Za'atar is SO. YUMMY!

My awesome friend Jill gave me some homemade za'atar seasoning for Christmas, and a wonderful recipe for making a za'atar flatbread using the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day (also known affectionately among us convers as ABin5 or even AB5). If you don't know what I'm talking about, let's start here. AB5 is a REVOLUTIONARY, super easy and wonderful way to have fresh, homemade, preservative-free bread anytime you want, with less than 5 mintues work. Really. So, go, buy their first book, or their second one (including gluten free and loads of whole grain recipes), then come back here and finish reading this post. We'll wait.

Now, the spice mix, za'atar, is a middle eastern blend of sesame seeds, salt, thyme, and sumac. It is DELCIOUS! Lemony-tart, and just fantastic. You can make your own, or buy it. For extra herby bonus points, you can grow your own thyme AND wildcraft the sumac! (Sumac is easily found in the eastern and midwest parts of the US and Canada).


The specific recipe I used was the AB5 boule (whole wheat), baked as a flatbread, but, if you wantedn to try this at home, you could use any foccacia type recipe and basically substitute the za'atar seasoning for the rosemary. Otherwise it is made the same - put your dough on an oiled sheet, use your fingers to make indentations in the dough, sprinkle on your seasoning and some coarse salt, drizzle with olive oil, and bake at 450 until it's done. I meant to get a picture of it right out of the oven but, as you can see, that did not happen. It was just. too. good.

The violets are going crazy....time to make Violet Jelly!

It's simple, beautiful, and tastes yummy. Tutorial here: http://prairielandherbs.com/violetjelly.htm

This recipe is not in any way herbal, but it is super-delicious, and I thought some of you might enjoy it. Warning: this is really, really, really addicitive.

REALLY addictive. (just so you can't say that I didn't warn you).

Apple Toffee Dip
by Robin Warren

1 cup marshmallow cream
8 oz. softened cream cheese
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 oz. package English toffee bits.

Mix all ingredients together with electric mixer, and serve with sliced apples or pears.

Did I mention it was addictive?

Today is your last day to order e-gift certificates for Christmas delivery! We'll be at the shop until 5 PM CST and will be emailing gift certs. until then!

Last minute folks, we're open today, but closed tomorrow, so this is your last chance for shopping before Christmas!

Our $5 shipping sale runs through the end of the year, however.....so you can treat yourself to some great goodies at a fantastic shipping rate.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to pick up ingredients for my favorite holiday recipe - Mulled Berry Wine. Here is the recipe for you to enjoy too!

Mulled Berry Wine

1 pint cranberry (or raspberry) juice cocktail
3/4 cup sugar
2 sticks cinnamon
6 whole cloves
1 bottle (4/5 qt) Burgundy wine
1 lemon, thinly sliced (unpeeled)

Combine ingredients in a crock-pot. Heat on low 1-2 hours. Strain, and serve hot. Can be refrigerated and reheated again if it is not all consumed at once.

HOLIDAY Shippping & Hours Info:

Last day to order for holiday shipping: Sunday, Dec. 21st. (earlier is better!)

Last day to order online gift cards: Tuesday, Dec. 23rd, 5pm CST.

We WILL BE CLOSED: Wed, Dec. 24th until Tuesday, Dec. 30th.

We WILL BE OPEN: Sunday, December 21st, 12-5

Also: New delicious recipe online! Lavender Honey Biscotti. Divine! Biscotti makes a lovely holiday gift, becasuse it keeps well and ships well. Don't forget our Triple Chocolate Double Orange biscotti recipe too!

Can't write now. must crank Tom Waits albums and make bath salts.


While I do that, print off this recipe, and then make it. It's SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO delicious, and perfect for fall. (archived on our site here)

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Every year, we sponsor a cooking contest at the Iowa State Fair, which has the largest food department in the nation! Thousands upon thousands of foods are entered, and we feel honored to be a part of this fun event. PLUS, we get to eat really, really good foods, and then get to bring back the recipes to share with you! This recipe was a 1st place winner and tastes AMAZING. This would be a great addition to any holiday feast, but we also think it's great as a side-dish anytime. We'd like to thank Sally Kilkenny, author of this recipe - she is an amazing cook that astounds us with new, delicious herbal recipes every year.

