So Many Ways with Tomatoes

Really, we practically eat fresh tomatoes three meals a day in summer.  They are just so good, fast, and versatile.

Here are some old favorites and new discoveries.

Panzanella, Italian bread salad.  I had heard of this before, but Jane made it look totally accessible and delicious.  I didn't even bother to write down her recipe, but just tasted as I went along.  To make sure the bread has a sturdy texture,  I usually toast it a bit before I chop it.  The flavors of this salad remind me strongly of bruschetta, another summer favorite.

Here's a retro favorite:  tomato slices with dollops of mayonnaise and a sprinkle of sugar and salt (and I hotted it up with freshly ground pepper).

on the porch at the beach cottage

Sliced tomatoes with eggs and toast, an interesting discussion we had a few years back.

Another old favorite with a new twist: caprese salad.  But this time, I just used a mild white cheese because I didn't have any mozzarella.  Still wonderful.

More from the archives:

my version of redeye gravy
fabulous tomato gravy
lettuce-tomato with beef
10-minute all-in-one supper (and don't forget its cold cousin, tomato sandwiches:  good bread, mayo, salt, pepper, and tomato slices)

How are you eating tomatoes these days?

Oh, Jeni

You have changed my dessert life.  Well, probably my whole flavor life.  I never knew that basil ice cream could be so perfect.  Or that corn on the cob needed to be in ice cream.  Oh, Jeni.  You are a genius with flavors.  Every time I doubt, you prove me wrong.  I love looking at the flavor pairings you suggest.  Of course an olive oil cake and a Parmesan tuile sounds perfect with sweet basil ice cream studded with pine nut pralines.  Of course!  Absolutely I should eat baked rhubarb frozen yogurt with Champagne. But I would never think of these things on my own.

sweet corn with black raspberry sauce on the left, sweet basil with pine nuts on the right

And your ice cream recipes give such a luscious texture.  Truly, I think your ice cream recipes make the best ice cream ever and I'm not biased because it's home food that I made.  I really think you are a genius.  One of these days I am going to drive through Ohio in search of a Jeni's shop so I can see if what I make in my kitchen is just like yours. But in the meantime, I am so very satisfied with black coffee ice cream, the Buckeye State ice cream, Bangkok peanut, and why have I not tried the beet ice cream yet?  It has mascarpone, orange zest, and poppy seeds in it -  I know I can trust you.

My friend Christy and I spent a long time discussing your recipes recently.  Christy had family over for an ice cream parlor experience with four of your flavors and pretzels.  Isn't that fun?

 I'm taking your book to a friend soon, and I can think of about three more friends that I should buy it for.  Thank you, Jeni, for generously sharing your knowledge with the rest of us.

Gratefully,

Margo

A Gazpacho Discovery

We came back from vacation to a forgotten tomato and cucumber salad in the fridge.  I make variations on the theme all summer long:  sliced cucumbers, sweet onion, tomatoes, dressed with a little vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, and usually a few snippets of basil.  Sometimes I use lemon instead of vinegar.  Sometimes I add bell pepper or subtract another vegetable.  Whatever.  The only problem with this salad is that it is best eaten fresh; leftovers can get mushy.

In this case, I had a sudden idea at 6 am : what if I stuck my immersion blender in the leftover salad and called the result gazpacho?  It looked reasonable when it was done, so I packed it into my honey's lunchbox.  That evening, I asked him how he liked his gazpacho and he was quite enthusiastic.  Score!  Hooray for a salad that morphs into a summer soup!

The First Beets into Shuba

I spent some time in Russia after high school, and this salad takes me straight back.  I adore it on a summer's day with sourdough bread and butter or cheese and a cold beer.  It goes very well with peas of any kind, and sometimes there were peas in the salad, too, in Russia.

For dessert with this shuba, we had a strawberry pie that was divine.  It's this "French" one (a retro Bisquick recipe gussied up with "French").  I used my own tart crust and brushed simple syrup over the berries because I didn't have apple jelly. I'm absolutely going to make this again with whatever fresh fruit is around.

Shuba can be a strange-looking salad if you're not used to violet-colored mash (it's very hard to photograph, by the way).  And you probably should like strong fish in order to like this salad.

I feel a little rustic when I eat this salad, like I should be wearing a dirndl beside a mountain lake with a kerchief on my head and a basket in hand for berries.  I have a clear memory of visiting a friend's dacha (summer house) beside one such lake in the sunshine.  We biked around and swam in the sharply cold water, and then she served us scrambled eggs beside garden zucchini and tomatoes with hot chocolate in a mug. That food tasted like nectar, and years later, I finally understood that the flavor came from the perfect day, from the lake and the pine trees and the little yellow dacha.

