Category: Real Food

DIY Italian Seasoning for Pizza, Pasta and Sausage

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This is an amazing recipe for a multi-purpose Italian seasoning. We mainly use it for Pizza and Sausage but it fits nicely just about anywhere. I started doubling the recipe because I use it in so many dishes. I’ll powder some up in the food processor and leave some in course form to use fresh from a grinder.

Pizza is one of our go to meals. I always think to myself, ugh, pizza again? However, it never disappoints and yet I am somehow always surprised by this. I have to give most of the credit to the seasoning that we use. At some point several years ago, we were purchasing a pizza seasoning that came in its own grinder. Then, all of a sudden I couldn’t find it anymore. So I used the very last of it as a guide to making my own. I never did quite manage to make it taste exactly the same as the one I purchased, but this one holds it’s own none the less. The nice thing is you can probably make it with spices you already have in your pantry. It’s an excellent multi purpose Italian seasoning. As always, feel free to tweak the recipe to suit your own taste. Many of you will want to put more pepper flakes in the recipe. I’m super sensitive to the heat and this is about as hot as I can go. The boys usually just shake hot pepper flakes right onto the pizza slices as they eat them. Before I get to far, here is a link to the pizza recipe Simple Pizza From Scratch.

For this recipe (and all recipes really) here is a quick little list of conversions that might make things quicker for you, especially if you’re doubling the recipe.

  • 3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon
  • 2 tablespoons = 1/8 cup
  • 4 tablespoons = 1/4 cup

This is an amazing multi-purpose Italian seasoning. It goes great on pizza or into ground meat.

I get almost all of the ingredients from the dollar store with the exception of the fennel seed. I had to order that from Amazon. It came in the ‘raw’ form so I just toast it real quick in a pan on the stove before I add it. 

Raw fennel gets toasted for best flavor

So I guess this would also be a good spot to drop in a little info on the ground sausage we make. I’m going to try to do a short article in the near future about grinding pork and beef so I’ll keep this short. We started grinding all our meat at home several years ago when I found out there was more than one cow in those packages. We make hamburger and Italian sausage. I use the seasoning in this article to make the sausage. Unfortunately I don’t have a guide for the pork:spice ratio that I can give you. I can tell you this though; it always takes way more seasoning than you think it will! Sometimes I’ll start grinding and cook up a tiny patty to get an idea where I’m at and adjust accordingly.

I used to put the ground meat in a flattened gallon zipper bag and press it into quarters with a chopstick. Now I make balls out of it and store those balls in a zipper bag. Each ball is a third of a pound and three pounds fits in a bag. A third of a pound is about one serving so it’s easier to just take pull out what we need for that meal. I’ve included some older pics here so you can see what I mean.

Each ball is one serving and approximately one third of a pound.

As always, feel free to leave comments or questions. Some of you who are as immature as I am like minded will want to comment on some of the things we touched on like; grinding your meat, pulling your meat out, balls and one pound balls. Believe that none of that was lost on me.

I’m hoping to start writing again, so fingers crossed that you’ll be reading more from us soon.

Until then…Take it simple, Sam and Stacey

Not Your Health Food Store-Chip A Tooth Banana Chips

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Been going bananas the last few months over not getting anything written for this site. This will be a record short post just to get things moving again. It has been literally half a year! So much has happened there is no way I will catch up. I still have ‘drafts’ from 2 years ago that have yet to be published. I know, I know, same old song and dance…..so….bananas!

We kind of go through spirts with the dehydrator. We were big into what I can only call ‘banana taffy’ at this time. So, when we ran into a brand new food dehydrator at a yard sale for 3$, we jumped on it. Now, much like the bread machines, we have two. I have to say the original Ronco that I have had for about 25 years is still the best. It is however, on it’s last leg. Or so I have been saying for 3 or 4 years now. That’s how we justified splurging on the new one.

On to the banana taffy. These banana chips are not the typical ones you purchase from wherever people buy such things. Those are hard, crunchy, and I fear risking an emergency trip to the dentist every time I eat one. And I’m not sure how they do it but they almost have a fake banana taste. Ours have two ingredients, bananas and lemon juice. These chips are tangy and chewy and actually taste like bananas…but better. The diluted lemon juice used to keep them from getting brown gives them an almost candy flavor. They are seriously good, easy peasy to make and addicting.

Cut the banana slices about 1 cm thick. Just try to be consistent with the size so they all dehydrate at about the same rate.

Put them right into a bowl of diluted lemon juice. I think I use about 2 parts water to one part lemon. It is basically to keep the bananas from turning a gross shade of dark brown as they dehydrate. I guess I should also tell you that along with not chipping your teeth, they are also not that butter yellow color of the store bought ones. I usually just drop them in the lemon juice as I cut and by the time I’m done they are ready to put on the trays. They don’t need to be in the juice more than a couple minutes.

