VPWL

Swedish Sour Cream Cucumbers

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Creamy cucumber salad is the perfect low carb summer salad, and fortunately it’s extremely easy to make it. Cut up the cucumbers, onions, and herbs, stir together a few things for the dressing, and mix it all up. You’re good to go!

Ingredients:

  • 6 small or 2 large cucumbers, washed and sliced thin (about 3 cups)
  • 1 large red onion (or 1 cup), halved and sliced thin
  • kosher salt
  • 4 Tab sour cream
  • 2 Tab fresh dill, roughly chopped
  • 1 teaspoon Sugar, or more to taste
  • black pepper, to taste
  • A few splashes white balsamic vinegar (or white wine vinegar)

Directions:

  1. In a large bowl; layer a third of the cucumbers and onions, then a sprinkle of kosher salt, and repeat with the remaining.
  2. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
  3. With your hands, squeeze the excess moisture out of the cucumbers and onions and place into a clean bowl.
  4. In a small bowl; mix up the sour cream, fresh dill, sugar and black pepper.
  5. Add a little vinegar at a time and taste as you go.
  6. If you add too much vinegar just balance it out with a little more sour cream and a pinch of sugar.
  7. 30 minutes before serving, pour dressing over vegetables, stir and cover back up with plastic wrap and refrigerat.
  8. Stir again, season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Serves: Yield: 6-8 servings

Source: Simply Scratch

 

Villa Park Women’s League – GOURMET – June 21, 2014

Blueberry Fruit Salad with Tequila-Lime Syrup

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A real winner at the next “Just bring a salad” dinner.

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 lb fresh blueberries (2 cups)
  • 4 medium kiwi, peeled, halved lengthwise, then sliced crosswise
  • 1 large ripe mango, peeled, pitted, and cut into bite-size pieces
  • 1/2 c granulated sugar
  • 1/4 c tequila
  • 2 Tab lime juice
  • 2 tsp. finely grated lime zest

Directions:

  1. Put the blueberries, kiwi, and mango in a medium serving bowl.
  2. Combine the sugar, tequila, and lime zest in a 1-quart saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
  3. Remove from the heat and stir in the lime juice.
  4. Pour the warm syrup over the fruit and gently toss.
  5. Cover and refrigerate until cold, at least 1 hour.
  6. Gently toss before serving.

Serves: 10

Source: by Shelley Wiseman from Fine Cooking Issue 124

This entry was posted in Salads and tagged .

French Cream

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Use as a dressing for fruit salad/dessert or a dip for fruit pieces.

Ingredients:

  • 8 oz cream cheese
  • 1 c powdered sugar
  • 1 c whipping cream
  • 1/4 c granulated sugar
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • Pineapple juice

Directions:

  1. Soften cream cheese and then whip with powdered sugar.
  2. Whip cream and sugar together until it forms soft peaks.
  3. Combine beaten cream cheese, whipped cream, lemon juice and zest
  4. Continue to beat, adding just enough pineapple juice to achieve desired consistency.
  5. Serve French Cream in pineapple shell.

Serves: Makes 3 cups

Source: foodnetwork.com – Paula-Deen

Cumin Raita

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A nice change for a sauce/dip with seafood or chicken.

Ingredients:

  • 2 c plain Greek yogurt
  • 1/3 c seeded cucumber, finely diced
  • 1/4 c red onion, finely diced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 2 Tab fresh lime juice
  • 3 Tab capers, minced
  • 3 Tab cilantro, minced
  • 3 Tab dill, minced
  • 1 Tab cumin, ground
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground white pepper

Directions:

  1. In a medium bowl, combine all of the ingredients and mix well.
  2. Garnish with Cilantro and cumin.

Serves: 3 cups

Source: Food and Wine, Andrew Zimmern’s Kitchen Adventures

Easy Aioli

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Aioli sounds a lot fancier than garlic mayo!  Use this with vegetables, shrimp, chicken – anything that’s good with garlic.

Aioli Ingredients:

  • 4 garlic cloves, pressed
  • ½ Tab coarse kosher salt
  • 1 c mayonnaise
  • ¼ c olive oil
  • 2 Tab fresh lemon juice

Aioli Directions:

  1. Mash garlic and ½ teaspoon salt in small bowl until paste forms.
  2. Whisk in mayonnaise, olive oil, and lemon juice.
  3. Season to taste with coarse salt and pepper.
  4. Cover and chill.

