THREE ALARM TOMATO'S

Ms. Goofy loves cheese. She also is a Chilehead in training. When I first met her, she was a novice in all things chile. Jalapeno peppers, one of the mildest peppers was a challenge for her. Over the years, she has been introduced to many varieties of peppers. She still shies away from the exotic peppers so I was a little surprised when she came home with some 'Three Alarm Pepper Cheese'.This Colby Jack cheese has a trio of peppers: Habanero, chipotle, and jalapeno. This is some great cheese. I love the mix of peppers with creamy Colby Jack cheese. It definitely will warm your taste buds. I would give it three stars out of five on the heat meter.

We have a glut of tomato's right now. BLT's, spaghetti sauce, and wonderful summer salads are my favorite tomato meals this time of year. How about mixing the Three Alarm cheese and our red orbs of summer? We thickly sliced the tomato's and seasoned them with salt and pepper. They were topped with a thick slice of our pepper cheese. The toaster oven was put to use. This was a wonderful hot summer treat. So easy but so tasty. As a side note, even though Ms. Goofy is more learned in her pepper palate, this cheese was too hot for her.

DUKE’S MAYONNAISE

Duke’s mayonnaise is a staple product in most southeastern kitchen pantries. This regional product does not make it out to the West Coast very often. Melanie informed me of its availability at a local discount store and I took advantage of this opportunity. I acquired a couple of bottles and now had to find some recipes. In the southeast this mayonnaise is used to bind Cole slaw and potato salads. Duke’s does not add any sugar to its product making for a unique flavor. Melanie suggested a recipe for pimento cheese. Pimento cheese is another regional dish from the south. I have to admit I am not very familiar with pimento cheese.

I went straight to Duke’s Mayonnaise web site for this potato salad recipe. It is called “Baton Rouge-Style Potato Salad’ and is found under the recipe tab. All the ingredients were simple enough but together created a delicious salad. We served this with ‘beer can chicken’. It was quit tasty. Did I notice a difference with Duke’s Mayonnaise? Not really.

I needed to try this with a little simpler dish. Some tomato, lettuce and avocado with a dollop of Duke’s should do the trick. It did not taste as sweet as ‘Best Food’ mayonnaise. It was still just mayonnaise though. If you were brought up in the South this may be a flavor that brings back memories. Being a West Coast native, I just do not get it. I will try to make some pimento cheese though.

Duke's Mayonnaise 

FIRST TOMATO

We have been picking cherry tomato's for several weeks now.. Cherry tomato's are great in sauces and salads but are not preferable for our favorite sandwich. Our patience has finally been rewarded with the ripening of this beauty. Some pork bellies were cured and smoked in anticipation of this event. A loaf of fresh bread was picked up at our local pizza parlor. Let the BLT's begin.

PESTO PASTA & CAPRESE SALAD

Toss some basil seeds on the ground and sooner or later magic will occur. You will be rewarded with green gold. Basil plants need to be topped off to create bushier plants ‘Saveur’ magazine states; Italian basil plants are grown until four to six leaves and are harvested to use the youngest leaves. Well this is Rodeo and by topping and pruning we will have Basil for the next couple of months. We harvested a couple cups of basil leaves and are going to make pesto with pasta and a Caprese salad.

There are so many recipes for pesto but today we are using a Chilebrown twist. Basil, toasted pine nuts, heirloom garlic, parmesan cheese, olive oil, salt and “Drum Roll Please” a couple of roasted “New Hatch Chiles”. This should make for some toasty roasty pesto goodness. The blender was put into action and pesto was created.

Growing basil is very easy and rewarding. We are growing ‘Genovese and Thai’ varieties Making extra pesto is no problem because it freezes very well. The Chilebrown twist was a peppery treat that could not be beat. The salad was refreshing and flavorful. The summer bounty of produce has only just begun.

I SAY TOMATO

How ever you say it, it is time to get some ‘Gosh Darn Golly Wompers’ tomato plants in the ground. Mother Nature has been throwing us curveballs with her rain delays. We have made it to the fifth inning (month) and is time to play ball. A strange long trip to Bezerkley, to visit my favorite two nurseries for unique and fun tomato plants was in order.
  Last year, the ‘Julia Child’ tomato plant was purchased and transformed into a beautiful pink Brandywine type of tomato that we want to grow again. We arrived at the first nursery (which will remain nameless) and it was closed. Closed on Thursdays? No problem we will just go to the next garden of our tomato delights. I was shocked and greeted with the same sign ‘Closed on Thursday’s’. Only in Berkeley are gardening establishments closed in the middle of the week. Conspiracy? A large retail box store was settled for to purchase one ‘Brandywine’ tomato and a half dozen jalapeno plants.

