Ball Fresh Taste of Summer Party

At the beginning of June, I hosted a Ball Fresh Taste of Summer Party. I was selected to demo products and teach others how to preserve their summer harvest.

We had a "working lunch" with some close friends to celebrate the wonderful taste of summer. I prepared my version of Pepper Jelly before the party and we made a batch of Homemade Salsa together.{Confetti Pepper Jelly}

4 1/2 C finely chopped green bell pepper (I use 2 red, 1 orange, and 1 yellow pepper)
1/2 C finely chopped jalapeno pepper
1 1/4 C cider vinegar
1 pkg Ball-brand No Sugar Needed Fruit Pectin
2 C sugar
1 C honey
12 - 4 oz. jelly jars (with new seals)

Prepare water bath canner and jars for canning.
Combine bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, and vinegar in a large saucepan. Gradually stir in pectin. Bring to a full rolling boil that cannot be stirred down. Add sugar and honey. Return to a boil. Boil hard for 3 full minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and skim foam if necessary. Ladle hot jelly into jars leaving 1/4" headspace. Wipe rim and center lid on jar. Screw band on. Process filled jars in a water bath canner for 10 minutes. Remove from canner and allow to cool.

While the salsa was cooking and, then, processing we dined on Pepper Jelly & Cream Cheese appetizers, Chips & Salsa, Lemon Cucumber Water, and Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad. Each guest went home with a reuseable gift bag full of coupons for Ball products, a box of pectin to make their own jam or jelly, recipes, ideas for how to use their Pepper Jelly, a jar of Pepper Jelly, a jar of Salsa, and some with other prizes too.

To watch my Pepper Jelly Canning Demo, shown at the party go here.

World Nutella Day

So, apparently, it is World Nutella Day. Very exciting as I recently fell in love with Nutella. I just thought I would share this little snack.

7 Utz Pretzel rods

just over 2 Tbsp Nutella

Dip the end of your pretzel into the nutella. Bite. Flip. Dip again. Enjoy!

A single serving of this tasty little snack is just over 300 calories, but could obviously be reduced by cutting the number of pretzels and amount of nutella down.

The Cracker Chronicles

Remember this post about Homemade Graham Crackers? Well, I make them often. Perhaps not often enough for my little guys, and my sister who loves them immensely - but, I do try to make it at home when I can.

Recently, I have been inspired by several tasty looking cracker recipes floating around on the internet. Here is a sampling of the ones I hope to try soon:
Parmesan Thyme Crackers
Parmesan Cream Crackers
Crisp Rosemary Flatbread (I will be making this on for Valentine's Day, to share with my hubby and a wheel of Baked Brie.)
Rosemary Raisin Pecan Crisps

Pretty much anything that I can spread Brie on catches my eye these days. Ha ha!

Homemade Granola Bars

My sister made these granola bars, but they did not "firm up." But, even as granola they were worth giving it a try. I made a few modifications to the recipe and mine turned out great.

{Homemade Granola Bars}

Original recipe here

1 cups old-fashioned oatmeal
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/3 cup honey
3/4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup chopped dried apricots
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 7 by 9-inch baking dish with parchment paper and spray lightly with cooking spray.
Toss the oatmeal, almonds, and coconut together on a sheet pan and bake for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and stir in the wheat germ.
Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F.
Place the honey, vanilla, and salt in a microwaveable bowl. Heat for 30 seconds, stir and heat for another 30 seconds if needed. Pour over the toasted oatmeal mixture. Add the apricots, raisins, and cranberries and stir well.
Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Press the mixture evenly into the pan, with the back of a greased spatula. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into 10 bars. Serve at room temperature.

Roasted Red Salsa

I have been searching for information about home-canning salsa. There is a concern that the other ingredients in salsa - onions, peppers, cilantro and spices - decrease the acidity of the tomatoes enough that it isn't "safe" to canned in a waterbath canner anymore.

Well, my search lead me to this recipe which sounded too good not to try it. And, well, it did not disappoint!

