Avocado Salsa - DELICIOUS!!

Avocado Salsa

2 cups - Finely Chopped Onion (I only did 1/3 or an onion)
3/4 Cup - Chopped red bell pepper (I did 1/2 large pepper)
3 Tbls. - Finely chopped seeded jalapeno pepper
3 Tbls. - Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 Tbls. - White Wine Vinegar
1 tsp. - Dijon Mustard
3/4 tsp. - Sea Salt
1/4 tsp. - Freshly Ground Black Pepper
1 large - Garlic Clove, minced
1 1/2 cups - Chopped peeled avocado (about 2)
1 1/2 cups - Chopped Plum (Roma) Tomatoes
2 Tbls. - Chopped Fresh Cilantro
1/4 tsp. - Hot Pepper Sauce

Combine first 9 ingredients in a large bowl; toss mixture gently. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours. Stir in Avocado and remaining ingredients just before serving.

I just combined it all, refrigerated for 1 hour and ate it up! It is so delicious! Avocados are cheap and ripe right now too!

Crackers

Here is a great and super easy recipe for homemade crackers I found online. They were really fun to make! I am sure my tips and the end will be all you wanted to know and more on how to make them.

Simple Crackers

2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2/3 cup warm water
1/3 cup olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Lightly grease two large cookie sheets. Combine the dry ingredients, and then stir in the water, oil and mix until a smooth dough forms.
3. Divide the dough in half and flatten each half on a cookie sheet. Use a small rolling pin or even your fingers for a rustic, uneven look. Once the dough is spread thin, use a sharp knife or a pizza cutter to cut the dough into squares. The elasticity in the dough will make the crackers shrink slightly and pull away from each other; this makes them easy to bake without sticking together.
4. Brush lightly with an egg wash(one egg white and 2 tablespoons of water) or spray lightly with olive oil.
5. Sprinkle with the topping of your choice. Experiment with your favorite flavors, or try one of these variations. Chopped rosemary and sea salt, sesame seeds, poppy seeds and onion salt, Parmesan cheese
6. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the crackers are golden and crispy.

Bonnie's Tips: I found that you need to spread these out pretty thin. Half of the dough should almost fill a normal sized jelly roll pan. Also, I found that to make them crisp you need to bake them like 15-20 minutes and that you really need to watch them so they aren't too dark of a brown color. As for the seasoning, it works best if you mixed it in with your dry ingredients rather than putting a whole bunch on top. I used Mrs. Dash. Also, I did one batch with just white flour and the other with half white half whole wheat. It seems you can use any kind of flour. Also, I used canola oil because that is what I had and they turned out fine but I am sure olive oil tastes better. If you are using a metal jelly roll pan then you may want to roll them out with a drinking class so you can get them to the edge of the pan with no problems. I prefer using stoneware with no lips or edges, like the pizza pan, so that you can roll it out better and it is easier to cut.

Jalapeno Bacon Wraps

Seeing that football season is upon us, and because I like to eat yummy, spicy treats, I present the Jalapeno Bacon Wrap.  This is always a people pleaser for any game or event.  Although they are not intended for those who are afraid of a little heat (and bacon).  

Ingredients: 

1 lb bacon

2 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)

1 can jalapeno chilis, whole or halved (halved seems to be less spicy)

skewers

Preparation:

Put bacon in the freezer for a bit so that it will harden and be easier to work with, do not completely freeze.  Cut chicken into long strips, about 1/3 to 1/2 inch in width.  After bacon is partially frozen, cut in half length wise.  Take one 1/2 strip of bacon, one strip of chicken and one jalapeno (halved, with seeds and stem removed if applicable), wrap jalapeno with chicken and bacon (bacon on the outside) as tight as possible and secure with skewer.  Skewer can hold up to 5 wraps.  Place into preheated oven at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until desired doneness of bacon.  Let cool for a couple minutes, serve and enjoy.  

Cucumber Cream Cheese Dip (optional):

For those who wish for a cooling agent here is a simple option.  Although you can substitute with ranch or blue cheese dressing.  

1/3 cup english cucumber (the no-seed kind), peeled and sliced

1/2 cup cream cheese

salt to taste

Put ingredients in food processor and mix until desired consistency.  Keep cool.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

This is a perfect summer salad. The dressing is to die for! I get requests to make this salad all the time, and I just made it for my dad for Fathers Day. It was a big hit.

Salad

1 head Romaine lettuce, chopped

1/2 bag of spinach, stems removed

2-3 pears, peeled and chopped into 3/4" cubes

2-3 granny smith apples, chopped into 3/4" cubes

2 cups sliced strawberries

1 package craisins

1/2 package Parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cups sliced or slivered almonds

Dressing

1/2 cup oil

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

juice of 1 lemon, plus the zest

1 tea dry mustard

1 TB poppy seeds

Mix well and pour over salad before serving, or put the dressing in a small pitcher, and let everyone pour their own. The only risk to doing it that way is that some people will opt out of the dressing, and seriously, the salad is 100 times better with it. This one is a total crowd pleaser, a perfect mix of sweet and tart.

PS This makes a LOT of salad, you might want to cut the salad ingredients in half for a regular family meal.

Creamy Italtian Bow Tie Saute

I guess I think of summer when I make this because it calls for zucchini and summer squash. I don't have a picture, but I got the recipe from a friend. You can change up the veggies, I never use the red pepper.

Ingredients:
1 lb chicken, cut up in pieces
1 Tbsp oil
1 box cream cheese
1 package Italian dressing mix
bow tie pasta (6 oz)
1 zucchini, sliced
1 summer squash, sliced
1/2 C-1 cup broccoli, chopped
1 red pepper, sliced


Boil pasta and keep warm. Saute chicken in oil, remove and keep warm. Saute veggies, add chicken, add cream cheese and dressing mix. When cream cheese is melted, add pasta. Serve warm.

Summer Foods

I love summer but I have such a hard time knowing what to cook for dinner. Does any one have any good summer dinner ideas?

Here is a picture of my first veggie tray that I put together and brought over to a friend house. I think it looks good and is a great summer food.