Pickled Okra

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My okra plants are taller than me…ya, not hard to do, but still impressive to me. Coming from Oklahoma, I looooove me some fried okra. But I wanted to find better and healthier recipes for preparing okra. With a bumper crop of okra, I have been trying to find different ways to preserve them. I have frozen nearly four gallon bags of these puppies, waiting to make gumbo this fall. I decided to try my hand at pickling okra also.

These are a fabulous snack and pretty too! It’s a lot easier than you would think. The smaller okra pods work best, but as you can see from my photos, I allowed my okra to get a little too big and went ahead and used them anyways. They just aren’t as tender as the babies, but they still are tasty tasty. I used the recipe from my Ball Preserving book. They even have a homemade ketchup recipe in there….mmmm…tempting.

Pickled Okra by Ball’s Guide to Preserving

  • 3 1/2 pounds small okra pods
  • 1/2 cup canning salt (I use kosher salt)
  • 2 tsp dill seed
  • 3 cups water
  • 3 cups vinegar
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 small hot red peppers, cut in half (or 1 to 2 tsp red pepper flakes)
Materials: You will need 4 clean and sterilized pint mason jars with lids (band and clean lid). A funnel may also be useful, but not necessary.
Prep: Trim stems of okra but leave whole, being careful not to cut into pods. For the larger okra, I went cut them up. The downside of this is that you will have a bit of slimy goo from the okra in your jar, but it still tastes fine. The smaller pods are still better. After you have prepped your okra, set them aside.
Make Brine: Combine salt, dill seed, water, and vinegar in a large pot. Bring to a boil.
Pack: Pack okra into the hot and clean jars, leaving about 1/4 inch headspace to allow for heat expansion. Shove 1 clove of garlic and 1/2 pepper in each pint jar.
Finish ‘er up: Ladle the hot brine liquid over okra, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Add the cap and band. You can heat in a hot water canning bath for 15 minutes to seal completely….OR allow to cool for 15 minutes and then place in refrigerator for fridge pickles. They should be ready to eat within a week.

Bison Chili

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The windows are open, the morning temps are in the 50s and evening temps are in the low 70s. My sweaters are begging to be worn and my wool socks are starting to peak their heads out of my drawers….fall is finally getting here after a looooooooong summer. And there is nothing that I like to celebrate fall with more than an awesome bowl o’ chili!

Now, there are more chili recipes out there than you can shake two sticks at. My chili changes nearly every time I make it, depending on my mood (and what’s in my cabinets). In my mind, meat is optional in chili….yes, I think I just heard a massive gasp from all the okies and texans. But beans are not options. Sorry to all you anti-beanites…I still love you despite your hate for legumes. Anywho, my main chili formula is:

CHILI = Meat (optional, but could be beef, turkey, or bison) + beans (at least two cans of whatever I have in the cabinet) + tomato sauce + diced or stewed tomatoes + garlic+ onion + peppers (bell and jalepeno..whatever you have) + a poop ton of chili powder

…seriously, nearly 1/3 cup of chili powder…dump that stuff in…go on….it’s called CHILI for a reason folks. And that’s mainly it. From there, you can dump add a myriad of other items to this pot o’ awesomeness.

This week, my cabinets were a bit sparse and I had just harvested veggies from the garden. So my chili was more of a garden medley than normal. To the above formula, I through in some diced carrots from the garden, tomatoes, a purple bell pepper, a jalepeno, a hungarian wax pepper, and parsley. I only had garbanzo beans and red kidney beans, so those jumped in as well. And to top if off, a pound of local bison meat. If you have never tried bison, do it. It’s lean and a great grass-fed meat option.

Bison Chili by Big eats, tiny kitchen

  • 1 lb of ground bison
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 jalapeño, diced and deseeded
  • 1 bell pepper, diced
  • 2 carrots, diced
  • 1 15oz can of diced tomatoes
  • 1 150z can of tomato sauce
  • 3 Cups of water or broth
  • 1/3 Cup chili powder
  • 2 Tbsp cumin powder
  • 2 Tbsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp chipotle chili powder
  • 2 cans of beans (kidney, ranch, chili, black, or garbanzo), drained and rinsed
  • salt and pepper
Saute meat over medium heat until no pink re
mains. Drain meat. Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes until onion is translucent. Add garlic through carrots and cook over medium heat for another 5 minutes until vegetables are slightly tender. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, and spices and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes or 45 or until you are ready to jump in. Add beans at the end so that they do not become tough. After adding beans, cook for another 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Now dig in!

Fig Gilette

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Get Figgy With It…..

I think the fig is the most beautiful fruit…hands down. When it comes to food porn, the fig takes the cake. Cut open a fresh fig and I dare you to not be smitten. I am perfectly satisfied to eat fresh figs until my stomach churns….similar issues that I have when confronted with A) pecan pie and B) ketchup…yes, ketchup is a downfall of mine. I swear I have no idea what a tater tot actually tastes like….but I digress.