Place them on the trays making sure the pieces are not touching. The space between them really just has to do with how much I have to dehydrate. The ones in this photo had a ton of room, you can really load the trays, just makes sure the pieces don’t touch.

Here is our fancy new 3$ dehydrator! We usually get the trays filled in the afternoon and by morning most of the pieces are done. They are finished if they don’t have any mushy parts. If I am not sure I usually just eat those hehehe. Just like the beef jerky, it will depend on your dehydrator, how thick you slice them etc.

We also had a surplus of apples from the neighbor and a few straggler strawberries. They went on the other dehydrator. Apples get the same lemon bath as bananas.

Ok folks that’s it. I really wanted to get this post up so I’m not doing the umpteen rewrites I usually do.

-Take it simple-  Sam and Stacey

 

Beef Jerkey

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Beef jerky is not a meal, and for that matter neither is Chex mix. I must constantly reinforce this idea in our house when such delectables are on hand. Seriously, they would sit down and eat an entire bag (of either) until it was gone if I didn’t dole it out over a reasonable amount of time. The deal is, the more you help out with the process, the bigger cut of the goods you get. Seems fair right? Last time Wes did a third of the work. When it was done I gave him a third of the jerky, which he promptly mowed down and ate in its entirety….in one sitting. This is why we can’t have nice things.

All you need to make this recipe is a dehydrator. It’s very simple to make your own beef jerky at home. The following is kind of a loose recipe. I’m not very good at measuring the ingredients but I can give you a jumping off point and you can adjust from there. I usually do a little taste test of the marinade before I put the meat in and see if it’s what I’m looking for. The various brands of ingredients can give you different flavors. Some more salty or more smoky. This is the same ‘ol recipe I have used forever.

I have been getting London broil on sale for $2.99 a pound. This is a perfect cut of meat for jerky. It’s nice and lean and usually a consistent thickness. I cut it into strips between 1/8 and 1/4 inch thick. Cut off any strips of fat. Try to be consistent so all the jerky is done about the same time. I was so focused on this project I forgot to take photos. Most of these are from the second batch I just did.

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I use about 2 cups of soy sauce, 1/2 cup of brown sugar, a cap full of liquid smoke and a couple tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce. Be careful with the liquid smoke! I learned the hard way that just a little too much can ruin the marinade. Put all this in a bowl and stir to dissolve the sugar. Adjust the flavors if you need to and add the meat as you slice it. The meat does not have to sit in the marinade very long! It usually ends up in there for about 15 to 20 min. As soon as I’m done slicing I start to load the dehydrator. I let it sit in the marinade for a couple hours one time and woooo doggy that was some strong jerky.

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Here it is in a bag. I forgot to take photos of it in the bowl marinading so you will just have to take my word on it. This is extra meat that didn’t fit on the dehydrator.

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Load up your dehydrator with the strips of meat. I usually put a piece of wax paper under the dehydrator to catch drips. I can be a sticky mess. While they are still wet, sprinkle them with the seasoning of your choice. I usually just go with the tried and true black pepper. Red chili flakes are also popular around here. Make sure the pieces are not touching each other. We want to have lots of room for the air to circulate and do its job. Jerky is usually done fairly quickly. I start it in the afternoon and by the next morning it is done. I rotate the trays and give them a half turn a couple times during the process so that all the pieces are finished about the same time.

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Once all the moisture is gone, seal them in an air tight container and hide them from your family. Just kidding, do with them as you please.

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  • So here are the numbers, you know I love me some stats!
  • I had 5 pounds of beef that cost $15.
  • 5 pounds = 80 ounces
  • This batch of jerky dehydrated to approximately 23.5 ounces which is an almost 75% reduction in product. So in other words you will only end up with about (by weight) 1/4 of the meat you start with.
  • $15 divided by 23.5 ounces gives you a cost of about .64 cents an ounce
  • Jerky from the store is about $1 an ounce and has lots of unpronounceable ingredients

Hope you enjoyed the article. Sorry they have been few and far between but we are busy busy here on our urban homestead.

Take it simple   –Sam and Stacey–

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Eggsperiment

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If you find eggs on sale this week, go ahead and stock up. I’ll show you a simple way to make them last 6 plus months in the refrigerator. If you are lucky enough to have your own laying hens and your neighbors now hide when they see you coming over with yet another box of eggs, this article is for you too. With Easter this week, I was able to find eggs on sale at most of our local groceries. I work out the price of each egg. A good price for eggs is 16 cents a piece. So if I can get them at that price or less I will buy a couple dozen. Just take the price of the carton and divide it by 12. That will give you the price of each egg. This week I can get a dozen eggs for $1.79 making each egg about 15 cents. I usually only buy large or extra large sizes but if the price is right I’ve been known to purchase jumbo and even mediums. You can easily find egg size conversion charts if you are baking with them.

