Cooking and Canning

I don’t know why I didn’t know about this berry decades ago, as it is native to the Southeastern United States….as am I. I’ve only become aware of it over the last year. Do not judge the jelly based on the raw berry or the taste/aroma while cooking them. The end result is similar to a grape flavor, but with a little spice…not spicy, as in hot, but spiced. You need: 5-6 cups of American…

  NOTE: I wrote this back in mid-July, and TOTALLY forgot about publishing it. Use frozen or save this for Summertime!

Fresh corn is in season! After canning some, I decided to use the rest to make salsa. It was a hit with the family!

INGREDIENTS:

About 9 ears of fresh corn, shucked

1 large jalapeno pepper, seeds removed, fine dice

1 serrano pepper, seeds removed, fine dice

1 small can chopped…

This is a little different from my mango pico from a few years ago. It is briefly simmered, I’m using cumin instead of chili powder, and I’m using some fresh jalapeno and serrano chili.This salsa is great on tortilla chips. I’m also considering a chicken dish, maybe fish, and a friend says his wife is going to use some in a meatloaf. There’s lots of possibilities!

Ingredients:

10-12 small-ish…

Pork Skins (or Chicharones)

Fried pork skins. They’re a great a great Southern snack. And in Latino culture, they call them “chicharones”. Many people either do not like them, or refuse to try them; but many of us love them. Plain, with salt, hot sauce, or vinegar and BBQ seasoned flavors are all popular ways to eat them. But it is a somewhat involved process. Normally, I am happy to eat ones prepared by someone else;…

Quick quinoa and corn recipe. 1c. Quinoa (“Red Incan”) 1 Knorr vegetable bouillon cube 1 packet Goya Sazon with Saffron 1 can corn with liquid 1-1/4 cups hot water 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil Add the oil to the bottom of the Instant Pot. Pour in the quinoa and stir. Put the bouillon cube in the hot water and microwave for about a minute, keeping watch that it doesn’t boil over. Stir to…

I’ve been looking for some healthier alternatives lately…ways to cut down on sugar and carbs. I know that pasta isn’t low carb, but when I’m looking for a little cheat, at least I can try a little whole wheat, to mitigate my splurge. Ingredients: 2 cups whole wheat flour (I used King Arthur brand) 1 cup unbleached all purpose flour 4 large eggs 2 teaspoons olive oil, extra virgin 1/2 teaspoon…

Instant Pot Italian Sausage and Cabbage Soup

Let’s give this a try, with some ingredients I have on hand. I would have used a small onion, if I had one, but I didn’t, so I used onion powder. Another option might be some sliced mushrooms, but then my kids wouldn’t eat it. So, here’s what I have: Ingredients 1 lb Italian sausage, sweet or mild 1 can Diced tomatoes 1 small can Tomato paste 1 cup Green cabbage, rough chopped 1 cup Carrots,…

Loroco, thawing in water. Someone from El Salvador told me that my Pupusas are pretty good. He tried to describe one thing that was missing, though. Something his mother used. He didn’t know the name…didn’t know how to describe it. What I took from his attempt was that it was some kind of small pepper that you ate with the pupusas. But he said you couldn’t find them locally. The closest store was…

Pulled BBQ Chicken This recipe basically adapts the technique that I used for the enchilada filling, except I made a BBQ sauce from my Guajillo-Pasilla  to add to the chicken, rather  than the enchilada sauce. I offered rolls and flour tortillas with the chicken, and it was a hit…no leftovers! ingredients: For the Chicken 4 boneless chicken breasts, trimmed 1 T. vegetable oil 1/3 c.…

Guajillo-Pasilla Chili Sauce   This sauce is basically like a liquid version of chili powder. The Instant Pot helps with the toasting of the dried chilies, and then speeds up the process by pressure cooking the chilies briefly, rather than soaking for a half hour to an hour. Dried chilies, stemmed and seeded. The rest of the process involves a blender, a strainer and a utensil to force the pulp…

Chicken Enchiladas Guess who finally got an Instant Pot for Christmas?! Yup, that would be me. Just getting my feet wet and, so far, I’ve made vegetable beef soup, a vegetarian vegetable soup (that really needed some tomato paste), and today’s recipe: Chicken Enchilada Filling. The ingredients are: 1.5 lbs boneless chicken breast, trimmed 1 can Red Enchilada Sauce 1 can Green Chilies,…

  Tostones is a great snack or side dish. It’s basically fried, flattened green plantains, fried again. The mojo is a dipping sauce. The process for the plantains is a little time consuming, but it isn’t really hard. The mojo is basic and simple. I used yellow plantains instead of green, so they were a bit sweeter and less starchy than traditional…I’ll try green ones next time, but these were…

Basic Flan. Yum! Flan. Not what most kids want for dessert. But, if you can get them to TRY it, many will like it. As an adult, with more mature tastes, almost everyone will appreciate it. Flan is a custard that is pretty firm, and is baked with caramelized sugar that becomes a syrupy sauce. Many cultures have a version of flan, especially Latino and Hispanic cuisines. The one I am doing here is…

Red okra. I saw this somewhere and it sparked an interest. I made a couple of jars of pickled okra last year, and I entered one in competition at the State Fair. I had some winners, but my okra wasn’t one of them. I tried it, and I thought it was good; but I’m not a pickled okra “expert”, so…. How can I get the judges’ attention? How about some RED okra?! I followed the basic recipe found here:…

Corn and Salsa Spiralized Zucchini Pasta

Southwest Spiralized Zucchini Pasta A spiralizer has been sitting around in my closet for quite some time, gathering dust. Something recently caught my attention and prompted me to buy a couple of zucchinis and dust that puppy off. Being that it is Summer, and the height of fresh veggie season, now is the time to do it! First thing I did was set up the spiralizer with the smaller of the string…

Pressure Cooker Navy Beans

Fissler Stove-top Pressure Cooker   For some reason, I decided to buy a bag of dry navy beans the last time  went to the grocery store.  I guess I had the idea to use my Fissler stove-top pressure cooker and was having some nostalgic feelings about my Mother cooking a “big pot of soup beans”. She usually added a big ham bone from a recently cooked ham supper. I used to complain about these meals…