Mantle Decorating for Fall

Simply try a new decorating idea for an autumn mantle, use what you have around the house or make some of your own pumpkins. I'll be posting a tutorial for the DIY Autumn Burlap Wreath next week so keep checking back if you need a new DIY project! For the shabby pumpkins check the previous post Simply DIY Pumpkin Decorating Project.
Have a great weekend!

Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi

One More Recipe for Refrigerator Dill Pickles

I picked the last of my cucumbers today from my garden and decided to make some refrigerator dill pickles. Angie had posted our grandma's pickles Simply Grandma's Refrigerator Pickles for sweet pickles, so I thought I would try some refrigerator dill pickles. I found a recipe on growveg.com so I decided to try it. It worked great! Even though canned pickles are my favorite, we liked these and they worked great on sandwiches!

Refrigerator dill pickles: 

4-5 washed, sliced cucumbers
1 cup white vinegar
1/4 c water
1/4 c sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2-3 cloves peeled garlic

1. Place sliced cucumbers in glass gallon jar. 
2. Heat the brine mixture in small pan just enough for the sugar to dissolve. 
3. Pour over the sliced cucumbers.
4. Add 1 teaspoon dill or about a handful of seeds, leaves or flower heads.
5. Add 2-3 cloves peeled garlic.
6. Shake gently. 
7. The liquid will not cover your cucumbers, that's ok. They will settle down in the jar as they sit in the refrigerator.
8. I didn't open mine for a three days. If they are still too sour, wait a couple more days.

Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi

Roasted Tomato Sandwich

Truly a favorite sandwich at our house! This is the fancy sandwich that I wrote about in the post, Simply Roasted Tomatoes. We ate these sandwiches for a couple of our camping meals, the kids thought it was very cool (and yummy)! The basic ingredients are roasted tomatoes, cheese and bread but here are some of the variations I use for this sandwich.
Fancy Sandwich:

• Toasted bread:  Start with your bread, here are some great ideas, English muffins, English muffin bread, ciabatta, French, Italian, white bread, buns, gluten-free, etc., you get the picture right? Any bread you like. For ours, I used ciabatta rolls and toasted them in the toaster.
• Mayonnaise: I mixed about a teaspoon of Italian seasoning in about 1/4 cup mayo. (I made 5 sandwiches). Spread mayo on your toasted bread.
• Cheese: I almost always use fresh mozzarella but I have on occasion used provolone. Place a slice or slices of cheese over the mayo.
• Place roasted tomatoes over the cheese. I like to heat my tomatoes slightly before I do this.
• The kids like another layer of cheese over the tomatoes but I will leave that one up to you!
• Place a layer of spinach (I don't always do this) on the top.
• Cover the sandwich with the toasted top of the bun or bread, whichever you used.
• Wrap the sandwich and heat them for about 2 minutes on the grill if you're camping or microwave them if you want, just enough to melt the cheese.

Enjoy your fancy sandwich!

Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi

Oven Roasted Tomatoes

Finally a few minutes alone with my computer! It is a beautiful fall day in the Midwest and I am still feeling blessed to have fresh produce from my garden! I am still harvesting peppers and tomatoes. Today my plan to can some salsa but I have been busy roasting tomatoes. This is a great plan if you are short on time or you don't own any canning equipment. When we were camping a couple of weeks ago, I brought some roasted tomatoes and we had the fanciest sandwiches ever, well the children thought so! I'll share our fancy sandwich recipe in a few days.
I absolutely love to freeze the roasted tomatoes to make sauces at a later date or use them during our cold winter months for pasta sauce, chili, soup, tomato sauce, pizza sauce, ketchup and tomato soup. I like to season mine slightly but you don't have to. The key is to roast them on a low heat in the oven.
Steps to roast tomatoes:

1. Wash and rinse tomatoes (as many or as few as you like).
2. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper and brush olive oil over the top of the paper.
3. Preheat oven to 275F.
4. Cut the tomatoes in half or chunks. I use different varieties and sizes of tomatoes.
5. Place tomatoes on the baking sheet.
6. Sprinkle some of your favorite seasonings or herbs over the tomatoes. I use Italian Seasoning or fresh thyme, fresh basil, rosemary, kosher salt and pepper.
7. Using a Misto, I spray olive oil over the seasoned tomatoes or just drizzle the oil over the top.
8. Bake 1 hour at 275F then turn tomatoes with a spoon or spatula.
9. Return to the oven and bake another hour.
10. Remove from oven and place pan on cooling rack for about 30 minutes or until cool.
11. If you are freezing the tomatoes, place them in a Ball jar or freezer baggies.

I hope you try this process and like it as much as I do, it's also the least messy!
 
Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi