Tomato Pie

(sorry, no 'baked' pictures...we devoured it before I remembered to get a picture)


1 baked pie crust (I like martha's recipe, here, bake it @ 400 for about 20-25 min)
BEFORE starting: slice the tomatoes, lay out on cooling rack, sprinkle with salt (draws out the water), layer with paper towels, and repeat. this makes the pie less soggy...


into the baked pie shell, layer these ingredients, in the following order:

pesto

sliced tomatoes (to fill the pie dish 1/2 way)

1/4 c diced, toasted walnuts

1/2 c kalamata olives

the rest of the sliced tomatoes, mounded like in the picture

cheese (combo of mozz, parm and cheddar is great)

bake at 400 for approx. 25 min. 

Crockpot Apple Butter

Crockpot apple butter (trees from our backyard!)


slice and dice the apples, if you don't have this tool. buy one. immediately!
fill up your crockpot with the apples and add apple pie-like spices. the following measurements are approximate, like all my recipes...


1 T cinnamon
1 t nutmeg
1/2 t cloves
3-4 c brown sugar (depending on the sweetness of your apples)


simmer on low with the lid off (so the water can escape) for 8 ish hours. the test for seeing if the apple butter is ready to be canned can be found here, or see the pictures below. when done, can in a hot water bath. yum. 

   not done (water edges) 

done, no watery edges on plate

                     

peppers and tomatoes

dehydrating peppers for cayenne powder.
dehydrating tomatoes to pulverize into tomato powder...apparently it's good added to soups. the flavor is awesome...

Sun-Dried Tomatoes

This is a great way to use up the tomato bounty right now:


Mix the following in a bowl.


approx. 5 c halved cherry or roma toms
1 T kosher salt
1 T black pepper
1/4 c olive oil
3 T mixed dried herbs (we use a combo of: basil, garlic powder, parsley, oregano...heavy on the garlic powder)
1 t dried thyme


lay face up in food dehydrator. turn on high and watch them turn into the best pizza toppings-right-before-your-very-eyes...(depending on the amount of trays in your food dehydrator, they can take anywhere from 5-10 hours to fully dehydrate)

it's tomato time

recipe coming for sun dried tomatoes made in the food dehydrator. they are so damn good on pizza... 

Never buy brown sugar again!!!

homemade brown sugar:
fill your Cuisinart 1/2 full with white sugar. add 2 T molasses. give it a whirl. if you want darker brown sugar...add some more molasses. that's it! store in an airtight container. 


homemade powdered sugar: 
fill your blender with about 2 c white sugar. turn it on high. let it go for a few minutes. it will slowly start to turn to powder. yes. it's really that easy. now get cooking!

Watch Documentaries for FREEEEEE

One perk about being, well, a tad on the poor side (only when it comes to $$$ biyat***s!!!) is that I have learned to scavenge for entertainment...free food...joy...you know, the essentials.


Here's a link to a website that posts many very cool (I recommend 'the business of being born') documentaries. You can watch them for free.

http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/watch-online/
enjoy.

September garden

Pizza Dough

Recipe from Peter Reinhart's artisan breads every day

Lean Bread


5 1/2 c (24oz) unbleached bread flour
2 t salt or 1 T coarse kosher salt
2 t instant yeast
2 1/4 c lukewarm water (95 deg)


combine all ingredients in mixing bowl. mix for 2 min. if mixing by hand, use spoon, stir for 2 min. dough should be soft and sticky. transfer dough to oiled bowl. let rest for 5 min. Stretch and fold the dough. cover the dough and let rest 10 min. stretch and fold 3 more times with 15 minutes between each stretching and folding. cover after iteration. place dough into oiled bowl. cover tightly. refrigerate overnight or for up to 4 days. dough will rise to about double. 
550 deg. 
on baking day: remove dough from fridge 2 hours before you plan to bake. transfer dough to oiled work surface. divide dough into fourths for pizzas. roll into 4 dough balls. cover and let rest, for 60 minutes. pat dough balls into circle. if it resists and springs back to a ball, cover it and let it rest for a few minutes. with floured hands, roll dough out into a circle. line a cookie sheet with parchment (flip the cookie sheet upside down so there is no lip on the pan). toss some cornmeal onto parchment, place dough onto cornmeal-lined parchment pan. top with toppings of choice. bake 10 ish minutes.     

Rhubarb Strawberry Crisp

Adapted from Martha. The one and only.


Make the crumble:
1/2 c flour
1/3 c br sugar
1/3 c oats (quick or regular)
pinch salt
4 T cold butter
Mix it up until it resembles crumbly crumbs...


Make the fruit mixture:
1 lb. rhubarb, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1 c (ish) strawberries
1/2 - 3/4 c sugar
1 1/2 T cornstarch
pinch salt
rind from 1 orange
Mix...


Heat oven to 400 deg.
Put the fruit mixture into 4 individual dishes or an 8x8 pan. Top with crumble topping. Place in oven, lower temp to 375. bake 40-45 min. 


Add any combo of fruit here. Strawberry rhubarb is classic but you could do a mixture of anything you have on hand. 

If I could, I'd eat pizza everyday for the rest of my life. I'm super serious.

The sky is the limit when I consider how to top my pizza. Whatever needs to be eaten up usually ends up as a topping. 
A few of my favs:

• kale (don't knock it till you try it)
• roasted garlic
• zucchini and squash
• walnuts (YES, YUM)
• garlic infused olive oil
• sea salt

I'm not much of a red sauce kinda gal when it comes to pizza. I pile it high, drizzle olive oil on top and that does the trick for me.

The dough comes from Peter Reinhart's book. Making pizza dough is really easy. Try it. You might surprise yourself...

Yes. We had a pig roast. And it was FUN!

Before...

 During...

 After...

Cute, huh?...