What Would Barbara Do?

If you've read Barbara Kingsolver's excellent book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle you may have wished for more information, ongoing updates and a way to connect locally with other locavores. Kingsolver's website, named after the book, contains a multitude of helpful things, including an index to the book, links to web resources, and a blog to which you can submit local food adventures of your own. I've listed my favorite links gleaned from the website below:

Slow Food USA: Supporting good, clean and fair food
http://www.slowfoodusa.org/

USDA list of farmer's markets:
http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateC&navID=FarmersMarkets&rightNav1=FarmersMarkets&topNav=&leftNav=WholesaleandFarmersMarkets&page=WFMFarmersMarketsHome&description=Farmers%20Markets&acct=frmrdirmkt

Local Harvevst: Locally and sustainably produced foods:
http://www.localharvest.org/

Lavender Pound Cake

My friend Carol Baker (all puns intended), who also gave me the muffin recipe in an earlier post, recently ate this cake at a family reunion. The cake itself is moist and sweet, but it's the lavender that really kicks the flavor up. I intend to throw in some lemon zest too. Thanks to Karla Sasse who created the recipe.

Lavender Pound Cake

(This cake is also very good with rosemary instead of lavender... yumm!)

3/4 c. milk

2 Tbl. dried lavender, crushed, or 4 Tbl. fresh lavender, chopped very fine

1 1/4 c. sugar

1 c. butter, softened

3 eggs

2 1/4 c. flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

Heat oven to 300 degrees. Grease and sugar 10 or 12 cup Bundt Pan.

In a small bowl, stir together milk and lavender; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, mix sugar, butter and eggs until very light and fluffy.

Add milk mixture; mix well.

Add all remaining ingredients; mix until smooth, about 2 minutes.

Spoon into prepared pan.

Bake for 60-75 minues or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.

Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pan; cool on serving plate.

Drizzle with Vanilla Glaze and garnish with sprigs of lavender.

Glaze:

1 c. powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy

1 Tbl. butter, softened

1 tsp. vanilla

2-3 Tbl. milk

In medium bowl, mix sugar and butter. Add vanilla.

Gradually add milk until desired consistency; mix until smooth.

A Must See of Misbegotten Food

Miss Retro Modern has lovingly selected photos of culinary atrocities of yesteryear from old cookbooks for the collection on her Flickr page. More delightful than a drag queen in an easter bonnet, I present Misguided Efforts in Cookery:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chanadaal/sets/72157594329484295/

Be sure to check out the rest of Miss Retro Modern's pics too.

A travesty in frosting

Tacky cakes and iced disasters abound at this website devoted to desserts that are just wrong: http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/

Thanks Becky and Ami!

Tremont Chow

More fun in the trendy Tremont neighborhood! They have an art walk every 2nd Friday night, and now they've begun hosting a Taste of Tremont events. Looking forward to the next one...

For more details see http://www.restoretremont.com/events/tremont/default.htm

Carol Baker's Low-Fat, High-Fiber Muffins *

1 c rolled oats
1/2 c juice or milk, brought to boil
1/2 c juice or milk
8 oz low-fat yogurt or sour cream
1 c whole wheat or all purpose flour
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1/4 t nutmeg
1/4 - 1/2 t cinnamon
1 t vanilla, almond or other flavoring
1/4 - 3/4 flax seed, ground
1/4 c chopped nuts
1 1/2 c dried fruit

Preheat oven to350 degrees.
Combine oats and boiling liquid, and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Add yogurt. Combine dry ingredients and stir into oat mixture, then add fruit and flavoring. Spoon into greased muffin cups and bake 22 - 24 minutes, turning pan halfway through cooking time. Remove from oven when tester inserted in muffin comes out clean, and allow to sit 10 minutes on wire rack. After 10 minutes loosen muffins and set them sideways in their cups as they cool completely.

* aka "Nature's Broom"

Road Food!

Roadfood Sandwiches: Recipes and Lore from Our Favorite Shops Coast to Coast by Jane Stern

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Great stories and mouth-watering sandwich descriptions from the road by Gourmet Magazine's Jane and Michael Stern. The Sterns provide recipes for all the delights in question (excepting hotdogs and hamburgers), and yet there are no pictures of the glorious repast! Each description should have a nice color photo of the condiment-spattered Sterns as they overcome their meal.



The Sterns are featured weekly on NPR's The Splendid Table, heard on Youngstown's local public radio station WYSU (88.5) Saturdays at 3 pm and Sundays at 11 am.




View all my reviews.