ZUCCHINI PICKLE RELISH

This relish is absolutely delicious, and we use it in everything from tuna fish salad, to potato salad, to hot dogs, you name it.....

NO ONE has EVER guessed it is made with zucchini 

It tastes like the 

BEST bread and butter pickle 

relish you have EVER eaten !!!

12 cups unpeeled zucchini (chopped small)

3 cups sweet onion (chopped small)
1 cup celery (chopped small)
2 large red bell peppers (chopped small)
2 cups peeled carrots (chopped small)
1 cup pickling* salt (see important note)
3 cups white vinegar
3 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons turmeric
2 teaspoons DRY mustard powder
1 tablespoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon corn starch

Wash and dry the vegetables before cutting them (the only one you should peel is the carrot). Coarsely chop the vegetables, then put them in the food processor (2 or 3 cups at a time) and pulse them a few times to get the pieces small enough for a good relish (but not too small). The chop size should look like this:

Measure the vegetables AFTER you chop 
them in the food processor.

Mix the small chopped vegetables and 1 cup of pickling salt. Place this mixture (covered) in fridge overnight (The salt will draw excess moisture out of the veggies).

IMPORTANT NOTE: After the vegetables have chilled overnight, it is VERY IMPORTANT that you rinse the salt off of them. I rinse the chopped veggies THREE TIMES (in small batches).

Whatever method you choose to rinse the salt off, just make sure you rinse, rinse, rinse then squeeze as much water out of the chopped veggies as you can(I use my salad spinner). Set aside.

In a large, non-aluminum, pot, mix the vinegar, sugar, celery seed, spices and corn starch. Bring to a boil (to dissolve the sugar). Add all of the rinsed vegetables to the pot and bring BACK to a boil. Once it is boiling hard, turn heat to medium low and GENTLY boil everything for 20 minutes, stirring every five minutes or so.

While the relish is simmering, sterilize 7 pint jars and 7 (two piece) screw on lids. I do this by putting the JARS through a hot cycle in my dishwasher. Keep the jars in the (unopened) hot dishwasher after the last cycle.

For the LIDS, I just wash them with hot soapy water, rinse them well and then pour boiling water over them in a large saucepan which I keep HOT on a burner.

Also, while the relish is simmering, bring your canning water to a hard boil, here is how:

 Place a rack on the bottom of a large stock pot (or something to keep the jars up off of the bottom of the pan) and fill the pot with water (water should be deep enough to cover the jars by 2". Bring the water to a full boil.

Now that your relish has boiled for 20 minutes, remove it from the heat and place it in the clean hot jars, leaving 1/4" space at the top of the jars (make sure there are no air pockets in the relish). Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean, hot, wet kitchen towel and screw on the two-piece lids fairly tight. Lower the jars into the already boiling water and keep them in there  10 minutes for half pint jars and 15 minutes for pint jars.

Remove from boiling water and let cool to room temperature on your kitchen counter. As they cool on your counter, you will hear the lids "pop" when they make the correct seal.  If they don't "pop", just keep them in the fridge.

NOTE: Do not use regular table salt for this recipe because the anti-caking agents in table salt cause the relish to discolor.  If you don't have pickling salt, the next best thing to use is kosher salt (but I highly recommend pickling salt).

NOTE: The recipe calls for 12 cups of chopped up zucchini. I have found that if I am a cup short of zucchini, I just add an extra cup of chopped carrots. Works well.

NOTE: This recipe makes 7 pints of relish.

ENJOY !!!

HEINZ CHILI SAUCE CLONE

This is a clone recipe for Heinz chili sauce. It is so easy...takes every day ingredients and is even tastier than the original!! Chili sauce was never a pantry staple for me; I always found it on my shopping list for holiday and special occasion recipes, like this shrimp cocktail (which called for Heinz chili sauce). I will never buy commercial chili sauce again because this is so much better (and cheaper)!!!

1 cup of tomato sauce

1/3 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 teaspoons dry onion flakes
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

Whisk everything together and bring to a boil in a small saucepan with a heavy bottom. Turn heat down to a low simmer and cook for 25-30 minutes, depending on how fast you are simmering it (mine was done in 25 minutes). Watch it towards the end so it doesn't scorch.

Cool to room temperature, 

then cover and chill.

It will get nice and 

thick like this.

NOTE: I made this recipe, exactly as it is stated above, I don't know how it would effect the final results if you use fresh onions.

