Salty Sweet Pretzel Dessert

I can't lay claim to this and I've seen several variations to it. My version is not that dissimilar from the others, just has a few minor tweaks to make it my own. This dessert has that whole luscious sweet and salty thing going for it on top of the tartness of the berry's and the sweet cream layer in the middle. This is perfect for parties as it needs to be made a day ahead so it all sets up right.

Salty Sweet Pretzel Dessert

• 1 1/2 c. crushed pretzels
• 1/2 c. melted butter
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 t vanilla
• 8 oz. Cool Whip
• 1 (6 oz.) pkg. raspberry Jello
• 2 c. boiling water
• 2 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen raspberries

Mix pretzels, butter and sugar together. Press into 9 x 13 inch pan. Bake 3 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool to room temp.

Beat cream cheese, vanilla and sugar together. Fold in Cool Whip. Spread onto pretzel mix. Chill 30 minutes.

Dissolve Jello in boiling water. Add frozen raspberries and stir until thawed. Pour over other layers. Refrigerate over night.

The texture of this is a bit coarse compared to your usual crumb crust so be sure to press in tightly so it doesn't fall apart when serving. Learned this the hard way.
Chilling the second layer makes it easier to put and even out the Jello/berry layer. Take the 30 minutes off to do something else and let it chill.

Variations...and there can be many. Jello matching fruit is the easiest thing you can do, or mix/match flavors. Use the same size Jello box and fruit weight and you are good to go. Here are a few I've used over the years.

Raspberry Jello and frozen peaches.

Pineapple Jello and pineapple chunks.

White Grape Jello and canned pear chunks.

Strawberry Jello and frozen strawberries.

Drowned Shrimp

Mmmm...butter. Not for those of us who diet regularly or watch our cholesterol, but every once in a while its nice to fall off the wagon. Leaving the tails on leaves you with a nifty handle and it becomes finger food in the process! How fun is that...playing with your food at the dinner table and not getting in trouble.

If you are using frozen shrimp instead of fresh here's a tip for easy thawing and keeping them from smelling fishy in the process. Pour your shrimp into a bowl with cold water and one sliced lemon. The shrimp will defrost in no time and the acid from the lemon will keep them smelling fresh like the sea instead of getting a chance to oxidize and smell "fishy".

Drowned Shrimp

• 3 lbs peeled and de-veined raw shrimp
• juice of one lemon
• 2 t chopped garlic
• 1 lb unsalted butter
• 1 t black pepper
• 1/8 t cayenne pepper
• 1/4 C white wine (optional)
• Salt to taste.

Melt butter and add garlic, peppers, wine and lemon juice. Place shrimp in a 9X13 inch baking dish. Pour butter mixture over the shrimp. Bake in 400F oven 15-20 minutes until bubbly and shrimp are no longer pink. Serve with a loaf of sourdough or french bread for dunking in the broth!

Beef Tamale Casserole

It was Iron Chef night in my neighborhood this past weekend. Rather than pick a secret ingredient we opted for a theme. We chose "Mexican" in honor of the coming cinqo de mayo celebrations. I came up with this casserole and took 3rd place out of 20 entries. Not bad, eh!?

Beef Tamale Casserole

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 c onion chopped
• 1 4 0z can diced green chiles-drained
• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 2.25 oz can sliced olives
• 2 cups frozen corn - thawed
• 3 T taco seasoning
• 1 1/2 c milk
• 1 c cornmeal
• 2 eggs - beaten
• 2 c shredded cheese (I use a cheddar/jack blend)

Heat oven to 350F. Spray a 9 X 13 pan with nonstick cooking oil spray.

In large skillet brown ground beef and onion. Cook until beef is well browned and onion is translucent. Off the heat add chiles, tomatoes, olives, corn and taco seasoning. Stir well to blend.

In bowl add milk, corn meal and eggs stirring well to combine. Pour over meat mixture and fold in.

Pour into prepared baking dish and even out. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle on the cheese. Return to oven and bake another 5 minutes until cheese is melted. Let set on wire rack 10 minutes to set when done baking.

Cut and serve with a dollop of salsa fresca on top and some refried beans on the side.

Limoncello Marinated Fruit....pic in action to follow

My twist on the California dream includes citrus trees in the back yard. Had to do it and now I have a bounty of fruit.

