Gazpacho

from the Barefoot Contessa

Ingredients

• 1 hothouse cucumber, halved and seeded, but not peeled
• 2 red bell peppers, cored and seeded
• 4 plum tomatoes
• 1 red onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 23 ounces tomato juice (3 cups)
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
  
• 1/4 cup good olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Roughly chop the cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and red onions into 1-inch cubes. Put each vegetable separately into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until it is coarsely chopped. Do not overprocess!

After each vegetable is processed, combine them in a large bowl and add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well and chill before serving. The longer gazpacho sits, the more the flavors develop. 

 

Another version:

My Best (and Easy) Gazpacho Recipe

2.5 - 3 pounds fresh tomatoes

1 English cucumber

1 red onion

1 red pepper

1 slices bread (stale Italian works well too)

4-5 cloves of garlic

2 tbs. red wine vinegar

1 tbs. sherry

2 fresh basil leaves (optional)

5-6 dashes of Tabasco

salt to taste

olive oil and avocado for garnish (optional)

Roughly chop onions, pepper and cucumber. Sprinkle with salt and set aside.

Optional step: You can remove the skins on the tomatoes for a creamier soup but if your pressed for time, you can skip this step. Bring a pot of water to boil. Slice an "x" in the skin of each tomato. Blanch tomatoes in large pot of boiling water for 30 seconds. Drain in a colander. Cool under cold running water. Peel tomatoes.

Soak the bread in a few tablespoons of water. Gently remove and "squeeze” dry.

Place the tomatoes, bread, cucumbers, onions, garlic and peppers in a blender. Blend until the mixture is smooth. Add vinegar, sherry and Tabasco. Season with salt to taste. Serve topped with a splash of good olive oil and diced avocado if desired.

Tofu Cacciatore

"This is a super-healthy, vegetarian version of an Italian favorite. As I describe below, be sure to really "press" the excess liquid out of your tofu to ensure that it absorbs the wonderful flavor of the sauce. Don't be afraid to put something really heavy on it to draw out the moisture. Cast iron pan works great! Also, don't limit yourself to just tofu here. I made this for both vegetarians and meat eaters. Make the sauce as written, and then substitute half the amount of tofu with 4 boneless chicken breasts. Then I bake for about an hour, in separate dishes, of course."

Ingredients

• 2 lbs firm tofu
• 1 medium onions, thinly sliced
• 1 red bell peppers, thinly sliced
• 1 green bell peppers, thinly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
• 3 (14 1/2 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/4 cup flour, for dredging
• grated parmesan cheese or romano cheese, for topping

Directions

1. To press tofu: For best results, tofu should be"pressed" in order to remove excess liquid and absorb the flavors of the marinade.
2. Press tofu block between two plates, weighted down with a cast iron pan, large bowl of water, or heavy cans, for about 30 minutes.
3. Halfway through, you may dump the plate of water and flip the tofu block.
4. For an even meatier texture, place the pressed tofu slices in the freezer until ready to use.
5. For the cacciatore: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
6. Coat a large, non-stick skillet with cooking spray, and heat over medium low.
7. Add onion and bell peppers and cook until softened, about 5-8 minutes.
8. Add garlic, oregano, basil and crushed red pepper, if using, and stir to coat the vegetables evenly.
9. Next, add the diced tomatoes, and tomato paste.
10. Mix well and bring sauce mixture to a boil.
11. Reduce heat to low, and simmer the sauce covered for about 15 minutes.
12. While sauce simmers, cut the block of pressed tofu into ½ inch thick slices.
13. Mix flour with a good pinch of salt and pepper.
14. Spray a nonstick skillet with cooking spray, and place over medium low heat.
15. Dredge the tofu slices in the seasoned flour; be sure to tap off the excess.
16. Place slices into skillet, and cook until lightly browned on both sides, about 3 minutes per side.
17. Watch that the pan doesn’t get too hot, and lower the heat if necessary.
18. This step needs to be done in two batches.
19. Be sure to re-coat the pan with spray for the second batch.
20. As the tofu slices are finished browning, place them in a baking dish in a single layer.
21. Pour tomato pepper sauce over tofu, sprinkle generously with Parmesan or Romano cheese if desired, and cover dish with foil.
22. Bake until heated through (about 45 minutes to 1 ½ hours) The longer the tofu bakes, the more flavor it will absorb.
23. Serve hot.

Bourbon Peaches and Cream Popsicles

From Endless Summer

Makes 18-22 popsicles
· 1 cup ripe peaches, crushed
· ¼ cup bourbon
· ½ cup simple syrup, cooled (recipe follows)
· 2 cups plain yogurt
Instructions:
1. Peel and slice peaches. Use a potato masher to crush the peaches. Combine crushed peaches and bourbon in a bowl, mix to combine. Add the simple syrup in slowly and taste to preference. Add yogurt to bourbon peach mixture and combine.
2. Score top edge of Dixie cup with scissors for easy peeling. Pour mixture into Dixie cups. Freeze for two hours or until mixture starts to solidify enough to hold a popsicle stick upright. Continue to freeze until mixture is completely frozen into a popsicle, about 5-6 hours. Peel off Dixie cups. Serve.

Simple Syrup
· ¼ cup water
· ¼ sugar
Instructions:
1. Place water and sugar in a sauce pan over medium heat. Heat and stir until sugar dissolves.

A few notes:
· Use the simple syrup sparingly. Taste the mixture as you mix to make sure it’s to your liking. Use more for a sweeter tasting popsicle and less for a popsicle that will have a stronger bourbon flavor.
· If you do not have ripe peaches on hand, use canned peaches in light syrup (make sure to drain before use). If you use canned peaches, bypass the simple syrup.
· To shave some time, use vanilla yogurt instead of plain yogurt to skip the simple syrup portion. Keep in mind this version will be much sweeter as vanilla flavored yogurt is sweetened. If you are using this in combination with canned peaches, rinse the peaches and add 2-3 tablespoons bourbon in addition to the ¼ cup in the recipe. The added tablespoons will offset any sweetness that may overpower the bourbon.
· Of course you can omit the bourbon completely for a simple Peaches and Cream Popsicle.

Fajita Seasoning Mix

Fajita Seasoning Mix 

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin

Mix all ingredients together.
To use:
Coat your meat and vegetables lightly with olive oil  - then coat with the dry mix to prepare for cooking.  Tip: for your fajitas shells  - dip them in water before you place them in the hot pan or grill, it acts like a steamer and keeps the shells soft.  (don’t use this tip if you microwave, use the oven etc).