Friday, October 12, 2012

Ketchup and Mustard for Fall | Tomato Bacon Jam and Shasha Sauce


A local radio station says, "Summer ain't over till we say it's over!"  Same goes for my garden.The leaves are turning, the days are shorter, the air is brisker, but the garden was still churning out a few tomatoes and peppers.

But all the tomatoes and peppers have been sauced, pureed, chopped, jarred, jellied, frozen or consumed. Just a few stragglers were left. These last few tomatoes and peppers needed to get dressed for fall. So instead of summer's ketchup and mustard they became tomato bacon jam and shasha sauce.

Don't get me wrong: There's absolutely nothing wrong with ketchup and mustard.  There's nothing more All American than squirting good gobs of the yellow and red stuff on a hot dog grilled on an open fire.

But come fall, it's time to warm things up.  Both these sauces are great condiments and very versatile  They can dress up a hot dog or hamburger -- or a steak. They can be spread on a sandwich or toast or be part of a crudite platter.


Side by side, they're a great pair of hot and sweet.  The mustardy shasha sauce is very hot, especially when I used the last of the serrano peppers as part of the mix along with jalapeno and bell peppers. And the tomato bacon jam is smoky and spicy.  Just like fall.

I first learned of the shasha sauce reading Pass the Sauce.  This saucy blogger was inspired by Michael Symon's recipe. So mine is a combination. Both recipes used Hungarian banana peppers, one canned, one fresh. I just used the variety of "leftover" peppers from the garden, including my serranos and some banana peppers.

The tomato bacon jam came from sister. Sorta. It's actually a misnomer because the recipe she gave me included apples and was meant to be served with feta on crostini. (Although she confessed to me that she subbed bleu cheese.) But crostini-with-tomato-and-bacon-and-onion-and-apple-jam-with-feta is a mouthful, a pretty tasty mouthful. Anyhow, what doesn't bacon make better?  (Maybe bleu cheese.)

The recipe my sister gave me also included apples and used canned tomatoes, but since I had the tomatoes (and no apples) this is what I came up with.

Before the recipes, let me share with you a couple pictures of the garden's guardians this summer.


My neighbor shared my garden this year with me and fashioned these great scarecrows. They must have done the trick because, although we had a very dry summer, we still had a pretty good bounty.


They're stored away in the barn now, in hibernation before they have to go on duty again next spring.

Now that I've made you look at my scarecrows, here are the recipes . . . .

ShaSha Sauce
inspired by Pass the Sauce, inspired by Michael Symon
12 fresh Hungarian peppers or a jar of banana peppers (or, like I did, their rough equivalent in volume!)
4 cloves garlic
1 cup yellow ballpark mustard
1 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons all purpose flour (optional)
Process peppers with the garlic, mustard and vinegar until pureed.  Add puree to a hot saucepan and add in sugar. Simmer 30 minutes.  Add a slurry of flour and water to thicken if desired. Simmer for another 20 minutes or so. When cool, pour into glass jars and store in the refrigerator up to a month.

Tomato Bacon Jam
inspired by my sister and from Better Homes and Gardens, September 2010
½ pound smoked bacon
about dozen (1 1/2 pounds) tomatoes, mixed variety, chopped
1 cup sugar
1 small yellow onion, diced
3 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1 ½ tsp salt
¼ tsp. ground pepper

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until it is just browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain excess fat.  Crumble or cut into small pieces. 

In a large saucepan, cook the chopped tomatoes on medium heat until they're softened and their liquid cooks down, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes.  Add the, sugar, onion, vinegar, salt, pepper and bacon.  Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook, stirring often for 12 minutes or until most of the liquid is reduced. Store in fridge up to a week.

30 comments:

  1. That opening photo just drew me in. Coveting the measuring spoons. Have been eyeing them but haven't taken the plunge. Both sauces sing of autumn. Such fun to dress up something ordinary with something extraordinary. Love the scarecrows. They wouldn't scare the bunnies and squirrels though - they make "hay" in my garden!

    ReplyDelete
  2. The sauces look delicious and I'm bookmarking them for next year. I've already harvested and prepared for the winter. It turned quite chilly very quickly here. Love the scarecrows!!

    Best,
    Bonnie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chilly here now, too . . . what happened to Indian summer? I'll be putting porch furniture away in snow!

      Delete
  3. I love condiments of all kinds...and this ketchup and mustard look lovely. Perfect for a burger! Thank you for sharing. What a great post to read before a long weekend (with plans of baking and cooking). I hope you have a wonderful Friday!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. A baking and cooking weekend sounds great this time of year. . . I'll be joining you!

      Delete
  4. Hi Rosemary, first I have to say, I have to give you some credit for my ice cream. I have been craving home made ice cream since reading your pistachio ice cream post. Now I am craving bacon jam. I love your autumnal photos. I think your pirate scarecrow could do double duty over Hallowe'en before you retire him for the season. Also, I'm intrigued by the ShaSha sauce. This is a MUST TRY!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, I'll be trying that lemon basil ice cream, for sure. I have another great picture of the pirate-crow holding a beer can in his hook. I mildly refrained.

      Delete
  5. Love that ShaSha sauce! Those scarecrows are hysterical! :o) Enjoy the weekend Rosemary!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I never tried Shasha sauce before. Almost as addicting as sriacha!

      Delete
  6. I am loving these "high brow" condiments. Bacon in a tomato jam sounds superb and the ShaSha sauce would be so good!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bacon is always a welcome addition, isn't it? And the hot mustard adds a lot. (I love that you called them "high brow", Kristen!)

      Delete
  7. Replies
    1. It was the scarecrows you liked, wasn't it, Claudia! My neighbor is quite a creative fellow.

      Delete
  8. These both sound like wonderful and unique condiments. I love tomato jam and with the addition of bacon it takes it to a whole new level.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The tomato jam was my favorite. But the mustard is pretty jazzy, too.

      Delete
  9. Haha...love your scarecrows!! And both your condiments look delish! I'd love to try both on a fall burger :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Very yummy Rosemary! I can think of a zillion ways to use these sauces!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Oooh, that tomato bacon jam looks amazing! I bet it's wonderful on everything from burgers to poached fish to grilled cheese.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We tried the tomato jam topping scrambled eggs for a hurry up dinner -- great!

      Delete
  12. Replies
    1. I really liked to shasha sauce; I just may need to tweak the tomato jam . . .

      Delete
  13. LOVE the scarecrows! So cute. I cut this Bacon jam recipe out whenever it was published and thought I would make it again last summer but did not. It looks yummy!
    Great blog, btw!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Si. (You know, I liked your blog design so much, I got your designer to help me out!

      Delete

I realize you don't have to take the time to comment . . . but it makes my day! So glad you decided to stay.