Great new recipes...

We got a huge basket of produce from one of my husband's grateful clients. There were about twenty cubanelle peppers and I wasn't sure what to do with them. I found a bunch of recipes online and reworked them to fit with the ingredients I had at home. It was great- I liked the blend of sweet and hot sausages and the cubanelles worked well with the onions and tomatoes...I highly recommend it.

Orecchiette with Sausage, Onions, and Peppers

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Yield: 4-6 servings

16-oz. package of shaped pasta, such as orecchiette or shells
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 pound bulk sweet Italian sausage
1 pound bulk hot Italian sausage
4 garlic cloves pressed
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and diced
6 cubanelle peppers (or other mild green peppers, such as pasilla or poblano), cored, seeded, and diced
15-oz. can crushed tomatoes
1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup (20 leaves) fresh basil, torn or shredded

Bring a large pot of water to boil. When boiling, add salt (at least 2 Tbsp) and pasta, and cook according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
Heat a very large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and all of the sausage. Brown and crumble the sausage, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove sausage to a paper towel-lined plate and reserve. Drain off pan drippings, leaving 3 Tbsp in the pan. Add the garlic, onion, and peppers to the pan and cook until tender, 6 to 7 minutes. Once tender, add tomatoes and heat through. Add sausage back to the pan and combine. Season the mixture with a bit of salt and fresh black pepper. Add the sausage mixture to the pasta, and stir in cheese, parsley, and basil.

I also made a roasted corn, tomato, avocado salad from Fresh Every Day. I love the original Foster's Market Cookbook and this one is just as good. I altered some of the proportions because I think it needed extra corn and tomatoes.

Ingredients:
12 ears of corn
1 pound of mozzarella
4 ripe avocados
5 large ripe tomatoes, diced
15 basil leaves- chiffonaded
salt and pepper to taste
1 cupe of summer herb vinaigrette (mix red wine vinegar, dijon mustard, lemon juice and zest, basil leaves, fresh oregano, with 1 1/2 cups of olive oil/salt/pepper-to taste..>I like a ratio of two parts olive oil to one part vinegar to make it a little more healthy and extra tart.)

Basically, I soaked a dozen ears of corn on the cob in the husk in a big pot of water for 10 minutes. Then I roasted them in the skins at 400 degrees F for 25 minutes. When they cooled, I pulled off the husks/silks and cut the kernels off the cob into a large bowl. I added a pound of cubed fresh mozzarella, the avocados, tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper and tossed it with a summer herb vinaigrette. I served it with grilled chicken breasts over a bed of arugula. I think the arugula cuts the sweetness of the corn and avocado part.

Yesterday, in my efforts to use up twenty five pounds of peaches (note to self: do not go peach picking when hungry!), I made peach streusel muffins from the Foster's Market Cookbook.

Sweet Peach Muffins with Brown Sugar-Walnut Streusel Topping
Try these muffins, perfect for spotlighting in-season peaches. You also can use frozen peaches.

For the Brown Sugar-Walnut Streusel Topping
1 1/2 cups walnuts, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup flour (I use the white whole wheat flour from King Arthur)
1/3 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

For the muffin batter:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 tablespoon dark rum or pure vanilla
1 1/2 cups peaches, peeled, pitted and chopped

To make the topping: Combine the walnuts, flour, brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl, and stir to mix. Add the butter and mix until well-blended. Set aside or refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to use.
Heat the oven to 375 degrees.
Line 12 large muffin cups with paper liners, and coat the top part of the pan lightly with vegetable cooking spray.
To make the batter: Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, cinnamon, allspice and salt into a large bowl, and set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, butter, sour cream and rum until well-blended. Fold in the peaches. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until moist and blended. Do not overmix.
Using a large ice cream scoop ( 1/3 cup scoop), scoop the batter into the prepared muffin pan. The batter will come to the top of the paper liner or pan. Sprinkle with Brown Sugar-Walnut Streusel Topping and lightly press the topping into the muffin batter.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the tops of the muffins spring back when pressed lightly and a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Turn the muffins out of the pan and serve immediately.
Makes 12 muffins.
Variations: Almost any fresh or frozen fruit (except for very soft fruits such as bananas, papaya or mango) can be substituted for the peaches. Try blackberries, raspberries, blueberries or strawberries. In autumn, try chopped fresh apples or chopped pears.

Finally, to finish off the peaches, I made a few peach and raspberry crisps. I made a bunch of them and foisted them on our friends and neighbors. I am going to be like those annoying people who force unwelcome zucchini on their coworkers when the harvest comes in. Do not make eye contact with me for the next few days or you will be receiving a peach crisp on your doorstep.

Peach and Raspberry Crisp

4 to 5 pounds firm, ripe peaches (10 to 12 large peaches)
1 orange, zested
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 1/2 cups plus 2 to 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 pint raspberries
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
1/2 pound cold unsalted butter, diced

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the inside of a 10 by 15 by 2 1/2-inch oval baking dish.
Immerse the peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds, then place them in cold water. Peel the peaches and slice them into thick wedges and place them into a large bowl. Add the orange zest, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, and 2 tablespoons of flour. Toss well. Gently mix in the raspberries. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes. If there is a lot of liquid, add 1 more tablespoon of flour. Pour the peaches into the baking dish and gently smooth the top.
Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, salt, oatmeal, and the cold, diced butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the butter is pea-sized and the mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle evenly on top of the peaches and raspberries. Bake for 1 hour, until the top is browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve immediately, or store in the refrigerator and reheat in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until warm.