Basic Three Ingredient Pizza Sauce

I recently started making pizza at home on a regular basis and quite enjoy it. The part I don't like conceptually is making the sauce. Simmering tomato sauce and herbs to make a thick pizza sauce requires a bit too much planning to make it into my rotation, not that it isn't worth the effort.

This recipe was born out of laziness, but I do enjoy the full, rich tomato flavor in the resulting sauce. Makes for a great sauce for my pizza crust! I love it too because I can make a double batch with one can of tomato paste and save it for next time. Dress it up how you like, fresh or dried herbs would be a lovely and welcome addition.

Basic Three Ingredient Pizza Sauce

Ingredients

• 3 oz tomato paste
• 2-4 tbsp olive oil
• Salt, to taste

Method

1. Place to tomato paste into a small bowl. Slowly whisk or stir the olive oil into the tomato paste until fully incorporated, adding as much or as little olive oil to achieve your preferred sauce thickness.
2. Season to taste with salt and add any other herbs/spices you desire.

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late season canning

I spent an afternoon last weekend canning some tomatoes and peaches after finding some recipes that I just had to try. First up, earl grey peach preserves. Sounds delicious and I was right in time, as I nabbed the very last peaches at my CSA farm, supplementing with ripe nectarines. This recipe makes a small batch, yielding about 1 quart, which I love. Small batch canning always feels special to me. Perhaps having a small quantity of something makes it feel extra special, to be savored, versus having a half dozen little jars that seem impossible to get through. I really love the addition of tea to what would be plain peach preserves. Definitely deserving of the "whoa!!!" upon the first taste it. And honestly, I'd take this again over the plain stuff any day.

Next in line, tomato marmalade. Wait, tomatoes plus sugar??? I've never been baffled by a recipe like this one I pulled from an old cookbook (picked up at random at an antique store, of all places). I apprehensively went to my CSA farm and filled up a huge bag with tomatoes in the name of experimentation. The sweet smells wafting from this stuff on the stove sealed the deal and trust me, it's hard to keep from eating this stuff by the spoonful.

Note: if you've never done any canning, you should do some research ahead of time to learn the proper techniques for preservation. Otherwise, these recipes could be stored in the refrigerator for several weeks, or frozen. Check out the National Center for Home Food Preservation as a starting point.

Ripe Tomato Marmalade

9 lbs tomatoes

6 C sugar

1 tsp salt

2 oranges

2 lemons

4 sticks cinnamon

2 tsp whole cloves

1. To peel tomatoes, bring a pot of water to a boil. Have a separate bowl of ice water at the ready. Submerge the tomatoes, a few at a time, in the boiling water for about 30 seconds, until the skin loosens slightly and begins to crack. Remove tomatoes to the ice water to stop the cooking process, then remove to a towel. Using your hands or a small paring knife, gently remove the skins, then core and slice.
2. In a large pan, combine tomatoes, sugar, and salt.
3. Use a peeler to remove the peel from the oranges and lemons. Thinly slice the peels and boil in water for 5 minutes; remove and add to the tomato mixture. Peel the remaining white pith from oranges and lemon, then slice fruit, removing any seeds as you go. Add the citrus to the tomatoes.
4. Tie the cinnamon and cloves into a cheesecloth spice bag; add to the tomatoes.
5. Bring the tomato mixture to a boil. Cook rapidly, stirring to prevent burning, until thickened, at least 45 minutes.
6. Remove the spice bag. If canning, pour the marmalade into hot sterile jars and seal for 15 minutes. Otherwise, pour into a container and let cool before storing in refrigerator or freezer.

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Carrot Salsa Slaw

For at least the past month, my CSA box has been overrun by carrots. A little bunch of 10+ carrots of which I've been stumped with how to use them. Don't get me wrong, farm fresh carrots are amazingly sweet compared to your average supermarket ones. But really, how many recipes use a lot of carrots, carrot cake aside?

I've been searching the internet for recipes to make, daring to only try a smoothie recipe as of late. Then I found this recipe for carrot salsa. I tweaked the recipe to my own taste, but more importantly, to incorporate more ingredients from my CSA box. I've also decided to call mine a "carrot salsa slaw" because some of the ingredients (lime juice, garlic, cilantro) reminded me of Asian food, slaws specifically. I made a batch of this around noon and have used it all up in tacos and a salad. I think I'm gonna be making a lot of this stuff in the coming week.

Carrot Salsa Slaw

Ingredients

• 2 C grated carrots
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• 1 small sweet pepper, diced
• 1/2 hot red pepper, minced (or to taste)
• 1 green onion, minced
• 1 1/2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
• Juice of 1 lime (or to taste)
• 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
• 10 cherry tomatoes, quartered

Method

1. Combine carrots, garlic, peppers, onion, and cilantro in a bowl and mix until well combined. Stir in lime juice and salt, then carefully fold in cherry tomatoes.

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Fresh Tomato Soup with Vodka

I wasn't expecting to, but I really love this soup. I've never tasted any tomato soup with such a strong tomato flavor. Granted, this was also my first experience with homemade tomato soup.

I used homegrown tomatoes, the last ones of the season for this. It's a tasty way to use up a bunch of tomatoes.



Fresh Tomato Soup with Vodka

2 lb ripe tomatoes, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
2 1/4 C vegetable stock
1/3 C breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp dried herbs of choice
salt and pepper
2 tbsp vodka

1. Put the tomatoes, green onions, sugar, tomato puree, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and vegetable stock into a stockpot and let simmer for about an hour, covered, stirring occasionally.
2. Add the breadcrumbs, dried herbs, and season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook for 20-30 minutes.
3. Add the vodka, then serve.

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Moroccan Chicken with Tomatoes and Zucchini

This next recipe is from Robin Miller's cookbook. I got it at the library and really enjoyed it for its easy, yummy recipes. The recipe is great for fall when zucchini is in season. The dish tastes very nice over basmati rice to make a meal.

Moroccan Chicken with Tomatoes and Zucchini

Ingredients

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/4 lbs chicken breasts, diced into 2 inch pieces
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp cardamom
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 14 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 medium zucchini, diced

Method

1. Heat a skillet over medium high heat, add oil and cook garlic for 60 seconds. Be sure not to burn!
2. Add the chicken and brown well on all sides. Next, add the spices and cook for another 60 seconds or so.
3. Add the tomatoes and zucchini and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, 5 minutes or so. Season with salt and pepper.

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