Wednesday! Halfway through interview week! And I bring you meusli!

I don't have tons to report on the internship/interview front yet: I'm in the middle of my 5 interviews, which are going well and are not nearly as scary as I imagined! I think the last few years of meeting SO many strangers and talking to them about what I do/have done has really prepared me well for chatting with potential employers. So, bring it on! This introvert is CHATTY! Sometimes.

Let's chat about meusli. This stuff is so dang easy to throw together, super customizable, and quickly becoming my favorite "on the go" (and also at home...) breakfast. Quiche: move over. I eat it with homemade almond milk, and usually throw it all in a jar to take to school with me. By the time I'm ready to eat it, an hour or two after assembly, the oats have soaked up the almond milk and it's nice and soft! But even if I eat it immediately, it's still delicious!

After looking at the ingredients in store-bought meusli, I was nervous about finding all the right grains to go into this - there are a few different types that I'd never actually bought on their own! As luck would have it, my local grocery store (New Seasons) sells a 'multi grain mix' in the bulk section that is essentially all of the meusli grains mixed together! It has red wheat flakes, white wheat flakes, barley flakes, rye flakes, rolled oats, and sunflower seeds. PERFECT. I'm 99% sure you can find this in the bulk section of most healthy grocery stores! Check it out. If not, you could just use oats and/or whatever other of those you can find.

With that base, it was super easy to do the rest: choose what fruits/nuts you want to add, and mix it all together. I had a bunch of toasted pecans on hand, some coconut I wanted to use up, a bunch of raisins and date pieces, and some ground vanilla beans. BOOM. Done! Mix it up, keep it in a jar, and get ready for an easy breakfast!

Toasted Coconut and Pecan Meusli

• Author: Mary
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Total Time: 5 minutes
• Yield: 6

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Ingredients

Units USM

• 3 cups multi-grain mix (see description above)
• 1 cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
• ½ cup toasted coconut
• ⅓ cup raisins
• ⅓ cup date pieces
• ½ tsp ground vanilla beans

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Instructions

1. Mix everything together, and store in an airtight container!
2. Serve with milk of your choice, and either let sit for up to 8 hours, or eat immediately.

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Notes

Play around with the ratios here — if you want more "goodies" in the mix, up the amount of nuts and fruit!

The post Toasted Coconut and Pecan Meusli is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

When it comes to Mexican food (or fake Mexican food...) I almost always take green over red sauce, when given the choice. It's so darn tasty! So, when I found myself with more tomatillos last week, I thought: GREEN ENCHILADA SAUCE! I was feeling super ambitious about making enchiladas, which never happened. But, chilaquiles did! A new kind! I'll come 'atcha with those on Wednesday!

This sauce is pretty simple - all the usual suspects: tomatillos, onion, garlic, green peps, something spicy, veggie stock, etc. Basically, cook it up, blend it up, simmer it down! Easy shmeazy. YOU CAN DO IT! Then, if you're more ambitious than I... make enchiladas!!

Have a wonderful week! xoxo

Green Enchilada Sauce

• Author: by Mary
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 1 quart

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Ingredients

Units USM

• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, roughly chopped
• 1 jalapeño, sliced lengthwise in half
• 1 lb. tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and halved
• 4 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup packed cilantro leaves
• 2 tsp salt
• ½ tsp. black pepper
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 cups veggie broth
• 1 tsp sugar (optional)

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Instructions

1. In a large, heavy skillet over HIGH heat, add the onion, bell pepper, jalapeño, and tomatillos. Let them sizzle and blacken, stirring somewhat frequently. Cook for 4-5 minutes, or until they're starting to slightly soften, and have blackened edges. Remove from the heat.
2. Blend the blackened veggies, along with the garlic and cilantro, in your blender until smooth. Pour into a saucepan over medium heat, and add the salt, pepper, cumin, veggie broth, and sugar (if using).
3. Bring the mixture to a simmer, and let cook down for at least 20 minutes — or until you've reached your desired consistency.
4. Store in an airtight container!

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The post Green Enchilada Sauce is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

BEST IDEA EVER.

