Eggplant

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Freezing, Grilling, Ingredient, UsingLeave a comment

I fell in love with baba ghanouj when I lived in San Francisco; Kan Zaman, just around the corner from my basement flat in the Haight, made the tastiest version. This Middle Eastern dip is the lesser-known cousin of hummus, pairing equally well with pita bread and made just as easily from scratch. Unfortunately, I’ve seen baba ghanouj recipes that are as flavorless and bastardized as the premade hummus popular in American grocery stores. Some even get the dip’s distinctive flavor by mixing in liquid smoke. Ew.

We spent a season working to replicate the Kan Zaman version—or at least my memory of it—and taste-testing it whenever we had people out for a sail or over for dinner. After grilling the eggplant to get a fabulous smoky flavor, we knew we had our recipe. If you grill, puree, and freeze the eggplant, you can make baba all year. The same goes for onions: grill, dice, and freeze for a year-round dip that will make you the hit of any party. Learn to make Baba Ghanouj and Grilled Onion Dip

Mushrooms

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Event, Grilling, Ingredient, UsingLeave a comment

When it comes to feeding a crowd, two things generally happen: expensive premade dishes pack the table, and those with special diets are left with precut fruit, naked greens, and a bare baked potato. This year’s Montana Cup meals proved it doesn’t have to be that way.

Dinner’s salads got the Twice as Tasty treatment, but North Flathead Yacht Club also had vegans and vegetarians fully covered with marinated and grilled Portobello mushrooms. NFYC also brought in gorgeous Yukon River Coho salmon fillets from Flathead Fish & Seafood Co. and top sirloin steaks provided by regional grocery chain Super 1 Foods. I decided to whip up some sauces that could accompany any option or the sides of salad and baked potato, relying on our local Kalispell Kreamery and my own canning shelves. Learn to make Marinated and Grilled Portobello Mushrooms with Yogurt-Dill Sauce and Romesco Sauce

Salad Dressings: Vegan

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Event, Refrigerating, Topic, Using1 Comment

Last weekend, Twice as Tasty recipes had the honor of being featured at the 2016 Montana Cup, a regatta hosted by the North Flathead Yacht Club in Somers, Montana. As usual, the club provided two breakfasts and one dinner for more than 150 hungry sailors, but this year there were a few twists. With the help of Sailors for the Sea, NYFC hosted its first Clean Regatta, working to use less, recycle more, and source locally throughout the event.

After the reusable cups had been cleaned and the winning skippers had been awarded insulated picnic baskets with durable place settings, the real results were in: resounding success. Not only is the club discussing how to implement more clean practices throughout its season, but so many people requested Twice as Tasty recipes that I’m offering bonus posts. Learn to make Vegan Green Goddess Dressing and Vegan Roasted Raspberry Vinaigrette

Corn

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Freezing, Grilling, IngredientLeave a comment

If fresh corn on the cob captures the flavor of summer, grilled corn makes that flavor explode in your mouth. Corn steams beautifully within its own husks and develops a taste and smell that can’t be matched by boiled or steamed ears. It also means you don’t need to heat a giant kettle of water on a hot summer evening and could even skip the kitchen altogether by grilling your entire meal.

I first started grilling corn when I was gifted Williams-Sonoma’s fabulous and comprehensive Complete Grilling Book, now out of print but still possible to track down. We used to just gobble up the grilled corn fresh, but then I realized it would freeze just as well and I could enjoy that grilled flavor all winter. As a bonus, the cobs can be frozen separately and turned into stock. Learn to grill and freeze corn and make Corncob Stock

Grilling for the Future

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Canning, Freezing, Grilling, Topic, Using2 Comments

Braised, basted, glazed, smoked, roasted, grilled—you may associate these words with large slabs of sizzling meat, but I visualize mounds of breakfast potatoes and eggs, cherry-filled scones, beets, garlic, and practically any other fruit or vegetable you can imagine. I also use these techniques when preserving food; they are the essence of making that bag of frozen corn or jar of raspberry syrup Twice as Tasty.

Grilling is one of the best techniques in my preserving repertoire. It’s easy, it’s low tech, and it takes you outdoors on a sweltering summer day or even a snow-bound midwinter one. Although grilling means extra effort initially, it can save minutes to hours on canning day or when throwing together a busy work night dinner—in other words, it saves time when it matters most. Read more about grilling vegetables and fruits

Cucumbers

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Canning, Ingredient, Using2 Comments

As a kid, I helped my mom processed dill pickles in vinegar brine and what my family called “sweet pickles,” which tasted nothing like the ones on a restaurant burger. It was years before I learned that what I considered sweet pickles were typically sold as “bread-and-butter” pickles. They fall somewhere between the tangy dills and the sugary sweets. And I could eat them by the jar.

