Some Simple Summer Salads

Using that delicious dill dressing, you can add it to your potato salad as a mayonnaise alternative.  It makes for a great salad.  I used the dressing I made from the previous post, found here and added onion.

The night we had the potato salad, I also made some roasted asparagus and tossed it with mini tomatoes, some balsamic, garlic powder, S&P and oil.   It was heavenly! A simple summer salad idea for yah.

Enchilada Sauce

Usually when I make enchiladas I am busy making the filling and totally not in the mood to make enchilada sauce.  I usually will pour some of my canned tomato sauce with a little taco seasoning in it and call it done.  That's okay but sometimes I want things really cooked through and thought out for a better depth of flavor.  So on my canning bucket list this summer was enchilada sauce.  I didn't think I was going to get to it but the end of summer tomatoes were a perfect fit for the sauce.  I ended up having 6 pints when all was said and done but it will largely depend on how long you boil it down.

I am pretty stoked about having ready made enchilada sauce in my pantry!

Canned Enchilada Sauce

24 cups  (about 3/4 peck) tomatoes
juice of 2 lemons
4 large cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons cumin
1 teaspoon chipotle powder
2 tablespoons Kosher salt
2 teaspoons oregano
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1.   Fill the canner with water, cover and turn the heat on medium.
2.   Cook tomatoes, boiling them down for about 60 minutes.
3.   Add the remainder of ingredients and taste.  If you want more heat, add in some more chipotle.
4.   Bring to a boil again for about five minutes.
5.   Blend the sauce being careful not to burn yourself as hot liquid in a blender builds pressure and can blow the lid.  I always put a towel over top.  I also only fill my blender 2/3's full.
6.   Strain seeds and skin out.
7.   Sterilize jars and while still warm pour the sauce into jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space.
8.   Run fingers around the rim to insure there are no chips or food particles on that would get in the way of a good seal.  Put lids and rings on.  Tighten rings firmly.
9.   Place jars in canner.  Add more water if necessary.  Water should be one inch above the tops of the jars. Once the water starts to boil, this is called processing, process for 30 minutes.
10. Turn off flame, remove lid of canner and wait five minutes.
11.  Use the canning tongs to remove the jars and lids one at a time from the canner. 
12.  Listen for a ping as the jars cool and the lid pops into place. You dont have to be there to hear the ping but it is a gratifying sound.  It means the lids have sealed.  
13.  Before you store them you do want to check to make sure the lid is depressed.  This means they are sealed properly.  If the lid is not depressed store in refrigerator and eat. Let the jars rest 24 hours.
14.  Store in a dark place.

Roasted Fennel and Tomatoes

 

What I did with the last of my summer tomatoes?  I had two roma's left that I needed to use.  It was the absolute last of the fully ripe, summer tomatoes.  I wanted to do something special with them.  It is always hard to say goodbye to tomatoes.  I decided to roast up some fennel since I needed to eat and it was a 5:2 Fasting Day.  Fennel is low in calories.  This meal turned out to be roughly 200 calories.

Roasted Tomato and Fennel

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large head of fennel
1 clove garlic
2 roma tomatoes
salt and pepper

Saute the fennel in olive oil until lightly golden. Add in garlic, cook one minute.  Add in tomatoes.  Season with salt and pepper.  Heat it just until tomatoes have softened a little. 


About 200 calories.  Fennel is 27 calories per cup so it depends on how much you add.

Ratatouille

Summer is coming to a close.  Pretty soon the kids will be back at school. Lately, I have been reflecting on this summer and what we have done and not done. 

I had a bucket list of what I wanted to do with them and I have to say, we did nothing on the bucket list. I felt bad about this for several weeks but then I realized some really important things were going on.  You see, my parents moved from my childhood home to an apartment for Seniors.  This was pretty significant as my parents have been living at that home for 52 years. 

My parents are in their 80's.  They have needed to move.  Some circumstances in the Spring kind of forced their hand.  The kids spent a lot of time helping them out.  They each would go and stay at my Mom and Dad's for a day or more working hard, carrying boxes, moving things to the curb, helping my Mom donate unwanted items.  All that lifting.  The kids really eased the burden for my Mom.  Of course, it was a pretty huge task packing up a house that she has been in for so long.