{Salsa Roja, or Roasted Red Salsa}
original recipe here
8 full size Roma tomatoes
1 1/2 yellow onions
2 Serrano peppers, remove top and seeds
4-5 cloves of garlic
1/2-1 Tbsp salt
1 bunches cilantro
Halve the tomatoes and onions and lay cut-side up on a cookie sheet along with the peppers and garlic .
Roast at 375 till the onions look nice and translucent, tomatoes look soft, and peppers are getting a nice char on them.

Let it all cool down, then, process in a food processor or blender. Dive in, it will go fast!

Shiree's Summer Salsa

Once upon a time, I did not like tomatoes. I know, crazy! This is the recipe that changed my mind. I was a freshman in college and had a women's group supervisor who was a cateror. She would bring food to all of our meetings. And, I fell in love, not just with this recipe but with tomatoes. {Shiree Thurston's Summer Salsa}
1 pkt dry Italian dressing mix
2-3 tomatoes
1-2 avocados
1 can black-eyed peas
1 can corn
2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

Make the Italian dressing according to packet instructions. Seed and chop the tomatoes. Chop the avocado. Drain the peas and corn, and rinse. Mix together tomatoes, avocado, peas, corn and cilantro. Toss gently to combine. Pour Italian dressing over the top, and toss to coat. The amount of dressing really depends on how "wet" you would like your salsa. Be careful not to mix too much or the avocado will start to get smashed.

The Baby Eats a Vegetable, Again!

Okay, calling this a vegetable may be a little bit of a stretch, but he ate it and technically there was a vegetable in it. I finished this bread on Monday afternoon. The kids both had a slice for breakfast today. The baby was loving it. The toddler and I had this conversation.

Mom: Do you like it?
Toddler: Mmmm. It is good.
3 minutes pass
Toddler: Uh, Mom, what are these green things?
Mom: Just part of the bread.

I had a Church dinner tonight for Home, Family and Personal Enrichment. And, upon returning home, I was informed that the baby ate two slices of zucchini bread for dinner. Apparently, my husband was so overjoyed that he a something green, he thought that sufficed as healthy.

{Zucchini Bread}
Adapted from Stephanie's Kitchen
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup sugar

Mix together in a bowl until well combined, and create a well.

1 large egg
1 T water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups shredded, unpeeled zucchini
1/4 teaspoon grated lime peel

Mix together well. Add to dry ingredients, and stir to combine. This will take a little work. Pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Cover with foil and bake an additional 10 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack.

Hello, Old Friend

Oh, the memories associated with this snack. Like my roommate, Heidi, who first introduced me to it in college. Or, how we carried it in to football games to snack on. Or, how a pan would last me a week of breakfasts the summer I was engaged. Somewhere along the way, I stopped making it.

That is until I scored 18 boxes of cereal at $0.37/box. My family doesn't eat THAT MUCH cereal, so I am having to get creative. Enter my old friend, the Grape Nuts Carb Bar!

{Grape Nuts Carb Bars}

1 C light corn syrup
1 C sugar
3/4 C peanut butter
4 C Grape Nuts cereal

Mix corn syrup, sugar, and peanut butter together in a microwaveable bowl. Heat on high for 1 minutes, stir and repeat. Dump in cereal and stir to coat. Press into a 9x13 baking dish lined with aluminum foil and greased. Cut in 30 bars.

Cal: 150 Carbs: 30g Protein: 3g Fiber: 2g

Cracker Chronicles

Homemade Graham Crackers

That's right graham crackers of our own. I thought it would be fun to make our own, because we love the many healthy and organic options available at Trader Joe's, but we can't always get there to buy them right away. So, I searched online for a recipe to try. A couple different versions came up, but the most popular variation that I was seeing, is the one we tried today.

Original Recipe Here

I probably went a little heavier on the molasses, because I measured them into a 1/4 C together and I like molasses. I would recommend cut the dough in half prior to rolling 1/2" thick and chilling. It gets a little too big to roll to the 1/8" thickness all together. We cut out boys, squares, and Noah's Ark figures (boat and animals).

