Parmesan Rice Squares

This is the tine of year when we make snacks for gifts  These were a favorite that my mom made when I was growing up.  I made them for my kids too.  Easy and tasty!  What's not to like?

Parmesan Rice Squares

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups Rice Chex or rice squares cereal

3 Tbl. melted butter

¼  cup grated Parmesan Cheese (the kind in the can)

In a shallow pan, toss rice squares in butter until coated.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Toast in slow oven at 300 degrees about 15 minutes,

stirring occasionally.

Cool.

Enjoy!

New Year's Day Bean Soup

This has been a family tradition forever.  I came across this recipe in 1980 at a holiday craft fair at a local armory.  Someone was selling 1 pound packs of 12 - 16 bean blend in cute calico bags with this recipe attached on a card.  I've seen other versions that include a tiny bottle of tabasco tied to the beans as well.  Through the years, we've given this or gifts and even had the cub scouts make this for their moms by layering the different beans in 1 pint mason jars and tying the recipe cards to the jar.  It turns out that a 1 pint jar holds 1 pound of beans.  As I'm gotten older, I just buy the 16 bean mix at the local grocery store and put them in the soup pot to soak before I go to bed New Year's Eve.

Happy New Year!  Enjoy!

New Year’s Day Bean Soup

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

1 bag of Mixed Beans (Butter beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, great

northern beans, navy beans, blackeyed peas, split peas etc.

1 ham hock, ham bone, smoked ham piece's, or 1 - 2 pounds beef shank
1 - 28 oz can chopped or crushed tomatoes
1 garlic clove
1 small onion (chopped)
1 lemon
red pepper (to taste, 1/4 - 1/2 tsp.)
1 1/2 tbsp.salt (less if preferred)
pepper (to taste)

Instructions:

Wash beans thoroughly. Place in large kettle & cover with water. Add 1 1/2 tbsp. salt & soak overnight.

In morning drain. Add 2 quarts water, and ham hock, smoked ham or beef shanks. Simmer slowly 2 1/2 - 3 hrs.  Remove any bones and shred or chop meat. Add onion, tomatoes, red pepper, juice of lemon, salt & pepper to taste. Simmer at least 30 minutes longer. Enjoy with crackers & green salad.

Cranberry Pear Salsa

This has been one of our favorite holiday appetizers for 20 years.  I first had it when a friend brought it to work.  I like to serve it with sweet potato tortilla chips but really any kind of chip will do.  It's also good on turkey sandwiches!

Cranberry-Pear Salsa

Printable Recipe

Adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine, Dec 1996/Jan 1997

Delicious with tortilla chips, this salsa is even better on turkey

sandwiches.

Yields 4 1/2 cups.

12 oz. Fresh cranberries

1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pears (about 2 medium pears)

1/2 cup diced green bell pepper

1/4 cup honey

1/2 cup sugar

1 serrano chile, stemmed, seeded, and minced

1 tsp. Minced orange zest

2 Tbs. Fresh orange juice

1 Tbs. Canola oil

Pinch salt

Chop the cranberries, or pulse them in a food processor until coarse.  

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss gently.  

Taste and adjust seasonings.

Sesame Green Bean Salad

This is one of those recipes that everyone asks for.  It came from a vegetable garden cookbook that a friend of mine gave me in the early 1980's.  My kids loved it.  We grew green beans throughout the summer as I had rotating harvests of them so I always had a dish of these in the fridge for the kids to snack on.  Emily used to love taking them in a zip loc as her healthy snack in kindergarten.  Apparently, even though the parents were advised to send healthy snacks, most of the kids brought junk food and she was the only one with vegetables.  LOL.  I tried the asparagus version, which I just came up with on my own, for a DAR luncheon as a side dish to the Chinese Chicken Salad which is also on this blog. 

Enjoy!

Sesame Green Bean Salad

(Adapted from an out of print vegetable cookbook ca. 1985)

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

1 lb. snap beans

2 tsp. sugar

2 tsp. sesame oil

3 Tbl. soy sauce

Cut clove of garlic

toasted sesame seeds for garnish (optional)

Keep beans whole.  Boil 5 minutes. Run under cold water.

Toss remaining ingredients with beans.  Marinate 1 hour in a

bowl that has been rubbed with garlic.  Serve slightly chilled

or at room temperature.

Notes:

Young skinny beans work best for this.  If I don’t have fresh

ones from my garden, I find that the little skinny bagged ones

at Trader Joe’s are perfect!

