Dinger’s Hot Pepper SaucePlace the following ingredients into a large sauce pan.
1-8 oz. can tomato paste
1 large bottle of ketchup (1 lb )
3 cups of sugar
2 cups vinegar
2 cups oil
1 tablespoon salt
Boil ingredients 10 minutes then add 1 peck of peppers (a peck is estimated at 7 and ½ pounds.) cut up.
I think peppers of different colors would be visually nice, and if desired add a few jalapeño peppers to
spice it up if that is the way you like your foods.
Boil this 3 more minutes, put into sterile jars and seal. Check your canning times for water bath or pressure. The jars can also be kept refrigerated if it is to be used soon. The recipe makes about 9 pints.The sauce is a winner to serve with crackers and cheese or to cook sausages, etc.
I had fun with this recipe. What is a peck of peppers? It brings to mind of the tongue twister “ A Peck of Pickled Peppers “ which is what we actually are doing with these peppers in a delicious way. A peck refers to volume, and it would be very hard to measure out peppers this way. A peck is 2 dry quarts.
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
How many peppers did Peter Piper pick?
I changed the tongue twister just a little to fit what we are doing with the peppers. The answer to this riddle could change in number. It depends on size of the peppers. Going by weight is best.
Apples are 48 pounds in a bushel, green beans are 30 pounds in a bushel, peaches are 50 pounds. Each fruit or vegetable has a different weight for a bushel and a peck is one fourth of a bushel. Peppers according to the NASS (National Agricultural Statistics Service) are averaged at 30 pounds per bushel. According to this a peck of peppers is seven and a half pounds in weight.
Cheese Ball
Place into mixing bowl:
3 – 8 oz. packages of cream cheese
2 packages of dried beef, chopped
1 teaspoon accent (Find this in the spice section of your supermarket)
1 bunch chopped green onions (about ¼ to ½ cup)
1 can of drained black olives, chopped
1 cup of fresh mushrooms, chopped
Mix together and form into a ball.
Optional: roll ball in finely chopped nuts for looks if desired
Serve on platter with crackers
A great snack. We had this while playing dominos. Only problem: hard to stop snacking.
The above recipes are shared thanks to a friend, an excellent cook herself.
Contributed by nancy.
_______________________________________________ Crab Casserole/Dip
I was playing around one day a few years ago with some packaged imitation crab, and came up with this recipe. This recipe can serve as either a baked casserole or as a dip for bread or crackers, even as a cream filling for other recipes. Although it is pretty rich, it’s been a hit and I usually get requests for the casserole on every special occasion since.
1 8-oz package imitation crab – roughly shredded
4 oz (half package) cream cheese
1/2 Cup (4oz) sour cream
1/2 Cup mayonnaise
1/2 Cup mayonnaise
2 cloves garlic crushed
1 Tbs. dried oregano
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
I mix all my ingredients directly in a glass casserole dish, to reduce mess. Warm cream cheese in the microwave until slightly melted, about 20-30 seconds on high. Add sour cream and mayo, and mix until smooth, then add the rest of the ingredients and mix thoroughly. If you wish to use this as a dip, chill before serving. Also, the longer the mixture chills, the more oregano flavor comes out in this dish.
As a casserole, I top with lightly buttered or oiled bread cubes (2-3 slices of bread) and bake 375F for 15-20 minutes until bread cubes are browned and crispy, and casserole begins to bubble at the edges.
Ugly Dip
My husband brought this recipe home from work one day, saying that I need to try making it at home for our family. Someone brought a dish of Ugly Dip in during one of the “Pot Luck” meals that they periodically have at his work and it was a hit with everyone. I obediently placed the recipe on the front of my refrigerator and then promptly forgot about it. Luckily I did try out the recipe, eventually, and it is now a favorite with my family. Just like its name, this dip looks ugly, but it is very delicious. We serve it with Tortilla chips.1 Pound hamburger
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup, undiluted
1 16 oz. jar Picante or Salsa
1 Pound Velveeta Queso Blanco cheese ( you can also use regular Velveeta cheese)
Brown the hamburger in a skillet and drain off the fat. Add the Cream of Mushroom soup and Velveeta cheese. Stir on medium to low heat until the cheese has melted and serve the dip while warm.
-Contributed by Dayweaver
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HERBS
Herb season is ending, and although I haven't done as much with my herbs this year as I have in the past, I still have a few projects in mind. My herb garden is smaller this year, just oregano, chives, sage, thyme, rosemary and basil. Basil has never grown well in my garden. Not enough sun and too many bugs. I don't like to spray because I've never been as careful cleaning home grown foods. So I just chopped it all down and hung it up to dry. It's amazing how much volume you can really get from drying your own herbs, and I like to make my own herb mixes. Plus I know what's in them!
My sister borrowed a spot in our parents garden for some fennel this year, which we've never grown before. it has done amazingly well...maybe, too well? So we've got a LOT of fennel to use before it dies off. Or spreads next year... It has a light anise/liquorice flavor, which I've never been fond of but I love fennel in a salad, or as a fresh topping for light soups. At first we didn't realize that the leaves could be used too, so for a while we were just composting them. But apparently they are edible; sometimes used in place of dill. So this fall I am "attempting" to dry some and see how it turns out.
My rosemary hasn't been looking too well either, but it HAS been growing out of control lately. It's getting all scraggly and tall, so it's time to start trimming before we bring it in for the winter. And since we have had a good supply of oils around lately, it is time to make some of my favorite flavored cooking oils. We have gotten a good supply of peanut oil from the peanut butter plant, (think several gallons and full refrigerator) so I was going to use that when I came across a large open container of extra virgin olive oil that I know we won't use before it goes bad. So even though it's not the best for cooking with I decided to use that instead just to move it along. I just need to be careful not to overheat it.
This rosemary garlic scented oil is quite easy to make and can be adapted to whichever herbs you have available or prefer. We like a lot of garlic in ours, and although it doesn't dissolve in the oil, I like to add salt as it seems to intensify the garlic flavoring.I used an old clean vinegar bottle I'd saved which still has the cap and plastic insert. The most important note for flavored oils is to make sure everything is clean and dry. While water and oil don't mix of course, water promotes the growth of molds and other pathogens in oils if left to sit too long. Granted though, this oil generally doesn't last long enough around our house for that to be much of a problem. It gets used in everything...
Rosemary Garlic Olive Oil
- Clean and thoroughly pat dry 5-6 fresh cut Rosemary stems about 4-6 inches long (longer or shorter depending on you bottle) Discard any browned leaves. When cutting your rosemary for this oil, it's best to cut newer green stems rather than older woody stems. If the stems aren't long enough, just cut a few extra, but cut no more than a third of the plant at any time.- Slightly crush 5-6 medium /large garlic cloves with the side of your knife blade to remove the peel. You may need to cut the cloves in order to fit them in your bottle.
- Salt is optional. I add about 1/2 TBS, but it's not necessary. It tends to collect in clumps at the bottom of the jar, when not being used.
- Enough oil to fill your bottle. General regular olive oil, or peanut oils are best for most cooking purposes. Extra virgin olive oil is doable but not really the best for high heat and cooking.
Shake before using, and have fun trying different herbs and flavors!
