Quick and Easy Cucumber Salad

I discovered this quick and easy cucumber salad online and have made it my own. I not only eat it alone as an accompaniment to a main meal, but add it on top of a tossed salads, pasta dishes, and more. I've never been a huge cucumber salad fan, but, honestly, I can't get enough of this one! It's super yummy!

Photo Credit

QUICK AND EASY CUCUMBER SALAD

1 pound cucumbers, thinly sliced

1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/2 small onion, thinly sliced

Peel and thinly slice cucumbers and onion into a bowl (preferably one that comes with an airtight lid). Sprinkle with sugar and salt; add red wine vinegar and seal. Store in refrigerator for, at least, 20 minutes to chill before serving, but it will last for days. 

Until next time...

~Rebecca

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Chive Butter

Chives are one of my summer favorites! 

They are a member of the onion family and even the flowers are edible!

I love serving chives fresh from the garden in a variety of dishes, but my favorite way to enjoy them is chopped up on top of a baked potato with butter and sour cream.

This week I've been experimenting with chives. I have printed off several new recipes that I plan to try and I made my first batch of chive butter. 

To make I simply harvested a handful of fresh chives from the garden, cut into thin slices, and mixed with a half-cup (one stick) of butter that had been laid out and brought to room temperature.

To mix I used a small spatula and spread the chopped chives and butter back and forth against the surface of a dinner plate until the two were well mixed.

Afterwards, I divided the mixture evenly between eight cavities of an old ice cube tray and popped it into the freezer until the butter was hard. 

Next, I quickly ran hot water over the back of the tray to loosen the cubes of frozen butter. I put the frozen cubes in a plastic bag and popped them back in the freezer where they are stored and ready for use. 

What about you? Do you like chives? What are your favorite ways to use them?

To learn more about planting, growing, and harvesting chives  visit THIS PAGE on the Old Farmer's Almanac. It is from this page that I learned the importance of dividing my chives and how to use them in companion gardening. Now I have a whole row of chives next to the tomatoes, plus the big clump that's still in the herb wheel. If all goes well, I should be able to freeze and dry a year's worth of chives before the season is over, plus have plenty to give away and share. 

Until next time...

~Rebecca

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The Low-Down on Watermelon

Granddaughter Esther Enjoying
a Big Slice of Cold Watermelon
July 2017

I love watermelon! 🍉

When I was a child I can remember our family getting those great big Black Diamond watermelons! Those things were HUGE!!! I've heard them described as 'the king' of the garden and have read that they can weigh up to 50 pounds a piece!!! Wow! 😲

Black Diamonds were so sweet and juicy! And, even though my mom didn't like it, I became quite an expert at spitting watermelon seeds! The problem is, I don't see too many Black Diamonds around anymore. (Actually...I don't see ANY!) 😞

Now days the only watermelons I can find are small, round, and seedless. They're definitely not the watermelons that my cousins and I enjoyed as children.

But...watermelon is watermelon, I suppose, and what we've got available is what we've got...so...here are some tips for those of you, who like me, enjoy having watermelons around in the summertime...

Photo Credit

🍉 When buying a watermelon, pick it up. Big or small a watermelon should be heavy for it's size.

🍉 Check for ripeness by looking for a buttery yellow underside. Avoid melons with soft spots or bruises. Depending on the variety, the color of the rind may vary from deep emerald green to grayish green to various shades of green with stripes.

🍉 Before buying a watermelon, give it a thump on its underbelly. Ripe watermelons have a deep hollow sound; under-ripe or over-ripe melons will sound dull.

🍉 Uncut watermelons can be kept at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

🍉 Keep fresh-cut watermelon in an airtight container.

🍉 Don't chop watermelon too finely or it will lose it's texture and turn mushy.

🍉 Did you know that eating watermelon improves cardiovascular health, soothes the tummy, reduces blood pressure, improves circulation, reduces inflammation, treats kidney stones and acne, and cures constipation? Read more about the health benefits of watermelon, find fun ways to serve watermelon this summer, and get a free recipe for fresh fruit popsicles by clicking here.

🍉 How about trying watermelon s'mores? To find out more, click here. 

Watermelon S'mores

🍉 This Watermelon Strawberry Sorbet is ready in minutes and is the perfect treat for a hot summer day. For the recipe click here.

Watermelon Strawberry Sorbet

🍉 For a whole host of other yummy watermelon recipes check out this page on allrecipes.com.

