My perfect summer snackin' plate... Pico, Guac, & Tortilla Chips

I anticipate mid-August every year...waiting for the glorious globes of summer tomatoes to be hot & juicy and in proper chin-dribbling mode.  I love to just cut some up and sprinkle them with sea salt...close my eyes and commence joy-making.  Know what I also look forward to?  THE freshest, most addicting, most flavor-laden salsas, picos, and guacs of the year.  So, after nearly a year of toe-tapping, finger-wiggling anticipation- the time has finally arrived!

Everybody's got their own versions...labeled 'the best ever' and 'my favorite'.  I have no doubt that those labels are fitting.  But as long as everything is at its glory...anybody's can garner those labels.  This is how I make them...just a guide...I use what I have...and so should you!

Pico de Gallo

 Use all of the ingredients in whatever proportion you prefer and/or have available

ripe, juicy garden tomatoes of any sort

fresh jalapeños or serranos or any hot chile you prefer

onion

garlic

salt

freshly squeezed lime juice

cilantro

Chop the tomatoes.  Small dice the chile and onion.  Mince the garlic.  Toss them all together in a bowl.  Sprinkle on a little salt.  Squeeze the lime over the whole thing.  Toss in a fair amount of chopped cilantro.  Mix everything together...taste. Adjust any ingredients to suit you.  Enjoy!

Guacamole

Use mostly avocado and add just a little of the rest to taste

ripe Avocados

ripe tomato

green onions

garlic

freshly squeezed lime juice

salt

Cut the avocados in half and remove the pit.  Scoop the flesh from the peel and place in a bowl.  Mash it with a fork/spoon/potato masher.  Mash as much as you like...it can be chunky or smooth, it's all a matter of preference.  Dice some tomato small, chop the green onion, mince the garlic and mix it all in.  Squeeze over some lime juice and a pinch or two of salt.  Mix it all together, taste.  Adjust seasoning as needed.  Eat this immediately, or add the pits back in to help retard browning, cover and refrigerate until ready for use (but not more than a day).

Don't forget to make some chips for dipping!  Cut a stack of corn tortillas into wedges.  Make them with your preferred method...fry them quickly in hot oil...bake them in the oven...lay them on a sheet of foil and bake them in the midday sun....  Hey, whatever floats your boat!

Kick back with a platter of Pico, Guac, and hot chips...perhaps a margarita or cerveza or kid-friendly bevvies...and some good company! 

 *Monday Mania*

Making your own Cultured Butter

Butter needs no introduction.  It is a wonderful, delicious, nutritious yeah, I said it, practical, indulgent entity all its own.

"Good bread is the most fundamentally satisfying of all foods; and good bread with fresh butter, the greatest of feasts."  ~James Beard

"With enough butter, anything is good."  ~Julia Child

Cultured Butter

a recipe from GAARP at Of Cabbages and King Cakes
(kinda condensed version...if you need more detailed info, click link)

1 qt. (4 c.) heavy cream
1/3 c. whole milk yogurt...make sure you choose one with all natural ingredients, ie. no gums or stabilizers
Salt, to taste (optional) 

1. Combine cream and yogurt together in glass bowl.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 12-18 hours.  It will get very thick and delicious looking!  Once it has cultured, place it in fridge or bowl of ice water to reach a temperature of ~60 degrees F.

2.  Prepare a bowl of ice water; set it aside.  Place the cultured cream a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) and beat with whisk/attachment on high speed until stiff peaks form.  Reduce speed to low and watch closely.  Once the mixture breaks (butter separates from buttermilk), turn off the mixer.

Pour the buttermilk into a clean container. You can use this just as you would commercial buttermilk for drinking or baking. If you aren’t going to use it within a week or so, it can be frozen and used later for baking.

3. Press the butter with a spoon, spatula, or your hands to remove as much buttermilk as possible. I found it easiest to use a flexible rubber spatula here. Add any buttermilk to the rest you've already gathered. Pour water from the bowl of ice water over the butter to cover. Rinse the butter by kneading it under the water.

4. Dump water and repeat until the water becomes clear.  It is necessary to remove all the residual buttermilk in order to keep the butter from spoiling too quickly.

