Tomatoes Galore

This is the first year that I have tried to can tomatoes (probably because this is the first year that I had tomatoes worth canning). I did 2 quarts and 6 pints!! Yahoo!!!


I have to be careful though...they are almost all gone and I haven't saved my seeds for next year yet!!

Pomodoro Sauce in Action

Happy Wordless Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Mom and Wordful Wednesday on SevEn cLoWn CirCus! Remember the recipe from Monday? Here it is in action on top of chicken and bow tie pasta.

Yummo!!! It was so fragrant that the neighbor kids had their noses pressed against my screen door!! No kidding! It was hilarious!!

Pomodoro Sauce

I am doing more menu planning with I'm an Organizing Junkie and finding more deals at Pick N Save for $5 Dinners and putting them together with great recipes:-)

Last week before school start which means...one more week of summer vacation. All of our back-to-school shopping is done. We got new glasses. Now, we just need an appointment for a flu shot and a hair cut and we will be all set for school. Yahoo!!

Thank goodness Pick N Save is helping me out with my menu planning! They have boneless pork loin on sale for $1.99/lb. (normally $3.99/lb.) !! I bought a bunch and I am going to top them with Pomodor Sauce (check out the recipe below). It is going to be super cheap because instead of canned tomatoes, I used my fresh tomatoes from my garden. We are going to eat like kings for months with what I have going on out there!!

Here is everything that I am serving this week:

Monday: Spaghetti (Cleaning Day)

Tuesday: Pork Chops with Pomodoro Sauce (See recipe below)

Wednesday: Leftovers

Thursday: Chicken and Rice

Friday: Eat Out

Pomodoro Sauce
Ingredients:
5 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for garnish later
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
2 1/2 tsp sugar
·Kosher salt or sea salt
1 medium onion, finely diced
1/2 cup basil, chiffionade
1 pinch red pepper flakes

Directions:
1. Begin by heating the olive oil over medium heat in a large saucepan or Dutch oven. Sautee the diced onions if you're using them, until they're soft but not browned. Add the garlic (in slices or paste) and sauté carefully and briefly, don’t let it turn brown; if you're using red pepper flakes, you can add that pinch now too. Add the tomatoes and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.
2. This sauce can be covered with a lid wholly or partially as it does not need to reduce too much; if you're making a creamier sauce your ingredients are mostly in puree and paste form and will not need much reducing; if it's a chunkier sauce with diced tomatoes, onions and garlic, you might leave the lid off so it reduces a bit better as it may be slightly watery. You can also add a small can of tomato paste with the diced tomatoes, to absorb some of their water.

3. Cook approximately 30 - 60 minutes, until the sauce slightly thickens. Stir and check it occasionally. Add sugar and salt according to taste during the process. Don't over-salt it but make sure it's not bland either, a common problem of poorly-made sauces. Taste it! as you go along, don't guess! Cook it longer if it seems to need 'more taste', as the reduction and mixing of the ingredients progresses over more cooking time, as is true with almost all sauces.

Servings: 12
Yield: 2 quarts

Cooking Times
Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes

Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 1/12 of a recipe (7.7 ounces).
Percent daily values based on the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition information calculated from recipe ingredients. One of the recipe's ingredients was not linked. This ingredient is not included in the recipe nutrition data.

Amount Per Serving
Calories 195.9
Calories From Fat (29%) 56.56
% Daily Value
Total Fat 6.45g 10%
Saturated Fat 0.88g 4%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 271mg 11%
Potassium 805.05mg 23%
Total Carbohydrates 32.98g 11%
Fiber 5.03g 20%
Sugar 1.82g
Protein 6.57g 13%

Recipe Type
Italian, Sauce

Tips
Experiment with the tastes and consistencies of the tomatoes you use, since they are the most important ingredient; some chefs will mix fresh tomatoes in with canned tomato paste, some will try a can of tomatoes, mixed with fresh tomatoes, and add some tomato paste.

