Let's jam.

Let's make jam.

Let's make jamalamadingdong.

Let's make jamalamadingdongloopdyloopbingbong.

Did I just say 'bong'?

Don't worry. I'm not smokin' anything. I may have a bit of a sugar buzz, however, from devouring this jam. It is lip-smackin' good.

And I don't say that about just anything.

I love homemade jam.

The reasons why are deeply intellectual.

(You know, like most things I write about.)

It's delicious. It's homemade. It's budget-friendly. It's pretty. My kids love it. It's easy peasy. It's easy peasy lemon squeezy. And it lasts for months and months.

Last summer I posted a recipe for my sister's homemade rhubarb strawberry refrigerator jam. I made twelve jars, and we ate every last one of them. This year, since my mom had mentioned that she made a rhubarb jam with blueberries, I wanted to give that a try. My mom did pass along her recipe to me, which I haven't tried yet, but hopefully will. Her version uses canned blueberry pie filling. The route I went was to use the same recipe I used last year, but to substitute fresh (from frozen) blueberries for the strawberries. I am over the moon about how it turned out.

But like I said, I'm also going to give my mom's recipe a try.

To compare.

To contrast.

To devour like a caffeinated hummingbird sucks down nectar.

For now, though, I just wanted to share the latest in jam adventures with you... Rhubarb Blueberry Jam!

Ingredient List...

• 6 Cups Diced Fresh Rhubarb
• 1 1/2 Cups Frozen Blueberries
• 2 Cups Granulated Sugar
• 4.5 oz. Gelatin (whatever flavor you like... I used 3 oz. raspberry and 1.5 oz. lemon... be creative!)

Last year I washed my jars and lids in hot soapy water. This year I decided to sterilize them in boiling water instead. Can't tell you why. It just felt like the thing to do. 'Tis a bad picture (boiling water doesn't photograph well), but I think it tells the story well enough... Hot burner, boiling water. I covered the jars and lids with enough water to reach about an inch above them in in the pot. Then I boiled them for about ten minutes, and removed them to a clean towel to dry.

In a stock pot, I combined the rhubarb (6 cups), blueberries (1 1/2 cups) and sugar (2 cups)...

Cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil, then simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, stirring every few minutes as you go. 

This fruit and sugar, simmering in your kitchen... The aroma... Sweet and heavenly.

Next, add the gelatin and stir well...

I used 3 oz. raspberry Jell-O and 1.5 oz. lemon Jell-O. Use whatever makes your skirt fly up. This recipe is open to interpretation!

Now, fill your jars (I ended up using five), filling to within an inch or so of the rim. Allow to cool, uncovered, until jam is barely warm or cool to the touch. Stir from time to time to help release heat. Place in refrigerator for four hours to continue cooling, then cover with lids. Keep refrigerated.

And now... Tastebuds, watch out!

I've had chicken salad where basically most of the ingredients are pureed together or at least very finely minced into a creamy, uniform configuration.

This is not that kind of chicken salad.

I have nothing against that kind of chicken salad.

But this is not that kind of chicken salad.

It's chunkier. But not too chunky. Because I have small children, and I tend to chop everything into pieces that I feel comfortable are not going to get lodged in their windpipe.

I whipped up this chicken salad the other morning for a little excursion to my mom's house for lunch, because summer is here, and summer is salad season. I had whipped up something similar last summer at my sister's lake cabin, and was pleased as punch with it, but of course didn't happen to write down my recipe at the time. So this time... Guess what. I wrote it down.

True story.

Try not to fall off yer chair.

Obviously I don't really have anything interesting to say about this chicken salad, other than the fact that it's chunky (but not too chunky), it's yummy, it's especially yummy on a qwah-sah (croissant), and I think you would enjoy it. So, let's just get on with the recipe, shall we?

Even though I managed to write it down this time, and take a few photos of the finished product, I didn't actually have time to take pictures as I was making it. But you know what? It ain't rocket science, baby. This is one of those instances where step-by-step photography of the whole process would be overkill anyway, so here's the recipe, in traditional recipe format. Enjoy!

Ingredient List...

