Turkey Pepper Pot

This morning I put a turkey breast in the crock pot along with 30 peppers of various colors and sizes from my garden, black pepper, salt and green chile sauce. It cooked 8 hours and was done by the time we were really hungry. I served it with sweet corn and a side of tomatoes and leftover sauteed squash.

Squash Dinner

Here is a quick dinner made of squash, tomatoes, onions and spices. Cut a spaghetti squash in half and place cut side down on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 about 25 minutes or until it is soft.

In a skillet heated on medium, add sliced zucchini, yellow squash, onion, tomato, salt, black pepper and sage. Cook until tender.

Rake out the insides of the spaghetti squash with a fork into a bowl then top with the skillet ingredients.

The only clean up is the cuttng board and the squash leftovers.

Weekend Meals

 Here are a couple of dishes I prepared this weekend. On top are sweet peppers stuffed with venison, onions, zucchini and jalapenos, all chopped very fine (see two pictures at bottom). The bigger the pepper, the easier it is to get the stuffing inside.
Just saute the filling with a bit of vegetable oil until tender, then place inside the halfed (and de-ribbed) peppers, then broil for about ten minutes.

Below is broiled salmon with four different garnishes, from left to rt.: tomatoes, onions and poblano peppers; tomatillo sauce; agave; and red peppers and onions.

chopped zucchini



chopped sweet onions



saute in skillet until done



Almost the last crop

 It's supposed to frost tonight, so I picked over 100 peppers from my raised bed (left) and from the big garden. There are still many blossoms so I'll cover with a tarp and hope for the best. My hoops aren't large enough to cover the tallest plants so I can't construct a regular cold frame.Here are some of the mild peppers I plan to stuff this weekend.

Another bed of peppers (rt) and butterfly plants in the other bed.

I got a few yellow squashes and zucchini from my garden and the butternut and acorn squashes from the farmer's market. Squash will be a major component in my Week of Indigenous Eating.

Lunch

Despite the heat, I still have a lot of tomatoes and peppers. The squash slowed down for a few weeks but is now making a comeback. Today I picked a variety of colors. For lunch I cut up a few of the squash, peppers and tomatoes, put in a pan and sauteed with vegetable oil. Here is the recipe:
http://www.aihd.ku.edu/recipes/vegetable_saute.html although I only used what was in my garden plus some garlic powder and an onion from a local farm.

I got out previously-cooked pinto beans from the freezer and thawed them. Here is the recipe: http://www.aihd.ku.edu/recipes/pinto_beans.html

 Then I cooked some wild rice. I find this rice more filling than other kinds. You can substitute brown or another kind of rice if you prefer.

 Then I layered the cooked rice, beans and vegetables. The beans already were cooked with salsa so there is lots of flavor.

Squash "hummus"

Wild rice

Squash and rice "hummus"

Hummus is an Arab "mash" or spread made out of cooked chickpeas, ground sesame (Tahini), olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and salt. Variations include additional red bell pepper, pine nuts, cilantro, jalapenos, etc. Store bought hummus is very expensive, but you can make it yourself with garbanzo beans from the store (usually about a dollar a can).

I created two completely different kinds of hummus--not really hummus because these are made with squash. Still, is an interesting dip. Regular hummus is about 80 calories per 2 tablespoons (or two chips worth). In the first variation, I sauteed two zucchines, then mixed them in a food processor with 2 cups of cooked wild rice, plus 2 T olive oil, pepper and garlic. The result is above (in the processor). It's sort of gummy from the rice starch, but not bad. It needs to be eaten warm.

Below is another type. I sauteed two zucchines with onions, tomatoes, garlic and 2T of oilve oil.

Below is tabouleh, a Middle Eastern "salad" made of bulghur wheat, with added parsley, rice flour, onion, mint, etc. I bought this in a box as the store. Simply add hot water and olive oil and let it set. After reconstitution it looks like the picture on the left.

Mix the prepared tabouleh with the squash, onions and tomatoes (in a processor or blender). It will not have the same creamy texture as hummus, but it still is interesting. You can add other items such as hot peppers, cilantro, etc. Eat with crackers, carrots or celery. Josh put a bunch on his sandwich.

Squash/tabouleh hummus with a Trisket





July Vegetables

A huge squash

The hot weather continues. It's been over 100 degrees every day this week. The vegetables are heavily mulched so I don't have to water too much at one time, but it's required every other day.

Cucumber vines latch on to the fence

A late squash plant. I put a twirley from the Dollar Store next to it to deter the rabbits and a funnel so water can reach the roots.

This giant squash looks like three fused together

A nice pick of peppers

Yellow squashes grow next to a watermelon

These tomatoes should ripen in a few days

Luckily the corn developed tassels before it got hot. It gets a drink every day but still looks stressed

A nice little bounty from this morning