Roasted Tomato and Chipotle Salsa

It's that time of year.  Summer is winding down and the garden is bounteous. Most years I have a good tomato crop but this year seems to be a difficult year.  I have lots of plants but my tomatoes aren't turning green!! Fresh tomatoes are my favorite part of summer and having a garden.  I hope they start turning quickly before the weather does.  Typically around here, they're done the first week of October so that doesn't give us very long.  Lucky for me, there are several produce stands around here that sell local tomatoes by the box.  I usually hit them up once or twice a season so I have enough to put up for the winter and through next year. We love to can spaghetti sauce and tomatoes for soup and, of course salsa!!

It's been a few years since I canned salsa and we are sorely missing it!!  I found this Restaurant Style Salsa to hold us over in the mean time, but there's nothing like the taste of salsa made from home grown tomatoes. This roasted variety will blow your socks off (especially if you use a lot of chipotles!!). I love the smokiness of the roasted tomatoes and chipotles, it's seriously the best-tasting salsa that's come out of this kitchen in a LONG time!


Roasted Tomato and Chipotle Salsa
1 quart roasted Roma tomatoes
3/4 cup diced tomatoes
1/3 cup onion, diced
1/4 cup Anaheim pepper, diced
1/3 cup jalapeño peppers, diced
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 1/2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp. salt
1/2 Tbsp. sugar
chipotles in adobo, seeded
1/2 cup lime juice
1/2 cup vinegar


Rinse tomatoes, slice off top and cut in half.  Place cut side down on a baking sheet and place under broiler.  Broil until tomatoes start to blacken.  Remove from oven and slightly cool.

Add all ingredients into a blender and enough chipotles to suit your taste. Blend to desired consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.

Store in airtight container in the fridge or process in boiling water bath canner for 15 minutes.

**If you are not planning on canning the salsa you can omit the vinegar and reduce the lime juice to 1-2 tablespoons.

Sweet Tomato Marinara

Raise your hand if you STILL have tomatoes from your garden you don't know what to do with?  Well, I don't...anymore.  I had to pick the last of them about 3 weeks ago and they were all green.  Then all of a sudden this last week they all ripened at the same time.

Lately we've gone a little over board on the Fresh Tomato Soup, although my girls devour it and would still probably eat it every day, so I wanted to see if I could make yet ANOTHER pasta sauce that I just couldn't live with out.  Score! 

All the sauces I make and have made I still like, but for different reasons.  This one is thick and rich, and slightly sweet with a hint of fennel.  I like LOTS of sauce on my pasta, but hate when it just puddles under the noodles as soon as it's poured on.  Not a problem here, this sauce ain't goin' nowhere!

Sweet Tomato Marinara
makes about 1 1/2 quarts

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small sweet onion
6 cloves garlic, minced
about 3 lbs fresh roma tomatoes, peeled and pureed (about 6 cups pureed)
2/3 cup red cooking wine, or cranberry or pomegranate juice
1 6-oz can tomato paste
1 1/2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. fennel seed (I ground mine in my mortar and pestle a bit)
salt and pepper

In a large saucepan or pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat.  Add onions and saute about 5 minutes until tender and translucent.  Add garlic and saute another minute.  Add tomato puree, cooking wine (or juice), tomato paste, vinegar, brown sugar and fennel.  Add a pinch of salt and pepper and bring to a boil.  Simmer for about 20-25 minutes until sauce is thickened to your liking, stirring occasionally.  Check for seasonings and add salt and pepper as necessary.  Serve warm with your favorite pasta.

Store in airtight container for about a week in the fridge and about 3 months in the freezer.

Vanilla Bourbon Peach Jam {Low Sugar, No Pectin Recipe}

I've been  up to my elbows in peaches lately, but I'm not complaining. They are one of my most favorite things of summer.  I usually make freezer jam, but my freezer is full of ... peaches.  Go figure.  Although I do prefer freezer jam most of the time, peaches are one fruit that make good cooked jam.

I actually decided to make this jam to go with some ice cream I'd planned on making as well.  I chose to do it old-school with no pectin because every time I go to make jam it seems I'm always out!  I also wanted to control the amount of sugar, so this method worked out perfectly.

I love the addition of cinnamon and bourbon vanilla in this jam; it spices it up just a bit.  If you can't find real bourbon vanilla, you can substitute regular vanilla extract or even the real thing!

