pierogi and sausage on sorghum rolls

since finding out about my hereditary celiac over two years ago, I've conquered almost all of my favorites in the gluten free kitchen: grilled cheese, hot wings, fried chicken, tortilla, baked mac and cheese, cakes, pies. but one very important food way way at the number one spot of my faves has been neglected: pierogi. if you're not familiar with pierogi(thank you being born in pennsylvania dutch country), they're little doughy dumplings that can be filled with a number of things but the absolute best being garlicy cheesy creamy mash potato. they are then baked, boil, or fried to perfection.

I've held off attempting these babies for a number of reasons. one, I've homemade other types before and pasta is Hard! even with wheat-based flours! two, I've never made my own pierogi! I had no idea where to begin. and three, I didn't have a pasta machine so how the heck was I supposed to make em nice and evenly and properly?? so after getting over my fears of one and two and miraculously being gifted a beautiful marcato atlas(these things are the best!! get one!!!): I felt ready. I got a lovely length of sausage from a local farmer and was ready to make the best damn gluten free pennsylvania-dutch meal I could!

after making the pierogi I chopped up yellow onions, sweet peppers frozen from my summer garden, and button mushrooms, lightly sauteed them in evoo and fried my sausage cuts up! they were deliciously complimented by gluten free sorghum rolls I baked the morning before. in the leftover oil I chopped a few more onions and fried my pierogi on medium high heat until they were nicely browned and crispy, my favorite way to prep them.

everything turned out far better than expected, and even my pierogi went further than anticipated: over five dozen in my first batch, with some left over still months later.

gluten free pasta recipe referenced is from Gluten Free Baking with the Culinary Institute of America (my favorite, and go-to book for baked goods recipes)

wild for salmon and sorghum beer

Happy Small Business Saturday! Today I'm digging up some pictures from a very simple and very delicious dinner from the summer. Featuring, of course, one of my favorite local small businesses! Wild for Salmon is based in my hometown of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. They harvest the salmon themselves off the coast of Bristol Bay, Alaska and truck it back to Pennsylvania to sell from their base warehouse, farmers markets, and small stores around our area! And wow! Is the product impressive.

The day we picked these fillets up, Pork and I left em in an olive oil, gluten free soy sauce, (our own)garlic, and ginger marinade for a few hours before tossing them on the grate over a nice bed of coals right before sunset. complimented, of course, with local mashed potatoes creamed up with our favorite raw milk and butter from another local vendor. believe me when I say these fillets are melt-in-your-mouth good. I'm glad I have a small vendor like Wild for Salmon I can trust to deliver a sustainable and high quality cut!

Although not AS small, I can't leave out my fish-pairing of choice, Dogfish Head's Tweason'ale. A totally quenching honey, strawberry, and GLUTEN FREE sorghum beer! I had a taste of this great brew in a tiny cafe in Philadelphia last winter and finally got a growler of my own during a trip out to Delaware in August. Just writing about it is making me itch to order a case.

I hope ya'll are having a great late autumn! and staying warm for those in the northern terrain!

x danielle

Wild for Salmon
Dogfish Head

roasted breakfast potatoes

every weekend morning, regardless of if I work or not, I force myself out of bed early enough to whip up something delicious. as a farm raised kid, I go for the meat/potatoes/veggie&egg a guiltily 9 outta 10 times. pre-shredded frozen potatoes are almost always kept in stock for the frequent occasion when we want to indulge in a pile of hash browns without the prep.  I could write a novel on potato dishes, but I digress.

this morning I decided to go for the just-as-delicious-but-longer-cooking roasted potatoes. this roasted potato recipe is so easy and even easier to modify to your tastes. it's especially great to roast along side a larger meal or even in the middle of the night for a quick, cozy snack. feel free to use your favorite type of oil in place of evoo, swap in sweet potatoes in lieu of reds, or play with all your go-to spices!!

oven roasted potatoes

• 3 med-large potatoes, diced into half inch pieces
• 1-2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 TBSP fresh chives, chopped
• 1 tsp garlic, minced or powdered
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 1 sprig fresh oregano

               preheat oven to 475 degrees F            
               combine in a large bowl oil, diced potatoes, and salt, pepper, chives, and garlic
               lay coated potatoes in a single layer into a roasting dish or baking pan
               top potatoes with fresh rosemary and oregano
               bake 20-30 minutes until browned, turning once or twice

on summer and small towns

a collection of pictures I took during july in and around my hometown. there's something so wonderful yet so very ordinary about attending these same carnivals in the same parks at the same parades I've attended for almost 20 years. even after a few years away I'm so familiar with every stand, every piece of food, every corner and almost every face but I already feel myself starting to grow out of place.

22 thoughts for 22

from august 2013

the one picture that somewhat survived was this birthday, a silhouette of my dining neighbors at a sushi bar in scranton my partner and I visited at 9am on the 21st. a nice quiet start to a day of driving, exploring scranton, and small bottles of wine in smaller bedrooms of good friends.

