Canning Fresh Tomatoes

I can clearly remember being sent into the cellar of my grandparents row home to grab a Ball jar of canned fruits and veggies. Inside of a large cabinet sat jars and jars of tomatoes, "sauce", peaches, basically anything that was in season during the summer months.

A few years ago my mom canned 20 lbs of organic Jersey tomatoes and they were amazing! Although the process takes a lot of time the end result is totally worth it!

My father-in-law got us 25 lbs of Roma tomatoes from Procacci Brothers in South Philly so it seemed like a good opportunity to attempt canning once again. We did a mixture of pint and quart jars of whole tomatoes and used the ones that were a little bruised to make sauce which we also canned.

Be sure to follow all steps as improperly canned products can grow bacteria and lead to botulism.

I am including the Tomato Sauce Recipe below the instructions for Canning

Canning Instructions

STEP 1: Peeling Tomatoes

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Score the bottom of each washed tomato with an x and drop into boiling water. Blanch for one minute, remove and place in an ice bath. The skin should easily peel off. You can halve, quarter, chop etc we used whole tomatoes.

STEP 2: Sanitize Jars

You can either use the sanitize setting on the dishwater or use the boil method which we did. Fill canning pot with water and bring to a boil. Place jars in water and boil for 10 mins.
It is helpful to have canning tools for this process as well as the rest of the canning process. 
Remove jars and allow to cool. Drop lids into water and boil for 10 mins.

STEP 3: Filling Jars

Boil a fresh pot of water as you fill jars with tomatoes-

POUR 1 TBSP BOTTLED LEMON JUICE IN PINT JARS and 2 TBSP BOTTLED LEMON JUICE IN QUART JARS.

Add tomatoes pressing down to remove air bubbles.  You can also add fresh basil, or other herbs. Top off with boiling water leaving 1/2" head space.

Wipe the rims of mason jars removing particles as they can interfere with the seal.

Place lid on top of jar and finger tighten the ring around the lid.

STEP 4: Sealing the Jars

Fill canning pot with water and bring to a rolling boil. Add the insert and place bottles inside. Lower the insert into the pot and boil jars for 45 mins you may need to do this in batches. The jars should not come in contact with the bottom of the pot so using the insert is important.

STEP 5: Cool Down

Allow jars to cool on a heat resistant surface. This may take several hours. Once they are cool tighten rings, label with date canned and what the contents are and store in a cool, dry, dark place. Use within 1 year but they probably won't last that long!
Do not use any jars that are not sealed properly or look like the lid has popped up. 

Fresh Tomato Sauce

This does not have to be made for canning purposes but we canned ours.

15-20 Roma Tomatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
10 leaves of fresh basil
1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
4 cloves of garlic chopped
1 medium yellow onion chopped
1/4 cup dry red wine
1 tbsp sugar
salt ans pepper to taste
crushed red pepper optional

1. Boil a large pot of water, wash tomatoes and score bottoms with an x. Drop tomatoes into water and blanch for 1 min. Remove and place in an ice bath. Peel and chop tomatoes.

2.  Heat olive oil in a pot. Add onion and garlic and saute until translucent.

3. Add tomatoes, red wine, parsley, basil, sugar, salt and pepper, and crushed red pepper. You may need to adjust the sugar if tomatoes are more acidic or if you like a sweeter sauce.

4. Allow to simmer for at least an hour.

You can then follow the canning process above- sanitize jars, add lemon juice, fill with sauce leaving 1/2" head space, seal and boil for 45 minutes.

OR

Enjoy over your favorite macaroni!

Summer Spaghetti

This post is a little late as we are approaching the end of summer but luckily these ingredients can be found throughout the year. This dish is extremely easy to prepare, is ready in less than 30 minutes, and healthy! I highly recommend using fresh pasta if you can get it(or make it!) If you want to add nutritional value to this recipe use a whole wheat pasta. 

We enjoyed ours with a crusty bread from Wolff's Apple House which is also where all of the veggies came from for this dish.

