Make-it-from-scratch Monday: A Little Help from our Friends

Hi all! This week's MIFSM is a little bit of a departure from our "home cooked" theme. In fact, it's probably the complete opposite, but hey, I'm not a stickler for rules around here anyway.

I know most of you are into eating better (that's why you're here on Mondays, right :) and what could be better for you than minimally processed raw foods? Better yet, what if those foods were chips? Vegan, raw, locally sourced, sustainable chips?

No way!

Yes Way! (OK, my 4th grade self got in the way there, but I am so stoked about these things!)

You all know by now that here at Chez QT we eat as much home-grown or locally sourced vegetables as possible. And we hunt and fish for our meat. We are not vegetarian, vegan or raw (though I do enjoy me some sushi) by any menas, but I would describe our eating philosophy as "whole foods" and sustainable. Of paramount imnportance to our family is knowing where our food comes from.


We eat very little processed food, and one thing we cannot do ourselves is make a good tasting, healthy snack chip (though I have a pretzel recipe I'm dying to try). The option for us is to eat crappy Frito-Lay products and feel really yucky afterwards or go without. And homemade granola bars only go so far (that's an upcoming Monday post.)

So I was delighted to learn from a friend about Brad's Raw Chips, a start-up operation just a few miles away from home base here at the PIT.  And they were gracious enough to send me a sample of their products to review. (Obligatory disclaimer: I was in no way compensated for this review- except for some delicious free snacks, LOL- and my opinion is strictly my own!)

Brad's Raw Chips are the product of one man's (that would be "Brad's") quest to develop a truly raw chip to fit into his raw diet. All the products are vegan, gluten free and truly raw- dehydrated to become crunchy, not fried or baked. And while you and I may not be on a raw diet, we can still enjoy the benefits of eating healthy with this tasty chip.

I sampled two different types of snacks- two kinds of dried leafy kale, and two kinds of more traditional "chips".

 The dried leafy kale came with vegan raw cheese (which is made from a blend of spices, raw nuts and nutritional yeast) in the "Naked" form, and added garlic in the "Vampire Killer" variety.

It is melt-in-your-mouth tasty, with a very light nutty crunch, lighter than popcorn. The "cheese" is very good- I don't know how they do it, but it really does taste like cheese! Before I knew it, I had eaten half the carton.

It's important to note that while the product is much healthier than your average potato chip, there is a large proportion of cashews in the "cheese" and it does add up in calories eventually. But the nuts do add a lot of protein (6 grams per serving!) to the snack, and that is definitely a good thing. They are also incredibly high in vitamins A and C- over 100% per serving.

And best of all, it looks like leafy, green kale- no mystery about what it is!

As you can see in the package above, since the kale is so delicate it tends to disintegrate a bit. If you're creative like me, this can be a plus. I mixed the remaining kale bits into some plain yogurt (sour cream would also work) for a great-tasting dip. They would also be great stirred into mashed potatoes (not raw, I know...) or as a topping for steamed broccoli or cauliflower. In fact, maybe Brad's could market them this way, like a Hidden Valley Ranch-type dip packet.

The other products were more traditional "chips" made from whole vegetables and seeds with a dash of olive oil and salt. Again, they are dehydrated, not baked, so all the ingrediants are still totally "raw". I tried the Red Bell Pepper and Sun Dried Tomato varieties. They had the texture of Sun Chips, but all the flavor of the vegetables they are made from. The Red Bell Pepper was my favorite- it had the sweetness of a ripe bell pepper with a bit of nutty crunch from the flax seeds you can see ground into the chip.

The tomato variety really reminded me of sun-dried tomatoes, but in a crunchy chip. I could totally see myself serving this at a party with some homemade salsa or guacamole, or with a yogurt dip made with the kale bits!

The texture is light and crunchy and not at all greasy, heavy or salty.

One of the best aspects of the company, and one that we here at the PIT share, is that Brad's Raw Chips supports local farmers by buying their produce nearby when in season. And all the waste product is composted and returned to the fields, just like it is here at Chez QT.

Brad's Raw Chips are available mostly on the East Coast, in Wegmans and Whole Foods markets. But you can buy them online at http://www.bradsrawchips.com/collections/all . And if you follow them on facebook, and subscribe to their newsletter, you are entered their giveaway to win three free bags: http://www.facebook.com/?tid=1425698061342&sk=messages#!/bradsrawchips?sk=app_7146470109

Hey Mikey, you'll like them!

Mr. Rogers: Vintage Style Icon!

My two-year old daughter is in the process of potty training. She was sitting on the potty today and asked me, ever so sweetly, if she could fall down the drain. Of course, I told her no, but it brought to mind immediately the Mister Rogers song "You Can Never Go Down the Drain".

It may seem silly and corny to us, but as a child I remember singing that song to myself, and how reassuring it was. That was the appeal of Mister Rogers- he spoke directly to children in a language they understood.