This recipe works well with asparagus as well.  Lightly peel

asparagus and steam until fork tender.  Run under cold water

then mix with remaining ingredients.

Top with sesame seeds before serving.

Red Pepper Relish

It's the beginning of September when the harvest is really coming in.  This is one of our family favorites.  I used to serve it over a block of cream cheese with Triscuits for a snack or as an appetizer at family gatherings.  One year, I gifted small jelly jars of this with homemade cheddar cheese crackers as teacher gifts.  Enjoy!

Red Pepper Relish

printable recipe

Ingredients:

7 cups finely chopped sweet red peppers (14 - 16 medium)

6 cups sugar

2 Tablespoons salt

1 quart vinegar

Combine peppers and salt; let stand 3 to 4 hours.  Add sugar

and vinegar; cook, stirring frequently, until thick, about

45 minutes.  Pour hot into hot half-pint jars leaving ¼ inch

head space. Adjust caps. Process 10 minutes in boiling water bath.  

Yield: about 6 half-pints

Helpful tips:

Processing:  Wash jars and place in canning pot while bringing

water to a boil.  Allow jars to boil about 5 minutes to sterilize them.

Remove jars, wipe rims dry and fill with hot relish.  Place disks on

jars and tighten lids. Place in rack in canning pot and time them

once water comes back to a boil.  Remove and set on a towel when processing is finished. Let cool overnight then check seals. Loosen

the rings on the jars for storage.

Preparation: Peppers can be chopped by hand, in food processor

or in a meat grinder.   If you would like a spicy version, you can add

some crushed red peppers flakes or mince some fresh red jalapeño

in with the bell pepper.

Chinese Chicken Salad

This recipe came to me in the late 1980's from my good friend Barbara who taught PreK with me for many years.  This recipe is reminiscent of the Asian Chicken Salad from that famous restaurant known for its cheese cakes.

I love this one for so many reasons.  It has a great mix of textures and it can be prepared for a crown ahead of time.  When doing it ahead, I fry the noodles and store them in a large zip loc bag, prepare the chicken, mix the dressing, and I put the green ingredients in a large bag.  I prepare the almonds and sesame seeds and put then aside, adding them when I throw the whole thing together.

Crunch Crunch Crunch!

Chinese Chicken Salad

Printable Recpe

Ingredients:

Rice noodles

2 Chicken breasts

1 head of lettuce, shredded (crunchy variety like Iceberg or Romaine)

3 green onions, sliced

1 c. sliced celery

1 cucumber, sliced

3 Tbl. toasted sesame seed

3 Tbl. toasted slivered almonds

Dressing:

6 Tbl. sugar

7 Tbl. rice wine vinegar

2 tsp. Salt

¼ tsp. White pepper

1 tsp. Lemon juice

¼ cup vegetable or canola oil

Break apart ⅓ lb. rice noodles and deep fry in small batches as

They will puff up when fried.  Do not let them brown. Drain and

Put in paper grocery bag.  Store in air tight container if they are

not to be used immediately.

Combine dressing ingredients, shaking to mix. Store in a jar.

Bake or steam 2 chicken breasts.  Cool and shred. Mix with

2 Tbl. of dressing.

Before serving, toss chicken, noodles, and dressing with the

lettuce, green onions, celery, cucumber, sesame seeds and

almonds.

Bailey's Irish Cream Cheese Cake

Need a dessert for St. Patrick's Day?  Here you go!  I got this recipe from our school nurse back in the 80's.  We used to beg her to make it for staff luncheons.

Baileys Irish Cream Cheese Cake

Printable Recpe

Ingredients:

8 ½ oz. package chocolate wafers

4 oz. Butter (1 stick)

24 oz. cream cheese at room temperature

¾  cup sugar

4 eggs at room temperature

½ cup Baileys Irish Cream

Cool Whip

Chocolate Shavings

Crush chocolate wafers between wax paper or in a food processor

and use a pastry cutter to blend in butter--the consistency should

hold together.  Use an 11 inch springform pan and spread crust on

bottom and slightly up the sides of the pan.  Chill.

Hand mix cream cheese, sugar, 1 egg and ½ cup Baileys.  

Add 3 more eggs one at a time while mixing.

Pour into pan and cook at 325 degrees for 45 minutes or until firm.

Cool and refrigerate.

Add Cool Whip on top and shavings fron any chocolate bar.  

You can use whipped cream instead of the Cool Whip, if desired.