Pork, Heirloom Tomatoes and Apples

I am going to combine recipes on this post because I have been making all of these things at the same time.  My cousin, Chris Douglas and her husband, Don, were in town this weekend and asked if I was going to the farmer's market this morning.  Of course I will go to the farmer's market for the chance to catch up with them!  While I was there, I found (well, she found) my favorite heirloom tomatoes.  This is the solid orange ones.  The seller said they were valencia, but when you look them up online, they come up amana.  Either way, I have discovered that I really like these for making slow-roasted tomato sauce.  So, I bought two quarts (at least, that's the size container they put them in). 

On Thursday, after mom and I went to pick up the CSA, she wanted to go get some meats at Jack's Market.  While there, I decided to get a pork shoulder.  I ended up with twice what I intended to get, but today was the day to braise it and make pulled pork. 

And finally, at the farmer's market near school, I picked up some Paula Red apples.  They are a bit tart, so I stopped at Bayne's Apple Farm and picked up some Gingergold (I think), which are a bit sweeter.  Today, I am making applesauce out of them in my crockpot.  So, without further ado, here are my recipes:

Oven-Roasted Heirloom Tomato Sauce

• 10 medium valencia (or amana) heirloom tomatoes**
• Garlic cloves (I used 4)*
• Italian Seasoning
• Salt, as needed

Preheat oven to 250F.  Wash and dry the tomatoes.  Cut them in half and remove stem end.  Place cut side up on cookie sheet covered with foil.  Peel garlic cloves and intersperse them between the tomato halves.  Sprinkle all with Italian seasoning.  Roast in slow oven for 3 hours or until tomatoes are cooked through.  Remove from oven and transfer everything to blender bowl.  Puree until smooth.  Taste sauce and season, as needed, with salt.

*CSA Ingredients
**Farmers market ingredients


Braised Pork Shoulder
Adapted from: http://csafoodie.blogspot.com/2011/04/pork-shoulder.html

• 1 9-lb pork shoulder roast
• sea salt and pepper, to taste
• cayenne pepper
• 5-6 sprigs fresh lemon thyme
• 1 ancho chile, sliced*
• 1 med candy onion, thinly sliced*
• water

Season the roast with sea salt, pepper and cayenne.  Place in a large Dutch oven.  Add thyme, ancho pepper and onion slices.  Fill the Dutch oven halfway with water.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 4-5 hours or until thermometer inserted into the center reads 160-180F.  Remove roast to plate; cover and allow roast to sit at room tempurature for 10 minutes.  Drain onions and peppers and place in a large bowl. Skim fat off cooking liquid and save to use as pork stock.  Pull the pork, mix in the peppers and onions and then mix with BBQ sauce (I used my homemade sorgham bbq sauce).

 *CSA Ingredients


Slow-cooker Applesauce

• 4 Gingergold Apples
• 6 Paula Red Apples**
• 2 Tbs water
• Sugar (optional)

 Wash and dry the apples.  Peel the apples, remove the cores and then slice.  Place all apple slices into crockpot.  Sprinkle with water and mix until apples are all coated.  Cook covered, on LOW, for 4 hours, stirring periodically.  If needed, break up apples with potato masher.  If you prefer sweet applesauce, add sugar or sweetener.

   
 **Farmers market ingredients

Tomato strata

The interesting thing about strata is that to do it right, you have to have 2 days.  Unfortunately, when I thought I had two days to make this one, I really had to take 3 days.  I forgot when I started making this strata that I had a morning appointment and then ended up having a very busy day.  So, this morning, I got up early to finally get around to baking the strata.  We got all kinds of wonderful vegetables this week from the CSA: squash (summer and winter), tomatoes, eggplant, onions, peppers (green, anaheim, and poblano!), corn, etc.  Following picking up our vegetables, we then stopped at Jack's and I ended up with bacon and a pork shoulder.  So, obviously, this is going to be a cooking weekend!  The tomato was a bit on the ripe side, so I decided to use it right away.  I combined it with the bacon and a loaf of cheddar onion bread to make a wonderful strata.  This loaf of bread, as well as the asiago bread that I get from Family Faire are addicting!  I have never had loaves of cheese bread that have such a great cheesy flavor and I was sure it was perfect for this use.

