Thyme Roasted Walnuts

Doing these today.

Best Hummus Ever

Saving this link here. Enjoyed it with my sisters this summer. Hoping my future daughter in law who loves hummus will use it. :) http://minimalistbaker.com/best-ever-5-minute-microwave-hummus/

Twice-baked Kale and Cheddar Potatoes

Today's hit lunch. 

Took two formerly baked potatoes.
Halved them and scooped out the insides.
Set the skins upside down in a baking dish, covered them with a dab of butter and broiled until brown and crispy.
Roughly chopped one scallion and one large washed Kale leaf in the food processor.
Added the potato insides, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, handful of shredded cheddar and chopped a little more.
Mixed about 2 oz. soft cream cheese and about 1/3 c. sour cream, then gently blended with the potato mixture.
Turned the skin inside up and loaded the potato mixture in each skin, sprinkling a little more cheddar on each potato.
Returned to oven and baked at 350 for another fifteen-twenty minutes.

Served with wine soaked granny smith apple slices and seedless red grapes.

Creamy Medi Tuna

Sara Bostrom served this to us 24 years ago and it became a favorite. Thankfully I found the recipe card this evening because we had a hankering for it. Too bad I'm fresh out of the pecans because it really does add a nice flavor and texture. And sorry to say canned tuna is not what it used to be. 

1 8 oz. package of cream cheese
2 T lemon juice
1/2 c mayo
1/2 c chopped ripe olives
7 to 10 oz. drained canned tuna
1 c finely chopped pecans

Blend first five ingredients lightly together in a food processor, sitr in pecans. Chill. Serve in sandwiches or dip. Goes especially well on Club Crackers.

Bang Bang Shrimp

My favorite is the Bang Bang Shrimp at Bonefish Grill. Cal was going to take me there tonight where they sell it for only $5. on Wednesdays. But out all day on business, we elected to buy the ingredients and try it ourselves at home. Here it is for easy reference next time: 

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup Thai Sweet Chili Sauce

3 drops Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (or to taste)

1 pound shelled and deveined shrimp

Dry cornstarch

oil for frying

lettuce

chopped scallions

DIRECTIONS:

Mix mayonnaise with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce. Add hot sauce to taste. Dredge the shrimp in cornstarch. Deep fat fry the shrimp until lightly brown. Drain on paper towel, put in a bowl and coat with the sauce. Serve in a lettuce lined bowl, top with chopped scallions.

Strawberry Balsamic Bacon Pizza

Okay, Kilby sent me this link and I have to post it here so I can come back to it as soon as I can make it. Reports to follow.

Caramelized Apple and Goat Cheese Tartines

This is a little snack perfect for afternoon tea or a very informal dessert. I concocted it on a cloudy Sunday evening for Paul and me to share. It will have been the first of many times it appears in my snack rotation. I used lavender (which my neighbor grows whole bushes of) and thyme with the apples, and although you could substitute different herbs or spices, I highly recommend this combination. So go get yourself some lavender and goat cheese and make this right now.

• baguette
• soft goat cheese
• 2 large apples
• <1/4 t lavender
• <1/4 t thyme
• 1 T butter
• 2 T sugar
• 1 T apple cider vinegar

Preheat the oven to 450º with the rack in the top third of the oven.

Slice 6 diagonal pieces of the baguette (I used French, but I think whole grain bread would be nicer) and spread each slice with a generous smear of goat cheese. Set aside.

Peel, core, and finely chop the apples. The herbs should be finely chopped as well. Heat the butter in a medium skillet until browning, then add the apples and herbs. Toss over medium-high heat until the apples begin to brown.

At this point, place the bread in the oven, either on a baking sheet or directly on the rack. Keep an eye on it, but it should take about 10 minutes to toast and for the cheese to melt.

Add the sugar and cider vinegar to the apples and turn the heat down to medium-low. Toss occasionally until the vinegar is cooked off, the sugar is melted, and some of the apples have a dark brown edge.

When the toast is done, remove from the oven and top each slice with a spoonful of the apples. Serve warm.

Makes 6 tartines.

White House Crackers

First experienced these amazing crackers at the White House when my sister, working there for Mr. Meese's office, and whom I was visiting, brought me a bowl of soup with these crackers from the White House Mess for lunch. They are amazing. And a little tricky to make. The recipe reproduced here is from my memory.

