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K’s California Adventures and Homemade Bagels

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It is official, I am finally settled into California!  My boyfriend and I have been unpacking for what feels like forever!   We have been here for one month and we have been having a lot of fun settling in (which is probably why we still aren’t totally unpacked.)  I started working at my new job in San Francisco right away so it has taken me awhile to get back into a routine.   I do apologize for not posting for so long, but I have many great recipes and stories to share with you.   M has done such a great job of posting while I have been moving in to my new home.  Thanks M!

My boyfriend and I have moved to Sunnyvale, CA which is still in the San Francisco Bay Area but also part of Silicon Valley.  I commute into San Francisco everyday which is not as bad as it sounds thanks to the express train.  Our favorite part of California so far has been the amazing weather and the fresh produce.   We go to the Sunnyvale Farmers Market on the historical Murphy Street every Saturday.   Our first trip we went a little crazy at the market because there was fruit and vegetables that I have never seen at a farmers market back east.Farmer's Market Finds

Farmers Market Finds- fresh bell peppers, jalapenos, Fuji apples, Granny Smith Apples,  strawberries, cilantro, red and green grapes, oranges, green beans, artichoke hummus, cilantro pesto, Italian bread, Kettle Corn, and Spinach Bolani

See what I mean about a little out of control!   It was so cool to have fresh strawberries and fresh oranges!  I used the bell peppers to make chicken fajitas later in the week.   I steamed the green beans and served them with pepper crusted steak.  I ate the fruit with my lunch and as a snack all week.  With the jalapenos, I made my jalapeno popper stuffed chicken and used them in M’s favorite chicken chili recipe.

While we are loving all the fresh produce and sunshine around here,  we are also missing some of the classic foods from back east.   We have yet to find good deli meats and bagels.   My boyfriend has been out every Sunday determined to find a decent bagel, but he returns disappointed each time.  I suggested a simple solution to him of just trying to make his own.   So this morning I taught him how to make bagels.  We chose a quick and simple recipe to start with.   The results?   They were actually pretty good!   They had the chewiness and consistency of the bagels we miss.   So if you are a transplant out here in the west and are missing some good bagels, try this recipe!

Homemade Bagels

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Homemade Bagels
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • 2 tsp. active dry yeast
  • 1½ tbsp. of sugar
  • 1 cup of warm water
  • ¼ cup of warm water
  • 3½ cups of bread flour (500g) plus extra for kneading
  • 1½ tsp. salt
Instructions
  1. In a small bowl or liquid 1-cup measuring cup add yeast and sugar to ½ cup of warm water. Do not stir. Let sit for 5 minutes and then stir until all the yeast and sugar are dissolved.
  2. In the bowl of a mixer add in flour and salt. Mix on low until just combined. Put a well in the middle of the flour mixture. Pour yeast mixture into the hole and then an additional ½ cup of warm water. Stir with the mixing blade on the mixer at medium until combined. You may need to add an additional amount of warm water into the mixture so that all the flour is mixed in.
  3. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a damp towel. Let the dough rest for 1 hour.
  4. After 1 hour push the dough down and let rest for another ten minutes
  5. Break the dough into 8 even balls and roll them out. You may need to moisten hands a little get the dough balls to roll into a perfect ball.
  6. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
  7. Press thumb through the center of each dough ball and stretch out to a bagel shape.
  8. Place on oiled baking sheet.
  9. Boil a large pot of water and preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
  10. Once the water is boiled turn down the heat, and drop 2-3 bagels into the water. Let cook on each side for two minutes. Pull out bagels with a slotted spoons and place back on oiled baking sheet.
  11. Repeat for all bagels.
  12. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden brown.
  13. Serve with whipped cream cheese

Source- Slightly adapted from The Sophisticated Gourmet

Fresh Produce Tuesday- Week #4: Peas

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Welcome to our 4th week of the Fresh Produce Tuesday- today we are featuring peas.  I was hoping to find shelling peas at the grocery store, but I was only able to find snap peas and snow peas today.  The local farmers markets in this area don’t start for a few more weeks so unfortunately, I was out of luck in my search to find just plain peas.  That’s alright though- we can showcase many varieties of peas this week!  Here are 10 recipes featuring peas:

Also, just wanted to remind you of our Fresh Produce Tuesday schedule for the spring:

Week #1- March 27th: Asparagus
Week #2- April 3rd: Artichokes
Week #3- April 10th: Spring Onions
Week #4- April 17th: Peas
Week #5- April 24th: Garlic Scapes
Week #6- May 1st: Rhubarb
Week #7- May 8th: Fava Beans
Week  #8- May 15th: Radishes

Please link up your favorite pea recipe below!  I would love it if you could provide a link back to 2 Sisters 2 Cities or add our button to your pea-related post, but it is not required.

