BLT Cucumber Boats

It's been a busy week or so around here. We spent most of last week in Missouri visiting family and every day this week I've spent much of my time preserving peaches and making pickles. We brought home a box of Missouri peaches and Sunday when we got back into town, I made my way out to a local farm to pick up two more boxes of peaches I had ordered from Michigan. After sharing a little bit with my sister in-laws, I'm guessing I still had a good 70 pounds to put up for winter. I've canned peach slices, made jam, cobbler topping and even salsa. Today I finished up freezing slices and stuck a few mini pies in the freezer. Oh and it's been hot! I'm ready to relax a little bit this weekend and enjoy the much cooler temperatures.

My garden hasn't been as successful this year as I had hoped. We did end up with a decent harvest of lettuce and peas early on, the squirrels got to the strawberries, my broccoli never did produce, same with bell peppers (I have the darnedest time with those!). I'm still hoping I'll get some zucchini to grow since I had to replant. But my tomatoes have done great, especially the cherry. And my garden is currently being taken over by watermelon vines. It's our first year trying this fruit and we're excited to see how it turns out. I spotted three tiny little babies in there, the girls will be thrilled if they end up growing well.

Right now meals are simple, and based largely around what's coming out of the garden or what we're bringing home from the farmers' market. I find myself trying to add tomatoes to just about every single meal. It also happens to be prime BLT season and we tried a little twist on this classic sandwich recently. I mixed up a light bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayo topping and stuffed it right into a cucumber that I simply scooped the middle out of. It was simply delicious and a nice lightened way to enjoy this favorite summer meal. You can try substituting a Greek yogurt if you'd like, but I figured if I was already skipping the bread, the mayonnaise wasn't such a big deal.

You really don't need a recipe per say to follow for a dish like this, but for those of you that feel more comfortable following one I've given precise measurements. Feel free to adjust as necessary. Enjoy this light summer meal while you've got tons of fresh produce around!


BLT Cucumber Boats

Ingredients:
2 medium cucumbers
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped lettuce
1/4 cup mayonnaise
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
Slice cucumber in half length wise, taking a spoon, scoop out the middle and discard. Set cucumber halves aside.

In a small bowl, mix together cooked and crumbled bacon, tomatoes, lettuce, mayo, salt and pepper. Adjust seasonings if needed, add additional mayonnaise if desired.

Top each cucumber half with bacon mixture. Serve immediately.

Roasted Ratatouille

I was just commenting the other day how I wish we could eat like this every day. Fresh from the garden or straight from the farmers market. The grocery store just can't compete during these summer months. But that's what makes us appreciate these seasonal fruits and veggies all the more!

I made this for lunch yesterday, the girls help chop veggies, munching on them as we went. They asked questions about eggplant and zucchini, declaring that they loved zucchini raw but not so much cooked. It was great to have their help, and conversation.

In the end it was only the oldest and I eating most of the dish for lunch. Which I fully expected. At least they tried, it's all I ever ask. They don't like the soft texture, and I was honest with them. It wasn't so very long ago that I preferred all of my veggies raw and with crunch. I've since grown to love so many more veggies than I ever thought possible. Keep trying, it's all we can do.

As for the ratatouille,  I love it! It's a simple goodness to be enjoyed during these months. I plan to continue taking advantage of the plentiful produce right now and even packing this in my lunch when I head back to work soon.  You can easily roast the veggies on Sunday and divide into containers for the coming week. Roasting the veggies brings out their natural sweetness and it's delicious!


Roasted Ratatouille

Ingredients:
1 small summer squash
1 small zucchini
1 onion
1 eggplant
1 bell pepper
handful of cherry or grape tomatoes
4 garlic cloves
Olive oil
salt and pepper
7-8 basil leaves

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a cutting board, chop all veggies into large chunks.  For the garlic, smash using the flat side of a knife and then peel. Place all veggies into a large bowl. Drizzle about 2 tbsp of olive oil over top and season with salt and pepper. Toss all together.

Spread veggies out onto a large baking sheet. Roast in oven for 40-45 minutes, turning every ten minutes, just until veggies are tender.

Remove from oven. Chop basil and mix into veggies. Season with additional salt and pepper, if needed. Serve warm as a side dish or a light meal with crusty bread.

Spaghetti w/simple Tomato Sauce

We probably make spaghetti in our house one-two times each month. It's quick and something that everyone will willingly eat. But it's generally topped with a hearty meat sauce, a little too heavy sometimes for summer.

