BBQ Jalapeno Peppers and Onions

     Every year, the garden produces jalapeno and banana peppers faster than I can use them. Desperate times called for desperate measures. I turned to Allrecipes.  After digging around, I found one of my favorite recipes for working through surplus peppers. I've tweaked the recipe to add in more of my produce. This recipe makes a LOT of extra sauce, so don't be shy about loading in extra peppers and onions. Even if you do have extra sauce, it's vinegar based, so it will can well.

     I'm not joking when I tell you that this sauce is the bomb-diggety. True story, I gave a pint to a co-worker because he liked it so much. Somehow, it fell out of his mailbox in the workroom and shattered. He came to me literally on the verge of tears. I brought him a quart the next day. He cradled it in his arms and smiled tenderly at it. I'm fairly sure he showed more affection for that quart of sauce than his own kids. Either way, this sauce is beyond good and will bring any meat to another level entirely. As always, notes and changes are in blue.

BBQ Peppers and Onions
via Allrecipes

Ingredients

• 2 cups corn oil 
• 2 cups cider vinegar 
• 2 cups white sugar 
• 4 cups ketchup 
• 1 pound fresh jalapeno peppers, sliced into rings 
• 1 pinch dried oregano (in this case, a pinch is a teaspoon)
• 1 clove garlic, minced 
• 1 pound fresh Banana Peppers, sliced into rings
• At least 1 large Yellow Onion, sliced

Directions

1. In a large pot, stir together the corn oil, cider vinegar, sugar, and ketchup until sugar has dissolved completely. 
2. Bring to a boil, then add the jalapeno peppers (any other peppers and onion go in at this step, too). Reduce heat to low, and simmer for 10 minutes. Season with oregano and garlic. 
3. Ladle into sterile pint jars, leaving 1/4 inch of space at the top. Wipe rims with a clean dry towel. Seal with lids and rings. Process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes to seal (I can't say I agree with the time of the water bath here, especially not for a full pint. As a rule of thumb, I do 12 minutes for a half pint, 15 for a full pint. I've done it my way for three years and haven't killed anybody yet)
4. Refrigerate any unsealed jars.

Good times!

Skillet Apple Brownie via All Recipes

     I have mixed emotions about All Recipes. It's kind of like the YouTube of recipe sites. People put their best efforts into creating something, then the people in the comments ruthlessly dismantle the person who posted. Some of the comments are just downright mean. However, there are some fairly good recipes lurking about. I actually subscribed to the All Recipes magazine to allow the recipes to be pre-screened for me. That's how I found this recipe. This was a very dense and rich dessert and would benefit greatly from a nice vanilla ice cream melting across the top. As always, any notes and changes are in blue.

Skillet Apple Brownie
via All Recipes

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg (I used 1/2 teaspoon)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves (omitted)
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I substituted a tablespoon of French Vanilla syrup from Java & Co.)
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon melted butter
• 2 cups apples, peeled, cored and chopped (I used a pint of my home canned apples in bourbon and clove)
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans (No pecans in the house. I substituted chopped walnuts)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Place an 8-9" cast iron skillet in oven to preheat.
2. Whisk together flour, white sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves (if used) in a bowl; set aside.
3. Beat together eggs, vanilla extract (or syrup), 1/2 cup of melted butter in a mixing bowl. (I used the Kitchenaid. Eventually Kitchenaid has to give me a sponsorship)
4. Toss apples and nuts in flour mixture, then stir into egg mixture until combined (again, the Kitchenaid was used to combine the dry and wet ingredients. ARE YOU LISTENING, KITCHENAID?)
5. Add remaining 1 tablespoon butter to hot skillet, coating pan evenly. Pour batter into pan and place in oven. Bake until sides are dry and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes (as always mine took a bit longer, closer to 50 minutes. Cooking times may vary)
6. Cool in skillet 20 minutes before removing to slice (as you can see from the picture, I left it in the pan to slice. Rebel to the end, that's me)

Good times!

Recipe Resources: Online

     I don't know about you, but I don't always want to try to come up with something new and original on my own. Sometimes I just want a nice recipe to make. Other times I'm stuck for ideas and need some recipes to use as a jumping off point.  Thanks to the Internet, there's about half a billion recipe sites available (I typed in "recipes" in the Google search bar and got 501 million results. Comparatively, "Justin Beiber" gives 598 million results, which speaks volumes about the state of the world).

There's a nightmare fanfic scenario for you

     Anyway, today I'm just going to give you a few of my go-to recipe sites. Here we go. Enjoy!

Allrecipes.com
There are a lot of great recipes on this site. However, you must steel yourself against some of the horrifyingly lame names. Honestly, if you really have the World's Greatest Stew (brownies, pasta, chili, meatloaf. haggis, pork face comfit, etc.) I'd imagine you wouldn't have to resort to posting it on a massive public recipe site. If you're willing to poke around, there are some really good recipes. Several of my canning recipes are culled from here. I really like the comments on the recipes. The people on here are absolutely ruthless in their criticism.

Bonappetit.com
You will probably see me link to this site more than anything. There is a reason for that. Their stuff, while occasionally expensive or complicated, is traditionally very good. They have an excellent recipe database, and the site is full of useful information. If you're willing to drop the cash, I'd recommend getting a subscription to the magazine.

Grouprecipes.com
Don't be fooled by the name. This isn't where you go to figure out what to make to bring to the pot luck at your 12-step program. This is very much like All Recipes, and you will likely find many of the same type of recipes here.  It's a bit rougher looking web site, design-wise, but is still a very good resource for recipes and inspirations.

Eatingwell.com
If you're like me (fat) you're going to be looking for recipes that don't break the caloric bank. Needless to say, you won't find many (none) Paula Deen recipes. Go elsewhere for your pig head cooked in butter.

I can't say I'm surprised this wasn't a hard image to find. DAMN YOU, INTERNET!!!!