Leslie Polson's Snappy Ginger Cookies

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup Brer Rabbit dark molasses
3 1/2 c. Flour, sifted (I usually only add 2 cups of flour to start as I like chewer cookies)
1/4 c. Hot water
1/4 tsp. powdered cloves
1 tsp. each: baking soda, salt(I add less), ground ginger
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Blend butter and sugar (I usually melt the butter) together and beat in molasses. Sift dry ingredients together and add to molasses mixture, in thirds, alternating with hot water. Chill the dough 2 or 3 hours or longer. Roll thin on a floured board and cut out with cookie cutters. Bake at 350 on greased and floured cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes. Decorate with icing and other fun stuff.

Melissa's Spicy Pickles

1 Ball Dill Pickle pickling packet

Cucumbers

Garlic Cloves

Jalapeños 

Make pickles according to packet directions but filling jars add half a jalapeño and 1 clove of garlic to each jar. Follow processing instructions.

Melissa's Zucchini Relish

This relish is delicious on hot dogs or brawts or mixed in with tuna fish.  Its also super yummy served over a block of cream cheese as a chip or cracker dip.  

10 C. Zucchini

4 C. Onions

3 Gr. Peppers

1 Red Pepper  

Chop all in a food processor finely.

Place all ingredients in a  large bowl.  Sprinkle with 5T. Canning salt over top.  Let set overnight.  Rinse well with cold water in drainer.

Syrup:

6 C sugar

2 1/2 C cider vinegar

1 T. Celery Seed

1 T. Black Pepper

2 T. Cornstarch

1 t. dry mustard

Combine syrup ingredients in a large pot.  Bring to a boil.  Mix syrup and zucchini mixture together.  Cook 30 min. at boiling (be sure mixture is boiling before you start the 30 min.)  Stir Occasionally.

Pack in hot jars and seal by turning the jars upside down and letting sit for 10 min. and turn over.  

Must have hot jars or they will break and/or not seal tightly.

Do not hot water bath.

Meg's Melba Jam

3 cups raspberries
2 cups peaches
1 can (20 oz.) crushed pineapple
3 cups sugar
1 large (8.5 cups size) raspberry jello

Blend or crush fruit.  In a large pot with out heat mix the fruit and sugar.  After mixed bring fruit to a boil, stirring constantly.  After it boils immediately reduce the heat to medium and let simmer for 15 min.  Remove from heat, stir in jello.  Mix thoroughly until jello is completely mixed in.  Ladle hot jam in to clean hot canning jars.  Wipe the top of the jar clean and place new canning lid and ring on jar.  Turn the jar upside down and allow jam to cool completely.  Once the jam is cool, turn the jar right side up.  The lid should 'pop' down sealing the jar shortly after jar is flipped.  Enjoy!

Homemade Granola

7 cups old fashioned oats

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 1/2 Tbsp. flax meal
1 Tbsp. chia seeds
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
1 cup honey or real maple syrup (I use 1/2 cup of each)
2 1/2 Tbsp. vanilla
3/4 cup unsweetened dried cranberries or other dried fruit
1 cup slivered almonds

Preheat oven to 225 degrees.  Line a big cookie sheet with parchment and grease lightly.

In a large bowl combine the oats, flour, salt, cinnamon, flax, and chia seeds.  In a small bowl whisk together the water, the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients.  Mix everything together making sure there are no dry spots.

Spread the granola onto the prepared cooking sheet.  Bake for 1 1/2 hours, stirring gently every 30 minutes.  Then stir in desired fruit and nuts.  Bake another 30-60 minutes (continuing to watch and stir every 20-30 minutes) until granola is light brown and crunchy.

Cool and store in an airtight container.  Granola keeps for up to 6 months.

Chocolate Banana Licuados

I just made this up as a throwback to our 2009 Honduras trip.  There are three things that are memorable about Honduras:

1) Taking a quick dip in the ocean on a hot day only to be horrified by a maxi pad floating by in the water
2) Swine flu
3) Licuados and baleadas  (a quesadilla-type concoction with beans, meat, cheese, avocado...whatever the cook thinks of to throw in...sounds ok but easy to get tired of these babys)

So my favorite take-away from the now "murder capitol of the world" are licuados.  These frozen concoctions are a little piece of heaven when you are beating the pavement looking for a hotel or the next tourist stop.  The basic essence is a blended drink made with milk, ice and fruit.  You will find places that blend cereal in as well but I never tried it because soggy cereal isn't really my thing.  My favorite flavor was chocolate banana.  They use cocoa powder to make it chocolate which at first is a little strange, but actually really grew on me.  The combo is delicious.  So here's my best crack at it here at home and it tastes pretty close to what you get down there.  Oh, and to get the authentic experience, pour the finished product into a clear cellophane bag, insert straw and tie the bag shut around the straw.

2 cups milk
4 heaping tablespoons Nestle Quik (more or less to taste)
14-16 ice cubes
1 banana

Put it all in the blender and process till smooth.  That's it!

Meg's Marinara Sauce

32 cups of Blanched and Peeled Tomatoes

4 large Onions coarsely chopped

3 Tbsp Minced Garlic

¼ Dried Basil

3 Tbsp of Italian Seasoning

½ cup Sugar

10 Chicken Bouillon cubes

5 tsp Salt (add more per taste)

1 tsp Pepper (add more per taste)

Blanch and peel tomatoes.

In a large skillet saute onions in a few tablespoons of olive oil until soft.

While onions cook, puree tomatoes in a blender in small batches.  Run them through a strainer to remove seeds.  When onions are soft, puree them in a blender (add some of tomato puree in so they blend easier).  Add tomatoes and onions to a big stock pot.  Turn on high heat.  

Add the rest of the ingredients.  Once the mixture begins to boil, turn down to a medium heat.  Gently boil for several hours to condense down to desired consistency.  Taste and add more salt or pepper if needed.

Freeze or can.