Bacon Tomato Strata

• 3 slices thick-cut bacon
• 4 cups cubed cheddar onion bread
• 1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar, shredded
• 1 large tomato*, diced
• 5 farm-fresh eggs*
• 1 cup 1% milk
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Butter a 9 x 13 pan and set aside.
2. Cook bacon until crisp. Remove from pan, let cool and chop. Reserve 1 tablespoon of bacon grease to saute the onion and garlic until tender. Toss onion and garlic with chopped bacon and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine eggs, milk and seasonings and whisk to combine.
4. Place 4 cups of the bread cubes in the 9 x 13 pan and pour half of the egg mixture over top. Top with 1 cup cheese, ½ of the onion mixture and half of the tomatoes. Repeat layers. Cover with foil and chill overnight.
5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
6. Remove foil and bake for 1 hour. Sprinkle remaining cheese over top and return to oven until the cheese melts and the center is set. Let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

- See more at: http://www.garnishwithlemon.com/cheese-bacon-and-tomato-strata/#sthash.VgJ3QFcy.dpuf

Instructions

1. Butter a 9 x 13 pan and set aside.
2. Cook bacon until crisp. Remove from pan, let cool and chop. Reserve 1 tablespoon of bacon grease to saute the onion and garlic until tender. Toss onion and garlic with chopped bacon and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine eggs, milk and seasonings and whisk to combine.
4. Place 4 cups of the bread cubes in the 9 x 13 pan and pour half of the egg mixture over top. Top with 1 cup cheese, ½ of the onion mixture and half of the tomatoes. Repeat layers. Cover with foil and chill overnight.
5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
6. Remove foil and bake for 1 hour. Sprinkle remaining cheese over top and return to oven until the cheese melts and the center is set. Let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

- See more at: http://www.garnishwithlemon.com/cheese-bacon-and-tomato-strata/#sthash.VgJ3QFcy.dpuf

 Spray a 9" X 13" pan with cooking spray.  Cube the bread and layer it in the pan.  Cook the bacon in the microwave between paper towels for 3 minutes on HIGH or until bacon is crisp.  Cool bacon until it can be handled, then cut into bite-sized pieces.  Dice tomato and mix with bacon.  Top the bread with the tomato mixture.  Sprinkle with cheddar.  Beat eggs, milk and seasonings until very smooth.  Carefully pour over fillings.  Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.  In the morning, remove the strata from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature (about 40 minutes).  In the meantime, preheat oven to 325F.  Remove foil and bake strata for 1 hour.  Allow to set for 5 minutes before serving.

*CSA ingredients

Instructions

1. Butter a 9 x 13 pan and set aside.
2. Cook bacon until crisp. Remove from pan, let cool and chop. Reserve 1 tablespoon of bacon grease to saute the onion and garlic until tender. Toss onion and garlic with chopped bacon and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine eggs, milk and seasonings and whisk to combine.
4. Place 4 cups of the bread cubes in the 9 x 13 pan and pour half of the egg mixture over top. Top with 1 cup cheese, ½ of the onion mixture and half of the tomatoes. Repeat layers. Cover with foil and chill overnight.
5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
6. Remove foil and bake for 1 hour. Sprinkle remaining cheese over top and return to oven until the cheese melts and the center is set. Let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

- See more at: http://www.garnishwithlemon.com/cheese-bacon-and-tomato-strata/#sthash.VgJ3QFcy.dpuf

Okra Eggplant Stew

The journey to enjoying my favorite southern foods continues, although I did do something a little different than you may expect.  At the farmers market today, one of the vendors had beautiful small okras.  I also had an eggplant that I needed to use and about 5 tomatoes to use up from my last CSA pickup (two weeks ago!).  So, I decided on stewed okra with eggplant.  Simple, quick and delicious!

