This is a very belated post for me… and I am talking about almost 3 months late 
Our friend generously offered to share her tomatoes from her garden this past summer, and I took her up on it. Nothing beats homegrown vegetables! These tomatoes were sweet and delicious on their own, but I generally love them better cooked, especially roasted. When you roast them in a low-temperature for at least a few hours, they dehydrate which in turn intensifies their flavors. I had seen them everywhere in Italy when Red and I traveled there a couple of years ago. This summer was my first time trying it at home on my own.
I had to play around with the temperature, to make sure that they get to the right level of dehydration. It also depends on the size of the tomatoes. The roasted slices keep well for up to two weeks in refrigerator. They make great toppings for salad, sandwiches/panini, soups, pizza, you name it! This is definitely one of those great pantry staples to have around the house. You don’t know when exactly you may need a little something special on your dinner table. If you run into abundance of tomatoes, pick up some and make this.
Ingredients
1 lb of tomatoes, sliced about 1/2-inch thickness
2 tbsp of olive oil plus 1 tsp of olive oil
A big pinch of salt
Directions
Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Lay all of the sliced tomatoes flat, cut side up on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt. Bake for 2-3 hours, depending on the size of the tomatoes, and how hot your oven gets. For smaller tomatoes, I would say an hour or two. Some of the bigger tomatoes may require 3 hours before they slices are dehydrated enough from the heat.
Store in a tightly covered container, drizzle a little bit of olive oil (~1 tsp), and keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
I love cooking with fresh herbs, but unfortunately they come with a rather hefty price tag, usually about $4.99 for a small bunch. If I don’t use them all up right away, they will turn bad in a few days and I would feel guilty about not cooking with them sooner. Every summer, I always tell myself that I would grow my own garden (both herbs and vegetables). But then for the past few years that I have been able to start the garden, they always end up dead before the summer is even over. This year, my pepper plant died when I took a week of vacation. Sigh! I have however, discovered the next best alternative for my love for fresh herbs: buying them at farmer markets! They have bunches of freshly picked herbs with a fraction of the cost of what I would pay in regular grocery stores. This pesto was one dish that I have been wanting to make for the longest time using fresh basil, and finally I got around to making them. This recipe is slightly “non-traditional” because it uses walnuts in addition to the pine nuts. I was really impressed with how fresh and complex the flavor was, and how easy this was to put together. It is important that you find the best cheese and olive oil that you can find since it will make a HUGE impact on the flavor. It scores extra points because it is freezer friendly. It is definitely a nice change from the tomato-based sauces for our pasta night.
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa Parties
Ingredients
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
3 tablespoons chopped garlic (9 cloves)
5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups good olive oil
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Directions
Place the walnuts, pignolis, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 15 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Use right away or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.
Notes: Air is the enemy of pesto. For freezing, pack it in containers with a film of oil or plastic wrap directly on top with the air pressed out.
To clean basil, remove the leaves, swirl them in a bowl of water, and then spin them very dry in a salad spinner. Store them in a closed plastic bag with a slightly damp paper towel. As long as the leaves are dry they will stay green for several days.
Yield: 4 cups
Two weekends ago, our local farmer markets finally opened for the season. I was up early and ready to check out our local farmer’s harvests. Unfortunately, since it was the first day of the season; the selection was rather limited. There were tons of potted herbs; vegetable and fruit plants; and some basic leaf vegetables (which we bought for salad); but everything else was not available yet. Then I saw these gorgeous reddish stalks of rhubarb; they were $1.50 for a pound. My husband was quick to point out that he didn’t like rhubarb; and kept on asking me if I had them, and if I liked them. On a second thought, nope, I never had them straight in a jam, maybe mixed in with berries in a pie. I finally convinced him that I would make them into a jam.
Since I have never worked with them before, I decided to only buy a pound; I figured that if I didn’t like them then I would not feel bad about my experiment. Not only that this was oh so easy and required no special equipment, this was so delicious that I kept on licking the wooden spoon that I used to stir it. It was sweet, slightly tart, tangy and perfect! It was so delicious that I think it converted my hubby Red into a rhubarb lover. I actually proceeded with the canning step; although I really didn’t need to; since I knew that this jar of rhubarb wouldn’t last very long at our house. This was perfect accompaniment to any of your breakfast breads; and I especially loved mine on top of simple grilled pork chops (with just salt, pepper, and olive oil).
Adapted from Kitchen Parade
Ingredients
1 tablespoon water
1 pound fresh rhubarb, trimmed in one-inch pieces
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons crystallized ginger, chopped
Zest of a lemon
Directions
Combine all ingredients above in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer until jam thickens, stirring often.
While the rhubarb cooks, sterilize the jars. You can either run the jars through the dishwasher by themselves, or just use a big pot of boiling water. Time it so both the jars and jams are hot at the same time.
When both the jam and jars are hot, spoon the hot fruit into the hot jars to within 1/8 inch of the top edge. A funnel helps but isn’t necessary. With a damp cloth, wipe the inside lip so no fruit remains.
Seal the jar. Place a lid on each jar and tightly screw on a rim.
Within 2 to 3 hours, you’ll hear an unmistakable and satisfying ‘pop’ as each jar seals. To check, press the center of a lid with a finger. The jar is sealed if the lid won’t depress, it’s not if it’s got a dimple. If a jar doesn’t seal, refrigerate it and enjoy the contents within a couple of weeks.
Yield: 3-4 half pint jars
Yea I know, I know… I’m sure every house in America is baking or cooking with some sort of apples right now. But I really couldn’t help it–I had to find something to use up the leftover apples at the house that used them all up and I actually ran out of ideas of what to do with these apples! Some recipes called for a lot more, some called for a lot less. Since I only had several apples left, I did not have enough to make a whole batch–but this recipe was so flexible that I went ahead and made this! It was delicious, although Red reminded me gently that he doesn’t like apple sauce. I know that I can find a wonderful bread or cake or other baked goods that call for applesauce!
Adapted from Ina Garten
Ingredients
2 large navel oranges, zested and juiced
1 lemon, zested and juiced
3 pounds Granny Smith apples (about 6 to 8 apples)
3 pounds sweet red apples, such as Macoun, McIntosh, or Winesap (about 6 to 8 apples)
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Place the zest and juice of the oranges and lemon in a large bowl. Peel, quarter, and core the apples (reserving the peel of 2 of the red apples) and toss them in the juice. Pour the apples, reserved apple peel, and juice into a nonreactive Dutch oven or enameled iron pot. Add the brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and allspice and cover the pot. Bake for 1 hour, or until all the apples are soft. Remove and discard the red apple peel. Mix with a whisk until smooth, and serve warm or at room temperature.
