• averythingcooks on September 02, 2024

  Cheeseburger Soup [pg 107]: The basic recipe for this soup was a good starting point but to better mimic the idea of a cheeseburger (and to thicken/enrich the broth) I raided the fridge for "spoonfuls" of burger toppers (ie BBQ sauce, corn relish & tomato/red onion relish). I also used a mix of grd beef + mild Italian sausage. This was a simple, tasty & hearty dinner bowl that we ate with some fresh homemade rolls.

• averythingcooks on August 30, 2024

  Tikka Masala Simmer Sauce [180]: I typically make tikka masala starting with (sometimes pretty complex) homemade pastes but I'm really happy to have this nicely spiced sauce waiting in the freezer. It starts with a fresh tomato puree (same book) and includes instructions re: adding coconut milk or cream when reheating. For me, this reads "quick & tasty winter dinner" and I'm happy to have 1 cup portions stashed away.

• averythingcooks on August 28, 2024

  Tomato Puree [pg 173]: As much as I water bath can many pints of chopped tomatoes, I also come here for a more leisurely way to deal with a mix of tomatoes in whatever quantity I have at hand. Cored/chopped tomatoes are simmered then passed 1st through my biggest food mill disc for the skins then again with the medium disk to get the seeds (I really have better results with this double pass rather than just using the medium disc). Back into the pot for thickening as desired and then this beautiful smooth puree can be used in recipes right away or simply frozen as in convenient amts (ie I really appreciate having 1/2 cup & 1 cup blocks available for all kinds of uses). This stuff is a must make for me every year.

• averythingcooks on July 16, 2024

  Frozen Herb Blends [pg 110]: This page has the instructions for 3 fresh herb blends (Winter Soup, Ranch & Greek) to freeze without water or oil. I flash froze my herb mix on a tray (Ranch this time) before adding to the jar & a check today confirms that it will be easy to stir up/spoon out the frozen herbs as needed. I like how she presents the recipes as ratios as opposed to measures & I plan to make the other 2 blends this week.

• averythingcooks on January 02, 2024

  Tomato Bruschetta Topping [pg 179]: This will never repace my gold standard fresh grape tomato, basil & balsamic bruschetta topper but it is sure nice to pull this out of the freezer on a snowy day to eat with garlic toast or (a house favourite) on crispy chicken cutlets.

• averythingcooks on January 02, 2024

  Roasted Cherry Tomato Pizza Sauce [pg 178]: We've been using this flavourful sauce (tucked in the freezer in generous 1/2 cup portions) since the fall...sometimes I add fresh basil or a spoonful of pesto once it is thawed and it's a great way to preserve those grape & cherry tomatoes that seem to just pour out of the garden :)

• averythingcooks on January 02, 2024

  Italian Inspired Marinara Sauce [pg 177]: I've been pulling 1 cup portions of this out of my freezer for all kinds of uses. It is a great way to preserve a bunch of garden tomatoes without pulling out the water bath canner.

• averythingcooks on September 09, 2023

  Basil Pesto [pg 111]: This is a good pesto which uses walnuts and a shot of fresh squeezed lemon juice. I'm very happy to add these 1 tbsp portions to my freezer stash.

• averythingcooks on September 06, 2023

  Green Enchilada Sauce [pg 170]: This is a great way to preserve tomatillos without the big hit of acid that some canning recipes contain. I freeze it in 1 cup portions and can always add a hit of lime when I am using it.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Greek herb blend

  • averythingcooks on July 20, 2025

    This is the 3rd (of 3) flavourful loose leaf fresh herb blend from this book which is now waiting in a jar in my freezer along side the other 2. It made great use of my mid-summer overflowing herb planters and I love that these blends are easy to scale up or down because she presents them as ratios (ie 4 parts, 1 part etc) making it a breeze to top up the jars you've already made.

• Freezing plum halves

  • melissa_8tppo3 on March 27, 2026

    We have already made a few plum desserts with this year's harvest. So, I decided to freeze a tray for later.

• Freezing raw tomatillos

  • melissa_8tppo3 on March 26, 2026

    Tomatillos from my garden have been sitting in the fridge waiting for me to harvest the rest of the crop. I decided to freeze them until I get the rest. You freeze on an open tray, then put them in a storage container (I use zip lock bags) when they are frozen.

• Italian-inspired marinara sauce

  • averythingcooks on October 09, 2025

    I came here for the last of the (very) ripe garden tomatoes. Cored/chopped tomatoes (with the food mill for skins & seeds at the end) make this easy to prep. I improvised a bit re: the dried herbs based on my pantry, was generous with the fresh basil & added a parm rind to the simmer. This is being frozen in 1 cup portions which will easily get used.