August 23, 2011: Vegetable Canning Recipe

When it comes down to it, canning vegetables like green beans, peas, and corn is quite easy. You just need to have the right equipment and follow the formula for success.

Canned corn in half pint, pint and quart size jars; jar vise for placing filled jars in your pressure cooker and taking them out, and corn shucker device.

The first step is preparing the vegetables. This year I bought a corn shucker device, shown in the photo above. It makes the process of removing the kernels from the ears of corn a breeze and it was worth every penny (I bought this one locally from a kitchen supply store for $12). Green beans need to have the stem removed, as well as the tough vein along its length, if possible. Then snap the beans into pieces that will fit in your jars, no more than 2 inches in length. For peas, you simply need to remove them from the pods. Carrots should be peeled and cut into slices about half an inch thick.

Now is a good time to get your pressure cooker going. Place a canning rack in the bottom and fill the pot halfway with water. Bring it to a gentle boil. While you’re at it, start a teapot full of water to boiling because you’ll need it soon.

Now comes the fun part. Simply place your vegetables in sterilized Mason jars (use your dishwasher since the temperature gets higher than you can stand washing by hand). Make sure you leave a half inch head space, which is about at the bottom of the screw channels at the top of the jar.

Now it’s time to add a bit of salt; use one half teaspoon for pint jars, one teaspoon for quarts. If you want to cut down on your sodium intake, halve those measurements. Take the boiling water in your teapot and fill up each jar to within half an inch of the top. Make sure the contents of your jars are covered.

Place new lids on the top of each jar and screw on a band, tightening just to finger tight.

Use a jar vise to grab each jar and carefully place it in your pressure cooker. Leave at least a tiny amount of space in between each jar. If you’re using half pint jars, you can place one on top of another to make more room. Fasten the lid on your pressure cooker but don’t yet put the pressure regulator (I call this the “jigger”) on top yet. You need to let hot steam exhaust from the whole where the jigger goes for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes of exhausting, place the pressure regulator on top. Now follow directions in your pressure cooker’s booklet for the amount of pressure required to cook at your altitude. Vegetables like those I described above shouldn’t take more than 20 to 30 minutes to process but since I live at a high elevation, I have to use 14 pounds of pressure; if you live below 2,000 feet in elevation you can use 11 pounds of pressure. After the pot gets up to the correct amount of pressure, reduce the heat to keep it steady.

Set a timer for the appropriate number of processing minutes. When the time is complete, turn the heat off and allow the cooker to reduce pressure to zero. You can slightly speed up this process by gently swishing a wet rag across the top of the pressure cooker. When no more pressure is left, remove the lid. Your jars of vegetables will still be boiling, so be very careful as you remove them with the jar vise. Place the jars on a cloth in an area where they won’t be disturbed for at least 12 hours.

August 11, 2011: Fresh Corn Risotto Recipe

This is the side dish I made with yesterday’s Garlic Basil Pork Tenderloin. I love using fresh, seasonal ingredients and I happened to have corn on the cob and basil on hand so this was the perfect meal. This recipe was also adapted from the August issue of Relish magazine.

Fresh Corn Risotto

2 corn on the cob

2 T. milk

1 T. olive oil

1 T. butter

1 large shallot, thinly sliced

1 cup rice (Arborio is best but I used Jasmine rice with nice results)

3 to 4 cups chicken broth

1 t. minced parsley

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cut the corn kernels from the uncooked cobs. Place half of it in a blender and add the milk. Puree; set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the olive and butter to medium. Add the shallots and cook for a few minutes, just until they begin to soften. Add the rice and cook for a few minutes more. Add the parsley and one-half cup of the chicken broth, stirring frequently until absorbed. Add the corn kernels and pureed corn. Continue adding chicken broth one-half cup at a time, cooking and stirring until absorbed before adding more. Minimum total cooking time is 20 minutes. Just before serving season with salt and pepper and add Parmesan cheese; stir gently to combine.

