The Local Farmers Market

Today I went to a Farmers Market in Flagler Beach and picked up all kinds of great deals. On Wednesday I went to a HUGE Farmers market in Volusia County Fairgrounds. It has hundreds of booths. It is awesome. It is about 30 minutes away, but worth every minute to get there. If you live in the Orlando area you need to visit the Volusia County Farmers Market. This is some of the deals I got:

.88cents per lb for beets

$1.00 lb for tomatoes (Romas, Green tomatoes, Beefsteak)

2lb bananas for $1

.50cents per lbs for all onions.

Homemade Marble Rye $2

Tilipia is 5$ a lb

Red bells 6 for 2$

2lb grapes for $2

Romaine Lettuce for .50 cents a head

This produce is even better then what you would find at most grocery stores.

You are probably wondering why I am telling you this. First of all, you can get more for your buck. Especially at these hard times a little always helps. (I bought 4 big bags of produce for 20 bucks) Second of all, it helps your local farmers and the economy.

You can always find a farmers market. Look at your local town or cities website. I know, every town near me has their own local farmers market. Try it out....You will be amazed at how much you save. It has great deals. Just wanted to pass that on.

Meatballs

1 lb ground beef

1/2 cp. milk

1/2 cp. white bread turned into bread crumbs (no crust)

1 tsp. garlic powder

2 TB parsley, oregano, basil...FRESH HERBS

1/4 cp. parm. cheese

1 egg

salt and pepper

1. Put the bread crumbs in the milk and let is soak up the goodness

2. This is sooo simple. Put everything together and get your hands dirty!!! Mix with your hands and form into pretty big meatballs. Throw it in the sauce....YEP!!! I said just throw it in the sauce. Let it simmer and it will do its things. It will not dry out and taste sooo good. Trust me.

****Use my simple Marinara below and add 1 8oz. can of paste****

Leftover Egg Yolks

I had 12 leftover yolks from the Angel Food Cake. This morning I made oven baked custard for my girls. This is how I did it.

10 yolks ( i know this sounds like a lot)
1/2 cp. sugar
3 cps. milk
2 tsp vanilla
cinnamon and nutmeg.

1. I beat the yolks until frothy and added the sugar. Then I slowly raised the heat of the milk in a sauce pan over medium heat. Then I tempered the eggs by adding a little of the hot milk at a time.
2. Added it to a greased 9x13 pan. Topped with cinnamon and nutmeg. Baked on 350 for 25 minutes
3. Let cool for 2-3 hours

My husband has the camera so I have no pics. I just wanted to give you an idea what to do with the leftover yolks.

Southwest Pasta Bake

Since I started my blog I have become very comfortable with experimenting. Well, tonight I threw this together myself and it turned out really good. I am Italian and I love to cook Italian. My husband LOVES LOVES Mexican. Tonight I put them together and it was awesome.It is a wonderful feeling when you throw ingredients together and the meal turns out so well. Thank you for visiting. Enjoy.

One more thing, I used a Southwest Chicken Sausage. It has tomatoes, spices, Cheddar cheese, and black beans in this sausage. It is the best sausage EVER. I get it at Petty's in Longwood, FL. The butcher makes it fresh every Saturday morning. I go...Especially for this sausage. You can use it for tacos, pizzas, queso's, soups or even pasta. My husband and I throw them on the grill and then throw them in hot dog buns. I top them with cheese, my homemade salsa (below), guac., and onions. SO GOOD....Anyway, that is what I used in this recipe.

2 TB Vegetable oil

4 links of Southwest Chicken Sausage

1 Red onion, Cut in half then slice thin

1 15 oz. can fire roasted tomatoes

2 1/2 TB lime juice

1 15 oz can black beans

2 ears of corn

1 cp. cilantro

1 lb. of elbow mac.

2 cps. Monterrey jack cheese

1. I heated a pan with the vegetable oil. Add the links and the sausage. When the sausage is brown and the onions are tender add the tomatoes and lime juice. Cook for a few minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients.

2 Heat oven on 350

3. Boil pasta.

4. Toss the pasta with the sausage mixture. Put in a 9x13 pan. Top with cheese. Cook for 20-30 minutes. When the cheese is brown and bubbly.

Angel Food Cake

12 egg whites

1cp flour

1 1/3 cp. powdered sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 tsp. cream tartar

1 cp. sugar

1. Beat whites until frothy. Add the cream tartar and vanilla.

2. Sift the powdered sugar and flour together while the eggs are beating on high.

3. Once the eggs formed high peaks add sugar one TB at a time. Turn off mixer when the sugar is dissolved and there is peaks.

4. Fold in the flour and powdered sugar mixture 1/2 cp. at a time until well mixed.

5. Put in greased tub pan. Run a butter knife through the batter to get all the air bubbles out.

6. Bake on 350 for 45 50 minutes. When the cakes springs back when you press on the top.

Berry and Strawberry topping:

1 cp. blueberries

3cps. strawberries

4 TB sugar

3 tsp. corn starch

1. Add all in a saucepan on medium heat. Cook until sauce is thick. I put it in the fridge when it was done. My husband likes the sauce cool.

Put on top of the angel food cake with a scoop of icecream!!! Yummy!!!

Chicken and Triple Onion Soup

My husbands favorite soup is french onion. I decided to try something a little different. It turned out really good. Today, it totally hit the spot for the rainy and dreary day in

Chicken and Triple Onion Soup

1/2 stick of butter

2 Leeks

2 Large Sweet Onions

4-6 Large Shallots

4 garlic cloves

4 Lg. Chicken Breast Shredded

6-8 cps of HOMEMADE stock (It makes a difference)

2 TB fresh Thyme

2 TB fresh Basil

salt and pepper

Bread

Provolone cheese

1. Melt butter ,Then add the onions and garlic. Let it carmalize. Cook low with the lid on until turns a light brown.

2. Add the broth and fresh herbs, salt and pepper. Simmer until ready to eat.

3. Top the soup with a slice of baguette and provolone cheese. Broil this on high until the cheese is brown and bubble. Remove the soup from the oven and it is ready to eat. Serve with more crusty bread.

Guiness Corned Beef

My Guinness Corned Beef

1 head of cabbage, shredded

6 TB butter

2 Guinness beers

1 cp. brown sugar

1/2 cp. white vinegar

1. Rub the corned beef with brown sugar. Put in a greased 11x13 pan and put the cabbage around the corned beef. Add the two beers.

Top with the butter.

2. Cook on 250 for 5-6 hours. When it falls easily off with fork.

3. When the food is done....Drain the cabbage and toss in the vinegar with salt and pepper. YUMMY.

Roasted Veggies

5-8 carrots, skinned

5-8 red potatoes, quartered

2 leeks

4 TB fresh rosemary

4 TB fresh thyme

4 TB butter

2 TB olive oil

1. Toss the veggies in olive oil

2. Put the veggies in a greased 9x13 pan. Top with the fresh herbs and butter. Bake for 2-3 hours (when soft) on 300.

My Simple Marinara

2 TB olive oil
1 sweet onion
3 garlic cloves minced (not the jar stuff, minced yourself)
28oz. fire roasted tomatoes
4 TB fresh basil
3 TB fresh oregano
1 TB fresh rosemary
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. pepper



1. Added the olive oil. Then added the onion and garlic on med heat until soft. Then added sauce and the rest of the ingredients. I cooked on low (simmering) all day. (6 hrs)