How To Make Wild Violet Syrup

Our violets have bloomed in all of their purple-blue glory! I love watching them wash over the orchard, it's so beautiful. We've spent hours picking them lately for syrups, bread and to be dried into tea. We wanted to share one of our favorite violet recipes in case you have a bunch that you don't know what to do with. 

Make sure you know what wild violets look like and don't confuse them with African violets, the ones that are safe to eat have heart-shaped jagged leaves and purple flowers although they can come in many shades and even white. They grow in zones 3-9 in shady places. Wild Violets are full of vitamin A & C (they contain more vitamin C by weight than oranges) and other vitamins and minerals. 

Violets can be made into jelly, syrup, tea, violet vinegar, candied flowers, you can even freeze them in ice cubes to jazz up your drink.

What you will need:

Quart canning jar
Measuring cup
Lids
Fine strainer
Small Pan
Wisk
Lemon Juice
Wild Violets

Recipe:

1 cup of wild violets
2 cups of boiling water
1 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Step 1: 

Pick the violets, remove stems, leaves and as much of the greens as you can. Wash them gently and let them dry.

Step 2:

Fill canning jar with 1 cup of flowers, meanwhile, boil water. Pour water over flowers, you will begin to see the color bleed into the water.

Step 3:

Cover the jars and allow to steep for 24 hours.

Step 4:

Strain the contents through a fine strainer, into a bowl or large measuring cup. You can discard flowers, you can throw them away or simply compost them like we do. 

Step 5: 

Add lemon juice to the strained liquid, a drop or to at a time.

Step 6:

Place liquid in a pan and add sugar, bring to a boil, whisk until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and pour into a clean sterilized jar with a lid. Store in refrigerator.

Watch the video we made of the whole process

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Spinach Enchiladas

This is a really different spin on a classic dish we love. We came up with these on New Year's Eve as we were eating spinach dip waiting for midnight, turns out they are as tasty as we thought they would be!

Ingredients:

10 Ounces frozen spinach thawed
8 Ounces cream cheese
1 Cup shredded white cheddar
1 Cup Jack cheese
1 Cup Mozzarella
2 Teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Cup Sour Cream

1/2 Cup Salsa
Cheddar cheese (topping)
Tortillas

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix spinach, cream cheese, white cheddar, Jack and Mozzarella cheese, garlic, salt, sour cream and salsa in a bowl and set aside. Lightly fry tortillas in oil, remove from pan, spoon spinach mixture down one side, add some shredded cheddar cheese to the top and roll tortilla. Place in a casserole dish, continue until the dish is full. Cover with more cheese and bake until cheese is melted.

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Raspberry Pancake Recipe

Who doesn't love pancakes? Growing up they were our go-to breakfast item for sleepovers, mom would get up early and make homemade syrup with fresh fruit and delicious pancakes for all of us. It was always so good! So we thought we would share one her yummy recipes with you! These are easy to make and taste amazing- best yet they don't have any artificial colors or flavors.

Ingredients:

1 cup of organic flour
1 1/4 teaspoon of non-aluminum baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon Himalayan Pink Salt
2 free-range cottage eggs
1 cup of cream, half and half or sour cream
1/2 cup milk
coconut oil

Direction:

Place dry ingredients starting with flour in a mixing bowl. Add your eggs (beaten) sour cream and milk to the top and let sit 5 -6 minutes. You will start to see the cream or sour cream and eggs reacting to the leavening. This will make your cakes more fluffy. Gently fold in the ingredients. Do not over mix. Cook on an oiled griddle on medium heat. When bubbles form on top and pop making air holes, flip your pancake. When finished keep on a plate in a warm oven until all are done and ready to serve.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Cup Raspberries

2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice

1/2 Cup Honey

Directions:

Place ½ cup of blueberries in a blender and blend well, add lemon juice. In a small pan put honey and add your berry puree. To this add remaining berries and heat gently. Keep warm and pour over buttered warm pancakes.

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Chicken Lo Mein

This recipe is pretty easy to make and really tasty. One of Brianna's favorite things to cook is Chinese, she's always experimenting with new flavors and recipes and this is one of our many favorites. 

Ingredients:

3 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup coconut aminos
1 tbsp avocado oil
1/2 tsp olive oil
1 large clove garlic coarsely chopped
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cornstarch
pepper to taste
1/2 lb (8 oz) Chinese Noodles
4-6 chicken tenders
2 heads of broccoli, fresh, cut into small pieces

Instructions:

Combine the chicken broth, coconut aminos, coconut oil, Avacado oil, minced garlic, ground ginger and cornstarch in a large pot. Place the chicken tenders on the bottom of the pot, layering the Chinese noodles on top. Heat some oil in a large skillet and saute the broccoli for 3 minutes then add a little water and steam for 4 more minutes. Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 5-7 minutes or until most of the liquid is gone and the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pot, slice into bite-sized pieces. Stir the chicken chunks and the broccoli together and serve.

