Cooking Archives - Page 2 of 13

My family loves stuffed green peppers! In fact, my husband loves them so much that last week, I came into the kitchen one morning to discover a large pile of green peppers sitting on the counter. Next to the peppers was a note that read, “Make stuffed green peppers, please.”

Because I adore my husband, I made some that afternoon.

Here’s how to make them:

Slice 6-8 green peppers in half. (If the peppers are huge, you won’t need as many peppers as if they are medium sized.)

Remove the seeds.

Place the green pepper halves in a large pot and boil until the peppers are fork tender.

Some recipes don’t tell you to boil them that long, but my experience is that if I don’t get them tender at this point, they won’t become tender enough to cut with a fork later – no matter how long I bake them.

Chop an onion into small pieces.

Add the chopped onion to 1 lb. hamburger and fry until the meat is thoroughly cooked.

Add a large can of whole or chopped tomatoes and cook a little. If you are using whole tomatoes, smash them up with a fork. Season to taste. I add salt, black pepper, garlic powder and a little crushed red pepper. Thyme is good, too.

I’m not giving you exact measurements for the seasonings because I don’t measure them myself. I start adding a bit of this and that and taste the mixture as I go. Once I like it, I stop adding things.

(That’s how my mom does it, too.)

Next, stir in the pre-cooked rice.

Place the green pepper cups in a greased baking pan. Spoon the meat/rice mixture into the cups.

Top each green pepper cup with some tomato paste.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes.

We are major ketchup fans around this house, so we almost always put some ketchup on top of our stuffed green peppers.

But that’s just us.

When I make stuffed green peppers, I try to make more than one meals’ worth so that I can freeze some leftovers for another day. Stuffed green peppers freeze well, particularly if you use a vacuum food saver.

Stuffed Green Peppers

Print recipe

Ingredients

6-8 large green peppers
1lb hamburger
1 finely chopped onion
1 can tomatoes (large)
1 can tomato sauce
2 cups cooked rice
salt and pepper (to taste)
crushed red pepper (if desired)
garlic powder (to taste)

Directions

Step 1
Cut the green peppers in half and remove the seeds.
Step 2
Boil green peppers in a large pot until fork tender.
Step 3
Meanwhile, cook hamburger and onion until the meet is browned and the onions are tender.
Step 4
Add a large can of whole (or chopped) tomatoes. If you are using a can of whole tomatoes, break them up with a fork as they cook.
Step 5
Add seasoning to taste. (Salt, pepper, garlic powder, and if desired, a little crushed red pepper.)
Step 6
Stir in pre-cooked rice.
Step 7
Drain the cooked pepper halves and place in a greased baking dish, cut side up.
Step 8
Spoon the filling into the green pepper cups and top with tomato sauce.
Step 9
Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 40 minutes.

I’ve had lots of requests this week from readers who want to know how I make homemade peach syrup. Because I’d imagine that some people don’t know anything about canning, I’m going to take you through the entire process – step-by-step – as if you were working along side of me in my kitchen. If you already know how to can, you can skip down to the bottom of the post to get the printable recipe.

Note: You can make multiple batches of syrup at once. The determining factor is what size of pan you use.

Note 2: If you make a single batch of the syrup and you aren’t into canning like I am, you can pour the syrup in a jar and keep it in the refrigerator.

Note 3: Peach syrup makes a wonderful gift. People love it.

SUPPLIES

Canning processor (steamer or water-bath)
Blender
Canning jars, rings, and lids
Sugar
Lemon Juice
Peaches

HOW TO QUICKLY PEEL THE PEACHES

First, I am going to teach you how to quickly peel a lot of peaches by blanching them.

Boil some water in a pot. As Mom and Grandma always said, “Put a lid on that pot. The water will boil faster!”

Place a few peaches in a strainer. Make sure the strainer has a handle on it or you’ll get yourself into trouble. I received this strainer as a wedding gift. It’s so 70′s!