• 1 Cup Mayo
• 1/2 Cup Plain Yogurt
• 1 Tbsp. Honey
• 1 tsp. Coarse Ground Mustard
• 3/4 tsp. Salt
• 1/4 tsp. Celery Seed
• Dash Fresh Ground Pepper
• 3 1/2 to 4 Cups Chopped Cooked Chicken
• 1 Cup Halved or Quartered Grapes (I used red this time)
• 1/2 Cup Diced Celery
• 1/2 Cup Diced Pear or Apple (I used pear this time)

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the mayo, yogurt, honey, mustard, salt, celery seed, and pepper. Add chicken, grapes, celery and pear. Gently stir to combine. Refrigerate for at least two hours before serving.

One final note... If my little girl weren't allergic to nuts, at this juncture, I would add nuts. Nuts would be lovely. Nuts would be perfect. Nuts would be scrumptious. And if I were to add nuts... Slivered almonds or cashews would be very nice.

But you know what would be the ultimate?!?

Chopped up hazelnuts, baby. Oh yeah! So, if you have nuts in your life, chop up some hazelnuts and throw 'em in for me, will ya? Then enjoy this little number wrapped in a lettuce leaf, on a qwah-sah, or however you so desire!

Mercy me, it's Friday already. How did that happen?

Being it's Friday, it's time for our little family to indulge in beer and pizza again (root beer for the kids, just to clarify), which reminded me I'd better get my petoot in gear and post the pizza recipe a promised you a week ago!

I named it 'Roasted Tomato & Pepperoni Pizza' because, well, that is what is on it, and I usually try to just name my recipes after what is actually in them. However, there are several other names that I'd really like to give this pizza, like...

Pizza Fantastico!

Roasted Tomato Delicioso!

Friday Night Pizzarific Delight!

I love it so.

Hope you do too. And believe it or not, that's about as long-winded as I'm going to be on the subject. Let's make pizza!

The first thing we must discuss is the crust. It is yummy. It is easy. It is not my own recipe.

It's Giada's.

You know, the Giada? De Laurentiis?

I figure she probably really knows what she's doing when it comes to this sort of thing, so I defer to her expertise.

It's taken from the March 2007 Bon Appetit issue, and you can find it here. I could rewrite it again, but why be redundant? Why be redundant when you can just click here and (voila!) there it is? So I shant be redundant. Just click here and you'll be all set to make the crust.

I will say one thing about it, though. I usually make it the day before, let it rise, punch it down, then stick it in an air tight container in the fridge until I'm ready to use it the next day, as Giada says. Before I use it, I let it sit out on the counter for about a half hour before I roll it out so it can kind of loosen up. You don't have to wait a day, however. Do whatever works for you.

I will say one more thing about the pizza dough. After I roll it out, I like to rub a little olive oil on the bottom side of the crust. (The side that will come into contact with the pizza pan.) I just think it adds a little extra flavor.

So, my part in this recipe really comes in with the selection of toppings. Let us begin with...

...the roasted tomatoes. The yumminess that will soon, when paired with parmesan cheese, elicit a tastebud explosion in your mouth. These... are... bliss.

(Pay no attention to that lemon in the background. He's just hanging out until we use him later.)

Take one pint of either grape tomatoes or cherry tomatoes, and slice them in half.

Except when I look at this picture I remembered that this particular bunch of grape tomatoes were a little large, so I sliced them in fourths. Do whatever works with your particular genre of tomatoes.

Next, put them in a bowl, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and stir gently to combine...

(Again, pay no attention to the lemon in the background, the empty pop can and dirty dishes. They are irrelevant to the process, but a permanent fixture in my kitchen. Gaze only upon the tomatoes, if you would.)

Sidenote on the olive oil: I happened to purchase this Felippo Berio extra virgin olive oil because I had a coupon, and I am now in love with it. It is fragrant and wonderful. You know how Giada always talks about extra virgin olive oil having a really nice 'fruity' aroma? This stuff has it, big time. It smells wonderfully fresh and fruity. I just thought I'd recommend it.

Sidenote on the salt: this much salt makes the tomatoes a little extra salty. I like them like this for the saltiness of the overall pizza. However, feel free to decrease the salt or eliminate it all together if that's what floats your boat.

As I said, give it a little stir. Then, spread them out on a baking sheet topped with parchment paper. NOT wax paper. Wax paper and parchment paper are not the same thing. Some of you may know this, some may not. I don't want any of y'all putting wax paper in your oven on my account.

(Again, pay no attention to the baked-on appearance of the pan. There's a lot of things in these pictures I just don't really want you to pay attention to. If you could just zone in on the actual food, that would be great.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, pop them in, and bake for about 25 minutes.

