Green Tomato Green Enchillada Sauce

I've had a plethora of tomatoes this year. It seemed like the crop would never end. But, it froze for the first time last night, so I had to pick all my tomatoes the day before, even if they weren't ready. Hence, a plethora of green tomatoes! I now have almost a bushel of green tomatoes, and have exactly 3 recipes for them.

A friend of mine has as chili verde that uses them, so I hit her up for the recipe...which called for green enchillada sauce. I didn't have any on hand (who does?) so I looked up recipes for it. I found one, which calls for tomatillos, which I also don't have. But remember what I do have?

So, I made green enchillada sauce using green tomatoes instead of tomatillos, and I have to say, it wasn't half bad! In fact, it was pretty tasty.

My recipe follows (makes about 20 oz)

ingredients:
About 3 c. green tomatoes (1 lb approx)
1 onion
2 jalepenos
1/4 c. cilantro
3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Instructions:
Put 4 c. water in a large saucepan on medium heat
Chop the tomatoes, or stem small whole ones and add to the water
Chop the onion and add to pot
slice the garlic and add to pot
seed jalepenos and add
add lemon and lime juice and cumin
cook until tomatoes are very soft
add salt & pepper & cilantro and let cool
process in food processor or blender.

This was pretty tasty. I'm not sure what green enchillada sauce is supposed to taste like, so I'm not really picky. But it tasted close enough to what comes on Mexican food in the restaurants where I've had it, and it was beyond easy, so I would definitely make it again.

Roasted Kale and Butternut Squash with Heirloom Jacob's Cattle Beans, Adobo Sauce and Feta Cheese

While researching the book I'm doing for NaNoWrimo, I looked for Puerto Rican recipes on Pinterest. This one, for kale salad, looked really interesting. However, I don't really like raw kale (I know, I know, I'm a freak of nature). I like the health benefits, though, so I thought I'd just cook the kale. The recipe was sort of strange, anyway, as it called for hot squash in a salad.

I have to say, making this was pretty time-consuming. I don't usually do 'fancy.' I do basic. So this made me feel quite accomplished. And it was sooo pretty (hence the photo overload) that I almost didn't want to eat it. It was really good though--and VERY filling. Even my husband couldn't finish a bowl full. It's a very fancy, filling vegetarian meal. The adobo sauce I made was good--I liked it heated up, although I guess it is supposed to be kind of the dressing for the salad. But it was a good seasoning for the dish, and I enjoyed it. I did sort of wing the adobo sauce, so if you're picky about that kind of thing, use canned stuff, or you can follow the link for my basic recipe.


Anyway, I adapted the recipe to make a vegetarian meal instead of a salad. Here's the full meal version.


Ingredients:

• 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed (1/2-inch pieces)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• salt and black pepper, to taste
• 2 tbsp red wine or apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp dried mustard
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1-2 tbsp adobo sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 cups cooked Jacob's cattle beans (any other kind would do just as well)
• 1 large bunch kale, stemmed and torn into small pieces
• 1/2 c. feta cheese

Instructions:

Wash, stem and tear up kale and place in a large casserole pan (mine was the big pyrex pan, about 9x14 I think.

Seed butternut squash, peel if desired, and cut into approx 1/2 inch cubes. Mine weren't too exact. Also, I don't peel mine because I grew them and they're organic. But if you're unsure, peel. The skins are very soft and edible, so feel free to skip this step. Spread over kale in the pan. Drizzle olive oil over the squash and kale, as evenly as possible.

Bake at 400 for 30-40 minutes, until squash is very tender. If you're like me and your pieces aren't uniform, test the largest pieces. When they're done, so is everything else.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together 1/2 tsp. salt, vinegar, mustard, honey, adobo sauce, garlic slices, and 1/4 tsp. black pepper.

When squash is done, pour sauce over it and toss in the casserole pan. Some of the kale may be crispy, and that's fine!

Add beans and mix well. Return pan to the oven for a couple minutes until heated through.

Serve topped with feta or other crumbled goat cheese.

Adobo Sauce

This is a quick and easy recipe for Adobo sauce, which can be used in a ton of things. Instead of going out and buying it, I made up a batch myself which was very quick and easy. You can use it to can chili peppers or chipotle peppers in. But I used it in a salad dressing.

I did not put chipotle in mine, because I don't have any and because I wanted to make a marinade sort of sauce. I had found the recipe while looking for Puerto Rican food, so I made an adobo that, according to the site, was a Puerto Rican versian. It had crushed garlic, olive oil, salt, black pepper, oregano, vinegar and paprika. I wasn't sure about measurements, so I sort of winged it.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tsp. red wine vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp. dried oregano (powdered is best, but you can use the leaves, if that's what you have)
1 tbsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together in a small jar, shake and leave overnight to let the flavors mingle. It does not need to be refrigerated, as that will make the olive oil separate. Shake right before using.

