Salmon Stuffed Cucumber Slices

One of the very best things about social media is the ease with which we can share creative ideas.  I particularly enjoy Facebook and Pinterest for this.  They’re a constant source of information and inspiration to me.  Sometimes, though, things don’t turn out exactly as I hope they will. 

Like everyone who tries lots of new projects, I have my share of failures.  When they happen, I look back at the process and make an assessment.  Is it worth trying again?  Or is it simply an idea that’s not right for me and should be set aside? 

I don’t often share my failed attempts with my readers but, when a failure can be turned into a success it seems worthwhile to share the process.  I figure folks already know I’m human and therefore bound to mess up from time to time, and it’s important to realize the value in learning from my mistakes.  Maybe if someone sees that I can occasionally pull success from failure, they’ll be inspired to try again too.

A couple of weeks ago, one of my Facebook friends, Celeine Sandlin, shared a good idea on Aunt B’s Kitchen:   She hollows out cucumber, stuffs it with salmon, and then slices the cucumber into individual portions.  

Her dish sounded both simple to make and very tasty so I decided to give it a try.

Here are the ingredients I started with:

• An English cucumber
• 1 tin of sockeye salmon
• A tub of herb and garlic flavoured spreadable cream cheese
• Red onion
• Red bell pepper

Since I was in the mood to try something new, I decided to try a garnishing idea too:  

Somewhere on Pinterest (I can’t recollect exactly where) I’d seen some very pretty cucumber rounds that had little notches carved through the skin.  The notches were, apparently, made by drawing a fork down the length of the cucumber so that the fork’s tines cut through the peel.

Simple enough, right?

Um...Not so much.

I drew a fork down the length of the cucumber but, although the tines did pierce the skin, there were no pretty little notches left behind.  Instead, I ended up with some crooked gashes down the length of the cucumber, edged with ragged bits of peel.

Since the fork didn’t work and the cucumber was already fairly messy I decided to see if the pointed tip of my vegetable peeler would do a better job.  I drew it down some of the grooves already made by the fork.  It was more visible but also even more messy and ragged. 

Clearly those Pinterest folk knew something I didn’t!

I had only one cucumber and suppertime was drawing near.  There was no time to go to the store for another cucumber and clearly I couldn’t glue in the pieces I’d scraped away.  I got out my paring knife and cut around the damage.  The resulting groove was tidier, but V-shaped and quite deep.

(Click on the image for a larger view.  You'll see my knife cut at the top, 

fork grooves in the middle, 

and the mess my peeler made at the bottom.)

Oh well. 

I forged on.

It seemed to me that it would be easier to cut thick slices of cucumber and then hollow out each slice individually so that’s what I did.  The grooves I cut to repair my garnishing experiment were so deep that when I removed the seeds from the centers of the cucumber slices they barely held together.

They were useable though so I continued on.

I cut both the onion and the pepper into a find dice then I put the salmon and vegetables in a bowl, and mixed them together.  

I mixed in about a third of my container of cream cheese, adjusted the seasoning with a little salt and pepper, then spooned the filling into the prepared slices.  They looked like this:

In the fairy tale land of pretty hors d’oeuvres my salmon stuffed cucumber slices might have been the ugly step sisters, but they were edible so we had them for dinner.

The flavour of the finished slices was acceptable but a little bland, and the moisture from the cucumber watered down the filling.  In this first incarnation they weren't a dish I would make again, but I had some of the salmon mixture left over and I liked the idea well enough to think it worth a second attempt.

I picked up a cucumber on my way home from work the next day and tried my project again.

This time, I cut my slices and hollowed them out, then used a sharp knife with a long thin blade to cut away thin strips of peel from the each slice, leaving alternating strips of light cucumber flesh and dark cucumber peel.

Still not perfect, but far better than my previous attempt.

I salted the cucumber slices fairly liberally and then placed them on a kitchen towel to drain for about an hour. 

While the cucumber slices were draining, I amended the salmon mixture.  I added in some additional onion, some chopped fresh dill, and a dash of Frank’s Red Hot Sauce.  That pepped things up a bit!

When the cucumbers had drained, I patted them dry with the kitchen towel and then spooned the stuffing into them.  I garnished each slice with a sprig of dill.

The second attempt was worth the effort.  These salmon stuffed cucumber slices were far prettier than the first ones.  The cucumbers still had good texture, and their flavour benefitted from the extra salt.  The filling was less watery and had a more appealing taste.

They disappeared from the plate in no time. 

I’m sure my third attempt will be even better.  