Granddaughter Mercy Enjoying
a Big Slice of Cold Watermelon
July 2017

Until next time...

~Rebecca

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Making Zucchini Noodles (Zoodles) For the Freezer

In My Thrifty Week Post #5 I shared a bit about the squash that I purchased last week and told you that I'd be sharing a post on what I did with it. 

This is it... 

As stated  in my previous post...I purchased zucchini and yellow squash from a friend who grows vegetables and sells them at a farmer's market. Bigger squash were 2 for $1 and medium ones were 4 for $1. My friend threw in several smaller squash for free. I spent $10 and came out with a boatload of squash! I shared several of them with my daughter and her family.

The yellow squash that I kept I saved to use and serve fresh. One of my favorite breakfasts is to saute yellow squash in a little butter, put it on a plate, and top it with fried eggs. Delicious!

The zucchini I ran through the Veggetti, turning them into noodles (or Zoodles, if you prefer) for the freezer.

Some of the noodles I cooked and served that night with Chicken Parmy (page 161 in the THM Cookbook), which, by the way, was absolutely delicious and gourmet quality in every way. It tasted like something that you'd pay big bucks for at a restaurant and it was so easy to make. My husband enjoyed it, too, so I'm sure it is a recipe that I will make again and again! 

The rest of the zucchini I spiral cut and prepared as per instructions in the video at the bottom of this post. The process is simple...spiral cut the noodles, sprinkle with salt, and work it in. The salt draws a lot of the moisture out of the squash and firms up the texture of the noodles, making them fit for the freezer. I ended up with 4 gallon bags of zoodles and 2 quarts of liquid off of it to add to soups this winter. 

I saved all the zucchini end pieces that were left over after making the spiral-cut noodles

Using my Vidalia Chop Wizard I cut the rounds into cubes and sauteed them that evening for use later in the week.

Here is the video that I watched that gave me the idea in the first place. I'm really glad that I ran across it. This will save us lots of money in the future and give us garden fresh zoodles in the middle of winter! 

Thanks for dropping in and, please, take a moment to say, "Hello!"

Until next time...

~Rebecca

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Homemade Kansas City Style Barbeque Sauce

I found (and made) this recipe for Kansas City Style Barbeque Sauce and it is THE best!!! From now on I will be making my own!


HOMEMADE KANSAS CITY STYLE BARBECUE SAUCE

1 1/3 cup tomato sauce
1/3 cup tomato paste
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup + 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/4 cup molasses (unsulfered)
2 tsp all natural hickory or mesquite liquid smoke (Colgin)
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp chili powder

In a large saucepan combine all the ingredients and simmer over low heat for 25 minutes stirring occassionally. Let cool and store in the fridge until ready to use. Makes 2 cups + 2 tbsp.

Green Grape Jelly

A few days ago I posted that, due to the fact that our grapes were shriveling up on the vine, there would be no grape jelly this year...and had the triple digit temperatures continued without rain...that would have been the case, but, praise the Lord! Just a day or two after that the heat broke and the rains came. I noticed yesterday that, even though it was true that most of our grapes were, indeed, gone, there were a few bunches here and there that survived under the shriveling leaves of one plant. They weren't completely ripe, but they were ripe enough, and, since they were, literally, falling off the vine, I decided to salvage what I could. I checked on-line and found that some recipes for grape jelly actually call for unripe grapes! On the way back from doctor appointments today I stopped in Lamar and got pectin and sugar. When I got home I picked what grapes I could salvage and, although it's not what we would usually end up with at the end of the summer, I was still able to put up a double batch of green grape jelly (green as in 'unripe'...not color...the jelly is still purple) and it tastes delicious! I am very thankful to the Lord for enabling me to at least get up a small amount of jelly for my family after all!

RECIPE: Margarita Pizza With Mozzarella-Stuffed Crust

Margarita Pizza With Mozzarella-Stuffed Crust

Summer really hasn't started for us until we've had the first slice of Margarita pizza (named after Queen Margarita of Spain). This year I tried something new by making it with a mozzarella-stuffed crust. 

A Margarita pizza is really easy to make. Simply make your crust (see recipe below), sprinkle generously with garlic powder and dried basil, then top with fresh sliced tomatoes, fresh basil leaves, and slices of provolone cheese. 

To make the mozzarella-stuffed crust, just take two cheese sticks and tear into quarters and roll up in the edges of the crust. 