Summer Spaghetti

1 package fresh pasta (we used Scaramuzza Spaghetti)

2 yellow or green summer squash thinly sliced

2 red peppers chopped

1 large onion chopped

1 bag baby spinach

4 cloves of garlic diced

4 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup grated Locatelli or Parmigiano Reggiano

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

crushed red pepper flakes optional

1. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet meanwhile bring a large pot of salted water to a boil

2. Add onions, squash, red peppers, garlic, season with salt and pepper and saute until translucent

3. Add spinach and cook until just wilted- remove from heat

4. Cook pasta according to instructions

5. Once cooked and strained pour pasta into a large bowl and toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil

6. Add vegetables and mix 

7. Top with 1/4 cup grated cheese

Buon Appetito! 

Breakfast Pizza

I come from a family of pizza lovers! My parents would make homemade pizza with us when we were kids and it was always so much fun! When we didn't make our dough, we would buy it from Cacia's Bakery around 16th and Ritner in South Philly. My mom is a total bread snob and the crust is her favorite part of the pizza so it was imperative to have only the best dough!

My biggest complaint about homemade pizza was that it never cooked properly. We tried numerous pizza stones including one for the grill but nothing cooked the pies the way a brick oven would. I even started to look at plans for a outdoor brick oven. 

I was browsing through the Williams-Sonoma catalog one day and came across the Breville Pizza Oven. 

We purchased this oven and made our first round of pizzas that night. IT IS AMAZING! The best $150 ever spent! The only issue is that you are limited to about 12" pizzas and they have to be fairly thin and not over topped  because of the heating elements on the top lid. Getting homemade pizza right relies on cooking at a high enough temperature. This oven reaches 600 degrees and has an element both under and above the stone for even cooking. If you like crispy crust you need this! 

Dough Recipe

I recommend using Pizza Flour or 00 Flour for crust. I like Antimo Caputo 00 Flour, it can be purchased here. 

4 cups 00 flour
1 ½ cups, plus 2 tablespoons water
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dry active yeast

Mix the dough in a stand mixer or by hand. If using a mixer start slow for 2 minutes, mix faster for 5 minutes, and then back to slow for 2 more minutes.

Put dough in a greased bowl and let rise for 1 1/2- 2 hours or until doubled in size. Once doubled punch dough down and push air bubbles out. 

Cut dough into 3 equal pieces.

Shape and roll dough into balls. 

Stretch the top of the ball down over the other side almost creating a tight skin around the ball. pinch either side closed and rest the dough seam side down under a damp towel or plastic wrap for 1 hour. f you aren't using your dough right away you can refrigerate until you need it. 

Roll out dough into round or square shape depending on which you prefer or what surface you are cooking on. If cooking on a stone I would suggest baking at 500 degrees. You can make your pizza on a sheet of parchment paper and put directly on the stone. Bake 3 or 4 minutes then slide parchment out from under pizza and continue baking until desired "doneness" is reached.

Breakfast Pizza

You can use your favorite dough recipe, the one provided above  or grab some store bought dough for the pizza.

Pizza Dough

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

1/2 Tablespoon Italian Seasoning Blend 

6 Slices Fresh Mozzarella, or 1-2 cups shredded Mozzarella or 6 Cheese Italian Blend (use more or less cheese depending on your taste)

4 Slices Prosciutto  or 6 slices Pancetta

2-4 eggs 

Parmesan Cheese

1 tomato slices

1/8 cup chopped fresh basil

Roll dough into a thin circle about 12" in diameter.

Coat dough with 1 tablespoon olive oil, garlic powder, salt, Italian Seasoning blend.

Top with cheese, prosciutto or pancetta, and Parmesan cheese. 

Crack desired number of eggs on top and carefully transfer into oven. (You can also poach or fry eggs and place on top of pizza when it is finished)

Top with tomatoes and fresh basil when pizza has about 2 minutes left to bake.

Bake 8-15 minutes depending on what medium you are cooking on. I find the best method to be checking periodically. 

I had some extra dough some meats so I made a Capicola, Prosciutto, and Cheese Flatbread also.

I used the same method of coating the dough with oil and seasoning. I used bout half of the amount of cheese and added the meat that I had left which was about 3 slices of each. I folded the dough over and baked in the pizza oven until crispy. The end result was a hit! 