I know a lot of adults like to poke fun at him for that, because the language and themes are so innocently simplistic. But children really responded to that approach and they always have. It's a very refreshing style now, with so much audio and visual bombardment on contemporary kids' TV (and believe me, I've seen a lot of that!) I wish there were reruns still on TV, but the best we can do is YouTube, and there are probably more parodies on there than the real thing.

Plus, Mr. Rogers always wore cardigans and keds. His set had a great vintage look to it, with that antique fridge and that traffic light. The music is piano jazz. Who wouldn't want their kids to absorb some of that goodness!

Here are a couple of YouTube clips- go get your kids and make them watch! They can watch iCarly later OnDemand.

Mister Rogers shows how a voting machine works.

This is one of my favorites- featuring Wynton Marsalis, the jazz trumpeter.

And did you know that March 20th is Mister Rogers Sweater Day? In honor of everyone's favorite neighbor, wear your favorite cardigan on what would have been his 83rd birthday!

Happy Birthday Glenn Miller!

In honor of Glenn Miller's birthday today (b. 1904) and mine (b. 1975, LOL) I thought I'd share with you my favorite Glenn Miller tunes. If you've never heard some of them before, they're well worth the download- follow the links to the iTunes file.

Glenn Miller was, by all accounts, a decent but unspectacular trombonist (I can sympathize). After playing for years as a sideman alongside some of jazz's greatest talents he formed his own orchestra in 1937 but was unsuccessful until 1938-39 when he developed his famous "Miller sound" by adding a lead clarinet to the more traditional saxophone section of his big band. By the early 1940s, Miller's band was the hottest in the country with a string of hits including "Tuxedo Junction", "In the Mood" and "Moonlight Serenade". He and his band were featured in the films Sun Valley Serenade (1941) and Orchestra Wives (1942).

When WWII broke out, Miller longed to be of service to his country. But at the time the armed forces employed only more formal concert bands; there was no place for modern swing music. From late 1942 until 1944, he led a relatively undistinguished group of musicians in the traditional marching band style. Finally, he was able to persuade the Army Air Force brass to permit him to form a swing band and a full string orchestra to boost morale of the soldiers abroad and the homefront. He made hundreds of recordings in England, many of which were also recorded in German and broadcast across the continent to listeners behind enemy lines.

In late 1944, after the Allies had stormed into France, Miller wanted to take his band directly to the troops in Paris. In preparation for the move, he boarded a single engine transport to fly across the English Channel. On December 15th, 1944, in the fog over the Channel, his plane disappeared and no trace of the aircraft or its passengers has ever been found. Major Glenn Miller is still officially listed as "missing in action".

As I've mentioned in previous posts, Glenn Miller's music was probably my jumping off point into vintage culture. I've been listening to it since I was 13, and boy, that makes me feel real old today when I say that has been 23 years! Most of these are on the "hot" side, and totally disprove the notion that Glenn Miller was strictly a "sweet" band.

1) "Peggy the Pin-up Girl" (also in honor of yesterday's passing of Jane Russell)
2) "American Patrol"
3) "Caribbean Clipper"
4) "Mission to Moscow"
5) "Song of the Volga Boatmen"
6) "Johnson Rag"
7) "Serenade in Blue"
8) "Jeep Jockey Jump"
9) "Moonlight Cocktail"
10) "Stealin' Apples"

I could probably keep going forever. What are your favorites?

Vintage Towels: the Finishing Touch

So you spent all kinds of time and money restoring a 1950s pink bathroom, seeking out vintage pink fixtures and just the right accessories, but something is still missing.

Or, you want to add a touch of vintage style to a modern bathroom. What is left?

Vintage sculptured towels!

I recently read a great article over at retrorenovation.com about how vintage-style towels are making a comeback. Apparently all those sculptured and textured towels from your Grandma's linen closet are hot stuff over at Anthropologie, Pottery Barn and even Kmart. Who woulda thunk it?

Why, you and me, of course.

See, it just so happens that here at the PIT we got hep to that jive long ago. I'm here to show you some of my vintage textured towels from the 50s and beyond! (It helps to be the only one in the family with a genuine 50s pink bathroom- I inherited all of these from Grandmas and Aunts over the years. No icky thrift store towels!)

Two of my favorites, both textured plush Textron towels.

 Close up of the large one- this is my favorite!

A matched pair of bath and hand towels. I have two sets of these, plus wash cloths. They probably are the closest match to my tile. These are Cannon sculptured towels like those mentioned in the article. The only downside to all this fabulousness is that the bath towels are about half the size of modern ones. So just use two!

Three of a kind! The middle one is a light green; I usually use it in the other bath.

This is another of my favorites.

I love the pink trim band!

 I bet I'm not the only one that remembers these.... I think we also had matching sheets back when I was a kid in the 70s. I think my eyes are burning.

And for those who call the 80s "vintage", see ET in that image? LOL

Hope you enjoyed your trip through the Chez QT linen closet! 

Thrifted Thursday- Tiki Time!

