1 1/4 lb. (4 to 5 cups) Zucchini, shredded
1 t. sea salt
3 eggs
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup chopped parsley, fresh
1 T. grated parmesan
1 T. grated onion
1/8 t. to dash pepper
1 pound spaghetti sauce

One hour early- scrub and shred zucchini with grater. Put in strainer or sieve and sprinkle with part of salt. Let drain one hour, press occasionally.

In large bowl mix egg, crumbs, parsley, parmesan, onion, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Stir in zucchini. Makes about 3 cups. If you have time put in frig, mixture will thicken more. Drop by large spoonfulls in small amount of hot oil (olive, butter, or coconut). Cook till golden on each side. Heat spaghetti sauce. Pour some on top of each patty when serving. Makes 9 patties. Leftovers can be frozen with wax paper between.
You can sprinkle with parmesan of mozzarella cheese.

Husk two ears of corn, wash the corn and cut off cob into bowl
cut up two tomatoes (I use Roma or sometimes throw in grape-tomatoes)
dice 1/2 cucumber
dice 1/2 zucchini
dice 1/2 red pepper
dice really small 1/4 jalapeno
add a clove or two of garlic through a garlic press
chop up 1/4 of a bunch of cilantro
juice 1 lime
toss in a tablespoon of olive oil
sea salt & pepper to taste

Sometimes I add carrots, green pepper, squash or whatever looks good. I also vary the herb trying parsley or adding a little tarragon, basil, mint. This is a great recipe; lite and refreshing, easy and enjoyable, tasty and new.

Italian Zucchini Casserole
3 medium zucchini, sliced
3 T. Veg.Oil, divided
1 medium onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 t. dried basil
1/2 t. oregano
1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 cups dry stuffing mix
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella

Saute zucchini in oil and set aside. Saute onion and garlic and add tomatoes and spices. Simmer uncovered 10 minutes. Place in greased 13×9 dish and stir in zucchini, stuffing and cheeses. Cover and bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 10 more minutes or until golden.

My family’s all time favorite zucchini recipe is the most delicious chocolate cake we have ever tasted.

Double-Chocolate Zucchini Cake
Beat together 5 minutes: 1 1/2 cups sugar, 2 sticks margarine, 1 tsp. vanilla, 2 large eggs. Add 2 1/2 cups flour, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup cocoa, 1 tsp. baking soda, 1/2 tsp. salt. Fold in 2 cups shredded zucchini, 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1/2 cup chopped nuts.
Place in a greased and floured 13×9 pan. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.
When cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar. Keep loosely covered, very moist.
Test with toothpick, my camper oven took longer, than my house oven.
Yes, we even make this while camping at the Michigan Dunes!

Butternut Squash Soup

2 lb. butternut squash, cooked
4 c. chicken, beef or vegetable broth
1/2 c. grated cheddar cheese
1 c. sour cream
2 Tbsp. butter
2 tsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Puree squash with broth. Heat to Medium-low. Stir in sour cream, cheese, butter and Cayenne. Season with salt and pepper. Heat thoroughly. Don’t boil.

1/2 cup of lentils, soaked for at least 6 hours and drained

Raw Lentil Salad
1/2 cup lentils, soaked for at least 6 hours to make them crunchy, like a sprout…these are known as “germinated lentils)
1 small, raw zucchini, diced
1 tomato, diced
the juice of one lime
1/2 onion, diced or 1/2 cup sliced, green onions
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped (you could also use 1 tsp. of garlic powder)
1 cup of coarsely-chopped, fresh cilantro
1/4-1/2 teaspoon dried cayenne pepper (depending on how spicy your preference is.)
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil of your choice
1/4 teaspoon salt

Combine and mix all of the ingredients and let sit for a few hours to let the flavors combine. You can also use this mixture in a wrap. It is delicious served over a nice, green salad as well. To add even more versatility, you could top a baked potato with it. I also like to serve it over cooked, brown rice. Lots of possibilities!

HOMEMADE PLUM JELLY

You’ll need your fruit,powdered pectin, 1/2 pint sized canning jars, jar rings/bands & seals, water bath canner, jar rack, magnetic lid lifter, jar lifter, jar funnel, jelly strainer & strainer bag.

Start by washing your equipment. You ALWAYS want to work with clean items. sterilize your jars, jar lifter, funnel, magnetic lid lifter, lids & bands. This can be done by placing them in the water bath canner filled with water. (I also like to add a tablespoon or two of white vinegar to the water as it fills. This helps keep the cloudy film from building up on the jars as they boil. It’s not a necessary step – just a personal preference.) Allow water and items to come to a full rolling boil. Let simmer until you are ready to use. An alternate method would be to wash them in the dishwasher. If your machine has a “sterilize” setting (which most newer appliances have), set the cycle to wash and sterilize. You will want to keep jars hot until ready to use. Never fill cold jars with hot liquid or else you will run the risk of the glass breaking and ruining your product. Safety first!

Meanwhile you will want to start working on making your juice. Wash fruit, making sure to remove stems and blossom ends. Chop or quarter fruit removing seeds and place in large bowl. Do not remove skins or peel fruit. Measure fruit into 1 quart (4 cups) increments. Dump into a large, heavy stock pot. for each quart of fruit measured add 1 cup of water to pot. Once all fruit and water have been measured and added, cover with a lid and allow to simmer until fruit is softened and juice has formed.

