Tropical Berry Spinach Salad

I'm always in search of simple salad recipe and I recently found this on the back of a Fresh Express bag of spinach. Give it a try!

Salad:
1 bag (9 oz.) spinach
1 pint strawberries, sliced
3 Kiwis, peeled and sliced
1 handful (about 1/4 cup), chopped macadamia nuts (optional)

Dressing:
1/4 cup canola oil
2 Tbsp. raspberry vinegar
2 Tsbp. raspberry preserves

Mix dressing and refrigerate for at least 15 min. Toss together with salad and serve.
Serves 4.

Easy Peasy Shredded Beef

I got this recipie from my mother-in-law's neighbor, and it is one of my all time favorites. And, it is also one of the easiest things I have ever made. (Alas, no picture, we ate it too quickly)

Start with a rump roast, anywhere from 2.5-5 pounds. Put it in your crockpot (no need to brown, or salt and pepper or anything else) Mix up one packet of Au Jous gravy mix and pour it over the top, plus an extra cup of water. Let it cook on low for anywhere from 4-6 hours, remove the hunk of meaty goodness, and strain the floaties out of the remaining sauce and return it to the crockpot Add another packet of Au Jous to the sauce (just the dry seasoning, not more water). Shred the beef with two forks, and put it back in the crockpot, let cook on low for another hour, or until it is heated through.

You can serve this as a sandwich, with mashed potatoes and corn on the cob, in burritos or taco's, on top of salads, or anywhere else you like shredded beef. Try it, you won't be disapointed.

Black Bean Soup

Now that fall is upon us, and it's geting a little cooler (well except for today) I'm in the mood for a good soup. Here's one that Richie and I love. You can either make it a little thinner like a soup with a little more chicken broth or make it as a thicker chili type dish with less chicken broth. I like mine thick.

10 slices bacon, finely chopped
6 garlic cloves, pressed
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups canned chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon chili powder
4 (15 1/2-ounce) cans black beans (we use 2), drained but not rinsed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch cilantro
juice of 1/2 lime
Thinly sliced scallions, for garnish
Sour cream, for garnish
Grated cheddar, for garnish

Put the bacon into a large heavy pot and place it over medium heat. Cook until it starts to give up its fat, about 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until you can smell it, about 1 minute. Add the broth, tomatoes, ketchup, Worcestershire, and chili powder. Stir in the beans, turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. Adjust the heat so the soup is bubbling gently and cook 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, pick off all the thick stems from the cilantro. Wash it and shake dry. Chop the cilantro coarsely and stir it into the soup when it has been simmering 10 minutes. cook until the soup is thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lime juice. Serve with the garnishes.

We add shredded chicken and/or a half cup of rice after it's simmered to give it a little more depth.

Fresh Peach Pie

Okay, so I'm no food photographer...but this recipe is really good. I've been craving peach pie and my mom gave me this recipe to try out. Let's just say the pie didn't last long...and I didn't offer to share it with any friends--it was even hard to share with Trevor.

Pie Filling:
6 large peeled sliced fresh peaches (better if they aren't freestone)
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash cardomom
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp almond

Combine all ingredients and set aside. I used a little more cinnamon and nutmeg than called for.

*Crust:
1 cup crisco
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar

Blend above ingredients with pastry blender, then add 1/3 cup sour milk. Mix with hands, divide in half and roll out to make top and bottom crusts.

*use whatever crust recipe you like. I like this one because it's easy and quick.

Assemble pie and bake at 425 for 15 minutes, then 375 for 45-55 minutes. Cover entire crust with foil for the last 20 minutes of baking to prevent browning.

My Fave Lemon Bars

I really like lemons just like my mom. So, I love to make lemon bars and I've taken them places and these are always complimented. I hope you may like them too.

Ingredients for Crust:
2/3 cups butter or margarine
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla pudding(optional)

Ingredients for Topping:
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 tablespoons flour
4 teaspoons finely shredded lemon peel
6 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Powdered sugar(optional)

First:
In a medium bowl, beat butter/marg. with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar and beat until combined. Beat in the flour and vanilla pudding (I say the vanilla pudding is optional because I use this in recipes a lot since I have canned in my food storage, you don't have to use it but I like the taste & texture it adds to the crust) till crumbly. Press mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 inch baking pan. Bake in 350 degree oven for 15-18 min. until just golden.

Second:
For filling, in a small mixing bowl, combine eggs, sugar, flour, lemon peel, lemon juice, and baking powder. Beat on high 2 min. until combined.

Third:
Pour filling over baked layer. Bake 20 min. more until lightly brown around the edges and the center is set. Cool before serving. As desired, sift powdered sugar on top(I like this on it). Cut into bars and serve. YUMMY!


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Now playing: John Denver - Sunshine On My Shoulders
via FoxyTunes

Creme Brulee

Creme Brulee is a very rich, dainty custard type dessert that you'll want to have only for special occasions. It is a French dessert.

Jared had us wake up at 7 a.m. and make creme brulee with him before he had to go to work. Jared, I, and Gracie helped make it. I think it turned out well. We did different variations like plain, orange and nutmeg, raspberries and dark chocolate, orange and dark chocolate. My favorite was the orange peel with dark chocolate while Jared liked the orange and nutmeg better. Overall, it turned out well and it was fun for something quite different to eat. It is definately a once in a while type dish.

Here is the link to the recipe we used: Creme Brulee II from allrecipes.com

I hope that it will be something special that you'll have a neat occasion to try it for.

Some of My Favorites:)

Here are some of my favorite recipes that I was thinking about while walking with a friend this morning. I hope you Enjoy!

Amelia's Carmel Popcorn
Pop 3-4 Bags of regular sized microwave popcorn(make sure to take out the grannies)
Melt together on medium heat in a heavy saucepan:
1 cup of butter or margarine (2 sticks)
1 cup of Brown Sugar
1 bag of mini marshmellows (small 10 oz or for gooey popcorn the large 16 oz bag)

Pour over popped popcorn, mix together and serve.

Quick and Easy Peanut Butter Cookies(from 101 things to do with a cake mix)
1 yellow cake mix
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil
3/4 cup peanut better(crunchy or plain)
sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degree.

Mix together cake mix, eggs, and oil until powder is completely dissolved into dough. Stir in peanut butter. Drop balls of dough into a small bowl of sugar, then place on a greased cookie sheet. Press fork horizontally and then vertically across each ball to flatten.

Bake 10-12 minutes, or until golden. Remove from pan and cool. (They are good warm but are very sweet and they taste better after they have cooled a little)


Taco Meat (Original is from Deceptively Delicious)

1 pound lean ground meat
1 (14 oz) can of crushed or diced tomatoes with juice(I sometimes us V8 juice instead)
1/2 cup sweet potato, carrot, or butternut squash puree
1/2 packet taco seasoning

Cook meat, then stir in the rest of the ingredients and simmer on medium low until thickened. I usually half the meat and the tomatoes but still add a half cup of puree and then I add an 1/8 cup of taco seasoning. (You can buy taco seasoning in bulk at Costco)
This is my absolute fav!

Sloppy Joes a V8 Recipe(For those that like it)

1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped (or onion flakes work too)
3/4 cup V8 juice
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp of cornstarch(optional for thicker joes)

Cook beef and onion in skillet until browned. Pour off fat. Add V8 juice, ketchup, and Worcestershire (and cornstarch) Heat through and simmer until thickened to your desire.
Serve on a healthy bun and Enjoy! This recipe is from www.campbellkitchen.com. A special shout out to Brooke for getting me hooked on V8 Juice!