The Schnozberries Taste Like Schnozberries

Well, more like the blueberries taste like blueberries! My 4th of July weekend was full of blueberries I tell you, full of um! You see, my parents have this lake house, and at this lake house are about 8 HUGE blueberry bushes. This means that every summer my mom and I wake up early before the heat sets in and pick blueberries until our faces fall off. Give us about 20 minutes and we will have about 10 cups worth, no lie.

So a few weeks ago, I decided to make some blueberry jam. Little did I know that a little pectin goes a long way, i.e. my jam was about twice as tough as a Jello shot! A non-alcoholic Jello shot of course! So.... I thought, what would MacGyver do? He would make Jam bars of course!

(please be reminded that I'm not a food stylist!)

Blueberry Crumb Bars
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

1 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cold unsalted butter (2 sticks or 8 ounces)
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon salt
Zest of 2 lemons
juice of one lemon
4 cups fresh blueberries
1/2 cup white sugar
4 teaspoons cornstarch
OR substitute about 2-2.5 cups of your favorite jam for the last 3 ingredients.

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 inch pan.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup sugar, 3 cups flour, and baking powder. Mix in salt and lemon zest. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter and egg. Dough will be crumbly. Pat half of dough into the prepared pan.
3. In another bowl, stir together the sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Gently mix in the blueberries.
4.Sprinkle the blueberry mixture (or jam+lemon juice) evenly over the crust. Crumble remaining dough over the berry layer.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. (This took an extra 10 to 15 minutes in my oven.) Cool completely before cutting into squares.


Although these blueberry bars were delicious I was still feeling defeated because of my jam fiasco and vowed to try again. The second batch was good, really good.

Blueberry Jam
10 cups/3.5 lbs blueberries (preferably fresh but frozen will do)
1/4 cup lemon juice 
1/2 cup water
4 1/2 cups sugar (more or less to taste)
1 box Pectin

Other stuff:
Jar funnel
Jar grabber
At least 1 large pot
Large spoons and ladles
10 pints sized Ball jars with new lids (can reuse rings)

1. Wash jars and lids (I prefer washing the jars in the dishwasher so they are clean and hot right before I fill them and I boil the lids for about 5 minutes)
2. Wash and toss any unripe blueberries
3. Crush the berries by using a potato masher or putting them in a food processor/blender. I prefer chunkier jam so I don't crush them too much, but the consistency is up to you. You should have about 6-6.5 cups crushed.
4. Mix the dry pectin with about 1/4 cup of sugar or other sweetener (I prefer using about 3/4 of the pectin and adding the rest at the end just to make sure I don't overdo it.)
5. Mix the blueberries with the pectin/sugar and cook to a full boil (med- high heat) stirring often.
6. Add the remaining sugar and bring to a hard boil for 1 minute.
7. Test for desired thickness by chilling a spoon in ice water then take a half spoonful of the mix and let it cool to room temperature on the spoon. If it thickens up to the consistency you like, then you know the jam is ready. If not, mix in a little more pectin and bring it to a boil again for 1 minute.
8. Fill the jars to about 1/4 in from the top and wipe away spilled jam from the top(this is where the funnel comes in handy!), then put the lid and rings on. BE CAREFUL it will be hot!
9. Place closed jars in boiling water for 5 minutes making sure that the water is about 2 inches over the top of the jar. Remove with jar tongs and let cool.
 *if the top does not "pop" within 24 hours then you it's not sealed and you will need to keep it in the fridge, otherwise the jam will remain fresh and testy for about 12 months. PLEASE read up on preserving before you try canning of any kind as there are tons of "rules" that I may not have touched on.

I know canning can seem intimidating but I promise it's easy as can be. If you have any questions at all please feel free to email me or check out the Ball website! Happy canning!

The Griswolds European Vacation

Wow! Things certainly are moving around the Caldwell house. I am graduating at the end of this month, thank goodness, and the day after my last class I am heading up to Birmingham to work for 3 weeks as a pharma rep. Weird, I know, but I am in the process of learning the products and getting trained and in a few weeks I'll be filling in until the new Birmingham rep is hired. So, if your in the Birmingham area and want to entertain me one weeknight I would be ever so grateful! After that I'll take a break then head back out into the field to fill in for our Montgomery rep while she is on maternity leave. I'm nervous but so grateful for this opportunity and I hope to make everyone proud!

