Roasted Bell Peppers – Go Ahead & Burn Them!

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram
Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail
Roasted Red Bell Peppers

Roasted Red Bell Peppers

Copyright by Jacqueline Peppard, all rights reserved.

When you see deals on bell peppers or chilies, stock up and buy 12-24 of them. Roasting your own peppers is an easy, economical way to add gourmet flair to your recipes. They keep well when packed in olive oil or frozen. Great for making sauces, on cheese, sandwiches, salads, or meat.

The sauces you can make from them offer a welcomed change from the usual tomato based sauces and pair well with spiralized vegetables (perfect for zucchini) or pasta, and as a bed for or drizzled over chicken and fish.

Yes, burn them!

Here is an instance where you want to burn them, go ahead and char until mostly black or blackish brown! Unless blackened and blistered, the skin will not remove easily.

How do I do this without setting them on fire? Easy.

Broiler: Preheat broiler on high. Line pans with foil for easy clean up, and place whole bell peppers on a shallow rimmed baking or broiler pan; position under the broiler about five to six inches away from heat or in the upper third of oven. Some like to quarter, de-seed and stem before broiling, and while perhaps easier, I feel flavor is lost in the process. Cook time 20-25 minutes

Grill: The grill is my favorite way and seems to produce the best flavor. Place whole bell peppers directly on the grill top preheated to 400-425 degrees and roast with cover on or down. Check every 5 minutes and rotate. Cook time about 20-25 minutes.

Gas Stove Top: Place directly over open gas burner and turn with tongs. Should be above flame, but not in flame. This method is best used when needing one or two bell peppers and definitely not recommended when processing large quantities. Cook time about 15 minutes for each pepper.

How do I know they are done?

Check the peppers after about three to five minutes. Rotate your pepper as needed until the skin has blistered and charred black on all sides.

I know, it seems just wrong!

Yes, you must almost entirely blacken the pepper’s surface.

Can I char them too much?

Well, yes you can. Stop when the most of the pepper’s surface is blistered and charred and only bits of color are showing through. The front middle pepper in the photo is a perfect example.

When the entire pepper skin has charred on all sides, remove the pepper (or peppers) from the grill and place in a baking dish or large bowl, bottoms down.

Seal tightly with plastic wrap, a lid, or a dish to prevent moisture from escaping. Hey, a cookie sheet works fine too as a cover.

Let the roasted peppers rest covered for 15-20 minutes. This process releases the skin from the pepper meat as it cools. Don’t let them cool too long or the skins will re-attach to the flesh.

Peel the peppers; the bell pepper skin should slide off easily and don’t worry if bits of char or skin remain. Remove seeds and stems.

If not using immediately, toss and coat generously with olive oil, a tablespoon vinegar, and salt. Pack into clean small canning jars and cover with additional olive oil. These will keep up to a couple months in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before use.

Like what you see?

While this recipe is open to all, some are exclusive and available for subscribers only. Don’t miss out!  Sign up and receive monthly recipes in your email box, future exclusive recipes, private Q&A’s, giveaways, blog post notices, and more!

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram
Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

Broccoli Puree or Mash Recipe – Rich, Colorful & Flavor Packed!

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram
Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail
Short Ribs with Broccoli Puree & Squash Puree

Short Ribs with Broccoli Puree and Squash Puree

Copyright by Jacqueline Peppard, all rights reserved.

Is it puree or is it a mash? The two terms are used interchangeably as if the same. Puree, known more recently as mash, is an easy way to dress up just about any vegetable or rescue ones that have resided in the fridge a bit too long escaping notice. It is a process where food has been finely mashed or strained to achieve a thick pulp like consistency. While I may be accused of splitting hairs, a mash usually retains large irregular chucks and lacks a smooth texture. In most cases, you will need a food processor, blender or food mill. For those on a budget, stainless steel food mills can be purchased for as little as $50.00. If you can afford it, a food processor will be the most versatile, easy to use, and will last you a lifetime – well worth the extra bucks.

Broccoli puree first crossed my radar in the late seventies and remains my favorite today. There is something about the bright green that says happy, plus it pairs so well with any meat dish. While I could devote a whole chapter to puree recipes alone, the following broccoli puree recipe provides a solid template for future forays with other vegetables such as the ubiquitous cauliflower mash, or for more exotic concoctions such as spiced butternut squash and apple, carrot and chestnut, beet and apple, celery root and potato. You are limited only by your imagination. Continue reading

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram
Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

Carbonnade – Beef, Bacon, Beer & Onions

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram
Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail
Beef Carbonnade

Beef Carbonnade

Copyright by Jacqueline Peppard, all rights reserved.

A country Flemish woman deftly moves about her 17th century kitchen with hair tied up in a white woolen cap and blue muslin apron on. Braids of garlic, onions, and herbs are suspended from the rough hewn ceiling beams. Rays of late morning sun gently stream through a window and bounce against the white plaster walls, filling her eyes with golden reflections. Life is good this year. It is winter, but the bountiful summer harvest lines the cellar shelves with ceramic bottles of dark brown ale, sides of smoked pork, and baskets of root vegetables. She creates a stew for the mid-day meal, a recipe containing beef, bacon, onions, beer, dried herbs, and root vegetables – Beef Carbonnade. A savory aroma soon wafts throughout the house warming the heart and beckoning one to the table.

Spring is almost here, but most can’t even begin a garden of hardy greens yet. In countries still receiving snow, a Paleolithic hunter and gatherer’s food supply would be restricted to whatever wild game he could kill. Much of the ground would still be frozen, and any plant food like greens and root vegetables just wouldn’t be on the menu yet. A denizen of the 17th century would be running low on veggies and would be limited to properly stored root and tuber vegetables that mice or rats hadn’t raided. Any wild game would be stretched with pork raised and cured from the prior summer. Our early ancestors available winter food supplies gave birth to the dish also known as Carbonnade Flamande.

The gourmet name disguises the humble nature of the dish, a sweet-sour beef stew largely comprised of onions. Unlike Beef Bourguignon made with wine, it is distinguished by the rich earthy flavor of dark ale contrasted against onions and herbs. My interpretation calls for 4 different members of the allium family, each adding its own individual flavor to the mix, balsamic instead of apple cider vinegar, and LOTS of bacon. Root vegetables are typically boiled and served on the side. Continue reading

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram
Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

Berry Delicious Jam

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram
Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail
Berry Jam

Berry Jam

Copyright by Jacqueline Peppard, all rights reserved.

Join my other health conscious subscribers and receive exclusive recipes, private Q&A’s, giveaways, blog post notices, and more! Sign up here. Thanks!

Traditional recipes require LOTS of sugar with fruit to sugar ratios ranging from 5:3 to 1:1. Just love jam, but hate the hefty price tag that goes along with the sugarless all fruit jams? Man, $5 for a teeny tiny jar LOADED with sugar! On top of that, the natural fruit flavor is diluted with grape juice concentrate and many “organic” brands contain additives, such as thickeners, preservatives, or artificial sweeteners, many of which aren’t labeled as organic, so they are definitely processed from genetically modified grains like corn.

The label reading nerd I am, I noticed that a jam marked “organic” had non-organic dextrose, citric acid, and pectin. The fruit and sugar were organic, but nothing else on the label – plus organic sugar was the number one ingredient, there was more sugar than fruit in the spread. Continue reading

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram
Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail