Southern Juju

Family, food, nature, magic, and musings from a mommy in her broom closet.

[southern-juju]

[southern-juju]

My Grandma's Magic Garden (AKA the Compost)

As I contemplated writing about starting a compost of all things, it occurred to me that I have a lot of odd stories about my grandma. My maternal grandma was the daughter of Polish immigrants. She was born and raised in Hartford, CT during the dark days of the Depression and was in high school during World War II. Right after the war, when she was fresh out of school, she met and married my grandfather. He was a young Air Force officer, and their courtship was a two week whirlwind of a romance that resulted in six kids and decades of marriage. After many moves around the world (and by the time I was born), she and my grandfather (a Lt. Colonel) had settled into an upper middle class neighborhood in Northern Virginia between Old Town Alexandria and Mount Vernon -the famous estate of George Washington.

My grandma and grandpa owned a six bedroom house in this neighborhood. Five of these bedrooms were used for people and one was just used for Grandma's clothes. She loved getting dolled up and could be as elegant as a movie star when she wanted to be. However, because of her humble roots, she was also thrifty and hard-working at home (when she wasn't watching soap operas in her bedroom). She was also never afraid to do her "own thing," as she would phrase it, however eccentric her "own thing" might be.

One of her eccentric "own things" was the way she "gardened." Grandma's "garden" was actually an enormous patch of decaying kitchen scraps --AKA a compost heap. Under the rubbish, you could tell that Grandpa had originally intended for this area to be a real garden. It was a large rectangular plot neatly trimmed with gray plywood fencing around the perimeter. It's size mirrored the deck of the tall wooden porch next to it. You could also tell that Grandpa had once tilled the rich Virginian soil. However, instead of cultivating this patch in the traditional way 98% of gardeners do, my Grandma would just hurl buckets of vegetable scraps, egg shells, coffee grounds, and tea bags onto it from the wooden deck above -like a farmer feeding slops to pigs.

Need I say, this "garden" probably made the residents of Grandma's swanky hamlet really happy (she, on the other hand, could give a s*%t what anyone thought).

Once in a while, and I don't know if this used to be standard protocol, Grandma would cover the entire patch with newspaper and and sprinkle it with lime to hasten the process of decay. I am pretty sure you can dispose of dead bodies this way, too, so lime is probably not a product you want big brother seeing you buy on a regular basis -even though alkaline lime can help neutralize acidic waste like pine needles and reduce odor (btw, I am joking about big brother -sort of).

In between these activities, my grandma hardly looked at her heap, and it was during these moments of NOT looking that the MAGIC would happen. Rotten tomatoes would release seeds and fertilize baby plants with sweet decay. Scooped out squash and cucumber seeds would nestle into moist pulp and sprout in the rich soil -gently coaxed by the rain. Grandma's weird compost would magically become a garden of first generation wild edibles -fertilized by the chemical energy of cultivated forebears. The plants that survived and thrived under these hard conditions were strong and untame, just like Grandma.

To a little girl like me, the fruit from this garden was magical because it was a surprise, a gift from the Earth to my grandma because she refused to be wasteful. It felt like Christmas to me every time she walked through her side door with an armload of butternut squash or tomatoes. Of course, we also benefited from these gifts because we got to eat the good cooking a harvest inspired. Contrary to what the neighbors might have thought, we knew that Grandma's thrifty garden was no eyesore but an abundant "waste"land that left us not wanting when it came to meals.

Now, decades later, but still inspired by my memories of Grandma, my family and I have decided to compost, but not using Grandma's open air method. Grandma used to befriend every raccoon and bird that came to visit her "garden." We, on the other hand, are not interested in becoming Chez Rubbish, the new hot spot in town, for every critter near our southern bay. Instead, we have opted to purchase an enclosed, plastic compost barrel that is easy to rotate. The barrel lets air and insects in and keeps rodents out.

