Gnocci Soup

464.  Soup season is here and sitting down with a hot bowl of steaming soup, bread on the side with a chill in the air means autumn has arrived.

My daughter makes a version of this soup recipe which I have taken and switched up a bit.  Here is my recipe:

"Troppi cuochi guastano la cucina."

"Too many cooks spoil the broth."

~ Anonymous Italian Saying

Tomato Bruschetta

421.  Tomato Bruschetta is a lovely appetizer, a first course, tapas, or light meal.  It is also complimentary to any Italian meal and is so satisfying.  From the crunch of the toasted bread, cool tomatoes, fresh basil, hints of garlic and pulled together with olive oil.  Each bite is a delight.

Bruschetta is delicious!  Simple, satisfying and each bite is like the first bite!

"I'm into very colorful food.  Obviously lost of flavor, but I think we eat with our eyes first, so it has to look great.  The presentation has to be great."

~ Giada De Laurentiis

Plum Sauce

396.  Summer bbq is a favorite for our family and ribs on the grill tops the list.  Last year I ventured into creating a blackberry bbq sauce for ribs and we loved it.  So, last week when plums began to come into harvest in California, I was fortunate to be the receiver of several pounds of fresh picked plums.  Several cups of small wild plums and several pounds of red plums.  Ribs were on the menu for Father's Day and a Plum BBQ Sauce was in the works.  Here is my process and recipe...

The consistency of the sauce will thicken the longer you simmer it.  You want it to be thick enough to stick to the ribs.  

The flavor was tangy, fruity and savory and complemented the ribs very well.  Serving this sauce with goat cheese or blue cheese on a salad or stuffed in a mushroom was perfect.  This experiment payed off so well.  Thanks Teri for the plums!!

"When the old plum tree blooms, the entire world blooms."

~ Ancient Proverb

"The rose is a rose, and was always a rose. But the theory now goes that the apple's a rose, and the pear is, and so's the plum, I suppose.  The dear only knows what will next prove a rose.  You, of course, are a rose - but were always a rose."

~ Robert Frost

Green Tomato Salsa

344. Garden Diaries..."The end of the growing season on Long Island has come to an end.  So, my tomato plants will not be giving me any more tomatoes or ripen the tomatoes on the vine.  My father would take his green tomatoes at the end of the season and place them in a brown shopping bag and put them under the sink in the kitchen.  This would cause them to ripen from the warmth of the house and the lack of light in the bag.  I tried this method many times but this year I wanted to use the tomatoes right away.  My solution, make salsa...green tomatoes and all."

Here is my process...Green tomatoes and all!

I chopped the whole tomatoes into cubes then placed all in a saucepan and followed my pico de gallo salsa recipe Here.
I brought the mixture to a boil then immediately placed in sterile canning jars and sealed them.
How great to pull these jars out in the middle of the winter!
If I need a quick salsa but don't have all the ingredients, I will open one of these canned jars, pour into a serving bowl, add 5 chopped tomatoes, 3 chopped green scallions and chopped cilantro adding salt and pepper to taste.  Perfection!

"Canned tomatoes are like summer saved....all that deep sun kissed flavor ready to be enjoyed."
~Better Homes and Garden

Garden Canning

316.  Canning tomatoes is a must each autumn.  My tomato plants were great producers with constant tomatoes on the vine from May through November.  I purchased the plants in March at a plant distributor in Brooklyn, NY.  It was very early but I brought them home and kept them warm and watered till May.  These plants were significantly hardy and healthy as opposed to plants that I would buy locally in town.   Along with tomato plants I purchased flowers and herbs, which were also good quality and productive.

Each week would produce a basket full of tomatoes and cucumbers.  There are only so many tomatoes you can eat fresh.  The rest were destined to be sauce, salsa and marinara.  Towards the end of the growing season, when the temperature stayed below 70degrees, the tomatoes that were green were very useful for green salsa.  And can I say, the green salsa turned out "magnificent"!

 I still use some of the old canning jars my mom gave to me and others purchased at flee markets and yard sales.  My funnel was purchased in my first year of marriage when we lived in Seattle, Washington.  We loved to go to Remlinger Farms, pick apples and enjoy the beautiful scenery in Carnation, Washington.  Here is the link:  https://remlingerfarms.com/wholesale.htm

I was able to put up 3 batches of tomato sauce and marinara as well as 2 batches of salsa in pint jars.  This was the best tomato growth I can remember in many, many years.  Not to mention the great fresh basil, parsley and oregano growth as well.  Ahhhh, homemade sauce, nothing like it!

"There ain't nothin' better in life than true love and a home grown tomato."

-Old Saying 

Marinara Sauce

 306.  This summer my tomatoes grew exceptionally well.  So well that the neighborhood squirrels had a steady diet of my little red beauties!

 When I make my homemade fresh tomato sauce I use my blender.  I remember my mom processing tomatoes for hours.  Boiling the water.  Dropping the tomatoes in the water then plunging them into an ice bath to stop the cooking process.  Then laboriously peeling each tomatoes and then squeezing every last bit of liquid and seeds from the centers.  There was just as much waste from the tomatoes as there were tomatoes to cook.

 My logic has been…the seeds and skin carry just as much nutrition as the pulp of the tomato.  So, I just wash each tomato, whole and cherry, and cut them in chunks, then fill up my blender.

 The blender does a wonderful job of mincing every bit of skin and seed that you would not know the difference.  And the texture is very smooth and consistent.

 Once it has processed till all the little bits disappear, it will seem foamy and the color turns pink.

 I prepare a large 6-8quart pot by sautéing in olive oil 1 large onion chopped and 4 cloves of garlic minced.  Once you pour the liquid tomato puree into the pot, bring it to a rolling boil and continue with the remaining tomatoes.

 The color red returns quickly with the heat.  I then chop fresh parsley, oregano and basil.  One to two cans of tomato paste.  Add teaspoon of sugar, salt and pepper and sometimes a pinch of red pepper flakes.

 Bring all to a boil, then turn down to simmer for about 60 minutes stirring every so often.  Taste to adjust the seasoning and if you would like to add more of the ingredients have fun!  I have even added chopped up veggies from my garden such as squash, green bean, peppers or eggplant.  Once it has cooked and the seasoning is perfect you can serve it with pasta or pour the hot sauce into sterilized jars and place sterilized lids on top.  Within minutes you will hear the seals pop and your sauce is ready to store away in a cool place until you need it.  For canning I use both canning jars and mayonnaise jars, which are a perfect size and the special canning lids fit just right!

"The federal government has sponsored research that has produced a tomato that is perfect in every respect, except that you can't eat it.  We should make every effort to make sure this disease, often referred to as 'progress', doesn't spread."

~Andy Rooney

"I don't care what anybody says:  Nothing is better than a tomato you grow.  There's something about it that's different than a tomato you can buy.  It's a great thing."

~T. Vilsack