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This post is linked to the Hearth and Soul Blog Hop hosted by The 21st Century Housewife, Premeditated Leftovers, Zesty South Indian Kitchen, Penniless Parenting, Elsa Cooks, and Savoring Today, to Keep it Real Thursday hosted by Beyond the Peel, to Foodie Friends Friday hosted by Not Your Ordinary Recipes, to Foodie Friends Linky Party hosted by Walking on Sunshine, Busy Vegetarian Mom, Robyn’s View,  A lil Country Sugar, Everything in the Kitchen Sink, From Calculus to Cupcakes, This and That,  Family Food Finds, Cindys Recipes and Writings, Luscious Delights, Spatulas on Parade, Chef Picky Kid, to Gallery of Favourites hosted by The 21st Century Housewife and Premeditated Leftovers, to The Pity Party hosted by Thirty Handmade Days, to Foodie Friday hosted by Rattlebridge Farm, 

 

 

What We Ate August 6 - 12

The local farm markets are full to bursting with beautiful produce.  My friends are giving me gifts from their orchards and gardens.  Wild fruit is growing in abundance.  The salmon are running and my fisherman friends are sharing their catch. 

You’d think that we’d eat more healthily at this time of year than any other, but often that’s not the case.  With my canner going for hours and the weather being so warm, I’m often ill inclined to turn my hand to meal preparation.  Take out is never so appealing to me as it is during the hot days of August, and making a meal of potato chips straight from the bag – never considered in the wintertime – can seem a perfectly reasonable alternative.

This year we’re trying hard to avoid buying take out and striving to eat proper meals, even on days when our scheduling’s crazy or it’s too darned hot to cook.  Quick and easy is often still the order of the day but, all in all, I think we’ve done pretty well this past week.

Here’s what we ate:

Monday, August 6:

• Breakfast – Homemade yogurt and fresh cherries
• Supper – Farmstead waffles topped with eggs scrambled with onions, bell peppers, and onion, roasted cherry tomatoes

Tuesday, August 7:

• Breakfast – Cheddar corn muffins, apple jelly, oranges
• Supper – A salad of red leaf lettuce, shredded carrot, shredded beet, red onion, and chick peas, served with homemade ranch dressing.  Peanut butter cookies for dessert

Wednesday, August 8:

• Breakfast – Five Little Chefs' egg in a hole grilled cheese sandwiches, oranges
• Supper – Ground beef and onions in beer gravy over brown rice, steamed broccoli and carrots, applesauce and vanilla ice cream

Thursday, August 9:

• Breakfast – Yogurt, granola, and peach parfaits
• Supper – Fish sticks, potato salad, carrot sticks, bell pepper spears, radishes, cantaloupe

Friday, August 10:

• Breakfast – Poached eggs on toast
• Supper – Brats on the barbecue, foil wrapped yams cooked on the barbecue, slaw of red cabbage, red onion, and carrot in an herb vinaigrette, apple crisp

Saturday, August 11:

• Breakfast – Leftover apple crisp and yogurt
• Supper – Homemade flat bread, feta tzatziki, grilled asparagus, tomatoes and bell peppers tossed together in a red wine vinaigrette

Sunday, August 12:

• Breakfast – Peanut butter and banana sandwiches on wholewheat bread
• Supper – Twice baked potatoes stuffed with chili style beans (from a tin) and topped with grated mozzarella, a slaw of shredded carrot, shredded yellow zucchini, and finely juilienned radish, tossed in homemade ranch dressing

Cherry Oatmeal Muffins

When I canned my sweet cherry pie filling, one of the jars didn’t seal.  I used the contents of the unsealed jar to make these muffins.

This recipe actually originates with my husband, who came up with it a few months ago while treating me to breakfast in bed.  I liked them so much that I asked him to teach me how to make them.

Cherry Oatmeal Muffins aren’t the prettiest muffins you'll ever make, but they have lovely flavour and they bake up with a pleasant crisp outer crust.  We like to eat them with cream cheese, brie or camembert, or with a creamy chevre. 

To make Cherry Oatmeal Muffins, you’ll need:

• 1 pint jar (just over 1-1/2 cups) of sweet cherry pie filling.  (If you don’t have this, commercially canned pie filling can be substituted.)
• 1 cup canola or other neutrally flavoured oil
• 1-1/2 cups sugar
• almond extract (I measure this into the cap of the extract bottle and use 1 capful.  It’s probably about 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon.)
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups all purpose flour (You can substitute up to 1 cup of whole wheat flour here if you want to)
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Combine the pie filling, oil, sugar, and almond extract in a large bowl.  Beat the eggs and add them in too.  Stir until well combined.

In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Add the dry ingredients to the pie filling mixture and stir just until the ingredients are combined.

Portion the muffin batter into oiled muffin pans.  (I got 18 muffins out of this batch.)