Vanilla Bourbon Peach Jam
makes about 3 half-pint jars

2 lbs peaches, peeled and pitted
juice of a small lemon
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp. real bourbon vanilla extract (or you can use real bourbon)

Place peaches into a blender or food processor and puree until smooth.  If you like chunks in your jam, you can puree it a little less.

Add peaches to a heavy saucepan along with lemon juice and sugar.  Bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Continue boiling until candy thermometer reaches 220 degrees F, stirring frequently (this may take up to an hour or so).  Be careful when stirring and scraping off the bottom, mixture will bubble and pop.

When mixture reaches desired temperature, remove from heat and give it a good stir.  Add in the cinnamon and vanilla and stir to combine.  Taste and add more flavoring as desired.

Ladle into half pint canning jars and secure lids.  Cool on counter then keep either in fridge or freezer.  If you want to can the jars in a water bath canner, follow instructions for your particular canner.

Fresh Spaghetti Sauce

I've been home canning my own spaghetti sauce for years.  I love gathering the last of the tomatoes in the fall and filling up my jars that line my pantry throughout the winter until next year.  The first sauce I used to make was from a dry mix, and although I loved it, it wasn't my husband's favorite. So, the last few summers I've been trying different recipes, searching for "the one." 

The last couple years I made this Tomato-Basil Simmer Sauce which I actually do love, but I also wanted a sauce that was more substantial, something that would stick to the noodles without running off.

 This, my friends, is "THE ONE," the very sauce I will can for the rest of my existence! Ok, well maybe not that long, but I think my search is over. This recipe uses fresh, vine-ripened tomatoes, but also uses just a little canned tomato sauce and paste which allow the sauce to thicken without cooking it to death, thus preserving that fresh tomato taste (and not keeping you in the kitchen all day).

I love the sweet bell peppers in this sauce.  I chose to use only about half green pepper and the rest red.  I find the green ones have a more bitter taste, but any other colored ones (yellow, red or orange) work perfectly. I think next time I will replace all of the green pepper with a different color.

This recipe makes roughly 12 cups, 6 pints.  If you're not a canner, you can also freeze the sauce in 2-4 cup portions in zip-loc freezer bags or freezer safe plastic ware. You could also just half the recipe for short-term use.

Fresh Spaghetti Sauce
makes about 6 pints
 
8 cups vine-ripened tomatoes (best from the garden), peeled and chopped (about 10-12 large)*
2 cups onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups sweet bell pepper, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. dried oregano
2 Tbsp. canning salt (if you don't have canning salt, just salt to taste)
2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbsp. fennel seed
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup apple cider vinegar
16 oz. tomato sauce
12 oz. tomato paste

1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped

Blanch and peel tomatoes.  Pulse in blender until desired "chunkiness" and set aside.  Drizzle a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a large stock pot and add chopped onions and peppers.  Saute over medium high heat about 5 minutes.  Add tomatoes, garlic and the next 8 ingredients.  Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in fresh basil.

To can sauce you must use a boiling water bath canner.  Pour hot sauce into hot jars.  Wipe mouth of each jar clean and place a lid and ring on each jar, only screwing lid to finger tightness. Process pint jars 15 minutes.

*To blanch and peel tomatoes, bring a pot of water to a boil and fill the sink with cold water.  Using a knife, serrated works best for me, score the tomato by making an "x." Place as many tomatoes in the pot as will cover the bottom in ONE layer.  Boil for 60 seconds, then ladle them out and immediately put them in the sink filled with cold water. Continue with the rest of the tomatoes.  

You will notice the skins already starting to peel off where they have been scored.  Slip off the skins, they come off easily, and core them and place them in a blender or food processor to chop or puree, whichever you prefer.

Make sure you do enough tomatoes to equal 8 cups, chopped.

Tomato Basil Simmer Sauce

*I thought this was another fitting post for the end of the summer. If you're like anyone else, tomatoes are busting out of your garden about now and you're running out of ideas to use them for. Try this sauce, you'll love it. And if you've canned all you can can, you can dry your tomatoes and call them sun-dried tomatoes; they're pretty posh in the store, but cheap and easy to make at home.


I've been canning my own pasta sauce for a few years now. I've experimented with different pouch mixes, where all you have to add is basically the tomatoes, as well as doing everything from scratch, chopping an dicing every last veggie and herb. I have two favorites that I really like now and they are completely different. The first is Mrs. Wages Pasta Sauce pouch mix; I believe it is readily available in most markets near the canning supplies. I love that all I have to is add the tomatoes to the mix (well after all the work of blanching, peeling and chopping in the food processor- which is really not that bad). I like the flavor of the pouch, but my husband wasn't as fond, so I started trying actual recipes from scratch.