Shuba
2 large potatoes
2 large beets
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup mayonnaise, divided
2 3-oz. tins kippered herring or sardines, preferably in oil (bonus points for smoked fish)
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup snipped fresh dill, or 1 1/2 Tbsp. dried dillweed, divided

Place potatoes and beets in baking pan, cover, and bake until soft (about 350 for 1 hour; to shorten the cooking time, slice in half first and place face down).  Or use leftover cooked potatoes and beets.  Allow to cool until you can handle them.  Mash the potatoes (you can peel them if you want) with a potato masher onto a shallow serving bowl, dinner plate, or glass baking dish.  Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.  Dollop on 1/4 cup mayonnaise.  Mash or mix again.  Flatten.  Lightly break up the fish and sprinkle evenly over the potato layer.  Sprinkle with onions and half the dill (how I wish I had fresh dill!  Mine gave up the ghost in the hard winter).  Slide the skins off the baked, cooled beets.  Grate.  Sprinkle the grated beets  over the fish/onion/dill layer.  Dollop on the rest of the mayo, 1/4 cup, and use a spatula to spread over the beets; a lovely lavender should emerge from the combination of beets and mayo. Sprinkle with remaining dill. Cover.  Refrigerate at least three hours before serving.

The Overripe Cantaloupe

It was my fault because I left the cantaloupe on the counter too long. Its flavor was good, its texture was not.  I blendered it into a smoothie and poured the leftovers into the popsicle molds.  I have finally realized that the popsicle is to summer what soup is to winter: take the little dregs or slightly undesirable leftovers and combine them into a new texture and everyone wants a bite!

Today Genevieve pestered her father into a lemonade stand on the front porch.  I told her it was a chilly day; she promptly used hot water to make the lemonade and billed it as "hot lemonade."  She didn't sell a single cup.  I poured 6 new popsicles of lemonade, her idea. 

What are your favorite popsicles?

Busy-Day Macaroni and Cheese

This is my go-to meal for busy summer days when my schedule threatens to swallow me and I need a little dependable comfort; I am immensely soothed by a proper meal eaten at a table with conversation.  It dawned on me that I have never blogged about this recipe because it appears during such busy times.  Like today, and that bushel of tomatoes.

 

 

 

I probably would still prefer oven-baked macaroni and cheese made with a white sauce (hello, Mom!), but any recipe that combines cheese and pasta is pretty darn good and this recipe is so incredibly easy.  The genius of cooking in the slow cooker is that it allows plenty of flex time at the end of the recipe - great for unpredictable schedules or spontaneous people.  This one, for example, can sit in the turned-off slow cooker for at least 30 minutes, probably more, if you're scrambling through your day - and then you get to have a nice, comforting plate of pasta!  I mix this up before we leave for swimming lessons, and it's done when we fall in the door at noon in wet swimming suits. Fabulous. 

Slow Cooker Mac & Cheese

Serves 2-3 if you're my family; I've been doubling this recipe this summer (see note on doubling below)

Generously butter a 3 or 4-quart slow cooker. 

Put in it:
1 2/3 cups uncooked macaroni or other similar small pasta
2 3/4 cups milk (I use 2%)
3 cups shredded sharp cheese, mixture of kinds preferred
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. ground mustard

Mix.  Cover.  Cook on low for 2-3 hours, taking the lid off for 20-30 minutes at the end if it looks soupier than you want.

 

To double this recipe, use a 5 or 6 quart slow cooker, cook on HIGH, and do not double the milk - make it more like 4 1/4 cups instead of 5 1/2 cups.

Now, there are some variables here, depending on how hot your cooker cooks and how soft or soupy you like your mac and cheese.  You will have to experiment. I like my mac and cheese on the firm, dry side with plenty of pepper and sharp cheese.  The cheese is important and I recommend that you mix several kinds of cheddar or Monterey Jack or the like, including a very sharp cheese.  I sometimes use a bit of smoked cheddar, too.  Some Parmesan would be excellent, I'm sure.

Serve with a plate of sliced tomatoes or cucumbers, purple basil optional, or whatever summer fruit needs to be eaten next.  Complete meal.  Complete comfort food.  Try it on your next busy day and let me know how you like it!

Several Cold, Creamy Treats

I made the Charlotte Russe from my 1952 Joy of Cooking (here is the Orange Charlotte)  I didn't have "maple flavoring," so I used vanilla extract, a little rum, and a sprinkle of nutmeg.  

After I assembled it, I cleverly googled "Charlotte" and realized, too late, that the traditional mold is more bowl-shaped with the ladyfingers lining the bowl.  So mine looked odd, but everyone loved it and fought over the leftovers. 

About every other day, Ben asks me wistfully if I have some Charlotte Russe in the fridge.  No, my cabbage, I am making other cold treats.

This is a delicious mash-up of several ideas with nary a recipe.

