Lemon Freeze

This recipe is from my mother-in-law. She often made it as the perfect cool and creamy dessert for summer barbecues.

LEMON FREEZE:

1 half gallon of vanilla ice-cream

1 (12oz) can of frozen concentrate lemonade

2 pre-packaged 9-inch graham cracker crusts or make your own* (you can also make a 9x13 graham cracker crust, doubling a 9-inch pie crust)

TOPPINGS:

fruit--you can use a can of cherry pie filling, fresh or frozen berries (sweetened with a little sugar), thawed frozen berries in syrup, etc.

fresh cream or cool whip

1. Let the ice-cream soften a bit and mix the ice-cream and frozen lemonade until well blended. I usually use my stand mixer and the paddle attachment on low.

2. Spread the lemon freeze into the pie crusts, dividing equally between the two crusts. (Note you can make this in a 9x13 pan and serve it cut into dessert bars. This recipe makes one 9x13 pan).

3. Cover with wax paper and aluminum foil or the inverted lid of the prepackaged pie crusts. Freeze until firm at least several hours. Can stay frozen for up to about a month.

4. Before serving, let sit for a few minutes to soften slightly. Top with fruit, and whipped cream as desired.

Caramelized Onion & Prosciutto Pizza

We LOVE this pizza.  It's definitely a grown up pizza.  But since Curly likes making her own little pizza, and Little Red devours a whole little pizza herself...it works quite well to make one medium grown up pizza and two smaller kid-friendly pizzas.  The recipe is adapted from Pioneer Woman.

INGREDIENTS
1 whole Pizza Crust (parbaked)
Olive Oil, For Drizzling
1 whole Large Red Onion, Halved And Thinly Sliced
2 T Brown Sugar
Kosher Salt To Taste
Parmesan Cheese, Grated
10 ounces, weight Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Thinly Sliced
4-6 slices Prosciutto (you can substitute bacon, but the flavor is more salty.  I also partially cooked it)

Make pizza crust.  Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet. Add onions and brown sugar and toss/stir for several minutes, or until onions are brown and cooked and soft. Set aside.

On half-baked pizza crust if using "My Favorite Pizza Crust" drizzle on olive oil, sprinkle on a little salt, followed by a little Parmesan.  If using a pizza dough recipe that does not parbake the crust, roll out the dough and then drizzle on the oil, add the salt and Parmesan.

Lay slices of mozzarella evenly over the top of the crust. Arrange caramelized onions over the top of the mozzarella. Randomly lay slices of prosciutto over the onions.  If you prefer you can cut the prosciutto slices into smaller pieces so they are more evenly distributed over the pizza.

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the lower half or middle of the oven, or until crust is golden brown. Remove from oven and cut into squares. Serve immediately.

Caramelitas

This recipe is one of my all time favorite desserts, but it's so addicting! From Sarah Silva

INGREDIENTS
2 Cups flour
2 cups oats
1 ½ cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 ¼ cup soft butter

12 oz. Mrs. Richarson's Butterscotch Caramel topping (or similar topping)
3 Tbsp. flour

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup chopped nuts (optional)

DIRECTIONS
Mix 2 cups flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, salt and butter together in stand mixer. Reserve ½ of the mixture. Press remaining ½ into a 9x13 pan. Bake for 10 minutes at 350°. While crust is cooking, combine the caramel and flour.

Pour over hot crust. Sprinkle 1 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips over the caramel layer. (you may also add ½ cup chopped nuts).

Top with remaining crust mixture by crumbling over the top of the caramel. Bake for 18-22 minutes at 350. Allow to cool 1-2 hours before cutting into bars and serving.

Black bean, Corn, and Quinoa Salad

My friend put this recipe on her food blog that she adapted from here.  Below is my take on it.  It is delicious!    This is the perfect side dish to any Mexican meal.  But I also LOVED it as a filling with our tacos/burritos.  I would choose this anytime over rice and beans.  It's so good and good for you!

1 Tbl. oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
1 1/2 c. chicken or vegetable broth
1  1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper
1 c. frozen sweet corn
1 (15 ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 c. cilantro, chopped

Heat olive oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Stir in onions and garlic and saute until lightly browned.

Add quinoa and cover with broth. Stir in cumin, cayenne pepper and season with salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes (or until all the liquid is absorbed).

Stir in frozen corn and black beans until heated through. Remove from heat and add chopped cilantro. Serve warm, room temperature or cold (I liked it just barely warm).

Cashew Ginger Sauce and Steamed Veggies, Savory Crepe Recipe

From the web

INGREDIENTS:

Steamed veggie(s) of choice

Sauce:
2 C toasted cashews
1 C water
2 T minced fresh ginger (NOT powder)
1 T soy sauce
1 T honey or sugar (white or brown)
2 T plus 1 tsp cider vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
cayenne pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS:
Puree everything together in a food processor or blender until smooth.  Best served warm.  (You can make it in advance, just reheat on the stove).    I just served the sauce on the side along with rotisserie chicken and steamed veggies.  We also had out berries, bananas, cream, nutella, etc for a make your own crepe bar.

But you can also make a large batch of just these veggie crepes with the sauce in the oven.  For that method do the following assembly:   Place a few tablespoons of the steamed vegetable in your crepe. Top with a tablespoon or two of sauce. Roll and seal with a drop of sauce. Arrange in baking dish. Once all the crepes are arranged, spoon some sauce of the top of all of them. Heat through and serve.

Basic Crepes

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter, melted

DIRECTIONS:
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine. Add the salt and butter; beat until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each crepe. Tilt the pan with a circular motion so that the batter coats the surface evenly.

Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side. Serve hot.  Yields about 16 crepes.