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Showing posts from March, 2014

Microwave popcorn... local-style!

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This is a great tip Sarah, our Specialty Products Manager, found online and had to share! (Try the local popcorn on our menu this week!) There's a video too at this link. Enjoy! How To Make Microwave Popcorn  (Without Buying Microwave Popcorn) Makes 5 to 10 cups popcorn What You Need Ingredients 1/4 to 1/2 cup popcorn kernels Salt or other seasonings of choice (optional) Equipment Paper lunch bag (use an extra-large lunch bag if popping 1/2 cup kernels) Microwave Instructions Place the popcorn kernels in the bag:  Depending on how much popcorn you need, you can use 1/4 to 1/2 cup of kernels. Fold the bag:  Fold the top of the bag down three times, making sure to leave plenty of room inside the bag for the popped kernels. Microwave the bag:  Microwave the bag on HIGH for 4 minutes. But stay close by — depending on the power of your microwave, the popcorn may be done in as little as 2 minutes. Listen carefully and stop the microwave when the popp

Gulf Coast Crab Cakes

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This recipe uses lots of bell peppers and green/spring onions.  I even snip more onions to put on TOP of the crab cakes before serving.. 1 Tbs butter 1 clove minced garlic 2 Tbs finely chopped red bell pepper 2 tsp finely chopped onion (I use white onion as the flavor is milder) 1 1/2 Tbs finely chopped green bell pepper 1 1/2 Tbs finely chopped yellow bell pepper 1 1/2 Tbs flour 1/3 cup half and half (I used fat free) 1 pound fresh lump crabmeat 1/2 - 3/4 cup soft breadcrumbs 1/2 tsp finely chopped serrano pepper 1 egg yolk 2 tsp chopped fresh chives 1 tsp ground dry mustard 1 tsp stone ground mustard 1 tsp lemon juice 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper 4 Tbs butter Melt 1 Tbs butter in a large skillet over medium heat, add garlic and next 4 ingredients, and cook 3 minutes, stirring often.   Stir in flour, cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly.   Gradually add whipping cream, stirring constantly, until thickened.   Remove from heat Drain cra

Hydroponic Lettuce Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing

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Yummy!  Had such fun with this salad :-) Wash the lettuce, rip it up (or cut - I like ripped better!) Grate carrots on top. Slice some hard boiled eggs and add some extra crispy bacon to the top. Serve with this dressing: Reserve 1-2 Tbs of bacon fat from the cooked bacon ============== 1/4 cup red wine vinegar 2 tsp sugar (or more to taste) 1 tsp Dijon mustard Reserved bacon fat Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper Whisk all together.  Serve over the salad. Delish!

Refer-A-Friend starts today -- $10 when your friends sign up for TPB!

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Doggie Birthday Cake with Carrots..

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We adopted an awesome dog over the holidays.. Her birthday was last week.  She turned 9.  My daughter BEGGED me to make her a cake... I looked round and round for recipes, finally deciding on the following one.  I had carrots to use, and thought it sounded healthy.. 1 egg 1/4 cup natural peanut butter 1/4 cup cooking oil 1 tsp vanilla extract 1/3 cup honey 2 cups shredded carrots (I bet I used more - and what didn't go into this cake went into black bean soup!) 1 cup whole wheat flour 1 tsp baking soda Preheat oven to 350.  Grease muffin pan or a loaf pan or round cake pan.  I used a muffin pan as I thought they'd be easier to freeze and pull out when needed.  Please note - my dog is only 17 pounds so one muffin (regular size) is MORE than enough for her :-) Combine the egg, peanut butter, oil, vanilla and honey.  Blend well.  Stir in carrots and mix thoroughly. Sift together the flour and baking soda.  Fold in the carrot mixture. Spoon cake batter into pre

Thank you from the Triad region

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    It is so hard to believe that just one week ago, the Triad was completely frozen in ice and snow. The record-breaking storm left over 80% of our county residents without power, including almost all of our Triad members.  It was a tough week with outages, lost wages, school cancellations, property damage, and major loss of food in all our homes. As rough as it was for our TPB Triad members, it was especially hard for the vulnerable populations in this area. Here at The Produce Box, it is our mission to impact our communities across the state and we responded to that need. All of the donated community boxes for this week were delivered Friday morning to Greensboro Urban Ministry-  we gave 600 shares of produce ! That is over 60 boxes of fruits and vegetables!  All that fresh produce will be distributed  today  in the Family Bags distributed to Triad families in need. When we reached out to the director about donating she was so happy, she cried, remarking, “Our families a

Fresh Carrots!

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My box arrived yesterday, full of bountiful goodies.. Tonight I forgot to take something out of the freezer for dinner.  HOWEVER, I do own a pressure cooker..  So, I pulled out a roast at 510pm, I heated up the olive oil, and browned the roast, then snapped on the lid.  I cooked it for 45 minutes, released the pressure, added fresh potatoes and the carrots !  Back on up to full pressure for 15 minutes, released the pressure, and dinner was ready.  Walaaaaaaaaaaaa. From start to finish, 90 minutes.  Not too shabby considering the roast was frozen solid! So here you go: 2 Tbs vegetable oil 1 - 3 pound roast ground black pepper 1 pinch onion powder 1 1/2 cups beef broth (used low salt) 1/2 cup red wine (I used merlot) 2 Tbs worcestershire sauce 1 large onion, cut into wedges 4 carrots, peeled and cut into slices or bite size pieces  (fresh carrots!) 4 large potatoes, cut into bite size pieces (I used red potatoes and did not peel them) Directions! Heat oil in pressure cooker