HOMEMADE PARMESAN CROUTONS

Croutons are a big part of any good salad, but I tend to shy away from commercial ones for a couple of reasons. First, they are expensive and secondly they can be teeth breaking-ly hard (is that a  real word?).

This is a very simple crouton recipe that has a wonderful flavor and is a good use of that day old French bread in your kitchen. After the cubes are baked, just store them in an airtight container and they will stay crunchy for 2-3 days or you can put them in the freezer for longer storage.

Start off with a half a loaf of day old french bread. The amount of bread isn't really critical...just use what you have.

Mix:
4 tablespoons olive oil (see note below)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (I use the cheap kind w/ green cap)
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt (more if you like a stronger flavor)
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon dry parsley flakes (not necessary, but pretty)

Cube the bread (or tear it up) into 3/4" pieces and spread them out on a cookie sheet.

Combine the olive oil, Parmesan, garlic salt and pepper (save parsley flakes for later in the recipe)and mix well. Dot the cheese mixture all over the bread cubes and toss very gently to distribute.

Spread seasoned bread cubes out on a cookie sheet so they aren't touching each other and bake in pre-heated 400° oven for 5 minutes. Depending on how small you make the bread cubes...5 minutes MAY be long enough to get a toasted crouton. If they aren't toasted enough, toss again and bake for another 5 minutes. Depending on how crunchy you like your croutons. Keep an eye on them, so they don't get too dark.

When they are done, sprinkle with the dried parsley flakes and toss.
Cool completely, then store in airtight container.

NOTE: Recipe calls for olive oil, but if I am going to eat them right away, I like to use melted butter (excellent flavor).

NOTE: Depending on what I intend to serve these croutons with, I sometimes add a pinch of cayenne to the cheese mixture.

ENJOY !!!

CHOCOLATE MAGIC SHELL

This fast and fun recipe is a delicious chocolate sauce and when you put it on something cold, it turns hard like commercial "Magic Shell" (except a lot more budget friendly). Don't restrict it to ice cream though, how about frozen bananas?

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 
¼ cup butter
¼ cup canola oil
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat the chocolate, butter and oil until the chocolate melts. I do this in the microwave, starting at 30 seconds on high, then stir, then 15 more seconds and stir and a final 15 seconds and stir. At first, it will seem like the ingredients don't want to blend, but whisk it for 10-15 seconds and it will go together beautifully. Once it is smooth, whisk in the vanilla extract.

Cool to room temperature, (you can use it right away, but while it is still hot it will take a few seconds for it to harden on the ice cream).

NOTE: If you use your microwave to melt the chocolate, watch it carefully, since your microwave might cook faster or slower than mine and chocolate scorches easily.

NOTE: With the addition of butter & oil, I thought this might have a greasy taste, but it does NOT. While warm (which is my favorite) this has a velvety texture, almost like the best hot fudge sundae taste.

"Peanutella" Chocolate Peanut Butter Spread

If you like Nutella, you will LOVE peanutella, just think of the possibilities!!

Lets see, let me count the ways: on waffles, on pound cake, on warm scones, in a sandwich, with s'mores, on waffles, as a dip for apples and oh yes...right out of the jar with a spoon!!!

2 cups shelled, skinned raw peanuts (see note)
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (best quality you can find)
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt 
2 to 3 tablespoons peanut oil

Spread the nuts on a cookie sheet and roast in a 400F oven for 10 minutes (stirring half way through for even roasting).  NOTE: I couldn't find raw peanuts, so I used dry roasted UNSALTED peanuts and roasted them for only 5 minutes in the oven (to bring out more flavor).

Put the nuts in a food processor and process for five minutes. At first they will get mushy or pasty, but keep processing and the nuts will start to liquefy. Scrape down the sides of the food processor every once in a while.

Once the nuts begin to liquefy, add the cocoa powder, powdered sugar, salt and 2 tablespoons of peanut oil. Process for another minute or so. If the mixture seems too thick (it will thicken more in the fridge) add the other tablespoon of peanut oil. Taste the mixture, add another mini-pinch of salt if you think it needs it.

That's it!! Store in the fridge (tightly covered) for up to a week.  This mixture might seem a bit thin at first, but it will thicken as it "sets" in the fridge.

ENJOY!!!

SUBWAY SWEET ONION CHICKEN TERIYAKI SANDWICH

This is a "knock off" recipe for Subway's sweet onion chicken teriyaki sandwich. It is delicious, only about 370 calories and very quick to fix (as long as you make the sweet onion sauce a day ahead so the flavors blend and mellow...important step).