I'm now 100% obsessed and in love and crazy about it. I'm putting it on my eggs. I'm putting it in my mac n' cheese. I haven't yet put it in my mac n' cheese quesadilla, but I might! I'm making delicious veggie bowls with quinoa and peanut sauce and THIS (keep an eye out for a post on Friday that will blow. your. mind.). I'm eating it straight off a fork. I pretty much feel like the healthiest weirdest person in the world because why else would I be consuming such massive amounts of sauerkraut? I'm gonna need a few more mason jars over here!

Here's the thing: it's ridiculously easy to make. It keeps for a very long time (thank goodness, because I left it untouched in my fridge while I was in Scotland and Iceland!). All you do is combine the shredded cabbage - I used my mandolin slicer - with some salt, and start massaging. Get in there with your hands! Eventually, the cabbage releases it's juices. Put EVERYTHING into a jar and let that baby sit for a few days! In this summer heat, it might not take that long. After 2-3 days, you have sauerkraut and you too can be the healthiest human in the world and try not to stain your entire apartment purple. Seriously, be careful.

HOW GORGEOUS IS THIS STUFF!? Ooh I love it. AND it's not all limp gross like the sauerkraut I have in my mind - it has a little crunch, lots o' flavor, and PIIIINK PINK PINK. Slash purple. Who wouldn't love a food that color? Maybe if I eat enough of it my hair will start growing that color... I would not be opposed to that.

So go buy yourself a few extra cabbages (or, one. You know. Moderation.) and make some 'kraut. If you don't want it, bring it to my place and I'll gobble it down. #younglove

Purple Sauerkraut

• Author: Mary
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Total Time: 15 minutes
• Yield: 1 quart

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Ingredients

• 1 head purple cabbage
• 2 Tbsp salt
• 1 quart jar and lid, sanitized

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Instructions

1. Remove on of the outer leaves of the cabbage and keep, in tact.
2. Thinly slice the rest of the cabbage and combine with the salt in a large bowl.
3. Using your hands, massage the cabbage and the salt together until the cabbage has softened and released a substantial amount of liquid. This should take 5-10 minutes.
4. Transfer the cabbage and all of the juice to your clean jar. Pack the cabbage down so that the level of the juice is higher than the level of the cabbage. Use your in-tact cabbage leaf as a cap over the shreds — tuck it down to hold everything in place underneath the juice.
5. Close the jar and let it sit at room temperature for 3+ days. Every day, use a wooden spoon to press the cabbage down and release any trapped gas bubbles.
6. After 3 days (less, if it's in a really hot environment), taste it! You can either put it in the fridge, if it tastes "done" to you, or let it keep fermenting. When it tastes how you want it, put it in the fridge and store there in an airtight container.

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The post Purple Sauerkraut is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

Remember the last time I made cashew milk? I'm pretty sure I blathered on about it tasting like drinking pure butter - which may turn some of you away, but to those who stay I LOVE YOU. You know I Love almond milk. I love pecan milk. I'm sure I'd love macadamia milk. But cashew milk? IT'S SO DARN CREAMY! So delicious! It's LIKE BUTTER!

So this version is pretty much my new dessert: it's creamy, it's sweet, it's kind of like drinking melted ice cream ... and yet it's sugar-free, debatably healthy, hydrating, fruity, YUM LIKE WHOA. Technical terms here, people.

Here's the order of operations: soak cashews. Blend cashews with water. Strain cashews, end up with cashew milk. Blend cashew milk with strawberries. Strain one more time, end up with NECTAR OF GODS STRAWBERRY CASHEW MILK.

I'm not gonna lie, I've skipped that first strain, and just thrown everything together... but the straining goes a bit faster if you don't skip it. So, depending on your patience and/or straining method: choose wisely.

This, as with nearly every recipe I post, brings to mind a myriad of other varieties: raspberries! add honey! add vanilla! ANY BERRY! Um... chocolate? Can we go there? I think I've just thought up my *next* project: chocolate cashew milk. How easy/delicious/CREAMY does that sound? We're going for the world record in "how many times can one food blogger say "creamy" in a single post." I'm winning. CREAMY!