Super yummy! We'll be doing this one again.

"Kicked Up" Hummus

I hope that you have all tried making your own hummus. If not, get a move on! You won't regret it. Even my two-year-old eats it.

Mediterranean Hummus
pine nuts
olive oil
dehydrated red bell pepper
parsley

Tuscan Hummus (made with White Beans)
olive oil
sundried tomatoes
parsley
white pepper
paprika

Cilantro & Jalapeno Hummus
chopped cilantro
pureed jalapeno

Spicy Hummus
pureed roasted red pepper
cayenne

Triple-Layer Hummus
In a clear container, layer: spicy hummus on the bottom, cilantro & jalapeno hummus, with traditional hummus on the top.

Like I said, there's a hummus for every occassion. And, speaking of occassions, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my dad who will be receiving what else . . . hummus as a part of his birthday gift.
For a BIG twist on hummus try this Black Bean Hummus recipe.

Addicted? Yes!

So, my new favorite snack, meal, any occasion food . . . HUMMUS! Yes, I could eat it 24/7, much to my husband's chagrin. My mom introduced me to Trader Joe's Creamy Meditteraenian Hummus. It could almost convince someone who doesn't like hummus that it is a decent thing to eat.

There are numerous health benefits to hummus as well. It is very low in fat, and high in protein. You can serve it with raw veggie sticks, pita bread, or (my favorite) rice crisps. (Really andything that can scoop it up!) Hummus is a good alternative to mayonnaise on a sandwich. And, one funny thing I read, apparently the chickpeas used to make hummus are an "early ancestor" of Prozac. So eat up, and be happy!

Basic Hummus Recipe
5 medium garlic cloves
15 ounces canned garbanzo beans, drained
1/4 cup sesame paste (tahini)
1/8 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon + 1/4 tsp soy sauce
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
pinch ground coriander
pinch teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
1/4 cup cold water, if needed

Fit a food processor with the steel blade. Process the garlic cloves until finely minced, stopping the processor occasionally to scrape down the sides of the work bowl. Add the beans and pulse the machine a few times to chop them coarsely. Then, with the machine running, puree them while you slowly pour the sesame paste through the feed tube. Still with the motor running, pour the olive oil, lemon juice, and soy sauce through the feed tube, stopping the processor occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Stop the processor, open the lid, and add the salt, cumin, coriander, and cayenne. Process until thoroughly blended. If the puree seems too thick for dipping or spreading, pulse in the 1/8 to 1/4 cup cold water. Transfer the puree to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate to chill well before serving.

Coming later: Ideas for kicking up the flavor of your hummus. Once you've "tweaked" and perfected the basic recipe!

Robin McGraw's Family Snack: Recipe Review

Okay, here's another helpful(?) recipe review for you and me (so that I remember what I did/would do differently).

Robin McGraw's Family Snack
original recipe here
4 C large marshmallows
1 C nut butter (I used JIF peanut butter)
5 C puffed rice cereal
1/2 C dried cranberries
1/3 C chopped pecans, toasted
1/3 C chopped cashews, toasted

Chop and toast the nuts, set aside. Add nut butter and marshmallows to a large microwaveable blowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute, stir. Microwave for another minute, and stir. Add all other ingredients and stir to combine. Pour into a foil-lined, greased 9x13 baking pan. Press evenly into the pan. Let the bars set up, about 30 minutes.

Okay, so I increased the amount of marshmallows and nut butter, and decreased the amount of cereal and nuts. I used regular peanut butter, but when I make it again I will try the natural peanut butter - I think that the recipe needs the more liquid consistency it would have.

We thought the flavor was great, but wished that the bars were "gooey-er". (Is that a word?) Pretty tasty!

***Update: My cousin tested this one out with my adjusted measurements. She suggested using even less of the rice cereal, and putting it in a 9x9 inch pan.***