Warm Mustard Sauce for Fish, etc

This sauce would go well with any fish, but I've always used it for salmon loaf.

Ingredients:
1/3 c. prepared mustard
3 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. vinegar
1 tsp. ground sage
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground pepper

Instructions:
Mix all ingredients in small sauce pan and heat over medium/low until hot but not boiling

Apple Sauce (applesauce)

Yes, I'm one of those cliche girls who just loves fall sooo much I have to post about it every year. But come on, what's not to love? Sitting by a toasty fire for the first time all year, and actually enjoying the heat instead of suffering it, as we do in summer? All the fun activities that come with the season, with the coolness that makes us want to get out and actually do something more than lie on top of the AC vent and sweat? Or the fact that we can wear jeans and sweaters again? But most of all, how can anyone not love all the flavors that come with fall--toasty pumpkin seeds, pumpkin lattes, hot apple cider, and of course, cinnamon and nutmeg in everything! I for one, embrace the cliche and wholeheartedly admit that I adore fall. And with opportunities to take pictures not just of leaves, but of the gorgeous, colorful food that comes this time of year, how can I not?

I made this recipe one morning because my mom had given me some drops off her apple tree. If you've ever gotten drops, you know that they spoil fast! So I had these bruised apples starting to go bad, and I needed a way to use them all up at once. Hence, a tiny batch of apple sauce (made about 1.5 cups after I cut out all the spots and cores and boiled it down to applesauce). I was stoked when I saw that it used a cinnamon stick, since I'd bought some recently for my son to try and because they reminded me of my own childhood, when my mom had these on her spice rack and on rare occasions, would let us kids have one (or maybe we snitched them when she wasn't looking, I can't remember).

I made a very simple sauce, leaving out the butter in Fannie's recipe. Don't get me wrong, I love butter, but in applesauce? Weird.

For this small batch, I used:
About 4 apples, cut, cored and spots removed
1/2 cinnamon stick
a bit of water

Peel apples if not organic. I use organic, and I like the extra fiber, so I leave the skins in.
Cut apples and put in a pan with a bit of water in the pan if it begins to stick, along with the cinnamon stick
Cook until apples are soft
Run through a foley mill or food processor. This will make it smooth even with the skins in. Also, leaving the skins in makes it a gorgeous pink color.

Basic Marinara/Spaghetti Sauce

This was basic sauce with red and green peppers as additions.

 I've made several different versions of spaghetti sauce from two different editions of Fannie Farmer cookbooks, and I don't like any of them. She was apparently not familiar with Italian food, or else I'm spoiled by my Italian mother's sauce so nothing else compares. While I don't remember my mother ever using a recipe, and my Italian grandfather's recipe apparently takes 4 hours to make, I know exactly how it is 'supposed' to taste. I have been making spaghetti sauce since I started cooking (don't we all start with spaghetti?) and even my very first pan of it tasted better than the ones in this century-old cookbook. So I can safely say, I'm thoroughly disappointed in Fannie's options where sauce is concerned.

So, I'm posting a version of my own recipe. This is a pretty basic one, though you can add in some optional veggies to make it more chunky.

My basic recipe:
4 tbsp. olive oil
1 med/large onion
2-4 cloves garlic

About 6 cups chopped, crushed or diced tomatoes (fresh or canned)
1/2 tsp. salt (you can add more later, but you can't take it out once it's in there, so err on the side of less)
1 tbsp. basil
1 tbsp. oregano
1 tbsp. thyme
(or substitute about 3 tbsp. Italian Seasoning if you don't have all three of those herbs)
small pinch of fennel seeds

Just the basic sauce, this time with a lot of onions.

Optional add-ins for variety: sliced or chopped mushrooms, zucchini, eggplant, carrots (I never use these but I see them fairly often in canned sauce), celery, red or green bell peppers, parmesan cheese (I always add this on top, but some people like it cooked in), 1-2 tbsp sugar if your tomatoes aren't very sweet, 1 can tomato paste if you really need a thicker sauce

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium/low heat
2. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently
3. Add garlic and fennel seed and cook 1 more minute
4. Meanwhile, chop tomatoes. Taste for sweetness, and add sugar if your tomatoes are sour or you just like sweeter sauce. If using canned, drain some of the juices and reserve in case you need it for step 6.
5. Add tomatoes and herbs and salt
6. Increase heat to medium and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes are completely cooked and some of the liquid boils away. If using fresh tomatoes, this sauce will be much thinner than canned sauce, so if you want, you can cook it down further to thicken. If using canned tomatoes, watch the sauce and add back in some of the reserved liquid if it gets dry or begins to stick.

This sauce is simple and no-frills, but it's always delicious and never fails for any type of Italian food requiring a red sauce.