Tomato Jam

The weather is still all over the place and my tomato crop is still the bomb. Luckily Pinterest came into my life a few months ago, because I would have never thought to look up a recipe for tomato jam.  The pin was a recipe from Bliss (please check out her blog).  I had a little less than 4 pounds of tomatoes, so I adjusted the other ingredients accordingly.  Actually I guessed. 

 

It looks pretty good in the glass.  It tastes so much better.  This afternoon I had a smear on my ham and sourdough bread sandwich.  Tomorrow I am trying it on grilled cheese.

Now my tomatoes aren't ripening fast enough.

Summer is Back

Well, that might be a little overstated.   The title of this post should probably read  "The Sun is Back", because the despite mostly sunny skies we only had a high of about 21º C or 71º F today.  I guess after days of rain it doesn't take much to get that feeling of Summer.

My tomatoes don't seem to care about the weather though.   For the past few years they hadn't really done all that well, so this year I only planted two plants:  a San Marzano and a cherry tomato. Had I only known, I would have planted more.

Figures.  But I really shouldn't complain.  Instead I will make a simple tomato sauce and enjoy it this evening with my two guys.

Happy Monday everyone!

Pavlova in a Bowl

Last year a neighbor made this dessert for her Birthday party and I have since made it on several special occasions for my family.  I have previously made Pavlova, but this is a lot quicker and equally delicious.

Recipe for about 10-12 people:

10 oz Meringue Cookies
32 oz Frozen Raspberries
30 oz Whipping Cream

Crumble the meringues.  If you have small ones, like I did, then reserve a large handful for a decorative last layer.  Whip the cream until it begins to thicken (soft peaks - should still be slightly pourable).

In a large bowl layer crumbled meringue cookies, frozen raspberries and whipped cream. Repeat layers.  Refrigerate for 3 hours. 

Done and enjoy!

Brownie Improv

On Friday I tried a new brownie recipe. Actually, probably my first that didn't come out of a box.  I made the double recipe and I didn't have two pans that were the size suggested.  So I came up with this improv.

 

I folded the parchment paper into a triangle at the end and used a silicone potholder to hold it in place.  Violà, it worked!

The brownies were for dessert on New Year's Eve and were a hit.  I received several comments along the line of how typically American they were.  Had to laugh to myself because the recipe was from an English bloke.