Farmers Market Salsa

Our tomato plants are thriving this year. The tomatoes I'm getting look so nice and pretty! I should have taken a picture. :) I love fresh, homemade salsa - it's a perfect snack that you don't have to feel guilty about eating. This recipe calls for Roma tomatoes but I used my Early Girls and they worked great - probably any medium sized vine tomato would. I also omitted the banana pepper because I couldn't find it at the grocery store.

Farmers Market Salsa

8-10 large vine ripe Roma tomatoes, diced
1 small Walla Walla sweet onion, diced
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded, diced
1 banana pepper seeded (long pale yellow), chopped
1 small green bell pepper, seeded, diced
Juice of two limes
Chopped fresh cilantro to taste (or dried, to taste)
1 tsp of sugar
Kosher Salt to taste
Ground pepper to taste

Mix everything together and enjoy!

For a variation try:
1 chopped, peeled ripe avocado or 1 chopped, peeled ripe nectarine, peach or mango

Whole Wheat Pear Granola Muffins

What can I say, I love muffins! I bought a case of pears from Costco and wanted to try something new. This recipe calls for D'Anjou pears but I used bartlett and I thought they still tasted great. I loved the granola topping. My one year old couldn't get enough of these. This muffin recipe comes from The Sisters Cafe.

Whole Wheat Pear Granola Muffins

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 (2 cups) D'Anjou pears, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice

Crumb topping:
1/2 cup granola

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 12-cup standard muffin tin with paper liners; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, brown sugar, yogurt, and butter. Make a well in the center of flour mixture. Add egg mixture to well, and mix in flour mixture until just combined. Gently fold in the pears.

Crumb topping:

In a bowl, toss together 1/2 cup granola, 1/4 cup each all-purpose flour and packed light-brown sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cut 3 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter into pieces; add to granola mixture, and rub in with fingertips until clumps form.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each 3/4 full. Sprinkle with granola topping. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool 5 minutes before removing from tin. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Peach Crisp with Maple Cream Sauce

Ben works with a lady who has several peach trees. Each year she invites us over to pick peaches to our hearts' content. Every year I freeze the majority of them for smoothies and shakes but we also eat a fair share of them fresh. This year I decided to try this recipe to use up the remaining peaches. It did not disappoint! I found this recipe on http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com but it originally came from "The Pioneer Woman Cooks."

Peach Crisp with Maple Cream Sauce

1 cup flour
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. (one stick) butter, cut into bits
5-6 cups, peeled, sliced fresh peaches
Juice and grated zest of ½ lemon
2 T. maple syrup

*Maple cream Sauce, for serving (make beforehand, see instructions below)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine flour, sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in medium bowl. Cut in butter with fork or pastry blender until mixture is the consistency of coarse meal. Place peaches in 9-inch square baking pan or smaller baking dish. Gently mix in lemon juice, rind and maple syrup. Top with crumb mixture. Cover tightly with foil and bake about 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake20 to 30 minutes more or until top is crisp and brown. You might want to broil fora couple of minutes to ensure good color. Serve warm with maple cream sauce.

Maple Cream Sauce
1 1/2 cups whipping cream
5 T. maple syrup
3 T. light corn syrup

Combine all ingredients in heavy sauce pan; cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly until thickened and reduced by 1/3, approximately 20 minutes. Chill until thickened. Drizzle generously over Peach Crisp.

Sloppy Joes

I've tried a few different Sloppy Joe recipes and this is my favorite to date. I like that it's not too runny so it doesn't make your bun soggy. Tonight we had these with homemade buns. (I just used my bread machine roll recipe and cut the dough into circles with a cookie cutter.) We like to top off our Sloppy Joes with a slice of cheese.

Sloppy Joes

2 lbs ground beef
1 onion, chopped
2 Tbsp flour
1 small can tomato sauce
1 Tbsp dry mustard
4 Tbsp brown sugar
3 Tbsp vinegar
3 Tbsp ketchup
3 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt & Pepper to taste

Brown ground beef and onion. Drain off grease. Add remaining ingredients. Heat on stove top until warmed through. Serve on buns.

Grilled Steak with Garlic Rub

This is a flavorful and super easy way to grill steaks. The best part about this marinade is you don't have to plan in advance. It only has to sit on the steak for 30 minutes before grilling.