Go enjoy this and try not to compare this puppy to much too the (far inferior) squeeze-bottle of strawberry milk stuff from your childhood. You know what I'm talking about! Not to say it's terrible (wait, should I say it's terrible? It's been a while, so I can't in good conscience pass judgement), but this is far superior. AKA has real ingredients. And no chemicals. And it's NATURALLY PINK! You can't go wrong there.

ENJOY! xo

Strawberry Cashew Milk

• Author: by Mary
• Prep Time: 8 hours
• Cook Time: 5 mins
• Total Time: 8 hours 5 minutes
• Yield: 1 quart

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Ingredients

Units USM

• 1 cup raw cashews
• water
• 1 pinch salt
• 8 oz. strawberries, hulled
• optional: honey, to taste

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Instructions

1. Cover that cashews with at least 2 inches of fresh water and soak overnight (minimum 8 hours).
2. Drain, then combine with 4 cups of fresh water and the salt in a high powered blender. Blend on high for one minute, or until very smooth. Drain through a nut milk bag, or cheesecloth.
3. Return the milk to the blender, and add strawberries. Again, blend until very smooth and pass through the same (cleaned out) nut bag.
4. If you want a sweeter end result, add honey (and blend or mix to combine) to taste.
5. Keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

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The post Strawberry Cashew Milk is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

Here's another throwback for you guys! This was one of the very first real yeasty "bread" recipes I ever made, and one of the first ones on this blog! HEYO! I'm such a sucker for soft pretzels... hellooo Auntie Anne's! This dough recipe can be loaded up with any topping - cinnamon sugar, icing, mustard, everything mix - whatever you want. Just make sure to brush with the egg, sprinkle liberally (including salt! always salt!), then bake to perfection. Surprisingly, these pretzels don't take very long at all. With a 45-minute rise, then a boil and a bake, you can have fresh soft pretzels in just over an hour! WINNING! Enjoy! xo

The rest of this post is from waaaay back when!

Life tips. Here we go. Based on lessons learned this week:

1: Don't put in your contacts after cutting onions. Ever. Even if you wash your hands. Ouch.

2: Hide vegetables in your smoothies. You'll never taste them and you'll feel like superwoman.

3: Don't make pretzels unless you're fully prepared to become addicted and therefore make them every single week.

We spent most of last Saturday commiserating over our upset tummies, due to some strange and mysterious food poisoning. Needless to say, we didn't eat a whole lot. Once Sunday rolled around and we were feeling much better, all I wanted were some soft, chewy, CARBS! I take this as a sign that carbs are good for us, and therefore we shouldn't restrict them with silly fad diets. Clearly my body wants them, so clearly it's gonna get them!

First I thought: BAGELS! Then I realized I'd have to make them Sunday and wait until Monday for them to be ready to bake. Lame. I mean, totally worth it if you have the patience, but at this particular moment: I did not. Second best: PRETZELS! Winner winner, chicken dinner.

I'd never made pretzels before, but I knew they were fairly simple. After browsing a few different recipes, and watching Joy the Baker's excellent video, I jumped right in. Easy stuff - and relatively quick! In a couple of hours I was munching on chewy, salty, mustardy goodness - and was all the happier because of it.

Not only did I enjoy some salty pretzel goodness, but I also made some with cinnamon sugar on them! YES! These were seriously addicting. First you eat a salty one with mustard, then you HAVE to have dessert with a cinnamon/sugar pretzel! Obviously I was thinking ahead.

The shaping was really quite easy, but I recommend watching Joy's video if the collage here doesn't quite do it for ya.

Soft Pretzels

• Author: Adapted from Alton Brown
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 8

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Ingredients

Units USM

• 1 ½ cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast
• 22 ounces all-purpose flour, about 4 ½ cups
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• 8 cups water
• ¼ cup baking soda
• 1 egg, beaten with 2 tablespoon milk
• Pretzel toppings, including salt, smoked salt, cinnamon sugar, or anything you can dream of!

