Homemade Root Beer

When a spot opened up on the annual "Botanical Walk" at Ramapo College, offered to our garden club by the fascinating Dr. Susan Petro, I decided to go again, and once again, became intrigued by the Sassafras albidum plant that she showed us.  Sassafras, which grows wild in my backyard, used to be used to flavor root beer.  However, large amounts given to rats were found to cause cancer, so its use as a flavoring was forbidden by the FDA in 1976.  File powder, used to make gumbo and other cajun dishes, is made by drying and grinding up the leaves, which are not as toxic.

The roots smell amazing!

Of course, nothing more needed to be said to make me slightly obsessed with breaking the rules and trying a brew from this "forbidden" root that was so conveniently growing 20 feet from my back door.  Why? Why even bother with it when it could be so dangerous?   Well, I did some research and nothing I read convinced me that I'd be taking my life into my hands by introducing a small amount of sassafras, just this one time, to my already embattled liver.   However, please consider this a warning and imbibe at your own risk. 

You can recognize sassafras by the leaves, which have 3 shapes - triple lobed, double lobed or "mitten" shaped, and unlobed.

Anise Hyssop

Since I was going to use only a small amount of sassafras, I thought I should probably flavor the root beer with a few other things:  anise hyssop leaves - also very easy to find in my yard, since it re-seeds so prolifically, star anise, chai tea (mostly for color), brown sugar, vanilla and molasses.  Other possible additions to a custom root beer brew could include ginger, clove, orange or citrus oil, wintergreen and cinnamon.

Star anise

Root Beer Recipe
20 inches of cleaned sassafrass root
20 anise hyssop leaves, washed
1 chai teabag
1/4 cup star anise
2 tsp. vanilla
1.5 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp molasses
carbonated water

Start by making the brew:  cover the sassafras root, anise hyssop leaves and star anise with 2 quarts of water and bring to a boil.  Add the teabag and steep until the brew is a nice brown color (about 10 minutes), then remove the teabag.  Cover the brew and allow to steep and cool overnight. 

The next day strain out the solids.  Add 2 t. of vanilla, 1.5 cups of brown sugar, and 2 Tbsp. of molasses.  Stir well to dissolve and heat the mixture to boiling.   Continue to boil, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes or until the mixture is reduced by half- you will have a sweet, root beer flavored syrup. 

The syrup can be added to carbonated water in any proportion you like. (If you have a Penguin or SodaStream, add the syrup as you would any of the other flavorings - you can play with the carbonation and proportions to suit your taste.)  I used about a cup of syrup to 3 cups of carbonated water.  

I always like to see the results of the taste tests done over at Serious Eats.  Here's the one they did for root beers.  What's your favorite kind of root beer?

Chicken Wontons with Mango Sauce

It's so great to be pulling handfuls of fresh herbs out of the garden again. So many recipes are adaptable, so it's an act of creativity to wander and wonder what flavor combos will work best, deciding right there on the spot. One thing thats growing wild in my yard right now is field garlic. It's everywhere and pitches in as a substitute for chives, scallions, garlic and even onion when sauteed.

Combined with fresh cilantro, chopped chicken and water chestnuts, it makes a great wonton filling.  This recipe was given to me long ago by Jack Young, a member of one of my long-lost online book groups, when I asked for something different to do with chicken.  The kids enjoyed folding the dumplings and making the mango sauce, too.


INGREDIENTS: 

1 package of wonton wrappers (also known as Large Fresh Dumpling Peel)

For the filling:
8 water chestnuts (fresh or canned)
2 medium chicken breasts
1 handful of field garlic or one large scallion, chopped
1/4 c. cilantro, chopped
1 egg
1 T. soy sauce
1/3 c. bread crumbs
salt & pepper to taste

For the sauce:
1 mango, sliced with pit removed
1/4 c. white vinegar
1 T. sugar
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped

In a food processor, process the water chestnuts until coarse.  Add the chicken breasts and continue to process until the mixture is smooth (about 10-15 seconds).  Transfer to a mixing bowl and add the field garlic or scallion, cilantro, egg, soy sauce, salt and pepper.  Fold in the bread crumbs.

Make the wontons using the traditional technique normally found on the wonton wrapper pacakaging.  Use about 3/4 teaspoon of the filling for each wonton. (Wontons may be makde ahead, placed on a plate or tray covered by plastic wrap and refridgerated until ready).


For appetizers, deep fry wontons in peanut or corn oil for a few minutes over medium-high heat, being careful to not overcook.  Place them on paper towels to absorb excess oil.

Serve with Mango Sauce which is easily made by combining  mango, vinegar and sugar in a food processor.  For extra zest, add in a chopped jalapeno pepper to the sauce.

I'm looking for some other good wonton fillings - any ideas?

Getting Stronger Every Day: Spring Veggie Update

This probably should have been two posts, but I haven't said much here about the vegetables we're starting, and I have a lot to catch up on. The school greenhouse is packed!

Parsley and dill need a bit more time in here, but I'm hoping to get this broccoli in the ground within the next few days. 

Earlier this week, I started some squash: "Goldy" Summer Squash, "Cashflow" Zucchini, "Black" Zucchini, "Delicata", "Sweet Dumpling", and a Pumpkin Mix. 

This is my first time starting onions from seed. I did both "Cippolini" and Red ones. Before planting in the ground, the greens are supposed to be cut down to just 3 inches.