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken tenderloins
1/4 cup soy sauce
3/4 cup pineapple juice
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
.
Bring everything but the chicken to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes or until it starts to reduce. Cool completely, then pour over the raw chicken, cover and refrigerate the chicken for about 30-60 minutes.
.
When it's time to eat, take the chicken out of the marinade (throw the marinade away...important!!) and grill or broil the chicken until done but don't over cook.
.
Place chicken pieces in grilled bun and add your favorite toppings. Drizzle with sweet onion sauce (recipe below). YUMMMY!!! Makes about 6 sandwiches.

SUBWAY SWEET ONION SAUCE

This is SO tasty and I find all sorts of uses for it. It is not overly onion-y and not overly sweet. 

IMPORTANT TIP: Make it a day ahead of time so the 

flavors blend and mellow.

1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon finely minced Vidalia onion
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons white distilled vinegar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon buttermilk powder
1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon poppy seeds
1/8 teaspoon salt
pinch cracked black pepper
pinch garlic powder
.
Combine all ingredients for the sauce and bring to a boil for about 30 seconds. Whisk well and cover and chill overnight...important tip.

NOTE: If you don't have Vidalia onion, a white onion will work, just mince it VERY finely. I've even used re-hydrated onion flakes successfully too, although the vidalia onion is best.

ENJOY !!!

JELLIED CRANBERRY-APPLE SAUCE

CRANBERRY-APPLE SAUCE

This is a recipe for those jellied cranberry sauce lovers out there. It has only 4 ingredients, PLUS it couldn't be easier to make. My picky-picky husband loves 100% jellied cranberry sauce, but it is just a little too tart for me.

With the addition of a couple of medium sized Gala apples.....that "pucker-tart" cranberry taste is mellowed just enough...and picky-picky husband really likes it too!! 

Whether you make half a recipe or a double a recipe, this is quick and easy. Did you know you can freeze jellied cranberry sauce?  I just put the leftover sauce in the freezer. 

Simple Ingredients:
12 ounces (3 cups) fresh cranberries (frozen is OK)

2 medium size Gala apples (cored but NOT peeled)
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 cup pineapple juice (or water in a pinch)

Wash and sort the berries, throwing away any light pink or mushy ones. If I'm using frozen cranberries, I don't even thaw them.

Core (but don't peel) 2 medium sized Gala apples. Chop fine in the food processor.

Put the cranberries, chopped apples, sugar and juice in a heavy pot and bring to a boil(cover the cooking cranberries with a splatter screen to reduce any potential mess). After it boils for a minute or so, turn the heat WAY DOWN to just a MILD SIMMER and cook for 20 minutes (stirring occasionally). 

After 20 minutes, remove from heat and PRESS the berries through a strainer, into a bowl (I just press on the berries with a big spoon). It takes a couple minutes, but just keep pressing until all you have left in the strainer, is skins and seeds (throw that part away). 

Stir, the strained cranberry sauce,then chill in the fridge (sauce will thicken as it cools). 

Cranberry sauce freezes well too!! We are "empty nesters", so I freeze small containers of leftover cranberry sauce and none of it goes to waste.

ENJOY !!! 

 

SWEET BABY RAYS BARBECUE SAUCE CLONE

We love thick and sweet barbecue sauce like the Sweet Baby Ray's brand. When I found myself out of BBQ sauce recently, because of the Corona Virus grocery shortage, I dug out this old recipe....it is DELICIOUS and very MUCH like Sweet Baby Ray's regular barbeque sauce.



Bacon wrapped Shrimp coated with

BBQ Sauce and Baked

1  1/4 cups regular ketchup
1  cup dark brown sugar (deeper flavor than light brown)
1/4  cup molasses
1/4  cup pineapple juice
2  teaspoons hickory liquid smoke
2  1/2 teaspoons ground dry mustard
2 teaspoons paprika
1/2  teaspoon garlic powder (not salt)
pinch of cayenne pepper
1  1/2 teaspoons kosher salt (not fine table salt)
1 teaspoon black pepper

Put everything into a saucepan and whisk it together. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to slow simmer and simmer 5 to 15 minutes, depending on how thick you want it to be.

You can use this immediately or store in fridge for a week or so or portion it out and freeze it for future use. 

NOTE: If you don't have kosher salt, you can use regular table salt, just use LESS, since kosher salt and table salt measure very differently.