Stewed Okra and Eggplant
Adapted from: http://eatingappalachia.com/2010/10/07/stewed-eggplant-okra/

• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium candy onion*, diced
• 3 cloves garlic*, minced
• 1 medium eggplant, diced into 1/2" pieces
• 1 pint small okra**, washed and tops removed
• 5 small tomatoes*, diced
• 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• salt & pepper, to taste
• water, as needed

 In a deep skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add onions and saute for 4-7 minutes or until onions are translucent.  Add the garlic and saute another minute until fragrent.  Add smoked paprika and cook another 30 seconds, then deglaze with a splash of water (you could use white wine or chicken stock here for added flavor).

Add the eggplant, okra and tomatoes.  Stir to mix well and reduce heat to medium-low.  Cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until eggplant and okra are soft.  Check frequently and add more water (or wine or stock) if necessary.  Check seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed.

*CSA Ingredients
**Farmers market ingredients

Taco Time!

I had been trying to figure out something different to use the corn in and wasn't quite in the mood for chicken tortilla soup (this is a default for me).  I decided to try making chicken taco filling in the crockpot.  It helps that they had chicken thighs on sale in the grocery store this weekend.  I do love cooking with chicken thighs.  I made some homemade salsa with some of the fresh tomatoes and jalapenos from the CSA and that is the base of the mixture.  Add some black beans and fresh corn and I think it's going to be a tasty mix!

Crockpot Chicken Taco Filling

• 4 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin and fat removed
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 cup fresh salsa* (tomatoes, jalapenos, green pepers)
• 1 tsp Cajun spice
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 3 cloves garlic*, minced
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups fresh corn kernals*
• 1/2 Tbsp lime juice

Place chicken in crockpot and pour water and salsa over the chicken.  Next, add the spices, garlic, black beans, corn and lime juice.  Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.  The chicken should shredd very easily.  Remove the bones and thoroughly shred the chicken.  Serve in tortillas with your favorite taco toppings.

*CSA ingredients

Avocado Breakfast

When we lived in Chicago, I discovered that I actually like avocados for breakfast.  We were doing a fitness challenge through he Discovery Channel and one of the breakfast ideas was an omelet with shrimp and avocado.  It was one of our favorites and I adjusted it to also use bay scallops instead of the shrimp.  I haven't thought of that recipe in a very long time, but this morning had an avocado that I needed to use before it got too ripe.  Last week, in my weekly pins from Pinterest, I got a pin that looked quite yummy.  It was a spicy tomato avocado egg bake from Kalyn's Kitchen (http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2014/07/baked-eggs-skillet-with-avocado-tomatoes.html). It was so pretty, I thought I would give it a try.  Of course, I had to add cheese to it because I need the extra protein, but it looked pretty simple and I have just recently come into a cast iron skillet, which is what she recommends to use.  Oh, and if you haven't spent any time perusing this website (www.kalynskitchen.com), you should.  She's got a lot of really yummy looking, healthy recipes on her site!

So, here is my version of the recipe:

Baked Eggs Skillet with Spicy Tomatoes and Avocado

• 1 can (10 oz.) Ro-Tel tomatoes 
• 1 ripe avocado, sliced lengthwise into 10 slices
• salt and fresh-ground black pepper, to taste
• 4 eggs*
• 1/2 cup sharp cheddar, shredded  
  

 
Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400F. Break eggs into individual ramekins and let the eggs come to room temperature while you proceed with the recipe.  (This might seem a bit fussy, but if you start with cold eggs the yolks will get too done by the time the whites are cooked.)

Spray a medium-sized ovenproof frying pan with non-stick spray or brush with oil, add the tomatoes, and start to simmer over medium heat.  (I used a 10.25 inch Cast Iron Skillet, and I highly recommend using cast iron for this if you have it.)

