I'm Still a Southern Gal!

Perhaps I am missing Texas or perhaps I was inspired by tomato season...either way I thought it would be fun to experiment with a southern classic, fried green tomatoes! Who doesn't love 'em? I picked some up from Green City Market Wednesday morning. Leaning Shed Farm had an excellent selection from which I chose a variety called green apple. These tomatoes were firm enough to fry up which is what makes an excellent fried green tomato. To go along, we whipped up some tarragon aioli using fresh herbs from my garden. These make a great dinner served on top fresh arugula or other veggies for a complete southern, vegetarian meal! Enjoy!

Fried Green Tomatoes
2 large green tomatoes
1 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup all purpose flour
Paprika to taste
Garlic powder to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
1 egg
Vegetable oil for frying

Tarragon Aioli
2 egg yolks at room temperature
4 garlic cloves
I TBS fresh tarragon
1 lemon
1 cup olive oil
Salt to taste

For the tomatoes: beat the egg in a bowl and set aside. Combine all dry ingredients. Slice the tomatoes about a 1/2 inch thick. Dip slices into egg wash then fully coat them with the dry ingredients. Bring vegetable oil to a very high heat, ideally using a cast iron skillet for maximum browning. Fry the tomatoes about one minute each side.

For the aioli: In a food processor mince the tarragon and garlic. Then add the egg yolk. The mixture will come to a paste. Slowly add the olive oil while mixing. Add the squeeze of one lemon and add salt to taste. Refrigerate before serving.

Sunday Salsa!

Tomato and pepper season have overlapped! What else would you make other than some spicy salsa? I can eat it by the spoon full (just ask #thesweetest!)

 Saturday morning, I picked up my salsa ingredients from The Green City Market. There are a few different farms you can find there every weekend. Tomatoes, garlic and onions from Leaning Shed Farm, jalepeños from Nichols Farm and cilantro from Genisis Growers. If you live in Chicago and haven't payed Green City Market a visit, you are truly missing out!

After a quick roast of the jalapeños and a rough chop of the tomatoes and onions, the ingredients can be thrown into a food processor or blender for a quick and delicious salsa. Warning: do not put your contacts in after making salsa! I learned this the hard way. Enjoy! I know I will...on some tacos!

Sunday Salsa

About a dozen vine tomatoes or plum tomatoes
About 8 jalapeños
2 small red onions
1 head of garlic
1 bunch of cilantro
Salt

Roast jalapeños under broiler for about 20 minutes. Remove stems and most of the seeds (more seeds = more heat). Cut tomatoes in half and squeeze out excess juice and seeds. Roughly cut tomatoes into smaller pieces to fit into food processor. Do the same with the onions, cilantro and entire garlic head. Place all ingredients in food processor and blend until desired consistency. Add salt to taste. Refrigerate overnight for the best flavor, if you can wait that long!

Raspberry Jam...For My Gramma!

This summer I took up a new hobby...canning! People have been canning, pickling, and preserving food for a very long time. When my boyfriend (#thesweetest) gave me Paul Virant's cookbook, Preservation Kitchen, I decided I was going to can as many things as I could this summer. This way I will have flavorful produce all winter long. (All miserable, Chicago winter, long)

Among my pickled ramps, asparagus and giardinera, my favorite thing I have canned is jam! After grape, blueberry and rhubarb, I decided it was time for my favorite, raspberry! I'm a sucker for toast and jam just like my Gramma Yvonne was! In fact one of my last memories of her was back in Texas as she sat at our kitchen counter drinking her tea and eating toast with jam. It was raspberry, one of her favorites.

Gramma Yvonne in front of The Indian Ocean

While making jam today, I wished more than anything I could send her a jar. Receiving a jar of fresh jam may be the best gift you could give because it is made with love and fresh ingredients! I used Mick Klug raspberries from Green City Market. Here is an easy recipe for my raspberry jam!

Mick Klug Raspberries

 Raspberry Jam for Gramma Yvonne

4 cups raspberries
4 cups sugar
1 lemon
4 half pint mason jars

Bring raspberries, sugar and juice of one lemon to boil. After mixture reaches a boil, reduce to simmer. Simmer until mixture coats the back of a spoon. (About 20 minutes)

While the raspberry mixture is simmering, process your jars. Bring empty mason jars to a boil in a tall pot. When the jam is ready and the jars have come to a boil, fill the jars with the jam leaving about a 1/2 in space at the top of the jar. Put the lids on the jars just tight enough so they stay on, you don't want the lids too snug. Put the jars in back in the boiling water. Make sure the water covers the tops of the jars. Boil for about ten minutes. Remove the jars and let cool. Soon you will hear the snap of the lids. This means the jars are sealed! Let them rest for a day, then enjoy!