Fresh Corn Casserole

A great way to use up Fresh Corn on the Cob and it was really yummy.... I got the official recipe here at Pioneer Woman (a great website) and there are LOTS more pictures with indepth descriptions, so go check it out if you really want to try this.

Fresh Corn Casserole

8 fresh ears of corn, husked and cleaned off
2/3 cup Heavy Cream
3 T. Butter, softened
1/2 tsp -1 tsp Kosher Salt, start small and add enough to suit your taste
Fresh Ground Black Pepper, to taste

Begin by cutting off the corn from the cob into a large deep bowl with a knife. Remove as much of the corn from the cob as you can including the stuff that is deep inside, since this will release some of the creamy milk inside the cob. Next add the heavy cream... this is an approximate amount. You want to add enough to make it look creamy and consistent but not overly soupy. Add the butter, salt and then as much black pepper as suits your taste. Pour into a baking dish and cook in a 350 degree oven for 30-45 minutes until heated through and the corn is still crunchy. Don't over cook since it can dry out the cream. Serve and enjoy! Yummy...

Here is what it looked like before I put it in the oven...


And... this is what our dinner looked like... Some yummy BBQ'd steak, salad and this new favorite corn casserole.

Tasty Tuesday

Need something cool, quick & yummy for summer entertaining??


May I suggest....

Layered Fiesta Taco Dip
Ingredients

1 pkg. Fiesta Ranch Dip Mix
(looks like the regular Hidden Valley Ranch dip mix, but it is Fiesta Ranch!)
16 oz. sour cream
1 bag lettuce
2 tomatoes, diced
1/2 diced red onion
1 bunch diced green onions
1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese or Mexican blend cheese


Directions Combine first 2 ingredients; refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Spread Fiesta Party Dip on a platter. Layer with lettuce, tomato, red onion, green onion and then the cheese. Serve with corn tortilla chips.

Let's make the most of summer. Let's start by making it EASY!
Enjoy!!


Picture to come shortly...

Strawberry Spinach Salad

This salad is seriously so simple and so super... If you like these ingredients you will LOVE this salad.

Spinach leaves, washed and dried
Strawberries, sliced
Red onions, sliced
Avocados, cut into chunks
6 ounces (3/4 cup) olive oil
4 ounces (1/2 cup) balsamic vinegar
2 T. sesame seeds, toasted (place on baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes, watch carefully since they become toasted and then turn burnt very quickly)
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup white sugar
1 t. salt
freshly ground pepper, to taste

Mix up the dressing and then pour over the salad and toss just before you are ready to serve the salad.
Tips: Best to keep ingredients separate until ready to serve if you are taking it somewhere for a party or something, so that everything is as fresh as possible. Plus it doesn't hold very well to the next day... It works, but it is just not as good!

Apple Dip

This apple dip is fairly simple but doesn't come with specific measurements... kinda make it up as you go to suit your taste.

Ingredients:

Cool Whip

Caramel Ice Cream Topping First put as much cool whip as you want for dip... then drizzle in the caramel and gently mix them together. More caramel equals more flavor and less caramel will make it more fluffy. Put the dip into the refrigerator while you cut up your apples. Pick your favorite type of apple... this works well with any apple... fuji, granny smith, gala, red delicious, etc.

Put some water in a bowl and squeeze a little fresh lemon juice in it, or bottled lemon juice. (Don't use too much so the apples don't taste like lemon.) Cut your apples into slices and put them into the bowl of lemon water. The lemon water prevents the apples from turning brown. I used my Apple slicer/peeler/corer tool to cut up my apples. The kids enjoy eating the apple peel string that this creates, plus the slices are smaller and you get more dipping per apple...Another tool that works well is the Apple slicer/corer... it keeps the skin on and if you mix different colored apples it looks good...Let the apples sit for just a minute in the lemon water and then drain. Arrange apple slices on the plate around your bowl of caramel dip and serve.

Chocolate Covered Blueberries...Mmmm...

A friend made these and I thought they looked so yummy so when I got a large clamshell of beautiful blue and plump blueberries... I figured I would try to dip some of them in chocolate... I mean there wasn't much of a margin for error... good blueberries and good chocolate!

First start with the plump blueberries...
Drop individual blueberries into the melted chocolate and using a fork carefully cover the blueberry with chocolate. (Don't drop too many blueberries in at a time since they can be easily lost in the melted chocolate... I did about 4 at a time since it was easy to keep track of 4.)

