Green Onion and Wine Jam

10 bunches of green onions
2 T. butter
750 ml white wine
1 package powder pectin
4 c. sugar

Finely dice white ends of onions, rough chop green ends. Saute in butter until soft. Add wine and pectin. When boiling, add sugar and bring to hard boil for 1 min. Can and process in hot water bath. Makes 2.5 pints.

Sweet Jalapeno Relish

Lots of peppers
A few bell peppers
2 T granulated garlic
1.5 T mustard seed
1 T celery seed

Ratio of 1 c. vinegar to 2 c. sugar

Remove seeds from larger peppers. Finely chop peppers (I pulsed for 27 times in food processor). Add peppers to large heavy pot, add enough vinegar and sugar to make it have a pourable consistency. Cook for 10-15 minutes until peppers become soft. Can and process in water bath. Makes 2.5 pints.

Relish That Green Sauce Dip

1/2 jar HEB Relish That Corn
1/2 jar That Green Sauce, mild or medium
1 (8oz) package HEB Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 package HEB Bacon Pieces

Mix all 4 ingredients and serve chilled with crackers of choice. Garnish with green onions of extra zip.

Taqueria-Style Green Sauce

20 serranos
12 jalapenos
6 garlic cloves, quartered

Remove stems and boil for 10-15 minutes COVERED (unless you want to die from coughing) or until soft. Transfer peppers and garlic to blender and puree. Add 3 T olive oil and boiling water until desired consistency is reached. If too hot when serving, a a few tablespoons of sour cream to lessen heat. Eat with reckless abandon.

Cranberry Pepper Jelly

1 red bell pepper (~1 c.)
2 jalapenos, finely chopped with seeds (~1/2 c.)

1 c. apple cider vinegar
1 c. white vinegar
Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 bag fresh cranberries
6 c. sugar
1 packet liquid pectin

Simmer peppers and vinegar together until peppers are soft. Add sugar until melted. Add cranberries, cook until all have popped, about 10 minutes. Follow directions on pectin packet.

Seafood Corn Chowder

3 slices bacon
1 onion, finely diced
1# potato (1 lg potato)
1 can white corn
2 Tbsp. floor

Box of chicken stock
Can of creamed corn 
Small can of clams in their own juice, juice separated from clams

Shrimp
Crabmeat

Slice bacon into small chunks. Render fat. Leave bacon in pot, drain fat except 1Tbsp. Add the onion and saute until onion is brown. Add potatoes and corn. Cook until potatoes and corn have color on them. Add more bacon fat if needed. Cover veggies in 2 Tbsp. of flour and cook for 4 minutes.

Add box of chicken stock,  creamed corn, and juice of clams to taste. Don't add all at once because it can be too salty. Bring to boil for 10 minutes or until potatoes cooked. Once potatoes are fork tender, add shrimp and drained clams and cook for an additional 5 minutes, or until shrimp turn pink.

Add crabmeat to individual soup bowls. The heat from the soup will warm the crabmeat, but that way you can ensure that there's plenty in each bowl. :) Serve with crusty bread.

Italian Crock Pot Roast

3# beef roast
Salt and pepper

1 small bag baby carrots
5 potatoes, medium cubed (about 1")
1 large onion, sliced vertically in large wedges
1 can diced tomatoes, Italian style
1/2 can dry red wine
Package of Italian salad dressing mix
Italian seasoning


6 ounces red wine
2 tsp. flour

Buy any type of roast that suits your fancy, usually I buy whatever is on sale. Cheaper cuts of meats do especially well cooking low and slow so it won't matter. Trim the roast of any excess fat, some fat at this point is okay, just gristle and large amounts hanging on the meat need to be removed. Once the roast is prepped, heat a skillet over medium high heat. Drizzle a little bit of oil in the bottom of the pan, salt and pepper the roast. Sear all sides of the roast until a nice brown crust develops. The roast doesn't need to be cooked all the way, you are just trying to brown the outside.

Put potatoes in the bottom of a LARGE crock pot. Then layer carrots and onions. Nestle the seared roast in the vegetables, leaving the potatoes touching the bottom of crock pot. Vegetables should be touching the sides of the crock pot and the roast should be surrounded by vegetables. Pour can of tomatoes over the roast and vegetables. In tomato can, pour in wine, add Italian salad dressing mix and stir. Pour into crock pot. (At this point, it's also okay to add a little water or wine back to the can to make sure you get all the seasonings out).

Cook on high for 6-8 hours or low overnight. About halfway through, taste gravy and add Italian seasoning to taste. You may need to add more liquid depending on the size of your pot and how much liquid develops. I did not need to add any, but I certainly would not have complained with more gravy.

Thirty minutes before serving, pour wine into a coffee cup (that's how I estimated 6 ounces, clever, no?) and add flour. Whisk until no flour lumps are present. Add to crock pot and turn heat to high. Gravy will thicken and be ready to serve with roast and veggies.

Roast should fall apart when you are ready to eat. Serve in a bowl with some nice hearty multi-grain bread. It's a meal in a bowl!

**Forgive me for the lack of pictures. There wasn't really any time for pictures before it got eaten up. I would assume that roast really doesn't photograph that well. But I guess that just means I'll have to make it again to test that theory!