Jam & Sandwich Holiday

Yesterday we were a productive little bunch, as I had hoped we'd be. I really wanted to get the house in order and feel accomplished by the end of this holiday weekend and before Matt went back to work. Between the two of us, we got the lawn mowed, garden weeded, errands run, kitchen cleaned, lunches made for Matt and Riker for the week, and about 6 loads of laundry washed and folded. I love crossing of my to-do list before the start of a work week!

My favorite part of the day was when Riker went down for his nap and I got to work canning about 15 jars of homemade jam.

Last week Matt surprised me with a huge, 20-pound bag of fresh Jersey peaches, knowing that I've wanted to make peach preserves all summer. The peaches were starting to turn bad yesterday, so I made sure to do my jamming and not waste any of the beautiful fruits. 

***

We were starving after our long day of chores, and neither Matt nor I felt much like cooking a big meal. You know sandwiches make their way onto the rotation once a week around here, and last night seemed the perfect night.

In an effort to use up some waning garden produce, I decided to make roasted vegetable and goat cheese baguettes. To make the filling, I simply peeled and sliced two small eggplants, and cut 5 tomatoes in half. Then I drizzled them with olive oil and sprinkled them with salt, pepper, thyme, basil and garlic. I roasted them at 400 degrees for about 35 minutes, flipping them halfway through, until they got nice and caramelized.

In the meantime, I sliced a baguette in half, and spread one half of the bread with olive oil and garlic powder. I toasted the baguette in the oven for about 5 minutes, until it got crispy and slightly golden brown.

Once the bread was toasted, I spread the other half with a little herbed goat cheese. Then I piled on the roasted veggies and we were good to go!

The veggies were chewy and sweet - especially the roasted tomatoes - and the bread was crunchy and salty. Perfect combo.

We ate our sandwiches while watching the finale of Breaking Bad. Is anyone else watching this show? Aaaah what a crazy ending! 

Source

That man is starting to scare me big time.

And with that, it's time to get back into work mode. Have a great Tuesday!

Living up Labor Day

Happy Labor Day Weekend! I hope you're having a fantastic holiday weekend so far. My weekend seems to be flying by. It started on Friday night with our second annual Fantasy Football Draft here at the "Baratta Bar," complete with a group of our friends, a few Cricket Hill Hopnotic IPAs (a Jersey brew I really enjoyed) and some snacks. Matt smoked a turkey in the backyard during the day, so served up some smoked turkey & bacon sliders alongside the typical chips & assorted dips for the hungry bunch.

I was bummed I didn't get Tom Brady on my team this year, but I can't get him every year I guess. I came in second place in our fantasy last year, and am gunning for first this time around. :)

***

LDW festivities continued on Saturday with a housewarming party for our friends Mike and Morrigan, followed by a 30th birthday party for my good friend Lindsay. It was a beautiful day for some outdoor parties.

And yesterday we wrapped up the "fun" part of the weekend with a boat day out at Tices' Shoal, which is a shallow area in the bay near Island Beach State Park. Matt's sister Missy and her husband Corey offered to babysit so we could enjoy an adults-only afternoon - I'm pretty sure Riker had more fun with them than he would've with us anyway. He went on his first bike ride!

How cute is he in that helmet?

Out on the boat we didn't have much sunshine, but that didn't stop our little crew from having fun in the water. We spent most of the day in the bay, but at one point we trotted over to the other side of the island to play in the ocean. The water was so warm, and us girls had a great time taking turns getting tossed up in the air and into the waves.

Matt still has a bum leg, so stayed nice and safe in the giant tube, also known as "party island." ;-)

We finished off the evening with sushi and Chinese food back at Missy & Corey's with our little guy. Great weekend so far.

***

Today is a big day on the homefront; school starts again tomorrow, so we're trying to get everything in order before Matt goes back to work. It'll be his first day in the classroom since he broke his leg in May, so we'll have some adjusting to do around here. I also have 20 pounds of fresh Jersey peaches sitting on my dining room table that need to be jammed and canned before they go bad, so I'm off to start peelin' and dicin'.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Green Tomato Salsa

Believe it or not, tomatoes are still growing on the vines in our backyard. They're starting to taper off at this point, but I think we still have another two weeks to enjoy the golden beauties. I don't want to waste a single one of the fruits, and since you can only eat so many tomato sandwiches and green tomato napoleons, I figured a new green tomato recipe was in order.

This salsa mimics the flavor of a salsa verde in that it's slightly tart and has a similar consistency. It tastes nothing like tomatoes, and is great when slathered on enchiladas or tacos. It's also the perfect complement to grilled seafood - or I imagine, grilled steak or chicken.

To make the salsa, all you do is pulse...

Puree...

Simmer...

And enjoy! I made two jars - one for now, and one that I preserved for later this winter when I'm looking for a little something reminiscent of summertime.

Green Tomato Salsa

Makes 2 pints

Ingredients
6 green tomatoes, chopped in large pieces
1 green pepper, chopped in large pieces
1 small onion, quartered
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup parsley
1 long hot pepper
2 lime zest and juice
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 tsp. red wine vinegar

In a food processor, combine tomatoes, green pepper, onion and garlic. Pulse until well chopped and combined. Add remaining ingredients, and puree until smooth.

Transfer salsa to a pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes. Taste and add additional salt and pepper if needed.

Salsa may be cooled and eaten immediately, or transferred hot into sterilized canning jars (with 1/4 inch headroom) and processed in a hot water bath for 10 minutes. Jars will keep in a cool place for at least 6 months.