I came across this Tomato-Basil Simmer Sauce last summer and made a batch then. I really liked it and even got a thumbs up from my hubby; so, this has become my other favorite. Since it's a basic sauce, it's not really much more work than using a pouch; all you're really adding is herbs and spices to the tomatoes. I love the fresh, clean taste of this sauce. It's not overly seasoned, so apart from using it as-is for a light pasta dish, you can still dress it up with Italian sausage to make a more complex sauce.

The recipe only makes about 6 pints, which is probably a good-sized batch for beginners. However, if I'm going to can, I'm going to CAN! I like to can my pasta sauce in quarts and make about 12 quarts worth at a time. If you decide to multiply the batch and do more, make sure you check your measurements WELL and even then add the spices a little at a time to make sure it tastes to your liking. I made the mistake of adding WAY too much black pepper once and although the sauce tasted good, it gave you that kick in the back of the throat right after.

For more information on basic canning you can check out the Ball website or grab the Ball Blue Book of Canning at your local grocery store or Walmart. I love this book, I call it my canning bible. I've used it a ton and well-worth the $5 or $6 it costs to purchase.


Tomato-Basil Simmer Sauce
Makes about 12 cups sauce (6 pints)

12 pounds ripe tomatoes (about 25 tomatoes), blanched and peeled
3 Tbsp packed brown sugar
2 Tbsp kosher salt or 4 teaspoons salt
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 cup lightly packed assorted fresh herbs (such as oregano, thyme, parsley, or Italian (flat-leaf) parsley), chopped
6 Tbsp lemon juice

Cut peeled tomatoes into chunks and add some of the chunks to the food processor. Cover and process until chopped. Transfer chopped tomatoes to a 7- to 8-quart nonreactive heavy pot. Repeat chopping remaining tomatoes, in batches, in the food processor. Add all tomatoes to the pot.

Add brown sugar, salt, vinegar, and black pepper to the tomato mixture. Bring to boiling. Boil steadily, uncovered, for 70 to 80 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mixture is reduced to about 12 cups (making sure you have enough to process 6 FULL pints) and is desired sauce consistency. Remove from heat; stir in herbs.

Spoon 1 tablespoon lemon juice into each of six hot, clean pint canning jars. Ladle sauce into jars with lemon juice, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Wipe the jar rims; adjust lids. Process filled jars in a boiling-water canner for 35 minutes (start time when water returns to a full boil). Remove jars; cool on wire racks.


SOURCE: Better Homes and Gardens

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Apple Butter Muffins

Yummy, healthy, pumpkin; what more could a girl ask for? The first time I made these muffins my girls devoured them within days. I've been itching to make these again for a while but I turned a few too many zucchini into muffins at the end of the summer and I had to deplete my supply in the freezer before I could make more.

I'm not sure how many of these will get into the freezer, but I'm sure glad I got to make them again. I got this recipe from my friend Jamie. The original recipe was a whole wheat pumpkin muffin but I changed it a bit to add the apple butter. I used my own apple butter, it's pretty simple to make. If you don't have apple butter, you could use applesauce or all pumpkin and no applesauce.

These muffins are great warm out of the oven or probably any other way you could imagine. Spread it with some more apple butter or even this pumpkin butter that I'm dying to try but haven't yet.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Apple Butter Muffins
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup yogurt (I used homemade that I strained to make Greek-style yogurt, but any vanilla or plain yogurt will work fine.)
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup pumpkin
1 cup apple butter
3 eggs
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon

Mix the wet ingredients together in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix only until just combined. Let batter sit for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 400° F. Line 2 muffin pans with liners or spray with cooking spray. Divide batter evenly among the muffin cavities. Bake for about 15-17 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

This recipe linked to Recipe Swap Thursday @ Prarie Story and Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms.

Raspberry Chipotle Sauce

Well, I certainly did not think I would be getting out my home canning equipment in the middle of winter. However, I had so many raspberries in my deep freezer from summer, I figured it was time to make room!

