We have been so busy lately. All day yesterday me and the kids volunteered at JOY Respite at our church which is a ministry group for special needs kids. Then we headed off to our friend's wedding.
We never skip church unless we're out of town but today got the best of us. I was exhausted and just wanted a day to spend with the family so we played hooky and spent the day together. We checked out Georgia's Farm to Market which turned out to be fabulous. We bought an 1/8th of a cow :) and lots of organic produce. Their produce prices are outstanding! So, in two weeks I'm going to have 50 pounds of local grass-fed organic beef in my freezer... which makes me very happy.
Today we made an interesting new snack that I ran across online. Well, I bought 12 pint jars for canning the strawberry preserves a few weeks ago and only needed 6 of the jars. I hated to waist them so I wanted to try my luck at canning again. I found a recipe for Banana Jam that sounded quite interesting. I've never heard of such before. Peanut Butter & Banana Jam sandwiches!?! How awesome does that sound?
I am always buying old banana to cook with. They are such a great bargain and you can make lots of great snacks with them... hum, I see a post in my future. :) I obtained 12 large bananas at Kroger for $1.25 that were started to get brown spots on the outside. The kids ate a few of them and I used the rest for the jelly. If you've never canned before, let me start by saying it is SUPER easy. I always thought it was difficult but it isn't at all. This is the recipe...
BANANA JAM
Makes: about 8 (1-cup) jars.
4 cups prepared fruit (about 10-11 fully ripe medium bananas)
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1 box SURE.JELL Fruit Pectin
1/2 tsp. butter or margarine (optional)
6 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl
BRING boiling-water canner, half-full with water, to simmer.
Wash jars and screw bands in hot, soapy water; rinse with warm water.
Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand
in hot water until ready to use. Drain well before filling.
MASH bananas thoroughly. Measure exactly 4 cups prepared fruit
into 6- or 8-quart saucepot. Stir lemon juice and fruit protector into
prepared fruit in saucepot.
STIR pectin into fruit in saucepot. Add butter to reduce foaming,
if desired. Bring mixture to full rolling boil (a boil that doesn't
stop bubbling when stirred) on high heat, stirring constantly.
STIR in all sugar quickly. Return to full rolling boil and boil
exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any
foam with metal spoon.
LADLE quickly into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of
tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands
tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner.
Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches; add boiling water if needed.
Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 5 minutes. Remove jars and
place upright on a towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check
seals by pressing middle of lid with finger. (If lid springs back, lid
is not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.)
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{please excuse the horrible photo!!}
CROCKPOT CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP
1 pound shredded, cooked chicken
1 (15 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed
1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups water
1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
salt & black pepper, to taste
1 (10 ounce) package frozen corn
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
Place chicken, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, onion, green chiles, and garlic into a slow cooker. Pour in water and chicken broth, and season with cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Stir in corn and cilantro. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 6 to 8 hours or on High setting for 3 to 4 hours.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Lightly brush both sides of corn tortillas with oil. Cut tortillas into strips, then spread on a baking sheet.
Bake in preheated oven until crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. To serve, sprinkle tortilla strips over soup.
**A few notes about this recipe: I just put in 2 raw chicken breast and let them cook in the soup. When they were done I took them out and shredded them then added back into soup.
Also, instead of baking the tortillas I just served a few crushed corn chips on top with a dollop of sour cream and a pretty cilantro leaf. I didn't have any bay leaves so I omitted them. And I used a handful of fresh cilantro toward the end of cooking.
THE VERDICT: I think this recipe is a good starter but next time I will add black beans and a little lime juice. Overall it was tasty and super easy to make. Hope you enjoy if you make it! :)
As promised, this is your first recipe card. :) You can print it at home or send it to your favorite photo processing store {walgreens, cvs, target, etc}