There are "American Slicing" and "Japanese Long" cucumbers.  I started both "Sungold" cherry and "Brandywine" Tomatoes, and I think they were planted to early.  They're outgrowing their pots, hogging up lots of space, turning yellow and some are even flowering already. 

This is the red okra - looking good.  It's about to flower -- I hope my flowers look like Bangchik's eventually.

Another first: Savoy cabbage.  E. planted all of these in the ground the day before the frost warning this past week.  I put a fabric cover over them.  They seem to be okay.

I put the sugar snap peas back up on the deck. There are a few Tuscan kale seedlings in there with them.

Now here's a challenge: Summer Iceberg Lettuce.  This is being grown at the request of the S. man, who likes his lettuce with crunch.  I like a thick chunk of iceberg with some homemade dressing as much as the next person, but I think we are a very long way from a wedge.  I hope I didn't try to harden these off too early.  They look a bit leggy and pathetic.

Quite a few of the herbs in the raised bottle bed came back - and all the bottle survived the winter intact!

One disappointment though was my favorite: lemon thyme.  I thought it would make a stronger showing than this by now.

Garlic seems very happy.

I planted swiss chard, spinach, red romaine and radishes in bed #1 - I was inspired by the formations done in the beds at the NYBG "Edible Garden" exhibit last year.  I used a bamboo pole to guide a criss-cross sow.

Got ourselves one of those tiered strawberry beds.  I foraged some wild Alpine strawberries for this bed, too. 

 Arugula came back up without any help from me!

Here are some nice trays hardening off at school.  The second graders planted these!

Have you planted any veggies yet?

My "Mad Men" avatar. You can have one, too!

Project Feederwatch Update

Project Feederwatch is underway and although I’ve been sharing a periodic count and photo in the sidebar, I thought I’d fill in a few more details. It seems I’ve been feeding my visitors the birdseed equivalent of oatmeal.  The true caviar of bird feed, ording to my trusted sources Our Friend Ben, the venerable Nyack Villager, and Proud Procrastinator’s ornithologist dad, is black oil sunflower seeds. When I saw that my seed was running low, I purchased a bag of these and am dedicating a single feeder just to these gourmet tidbits.  Business is booming.

What seems to have made the biggest change in my clientele, though, is the addition of suet to the menu. We started with a single regular hairy woodpecker visitor and now we’re up to 4 hairys and a red-bellied.

The titmice, juncos, doves and nuthatch are always around.

The sparrow markings are fun to note.  In these rather bad photos, you might be able to see the different masks and markings.  A few of the sparrows are distinctive because of their white throats. 

One day, I saw a purple finch!  (I did get a photo but can't seem to find it anywhere - I'll keep looking!)

Another time, a flock of starlings visited the yard. Only a couple were brave enough to visit the feeder that day, but since then, the starling population has been growing consistently.

The chickadees are my favorite. They are the littlest and cutest. And they seem not to be as camera shy.

We get excited when we spot a rare cardinal. 

I saw a robin today hopping around in the yard. Spring can’t be far behind. I guess that means I have to clean my deck.

Distractions abound.  I'm talking about that crazy-schedule-full-time-job-no-blogging-time thing.  Plus my Bloglines subscriptions got screwed up and now I have to subscribe to everything again.  I've missed visiting everyone and hope to catch up with all my blogging friends this weekend!

How to Make a Pinecone Wreath

Warning: this is the non-Martha way to do it. You are welcome to go to her site and find the “right” way to do it, using lots more wire and sheets of moss. This is the shortcut method for people whose cookies will burn or children will bleed if they get too caught up in craft projects.


Supplies needed:
About 3 quarts of pinecones per wreath
12” grapevine wreath frame (from craft store)
Small decorative ornaments, picks or bulbs
Glue gun and glue sticks
Floral wire – about 12 inches

1) Get the kids out from in front of the TV and send them out into the backyard or neighborhood with some bags to collect pinecones (and don't let them back into the house until they're found!).   If there are no trees near you producing pinecones, you can probably get them at your local craft store or Oriental Trading. Get a variety if you can. If the squirrels haven't taken all the larger acorns, they’re nice too.

2) Inspect for bugs. Not a bad idea to rinse them off. Lots of ours had a nice frosting of sap on them. I like this because it smells wonderful, but it can make them a little sticky. (or if you're like me you can break out in little red bumps wherever the sap touches you.  Small price to pay for beauty.)

3) Lay out the cones on the wreath and decide on your layout. They look nice 2 or 3-deep in a braid-like pattern.

4) Using the hot glue gun, make two dime-sized globs of glue on the top and bottom of the pinecone. Apply them to the wreath one at a time. (Note: Older kids can do this, but make sure they’re instructed on how to use the glue gun. It’s very easy to get a burn from hot glue, or by touching the wrong spot on the gun. Emergency room visits can ruin your night.)

5) Apply glue to the base of the ornament or pick. Find the ugly or empty spots in between the pine cones and fill them in. Acorns can be added now, too.

6) Take the wire and twist it so that it loops at one end. Tie the other two ends around the wreath so that the loop is in the back. The loop can be used to hang the wreath from a nail. Or you can skip this step and just hang it from the grapevine.

Now it’s just a matter of waiting until some kid slams the door a little too hard, dislodging the wreath, so it comes crashing down, making it necessary for you to re-glue a large percentage of loose pinecones. Have fun!

If you’ve ever had a regretable craft project, you have to see the snarky and hilarious blog, Regretsy. Where do they find this stuff? (They’re probably outside taking a photo of my wreath right now!)