Blog - Yelton Manor Boutique Hotel B&B

Mixed Pickling Spice and Yelton Manor Bed and Breakfast “Breakfast Pickle”

August 7, 2016 by Elaine

Yelton Manor Bed and Breakfast pickles are the highlight of our afternoon Beach Break Snacks, 3PM-6PM every day. I make at least 12 different kinds, preserving the ongoing summer harvest of fresh vegetables from early spring asparagus to late season brussel sprouts. I use our many different herbs and spices, and I use fresh dill and other herbs from the garden. I make a tarragon brine, a cumin pickle (very Indian flavor) and a star anise (very Asian flavor). When I discovered this mixed pickling spice I was very intrigued to try the amazing combination of flavors. As it turns out, the clove, cinnamon and allspice overtones give this mixed spice an aroma reminiscent of Christmas, so it’s ideal for the holidays. Now we have also added it to our breakfast buffet just for the heck of it. I tried it with many vegetables, from summer squash to beans, yet plain old pickling cucumbers won the taste test for me. You can experiment with it any way you please. I buy organic spices from Penzies or Amazon.

Mix in a jar:

3 T crushed bay leaf

3 T black peppercorns

3 T whole allspice

3 T coriander seeds

3 T mustard seed

# T juniper berries

1 T whole clove

1 T dill seed

1 cinnamon stick, crushed into small pieces

Place all in the jar and shake to combine. Isn’t it gorgeous??!!! Just the mixed spice alone makes a lovely gift!

Here’s my favorite way to use this spice mix: Obtain small Kirby pickles from your local farmer, freshly picked. Cut the blossom end to keep the pickle crunchy. Leave whole…. or cut into spears or rounds, your choice.

Increase this recipe as you need to, this is for 4 pints. For the brine: 3 cups apple cider vinegar mixed with 3 cups water and 3 T pickling salt, heated to boiling. Put a slice of lemon and a one tablespoon of the mixed spice in the bottom of sterilized jars. Pack in the pickles. Nestle in some garlic cloves too. Slowly pour the brine into each jar, wipe the rims and cover with lids and rings, process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Yum! See the lemon slice in there? You can increase that to two slices if you like the extra zing it brings to the brine.

Mark these for your Christmas holidays, they make great hostess gifts if you are invited to dinner! But eat them any time when you want a very unusual and zesty pickle.

Tarragon Pickles

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July 25, 2016 by Elaine

It’s a happy day when the farmer’s market has a half bushel of perfectly small and crisp Kirby pickle cukes! I have been wanting to try a new taste and my French tarragon just happened to be in full summer bushiness. I researched and found this simple refrigerator pickle based on a Martha Stewart recipe.

I multiplied the recipe by 9 in order to make a big batch.

Here is the original recipe:

4 Kirby pickles, washed, dried and quartered lengthwise. Trim the blossom end for a crispy pickle result.

2-3 springs fresh tarragon

1 3/4 cups distilled white vinegar

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

Place cukes and tarragon in sterilized pint jars.

Heat vinegar sugar, red pepper and salt in a pan, stirring until all is dissolved. Pour into jars. Let cool, cover. Refrigerate overnight and up to 6 weeks before serving.

Rhubarb Custard Bars

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July 2, 2016 by Elaine

Here is a super simple bar, the crust much like a sugar cookie and the guts a creamy, custard goo of rhubarb-ness!

The crust whirrs up in seconds in the food processor and bakes while you are mixing up the custard.

Line a small square baking dish (8X8) with parchment paper. This helps you simply lift the entire batch out and onto a cutting board after they cool.

If you double this recipe (highly recommended!) use two 8X8 dishes rather than one large baking dish, because the cookie edges are an important element….more edges = more awesomeness!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Pulse in a food processor: 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter. Press into the prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes, the crust will remain pale and still soft.

Whisk together 2 large eggs, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 tsp salt. Stir in 2 cups diced rhubarb. Pour the custard into the hot crust, return to oven and bake for 45 minutes.

Let the bars cool, lift with the parchment to a cutting board and cut into squares. Needless to say, this is especially wonderful while still a bit warm and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Eggs shared with LOVE!

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June 13, 2016 by Elaine

Local South Haven friend Donna Allgaier-Lamberti is a self proclaimed ‘Chicken Mom”! “My GIRLS!”, Donna gushes when asked about her chickens.

Donna’s hens, in teamwork with Donna’s amazing talents, hard work and love, are now producing Yelton Manor B&B’s delicious breakfast eggs!

