As promised on the video, I have the recipe for that yummy Banana Bread! Enjoy and let me know what you think.
Grandma's Banana Bread
1 3/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/3 Cup Shortening
2/3 Cup Sugar
2 Well Beaten Eggs
1 Cup Very Ripe Mashed Banana
1/2 Cup Chopped Pecans
Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and set the bowl aside.
In a large bowl, work the shortening until fluffy and creamy.
Gradually add the sugar in 1/3 cup increments and beat well between additions.
Gradually add the eggs and beat well.
Add the flour mixture alternating with the bananas about 1/2 cup at a time. Do not over mix as this will work the gluten too much.
Bake at 350 degrees for about one hour and ten minutes.
About five weeks ago, my spouse and I began unearthing one of our greenhouses. The houses have sat empty since 2006 when I became quite ill. I have spent years trying to figure out how to use these since I am now limited on the amount of weight at which I can pick up. Getting crops to market just wasn't in the cards as they say.... Finally, I decided that I would try my hand at veggie gardening instead of the commercial perennial production that we had been doing, in the past. I figured that I could feed my family and enjoy my houses once again. There isn't too much heavy lifting involved and it is a lot easier to pull out fresh produce a little at a time instead of hauling those 500-600 pound carts full of perennials.
Things are humming right along and we now have crops in the ground throughout most of the house. It sure feels good using these again! I love walking to spring when the weather is bitter cold outside and it is a balmy 60 or 70 degrees in the hoophouse! The smell of damp earth and seeing new growth is exciting when it is the dead of winter outside. I hope to take the camera with me and take a few snapshots the next time I go check on things at the farm. Until then, keep planting those cole crops and you will be harvesting in no time!
It's that time of year again when the seed and gardening catalogs pile up in the mailbox. I like to lie back on the couch with catalog in hand and plan my spring garden. I have already been to my local seed store and mail ordered most of what I need for the season. Very soon, I will plant peas in my zone 6b garden but first I must prepare the soil. Just the other day we had a balmy sunny day with a high temperature of 60 degrees fahrenheit. (That's 15.55 degrees celsius for those of you on the metric system.) I took my rear tine tiller out for a spin and opened up a new patch of fallow land. I just teased up the grass and worked the top 2 inches of soil a bit to open it up so that it could dry out a bit quicker. The next good day I get when the soil surface is dry, I'll finish the job and get my outdoor peas planted. Until then, I'll keep trowel in hand and continue to prep my double poly 20x96 foot unheated hoophouse. Seedlings are quietly growing on a heated bench so that I can begin planting the cold frame as soon as possible. Happy planting!
Do you get the crunchy munchies at night for something savory? It happens to me all of the time! I adore potato chips, popcorn, flavored corn chips, crunchy cheesy doodles etc. I could eat an entire bag, of these bad boys, each and every day!!!!! Not the snack size bag. You know the ginormous family size bag? Yep, that's the one! If I did, I would weigh three hundred pounds and my doctor wouldn't be pleased!!!! Instead, I find creative solutions to curb the desire for unhealthy crunchy foods.
I've spent a lot of time in my kitchen the last few weeks preserving food from my veggie garden. While I was at it, I took into consideration my love of crunchy foods and dehydrated some zucchini chips.The flavor combinations are nearly limitless so have some fun and be creative! Add a low calorie dip for a festive occasion and make sure you drink plenty of fluids. This snack is more filling than fried chips so they may help maintain your weight too! This helps me a lot! Enjoy the video!
Years ago I tried a salsa recipe from a book entitled Canning and Preserving by Linda Ferrari. I checked and you can still buy this book new or used on line. The recipe is very good but I had to do my own tweaking. I looked at canned salsa recipes and studied canning information regarding acidity levels and came up with this recipe which makes 6 to 7 pints.
My Best Canned Salsa
5 1/2 Pounds Plum Tomatoes
3 Cups Chopped Onion
7 Ounce Can Diced Green Chilis
1/4 Cup Fresh Cilantro Leaves
1/2-1 Jalapeno Pepper, Finely Chopped
2 Cloves of Fresh Minced Garlic
2 Teaspoons Canning Salt
1 Teaspoon Fresh Ground Black Pepper
1 Teaspoon Ground Cayenne Pepper
3 Tablespoons Bottled Lemon Juice
1/2 Cup White Vinegar, 5% Acidity
1/2 Cup of Tomato Juice (This can be made from the skins and seeds of the 5 1/2 pounds of tomatoes. Refer to the following video for more information.)
Working in small batches, plunge the tomatoes into boiling water for one minute and then into ice water to loosen skins.
Peel, seed and chop tomatoes into a large bowl or pot. Reserve skins and seeds to boil. Process skins through a food mill and reserve a cup of the juice for the recipe. Compost the skins.
Combine all ingredients and heat until salsa is hot.
Place salsa into hot sterile pint jars and leave 1/2 inch of head space.
Clean jar rims with a damp paper towel.
Attach lids and rings.
Place in a water bath canner with hot water below 180 degrees and water covering the jars by at least one inch.
Place the lid on the canner and bring to a rolling boil.
Water bath process for 45 minutes.
Turn off the stove and remove the canner lid.
After 5 minutes, remove the jars and place on a towel in a draft free place.
Once the jars have cooled for 12 hours, remove the rings and wipe jars with a damp cloth.
Make sure all jars have sealed and store in a cool dry place.
If a seal has failed, you may reprocess the jar using a new seal or place in the refrigerator for use within a few weeks.
This salsa is fairly mild. If you would like a medium or hot salsa, add more Jalepeno pepper and increase the cayenne pepper to 1 1/4-1 1/2 Teaspoons.
I like to make double batches of this since my family enjoys it so much.