Herbed Pumpkin Mushroom Stuffing

6 cups cubed pumpkin bread

1 cup butter

1 cup chopped celery

2 cups chopped red onion

2 cups sliced mushrooms (portabella, crimini, portini, or your favorite blend)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. ground black pepper

1/4 to 1/2 cup chicken broth*

optional: chopped, toasted pecans**

Spread cubes on a baking sheet and let dry overnight, or heat in a 200 degree oven until dry. Preheat oven to 375 and butter a 2 qt. baking dish.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium/low heat. Sautee celery and onions for about 10 minutes, then add mushrooms and continue cooking for about 8 minutes, or until tender. Add fresh herbs, salt, and papper. Fold in bread cubes and add enough broth to moisten. Transfer to prepared dish and cover with foil.

Bake for about 40 minutes. Remove cover and bake for 10 minutes, or until top is crisp. Garnish with fresh herbs and pecans.

* vegetarian Maggie suggests a nice vegetable broth as an alternative - Swanson's make a lovely certified organic veggie broth.

** We LOVE the pecans in this - and suggest adding whole, toasted pecans in the stuffing instead of sprinkled on top afterwards.

The pre-frost harvest continues....Yesterday I cut the last of our purple basil, to turn into delicious jelly. For those of you that don't know, purple basil has a very similar leaf shape and taste to "regular" pesto, but it is a DIVINE purple color. So, you can do really cool things like make purple basil vinegar with it, or make purple pesto.

Making purple basil vinegar couldn't be easier. You simply stuff fresh purple basil leaves into a glass jar, cover with vinegar, and let steep for a week or so. Strain out the leaves, and you have a gorgeous ruby-colored vinegar infused with the flavor of herbs. Salad, anyone?

Making Purple basil jelly is super-easy too - I have posted the recipe to our website. Enjoy!

I've posted this recipe before, but it's so damn good I'm gonna post it again. I'm making it tonight, but, instead of sage, I used some leftover pesto (I had a pesto-making spree last night, and turned a laundry basket full of basil into delicious pesto in my freezer).

Enjoy!

Sage and Shallot Foccacia Bread

1 cup warm water
1 1/2 tsp. dry yeast
2 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. good olive oil
2 tsp. salt
about 12 shallots, roughly chopped
3 tbsp. chopped fresh sage leaves (or 3 tsp. dried crushed sage leaves)
1/2 cup grated asiago cheese
1 tbsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 1/2 cups flour (I used a mixture of white and wheat)

Combine water, yeast, and sugar into a large bowl, and let sit while you grate the cheese and chop the shallots, grate the cheese, and chop the sage.

Add oil, salt, shallots, sage, pepper, cheese and 1 cup flour to the yeast mixture, and stir until completely blended. Gradually add the rest of the flour until dough gathers into a ball. Knead for 4 or 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Coat dough with olive oil, and let rise until double. Punch down, then place on a greased cookie sheet or pizza pan - pat dough down into whatever shape you like, as long as it's about 1/2 inch thick. Let rise again, for about half an hour or 45 minutes.

Dimple the dough very deelpy with your fingers. Sprinkle the top of the bread with coarse sea salt. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

WOW. we had an AMAZING 10th birthday party here on the farm on Sunday. I mean....WOW.

I'll have pics, and blog more fully about it soon - meanwhile we have approximately nine million orders to pack and send. (give or take a few).

Check out this amazing tutorial on how to make your own natural fruit soda at home.

OH! And, we have about FIVE BARS of the Luxury Soap of the MOnth left. If you want them, grab them NOW. :)

Yesterday at noon, we were ROASTING. Hot sun, nearly 100% humidity, just.....HOT. Today it's about 65 degrees, overcast,with a breeze,and we are wearing jeans and long sleeves. Ah, it must be nearing fall!


Anyway - we wanted to share this great recipe with you. It was given to us by our friend Jen -she uses it as a treatment for psoraisis on her scalp, and says it works beautifully! We know many of our customers have skin conditions, so we thought we'd share the recipe with you. And wasn't it kind of Jen to share her recipe?? We sure think so!

here goes:

Jen's Hair Oil (treatment for psoriasis)

1 oz jojoba oil
5-7 drops each juniper, tea tree, rosemary, and thyme essential oils

Combine ingredients; apply as necessary to scalp.

We do have all the essential oils that you need for this recipe, on our website. Her recipe specifies jojoba oil, but i do suspect you could use olive oil as the base as well....

This recipe will be permanently archived on our website - here.

Got Mint?

