Homemade Relish

With the garden in full swing and our kitchen counter looking like the produce aisle, I've been trying to bring purpose to every last veggie that has entered our home from our own garden or another's!

A couple weeks ago after making our first round of pickles this season, I had a bowl full of leftover cucumber chunks after needing to cut a few of my cucumbers to fit lengthwise in the jars, so I decided what better way to use these than some relish.

So I went a googling and found a recipe from Jim and Mary at Old World Garden Farms ... and to be quite honest it was 90% for the name of their farm and 10% for their recipe ;) Either way, they have an inspiring story and some delicious relish {and you know it's delicious when I can convince the Mr. to try it and he's up for trying it on his Chicago Dog!}.

Other than omitting the celery seed (only because it's a very prominent favor that's not overly appreciated by a few in the family) and having to improvise on the process because I was multitasking and didn't read the directions very well the first time through {whooooppsss!!!}, I followed their recipe to a 'T' and was very pleased with the process.

Homemade Sweet Relish

3 to 4 pounds of cucumbers (great resource for measuring vegetables without a scale)

1 onion

1/4 cup pickling salt

3 cups white vinegar

3/4 cup sugar

4 cloves garlic, minced or finely grated

2 teaspoons dill seed

2 teaspoons mustard seed

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

Cut cucumbers lengthwise and remove seeds. Chop cucumbers and onion in food processor, being careful not to over process them. In a glass bowl, combine chopped veggies and salt. Allow to sit for 2 hours. Strain liquid off, pressing to remove excess moisture. In stockpot bring remaining ingredients to a boil. Add veggies. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 10 minutes. Transfer relish to clean jars. Store in refrigerator for up to a month. Or can using a water bath for 10 minutes. Makes about 4 pint size jars. 

Cost comparison: 

Price per jar - $1.11 homemade vs. $1.49 for store bought

For 1st timers (based off of Meijer Prices) 

cucumbers - free or ~$3

onion - $1.19

pickling salt - $1.59

vinegar - $2.69

garlic - $0.50

dill seed - $3.49

mustard seed - $2.49

turmeric - $5.89

pint mason jars w/lid - $7.69 12 ct. 

TOTAL - $23.53 not including cost for cucumbers before tax

For next time, I will try using the celery seed and maybe cider vinegar instead of white. 

Homemade Celery Salt

Who uses that? Anybody? Well, we have never but will be now.

The other day I ran across those amazing Chicago Poppy Seed Buns and I instantly started reminiscing and craving the Chicago Style Dogs I always enjoyed at the ballpark when the Mr. coached in a collegiate summer league before the kiddos came along. SO of course what was my first instinct? To start googling Chicago Style Dogs and what all goes on them!

I knew the basics: poppy seed bun, hotdog, onion, relish, pickle, tomatoes, but I knew there was something special ... like a secret ingredient and sure enough there was! Any guesses? That's right ... CELERY SALT. 

Well of course, I didn't have any of this on hand BUT I did have some celery seed from over ten years ago {sad, I know, but herbs and seasonings can be outrageously priced so it pains me to throw them out and really do they ever go bad?!? if they do, please do not share this with me ... I am okay staying naive in this area. hehehe!} so I figured it was worth a try. After a quick google search, I realized it was as simple as celery seed and salt ground up.

  Homemade Celery Salt

1 part celery seeds

1 part salt

Grind in a mortar and pestle until fine. 

 This is a great job for the kiddos. "Is that good enough, mom?" "No, keep going ... a little more ... take turns." You get the idea ;)

And then of course there's the Chicago Style Hotdog complete with garden fresh tomatoes, banana peppers, homemade relish, homemade pickles, and a dash (yes, only a dash ... too much of a good thing isn't always a good thing!) of homemade celery salt. 

And every one of our kiddos where 100% on board with loading their dog up just like this and devoured the whole thing! 

Marinated Pork Burgers

WOW ... it's been WAY TOO LONG!!! There's nothing really outrageous or out of the norm about tonight's post but I promised myself I was going to get back in the swing again since the summer is almost to an end {que the tears or the celebrations ... I know there are always these two extremes that come with the mention of school starting back up}. We are a split household here with a current teacher, a former teacher (who is only slightly ready for a normal routine ... if there ever is such a thing in a family of 6, BAHAHAHAH!), two returning to school, and one getting ready to start kindergarten so we are a prime example of both of these! 

So like I said, I was bound and determined to get a post in and since an evening that involves a home cooked meal (other than frozen pizza, lunch meat sandwiches, or hot dogs) as been few and far between on these summer nights, I decided my efforts for dinner was post worthy ... even if it was just to get writing again!

First was my detailed (not even close) meal planning which consisted of grabbing the local grocery store ad to see what meat was on sale AND would be quick. At $1.99/lb ... pork burgers it was. On a fly-by to the grocery store on the way home from dropping #1 off at open gym it was in and out to grab the pork burgers and some buns {and of course along with a few other items, because really how often do you exit a grocery store with ONLY what you went in for ... for me it's rarely! Unless I have done my homework and my mealing planning is spot on which SO has not been the case this summer :) }. Best part about the pork burgers, they were from Steidinger Foods in Fairbury, IL. OH YEAH! I am going allow myself a little proud moment here since my maternal grandma was a Steidinger from Fairbury, which makes these pretty much from family AND absolutely delish!!!

Marinated Pork Burgers

12 pork burger patties

2 to 3 cups open pit barbeque sauce

1/2 to 1 cup honey

buns

Preheat grill. In a grill-safe pan (foil-lined optional), mix the open pit barbeque sauce and honey. Place pan with marinade on preheated grill. Grill pork burgers until fully cooked. As each one is finished cooking, add it to the marinate pan and let simmer for a 5-10 minutes. Remove marinated pork burgers from the pan to a serving dish as needed to make room the remaining burgers. Cover with foil until ready to eat. Enjoy marinated pork burger on a bun of your choice. 

Along with a side of steak fries and fresh cucumbers, we can call it a complete meal. YUM!!

COST - 

Pork Burgers - $6.23

Buns - $1.50

Honey - about $1.25

Open Pit - about $0.75

Cucumber - $1.01

Steak Fries - $1.80

TOTAL - about $12.50 for complete meal

Feeding Capacity - 4 adults and 4 kids