Back to the star of this dessert….the fig! So, figs are here and I bought a metric boat load. Before they went bad, I decided to use them in a rustic tart….also known as a gilette. I’m in deep smit with gilettes. They are easy and fabulous to make for gatherings. I made my own crust (preferable), but I have also used frozen pie crust in a pinch. The figs are quartered and placed over an almond paste also known as frangipane. I used salted and roasted almonds and simply rinsed the salt off of them. You can use raw almonds and roast them in an oven at 350F for 10 minutes, stirring frequently so that they don’t burn. I also recommend eating this with a fresh cream or my favorite…good vanilla ice cream.

Note: This dessert can be made with other fruit besides fig. Recently, I made a galette with thinly sliced apples tossed in cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar…mmmm. You could also substitute the figs for plums or peaches, or whatever is in season.

Fig and Almond Gilette (adapted from www.simplyrecipes.com)
  • 1 1/4 Cup all purpose flour, plus more for rolling
  • 1/2 Cup butter (1 stick), cut into 1/2 inch small cubes and placed in the freezer for 15 minutes
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1/4 Cup of ice water
  • 1 1/2 pounds of fresh figs, tips removed, quatered
  • 1/4 Cup roasted almonds
  • 1 tsp lemon zest
  • 3 Tbsp flour
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg white

CRUST: If you are daring enough to make your own (and I recommend it), use either a food processor or a mixing bowl and combine flour and sugar. Add butter and process until mixture resembles a coarse meal, approximately 10 seconds. If not using a food processor, You can use two knives or a pastry blender to cut butter into small pieces until they are the size of small peans. With food processor running, gradually add water and egg yolk through the feed tube. OR if you are like me and doing it by hand, just pour this stuff in. Stir with a wooden spoon until dough is not wet and sticky and holds together. Do not over mix (mix for less than 30 seconds). Wrap dough in plastic and chill for at least an hour.

ALMOND PASTE (FRANGIPANE): Grind almonds in a food processor with flour and sugar. Add egg. If not using right away, store this in the fridge for up to three days or freezer for a month.

ASSEMBLE GALETTE: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Remove pastry dough from fridge 30 minutes prior to using. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface. Press out to 10″ to 12″ diameter. Leave a 2 to 3″ border. Ttransfer crust to the baking sheet (something I keep forgetting to do and end up transferring the pie after it has been assembled elsewhere). Spread almond paste on the dough leaving a 2″ border. Quarter the figs and place them over the almond paste. Sprinkle lemon zest over figs.  For the crust, brush the endue of the crust with an egg white. Sprinkle the whole thing with raw sugar and bake for about 45-50 minutes, or until the pastry edges are golden brown.

Lemon-Ginger Zucchini Bread

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It is the end of summer and the markets and gardens are overflowing with zucchini. Unfortunately, squash bugs took over my garden. So, I am relegated to enjoying the fruitful harvest of other local gardeners. I had so much extra zucchini from my community supported agriculture (CSA) pickup that I decided to shred it and freeze it, waiting for the perfect time to unleash the oven again. As the cool air has FINALLY came in, I decided to use my extra zucchini in a warm spiced zucchini bread this morning.

Now, this ain’t your normal zucchini bread….get ready. It is bursting with amazing flavors and aromas that come from ginger, lemon zest, cinnamon, and…wait for it….curry powder. Ya, sounds weird…and I too balked at it when I first read the original recipe on Heidi Swanson’s blog 101 cookbooks.com. But seriously folks, I am a convert. The warm golden color from the curry with flecks of zucchini are a sure fire winner in this quick bread. DO IT!

Lemon-Ginger Zucchini Bread (adapted from 101cookbook.com), makes 1 awesome loaf.

  • Zest of one lemon
  • 1 inch portion of fresh ginger (grated)
  • 3 Tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1/4 Cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 Cup packed fine grain natural cane sugar or brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 1/2 Cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 to 1/2 Cups grated zucchini, with skins, squeeze some of the moisture out and then fluff it up again before using (if defrosting…drain for 30 minutes in colander)
  • 1 1/2 Cups whole wheat pastry flour (or all-purpose flour)
  • 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 tablespoon curry powder 

PREP: Preheat your oven to 350°F. Spray one 5×9 inch loaf pan with nonstick spray and set aside. In a small bowl combine lemon zest and grated ginger. Set aside.

WET INGREDIENTS: In a mixer, beat the butter until fluffy. Add the sugars and beat until smooth. Add the egg and scrape down the sides of the bowl to all that goodness stirred in. With a wooden spoon, stir in the vanilla and then the zucchini.

DRY INGREDIENTS: In a separate bowl, combine the whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and curry powder.

COMBINE: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in two batches, stirring with wooden spoon between each addition. Fold in the lemon zest and ginger mixture. DO NOT OVERMIX!

BAKE: Add the batter to the greased loaf pan. Top with nuts if you want. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes on the middle rack of the oven.

COOL: Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the bread pan for 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from pan and allow to cool on a wire rack (or eat immediately, like me).

EAT: Pour a big honkin’ glass o’ milk and ENJOY!