 Happy Grilling!!

ONION STRINGS

This quick fix addition to a burger, or salad is oh so addicting!!!
You can make this crunchy, salty, sweet-ish, treat in batches and keep them warm in the oven. There are a million and one ways to serve onion strings!!

1 large sweet onion (I like Vidalia's)
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Peel the onion and slice it as thin as you can. A mandolin works well here, but I don't have one, so I just slice the onion as thin as I can.

Soak the onion slices in the buttermilk for about an hour, making sure you press the slices down into the liquid. When I'm in a hurry, I've done this step in 1/2 hour and they turned out great.

In another bowl, mix the flour, salt, pepper and cayenne and set aside. Heat a quart of vegetable oil to 375F. 

Using tongs, remove a handful of onion slices from the buttermilk and put them into the flour.  Toss around gently to coat. 

With the tongs, take the slices out of the flour and tap the tongs on the edge of the bowl to remove excess flour from the onion pieces.

Put the floured slices into the hot oil and stir gently to separate the slices. These will be golden brown in a minute or so, so watch them carefully.

Drain on paper towels and salt them to taste.  Repeat batches until all onion strings are cooked.

ENJOY !!!

EASY PEASY TACO SAUCE

This is a great "all around" taco sauce.  It is a LOT like the mild taco sauce at Taco Bell and it is made from ingredients that are in EVERYONE's pantry.  The only "trick" is that it's best to let it chill in the fridge overnight to develop that great taste!!

As for "degree of heat"......this one is A-OK with teens AND picky-picky husband, so it is fairly mild. If you want more heat, add extra cayenne pepper.

16 ounce tomato sauce
2/3 cup water
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (this will give you a mild heat)

Mix together in heavy saucepan and simmer gently for 15 minutes or just until it is slightly thickened.  

You can eat this right after it cools down, but it is SO MUCH TASTIER if you chill it in the fridge overnight!!!

This keeps in fridge for a week (if it lasts that long). You will find yourself using it on everything!!

ENJOY!!!

FRENCH FRY SAUCE

This French fry dipping sauce is a delicious condiment that is quick, easy to make and very versatile. It goes together in minutes and everyone loves it.

There are a MILLION fry sauce recipes out there; some have a TON of ingredients, some have just a handful. This is our recipe.

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons finely minced dill pickles (see note below)
1 teaspoon regular old yellow mustard
dash of salt
scant 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar

When I make this, I put the pickle into the food processor first and pulse it until it is finely minced (2 tablespoons minced pickle is about 1 large pickle). NOTE: You can also just use 2 tablespoons of your favorite pickle relish.

Then add the rest of the ingredients and pulse them all together until the sauce is well mixed and smooth.  You can do this in a full size food processor, although a small food processor (or an hand held immersion blender) works even better.

This recipe makes one cup of French fry sauce. Keep chilled. It is excellent to dip just about anything in, but it is also good on hamburgers.

ENJOY !!!

MAKE BUTTER IN YOUR STAND MIXER

Do you have a lot of heavy whipping cream leftover from the holidays like I do?  If so, consider turning it into butter with your stand mixer. It only takes about 15 minutes tops, and the mixer does all the work.

This isn't something I would make on a regular basis, but it IS perfect for very special occasions (try mixing in your favorite herbs or spices). It is also a fun project you can do with your kids.

All it takes is some heavy whipping cream + salt, + a stand mixer + 15 minutes .... and "hocus-pocus", you will have butter!!

 

Start out with a quart of ICE COLD heavy whipping cream

Whip it, on medium high, in your stand mixer, using the wire whisk attachment. It will try and splatter a little, so I usually cover my whole mixer with a dish towel.

Whip until you get nice stiff peaks, like this (should take about 4-5 minutes.

Now this next step is where the "butter" starts to happen. Change from your whisk to your paddle attachment. Let the mixture beat for a few more minutes (at medium high speed,)and it will start to look a little more yellow and it will "loosen up" considerably. This is when you need to make a serious plastic wrap cover for the top of your bowl because it starts to splash.

The mixture will start to separate like this:

 

Don't freak out, this is what its supposed to look like. The buttermilk is starting to separate from the butter.

After it has whipped a little longer, the mixture will completely "break down" and separate, like this: (click on the photo to get a better look).

Although this liquid is called buttermilk, it is very thin and nothing like commercial buttermilk. 