Last week my brother and I did a little thrifting for his new pad. He was looking for some kitchen items and a bedroom set. We didn't have much luck there, but I found a couple framed pictures that I couldn't resist.  They were a pair of tiki prints, and I could tell there was something different about them. They just didn't seem like they were originally meant to be framed, if you know what I mean- I could see faint outlines of printing on them.

But I had to buy them and take them home to see what was behind the image!

Not a problem- at $1.99 each I knew one of us would find a place for them!

You can see how this print was cut out of a larger image.

Once I got home, we took them carefully out of the frame, and what did we find inside?

They were both menus from a Hawaiian banquet in 1961! Now, I know it's not the same as finding a priceless oil painting behind a cheap print, but I still think it's a cool find. And I'm a sucker for being able to date something exactly.

My brother now has them hanging in his house- he's going for a tiki theme bathroom, so these will be a good start.

Make-it-from-scratch Monday: Crock Pot Roast

This is a favorite in our house. I make a roast in the slow cooker probably twice a month during the colder months. But since you don't need the oven, you could definitely do this in the summer as well.

I'm using a venison roast, but you could use any lean beef roast, like an eye roast or shoulder London broil (round roast).

Ingredients:

2 lb. lean venison or beef roast (can be frozen)

1 medium onion, chopped

2-3 cloves garlic, sliced

about 7 juniper berries (optional)

1 tsp thyme

salt, fresh ground black pepper to taste

1 envelope brown gravy mix, prepared according to package directions

1 oz dry sherry

1) Chop the onion and garlic and place in the bottom of the slow cooker.

2) Season the roast with salt, pepper and thyme, and put in slow cooker. I put my roast in frozen, if yours is fresh, halve the cooking time.

3) Prepare the gravy mix in a saucepan on the stove. I use one envelope of Serv-a-gravy, with 2 cups of water. I usually use a little less water (1 3/4 c.) than the pkg indicates, because the roast will contribute more water while cooking. Once the gravy has thickened, add the juniper berries and sherry and heat through. The juniper berries may be hard to find in your supermarket- try a specialty store or bulk foods store- but they are worth seeking out. They are my "secret ingredient", and with the sherry really complement the flavor of the roast.

4) Pour the gravy over the meat.

5) Cook for 4-6 hours on high or 8 hours on low.

6) Slice and serve with gravy. I usually make herb-roasted redskin potatoes and a green vegetable, like broccoli.



I'd like to thank the Academy...

and all the little people out there who made this award possible...(*cue music*)

I've recieved my first-ever blog award from Miss Cherry Bubbles! Now I have to tell you seven things about myself, and pass the award along.

1) When I was in high school and college I wanted to play trumpet in a major symphony orchestra. I got my Bachelors of Music in trumpet performance but never got past the audition stage for anything other than local orchestras. So now I teach trumpet and freelance around the area (weddings, funerals, community events, etc.) with a community band and brass quartet.

2) When that didn't pan out, I went back to school and got my Master's in Museum Science. I went to Texas Tech in Lubbock, TX, home of Buddy Holly. I had always wanted to visit Texas, but never been. When I went to check out the school I felt right at home, and loved it down there. If I hadn't been already engaged to my husband here in Pennsylvania, I would have stayed out West. We'll probably retire to the Hill Country some day.

3) Now that I'm mostly a stay-at-home mom, I can really identify with Squidward. I sometimes feel as if I spend my days with Spongebob and Patrick, longing for sophistication.

4) I have always loved aviation. I started taking flying lessons after college and accumulated 72 hours. But I never got my pilot's license before I went to grad school and had no more money. My most recent real job was curator of an aviation museum.

5) My fascination with the past started with Big Band music. The first record album I ever bought was Glenn Miller's Pure Gold, in 1987. I was in 7th grade. Up until that point, I had listened mostly to classical music. Glenn Miller and I have the same birthday.

6) I still have the first car I ever bought new. My 1997 VW Jetta has 180,000 miles on it. I love that car and hope I can drive it forever. Between my mother and I, we have had a VW in the family since 1962. Hers is now a bit newer than mine, a 2009 Jetta.

7) I love to fish. I hunt as well, both archery and gun. I figured I'd never see my husband if I didn't learn to do what he did, and now I really enjoy getting out in nature. But fishing really suits me- the feeling of persistance paying off and the thrill of not knowing what you'll get.

Well, that's a bit about me, now I will pass the award on to these fellow bloggers- check out their blogs, if you haven't already!

My friend Eileen, an art deco dame if there ever was one: http://artdecodivaknits.blogspot.com/

Bombs Away, a real-life aviatrix and classy vintage gal

Shannon, another mom just trying to maintain her sanity: http://supermergentroidgal.blogspot.com/

Erin @ http://theconsummateamateur.blogspot.com/

Charlotte at http://tuppencehapennyvintage.blogspot.com/

Rachelle at http://rockabillybombshell.blogspot.com/ who is probably busy having a baby right about now...

And a bonus- I'll give the award to anyone else I didn't mention that can name the song on the sheet music on my header! (See, now that you know I'm a music geek, that isn't just some random image....)