I've got a good veggie filled freezer sauce I love, but not necessarily everyone else. Dare I say I think this one is even better?

It's true, I have fallen in love with this sauce and just how easy it is. I expect to be incorporating this meal into our menu plan until the very last of our tomatoes!

You can use any sort of tomatoes you have on hand, I do like cherry or grape for this recipe but of course I'll most likely be experimenting with bigger ones when they're ready in the garden. Also make sure to reserve one half cup of pasta water as you're cooking, it's the perfect finish to this sauce.


Spaghetti w/simple Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:
8 oz. spaghetti
1 tbsp olive oil
sea salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
handful of chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup pasta water

Directions:
Prepare pasta according to package instructions. Be sure to reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water after finished cooking.

While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic in and let cook for one minute. Add in tomatoes and let cook for about five more minutes. Then add in reserved pasta water, let cook for another 3 minutes until sauce is slightly reduced.

Remove from heat and stir in cheese, red pepper flakes and basil. Taste sauce and season with additional salt or black pepper if needed. Once pasta is done and drained, add that in and toss all ingredients together using tongs.

Serve pasta with a nice salad and crusty bread.

Bruschetta Pizza

One of my favorite appetizers is bruschetta. I could feast on those little breads and make a meal out of it. So it was about time I tried making a pizza version of this simple appetizer.

I've got a good amount of basil in my garden right now, I just love walking outside to grab some whenever I need it. It makes me feel sort of pioneer-ish, targeting my inner Laura Ingalls Wilder. My tomatoes are no where near ready yet, but I did find some local cherry tomatoes that worked perfectly.

This was definitely one of my favorite pizzas to date. The flavor was phenomenal! Everything from the basil, to the ripe tomatoes, to the garlic. Even the hubby said it was pretty good, and he prefers his pizza loaded with meat.

You can certainly use dried basil if that's all you have, but if you've got some in the garden or can score a bunch from the farmers market. I encourage you to do so. You'll love this fresh tasting pizza!


Bruschetta Pizza

Ingredients:
Pizza dough (or your own favorite recipe, enough for at least one pizza)
prepared pizza sauce
1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 garlic clove, minced
6 basil leaves, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
8 oz. mozzarella cheese, grated

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Press prepared pizza dough out onto a pizza stone or pan. Spread pizza sauce over dough. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over top of sauce and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine tomatoes, garlic, basil, salt and pepper. Mix together well. Evenly distribute over top of cheese.

Bake in oven for about 15-20 minutes, depending on how well done you like your pizza. Remove from oven, let set for a few minutes before cutting into slices. Makes enough for one pizza.

Tomato-Basil Mac & Cheese

We enjoyed a nice weekend, it always goes by too fast, that's for sure. We had very nice fall like weather, cool mornings but by afternoon the sun was shining. It's been forever since we'd been able to have a bon fire, so that's what our Saturday night consisted of. It was a little chilly but the fire sure warmed us all up. Of course we had to indulge in a little s'more action too.

These unusual chilly evenings have had us busy in the garden lately. Gathering as much as we can and covering plants to protect them from potential frost. I had quite a few cherry tomatoes sitting in a bowl on the counter, along with some fresh basil from our farm share. I incorporated the two into this awesome macaroni and cheese dish. Let's just say, all bowls were empty by the end of dinner time last night.

I'm not a huge macaroni and cheese fan, but I'll eat it on occasion. The hubby on the other hand, loves it. I was happy to see him eat it up, as well as the kids. In fact our oldest daughter took the last little bit leftover for lunch today and said it was still just as good. I loved the addition of fresh summer flavors in this, in fact I think a little crumbled bacon on top might even be a great topping for next time.

You'll also love how fast this dish comes together. It's not something you have to save for the weekends when we typically have more time to devote to our meals. Enjoy it as a meatless main dish or as side dish like we did.


Tomato-Basil Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:
4 cups cooked pasta {I used penne}
2 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tbsp flour
1-3/4 cup milk
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
small handful fresh basil leaves, chopped
3 tbsp panko crumbs
sprinkling of red pepper flakes

Directions:
In a medium saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add in minced garlic and let cook for about one minute, until fragrant. Whisk in flour. Add in milk, salt and pepper, whisking well until combined. Let cook for a few minutes, until simmering and let thicken just a bit. Once thickened, remove from heat and stir in both cheeses.