Bake the muffins at 350F for about 25 minutes, until they’re browned and spring back lightly to the touch. 

Because the sugar in these muffins caramelizes and can have a tendency to over-brown, you may want to turn the oven off at 20 minutes and let the muffins finish baking in the residual heat.

Cherry Oatmeal Muffins can be served either warm or at room temperature.  They will keep two or three days if stored in an airtight container.  They freeze well.

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This post is linked to Gallery of Favorites hosted by Premeditated Leftovers and The 21st Century Housewife, the Pity Party hosted by Thirty Handmade Days, to Foodie Friday hosted by Rattlebridge Farm, to Strut Your Stuff Saturdays at Six Sisters' Stuff, to Weekend Potluck hosted by Sunflower Supper Club, to Scrumptious Sunday hosted by Addicted to Recipes, to Makin' You Crave Monday hosted by Mrs. Happy Homemaker, to Busy Monday hosted by A Pinch of Joy, 

 

   


 

    

Sweet Cherry Pie Filling

A couple of weeks ago, one of our local farm markets was selling Lapin cherries (sweet cherries) for $19.80 for a 20 pound case.  

That's a big deal!  Only a couple of weeks before that, cherries had been selling for $5.00/pound!  It was a work night when I came upon them but I bought a case anyway.  (I probably would have bought more but common sense, in the form of my husband's voice in my ear, prevailed.)

We enjoy canned cherries but, even more than cherries canned in syrup, we find that we enjoy sweet cherry pie filling.  Not that we actually use it much for pies - we rarely make a cherry pie - but it makes an excellent cherry crisp, or cherry muffins, or a filling for cake during the dark winter months when fresh cherries are but a fond memory.

Since common sense had prevailed and I wouldn't be likely to find a case of cherries at the price again, I decided to forgo canning them in syrup and made the whole 20 pounds into pie filling.  I canned it in pints and now have 20 jars lined up in my pantry, just waiting for wintertime baking.

Here's my recipe.  Please note that while I am an enthusiastic home canner, I'm not an authority on the subject.  If you're canning cherry pie filling (or anything else), purchase a reputable canning guide book. (Putting Food By and the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving are both very good.)  Review their instructions on safe canning practices, then follow them to the letter.  Canning is no place for approximation or improvisation.  Food safety is a science and safe practice is, quite literally, a matter of life and death.

To can Sweet Cherry Pie Filling, you'll need:

• Sweet cherries (Lapins or Bings both work very well), washed, cut in half, and pitted

and, for every 8 cups of prepared cherries:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup quick cooking tapioca
• 3/4 teaspoon almond extract

Combine the cherries, sugar, and tapioca in a large pot and stir them gently so that the sugar is distributed throughout the fruit.   (My pot holds 24 cups of prepared fruit - about half of my 20 pound case) so I mixed in 3 cups of sugar and 3/4 cup tapioca.)

Cook the cherry mixture over medium low heat until it boils and thickens, stirring occasionally so that the mixture heats through evenly and doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.  Stir gently!  You don't want to break up the cherries any more than you have to.

While the cherries are heating through, prepare your canning jars.  Wash them either in your dishwasher or in hot soapy water, then put them in a large pot.  Add enough water to cover them by at least 2 inches and bring them to a boil.  Reduce the heat to hold the water at a simmer until you're ready to use the jars.

Prepare sealer lids for your jars according to the manufacturer's directions.

Fill your canner with water and bring it to a boil.

When the cherries mixture has boiled and thickened, remove it from the heat and stir in the almond extract.  Ladle it into your jars, leaving about an inch of head room.

Put the lids on the jars and screw on the sealer rings to finger tight.

Process your jars of pie filling in a boiling water bath, 25 minutes for pints or 35 minutes for quarts. 

Remove the jars from the canner and allow them to cool to room temperature.

Test the seals.  Store any unsealed jars in the fridge and use them up within a few days.

Wash the outside of the sealed jars with warm soapy water, give them a rinse, and gently towel them dry.

Label the jars and store them in cool space, out of direct light, until you're ready to use them.

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This post is linked to Gallery of Favorites hosted by Premeditated Leftovers and The 21st Century Housewife, the Pity Party hosted by Thirty Handmade Days, to Foodie Friday hosted by Rattlebridge Farm, to Strut Your Stuff Saturdays at Six Sisters' Stuff, to Weekend Potluck hosted by Sunflower Supper Club, to Scrumptious Sunday hosted by Addicted to Recipes, to Makin' You Crave Monday hosted by Mrs. Happy Homemaker, to Busy Monday hosted by A Pinch of Joy,

 

 

 

    

Slow Cooker Pinto Beans With Ham, and How to Can Them

Pinto beans are beautiful when dried, but cooked...not so much.  It takes a better photographer than I am to make a plate of pinto beans and rice look pretty!  It's a shame, really, because they make an excellent meal: delicious, nutritious, and cheap.  

