Plates & Places - Found Our Haven

Found Our Haven, a new home décor store in the heart of downtown Toledo, may be small in square footage but it's huge on inspiration and offerings. The petite boutique, created by Jennie Lewis, is filled from floor to ceiling with vintage, antique and farmhouse-style finds as well as handcrafted items.

Lewis stocks her store with her refinished furniture, hand-sewn pillows, floral and greenery arrangements, and found treasures she has given new life and purpose.  In addition, there are handmade candles, charcuterie boards, soaps, and decorative accessories made by local vendors. 

“One of my goals for the store is to provide local creators with a venue to sell their work,” said Lewis. “It’s very important to me to help and promote other vendors in my community.”

Jennie Lewis

Found Our Haven shares its bricks and mortar with Rustbelt Coffee, located at 119 N. Ontario Street. 

The multi-use destination gives visitors a perfect opportunity to grab an espresso or a chai latte, along with a raspberry Russian tea biscuit before or after shopping.

Decorating has always been a passion for Lewis. “I’ve been a creator my whole life,” she said. When Lewis was about 6 years old, she built her first clubhouse with some sheets and a hammer and then decorated it. “I didn’t build it for friends to play in. I just wanted to sit and look at how pretty it was,” she reminisced. “I’ve always wanted a store, and now my dream has come true.”

Currently, Found Our Haven is open three days per month from Thursday through Saturday. Lewis hopes to add more days soon. 

For opening days and hours, visit Found Our Haven on Facebook or Instagram.

Homemade Italian Meatballs

An unexpected change of work plans this morning left me with a whole day at home alone. This doesn’t happen too often anymore, so I thought I would put these hours to good use and whip up some homemade meatballs.

Who could resist a big, bowl of spaghetti and meatballs on a cold, snowy January evening? So, let’s get right to it. 

The way I make my meatballs is basically how my grandmother makes hers. No fancy cookware or utensils are required – these meatballs are just easy-to-make, good Italian food. I hope you enjoy them as much as my family does. 

Mangia!

Homemade Italian Meatballs

The ingredients listed are per pound of ground beef. Recipe yields about 10 meatballs (I like them big).

1 pound ground beef

2 eggs
½ cup Italian-style breadcrumbs
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
Small bowl of water
Extra virgin olive oil for frying
Pasta sauce

In a large bowl, add the ground beef through the parsley. Using your hands, mix together ingredients until well combined. Do not overwork the mixture, or the meatballs will be tough.

Roll mixture into 1 ½ inch balls. If the mixture seems a bit dry, add a few splashes of water to it. The meatballs should glisten, but not be dripping wet. Adding water to the mixture is the “secret” to soft meatballs.

In a frying pan, heat olive oil over medium. Fry meatballs in small batches, tuning them every couple of minutes and just long enough to get a nice even “crust” around them. 

Meatballs should not be cooked all the way through at this point.

Drain meatballs on paper towels.

In a large sauce pot, heat pasta sauce. Add meatballs to sauce and simmer 1 ½ to 2 hours or until cooked through.

Spend the Holidays in the Manor House

One of Toledo’s most beloved traditions, Holidays in the Manor House at Wildwood Preserve Metropark, will continue through this weekend for free tours and holiday activities. During the annual fun-for-all-ages celebration, which began on December 1, approximately 40,000 adults and children are expected to visit the 30,000 square foot home and participate in the festivities.

All set for New Year's Eve.

Come in for a tour.

While touring the grand mansion, guests will be delighted by 32 displays lovingly created by local volunteers including the miniature model of what Treehouse Village will look like when construction is completed at Oak Openings Metropark. 

For more than 40 years, volunteers have decorated the Manor House as a holiday gift to the community.

A miniature model of Treehouse Village.

In addition to tours of the home, visitors may stroll a lighted path leading from the Manor House to a boardwalk trail, toast marshmallows for s’mores along the way to or from the Manor House, bring their own or rent skates over the weekend for a few spins around the ice-skating rink, and experience the joy of the larger than ever model train exhibit held at Holidays in the Hall.

The party in the grand parlor is about to begin.

Santa takes a quick break from checking his list.

The final days of Holidays in the Manor House are this weekend, Friday, Dec. 14 – Sunday, Dec. 16 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Admission is free.

Take a stroll through the lighted garden.

See you at the Manor House.

Roasted!

Chile Roasting Weekend has come to a close for this Someday Cowgirl and her hunky hubby. Now it’s time to enjoy the fruits of our labor, green chiles! Sixty pounds of them. Straight from Hatch, New Mexico, the green chile capital of the world.

For two full days, we (well, mostly hubby, the chile master of the Midwest) roasted, sweated and prepped three varieties of peppers, Big Jim, Sandia and Lumbre for freezing. Now, throughout the year, we have the luxury to pluck a bag out of our downstairs freezer anytime we feel the need to cook up any of our favorite green chile recipes. 

