Plum vinaigrette (salad dressing)

plums poised and ready to make salad awesome

Super simple summer fare.  A handful of little red plums get jazzed up into this beautiful drizzler.

I used a dressing jar for easy measurements.  These you can find at Goodwill or Salvation Army for maybe 50 cents.  They were big in the 80's when those dressing packets were all the rage with moms who also seemed to be addicted to Crystal light.  Those dressings always had some lying name that sounded sweet and wholesome but was really just loaded with MSG.  Good Seasons or Good Seasonings... or Super Longlife-if-you-Buy-Our-Crap powder.  I dunno.  But the JAR is helpful.  On it there is a mark for Vinegar, Water (I never use that measurement for water but instead the herbs, spices, wine or fruit preserves measurement), and Oil.  You then can blend up to your heart's content without much going awry. 

If you don't have one.  That's okay.  A container that you can reliable close tight so that you can shake it vigorously is in order.  Like a mason jar or a little jam jar.

The measurements if you don't have the specialized jar are:

1 heaping tsp raw sugar or vegan sugar
1/2 tsp sea salt or 1-2 pinches
5 one inch plums or 3 two inch or so on... (this mix is for the sweet-tart blushy colored plums so you may not need sugar at all if they're very sweet)
1/2 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar (not Bragg's brand, others that contain the mother may be fine)
1/2 Cup Olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt or 1-2 pinches
1/4 Cup of sweet sherry or a favorite red wine
1-2 TBSP plum preserves (this will make the vinaigrette a tad more instantly infused so you wont have to wait 1-3 weeks for the infusion)

Chop up plums and add those last to the mix and shake vigorously. Done, you're amazing.
This is delicious on cole slaw instead of whatever wet white stuff some folks like, and greens.  It doesn't end there, but I'm tired can you take over?

Coming to a mouth near you...

Peach gaspacho

Before mixing together blended ingredients

I like to force on summer usually but this one has snuck up on me.  May wasn't cutting it, June just didn't feel right and then all of a sudden I was sweaty and irritated but berries started to appear. AAAAH There you are summer.  I was mad at you but I can forgive you for all the fruit you bring.  Until I'm sick of that too and then we will be on the outs again.

Gaspacho doesn't take much effort at all.  Best of all it doesn't take much cooking at all.  Recipes without the stove are a favorite.  This one requires light stove top activity.  When you use mango, peaches or any delicate fruit it is best to let it sit overnight and have the fruitiness infuse the entire soup.

This recipe yields approximately 5 cups.  It fed 4 people with veggie and fruit sides well.  It will feed 2 people like kings.

• 3 ripe tomatoes
• 3 ripe peaches (the sweeter, peachier the better)
• 1 jalapeno
• 1/2 Medium onion
• handful of cilantro
• salt to taste
• sometimes I'll add some pepper seeds to up the heat
• fresh zucchini slices on the side
• avocado slices on the side

You can add garlic if you wish at any point (simmer it with the tomatoes if you want it a little more mellow) I did not this last time, and it was delicious without it too.

 Cut tomato in their middles the top and bottom facing out and the side on the cutting board and the knife slicing the other side which should be facing up.  By slicing it in half this way you can expel the seeds with one light squeeze.  I'm not too nutty about the seeds remaining, survivors will be eaten at no real cost.  But it is best to not have a very seedy gaspacho.  Roughly chop tomato pieces and put into a pot with a little olive oil enough to prevent sticking and cook just until the tomato has softened and turned bright red-orange.

Finely chop onion and jalapeno, rough cut cilantro and peaches.  These all go into the food processor until small bits remain (which is fine).   I pour everything into a container with a sprinkle of salt and put it in the fridge.

When you are getting ready to eat it just take it out of the fridge for an hour or two and serve it up with avocado slices and big fat salad. This soup travels really well for potlucks. Crostini is awesome with it. Toasted tortilla wedges too.

Lemons and Limes for keeps

I've salted and sugared some limes and tossed them into a jar along with the juice of 4 other limes.  I have also salted some lemons and put those into a jar along with the juice of 3 other lemons. 

The salt will draw out the juice and create a citrus brine for preserving the fruits in.  The only maintenance it needs is to shake the brine a little to coat the lemons and limes respectively every other day (most important during its initial curing of 3 weeks) while visiting your fridge.  Once the brine covers the majority of the citrus, it will keep refrigerated for a year.  This leaves plenty of time to do it all over again the next year.  After about 3 weeks the citrus will be soft and supple and at that point, the rind is soft and edible too.  These are excellent for salads and other Summer refreshment.  When the lemons and limes are this way they qualify as a full-fledged  condiment and can be used just as you would any other.  And, best of all, a little goes a long way and is always an impressive addition.

Instructions on cutting, salting, canning these citrus:

- Meyer are the preferred choice, but really any will do.

- The amount of salt and additional juice depends on the jar size. 1 quart Mason or Kerr jar needs 2 TBSP salt (then add the juice as mentioned below)

- The double quart size needs 4 TBSP of salt

- For the additional juice, you want enough to help give the citrus a boost.  This again depends on the size of jar and how many fruit you choose to do.  1/3 or better of juice/brine is best to start off.   It will continue to make its own brine as the salt does its magic.

- With the limes, I chose a smaller jar as the slices of limes are so much smaller than the lemons that the same amount of wedges fill a much smaller jar.  For limes I also add 2 TBSP vegan sugar along with 2 TBSP sea salt.

• Cut one end off -- enough to reveal some fruit and not just the pith, cut the other end just enough to stand your fruit upright
• Cut downwards from the most cut end toward the stand end along the wedges direction but not severing the citrus entirely through. Repeat in as many wedges as you'd like - I do 6 for each.
• Pour salt into each wedge cut making certain each side of each wedge is well salted.
• Cut and juice the amount of citrus you'd like for the jar you've selected
• Pour 2-4 TBSP salt into the jar (2 for 1 pint-1 quart 4 for a double quart).
• Pour a lesser amount of sugar into the jar if you'd like it to be a touch less tangy in the end (it's rather minimal and I do it for limes
• You can add spices like cloves, cinnamon sticks and allspice to lemons if they are too edgy.  I like it without because they have more uses without the spices added.  Maybe try two little batches?

Now this is really a very general recipe and hasn't many rules.  The basic rules are:

• You want enough salt to keep the citrus and enough to make brine
• You want enough starter brine so the citrus is eventually covered
• You want it to taste like a million dollars and for people to think you're incredible.

You can leave the citrus out overnight to let it stand at room temperature and after that move it to the refrigerator with a shake to coat and tend to it as you think of it.  A good shake should move the salt from the base of the jar and redistribute it.