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Instructions

1. Combine warm water, sugar, and yeast in a large mixing bowl and allow to proof for 5 minutes.
2. When the mixture is foamy, add the flour, salt, and melted butter all at once. Mix with a dough hook, or knead by hand, for 5 minutes or until the dough is smooth and firm to the touch. Dough should not be sticky.
3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let rise for 45 minutes, or until the dough has doubled in size.
4. Remove the risen dough from the bowl, and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 24″ rope, shape into a pretzel, and then place on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
5. Preheat the oven to 450 F.
6. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add baking soda, and then carefully boil each pretzel. They will puff up a bit, so make sure not to overcrowd your pot. I did two at a time, for about 60 seconds on each side.
7. When they are done boiling, remove the pretzels from the water gently and place them on the parchment-lined cookie sheet.
8. Lightly brush with the egg/milk mixture, and immediately top with your chosen seasonings. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until they’re browned and cracking open. Allow to cool slightly before serving.

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The post Soft Pretzels is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

So, we missed a landmark. Just sayin'... This is the 501st post on TKP! 501. Not 500. Oopsies. Who knew I berated you with so many recipes and ramblings? HA! Thank you guys for sticking around (or joining me!). I really appreciate you all!

Also, thanks for being patient while I took a break from blogging! And work in general! And life! I've been hibernating. DURING that hibernation, there has been a lot of planning, reflecting, re-evaluating, etc. I guess that means I kind of have been working... just not in the normal way I usually do. I've totally changed up the way I'm going to work, and am a bit embarrassed I didn't think of this earlier: instead of cooking one dish everyday to blog, I'll only cook two days per week and cook 2-3 dishes each day. WAY easier (for me!) to split things up like that. Two kitchen days means fewer grocery trips, less exhaustion (I get tired in the kitchen, and doing it everyday makes me lazy!), and more time to get down to work on the more businessy-side of things (which I've been seriously ignoring). I don't know about you, but I do much better if I'm not going from one thing to another all the time - if I can focus on a task and know I can see it totally through RIGHT THEN, I'm way more into it.

In order to get really on top of things, I spend a day this week coming up with my editorial calendar for the next SIX weeks. Like "Cook X, Y Z" on one day, and "post Z" on a certain day, etc. In planning out my week schedule for blogging I find myself obsessing over the silliest things: should I post Mon/Wed/Fri, or Tues/Thurs/Sat? Should I post the vegetarian main on Wednesday and the dessert on Friday, or switch them? Then I imagine people at the office looking at my blog on a Friday, and probably wanting something FUN (like a dessert!) for the weekend. I seriously weigh these things in my head as I make my calendar and wonder: am I wasting my time?

I write this now because I basically came to the conclusion that yes, that level of scrutiny is a waste of my time. Most of the views on any particular post don't even come from the day it was posted… so, why bother?

That said, I've come up with an editorial calendar I'm feeling really good about. I won't bore you with the nitty-gritty formula here, but it's pretty balanced and has a good about of variety for you guys. No more weeks of all chicken or all soup or all chocolate (though that does sound pretty great, right?). Also: I'll try to keep the breakfast foods to a minimum. That means like 1 of every 4 posts, instead of 50%. Boohoo! (Don't hold me to that. I've seriously considered becoming a breakfast blog.)

With all of that business-talk out of the way, I bring you something 100% out of whack with my new system. I'm not supposed to post on Sundays anymore (#DroolWorthy will be on Tuesdays!). BUT: I wasn't planning on posting this. I have a *wonderful* Vietnamese dish (my FAVORITE dish of all Vietnamese food) coming your way tomorrow, and it has a few different pieces to it. I thought about actually making it into THREE posts, but decided against that for now. So. Here we are on Sunday with pickled yummies!

Picked carrot and daikon are everywhere in Vietnam. They're in sooooo many dishes, they're a staple for everyone. And for good reason! They're addicting! I know you're probably like "um so what? this looks boring" but let me promise you that tomorrow you will be like "WHYYYYY DIDN'T I MAKE THOSE PICKLED VEGGIES YESTERDAY?!?!" because they take 24 hours. And when you see the deliciousness that is tomorrows post: you'll want to have these on hands. So, do yourself a favor, go out and get yourself some carrots and daikon, and can up some crunchy veggies! You'll be glad you did. Even if you just snack on them... which I am most definitely doing.