While the tomatoes simmer, peel the avocado, cut in half, and then cut each half into 5 thin slices. When all the liquid has evaporated from the tomatoes (about 4-5 minutes), turn the heat to low and arrange the avocado slices like spokes of a wheel in the pan.  Gently put each egg between two avocado slices, spacing them evenly apart.  Season to taste with salt and fresh-ground black pepper.

Put the skillet into the pre-heated oven and bake until whites are completely set and the yolks are done to your liking, about 6-8 minutes for runny yolks.  Add the cheese and return to oven for a minute to melt the cheese.  Serving size (for me) is one egg plus 1/2 vegetables.  

*CSA ingredients

The Southern Tour Continues: Corn

I guess I started a theme this week which was probably spurred on by the opening of Bayne's Apple Farm.  You see, the opening of the cider mills is my signal that autumn is upon us.  True, they haven't started selling cider yet (that will start Labor day weekend), but I did have a cider doughnut (the other requirement for autumn).  Given this event and having made corn pudding last weekend, I was reminded of my other favorite autumn food...one that is rather uniquely Southern.  We received corn again this week in our CSA shares and the vegetables which make Brunswick stew are corn and lima beans.

If you do not know what Brunswick stew is, there is a bit of history you need to know...and a decision to be made, which I still haven't quite figured out.  According to the stories, the origin of Brunswick stew can be traced to either Virginia or Georgia.  Each state has a city/town called Brunswick.  Each of these cities/towns claims to have created this lovely dish.  As a matter of fact, if you stop at the rest area off I-95 nearest Brunswick, GA, there is a stewpot monument explaining their version of the story.

Regardless of which state actually was responsible, one of my favorite things in the autumn near Richmond was when people would set up massive cast-iron kettles on the side of the roads out in the country and cook up stew...and then sell it by the quart.  I mentioned on my FB tonight that apparently the key to it was smoked paprika.  To this, I got the response "I thought the key was squirrel".  The rumor always was that the reason these roadside Brunswick stews were so good was because they included the local "roadkill" (squirrel or oppossum).  When we had a block party and made a big pot, we actually used shredded pot roast.

The interesting thing is that I could never quite get the right texture or flavor when I tried to make Brunswick stew at home.  Thus my comment above.  I saw something that suggested adding smoked paprika to the stew and sure enough, that did the trick.  I finally managed to make a Brunswick stew that is similar to the stews I remember from my days in Richmond, VA.

Brunswick Stew

•  3 ears of corn*, kernels cut from the cob
• 6 small to medium tomatoes*
• 1 (10-oz) bag frozen lima beans
• 1 small sweet onion*, thinly sliced
• 2 medium red-skinned potatoes*, diced
• 1 (15-oz) can tomato sauce
• 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 3 cups shredded chicken (rotisserie)
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp cayenne

Combine the first 7 ingredients in a large Dutch oven.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked.  Add chicken paprika and cayenne.  Cook, simmering, until vegetables are cooked and to desired texture.

*CSA ingredients

Pickle Relish

This week when I went to pick up my CSA, they had some tubs on the side with some very interesting looking cucumbers in them.  As I was looking at them, I was told that they were relish cucumbers.  They were pale green, yellow and a combination of green and yellow.  They also looked more like spaghetti squash than cucumbers.  I have never made relish before, but I thought I would give it a try.  It took me a while to find a relish recipe that could be made and refrigerated rather than having to can it right away.  But I was able to find a sweet relish recipe and decided to give it a try. I didn't have red peppers, but had gotten some lovely green peppers, so I substituted them.

What I didn't know before I found this recipe is that making relish is a two-day process.  So, I had to put it off a day so that I could start it at night and finish in the morning.