Experiment with different herbs and seasonings... though experiment carefully. You are usually safe to try adding small amounts of herbs that are generally known to be good in Italian red sauces... but first put the tiniest pinch of any herb on a spoonful of the sauce to see what you think, rather than dumping it straight into the main batch. If it seems to go well, you might try a pinch in with the sauce to begin with, and add more if you're liking the taste.

Common other additions include, to your taste: mushrooms of various kinds, colored bell peppers, hot peppers, and meats. Pomodoro sauce and pasta are especially famous and recommended to go with chicken, but other meats, seafood, and meatballs are used.

A secret ingredient of some chefs is to add a little cream to the sauce to make it... er... creamier.

Source
Web Page: http://www.pomodorosauce.com/

Recipe Cost: $4.32 ($1.32 with fresh tomatoes)
Serving Cost: $ .36 ($0.11 with fresh tomatoes)

Grape Jam

This is what I did yesterday:


9 jars and vines and vines to go...

Hazy Shade of Summer

My camera lense was weeping in the heat this morning but out of pain comes beauty.

Presto Pesto

Happy Wordless Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Mom and Wordful Wednesday on SevEn cLoWn CirCus! Heck, I am even linking this up to Amy's Round Robin on Keeping Up with the Schultz Family on Friday.

It's time to harvest the basil and I love it because that means pesto time:

I love it! It is good in pasta dishes, mixed with mayo on sandwiches and even as a topping for grilled fish. I found a recipe for some dessert pesto that I am dying to try. I will let you know how it turns out:-)

Chicken in Basil Cream

I am doing more menu planning with I'm an Organizing Junkie and finding more deals at Pick N Save for $5 Dinners and putting them together with great recipes:-)

Summer isn't over yet but my life is starting to pick back up anyway. This week, I have 2 doctor appointments, Girl Scout Day at The Wisconsin State Fair, an oil change and back to school shopping. I am also helping my older daughter pack to move back to Madison for college. She is a Junior this year and getting her first apartment!!! Unbelievable!

Thank goodness Pick N Save is helping me out with my menu planning! They have split chicken breasts on sale for $1.28/lb. (normally $4.69/lb.) !! I bought a bunch so I could make Chicken in Basil Cream. Check out the recipe below.

Here is everything that I am serving this week:

Monday: Spaghetti (Cleaning Day)

Tuesday: Chicken in Basil Cream (2 doctor appointments) (See recipe below)

Wednesday: Leftovers (Girl Scout Day at The Wisconsin State Fair)

Thursday: Pork Chops (oil change)

Friday: Eat Out (Back to school shopping)

Chicken In Basil Cream
Ingredients:
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup dried bread crumbs
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
3 Tbs butter
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 (4 ounce) jar sliced pimento peppers, drained
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/8 tsp ground black pepper

Directions
1. Place milk and bread crumbs in separate, shallow bowls. In skillet, heat butter or margarine to medium heat. Dip chicken in milk, then coat with crumbs. Cook in butter or margarine, on both sides, until juices run clear (about 10 minutes). Remove and keep warm.

2. Add broth to skillet. Bring to a boil over medium heat, and stir to loosen browned bits from pan. Stir in cream and pimentos; boil and stir for 1 minute. Reduce heat.

3. Add Parmesan cheese, basil and pepper. Stir sauce and cook until heated through. Pour mixture over chicken and serve!

Servings: 8

Cooking Times
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 1/8 of a recipe (6.6 ounces).
Percent daily values based on the Reference Daily Intake (RDI) for a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition information calculated from recipe ingredients. One of the recipe's ingredients was not linked. This ingredient is not included in the recipe nutrition data.

Amount Per Serving
Calories 318.4
Calories From Fat (53%) 168.36
% Daily Value
Total Fat 19.09g 29%
Saturated Fat 11.28g 56%
Cholesterol 127.1mg 42%
Sodium 259.85mg 11%
Potassium 369.98mg 11%
Total Carbohydrates 4.02g 1%
Fiber 0.21g <1%>

Recipe Cost: $13.68 ($6.27 on sale)

Serving Cost: $ 1.71 ($0.78 on sale)

How Do You Like Me Now?

Remember the geraniums that I got in May? Well, check them out now:

I am so happy how they are growing:-)