Once the butter has been cleaned thoroughly, knead it on the counter for a minute. If you want to salt the butter, press the butter out on the counter, sprinkle lightly with salt, then knead it in. I decided to divide my butter into thirds (not precise thirds...just three pieces, I suppose).  Into the one, I kneaded fleur de sel gris.  Into another, I kneaded Black Truffle sea salt.  Into the last, I kneaded a dried jalapeño/garlic/onion/salt blend that I received in the mail from my friend Linda from New Mexico.

To store the butter, you can press it into ramekins or roll it into logs. Cover the ramekins or wrap the logs tightly in plastic wrap.  You can make more than one roll from the butter and freeze one once you've wrapped it well.

I ended up with ~2 c. of scrumptious, tangy buttermilk and three rolls of butter, weighing a total of 21 oz. (~1 1/3 lb.)!!  The buttermilk was delicious enough to drink straight up...which I did with a bit of it, the rest I reserved for baking.  ALL three of the butter "flavors" were out of this world.  I mean, it was amazing all alone I licked it from my hands after kneading it yet equally amazing with the regular sea salt and the flavored salts.

The salted butter is fabulous anywhere you'd normally use butter...the jalapeño butter is soooo sinful slathered on a piece of hot, crusty toast or for tossing just cooked veggies in.  The truffle butter...aaaahhhh...on eggs, potatoes, meat- grill a steak and cut off a slab of it and let it melt into the top of the hot steak...nothing compares!

If you've never made your own butter, you should definitely give it a go!  It's super easy and rewarding.  You make regular butter the exact same way, just w/out adding the yogurt and going through the culturing step.  But boy, oh boy, do I LOVE the cultured buttermilk and the slight tang it gives the butter, too.

Feel free to join us over at Forging Fromage...add your link to the linky for the month in which you make it and we'll add you to the roundup!  Also, since cultured butter is the current BOM challenge, you can join in the (open) challenge over on Facebook.  Funny huh...a cheesy place and a bready place both featuring...well...something that's not cheese or bread this month!?  But at the same time...it's so natural.  Cheese and butter are both dairy products.  Bread and butter go hand in hand.  So, not really "funny" at all.  The links are below if you are interested!


*This post is linked to:

 BOM: Cultured Butter on FB

 Monday Mania at The Healthy Home Economist


*Today is your last chance to enter my GIVEAWAY for your chance at winning a $75 gift certificate to NOVICA! All entries must be entered by Monday, August 16 at 11:59 PM, Eastern time!

Homemade Coconut Milk

No, I do not live in the Tropics boo, but that does not stop me from being totally ga-ga over tropical ingredients.  Pineapples, mangoes, bananas, RUM, sugar cane, and of course...coconut!

The shredded, sweetened stuff you buy at any grocery store in the baking aisle...um, it's okay I guess...but after about one giant pinch, it's cloyingly sweet.  And for some reason, it's really hard to find unsweetened, shredded coconut around here...so I just do it myself.  Take that.  All you need is a little muscle.
You can do it with either  one of those "easy-break" coconuts...the ones that are sort of scored across the middle...or a regular old harder-to-break variety.  I've found that it doesn't really make much of a difference.  Start by screwing a corkscrew through each of the eyes of the coconut- wiggle it around a bit once it's all the way in, to make the hole as open as possible. Remove the corkscrew and pour the coconut "milk" through a strainer into a bowl.  Waste not, want not. 

Once you've drained them of their liquid, place a flat-head screw driver flat against the center of the coconut and pound in with a hammer.  The shell will crack...move it around the shell and repeat until the crack runs all the way through and you can separate the two halves.  Now, grab a thin, flexible butter knife and slide it between the meat and the shell.  Slide the knife in and pull back like a lever to release the meat.  Sometimes you get large chunks...sometimes not so large.  Once all the coconut is free from the shell, use a veggie peeler to peel off the outer brown "skin (?)" that remains...leaving you with just the creamy, white coconut meat.

At this point, eat a few chunks as a reward for all of your hard work.  You can use it like this if you wish...or if you need it shredded/grated, simply use a hand grater if you're in the mood for more physical labor...or run it through the shredding blade in a food processor.