Serves: Makes about 1 ¼ cup

Source: Amy Finely, Bon Appétit | July 2008

Creamy Sriracha Cocktail Sauce

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If you’re not familiar with Sriracha, start with a couple of teaspoons and taste it before you add the full tablespoon. This will get more heat as it sits in the fridge.

Creamy Sriracha Cocktail Sauce Ingredients: 

  • 1 c mayo or light mayo
  • ¼ c ketchup
  • 2 Tab fresh squeezed lime juice
  • 2 Tab Sriracha Sauce (more or less to taste)
  • ½ c finely chopped green onion

Creamy Sriracha Cocktail Sauce Directions:

  1. Finely chop the green onion.
  2. In a glass measuring cup or small bowl, whisk together the mayo and ketchup.
  3. Stir in the lime juice, Sriracha sauce to taste, and finely chopped green onions.

Serves: 1 ½ cups

Sorce: KalynsKitchen.com.

Long Island Ice Tea – Party Quanity

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Ingredients:                                                                Party Quantities

  • 1 part vodka                                                                      1 pint
  • 1 part gin                                                                             1 pint
  • 1 part white rum                                                               1 pint
  • 1 part white tequila                                                          1 pint
  • 1 part triple sec                                                                 1 pint
  • 8 part bar sweet and sour mix                                     2 1.75 liters
  • 4 part Coke                                                                       5 12oz cans
  • Lemon wedges for garnish
  • ice

Directions:

  1. Premix the 5 pints of liquor and re-bottle.
  2. At party, put one bottle of premixed liquor into pitcher.
  3. Add 22 oz of bar sweet and sour mix.
  4. 1 can of coke.
  5. Mix.
  6. Pour in tall glass filled with cracked ice.
  7. Make an additional pitcher when previous one is empty.

Serves: Depends . . . .

Source: The kids in college

Comment: Make by the pitcher full. It is wicked!

It’s never a good idea nor a safe idea to drink and drive. But if you do, you’d better know your limits.  See Blood Alcohol  Percentages in Beverages  in the Miscellaneous Information category and the Drinks category.

Roasted Beef Tenderloin

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You can serve this as an entree or an hors d’oeuvre if the party is really all about grazing.

Ingredients:

  • 1 beef tenderloin (4 To 5 Lbs.)
  • 4 Tab butter
  • garlic salt
  • Sour Cream Horseradish Sauce
  • Blue Cheese Butter

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325°.
  2. Rinse meat well.
  3. With a very sharp knife, begin taking the fat off the top, revealing the silver cartilage underneath. You definitely don’t want to take every last bit of fat off—not at all. As with any cut of meat, a little bit of fat adds to the flavor.
  4. If tenderloin is large, cut in half lengthwise and tie into 2 rounds.
  5. Put several tablespoons of butter all over the meat.
  6. Sprinkle meat generously with garlic salt.
  7. Place in a 325° oven until the internal temperature reaches just under 120°, about 40 minutes. Stay near the oven and keep checking the meat thermometer to make sure it doesn’t overcook.
  8. Let meat stand ten minutes or so before slicing.

Sour-Cream Horseradish Sauce

Ingredients:

  • 1 c sour cream
  • ¼ c prepared horseradish, drained

Directions:

  1. Combine the sour cream and horseradish and mix well.
  2. Season to taste with salt and ground pepper.
  3. Store in the refrigerator, covered, until ready to serve.

Serves: 1 ¼ cup

Source: Joshua Paul, Pioneer Woman Cooking

Blue Cheese Butter

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb crumbled firm blue cheese (2 cups)
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/4 c Port

Directions:

Gently mash together all ingredients in a bowl with a fork, leaving some texture.

Serves: Makes about 3 cup

Source: Gourmet – October 2003
Comments: Butter keeps, covered and chilled, 1 week. It will freeze.

 

Blue Cheese Butter

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I use this on steaks, chicken, sandwiches, or just about anything – I really like blue cheese.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb crumbled firm blue cheese (2 cups)
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (or salted if that is what you have)
  • 1/4 c Port (optional, but it does make it really tasty)

Directions:

Gently mash together all ingredients in a bowl with a fork, leaving some texture.

Serves: Makes about 3 cup

Source: Gourmet | October 2003
Comments: Butter keeps, covered and chilled, 1 week. It will freeze.