Grandma's Fried Green Tomatoes

When late summer rolls around, a bounty of vegetables begins to arrive. When looking through Grandma's recipes, I found this one for fried green tomatoes. Although I do not remember Grandma making these, I bet she did. I am glad that I decided to give them a try. These fried green tomatoes were outstanding.

Now, you may find other recipes for fried green tomatoes that require more steps. For example, I saw one recipe that called for dredging the tomatoes in flour, then coating in a beaten egg, then dredging them through seasoned corn meal. There is nothing wrong with taking all those steps. But I plan to stick with the simplicity of Grandma's recipe. The only change I recommend from grandma's recipe is to use salt on the sliced tomatoes to draw out some of the excess water.

This year, Mom has a bumper crop of tomatoes in her backyard. I was lucky to already receive two lovely ripe tomatoes. They were delicious. As the tomatoes continue to grow, I hope to get more tomatoes from Mom, maybe even some green tomatoes.

Fried Green Tomatoes 

• 2 medium green tomatoes
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 2 Tbsp. butter or olive oil

Slice the tomatoes into 1/4 inch slices. Set in a colander and sprinkle with salt and allow excess water to drain for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the flour, salt, pepper on a piece of wax paper or in a shallow bowl. Coat the tomatoes with the flour mixture.

Heat the butter or olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the tomatoes in a single layer and cook about four minutes per side or until the tomatoes are lightly brown and barely tender. Repeat as necessary with remaining tomato slices. Enjoy!

Grandma included a note that if green tomatoes are gone, use firm red tomatoes. I will have to give red tomatoes a try some time. 

Aunt Paula's Blueberry Coffee Cake

A few summers ago, MDS and I picked several pounds of blueberries while we were in Michigan. Lucky for us, Aunt Paula gave us this excellent recipe to use up some of the blueberries. For some reason, this recipe shouts summer to me, but maybe this winter, I will give it a try with frozen blueberries.

Aunt Paula and Uncle Zach graciously host us when we visit Michigan. The photo here of MDS with Aunt Paula and Uncle Zach was taken around MDS's birthday in 2011. We always have a great time staying with the Holmes, which usually involves a fair amount of wine and delicious food.

Aunt Paula's recipe notes that this coffee cake freezes well. I imagine that it might, but I have never had to freeze it. The entire coffee cake disappears within days anytime I make it.

Aunt Paula's Blueberry Coffee Cake 

• 1 cup butter
• 2 1/4 cups sugar, divided
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)

Cream butter and 2 cups of sugar, then add eggs and beat again. Fold in sour cream and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder and salt. Pour batter into a greased 9X13 pan. Arrange blueberries evenly over the batter then sprinkle 1/4 cup sugar over the top. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

Glaze

• 3 Tbsp. melted butter
• 1 Tbsp. milk
• 1 cup powdered sugar (approximately)

Mix the milk and butter together. Begin adding the sugar a little at a time until glaze thickens and can be easily drizzled. When the cake has cooled, drizzle the cake with the glaze. Enjoy!

Grandma's Stuffed Peppers

I have a number of Grandma's recipes cards, but as you can see, she knew her recipes so well, that she did not write much information on her cards: She would simply write "Italian cheese," "parsley" and "garlic" without specifying how much. You might notice that the bottom of the recipe card says "over," but the other side just contains an alternative of using bread crumbs -- probably instead of the rice, but the card does not say so. As I made this recipe, I did some research to fill in the details. It turns out that this recipe likely came from Betty Crocker (or, maybe Betty Crocker took it from Grandma). I have included a more complete recipe below that I hope will help you make this recipe.

These stuffed peppers are easy to make and a delicious, filling meal. As Grandma's own recipe card has an alternative, this recipe could be modified by using Italian sausage, turkey sausage, or other meat. Other herbs instead of parsley could be used. The best part of this recipe is that it is hard to go wrong.

Grandma's Stuffed Peppers

• 4 large bell peppers
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 2 Tbsp. parsley
• 1 Tbsp. minced garlic 
• 1 cup cooked rice
• 2 8-ounce cans tomato sauce
• 1 egg
• Italian cheese (optional)

Prepare the peppers by removing the top of each pepper and cleaning out the seeds and membranes. Soften the peppers by cooking them. Option 1: Place the peppers in a large sauce pan and cover with water, bring to boil and cook for two minutes, then drain. Option 2: place the peppers in an microwavable dish, add a little water then cover with plastic wrap; then, microwave for 2-3 minutes.

In a skillet, brown the beef. Add in the onion, parsley, garlic, 1 can tomato sauce, and rice. Turn off the heat and mix in the egg. Mix in cheese (such as parmesan or mozzarella), if desired.

Preheat oven to 350. Stand the peppers upright in a casserole. Fill each pepper with the meat mixture. Pour remaining can of tomato sauce over the peppers. Cover with foil tightly and bake for 10 minutes. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes. Top with cheese. Enjoy!