Goal: Burn his face off spicy!

It's been years and years since we've made salsa. I'm pretty sure it's because the last time we tried to make spicy salsa for Andy and we failed... so we had to make another batch and give it another try so we just had so much salsa sitting on our shelves. Our garden is very busy producing tomatoes this year, which hasn't happened for a few years, so salsa was on the plan for canning! This is my friend Mandie's recipe and it's a huge hit. It's fresh and tastes great. We did our best to spicy it up for Andy. Nicholas and I went to the grocery store and bought as many hot peppers as we could reasonably do. We even broke the self check out! Ok, we didn't... but it did freak out and stop working when we tried to scan the peppers. We wore gloves and used a chopper and included all the seeds for him. For us we did some jalapeños but no seeds. We were very careful not to pepper ourselves. I canned 31 jars on Labor Day, the next day? He ate an entire jar of the spicy salsa... you could say he liked it.
One tip I tried and true tip to avoid breaking jars - warm the salsa first. I've seen some recipes that want you to cook it down - I'm not saying that, just to warm it up. I do the same thing with canning tomatoes warm up the tomatoes or salsa before putting into the cool jars - this helps avoid the shock of the cold tomato mix into the hot water and fewer broken jars and having to start over on your canner full of clean water... which is a pain! Also don't over tighten your lids... I had help a few weeks ago with pears and had some weird issues and realized my helper was over tightening things so I had a broken jar and a buckled lid. Appreciate the help - but the right help. Enjoy this salsa recipe - it's great.

Mandie’s Salsa
Makes 10-12 pints
What you need!
12 cups heaping tomatoes chopped
2 cups green peppers chopped
3 large onions chopped
jalapeños - 1/3 c. (mild) - 1/2 c. (medium) - 1- cup (hot)
6 cloves garlic minced
1/2 bunch cilantro chopped
Mix above ingredients in a large bowl
Mix together:
12 oz. tomato paste
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons salt
1 cup vinegar
Add tomato sauce ingredients to salsa. Poor into sterilized bottles and process in boiling water bath for 20 minutes.

Babysitting basil waiting for the motherload of tomatoes

For most of the summer I'm babying my basil just waiting for a few tomatoes to ripen so I can add them together and make Bruschetta. Years ago when I was helping with VBS (we are talking like 25+ years ago) we had a volunteer bring us a bowl of this and crunchy bread slices to pile it on. Amazing. She gave us the recipe without measurements so I'm giving it to you that way. This is one of those recipes that you add how much you like of each thing - to taste. I made it a day early for a few reasons - I had way too much going on and it tastes better once the flavors meld a little and sometimes the onion and garlic aren't as sharp. this time I grated my garlic so no one would get a spicy chunk and ruin their week. This tomatoey goodness is great on toasted bread slices, cold or hot with pasta, and even chicken! It's summer in a bowl. Now would someone tell my body not to hate tomatoes because that would be really neato...

Tomato Basil Crostini (Bruschetta)
What you need!
Fresh plum tomatoes – halved, seeded and diced
Fresh basil leaves, stacked, rolled and sliced thin
Fresh garlic cloves, halved and “Smooshed”
Sweet onion; diced fine
Red wine vinegar to taste
Extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt; to taste
Ground black pepper
Italian or French baguette bread sliced diagonally 1/2in thin; grilled or toasted in the oven

Make it!
Season diced tomatoes in a bowl with salt and pepper. Add garlic and onions and toss. Drizzle olive oil and vinegar to taste. Mix well. Just before serving add basil leaves. When absolutely ready to eat, place grilled bread on large platter. Scoop spoonfuls of salad atop crostini.
Best when salad is refrigerated a few hours before serving.

New Lenox bakers earn lots of ribbons despite mom's sad attempt at baking

The Will County Fair this year meant the Raatjes family baked all the things... cookies, brownies, focaccia, cornbread, and even scotcharoos! I saw that turtle brownies were an entry and decided to give it a go. My brownies turned out delicious and gooey - but terrible for looks and serving and sitting at a hot fair for a week. I also couldn't get caramel at Aldi, so sweetened condensed milk to the rescue. I let it cook in the crockpot for 10 hours and still again... it wasn't dark enough. I think I'm doing something wrong with that... so into a pot to cook it down a little more. I went to grab my pecans to roast them with butter and salt.... No pecans. Ugh... back to the grocery store. So these brownies? Amazing with a scoop of ice cream and some extra hot fudge, on a plate for a fair judge? Ehhhh prob not so great. I did win a third place ribbon... I mean how many entries? I hope at least three. Haha!! We all did great with our baked goods - I have some great baker kids! It's great to see them embrace it and show it off.

Turtle Brownies
Boxed Brownie Mix and ingredients listed on the back
1 cup whole pecans - chopped coarsely
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 tsp salt
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Set can of sweetened condensed in crockpot on low covered in water for 10-12 hours, let cool completely before opening.
Melt butter in small pan, add pecans and salt. Cook until you can smell the pecans, then turn off.
Mix up brownies as listed on package with required ingredients. Add half of nuts.
Pour half of brownie mix into sprayed 9 x 9 glass baking dish. Add cooled can of now caramel formerly sweetened condensed milk. Dot top with rest of brownie mix and rest of nuts. Use knife to swirl.
Bake as package directions state, may need longer.

