Category: Part of another recipe

How to Can Tomatoes

A NOTE ABOUT THESE INSTRUCTIONS

canning-jarsThese step by step instructions are USDA approved.  It is very important to read up on canning before getting started, so that you don’t accidentally miss a small but very critical step.

INGREDIENTS

  • Lots of firm, ripe tomatoes from your garden or from the farmers market.
  • 12 Canning jars, lids, and screw rings – 16 oz – 1 pint
  • A BIG pot of water – Fill with enough water to just barely cover the top of your canning jar.
  • A medium pot of boiling water

STEP BY STEP

  1. Time the entire wash cycle of your dishwasher WITH the dry cycle.
  2. Your tomatoes should be firm, red and ripe and have no soft spots.
  3. Wash your canning jars in the dishwasher making sure they finish the rinse and dry cycles.
    The rinse cycle will rinse off most bacteria, and the heat of the drying cycle will kill any remaining bacteria.
  4. Start your big pot to a boil on medium high heat
  5. Make a small X on the tip of the tomato
  6. Plunge them in boiling water in the medium pot for 60 seconds, then into cold water for another 60 seconds,
    The skin should easily peel off
  7. Discard the peels, and quarter your tomatoes and discard the hard stem end
  8. Using a slotted strainer or a spider strainer or a strainer basket, lower your tomatoes into the medium pot with boiling water
  9. Let them heat for 30-60 seconds
  10. Pack the fruit directly into the canning jar, leaving 1/2 inch clear space at the top.
  11. Add 1 TBL lemon juice to the tomatoes
  12. Add a bit of your boiling water to cover the tomatoes
  13. Wipe jar rim with a damp cloth, and secure tops with the metal rings.
  14. Add your jars to your BIG pot of water.
  15. When the last jar is in place, verify that your water level has risen to about two inches above the tops of the containers.
    Add more water if you need to raise the water level.
  16. Increase heat to bring your big pot to a boil
    Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and start timing
  17. Let your pint canning jars simmer for 35 minutes.
    If you are using the larger quart jars, let them simmer for 45 minutes
  18. If water level starts to drop substantially, heat water to boiling in the microwave, and add to the pot to raise the water level.
  19. Remove jars right on time and place on a cooling rack.  DO NOT TIP THE JAR.
  20. Let cook and store in a cool dark place until they are ready for use.
  21. Store opened cans in the refrigerator for up to a week.
  22. DISCARD a can if the lid seal seems to have broken, or if the lid is puffed up.

 

RobtCyn Tapenade

The IRC Gila Farms project gives us more greens than we can use in a week, so here is a way to extend the season.  This is also good when greens are in season at the grocery and very inexpensive.

INGREDIENTS

Mustard Greens, Kale, Spinach, Cilantro, Garlic, Lemon Juice, Onion, Olive Oil, Salt

  1. Re-wash all greens
  2. Chop greens into small pieces
  3. Mince in food processor
  4. Drizzle in 1/2 C olive oil to emulsify
  5. Pack into ice cube trays
  6. Top off with water
  7. Store in refrigerator for up to a month or freeze in cubes for a year.

Possible Applications

Mix with:
… Sour Cream for Dip
… Yougurt and Cuke
… EVOO for Salad dressing
… maranara for spagetti
… deviled egg filling / topping
… add as a pizza topping
… under chicken skin to bake
… hamburger for meatloaf
… scrambled egg
… mix with cream cheese for crackers

 

 

 

Very Thin Tortillas – Mu Shu

Authentic Mu Shu Pancakes

I don’t like the thicker tortillas that you find in the grocery store.  Here is a fairly simple way to make thin ones.  These also work well for Mu Shu pancakes.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup sifted flour
  • 1/2 cup  very hot water
  • Scant salt

STEP BY STEP

  1. Mix flour and salt, then add extremely hot water
    What I do is put flour and salt in a food processor, and then drizzle in hot water until it starts to come together.
    The hot water breaks down the gluten so that they roll easier and flatter
  2. After adding the boiled water, drizzle in cold water until dough comes together.
  3. Mix adjusting water until dough is like playdough
  4. Wrap in plastic and let set for 30 minutes
  5. Prepare a medium-hot skillet – Cast iron is my preference – NO OIL
  6. Roll a log, and then cut in half, then in half again, then in thirds – You will have 12 pieces
  7. Roll into balls, and then flatten into thick disks – hockey pucks
  8. Brush sesame oil onto the top of HALF of them
  9. Stack two disks (oil in between) and roll out until about 7 or 8 inches in diameter
  10. Put a pair into a non-greased skillet on 350-400º for 30 seconds
  11. When the edges start to become translucent (about 30 seconds) flip the pancakes as a pair
  12. Cook the second side for about 30 more seconds
  13. Flip the two together and cook the first side again for only 10-20 seconds more
  14. Remove the pancakes to cool just a little bit, then separate
  15. See tips below on keeping them from drying out

