Fruit Pizza

Another summer fav: Fruit Pizza
The first time I ever made this, I totally ruined the dough. My cute boyfriend at the time(hubby now) showed superior cooking skills and told me the 2 1/2 C. flour was indeed that and not two half cups of flour (yes- that equaling one total cup of flour). Lucky for him I have gotten better at cooking, and can read a recipe now.
I made individual pizzas this time. You can make a big one and cook it on your pizza stone, or use your cookie cutter and make small ones. The small ones were fun because I could give them away!!
Crust: Use this sugar cookie recipe.
Filling: Mix 8oz. softened cream cheese with 1/2 C. sugar and 2 t. clear vanilla- mix until light
Toppings: Whatever assortment of fruit you desire. I used strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, kiwi and bananas. I have also used peaches and mandarin oranges.
Let the cookies cool and then top them with filling and fruit!

Julie's Pesto Pasta Salad

Guest blogger here. I am a sister to this salty cook. And I love her a lot. Seriously. I also love her enough to make a post on a cooking blog. I say that because I am not always super confident in my cooking skills... but I have a few tricks up my sleeve that seem to be people pleasers. Summer cooking for me is a LOT of pasta salads. Mostly cold ones that I make in the day and stick in the fridge ready for dinner that night. But the other day my cute bff from elementary school (who's birthday is today!) brought this pasta salad to a shower and I have salivated over it ever since. It was so simple- yet had such a fun fresh flavor. Love it!

Julie's Pesto Pasta Salad


box of bowtie pasta
chicken cooked on the grill- and cut into pieces
purple or sweet onion
craisins
pesto sauce ( I use Costco's- I know she makes her own sometimes)


Cook your chicken on the grill. It looks so much prettier when done on the grill, and for this pasta it adds a nice smoky touch. Cut it up and set aside. While your chicken is grilling, cut your onion and throw it on the stove with some olive oil. I let these caramelize for a really long time. Like almost a half an hour- til they are nice and clear and stringy! After your noodles are cooked, drain and then toss them with the pesto sauce. Add the chicken, onions, and craisins. Serve warm.


My own twist: I added a little half and half to the sauce to make it a bit creamier. Also it was delicious topped with crumbled feta. Another addition you could add would be toasted pine nuts.

Salmon Tacos

voila! one of the best and easiest cinco de mayo dinners!!


salmon

cajun seasoning

1-2 T butter per pound of salmon

small corn tortillas

cheese ( I like pepper jack)

shredded cabbage

mayo

1 lime

cilantro

salt & Pepper

Gently spread butter on salmon fillet in small pats, then sprinkle cajun seasoning on salmon according to your own personal spicy threshold. Wrap entire piece of salmon in foil and cook on the BBQ for about 20 minutes until light pink and flaky. (no need to flip)

while your salmon is cooking, melt pepper jack cheese between two small corn tortillas (just lightly spray the pan with Pam so they don't stick)

Place hot salmon on the tortilla and add shredded cabbage (I love the pre-made cole slaw mix because it saves on the chopping)

Then top with lime cilantro sauce: 1/2 c mayo, juice from one lime, 1 t salt, 1 t pepper, 1/2 c. finely chopped fresh cilantro ( I like to thin my sauce with a little milk to make it spread easier)

And for dessert: Fried Ice Cream. Just roll a ball of vanilla ice cream in honey bunches of oats, or granola and then drizzle with caramel. It is a lot easier and you won't run the risk of burning your house down or having to endure hot oil smoke for days!!

Brittany's Sweet & Sour Chicken

how cute is that apron??

Brittany's Sweet and Sour Chicken
1/2 c flour
1 T baking powder
2 c water
2 T cornstarch

4 chicken breasts, boned & skinned and cut into cubes
Mix ingredients & marinate the chicken for at least an hour

2 c cracker meal (I haven't yet been able to find cracker meal so I have used fish fry and it works great. You'll find the McCormick 12 oz boxes near the Seafood Counter)

Dip marinated chicken pieces in cracker meal and fry in oil for about 2-3 min per side. Drain on paper towel.

Sauce
2 T ketchup
1/2 c sugar
2 squirts of lemon or orange juice
1/2 T vinegar
3/4 c + 1 1/2 T water ( I know it's a weird measurement, but it works)
Combine ingredients and bring to a boil on med-high heat, stirring frequently. Boil 2 min.
Then combine 1 T cornstarch & 1 T water and then add to sauce and stir until boiling and thick.

(note on the sauce- Brittany adds an extra cup water, but I liked the thicker and heavier syrup. So if it too much for you add more water)

Fried Rice
3 c cooked rice (rice is actually better if it is a day old)
1 c carrots, diced
1 c onion, diced
1 c celery diced
1 c broccoli florets diced

1 c. frozen peas (add the peas when the other veggies are almost soft)
2-3 T butter OR 2/3 c. veg oil. (I prefer butter, Britt likes oil)
Stir-fry vegetables for 10 min. Add rice and soy sauce (3-4 T) to taste, breaking up rice clumps.

Free Cone Day!!

Tuesday April 21st is Free Cone Day

at Ben & Jerry's noon to 8pm



wow! that's long enough to go back a couple of times!!



ohh! and think of the fun shopping you can do at the gateway in between cones!



your welcome!

Toffee Coconut Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. shortening
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 t vanilla

1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
2 1/4 c. flour

2 c. oatmeal (non-instant)
1 c. chocolate chips
1/2 c toffee pieces
1/2 c. coconut

Cream the butter until fluffy, add the sugar and mix well. Add the eggs and vanilla. whisk the dry ingredients in a separate bowl and then slowly add to creamy mixture until well combined. I then stir in the toppings (oatmeal, choc chips, toffee and coconut) by hand.

Bake at 350 for about 8 minutes. Don't overbake!

Enjoy!

April Fool's Cookies

These are darling little April fools day cookies that my cute friend Gretel made for preschool this morning. They aren't too complicated and they taste pretty good.

thought I would pass along the how to

• the buns: vanilla wafers


• meat: york peppermint patty


• lettuce: coconut turned green with a little food coloring


• mustard and ketchup: red and yellow frosting


• sesame seeds are stuck to the bun by melting a little jam (preferably a light color like apricot and spreading a little on the wafer and then sprinkling on the sesame seeds).

Happy April Fool's day!