Champagne Granita

Anyone want something cool, refreshing, and super easy to make?! :) You found it! So simple yet a super fun, adult treat! :)

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 2 lemons
  
• 1 (750-ml) bottle Champagne or other sparkling white wine, cold

Combine the sugar and 1 cup water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and place in the refrigerator until cold, about 1 hour.

Using the finest grater you have, lightly scrape the skin of 1 lemon, removing only the top surface of the peel. Squeeze out the juice and remove the seeds from both lemons.

Open the Champagne or sparkling wine, and pour it into a 9 by 12 by 2-inch pan. Mix in the simple syrup, lemon juice, and grated zest. Place mixture into the freezer. Check after 30 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, break up any ice formed on the sides and stir into the rest of the liquid. Continue to freeze and repeat this procedure every hour for at least 3 hours. Before serving, fluff the granita by "chopping" up any clumps with the spoon or gently whisking the frozen mixture. Spoon into small glasses or cups and serve.

Fish Tacos

For anyone who has never enjoyed fish tacos or have been afraid to try them, these are a must. You can actually use any kind of fish, we use whatever we have in fridge/freezer. I have made these a few times and my husband used to be a skeptic. He likes them, a lot. I hope you will too :)

• 1 1/4 pounds tilapia fillets, about 5
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Salt, pinch
  
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups water
• 3 cups canola oil
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
  
• 2 teaspoon garlic, chopped
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves, divided
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 8 corn tortillas, or you can use flour
  
• 1/2 head green cabbage, shredded

Cut the fish into 1 1/2-inch chunks.

To make the batter, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk in enough water, about 1 to 1 1/2 cups, until the mixture is the consistency of pancake batter.

Heat the oil in a deep skillet over medium heat to 360 degrees F.

When the oil is hot, working in batches, dip the fish pieces into the batter and carefully add them to the hot oil. Cook the fish until golden brown on both sides and the fish is cooked through, about 4 to 6 minutes total. Remove from the pan and drain on to a sheet tray lined with a paper bag or paper towels.

To make the sauce, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, hot sauce, lime juice, garlic, and 2 tablespoons cilantro in a small bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Wrap the tortillas in a damp towel and microwave on medium for 1 minute to warm. Put about 1/4 cup of the shredded cabbage on each tortilla. Put 3 pieces of the fried fish on top of the cabbage, then top with some sauce. Arrange the tacos on a serving platter and garnish with a sprinkle of cilantro. Serve immediately.

Pesto Lasagna

I have a huge basil section in my herb garden, both purple and green basil, sweet and Italian basil. I love basil so much! No surprise to my husband that I came up with a pesto lasagna. It's super yummy. It's definitely not a meal, unless you fiend for pesto, but it'd be a nice side dish :)

For the pesto:

• 4 cups basil leaves, loosely packed, washed and tough stems trimmed and roughly torn
• 2 cups finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 2 ounces)
• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
• 8 medium garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt

For the lasagna:

• 1 pound fresh lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
• 1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 1-ounce)

For the pesto: Combine half pesto ingredients in a blender or food processor, and process until evenly combined, about 1 minute. Add remaining ingredients and process until evenly blended, about 1 more minute. Taste and adjust seasoning, as desired.

For the lasagna: Heat oven to 375 degrees F and arrange rack in upper third.

Meanwhile, alternatively layer a scant 1/4 cup pesto and 1 sheet of fresh lasagna noodles in an 8 by 8-inch baking dish, trimming noodles, as needed, to fit. There should be about 10 to 12 layers. Top lasagna with cheese and bake until bubbly around edges and cheese is melted, about 20 to 25 minutes. Let sit at least 20 minutes before serving.

Strawberries Romanoff

2 cups sour cream
1/3 cup brown sugar
Juice of 1 orange
1 Tbsp Triple Sec
2 qt strawberries, washed and quartered
Fresh mint sprig

Combine sour cream, brown sugar, orange juice and triple sec together in a mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly. Add strawberries. Fold in until evenly coated.

Place coated berries in a dessert dish or champagne glass. Garnish each with a sprig of mint.

Chill until ready to serve, serves 4.

