Huckleberry–Rhubarb Galette

On July 20, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn baked, Column4 Comments

Huckleberries are the flavor of summer in Montana, whether you venture into the woods to find your own or not. Pickers horde them to enjoy all year, reliving memories of summer days with each burst of the sweet, intense fruit. As I share this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, once I’ve left a mountainside with purple-stained fingers and tongue and a bellyful—perhaps too full—of huckleberries, I use my haul judiciously to stretch out the berry season.

This week’s recipe, pairing huckleberries and rhubarb in a freeform tart, does just that. If you freeze hucks on a tray and then bag them for the freezer, and if you chop and bag rhubarb to freeze, you can make this tart off-season too. Blueberries can stand in for huckleberries if you don’t harvest the wild fruit, and tart apples can stand in for the rhubarb if you don’t grow and freeze the stalks.
Learn to make Huckleberry–Rhubarb Galette

DIY Herb Blends

On July 13, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, dehydrated3 Comments

When I moved into my 500-square-foot cabin, building custom, open shelves for the tiny kitchen was a top priority. I designed them for exactly how I planned to use the limited space, sketching out what would live on each shelf. That included two 3- by 24-inch shelves where I could stack a set of little canisters holding 50 different spices.

I adhere to Madhur Jaffrey’s view on spices: “If you can put one spice into a pan, you can easily put in ten or even fifteen.” So I happily stored individual canisters of each spice and herb I use regularly and had little interest in premixed blends. But I slowly started to see their value: pickling spices for canning, a version of a favorite restaurant’s Cajun mix, za’atar to sprinkle on just-boiled bagels and popcorn, a friend’s sweet spice blend to replace cinnamon in almost anything.

When my parents asked for easy ways to keep their meals flavorful yet simple, my first thoughts turned to spice blends. Mom knows the value and versatility of individual spices, but aging dulls taste and smell and makes small kitchen tasks more challenging. Topping my list to prepare for her was a simple blend of homegrown, home-dried herbs she could sprinkle on anything. I share it this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon.
Learn to make DIY Herb Blend

Dill-Infused Yogurt Sauce or Dressing

On July 6, 2023July 6, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, Ingredient, TopicLeave a comment

Dill may be an annual herb, but it self-seeds so readily that I think of it as part of my perennial collection. Like cilantro, I save some seed to use each year in the kitchen, letting the rest drop in the garden for next year’s crop. Dill seed isn’t quite as versatile as cilantro seed (better known as coriander), but I keep a bit on hand to use in pickles and mustards.

Fresh dill fronds can find more uses, as I share this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon. Sometimes called dill weed to distinguish it from full dill heads or individual seeds, its strong flavor goes a long way, although I do pile it on when making gravlax. With a self-seeded crop, I can harvest plenty of fronds without running short on dill heads. We recently discovered another bonus of growing dill: a brood of black swallowtail caterpillars. They’re such beautiful and effective pollinators I’m happy to share some of my dill with them.
Learn to make Dill-Infused Yogurt Sauce or Dressing

Chocolate Pudding Cake, Snack or Stacked

On June 29, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn cakes, ColumnLeave a comment

Seven years! Seven years ago, I started writing the Twice as Tasty blog. What started as a personal project led to workshops and house concerts, a cookbook and a column, and the launchpad for so much of the other food writing I do today. I’m especially appreciative of those of you who have been following my journey from the beginning, and I’m thrilled that so many more of you have joined in over the years.

To celebrate, I share my favorite chocolate cake recipe this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon. When I say “my favorite,” really I mean that unless I have a surplus of zucchini, this is the only chocolate cake I make. My mom discovered the original recipe when I was still a teenager. I’ve made a few tweaks but I’ve never needed another technique because this one is that good.
Learn to make Chocolate Pudding Cake, Snack or Stacked

Cheese- and Bacon-Stuffed Burgers

On June 22, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, grilledLeave a comment

One of the perks about writing my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon is that I learn about food I don’t eat personally. Mitchell Farm, where I garden, raises and sells all-natural, purebred Red Angus beef. So I was excited when the owner and my garden partner, Leah Mitchell, offered to share a favorite recipe with my meat-loving followers.