To keep Mu Shu Pancakes from Drying Out

  1. Place finished pancakes in shallow covered bowl – like a glass pie pan
  2. Put microwave-heated wet cloth at the bottom of the bowl
  3. Put a plate on top of the cloth so the pancakes do not become soggy
  4. Cooked side always goes up.
  5. Put a pan lid on top of the bowl to keep the moisture in.

 

Mu Shu Pancakes – Video

Here is a video that shows how to roll the pancakes together. It is kind of hard to visualize above.  They fold the pancakes into quarters.  Although that is very common, I don’t like that because they tend to stick together that way.

Mu Shu Crepe Pancakes

INGREDIENTS

  • 3 TBL melted butter
  • 1 C whole milk
  • 1/2 C flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 eggs

STEP BY STEP

  1. Pulse together flour, salt, eggs and butter
  2. Add milk, and pulse just to mix
  3. Strain using a fairly coarse strainer
  4. Let batter rest for 30 minutes to let the glutens relax
  5. Cook in buttered crepe pan until cooked, but not browned
  6. Stack on plate to store and serve

Finish on a floured surface. If you have a scale, 120 – 130 mg ball of dough is perfect for pancakes. Roll balls, then cover and set them aside for 30 minutes

Picadillo

Picadillo is a mixture of ground pork or beef, onions, garlic and tomatoes. It is frequently used as stuffing for a Chile Relleno

INGREDIENTS

  • 1/4 lb. lean ground beef
  • 1/2 lb ground pork
  • 1/2 cup ready made sofrito – See Recipe
  • 1/4 cup diced bell pepper (green and yellow or red)
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro (1/8 bunch)
  • 1/4 cup sliced olives
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 TBL tomato paste to thicken if necessary – Should be kind of like meat loaf

STEP BY STEP

  1. Brown the ground beef and pork
  2. Add Onions and cook until start to brown
  3. Add sofrito and peppers
  4. Add the olives, capers, salt and pepper, and tomato sauce.
  5. Add chopped cilantro
  6. Cook another 5-10 minutes IF NECESSARY to cook down any extra liquids.

MORE INFO

  • Picadillo needs to be moist but not runny, so not a lot of tomato sauce is used. But if you are serving it as a side dish use more tomato sauce. Usually a dish like this uses more sofrito, but I like to see the chopped spices so I reduce the amount of sofrito and add chopped ingredients – more like a pico de gallo.

Sofrito

Sofrito is a base for anything that uses tomatoes or tomato sauce. It just adds an extra dimension to your recipe.  It’s GREAT in any kind of marinara.

INGREDIENTS

  • Grandpa’s Thunder Powder – to taste
    MIRPOIX/TRINITY and FLAVOR VEGGIES
  • 1 onion (chopped fine)
  • 1 large Carrot
  • 1 stalk Celery
  • 3-4 garlic cloves (minced)
  • Optional red and green bell pepper
  • Cremini mushrooms – caramelized first – 15 minutes
  • Dry shitake – soak in boiling water, then strain – reserve liquid – destem
  • 1/2 C veggie or chicken stock
  • 1/2 C shitake strain (or 1/2 C more stock)
    ACID BASE
  • 1/2 C nice dark red wine
  • 1 TBL tomato paste
  • 2 TBL crushed tomatoes
    SACHET
  • Rosemary, sage, oregano

STEP BY STEP

  1. Saute onion, carrot, and celery in EVOO
  2. Simmer on low for about 8 minutes
  3. Optional at this point, add red and/or green bell pepper
  4. Add tomato paste and garlic and cook for another 3 minutes
  5. Add stock, wine and mushroom liquid
  6. Simmer until reduced and liquid begins to disappear
  7. Add San Marzano whole – mashed
  8. Use as you would Mirpoix or Trinity as part of another recipe

EXTRA INFO

  • Sofrito freezes very well
  • If you freeze it in an ice cube tray, you can break out the cubes and use them to flavor your spaghetti sauce bit by bit.
  • Optional to add above where you add the garlic
    • Red bell peppers
    • Green peppers
    • Cilantro
    • Ajicitodulces

 

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