Alfredo

For those of you who know me, Alfredo is my F-A-V-O-R-I-T-E food! If I could, I would eat it every day... but that's not realistic. :) This is a rich, creamy, succulent recipe that I got from the Olive Garden website. It's EASY to make but you need to be patient when you temper the egg yolks or you'll have lumpy sauce (from the cooked yolks). This is from personal experience :) It's totally doable though. I have been making this for about 10 years. Enjoy!

1 1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup imported Parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 cup imported Romano cheese, grated
6 egg yolks from fresh jumbo eggs
Salt and black pepper to taste

Heat milk and cream in a heavy bottom saucepan until it begins to simmer. Turn off heat. Slowly whip in cheese, then remove from heat.

Place egg yolks in a separate bowl and slowly whip in a portion of the hot milk and cream mixture. Slowly add egg yolk mixture back into remaining cream mixture. Place back on very low heat and continually stir until simmering. Take sauce off heat so it thickens. (This will increase temperature of egg yolks, known as tempering).

Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Serve over your favorite pasta.
This sauce is for a serving of 4.

Corn Bread Stuffing with Sage and Sausage

I used to go to the pool at 5:45am to "swim" with the old ladies in the therapy pool after I injured my back. We would talk about anything and everything. It was around Thanksgiving time that I told one lady in particular that I was in charge of making the stuffing. It turned out, I talked to the correct woman! I have to admit, I asked her because she was from the South (you could tell by her awesome accent). She asked me a few questions and in no time she was spouting off an ingredients list. I don't cook with measurements anyhow so this method of telling me the recipe worked well :) For all intents and purposes of letting people know the recipe I have had to come up with some measurements but it's really easy and is a for sure crowd pleaser!

2 pkgs. of Marie Callendar's Corn Bread mix, made per directions and crumbled
1 c. fresh chopped sage
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 pound Italian sausage, loose, not links (or more if you prefer a meatier stuffing)
4-6 c. chicken broth (I use my own home made broth, it adds an awesome flavor!)
1 onion, chopped

Make corn bread as per directions on box. Crumble and set aside. (You can actually use ANY corn bread mix, but the Marie Callendar's is the BEST tasting with this recipe!)

While cooking Italian sausage, add chopped onion and minced garlic. Cook until meat is browned and onion is transparent. Drain excess fat.

Mix corn bread, meat mixture, and fresh sage. Stir thoroughly. Add chicken broth to desired consistency. Remember, it'll dry out a little when it's baked, so a little "too much" is ok! Pour mixture into a 11"x13" baking dish.

Bake at 350 degrees for an hour! :)

Shrimp and Beef Chow Fun

This is one of my favorite Chinese food dishes. So, imagine my surprise and delight when I came across the recipe while searching the web. I added a few of my own ingredients (veggie wise) and it turned out so great. I ate the rest of what was left for breakfast the next day :) I found the rice noodles in a co-op store in Corvallis but you could find them in any Asian market or specialty store. In all honesty, you could probably use fettucini noodles, though the texture wouldn't be the same, it'll still taste just fine. Enjoy.

1/2 to 3/4 pound flank steak
1/2 to 3/4 pound deveined shrimp
3 tbsp. dark soy sauce
3 tsp. Chinese rice wine or Dry Sherry
3 tsp. cornstarch
Sesame Oil
1/2 pound of fresh or dried rice noodles
Assorted Veggies - baby corn, snow peas, onions, green onion, baby bok choy, I like cut up portobello mushrooms, bean sprouts, zuchinni
2tbsp. Chinese Black Bean Sauce
2 cloves of garlic
3-4 tbsp. oyster sauce
5 tbsp. oil or so for frying (I used sesame oil)

Cut flank steaks across grain into strips about a 1/4 inch thick. Add dark soy sauce, rice wine, sesame oil, and cornstarch. Add shrimp to meat mixture. Marinate 15 minutes.

While steak is marinating, prepare vegetables into bite size pieces. Prepare noodles as directed on package. Heat wok, add 2 tbsp. oil. When oil is hot, add meat. Lay flat and cook 1 minute. Add black bean sauce and cook meat until browned and shrimp is pink. Remove meat from wok.

Clean out wok and add 2 more tbsp. oil. When oil is hot, add garlic and stir fry until aromatic. Add rice noodles and stir fry until browned. Remove noodles from wok. Add 2 more tbsp. oil, add veggies, and saute briefly. Add noodles to veggies and add oyster sauce. Mix well. Add meat and stir together. Serve :)
Serves 3-4