We’ve got medium hot, hot, and extreme caution hot chiles to work with.

A true labor of love, our annual Chile Roasting Weekend begins immediately after the boxes of pungent, smoky fruits are delivered to our doorstep from the Hatch Chile Store.

Why do we go through all of this, you ask? Because after many visits to Santa Fe, we became obsessed with New Mexico cuisine and its power player ingredient, the green chile. They don’t grow well, or perhaps at all in our local soil; therefore, we go straight to the source for them.

After three seasons of experimentation, we’ve (again my husband) become experts in the roasting arena. 

The master himself even created a roasting machine to facilitate the process, because a standard gas grill just doesn’t get it.

All of the hard work is realized in the end though. 

Now we’ve got our chile stash for the entire year, so we can enjoy our enchiladas, breakfast burritos, tacos, burgers and anything under the sun that you can imagine putting green chiles on. 

Jealous? I thought you might be. 

Here’s to a year of green chile cookin’ from our sacred stash. 

If you’re looking for some hot recipes for green chiles, some of my favorites are listed in my recipe index on the right. 

What’s next for these two chile crazed lovers?  I’m smelling a local wine and chile fiesta in our future.

Summer Dishes Fresh From the Farm

Summer is in full bloom as are area farmers markets and community supported agriculture programs (CSAs). Gaining in popularity, due to the farm-to-table movement, CSAs allow people to purchase shares of a farmer’s crop in advance of the season. 

Zucchini Au Gratin

Last month, I shared recipes for dishes I prepared from my very first CSA box - Roasted Beet Hummus, Roasted Balsamic Beets, Peas and Pancetta, and Tortellini with Asparagus and Peas. 

A small challenge was presented with the inclusion of garlic scapes in my box (even my farm-raised husband wasn’t sure what to do with them). However, after consulting with a foodie friend, I learned that garlic scapes can be used to flavor dishes just like traditional garlic. 

This month, my journey continues with a new box of farm-fresh goodies. Here are a handful of dishes I cooked up with July’s bounty.

Grilled Summer Squash Pasta Salad

Grilled Summer Squash Pasta Salad
This fresh and flavorful pasta and vegetable salad makes a great light lunch or a nice side dish to accompany grilled chicken or beef. I like to incorporate both zucchini and yellow squash to add extra color to it, and I choose pasta with big wells or cavities to cradle the other ingredients.

6 -10 servings
12 ounces pasta
2 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 medium yellow squash, halved lengthwise and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup cherry tomatoes
¼ cup olive oil, divided
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup pine nuts, toasted
2-3 tablespoons fresh basil, thinly sliced
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Cook pasta according to directions, drain and set aside.

Thread zucchini, yellow squash and tomatoes onto metal or wooden skewers. If using wooden skewers, soak them in a pan of water for about 30 minutes prior to threading the vegetables.

Brush vegetables on all sides with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.

Transfer skewers to a grill and cook over medium heat for about 12 minutes, turning occasionally, or until tender.

In a large bowl, toss together pasta, vegetables, pine nuts, basil, cheese, and remaining olive oil. Dress with additional basil and pine nuts.  

(Recipe by Jennifer Ruple) 

Zucchini Au Gratin

Zucchini Au Gratin
This dish takes me back to when I was a kid growing up in Grand Haven, Mich. Every weekend, someone on the block would host a backyard get-together for a handful of families. 

The parents would hang out and drink Sangria while the kids would run around between backyards. There were two side dishes my mom used to make often and Zucchini Au Gratin was one of them. 

The dish is easy to prepare and a great way to use up an abundance of summer squash. In my version, I add an Italian flare with flavored bread crumbs and Italian parsley. Serve it hot and bubbly out of the oven or at room temperature after it has time to congeal. 

6 servings
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6 medium zucchini and/or yellow squash cut into ¼ inch thick rounds
1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped
½ cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Salt

Heat oven to 350 F. In the bottom of a 2-quart casserole dish, pour olive oil. Layer zucchini, mozzarella, grated cheese, parsley and salt. Repeat layers.

Top casserole with bread crumbs and drizzle with butter. Bake for 1 hour or until hot and bubbly.

(Recipe by Jennifer Ruple)

Creamy Cucumber ad Radish Salad

Creamy Cucumber and Radish Salad
Crispy cucumbers and peppery radishes make up this simple cool and creamy summer salad. 

Peel them before slicing or leave some of their skin on for color and crunch. As the mixture settles, the cucumbers will begin to release liquid. For a thicker consistency, serve this salad immediately after mixing.

4-6 servings   
2 large cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced
10 radishes, peeled and thinly sliced
½ medium Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
½ cup sour cream
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped

In a medium serving bowl, combine cucumber, radish and onion slices.

In a small bowl, whisk together sour cream, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic powder and salt and pepper.

Pour dressing over cucumber mixture. Stir gently to combine. Sprinkle with fresh dill. Serve immediately.

(Recipe by Jennifer Ruple)