Now, use your fresh, naturally sweet, shredded coconut as you will.  Store in the fridge...but not for too long.  No preservatives mean it doesn't last as long. 

Homemade Coconut Milk

from The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman

yield ~2 c.

1 c. unsweetened, shredded coconut I used freshly grated

Combine the shredded coconut with 2 c. very hot water I used the coconut milk I extracted from the coconut, and added hot water to make 2 c. in a blender.  Pulse on and off quickly, then turn on the blender and let it work for 15 seconds or so.  Let sit for a few minutes.

Put through a strainer, pressing to extract as much of the liquid as possible.  Discard the solids and use the milk immediately or store, covered, in fridge for a few days.  Use in place of canned coconut milk!!

This is made from all raw ingredients (and is from Mark Bittman) and so I'm submitting it to IHCC because our theme this week is Raw Foods!  I'm also submitting to the events below...

This post is linked to :

Hey...your chocolate's in my PEANUT BUTTER! No...your peanut butter's in my CHOCOLATE!

Does anybody remember those commercials?  I totally loved Reese's Peanut Butter cups when I was a kid.  Okay, maybe I still do.  Maybe.  I mean come on, peanut butter and chocolate is a classic combination!  I remember my mom loving the crunchy ones...and as a kid, I was was like ewww.  But as I got a little older, I decided I loved 'em, too.  And now, I can't even find the crunchy ones anymore!  But I can find endless variations...the Big cup, dark chocolate cup, white chocolate cup, reverse cup (pb shell & chocolate filling...gag me), mixed nut (I actually liked this one)...and then there's the whips, wafers, crispy crunchy, clusters...oh, and let us not forget the egg, tree, heart and other various festive shapes for the holidays!  I admit, I always buy an egg when they roll 'em out.  But the classic cup is still my favorite. 

I don't think it's a bad thing to buy a candy bar every once in a while...so long as it's not a daily...or even weekly occurance.  We all get a craving sometimes back me up, ladies.  But how about making our own peanut butter cups AT HOME!?  Sure, they may contain just as many calories...but they won't contain all the other unknown fillers that I'm not even going to bother to look up-ignorance is bliss??...but taking the time to make your own peanut butter and fashion inside some melted chocolate makes it seem not so bad. Doesn't it? 

I came across this recipe inside what is currently my favorite book.  A book in which I want to make every last thing.  A book which I checked out from the library and don't want to return.  EVER.  Give me a break, I'm broke!  So, I've already renewed it once on my card.  Once is the limit. Lucky for me there are 4 other people in my house with library cards.  I can check it out and renew it once on each of their cards, as well.  Hmmmm...at 3 weeks per check-out, that means I'll be able to keep this book for 15 weeks.  Then I can start the whole thing all over again.  As long as nobody puts a hold on the book- that would throw a wrench into my evil plan.  I gladly accept charity donations.  Not too proud.  So, with a few recipes under my belt and many more in the cache...

Peanut Butter Cups

from jam it, pickle it, cure it by Karen Solomon

yield: 12

filling:

1 1/3 c. fresh roasted & salted peanuts

2 tsp. honey

1 tsp. neutral oil I used coconut oil

2 Tbs. confectioners sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

coating:

2 c. chocolate chips or chopped chocolate

Place liners in cupcake pan and set aside.  I used regular size liners, but I think next time I'll go to the candy making shop and purchase some shorter ones...for a better presentation.  Didn't matter, though...we ate 'em all.  Didn't share. 

To make the filling, puree the peanuts in a food processor for 3-4 minutes, until very smooth.  Add the honey, oil, sugar, vanilla, and salt and puree until completely combines, scraping down the sides as  you work.

Take ~2 tsp of the peanut butter mixture into your clean hands, roll into a ball, and flatten into a disk that will fit into the center of the cupcake liner but not touch the sides.  Shape the remaining 11 centers, distributing pb evenly. 

Prepare the coating in a microwave safe bowl; heat chocolate on high for 1 minute, stir well w/ fork to distribute heat.  Heat one minute more, and stir again.  Heat an additional 30 - 60 seconds, stirring thoroughly.  The chocolate should be melted and quite satiny, and you should be able to drop it in ribbons from the end of the fork.

