Sweet & Sour Sauce

Great with fried shrimp, egg rolls, anything!

1/3 c rice wine vinegar
1 T cornstarch
2 tsp oil (vegetable or sesame)
2/3 c unsweetened pineapple juice (there is enough juice in a 20 oz can of pineapple chunks, FYI)
2 T ketchup
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt

In a small saucepan, whisk together vinegar and cornstarch until combined. Add all the rest of the ingredients; bring to a boil while stirring continuously. Remove from heat and serve.


In the picture above, I had used about half this amount of cornstarch; it was a little too runny for my liking so I will use 1 T next time as indicated.

Apple Topping

5 medium Gala apples, peeled and sliced
6 T butter
1/2 packed brown sugar
cinnamon

In a saute pan, heat butter until melted. Add apples and saute until apples become tender, about 4-5 minutes. Add brown sugar and toss to coat. Sprinkle in desired amount of cinnamon and stir. Cook until sugar dissolves to make a caramel-like syrup. Serve over waffles, pancakes, ice cream, or whatever else you like! The last time I made this for my family, there was a little leftover which I stirred into a bowl of oatmeal the next day... delicious!


Recipe and photo courtesy of realmomkitchen.com

Creamy butter sauce for fish

I'm kinda proud of myself for coming up with this sauce recipe; it turned out so yummy! We had it spooned over oven-baked orange roughy; it would be good with any white fish.

1 stick butter
1/2 tsp Emeril's "Essence" seasoning (or more if you want it spicier)
1 tsp worchestershire sauce
2 T lemon juice
2 T cream

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. When completely melted, turn heat off and add next four ingredients. Whisk together thoroughly, then whisk in cream. It will take a few minutes of whisking to get the sauce to the point where it doesn't separate. Keep saucepan over low heat until ready to serve, whisking as needed.

Emeril's "Essence" Creole Seasoning

A few years ago I mixed up a batch of this spice blend and have kept it in a small tupperware container with my spices. It has been convenient to use from time to time. Good on meat, Thanksgiving turkey, and fish!

2 1/2 T paprika
2 T salt
2 T garlic powder
1 T black pepper
1 T onion powder
1 T cayenne pepper
1 T dried oregano
1 T dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly.
Yield: 2/3 cup

Cha-Cha Chevy's Salsa

(I'm told this is like Chevy's salsa but I haven't been to that restaurant in at least 8 years so I don't know how close it is...)

Lots of tomatoes (I use about a dozen Roma)

1/4 of a regular onion

jalepeno peppers... see notes for quantity (it varies)

2 cloves garlic

2-3 Tbs fresh cilantro

2 1/2 Tbs white vinegar

2 1/2 tsp salt

vegetable oil

Equipment needed: BBQ, blender, knife, tortilla chips


Like all recipes I use, I have modified this one slightly to my liking, and like any recipe that involves spices, it will not turn out exactly the same each time. Jalepenos: the last time I made this I only used about 1 1/2 jalepenos and it was plenty hot; a bit too hot for me in fact. However, my brothers-in-law in Utah who make this same recipe, always use at least 3. As everyone knows, things get spicier the further south & closer to Mexico you go! Hence, Arizona peppers are hotter than Utah peppers, apparently. I heard that the official Chevy's recipe calls for 10, or something ridiculous like that. I would recommend buying 3 or 4, depending on where you live, and adding 1/2 at a time until it's hot enough for you.

Step one: coat the tomatoes and jalepenos with oil; cook them on the grill. Turn them occasionally & cook until the peppers blacken and the tomato skins are baggy & look like they'll come off easily.

Step two: peel your two garlic cloves (may use more or less; I like two), chop them in half, and chop your 1/4 onion in large chunks (to make sure it blends evenly). Likewise, do a rough chop on the cilantro.

Step three (once tomatoes & jalepenos are cool enough to handle): cut the very tops off the tomatoes and peel the skins off; if they don't come right off, you didn't grill them long enough. Chop the tops off the peppers & cut them in half so you can add half at a time if you want. Don't peel them.

Step four: put everything in the blender! (Don't forget about the salt & vinegar.) I like to sort of layer the tomatoes with the other ingredients to ensure that it mixes evenly. Do a medium-low speed and blend until it's an even consistency; no big chunks. It will look similar to the photo above. When I use the amount of ingredients listed, it fill up my blender to the very top!

Step five: eat with chips; yummy yummy!

Tips: have extra tomatoes so you can add them at the end if it's too spicy. However, don't put raw tomatoes in; that will slightly wreck the yummy grilled flavor. Also, you don't have to use Romas; any old tomatoes will do. But since Romas are small, you won't need as many if you're using a larger variety. Chevy's, and my brothers-in-law, use liquid smoke as a final ingredient. I don't use it & don't prefer it & I don't know how much they put in.

Recipe courtesy of my brother-in-law Josh

Strawberry Freezer Jam

• 2 c sugar
• 1/4 c Instant Clear Gel (it's a powder)
• 1 pkg strawberry Kool-Aid (also a powder)
• 5 c whole or 3 1/2 c crushed strawberries
• 1/2 c Karo syrup (light corn syrup)

Mix dry ingredients together well (first 3 ingredients). Mix wets & add to the dries. Mix well -- until sugar is dissolved. Put into jars and freeze, leaving 1/2" headspace.

My tips: ~I always, always double-batch (but never triple). A half-flat of strawberries (or 4 1-lb containers) makes about 7 cups of mashed/pureed strawberries; perfect for a double-batch. A double-batch yields about 11 to 12 cups of jam, so you'll need 11 to 12 half-pint jars or 6 pints. Crush/puree the strawberries by pulsing in the blender. My kids prefer "no chunks" so I do a total puree. If you want "chunks" I would puree part of them, then do a rougher blend on part, then mix those together. Cutting the berries in half after washing/hulling makes them blend more evenly. ~Really mix the dry ingredients together well. I pour them into a big bowl through a sieve and then I mix them together with a whisk or a slotted spoon. Instant clear gel is a modified cornstarch and will make lumps in the jam if not first mixed well with the sugar. You can get instant clear gel (note: has to be called Instant! Not the same as regular clear gel! I learned that the hard way!) from some specialty food stores but I order mine online; Amazon has plenty of vendors. Order a couple pounds of it and it will last you for the next few years' worth of jam. ~How do you know when the sugar is dissolved and it's time to put it into the jars? When you rub a little drop between your fingers and you can't feel the sugar granules anymore. It only takes a few minutes of good mixing. This is SO easy to make! ~This turns out more runny than other freezer jams or cooked jams. But that's okay with me! It's excellent not only on sandwiches or toast but also on pancakes, french toast, crepes; even ice cream. Mmmm.




Recipe courtesy of my mother-in-law Ruth