Immerse the peaches in the hot water for about 30 seconds. Don’t leave them in there too long or you’ll end up with mushy peaches.

Take the peaches out of the hot water and spray them with cold water until you can handle them.

Slip the skin off of the peaches.

Cut the top off of the peaches, remove the pits, and cut them up.

MAKING THE SYRUP

Measure the peaches as you are cutting them up. You’ll need about 5 cups of chopped peaches for each batch. You can make multiple batches at once.

Put the chopped peaches in a large, sturdy pot. I have a number of Revere Ware soup pots that I use.

Revere Ware pans last more than lifetime. I highly recommend them. I own several large Revere Ware soup pots. I inherited the pot you see in this particular photo from my mother-in-law.

Add 2 cups of sugar and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice for each 5 cups of chopped peaches.

You are going to mash the peaches while heating them. I use a potato masher.

Stir and mash the peaches while heating until the sugar completely dissolves.

Now, you are going to blend the peaches and liquid until smooth. I use my Blendtec blender to do this. I resisted getting a Blendtec for years because they pretty pricey. But my husband wanted me to have one so badly that he finally bought one and gave it to me as a Mother’s Day gift.

I love it! I use it often, because it works so well. It has special settings – such as soups and syrups – that allow you to push a single button and walk away. The blender heats the liquid up and processes it to the syrup stage. It only takes 90 seconds to make the syrup!

Amazing.

You don’t have to have a Blendtec to make syrup, but it sure speeds up the process.

Here my required action shot. The blender is working.

Go, blender, go!

If you have a Blendtec blender (or another brand that heats the liquid to the syrup stage), test the liquid to see if it is thick enough. If it is, the liquid will be kind of thick and will slowly drop off of the spoon. If it runs off of the spoon quickly, it isn’t syrup yet.

If your blender doesn’t have a syrup setting, the next steps show you how to turn the liquid into syrup.

Once all the peaches are blended, taste the syrup. If you decide that the syrup needs more sugar, pour it back into a pot, because you need to reheat it.

If your blender doesn’t have an automatic syrup setting, you must put it in the pot so that you can boil it until it becomes syrup!

Bring the liquid to a boil, testing as it heats up. Once it has reached the syrup stage, immediately remove the pot from the heat.

Skim the foam off of the top with a large spoon.

CANNING THE SYRUP

Pour the syrup through a wide-mouth funnel into clean canning jars. I use pint jars, but you can use any size you wish.

Leave 1/2 inch head space. If you happen to get any liquid on the rim, wipe it off.

The rims MUST be clean or the lids won’t seal.

This is a trick my mother taught me: Increase the odds that the lids will seal the first try by simmering them in water for about a minute. Fish them out with a fork when ready to use.

Put the canning lids on the jars.

Put the rings on the jars and tighten. If you hold the bottom of the bottle with a dish towel, it is easier to tighten the ring.

PROCESSING THE JARS

Here comes the controversial part of this post…

I use a steamer while canning fruits, pickles, jams, jellies, syrups, and juices. I’ve used one for 36 years and my mother has used one longer than that. My mother-in-law used one, too. Steamers speed up the process dramatically and the food gets super hot. It actually boils inside of the bottles.

However, for some reason, certain people think that steamers are dangerous because they believe that the food doesn’t get hot enough.

But here’s the thing… The lids seal tight in the steamer. The food boils. I can’t imagine why that is a problem.

I have never, ever had any trouble with the food that I have processed in a steamer and I’ve been at this for a long, long time.

When you use a steamer, you don’t have to wait for a huge pot of water stuffed full of bottles to boil before you can begin timing the processing. Believe me when I say, this saves a lot of time.

I have a water-bath canner, but I only use it while making applesauce. (I use it like a big soup pot.) But when it is time to process the jars, I use my steamer.

If you hate the idea of steamers, then just use a water-bath canner.

To each their own.

Now… on with the show…

Put some water in the bottom of the steamer. Put the bottles on the steamer shelf, taking care not to place them on top of the holes. You can process seven jars at a time.