To assemble the cups, working quickly, spoon about 2 tsp. melted chocolate into the bottom of each liner, being careful to coat the bottom in a complete, thin layer, and to coat the sides about halfway up.  Gently drop each of the pb disks into the center of a cup, and give it a gentle tap to secure it in the chocolate (but don't push it all the way through to the bottom).  Cover each center with an additional tsp. of chocolate, covering the top completely and allowing it to surround the sides of the peanut butter, enclosing it completely.  Gently smoothout the tops withthe back of the spoon or by giving the pan a gentle shake. 

Let sit, undisturbed, for at least 4 hours this is the hard part, until the cups completely harden. 

How to store them:  Devour immediately, or store up to 2 week shyeah, right in an airtight container. Do NOT refrigerate!

Jam it, pickle it, cure it is packed full of amazing recipes, methods, techniques, tips and funny little intros by Solomon.  Make everything from beef jerky to jam to marshmallows to pickles to cheese to liqueurs.  I LOVE this book and highly recommend it to anyone interested in venturing into the world of making and preserving  your own foods...in an easy, fun manner!  Remember, any extra copies laying around and sent my way would be well-loved and well-used and highly coveted.  Shameless.

Anybody remember this one?

Support your local Farmers Market

Help Your Local Farmers Market to become America’s Favorite Farmers Market!

It’s summertime and that means two things:

1. There are loads of delicious farm fresh produce available at farmers market every week

2. American Farmland Trust’s America’s Favorite Farmers Markets™ contest has kicked into gear and your local market needs your votes to win!

It's simple, really...all you have to do to vote is:

1. Go HERE

2. Type in the Name of your favorite Farmers Market

3. Click “Vote”

Yup, that’s it. That’s all it takes to show support for your local farmers and vendors and bring your favorite Farmers Market one step closer to being America’s favorite farmers market!

American Farmland Trust has introduced leader boards where you can keep track of the Top 5 markets receiving votes in your state.

If you'd like to support multiple Farmers Markets in your state, simply search by state and you can vote for all of your favorites - just remember, you only have one vote to cast per market!

According to American Farmland Trust (AFT) , the purpose of this contest is to re-connect local consumers to local farms, with the ultimate goal of keeping our nation’s farm and ranch land productive and healthy! Buying at the farmers market keeps money in the local community and helps farms and ranches remain economically viable. By voting, you’re helping support farms and communities across the nation. As American Farmland Trust says, “No Farms No Food™!”

So, head on over to VOTE and don't forget to spread the word (you have until August 31)!

I'm submitting this post to Simple Lives Thursday hosted by my friend Diana over at A Little Bit of Spain in Iowa...I think that supporting our local farmer's and farmer's markets are as important as growing our own food...I realize sometimes we can't find everything we love/crave/desire locally- but we should embrace the things we CAN...and for the same reason, I'm sending it over to Food Renegade for Fight Back Friday!

Zucchini, Potato, Chipotle Tacos on Homemade Corn Tortillas...and a peek at the garden.

I love tacos. True story.  I'm not talking about the seasoned meat, lettuce, tomato, cheese, onion-type of tacos...although, I do love those, too.  I'm talking about the concept of tacos in general.  Not being confined to the the norm.  There are so many delicious concoctions you can stuff inside a warm tortilla.  Use what is seasonal...use what sounds good to your soul...use what you have in your garden, your fridge, your pantry...use what you see growing in your neighbors garden kidding.  We had a few small zucchini we brought home from our trip to the community garden...and some fresh oregano...mmmm.  This is possibly one of the simplest concoctions...but I kid you not...it's also one of the tastiest.  Originally we made some for brunch, but I ended up making them again.  For dinner.  On the same day.  Seriously good eats.

Zucchini, Potato, Chipotle Tacos
from the kitchen of girlichef

For these tacos, use the ingredients in whatever amount you and those you're feeding enjoy.  We like our heat, so we use a decent amount of chipotle...but you can just add a dab if you don't dig it so much.  Using freshest ingredients and eating them right after they're made is key here!

