I say tomato, You say Tomahto

(That's actually how it's now said in our house after a year in London.) But that's another story for another blog...
The food, the food, that's what we're all about here!


Over the past several weeks, I have been receiving lots of tomatoes with our organic food box. What to do, what to do? I've got it! Sun-dried tomatoes!
Oh, wait, this is London, in February. We get sun, just not vast quantities for days on end. How about using the sun in my oven? Now that's the ticket, oven dried tomatoes for pasta sauce, pizzas, salads, fish, the list goes on...


Oven "Sun" Dried Tomatoes


8 or more tomatoes, cut across. You can use any type that you like, or have too many of.


Olive oil for drizzling


3 to 5 garlic cloves still in the skin


sea salt


dried herbs - rosemary, thyme, basil - optional


sugar - optional if the tomatoes aren't sweet enough


Place the tomatoes cut side up on a tray. Drizzle with a bit of the olive oil. Sprinkle a little sea salt over each half, as well as the sugar if needed. Top with the herbs, if desired, I didn't use any here. Scatter the garlic cloves around the tray. 

Place in a 250 degree oven. Start checking the tomatoes at 2 hours. How they finish is a matter of personal taste and how your oven works. 

In my oven, 3.5 hours gives a chewy, still moist tomato, that is caramelized on the outside. 
To store, pack in a jar with olive oil, keeping in mind that the oil, must come all the way over the top.  Or pack into the freezer for a quick addition to soups, and sauces.


Personally, all mine will get roughly chopped and mixed with onions and ground turkey for a nice change to typical spaghetti with meat balls!

Happy Valentines Day!

My mom used to make heart shaped coconut macaroons and dip them halfway in chocolate. mmmmm
There are so many macaroon recipes out there, try your favorite, or use this easy one! I


Coconut Macaroons Dipped in Chocolate

Ingredients

• 4  large egg whites
• 2  teaspoons  vanilla
• 2/3  cup  sugar*
• 1/4  cup  all-purpose flour
• 3 1/2  cups  desiccated coconut (available at health food stores) *
• 
  
• 2  tablespoons  butter
• 5  ounces  dark chocolate, chopped

Heart shaped cookie cutter

Preparation

In a bowl, with an electric mixer on high speed, beat egg whites until frothy. Beat in vanilla, sugar, and flour until well blended. Stir in coconut.

Holding cookie cutter on parchment lined baking sheet, fill with about 1heaped tablespoon of coconut batter  for a small heart and 2 tablespoons for a larger one. Gently press mixture down so the thickness is even across the cookie. Slowly lift off the cookie cutter using the spoon to help press the cookie through onto the parchment. Keep them about 2 inches apart, though they shouldn't spread much. 

Bake in a 325° oven until macaroons are golden, about 20 minutes; if baking more than one pan at a time, switch pan positions halfway through baking. With a wide spatula, transfer macaroons to racks to cool completely.

 In a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water (bottom of bowl should not touch water), stir butter and chocolate often until smooth, 5 minutes. Hold a macaroon on one edge and dip other side into chocolate to coat half the cookie. Shake off excess chocolate. Set macaroon on a waxed paper-lined baking sheet. Repeat to dip remainder. Chill, uncovered, until chocolate is firm, about 30 minutes.

Makes about 24 small hearts or 12 large hearts

* If you can't find desiccated coconut, use the regular shredded kind, but decrease the sugar by about 1/2. Or leave it in if you like them really sweet!

Healthy recipe, Naughty recipe...

So it's summer. That means healthy and not-so-healthy are fighting out the battle at our house.
Fast becoming a staple to us is a tasty Mediterranean salad and already a staple - Pork Ribs rubbed with a tasty seasoning. Both are adaptable to what you have on hand and what you find to your taste.

Med Salad
1 to 2 cups of cooked large couscous - small couscous is fine as well, but I prefer the larger type
1 tsp finely chopped fresh oregano or 1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp finely chopped fresh mint leaves
1/2 to 1 whole red, orange, or yellow bell pepper
2 to 4 diced small tomatoes
1 small or 1/2 large cucumber diced
1 to 2 green onions finely sliced
1/3 cup pitted kalamata olives
1/3 to 1/2 cup diced feta or halloumi cheese
1/8 cup tasted pine nuts
Optional - diced grilled chicken


Dressing
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Make dressing by combining vinegar, oil and salt and pepper. Use more or less oil to taste, but quite a bit of dressing is needed because the couscous will absorb some. Set aside.

Cook couscous according to package. After draining, set aside to cool. If using dried oregano, mix into the hot couscous.
When cooled, mix the couscous with all the rest of the ingredients, including the dressing. Refrigerate until serving time.
Remember to taste as you make this salad. The key is to tweak the veggies, herbs, and dressing to your taste.


Now for the Naughty! Taste the rub before you use it. You might want it spicier, or with more garlic or chili powder.

Ribs - MB Style
1 slab of pork ribs

Rub
3 Tbsp Chili Powder
1 1/2 Tbsp Paprika
2 Tbsp Granulated Garlic or Garlic Powder
1 Tbsp Mustard Powder
1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper

3 Tbsp Kosher Salt

Optional BBQ Sauce or Cider Vinegar

Preheat oven or grill to 350 degrees.
For a longer marinade, make up the rub without the salt and rub most into the meat side of the ribs and a little onto the underside as well.
For a short marinade of about an hour, make up the rub with the salt and rub into the meat as described above.
Cook the ribs for about 45 minutes, or until the meat starts to shrink back from the bone. At that point brush on optional bbq sauce and cook for another 10 minutes to until glazed. Or a quick brush of cider vinegar before serving is tasty as well. Or nothing at all is just as tasty - all according to your taste!