End Of Summer Recipe Round-Up

Autumn began on the Fourth of July – if you believe the retailers who are already selling fall and winter goods.

Even if you disagree, you might be ready for summer to hurry up and end already, especially if you’ve got a stockpile of produce quickly passing its prime.

Here are some recipes from fellow foodies who can help.

Heidi Flick passes along the recipe for Grandma Williams’ Squash Lemon Pie. “It really tastes, feels and looks like lemon chess pie,” she promises. (See more of her recipes at Heidi’s Living to Eat: Putting the Fun Back in Eating.)

• 6 medium yellow squash, sliced (not peeled)
• 8 tbsp butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp lemon extract
• 3 eggs
• Three prepared pie crusts

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place the squash in a large pot and add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the squash is very tender, but not falling apart – about 20 minutes. Drain the squash, pushing on it with a spoon to remove excess water.
3. Place the squash in a blender. Add butter and flour and puree. Stop the blender and add the sugar, lemon extract and eggs. Blend on medium speed until smooth. Divide the mixture between the three pie crusts and bake 45 minutes to one hour, until the filling is set. Let cool at least an hour before slicing. Makes three 9-inch pies and freezes well.

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  Stephen Crotts from Rock Hill shares his recipe for Goat, Buttermilk & Peach Ice Cream:

• 3 cups raw goat's milk
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1-1/2 cup unrefined sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• pinch of kosher salt
• 4 egg yolks
• 3 - 4 ripe peaches
• 1 tbsp bourbon

1. Bring milk, buttermilk, 1 cup sugar, vanilla and salt to simmer in a sauce pan until sugar dissolves. (You can use goat's milk only, but buttermilk lends a nice tang if you have some on hand).
2. In a medium bowl, whisk yolks well. Whisking constantly, very slowly pour 1/2 cup of the warm milk mixture into the yolks to temper them. Stir tempered yolk mixture into the simmering pan with remaining milk mixture. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Refrigerate until completely chilled.
3. In a small saucepan, add peeled and chopped peaches and 1/2 cup sugar. Bring to simmer and reduce peaches. Add bourbon to keep from sticking. Peaches can be mashed or puréed. Refrigerate until completely chilled.
4. Turn on ice cream maker and add milk mixture, then fold in peaches. Churn according to ice cream maker instructions. Place in freezer for 2 - 4 hours to firm before serving.

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  Carolina native Becca Thompson has since moved west, but says, “Bates Peach Pie is a recipe we have passed down for generations in my family from Georgia and are sharing it with y’all now.”

• 1 unbaked pie shell (homemade or refrigerated brand)
• 3 or 4 peaches, peeled and halved
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 tbsp flour
• 2 eggs
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 4 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line the uncooked pie shell with peach halves. In a bowl, mix sugar, flour, eggs, lemon juice, and vanilla and pour over peaches. Dot each peach half w/butter (a necessity!). Bake for one hour or until set. Serve with whipped cream.

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  Ilke McAliley is “a Turkish girl cooking it up in the American south.” Where she grew up, Kisir is a popular light salad. “I love making this with fresh tomatoes and mint most of the summer,” she says.

• 1 cup of bulgur
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup water (depends on what kind of bulgur you have, increase it by 1/4 cup if necessary)
• 1/2 cup diced yellow onions
• 1-1/2 tablespoons tomato paste or red pepper paste
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
• 2 green onions, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses (you can omit and add more lemon juice if you can not find it)
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice (less or more for your taste)
• 1/3 cup diced tomato
• 1/4 cup diced cucumber
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1-1/2 tablespoon dry crushed mint

1. Place bulgur in a bowl. Add salt and pepper. Boil the water and pour it over the bulgur.
2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 20 minutes.
3. Sauté yellow onions in 2 tablespoon of olive oil in a pan until they change their color. Add onions to bulgur, cover, wait for another 10 minutes.
4. Add the tomato or red pepper paste to bulgur. Mix well until all paste dispersed in the bulgur. Add parsley, fresh mint, green onions and mix them well with the bulgur.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk the molasses, lemon juice and 1/4 cup olive oil then pour it over the bulgur. Mix well. At this point, you can taste and see if salt is enough for your taste, or if bulgur is undercooked. If so you can add more boiling water gradually, but do not over-soak it; normally 1-1/4 cup to 1-1/2 cup total is enough for medium and coarse bulgur.
6. Add tomato and cucumber. Add dry mint and crushed red pepper. Adjust it if necessary for your taste.

*Alternative ingredients: You can use fresh dill, finely diced red cabbage, even finely chopped walnuts in kisir.
Serves 2

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  Renée Joslyn’s small-batch artisanal jams from the Freakin’ Flamingo in Florida can be purchased here in N.C. at Durham’s Respite Café. A favorite is Blueberry Mojito, which makes a nice addition in Renée’s recipe for Jam Muffins.

• 1-½ cups unbleached flour
• ½ cup ground oatmeal *
• ¼ cup flax seed meal
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 tbsp (generous) jam
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 large eggs
• ½ cup canola oil (or other neutral oil) *
• 1 cup soy milk *
• 1 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF.  Prepare a muffin tin by lining with paper or silicone liners, or by spraying the compartments well with cooking spray.
2. Combine the flour, ground oatmeal, flax seed meal, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the jam, sugar, eggs, oil, milk, and vanilla.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and stir together until just combined.
4. Divide the batter equally into the prepared pan, filling each cup about 2/3 full. 
5. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick or wooden skewer inserted into the center, comes out clean. Makes 12 muffins.

*To make ground oatmeal, measure ½ cup of uncooked oatmeal (old-fashioned or quick oats, not instant), and grind in a food processor until fine. *For richer muffins, you may substitute one stick (8 tbsp) butter, melted, for the oil; and/or dairy milk for the soy milk, if you prefer.

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  And last but not least, here is what to do with the all of those zucchini that won’t stop coming: Tammy Wilson’s Zucchini Relish, which the author has been making for more than 30 years. She says, “If you’re not into canning, you could pare the recipe down for a jar or two to keep in your refrigerator for a week or two, but once it’s gone, you’ll be sorry that you don’t have more in the pantry.”

• 12 cups finely chopped zucchini
• 4 cups chopped fresh onion
• 1 cup chopped bell pepper (red or green)
• Canning salt (without iodine)

1. Combine the chopped vegetables in a large bowl with 5 tablespoons canning salt.
2. Cover with a towel and leave for at least 8 hours. Drain thoroughly in a colander and set aside.

In large cooking pot, combine:

• 2 ½ c. vinegar (I prefer cider vinegar)
• 6 cups granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon dry mustard
• 1 ½ teaspoons celery seed
• ¾ teaspoon nutmeg
• ¾ teaspoon turmeric
• ½ teaspoon black pepper

Bring these ingredients to a boil; then add the chopped vegetables. Cook slowly and stir often for 30 minutes. Place the mixture in jars and process in hot water bath according to your canner instructions. Makes about 7 quarts.