Buon Appetito!

Grandmom's Party Cake

In honor of my mom's birthday, I thought it would be nice to make her a cake from her mother's recipe book. I forgot to bring the recipe book back from her house to mine so I called my dad and asked him to take a picture of a cake recipe from the book and send it to me. 

He sent me a recipe for "Party Cake". As I looked of the recipe to ensure I had the proper ingredients I realized their was no baking instructions. No big deal. I figured I would make this a layer cake and bake at 350..problem solved! 

I started preparing the cake and didn't even realize during my initial scan that there was no sugar in the ingredients. This was a bigger issue than the baking instructions! Luckily I called my dad and he advised me to use 1 cup of sugar. 

Here is the "edited" recipe:

Party Cake

3 3/4 cup flour
3 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup oil
1 1/2 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3 eggs 

In a large bowl mix sugar, milk, oil, eggs, vanilla, and milk
In a separate bowl mix dry ingredients
Add dry mixture gradually to the wet ingredients
Mix thoroughly

Pour into to 2 prepared 9" round pans and bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean 

Once cool ice as desired, I used :

Chocolate Icing

2 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
6 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
6 tbsp butter
5 tbsp evaporated milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix sugar and cocoa in a medium bowl In a large bowl cream butter and beat in sugar mixture alternating between the evaporated milk
Add the vanilla and beat until light and fluffy

Ricotta & Spinach Stuffed Shells

Ricotta & Spinach Stuffed Shells

I have been such a slacker lately between the awful snowy weather, my crazy cooped up kiddies, and La Bella Vita. But fear not... I am back! 

We have had a container of Ricotta in the fridge and my mom has been (not so subtly) hinting that she wanted stuffed shells. So tonight's dinner was prepped at home and assembled at my parents'. I started the sauce or "meatless gravy" in the early afternoon so it had time to simmer.

It was basically the Quick Tomato Gravy recipe but I used fresh basil which I think makes a difference in the taste. It also helps when you have hours to let the gravy simmer so the ingredients really cook down and the flavors meld together. 

This recipe for the shells is pretty much the one both of my parents use only with spinach added and obviously however they adjusted seasoning after tasting the filling pre-egg is a mystery! 

Ricotta & Spinach Stuffed Shells

1 box large pasta shells

1 lb Container Ricotta Cheese (as usual we used part skim)

3/4 cup Locatelli

1/4 cup sharp provolone grated

1 tsp parsley

1/2 tsp salt or more to taste

1 egg

2 cloves of garlic sliced

1 bag baby spinach or 1 package frozen spinach thawed

1 tbsp olive oil

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large pan

Saute garlic and spinach until spinach is wilted

Allow to cool
Cook shells according to instructions on box

Pour contents of pan into food processor or blender

Add ricotta, Locatelli, provolone, parsley, and salt

Pulse until blended 

If you use the taste and season method now is the time to do so and add more seasoning

Add the egg and pulse until blended thoroughly

Ladle some sauce into the bottom of a 3 qt or 4 qt Pyrex baking dish or similar

Distribute filling evenly among shells and place them into the baking dish

Cover shells with more sauce
Top with some grated provolone, mozzarella, and Locatelli
Cover loosely with foil and bake at 350 for 25-30 mins or until bubbly
Remove foil and bake an extra 5-10 mins

Buon Appetito!

Pop-Pop's Peppers and Eggs: Pepper, Potato, and Onion Frittata

Pop-Pop's Peppers and Eggs: Pepper, Potato and Onion Frittata

I don't remember my pop-pop cooking a lot, but the few times I do remember he was making "peppers and eggs". The contents of this omelette or frittata really depended on what he had available. Usually the peppers were from his garden that he grew in the back "yard" of his row home in South Philly, sometimes he threw in tomatoes also grown out back. My favorite preparation was with red onion, red and green pepper, potato and a little grated cheese. 

