"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. " -Helen Keller

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

SHOW AND TELL: Gustatory Delights and More

This weekend, I decided I was tired of cooking the same stuff all the time. I decided it was time to expand our palates. I've always wanted to try making a chutney, specifically a mango chutney. Of course, I didn't have mangoes but I did have canned papaya and guava (2 cans of each) so I figured I'd give it a shot.

Once I chopped up the papaya and guava into small slivers, I decided I didn't have quite enough fruit and I threw in a pan of peaches, sliced even smaller. I combined two mango chutney recipes from Cooks.com and this is the recipe I came up with...

Papaya/Guava/Peach Chutney

2 cans papaya (sliced small)
2 cans guava (sliced small)
1 can peaches (sliced small)
1 cup cider vinegar
2 cups white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp minced garlic
3 tbsp ground ginger
2 tbsp salt
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tbsp crushed red peppers

Bring all ingredients to boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to low
and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent
sticking. Remove from heat and cool completely before serving.

I served this with beef tips that had been marinading in a citrus marinade for 24 hours. I mixed them together and served it over rice. It turned out to be a wonderful combination of spicy and sweet. The chutney had a spicy bite but it never got your mouth too hot. The kids have requested that it be added to our regular menu.


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I want to petition all of you to support Lady Nunn over at Preemie Presents. She is the mom of a preemie and knows how tough the holidays can be when you have a baby stuck in the NICU/PICU. Last year, she started Preemie Presents to put together gift bags for the families of preemies who are in the hospital over the holidays. If you are crafty, you can make blankets, hats, booties, and gloves for the babies. If you aren't crafty, she is accepting monetary donations and purchases from the charity's Amazon wish list. Not only does she put together gifts for the babies, but the gift bags contain treats for the parents too. Head on over to Preemie Presents and join in the fun.

BTW, if you click on that nifty picture right above, it will take you to the Google Docs page that will let you add that image as a smaller button on your blog (look left on my blog).
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To see what everyone else in class is bringing to SHOW AND TELL, take a trip to visit the Miss Mel, Goddess of the Infertility Blogosphere.

14 comments:

loribeth said...

I should send this recipe to my girlfriend -- she is from New Zealand and LOVES both papayas & guavas! (Claims it is very rare to find a good guava fruit in Canada.)

Anonymous said...

That looks really delicious. I am not a chef though. That's DH's job

JW Moxie said...

And all I had for dinner tonight was pizza.

Yummo.


*rofl- my word verification is "mating."

AnotherDreamer said...

Wow, that's some serious cooking :) I'll add the link and check them out too.

Anonymous said...

You know, you make me feel like a serious underachiever...about as creative as I get in the kitchen is tofu with soy sauce.

Lori Lavender Luz said...

Yumminy yum yum yum.

I love how loyal you are to the people and causes you support. I bet your color is true blue. We are so lucky to have you in our blogosphere.

XO

Anonymous said...

Ooh, now that chutney sounds gooood.

Shelly- Mom Files said...

Oh wow what a great recipe! It's right up my alley :-)

Wishing 4 One said...

I love how you improvised with the fruits, looks yummy. I never made a chutney, but something I may try.

Mrs. Gamgee said...

I'm not a fan of fruit and meat together, but that looks so good, I might just have to try it!

niobe said...

Mmmm...that sounds really good. Maybe I could try a veggie version...

Lynn said...

Mmmm! That sounds (and looks!) delicious! A friend of mine posted a recipe for an apple chutney just a couple of days ago, so I will defnitely have to give both of these a try :D

Suzy, Not a Fertile Myrtle said...

I'm headed over to preemie presents now to check it out!

Lollipop Goldstein said...

I'm impressed with how much you played with the recipe on the first try--good for you.