OK, now for the good stuff. All you need to do is lightly coat the egg in mineral oil. Seriously, that’s it. Click on this link to read the first article we wrote for complete instructions. Our answer to the rising cost of eggs and how to preserve them.  Several months ago I started this experiment to see if eggs really would last that long. I preserved a few cartons with mineral oil and did nothing to another carton. The mineral oil eggs won by a long shot.

Just to recap, the first thing you should do when you bring your eggs home is a freshness test. It’s very simple. Put the egg in a container of water. If it sinks and sits on its side, it is very fresh. If they sink but stand on end, use those guys fairly soon. If they float, they’re only good as stink bomb projectiles.

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Always test the eggs first. Every once in a while I will find an egg of questionable stability in a carton I just purchased. Next, dry them off and lightly coat them with mineral oil. I wear gloves because I’m like a small child and don’t like getting my hands yucky.

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Yesterday I did a float/freshness test on all the eggs. I checked both the oiled and the untreated eggs that were put in the fridge in the middle of September. I always recommend labeling and dating all your projects. We have a roll of ‘painters tape’ that hangs in the kitchen attached to a sharpie. I use it every single day, works great even in the freezer.

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I didn’t really expect to see much difference in freshness between the two groups. Boy was I wrong. The eggs that were coated with mineral oil were as fresh as the day I put them away. However, the untreated eggs (just refrigerated) were not in very good shape. The next photo shows two sets of eggs. The ones in the carton slots floated on end so I promptly put those into everyday rotation to be used quickly. The ones in the carton lid? Stink bomb projectiles.

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So now we know. If you want to preserve eggs you must coat them in mineral oil. It should be mentioned though that two thirds of the eggs lasted six months with just refrigeration. If you read the previous article I linked, it explains why the mineral oil works.

I will continue to test the eggs from September every month or so. I am curious now to find out just how long they are going to last. Supposedly they will last a year. I will definitely keep you all posted. Every once in a while I score a really good deal on eggs, like 11 cents a piece. So I always stock up then. Eggs became really expensive at the first of the year due to some new, kinder gentler, chicken farming laws. If we run out of eggs and they are not on sale, I just grab one of the cartons I have stashed in the back of the fridge.

That’s all for today. Hope you all had a wonderful Easter Day, Eostre, Vernal Equinox, end of Lent, Sunday, pre-Monday or any other reason for celebration.

Take it Simple   -Sam and Stacey-

 

Easy Enchilada Sauce

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This recipe has only 6 ingredients and is inexpensive to make, not to mention super duper easy. I’m not sure about where you live but around here canned enchilada sauce is relatively expensive. Usually between $2 and $3 a can. Even in the small, predominately Hispanic community I live in. We love enchiladas. They are a delicious quick meal but I always cringe at spending 3 bucks on a can of sauce. We decided to make our own. This stuff is seriously tasty. Way better than the canned stuff. We will never go back. Other than the pasilla chili powder, you probably already have all the ingredients.

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Put 2 tablespoons each of flour and cooking oil in a pan. Stir and cook on medium high heat until a golden color. Add all of the spices. Make sure you use pasilla chili powder. It’s very flavorful but mild. If you use regular chili powder you will end up with enchilava sauce. If you enjoy the burn just add additional chili powder in your favorite flavor or heat. Stir for a minute or two to combine.

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This next photo is incorrect. The spices should be all stirred up and fragrant before you wisk in the 2 cups of chicken stock.

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Gently simmer for 15 to 20 minutes stirring often so it doesn’t gum up on the bottom.

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That’s it! Easy peasy. I’ve used it in enchiladas and tamale pie. We will never go back to canned, this is just too simple and inexpensive. We use our homemade canned stock so this recipe probably costs about $1. The package of pasilla powder is .79 it is 4 Tbl which = 1/4 cup. So that is the majority of the cost.

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I don’t have a recipe for the enchiladas. I just kind of wing it every time. I do like to make a double batch and put one in the freezer for those nights when no one is feeling like making dinner.

Hope you all had a great week. I’m on a writing roll now! I have found if I don’t try to write an entire article in one sitting I can crank out a few more a month….as in more than one. 😉 It takes quite a while from start to finish. Mostly proof and reproof reading and writing. I absolutely hate reading blogs with grammatical errors. So hopefully you don’t find too many here.

Take it simple      -Sam and Stacey-