Category Archives: veggie

hot pepper vinegar

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pickled peppers

Canning and pickling are not in my wheelhouse.  My sister seems to have inherited those abilities, and spends nights and weekends filling her pantry (and possibly under her bed!) with all sorts of canned goods.  I just can’t be bothered with all that boiling and worrying about top popping failures.  I got sh*t to do.  But when the end of a season  comes for certain vegetables, something inside of me still wants to buy massive amounts of veggies and save them.  So I’ve since found a happy medium.  Easy refrigerator pickles are my answer to canning.  I get the pretty jar, and the goodies inside for a few weeks, and I feel like I have accomplished something.  Ok, so I don’t have a stocked pantry, but that is what sisters are for, right?
So while at the farmers market recently, I had in mind to buy some cute patty pan squash and pickle them, but since I know nothing about seasons, they didn’t have any.  I then saw a full basket of assorted of hot peppers – jalapeños, Habanero, Thai chile peppers – you name it.  They were calling me.  Some people may call it a twisted sense of joy, but I wanted to buy them all.  I refrained, but only because I knew I was just going to try making one jar of this vinegar recipe.   The big question loomed if the vinegar would truly be tasty, or would turn out to be liquid fire.  I was pleasantly surprised.  I think adding in some milder chiles helped, plus I didn’t slice into the Habanero (I don’t know what came over me?).  Since making them, I’ve made a quick vinaigrette, tossed the diced peppers into meals, and of course daring my kids to eat them like pickles.

peppers and garlic

hot pepper vinegar  (adapted from Cooking Light June 2013)

4  cups hot chile peppers
4  garlic cloves, halved
1 1/2  cups white wine vinegar
2 1/2  tsp sugar
1/2  tsp salt

sliced peppers

get started on the vinegar:

Slice 6-8 peppers in half lengthwise.  Layer and arrange the peppers and garlic in a 1-quart glass jar.  Combine the vinegar, sugar and salt in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.  Cook 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves.  Do not let mixture evaporate too much.  Pour vinegar mixture over peppers.  Cool to room temperature (so jar doesn’t break).  Cover and refrigerate at least 1 week.

jar of pepperspeppers

zucchini and summer squash salad

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squash salad

Ah yes, there are those foods that garner immediate food porn photos, the dramatic drooling and the obvious filling of one’s plate.  Then there is squash salad.  Recently, when planning an informal dinner party at the house, I told my husband that I would be making a squash salad.  Talk about a lukewarm response, followed by “…and?”.  That made me really want to try this and see if it could pass the party test.  I had a similar recipe from Tyler Florence (not personally…though, that would be SWEET)  which sounds a bit fancier – Zucchini Carpaccio.  I never made it because of how it sounds – blah.  This recipe came from Cooking Light, and intrigued me a little more – probably because of the ricotta salata and prosciutto.  Needless to say, it was a hit, and as a bonus, it’s a fairly guilt-free food.  My husband gave me the nod to add it to my index of party foods.  The following weekend, I bought the ingredients to make it at a friend’s BBQ.  But there I was again, in the kitchen, and when asked what I was making, I hesitated since it doesn’t grab your attention like other party favorites.  I went with the very formal name of “shaved summer squash with prosciutto crisps”.  Call it whatever you want, the plate will be empty sooner than THEY thought.

summer squash

shaved summer squash salad (adapted from Cooking Light)

1  medium zucchini
2  medium yellow squash
pinch of kosher salt
cracked black pepper
2  TB thinly sliced basil or mint
2  TB extra virgin olive oil
1  tsp. grated lemon rind
2  tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
3  slices prosciutto, chopped
1/3  cup crumbled ricotta salata or feta cheese

shaved summer squash

pile of squash

get started on the salad:

With a good vegetable peeler, shave the zucchini and squash into strips.  Discard the strips from the center that have a lot of seeds, if you wish (compost!).  Place zucchini and squash in a medium bowl and toss with salt and pepper.  Combine basil, olive oil, lemon rind and juice and stir with a whisk.  Pour over zucchini and squash and toss to coat.  Heat a small non-stick skillet over medium heat.  Add prosciutto and sauté for 2 minutes, or until crisp.  Place salad on a platter and top with crumbled ricotta salata and prosciutto crisps.  Add additional olive oil or lemon juice to your liking!

prosciuttocooked prosciutto

note:  this feeds about six as a family style appetizer.  As a salad, it would feed four people.

summer squash salad

bacon-wrapped potatoes

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bacon wrapped potatoes

I am tired of french fries.  I never thought I’d hear myself say that, but it’s true, and it’s because of baseball.   Soccer you aren’t even given bleachers, let alone  a place to buy a snack.  You endured the game with whatever you felt like packing, if anything at all.  Now that the kids are older and play organized baseball and softball, it seems that every town we play in, including our own, has the much beloved snack shack.  What used to be an occasional treat has now become a nightly offering that I have to fend off.  Fries, soft pretzels, slushies, soda and Big League Chew are being requested  left and right, and there isn’t much I can do but give in to the madness.  I have done everything I can think of to fend off the greasy magnetism of that shack but I keep losing.  I pack fruit, nuts, Goldfish but fries seem to make it into the mix anyway.  I have fed the kids dinner at 4pm, but by the start of the game at six, the one that isn’t playing is asking for skittles or fries.  Then after the game is over, the one who played thinks they deserve an ice cream or yet again – fries.  And to top it off, there is nothing worse than stealing one of your kid’s fries and it turns out to be a lukewarm, soggy mess.  I mean, if you are going to indulge, it better be worth it, right?
So in honor of the potato, I felt like doing it justice this past weekend.  We had family and friends over and were grilling steaks, and although I have a “go to” recipe for crispy oven-roasted potatoes, I saw this one and knew that the bacon would be a hit with everyone.   So I put my girlfriend to work wrapping them up, and by the looks of the empty bowl at the end of dinner, I’d say that I became a potato fan again – we all did.

bacon-wrapped potatoes (adapted from Southern Living)

non-stick cooking spray
6  medium-size red or golden potatoes, cut into eight wedges each
kosher salt
24  slices of bacon, cut in half
ground black pepper

bacon

get started on the potatoes:

Preheat oven to 425.  Coat a jelly roll pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Sprinkle potato wedges with kosher salt.  Wrap each potato wedge with the halved slice of bacon.  Arrange potato wedges in a single layer on the cooking sheet.  Bake at 425 for 40 – 45 minutes or until bacon is crisp and browned.

girlfriend at work

potato in bacon

note:  this serves 6-8 people.