Can Do Attitude: Easy Garden Salsa

 Yeah, all of those tomatoes are fresh out of my garden.  Everything else, not so much, but these ingredients made a double batch of salsa, so 16 and 3/4 quart jars.

Also, I only used one head of garlic, and one of those really large onions.
And yes, I did use all those peppers.  I wanted a nice variety of spice, so there are random hot red peppers and purple bells from my garden, Anaheims, poblanos, jalapenos, whites, and yellow bells.  You can use as much or as little as you'd want.  I love chunky salsas with lots of pepper.

As far as the tomatoes go, I just divided my crop in half (since I was doubling the recipe).  They're Roma tomatoes, so I seeded most of them, but there wasn't a lot to worry about.

For each batch, I diced half in bigger chunks, then used my slap chop to finely dice the other half.  The chopper also made quick work of the onions and peppers.  I still wore gloves, though, because that juice gets everywhere and I hate accidentally getting it in my eyes (or worse) when cleaning up.

So, the ingredients for one batch (about 6-8 quarts)
8 C tomatoes; chopped, diced, and drained
2 1/2 C onions, diced
1 1/2 C green peppers, diced
1 C jalapeno, diced
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp ground pepper
1/8 C (or less) canning salt (optional)
1/3 C sugar
1/3 C vinegar
15 oz can tomato sauce
12 oz can tomato paste

Directions:
Mix everything together in a large pot.
Bring to a slow boil.
Boil for ten minutes.

Follow proper canning procedures.  Sterilized jars, boiling water bath for 10 minutes.  Let cool and wait at least 24 hours before storing.

Hint: to prevent the white grit from collecting on your tops, add about 1/2 C of white vinegar to your water bath.  It helps reduce/eliminate the residue.  ( I obviously forgot this step!)

Happy 100 Posts!

It wasn't supposed to happen this way...  My 100th post was going to be a recap and something fun.  I have lots of great recipes coming up, and any one of them would have been great for dinner and celebration.

And then life gets in the way.  Family obligations and short planning for dinner equals one FABULOUS pasta dish that takes very little time to make, is low fat(ish), and fairly flavorful!  Maybe we knew I was fated to have a pasta dish as my 100th any way.  We know how I love it!

Here's the original recipe (no, not KFC!)...  I was worried about not apparent sauce, but I was excited because it wasn't a creamy sauce and it wasn't an oily sauce, just noodles, meat, and veg.  A perfect combo for a night by myself, and I knew I could get a ton of leftovers.

Here's what I did...
Ingredients:
1 box of Ziti pasta (make as you normally would a box of pasta)
1ish T of Olive Oil


1 pkg of Jennie O Smoked Turkey Sausage (angle sliced)
2 bell peppers (chunky diced)
about 1/2 of a small onion (diced)
2 cloves of garlic (pressed/diced)
Ground Pepper and Italian Seasoning to taste
3 T of grated Asiago Cheese
1/4 C of pasta water reserved

Heat olive oil, saute onions, garlic, and bell peppers.  Add seasonings.
Add Smoked Sausage and heat through.
Once the Ziti is prepped, mix in the drained pasta to the cooked through meat and veg.
Toss, and if it looks dry, add a little pasta water.  Sprinkle with cheese, then serve with your favorite crusty bread and enjoy.

That's it.  Really.

Yep.  It seems as though my 100th blog entry is just like every other entry.  Simple, easy, and new (for me).  So here's to the next 100.  Here's to new dinners and desserts, and maybe more breakfasts and brunches too.  This has been an awesome 8 months, and here's to many, many more.

Have fun and eat well!

J

Fall Bruschetta

Halloween Bruscetta - with orange tomatoes and black olives to help with your color scheme.  (No, these tomatoes don't taste any differently when you change the color.)  Make some crostini and enjoy!

I feel like chicken tonight! Like Chicken Tonight!!

Yes, chicken is a common theme in these parts, but when it's cheap and easy - who could blame me?  I'm continuing on my trend of using my deep covered baker because it makes things so stinking easily, I can't resist!  So, without any real further ado, I bring you the Grilled Chicken Penne al Fresco.

  I'm starting to use some of the tomatoes from my garden.

It's easy to tell the crazy looking homemade ones (with no fertilizer or pesticides) from the perfect ones from the store.  I have about 100 tomatoes that will be ripe in about a week, but for this recipe, I had to supplement.  I quickly diced them, threw them in the baker, and baked them with the garlic.

 Then I added the noodles and the other ingredients (except for the chicken and cheese) and threw the baker back into the microwave.

I ended up added the extra (extra large) chicken breast that was left over from my last baker round, and a whole cup of parmesan because we love our cheese!

Thomas loved it, but I would have loved to add some fresh garden zucchini, peppers, and maybe some more veggies!

A cool summer pizza

I had an awesome recipe planned for tonight's dinner.  As part of my triumphant return from New Orleans (look for the food post later), I told Thomas I would make dinner.  He only had one requirement: something light.  Now the recipe I had in mind was from June's Everyday Food magazine.  I get in on my Nook and figured it was worth a try.  (No, I'm not revealing what it was until I actually get the chance to try it out. Well, I knew today was going to be a busy one, so I left my reader at home, and subsequently enough information that I couldn't find the recipe online.  Of course, I turned to Pampered Chef to see what I could find.  Luckily, I found this.  Thomas is not such a fan of a protein-less meal, so I did add some chicken to my shopping list.

I was able to use one of my new favorite toys - the garlic press.  It's so easy to use, it has a huge hopper to fit multiple cloves, and it comes with a little Barbie-brush looking cleaner that helps clear out the little holes when you're done.  No peeling necessary, just pop it in and squeeze it out!

I also was able to use my PC huller to gut the tomatoes.  I'm not going to lie, I hate tomatoes.  However, it's not for the taste, it's for the goopy insides.  With my huller, I can clear it out without any real touching or goop-related incident.  Score!  The recipe was remarkably easy to follow, and other than adding some slightly warned (pre-cooked) chicken, I pretty much did everything it told me to.  I mean, they told me to have cream cheese on a croissant crust.  

Who would I be to argue with that kind of yumminess??                                                                                                   

It didn't take too long to put together, and it was just as refreshing as I could hope.  Thomas loved it, so this is going to be put on the "let's try that again" pile.  (and I can't wait!!)

On a completely unrelated note...

I had Thomas pull out my lone, remaining carrot from the garden yesterday.  I didn't think it would be any good because it's left over from my late winter planting.  All of the white and purple ones are still coming up, but this was the last of the orange danvers.

Yes, my husband has a good sized paw, and yes, that carrot is truly thicker than the sweet corn we had with dinner.  And, surprisingly, the carrot worked really well with some early zucchini as a stir-fried side.