When I was searching for recipes to help me use up my raspberries I came across the combination of raspberries and chipotles and since I love both I thought they'd be great together. The sauce recipes I found were all pretty similar so I decided to stick with one from Emeril Lagasse. I mean, who can go wrong with Emeril? I didn't think I could go wrong. I found some amazing recipes to use with this sauce that I'll be making in the near future. For starters, you could use this over a pork loin or pork chops, meatballs, on a turkey sandwich with some provolone, slather it on a whole wheat quesadilla with cheese and thinly sliced granny smith apple or you could make like a southwest chicken cordon bleu with ham and pepper jack cheese rolled up inside and the raspberry sauce drizzled over the top. Yum!


1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup small diced onion
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 tsp. chipotle chiles in adobo, chopped
2 pints fresh raspberries, rinsed (I used frozen and they worked fine)
1/2 cup red wine vinegar (or raspberry vinegar)
3/4 cup granulated sugar (brown would work too)
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, until soft and slightly caramelized, 4 minutes. Add the garlic to the pan and saute for 1 minute. Add the chipotles and cook, stirring continuously, for 1 minute. Add the raspberries and cook until soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the vinegar and stir to deglaze the pan. Add the sugar and salt, and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until thickened and reduced by half, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool before using.

Yield: about 1-1/2 cups

*Home canning instructions
To make it worth my effort to can the sauce, I tripled the recipe and got about 4 pints. I used some pints and some half pints. Ladle hot sauce into hot jars and process in hot water canner 10 minutes. For detailed instructions on how to home can, see the Ball website.

Source: Adapted from Emeril's Kitchens: Favorite Recipes from Emeril's Restaurants, by Emeril Lagasse (William Morrow)

Sun-Dried Tomatoes

I should have posted this at the end of the summer when I was actually making these. But, I will post it now, prefacing my next dinner post that uses sun-dried tomatoes.

At the end of the summer and the end of my garden, after I had canned all the salsa, spaghetti sauce, barbecue sauce and stewed tomatoes that I could handle, I still had a bunch of tomatoes left and didn't know what to do with them. My mom suggested that I dry them in the oven so I gave it a try. Then she surprised me with an early Christmas present; a food dehydrator! So much fun.

If you've ever endeavored to buy sun-dried tomatoes, they're posh! Try making these this summer and you can use them year round for soups, Italian dishes, homemade tomato paste or sauce and many other things.

*Roma tomatoes are best for dehydrating because they have a lower water content. But other tomatoes can be dried as well. Make sure they are not low-acid tomatoes, they do not dry well and turn black.

*Make sure the tomatoes are fully ripe. If they are not, store at 60-70 degrees before processing, but not in the fridge.

*Wash tomatoes and remove center stem core. For Romas, slice lengthwise in 1/2-3/4 inch slices or halve or quarter. Dry skin-side down. You may remove skins if you want by blanching. For round tomatoes, slice 1/2-3/4 inches thick. You can sprinkle them with sea salt or Italian seasoning if you wish or just leave them plain.

*Dehydrator method: Dry at 140 degrees F until dry. They should be tough to crisp when dry.

*Oven method: Place tomato slices on a cookie sheet lined with parchment, silpat, or sprayed with cooking spray. Set your oven temperature to the lowest setting (about 150-200 degrees F). Bake for 6-12 hours. Check them periodically as some will dry faster than others.

*Storage: Do not chop up tomatoes until ready to use. Store in air-tight container or zip-top bag up to 6 months in the fridge or 1 year in the freezer.

Apple Butter

4 lbs of good *cooking apples
1 cup apple cider vinegar
2 cups water or apple cider
brown sugar
Salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
Grated rind and juice of 1 lemon

Peel, quarter and core apples (if you have an apple-peeler-corer, about $25, this is very quick and easy; if not, it's not too bad). In a large stock pot cook apples with cider (or water) and vinegar until soft. Puree by either using a hand immersion blender or a blender/food processor; you may have to do it in batches in a blender. Return puree to pot and add about 1/2 cup of sugar for each cup of apple pulp. Stir to dissolve sugar. Add a dash of salt, and the cinnamon, ground cloves, allspice, nutmeg, lemon rind and juice. Taste and adjust sugar and seasonings if necessary.

Cook uncovered on medium low heat, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Scrape the bottom of the pot while you stir to make sure a crust is not forming at the bottom. Cook until thick and smooth; about 1 to 2 hours. You can also cook the purée on low heat, stirring only occasionally, but this will take much longer as stirring encourages evaporation. (Note the wider the pan the better, as there is more surface for evaporation.)

*Apples good for cooking are golden delicious, jonathan, rome beauty, jonagold and gala.

