ZESTY QUICK PICKLES

Are you still getting gobs of cucumbers off your vines?  Try this easy recipe to put some up and enjoy later!


· PREP TIME: 10 min
· COOK TIME: 5 min
· TOTAL TIME: 15 min
· YIELD: 4 pint jars
· DIFFICULTY: easy



Ingredients:

2 c Water
2 c Vinegar (I used half white and half apple cider)
2 1/2 tbsp Sea salt
4-8 tsp Pickling spice, 1-2 per jar
8 cloves Garlic, 2 per jar
4 Bay leaves, 1 per jar
4-8 sprigs fresh Dill
1 Onion, sliced or quartered
8-12 small, pickling Cucumbers, quartered

Directions:

Over medium-high heat bring water, vinegar, and salt to a  simmer

While the water is heating ensure your jars are sanitized, clean and dry

Divide the cucumbers, garlic, and onion amongst the jars

Add the pickling spices and dill to each jar

Once the brine is simmering use a funnel to pour it evenly into the jars leaving about a 1/2 inch room at the top of each.  Wipe the jar rims before sealing.

Screw lids tightly on and let come to room temperature

Refrigerate the jars for at least 48 hours

They will keep in the fridge for 3-4 weeks!

You should be able to keep these pickles in a cool, dark place for several months once jars have sealed.  I always bring my liquid to a full, rolling boil, then reduce to low flame while canning. To sanitize your canning jars, run them through the dishwasher.

Published on August 12, 2013by thefreckledfoodie http://www.thefreckledfoodie.com/zesty-quick-pickles/

TEXAS FRIED CABBAGE
--Betty Richardson (Original recipe)

1 pound pepper bacon, fried crisp & crumbled (set aside). Retain drippings.
1-2 large Texas 1015 onions (or other sweet onion like Vidalia), coarsely chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large head cabbage, coarsely chopped
salt & pepper

1.  Brown bacon in large skillet. Remove to paper towels to drain. Crumble. Set aside.  Leave drippings in skillet.  If there is too much, you can drain off some and save for later use.  Store in fridge.

2.  Put in onion and minced garlic in hot bacon drippings.  (You can also use the prepared garlic, and dip out a couple tsp fulls if you don't have fresh garlic).  Stir to start cooking process and when about half-way translucent, add the cabbage. Turn the cabbage over/over in skillet to coat.  Add salt & pepper to taste.  Stir frequently & turn over as cabbage begins to wilt so you don't burn the garlic.

3.  Remove all from pan when cabbage is tender crisp.  Turn out into large serving bowl and top with crumbled bacon.

Serve immediately.  Excellent side dish with some pan fried steak, mashed taters and cream gravy.

SUMMER SQUASH CASSEROLE

This recipe was given to my by my husband's biological mother, Mary.  Easy and delicious and another wonderful way to use up that summer garden bounty!

2 pounds yellow squash, sliced
1 small onion chopped
salt & pepper to taste
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 can cream chicken soup, undiluted
1 (8 oz) carton sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped pimento
½ cup melted butter
2 (8 oz) pkg herb seasoned stuffing mix [divided use]
3 slices velveeta cheese, cubed
sage

Cook squash, onion and salt & pepper in small amount of boiling, salted water until tender.  Drain.  Put 1 tablespoon of melted butter on squash. Add cubed cheese and stir to melt.   Add cream chicken soup, sour cream, pimento.  Mix well, but gently.  In separate bowl, combine ½ cup melted butter with 8 ounces (1 pkg) stuffing mix. Add sage to taste ***Careful not to put too much, or it will be bitter***  Spoon mixture into 2 quart casserole dish.  Top with ½ of remaining package of stuffing mix.

Bake at 375F for 30 minutes.

Mother's Carrot Cake

My mother loved carrot cake and she must have had about 20 different recipes, but she almost always came back to this one. It is moist and delicious.  You can substitute 1 cup finely grated fresh carrots and add about 1/2 cup applesauce if you don't want to use baby food carrots.  Pecans are usually our nut of choice, but Walnuts or Almonds work equally as well.

MOTHER'S CARROT CAKE

Image courtesy of Cooking.com

2 cups flour
1-1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
2 (6oz) jars baby food carrots
1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1/2 cup chopped nuts
Cream Cheese Frosting (follows)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a 9x13" pan. (or a bundt pan) Set aside.

In large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg; set aside.  In another bowl, mix baby food carrots and pineapple; set aside.