On a recent evening, I learned the ins and outs of burger making and how to get the right sear on a Traeger Grill, a tool I’d never used and was eager to try. My contributions to the meal were mainly burger toppings: German-Inspired Spicy Mustard, Half-Sour Dill Pickles, Grilled Onion Relish, and other options from my pickling cookbook. I also found my own spin for the main recipe: The cheese filling, without the bacon, makes a delicious pescatarian-friendly topping for grilled salmon.
Learn to make Cheese- and Bacon-Stuffed Burgers

Strawberry-Rhubarb Shrub

On June 15, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, refrigerated3 Comments

If you’d walked into my kitchen late last night, you would have found me turning some of summer’s first fruit into a batch of shrub. A drinking shrub, as I share this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, is an old DIY beverage that fans of today’s sparking water and hard seltzers should have on their radar. The combination of fruit, vinegar, and sugar into a concentrate that is then diluted with fizzy water to taste packs a flavor punch and quenches thirst of hot summer days. Mix in a couple of shots of alcohol and you end up with a sparkling evening cocktail.

I usually have several shrub flavors in my fridge, made with the current bumper crop of fresh fruit or whatever I squirreled away in the freezer for the off-season. Although I find strawberries too sweet to pair with rhubarb in desserts and jams, the vinegar in a shrub balances this popular combination for my taste buds.
Learn to make Strawberry-Rhubarb Shrub

Gluten-Free Scallion Pancakes

On June 8, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, grainsLeave a comment

If you think of pancakes as sweet breakfast treats, think again. Savory pancakes can be eaten any time of day and make a delicious light summer meal that features seasonal veggies—in and on them. This week, in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon, I share one of the first variations I make each summer. It’s easy to make, delicious, and—bonus—gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan.

You can make scallion pancakes with store-bought scallions (also called green onions), but if you grow your own bulb onions, you can swap in small ones as you’re thinning your onion bed. I make them even earlier in the season with walking onions and then later in summer with just the green tops from nearly full-grown bulb onions that I pull early to use fresh.

Other vegetables and herbs work well in savory pancake batter, including zucchini with basil and grilled peppers with chives. I then pile on more vegetables as toppings, especially pickled ones like Tangy Radish Rounds, Ripe Cherry Tomato Pickles, Pickled Avocado Slices, and other quick pickles from my cookbook.
Learn to make Gluten-Free Scallion Pancakes

Arugula Salad with Asparagus and Shaved Parmesan

On May 11, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, salads1 Comment

One of my favorite things about the start of garden season is clipping the first homegrown spring greens. If you grow lettuce, spinach, arugula, or other greens, you know what I’m talking about. If you don’t, I highly recommend getting a few seeds and giving it a try. Homegrown greens have flavor that is often muted or missing from store-bought ones, and you can buy seeds in varieties that grocery stores won’t carry. These seeds grow easily in the ground or in pots. My sister seeds two “lettuce bowls”—wide, low plastic pots—for my parents each year that sit in the shade on their porch all summer. When the supply gets low, they simply pull the straggly plants and tuck in a few new seeds.

My homegrown lettuces and other greens mainly land in salads, as I share this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon. I also tuck them into tacos and sandwiches, fold them into hot pasta or curry, and pair them with eggs.
Learn to make Arugula Salad with Asparagus and Shaved Parmesan

Compound Herb Butter

On May 4, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, frozenLeave a comment

I save homegrown herbs in many ways, but one of the easiest may be mixing them into butter and freezing them, as I share this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon. This technique for making compound herb butter is also ideal for a bunch of fresh herbs you’ve purchased but won’t use up before they start to fade, since you only need 2–4 tablespoons for each stick of butter.

I typically mix up small, fresh portions of flavored butters to use immediately, like my favorite lime butter for grilled corn. Small batches of compound butter keep well in the refrigerator for a few days. For longer storage, freeze “logs” of herb butters and use them throughout the year.
Learn to make Compound Herb Butter

Homemade Baked Mac and Cheese

On April 27, 2023November 18, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Column, grainsLeave a comment

We’ve had a spate of cool spring weather here in northwest Montana, including days when I woke up to snow on my just-emerging crocus and scilla, so I’ve been in comfort food mode. That means—along with other recipes that satisfy filling, fatty food cravings—mac and cheese.

I grew up eating homemade mac and cheese baked in the oven until the center was gooey and the top was a crunchy cheese crust. My mom’s version was kid-friendly and simple: elbow pasta, butter, flour, milk, and mild Cheddar. I’ve tweaked it to bring in more flavor and better texture. But when it comes to making mac and cheese your own, the recipe I share this week in my Twice as Tasty column for the Flathead Beacon is just the beginning.
Learn to make Homemade Baked Mac and Cheese