Summer Tortellini Salad

Food for a whole week :)  This was good - but it was SUPER rich...I don't think I put the Ranch dressing on next time....maybe just throw some olive oil on there to lighten it up a bit.

Ingredients:
9oz package cheese tortellini
1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, snipped
1/2 cup ranch dressing
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Cook tortellini according to package directions, drain and rinse under cold running water.  Place tortellini in a large colander and set aside.

Meanwhile, slice zucchini and chop carrot.  Cut tomatoes in half and slice green onions.  Snip Parsley.  Add veggies to tortellini.

Pour salad dressing over salad - sprinkle with Parmesan.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

Cream Cheese Jalapeno Burger

Tonight was cookbook club - GRILL MASTERS edition!  Our menu was fantastic:

This awesome burger...

Veggie: Corn on the cob

Salad: Fruit Salad

Dessert: Banana Split

HELLO awesome burger!!  This was SUPER SPICY - but it was worth my prego heartburn!  It was so so so good :)  Took like 15 minutes to make - so not only super quick to make but tastes like heaven with some sass!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups seeded and chopped jalapeno pepper 8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened 1 1/2 pounds ground beef 6 hamburger buns, split

Preheat a grill for medium heat. When hot, lightly oil the grate. In a medium bowl, stir together the jalapenos and cream cheese.

Divide the ground beef into 12 portions and pat out each one to 1/4 inch thickness. Spoon some of the cream cheese mixture onto the center of 6 of the patties. Top with the remaining patties, pressing the edges together to seal.

Grill for about 10 minutes per side, or until well done, taking care not to press down on the burgers as they cook. This will make the cheese ooze out. Serve on buns with your favorite toppings.

Mexican Style Corn on the Cob

Check out how awesome this corn looks!!!  It was so so so good!!  I really don't have much else to say besides YUMMY!!!!

Serves 4 : OBB

Ingredients:

4 ears corn
3 tablespoons mayo
2 tablespoons sour cream
1/4-1/2 teaspoon lime zest
1/2 teaspoon fresh lime juice
1/8- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup crumbled Cotija Cheese* (use fresh parmesan or queso fresco if you can’t find Cotija)

Soak corn in water for 30 minutes to prevent burning - Cook corn by method of choice.  We husked the corn - soaked in water - and then wrapped in foil and put on the grill.

While it’s cooking, combine mayo, sour cream, lime zest, lime juice, chili powder, and pinch of salt.  Store in the fridge until ready to use.  (For even better results make the sauce ahead of time).

Grate Cotija cheese with a fine-hole cheese grater and place on a plate.

When corn is finished cooking, immediately spread sauce all over it and then roll corn cob in grated cheese.  Serve with lime wedges for squeezing and extra chili powder or cayenne sprinkled on top if desired.

Even babies are speechless from this corn: 

Fruit Salad

So I was really excited to make a fruit salad - so I asked my mom for a family favorite.....Please don't judge the picture on the taste....I know it looks like soupy marshmallows, but even though we made it wrong - it still tasted awesome!!  

Here is a tip: when asked to add vanilla pudding - you don't actually MAKE the pudding ....you just put in the powder.....that way it wouldn't look like soup!  :)

Recipe from N-Ron

Ingredients:

16 oz fruit cocktail

Can crushed pineapple

4 oz vanilla pudding

2 cups mini marshmallows

9 oz cool whip

Combine fruit cocktail (juices too), pineapple (juices too), and pudding powder.

Fold in marshmallows and cool whip, and add a banana right before serving.

Campfire Banana Splits

Cookbook tonight - and being the theme was grilling, figured we would make up a GRILLED dessert as well!  I also then got excited when I realized you could make this on a campfire too!!  I'm not a HUGE fan of chocolate - so I would probably put some resee's in there instead.....BUT it was really good!!