Everything went really smooth.  My brother and sister in law came in from out of town to help out.  We moved the boxes from the house and movers came and moved the furniture.  The kids helped out so much.  They never complained, they just kept on working.

Even though we may not have hit the jackpot of bucket list excitement and fun.  We sure hit the jackpot of family time, responsibility to others, helping and honoring.  It just doesn't get any better.  I could not have been more thrilled with what I seen them do and how they behaved.  Well, except for a little fighting... I don't want to make it sound perfect or anything...

Here is one of my bucket list dishes for this summer.  I have made it before but I wanted to try different ways of making it until I found a fast and easy one.  Bingo.  I scored a great pot of ratatouille.

Ratatouille
Recipe slightly adapted from Emerill Lagasse.

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more as needed
1 1/2 cups small diced yellow onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups medium diced eggplant, skin on
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 cup diced green bell peppers
1 cup diced red bell peppers
2 cups diced zucchini squash
1 1/2 cups peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Balsamic Vinegar

Sauté onions in olive oil for about five to ten minutes.  You want them lightly golden. Add garlic, cook one minute more.  Add in eggplant and thyme, cook for about seven minutes.  Add in bell peppers and squash and cook for five minutes.  Add tomatoes, basil and parsley and cook for five minutes.

Drizzle balsamic over top.  The balsamic really makes it all pop!  If you have balsamic reduction, by all means, use that.

 

Mrs. Wages Ketchup My Way

It would be a cliché to quote Frank Sinatra in his song, "I Did It My Way".  But I can't help but have that song rolling over and over again in my brain as I write this post. 

I don't say "my way" because I am thinking I am awesome.  I say "my way" so that next time when I go to can ketchup I know exactly what I did.

I don't know about you but I am often put off by the strong flavors of homemade ketchup.  Sometimes I like it, on certain things.  Like a burger, when it compliments the flavors.  There are time when I don't like it.  Like on French Fries, because for me, the ketchup should taste a certain way.

Finding the right ketchup, that tastes that certain way, without going to the store to buy it, is a bit of a challenge.  I think I have found a solution.  It might be temporary though.

Mrs. Wages are premixed "spice packs" that you can add to your canning process.  There are other things in the mix.  Since I try to stay away from packaged things as much as possible, and really that is a big part of why I can fruits and vegetables, I hate my reliance on it.  But it will do until I find the perfect combination of spices and such.

On the Mrs. Wages package it says, 6 pounds of tomatoes.  I used 7 and I did it a different way so I am going to rewrite the recipe like I did it.  Of course, you are still adding that package of Mrs. Wages.

Adding that pound with yield more ketchup.  But it will also tone down the spices into more of what I like about commercial ketchup.

Mrs. Wages Ketchup, My Way

7 pounds fresh Roma tomatoes (weighed after coring them)
1 cup white vinegar
1 6 ouncs can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 pouch Mrs. Wages Ketchup Mix

Start with pretty ripe Roma's.  You want them to be at their peak.  They will be sweeter and meatier.

Wash the tomatoes. Cut of bad spot and cores.  Squeeze them with your hand into the pot.  The package directions say to mash it with a tomato masher.  I am here to tell you friends, your hands are much faster and effective.  But do make sure they are clean first.

Start the flame on low just so nothing burns.  Turn to medium high after the tomatoes start to release more of their juices. Reduce to simmer and let cook at least for a half an hour. You want some of the liquids to evaporate.  This will yield a thicker ketchup.

Turn off the heat.  Place about 3 cups of the mixture into the blender.  I place a towel over the top because sometimes the hot liquid can rise and force the top open a little.  Let me tell you, that hurts.  I also start the blender on 'stir' to get things going and then I move it up to 'liquefy'. 
 

Pour the liquid through a strainer.  You will need to run a spoon around the bottom of the strainer.  You are basically forcing the small solids through.  You want these small solids.  Again, it will add to the thickness. Once you have forced as much through as possible, then you tap the strainer edge on the side of the pot you are straining into.  A couple times do this,  This will force the rest of the solids through. Pretty soon there will be a ball of tomato skin and seed bouncing in the strainer.  That is when you know You have forced as much of the mush tomato through as possible.  Discard those solids or better yet, compost them.