Donna nurtures a White Cochin named Snowball and 3 Black Cochin/Phoenix mix (Freckles, Sweet Pea and Goldy) hens. She also mothers 3 Rhode Island Reds, (Elsa, Crystal and Anna) a Heritage line which she nurtured by hand from day old chicks. Her Grandchildren named all the hens.

Free range, the much loved hens are fed layers feed, hand sprouted mung beans, fresh herbs and “all the bugs and worms they can find”. Donna says they are also great mousers! Snowball lays a smallish pink/white egg, the Rhodies a gorgeous brown egg.

Please join us to discover the amazing pleasure of eating these nutritious, delicious eggs. Luscious, healthy goodness, served up every morning on the breakfast buffet and contributing distinctive deliciousness to all our baking too.

Light and Lazy Lasagna

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January 30, 2016 by Elaine

This is a simple recipe that makes it easy to feed a crowd or make enough to have leftovers all week. Meatless and very light (uses wontons instead of noodles), this recipe will become a family favorite!

Basic recipe for 4 stacks, then multiply by the amount you are making (I have made X5 here):

3/4 cup whole milk ricotta cheese

1/4 cup Parmesan Reggiano cheese, grated

12 wontons

Homemade tomato sauce

Mix the cheeses in a bowl. Preheat over to 400.

Butter baking dishes and coat with sauce. Blanch the wontons individually, dipping them with perforated spatula in hot water, lift out and lay on towels to dry. Lay one layer of wontons in dishes. Top each wonton with a dollop of cheese mixture, flatten cheese to edges. Top with 2nd wonton. Top with another layer of cheese mixture. Top with final wonton and a dollop of sauce.

Bake for 15 minutes or so. These are perfectly nice reheated in the microwave the next day. These also freeze easily after baking and reheat nicely weeks later. Easy, light, delicious!

Dilly Garlic Beans

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July 10, 2015 by Elaine

Hands down, this is everyone’s favorite pickle. Make yourself some!

Get green and yellow beans, absolutely dew-drop fresh from the Farmer’s Market or directly from your favorite local farmer. Organic garlic. Fresh dill flowers. And lovely, long red chile peppers called Arbol chiles.

For 4 pint jars (multiply as you wish):

2 1/2 cups white distilled vinegar

2 1/2 cups water

1/4 cup pickling salt

4 garlic cloves (or more to taste)

dill flower seed heads

Arbol chiles

Washing the beans and dill.

Cleaning and preparing the garlic cloves. Choose your biggest and most attractive cloves.

Prepare a boiling water bath and sterilize your jars, caps and screw tops. Wash and trim the beans. Combine the vinegar, water and salt and bring the brine to a boil. Pack jars tightly without bruising the beans, into sterilized jars into which you have place dill flowers heads, 2-4 cloves of garlic and 1-2 arbor chiles. Slowly pour the hot brine over the beans. wipe the rims, add the rings/screw tops and process in water bath for 5 minutes. Let these pickles cure for two weeks at least before eating.

Is this a mess? Yes. Does it take some time? Yes. Put some music on, pour a glass of wine, perhaps, and enjoy the fun of perfect food prep and the gift of excellent nutrition for your family!

Yelton Manor B&B Mocha Refrigerator Oats

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May 24, 2015 by Elaine

Our oatmeal/chia “breakfast pudding” is wildly popular with choices of organic blueberries, raspberries or blackberries….so this week I invented MOCHA! Pinterest recipes generally called for instant espresso powder and cocoa powder, but I wanted ours to feature premium Manor Blend coffee and organic chocolate. After some experimentation, here it is…and it’s FLYING off the buffet to great acclaim! Make some!

1 cup old fashioned oats

1/8 cup organic chia seeds

1 cup Organic Greek Vanilla Yogurt

3/4 cup 2% milk

1/3 cup cold coffee

3 tsp. organic chocolate syrup Mix, put in jars and cover, refrigerate overnight and enjoy. Keep 3 days easily, a week if you must. Grab and go, a healthy treat!

Yelton Manor Bed & Breakfast Refrigerator Oats

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May 2, 2015 by Elaine

No Cook Refrigerator Oats are a healthy and delicious way to “Grab and Go” into your morning, or take them to work for lunch or a snack. You can make up a batch and they keep well in the fridge for 3-5 days. Use fresh or frozen fruit, your choice. We use small mason jars with the plastic lids available at Amazon.com.

There are many recipes to make these, check online and at Pinterest for recipe varieties. We at YMBB have standardized on this recipe:

Simple!