1 ripe avocado
some coconut milk (I froze the rest in ice cube size)
lemon juice (I would have used a lime if I had one)
pinch of salt
smidge of sugar
dried coconut - just a little, and I wanted it to disappear, but it stayed as nubs

I blendered this concoction and kept tasting it until I loved it.  Then I froze it as popsicles.  Rich, exotic, and totally wonderful.

Finally, here is another Jeni's recipe (and as I type, I am chilling Backyard Mint in the fridge).  Pictured here is Sweet Corn Ice Cream with Raspberry Sauce.  Sounds odd, but it's perfect. The sweet corn is cooked with the cream mixture and then strained out.  I gave the cooked corn to the children to eat and then took it back because it was so delicious.  Which reminds me, my sister-in-law saw a recipe on Pinterest for boiling corn in milky water with a stick of butter - wow.

I love summer desserts.  I'll have baked goods later, in the chilly weather.

Sunday Dinner: Multitasking Slow Cooker (updated with recipe)

People, it is hot here and my husband is manic on the subject of no cooking heat in the house.  I use my slow cooker pretty often in the summer and I usually set it outside.  That pleases him, as does cooking outside on the new grill.

Sunday, we had a meatless meatloaf which is a lentil loaf which really needs a better name.  It sounds like we are being all 70s alternative or like we miss meat so much we are trying our best to imitate it, but that's just not the case.  At my house, this is just a delicious way to eat lentils and it just begs for traditional meatloaf sides.

The menu:
the loaf
baked potatoes
cucumber salad with basil
espresso granita with whipped cream (I used strong decaf coffee and decreased the sugar by 1 Tbsp.)


I put the oiled potatoes in the bottom of my 6-quart oval slow cooker.  I turned them on high around 7am.  Before we left for church at 9am, I turned the cooker to low and added the lentil loaf (mixed up the day before) in a 9x5 metal loaf pan, sitting directly on top of the single layer of potatoes.  Clapped the lid on. 

It worked so well!  When we got home from church, I put together a cucumber salad. Delicious, easy Sunday dinner and no cooking heat in the house - plenty of other heat, though. . .

Lentil Loaf (originally from a cookbook called The Daily Bean)

Combine and mix well:
1-2 cups tasty cheese such as cheddar with a bit of smoked cheddar if you like
2 cups cooked lentils
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
pepper to taste
1/4 tsp. dried thyme (or triple the amount of fresh thyme)
1 cup soft breadcrumbs
1 egg
1 Tbsp. soft butter (optional)

Place in greased loaf pan and smooth top.  Bake at 350 F for 45 minutes or covered in a slow cooker on low for 2-3 hours.  You can put the loaf pan in the dry slow cooker and if there are no potatoes beneath, keep it off the bottom with a metal jar lid or small trivet.

If you have to cook your lentils just for this recipe, use a scant cup with a scant 2 cups water.  Cook covered for about an hour, until water is absorbed and lentils are soft.  Or you can cook a big pot and freeze the cooked lentils in 2 cup amounts.

Serve this loaf as you would traditional meatloaf; the wheat in the breadcrumbs in combination with the legumes (lentils) is a complete protein and there is protein from the cheese and egg.  Cold slices of leftover loaf are excellent in sandwiches with ketchup and sprouts.

The Beginning of a Summer Kitchen

Our old gas grill was really feeble, so we replaced it this year with a Big Camp Chef III grill.  It has three propane burners and a grill box that can be placed on two of the burners.  It is fabulous.  I called several places and searched multiple websites over several weeks until we found the best price (amazon, a few months ago when we bought it).

Next year, we're hoping to launch our grand plans for our summer kitchen (see my Pinterest board for some of my ideas!), but this year, we are getting used to the grill and seeing what it's like to cook and can outside.

grill box on, pot of boiling water on the available burner

 

I love boiling corn - the burners are 30,000 BTUs which means I can get a huge pot of water boiling in what feels like minutes (I should time it one of these days).

now our butter will stay this way all summer

Last week, I did my first canning project:  dill pickles.  Inside, I would have heated the jars in the oven.  Outside, I heated them in hot water in the canner.  I boiled the pickle brine on another burner.  I kept the lids and rings hot in my slow cooker.  Everything worked beautifully (except that I ran out of salt, vinegar, and garlic mid-project - seems like the first canning project of the season must always be ill-supplied).  

grill box off, three burners available

This year, I added a grape leaf to each jar; supposedly, the tannic acid in the leaves will help to keep the pickles crisp.  I also carefully sliced off each end of the cucumber, which also supposedly makes crips pickles.  I'll report back.

I also made a half-gallon of fermented dill pickles following the loose directions in The Art of Fermentation.  They are in the fridge now after their 3-day ferment, puckery and crisp, but not vinegary which is what I think of for a pickle.  We like them a lot.

Have you thought of setting up a summer kitchen?  Do tell!