The manufacturer's instructions are simple: mix 2 parts Brown materials (wood ash, cardboard, cornstalks, leaves, pine needles, straw, paper -Grandma was on the right track with the newspaper) with one part Green --everything grandma put into her heap plus any green plants (the instructions also say manure, but that is not happening here). It sounds simple enough, but we are clearly newbies, so any advice from more experienced composters is appreciated.

Ultimately, I know that with our new compost barrel, my chances of growing a magical garden like Grandma's are slim to none. Still, I hope to reduce our garbage output by at least one bag a week and to fertilize our sandy soil. And, hey, Grandma, if you are listening, once in a while I still throw fruit directly into my garden patch off season, hoping to create magic just like you did.

[southern-juju]

That time the kids turned Christmas Bells into Baby Yodas. Sorry, Grogu, you were delicious. 😂😋 #maythe4thbewithyou #maytheforcebewithyou #cookingwithkids #kidsinthekitchen #kidscooking #cookies #cookiecutters #creativecooking

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[southern-juju]

Good luck, kitchen garden! We will try to remember to water you. 🙏😅🌱😋😊 #kitchengarden #kitchen #garden #herbs #jalapeños #cookingwithkids #goals #positivevibes

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[southern-juju]

HEALTHY Honey, Peanut Butter, Banana, Chip, Ice Cream

Never throw away an old banana. If you are not in the mood to use them right away, simply peel and slice them, and then store them in the freezer for future smoothies and yummy ice cream like this one (no ice cream maker needed):

Ingredients:

4 ripe bananas

1-2 Tablespoons Honey

2 Tablespoons peanut butter

¼ cup mini chocolate chips or any other yummy mixin’s you can think of (optional)

Directions:

1.peel and slice banana with a knife and freeze.

2. Dump frozen bananas into a food processor or powerful blender. Add peanut butter and honey and blend, scraping sides often, until mixture resembles soft ice cream (don’t be surprised if you have to hold down the food processor at first).

3. Scrape into a quart container, add mixin’s, and freeze for about an hour.

4. Scoop and serve.

To make ice cream sandwiches, scoop ice cream in between your favorite cookies (being careful to not squeeze cookies together too tightly). Refreeze for an hour. Clean up edges with a butter knife. Then, roll sides in sprinkles, chocolate chips, nuts or anything else you can think of. Be creative!

[southern-juju]

My Grandma's Magic Garden (AKA the Compost)

As I contemplated writing about starting a compost of all things, it occurred to me that I have a lot of odd stories about my grandma. My maternal grandma was the daughter of Polish immigrants. She was born and raised in Hartford, CT during the dark days of the Depression and was in high school during World War II. Right after the war, when she was fresh out of school, she met and married my grandfather. He was a young Air Force officer, and their courtship was a two week whirlwind of a romance that resulted in six kids and decades of marriage. After many moves around the world (and by the time I was born), she and my grandfather (a Lt. Colonel) had settled into an upper middle class neighborhood in Northern Virginia between Old Town Alexandria and Mount Vernon -the famous estate of George Washington.

My grandma and grandpa owned a six bedroom house in this neighborhood. Five of these bedrooms were used for people and one was just used for Grandma's clothes. She loved getting dolled up and could be as elegant as a movie star when she wanted to be. However, because of her humble roots, she was also thrifty and hard-working at home (when she wasn't watching soap operas in her bedroom). She was also never afraid to do her "own thing," as she would phrase it, however eccentric her "own thing" might be.

One of her eccentric "own things" was the way she "gardened." Grandma's "garden" was actually an enormous patch of decaying kitchen scraps --AKA a compost heap. Under the rubbish, you could tell that Grandpa had originally intended for this area to be a real garden. It was a large rectangular plot neatly trimmed with gray plywood fencing around the perimeter. It's size mirrored the deck of the tall wooden porch next to it. You could also tell that Grandpa had once tilled the rich Virginian soil. However, instead of cultivating this patch in the traditional way 98% of gardeners do, my Grandma would just hurl buckets of vegetable scraps, egg shells, coffee grounds, and tea bags onto it from the wooden deck above -like a farmer feeding slops to pigs.

