Iced Coffee

I'm addicted to iced coffee. I keep a large pitcher in the fridge at all times. Joe doesn't understand because I drink decaf but I need it. I limit myself two large cups every day. I'm not sure what I'm going to do once summer is over. I drink mine unsweetened with skim milk. I like half and half better :) Joe likes his black with Jamison. Sorry for the choppy sentences.

From Pioneer woman.
Read her article, she makes it all sorts of interesting and delicious and high calorie with her additions
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/06/perfect-iced-coffee/

my recipe (hers makes a quantity bigger than any container i own)
■1/2 lb Ground Coffee (good, Rich Roast)
■4 quarts Cold Water

In a large container, mix ground coffee with water. Cover and allow to sit at room temperature eight hours or overnight.

Line a fine mesh strainer with a papertowl and set over a pitcher or other container. Pour coffee/water mixture through the strainer, allowing all liquid to run through. Discard grounds.

Place coffee liquid in the fridge and allow to cool. Use as needed.
To make iced coffee, pack a glass full of ice cubes. Fill glass 2/3 full with coffee liquid. Add healthy splash of milk.

My favorite Potato Salad

I like a really simple potato salad with not a lot of mayo. We got potatoes in our CSA share and they were awesome. There is no measurements in my recipe because I don't measure. Just add however much you think you would like of each ingredient.

My favorite potato salad

Chop up some potatoes and boil them until cooked. Drain and leave in the colander to cool just a bit. In a big bowl mix up a little mayo, some olive oil, lemon juice, a bunch of dill (or chives) and salt. Add the drained potatoes. Taste it and try not to eat the whole bowl. Add more of what you think it needs. Let sit for 5 minutes and serve.

I think this salad tastes best slightly warm or at room temp. But its good cold too.

Summer Squash Casserole

We had 6 squash to use from our CSA and this is really yummy and reminded me of something my mom made growing up. We ate it as a main course. Joe said that it was really good for having no meat in it. success.

Summer Squash Casserole
4 cups sliced yellow squash
1/2 cup chopped onion
35 buttery round crackers, crushed
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
2 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon salt
ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter
Directions
1.Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2.Place squash and onion in a large skillet over medium heat. Pour in a small amount of water. Cover, and cook until squash is tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well, and place in a large bowl.
3.In a medium bowl, mix together cracker crumbs and cheese. Stir half of the cracker mixture into the cooked squash and onions. In a small bowl, mix together eggs and milk, then add to squash mixture. Stir in 1/4 cup melted butter, and season with salt and pepper. Spread into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining cracker mixture, and dot with 2 tablespoons butter.
4.Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Blue Cheese Flank Steak Wraps

Well, I finally figured out how to log in an add a post so I'll add one of our favorite, easy everyday main courses.

1 lb flank steak seasoned with salt & pepper and olive oiled

2 medium sweet onions

crumbled blue cheese

1/4 cup mayo

wraps

Grill the flank steak to your preferred degree of doneness. We do direct high, for about 9 mins depending on the thickness. Slice into thin pieces.

Slice onions and caramelize over medium heat with olive oil.

Mix blue cheese and mayo (I didn't have mayo when I made this last week so I just used plain greek yogurt. I may have preferred that better than the mayo).

Warm wrap in microwave for 10-15 seconds. Fill with steak, onions and blue cheese sauce. Wrap and enjoy.

First Tomatoes of the Season! Caprese-Style Salad with Beans

On Sunday, when it was so hot outside, I was working at the Farmers' Market running around sweating buckets, lovely.  Lucky for me though one of the vendors had tomatoes!  Since we only buy tomatoes when they are in season, I have been waiting for this day for a long time.  Finally!  What better way to showcase fresh tomatoes than in a simple raw salad.

Caprese-Style Salad with Beans
A Kelly Original Creation
Serves 3
(Other than tomatoes and beans, all measurements are "ish")

4 medium tomatoes, cubed/chunked however you like to eat them

1 can canellini beans, drained and rinsed

1T or more fresh basil, cut into thin strips

1c fresh mozzarella cheese, cubed

3T olive oil

1T red wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

1.  Add tomatoes to bowl and season with a little salt.  Stir and let sit while you get the rest of the ingredients ready.  This allows the tomato juices to come out and adds to the dressing.

2.  Add the rest of the ingredients, one at a time, stirring and checking seasoning after each addition.  I did it this way because I really didn't measure any ingredients or seasonings and just went on what tasted good.

3.  Serve it up with some nice crusty bread.  I used a roasted garlic loaf from Mariano's that was quite tasty and complimented the flavors in the tomato salad nicely.

Background and Inspiration for this Dish:  Ryan and I love the ingredients of a caprese salad, but don't really like the traditional serving of it with big slices of tomato and cheese and whole basil leaves, so I always make it into a "chopped" salad.  Last night I wanted the tomato salad to be the star (entree) of dinner since I was so excited to be eating fresh tomatoes again, so I needed to add some protein.  Beans are always our go-to protein so it made perfect sense to add some cannellini beans to the salad.  They add some texture and don't take away from the flavor of the salad.  Traditionally I would use balsamic vinegar, but I was out of it and needed to make due with what I had on hand - red wine vinegar - or go without.  Ryan likes the tang the vinegar adds, so I went with the red wine vinegar and it worked just fine.  Go ahead and use balsamic if you prefer. 

If you have any versions of a fresh tomato salad that you do or come up with any good additions to this one, I'd love to hear about it.

P.S. The tomatoes tasted so good I'm emailing the farmer today to thank him.  Hopefully the tomatoes in our garden taste as good.

Black Bean Burgers

I have been searching for a good homemade veggie burger.  I really like the one Dave makes for me, but I couldn't duplicate it at home.  After a couple bad tries of a few different recipes, I decided to refocus my efforts on black bean burgers.  That's what I eat from Morningstar anyway, may as well have one that's just as easy to make myself.  This is it.  Well, it's not as easy as unwrapping a frozen patty and popping it in a skillet for a few minutes, but it comes close.



Black Bean Burgers

Makes 6

directly from My Recipes.com 

2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1/4 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 medium jalapeño pepper, finely chopped

2 large egg whites

1. Preheat oven to 350°.  Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.

2. Place black beans in a medium bowl; mash with a fork. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Shape bean mixture into 6 (1/2-inch-thick) patties. Arrange patties on prepared baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes, carefully turning once.

 

The link to the recipe I've provided above pairs this burgers with a mango salsa.  We've done that once and it was ok.  I've also topped it with sliced avocado and some sour cream mixed with hot sauce.  Plain ol' ketchup is another topping option.  Last night we topped it with a green tomato relish/salsa* that tasted really good.  I served it with corn on the cob and homemade tortilla chips. 
 
One thing we want to experiment with is putting these burgers on the grill.  It's not much fun to have a summer burger and have to cook it in the oven.  We think we can probably do it in those little aluminum pans, but haven't tried yet.  I'll keep you posted on that when we get around to trying it.
 
*I made and canned the green tomato relish last year after a July storm knocked over our tomato plants full of unripe tomatoes.  I'm sure I'll have some green tomato recipes to share with you later this summer.  Anyone ever had green tomato pie?