When I started canning on my own, pickles were in my first jars. They’re easy to pack and process, the vinegar ensures food safety, and the options for spices in the standard brine are endless. My mom followed the version in the old Ball Blue Book, but Ball has since updated its recipe and other authors have inspired me to make a few tweaks to the flavorings—and to use the brine once the jar is empty. Learn to make Better Bread-and-Butter Pickles and Braised Breakfast Potatoes

Tart Cherries: Savory

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Canning, Event, Giveaway, Grilling, Ingredient, Using5 Comments

Happy Can-It-Forward Day! As a new food blogger, I feel honored to be invited by the Ball brand to make a recipe from The All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving. One pass through the book, and I had decided what to create for the sixth annual Can-It-Forward Day. Yes, recipes such as Low-Sugar Strawberry–Tequila Agave Jam and Apricot–Lavender Jam caught my eye, but how could I pass up the chance to combine tart cherries, chipotles, cilantro, and tequila—especially when I was midway through the cherry harvest?

We harvested and processed a double batch of this cherry salsa last weekend, and we’ve been sharing it with people all week for feedback. Love for it has been unanimous. The recipe produced a lovely fruit salsa, with plenty of cilantro flavor and a great tart bite. It’s been particularly popular as the accompaniment for our favorite fish tacos. Learn to make Smoky Sour Cherry–Tequila Salsa and Grilled Fish Tacos

Raspberries

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Canning, Ingredient1 Comment

Raspberries are probably my favorite fruit; as a kid, I used to walk barefoot in PJs to the berry patch and pick them straight onto my bowl of Cheerios. Strawberries may be a close second. After everyone from my 4-year-old nephew to newlywed friends told me how they gobbled up Chamomile-Scented Strawberry Syrup, which I made using Liana Krissoff’s Canning for a New Generation, I was prepared to put up an even larger batch the next year—only to have the strawberry patch fall short. But raspberries came in with a bumper crop, so I decided to attempt an adaptation. Then while I was prowling online, I found Carey Nershi’s fabulous cocktails at Reclaiming Provincial and knew I needed to start in the oven. The idea of roasting delicate raspberries may seem odd, but that step adds another level of flavor that’s irresistible in syrup, jam, or salad dressing. Learn to make Roasted Raspberry Syrup and Apricot–Raspberry–Mint Jam

Bonus Post: Giveaway for Can-It-Forward Day

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Canning, Event, Giveaway6 Comments

Canners, prep your gear: The Ball brand is hosting its sixth annual Can-It-Forward Day on July 22. As a bonus for Twice as Tasty readers, it is letting me give away a new book to help get you started in home canning or give you new ideas for favorite produce.

I love this event. I’m a pay-it-forward person: I would rather go through life knowing the things I do for or give to others are encouraging them to pass it on than build lists of people who owe me. Much of what I give comes from my kitchen. By canning food, I have a stash of salsas, preserves, and other goodies to give as gifts at Christmas, birthdays, or weddings; to share at potlucks, picnics, and parties; and to turn into delicious meals and snacks when people gather at my table. With this blog, I can it forward by sharing what I’ve learned so that you too can preserve, enjoy, and share. Participate in Can-It-Forward Day and in the Twice as Tasty giveaway

Tart Cherries: Sweet

On By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Baking, Canning, Freezing, Ingredient, UsingLeave a comment

My area is known for its sweet Flathead (Lambert) cherries, but I grew up with a pie cherry tree that I would climb into to pick its tart, bright red fruit—and often eat right within the branches. So let that warn you as to how tart I like my cherries.

If you’ve read the Canning Tools page, you may have noticed a slow cooker on the optional list. Fruit butters are entirely the reason. Fruit butters use both pulp and juice (unlike jelly) but let a long cooking time evaporate excess moisture and build dense texture and flavor (unlike jam). I use a slow cooker to make all fruit butters, which lengthens the cooking time but makes the process nearly hands off and burnproof. Add some spices to the reduction, and the cherries pop. If you have more cherries than your slow cooker can hold, set them aside for scones. Learn to make Tart Cherry Butter with Chai Spices and Sour Cream Scones with Tart Cherries