Pop-Pop's "Peppers and Eggs"

6 eggs or 1 1/2 cups egg substitute

4 tbsp milk

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 green pepper diced

1 red pepper diced

1/2 red onion diced

1 large baking potato diced

1/4 cup grated Locatelli

1 tbsp olive oil

Dice vegetables, season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder and saute in 1 tbsp olive oil

 Once vegetables are tender remove from heat and allow to cool

Whisk together eggs milk, and grated cheese

Spread vegetables into greased pie pan and pour egg mixture on top

Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 25-30 mins

 Let sit for at least 20 minutes before slicing

Tips: You can get as creative as you would like with this recipe. I added 1/2 cup chopped broccoli because I had it. You could add meats, other vegetables or cheeses etc. You also could make as an omelette or scrambled egg dish. 

Buon Appettito! 

Sceppelle mbusse (Scrippelle Soup)- Crepes in Broth

There is nothing more satisfying on a cold winter's day than soup. There are so many options but when you don't have a lot of time Scrippelle is a great go to. This is why this soup gained popularity among my family.  You do not have to make your own chicken broth. You can grab a large can of Cento broth, or a box of College Inn. If you choose a can, doctor up the broth to taste- more garlic powder, pepper etc. Here is our recipe for homemade broth.

Broth

1 package chicken backs

2 carrots

2 stalks celery

1 large onion cut in half

2 cloves garlic smashed

2 tsp salt- may need more, add to taste

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp parsley

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

water

Place chicken in pot

Add vegetables

Fill pot with water

Add seasoning

Heat over medium/high

Bring to boil

Reduce heat and simmer 2-3 hours

Remove from heat and take out chicken and vegetables

Pour broth through cheese cloth or tight meshed strainer

As broth cools fat will separate and can be skimmed from top if you don't have time, pour through cheese cloth a few times

Crepes

3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour4 large eggs1 cup milk 
Locatelli or Parmesan2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley- or dried1/2 teaspoon sea saltPinch of nutmeg

Sift flour in a medium bowlIn another bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, parsley, salt,and nutmegPour  egg mixture into the flour, whisk to avoid lumpsThe batter should be the consistency of a thick cream

Spray crepe pan or 9" frying pan with butter flavored cooking spray
Heat on medium
When pan is hot ladle 1/4 cup of batter into pan and swirl to coat evenly
While cooking crepes heat broth
Cook crepe 35-40 seconds and then flip to cook another 25 seconds
Lay crepes on wax paper as you remove from pan

Sprinkle each crepe with 2-3 tbsp pf cheese

Roll crepes and lay seam side down in a bowl (2 per bowl)
Ladle hot broth on top and top with extra cheese

Buon Appetito!

Quick Tomato Gravy, Dad's Chicken Parmesan, Wheat Linguine

There is an ongoing argument at least in the Northeast US about whether what you put on your macaroni is "gravy" or "sauce". The rule of thumb is that if it is prepared with meat it is gravy and is it is prepared without it is sauce. Some have never heard of this debate, but if you live in the Philadelphia area I am sure this is something you are familiar with.

To me it is all gravy! We were conditioned to call it that. My mom said her mother always started her gravy with meat as did her step mother, my nanny (that recipe is for another blog). If I so much as slipped and called this "sauce" I would never hear the end of it!

More often than not, time is not on my side. I wouldn't dare use a jar, so here is our quick meat-free Sunday "gravy". All of the measurements depend on the tomatoes so I will give you a range. Some are more acidic than others so you may want to add more or less sugar. If you buy the tomatoes with Italian seasonings already added you will want to go on the low side with the extra spices. Everything I do is to taste. This only has to simmer for at more an hour, but the longer the better. You can use fresh herbs but those are not always readily available- I will give a recipe for a fresh version in a future blog.

Quick Tomato Gravy

We prefer Tuttorosso Products

1 small onion diced
3 cloves of garlic minced
2 tbsps olive oil
1  28oz can crushed tomatoes
1 28 oz can tomato puree
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 -2 tbsp basil
1/2-1 tsp salt
1/2-1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp black pepper
dash red pepper flakes
1/4 cup grated Locatelli or Parmesan cheese (optional)

In a large pot or Dutch oven heat olive oil over medium heat
Add onion and cook until they begin to turn translucent
Add garlic cook another minute
Turn heat to low
Add all of the tomato products
Fill one 28 oz can with water and pour into pot
Stir well
Add seasonings
Stir
When it begins to bubble is the time to taste and add more seasoning
Turn heat to low and cover pot- simmer 1-3 hours depending on how much time you have

When I was younger Chicken Parmesan was one of my absolute favorite meals! We didn't eat it nearly as much as I would have liked. My parents tried to limit our consumption of breaded and fried foods so in the event that we had meals like this I definitely over indulged!

