Sweet Relish

This is Little Rooster...He is one happy boy...why you ask?
Today was SWEET RELISH day at our house. Little Rooster can't eat anything with smothering it in SWEET RELISH. Today we bottled 48 pints, enough to last us awhile. It is a wonderful recipe one that has been passed through our community for many years. A tried and true recipe. Cucumbers are abundant right now, so the time was right.
Little Rooster's Favorite Sweet Relish

24 lg. cucumbers - unpeeled

8 lg. onions

8 lg. green peppers

1 lg. red pepper

*grind above ingredients and drain juice. I have an attachment to my Kitchen Aid, that is a food grinder, it works great. After liquid is drained, place in a large stock pot and add:

1 T. turmeric

8 T. salt

4 tsp. mustard seed

8 tsp. celery seed

1 tsp. powdered cloves

10 c. sugar

1 1/2 qts. apple cider vinegar

Boil all together for 20 minutes. Hot pack in sterile jars and steam process for 10 minutes.

My First Culinary Award!

Listen, I will take it! I have never cooked in a dutch oven, but am now inspired. At scout camp this past week there was a dutch oven cobbler competition and so for fun I entered. Mine was a Peach Dutch Oven Cobbler and it won!!
Here it is! It really was pretty! And here is the very simple recipe!

Dutch Oven Peach Cobbler

1 yellow cake mix

3 large cans of peaches

1 cube of butter

cinnamon

In a number twelve dutch oven, rub the sides of the oven with butter, enough so that the cobbler won't stick. I noticed others using tin foil but I have not done that. Drain peaches and pour into dutch oven. Sprinkle dry cake mix over the top of the peaches. Then top with chunks of butter all over the top. Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. Cover and bake for 40-50 minutes until it is browned on top.

"Team Cobbler" They were awesome helpers!

Suzie Homemaker Tagged Me

Suzie Homemaker tagged me! Here is the drill

The Rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you.

2. Post the rules on the blog.

3. Write six random things about yourself.

4. Tag six people at the end of your post.

5. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

1. I ROAST GREEN CHILE FOR A LIVING - "Tons" of it. We sell it to restaurants and a company that has a national salsa. You can find it in most grocery stores and Walmart.
2. CILANTRO IS NOT MY FRIEND! - I have tried, oh how I have tried to love Cilantro. Actually I would settle for "like" but no. Living in Mexico, you would think that would be a given, as it is in almost everything you eat. Oh well.
3. I GOT THE CHICKEN FEET IN MY SOUP! - While on my honeymoon in Mexico City, we ate dinner with a very humble family. They gave me the greatest gift they had to give...the chicken foot in my soup. I nearly died. The Farmer, upon seeing my face, quickly pinched me under the table and then congratulated me for getting the foot. Hummmm, it was interesting and I was touched by their generosity toward me. (The picture is pretty disgusting, sorry!)
4. I WAS A PERFUME MODEL - While in college, I stood in department stores and sprayed passers by, in hopes that they would purchase an expensive bottle of perfume. It was fun and the best part was, I always smelled good...for free!
5. I SHARED A BOX WITH BARRY BONDS - The year Michael Jordan retired, (I love him), he went to Sacramento for his final game against the Kings. The owners of the Kings invited The Farmer and I to the game (they were aware of my obsession) so we flew over and had a total blast! Our box was complete with several celebs Barry Bonds and Jerry Rice being a couple. He was such a nice person, and so was Jerry Rice. What a great time we had!

6. MY HAIR IS NATURALLY CURLY - I do not perm! Do people still perm? Some days I like my hair, but not at this rainy time of year. It is basically alot of frizz right now.

SO THERE IT IS!

I am tagging Rachelle, I'm so Funny, Spin, Kim, Cedar, and Beth

GOOD LUCK MY FRIENDS!

Peanut Butter Fudge Cake

Just another tribute to Susie Homemaker, she just doesn't make a mistake! This cake was amazing, and very rich, just ask the family...we enjoyed it for Sunday dinner last week. If you love chocolate and peanut butter, you will love this. I will post the actual recipe when I return home, or you can find it at Susie Homemaker's blog.