Brush a cookie sheet generously with butter. Butter, not margarine.
Prepare an ice bath of water and ice-cubes.
Plunge a half dozen Saltine crackers into the cold water for 30 seconds and remove, letting the water drip off of them.
Treat these soggy things gingerly so they don't fall apart.
Place crackers on cookie sheet, gently and quickly, and return to dunk more crackers, repeating the process until the cookie sheet is filled.
Gently brush tops with more butter.
Bake at 325 for over a half hour or until dried out and golden brown.

I am not sure I have either bake time or temp correct. I'll hope to edit this post when I try them again. You're welcome to change it if you have access to this blog (that would be you, daughties all), or post a comment.

Enjoy!

Sesame Ginger Chicken Quesadillas

Found this recipe in my stuff, handwritten by me on a piece of paper. The accompanying Citrus Iced Tea recipe suggests to me that I got the recipe from my cousin, Chrissie. I made these tonight for supper and it was a hit. But first I used the sauce on a bacon/hardboiled egg lettuce salad for lunch, and it was delish.

9 T Sesame Ginger Sauce
3 c chopped cooked chicken
9 carrots, shredded
3/4 c diced purple onion
12 (8 in) flour tortillas
24 oz. shredded Mexican cheese blend

Heat the sesame ginger sauce in large skillet over medium heat; add chicken, carrots, & onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, 2--4 minutes, or until heated thoroughly.

Heat lightly greased griddle or large skillet. Place tortilla on griddle, sprinkle with cheese, spoon chicken mixture over half of tortilla. Cook one minute or until lightly browned, fold up non-chicken half over onto chicken half and press. Serve immediately.

Glazed Pecans a la Bon Appetit

1.5 c (6 oz.) pecans

1.5 T veg oil

1.5 T sugar

1/4 t cayenne pepper

1/4 t salt

Preheat oven to 325. Spray large baking sheet with nonstick spray. Stir pecans and oil in medium bowl to coat. Mix sugar, cayenne, and salt in small bowl, then add to pecan mixture and toss to coat. Scatter coated pecans on prepared baking sheet. Bake until pecans are brown and crisp, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Transfer baking sheet to rack and cool completely. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temp.)

Seven Layer Mexican Dip

This recipe found when looking for a seven-layer dip I post here so we have it again as it is a hit, especially following Bible study. Leftovers the next day make a great meal. Following are my changes:

For 9 x 13 baking dish
1 large can refried beans
2 cans Fritos bean dip
4 ripe avocados turned into guacamole with lemon juice, fresh garlic, and cumin
1 pint sour cream
1 c mayo
1/4 c taco seasoning (or 2 pkgs)
1 # shredded Jack & Cheddar cheese
2 cans sliced black olives with jalapenos
3 chopped tomatoes
2 bunches chopped green onion

Mix refried beans and bean dip. Spread in bottom of dish.
Next spread guacamole dip.
Mix sour cream, mayo, and taco seasoning; spread.
Sprinkle with cheese.
Sprinkle with olives.
Sprinkle with tomatoes.
Sprinkle with green onions.

Honey-kissed chicken wings Marinade and Sauce

Got this from the Neely's cooking show on television last week. Made them Sunday and though I still prefer Frank's, this is a nice marinade for chicken. Might be good on ham, as well.

Equal parts (I used 1/2 c each for about ten pounds of chicken)
BBQ sauce
Dijon mustard
Hot sauce
Orange zest
Honey

Marinate chicken for at least a half hour; I marinated our wings overnight, then took them out before we went to church so they were closer to room temp when we grilled them.

When chicken is nearly done, brush with crisping sauce of
Equal parts
melted butter
honey
dijon mustard

Mmmmm.

Karen Gonzalez's "Zippy Dip"

Ingredients:

8 oz. softened cream cheese

8 oz. sour cream

1 pkg. dry taco mix

3-5 drops tobasco sauce

1/4 c. taco sauce

8 0z. shredded cheddar cheese

8 oz. shredded monterey jack cheese

1 can refried beans

Preheat oven to 325. Combine cream cheese and sour cream, then add beans, taco mix, tobasco, and taco sauce. Add 3/4 of each cheese, mix well and put into 9x13 greased baking dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Bake 30 minutes or until center is bubbly. Serve with tortilla chips.

Eggroll-rolling Technique Diagram a la Becky

Here's a link to the eggroll recipe I put on my blog, including a diagram which my ever-so-skillfully-artistic self drew on Paint.

If my recipe differs at all from the one Mom posted, go with hers.

