Cranberry Applesauce

Last year I heard someone on the radio talking about making homemade Cranberry Applesauce.  It sounded awesome to me.  So when I was in Costco before Thanksgiving and saw the huge bag of cranberries and the plastic container full of organic Gala apples, I knew it was time to make the applesauce.  This recipe makes a lot of applesauce, but it is designed to be canned and put away to use all winter.  You need the basic canning supplies to make this recipe.  I used up the apples I had in the crisper in addition to the Galas, like Macintosh, Fuji and Pink Ladies.  Don't use tart apples, because the cranberries are already tart.  I don't like the applesauce to be overly sweet so I don't use a lot of sugar. Feel free to add more to your taste.  Eat this on its own, with pork chops or use and baby food.

Makes 10 half pint jars

Ingredients;

7-8 lbs apples, organic preferred
9 cups of cranberries (this is 3 12 oz bags)
1/2 cup water
1 cup sugar

Additional tools:

Canning pot, jars, jar remover and funnel
Potato Masher
Food mill

Here's how:

Sterilize your jars, rings and canning supplies in the dishwasher.

Heat your canning pot.

Heat the lids to almost a boil.

Place the apples, cranberries and water in a large pot.  I put them in whole but you can cut this all up to make it go faster.

Heat the pot and cook down the mixture, for about an hour.  While the mixture is cooking down, use a potato masher to mash it up and break it down. Mix the pot often to prevent scorching on the bottom.

Once the apples are completely broken down, turn off the heat.

In batches, put the mixture through the food mill.  Discard the solids.

Return the applesauce to the pot, add the sugar and reheat the applesauce.

Ladle the applesauce into the jars, leaving 1/2 inch of head space.

Place the lid and ring on the jar, careful not to tighten the ring too much.

Process the jars for 15 minutes.

Remove the jars and let them cool overnight, upside down.

Check the lids to make sure they sealed.  If they did, store them in  your pantry.  If not, place the jar in your fridge and eat it within 2 weeks.

Jellied Cranbery Sauce

I have made cranberry sauce in the past and posted it here in the blog.  This time I was looking to make it easier and closer to the version that everyone knows from the can.  I used organic sugar, cranberries and orange in this recipe but conventional ingredients work just as well.  I also use a cranberry sauce mold to make it look festive but a plain bowl works just fine.

Ingredients;

1 cup water
1 cup sugar
3 cups fresh cranberries
zest from 1 orange

Here's how:

Place the water and sugar into a medium sized bowl and bring to a boil.

Once it starts boiling, add the cranberries and orange zest.

Let the mixture simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from the heat.

Pour the mixture through a fine mesh sieve placed over a bowl to get all the liquid out of the berries. Use a large spoon to push the liquid through until all all the liquid is through and only pulp is left.  You can also use a food mill for this.

Discard the cranberry pulp left over.

Pour the liquid into a mold or bowl.

Refrigerate 4 hours, overnight or a few days before serving.

Pea Soup

I usually make my soups in the slow cooker- clean up is easier and I can do other things while it cooks.  So, when I made a ham for dinner last weekend, I ended up with a big ham bone that would not fit in the slow cooker.  I decided that I should come up with a Pea Soup recipe that could be made on the stove top. I also had extra ham from dinner that I could throw into the soup to make it a bit heartier.  This recipe is easy and was made with ingredients that were either leftovers, in the crisper drawer or a pantry staple.   This soup was made using things I already had in the house.  That makes for a cheap and easy meal for me. The ham was not organic but all the veggies, spices and peas are.  You can use conventional ingredients too.  Use a large stockpot for this to keep the bone in and to fill it with water.  If you don't have a leftover ham bone, use two smoked ham hocks.  Whole Foods sells Nitrate free ones.

Makes 3 quarts

Ingredients:

1 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 medium sized carrots, organic, diced
3 celery stalks, organic, diced
1/2 tsp pepper
1 ham bone
2 Bay leaves, organic
4 cups split peas, organic
16 cups water
4 slices ham, cubed (optional)

Here's how:

In a large stockpot, add oil and heat until hot.

Add carrots and celery. Saute for 5 minutes, until softened.

Add pepper, bay leaf, peas, ham bone and water.

Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour and 15 minutes

Turn heat off and remove the bone and bay leaves. 

Remove the meat from the bone and add it back into the soup.

Add the extra ham from the slices if using.

Serve now or refrigerate or freeze for later.

Boneless Chicken with Mushrooms, Onions and Provolone

I try to use organic and local ingredients as much as possible.  I used organic ingredients (except the cheese) for this recipe but, none of it is local. How good this chicken tastes will make you forget that part.  If you cannot find boneless skinless thighs, use boneless skinless breasts instead. Turkey would work in this recipe too.  Costco and BJs carry the thighs at a great price as well as Whole Foods. If you don't have or don't like Provolone, use Swiss or your favorite cheese.  And, as always, conventional ingredients are OK too.

Ingredients:

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs, organic
1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
8 oz mushrooms, sliced, organic
1 white onion, medium diced, organic
1 garlic clove, minced, organic
salt
pepper
8 slices Provolone cheese

Here's how:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the chicken on a baking sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. I use my rectangular pizza stone instead of a cookie sheet.

Put the chicken into the oven once it is at temperature.  Bake for 10 minutes.

In a saute pan, add the oil and heat.

Add the mushrooms, onions and garlic and saute for 10 minutes.

Before

                                     
                                                                               After
Set aside.

After the chicken has been in for 10 minutes, remove it from the oven.

Turn the chicken over.

Top with the mushroom and onion mixture.

Top that with Provolone cheese.

Return the chicken to the oven and bake for 10 more minutes.

Remove from the oven and serve.

 

Thanksgiving Bathroom

I have written about my Halloween Bathroom and today I going to share my Thanksgiving bathroom. My themed bathroom includes a shower curtain, towels, soap, rug and oil diffuser.  I am still looking for a turkey soap pump.

 My grandmother has a sewing pattern for a shower curtain and she makes me all of my themed shower curtains using this pattern.  It uses regular cotton fabric for the main part and then a small amount of a coordinating fabric to make the ruffles with.  I picked a fabric with a turkey wearing a Pilgrim hat for the main fabric and pumpkins for the coordinating ruffles.  Here is what it looks like:

 

 

I also used some of the leftover fabric to embellish the towels.

The sink area has an apple scented liquid soap, an acorn soap pump and an embellished hand towel.

I put an oil diffuser in the wall that has a pumpkin on it.  I bought this at Bath and Body Works.

My favorite part of the bathroom is the rug.  I managed to find a turkey wearing a Pilgrim hat rug.  I have no idea how I found it (especially since it matches the shower curtain) but I did.

Now, if I could only find a soap pump that matches this rug!  Let me know if you find one.