Sauce from Fresh Tomatoes, Basil, Thyme and Oregano

It is that time of year when you need to find things to do with all of the produce from your garden. Normally pasta sauce is made best with plum tomatoes, but this sauce is okay with slicing tomatoes because there are just too many of them for me to eat in a sandwich! 

If you have plum tomatoes, use them instead! I tried adding carrot for the first time. I read that adding a carrot, both grated and whole, will reduce the acidity in the sauce and eliminate the need to add sugar. Why not try it?

8 lbs of slicing tomatoes or 5 lbs plum tomatoes, blanched, peeled, and seeded
1/4 c olive oil
1 celery stalk, diced
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, peeled, grate half and put the other half in whole
1 head of garlic, cloves crushed
2 t anchovy paste
1 T tomato paste
1/2 t red pepper flakes or to taste
2 bay leaves
1 t salt
1/4 c dry white wine (optional)
1/4 c torn basil leaves
1/2 t dried oregano or one sprig of fresh
1 sprig fresh thyme
2 sprigs of fresh flat leaved parsley
1 1/2 c water

Heat oil in large pot. Add onion and celery and cook until translucent. Add garlic and grated carrot and cook for one more minute. Add anchovy and tomato paste and red pepper flakes and cook until color deepens. Add white wine if using and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook for at least 3 hours or until the sauce has cooked down so it isn't watery. Remove the bay leaves and stems of the herbs. Use in your favorite recipes.

Mung Dal Kitchari (Kapha Reducing)

This is my first attempt at kitchari. I may need to adjust some seasoning.

Kitchari

4 c Basmati rice
6 bay leaves
1 t cardamom
2 t cinnamon
1 t cloves
4 t cumin
6 T ghee
4 in piece of ginger
2 c mung bean
1 t salt
8 c water

Soak the mung beans for several hours before cooking and drain. Add 6 cups of water or more and bring to a boil, scooping off any foam that forms on the top. Then, strain out the liquid and add another 16 c of fresh water to the mung dal.

2. When the mung beans are dissolved into the broth (1-3 hours), grind the ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, and cumin. Make a thick paste by adding a bit of water. Let sit for five minutes, then sauce in ghee until aromatic but before they brown. De-glaze the frying pan with 1/4 c water to add to the soup.

3. Add rice and any remaining ingredients to the broth. Cover and cook on low heat for 20 minutes or until rice is tender.

Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs-- The Best Recipe Ever!

If you want tender ribs in a short amount of time the instant pot is the way to go! If you buy your ribs at Costco or Sam's club, three racks come in one package and an 8 qt pot can handle it just fine.

First pull the silver skin off of the ribs. This is not my favorite thing to do, so I let my husband help out with this task. Put your ribs on a large baking sheet and using a paper towel so you can grip it okay, start at one of the ends to grab the silver skin.  Once you get going it will come right off.

Then, GENEROUSLY season your ribs on the front and back with salt and pepper and your dry rub of choice. We've been using Montreal seasoning lately and it is really good, but always use more than you think you need here.

Let the ribs rest while you get out your instant pot set up. Put the cooking rack in the bottom of the cooker.
Add 1 c water, 1/2 c apple cider vinegar, 1 t liquid smoke

Next lay the ribs on their side and coil around the outside. If you have three rib racks, coil the third one in the middle of the other two (in an 8 qt pot).

Pressure cook for 25 minutes. Let it do natural release for 10 minutes and then quick release. Using a couple pairs of tongs, pull the ribs out and place on a baking sheet. Slather on your favorite BBQ sauce (we like Sweet Baby Rays Sweet and Spicy) and grill or broil on each side for 5 minutes.

The meat will be falling off the bone and delicious!

Low Country Boil in Foil Pack for camping

Low Country Boil in Foil Pack for camping

This was delicious!

1 lb shrimp, deveined with shells on
2 lb turkey or chicken sausage, sliced
1 lb fresh green beans
1 lb baby potatoes, quartered
5 corn on the cob, sliced
5-6 cloves of minced garlic
6 T salted butter (1 T per foil pack)
1 t of each, Old Bay seasoning/Cajun seasoning/black pepper/paprika/Bragg's 24 herbs and spices seasoning
cooking spray
heavy foil

Prepare ingredients and toss together with seasonings in a large bowl. Divide evenly between 5 foil sheets sprayed with cooking spray. Fold foil tightly. Place foil packets on hot coals or on the grate for about12-15 minutes. Check if potatoes are done.

Enjoy!

Black Bean Soup

Black Bean Soup

1 onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 t oil
2 bay leaves
1/2 t smoked salt (not too much because the ham is salty)
1 t black pepper
2 t ancho chili pepper
1 t ground coriander
1 t ground cumin
several grinds of South African Smoked Pepper
1 ham bone with some meaty bits still attached
5 c pre-soaked beans
1 carton of chicken broth
water to meet the fill line

Leave the lid off and hit the sauté button on the Instant Pot. Add oil and heat for a minute. Add the veggies to the Pot and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add seasonings and fry until fragrant. Add beans and ham bone, broth and water. Make sure sauté function is off. Put on lid and seal. Make sure the valve is closed. Hit the soup function and set for 30 minutes. It will take some time for the pot to come to pressure and then normalize after cooking.

Serve with rice, cilantro, and sour cream

Pre-Soaking Beans - Instant Pot

One of the best things abut the Instant Pot is preparing dried beans. Here is my method and quantities for my eight-quart Instant Pot.

5 C rinsed and sorted black beans
10 C hot water
5 t salt

Seal the lid of the Instant Pot, make sure that the pressure valve is closed, and hit the pressure cook button. Set at 4 minutes (when you push the button and set the time, wait for a few seconds and it will beep and will say "On"). It will turn off and it will automatically turn on the "Keep Warm" function. Let it run for 10 minutes and then turn the pot off. Let the pressure normalizes naturally or you will spray bean juice all over your kitchen.

Note: Only fill the Instant Pot half full for cooking beans because they expand when they cook.

Rinse beans and use in your favorite recipes (soups, salads, etc) for the week. You can freeze them for later as well.

Instant Pot Cooking - Another feature for the new year 2018

I just got an 8-quart Instant Pot so I will be recording the recipes that I try on this blog as well.