Barbeque Baked Beans

It’s a cold, blustery day outside today. But inside there’s a cinnamon candle burning on my table, a Focus on the Family radio drama in the CD player, a yummy supper cooking in the crock pot.

On the menu tonight – barbeque baked beans – a stick to your ribs comfort food that is fast and cheap – especially when you use dry beans that you cooked yourself.

Tonight we added a pound of fried sausage to the beans to make it even more hearty.

It took about 10 minutes to throw together and is sending the most delicious smells through the house!

Barbecue Baked Beans

1/2 cup ketchup
3/4 cup tangy barbecue sauce
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoons mustard
3 cup canned white beans
salt to taste

Mix the ketchup, barbecue sauce, water, Worcestershire sauce, honey and mustard. Bring to a boil. Simmer 5 minutes.

Add beans and salt to taste.

Transfer to a greased casserole dish and bake uncovered at 325 degrees for 1 hour.

Or put in a greased crock pot and cook on low for 4 hours or on high for 2 hours. The crock pot version won’t be as thick – but just as delicious!

Homemade Tomato Soup

Cold weather has arrived making us hungry for a bowl of soup! Today Nana shares a yummy homemade tomato version. Inexpensive and delicious! Enjoy!

Homemade Tomato Soup This could be called Senior Citizen Soup! It is similar to Campbell’s, but our grandchildren have discriminating taste buds and picked it out as different right away!

We pick our ripe tomatoes during the summer, wash them, take off the stem and bud end and any blemish, put them in a plastic freezer bag & freeze to use in the fall & winter.

You can use them in any recipe that calls for cooked tomatoes. The skins literally slip off when thawed.

We were telling our friends about our “stash” of tomatoes and they shared this recipe.

Serve with a grilled cheese sandwich. Sprinkle some cilantro or basil on top for a “fresh” taste or skip the grilled cheese sandwich and sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese. Yum!

Tomato Soup
From Alice Jones’ Kitchen

15 Washed & Cored Tomatoes; start cooking and bring to a boil.
5 to 6 Onions, diced
1 Red Pepper, diced
1 Green Pepper, diced
7-8 Stalks Celery, diced

Put the diced veggies in a separate pan. Cook until soft and onions are transparent.

Put them in a blender. (Use some of the juice from the tomatoes to help with the blending process.)

When tomatoes have come to a boil put through a colander. Put the juice back in the larger pan and bring to a light boil. Add ½ Cup of butter. Add blended veggie mixture.

In a separate dish mix:

¼ Cup Salt
1 Cup Flour
1 Cup Sugar

Put about a cup of the liquid soup in blender and add the mixed dry ingredients. Blend.

Add this mixture to the soup and continue to cook to a light boil.

Put into hot jars. Seal. Process in hot water bath 25 min for pints & 35 min for quarts.

(I use my pressure canner and process 1 minute @ 15 pounds)

This makes about 12 pints or 6 quarts.

You can serve as is by heating or add 1 cup of milk for a cream of tomato soup.

Until next time,

Nana

Homemade Chicken Soup

Here’s Nana with a delicious way to stretch your food budget. How do I know it’s good? We just enjoyed some tonight!

Chick Noodle Soup & Buttermilk Bread

We purchase whole chickens and turkeys when they are a good price and cut them up into meal-sized pieces for us.

Then we take all the bony pieces and make a delicious homemade broth. Delicious fresh, its also wonderful to have in the freezer for those busy days or last-minute meal guests (hospitality!)

Homemade Chicken Soup
From Papa & Nana’s kitchen

Put the bony pieces (*ribs, back, wings) of chicken in a stock pot and cover with water.

Cut the following vegetables into chunks and add to pot:

2 med Onions
4 Carrots
2 Stalks of Celery (or 1 tsp. celery seed)

Add following herbs & seasonings:
1 tsp. Turmeric
2 tsp. dried sage
1 tsp. dried thyme
2 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. dried marjoram
1 tsp. garlic powder

(You may substitute fresh herbs for any of these or 2 tsp poultry seasoning)

For additional flavoring we add:

1 cube or 1 Tbs. Chicken Bouillon

Bring to boil and simmer until meat is tender.

Take out pieces of meat to cool until you can pull it off bones.

Strain the broth and return to stock pot.

Taste. Adjust seasonings by adding salt & pepper and perhaps more bouillon.

Add chicken.

Add either noodles or rice and simmer until done.

(Amount of noodles or rice depends on amount of broth)

Serve or put in serving size containers, cool & freeze to reheat later in the microwave.

* If you want more meat, also put in a leg and/or thigh or breast.

You can do the same thing with a turkey, too!

Until next time,

Nana