Garlic Rub

1-2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp coarsely ground pepper (I use 1/2 tsp)
2 garlic cloves, crushed with a press

Mix together in a bowl and spread on steaks. Allow to sit for 30 minutes. Then grill or broil in oven. My husband grilled these outside tonight and he was able to do it without flipping the steaks - that way we didn't lose any of the marinade. They were still grilled on both sides and tasted great.

Banana Carrot Bread

This is a fun variation on regular banana bread. I had a bunch of carrots in my fridge so I made this recipe to use some of them up. You really can't taste the carrots but you can see the pretty orange flecks. :)

Banana Carrot Bread

1 cup mashed bananas (about two large, very ripe bananas)
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup canola oil
2 eggs
2 cups sifted flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg (I do slightly less.)
1 cup finely grated carrots

Combine bananas, brown sugar, oil & eggs in bowl and mix. Sift flour, soda, salt, cinnamon & nutmeg together in large bowl. Stir into banana mixture. Fold in carrots. Spoon into large greased and floured loaf pan. Bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Can also makes these into muffins.

Blueberry Sour Cream Pancakes

Another pancake recipe. Ben made pancakes from a mix the other night and I think I've been ruined. They tasted terrible! I definitely prefer pancakes from scratch and there are so many options! These ones are very moist because of the sour cream.

Blueberry Sour Cream Pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour (Or 1 1/2 c. white flour, 1/2 c. whole wheat flour.)
1/4 cup sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup (8 oz.) sour cream (I have substituted 1 c. plain greek yogurt for this.)
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. In another bowl, beat the eggs. Add milk, sour cream & butter; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until blended. Fold in blueberries. Cooked on greased hot griddle.

Chicken Salad Sandwich

I saw a picture of a chicken salad sandwich on my friend Ruby's blog and it looked so good! It reminded me how much I love chicken salad on a croissant and how infrequently I eat it. The next time I was at Costco I picked up a pack of these croissants (Costco's are fabulous!) and whipped up some chicken salad for dinner. Here is how I like to make it:

Chicken Salad

1 can chicken, drained and shredded
1/2 cup or so of mayo
1-2 tsp. lemon juice
1 cup red seedless grapes, cut in half
1/2 cup celery chopped fine
crumbled bacon or real bacon bits
pineapple tidbits (optional)

Mix everything together and spread on fresh croissant rolls. Yum!

Baked Oatmeal

Our family consumes A LOT of cold cereal. Ben grew up on cold cereal. For Christmas every year he and his brothers would each get five or six full size boxes of cold cereal with their stockings. Though I shop sales and use coupons so usually get it quite cheap, cold cereal takes up a lot of space in my house and is not the healthiest breakfast out there. I have a goal to make more "homemade" breakfasts. My kids love oatmeal - I don't. Regular oatmeal cooked in a saucepan is just "ok" for me. But I came across this baked oatmeal recipe and it is super! Ben LOVED it. It's super quick to make and very filling. I halved the recipe and baked it in an 8X8 dish and it was the perfect amount to feed my family for one morning. This tastes great plain or with fruit on top.

Baked Oatmeal
6 cups oats (rolled or quick)
1 1/2 cups brown sugar (can substitute coconut sugar with great results)
1 cup oil (melted coconut oil works great)
2 cups milk
4 beaten eggs
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and pour into a 9X13-inch baking pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Serve warm with milk….or not.

Red Wine Vinaigrette

I want to start making my own salad dressings so I'm going to experiment with a few. I'll still keep a bottle of Hidden Valley Ranch and Italian Dressing in my fridge but homemade salad dressing is so much better for you without all the preservatives, etc. so I'm going to try to do more of that. Here's one that is sweet and tasty. We call it the "pink dressing" in our house. This recipe comes from another great recipe site: www.melskitchencafe.com. (BTW, I think next time I make this I will only use 1 cup sugar.)

Red Wine Vinaigrette

2/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup red onions, finely grated (about 1/4 of a large red onion)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons salt
ground pepper to taste
2 cups canola oil

Add all ingredients except oil in a blender. Blend well. While processing, slowly add the canola oil and blend well. Transfer dressing to a jar or cruet. It keeps well in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks (although I’ve found it gets a little thick if it is too cold so I’ll pop it in the microwave for 5-10 seconds to help thin it out before I use it if it has been in the refrigerator for several days).