Need I say, this "garden" probably made the residents of Grandma's swanky hamlet really happy (she, on the other hand, could give a s*%t what anyone thought).

Once in a while, and I don't know if this used to be standard protocol, Grandma would cover the entire patch with newspaper and and sprinkle it with lime to hasten the process of decay. I am pretty sure you can dispose of dead bodies this way, too, so lime is probably not a product you want big brother seeing you buy on a regular basis -even though alkaline lime can help neutralize acidic waste like pine needles and reduce odor (btw, I am joking about big brother -sort of).

In between these activities, my grandma hardly looked at her heap, and it was during these moments of NOT looking that the MAGIC would happen. Rotten tomatoes would release seeds and fertilize baby plants with sweet decay. Scooped out squash and cucumber seeds would nestle into moist pulp and sprout in the rich soil -gently coaxed by the rain. Grandma's weird compost would magically become a garden of first generation wild edibles -fertilized by the chemical energy of cultivated forebears. The plants that survived and thrived under these hard conditions were strong and untame, just like Grandma.

To a little girl like me, the fruit from this garden was magical because it was a surprise, a gift from the Earth to my grandma because she refused to be wasteful. It felt like Christmas to me every time she walked through her side door with an armload of butternut squash or tomatoes. Of course, we also benefited from these gifts because we got to eat the good cooking a harvest inspired. Contrary to what the neighbors might have thought, we knew that Grandma's thrifty garden was no eyesore but an abundant "waste"land that left us not wanting when it came to meals.

Now, decades later, but still inspired by my memories of Grandma, my family and I have decided to compost, but not using Grandma's open air method. Grandma used to befriend every raccoon and bird that came to visit her "garden." We, on the other hand, are not interested in becoming Chez Rubbish, the new hot spot in town, for every critter near our southern bay. Instead, we have opted to purchase an enclosed, plastic compost barrel that is easy to rotate. The barrel lets air and insects in and keeps rodents out.

The manufacturer's instructions are simple: mix 2 parts Brown materials (wood ash, cardboard, cornstalks, leaves, pine needles, straw, paper -Grandma was on the right track with the newspaper) with one part Green --everything grandma put into her heap plus any green plants (the instructions also say manure, but that is not happening here). It sounds simple enough, but we are clearly newbies, so any advice from more experienced composters is appreciated.

Ultimately, I know that with our new compost barrel, my chances of growing a magical garden like Grandma's are slim to none. Still, I hope to reduce our garbage output by at least one bag a week and to fertilize our sandy soil. And, hey, Grandma, if you are listening, once in a while I still throw fruit directly into my garden patch off season, hoping to create magic just like you did.

[southern-juju]

PINK Potato Salad!!👀 🌸🐰🐣 Just like my Polish G'ma, I sometimes add pickled beets to my favorite homemade potato salad for a pretty (and tasty) Spring twist.

[southern-juju]

Spring Colored Deviled Eggs

(Aka: Sir Simon Dragon’s Famous “Smooshed” Eggs)

Give your boring, yellow, deviled eggs some colorful company on your Spring buffet this season by adding pink pickled beets or pale green avocado to your traditional deviled egg filling. Since this recipe is really about the technique, you can use your family's favorite deviled egg recipe as a base (or ours).

Parents, for no mess no muss fun with the kids, have them make the colorful fillngs in three separate plastic zipper bags. Then have them smash the fillings in the bag (this will keep them occupied with loads of sensory fun for a few precious minutes). When they are finished, make sure the bags are airtight, and chill. Then, simply snip off the corners of the baggies and have your littles pipe the mixtures onto prepared eggwhites and garnish.

Adults and super environmentally conscientious parents can omit the plastic baggies and smash the egg filling with a fork. I originally developed this recipe to accompany one of my kidsbooks, and I had harried moms and dads in mind when I came up with the no mess method.