In another large bowl, blend sugar and oil. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add dry ingredients alternately with carrot-pineapple mixture; mix well. Stir in nuts.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 40-45 minutes.  Cool; top with Cream Cheese Frosting.

Yield: 16 servings

Cream Cheese Frosting:
Cream together 1/2 cup butter, 1 (8oz) package of cream cheese and 1 tsp vanilla. Gradually add 1 (1 pound) box of confectioner's sugar (powdered sugar). Beat thoroughly. Add a few drops of milk if frosting seems too thick.

CAPRESE CON SPINACHI

Caprese con Spinachi -- a beautiful fresh garden tomato and bull mozzarella salad served over a bed of baby spinach greens.  Easy, low fat and delicious.  Makes a wonderful dinner all by itself or as an accompaniment to any summer dinner.  Since I have bushels and bushels of tomatoes coming in my backdoor, we eat this frequently as supper.  It's light, but filling.  Quick to fix and always satisfying with those garden fresh tomatoes.  If you don't have or can't get fresh summer tomatoes, I recommend you use nice, red, ripe Romas.  Pick the reddest ones you can find.  Yield: 2 or more servings

Caprese con Spinachi Salad

Ingredients:

2 medium-large fresh tomatoes, peeled & cored if desired
1 sleeve of BelGiosi water pack Mozzarella (usually in Deli section)
Fresh Baby Spinach leaves
Red Wine or Balsamic Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Fresh Basil (snipped or cut into chiffonade)

Directions:
Put a very healthy handful of baby spinach in the center of two dinner plates. Slice your tomatoes and lay around the edges of the plates.  Interlace slices of mozzarella between the tomatoes.  Scatter cut, fresh basil over all.  Generously salt (I use coarse sea salt) and pepper (fresh ground is best).  Drizzle EVOO over both plates; then drizzle vinegar over both plates.  Voila!  Ready to serve.

If you have extra tomatoes, and love them like we do, pare another medium tomato and cut into 8ths, not cutting all the way to the bottom.  I do this holding the tomato in my hand.  Spread out in center of plate.  Add some chunked up mozzarella and season when you season up the plates.

This is also excellent service with Triscuit crackers. We especially like with the Garlic Parmesan crackers and maybe a fresh green onion on the side and a big ole glass of cold tea.

Enjoy~
~~Aunt Betty

Tomatoes Everywhere!

This winter's supply cookin' up!

Tonight's Tomato Bounty

We normally harvest in the evenings and this is a small sampling of tonight's harvest from our garden. I'll bet I have already given away about 8 bushels of tomatoes and at least 3-4 bushels of Zucchini and Squash.  Thank goodness the zukes and squash are slowing down (getting too hot in this Texas heat).

But the tomatoes are still coming off gangbusters.

This is my big stainless mixing bowl (on the left) and as you can see it is overflowing with rich, ripe goodness.  There were more cherry tomatoes, but I couldn't resist and ate a bunch of them after washing.  

And for the rest that had a few spots, were super ripe or were misshapen, into the pot they went and they are cooking away now.  Winter is always good at our house because I have lots of summer veg put up.  But we need 'super fan' in the kitchen during canning season.  All the burners going it gets hotter than a firecracker in there!

Don't worry about peeling your tomatoes. 

Get the bad spots out, peel off any funky peel or areas of the tomato, slice up and put in a heavy bottom stock pot.  Cook until they are reduced by at least half.  Run through a wire mesh sieve and any seeds and skins will be retained. 

I usually sieve into the giant Tupperware bowl that I've had since the early 1970's and then put it all back into the pot and cook about another 15-20 minutes. 

Have your hot sterilized jars and seals ready and ladle into prepared jars.  I add 1 tsp salt and 1/2 Tbs lemon juice to the top of  a pint jar (leaving 1/2" headspace), (or 1 + 1);  wipe the rims and seal.  Set on a tea towel on the counter and wait for them to seal.  You will hear them popping.  Double check after 24 hours to make sure they all sealed.  If you have one that didn't seal, stick it in the fridge and use it within a few days.  Once completely cooled, I remove the rings and store.  I never store my canned jars with the rings on because sometimes they get so stuck on you can't get them off later.  At least that's the way I learned.  DO NOT RETIGHTEN the rings once you tighten them.  There will be some contraction usually after they seal.

If you are a novice to canning and preserving, I can strongly recommend the 'bible' of canning:  Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving, available at most book retailers, Wal-Mart, Amazon.com, Target and places like that.