The Heart Of Texas

Marinara Sauce 6 large tomatoes blanched and chopped ½ onion 1 C fresh basil ½ T black pepper Fresh garlic to taste  1 T or more 2 t sea salt 2 T olive oil 1 T sucanat 1 T balsamic vinegar Tighten with arrowroot or corn starch I finely chopped half of an onion and sauteed until caramelized.  Add the tomatoes, garlic, basil, black pepper, salt, sucanat and vinegar.  Simmer for a few minutes and add the corn starch.  Delicious ~

I have been thinking of a flavor in my mind for quite some time and trying to create a base rub unique to the world drawing on my southeast Texas experience.  I got the itch to experiment with flavors.  Here is an excellent outcome for you to try ~  It is pretty interesting.  I added Schezwan peppercorns and coriander and modified amounts.  I toasted the coriander in a black iron skillet.  I pulverized 1 cup of pink Himalayan sea salt, 1 cup of Tellicherry black peppercorns, 2 cups sucanat and  ½ cup coriander.  The paprika and onion were already a fine powder.  The garlic was granulated.  I did not pulverize the granulated garlic.  All of the ingredients are organic and the finest available.  Most come from Whole Foods or Central Market.  The coriander I used is whole fresh organic.  The paprika is organic Spanish sweet already pulverized to a fine powder. After I combined all ingredients and mixed very well I co...

Country Pancakes 1 Cup Oat Flour 1 Cup Pastry Wheat Flour 1 Cup organic unbleached all purpose 3 eggs 1 T baking powder 4 T Sucanat 2 Cups milk 1/4 Cup olive oil 1 t Mexican vanilla I ground all my flour except the organic unbleached all purpose flour.  I beat the eggs in the milk and mixed all ingredients.  As a family, we had some plain, some with blueberries and some with chocolate chips.  The outcome was excellent.

Here is a dry rub with a kick.  Not too much, but you know it has pepper in it.  I still used pink Himalayan sea salt and organic tellicherry black peppercorns and organic Spanish sweet paprika and sucarnat.  The quantities are in the picture.  This dry rub is excellent.  I just tried it out on chicken, pork and beef.  30 Fresno peppers pulverized in a spice mill adds a deep, dull heat unlike the cheap burn of cayenne.

Through the years I have created many different dry rubs combining many different ingredients.  Last week I put together a very basic dry rub hitting my favorite flavors.  Some of the things I have learned is the fact powderized salt goes a real long way.  Any salt pulverized in a spice mill will work.  In this rub I used pink Himalayan sea salt.  The ingredients are as follows: Tellicherry black pepper (1/8th cup) Pink Himalayan sea salt (1/16th cup) Organic sweet Spanish paprika (1/2 cup) Onion powder and granules (1/2 cup total) Granulated garlic (1/4th cup) Sucanat (which stands for sugar cane natural) (1/2 cup) 8 Fresno peppers I pulverized to a powder the black pepper, sea salt and Fresno peppers.  Then I mixed in the ingredients.  The rub has a nice flavor and just a hint of heat.  You could double the peppers if you want it hot.  I bought fresh Fresno peppers and dried them out in the oven at 200 degrees for ...

The nutritional benefits of milling your own grains Preparing the most nutritional meals possible for my family has been my focus for many years. For years I have read about the many empty calories we consume on a daily basis. The vitamin and supplement business is a mega-billion dollar industry. I have known for years highly processed foods were bad nutrition. Processed foods are easy and pretty but do not translate to nutritious food. Any foods that have been processed and designed to have a shelf life are at the best poor nutrition. Canned and pre-packaged foods have added ingredients that are poison to our bodies. Doctors have been telling us for years to lower our consumption of saturated fats, sodium and sugar. If everyone just cut their consumption of bad stuff by 50% we would be in far better condition. If we consumed the foods God gave us we would be in splendid condition. In my research I have read many things that are just good common ...

3 cups almost hot water 1/8th cup honey 2 T yeast 1/4th cup olive oil 2 t sea salt 1 T ground oregano 1 T ground basil 1 T onion powder 1 T minced garlic 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese 1/4 cup gluten flour 6 to 7 cups whole wheat flour 1/2 cup corn meal Mix water, yeast, honey, salt and olive oil and let rest for a couple minutes and then add the rest of the ingredients except the corn meal. Knead for about 10 minutes. Let dough rest for a few minutes and then divide into 3 large pizza crusts. Put some of the corn meal on a flat dry surface. Sprinkle the dough with some corn meal. Roll out your crusts and sprinkle with corn meal. Form your 3 crusts. Pre- cook the crusts for about 3 to 5 minutes per side at 450 degrees. After the crust has pre-cooked on both sides simply top with your favorite toppings and bake in the oven at 400 degrees until the cheese is melted. These crusts can be frozen and used at a later date. Enjoy!