Fresh mint abounds this time of year, so I thought this would be a great time to post my favorite mojito recipe. Peppermint is the "classic" mint for this cocktail, but if you have other types of mint (spearmint, orange mint, applemint, etc), feel free to experiment. It's also delicious with other herbs - try lemon verbena or lemon balm, for example.


Sugar (superfine, if you have it)
Fresh Lime Juice
Rum (white)
Soda

In the bottom of a tallish glass, muddle together (smush) 5-6 fresh
mint leaves, 2 tsp. sugar, and the freshly squeezed juice of one
small lime. Fill the glass with ice, and add 2 oz. (or to taste) rum.
Top the glass with soda, stir well, and serve with a slice of lime
and some fresh mint for garnish.

YUM!

You these are delicious "virgin" too - just leave out the rum.

New fantastic recipe, to be archived on our recipes page:

Triple Orange Double Chocolate Biscotti

1 cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
juice of one orange
zest of one orange
10 drops orange essential oil
3 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 12/ tsp. baking powder
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325; grease a baking sheet. Combine butter, sugar, and eggs; stir well. Add the juice and orange zest, and essential oil. Stir in flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder until very well blended. Add chocolate chips. You may need to add more flour, depending on the size/juiciness of your orange. You want a soft dough that is easy to handle but not too sticky. Divide dough in half; shape each half into 5 by 10 inch logs. Place on baking sheet, and bake for about 25-30 minutes. Removed from oven and let cool thoroughly. When dough is cool, cut logs on the diagonal into 1/2 inch slices. Lay slices on baking sheet and bake about 8 minutes, then turn them over and bake the other side. You want them to be dry and lightly toasted, but not overdone! Remove from the oven, and cool. Enjoy!

Best. Bread. EVER.

I made this bread last night and I'm so impressed with myself. ENJOY!

Sage and Shallot Foccaccia bread

1 cup warm water
1 1/2 tsp. dry yeast
2 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. good olive oil
2 tsp. salt
about 12 shallots, roughly chopped
3 tbsp. chopped fresh sage leaves (or 3 tsp. dried crushed sage leaves)
1/2 cup grated asiago cheese
1 tbsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 1/2 cups flour (I used a mixture of white and wheat)

Combine water, yeast, and sugar into a large bowl, and let sit while you grate the cheese and chop the shallots, grate the cheese, and chop the sage.

Add oil, salt, shallots, sage, pepper, cheese and 1 cup flour to the yeast mixture, and stir until completely blended. Gradually add the rest of the flour until dough gathers into a ball. Knead for 4 or 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Coat dough with olive oil, and let rise until double. Punch down, then place on a greased cookie sheet or pizza pan - pat dough down into whatever shape you like, as long as it's about 1/2 inch thick. Let rise again, for about half an hour or 45 minutes.

Dimple the dough very deelpy with your fingers. Sprinkle the top of the bread with coarse sea salt. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

SO GOOD!

We served these cookies at our "Herb Overload" class a week and a half ago. I love super-easy things that you can make in a hurry - perfect for classes. Beucase I procrastinate. (I know. you're all surprised!)

So these were made with tube sugar cookie dough, the readymade stuff, and some rose petal jelly I had made earlier in the spring. (Follow my recipe for dandelion jelly, but substitute rose petals instead. Delicious and beautiful!) I made teensy balls of dough, then pressed my fingerprint in them to create an indentation. Baked the cookies, then let the cool and put a tiny bit of rose petal jelly in the indentation. Decorate plate and cookies with edible flower bits (in this case I used borage flowers, lavender flowers and rose petals) and listen to the ooh's and aah's as you serve these pretty little cookies!

If you have a bit of extra tiem and want to be even fancier, you can add some chopped rose petals directly to the dough. YUM!

Hey gang! We still have 3 spots open in our Soapmaking 101 Class this Saturday, August 4th - if you're interested, please do sign up!!

And, here is a wonderful summer recipe for all that zucchini I know you have in your garden...Enjoy! I will get it posted on the website pretty soon!

You need:
zucchini or summer squash
cheese (whatever kind you want)
herbs (whatever kind you want)
salt and pepper (if you want).

I made this last saturday for 10 people, for a dyeing class we had at
our shop. I made a huge 9x13 pan and they ate it all and I thought
there might be a fight over who got to lick the pan.