Mmmmmm. Oh yum. Oh goodness. Oh yum. I shudder to think what would happen to my digestive system if I ate all of these, but I could. To not devour them all before they make their way to the pizza is a considerable act of will power for me. And that's not to mention fending off my hubby and kids.

While the tomatoes are roasting, combine 1/3 cup of mayo (that's right, I said mayo, not Miracle Whip) and 1 teaspoon of lemon zest, and whoop it up a bit...

See? This is where the lemon comes into play. That inconspicuous little lemon that was hanging out in all the above photos is now making his move. And let me tell you, to me, the lemon is really the key to the whole pizza. It's that little something that makes you say, "Mmmmmm."

(Timesaver tip: Mix the mayo and lemon zest in the same bowl you used to mix the tomatoes. Won't hurt a thing. Easy peasy.)

Now, spread the mayo / lemon zest mixture over the crust, which should be on your pizza pan...

That's right, we're putting mayonnaise on pizza. I dunno what Giada would think about that one. But I'll tell you one thing: If she tasted this pizza, she'd say, "It is good. Rock on, Farmer Gal."

At least, that's what she'd say in the fantasy in my mind where she comes to my kitchen and tastes my pizza.

Then top with pepperoni to your liking...

Then top with the roasted tomatoes (yum)...

Top with 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese and 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese (yum x2) and roll up the edges a bit...

Pop it in the oven (preheated to 425 degrees) and bake for 22-25 minutes, remove, let sit for about ten minutes or so, slice, prepare yourself for new levels of deliciousness, and serve!

Pizza Fantastico!

If you haven't already, you should stop over at Amy's site, She Wears Many Hats, and check things out. Especially check out the recipe section! Pretty much every recipe she posts is right up my alley, so I always like to see what she's cooking up.

I decided to make her Grapefruit & Lime Cake with Citrus Glaze today. I'd been eyeballing it for awhile now, and finally had a grapefruit in my possession to use. However, since I've been somewhat trying to stay away from refined flour and sugar, I knew I was taking a risk. The photo above shows the initial damage I have done, in one foul swoop, to the cake, my resolve to stay away from refined flour and sugar, and my waistline.

However, I thought the above photo really didn't do this delicious cake justice, so I exercised ultimate self-control and cut a piece out of the middle to take a picture of.

I didn't eat it.

I put it back where it came from when I was done photographing.

I'm a pillar of strength.

I may have fallen off the wagon momentarily, but that doesn't mean I have to let it run me over too, right?

Voila! Here it is! I don't think this picture does it justice either, so you'll just have to take my word for it. If you like zesty citrus flavor and moist, fluffy cake, I would highly recommend it. There is a citrus glaze that has been poured over the top, but it has soaked in so it's hard to see. But it's there. And it's simple and delicious. I think it is the perfect topping for this cake.

Thanks to Amy for sharing this tasty recipe!

This looks delicious, no?

And it kind of was.

There were sugared nectarines, fried in butter and hinting of lemon zest. There was a cobbler/crisp base. There was butter.

(Butter needs no adjectives. Its perfection is known far and wide.)

It was fresh and unique and quite beautiful.

I took pictures, wrote down the recipe as I concocted it, and rubbed my palms together with glee as I envisioned putting it here on my site to joyously share with the world at large.

Unfortunately, even though it was definitely edible and parts of it were completely delicious, the dish as a whole just didn't quite come together for me. Not enough to make it 'blogworthy'. It needs a little tweaking.

I haven't been much good at posting recipes here lately.

(The last recipe I posted was 'Veggie Pizza'. Really? Yes, it's good and it's definitely blogworthy. But is veggie pizza my final cooking contribution to the world? I think not.)

It's not because I haven't been cooking. Oh I've been cooking. I've been cooking like nobody's bizness. But I have some standards when it comes to recipes that I post on my blog: They need to be really, really good.

Especially when they're a little more labor-intensive.

Well, at least I have to feel that they are really, really good.

Whether or not everyone likes them is subjective. But there's not much I can do about that.

Sooooo... If you don't see many recipes around here, it's because of one of two reasons...

a) I haven't made anything that I feel is truly blogworthy.

b) I have made something that is blogworthy but don't have enough time to post it.

That's just the God's honest truth.

But when I do make something that is blogworthy AND I have time to post it, guess what!?!

I will.