So between my stints in Birmingham and Montgomery, Tyler and I are headed to Europe for 12 days!!! Woot Woot!! We are calling this my "graduation present" a.k.a. graduation, Christmas, birthday and anniversary...for a few years!

Tyler and I perfer "adventure travel" over "relaxing travel" so we are planning on jumping from city to city with only our backpacks and have found some interesting places to say. Meet Airbnb.com.... This is a website where you can list your property for travelers to rent. We found a cute little apartment in the center of Luzern where we will have our own room, bathroom and even a kitchen. And get this, it's only $110 a night!
Click on the link below to see some pics of our little place
http://www.airbnb.com/rooms/99351

We have an actual hotel for Turin, Salzburg and Zurich and we are thinking of using airbnb.com for our stays in Bologna and Bolzano simply because we will be able to meet some other travelers AND its totally in our budget. I know some of you may think we are crazy for doing this but believe me, it's safe....

Here are a few of things we want to see!

Lake Luzern, Switzerland


Vineyards in Alba, Italy (close to Turin)
http://www.virginia.edu/travelandlearn/2009wine.html

Food in Bologna and Parma, Italy

http://principiagastronomica.com/post/32

Bicycling in Bolzano (Not in the Dolomites, of course!)

http://www.art.com/products/p1866461293-sa-i4240036/ruth-tomlinson-parco-naturale-puez-odle-santa-maddalena-val-di-funes-dolomites-bolzano-italy.htm

Pretending like I am Maria from the Sound Of Music in Salzburg, Austria

http://hotels.uptake.com/blog/value-hotels-salzburg-austria-7388.html

Cheese, lots and lots of cheese in Zurich, Switzerland

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zurich

If anyone has ANY tips for us please let us know! Over and out and have a GREAT 4th of July!

Best Maps EVER

So my buddy Lindsey lead me to the wonderful world of Stumble Upon. If you don't know about it, I'll give you the Cliff's Notes. It's a website where you can create a profile and tell it what your interests are and what kinds of websites you like to surf. For instance, I told it that I like, cooking, travel, mind and body, music, crafts....stuff like that. All I have to do is click the little "stumble" icon and, POOF, there is a website picked especially for me! It's like having a little gnome in your computer that knows just what you like. You can "like" or "dislike" anything it gives you and it uses that info to narrow in on what you want. AKA it's addictive.

Anyway.............. I was stumbling the other day and this is what I found.


They are mapping stereotypes prints by Yanko Tsvetkov and they are so spot on! I can't decide between the one above that is called "USA According to Common Sense" or the one below which is "Europe According to USA." Both are hilarious and will need to be strategically placed on a wall of my house. ASAP!



If you get bored, I beg of you, go to his website and see the rest. But, beware, some are NOT kid friendly yet oh so funny.

A New Obsession

I saw Bon Iver on The Colbert Report last night so I had to Google. AMAZING! I told Tyler that I had a crush and he said it was okay. Enough said...

Memorial Day

Well remember when I said I was going to start taking my own pictures? I have gotten lazy and today I am just going to tell you to head over to Tyler's blog to see more pics! Warning: Gratuitous amount of  pictures of Strongbow will be present...
 
Memorial Day weekend at Lake Martin was nice and lazy but my Mom and little bro were greatly missed! We celebrated Jessica's birthday, went tubing (yes Tyler and I still scream like children when my Dad takes a sharp turn), ate Pizza at Chucks Marina, grilled some DELICIOUS Red Snapper, hung out in the hot tub and watched our huge pack dogs wear each other out!

Bacon-Grilled Fish with Creole Red Sauce 

For Fish:
•4 red snapper fillets (6-8 ounces and 1-inch thick each)
•1 pound sliced bacon
•1 large Vidalia (or other sweet onion), sliced into rings
•1 dash soy sauce

-Preheat an outdoor grill to medium-high heat. Open fish basket and line one side with strips of bacon, leaving a 1/2 inch space between slices.

-Cover the layer of bacon with a layer of onion rings.

