Happy Belated Fourth

I was still under the weather yesterday but we spent the 4th of July with friends at their lake house.

There was a lot of water play.

A bit of rowing.  I had fun with the wakes from anything that had a motor.

There was a bit of fixing because part of my family became wild and crazy yahoos.  (That is a quote).  Now they want their own jetski.  One thinks it is more fun then skydiving.  The other say it is quite possibly better then skydiving.  A bit safer it is.

We had shade on the beach and on the dock.  Our dogs and the neighbors.  And one small boy.  He loved it all!

There was even a bit of rain.  But it really was not a good soaking rain for the woods.  There is a garden deep in the woods that I am helping to save seeds for.

A bit of dinner.  A glass of wine.  Fireworks on the other shore.  It was a lovely day and when I walked into our house,  I dropped into bed.  There was work today.

under the weather

I am hoping it is just allergies and not a summer cold, but I am under the weather.  This evening has been about my rocking chair, a book, tea, and my crochetting.  I can crochet and read at the same time.  At least this way, my shawl grows. 

Tomorrow, we are spending the day with friends in a small town.  It should be a long lovely day and I may be very tired at the end of it.  But that is spending time with friends.  That makes me smile.

eggplant and italian sausage sauce

The garden is being very abundant.  Though the heat is starting to make it go dormant and most of the tomatoes are a bit wild to bear well.  I have been trying to figure out what to do with 15 pumpkins.  I ordered canning jars this weekend and feel very greatful that I have a pressure canner!

The eggplant are another story.  What to do with about a pound and half of ripe eggplant that needs to be used now!  While I was creating memories and with our trip to New York so close behind us, I came across another Mama Leone's recipe for eggplant and italian sausage sauce to be served with spaghetti.  

This is a good one.  But I always increase the onions and garlic portions and I left out the green peppers because I did not have any.  I had already gone to the store for sausage and need not wish to return.

All I can say, what a wonderful way to use the abundance of the garden.  It freezes well too.

eggplant and italian sausage sauce

1 pound sweet italian sausage

1 1/2 pound eggplant (the ones I grow do not need to be salted and drained, so mild!)

6 large garlic cloves, minced or mashed

1 medium onion, chopped fine

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup butter

2 ounces salt pork or very good bacon

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 cups plum tomatoes, peeled and chopped or crush

3 large tomatoes chopped fine

In a large pot, heat the olive oil and butter.  Add the bacon, and let it start to brown.  

Open the casings of the italian sausage and squeeze out the filling into the bacon mixture.  Brown.  

Add the onion and garlic.  Let the mixture cook over a low medium heat and caramelize a bit.  (At this point, you could add 3 bell peppers, chopped fine, deseeded and cored).

Add the tomatoes.  Let cook for about ten minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Taste for salt and pepper

Now, go serve this on pasta or a piece of bread or on a spoon.  Yes, really.

Hopefully, I am just tired tonight.  A bit under the weather.  I hope to be writing here tomorrow but if I am just sleeping if I do not.

blackberry and nectarine crisp

I was inspired by Irvin Lin's Nectarine Blackberry Open Faced Pie.  I really liked the idea of the flavors he put together, but I admit I am not that fond of pie.  I eat it.  I enjoy it.  But i do prefer a crisp or slump to pie or cobbler.  I decided to use the fruit combination of nectarine and blackberry in a crisp.  It was quite delightful.

blackberry nectarine crisp

Note:  to use regular wheat flour, use 1 cup in place of all the flours

10 ounces frozen blackberries

5 small nectarines (I also had a peach in here because it needed to be used)

a bit of sugar if the fruit is tart, up to 1/2 cup

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup almond flour

1/2 cup arrowroot flour

1/2 cup teff flour

1/2 cup millet flour

2 teaspoons cinnamon 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

In an 8 inch square pan, put the blackberries.  Sprinkle with sugar.  Cut up the nectarines and put on top.  Sprinkle with sugar if tart.

Cream the butter and brown sugar together in another bowl.  Mix in the flours and cinnamon.  Spread over the fruit.

Put in the oven and bake for 45 minutes.

This was quite juicy when it came straight out of the oven so you may wish to let it cool a bit.  This would be very good with vanilla ice cream but we chose not to eat it that way.  Just a spoon.  

It was nice at room temperature today for lunch too.

corn tortillas

I was taken out to lunch this week as a thank you for my work.  We went to Hugo's here in Houston.  It is a high end Mexican resturant.  The food was very good but what impressed me was their corn tortillas.  They are handmade.  It is really the simple things in life.

I decided I needed to try making corn tortillas again.  The last time I tried, they were very unimpressive.  But I decided to go with a bit thicker tortilla.  That worked.

These tortillas make everything that much better.  They take a good enchilada and make it a great enchilada.  And for a simple tacoish meal, it makes it not seem so simple.

They are easy but a bit of work.  Well worth the effort.

corn tortillas

2 cups masa harina (I used Bob's Red Mill - very fresh)

1 1/2  to 2 cups water (dependent on the humidity)

1 teaspoon salt

Mix all the ingredients together.  Once you bring it into a ball, knead for a few minutes.  It is very easy not to get all the masa moistened.

Cover and let sit 30 minutes to 2 hours.  This is very important because it will let the masa hydrate better.

After the resting time, heat a griddle to a medium heat.  Take a golf ball size bit of dough and roll out between two sheets of parchment paper.

Move to the griddle and cook a couple minutes on each side.  You want little brown spots.  Remove and put in a cloth as you cook the others.

Serve with whatever you wish or use in enchiladas or just eat plain.  We were having mushrooms and caramelized onions with a bit of cheese here.

Makes for happy tummies.