Panzanella

With tomatoes and cucumbers coming out of the garden I can finally make one of my all time favorite salads, panzanella. This is a bread salad from Italy. It is so bright and refreshing is screams of summer. Now often the problem with something like panzanella is that the bread soggy when the water given off by the tomatoes and cucumbers gets on the bread. They don't give off a ton of water until seasoned.
This problem is solved two ways. One eat it right away. Which I high recommend and you will wan to anyway because it is so yummy and two I make the dressing using the tomato water from tomatoes so you get double the tomato flavor and less sogginess. Always good.

Panzanella

6 cups rustic Italian loaf, in 1 inch cubes

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1 1/2 lrg tomatoes, cored, seeded and chopped

1/4 tsp kosher salt

4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1/8 tsp pepper

1 cucumber, seeded and sliced thin

1/4 cup basil, chiffinade

1 shallot, thinly sliced

        1. Toss the bread with the 2 Tbsp olive oil and 1/4 tsp salt. Toast on a sheet pan at 400 for 15-20 minutes until toasted.

Place the chopped tomatoes in a strainer over a bowl and toss with salt. Let drain 10 minutes. Save the liquid.

2. To the drained tomato juice add the olive oil, red wine vinegar, and pepper. Whisk together.

Toss bread with the dressing and let sit 10 minutes.

3. Toss bread with remaining tomatoes, cucumber, basil and shallot.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

Homemade jam is a wonderful thing. It tastes much fresher and even looks more inviting than the stuff on the shelf in the grocery store. When i mention making jam most people freeze like a deer in the headlights thinking "oh wow so much work". The truth is when I make jam I make the freezer jam variety. There is no giant pot of boiling water or checking that all the jars have sealed super air tight and it is much easier.
My mom kept a supply of homemade freezer jam in the fridge so that every Sunday when the family came over their were rolls and jam to go with dinner. Sometimes I think that is all some of the grand kids ate. The adults and older children judiciously saved their rolls for the end of the meal to have with the jam as dessert. It was really all the dessert you needed and there we almost never leftover rolls.

When not in season frozen strawberries are and economical choice and far superior to the fresh but imported from who knows how far ones in the produce section. I think of making it most when the berries are in season and both dirt cheap and tasting their best. It is just another way to enjoy the bounty and preserve some for later.

I could try to be cleaver and come up with my own original recipe but the truth is we have always used the recipe provided with the packet of pectin we use to turn the strawberries into jam. We found the best results using the brand Sure Jell fruit pectin and followed the recipe the only change I made was it called for crushing the berries and to speed the process along I blended them up in the food processor. Either method seemed to work fine.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

2 cups crushed strawberries(about 4 cups strawberries)

4 cups sugar

1 pkg sure jell

1. Measure the sugar and add to the strawberries. Let is sit 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to help it along. (don't try to substitute other things for plain old sugar, it messes up the recipe)

2. in a small pot combine the sure jell with 3/4 cup water and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Keep stirring and let it boil 1 minute. Remove from the heat.

3. Add the hot pectin to the fruit mix and stir for 3 minutes, or until all the sugar has dissolved and is no longer grainy.

4. Fill all the jars leaving about 1/2 inch for expansion in the freezer. Cover with lids.

5. Let sit at room temperature for 24 hours or until it sets. Place one in the fridge for immediate enjoyment and the rest in the freezer for up to a year. Until the strawberries are in season again!

Beef and Barley Soup

I make no excuses I love soup. I could eat it morning noon and night. My husband has to be more in the mood with the cooler weather or a rainy day. We have been getting more than just a speck of rain here in Houston. Near epic rainfalls. This soup is a warm hug on those rainy days and he loved and finished off every last drop.
Soup is also a great way it use up leftovers or the bits of this and that in the refrigerator. Growing up my mom always made a roast beef for dinner on Sunday. There were often leftovers, and though my dad would eat some in a sandwich I have never been a roast beef sandwich type of person. I used the meat to make a hearty soup.
So in this recipe you can always use the beef stew meat but don't be afraid to use up and leftover roast in the fridge. It works great as well.

Served with some good bread smeared with butter and what could be better!

Beef and Barley Soup

 1 Tbsp oil
1 1/2 lb top sirloin, or stew meat, trimmed and diced into cubes
1 onion,diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
2 carrots, shredded
1/3 cup quick cooking barley
1 russet potato, peeled and diced
1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
2 bay leaves
4 beef bullion cubes
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp oregano
6 cups water
Salt And Pepper, to taste

1. Heat the oil on high in a large pot. Pat the beef stew meat dry and season with salt and pepper. Brown the meat in the pot on all sides.
2. Turn the heat down to medium and add the onion, celery and carrot to the pot. Sweat until slightly softened. Add the remaining ingredients.
3. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Allow the soup to simmer until the meat is tender and the potatoes are cooked, about 20 minutes.