A few years ago for my dad made eggplant parmesan for my son's Christening. My cousin Frankie tried his parm and approved but shared some advice to make it even better.  The trick? MAYO! This is not just a trick for eggplant parm but for chicken as well.

So here it is....

Dad's Chicken Parmesean

4 Thin sliced chicken breast cutlets or chicken breasts cut and pounded
2 eggs
1/4 cup mayo
1 tbsp. milk
1 tsp parsley
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp garlic salt
1 cup breadcrumbs (we used seasoned)
1/4 cup olive oil

8 oz Mozzarella Cheese
2 tbsp. grated sharp provolone (optional)
1/4 cup locatelli

Wisk together eggs, mayo, milk, parsley, cheese, and garlic salt
Fill a plate with bread crumbs
Dip cutlets one at a time into the egg mixture

Coat well with breadcrumbs

Over medium heat in a large frying pan heat olive oil
Add cutlets to pan and cook for about 3-4 minutes per side until browned

Pre-Heat Oven to 425 degrees

In a Pyrex or casserole dish (13"x9" works) cover bottom with a few ladles of "gravy"
Arrange cutlets in dish
Top each cutlet with about a tablespoons of gravy (not too much or your cheese will slide off) a handful of mozzarella, sprinkle some provolone and Locatelli on top

Bake until cheese is melted and slightly brown about 10 mins

Tips: You can also bake the cutlets at 350 for about 15 minutes or until thermometer reads 165 degrees- we baked ours this time as we are trying to detox from the holidays, but fried tastes much better!

My husband, yes the metagon, is the pasta maker in our house. Maybe it is my lack of patience, but my volcano always collapses, the dough is never the right consistency, and the myself, the dog, and the floor are always covered in flour! I usually run for a pack of P&S pasta instead of trying again.

Whole Wheat Linguine

Pasta
1.5 Cups Flour
1.5 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
4 Eggs
1 Teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Tools Needed:
Pasta Roller (Manual or Attachment for Kitchen-Aid Mixer)
Linguine Roller (Manual or Attachment for Kitchen-Aid Mixer)
Pasta Drying Rack

By Hand:  Combine all of the flour and the salt and form a volcano shape with the hole in the center and add everything.  The hole has to accommodate the 4 eggs and olive oil, so size appropriately.  Stir and beat the eggs inside the volcano and slowly scrape in some flour until it forms a semi solid ball at which point you can gradually add the rest of the flour (volcano).  Take the dough ball and knead for 10 minutes until it is semi-elastic.  Add oil as needed while kneading.  You may have some flour left over, that's ok.  Coat the final ball in oil and wrap in plastic wrap for 30 minutes.

Unwrap the ball and cut off a piece of dough approximately 2" H X 4" W X 0.5" D.  On the thickest setting of your pasta roller (typically 1), run the dough through 2-3 times to maximize the width of the piece of dough to fit in the linguine roller.  Reduce the pasta roller thickness setting gradually all the way to 6 or 7 (whatever you are prefer) after rolling the dough through each time.  Run the sheet of pasta through the linguine roller and hang pasta on drying rack.  (Note:  You may want to create a couple of sheets of dough, set them aside, then change the attachment on your rolling machine and do all the linguine at once.)

Alternatively, if you do not have rolling machines, you could roll out all the dough and cut it with a knife to make the pasta.  Just make sure the dough is sufficiently thin for your liking.

You can either freeze these or refrigerate. If you are using immediately, let sit for 15-20 mins before cooking.

Bring a salted pot of water to a boil. Drop in pasta and cook for 7-9 mins. Drain and serve with sauce of your choice. (In this case we served with "Quick Tomato Gravy".

Buon Appetito!