Baked Garlic and Thyme

In this version of baked garlic, we season fresh bulbs of fragrant heirloom garlic with thyme. If you can’t consume six bulbs of garlic right away, you can easily freeze the cloves for later use and they keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.

Ingredients

6 bulbs fresh garlic
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 bunch fresh thyme
unrefined sea salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400° F.
Gently rub away as much of the papery outer skins of the garlic bulbs of you can, but take care to leave the skins encasing the garlic cloves intact.
Using a good sharp and sturdy knife, chop the very top of the bulbs of garlic off so that you might expose the tops of the individual cloves of garlic.
Place the bulbs of garlic in a clay baker or casserole dish, root-side down.
Dot each bulb with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Cover the garlic with fresh thyme and sprinkle the bulbs with unrefined sea salt.
Bake the dish, covered, at 400° F for 30 to 45 minutes.  If you don’t have a covered casserole dish or clay baker, you may tent the bulbs of garlic with aluminum foil.
After about 30 to 45 minutes, when your home becomes fragrant with the rich scent of garlic and thyme, remove the garlic from the oven and allow it to rest and come to room temperature before serving it.  Baked garlic is perfect on its own or with a slice of bread, but it also adds a beautiful, deep richness to any dish in which you would customarily use fresh garlic.
Total Servings: 6

Nutritional Information Per Serving

Calories: 127
Carbohydrates: 4.1g
Cholesterol: 8mg
Fat: 8.0g
Saturated Fat: 3.8 g
Fiber: 0.9g
Sodium: 81mg
Protein: 0.7 g

Nana's Cocktail Meatballs

1 bag frozen Italian-style or homestyle meatballs
2 cups ketchup
2 cups grape jam
Lemon juice, to taste (maybe 1/4-1/2 cup, to make the sauce tangy)

Mix ketchup, grape jam and lemon juice in a sauce pan over medium heat until combined.  Add frozen meatballs and cook on medium-low until heated through. 

This can also be prepared in a crock pot.

Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip

Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
• 1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a small baking dish.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together cream cheese, mayonnaise, Parmesan cheese, Romano cheese, garlic, basil, garlic salt, salt and pepper. Gently stir in artichoke hearts and spinach.
3. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top with mozzarella cheese. Bake in the preheated oven 25 minutes, until bubbly and lightly browned.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 143 | Total Fat: 11.8g | Cholesterol: 28mg

Chicago-Style Deep Dish Pizza

This pizza turned out soooo good!  I don't have a deep dish pizza pan so I substituted a quiche pan.  I deviated from the recipe just a bit.  I put the cheese on the crust and baked it for 10 minutes, then added the toppings and tomatoes.  (My toppings were pepperoni, Italian sausage, and sauteed mushrooms.)  Then 10 minutes before it was 'done', I added some shredded mozzarella to the top instead of Parmesan.  Next time I make it I'd like to cook the sausage whole and crumble it; cut back on the garlic a bit; add onions; and a small sprinkle of sugar to the tomatoes.

Dough Recipe

• 2 packages rapid rise dry yeast
• 2 cups warm water
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 5 1/2 cups flour

In the bowl of a stand mixer (e.g. KitchenAid), dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the vegetable oil, olive oil, cornmeal, and half of the flour. Beat for 10 minutes. Attach the dough hook and mix in the remaining flour. Knead for several minutes with the mixer. (Note: because the dough is very rich and moist, it would be difficult to do this by hand.)

Remove dough and place on a clean countertop. Cover with a very large metal bowl and allow to rise until double in bulk. Punch down and allow to rise again. Punch down a second time and you are ready to make pizza!

Oil your deep-dish pizza pan. Depending on the size of your pan, place some dough in the pan and push it out to the edges using your fingers. Put in enough dough so that you can run the crust right up the side of the pan. Make it about 1/8-inch thick throughout the pan.

Filling for a 9- or 10-inch Pan 1/3 pound sliced mozzarella cheese 2 cups Italian-style whole peeled tomatoes, drained and squished 1 teaspoon basil 1 teaspoon oregano 2 cloves garlic, minced Salt to taste 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese 3 tablespoons olive oil

Place the cheese in tile-like layers on the bottom of the pie. Next put in the tomatoes and the basil, oregano, garlic, and salt, reserving the Parmesan cheese for the top. Drizzle olive oil over the top of the pie and you are ready to bake.