Cheese with a side of spinach

The kids had a Youth Group BBQ and while we could have gone in a mini date night - I had jars in the canner also a plan to make this stromboli. I wasn't sure if this was going to be a hit for the kids but it sure was for me! I found a package of pizza dough in the freezer to make this even easier. I tossed that in a bowl and at one point into the oven with the light on to hurry things along a bit. I mean sure it had freezer burn and it's clear I need to clean out my freezer since it was a happy surprise to find that in the freezer. I think this was a copycat recipe of some sort but I have no idea what the original was supposed to taste like, but I can tell you that this version was fantastic. It was great on reheat as well. This was a super easy delicious dinner.

Spinach Stromboli
For pizza dough:
2 cups plus 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, extra for dusting
1 teaspoon sea salt
3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup lukewarm water
For assembly:
1 lb. pizza dough
1/3 cup finely grated parmigiano cheese
4 cups whole milk mozzarella, grated
2 cups frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1/2 cup whole milk ricotta
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 egg yolk, beaten
1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Olive oil, for drizzling
1 jar marinara sauce, warmed for serving

Mix the pizza dough in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook starting with flour, salt, and yeast until combined. Add warm water and olive oil to the flour mixture and mix until a sticky dough forms. (7 - 10 minutes or until the dough doesn’t stick to the bottom)
Let dough proof in a greased bowl covered with a damp tea towel or plastic wrap for 1 hour in a warm place. Stretch and fold each corner once doubled in size and let proof for another hour. If using store-bought dough, let the dough come to room temperature for at least 1 - 2 hours.
Prep a sheet tray lined with parchment paper with olive oil and prepare your egg wash whisking together your egg yolk and water.
Mix your ricotta, garlic, chili flake, and squeezed spinach in a bowl, then season liberally with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside
Roll your 2nd proofed pizza dough out on a flour-dusted surface to a half-sheet tray-sized rectangle. Use more flour as needed to prevent sticking. Keep the dough moving.
Drizzle the middle of the rolled dough with olive oil, then sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Add all your grated mozzarella cheese over the parm, then spoon over your spinach mixture. Starting with the side of the dough closest to you, roll the dough over the fillings and pull the fillings together to make a nice tight roll. Roll away from you as you tighten the roll to form a nice thick cylinder.
Place the roll seam-side-down and brush with egg wash. Cut 45 ° slits all across the log and top with sesame seeds.
Baked at 450 °F on the lowest rack of the oven for 18 - 21 minutes or until golden.
Remove from the oven and brush with olive oil for glistening and softening the stromboli.
Place on a wire rack to cool for 5 - 10 minutes, then slice and serve with warm marinara to dip.

Too complicated for a Friday? Maybe but it was good!

Our freezer needs some work... like we need to eat what is in it because we have a quarter of a cow coming at some point, so we need to work on what's in there. Sure, we keep adding jam, pork chops, chicken, peaches too! MUST clean out the freezer! I ended up taking some chicken thighs out to make some room for pork chops, so needed to find a use for them. This Herb Chicken fit the bill. I also made it with egg noodles so my kids were happy to add butter and garlic salt to that... Andy and I soaked our noodles in this herb sauce which was fantastic I might add. This recipe was wonderful. I mean pounding chicken, dredging, and cooking it in oil is a pain in the butt. It is, I'm not going to lie about that. It's messy and you are always wondering if this stuff is actually cooked. But is it worth it? 100% worth it for a great dish. On a Friday when I'm ready to be done with the week worth it? I mean I guess... that's what I did. And yes, we sat and ate as a family and were thankful for a great dinner.

Herb Chicken
Chicken
2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 1.5 lbs.
Salt/Pepper
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
Sauce
1 cup chicken broth
10.5 oz. cream of chicken soup
¾ cup sour cream
¼ cup milk
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Seasonings
1 teaspoon EACH: onion powder, garlic powder, basil, oregano
½ teaspoon EACH: mustard powder, dried parsley
Fresh Parsley, to garnish, optional

Combine the chicken broth and seasonings. Set aside. Measure out remaining ingredients before beginning.
Slice the chicken in half lengthwise to create 2-3 thinner slices. Cover with saran wrap and use the textured side of a meat mallet to pound it to ½ inch thick. Pat the chicken dry.
Lightly sprinkle each side of the chicken with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Dredge in flour and tap off excess.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken in batches for 4-5 minutes per side, until a golden crust has developed. Set aside.
Turn the heat off and add the chicken broth/seasoning mixture (from step 1 of prep work). Use a silicone spatula to "clean" the bottom and sides of the skillet.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in the cream of chicken soup until fully combined. Gradually stir in the sour cream until combined, followed by the milk, then the lemon juice. Make sure the heat isn't too high, you don't want the sour cream to curdle.
Add the Chicken Back and Serve
Add the chicken back and spoon sauce over the top. Let heat through for 5 minutes or so. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired and serve!