You are now done with the whipping stage (the whole process takes about 12-15 minutes) but there are a couple more steps:

Put the butter into a strainer, and drain off the liquid, It will look like this:

Rinse the "chunks" under VERY COLD running water (the water will not effect the butter as long as it is very cold). Squeeze the pieces together as you rinse the butter. You are basically trying to rinse out any little pockets of milk liquid.

 

Work 1/2 teaspoon table salt into the butter (or you can leave it unsalted). To do this step, I put the butter back in the stand mixer and beat it for a few seconds, so the salt would be evenly distributed.

Finally you have butter !!

 

A quart of heavy cream will make 10 ounces of delicious butter. It will keep in the fridge for about a week, or you can freeze it.

 

 

This sounds like a LOT of steps, but they are really

very simple and straight forward.

 

 

 

ENJOY !!!

 





GRANDMA's BREAD AND BUTTER PICKLES

When I was a little girl I watched my (very German) Aunt Welentina Ezlinger make pickles in her basement. I climbed up on a stool and watched her line up the hot jars and put "seeds" in each one. She then packed the jars tight with cucumbers from her garden and poured a hot vinegar liquid over them. That was almost 60 years ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday. I was so impressed!! I think of her when I make this recipe.

We love these bread and butter pickles!! They are fresh and bright tasting and are worlds better than commercial pickles!!

 

 

 

GRANDMA's BREAD AND BUTTER PICKLES        6 PINTS

 

4 cups water

1/4  cup pickling salt (not regular salt)

10 large pickling cucumbers

ice cubes (I use 2 trays of ice cubes)

3 cups sugar

2 cups water

2 cups apple cider vinegar

2 teaspoons ground turmeric

2 teaspoons mustard seed

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

 

Wash the pickling cucumbers and slice them into 1/8" slices (I cut mine just a tad thicker than 1/8").

 

 

In a LARGE bowl, mix 4 cups water and 1/4 cup pickling salt until well dissolved. Add cucumbers and ice cubes and gently swirl, making sure the slices are all submerged.  Let cucumber slices soak for two hours.

 

After 2 hours, drain the cucumbers (throw away the liquid) and rinse completely with fresh water (I rinse mine 2 or 3 times).

 

In a large/deep pan, mix 3 cups sugar, 2 cups water, 2 cups apple cider vinegar, 2 teaspoons ground turmeric, 2 teaspoons mustard seed and 1/2 teaspoon celery seed. Bring this mixture to a boil.

 

Reduce heat to LOW and put the cucumber slices in. Stir gently and let the cucumber sit in the hot liquid until they are all hot (but not cooked). Don't let the cucumbers boil.

 

Remove the slices from the hot liquid (with tongs) and pack directly into sterilized PINT size mason jars (pack as many as you can get into the jars...pack tightly).

 

When the jars are all packed with cucumber slices, bring the pot of vinegar liquid back to a boil. Remove from the heat and pour into the jars of cucumber slices, to within 1/4" of the top. Run a CLEAN knife around the sides of the jars to remove any air bubbles.

 

Wipe off the rims of the jars with a clean moist towel and screw on the two piece lids.

 

If you are going to use these pickles within 2-3 months, you can just keep them in the fridge at this stage.  If you want to keep them for a lot longer or if you want to store them in the pantry, you'll have to process the PINTS immediately in a hot water bath for 10 minutes.

 

Whether you keep them in the fridge, or put them through a hot water bath, you will have to let the cucumbers "pickle" for 2 or 3 weeks before you eat them, gently "shaking" the jars once a day.

 

 

 

ENJOY !!

 



BIG MAC SECRET SAUCE

Every once in a while, rather than going to McDonalds and buying a "maybe hot...maybe not"  Big Mac (with only 3 ounces of beef) , we make a full size version at home. Here's another idea: Ever thought of Big Mac sliders for a kids party?  

This recipe tastes EXACTLY LIKE the secret sauce on the Big Mac, trust me, it really does.  It's quick to put together and lasts in the fridge for at least a couple of weeks.  Surprise your family with home made Big Mac's for dinner.

BIG MAC SECRET SAUCE

1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 heaping tablespoons French dressing  (salad dressing)
1/2 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
2 heaping tablespoons dill pickle relish
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon dry onion flakes
1 teaspoon ketchup
1/8 teaspoon salt

Mix everything and chill for several hours or overnight.  Makes 1 cup.

(works best with THIN burger patties)

CLICK HERE FOR McDONALD's FRENCH FRY

CLONE RECIPE

ENJOY !!