Enjoy!

Spring Colored Deviled Eggs

(Note: if making all three colors, triple the recipe. This is a great way to use leftover Easter eggs)

Ingredients:

6 hard boiled eggs, cooled and peeled (See my tip for how to boil eggs at the end of this recipe.)

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 tsp. yellow mustard (you don’t need to be precise)

1 tsp. vinegar

Pinch of salt and pepper

Quart sized plastic zipper bag

Paprika, chopped parsley, chives, dill, or cilantro for garnishing (optional)

Directions:

1. Wash your hands.

2. Cut the eggs in half lengthwise.

3. Carefully, scoop the yolks out with a teaspoon and place in plastic zipper bag (you can place your baggy in a cup or small bowl and fold edges over rim to make this easier). Refrigerate whites until fillings are ready (you can simply place on your serving tray and cover with plastic wrap).

4. Add the rest of your ingredients (including mix-in’s if you are making colorful eggs). Leave out the garnish.

5.  Squeeze out any excess air and close your bag TIGHTLY.

6. Now for the FUN! Gently, smash, squeeze and mush all of your ingredients together! When they are mixed well, squeeze ingredients towards one side of your baggy.

6. Make sure your baggies are airtight and chill for 20 minutes in the fridge.

7. Twist the top of the baggy and snip off one corner.

8. Squeeze filling into your egg whites.

9. Decorate with your garnishes (my kids decorated these beauties).

10. Serve right away (avocado will oxidize if it sits too long. If bringing to a party, bring chilled baggies and prepared whites and pipe right before serving).

Mix-in’s (per six eggs)

Pink Eggs:

¼ cup pureed or finely minced pickled beets

1 tsp. chopped fresh dill (or ½ tsp. dry dill)

Dill for garnishing

Spring Green Eggs:

½ ripe avocado smashed with 2 tsps. lemon juice

¼ tsp. chili powder

Cilantro for garnishing

How to make hard-cooked eggs (adult supervision required):

1. Place eggs gently in a pot.

2. Cover with cold water.

3. Place lid on pot and bring water to a boil over high heat.

4. Turn off heat and let eggs sit for 10 minutes.

5. Cool by running under cold water.

*Older eggs are easier to peel than fresh ones (your welcome 😉).

[southern-juju]

Candied Orange Peel

"Waste not want not" was my maternal grandmother's rule. She was the daughter of Polish immigrants, a child of the Great Depression, and a teenager during World War II. As a result, she was hardwired by her hardworking parents never to waste ANYTHING --especially in the kitchen.

My grandma took her philosophy to heart. Her kitchen pots were always bubbling with bone broths and delicious soups made from leftover leftovers. She filled jars of used pickle brine with onions, baby carrots, and cauliflower, and she even saved the juice from cans. She also never threw away orange peels. More often than not, she candied these --though orange peels have many uses (think about rinds in cooking, DIY cleaners, and potpourri) .

If an orange had a beautiful, thick skin, she would give it a good scrub with baking soda and water. Then she would magically slice the peel off into a single, unbroken spiral with her paring knife before eating the juicy flesh (or giving it to me).

Next, she would chop the peel, filling the kitchen with dreamy orange oils, and boil the slices in simple syrup.

After they cooled, she would eat them like gummy bears, which I didn't understand at all. They were way too bitter for me when I little (so was orange marmalade). However, now that I am older, these bittersweet toothsome orange peels are my gummy bears, too -especially when they are dipped in chocolate. They can also be chopped up and added to scones, muffins, cookies, granola, fruit breads, or cakes, and they pair well with anything that loves orange -especially chocolate and cranberries (in my opinion).

Candied Orange Peel

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. Baking Soda to wash the oranges

The peels of 2 oranges

2 cups raw or white sugar plus 1/2 cup raw or white sugar for dusting (optional). Raw sugar will turn the peels an amber color. (Honey can be used, but will result in soft peels).