Pick up the blueberry with the fork and tap the fork on the edge of the bowl. The extra chocolate will fall through the tines of the fork. Place the chocolate covered blueberries on a sheet of waxed paper until they have set... (you can refrigerate them to speed up this cooling process)...then serve.

What a wonderful combination... fruit and chocolate.... it almost feels healthy.

Summer Fruit Salad

... Fruit Salad Before and After...
Fruit Salad

* 2 pears
* 2 apples, cored and chopped
* 2 ripe bananas, sliced
* 1 pint fresh strawberries, sliced
* 3 cups seedless grapes
* 1/2 lemon, juiced
* 8 ounces fat-free strawberry cream cheese
* 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
* 1 cup fat-free pretzels, broken

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine the pears, apples, bananas, strawberries and grapes. Add lemon juice and toss.
2. Blend together the cream cheese, brown sugar, vanilla and cinnamon; add the fruit and pretzels. Fold together. Serve immediately with a dollop of lite whipped topping or refrigerate until chilled.

Nothing says spring like a delicious fruit salad! This was a new one that I tried... it has a distinct cinnamon flavor and a nice crunch with the pretzels. I was afraid that the strawberry flavored cream cheese would be too much, but it didn't give a fake strawberry flavor like I thought it might, but you could you regular flavored cream cheese or half and half. I think I would reduce the amount of brown sugar next time though, since it was a bit sweet. Plus you can change up the fruit that you use in the salad. I added cantalope and blueberries which were yummy! Also I am thinking you could add an 8 oz tube of Cool Whip to the dressing and it could be a fruit dip that you serve on the side of the salad since you don't want to let it sit too long before serving.

Candy Bar Apple Salad

1 8-oz container of Cool Whip
3 apples, cored and cut into bite sized pieces
3 regular sized Snickers bars, or Milky Way bars

Mix together the Cool Whip and apples. Cut up the candy bars into small bite sized pieces and add to the salad. Serve soon after preparing or store in refrigerator for only a few hours before serving.

Chili

I thought my chilli making days were over until fall returned, but when my dear husband requested chili... I couldn't possibly turn down any request for a dinner suggestion.

I'm always asking (just like my mom did), "Hey what do you want for dinner?" and the response is ususally, "I don't care" or "I don't know" or "Whatever" (just like we told my mom). Not very helpful! So I take any suggestions very seriously.

This recipe is one that my father in law came up with... his name for the chili is somewhat explicit so I have renamed it to be just plain chili. It is quick, easy and oh so delish! Topped with your preferred toppings and it only enhances the already fabulous flavor! Enjoy!
3/4 pound ground sirloin
1/2 cup onions, chopped
1/3 cup green bell peppers, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 tablespoon jalapeno chili, chopped
1-40oz or 3-15oz cans pinto beans
1-15oz can chopped peeled tomatoes
1-15oz can tomato sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 tsp. black pepper

In a large sauce pan cook meat until done, but do not brown. Remove meat, leave juices. Add onions, green bell peppers, garlic and jalapeno chilies. Cook until tender. Then add pinto beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, cumin, red pepper, black pepper and meat. Simmer for about one hour. Serve with cornbread, crackers, chopped onions or you may sprinkle cheddar or Monterey Jack
cheese on each serving.

Banana Smoothie

In a blender combine:
2 1/2 cups ice
1 cup milk
1 banana
1 T. sugar or splenda (optional)

Blend all ingredients until smooth, then pour into a glass and serve immediately. Very light and refreshing banana smoothie.

Lotion Bottle

Took a lotion bottle and stripped off the original label, added some strips of patterned paper and then glued it on with sticky strip. I wanted it to be in the guest bathroom so I wanted to make sure it was waterproof. I added a strip of packing tape over the top of it! Ta Dah! Add some ribbon at the top and it was ready to go!
Here is the before and after shot...

Wreath Holder

Just got a brand new wreath holder... made by my ever so talented brother... Here is his blog where he is selling them. We got the star, but there are a bunch of different shapes plus you can accessorize the front to a letter or something as a Monogram. Very cool! They are made out of metal and they are strong plus it keeps the door and door frame from getting all scratched up.


Check out all his other stuff as well.... http://www.bishopbuilt.net/ He can customize just about anything you want!

Also... click here for information about that ADORABLE brown ribbon wreath! Easy to make and fun to show off!