Will the heat ever end!

We are in the middle of a 100 plus degree heat wave. This is the part of living in Sacramento that I cannot stand. I detest hot weather. For nine months out of the year the weather is great, but the summer months are at times unbearable. I am not a nice person when the weather gets into the triple digits. I get cranky and a bit surly. Just ask my family. We would love to move up to the Pacific Northwest. Maybe, one day we will make it up there. In the meantime, we deal with the heat. Today's forecast is 103. I guess to look on the bright side, it's not 110!






I went to the farmer's market this weekend and look at these jewels I picked up. They are the sweetest peaches I have ever had. Look how the grower packaged them. He didn't want them to bruise so he packs his gems in these boxes lined with foam. It was like opening up a jewelry box. I will try to take a picture next week of his stand. He grows the absolute best fruit. His nectarines are fabulous!





I know I have been complaining about the heat, but I couldn't resist trying out this new chili recipe. It turned out even better than I thought it would. It is Guy Fieri's recipe from the August/September Food Network magazine. It's called Ryder's turkey chili . I love the complex flavor of the chili. I halved the recipe because the original recipe served 10 to15. I still had a lot of servings and ended up portioning out the servings and freezing the rest. This would be great for a crowd. Serve this chili with some saltine crackers or homemade tortillas. Yummy!

Homemade flour tortillas ( adapted form The Well-Filled Tortilla by Victoria Wise and Susanna Hoffman)

3 cups of unbleached all purpose flour
1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon slat
1 cup of warm tap water

1. Place the flour in a mixing bowl. Add the oil and mix together with a fork or your fingers until thoroughly distributed and the flour is crumbly in texture.

2. Mix the salt with the warm tap water and add to the flour. Mix together with your hands until you can gather the dough into a ball. Place the dough on an un-floured board and knead until smooth and elastic, 3 to 5 minutes. Return the dough to the mixing bowl, cover with a towel, place it in a warmish spot, and let rest for up to 2 hours, but no less than 30 minutes. The dough may be wrapped in plastic and stored in the refrigerator. Use within 1 day.

3. To make the tortillas, divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and roll each between your palms to make a ball. Flatten the balls, then place on a very lightly floured board. With a rolling pin, roll each ball into an 8 to 9 inch very thin round. The uncooked floured tortillas may be layered between sheets of plastic wrap and stored in the refrigerator overnight.

4. To cook the tortillas, heat a heavy cast iron frying pan over medium high heat. Place the tortillas, one at a time or as many as will fit without overlapping, in the pan and cook for 30 seconds. If the tortillas puff up, gently press them down with a spatula. Turn and cook on the other side until speckled with brown spots but still pliable and not crisp, about 3o seconds more. Remove and stack as you go, while the tortillas are still warm. Use the cooked tortillas right away or reheat just before serving.