Fresh Produce Tuesday- Week #3: Spring Onions

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For the third week of the Fresh Produce Tuesday series, we are showcasing spring onions.  We’ve received so many great recipe ideas for asparagus and artichokes in the past couple of weeks (the linky parties for both are still open if you would like to submit a recipe!)  Also, here is the current schedule for the Fresh Produce Tuesday series by week:

Week #1- March 27th: Asparagus
Week #2- April 3rd: Artichokes
Week #3- April 10th: Spring Onions
Week #4- April 17th: Peas
Week #5- April 24th: Garlic Scapes
Week #6- May 1st: Rhubarb
Week #7- May 8th: Fava Beans

Spring onions are onions that are picked before they grow into conventional onions.  They have a milder flavor than regular onions.  Elizabeth Schnieder, author of Vegetables from Amaranth to Zuchini describes spring onions in the following manner:

What we call spring onions are usually young onions, more mature than a straight green onion or scallion, less mature than the bigger round things we call onions.

I made some spring onions as a side for dinner a few weeks ago.  I brushed them with olive oil, sprinkled on some salt and pepper, and just threw them on the grill for a few minutes.  Very easy and very tasty!  Here are some other recipe ideas that include spring onions:

Do you have a recipe that includes spring onions?  If so, please link up your recipe below!  (It would be great if you could provide a link back to 2 Sisters 2 Cities or add our button to your spring onions post, but it is not required.)

Farmers’ Market Recipe: Bacon Asparagus Quiche

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I went to the Southie farmers’ market for the first time that I have lived here for the past 5 years.  It occurs from 12-6 every Monday, but in the past I had always worked during these hours.  I picked up some additional plants for my porch, and also bought some asparagus and fresh eggs.

 

 

 

 

 

When I got home, I realized I had enough ingredients to make a whole meal out of my farmer’s market purchases…Bacon Asparagus Quiche!  I love to make a whole meal our of my farmers’ market finds.

Ingredients:
-1 pie shell (I used a frozen one)
-1 bunch asparagus
-1 tablespoon olive oil
-6 pieces of bacon
-6-8 eggs (I used 8 as the fresh ones were on the small side)
-thyme (dried or fresh)
-1 and 1/2 cups milk and/or half & half (I used a 50/50 combo, but use any combination you prefer)
-shredded cheese (I just used a cheddar and monterrey jack mix I had from a previous recipe)
-salt and pepper

 

 

 

 

 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Cover the pie shell (in a pie pan) with foil.  Lay the bacon on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.  Bake both in the oven for 12 minutes or until done.

 

 

 

 

 

Meanwhile, wash and slice up the asparagus in 1-2 inch pieces.  Heat a small skillet to medium and add olive oil.  Add asparagus and saute 6-8 minutes.  Add a small dash of thyme and cook for 1-2 more minutes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Combine the eggs, milk/half & half combination, and shredded cheese in a large mixing bowl.  Once the asparagus is done cooking and has cooled for a bit, add the asparagus to the egg mixture.  In addition, once the bacon has cooled, break it up into small pieces and add it to the egg mixture.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

 

 

 

 

 

Lower the heat on the oven to 325 degrees F.  Put the pie shell on a baking sheet.  Pour the egg mixture into the pie shell (I originally put a little too much milk in the recipe at first so it overflowed, as seen in the picture below…recipe above adjusted for this!)  Cook for 30-40 minutes, or until set.  Let the quiche cool slightly before eating.

 

 

 

 

 

This recipe would be delicious with a mixed greens salad and a light dressing and a nice glass of white wine!

-m

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