Thayer in the Kitchen

  These herb biscuits are excellent. The first time I made them I cut the recipe in half. I think the next time I make them I would make the full recipe and freeze some of them. According to the original recipe, " Just freeze the biscuits prior to baking, flash freeze on a sheet pan, and bake them individually (adding a few more minutes to baking time)." INGREDIENTS: 4 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup crumbled feta cheese (about 4 ounces) 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil 3 green onions, thinly sliced 1 tablespoon lemon zest 4 teaspoons baking powder 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 3/4 cup unsalted butter, frozen 1 3/4 cups buttermilk DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. (I used a silicone baking mat) In a large bowl, combine flour, feta, parsley, dill, basil, green onions, lemon zest, baking...

We love oatmeal, but sometimes I get tired of serving it basically the same way. When I saw this recipe for Savory Oatmeal I wanted to try it. Arthur and I decided it was worth adding to our breakfast repetoire. Ingredients for 2 servings: 3 strips of bacon 1 1/2 cups oatmeal  1 cup plain almond milk 1 cup water (or 2 cups water and no almond milk) 1-2 chopped scallions (whites separated from greens) 2 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoons salt  2 eggs 1 teaspoon black pepper 1/4 cup heavy cream (or 1/2 & 1/2) 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese Sriracha or hot sauce (opt.) Steps to Prepare Chop the bacon and saute until crispy. Drain the bacon but leave the grease in the pan. Bring the water and almond milk to a simmer along with the whites of the scallions, the butter, and a teaspoon of salt. Stir in the oatmeal and cook until tender. Cover and set aside. Fry the eggs in pan containing bacon grease. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook until they are as done as you like them. Put th...

 I love these biscuits! They remind me of bagels but you can make them yourself without too much work and with great results. I served mine topped with Tomato Gravy for a delicious breakfast. Ingredients For the everything bagel mix 2 tbsp sesame seeds 2 tbsp poppy seeds 1 tbsp dried minced onion 2 tsp dried minced garlic 1 tsp coarse salt For the biscuits 2½ cups (325 g) all purpose flour 2½ tsp baking powder 1 tsp coarse salt 4 tbsp (55 g) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes 4 oz (115 g) cream cheese, cold, cut into ½-inch cubes 1 cup (235 mL) buttermilk Instructions Heat oven to 450F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. To make the everything bagel seed mix, mix together all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.  You won't need all of the mix but its good on other things as well. To make the biscuits, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and 1 tsp salt in a large bowl. Add the butter and cream cheese to the dry ingredients. Cut the b...

This is a recipe using fresh peas which are very difficult to find at least where we live.  This spring I saw them listed for sale already shelled by one of the vendors at the farmers market for just a couple of weeks for a very reasonable price. Later a friend told me that the farmer had a machine to shell them. No wonder! I love fresh peas. Frozen peas are fine, but fresh peas are so much better.  I found this recipe in a cookbook called, Victuals, an Appalachian Journey with Recipes by Ronni Lundy. When I was lucky enough to acquire some fresh peas I decided to try this recipe and I'm pleased that I did. I guess you could try it with frozen peas but it won't be the same. 1/2 cup heavy cream 1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar 1/4 tsp. honey Salt 2 cups fresh peas 1/2 cup thinly sliced radishes 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions Black pepper Before you are ready to serve the salad, make the dressing by combining the heavy cream with the vinegar, honey and a few pinches of salt...

This is a delicious and very simple dessert. You could use other berries or a combination of berries, but I chose to use blueberries because we had just picked up 5 pounds of blueberries. There is a woman here is Madison who organizes a blueberry shipment from a Latino growers cooperative in Southwestern Michigan every year. There wound up being 5000# of blueberries ordered! I would get more but we don't have room to store them. She also ordered pecans from Georgia. I ordered 1# of those as well. Delicious. My favorite nut. Now for the recipe: Filling: 4 cups blueberries, fresh 1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp sugar (you could use a bit less sugar if your fruit is very sweet) 2 Tbsp instant tapioca 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice Topping: 1/2 cup flour 1/2 cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened) 1/4 cup sugar (use 1/3 cup sugar if you use unsweetened coconut 1/4 cup chopped walnuts (I'm thinking you could also use pecans) 1/4 teaspoon baking powder Pinch of salt 4 Tbsp (1/4 cup) cold, unsa...

This is a breakfast recipe using the lovely spinach that we got in our first box  from our new farm My Fine Homestead. I love easy recipes that incorporate vegetables in courses other than lunch (which we typically don't eat) or dinner. My husband, Arthur, is a big fan of polenta and will happily eat it for any meal. If you try this dish, I hope you will find it as satisfying a breakfast as we did. Ingredients Polenta: 5 cups water or stock (I used a combination) 1 cup polenta 2 Tbsp oil (or butter) 1 tsp salt Greens & Eggs: 1 medium onion, chopped 1 bunch of spinach, chopped (or other greens like Swiss chard or baby kale) 2 - 4 eggs 1 Tbsp butter or oil Salt and pepper to taste Freshly grated Parmesan  Directions To make the polenta, pour the water into a pot, add the salt and bring the water to a boil. Slowly pour in the polenta while whisking well. Bring the polenta to a simmer on low heat, stirring often, cooking gently for around 30 to 45 min...