Applesauce Pancakes

I don't know if I'll ever go back to store-bought pancake mixes. I guess I'll always keep some on hand - just in case, but pancakes from scratch are so much better! I had some applesauce in my fridge that I needed to use up so I decided to try these pancakes. I used unsweetened applesauce but I'm sure any kind would work. I didn't have time to make the syrup but I'm sure it would taste great with these pancakes. These recipes come from The Sisters Cafe.

Applesauce Pancakes

2 eggs
2 c flour
1 c milk
1 c applesauce
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 c vegetable oil
2 T sugar
1 T baking powder
1 tsp salt

Beat eggs until fluffy. Beat in remaining ingredients just until smooth. Heat griddle or skillet over medium heat or to 375 degrees. (To test griddle, sprinkle with a few drops of water. If bubbles jump around, heat is just right.) Grease griddle. For each pancake, use slightly less than 1/4 cup batter. Cook pancakes until bubbly on top and dry around the edges. Turn to cook other sides until golden brown.

Cinnamon Syrup
1 cup sugar
slightly less than 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup evaporated milk

In a saucepan, combine sugar and cinnamon. Pour in corn syrup and water and stir to dissolve. Boil, stirring constantly 2-3 minutes. Cool. Stir in evaporated milk and serve. Refrigerate leftovers.

Cafe Rio at Home

My cousin Liesel let me in on the secret recipes for Cafe Rio goodness in the comfort of your own home. :) My five year old has reverted to his old picky self lately and won't go near anything with "little green things" in it. But my three year old ate this up.

Cafe Rio's Sweet Pork Barbacoa

Pork Roast
*Cook pork in crock pot on low for 5-6 hours. Drain water and fat; then shred pork. Return to crock pot and add:
2 cups sugar (I think 1 is plenty.)
1 can Coke
1 pint fresh salsa (Bottled salsa works.)

*Cook an additional 2-3 hours. Serve in warm tortillas with cheese, beans (I like black), cilantro lime rice and tomatillo & cilantro dressing.  Or make as a salad with tortilla on bottom and lettuce and other toppings piled on top.

Cilantro Lime Rice

1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup white rice
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp salt
*Heat oil, add rice stirring to coat; add broth and salt and bring to boil. Cover and cook on low for about 20 minutes or until rice is tender. (Mine was done in only about 10 minutes.) Then add:
Grated rind and juice from one lime
1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves (I used about 2 Tbsp dried cilantro.)

Tomatillo and Cilantro Dressing

1 envelope buttermilk ranch dressing
1 cup mayo
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup sour cream
1 cup cilantro leaves
3 tomatillos (remove husk cover, core and cut in half)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
*Put everything in blender and blend until smooth. If you refrigerate it for a while it will thicken.

Crepes

We were given a crepe maker for a wedding gift. You don't need one to make crepes but it sure makes it easy! Tonight we had chicken crepes for dinner (chicken, spinach & cheese w/ a chicken gravy) and apple pie filling and strawberry crepes with vanilla ice cream for dessert! Oh the possibilities...

Basic Crepe Batter

1 cup all purpose flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

Place ingredients in blender. Blend 30 seconds. Stop and stir down sides. Blend 30-60 seconds more until smooth. Or, mix in bowl with wire whisk or mixer, first combining flour and eggs, adding liquid gradually. Beat until smooth; add other ingredients. Makes about 16 crepes.

I pour my batter into a shallow pie plate and then dip the crepe maker in the plate quickly. Then I allow the crepe to cook for about a minute. If you don't have a crepe maker I'm sure you could spray a frying pan and cook them that way. The key would be minimal batter in the pan so your crepe stays thin.

Chicken and Dumplings

In my opinion, this meal is the epitome of comfort food. I've really cut down on my use of cream of chicken soup, but I am not above it. This dish is easy to make, quick and filling. Another great recipe from The Sisters Cafe.

Chicken and Dumplings

3 c. cooked chicken, cut into large pieces

½ c. butter

1/3 c. flour

½ tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

3 c. chicken broth

1 can cream of chicken soup (98% fat free variety works great)

Dumplings:

2 c. flour

3 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 tsp poultry seasoning (I used McCormick's chicken seasoning.)

1 tsp celery seed (I omitted.)

¼ c. oil

1 c. milk

Blend butter, flour, salt and pepper in saucepan. Add chicken broth and cook until thick. Stir in cream of chicken soup and add cooked chicken. Put in a 9x13 pan. To prepare dumplings, mix all ingredients together and stir until moistened. Drop rounded spoonfuls onto chicken and gravy. Bake at 425° for 20-25 minutes.