Bake pizza at 450 degrees until crust is done and cheese is bubbly (about 15 mintues) and enjoy!

Pizza Crust
 

2 1/2 teaspoons or 1 package yeast

1 cup warm water

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 1/2 cups unbleached or whole wheat flour

Mix well. Then flatten out in pizza pan that has been drizzled with olive oil. Brush top of crust with olive oil.

RECIPE: Tomato Preserves

I got a request from a friend on Twitter this morning wondering if I had a recipe for 'tomato jam' and, while I'm not sure that this is exactly what she's looking for (if it is, here we call it 'tomato preserves'), here's what I've got. Lylah, this is for you!

TOMATO PRESERVES

1 tablespoon mixed pickling spices
1 piece ginger root
4 cups sugar
1 cup thinly sliced lemons (about 2 medium)
3/4 cup water
1 1/2 quarts Roma tomatoes (about 2 pounds)

Just cut a slice off the end of the tomatoes, but do not core. Tie spices in a cheesecloth bag; add to sugar, lemons, and water in a large sauce pot. Simmer 15 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook gently until tomatoes become transparent, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Cover and let stand 12 to 18 hours in a cool place. Remove spice bag. Drain; reserving syrup. Boil syrup 2 to 3 minutes or longer if too thin. Add tomatoes and lemon; boil 1 minute. Pour hot into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch head space. Adjust caps. Process 20 minutes in boiling water bath. Yield: about 6 half pints.

RECIPE - BLT Pasta Salad

BLT Pasta Salad

For lunch today I put together a bacon, lettuce, and tomato pasta salad. I started off with a recipe that I had, cut it in half (there are only three of us), tweaked it a bit, and added my own touches. It made for a cool and summery one-plate salad and my family loved it! Here's what I came up with...

BLT PASTA SALAD


1/2 box whole wheat rotini
6 slices turkey bacon, cooled and cut cross-wise into narrow strips with scissors
1 large tomato, diced
3 good handfuls of mixed lettuces, torn into small pieces
1/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese
1/2 cup Miracle Whip light salad dressing

Cook the pasta according to package directions, then drain and run cold water over it to cool it. After it is cool and drained well, toss all ingredients together in a large salad bowl and chill for at least an hour before serving. (Serves 3)

Making Sauerkraut From A Vintage Family Recipe

"...And this is the finest Kraut I ever did eat. I am thinking of getting my self some cabbage and make some when we go to town make it this way and you wont regret it..." 
                                                      ~my great-aunt, Jessie McCann Martin

Grandma Maude's Handmade Binder

Among the many things that keep me connected to my grandmother (my dad's mother), Maude Belle McCann Brown Graham, is this treasured binder that she made in December of 1941 to house her, then new, Ball Blue Book, as well as other favorite family recipes in, among which is her sister, Jessie's, handwritten sauerkraut recipe. It's not only the recipe that my grandmother and Aunt Jessie used, but it's the recipe that my mother used, and the recipe that I have used since first learning how to can.

Dec. 1941 - Maude B. Graham - Birch Tree, MO

Grandma's 1941 Ball Blue Book

Yesterday we were blessed with three large heads of cabbage.

These were some of the biggest cabbages I've
ever seen and I think they were home grown!

They were too big to fit in our fridge, so this morning I set to work turning them into sauerkraut. Once again, I used Aunt Jessie's tried and true recipe.

Great-aunt Jessie's Handwritten 'Sour Kraut' Recipe

 Aunt Jessie's recipe reads as follows (and I quoted it word for word exactly the way Aunt Jessie wrote it)...

"...here is how I make my sour kraut I cut It with a cutter and then pack it tight In the Jars I use the handle of a butcher Knife and press it tight and dont leave no air holes In it and then I put a tea spoon salt to a qt or a table spoon  to a half gallon. and have a tea kettle hot boiling water and fill the Jar with hot boiling water and seal tight. and set the jars in a pan for they will spit out some. And this is the finest Kraut I ever did eat. I am thinking of getting my self some cabbage and make some when we go to town make it this way and you wont regret it..."

Using photos and a few further instructions of my own, I have decided to share Aunt Jessie's recipe here on HEARTH AND HOME...

After preparing the quart jars and tearing away the outer leaves of the cabbages (which were a real treat for our chickens), I set to work cutting one cabbage at a time into quarters, coring it, and slicing the quarters into food-processor-sized slices. 

