Spring Rain + Morels + Italian Seasoning = YUM!

We discovered a secret patch of morels right after a nice spring rain. A simple flour breading with a little Garlic Earth Italian Garlic Seasoning is all we did and YUMMY! Thinking back, I didn't even LIKE mushrooms until about 7th grade when an old family friend from Orchard Farm fried some up. Man! That was like nothing I have ever tasted.

Preparing the Morels
Cut off bottom of stem, split morels in half lengthwise, and rinse. There will be dirt, sand and possibly little bugs. It's necessary to soak the mushrooms, too. Put morels in a bowl of salty water for at least one hour in the refrigerator (we placed a small plate on top of mushrooms to keep them from floating).

Sauteeing the Morels
Rinse them off and pat dry. Cover each one in flour and saute in a pan of melted butter or olive oil and a few shakes Garlic Earth Italian Garlic Seasoning.

Serve immediately.

Southwest Seasoning on Pasta?!

Oh, yeah.

Rosie, a caterer and one of my business/cooking mentors, fed me some of her pasta while I was making my seasoning at her kitchen. What a treat. I always enjoy taking a break to enjoy her famous potato salad, pasta salad, roast beef, ... This pasta was delicious. I had to ask for the recipe. She replied, "It's your seasoning on there!"

I have been making and eating my Southwest Seasoning for years and never thought to put it on pasta. Imagine eating pasta with a zing of lime in the end! To simplify things, Rosie uses a vegetable peeler to "cut" the carrot into the pan. Great idea. You get little curls of carrot -- kids might like that, too. Here's her recipe:

Rosie's Pasta with Southwest Seasoning
Serves 2
2 servings of cooked pasta (Rosie prefers spaghetti noodles al dente "kind of chewy")
little bits of veggies (broccoli, celery, carrot, zucchini ...)
leftover cooked chicken or turkey, chopped or shredded
a couple tablespoons of melted butter or olive oil
2 teaspoons Garlic Earth Southwest Garlic Seasoning
a few shakes of Parmesan cheese

In a saucepan, steam the veggies in a little olive oil for a couple minutes, covered. Add the chicken to reheat, toss in the pasta, add the 2 Tbsp. olive oil or butter and Southwest Seasoning, toss. Put in bowl, top with cheese and serve.

Our First Podcast!

A very warm thanks to the folks at AgriMissouri for giving us the opportunity to publish our first podcast (I'm sure Sarah had a LARGE part to do with it -- thank you, Sarah!) Here's the link:

AgriMissouri Podcast

P.S. Earlier this week, I marinated a bunch of chicken, such as bone-in chicken breasts and chicken legs, in the Balsamic Marinade made with our Garlic Earth Italian Garlic Seasoning. My son, Jack, exclaimed, "Man! This chicken is GOOD!"

It makes me happy to make him happy. I'll get that exact recipe up soon so you can make someone happy, too.

Roasted Potato Salad with Feta

During the summer I usually make Grilled Potato Salad with Blue Cheese or Feta. I decided to try this recipe indoors by roasting the potatoes in the oven instead of grilling them. It was just about as tasty!

Tip on cleaning veggies: An environmentally-friendly and cheap way to clean your fruits and veggies is to fill a clean bowl or sink with diluted vinegar (about 1/2 cup to a 1/3 of sink of water). Brush or agitate veggies/fruit as needed and rinse.

Roasted Potato Salad with Feta

3 lb new potatoes, cleaned and halved
3 Tbsp. olive oil + some for roasting dish
2 tsp. Garlic Earth Italian Garlic Seasoning
1 medium - large red onion, halved then sliced
1/2 lb bacon (turkey bacon works well), chopped
1/2 cup white wine vinegar (can combine with red wine vinegar)
2-3 ounces of Feta cheese crumbles (reduced fat works; Blue Cheese works, too)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Toss potatoes in the olive oil and garlic seasoning and let marinate for 20-3o min. Place potatoes in a single layer in greased casserole dish or cookie sheet (grease dish with a little more olive oil or spray). Roast until tender, about 35-45 minutes. While the potatoes are in the oven, slice the onion and chop the bacon. Saute the bacon and onion over med-low heat in a skillet for about 10-15 minutes, stirring often. When the bacon is done, add the vinegar and let simmer for about 10 more minutes.

By this time, the potatoes should be done. In a large bowl, toss the potatoes with the bacon and onion. Stir gently. Top with Feta or Blue Cheese crumbles just before serving.

Eric's Tortilla Pizza

My friend, and now Garlic Earth Italian Garlic Seasoning addict, told me he won't buy that "other" Italian Seasoning at the store anymore (Hello, my name is Eric and I'm a Garlic Earth addict"). Here's his recipe:

Eric's Tortilla Pizza
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

1 tortilla
some pizza sauce
a few shakes of Garlic Earth Italian Garlic Seasoning
some Mozzarella cheese

Spread pizza sauce and seasoning over tortilla. Top with cheese. Fold over and bake for about 10 minutes.* Caution: Filling will be very hot! You may want to eat it with a fork.

*You may want to spray or brush olive oil onto bottom of tortilla before filling.