This makes a little over 3 pints. If you plan to can the apple butter, ladle hot butter into hot jars and process in hot water canner 10 minutes.

You can also freeze or store in the fridge for about 2 weeks.

Classic Barbecue Sauce

2 Tbsp. vegetable or canola oil
4 cups yellow onion, chopped
9 cloves garlic, minced
6 tsp. kosher salt, divided
2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
2-3 Tbsp. honey
1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp. unsulfured molasses
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 quart jar (4 cups) tomatoes, roughly chopped or pulsed slightly in food processor
1 cup + 2 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1/3 cup white vinegar
3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2-3 tsp. black pepper

In a large stockpot or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté until tender, about 5-6 minutes. Mix in 2 teaspoons of the kosher salt, the chili powder, coriander and cumin. Stir in the honey, molasses and brown sugar. Mix well and boil for about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and cider vinegar. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and let simmer on medium-low heat for 2-3 hours until the sauce has thickened and darkened. It should be the consistency of ketchup.

Stir in the white vinegar and Worcestershire sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste (up to about 1 tablespoon of each). Use a hand blender and puree mixture until smooth. If you don't have a hand blender, add the mixture to a blender or food processor in batches and puree.

Prepare jars and 2 piece lids for canning and heat water to boiling in a canner. Ladle hot liquid into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Place lids on and process for 20 minutes for either half pints or pints. YIELD: 6 pints.

You may also store sauce in airtight containers in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks.

NOTES: Recipe adapted from Annie's Eats.

Dried Cinnamon Apples

2 cups pineapple juice
8 oz. red hot candy
Apples

Heat to dissolve candy. Peel, slice and core apples and let them sit in the juice for a few minutes. Spray dehydrator racks with cooking spray. Drain apple slices and put them on the racks. Dry 10-12 hours. Store in airtight containers in a cool place.

NOTES:This recipe is from my aunt Sheila. YUM!

Tomatillo Salsa

Last year we planted 2 tomatillo plants in our garden because we thought it would be fun and something new. Unfortunately, they didn't do very well. This year, we made quite a bit larger garden plot and got a few more tips on gardening and decided to plant 6 plants! Wow, that was a lot. Tomatillos produce a lot of fruit. The good thing is they keep really well. When harvested, tomatillos keep, whole with husks on, for about a month in a zip-top bag in your fridge. You can also freeze them whole after washing and removing the husks.

Tomatillos are actually part of the gooseberry family, contrary to the misconception that they are tomatoes. This sweet fruit makes for a wonderful salsa verde and pairs perfectly with flavors like cumin and fresh cilantro.

This is a versatile salsa in that you can eat it with chips, cook it up with some chicken, add it to rice, on a burrito or even use it as a soup base for a white bean chicken chili.

5 1/2 cups chopped, cored, husked tomatillos (about 2 lbs.)
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped green chili peppers (if you want to use fresh, use poblanos or anaheims)
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. minced cilantro
2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. red pepper
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup lime juice

Combine all ingredients in large sauce pot. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Ladle hot salsa into hot jars, leaning 1/4-inch head space. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 15 minutes in a boiling water canner.

SOURCE:Ball Blue Book of Canning

Mustard Pickles

I had never heard of, let alone tasted, mustard pickles until I was in college. I had a roommate from Canada who brought these with her, along with dilly beans and ketchup chips after she would visit home. I begged her to get the recipe from her mother and thankfully she obliged but it stayed tucked in my recipe file for years until I had a garden of my own and grew my own cucumbers. I love this relish. It's great on tuna sandwiches or hamburgers.

4 quarts small (pickling) cucumbers (about 5 lbs.)
2 quarts onions (1-2 bags of regular size)
2 quarts cabbage (about 1 head)
1 red pepper
1 green pepper

Shred vegetables or chop very small and put in large kettle.

Sauce
12 cups sugar
4 tsp. celery seed
4 Tbsp. salt
6 tsp. turmeric
8 Tbsp. dry mustard

Add 2 quarts vinegar to the ingredients above.

Add the sauce to the vegetables and cook approximately 1 hour until vegetables are cooked.

Make a paste using 2 cups flour and 1-2 Tbsp. sugar. Add a cup of hot vegetables to flour mixture and mix well then pour into the whole batch and cook 1-2 minutes or until thickened.

Ladle into hot canning jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space; place lids and rings and process in hot water canner for 10 minutes.