Antipasto Dip

Here's a dip recipe from my Aunt Robin. I don't think I've ever had it, but it sounds interesting and she loves it. Apparently I was talking about having leftover canned artichokes at some point (probably after the Easter Soup Disaster of '09) and this is a good use for them.

14oz can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
7oz can sliced mushrooms, drained and chopped
7oz jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1 c pimento-stuffed olives, drained and chopped
1/2 c chopped green pepper
1/2 c chopped celery
1/2 c finely chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c olive or vegetable oil
2/3 c white vinegar
2 1/2 t Italian seasoning
1 t seasoned salt
1 t sugar
1/2 t freshly ground pepper

Try to chop all the vegetables to about the same size. Combine artichoke hearts, mushrooms, red peppers, olives, green peppers, and celery in a large bowl and set aside. Sauté garlic and onion in oil about 3 minutes until onion is tender. Add vinegar and spices. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat and pour over the vegetables. Cover and chill for 8 hours. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to serving dish. Serve with crackers or with toasted bread as bruschetta.

Sour Cream Cheesecake

This is my dad's favorite kind of "cake" :)

Crust:
2 c graham cracker crumbs
6 T melted butter
1 t cinnamon

Mix together. Press into deep pie pan. Chill.

Layer 1:
2 eggs
3/4 lb soft cream cheese
1/4 honey
1/2 t vanilla
1/2 t salt

Preheat oven to 375F. Beat eggs well, then combine all. Pour into crust. Bake 20 minutes. Dust top with cinnamon. Cool to room temperature.

Layer 2:
1 1/2 c thick sour cream
2T honey
1/2 t vanilla

Heat oven to 425F. Combine all. Pour over cake. Bake 5-10 minutes to glaze. Cool to room temperature, then chill at least 6 hours.

Instant Cocoa

2 cups dry milk
dash salt
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup non-dairy creamer powder

Combine well. To prep, add 4 T to 1 cup hot water and mix to dissolve.

Fruited Grain Salad

This is a neat salad from Moosewood, originally introduced to us by one of the Liberal Luncheon crew.

1 c raw wheat berries
1 c pearl barley
1 c short grain brown rice
3 T balsamic vinegar
1 T lemon juice
3 T light oil
1/2 t salt
1 1/2 c golden raisins
3/4 c minced chives or scallions
6-7 large mint leaves, minced
4-5 ripe plums, sliced (or grapes, peaches, etc.)
1-2 tart apples, diced

Soak wheat berries about 30 minutes. Wash barley several times, then cook with rice and 4 1/4 c water (boil, cover, simmer 35 minutes). Drain wheat berries, then cook with 2 1/2 c water (boil, cover, simmer 1 hour - 1:15). Combine warm grains. Add everything except fruit. Cover and chill. Add fruit just before serving.

Pasta Salad

10 oz tri-color pasta twists
1 bottle Italian salad dressing
1 small bottle McCormick's Salad Supreme Seasoning
1 tomato, chopped
1 cucumber, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 can sliced black olives
1 can sliced mushrooms

Cook pasta according to directions. Drain, rinse in cold water to cool. Combine everything. Chill overnight, stirring occasionally.

Bean Soup

This is a simple crock-pot soup that I made for Father's Day last year. We were meeting up for a winery tour in the morning, and then everyone came to my house for lunch, so I needed something that could take care of itself for a while. The times below are how our day went, but I'm sure it would be fine with cooking longer in part 1 and shorter in part 2.

2 c mixed dried bean
2 potatoes, cubed
2 quarts water
1 c uncooked macaroni
1 can Rotel tomatoes w/ green chilis
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
salt, pepper, basil, oregano

Part One: Rinse the beans. Put beans, potato pieces, and water in crock pot. Cook on High for 3 hours.
Part Two: Sauté the onion and garlic in oil until onions are soft. Add the onion and garlic, tomatoes, and macaroni noodles to the crock pot. Salt and spice to taste. (It needs more salt than I expected - canned beans have a lot of salt, while dry beans have none.) Cook on High for 1 hour.

Black Bean Salad

This is a bean salad recipe that my mom developed when trying to replicate a salad she had at a restaurant. The amounts are pretty flexible, so play around with what you like.

15 oz. can black beans
1/2 t pressed garlic
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup minced green pepper
1 tomato
1/8 t cumin
1/2 t dry cilantro
1 T balsamic vinegar
salt and peper

Drain and rinse the black beans. Chop the tomato. Mix everything together in a bowl and let sit at least an hour before serving.

Szechuan Cold Sesame Noodles

My sister's graduation party tomorrow, so while we've got party food on the brain, here's some of our favorites. This is an excellent noodle/sauce recipe from the book "One Pot Vegetarian Dishes". It's really good & easy, and we usually make it in a double batch.

img via: foodzings

1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter
3 T hot water
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 T soy sauce (tamari)
2 T sesame oil
1 t vegetable oil
1 t chili oil
2 t sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
8 oz. sesame noodles or spaghetti
2 medium carrots, shredded
2 scallions, thinly sliced

Start boiling water for the noodles. In a large bowl, whisk together peanut butter and water until well blended. Gradually whisk in vinegar, soy sauce, oils, sugar, and garlic. Cook the noodles as directed, drain and rinse. Add the noodles to the sauce, toss to mix well, and serve cold with carrots and scallions as garnish.

Marinated Tomato Sauce

Only make this in the summer when you've got really good, ripe tomatoes and fresh basil avaliable.

4 large ripe tomatoes
12-15 large basil leaves
1 large clove garlic, pressed
3 T olive oil
1/2 t salt
6 oz. mozzarella cheese
freshly ground black pepper

Cut tomato and cheese into 1 inch cubes. Mince basil. Combine all and let stand 1 hour at room temperature. Serve over pasta.

4 servings: 687 calories, 23.5 grams fat
6 servings: 458 calories, 15.6 grams fat
8 servings: 343 calories, 12 grams fat