You will want to strain the fruit through a damp jelly bag or several layers of cheesecloth to get out as much juice from the fruit as possible. At this point you can either use the juice for making jelly (which we are going to do) or you could can the juice itself and use it for cooking or other cooking needs. It will also freeze nicely too.

Now for the jelly making itself. You will need…
5 cups plum juice*
1 package powdered pectin
6-1/2 cups sugar
*I started with around 5 1/2 lbs. of fruit before making juice. Once it was strained I ended up with 10 cups of juice. In order to have the jelly set well, I did this in two batches. Therefore the recipe measurements reflect this. So in essence…to use all of the juice you have you will actually need 10 cups of juice, 2 packages of pectin & 13 cups of sugar.

Combine juice and pectin in a large, heavy stock pot. stir to mix well. Over high heat, bring mixture to a boil. Stir in sugar until fully dissolved. Return mixture to a full rolling boil. Let it boil hard for 1 full minute. Remove pot from heat. You may notice some foam on top of your liquid. This is normal. All you need to do at this point is skim it off.

Ladle hot liquid into your hot sterile jars. Make sure you leave at least 1/4″ head space in each jar. With a clean damp paper towel wipe down edges of jar to clean any spills. DO NOT TOUCH the mouth of the jar itself with your bare hands. Remember you are needing to keep everything as sterile as possible.

Using the magnetic lid lifter place a jar seal over the mouth of each jar. Place the jar ring. Screw rings on securely but only until secured & fingertip tightened. DO NOT screw on overly tight as you can as you need some “wiggle” room per sea in the lid for processing.

Using jar lifter place each filled & closed jar back into the water bath canner. Fill with water until jars are completely covered and you have at least 1 inch of water above the top of the jars. Place canner onto stove burner, cover and bring to a full rolling boil. Let process at full boil for 5 minutes. DO NOT start timing until after boiling has started.

Once processed, remove jars using jar lifter and place on several layers of a dish towel or newspaper (you just want to make sure to protect your counter top from the heat of the jars) and allow to cool completely. As jars cool you will hear a “ping” sound. This means your jars are sealed. Once jars have fully cooled, press down lightly over each lid. If lid does not pop back up for you then the jar has properly sealed and is now ready to be placed in the pantry for later use. If lid presses in and pops back up for you the jar is NOT properly sealed. In this case you will need to remove the lid seal and ring. DO NOT reuse the same lid seal, instead replace it with a new one, screw ring back onto jar and start the water bath processing all over again. Once cooled check to make sure seal has taken. As you can see I ended up with 21 half pint jars of jelly.

**If you only have one jar that hasn’t sealed you can always skip trying to reprocess if you like, and just place it in the refrigerator. You can still eat use it with no problem, it just can not be stored in the pantry.

Happy canning!

Easy Caramel Pears
8-9 fresh pears, peeled with stems left on
1 cup cream de cocoa liquor or white cooking wine
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 Tsp nutmeg
1 Tsp cloves
Caramel sauce

Place all the pears in a crockpot, cut bottoms flat to make them stand up.
Mix all other ingredients together and pour over pears. Cook on low for 4-6 hours until pears are tender.
Let cool in liquid.
Place a pear on serving plate spoon a Tbsp of liquid over it it.and pour hot caramel sauce over

Red, White and Blue-Black Eggplant

1 pound eggplant
Salt
3 large, ripe tomatoes
6 ounces sliced mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup olive oil
3 cups sliced onions
Freshly ground pepper
3 Tablespoons freshly chopped basil, or 2 tsp dried basil

Wash eggplant, but do not peel. Remove the ca and slice off the other end. Quarter the eggplant lengthwise. Then, slice each quarter again into lengthwise 1/4 – 3/8 inch pieces. Salt the slices and let drain for 30 minutes. (it’s important to salt the eggplants to get out the water). Core the tomatoes, core and thinly slice. Cut the cheese into 6 1/2 inch slices.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil, and saute the onions until soft without browning, about 10 minutes. Remove from the pan. Pat the eggplant dry, and brown the slices a few at a time, using most of the remaining oil. Salt and pepper the slices. Lightly oil a 9 X6 inch 2 quart baking dish. Spread half of the onions on the bottom. Sprinkle with the basil. Starting at one end of the baking dish, arrange alternate standing layers of one slice of eggplant, skin side up, 2 or 3 slices of tomato (as best fits across eggplant), and then a slice of cheese against the tomatoes. Repeat these three rows, working down the baking dish. When all have been fitted in, top with the remaining onions (add more basil if you wish). Cover the dish tightly and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 40 minutes.

This dish can be easily doubled.

Raw Summer Salsa
ingredients are approximate amounts, as the recipe is forgiving and to taste:

4 cups of diced fresh garden tomatoes-works with all types
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro, stems removed, finely chopped
2-3 Tbsp. of raw onion chopped, can use green onions, I like Vidalia
1/2 of a lime juiced, more or less to taste
1 tsp. of sea salt
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
If you have a Cuisinart, then place the jalapeno, cilantro, and onion in the chopper and pulse till finely chopped but NOT a gooey mush. Mix all ingredients together well in a glass or stoneware bowl, cover and refridgerate or mix and eat immediately. If you wait, the flavors have a chance to blend and the salt to dissolve. This is a great way to use up garden jalapenos and tomatoes and cucumbers. I have never tried it but I bet it would be good on raw zuchinni and yellow squash mixed in with the cucumbers as well.

Hope you enjoy!!!! Don’t we love our summer gardens!!!!