2 1/2 cups water

Directions:

1. Wash oranges with baking soda and water.

2. Peel the orange with a knife or by hand and use the flesh as usual. Slice peel into 1/4" strips.

3. Place peels in a pot. Cover with one inch of water and boil for 15 minutes, drain, rinse, and drain again. You can repeat this process, if desired; it removes bitternes (Grandma never had the patience for this part).

4. Bring water and sugar to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add orange peel. Reduce heat and simmer until soft (about 45 minutes).

5. Drain and let cool slightly on parchment. After they cool slightly, put them onto fresh parchment, sprinkle with sugar, and allow to dry (that can take up to two days here in the humid South --probably one day in dryer climates). Wrap and freeze up to two months.

Enjoy!

[southern-juju]

Giving kids sharp knives!😅 Beautiful, local Honeybell oranges inspired a lesson with my son on how to cut supremes.

🤔That orange rind is too gorgeous to put in the compost. 💡😃🍊 To be continued...

[southern-juju]

🌈 Rainbow Fruit Salad fit for a Leprechaun. There's even a pot of gold (golden honey drizzled over yogurt and topped with banana "coins"). A kiwi shamrock and a fluffy whipped cream cumulus cloud add to the magic. 🍀✨

[southern-juju]

💩 Why Poop Should Stay Trendy

(The Story of a Worm --and a Kids' Book Writer)

As a kids' book author trying to find an agent, I have come to realize that the real way to make money might be to cave in and write about poop (or, perhaps, specifically unicorns that leave glittering light trails of poop in trendy Frappucino colors🤔). Honestly, I think the real money is in plain old poop, sooo... ok, then, here I go. Today I will shame myself and write about something SUPER trendy 💩:

The "Tail" of a Super Pooper

Once there was a lowly worm, but what the world around him didn't realize when they looked at his or her...🤔 (they are hermaphrodites, so let's call "them" Wormy). What the world didn't realize when they looked at Wormy's slimy, wriggling brownish-pink body was that "their" poop was the entire foundation of the earth we stand upon. Without Wormy the "Super Pooper," life on our little planet as we know it would end...

...I know, this sounds pretty dramatic, but, honestly, this story is true. Without Wormy and his kin, life on Earth as we know it would, arguably, disappear pretty quickly. Along with other tiny and equally important critters, worms complete the circle of life by eating everything they can get their slender, slimy bodies on: rotting plants, dead animals, fungus -even bacteria, and sending it back to the Earth as chemical energy. Worms are clearly not very discerning, and they consume up to 1/3 of their body weight every day (that would be like a 60lbs. kid eating 80 quarter pound burgers in a day. Even my 11 year old son can't do that). As you can guess, this translates into poop, A LOT of poop --which is GREAT! This awesome poop provides vital nutrients that keep the Earth's soil viable and healthy -- pretty important if we want food, oxygen, and other minor things like that. Our little Super Poopers' secret tunnels also aerate the soil and improve drainage and water flow to plants.  

Which brings me back to our little protagonist Wormy...

Wormy actually didn't wear a cape, but two little kids recognized Wormy's superpowers right away. They knelt down on the moist soil before Wormy's wriggling body and asked Wormy to help them try to save the Earth by starting a compost with them (after all, even the small efforts count). Wormy recognized that the kids were heroes, too, and said...

"Sure."

As a reward, Wormy the Super Pooper lived happily ever after, eating lots of fruit and vegetable scraps, grass cuttings, green tea bags, and tons of coffee (though, Wormy never did get to try, or poop out, the tasty dregs of a Unicorn Frapuccino).

The End

Btw, my 9 year old just informed me that 💩 poop is soooo 2019. However, I think I made a compelling case for why it should never go out of style... And, hey, literary agents, I have no shame. In fact, I enjoyed making poop the star of my story --well...at least, the side-kick.

I tried!