I didn't always like pinto beans.  Until I was in my middle thirties, I'd never had them other than from a tin and I disliked them intensely.  Up until that time, Mexican food had no part in my diet so I was unfamiliar with the comforting flavour of refried beans or even, for that matter, with the idea that you could or should spice bean dishes at all.  

Of course I didn't like them!  Who would like a bowl of unseasoned, under cooked, woody textured, beige, beans from a can?

When I did eventually learn to cook pinto beans properly, the flavour was a revelation to me.  I discovered that a plate of beans and rice can, indeed, be a wonderful thing.

I always cook pinto beans in my slow cooker.  I soak them, then cook them until they're very tender.  I find the texture comforting.  Some of you may prefer a firmer bean, though, so I've added some alternate cooking instructions at the bottom of the page.

Last time I cooked them, I paired my pinto beans with ham.  

I'd cooked a toupee ham for dinner earlier in the week, and used the leftovers in the cooker with my beans. I cooked a lot of beans (I often do), so I canned the extras for use on days when I'm too rushed to fuss with dinner. 

I've included instructions for both cooking and canning the beans here.  

Please note that while I am an enthusiastic home canner, I'm not an authority on the subject.  If you're canning pinto beans (or anything else), purchase a reputable canning guide book (Putting Food By and the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving are both very good).  Review their instructions on safe canning practices, then follow them to the letter.  Canning is no place for approximation or improvisation.  Food safety is a science and safe practice is, quite literally, a matter of life and death.

You are unlikely to find canning instructions specifically for beans and ham.  When canning any food that contains more than one ingredient follow the processing instructions for the ingredient that requires the longest processing time, at the highest pressure.

To make Slow Cooker Pinto Beans with Ham, I used:

• 2 pounds of dried pinto beans
• 2 pounds of cubed, cooked ham
• Reserved water from simmering the ham (You can use stock instead if you prefer)
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• Salt and pepper to taste

I covered the dried beans with cold water and left them to soak overnight.  

(Use a big bowl.  They expanded right over the top of  my 8-cup measuring cup, spilling bean soaking water all over my counter.)

I put the soaked beans in my slow cooker, together with my cubed ham.

I sprinkled the cumin over top of the beans and ham and then stirred them all together.  

Once they were stirred together, I added enough of the ham cooking water to just cover the top of the mixture.  

I put the lid on the slow cooker and cooked the beans on "low" for about 4 hours, until they were as tender as I wanted them to be.  You can adjust the cooking time to suit your own preference.

When they were cooked, I lifted enough beans and ham out for our supper and seasoned that lot separately, adding in salt, black pepper, and chili powder.  I served the seasoned beans over brown rice, and topped them with fresh salsa.

I cooled the rest of the beans, in their cooking liquid, before refrigerating them for use the following day.

When I was ready to can the leftover beans, I put them in the oven to reheat.  

While the beans were reheating, I sterilized some jars, prepared jar lids according to the manufacturer's directions, and heated some water in my pressure canner.  I also brought a quart of vegetable broth to a boil, to supplement the bean cooking liquid when filling the jars.

When the beans were hot, I ladled them into pint jars, filling them about 3/4 full, 

and then added in a mixture of stock and the reserved bean cooking liquid, leaving an inch headroom in each jar.  

I added 1/2 teaspoon of pickling salt to each pint jar, wiped the jar edges, and then screwed the lids on finger tight.

I processed my beans at 10 pounds pressure for 75 minutes.  

Because I'd already cooked them, my beans didn't expand much in the jars.  Next time, I'll fill the jars a little fuller.

Beans that have been cooked in the slow cooker and then cooked again in the canner will have a very soft texture that makes them perfect for making refried beans.  If you prefer a firmer textured bean, skip the slow cooker step and cook your beans entirely in the jar.

To do this, drain the beans from their soaking water and fill your prepared jars 3/4 full with soaked, uncooked beans.  

Top up the jars with either boiling water or stock, leaving in 1 inch of head room.  

Add 1/4 teaspoon of cumin and 1/2 teaspoon pickling salt to each jar.  

Process at 10 pounds pressure for 75 minutes.
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This recipe is linked to Hearth and Soul Blog Hop hosted by The 21st Century Housewife, Premeditated Leftovers, Zesty South Indian Kitchen, Savoring Today, Penniless Parenting, and Elsa Cooks