Grandma Elma's Squash Casserole

Did I mention that I love zucchini? And it a good thing because it is that time of year in our garden. I really do wait for zucchini season to begin. We have it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Often time in our desserts too. That will be another post. The Farmer's grandma is a wonderful lady and a fantastic gardener. This is her recipe with my own twist. A recipe that the whole immediate and extended family makes and enjoys.



Grandma Elma's Squash Casserole
3-4 medium zucchini, roughly chopped
2-3 large carrots, roughly chopped
1 med. onion, finely diced
2 T. butter
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 c. water
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 c. sour cream
2 c. dry stuffing mix, browned in 1 T. butter
1 1/2 c. cheese
1 T. chicken boullion (caldo de pollo in Mexico)
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a stock pot, sautee onion and garlic in butter. Add diced squash, carrots, water and chicken boullion. Bring to a boil and cook for 5-8 minutes, vegetables should be soft but not over cooked. When vegetables are done, drain off liquid and pour into a large bowl. Add soup, sour cream and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and pour half of mixture into a greased 9 x 13 pan. Top with half of browned stuffing mixture and half of cheese. (Any cheese is good. Sometimes I use mozarella, sometimes cheddar. This particular time I used a combination of parmesan cheese and mozarella cheese). Repeat with remaining squash mixture, stuffing and cheese. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until it begins to bubble. This is a summer staple in our home, and a great way to link generations through food.

Summer Peach Ice Cream

Summer for us is a time of plenty. Everything is baring its fruit. So the trick is...how to preserve the excess for the months of no fruit. We have PEACH orchards and we have begun to pick the fruit. In my opinion the best fruit is a little later in the season. And so I wait, to bottle the varieties that we love. Each year the number of bottles of PEACHES that I put up increases, my kids are getting bigger! The past few years I have done 100 bottles and have always run out before the next crop is ready. Today I thought that PEACH Ice Cream sounded yummy and so I went to the pantry to get a couple of quarts of PEACHES, and discovered that we only have a few bottles left....just in time! I am excited to begin bottling in the next month, it will be nice to have a supply again.
Summer Peach Ice Cream, is amazing! It is very simple to make and you can use either fresh or bottled PEACHES. I have made it with both, can't really say which I like better. The Boy says that this is the best ice cream he has ever tasted (in is 15 years).

Summer Peach Ice Cream

2 1/2 lbs. peaches, peeled and chopped or

2 qts. of drained peaches

1 c. white sugar

1 pint half-n-half

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 can evaporated milk

1 t. vanilla

2 c. whole milk

Puree peaches, sugar and half -n-half in food processor. I usually do this in two batches, it will spill over if you do not. Pour into large bowl and add other ingredients. Chill in refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Freeze in ice cream freezer to manufactures directions. I use a counter top freezer and this recipe makes two batches. Call the family together, and ENJOY!

Happy 4th of July!!

Hope your day is filled with great friends, lots of family

and amazing food! Here's to the U.S.A!!

Chocolate Coconut Perfection

A new found friend sent me this cupcake recipe, and, well....it is amazing to say the least. Susan at She"s Becoming Doughmesstic, always has such great posts, but this one really does "take the cake" check her out,you won't be disappointed.
The recipe is Chocolate Coconut Filled Perfection! The cake is so good but the filling is what really makes it. Creamy coconutness...(is that a word??) You will love it! Perfect for a Fourth of July party. Thanks Susan...you did not disappoint!

Chocolate Coconut Perfection!

Devils food cake mix - prepared according to directions

add: 1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. coconut extract

chocolate pudding powder (I used 1/3c.)

Fill cupcake cups 1/3 full with cake batter and spoon in 3/4 T. filling then

top with cake batter, be very careful not to overfill.

Filling: 2 egg whites

1/3 c. sugar

2 T. flour

2 cups sweetened coconut

Mixture will be sticky. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cake tests

done, "bounces" to the touch. Cool completely, and then frost.

Frosting: 1 1/3 c. butter, softened

2 c. marshmallow creme (7oz.)

1 T. vanilla

1/2 t. almond extract

1/2 t. coconut extract

1 - 1 1/2 t. milk

2 2/3 c. powdered sugar

Mix well, frost cupcakes, sprinkle with coconut and Enjoy!!