Parmesan Stuffed Mushrooms

This is one of absolute favorite. dishes. ever. I've made it several times (although not often enough) and each time its been a big hit. This dish can be served as an entree, or a appetizer, depending on the size of the mushroom. This mix is also extremely good as a spread for crackers.

2/3 Cup Mayonnaise

2/3 Cup freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

1/2 Cup grated Mozzarella Cheese

2/3 Cup Minced Red Onion

Freshly ground Pepper

3 Tablespoons minced fresh flat-leafed parsley (plus leaves for garnish)

1 Pound small to medium sized white mushrooms. (to use large mushrooms I would double the cheese mix)

1) In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, cheeses, and onion, mixing well. Season to taste with pepper, and stir in parsley. Cover and refrigerate until use.

3) Preheat the broiler. Remove the mushroom stems and wipe the caps clean. Spoon a generous teaspoonful of the filling into each mushroom cap, mounding it slightly. Arrange the mushrooms, filling side up, on the broiler pan (You may have to cook the mushrooms in 2 batches) Broil about 5 inches from the heat source for about 5 minutes, until the mushrooms are hot and the filling is lightly golden brown. Let cool for just 1 minute. Garnish each mushroom with a parsley leaf, transfer to platter, and serve.

Eggrolls

Technically called Springrolls, as eggrolls are really thin omelettes stuffed with goodies, I'd best show you how to make these if you dasn't know, as they have a bit o' technique in the rolling. BUT, I post this for Wendy and my daughties who might want recipe details. If you need help with technique, experience is a great teacher.

One package eggroll wrappers from the produce department of a grocery store (Walmart carries them, too), room temperature, preferably.

One head green cabbage, shredded thinly, steamed only until tender enough to squeeze, but not overcooked. Squeeze out extra moisture. You want it to be totally soft, but not yet having lost its bright greenness.

One chicken breast, cooked, pulled apart into small shreds to match your cabbage. Mix with cooked cabbage.

Generously salt and pepper your cabbage-chicken mix. Some add chicken bullion powder. Optionally you could add thinly sliced green onion or shredded carrot.

Lay out your first wrapper as a diamond. Pick up about 1/3 cup cabbage mix and plop in the middle. Pick up the closest corner and wrap upward. Pull sides in in a couple of folds, then using a fingerful of warm water (from a cup you already placed nearby) glue the corner farthest from you down onto the folded wrapper. Hope nothing is exposed that can fall out during the cooking. \

We piled the wrapped cabbage rolls on a serving dish while the oil is heating. If you don't have deep fryer that tells you what temp it is, my Chinese friend taught me to stick a chop stick down into the heated oil. If teeny bubbles come upward from that action, it supposedly is hot enough. If the roll doesn't cook and brown nicely in a matter of about five minutes you have the oil either too cold or too hot. You can use a sturdy sauce pan and fill with about four or five inches of vegetable oil and heat on a burner if you haven't got a deep fryer. I find I have to turn the rolls, sometimes holding them down into the oil in order to cook the other side.

Once your rolls are golden, crispy brown and driving everyone nuts from the delicious smells, you can serve them with a delicious sauce made of soy sauce and freshly crushed garlic, and a tablespoon of sesame oil if you have it.

Grain and vegetable and meat, these make a great meal all in themselves!

Melvin Hot Punch for Holidays

Heat equal parts cranberry juice cocktail and pineapple juice with dash of whole cloves and cinnamon sticks. Simmer for half hour or longer.

Don't know when my mom found this recipe, but it graced all of our holidays with a lovely tradition. It is especially good served along with Ritz crackers topped with a smear of Braunschweiger and a thin slice of cucumber. Sounds awful? Try it!

Baked Cheese Olives

Thanks to Jay and Marissa for this one which we had this past Thanksgiving.

1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

2 T butter, softened

½ c flour

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

24 pimiento-stuffed green olives

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine cheese and butter. Stir flour and pepper into cheese and butter mixture. Blend well. Wrap a tablespoon of dough around each green olive. Arrange wrapped olives on a cookie sheet.

Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Becky's Favorite Snack

1 package Ritz crackers
1 jar apricot preserves
1 block sharp cheddar cheese

Spread a spoonful of apricot preserves on a Ritz cracker, and top with a thick slice of cheese. Make sure to include plenty of friends or you'll wind up eating the whole package/jar/block by yourself, as I nearly did once. :)