Accidental Punch

Well, as it got later last night, we decided to spike the punch. I wanted to document what we did, because it was GOOD.

1 2-liter bottle of Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash soda

2 cups orange juice

6 oz. Lemoncello (liquor)

1 bottle of Zardetto Brut Prosecco

Serves...a few :-)

Baked Reuben Dip

Baked Reuben Dip

1 (appx. 16 oz) can of sauerkraut, rinsed and squeezed dry

1 small onion, finely chopped

1/2 pound deli corned beef

2 tablespoons prepared horseradish

1 tablespoon brown mustard

1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

1 cup mayonnaise (NOT Miracle Whip)

1 cup sour cream

Place sauerkraut, onion and corned beef in food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Combine the mixture with remaining ingredients in a 1-quart baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Serve with rye cocktail squares.

Serves 10

Recipe from The Bread of Life: A Cookbook for Body and Soul by Episcopal Church Women

Cowboy Caviar

I found this recipe in Annie's cookbook and made some adaptations. It was a HUGE hit at our party :-) --edited 1/12/08, reducing oil by 1/4 cup and adding 1/4 cup vinegar--

Cowboy Caviar

1 1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup oil (I used Canola Oil)

1-3 jalapenos, seeded and minced (I use 3)

3 red bell (sweet) peppers, diced

3 yellow bell (sweet) peppers, diced

2 cans white shoe-peg corn, drained

2 cans black-eyed peas, drained

2 cans pinto beans, drained

1 small onion, diced

Bring vinegar to a boil. Remove from heat and add oil, sugar and minced jalapenos. Cool dressing mixture. Mix together remaining ingredients. Pour dressing mixture over vegetable/bean mixture and marinate overnight. Strain off marinade before serving (this is important or the dish will seem soggy and oily). Store leftovers in the refrigerator; keeps well for up to two weeks. Serve with Scoops tortilla chips.

Holiday Party Menu

We had our 3rd annual holiday party/open house last night. I enjoy throwing this so much! I always overcook, and several people bring food with them, too. Somehow, nearly all of it gets eaten. This year's menu:

• Cider Baked Ham with Mini-Croissants
• Shrimp Cocktail (thanks Stacie)
• Baked Reuben Dip with Rye Bread for dipping
• Buffalo Chicken Dip with Blue Corn Chips
• Cowboy Caviar with Tortilla Scoops
• Hummus with Pita Chips(thanks Becky)
• Taco Dip (thanks Caroline)
• Mini Meatballs and Cocktail Franks in Homemade BBQ Sauce (thanks Becky)
• Biscuit-wrapped Mini Franks (thanks Angela)
• Fresh Pico De Gallo, Guacamole and Blue Corn Chips (thanks Angela)
• Pickled Eggs (thanks Kate)
• Veggie Tray
• Chocolate Raspberry Yule Log (thanks Jon's parents)
• Trifle (thanks Karen)
• Assorted Cookies (thanks Kate and Becky)
• Cream Puffs
• Punch in a Pinch (and we made up a new spiked recipe during the party that is oh-so-good)
• Wine and Beer

Wow that was a lot of food. Amazingly, there are nearly no leftovers. I'd say we had 25-30 guests throughout the evening. It's great to see everyone, even though I always feel like I don't get to visit with everyone individually as much as I would like!

Me and my Big Mouth(tm)...

I have a teeny, tiny (OK, maybe medium-sized) food processor. It takes I don't know how many rounds to pulse/chop/shred/slice/etc whatever I'm processor-ing. So, in the midst of my stove fit (and the fact that I'm currently being overcome by gas fumes in my kitchen as my husband installs a new stove), I asked Jon to bring home the biggest food processor he could find. He said locate it, he'd bring it home. I checked everywhere online that had some local brick-and-mortar store Jon could go to and buy the item, and I have learned some things. The largest food processor I could find was a 14-cup model. I don't use a food processor often enough to justify spending $200-300 on a new one, even though when I use it, it's always for a large job (or big mess, as the case may be). So, the hunt was on. This is what I found. The Hamilton Beach 14-cup Big Mouth Food Processor. Jon picked it up at WalMart for $49.88 (My sweet, errand-running husband picked it up where it was available in our local area, which was The Evil Empire. For anti-WalMart-ers, it's available at other retailers, too.) I'm hoping it's worth the price, because as I said before, I couldn't justify dropping what it would cost to buy a KitchenAid stand mixer! More later! I am doing what I can to fill the time it's taking for Jon to finish installing my new stove. That will be another post. See what you have to look forward to?!?!

Wishing you all the magic of the season...

Herbed Salmon & Rice Pilaf Bake

I made this a long time ago, straight from an Allrecipes recipe for Baked Salmon. I wasn't too impressed, and thought the recipe was a good idea, but somewhat bland. I always meant to doctor it up, but never got around to it. Well, tonight was the night, and I made some changes to the recipe. Jon and I really like how it turned out!


Herbed Salmon & Rice Pilaf Bake

INGREDIENTS
1 cup wild rice pilaf (I use Par Excellence Garden Harvest from Costco)

1/2 package fresh matchstick carrots (appx. 6 oz)
2 1/2 cups water
1 pound salmon filet
1/8 cup lemon juice

1/8 cup white wine
1 Tablespoon dried dill weed
1 Tablespoon dried rosemary
1 Tablespoon dried basil
1 Tablespoon ground mustard
1 Tablespoon lemon pepper

Salt (as desired)

Olive Oil

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a saucepan bring 2 1/2 cups of water to a boil. Add rice and carrots. Stir. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

In a large pan, add enough water (or wine, if you wish) to just wet the bottom of the baking dish. Lay the salmon fillet in the pan, pink side up. Brush with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt. Place cooked rice mixture around the outside of the fish. Sprinkle the lemon juice and wine over the fish and rice.

In a small bowl, combine the dill weed, rosemary, basil, mustard, lemon pepper and sprinkle over the fish and rice (please note, if you like less spices, don't use all the dried spice mixture; we like a lot of spices in our food). Cover with aluminum foil (if desired).

Bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes or until the salmon is tender and flaky.

***Also, this certainly would all but destroy the health-conscious factor of the dish, but adds to the flavor...put a thin pat of butter on each piece of fish and atop the rice before baking.