Sweet Pickle Relish

• 3 large relish cucumbers*
• 1 large green pepper*
• 2 Tbsp kosher salt
• 1 cup cider vinegar
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 Tbsp mustard seed

Wash cucumbers and cut into quarters.  Remove the seeds.  Using a food processor, first shred the cukes and then switch blades and process until evenly processed.  Repeat with the green pepper.  Place both into a large bowl and mix in the salt.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, drain the cucumbers through a fine sieve.  Rinse well and press out the water with a spatula.  In a medium sauce pan, combine the vinegar, sugar and mustard seed.  Bring to a boil then add the cucumbers.  Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes stirring a couple times.

Cool and then store in the refrigerator.

 *CSA ingredients

A Little Southern Style Corn

Anybody who knows me knows that I lived in Virginia for 20 years and really did not enjoy living there.  It was too hot, too humid and people were too "in your face".  But I will admit that there are a few "guilty pleasures" that I still have to revisit when I have the ingredients to do so.  And it has been about 20 years since I've had today's recipe.  One of my favorite side dishes I discovered on a trip to Tangier Island.  Corn Pudding!  While there are many, many different versions of baked corn casseroles, there is nothing quite like real, good, old-fashioned, southern corn pudding.  Most corn casserole recipes are more like rich cornbread...many using Jiffy Corn Bread Mix.  Real corn pudding is more like a really rich quiche bursting with fresh corn cut form the cob.  It took me a while, but I figured out how to put together the real thing.

Corn Pudding

• 3 eggs*
• ½ tsp. salt
• 2 cups milk
• ½ cup sugar
• 4 cups fresh corn*
• ½ stick butter
• 3 heaping tbsp. almond flour

Melt butter in 9x13” baking dish in 350° oven.  Combine eggs, flour and sugar; beat well.  Add milk, corn and salt.  Stir corn mixture to combine and add to melted butter in baking dish.  Bake for 45-60 minutes or until firm.

*CSA ingredients

Broccoli and Sausage

This week, I had purchased some broccoli at the farmer's market.  As I've mentioned before, I love eggs and broccoli.  I still have some of the Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage left, so this morning I decided to make a quiche with broccoli and sausage.  As you will see from the pictures, this is an especially hearty quiche, but I still prefer quiche to frittatas. 

Sausage & Broccoli Quiche

• 6 oz cooked crumbled sausage (I used Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage)
• 1 small crown broccoli**, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 6 farm-fresh eggs*
• 1 1/2 cup 1% milk
• 1 cup sharp cheddar, shredded
• salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder

Preheat oven to 350F.  Place broccoli into a small casserole with 1/4 cup water.  Cover and microwave on HIGH  for 5 minutes.  Drain broccoli and place into bottom of baking dish.  Mix in crumbled sausage.  Beat eggs with milk and seasonings until very smooth. Pour over fillings.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Bake 40 minutes or until knife, inserted into center comes out clean.  Allow to set for 6 minutes before serving.

*CSA ingredients
**Farmers market ingredients

Corn and Sausage

We got the first ears of corn of the season from the CSA this week.  Since there were only 2 ears, I felt like I needed to go ahead and make something out of them.  I really do not eat corn on the cob anymore...habit from having braces for 2 years.  So, I husked the corn and then cut the kernels from the cob.  I also found some Jimmy Dean sage sausage in my freezer and thought maybe a frittata might be a good choice.  I do not usually make frittatas because I prefer the custardy texture of quiche.  However, I was making it for dinner and figured this would be a nice light meal for a warm day.

Sausage and Fresh Corn Frittata

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 4 oz cooked crumbled sausage (I used Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage)
• Corn cut from 2 cobs fresh corn*
• 4 eggs*
• 1/2 cup sharp cheddar
• 1/2 cup 1% milk
• garlic powder

 Heat olive oil in a large skillet.  Add corn and cook for about 4 minutes.  Add sausage and mix well.  In a small bowl, beat eggs with milk and garlic powder.  Drizzle over the corn and sausage.  Cook over med-low heat until almost cooked.  Sprinkle cheddar over frittata.  Cover and turn off heat.  allow to continue cooking for another 2-4 minutes or until the cheese is melted.  Makes 4 servings.

*CSA ingredients