Variations: Before you put on the Parmesan cheese and olive oil drizzle, you might like to add any or all of the following:

• Italian sausage, hot or mild
• Yellow onions, peeled and diced
• Pepperoni, sliced thin
• Mushrooms, sliced
• Green sweet bell peppers, cored and sliced thin

Bake the pie in a 475°F oven until the top is golden and gooey and the crust a light golden brown, about 35 to 40 minutes.

Mango Passionfruit Smoothie

Ingredients

• 2 cups 1/2-inch cubes peeled mango
• 2 cups crushed ice
• 5 tablespoons strained passion fruit juice (from about 8 passion fruits; seeds discarded)
• 1/4 cup coconut water (such as Vita Coco)
• 1 teaspoon honey

Preparation

• Combine all ingredients in blender and process until smooth. Divide smoothie between 2 glasses and serve.

Read More http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2010/06/mango_and_passion_fruit_smoothie?mbid=synd_yshine#ixzz0qVU4Nnta

Banana Berry Soy Milk Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 1 ripe banana
• 6 ice cubes, crushed
• 4-6 large frozen
• strawberries
• 1 cup soy milk
• 1-2 Tbsp. honey

How to Prepare:
1) Break up banana and place in blender jar.

2) Put in crushed ice, strawberries, and milk. Use enough milk to come half-way up on the strawberries. Add honey.

3) Cover blender jar and blend at high speed for about a minute, or less, if you like larger pieces of ice in your drink.

Holiday (Microwave) Mochi

Ingredients:

• 1 4oz package Jello, any flavor (I use red, green, and yellow)
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup mochiko (sweet rice flour)1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Potato starch

How to Prepare:
1) In a medium bowl, mix jello and boiling water till jello dissolves. Mix in sugar, then with a wire whisk, mix in mochiko. Stir in vanilla extract.

2) Lightly spray a microwave bundt pan with vegetable cooking spray. Pour mochi batter into prepared pan, cover with plastic wrap, venting one edge.

3) Microwave on HIGH for 3-6 minutes, or just until set. Microwave oven times may vary, so don't over-cook or your mochi will be hard and lumpy. Cool completely.

4) Remove from bundt pan and place mochi on a plate. Using a plastic knife, cut into 1/2 inch thick slices, separating each piece, and roll in potato starch to prevent sticking. Store in airtight container for up to 5 days or so.

Crockpot Cranberry Applesauce

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 8 apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick, halved
• 6 whole cloves
• fresh ground nutmeg

How to Prepare:
Combine cranberries, apples and sugar in a slow cooker. Place cinnamon and cloves in center of 6" square piece of cheesecloth. Pull up around sides, and tie to form pouch. Place in pot. Cover and cook on low 4-5 hours or until cranberries and apples are very soft.

California sushi

Ingredients:

• 2 Japanese or European cucumbers
• About 2 cups imitation crab meat
• 2 packages powdered sushi flavoring, 2.6oz each
• 6 cups uncooked rice (wash and cook)
• 1/2 to 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 avocado, peeled and sliced thinly
• 1 bottle Nori Furikake

How to Prepare:
Strip cucumbers, slice thinly lengthwise, lightly salt, and set aside. After rice has cooked, spoon out into a large bowl, and while still hot, sprinkle in sushi flavoring. Mix well and set aside to cool.

Spread 1/2 of the cooled rice in a 9x13" pan. Rinse the cucumbers and pat dry. Layer ingredients in the following order: mayonnaise, sliced avocado, crab, cucumber, and remaining rice. Lightly press down and sprinkle with nori furikake. The mixture may be slightly chilled. Cut into squares.

Maple Sugar Candy

Ingredients:

• 2 cups fancy grade-A pure maple syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon milk, cream, or butter

How to Prepare:
1. Heat the maple syrup and the milk, cream, or butter over medium-high heat to 242°, about 10 minutes.

2. Let the bubbles settle down for about 1 minute.

3. Stir the hot, thickened syrup with a wooden spoon until it just begins to turn grainy or you begin to see granules forming, about 1 to 2 minutes.

4. Working quickly, pour the syrup into molds.

5. While the sugar is still soft, use a large wide, stiff spatula or bench scraper to pack syrup into the molds and smooth the surface.

6. The candies should take 10 to 30 minutes to harden. When they are hard, pop them out of the molds.

Store in an airtight container.

Mabel's Dipping Oil

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried cumin
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
• 3 teaspoons dried rosemary
• 4 teaspoons salt (I use 3)
• 4 teaspoons dried oregano

How to Prepare:
Mix all ingredients together and store in a spice jar or plastic container with a tight-fitting lid.

Use 2 teaspoons of spice mix for each 1/4 cup of good quality olive oil.