Potatoes, cubed
Zucchini, sliced
Olive oil (not extra virgin)
Chipotles in adobo
fresh Oregano
salt & freshly ground pepper
Corn Tortillas, preferably homemade (see recipe below)

Drizzle some olive oil in a pan the right size to fit your ingredients.  Heat it over medium and add the potato chunks.  Sauté them until they are just beginning to get tender and slightly golden.  Add the zucchini slices and cook for another minute or so, until just soft and golden.  Add a sliced chipotle and drizzle in some of the adobo sauce.  Throw in some fresh oregano.  Remove from heat.  Season to taste w/ salt & pepper.  Stuff into warm corn tortillas and enjoy. Immensely.

Okay, homemade tortillas are one of the easiest things to make...like, ever.  Totally.  I'm feeling my inner valley girl today...you'll have to excuse me.  Now, I guess you can't call these completely homemade, because I use masa harina...but I  am hoping to be able to bring you some that are entirely homemade soon...we have some friends that are in Mexico right this very moment, as we've asked them if they can bring us back a mill to grind our own corn (and other things) when they come back next week.  It all depends on if they can fit it in their things. Fingers crossed!!  But these are as homemade as I can get right now.  And if not having a tortilla press holds you back from making your own...stop letting it!!  I've lost mine...don't ask me how...so I just use what I have available- my slab of granite, a sheet of plastic, a heavy pot, and a rolling pin.

Corn Tortillas

yield: ~16 tortillas

This is the basic formula using any brand of Masa Harina. 

2 c. Masa

~1 1/4 c. water

Place masa in a bowl.  Add ~1 c. of water and mix it up using your hands.  It should still be a bit dry at this point.  Little by little, add more water, gathering and kneading with your hands until the mixture just holds together.  It is preferable that it be more on the dry side...otherwise the dough will be too sticky (in which case, add a little more masa in...but this can be a vicious circle).  Knead it together quickly and let it sit, under a damp towel while you prepare everything else.

Heat a heavy comal or skillet...heavy, I think cast iron works best...over med-high heat.  It should be smokin' hot (~425 degrees F).  Either prep your tortilla press & 2 sheets of plastic OR use a slab of granite or marble....or a hard surface and some plastic. 

Divide the dough evenly into 16 balls.

This is what I do w/out a tortilla press:  Place one ball on the slab or granite.  Cover with a sheet of plastic (I use a gallon-size baggy) and press down with a heavy pot.  You'll have a nice circle of dough now.  I then continue to roll it to the thickness I want with a rolling pin (over the plastic).  This doesn't leave perfectly circular edges...but if you know me at all, you know I love rustic food...and they look totally rustic.  I then use a bench scraper to lift the dough from the granite slab and lay it onto the pipin' hot comal.  If you don't have a slab or granite, use a sheet of plastic on bottom and top, and use the same process.  You should be able to peel the rolled dough from the plastic instead of using a bench scraper.  If you have a tortilla press, simply line w/ plastic on both sides and press.  Pfft...easy. 

Leave it on the first side for ~30 seconds.  Flip it and leave another 30 seconds.  Flip one last time and leave another 15 seconds or so.  Eat it warm...it's bliss.  Or, let 'em cool and store them.  Heat up as you would any tortilla before using. 

I also wanted to show you what we harvested from the earth in our community garden earlier in the day.  I love bringing home a little basket of freshly grown vegetables.  I find it thoroughly satisfying...down to my very soul...and it's something the kiddos love, too...getting their hands dirty.  Alot of the satisfaction comes when you nourish your bodies with the very food you nurtured and watched grow.  This is DQ, searching the ginormous zucchini plants for some zucchini...the same zucchini we used in the tacos.

Although there were several more types of herbs, I only gathered Italian Parsley, Oregano, and thyme today...because I knew I'd use those right away!  The oregano was such a green, earthy addition to the tacos!

I also brought home some Mustard Greens and Kale...love those greens!

The Roma's and the yellow cherry tomatoes...only brought home a few cherry tomatoes...none of the bigger varieties were ready yet.

In my humble opinion, no garden is complete without a tribute to the sun...

This post is linked to:
------->an event originated at Mharo Rajasthan Recipes!