these are some of the things I've learned recently and will be carrying close to my heart for my 22nd year

twenty two thoughts for my twenty second year

1. get up as early as possible. do as much as you can first thing in the morning.
2. friendships shouldn't be perpetually full of apologies and lies and hurt feelings. or else they may not really be friendships
3. it's not selling out if it's buying into the system
4. coffee deserves to be black
5. western beauty ideals are absolute shit, don't listen to them
6. western gender rolls are absolute shit, don't listen to them
7. always apologize if someone tells you you hurt them. if you care about a person, they deserve the effort not to hurt them again.
8. using slurs doesn't show you're tougher. it makes you look uncreative, incredible, and probably really really mean.
9. dogs are important. animal companions are important
10. it's okay to want the best everything
11. there is nothing wrong with self promotion, especially when promoting your work
12. starting now is better than starting later(or never)
13. always practice your craft, always refine
14. how much this ira glass quote rings true. to summarize, you only get good at something by sucking at it for a long time.
15. re: american healthcare. if you're not getting the service you want, complain complain complain(they do not care otherwise)
16. say what you mean, don't be vague
17. being strong is okay
18. being not strong is okay too
19. drinking is fun until it's not fun anymore
20. good company is better than bad company which is better than no company(maybe not good)
21. I don't really care what I'm making, as long as I'm making something forever
22. still don't think I'm fond of sushi

crv appreciation post

in may I purchased a 1998 honda crv. I quickly became enamored with this little vehicle. it's small, great on gas, cute as heck, and can drive literally anywhere. this is a collection of pictures over the past few months with her, i hope for many more to come.

1. crv at home
2. over the blue ridge
3. relaxing in the back on the obx
4. dune driving
5. over the blue ridge again
6. selfie in side mirror

pepper preservation: freezing

this past summer I was luck enough to grow sweet and hot peppers for the first time in my own garden! my partner and I had a blast planning, selecting young plants, and caring for our pepper gardens over the summer. although our yield(particularly the sweet pepper yield) was a bit smaller than expected, we were excited to preserve our goods for the months to come.

most of the hot peppers were either diced and dried for the spice rack, or pickled for later. besides the handful used to bulk up my canned tomato sauce, I was left with only a few pounds of sweet peppers. so in lieu of the salsa I anticipated making(next year!) I opted for the easiest option I know, dicing and freezing. freezing veggies is one of the easiest and fastest way to store your garden bounty! and even better, this same method can be used for tomato, greens, peas, corn, carrots, berries, and more! just be sure to look up the blanching time for your veggies of choice.

freezing fresh peppers

• fill large pot with water and bring to boil
• fill large bowl with ample ice water
• after water boils, drop peppers in a few at a time and allow to boil(blanch) for 2 minutes
• immediately transfer to ice water to stop from cooking
• pat dry, core, deseed, and destem peppers
• cut peppers into pieces as desired(I cut half into pepper rings and the other half into thin spears)
• lay flat on cookie sheet with a small space between every piece
• freeze flat for at least 20min, up to 45min, or until peppers no longer feel moist and begin to harden(it helps to have your freezer on the lowest setting or closest to 0°F)
• bag peppers in airtight freezer bags and keep for 18mos or longer

sun brewed calming tea

summer is in full swing: heat, swimming, gardening, grilling. although I love it all, sometimes I need a respite. a little danielle time to bring it all back home. over this past winter I fell in love with calming teas. they're perfect for the morning to ground myself, at night to rest my mind, and even during the day to take a moment to be able to analyze priorities. I never considered myself a "tea drinker" but calming tea is making me into a liar.

once the warm weather came around again I was desperate to try out a family classic with my new favorite drink: sun brewed tea

sun brewed calming tea

• 2 liters cold water
• 6-8 tea bags of calming tea, depending on strength (if you can't find calming tea a great mixture is lemon balm, chamomile, passion flower, and rose)
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 1/4 C honey
• 1 sprig fresh mint

in a clear container, fill with cold water and mix in honey or desired sweetener. if you have a tea ball you can just drop it in, if you're using bags, tie the bags together and attach to container with the assistance of a wooden spoon laying across the top or a lid on the pitcher. add lemon slices and mint sprig.

let the container sit in a sunny window or outside for 2-4 hours, depending on how strong you want the tea to be. serve at room temperature over ice.

morning beekeeping

happy solstice! summer is finally here and I'm humming with joy and warmth. between developing and prepping film prints for a show, shooting for work, and editing old work, it's been a boring summer so far for personal work. but! about two months back I stumbled upon a local beekeeper's website where he mentioned he was interested in some photographic services from anyone "brave enough to suit up." hey! I'm brave as heck! and I love bees! two weeks back we teamed up and made some killer bee shots together(I look like a 5 year old in the ridiculously oversized bee suit, sorry no pics). I didn't even wear gloves and I got right up in those little bee faces without any issues! how cool! hopefully this will be a continuing relationship, so look for more bees here in the future and give my pal Andy some facebook love if you like that kind of stuff.

andy's been keeping bees as a serious hobby for about six years, picked up from his father

 little male bee, a drone. stinger-less and able to be held

andy tries to keep his operation as natural as possible! he smokes out his bees with recycled burlap

right: queen bee

memorial day garden stocking

on memorial day I had a portrait session at a local greenhouse with a veteran who wanted recent shots in uniform. being only a short drive from my house, and me being a plant enthusiast, I'm surprised I've never visited this place. although pork and I tried to start as much as possible from organic seed this year, we had a few holes to fill.

this greenhouse was beautiful and expansive and full of so many plants I badly needed. rows upon rows or hanging plants, growing flats, and encouraging little pots-- a place I literally got lost in. the portraits took less than thirty minutes, but I spent another two hours browsing and buying and barely scratching the surface of what they had to offer

we walked out with an abundance of kale, a curly curry plant, a few peppers, rosemary, thyme, a discounted struggling aloe(which looked twenty times better after I put it in proper dirt), and a little mint bush of the kentucky variety. a fruitful day, for certain