Delicio Recipe List

Always keep pickles in your fridge.  At least if you like pickles in your sandwiches.  And for sure if you like a cracker-pickle-cheese sort of snack.  And especially if you live in a land where you can't buy pickles at the grocery store.  (Except for the strange flavors of pickled tofu and vegetables and chicken feet, but I'm not after that flavor when I'm having a sandwich.) Sliced onions Garlic cloves Sliced cucumbers Sliced red pepper, if desired Fresh dill, if available Layer a one gallon (or so) container with desired amounts of these ingredients. Brine:  2 cups water             4 cups vinegar             4 cups sugar             4 T. pickling salt             2 T. pickling spice Heat until dissolved, but do not boil.  Pour over cucumbers ...

I've made several batches of jam here in China with my Certo from home.  (Thanks, Paula)  But when a Chinese friend asked me to teach her to make jam, I searched for a pectin-free recipe.  We first made the regular jam, because I knew it would work.  And then later I tried the pectin-free.  And it worked!  It was a little runnier than Certo jam, and kind of sour because of less sugar.  But it was bursting with flavor, a little goes a long ways.  I used end of the season strawberries (they're getting cheaper and cheaper) and lemons from Mrs. Shi.  It made beautiful, dark red jam! Low Sugar Pectin-Free Strawberry Jam 3 cups mashed strawberries 1 1/2 cups sugar juice from 1 1/2 lemons as much of the zest as you like, I grated the peel from 1 lemon Stir lemon juice, zest and sugar together in your pot.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves into a syrup. Remove from heat and stir in the strawberries....

This is a great way to have your own potatoes ready to use in the freezer.  Fry them for breakfast or supper, or use in a potato casserole.  Make them in winter with your potatoes that are sprouting too soon, or make them in fall with the ones that got stabbed while digging.  Amounts aren't listed so just add ingredients to your liking. potatoes canola oil seasoning salt Peel and dice potatoes.  (My Vidalia chopper works great for this!)  Throw them in a big bowl of water.  After you have a large bowl full and they've soaked a bit, drain them.  Spread them on a bath towel to dry.  Once they're dried off somewhat dump them back into the bowl. Toss them in some oil and seasoning salt to taste.  Bake at 450 for 15-20 min.  They will be cooked but not really brown.  Cool and they're ready for the freezer.