Homemade Pizza Sauce

-Roma Tomatoes (15)
-Olive Oil
-1 tsp sugar
-1/4 tsp oregano
-1/4 tsp basil
-1/4 tsp thyme
-1/4 tsp garlic powder
-1/4 tsp salt
-1/8 tsp pepper
-1 bay leaf
-1/2 tsp lemon juice


Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Core, cut and half roma tomatoes and place on greased baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Bake for 30 minutes or until tomatoes are caramelized.  Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes.  Place tomatoes in blender and blend on high for 15 seconds.  Pour in container or jar.  Add all of the remaining ingredients and mix well. Enjoy!

I personally canned a few jars and kept the jar out that was not all the way full.

Single Serving Cookie

 

I have to admit I am ADDICTED to these cookies...  It took a few times of me making them to figure out the correct time for my microwave, so keep that in mind if it doesn't turn out quite right the first couple of times.

 

 

1 tbsp. butter, melted

1 tbsp. white sugar

1 tbsp. brown sugar

3 drops of vanilla

pinch of salt

1 egg yolk

1/4 c. flour

2 tbsp. chocolate chips

In a bowl, mix together the butter, sugars, vanilla, and egg yolk.

Add in the flour and salt. Mix until combined. Add in the chocolate chips.

Put the dough into a small microwaveable bowl, ramekin, or coffee cup.

Microwave for 40-60 seconds or until the cookie looks done.  I find that in my microwave I need to do 60 seconds and I let it sit for about 2 minutes to cool and continue to cook.  And of course it is best with a tall glass of milk… Enjoy!

 

Chicken Noodle Soup

 

Ingredients

Stock:

• 1 (2 1/2 to 3-pound) fryer chicken, cut up
• 3 1/2 quarts water
• 1 onion, peeled and diced
• 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 bay leaves
• 3 chicken bouillon cubes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Soup:

• 2 cups sliced carrots
• 2 cups sliced celery, with leafy green tops
• 2 1/2 cups uncooked egg noodles
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 1/3 cup cooking sherry
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves
• 1 cup grated Parmesan, optional
• 3/4 cup heavy cream, optional
• Seasoning salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Crusty French bread, for serving

Directions

For the stock: add all ingredients to a soup pot. Cook until chicken is tender, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove chicken from pot and set aside to cool. Remove and discard bay leaves and onion. You should have approximately 3 quarts of stock. When chicken is cool enough to touch, pick bones clean, discarding bones, skin, and cartilage. Set chicken aside.

For the soup: bring stock back to a boil, add carrots, and cook for 3 minutes. Add celery and continue to cook for 5 to 10 minutes. Add egg noodles and cook according to directions on package. When noodles are done, add chicken, mushrooms, parsley, sherry and rosemary. Add Parmesan and cream, if using. Cook for another 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning, if needed, by adding seasoning salt and pepper. Enjoy along with a nice hot crusty loaf of French bread.

Garlic Dill Pickles

These garlic dills will forever change the way you approach pickles. If you've never canned before, you can make it easier on yourself and make them as refrigerator pickles. However, for those of us who love stashing away a little bit of summer for later in the year, canning instructions are also included.

Ingredients

serves 10 to 12, active time 30 minutes, total time 1 week

• 2 quart kirby cucumbers (approximately 3 pounds)
• 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups filtered water
• 2 tablespoons pickling salt
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled
• 4 teaspoons dill seed
• 2 teaspoons black peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon red chili flakes

Procedures

1. Wash jars thoroughly in warm, soapy water. If you plan on making shelf stable pickles, prepare a boiling water bath canner. Put fresh canning jar lids into a small saucepan with 3 inches of water and set to the barest simmer.
2. Wash and dry kirby cucumbers. Remove blossom end. Cut into chips, spears or leave whole, depending on your preference.
3. Combine vinegar, water and salt in sauce pan and bring to a boil.
4. Equally divide garlic cloves, dill seed, black peppercorns and red chili flakes between jars. Pack prepared cucumbers into jars as tightly as you can without crushing them.
5. Pour the brine into the jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace (that's the amount of space between the surface of the brine and the rim of the jar).
6. Remove any air bubbles from jars by gently tapping them. You can also use a wooden chopstick or plastic utensil to help remove stubborn bubbles.
7. Wipe rims and apply lids and bands (don't screw them on too tightly).
8. If processing jars for shelf stability, lower jars into your processing pot. When water returns to a boil, set a timer for 10 minutes.
9. When time is up, remove jars from canning pot and allow them to cool. When jars are cool enough to handle, check seals.
10. If you choose not to process your jars, let them cool before putting them into the refrigerator. Do note that your jars may seal during the cooling process. However, without the boiling water bath process, that doesn't mean they're shelf stable. Still refrigerate.
11. Let pickles rest for at least one week before eating.