Summertime Recipes

So last week 5/26 I was left with 6 left bins...yes 6!! So after I fed my neighbors I still had 2 extra bins for our family in addition to our one usual one. What did I do??? I accepted the challenge and here are a few of the recipes we have tried..

Potato Skins.. a la what I have...

Bacon & Cheddar Potato Skins
Serves 6 - 8

Ingredients:

• 8-10 small Russet Potatoes, washed, not peeled, and cut in half
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon Kosher salt
• 4 strips bacon, cooked crisp, crumbled
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions or chives

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Brush potatoes with olive oil and place cut side down, on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and bake 15-20 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork.
2. Remove from oven and allow to cool 5 minutes.
3. Using a melon baller or a small spoon, scoop out a small portion of the potato flesh. Be careful not to remove too much flesh from the skin. Allow 1/2 - 3/4 inch on flesh to remain between the scooped out portion and the potato skin. Place potato skins face up on the baking dish. At this point, you can cover and refrigerate up to 6 hours and serve later. When you are ready to serve, remove from refrigerator and follow directions from here.
4. Increase oven temperature to 475 degrees.
5. Place 1 Tablespoon of grated cheese on the scooped out portion of each potato. Then top with 1 teaspoon of crumbled bacon. Bake 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
6. Remove from oven, top with 1 teaspoon of sour cream and sprinkle with green onions. Serve immediately.

**After I scooped out the skins I put the potato in a bowl with some butter, sauteed some mushrooms and onions and mixed it all together. Added a little milk and sour cream and made the mixture smooth and creamy. I then put a little cheese on the skins, piled the potato, mushroom, and onion mixture in there and topped with cheese again. I crisped up 4 slices of bacon, chopped them up and put them on top also. The crowning achievement to this was sour cream. Everyone loved this recipe.. even my little Alex that does not like potatoes. **

Cherry Tomato Salsa

Ingredients

• 2 (1-pint) baskets cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 small white onion, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
• 1 small chopped seeded jalapeño pepper
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 teaspoon lime juice

• Preparation

  Toss ingredients together.

  **We do not like jalapenos so I substituted those for fresh garlic.  I put this in one of my favorite mason jars to marinate over night and we cannot wait to try it today.

  
  
  
  

  Next I made Cantaloupe Salad...

  Cantaloupe Salad with Lime, Mint, and Ginger

  
• 1 cantaloupe, halved, seeded, peeled
• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• 2 teaspoons grated lime peel
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons honey

Preparation:

•  Cut cantaloupe into 3/4- to 1-inch cubes (about 5 cups) and place in large bowl. Add lime juice, mint, and lime peel; toss to blend. Mix in sugar, ginger, and honey. Refrigerate salad until ready to serve, stirring occasionally, up to 3 hours.

  
  
  
   
  We took this to a birthday party and everyone loved the sweet and spiciness of it!
  Then...
  
  Cilantro Chicken Salad
  
  Cilantro Chicken Salad
  Servings: 2 • Serving Size: 1/2 of recipe • Old Points: 4 pts • Points+: 4 pts
  Calories: 163.3 • Fat: 6.2 g • Protein: 23.2 g • Carb: 2.3 g • Fiber: 0.2 g 
  
  

  • 7 oz cooked chicken breast, shredded or diced
  • 2 tbsp light mayonnaise
  • 1 small scallion, chopped
  • 2 tsp lime juice
  • 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
  • salt and pepper
  • pinch garlic powder
  • pinch of cumin
  • pinch of chile powder
  • fat free chicken broth

  Combine chicken, mayonnaise, scallions, lime juice, and cilantro. Season to taste with salt, pepper, garlic powder, cumin, and chile powder. Add a little chicken broth if chicken seams too dry, 1 tbsp at a time.
  **I modified this a little since I did not have many of these ingredients. I used the chicken, cilantro, onion, mayo, and lime juice. I then added a little chopped up sweet pickles that I had made here.
  I also used my little chopper to blend the mayo, lime juice, cilantro, and onion.
  Then I made Peach Crisp...

  Ingredients:

  Servings: 6
  

  
  

  Servings Size

  • 
    

  • 6 cups peaches, peeled and sliced (or canned peaches can be used)
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup liquid honey
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup rolled oat
  • 1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup soft butter

  
  

  Directions:

  Prep Time: 25 mins
  Total Time: 1 hr

  
  

  1. 1 Place peaches in a 9 inch square pan.
  2. 2 Sprinkle with lemon juice and then drizzle with honey.
  3. 3 In medium bowl, mix together remaining ingredients using a pastry blender or fork.
  4. 4 Sprinkle mixture evenly over peaches.
  5. 5 Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 35-40 minutes or until top is golden brown.

  
  

  

  
  
   
  

  Now I had a few oranges left from.. what?? Maybe 2 weeks ago

  

  
  
   

Lemon Sponge Custard (or orange)

Preheat the oven to 325. Lightly butter a 9x2 inch round cake pan or six 6 ounce custard cups or remekins.

Combine in a medium bowl and mash together with the back o a wooden spoon:

     2/3 cup sugar

     2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

     1/8 tsp salt

Beat in:

     3 large egg yolks

Add and mix until smooth:

     3 tbsp all-purpose flour

Gradually beat in:

     2 to 3 tsp gradated lemon zest (I skipped this)

     ¼ cup strained fresh lemon juice

Stir in:

     1 cup whole milk

Beat in a large bowl on medium-high speed until stiff but not dry:

     4 large egg whites, at room temperature

Gently whisk the whites into the milk mixture, blending just until no large lumps of whites remain. Ladle (do not pour) the batter into the prepared pan or cups; it may reach the top. Bake in a water bath until the tops are puffed and golden brown and spring back when pressed lightly with a finger, 30-40 minutes for both small and large custards. Let stand for 10 minutes in the water bath.

For the Orange Sponge Custard:

Substitute the grated zest of 1 orange

Reduce lemon juice to 2 tbsp and add ¼ cup strained fresh orange juice ( or 1 orange)

This is from one of my favorite recipes books Joy of Cooking 75th Anniversary Edition