Pickled Carrot & Daikon {Đồ Chua}

• Author: by Mary
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Total Time: 10 minutes
• Yield: 3-4 8oz. jars

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Ingredients

Units USM

• 1 large carrot (8 oz.)
• 8 oz. daikon radish
• 1 tsp salt
• 5 Tbsp white sugar
• ½ cup hot water
• 1 cup water
• ¼ cup distilled vinegar

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Instructions

1. Cut both the carrot and daikon into matchsticks slightly shorter than the jar you plan to use. I cut mine to about 3" long.
2. Toss the matchsticks with the salt and let sit for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes (quite a bit of liquid should be released) rinse well (multiple times) with cool water.
3. Drain the water and pat the matchsticks completely dry.
4. Dissolve the sugar into the hot water, stirring until totally dissolved. Add the remaining (cool) water and distilled vinegar. Stir.
5. Put the matchsticks into your clean jars, then pour the vinegar solution into the jars until just covering the matchsticks. Seal, and refrigerate.
6. Let these sit for 24 hours, or more if you want a more pickled taste.

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The post Pickled Carrot & Daikon {Đồ Chua} is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

If I had to sum up Cambodia in one phrase, it would be: naked babies. I'm not even kidding, I've seen more naked humans (mostly babies and young children, but certainly not all!) in the last three weeks than I think I have in the entire rest of my life. I'm not exaggerating. I'm pretty sure kids here just aren't given clothes until they're about five years old, because they're always getting into the dirt, mud, rivers, etc. and are generally covered in dirt! We now have an unspoken game of "spot the naked baby" going on, and yell "naked babies!" to alert each other of cute brown booties. They are really cute little brown booties! Is this getting weird yet? Let's move on.

It's the middle of the rainy season here, but for the first week we were here I was not convinced. It was dry, and pretty hot, and not all that humid (compared to Laos, where we were wet a LOT). I guess the Cambodian weather gods heard me, because they changed their tune and have shown us some SERIOUS rain! On the coast we had a few impressive rain/thunder/lightening storms, and since being back in Siem Reap we've had quite the stormy week! Last night, in the midst of another impressive storm, the power for the entire city - as far as we could tell from our third story hotel room - went completely black. It was exciting, but I was glad it only lasted 30 minutes because that AC is VALUABLE! I tell you what! We love the storms - we lie in bed waiting for the thunderous booms that come quickly after bright flashes of lightening, all the while with an unbelievable amount of rain pounding down on the roof. It's incredible.

Ooh Cambodia! You've been so good to us! I've been pretty MIA this week because we've been exploring Angkor (which is more than just Angkor Wat) and soaking up our last week (temporarily) in SE Asia by being exceedingly "in the moment." I know I've mentioned several times throughout the last four months that being present is something I'm working on, and I think this week it really clicked. Usually I'm constantly reminding myself to not worry about tomorrow's plans, or next week's hotels, or next month's adventures: be here. Now. Last week I was extremely excited about coming home, and while I'm still really looking forward to it, I've been more more present and calm this week. Finally! I made it! Ha! I'm sure this will be an ongoing battle, but one I've discovered is very much worth fighting.

It's hard to believe we've actually been here for four months - it's gone so quickly, but at the same time feels like normal life, which I'm sure was not the case at the beginning. At some point along the way we grew comfortable with living in Asia, living in hotels, bargaining for everything {most recently I bargained a lady from $75 down to $16! For someone who doesn't really love bargaining, I was quite proud of myself!}, and being "on the go." It's comfortable, and we're good at it. We knew we traveled well together, but this trip is the first HUGE trip we've taken that's given us that opportunity to test it. I'm so grateful for that!