1 cup Old Fashioned Oats (not instant, not steel cut)

1 cup Vanilla Greek Yogurt (your choice to use plain or fruited)

1/8 cup Chia seeds

1 1/3 cup 2% milk (can use whole/skim milk almond milk, soy or coconut milk, your choice)

Combine ingredients well in a bowl. Use a whisk to be certain that the oatmeal isn’t at all clumped, which will make your yogurt pudding pasty. Then simply layer in jars with organic berries, fruit, chocolate, etc.

Refrigerate overnight and they are ready to eat!

Nutrient Rich and Yummy Vegetable Soup

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January 2, 2015 by Elaine

I have adapted this fabulous soup from a recipe in Cooking Light Magazine. Their recipe calls for store bought veggie stock, perfect for convenience but I heartily recommend making a much improved base by using my own veggie stock recipe. This is a big batch, so plan on a party, share some with friends or put some in the freezer for another day.

2 T olive oil

2 cups chopped yellow onions

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary

1/2-1 teaspoon crushed red pepper to taste

8 cups Veggie Broth (see the quick, no cook version here)

3 cups (16 oz) Yukon gold potatoes, diced

8 cups chopped Rainbow chard, chopped, tender veins only

2 cans unsalted cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes (varied colors is nice!)

In a large soup pan, heat oil over medium heat and saute the onions for 6 minutes. Stir in the lemon zest, rosemary, red pepper, about 1 minute. Stir in the stock and potatoes, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in chard and beans, simmer 10 minutes. Stir in cherry tomatoes. Check for salt and add accordingly.

To take it over the moon, top with a perfect poached or fried egg, perhaps some homemade garlic croutons.

No Cook Veggie Soup Stock

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January 2, 2015 by Elaine

I have previously shared my favorite recipe for veggie stock here. It’s intensely delicious, with deep herb and garlic flavors, but it also takes about 4 hours to make and, ideally, must be used to make soup right away. Perfect for a long, winter weekend in the kitchen but….wouldn’t it be great if homemade stock was available at a moment’s notice? Of course you can choose to buy a good brand of canned/boxed organic broth, but if you are a freak for homemade, here’s the answer.

Cook’s Magazine (I’m an addict) published this in the 2-15 issue, and I just had to try it. Their claim: “This broth has it all: easy preparation, minimal waste, convenient storage, and, best of all, fresh, balanced vegetable flavor.”

It’s made in the food processor, raw and then frozen, for scooping out by the tablespoon whenever you need veggie stock. It chooses celery root instead of celery for “mild, complex celery flavor without bitterness/sourness”, dried minced onion gives it “depth” and tomato paste makes it “savory”. The soy sauce is for the “umami”.

Would it be as flavorful as my long-cooking veggie stock? I had to know! So I made them both and put it to the test.

I know this seems like a salty recipe but once diluted it’s actually perfect. Salt also depresses the freezing point and the concentrate never freezes solid, making it perfectly scoopable from the freezer as needed.

I recommend using a digital scale for the best balance of flavors in this recipe. Kosher salt aids in grinding the vegetables.

Into the Cuisinart with it! Do I still need to remind you that all root vegetables should be certified “Organic”?

2 leeks, white and green parts, chopped and washed, 5 ounces

2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces, 3 ounces

1/2 small celery root, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces, 3 ounces

1/2 cup/1/2 ounce) parsley leaves

3 T dried minced onion

2 T kosher salt

1 1/2 T tomato paste

2 T soy sauce

Process the leeks, celery root, parsley, minced onion and salt, scraping the sides of the bowl frequently, until the paste is as fine as possible, 3-4 minutes. Add tomato paste for 1 minute, scraping sides frequently. Add soy sauce and process another minute. Transfer mixture to an airtight container and tap firmly on the counter to remove air bubbles. Press a piece of parchment paper flush against the surface and cover. Keeps in the freezer for 6 months.

Here is what it looks like when it’s finished. The nearly 2 cups of base makes 28 cups of broth!

Reconstitute by adding 1 tablespoon of this base to 1 cup of boiling water. Strain though cheesecloth if you want a particle free broth, but it’s not necessary.

Here’s a cup of my standard stock, on the left, next to the reconstituted base on the right. The flavors were similar but certainly not the same. The regular stock will still be my favorite for gourmet times and broth dependent soups. But for everyday convenience, like risottos, pastas, sauces or quick soup for two….this freezer option is a winner!!!!