This soup turned out to be tastier than I expected which is why I'm including it in my blog so that I don't forget about making it again. I think it is due to the celery root puree. This makes it necessary to add another step to preparing the soup but it is definitely worthwhile.  You could substitute another grain for the cracked wheat, such as farro.  However, I happened to have cracked wheat available and it cooks quickly. 1 celeriac (celery root 3/4 - 1#) 1/2# onions, sliced (yellow or red) 3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced or chopped 3 tablespoons unsalted butter Kosher (or sea salt) and cracked black pepper 2 tablespoons olive or sunflower oil 1 cup cracked wheat Several sprigs fresh thyme if available, otherwise use dried thyme 1 stalk celery, diced -- note, I used my vegetable chopper to chop all the root vegetables so they were about a 1/2 inch dice 1 carrot, diced 1 turnip, diced (I didn't have a turnip so I used a daikon radish) 1 medium potato, unp...

Adapted from  Cook This Now  by  Melissa Clark .  A great way to use some of those carrots from your CSA farm in a familiar dish. Ingredients 2 cups whole wheat macaroni 2 1/2 cups coarsely grated carrot (about 8 small) 3 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese (note: any kind of cheese you have available will work fine) 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces 3/4 cup sour cream 1/4 cup whole milk 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon kosher salt 3/4 teaspoon mustard powder 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese Directions 1. Preheat oven to 400° F and grease an 8-inch square baking pan. Arrange a rack in the top third of the oven. 2. Cook macaroni according to package instructions in a large pot of salted boiling water; add carrots 3 minutes before the pasta is finished cooking; drain well. 3. While pasta is hot, stir in all but 1/2 cup of the cheddar and the butter. In a bowl, whisk together the s...

This dish can be served warm or cold, leftover the next day.  Delicious both ways.  It is a bit labor-intensive but very tasty and a good way to use some of those winter vegetables. 1# beets, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks 1/2# carrots, cut into thick coins 1/2# onions red or yellow onions or shallot, cut into chunks (a little less is fine) 1/2 cup Citrus Vinaigrette 1 cup Israeli couscous 1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped 1 large sprig of thyme, if fresh is not available sprinkle in some dry 1/4-1/2 tsp. dried chile flakes 1/2 cup salted roasted sunflower seeds (raw seeds are also OK) 1 cup lightly packed cilantro leaves 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese Heat oven to 450℉. Toss the beets with a small amount of olive or sunflower oil, season with salt and pepper and spread on a rimmed baking sheet.  Roast for 10 minutes.  Toss the carrots and onions with oil and season with salt and pepper.  Add to the baking sheet.  Roast all the vegetable...

I loved this Rachael Ray recipe for Red Cabbage soup!  It was so hearty and filled with so many good winter vegetables.  It helps if you have a hand chopper to chop up the vegetables and a food processor to slice the cabbage. 2 tablespoons olive oil or sunflower oil 2 tablespoons butter 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped 1 parsnip, peeled and chopped 3 ribs celery with leafy tops, chopped 1 leek, quartered lengthwise, cleaned and chopped (I forgot to buy a leek and substituted 1/2 chopped red onion--worked fine) 1 large firm apple, such as Honeycrisp or Gala, peeled and diced Salt and pepper ½ teaspoon whole allspice 1 teaspoon juniper berries (I didn't have any, so I skipped them) 1 teaspoon cumin, ground or seed 1 teaspoon celery seed 1 teaspoon caraway, seed  1 tablespoon paprika 2 large fresh bay leaves or dry if fresh isn't available 1 small red cabbage, quartered, cored and very thinly sliced 2 tablespoons light-brown sugar 2 tablespoons sherry o...

We frequently have oatmeal for breakfast, but I like the idea of adding variety to the way it is served.  This is different than we usually have our breakfast cereal, but Arthur said he thought it was quite tasty and we should have it again. 2 cups hot prepared oatmeal 2 eggs, fried sunny-side up (poached would also be OK) 1 avocado, sliced 2 oz. Gruyere or cheddar cheese, shaved or grated Snipped fresh chives Place oatmeal in a serving bowl.  Top each serving with an egg, slices of avocado, cheese, and chives.  You could also offer hot sauce. To cook 2 cups of oatmeal: 1 cup of dry oats 2 cups of water 1/4-1/2 tsp. salt Cook 10-12 minutes or until water is absorbed and oats are tender Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens

This recipe is a vegan version of the soup joumou that Haitians devour on New Year’s Day.  This was a great soup to make because we got so many of the ingredients in our winter storage share.  It is a delicious soup! Ingredients 1# kabocha squash, seeded and cut into 8 pieces (I used a baby dumpling squash from our CSA farm) 1 can whole coconut milk (not lite) 2 quarts vegetable or chicken broth, divided 2 tbsp sunflower oil or olive oil 1 cup diced carrot 1 cup diced celery 1 cup diced yellow onion 3 tbsp chopped fresh thyme, divided (dry can be used if fresh is not available--use less) 1 tbsp minced garlic (about 3 cloves) 1 tbsp sea salt, divided 2 cups shredded green cabbage (1/2#) 1 cup chopped leek or green onions 1 cup peeled and diced sweet potatoes 1 cup diced potatoes (2 potatoes) 1 cup diced turnips 2 tbsp garlic powder 2 tbsp onion powder 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes Pinch of cayenne pepper 1/4# small ...