Lisa's Salsa

To make my very own salsa, have ready:

5 lbs. tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 large red inion, diced
1 large white onion, diced
2 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 lbs. tomatillos, diced
1-1/2 tsp. kosher salt
Juice from 4 limes (approx. 1/2 cup)
1 lb. fresh strawberries, finely chopped
2 bunches cilantro, finely chopped

The Peppers:
I tend to buy whatever is available and looks good.  The variety of peppers varies from batch to batch but the peppers that always get used are Jalapeño and Serrano.  Other common peppers used include:

Georgia Flame
Banana
Melrose
Cubanelle
Anaheim

Begin by dicing the tomatoes.  Add them to a huge bowl so you'll have plenty of room to toss everything together.   Add the other ingredients to the tomatoes in the order listed above.  Toss everything together as each ingredient is added to get a visual on the ratio of each component.  The tomatoes should be the largest in size and volume.   Since we eat with our eyes first, the medley should look balanced too.

Unlike the other ingredients, the peppers never get minced by hand.  The reason for this is because, too many times to count, I've ended up rubbing one of my eyes with a capsaicin-laden finger and then howl and weep for at least twenty minutes following my mistake.  Use a small electric mill or food processor to mince the peppers.  Lop off the tops of the peppers and then split them lengthwise.  Use a paring knife to remove the seeds and membrane of the peppers to your liking.  (I'm not overly picky about this process.  In fact, it's pretty random.  Some peppers are stripped clean, others are simply chopped without being cleaned, and some peppers still have some of the seeds and membrane attached.)  Coarsely chop and drop the peppers in the food processor and loosely mince them.

Allow the salsa to steep at room temperature, stirring periodically, for and hour or two before refrigerating.  Taste and adjust with salt if needed, or to add additional peppers for more heat.

This recipe will yield about a gallon and a half of salsa.  I've tried to make less but, really, why?  It should go without saying that the best time to make salsa is in the summertime when the produce is in season, especially the tomatoes.

Enjoy!

Garlic Dill Pickles

The key to success when making pickles is getting the brine just right.  Too much salt and the pickles will ultimately shrivel and become soft; too little salt and the fermentation process won't be as efficient and the pickles will begin to spoil.

Most recipes call for approximately a half-cup of salt per gallon of water.  You'll also find many recipes that call for vinegar and an equal number of those that don't.  Personally, I like the taste that vinegar adds, along with the other spices and herbs, so vinegar is included in my brine recipe.

In a large stockpot, add 2 quarts of water, 1 quart of white vinegar and a half-cup of salt.  With the heat on med-high, stir the mixture.  You only want to warm the water just enough to dissolve the salt.  Once the salt is dissolved turn the flame off and allow the brine to cool.

Wash your cucumbers and remove any floral-ends still attached to the fruit.

Now we're ready to begin filling the quart jars with pickles, herbs and spices.

Begin by lining the bottom of your canning jars with a bed of fresh dill.  You can use the fern-like fronds as well as the flower heads, provided they're not spend and turning to seed.

This amount of dill is about a 1/4-cup.
Once the pickles are added, it will compress and take up less room in the jar.

Add pickles to the jar, lining them vertically without packing them in like sardines.  Once the pickles are in the jar, add the herbs and spices to the jar.

1 TB yellow mustard seeds
1 TB brown mustard seeds
1 TB coriander seeds
1/2 TB of black peppercorns
2 medium-sized bay leaves
2 large garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
More dill leaves if desired

When you're finished adding the herbs and spices, slowly ladle brine into the jar, making sure to add enough to cover the pickles.  I like to add a few of the dill flowers on top of the pickles to help keep them submerged, and then seal the jars with a lid and ring.

Place the jars in the refrigerator and allow them to ferment for 10-14 days before eating them.

If you have larger cucumbers (closer to deli-sized pickles), use a half-gallon canning jar and allow them to ferment 15-20 days before eating.  Double the amount of herbs and spices you use as well.

Shorten the fermentation time to one week if you choose to make pickles slices.

The whole pickles, regardless of size, should last in the refrigerator for 3-4 months, give or take.  Keep them as long as the pickles retain their crispness.  Homemade pickles are so delicious that having them remain in the fridge too long shouldn't even be an issue.