Old glass mayonnaise jars work great for sauerkraut!

Slicing The Quarters

Preparing The Cabbage For Kraut

Alternately, I worked between slicing cabbage, running it through the food-processor, filling a big bowl with shredded cabbage, and packing it into clean jars.

The food-processor did a great job
of shredding the cabbage for kraut!

Shredded cabbage was everywhere!

Packing The Kraut Into Jars

You want it good and tight!

A wooden spoon helps to tamp it down.

Next, it was time to add salt...1 teaspoon per quart and boiling water to each jar. I'm not sure what kind of salt Aunt Jessie used, but I used regular Morton Canning and Pickling Salt.

Adding salt to each quart...

...and boiling water.

After that, the next step was to release the air bubbles. I did this by just running a regular table knife up and down the inside edge of each jar from top to bottom several times. After that I finished filling the jars to within a half-inch of the top with more boiling water.

Releasing The Air Bubbles

Adding More Hot Water To Fill

Then it was time to clean the rims of the jars and cap them with lids which had been kept on the stove in boiling hot water.

Cleaning The Rims Of The Jars

Capping The Jars

The final step in the canning process...at least this leg of it...was to rinse the jars and line up them up on the cabinet to admire their beauty.

Rinsing The Jars

The Finished Product (For Now Anyway)

I got eight, fully-packed quarts of sauerkraut out of the three heads of cabbage. While I was preparing the kraut, my husband was preparing a a cool, dry place under our house to store the kraut while it ferments. That is where it will stay for the next six weeks. After that we will bring it out, wipe the jars, refill any jars that are low on water, recap with fresh caps, and bathe them in a hot water bath for 30 minutes. After that, the sauerkraut will be ready to eat.

(This article is linked back to The Legacy of Home's 'Vintage Home Link-Up' page. Please visit it to find other great articles on 'vintage living'.)

Recipe - STRAWBERRY GELATIN DESSERT

I originally intended to make a Paula Deen dessert that I had seen on Swagbucks TV the other day, but, when I started making it I tweeked and tweeked and kept tweeking until I think I ended up making more of an original dessert than not...so...here it is...

STRAWBERRY GELATIN DESSERT

2 boxes strawberry flavored Jell-O
1 cup boiling hot water
1 pound fresh strawberries
3 bananas
1 can chunk pineapple
1 cup chopped pecans
1 box sugar-free French vanilla instant pudding
2 cups plain yogurt, sour cream, or milk

Open Jell-O and pour into bowl; add boiling water and stir until dissolved. Crush strawberries and bananas, slice pineapple chunks, and mix together with chopped pecans (I did this with my kitchen aid. Spray an oblong glass baking dish with pan spray and spoon half of the Jell-O mixture into the pan and flatten out level. Put it in the fridge to set (this only took about 20 minutes). While that's setting, mix instant pudding and yogurt, sour cream, or milk (I used plain, homemade yogurt and it worked really well or any combination of the three however you choose would work well, too). After fruit and gelatin mixture is set, spoon the pudding/yogurt mixture over that, then top with the remaining fruit and gelatin mixture. Chill until ready to serve.


This is part of the 12th edition of The Christian Home Magazine.

Seed Selection

This article is definitely worth reading and considering before ordering this year's garden seed...

http://mountaincommunitycoop.wetpaint.com/page/Seed+Selection

FREE Printable Canning Jar Lables

25 Canning Jar Labels

In My Kitchen Today (7/20/10)

Herbs drying in the oven, fresh tomato juice bathing in the hot water bather, French bread baking in the bread machine, and Ratatouille on the menu for company supper made with all fresh vegetables from the garden.

Fresh From The Garden and Hot From The Oven - Margarita Pizza

One of our favorite summer time treats are Margarita pizzas (named after the queen of Spain for whom it was first made), and they're so easy to make! This one is made of tomatoes fresh from my dad's garden, and fresh picked basil from our own garden. To make...first make crust (1 c. warm water, 1 pkg yeast, 1 t. sugar, 1 t. salt, 2 T. olive oil, 2 1/2 c. flour), and spread in a pizza pan that has been drizzled with olive oil. Top with fresh, sliced meaty tomatoes, a handful of chopped, fresh basil leaves, and cheese (normally I use provolone slices, but today I used shredded mozzarella), and bake in a 450 degree oven until cheese is brown and bubbly; enjoy!