Once steam starts shooting out of the holds in the steamer’s lid, set your timer for 15 minutes. If you are using a water-bath canner, start your timer when the water boils.

Once the 15 minute processing time is up, carefully place the bottles on your counter, cooling rack, or a cutting board. I have a granite countertop, so I can place them directly on the counter.

Oh – and use a hot pad when you pick them up. You’ll see why as soon as you touch one of the bottles. They are hot!

The rings will be loose. Do not re-tighten them!

As the bottles cool, you will begin to hear little high popping sounds coming from the jars. That’s a GOOD thing. It means that the lids have sealed.

Once the bottles are cool, tap on the lids. If you hear a high-pitched, tinny sound coming from the lids, they have sealed. If you hear a low-pitched thunk while tapping, the lids haven’t sealed.

If the lids haven’t sealed, put the bottles in your refrigerator to use immediately, or replaced the lids with new ones and reprocess.

You’ve done it! Admire your beautiful jars of syrup. Homemade peach syrup is wonderful on pancakes, French toast, waffles, German pancakes, ice cream….you name it

Note of encouragement: If you haven’t ever bottled before, it might feel overwhelming. But really… it isn’t as hard as it looks. If you have questions, feel free to add a comment to this post and I’ll help you out. You can save a lot of money by canning your own fruit - particularly, if you grow a garden and have some fruit trees.

Why you should plant fruit trees: If you own your own home, I highly -HIGHLY – recommend that you plant some fruit trees. They are beautiful – particularly in the spring as they bloom. Ripe fruit picked from a tree is amazing and you’ll save so much money over time. Fall is a great time to plant fruit trees because nurseries have fall sales and the fruit trees don’t have to struggle through a hot summer while taking root.

Two Options for Processing Jars (Available from Amazon.com)

Back to Basics 400A 7-Quart Aluminum Home Steam Canner

Some steamers use a flat, wire rack to hold the bottles, rather than a shelf like mine has. My mother-in-law’s steamer has a rack. I inherited it from her so I have two steamers now. I can process a lot of jars at once!

Granite Ware 0707-1 21-1/2-Quart Steel/Porcelain Water-Bath Canner with Rack

Homemade Peach Syrup

Print recipe

How to make homemade peach syrup.

Ingredients

5 cups sliced peaches
2 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions

Step 1
Add peeled and halved peaches to a large pot.
Step 2
Add sugar and lemon juice.
Step 3
Mash ingredients together with a potato masher while heating.
Step 4
Once the peaches are broken down into small pieces and the sugar is dissolved, use a blender to blend them until smooth in batches.
Step 5
If your blender has a "syrup setting", the blended peaches will heat up and thicken to the syrup stage. If your blender doesn't have that option, pour the liquid into a new, large pot.
Step 6
Taste the syrup. If it isn't sweet enough (or if the smooth liquid isn't thick enough), pour the liquid into a large pot. Add sugar to taste.
Step 7
While stirring, cook the liquid until it reaches the syrup stage. You can tell if it has reached the right thickness by dripping the liquid from a spoon. The drops should have a semi-thick consistency and there should be a slight delay before they fall off of the spoon.
Step 8
Skim off any foam that develops while cooking.
Step 9
Pour into clean canning jars. Make sure you leave 1/2 inch heading space between the syrup and the top of the jar.
Step 10
Add canning lids and rings, and process in a water bath or a canning steamer for 15 minutes.
Step 11
Cool jars. Make sure that the lids have sealed by tapping on them with a fingernail. If you hear a high, tinny sound, they have sealed. If you hear a low-pitched clunk, they haven't sealed. To reseal them, replace the lid and reprocess.
Step 12
Tip: Simmer the canning lids in a small amount of water for about a minute before using them. This softens up the rubber and increases the odds that the lids will seal.

Note

The color of your syrup will be determined by the color of the peach flesh. If the peaches have a yellow flesh, the syrup will be yellow. If you'd like, you could add a little bit if red food coloring to make it orange.