Add in cooked pasta and mix together. Then stir in tomatoes and basil. Divide mixture between three small oven safe dishes or an 8x8-inch pan. Sprinkle each dish with one tbsp of panko crumbs, or if using one pan then sprinkle all three tbsp over top. Add desired amount of red pepper flakes on top of panko crumbs.

Broil in oven for about 3 minutes to brown panko crumbs. Remove from oven and enjoy!

Tomato Pesto Tart

I promise I'll chill out with the tomato recipes, I've just had to put them all to use before they rot away on my counter. Along with a gazillion other veggies. Okay, I'm exaggerating a bit, but you probably know the feeling. Way more produce to deal with this time a year than you simply have time for. It's really a great problem to have!

I've always thought I didn't care for tomatoes much, until I really ate one fresh from the garden. My parents were not much for gardening growing up; I do remember my grandma having a small garden though. The ones from the stores, especially in the dead of winter simply do not compare to seasonally, locally grown tomatoes. Now we try to enjoy as many as we can until we cannot stand to set eyes on one more. Because come January, we'd give our right arm for a red, ripe tomato from the garden.

I'm usually all for something sweet baked in a pie crust, not savory. But something about tomatoes, fresh pesto and mozzarella cheese sounded really good! And good is was. I had some prepared pie crusts and pesto in my freezer from all of my freezer cooking in July, it certainly made this dish easy to prepare.

We enjoyed this as part of our meal one night but it would absolutely make for a great meatless main dish. Pair with a nice green salad and you're set. Or what about as an appetizer? Football is just getting started, you could spread this into a rectangle shape and cut into squares instead of slices. So many options. All I know is you must give this one a try.

Tomato Pesto Tart

Ingredients:
1 prepared pie crust
1/4 cup pesto
3 large tomatoes
1 cup mozzarella cheese
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
Press pie crust into a tart pan. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

Slice tomatoes and let sit on paper towels for about 10 minutes to help absorb some of the liquid. Spread pesto over bottom of pie crust. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of cheese over pesto. Arrange tomato slices on top and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle remaining 3/4 cup of cheese on top.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 40-45 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool for a few minutes and then cut into slices.

Freezer Fridays: Homemade Pizza Sauce

As I stared at a big bowl of tomatoes on my counter last week, I tried to think of new ways to put them all to use. Pizza sauce instantly came to mind, it's something we use quite often in our house. Saturday morning, that's what some of my time consisted of. The funny thing was, as I logged onto Facebook quickly, many of my foodie friends were doing the exact same thing. I found picture after picture of tomatoes, peppers and onions roasting away in the oven.

We all had the same idea but I went a different route. I had other things I wanted to get done so I simply threw all of my ingredients in the crock pot and let it do it's thing.

Lots and lots of tomatoes, different varieties, fresh basil and other spices and that was it. I covered the pot and let it cook all.day.long. Towards the end I added in some cornstarch to thicken up the mixture a bit. I didn't even worry about peeling the tomatoes, because I knew I wanted to process the mixture a bit more in a blender so it wasn't a big deal. If you'd rather peel the tomatoes beforehand, by all means, go ahead.

In the end, I came out with a flavorful sauce that will be awesome on our homemade pizzas and just about anything else I can think of. I threw the jars in the freezer so we can enjoy this deliciousness throughout the winter. It will surely be a welcomed treat!


Homemade Pizza Sauce

Ingredients:
15 medium-large tomatoes, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced {I actually used some garlic scapes from my freezer
10 basil leaves, chopped {don't worry about chopping finely, you'll puree mixture later}
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tbsp cornstarch

Directions:
Add the chopped tomatoes to a large crock pot. Sprinkle in seasonings and stir together just a bit. Cover and let cook on low for 8-10 hours. Add in a tbsp of cornstarch to help thicken the mixture, make sure to stir well so it doesn't clump. Cover and let cook an additional one hour.

Afterwards, turn crock pot off and let sauce cool. Once cooled, in smaller batches, puree mixture in a blender for just a few seconds. It won't take much at all. Make sure to taste and season more if needed.

Ladle into mason jars, I used 3 pint sized jars and 2 half pint. Place lids on and place sauce in the freezer. When ready to enjoy, all you have to do is thaw.

*If you find sauce is still a little too runny even after adding the cornstarch in, before using, just add in tomato paste in small amounts {1-2 tbsp}. That should help thicken up the mixture.