Cooking Lesson: Baked Oatmeal in the Slow Cooker

Genevieve is seven-and-a-half years old and she is ready. We are taking a bit more formal approach to cooking this summer. Every Wednesday, we will have a cooking lesson and then I will share it with you!

I have come to realize that what I am teaching Genevieve is how to read and follow a recipe.  It sounds so obvious, but the first thing I taught her was a technique with no recipe (eggs and toast).  

I realized I need to teach her to read the recipe through once, assemble her ingredients, and keep re-reading as she steps through the recipe.  What I do is stay in the kitchen and put away ingredients as she uses them.  

Ben adores kitchen work, too, so he stays in the kitchen and his sister kindly allows him to stir or something.  Then he gets to be my helper at the next mealtime. 

This lesson, we made Baked Oatmeal.  I have blogged a lot about Baked Oatmeal because it is healthy, cheap, fast, and delicious. 

And people with summery-hot houses, take note: we put this Baked Oatmeal in a 4-quart slow cooker on high for 1.5 hours. Slow cookers don't give off a lot of heat to begin with, but you can also plug it in outside to cook and keep more heat out of your house.  Great, huh?  (We didn't take the slow cooker outside today because I thought it would be simpler for the newbie cook to stay in the kitchen.)

We actually had this cooking lesson in the afternoon due to our busy day, so we ate the Oatmeal for breakfast the next morning with some blackberries.  I love to have meals figured out so far in advance!  It frees my mind up to think of other things and to get to the sewing machine. 

However, later that evening as I sewed happily away, I listened to a sermon we missed while on vacation; it came highly recommended from several church members. 

scraping technique: hard to explain, hard to execute, but she licks the spatula at the end

I was convicted.  The sermon was about how Jesus responded to interruptions and didn't get glued into his plans and miss God speaking.

Oh, how I love my plans!  Oh, how I love order! 

But I want to love my children, my family, Jesus, more than my plans.  So I'm trying make plans that I'm willing to release - hard lesson for me.  And so far, the cooking lessons have been bright spots, so I'm grateful for that.

Fresh Corn Salad

These photos are from last week, and the corn is really over.  I apologize in advance for talking about summer food when actually, what I did in my kitchen today was bake a pumpkin pie.  We're having that for dessert tonight after black-eyed peas, greens, and cornbread.  I do not enjoy uploading photos, so sometimes things are just out of sync here on the blog.  Don't worry:  I'm going to upload a whole batch of interesting project photos I did recently, so I'll churn out those posts in the next few days.

So I discovered a wonderful corn salad, right at the end of summer.  It's raw corn, simply cut off the cob, marinated in a simple vinaigrette, with goodies added.  It's great, and I love skipping the blanching step with the corn.

 

I found the recipe when I was looking for a dish to take to a potluck.  Then, I made it again because we liked it so much - we had it at home with sauteed mushrooms, vegetarian crab (zucchini) cakes and wacky cake with caramel sauce. 

I had made the caramel sauce with half-and-half, so it wasn't as tempting as the version made with heavy cream.  But spooned warm over chocolate cake?  Well, that was amazing.  My husband had seconds and he does not have a sweet tooth.

 

Fresh Corn & Tomato Salad

(originally from Fix-it and Forget-it Potluck Heaven, but I made a number of changes)

 

1 1/2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

1/2 tsp. salt

fresh ground pepper

pinch sugar

2 Tbsp. olive oil

3 ears corn, cut off cob

1 cup halved grape tomatoes

1/3 cup cubed mild cheese or avocado

2 scallions, thinly sliced

about 1 cup fresh basil leaves, snipped

 

1.  Stir together vinegar, salt, pepper, sugar in salad bowl.  Slowly add the olive oil, whisking continuously, until dressing thickens (emulsifies).

2.  Stir in corn.  This part may sit, even overnight in the fridge, if needed.  Otherwise, add the rest of the ingredients and serve immediately at room temperature.  (At the potluck, I added the basil at the last minute.)

Stuffed Peppers I Love

I'm not fond of those baked stuffed peppers where the peppers get sort of mushy and slimy and weird; in the past, I tried to improve their texture by using higher heat and oiling the outside of the peppers.  The results were not worth repeating, although I can't exactly recall the actual results.

Well, I got a much better idea from Kate at Motley Mama.  I grilled the pepper halves first, lightly oiled and salted.  Then I stuffed them with a quinoa, garlic, tapenade, feta mixture I made up, and popped them back on the still-hot grill to coalesce. 

They were delicious!  And easy!  However, my filling was too crumbly - it needed more cheese to hold it together.  I wonder what leftover macaroni and cheese, mixed with a few chopped tomatoes, would be like as a filling for these?  I need to tell you about our crockpot mac and cheese that we've been eating frequently for lunch this summer!

Anyway, I served the peppers with hummus, crackers, and cucumbers.  A lovely summer supper.