One of the things I've missed about not being home for summer is CAMPING! Oooh how I'd love to pack up our tent and gear and head out into the woods in Oregon or Montana! Or anywhere, really! As we think about our plans for moving back to the US eventually, I often come back to envisioning our life as it will be - which includes weekend trips out into the wild! With that in mind, I bring you DIY hot chocolate mix - because where does hot chocolate taste better than out in the backcountry on a chilly night? Nowhere. Except maybe while skiing, because that's darn delicious too. This mix is so easy to throw together, and endlessly customizable. If you know you like it sweeter, add more sugar! If you want some spice, add some chili powder! Or cinnamon! You can use hot water instead of milk, but we all know that's never quite as good... but when in the backcountry, sometime you gotta do what you gotta do! Please go camping this weekend for me, and bring along some hot chocolate!

DIY Hot Chocolate Mix

• Author: by Mary
• Prep Time: 2 mins
• Cook Time: 2 mins
• Total Time: 4 minutes
• Yield: 8

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Ingredients

Units USM

• 3 oz bittersweet chocolate
• 3 oz milk chocolate
• ½ cup Dutch process cocoa powder
• ¾ cup powdered sugar
• ¼ cup powdered milk
• 1 pinch salt
• 2 tsp cornstarch

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Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender, and blend until very fine. Store in an airtight container.
2. To make a glass of hot chocolate, add 2-3 tablespoon of the mixture to once cup of hot milk. Mix to combine and dissolve. Add more as needed.

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The post DIY Hot Chocolate Mix is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

I'm super excited today because our wedding, which was eight months ago yesterday (!!), was featured in the Spring 2014 issue of DIY Weddings Magazine. Woohoo! If you remember from my post about our wedding, we DIYed almost everything - from the decorations to the backdrops to the desserts, and more! I had no clue it would end up in a magazine (otherwise maybe I would have tried a little harder…)! Big thanks to our wonderful photographer, Kacie Q, for capturing the fun spirit of the day!

If you want to order your own copy, head over to DIY Weddings Mag and order either a print or digital copy for yourself!

The post DIY Weddings Magazine Feature is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

I suppose maybe it's time to fill you in on our future plans, as I keep getting questions about what's to come in the next few months. Long story short: anything could happen. You might recall that we had planned to delay our honeymoon to Vietnam until after Derek finishes his degree. That part of the plan is still happening. The part that has changed is what we planned for after the honeymoon - we were going to make our way to France or Switzerland and live there for a year. Not anymore!

For various reasons, the main ones being visa-related, we've decided to forego living in Europe. Not only is is WAY more expensive, but it's hard to get a visa to stay for more than three months. The way around that is to get a "real" job, which is hard (and often they require you already have access to a visa), or make a boatload of money and be able to prove it. Unfortunately, we're not really in either of those camps right now.

Asia has a lot more to offer to our tax-bracket! With me blogging full-time, and Derek coaching more and more, we're excited to keep working for ourselves and live in SE Asia on those incomes. We don't have much more of a plan that this: finish our honeymoon in Vietnam, head to Cambodia, and keep going until we find a place we want to stay for a while! I'd really like to be near water, as we've lived in the mountains for the last six years, and for some reason Cambodia and Indonesia are really calling my name. If you have any suggestions on where to go for an extended stay (like, a year!), send them our way!

Timing is still very much in the air, but we think we'll be leaving Bozeman in April. While I'm really excited to get on the road and travel a bit (it's been a while since I've been out of the country!), I'm going to be really sad to leave Bozeman! We LOVE living here, and it seems like I meet new friends every week that I want to hang onto forever. It's not easy to leave that behind. After really not being psyched to move here, I'm now REALLY grateful for the time we've had - and the remaining few months we have! We are skiing up a storm, knowing it'll be our last winter in while.

I'm sure I'll be writing more about our plans as they progress, but I figured I'd catch you up to where we are now! Ketchu up? Ketchup? That was terrible. I apologize. But really, we're moving into KETCHUP!

Ketchup is not something I ever really thought I'd be making. It seemed more of a "why would I do that?" kind of thing. Perhaps because I'm a total mustard-lover, so my store-bought ketchup lasts forever. But you all know I like making things I could buy, cheez-its, yogurt, marshmallows, etc. Normal ketchup had no draw for me, but then I saw (on a menu somewhere in St. Louis) some smoky jalapeño ketchup. I knew IMMEDIATELY that I would love it. I didn't actually get any at the restaurant, but I did write it down and immediately make it upon returning home. WINNER.