Ingredients: 

6 large bananas, unpeeled, stems removed 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips 1 (10.5 ounce) package miniature marshmallows

	Preheat the grill for high heat.
	Spray 4 sheets of aluminum foil, large enough to wrap bananas, with cooking spray.
	Slice the peel of the banana from stem to bottom, while slicing the banana inside lengthwise. The bananas can be cut into slices instead if you like, (while still in the peel) for easier handling later.
	Carefully open the banana just wide enough to place the chocolate chips and marshmallows inside the peel with the banana. Stuff with as much of the chocolate chips and marshmallows as desired.
	Wrap the bananas with the aluminum foil and place on the grill or directly in the coals of a fire. Leave in long enough to melt the chips and the marshmallows, about 5 minutes. Unwrap bananas, open the peels wide, and eat with a spoon.

Best Hamburger ...and secret sauce!

Burgers in the house -- what what!!  These were SUPER easy to make and SUPER tasty - they were almost the "best hamburger" we've ever had.....but for real - great burger!!

Servings 5 - Six Sisters Blog

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef (I used 85/15- you want a fattier meat to make a juicier burger!)
sesame seed buns
1/2 cup Monterrey jack cheese, grated
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
seasoned salt to taste
cracked black pepper
onion powder

Secret Sauce:
3/4 cup of mayo
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup relish
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
seasoned salt

Combine the ground beef, grated cheese, bbq sauce, and seasonings. Shape patties that are about 1 inch thick.

Turn grill up to high and let it get hot.

Reduce heat to medium-high and place the burgers on the grill. Allow this side of the patty to cook for about 4-6 minutes, but make sure it doesn't burn. Then flip the burger over and cook until done.

For the sauce: Combine all ingredients and whisk until well mixed. Taste and adjust ingredients to your liking.  Assemble the burgers and serve with the special sauce, avocado, lettuce, tomato, cheese, pickles and your other favorite hamburger toppings!

Cajun Style Beef Jerky

Rossy borrowed a smoker from his co-worker, and has been CRAVING some beef jerky!  He made up a batch - and well......it was awful -- haha!!  It wasn't because of this recipe (he has made this before and it was yummy!), but it was awful because he used curry powder instead of onion powder....haha.....appar the tops of the spices were mixed up - and so the beef jerky / our house / everything smelled like curry tonight!!  ICK!!

Ingredients:
2 1/2 lbs Black Angus Round Steak (cut against the grain)
1 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 cup soy sauce
3 teaspoon black pepper
3 teaspoon garlic powder
3 teaspoon onion powder
3 teaspoon liquid smoke
8 teaspoon Franks red hot
3 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 Haberno peppers
1/2 teaspoon salt
Lawrys

Cut meat against the grain - and tenderize on both sides.

Mix rest of the ingredients to create marinade - pour on top of steak and marinate for 12-24 hours.  Then throw pieces in dehydrator and dehydrate for around 20 hours.

Pasta with Cilantro-Peanut Pesto

We had Erik's 8th grade graduation tonight....first off - that makes me feel OLD!!  I was 16 when he was born - where did time go.....second off - he is taller than me now, when I'm wearing heels AND on my tip toes...what the heck!

Back to the meal - we needed something quick tonight so we could head off to the world of traffic, so Ross was nice enough to make this for us - and it was pretty good.  I really liked it - Ross thought it was "eh"....so more leftovers for me!! :)

Serves 4 main dish / 6-8 small sides: OBB

Ingredients 
1 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
1 clove garlic, smashed, peeled, and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/4-1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
zest and juice from one lime (about 2 teaspoon zest and 2 tablespoons juice)
1/4 cup roasted peanuts (plus more for serving, if desired)
2-3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
3/4 pound (12 oz) linguine or spaghetti, cooked according to box instructions

In a food processor (or blender!), combine cilantro (save a bit of cilantro for garnish), garlic, ginger, vegetable and sesame oils, red pepper flakes, lime zest and juice, brown sugar, and peanuts (basically everything except soy sauce).  Pulse until a coarse paste forms.  Season with soy sauce and pulse to combine.

In a large bowl, toss pesto with hot pasta.  Roughly chop additional peanuts and sprinkle over pasta along with extra cilantro leaves and lime wedges if desired.   Serve immediately.  (If you’re prepping and not quite ready to eat yet,  I recommend waiting to toss with pasta until right before serving for the best flavor.)