Fresh Herbs for Spring/Summer

I'm trying something very out of the ordinary for me...growing plants. I tried to have a garden as a small child and became traumatized when the rabbits ate all my flowers. I have not been able to keep plant-type things alive very well sense.

But in the spirit of cooking, and spring, I'm giving it another shot with a few fresh herbs. I have the world's best boss, and she has been teaching me about different types of plants and gardening and such. One Monday morning she bought be some little planted herbs from the farmer's market as a gift! Thus, I needed to get a cute pot to plant them in. And, of course the pot I wanted required a few more plants, and so the adventure begins.

For my lil' fancy herb pots I have planted:

- Regular ol' Basil

- Thyme

- Cilantro

- Spicy Globe Basil

Here's What I Got:

All of my plants all lined up

My cute planter. All three pots are connected to the same drain pan type thing. Sorry for the poor quality photo, but you get to see the cute colors of the planter!

I stole some of my mom's miracle grow potting soil.

Here they are all planted!

Spicy Globe Basil. This stuff smells REALLY good.

Cilantro! I feel some fresh salsa coming on....

And finally... Thyme

What I've Learned:

- Learning to have a green thumb may just be fun!

- Check back with me when I actually make something using the herbs. I'll let you know how it turns out!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Kara

Ginger Cookies for Mom

I love my Mom and my mom loves ginger snaps and baking. Coincidentally, so do I. So, I thought what better Mother's Day present than some home made treats. So, I made her these oh-so-yummy, deliciously chewy, not-so-springtime, but who cares? chewy ginger cookies.

Here's the Recipe:

INGREDIENTS :
2 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour (you get it in that funky little box section in the baking aisle where all the flax seed and crap like that is)
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup margarine, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon water (use orange juice if you want to bring out the ginger flavor, I did!)
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons white sugar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2.Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture.
Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and flatten slightly.

3.Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Here's What I Got:

Gritty delicious batter. It's quite the quick mix, and quite simple.


Little ball of dough all rolled up in sparkly sugar


Fresh from the oven


Taking time to cool down.


Wrapped up and ready for my mom


What I learned:
- I miss cooking/baking and blogging
- These cookies are so simple, yet so delicious
- Baked goods make the best gifts
- I wouldn't change a thing about these
- I LOVE MY MOM!!

Thanks for stopping by!
~Kara