Beet, Dried Cherry, and Red Wine Risotto

The following risotto recipe is from Risotto: 40 Exquisite Classic and Contemporary Risotto Dishes by Clive Tring.

- 5 cups chicken or vegetable stock
- Generous 1-3/8 cups dried sour cherries or dried cranberries
- 1 cup fruity red wine, such as Valpolicella
- 3 TB olive oil
- 1 large red onion finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- Generous 1-5/8 cups risotto rice
- 4 cooked fresh beets, diced
- 2 TB chopped fresh dill
- 2 TB snipped fresh chives
- Salt and Pepper
- Generous 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to serve (optional)

• Bring the stock to a boil in a pan.  Then reduce the heat and keep simmering gently over low heat while you are cooking the risotto.
• Place the sour cherries in a pan with the wine and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and let simmer for 2-3 minutes until slightly reduced.  Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-bottom pan over medium heat.  Add the onion, celery, and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally for 3 minutes, or until just starting to soften.  Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
• Reduce the heat, add the rice and mix to coat in oil.  Cook, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes, or until the grains are translucent.
• Gradually add the hot stock, a ladleful at a time.  Stir constantly and add more liquid as the rice absorbs each addition.  Increase the heat to medium so that the liquid bubbles.  Cook for 20 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is creamy.
• Halfway through the risotto cooking time, remove the cherries from the wine with a slotted spoon and add to the risotto with the beet and half the wine.  Continue adding the stock and the remaining wine.
• Stir in the dill and chives and season, if necessary.  Serve with the Parmesan, if you like.

Serves 4 to 6

The result is delicious!  

Because a bottle of Valpolicella couldn't be found (I'll admit, I didn't look too hard), a bottle of Saserello was used to make this risotto.  Additionally, since the recipe doesn't specify a method for cooking the beets -and for goodness sake don't use canned beets!- I took the liberty of sautéing the diced beets in 2 TB of butter, a splash of olive oil, a pinch of salt, and 2 tsp of dried thyme.  Stir to evenly coat, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, just until the beets are easily pierced with a fork.  This took about five minutes.  Once done, remove from the pot and set aside.  Note: The beets were cooked in the same pot that I ultimately cooked the risotto in.  No reason to have all the beety goodness clinging to the pot go to waste.

Also, when it came time to add the wine, I added it all at once.  The cherries were pressed against a strainer to get all the wine out of them as well.  Save those boozy cherries, too!  They were splendid over vanilla ice cream for dessert.

Garlic Scapes

Garlic Scape Butter

2 sticks of salted butter, softened to room temperature
10 - 12 garlic scapes, coarsely chopped
1/8 tsp of freshly ground black pepper

Add chopped garlic scapes to a food processor or herb mill and grind well.  The end result should be nearly a paste.  If you have a large mortar and pestle, or molcajete, finely grind the scapes with it.

Add the ground scapes and black pepper to a bowl with the two sticks of softened butter.  Mix well.  Then, place the bowl in the freezer to help firm the butter so it can be more easily formed.  After approximately 15-20 minutes remove the bowl from the freezer and scoop the butter into the center of a sheet of wax paper.  Bring the bottom portion of the wax paper up and over the butter and use it to help shape the butter into a log or puck shape.

Wrap the butter completely in the wax paper, seal it in a freezer bag, and then return it to the freezer to use at your leisure.  If you plan to use the butter immediately, omit the freezer bad and store it in the refrigerator.

*  *  *

Salad dressing is another excellent way to use garlic scapes.

Garlic Scape Dressing
4 garlic scapes, coarsely chopped
2 green onions, coarsely chopped
1 small shallot, finely minced
2 tsp honey
2 tsp Dijon mustard
4 TB red wine vinegar
2 TB fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp coarse salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients BUT olive oil in a blender and blend until smooth.  Then, with blender on low, slowly add the olive oil until well incorporated.  Pour into a pint-sized mason jar (or other glass vessel with a tight fitting lid) and store in refrigerator.  This recipe makes one cup.

This recipe is a modified version of Diana Rattray's recipe found at About.com.


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