I am going to share my ultra secret growing tip for beautiful and tasty tomatos. A green thumb with a special fertilizer will help. ‘Gardens Alive’ sells a special mixed blend of organic material, minerals and special guano from a rare lisping ‘Quichomo Islands’ bat. Follow the directions and reap the awards for delicious tomatoes.

FALL HARVEST

Late but beautiful. We are really busy getting ready for the Chili Cook-off.

RIPE TOMATO

Our first tomato is ripe and it is a doozy. It is about time!

JULIA CHILD TOMATO

Julia Child the grand dame of cooking, now will be a tomato in my garden. She will be respected, nurtured and coddled. In return she will produce large, deep pink, beefsteak tomatoes with a remarkable flavor. This will be the first time we have grown this variety of tomato. How could I refuse. In a couple of months we will be having Bacon, Lettuce and Julia Child Tomato sandwiches. I cannot wait.

SUMMER BOUNTY

When life gives you tomato's, make salsa. It is that time of year that the tomato and pepper crop at the Mad Meat Genius farm is over growing with ripe produce. It is a cornucopia of colors and flavors. It is time to make salsa.

We are making Pico de Gallo and a chipotle salsa today. Pico de Gallo is an all purpose salsa. It just makes everything taste better. My favorite, is to make a cheese quesadilla and plop a dollop of pico de gallo on top. Simple and delicious! I will refer you to a past post for a recipe.


Chipotle Salsa is a smoky, hot, sweet and ketchup like type of salsa. The chipotle pepper has so many flavor nuances. I am using home smoked chipotle, but canned chipotle in adobo is readily found at your local store. This sauce is simmered for a while and then pureed in a blender.

Chipotle Salsa

1. 7 tomatoes roughly chopped
2. 4 chipotles peppers
3. salt to taste
4. 1 tablespoon sugar or honey
5. 2 tablespoons vinegar
6. 1/2 cup of water

Place all ingredients in a saute pan. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes. Let cool and place into a blender. Puree all ingredients. Add a little water if mixture is to thick.

That's all she wrote. Another simple but very satisfying salsa. Take some tortilla chips and enjoy the summer bounty!!!!!!!

JALAPENO POPPERS AND TOMATO GOODNESS

TOMATO FESTIVAL

This weekend Fairfield California will hold their annual Tomato Festival. This is a great local event that will also host the West Coast BBQ Championship. This is a fun in the sun event. The newly certified barbeque judges, Chilebrown, Ms. Goofy and Dr. Biggles will be attending. We will be wearing our fancy brand spanking new barbeque judge shirts and name tags.


This will be an opportunity to see an actual Kansas City Barbeque Society event. This is a state championship. It will bring out some heavy hitters in the barbeque competition world. These warriors will be manning their pits all night long cooking with wood, charcoal and smoke. Their goal is to impress the judges with the meat delights they have prepared. Another incentive for these competitors, are cash prizes and the right to proceed to national events. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is serious business.




This is an event for the whole family. Their will be a huge tent with numerous different variety's of tomato's to taste. A tomato eating contest will be waged. "Attack of the Killer Tomato's will be shown. Hundreds of vendors selling crafts and food are ready for you. Live music will entertain the crowd. One of the best things about this gathering, the admission is FREE! See you there.

LET THE TOMATO'S BEGIN!

Ah, the first ripe tomato of the season. The anticipation, patience and having a bad case of the 'hardly can waits' have finally passed. A couple of beautiful 'Japanese Black Trifele' were found hiding behind their green foliage. This plant was purchased from that hectic tomato sale that the Sustainable Garden Education hosted last April. You probably have guessed my next train of thought. Yes, you are right! Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato sandwiches. We just so happen to have some delicious maple bacon from Wright Brand to accompany this sensational orb of summer. Toasted sourdough bread, crisp lettuce and a dollop of mayonnaise will accompany the maple bacon. These simple ingredients are a winning combination. Let the tomato's begin!

YOU SAY TOMATO

'You say tomato, I say tomatoe, Lets call the whole thing off'! * Not today! The 'Organic Heirloom & Hybrid Tomato Market' was held in Novato, California. This was the spot to purchase some new and unusual varieties of tomato. The sales went to support a program for Sustainable Garden Education.

We arrived at the opening of the sale. It was a mad house. Have you ever been bowled over by an aggressive Marinite? This one highly caffeinated 'Soccer Mom' cleared a path, regardless of any crowd etiquette, to make her purchase. It is a good thing I had Ms. Goofy to block for me.
Local Celebrities

There was some really great varieties of tomato's. 'Aunt Ruby's German Green, Box Car Willie and Japanese Black Trifele were a couple of varieties that were purchased. We ran into some celebrities, Zoomie & Her Beloved but no Cookiecrumb or Cranky. We took our purchases home and got Diggity!

* Sorry, George Gershwin "Lets Call the Whole Thing Off"