Lemons, Meyer Lemons to be exact is among my many plantings. What to do with the bounty? Aside from the obvious "make lemonade" I make limoncello. Hands down the best Limoncello recipe belongs to Mario Batali of "Molto Mario" fame from FoodTV. The link to the recipe is HERE. The lemons left after the zesting of the lemons is ample for making Plus Perfect Lemonade...nothing wasted here!

The stuff is amazing. Straight up it will knock your socks off and get you twisted toot suite as it involves nearly 50% vodka. Good stuff. Cut it 50/50 with Ginger Ale or Sparkling Water and you have quite the refreshing cocktail for the patio on a warm summers day. After that you still will have plenty left over for other uses.

My favorite other use is to take seasonal fresh fruit and cover it with the limoncello and let it marinate for a few hours before serving. The fruit juices macerate (how's that for a $5 buck word) in with the limoncello and you have a dessert topping perfect for ice cream or pound cake. The former is my entry in the dessert category for tonight's Iron Chef night in my 'hood.

Buster Bars

Lordy be I can't claim this one, its my Mom's recipe but it is pretty terrific. It has the whole salty/sweet thing going with the rich caramel and Spanish peanuts.

Buster Bars

1 lb. Oreos or Hydrox cookies-crushed

1/2 cup melted butter. Add to oreos, mix well and pat into bottom of a 9x13 pan.
Soften 1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream and spread over oreo mixture. Sprinkle 1 1/2 cups Spanish peanuts over ice cream. Put in freezer.

Topping
2cups powder sugar
1 large can evaporated milk
2/3 cups chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter.
Combine and bring to a boil in heavy bottom pan. Boil for 8 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat add 1 tsp. vanilla. Let this mixture cool over night before pouring over the ice cream. Freeze. Serve

Plus perfect Lemonade

The secret which I'm about to give up is elementary my dear Watson. Everyone knows the zest contains oils that are so flavorful only a tiny bit will flavor an entire cake. I got to thinking and figured that since I make a simple syrup for lemonade I could take it over the top in terms of lemony flavor by adding zest to the syrup and let it steep. I was right, more perfect than perfect lemonade, PLUPERFECT to be precise.

Several years ago I planted a lemon tree and after debating and discussing with the local garden center I settled on the Myer Lemon as it is lemonier and sweeter than say the standard supermarket variety, usually a Eureka. I'm glad that I opted for the Myer as it has lived up to its reputation in the garden centers as the lemoniest of the lemons.

Plus perfect Lemonade

• 1 c sugar
• 2 c water
• 10 lemons
• 2 c ice cubes
• additional cold water

Using vegetable peeler peel the zest off of 2 lemons. Place in heavy sauce pan with sugar and 2 cups water. Bring to a simmer stirring until sugar is dissolved. Turn off and cover. Let steep 10 minutes.

Juice the lemons, including the 2 you zested (should yield about 1 1/4-1 1/2c juice). Take a 2 quart pitcher and add the ice and juice. Strain the lemon zest from the syrup and add to pitcher. Add enough water to make 2 quarts of lemonade. Stir and chill until ready to serve.

Mexican Rice Soup

I cheated. I admit it, I buy industrial sized taco seasoning as its cheaper and easier to grab it at Costco than concoct my own from scratch. It is definitely way cheaper than buying those little packets of taco seasoning from the grocery store. Prolly wouldn't be that difficult, but what the heck sometimes it has to be about convenience.

The soup itself is inspired by a chicken and rice soup I had years ago as a starter at a Mexican joint in old Tuscon AZ. The addition of the corn was my idea to add some sweetness to calm the otherwise spicy-ish soup. Worked quite well if I say so myself.

Mexican Rice Soup

• 1 yellow onion finely diced
• 1 green bell pepper diced
• 1 T garlic minced
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 C mixed rice (white, brown, wild or substitute all white)
• 2 14 oz cans chicken broth
• 3 T taco seasoning
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/2 t fresh ground black pepper
• 12 oz cooked chicken diced
• 8 oz frozen corn

Add olive oil to coat the bottom of a stock pot over medium-low heat. Cook onion and bell pepper and 1/4 t salt, saute until onions are caramelized. Add rice and garlic, cook 1 minute stirring constantly so as to not burn the garlic.

Add chicken, broth, taco seasoning and black pepper to the pot. Increase heat and bring to boil. Test seasoning and add more salt if needed. Reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes to 1 hour covered until rice is cooked through. Add corn at end and stir in until thawed and heated through, should take only a minute or two. (You don't want to over cook the corn so it looses its tender crisp texture).