Guacamole

This is my mom's guacamole. I absolutely love it. Eat it with her homemade chips and you might not be able to stop before the whole bowl is gone.

Ingredients

2 avocadoes peeled and pitted
1 medium onion finely chopped
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt
½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper
½ tsp ascorbic acid mixture (optional)
1 medium tomato peeled and sliced

Beat avocadoes, onion, lemon juice, salt, pepper and ascorbic acid mixture until creamy. Fold in tomato. Cover and refrigerate. Stir before serving. For a chunkier guacamole, mix avocadoes with a fork.

I make mine chunky and mash it all up with my fork. We LOVE it.

Breadsticks

This recipe is from my cooking class in college.  Basically everything in her cooking book is magic and I love it. (My fave alfredo sauce is from there.)

Ingredients

2 cups flour

2 T. sugar

1 1/2 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

2 T. olive oil (I just use vegetable)

2/3 cup milk

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1/2 t. garlic powder

1/2 t. dried parsley

1 t. sesame seeds

Combine dry ingredients in medium bowl. Add oil and milk and mix with a fork until dough clings together. Knead 10-12 times on floured surface. Roll into an 8" square. (I'm awful at this stuff, but just try and aim for this size, since that'll be the pan you bake them in.) Cut into strips. Place on greased baking sheet (Can use an 8x8 dish) and brush with melted butter. Combine parmesan cheese, garlic powder, parsley and sesame seeds in a bowl. Sprinkle breadsticks with cheese mixture and bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes until golden brown.

Yes, they're nummy.

Egg Flippin' Fun

Thought I'd try this out. If I can do it, anyone can!

Ramen lunch

This is pretty similar to the Ramen Fried Rice I posted a while back, just a bit more simple.

Ingredients

Ramen Noodles

Broccoli, steamed or pan fry

Eggs, scrambled

Again, like last time, very simple. Cook the noodles like you would for Top Ramen. Strain them if needed.  In the meantime, scramble your eggs and cook your broccoli however you prefer. Throw it all in together and add sauces of your choosing. We like to have a wide variety of asian sauces. Soy sauce, of course, but more exciting ones. Black Bean and Garlic, Hoison, General Tsao, and many others. They're not too expensive and they last a while. We think they're worth it because they can really spice up the meals and make them taste great!

 

You can easily spice this up with other ingredients that you like. I remember, this kind of reminded me of Chow Mein because it was noodle heavy, which I love. You could get very creative with any other ingredients to suit the tastes of your eaters. :)

French Fries

We made these a while ago. I'm always interested in finding different and yummy ways to eat those potatoes. I know I posted another french fry recipe a while back. Last time I didn't have a real specific recipe, but this time I do. The flavor was really yummy, and depending on how you cut them, the cook time will differ, so just be aware.

Ingredients

1 large baking potato

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).  Cut potato into wedges. Mix olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, chili powder and onion powder together. Coat potatoes with oil/spice mixture and place on a baking sheet.  Bake for 45 minutes in preheated oven.

I put mine on foil to ease the mess clean-up, althought that might also change exactly how they bake. Like I said, you'll just have to be aware. The thinner the fry, the faster they bake and vice versa. But the flavor is really yummy and easy to alter depending on your tastes.

Homegrown Green Beans

These are just some green beans from the garden we have at my in-laws. I'm not a big green bean eater, and certainly don't know exactly what to do with fresh garden vegetables. I'm still learning. The only ones I really remember eating from childhood are corn on the cob. And that is pretty obvious as to preparation. Anyhow, For those like me who don't really know what to do with fresh stuff like this, this is what I did.

 After washing my freshly picked beans, I prepped a pan by melting butter, and then popped my green beans in the pan. Stir fried vegetables always taste good to me. Maybe top with a little bit of salt. Nothing fancy. You can also steam fresh veggies for a fresh, crisp taste. I'm super new to this, but wanted to open the arena for fresh grown foods.

What is your favorite way to prep garden veggies?

That Spaghetti Tomato Thingy

I kinda made this up, so I don't have a name for it.  I'm sure there is one; I just don't know what it is.  So when hubby asks what's for dinner, it's "That Spaghetti Tomato Thingy."  It's met with rave reviews every time I make it.

Ingredients:

Spaghetti

Tomatoes (I use whatever's available in the garden.  When tomato season is done, I'll probably buy Romas.)

Basil leaves (Also from the garden; I assume you could use dried stuff, but never have for this dish.)

Butter (or margarine; I use the light stuff to save calories)

evoo (extra virgin olive oil for you non-Rachel Ray fans)

Salt & Pepper

Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

Cook spaghetti.  I do about 4 servings for my family.

While pasta is boiling, dice your tomatoes and slice your basil leaves.  For my family I use about 2-3 roma tomato's and 2 or 3 basil leaves, depending on the size.

Put a little evoo in a small frying pan.  After it heats up, add the tomatoes.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Sautee until soft but not mushy.  Add the basil for the last minute.

Drain the spaghetti and put it back in the pot.  Add the tomatoes and basil.  Add some butter and evoo for flavor.  I do about 2 tablespoons butter and 2 tablespoons evoo to mine. 

Serve sprinkled with parmesan cheese.