*Coming Soon: Starting a Compost

[southern-juju]

Ummm...we had buttermilk milk and fresh local strawberries. Buttermilk Strawberry Shortcake with Lemon Yogurt Cream.

[southern-juju]

Cookies for our cute, cuddly, cooky canine. #kidscooking #cookingwithkids #dogtreats #dogsofinstagram #poop

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[southern-juju]

Letting kids learn with sharp knives. 😱 It's what you teach them to do for themselves. #cookingwithkids #kidscooking #knives #education #tomatoes

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[southern-juju]

Simple Homemade Butter

(A No Recipe, Recipe for Kids)

When my munchkins don't feel like doing chores, they love to be reminded by their history-buff mama that, back in the day, kids had way more work to do around the house. Whenever my son and/or daughter feels like putting socks in a drawer or making a bed is too cumbersome a task, I gleefully point out that before the existence of conviences like washing machines, video games, and Uber Eats, kids had to help scrub laundry on washboards, wake up early to feed farm animals, help with butter and candle making, and, basically do whatever they were told. I can tell by the way my kids roll their eyes that this lecture makes me really popular 😉.

Much to my surprise, however, there was one old-fashioned, kid chore from my litany that actually sparked my kids' interest --butter making. I decided to roll with their curiosity, and soon, with a little research, we learned that in pioneer America (and all over the world) kids were indeed often tasked with turning fresh cream into butter using a butter churn: a tall pot with a lid that had a hole in it big enough to fit a large stick called a “dasher” or “churn dash.” The kids would move the stick up and down until the cream inside of the pot transformed from liquid, to whipped peaks, and finally to thick creamy butter clotted in puddles of thin white buttermilk. They would then strain off the buttermilk, rinse the butter solids, and mold the butter into shapes –sometimes using pretty molds. Salt was often added for flavor and to aid in preservation, and, once in a while, families even added wholesome ingredients (like carrot juice) for fun colorful twists.

For children who lived a long time ago, butter making was not a hard job, but it could be time consuming. To keep from getting too bored, families all over the world often sang short songs or poems (like little raps) about their butter. In fact, almost every country where butter is made has a butter song --from the far reaches of mountainous Tibet and colorful India to the emerald shores of Ireland and the white cliffs of England.

In fact, in England people sometimes sang:

Come, butter, come,

Come, butter, come

Peter’s Standing at the gate,

Waiting for a buttered cake,

Come, butter, come

We discovered that making butter at home is EASY. Simply fill a mason jar about one third of the way up with heavy cream, screw the lid on tightly, and shake the cream like a milkshake until the solids and liquids separate like in our simple recipe below.

Btw, if you are gonna shake it like a milkshake, you might as well try singing while you're at it (we did!). Maybe you can make up your very own butter rap song!

To Make Butter You Will Need:

A mason jar with lid

Heavy Whipping Cream

Directions:

1. Fill a mason jar 1/3 of the way full with cream.

2. Shake and shake the jar (it’s nice if you can take turns with a friend). The liquid will stiffen into whip cream.  Keep shaking!  A few minutes later the cream will separate into solids and liquids.  Shake and shake and shake until a solid chunk of butter forms.

3. Strain off liquid. (You can use this buttermilk instead of regular milk in your baking recipes. It is not acidic enough to use in recipes that call for store bought buttermilk, which is cultured.)

This butter is delicious plain, but you can add salt to taste if you like (it will help your butter stay preserved, too).  You can also flavor your butter with the following mix-ins:

Herb Butter:

Mix ½ cup butter with ¼ cup chopped fresh herbs (such as chives, dill, basil, parsley, or thyme).

Cinnamon Butter:

Mix ½ cup of butter with 3 tablespoons of honey or sweetened condensed milk. Stir in ½ to 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.

Fresh butter on fluffy pancakes gets a thumbs up from my crew! 😋

[southern-juju]

Teaching my kids to eat 🌈 rainbows. Homemade salsa with chips for snack time. #cookingwithlove #cookingwithkids #snackattack #remotelearning

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