Slice zucchini or summer squash into 1/4 inch thick slices or rounds.
I like to do it longways, so the slices are kind of like lasagna
noodles, but the rounds work too. Place one layer of sliced zucchini
in the bottom of a pan. Sprinkle with salt and/or pepper (if you
like), a generous sprinkling of whatever chopped fresh or dried herbs
you have, and a layer of cheese. Repeat, until you are out of zucchini
or cheese or your pan is full - but end with a layer of cheese. Cover
with foil and cook at 375 until cheese is melted and zucchini is al
dente. If you want to be fancy, remove the foil for a few minutes and
broil the cheese on top.

My best rendition of this recipe, to date, used green zucchini, a
combo of sharp cheddar, mozzarella and feta cheeses, seasoned sea
salt, freshly cracked black pepper, plenty of dried toasted minced
onion, a bit of granulated garlic, and lots of thyme.

I (maggie) am back from mexico, and home this week with a WICKED sinus infection. gah. I have begged several people to cut my head off to relieve this pain but so far...no takers. I am subsisting on echinacea tea and whiskey tea (recipe to follow). It really DOES help, and tastes yummy too!

A class note: We have ONE space available for the Hot Process Crock Pot Soapmaking class Feb. 3rd. If you want to sign up, do it now!


Whiskey Tea (Irish version)

1 lemon
1 teabag black irish tea (Barry's, if you can get it)
honey
Irish whiskey (I prefer Jamesons)
whole cloves
cinnamon stick


Cut a 1/4 inch slice out of the middle of the lemon. Stick 4-6 cloves into this lemon slice, and set aside. Juice the 2 halves of lemon into a large cup (using a clear cup is easiest). Then add a roughly equal amount of honey, and a roughly equal amount of whiskey. Stir whiskey, lemon, and honey together, and add a cinnamon stick. In a separate cup, brew a strong cup of black tea - about 6-8 oz. Remove teabag, and pour tea into the whiskey/lemon/honey mixture. Float the clove-studded lemon slice on top of the entire mixture, and drink quickly before all the "good" stuff evaporates! This really does work to help cut phlegm, soothe coughs and sore throats, make you warm and toasty, and make you feel better!

here's a delicious white chili recipe given to us by some of our favorite friends! :)
enjoy!

Lora's White Chili

2 size #4 cans great northern white beans
1-3 chopped onions
2 lbs ground turkey
2 cans salsa verda (about 14 oz total)
2 cans copped green chilies (or cut up fresh ones)
1 small bottle La Victoria green taco sauce
2 cans (about 32 oz) chicken broth
1 tsp cumin or to taste
1 tsp oregano or to taste

Fry turkey, onions, cumin, oregano together. When fully cooked, add other ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes or until ready.

Enjoy!

Here's a lovely recipe to warm up your November day! Thank you to Betty, who let me post it!

Betty's Chocolate Chai

Betty says " I developed this after much experimentation. You can adjust the seasonings
to suit your taste. Please, please, please, don’t use this recipe without
giving me credit and a link to my website!"

3 slices fresh ginger root
6 whole cloves
½ teaspoon coriander seeds, crushed
1 teaspoon quality cinnamon
5 black peppercorns
¼ tsp. crushed cardamom seed
2 Tablespoons Darjeeling tea leaves
2 cups milk
1 cup boiling water

Infuse the spices in the boiling water for 15 minutes. Strain. Pour
infused water into saucepan, add milk. Heat til warmed thoroughly, but do
not let boil. In each serving cup, squirt a bit of chocolate syrup, add the
hot, spiced infusion, stir. ENJOY!

www.bettypillsbury.com

Here's a lovely recipe from our website - perfect for fall. :)

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Recipe courtesy of Kristine Farley of herbalmomma.com

Here's what we have been doing for at least a decade. We love to have it on
Sundays in the fall and winter. That way we all get our immune boost for the
week.

A-1 tablespoon each; Pau D'arco, Echinacea root, Cinnamon stick, Cloves (whole), Dried Ginger
Add to a quart of water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes

B-Add to above; 1 tablespoon each; Hibiscus flowers, Orange or Lemon peel,
Juniper berries, Rosehips.
Let steep for 20 minutes.

C-Strain & add apple cider or frozen apple juice concentrate with water. (1 gallon total)

D-Add 1/2 cup honey & lemon juice.

Serve warm. Yum!!!
Healthy Blessings,
Kristine ~ Herbalist & Mother of Many
Handcrafted Soaps & Herbal Products
www.herbalmomma.com