Serves 4 – 6

July 30, 2011: Buttery Onion Corn on the Cob Recipe

I have to admit I got this recipe straight from my latest Taste of Home magazine. It sounded really good so I had to try it and, sure enough, it was very tasty! This is another unique way to serve the bounty of corn on the cob sure to be in your garden or at the farmer’s markets very soon.

I decided to add leeks to this dish instead of making 4 corn on the cobs.

Buttery Onion Corn on the Cob

8 T. butter
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
4 ears of corn, shucked

Melt the butter and combine with the onion soup mix. Place the ears of corn in a square of foil and brush with the onion mixture. Wrap the foil around the corn and seal the edges. Bake in a 375 degree oven or throw on the barbecue grill for about 30 minutes, until corn is cooked.

Serves four.

July 8, 2011: Grilled Potato Salad

Wow! What happened to Blogger? New changes caused me to miss a couple days of posting so I'm sorry if you were looking forward to a new one that didn't appear! Why fix what isn't broken? Oh well, I've got to get used to the new format, I reckon. So... getting back on track...

Although my favorite type of potato salad is the traditional, mayo-sauced version with that yellow tinge, every now and then I break out of the mold and convince my family to try something new. This is one of those recipes.

I happened to have some of the corn salad recipe leftover from the previous night’s meal, so I simply used that in place of the corn.

Grilled Potato Salad

2 pounds red potatoes, cleaned and quartered
3 T. olive oil
½ t. kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 can corn or 3 ears of fresh corn, shucked
2 T. jarred, diced pimiento
2 T. minced yellow or orange bell pepper
¼ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup Greek yogurt
1 t. garlic salt
½ t. paprika
1 T. fresh or freeze dried cilantro, minced

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Toss together potatoes, olive oil, salt, and pepper in a 13 x 9” baking dish. Roast for 45 minutes or until potatoes are soft. Remove from the oven and cool slightly. Cut into 1 ½” chunks.

Mix together remaining ingredients. Add cut potatoes.

Serve warm.

July 7, 2011: Grilled Corn Salad

Here’s a slightly different way to serve grilled corn with your summer barbecues. This recipe is similar to the Parmesan crusted corn recipe I shared with you last month but this one capitalizes on the sweet flavor of fresh corn. Try it and see what you think!

Grilled Corn Salad

3 ears corn
2 T. mayonnaise
1 T. jarred, diced pimiento
Juice of one key lime (about 1 tablespoon)
1 t. garlic salt
1 t. honey
1 t. dried parsley

Prepare corn by removing silk and husks (if wrapping in foil). Grill over medium indirect heat for 20 minutes or until done, turning often.

Remove corn from the cob. Combine with remaining ingredients. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves 4.

June 12, 2011: Parmesan Crusted Grilled Corn Recipe

If you’re looking for something a bit different to do with your grilled side dishes this summer, look no further than this recipe for parmesan crusted corn on the cob. It not only makes a beautiful presentation next to a platter of ribs or steaks, it’s quite yummy – my niece thought this was the best corn she’d ever tasted!

Parmesan Crusted Grilled Corn on the Cob

3 ears of corn
2 T. butter, softened
2 T. mayonnaise
¼ cup fine bread crumbs (freshly made from whole wheat bread is best)
¼ cup Italian cheese blend (parmesan, mozzarella, and romano)
1 t. dried parsley, or 1 T. minced fresh parsley
½ t. garlic salt

Carefully peel back the corn husks. Remove the silk, then press husks back up over ears. Soak in water for at least half an hour.

Meanwhile, combine softened butter and mayonnaise; set aside. Combine bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, and garlic salt on a plate; set aside.

Remove from water and grill corn over direct, medium heat, turning often to avoid burning the husks. Grill just until done and the kernels are somewhat browned, about 15 – 20 minutes.

Take the corn off the grill and remove the husks (be careful – the corn will be hot!). If you wish to serve 6 people, cut the ears in half. Brush each ear with butter-mayo mixture, then roll in the bread crumb mixture.

Serves 3 – 6