-Place the red snapper fillets on top of the onion. Cover red snapper fillets with more onion, then strips of bacon over the onion.
-Close the basket, and lightly sprinkle with soy sauce.
-Place the basket on the hot grill, and cook for 5-7 minutes per side, or until the bacon is just cooked through.
-Remove from grill and open the basket.
-Place a similarly-sized plate upside down onto the food, and flip the basket and plate over so that the food is on top of the plate. Lift off the basket, and serve.

For Sauce
(Recipe by:  Diana Rattray)
•1 tablespoon butter
•1 tablespoon olive oil
•1 large clove garlic, minced
•1/4 cup chopped onions, about 1/2 medium onion
•1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
•1/4 cup chopped yellow or red bell pepper
•1/2 cup chopped celery
•1/2 teaspoon paprika
•1 1/2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
•1/2 teaspoon dried leaf thyme
•1/2 teaspoon dried leaf oregano
•1/2 teaspoon dried leaf basil
•1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
•1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
•1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
•1 can (14.5 ounces each) diced tomatoes with juice
•1 can (approx. 1 2/3 cups) chicken broth
•4 green onions, sliced, with most of green
•1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste
•2 tablespoons butter

-Heat butter and oil over medium low heat in a medium saucepan.
-Add chopped garlic, onions, peppers, and celery. Sauté vegetables for about 2 minutes, until just tender.
-Combine the paprika, Creole seasoning, thyme, oregano, basil, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, and ground pepper in a small cup.
-Stir tomatoes into the vegetables then add the seasoning mixture. Sauté for 1 minute longer.
-Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Stir in the sliced green onions. Continue boiling, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Most of the liquid will cook away.
-Stir in the tomato paste until blended in. Remove from heat and stir in the 2 tablespoons butter.

My Loot

 Who doesn't love free food?! Well I guess it's not technically free considering we bought the plant, but $1.39 for a summer's worth of veggies ain't bad! Plus, giving away half of my bounty because we can't eat it all has made me a bit of a local fav around these parts! I love being popular!

The Topsy Turvy is doing well. I was a bit worried for a little while but after we moved it to a sunnier spot it really started to take off. I helped my dad plant 6 plants in a Topsy Turvy Tree and his are coming along slowly but surely as well.

 Cucumbers are NUTS! These suckers double in size in only about two days. I wish I had a video camera on them so we could go National Geographic style and watch a time lapse of them growing like Barry Bonds on steroids. Tyler and I both hate cucumbers so these are going to be sacrificed to the pickle gods.

 These will soon be red bell peppers...because I am to cheap to buy them at the store!

 And baby jalapeno peppers....

 The tomatoes that we put in the ground are doing a little better than the ones in the Topsy Turvy but I think the others will catch up soon.

 The squash and zucchini plants are HUGE and have been feeding us for about a week now. I'm not really sure why I thought I needed another of each in the new bed. I guess those will be giveaways.

Oh I forgot...I pulled up the carrots, which were pretty small due to the heat, so I will be pickling those this weekend if all goes to plan. The onions also came up and have been super tasty!

Next mission: Convince the city to change our zoning ordinance to allow us to have chickens in the back yard!

Lately...

Okay okay I know, I'm a horrible blogger. I have excuses but all of which are annoying so I will refrain and just give you an update on what has been going on recently.
Here is how it will go work trip, play trip, work trip, play trip, all in 2 weeks.

Work Trip 1:
Two weeks ago
rather plesant
nightmarish flight home

Play Trip 1:
Orange Beach
Hangout Music Festival
Brandon and Margaret
Matisyahu and Avett Brothers
Too much fun

Work Trip 2:
Flight from beach to Chicago
Matisyahu (my ultimate fav) and Michael Franti ON.MY.FLIGHT!!!
Cold weather
easy flight home

Play Trip 2:
Lake Martin
Lots of food
Lots of sunscreen
Lots of fun

I also started school on May 23rd. Last semester, booo yaaa!!
Can you tell that I have been busy?! Oh yeah, I forgot, no excuses (what a lame idea).

In other news, the vegetable garden is busting at the seams and Tyler made another 4x8 ft raised bed for me. I started some zinnia seeds inside because the ones I planted outside seemed to get washed away or the birds got them. We are planning to turn a few more square feet of dirt and weeds in the backyard into a bed.

I think that is about it for now and because I generally refuse to do a post without something visual, here is a video of Matisyahu from the Hangout.