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Jambalaya Recipe

Nothing beats a spicy batch of Jambalaya! This is a family favorite here at the Cottage, it's really easy to make and tastes amazing! 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 onion, diced
1 small green bell pepper, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (16 ounce) can crushed Italian tomatoes
10 ounces andouille sausage, sliced into rounds
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 1/4 cups uncooked white rice
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

Direction:

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a dutch oven over medium heat, saute sausage until browned. Remove from pan retaining the oil, add the other tablespoon of oil to the pan. Place the onion, bell pepper, garlic, and celery in the pan and saute until tender. Stir in tomatoes, red pepper flakes, salt, Tabasco sauce, and Cajun seasoning. Add sausage to the pan, cook for 10 minutes stirring occasionally, stir in rice and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes.

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Creamy Garlic Scallops

Buttery, creamy, garlic deliciousness! We served our scallops over a bed of rice and served it with fresh parsley on top.

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 1/4 Pounds Scallops
2  Tablespoons Butter
4-5 Large Cloves Of Garlic Minced
Salt and Pepper To Taste
1/4 Cup Dry White Wine or Broth
1 Cup Cream
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
Parsley and Parmesan to Garnish

Directions:

1. If scallops are frozen, thaw in cold water (about 30 minutes). Thoroughly pat dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper on both sides.

2. Heat oil in a large pan or skillet over medium-high heat until hot and sizzling. Add the scallops in a single layer without overcrowding the pan.

3. Fry for 2-3 minutes until a golden crust forms underneath, then flip and repeat. (Crisp, lightly browned and cooked through.) Remove from Skillet and transfer to a plate.

4. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in the same skillet, scraping up any browned bits left over from the scallops. Add the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.

5. Pour in wine (or broth) and bring to a simmer for 2 minutes or until the wine has reduced by half. Add cream and lemon juice and allow to simmer until slightly thickened.

6. Remove pan from heat and add scallops back in to warm through.

7. Serve over rice, pasta, garlic bread or steamed vegetables and garnish with parsley and parmesan cheese.

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Healthy Strawberry Shake

This is one of our favorite shake recipes! It's super easy to make and tastes AMAZING! Creamy, sweet but not overly sweet, and it isn't bad for you which makes it even better. You're going to love it! 

Directions:

1/4 frozen banana
3/4 cup frozen strawberries
1 cup organic milk, coconut or almond milk
A few drops of vanilla stevia (if desired) or just add 1/2 tsp vanilla
A handful of ice cubes
Splash of cream (If desired)

Directions:

Put ingredients in your blender. Whirl until smooth. Midway I like to splash a bit of cream just to make it really creamy. Pour into a cup with a large straw. This is thick and delicious! If you want to you can add a bit of whipped cream on top to make it pretty and top with a berry. Enjoy!

Let us know if you like it!

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Raspberry Mousse

This recipe is such a light and delicious dessert. It about melts on your tongue and it is not too sweet.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of cold water
1/2 cup of boiling water
2 tsp gelatin (we used this grass-fed beef gelatin)
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup raw organic sugar (or your sugar of choice)
1 1/4 cup of raspberries
2 cups heavy cream
1 vanilla bean (you can use extract if you'd like)

Directions:

Place your mixers, bowl, and beater in the refrigerator to cool. To begin place your cold water and gelatin in a small saucepan and let sit for 5 min. In another pan boil your water and after the 5 min above has passed add the boiling water, sugar, vanilla bean, lemon juice, and berries. Stir. Turn the eye to medium heat and boil. When it hits a boil turn down to low stir and cook for five minutes. Cool and put in your blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Place your container in the refrigerator and cool. When your berry mix has cooled measure out 2 cups of cold heavy cream.
Remove your bowl and beater from the refrigerator and place in your mixer and beat your cream on high for about one minute or so until the cream has stiff peaks that appear (and do not fall) when you lift the beater on your mixer. Do not overbeat. Remove the bowl from your mixer and get a spatula.

Pour the cooled berry compote over to the side in the bowl a little at a time and use your spatula to fold the ingredients in slowly. Place the spatula at the bottom of the bowl gently lifting the whipped cream and then using an arcing motion gently fold the cream over the fruit.  Continue until all of the fruit is in the cream.

Spoon the mousse into your favorite bowls or glasses. You can top with whipped cream and a berry or like we did alternate whipped cream, mousse, whipped cream, mousse. To get a neater appearance use a piping bag for icing and a wide tip and pipe the mousse into the containers. Place in refrigerator for one hour to chill and serve.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies

We always have so much fun playing around in the kitchen, creating new things and putting a twist on a classic favorite. Like these delicious peanut butter cookies drizzled with allergy friendly dark chocolate! These are so good and super easy to make!

Ingredients: 

1 1/4 Cup Organic All-Purpose Flour

3/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda

1/4 Teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt

1/2 Cup Grass Fed Butter

1/2 Cup Organic Peanut Butter or other nut butter

1 Cup Raw Sugar

1 Free Range Organic Egg

1/2 Teaspoon Organic Vanilla Extract 

Simple Truth Organic Chocolate Chips (Allergy Friendly)

Directions:

In a small bowl stir together flour, soda, and salt. In a mixer bowl beat butter for 30 seconds. Add peanut butter and sugar. Beat till fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; beat well. Add dry ingredients to beaten mixture; mix until combined. Shape into small balls Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Let cookies cool on a wire rack. When cool melt a few chocolate chips in a double boiler or your microwave. When melted drizzle cookies with chocolate and put back on the wire rack to set.

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