Pepper and Tomato Recipes

 

Fresh Pico

2 pounds tomatoes (meaty tomatoes = less watery salsa)
2 large onions
5 cloves garlic
8 sweet peppers (variety of colors and flavors improves the salsa)
6 mild to hot peppers (or more to taste)
2-3T chicken broth powder
1T salt (or more to taste – let sit for an hour before adding more)
1T oregano
Cilantro (1/4 cup - optional)

Dice all ingredients and mix in glass bowl. Store covered in refrigerator (keeps about a week) or freeze in small bags or containers for use in cooking.

Here's the deal, people - pico for you and pico for me will likely have a completely different balance of peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic - and whatever else.  We love to have a wide variety of our heirloom peppers and tomatoes in our pico.  Go with the balance, taste and texture that works for you.

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Cool Cucumber Salsa
• 2 medium cucumbers - peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 (12 ounce) package tortilla chips
In a medium bowl, stir together the cucumbers, tomatoes, green pepper, jalapeno pepper, onion, garlic, lime juice, parsley, cilantro, dill, and salt. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Stuffed Red Bell Peppers
Ingredients :
2-3 Red Bell Peppers, cleaned and sliced in half(lengthwise)
1/2 cup onion(chopped up)
1-2 cups of sliced mushrooms
Seeds of Change 7 grain Pilaf or other seasoned rice mix like "wild blend"
Shredded Cheddar

Cook the 7 grain Pilaf or other rice mixture. While that is cooking, sauté the onions and mushroom together in some butter until softened & slightly browned, salt and pepper if desired. Add this to the finished pilaf. Fill the red peppers with the pilaf/onion/mushroom mix and load the top with shredded cheese. Bake at 350 until cheese is melted and peppers have slightly softened-- about 20 min.
Serve with a fresh spinach salad(with the cheddar sesame sticks on top)

  

Stuffed Beaver Dam Peppers

• l lb hamburger, cooked and drained
• 1 c cooked rice
• 1/4 c shredded cheese
• 1 med tomato, diced
• 6-8 Beaver Dam peppers
• salt, pepper and other seasonings to taste

Mix stuffing ingredients and let sit for 5 minutes. Cut off tops of Beaver Dam peppers and remove seeds. Stuff hamburger mixture into peppers. Place peppers in a greased 9x13" cake pan. Bake at 400 degrees F for 35 minutes.

Substitution: 2.5 c black beans for hamburger.

Note: Easy meal. Beaver Dams rate 2 to 3 out of 5 on the heat scale - we can't really predict where each fruit will land. Hotter with seeds and hotter towards the tip of the pepper.

Refrigerator Pickles – Fast and Easy!

6 c. sliced cucumbers
1 T salt
1 onion, chopped
1 small/medium green pepper
1 c. sugar
1 c. vinegar

Mix salt and cucumbers. Let sit for 15 minutes. Add rest of ingredients. Stir to mix. Let sit overnight in the refrigerator, covered. The pickles will look too dry at first. Don’t fear – they will have plenty of liquid by the next day.

Store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Butternut Squash with Chipotle Sauce

1 butternut squash, cut into 1” chunks
1 large yellow onion, cut into chunks
2 red peppers, cut into chunks
2-3 tablespoons olive oil or canola oil
2-3 chipotle peppers in sauce OR 2 tablespoons chipotle sauce (more if necessary)
1 tablespoon honey
5 tablespoons white vinegar 

 ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss squash, onion, and red peppers with oil in roasting pan and bake for 20 minutes. While vegetables are roasting, chop chipotle peppers into small pieces (if using the peppers). Whisk together chipotle peppers (and/or chipotle sauce), vinegar, and honey. Remove pan from oven and coat vegetable mixture with sauce. Bake for an additional 20 minutes or until squash is cooked, but still firm. Remove from oven and add chopped cilantro.

This dish can be served hot with warm tortillas, cheese, sour cream, and guacamole or it can be served cold as a salad.

note: a chipotle pepper is a smoke-dried hot pepper - typically a chili type.