Cranberry Pancakes

Total Time: 20 min

Ingredients:

1/2 cup(s) fresh cranberries

1/4 cup(s) all-purpose flour

2 cup(s) whole-wheat flour

1 tablespoon(s) yellow cornmeal

1 tablespoon(s) sugar

1/2 teaspoon(s) baking powder

1/8 teaspoon(s) salt

1/8 teaspoon(s) ground nutmeg, or 1/4 teaspoon vanillaextract

6 tablespoon(s) nonfat milk

2 tablespoon(s) pasteurized egg substitute, such as Egg Beaters

1 1/2 teaspoon(s) walnut or canola oil

Directions:

1.  Bring 2 inches of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add cranberries; boil for 2 minutes. Drain and cool for 5 minutes.

2.  Meanwhile, whisk all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt and nutmeg (if using) in a large bowl.

3.  Whisk milk, egg substitute, oil and vanilla (if using) in a small bowl until combined.

4.  Coarsely chop the cranberries; stir into the milk mixture. Stir the milk mixture into the dry ingredients just until combined.

5.  Coat a griddle or large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium heat. Using 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake, cook 2 pancakes at a time until bubbles dot the surface, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until browned, 1 to 2 minutes more. Repeat with the remaining batter.

SOURCE

A hidden treasure

The other day, my sister found this bird's nest filled with eggs and she enjoyed showing us all her find. It was like nature's treasure tucked away in her shrubs. I know that in a few days, the eggs will hatch and the birds, probably house sparrows, will be ready for grubs and bugs -- I hope taken from our garden. We have plenty of bugs to spare for the little birds.

Now I want to share it, too. They are a little hard to see but something like this is always a treat to me.

Garden shapshots

Today -- just a few garden views. My husband says I just like to grow vegetables so I can look at them and he wants to pick them while they are still good enough to eat. I don't think he is entirely correct but I do like to look at the vegetables and I prefer not to pick them too soon.

This cabbage is almost too pretty to pick, in my opinion. It really looks perfect right now.

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I love, love, love the way the cucumbers run on the fence and almost meet in the center. Very pretty. I would love for the vines to look like this all summer. I also like to pick the cucumbers.

The green beans look pretty from this angle, but they are not really doing so well. This heat is very bad for them. They have almost stopped blooming. I do like the way they look, though.

I love the clusters of tomatoes. I usually pick them before they turn red, like these. I think when you let tomatoes go too long they draw the attention of birds and small animals. If that happens you loose some nice large ripe tomatoes. That is sad.

Clusters of green tomatoes can be pretty, too.

I like the Romas. They really are good for canning. They also get pretty large at times.

I have two rows of peppers that look pretty good and one that is not doing well. It is hard to tell, but this is one of the good rows.

The squash is still not producing as well has they did but they look better than right after we did surgery on them to remove the vine borers.

 The big news is that we have planted some more squash: Yellow, zucchini, some gray squash and some scalloped squash. Maybe we will fare a little better with the new plants.

I hope you enjoyed my snapshots.

Strawberry sorbet to celebrate summer

Last week my daughter and I bought an ice cream maker. At home, she has the kind that uses ice and salt -- the semi old fashioned kind -- it does run on electricity. While she was visiting, we bought a freezer with a gel bowl. When it's not in use, it can be stored in the deep freezer so we can pull it out and make soft serve ice cream or sorbet at a moments' notice.

In our desire to make a desert that tastes good but is high in nutrients and lower in fat, we decided not to use milk, but frozen fruit, nuts and dates, instead. The pomegranate juice is a healthy alternative and the nuts add creaminess. The frozen strawberries are really good in this tasty treat and I like seeing the flecks of fruit in the mixture. The xanthan gum (we used Bob's Red Mill) makes the mixture very creamy. It is expensive but will last for quite a while.

It takes between twenty and forty minutes to make the sorbet and it gets hard enough. We certainly liked it and the texture was wonderful.

We like the convenience of the gel ice cream maker. It is easier than the ice and salt machines. The only drawback is that it doesn't make as much as I am used to making. The truth is that we really need to east less and if you don't have so much ice cream, you won't eat so much. I think we can turn that in to a positive.

Creamy Strawberry Sorbet

2 cups pomegranate juice or other high-antioxidant juice
1/2 to 1 cup walnuts (high in omega 3)
8 medjool dates or 1/2 cup packed dates
2 cups frozen strawberries
1/2 teaspoon xanthum gum or guar gum (optional)

Blend first three ingredients in a high-powered blender until very smooth. Add xanthum gum. Add 1 cup strawberries, one at a time, blending until smooth. Pour into ice cream maker and freeze according to your model's instruction booklet. Freeze the leftovers in a small air-tight container. Let soften or soften in microwave 10 to 30 seconds before serving.

Independence Day (continued)

This past weekend there was quite a bit of celebrating going on. I am sure there are quite a few people who are guilty of "over-celebration" will need the day to get over Saturday and Sunday. It is a rare time when a holiday seems to spread over a number of days like it did this year.

We had a quiet weekend without too much celebration but we did go to my sister's house to light up some "legal in Georgia" fireworks and we really enjoyed them. I think our fireworks weren't quite as flashy as those the neighbors sent flying up over the trees, but we enjoyed every one of our non-ariel illuminations.

I probably spent more time trying to take photos than watching the display, but I really enjoyed it.
We had chips, salsa and watermelon and it was simple and snacky and very nice. We washed the snacks down with bottled water and had fun laughing and talking and teasing each other.

I think it is appropriate that we are getting into a season of elections and I am using this 4th of July holiday to contemplate what it means to be an American and the freedoms we often take for granted.

So enjoy your day and count your blessings. If today is your holiday, have a cookout, maybe some watermelon, chips and salsa -- and make sure you celebrate the holiday with a grateful heart. As for me, I will get back to work and try and decide who in the world (or Georgia) to vote for on July 20.

Carrots & a July 4th wish

Root vegetables don't sound very exciting but we have found them very hard to grow in our garden. I think the real reason is because we haven't yet used tried and true methods -- we have just thrown the seeds in the ground and did the best we could until it was time to put them up.

I don't think this is the method we should be using. Last year we had only a very few anemic carrots. This year we had quite a few more. Many were even "carrot-like." Many of them were very tiny or misshapen. Even though they looked like this, they were they were so much better than last year.

I think preparing the soil is the key -- more like what we did with potatoes. Potatoes are easier to grow than carrots, in my opinion, but I haven't given up on carrots. I would just love to grow some that are shaped like the ones in the store without being knotty. I think we will get there. Meanwhile, we do have carrots -- not perfect ones but good enough for slaw. That is a good thing.

I would like to wish you a wonderful Fourth of July, and celebrate the freedom our forefathers fought and died for.

Garden views

Even though the weather has been so hot and dry, as I go to my garden early in the morning, blossoms still greet me. I must admit I savor those moments. I really love it when the bees are buzzing from flower to flower and I really love this zinnia. This is a volunteer from last year.

This okra blossom is almost as beautiful as the hibiscus flower to which it is related. I really like having the okra after the blossom fades.

This could be a photo of Queen Anne's lace but it is of its cousin, the carrot.

I love the spaghetti squash hanging from a trellis. I also love the little bloom beside it.

These Black-eyed Susans are also volunteers.

I really love this squash bloom because our squash plants have been under attack. They are naturally hardy and still trying to produce fruit.

I think this is a bee inside another squash bloom. I hope so.

Aren't the blossoms beautiful?