Pineapple Pear Syrup

I had some pears on hand so I decided to try a new recipe yesterday called Pear Honey.

It was a fairly simple recipe for canning (love that!) calling for only three ingredients.

It took me about 20 minutes with the food processor to get everything together and then 3 hours later I was canning and done.

You will need:

8 cups pears, peeled and grated (in food processor)

4 cups sugar

1 can (20 oz) crushed pineapple, undrained.

Mix together in large stockpot and let simmer for several hours.

Mixture will become syrup like and golden colored.

  It looked more like syrup than honey - so I renamed it.  It is very sweet and delicious!!  Perfect for a special breakfast topping over french toast, pancakes or waffles. 

When ready pour into warm pint jars, seal tightly and place them in a water bath canner with boiling water for 20 minutes.  Remove and let cool.  You can have these on your pantry shelf for up to one year if they have sealed properly.

 They most likely won't last that long in your home though - look at that beautiful golden color!

I thought that some of these would make perfect little "Hello Fall!" gifts to friends.

 Add a bit of twine and a tag and it couldn't be cuter!

 Linking Up to Show and Share at JAG

Chopped Tomato and Basil Sauce

We still have quite a few tomatoes coming into our garden.  The basil is on its way out so I thought I would take what was left and make my house smell yummy today.

This was about half of the tomatoes we had!

4 medium sized, ripe tomatoes (about 1.5 pounds - I used a lot of smaller Romas from the garden)

1/4 cup olive oil

2-3 medium cloves garlic, minced

1/3 chopped fresh basil

1/2 tsp salt (I used course sea salt for no special reason)

salt and pepper to taste

Remove and discard the cores of the tomatoes and then coarsely chop them and put them in a large saucepan.
Add the olive oil, garlic, basil, salt and salt and pepper to the tomatoes. Stir well.
Cover and set aside a few hours to release the tomato juices and let the flavors combine.

Pour over pasta and enjoy!
This tomato sauce will keep for one week in the refrigerator.

Isn't that just gorgeous!  I wish you could smell it - it's that good! 
Linking up to Show and Share Day at Just a Girl.

Witch Finger Cookies

Witch Finger Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup whole almonds
• 1 (.75 ounce) tube red decorating gel

Directions

1. Combine the butter, sugar, egg, almond extract, and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Beat together with an electric mixer; gradually add the flour, baking powder, and salt, continually beating; refrigerate 20 to 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease baking sheets.
3. Remove dough from refrigerator in small amounts. Scoop 1 heaping teaspoon at a time onto a piece of waxed paper. Use the waxed paper to roll the dough into a thin finger-shaped cookie. Press one almond into one end of each cookie to give the appearance of a long fingernail. Squeeze cookie near the tip and again near the center of each to give the impression of knuckles. You can also cut into the dough with a sharp knife at the same points to help give a more finger-like appearance. Arrange the shaped cookies on the baking sheets.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until the cookies are slightly golden in color, 20 to 25 minutes.
5. Remove the almond from the end of each cookie; squeeze a small amount of red decorating gel into the cavity; replace the almond to cause the gel to ooze out around the tip of the cookie.

 These are so realistic looking they are a little awkward to eat.  Until you taste one - then my boys couldn't stop.  They are yummy but you might have to close your eyes to get over the fact they are SO realistic looking!

I made these for several Halloween parties last year - easy and so much fun to bring!
Linking to Show and Tell Saturday!