Processing Peaches, Peppers and more....

I bought two boxes of Alberta peaches last week. These were beauties right off the trees locally. Some were as big as soft balls. I almost hated to cut them up. I lost a couple on the bottom of one box tho , they started to go bad but still I had tons to do. So I started out peeling them.

Dipping them in hot water for 30sec. and then into cold water, and the skins slip off ez. Ive saved all the skins to add to some I had in the freezer. Later on when all this canning dies down some, I want to make Peach honey, which is basically jelly. You cover the skins with water and cook them down and strain it to use the juice to make the jelly. 

 I sliced these up and put them in qt. jars. A friend told me he makes a light honey syrup. Last year I did a sugar syrup which was good but I think honey is better. So I bought a big bottle from the local honey guy at the farmers market. Only 7qts fit in the water bath canner so I did those with the honey syrup. When I was making more syrup for the rest I thought why not add cinnamon to the rest so I did. I got 12qts sliced peaches, 7 plain, 5 cinnamon. One didn't seal so I'm eating it with my yogurt this week.(Honey syrup for a light syrup is 1qt. water/3/4c. honey)

Then I peeled the other box and cut them up. They got tossed in the crock-pot with the leftover honey syrup, to cook down overnight. Today I added some organic sugar, some cinnamon and then I thought it needed something more so I added one tsp. of pumpkin pie spice. Its yummy. So these got canned in two batches in small half pts. I figure Ill use several as Christmas gifts this yr. 

 While I had the canner going I remembered I had peppers still in a big bag in the garage. They ripened even more and many turned yellow. There were also a couple reds and a few greens. I saved the green to freeze, roasted the others. I made a brine of 1c. lemon juice, 1c. white vinegar, 1c. homemade chive vinegar (could be 2c. white instead), 1c. olive oil, 2tsp. kosher salt and 3 sliced garlic cloves. I put some opal basil in the bottom of a couple of small jars then topped with the peppers. Then I poured the hot brine over them and sealed to water bath them too. 

I hated to waste the brine tho cuz I didn't have enough peppers to use it up so I had about 1lb. mushrooms. I sliced them up and tossed them in the brine. Then I added a few peppercorns and a few springs of thyme. I let them cook then filled two small jars with the mushrooms and topped them with the hot brine. Peppers and mushrooms were water-bathed for 20min. plus 5 extra just sitting in the hot water to ensure a good seal.

One slice of mushroom stuck to the pot so I tasted it......and omg they are really yummy! So I'm thinking I may do this again real soon when the big crush of canning is done here. They are worth keeping around. I use those peppers in omelets and salads and I use both in antipasto platters. Its nice to have my own around.

Tomorrow is tomato sauce. I have to get them going before they go bad. I have jars for it but I need to run more jars thru the dishwasher. Busy busy week here.  

STUFFED PEPPERS

I made Stuffed Peppers the other nite so I thought Id post them here for you. I only made 3 peppers cut in half because there are only two of us here. I put the other half in the freezer for another day .

STUFFED PEPPERS Makes 3 hearty servings or 6 smaller ones

1 1/4lb of ground beef
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs
3tb. fresh chopped parsley
1 tsp. dried thyme
dash of cayenne
salt and pepper
1 c. regular rice, cooked and cooled
3 lg. green peppers, sliced in half, seeded and cored
1 jar Classico tomato and basil sauce
Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
First cook your rice so its cooled when you use it for the meat mix. I use one cup regular long grain rice and then cook it. There's more than I need for the mix but we like to eat it on the side too with extra sauce. You can use any rice, my mom uses Minute rice but I hate that fake stuff.

Next mix all ingredients in a bowl (except the peppers). Add about half that rice or more depending on how much rice you would like. I like more meat than rice. Stuff each pepper half with the mix and put in a baking dish.

Top with jarred sauce. Add about 1/4 of the empty jar filled with water to the pan too. The sauce will thicken as it cooks but its too thick to start with. Top with some grated Parmesan cheese.

Bake for about an hr or till peppers are tender basting a couple times with the sauce. You can serve one pepper with other vegetables and the extra rice or just that with the rice. Sometimes we just have two halves and nothing else after all you have meat, veggies and rice there too. A nice crusty bread and your done.

Sausage and Peppers over Rice

Last nite I made Sausage and Peppers over Rice. I created this dish one day, long ago when I was craving one of those awesome Sausage and Pepper sammichs from a NJ boardwalk. Somehow the salty air and breezes always stirred up an appetite and this was what Id want. Last time I had this was maybe 10yrs ago. I went to a chat party in Atlantic City. I was home visiting my folks and planned to drive there for the party. We all had lots to do of course down there but I told the bunch I wasnt going home till I had one of those sammichs. Curiosity got the best of them and many of them followed me down the boardwalk. I found us a place that served ones that just looked delish! It was almost a foot long and only $3.00! Id never find anything like that here in CA. lol. So this recipe is a variation of that sammich I love. My kids love this and now my bf does too.

I will give you the amts. for what I made last nite but you can tweak it to what you need and more or less of something doesnt really matter . So if you dont like alot of peppers only add one, same with the onions.

SAUSAGE 'n PEPPERS OVER RICE serves 4 hearty meals
8 Italian sausages, cut into 1 in. chunks
2 green peppers, cut into 1in. chunks
2 med. onions, cut in half then cut into about 1/2 slices
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. fennel seed, crushed
S & P
1 jar Classico Tomato Basil Sauce
1 1/2c. rice plus 3c. water
Romano Cheese

First get your rice started. Add rice and water and a dash of salt to pot and cook till almost done. The reason for this is , it will continue to steam as you do the other and come out nice and fluffy when you fluff with a fork.
Next drizzle a bit of olive oil in a pan and heat. Add sausage chunks and brown well. I use Italian sweet sausage but if you like spicy then buy the hot. When brown remove from pan into a sm. bowl. Next add onion and saute till beginning to get soft. Add peppers and garlic and saute a bit more till they have a glazed look, maybe 10min. more. Next add tomato sauce, basil, parsley, fennel and S & P. Stir well then add the sausage and stir that in too with any juices that are in the bowl. Cover and cook on simmer for 15-20min. If too thick add a bit of water. You dont want it to stick and scorch.
For each serving put some rice on a plate, top with sausage mix and sauce. Grate some fresh Romano Cheese on top and serve.

This is one of the few times I use jarred sauce. I love the Classico brand and only use the Tomato/basil sauce. It has the NJ tomato taste Ive missed since I moved here and its a plain jarred sauce like I used to make from my garden tomatoes and basil. Its a good basic sauce.

I use dried herbs here but when I have fresh I always use them. Just depends on the season and whats in my refrigerator. You could serve this as sandwiches too on a nice crusty italian roll or bread cut into chunks but its messy. You could leave the sausage whole tho if your going to do that and just top with the pepper sauce.

Because theres only two of us here now, I always have leftovers. I put a layer of rice in a casserole and top with the remaining sauce and freeze. Then all I have to do is put it on a 350 degree oven and let heat thru. Ive even made this as a dish for a potluck and they all loved it! You could use loose sausage meat too but we like getting chunks of it when eating it. Oh and the reason I add crushed fennel seeds to this is because out here none of the Italian sausage has it in it. On the east coast thats how its made. I couldnt for ages wonder what the heck was missing from the sausage here out west. That was the key!