Smoky Jalapeño Ketchup with Sweet Potato Fries

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews

• Author: by Mary
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 50 mins
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 2 pints

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Ingredients

Units USM

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 clove garlic, minced
• 2 jalapeños, diced (seeded if you want less heat)
• 3 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp smoked paprika
• ¼ tsp allspice
• 1 28-ounce can diced or crushed tomatoes with juice
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• 3 Tbsp unsulfured molasses
• 3 Tbsp adobo sauce

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Instructions

1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until beginning to brown, or even blacken, in some spots.
2. Turn the heat down to medium and add the garlic and jalapeños.
3. Cook for another minute before adding the tomato paste, salt, smoked paprika, and allspice. Cook again for a minute, fully mixing the tomato paste around.
4. Add the tomatoes and their juice, apple cider vinegar, molasses, and adobo sauce. Stir everything together and cook until quite thick, about 45 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and blend, either with an immersion blender or a regular blender (careful with the heat - leave the lid cracked!) until very smooth. If necessary, strain out lumps.
6. Season with salt as necessary. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

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Notes

For the sweet potato fries, you can make either baked or fried fries. I love them both, but don't have recipes for them alone on the site!

The post Smoky Jalapeño Ketchup with Sweet Potato Fries is from The Kitchen Paper. Click over to see it on The Kitchen Paper!

Oh. My. Gosh.

Seriously I think I need to go nap for a week because my brain is about to EXPLODE. I decided to do a little website maintenance on Wednesday, as I was feeling productive and ready to take on 2014, which resulted in three days of my site being down and MANY TEARS OF FRUSTRATION. Today I took matters into my own hands (and then realized I was in over my head, and handed the project over to the professionals), resulting in many more tears of frustration, but eventually a working solution. Nothing has changed, besides my hosting. So hopefully we will NEVER. EVER. EVER have to see The Kitchen Paper down ever again! Fingers and toes and eyeballs crossed.

Word to the wise: Don't use the interwebs. Well, not really. Then you couldn't hear me ramble! Let's just leave it at this: I understand how people get frustrated at technology of all levels. If it's over your head, wherever that level may be, it is THE WORST FEELING. I sincerely feel for anyone trying to learn a new technological skill. May the force be with you.

Moving on from my web frustrations, let's look at 2014! I have grand plans for TKP in 2014, despite the rough start, so I guess we'll start catching up now. We'll start with a simple recipe! I posted homemade cashew milk right after Thanksgiving, so it seems fitting to post another nutty milk right after this last batch of holidays. Have at it!

I made plain (SO YUMMY!) and chocolate (... !!!). Both are crazy easy. I liked to use the chocolate (and the plain) in my coffee, when I wasn't drinking it straight from a jar with a straw. Don't judge. These things happen.

I've yet to use the leftover pulp for anything, but I HEAR you can do cool stuff (like bake!) with it. Or you could just throw it in a smoothie. Ask the Google what to do. I'm sure she can tell you. Yes, I just gave Google a gender.

Make yourself some almond milk, pour a big ol' glass of it, and toast to a wonderful year ahead of us!

Homemade Almond Milk

• Author: by Mary
• Prep Time: 8 hours
• Cook Time: 5 mins
• Total Time: 8 hours 5 minutes
• Yield: 1 quart

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Ingredients

Units USM

• 1 cup almonds
• 6 cups water
• 1 whole vanilla bean
• simple syrup or honey
• ¼ cup cocoa powder (if making chocolate)

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Instructions

1. In a large container, cover the almonds and vanilla bean with water so there is 3" above the last almond. Let sit overnight (or at least 6 hours).
2. In the morning, drain the almonds and vanilla bean. Add them to a blender with 4 cups of clean water. Blend for 1 minute on high, or until completely smooth.
3. Strain through a cheesecloth, squeezing as much liquid out of the pulp as you can. Set the pulp aside and google how to use it.
4. Add a sweetener of your choice, to taste.
5. If making chocolate almond milk, add the cocoa powder (you'll need more sweetener too) and blend again. DO NOT add the cocoa powder before straining! It will be far too difficult.

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