| A
Salute to Red, White and Blue Recipes |
| Patriotism is a renewed feeling in many holiday gatherings
this year, and I have had several requests for patriotic colors
in foods. The reds could be tomato-based sauces or pasta salads,
the white is a refreshingly chilled lemon sorbet, a tart home-made
lemonade, and the blue is definitely blueberries! |
| So, grab your red, white, and blue paper plates and picnic
basket, and head for the park to celebrate. |
| If the temperatures climb into the 90s, be sure to have
plenty of Jennifer McKinney's Homemade Lemonade on hand. (This
is one of my favorite recipes from this year's cookbook.)
It is easy to make, and is very refreshing. It is the lemon-flavored
sugar that makes the difference, so make a double-batch because
it will go quickly! |
| Here are my favorite recipes: |
| |
| Very
Tart Frozen Lemon Sorbet |
| 1/4 tsp. finely grated fresh lemon rind |
| 1 cup fresh lemon juice |
| 1 cup water |
| 3/4 cup good-quality sugar |
| Choose good quality lemons. Use only the outer, yellow part
of the rind, avoiding the inner white part when preparing
the rind. Press fresh lemons, and mix the juice and the water,
and add rind. Stir in the sugar until completely dissolved.
Using an ice cream freezer, freeze according to the freezer
directions, and store in freezer. Remove about 5 to 10 minutes
before serving. This only makes about 1/2 quart, so adjust
the recipe for the quantity you want to make. |
| |
| Chilled
Red Beet Salad |
| 4 medium beets |
| 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar |
| 8 black peppercorns |
| 1 Tbsp. sugar |
| 1 bay leaf |
| 2 cloves |
| 1 Tbsp. Canola oil |
| 1 Tbsp. sweet onion, chopped |
| 1/4 tsp. salt |
| 1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper |
| Wash the beets, cut away the roots and stems. Cook the beets
in salted boiling water for 30 to 40 minutes, or until they
are tender. (Beets are done when a folk easily sinks through
to the middle of the vegetable.) Place in cold, ice-cube water
to chill quickly. Slip the outer skins off, and when beets
are cool, cut into large strips. In a separate saucepan, combine
vinegar, sugar, peppercorns, bay leaf, and cloves. Bring to
a boil, and simmer for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat,
and strain this mixture into a Pyrex, heat-proof bowl. Combine
the oil, onion, salt, fresh ground pepper, and whisk with
a wire whisk. Taste and add more salt if needed. Pour over
the still-warm beet strips, toss, and chill until ready to
serve, or serve warm. |
| |
| Sandee's
Incredible Blueberry Salad |
| 1 bag of butter crisp lettuce |
| 1/4 cup sliced almonds |
| 1 Tbsp. minced sweet onion |
| 1 cup fresh blueberries |
| 2 tsp. Fini balsamic vinegar, or other quality brand |
| 1/4 cup light olive oil |
| Pinch of sugar |
| 2 dashes of onion salt |
| Salt and freshly ground pepper |
| Combine vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, onion salt and
sugar. Mix well, and pour over blueberries in a large bowl.
Let sit for 5 minutes. Add onion. Add lettuce, almonds, more
salt and pepper if needed, and toss well. This is from Sandra
Duker and is one of my favorite recipes from this year's cookbook. |
| |
| Old-Fashioned
Raspberry Cream Pie |
| 1/2 cup flour |
| 1 cup sugar |
| 1 pint half ån half |
| 1 tsp. salt |
| 1 Tbsp. butter |
| 1 tsp. vanilla |
| 2 cups fresh raspberries |
| 9-inch deep dish pie shell |
| Mix dry ingredients, except raspberries, and cut in butter
gently. Then add liquid ingredients in a separate bowl, and
mix with dry ingredients, and pour into pie shell. Gently
drop raspberries over the pie. Bake at 375 to 400 degrees
for 20 minutes, then drop the temperature back to 350 and
bake until the pie is set, around 30 to 40 minutes. |
| |
| Jennifer
McKinney's Homemade
Lemonade |
| 3 large lemons |
| 1 cup sugar |
| 1 quart hot water |
| Peel the rinds from the lemons, and cut them into 1/2 inch
slices. Place rinds in a mixing bowl and put sugar over them.
Let stand for 1 hour, so that the sugar begins to soak up
the lemon oil. This is a very important step, and without
this step the lemonade will not be as flavorful. Carefully
pour the hot water over the sugared lemon rinds. Stir and
allow this mixture to cool, then remove the rinds. Squeeze
the lemons through a strainer into a 2-quart pitcher. Pour
the sugar mixture through the same strainer into the pitcher.
Stir well. Store lemonade in the refrigerator, and serve over
ice cubes. You will not taste a better homemade lemonade than
this one. |
| |
| Lemon
Mousse |
| 6 eggs |
| Zest and juice of 4 lemons |
| 1/2 cup, plus 2 1/2 Tbsp. of sugar |
| 2 cups heavy whipping cream |
| Whipping cream and lemon slices for garnish |
| Combine beaten egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice and 1/2
cup sugar in a non-stick saucepan and cook until very thick
and custardy, stirring occasionally. Be careful not to let
it near the boiling point, as it will curdle. Cool thoroughly.
In a separate bowl, whip cream until thick. Fold gently into
the cooled curd mixture. Whip egg whites until slightly thick,
add 2 1/2 Tbsp. sugar and continue to whip until thick and
firm, but not dry. Fold this gently into the whipped cream
and lemon curd mixture. Spoon into glasses, and serve with
fresh sweet whipped cream on top, and a slice of lemon curl.
This dessert should be kept chilled, but will hold up to two
hours before serving. |
| |
| Swiss
Cheese Salad |
| 1 lb. Good Gruyere cheese, cut into thin julienne strips,
2-inches long |
| 3 heaping Tablespoons of finely chopped red or sweet onion |
| 2 Tbsp. fresh chopped parsley |
| 1/3 cup good Caesar dressing, or Italian if preferred |
| 1 tsp. Dijon mustard |
| Pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper |
| Combine all ingredients, toss in a bowl, and serve on a
bed of lettuce. |
| |
| Simple
Tomato Salad |
| 4 ripe tomatoes, thickly sliced |
| 1 head of good Boston bibb lettuce |
| Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste |
| Pinch of sugar for tops of tomatoes |
| 4 Tbsp. chopped Vidalia onions |
| 4 tsp. chopped green onions |
| 2 tsp. chopped fresh basil |
| 2 tsp. chopped fresh parsley |
| 4 Tbsp. red wine vinegar |
| 4 Tbsp. good quality olive oil |
| Mix fresh basil, parsley, red wine vinegar and olive oil
together. Place tomatoes on a plate of lettuce (fan out).
Sprinkle tomatoes with salt, pepper and sugar. Sprinkle with
Vidalia onions and green onions. Sprinkle tops with vinegar/olive
oil mixture. Serve chilled. |