Now that you have cooked and strained as much of it through as possible, you can proceed with the recipe as it is written.

"Combine juice, tomato paste and vinegar into a large pot and bring to a boil.  Stir frequently.  Slowly add sugar and Ketchup Mix to hot juice until evenly dispersed.  Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.  Ketchup is ready." (Mrs. Wages Ketchup package directions).

The only thing I would add is that I used a whisk to mix in the Ketchup Mix.  It clumps very easy.  You could also take some of the hot liquid out and mix it with the powder in a separate container and then pour it back in. 

You can freeze it or can it.  If you can it.  You will need to process it for 40 minutes.  What does that mean? Process?  Bring a large pot of water, preferably a canner, to a boil.  Pour liquid into canning jars, place lids on top and screw down with a jar ring tightly.  Place hot jars into hot water.  Bring to a boil in the canner.  Once the water in the canner has reached boiling, Let boil for 40 minutes.  Remove with a jar remover and place on towel on counter to cool.  You want to make sure you hear that ping.  This lets you know it has properly sealed.  After 24 hours, push down on lids, if they spring back, they are not sealed.  They need to be refrigerated and used. To learn more about canning please consult a Ball Canning Book or go to this site and learn more about safe canning practices.

If you are anything like me, you will ask what is in this list of ingredients on the Mrs. Wages package.  Here yah go: salt, food starch, evaporated can sugar, beet powder, onion, natural flavor, xanthan gum,citric acid, paprika spice, garlic.

South Western Quinoa Salad

The good people at Red Pack tomaotes contacted me and sent me some of there wonderful canned tomatoes. This recipe is slightly adapted from Red Pack's recipe.  Visit there website for more delicious recipes and pcik up a can and make some of these fresh delicious salads!

South Western Quinoa Salad
Recipe courtesy of Red Pack Tomatoes

1 cup quinoa cooked
1 – 14 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 – 14 ounce can corn, drained
1- can Red Pack Tomatoes
1/2 of a large red bell pepper
4 green onions, sliced thinly
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Juice from 2 limes
3 tablespoons barbeque sauce

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
for bonus flavor and added heat add a 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne or a chopped pickled jalapeno

In a small bowl whisk together limes, olive oil, garlic powder, barbeque sauce, salt and pepper. Set aside.

Combine cooked quinoa, black beans, corn, tomatoes, bell pepper, green onions,  and cilantro.  Mix in the dressing.  Serve with cilantro sprinkled over top and some lime wedges.

Pasta e Fagioli

The kind folks at Red Pack offered to give me this lovely tomato package in exchange for a recipe featuring their tomatoes.  Let, me think about that (no time passage)- Yes! I definitely like their product so that was kind of a no brainer.

I used the tomato paste for my sauce.  I use tomato paste all the time for many things. Making dressings for salads, thickening sauce, add to soup, add to bean dishes...  One of my favorite ways that I use paste is to make pizza sauce. To make the pizza sauce, mix tomato paste with an equal 1 -2 cans of water, along with 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1 tablespoon of sugar (as my kids and husband like a sweet sauce) and 1 teaspoon oregano. Easy peasy.  The first time I made pizza this way, they said, Wow! Love the sauce. 

Then I made pasta e fagioli- a souped up variety with more veggies that I usually put in.  Amazing! It turned out delicious.

Okay, in my case- just Fagioli.  But for the rest of the clan, they had the combo.

Pasta e Fagioli


1 fennel bulb, chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, quartered then halved
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (29 ounce) can Red Pack Crushed Tomatoes
1 (29 ounce) can Red Pack Diced Tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons basil
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans
grated Parmesan or Asiago cheese for serving in bowls

1 pound ditalini pasta

Sauté garlic, fennel and onion in olive oil until lightly golden.  Pour into crockpot.  Pour both cans of tomatoes, parsley, basil, oregano, salt, cannelini beans, garbanzo beans.  Heat on low in crockpot for 4 to six hours.  Right before serving cook pasta in water, drain, then combine with pasta.  Serve in bowls and sprinkle with parmesan or asiago.