Pinckney Peach Potato Pepper Sauce and other recent favorite recipes...

I love to bring produce in from the garden and use it in my meals. Since I started growing hot peppers last summer, I’ve enjoyed experimenting with hot sauces and tonight I made one that was really good! Here’s the recipe:

An assortment of hot peppers (I used four red Hungarian wax peppers and 8 orange Bulgarian carrot peppers)

About a cup of vinegar (sorry, I didn’t measure, just poured to get it to the right consistency)

About a cup of brown sugar (again, I didn’t measure)

3 sweet potatoes, baked til soft

2 ripe peaches

Slice the peppers and remove the seeds and membranes. I wear rubber gloves when I do this so I don’t burn my hands! Chop peppers and put together with all the other ingredients in the food processor and puree. Store in the refrigerator and use with rice and beans, curry, or whatever you like to put hot sauce on.

We had it with Cauliflower Curry tonight. I’ve had people comment on how delicious that curry is so here’s the recipe for it as well:

2 onions, chopped

1 sweet red pepper, sliced

1 sweet yellow pepper, sliced

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

2 Tablespoons Patak Hot Curry Paste

1 bunch cauliflower

5-6 russett potatoes (any kind is fine, that’s just what I had tonight)

1 can coconut milk

1 can chick peas

1 can diced tomatos

1 bunch cilantro, chopped

juice of 2 limes

salt to taste

Saute the onions and peppers in the oil til soft, add the curry paste and enough water to keep the onions and peppers from sticking. Cut up cauliflower and chop potatoes. Add to the onion/ pepper/curry sauté. Add a little more water if needed. Cover and simmer on medium to low heat til potatos are just soft. Add coconut milk, chick peas, tomatoes, cilantro, and lime juice. Cook about half an hour on low. Serve over rice with a variety of condiments. We like to have small bowls of chopped mango, raisins, coconut, sunflower seeds or peanuts, yogurt, pineapple, and of course the hot sauce to accompany our curry.

The secrets to this curry are the Patak curry paste, coconut milk, and cilantro. You can find the Patak's and coconut milk in the international aisle of most grocery stores. Food Lion even carries them. Delicious!

And one last recipe…..After posting about making Pesto, several people asked me for my pesto recipe. If you know me or have been in my kitchen, you know that I don’t use recipes very much. I may start with a recipe but usually end up adapting it to my own taste, and after a while, I just wing it and cook by feel! Here’s the original pesto recipe that I used from the Moosewood Cookbook. I vary this somewhat each time I make it but this is a good starting point:

3 cups packed fresh basil leaves

2 large cloves fresh garlic

½ cup pinenuts, walnuts, or almonds (I usually use walnuts)

¾ cup fresh grated parmesan (parmesan in the can will work fine, too)

½ cup olive oil (add more if the pesto seems too thick)

Salt to taste

Combine everything in a food processor and whiz til it turns into a smooth paste. Toss with hot drained pasta.

Happy eating!