Its suppose to be summer today....hmmmmm but in summer a wonderful crisp and refreshing salad is a great thing to have...when I was younger my mom always had Gargonzo Beans around but she called them "Chi Chi Beans" I always popped them into my mouth as a snack..here is a salad to treat yourself too...
Ingredients:
1 can (8 – 10oz) "chi-chi" beans[garbonzo]
1 cup bean Sprouts
1 small onion diced
1 small tomato diced
1/2 tbsp lime or lemon juice
A few sprigs of fresh cilantro chopped
Salt as per taste
Directions:
Mix all the ingredients together except cilantro and cover it with a plastic wrap and refrigerate it in the morning if you would like to eat it in the evening. The lime juice tends to tenderize the sprout and makes it a little soft and blend more well into the salad. Serve chilled by garnishing with cilantro. You will be so glad you tried this recipe which is as simple as this yet so fulfilling and delicious.
Enjoy!!!
Smores are a favorite of mine...So last Saturday when the gals and I got together for a stitchin Slumber Party I made some for us to munch on while we enjoyed watching "Welcome to Mooseport" with Ray Ramone and "Housesitter" with Steve Allen and Goldie Hawn...yummy...
This is the easy way...
You'll need:
- a jar of Marshmellow cream
- some graham crackers
- 1 bag of semi sweet chocolate pieces
Directions:
- break the graham crackers in half
- spread some marshmellow cream on one half
- sprinkle with chocolate pieces
- top with 2nd half
- microwave for 33 seconds [depending on your microwave]
Enjoy and watch out they are addictive!!!
I found a wonderful recipe called "Pasties" on a new blog friend's blog "Crochet and Orchids" and I just had to share it with you all here....This is a true winner and one I want to make for my upcoming "Summer Party" with my stitching group in 3 weeks....Enjoy.........
Pastie Recipe.
The ingredients are:
- 500 grams lamb mince [or chicken]
- 2 large swedes
- 3 large carrots
- 4 large potatoes.
Directions:
- grate the potatoes
- rinse thoroughly through a sieve and squeeze dry [You can use a clean tea towel or paper towel for this]
- 2 chicken stock cubes or 2 tspns stock powder, black pepper (lots)
- 6 sheets puff pastry rolled as thin as possible
- cut out circles. [you can an ordinary soup or cereal bowl for the shape]
- Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl
- Wet half the edge of a circle with water and place a small dessert spoon of mix on half the pastry
- Fold over until the edges meet and press together
- crinkle the edges with your fingers or a fork
- Preheat oven to 220o c.
- Place pasties on tray covered with baking paper and place in oven turning oven down to 180o c.
- Cook for 30 mins.
- Allow to cook slightly before sampling. Enjoy!!
She says she likes to grate all her ingredients.
Ready to go into the oven.
Try this one with Beef:
Pasty Recipe
2 lbs ground beef (uncooked)
3-4 good size potatoes
½ large onion
4-5 celery stalks
½ rutabaga (optional, but I suggest at least trying it.)
½ turnip (optional)
12-15 baby carrots
Salt and pepper to taste
Makes 8-10 pasties
- Chop potatoes into small squares. About the size of a French fry, cubed.
- Chop rutabaga, carrots, and turnip into smaller squares. Chop onion into small pieces.
- Combine everything in a large mixing bowl. (By hand is easiest.)
- Roll out pie crust to approx. 9” diameter circles, one for each pasty. [Store-bought pie crust works fine too, and is much easier]
- For each crust, put in about 1 cup of the mixture of veggies and ground beef, onto one half of the crust.
- As you scoop it into a cup, it’s easy to see that you get a good variety of all ingredients.
- Fold over the crust. Pinch together the edges.
- Place small slits in the top of the crust.
- Bake at 375 for one hour.
They are ready to eat! Enjoy. They can also be frozen if they won’t be eaten in the next couple days. For frozen pasties, they can be heated in an oven at 350 for about 40-45 minutes. After about 20 minutes, you might want to cut them in half, to help the middle of the pasties thaw and heat thoroughly. As a variation, add a can of Cream of Celery soup to the beef and veggie mixture to help moisten it.
Now for those of you that have a sweet tooth try this scrumptious
Pumpkin Filled Pasty
Make your dough from scratch or from a store bought pie crust....
Pumpkin filling
You’ll probably have leftovers so go ahead and halve this if you want, or make a little pie with the leftovers.
1 cup raw cashews[or walnuts]
Water to blend cashews
1 16 oz can pumpkin
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
½ cup sugar
¾ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
Place cashews in a food processor, add ¼ cup water and mix on high speed until a paste has formed. Add more water 1 Tablespoon at a time if necessary. (You could also try soaking and draining the cashews before hand so not as much water will need to be added or leave whole for a crunchier taste)
Add pumpkin and cornstarch and blend again until smooth and no cashew chunks are visible. Add a little extra water if necessary. The key is to make sure the filling is thick enough so that it doesn’t ooze out of the little pies. Add in the sugar and spices and blend to combine.
*** Or if you're lazy like me buy a can of pumpkin filling and add some of your favorite nuts and more spices if you want....
- Assemble
- Preheat oven to 400 F
- Roll out dough to a little less than ¼ inch thick and cut into 3 ½ to 4 inch circles using a biscuit cutter or a drinking glass.
- Take one round and stretch it out a bit
- place about 2 tsps of filling in the center.
- Fold circle over into a half moon shape and press down the edges with a fork to close.
- Make a little slit in the top and sprinkle with a little sugar if you want
- Transfer to greased or parchment covered baking sheet and bake for about 25 minutes until pasties are golden brown.
Yummy....................
***Some Variations for any Pasty..
- apple pie filling
- homemade cream corn [make thick]
- thin sliced tri tip
- peach pie filling
- ham and cream cheese
- and here's a different one....peanut butter and/or apple butter
Bon Appétit~~~~~
