Thursdays Recipe Corner

Beachcomber Pasta Salad
Brought to you by Beachcobersgrove
Paintings and jewelry with a sandy point of view. Its only appropriate that the first ingredient in this recipe is shells.

1 lb pasta (sm shell)
1 handful black olives, pitted
  1 c. sun-dried tomatoes in oil
1 c. broccoli crowns (firm cooked)
1 bunch fresh basil
1 c. corn/peas
1/2 red onion chopped(or green onions)
1 bottle italian dressing
Optional: parmesean cheese & bacon bits
Salt, pepper, thyme to taste

Beachcombers Cove, Your Oasis of Fun , Tropical Art

The peaceful spirit of the seahorse is represented here for your wearing pleasure. Handmade in 16g. sterling silver wire and combined with natural, bone beads, it is approximately 8" long and fastens with a handmade clasp. 

The Recipe Corner - Grandma's Sponge Cake

6 large eggs, separated
1 cup sugar
Grated rind of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsps. lemon juice
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking power

Beat the egg yolks until thick. Add sugar slowly, still beating. Then add the grated rind, lemon juice and one half of the beaten egg whites. Mix well.

Fold in flour, baking power and salt. Add remainder of beaten egg whites and mix lightly.

Bake in an ungreased tin (cake pan) in a moderate oven (350〫F) for 35 to 45 minutes. Invert pan to cool.

Grandma always used an angel food cake pan for her sponge cake. She would also substitute orange rind and juice for the lemon. It depended on what she had in the house.

Recipe compliments of MarthaHorman.
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The Recipe Corner - Evil Genius Mac and Cheese

1/2 lb uncooked macaroni or chunky pasta, give or take
1/2  onion, chopped
1/2 head of garlic, peeled and chopped
oil for sauteing
4 oz of really awesome cheese, grated
generous pinches of the herb/seasoning of your choice. I like curry powder myself
salt and pepper to taste
milk and yogurt to equal approximately 2 cups, give or take

topping:
1/3 heaping cup breadcrumbs
grated parmesan

Heat oven to 375F and grease an 8 or 9-inch baking dish.

Saute onions until soft, then add garlic and saute for a few more minutes. In a mixing bowl, mix pasta, really awesome cheese, and enough milk and yogurt to just cover the pasta when stirred in (you want to be able to tell it's still in there). Add other ingredients, including onions and garlic, and pour into baking dish. Top with breadcrumbs and parmesan.

Bake for 45-55 min, or until it's browned on top and not bubbling anymore.


Servers 4 to 6.


Recipe compliments of tofunutloaf.

The Recipe Corner - Sopa de Peña

I named this soup Sopa de Peña after the friend who gave me the recipe.

Take 4 large links of sausage (spicy is good) and slice into rounds. Saute them with sliced onion until light brown. Add a small can of sliced white potatoes, a can of diced green chilies, a small can of corn and about a quarter of a cup of your favorite salsa. Add a cup of water, bring to a boil, cover and let simmer for about 15 minutes.  Serve with a nice crusty bread. Should feed 4.

This can also be made with elbow macaroni instead of the potatoes. Just use more water because the pasta will absorb a lot. Keep your eye on it and if the liquid gets low, add more. It is a soup after all.

This is just a basic recipe. One can add and subtract meat and veggies to taste.

Recipe compliments of AuntMartha.

The Recipe Corner - Basic Roasted Root Vegetables

We made something approximating this for dinner. It was yummy.

You need enough chopped root vegetables to fill a medium-sized mixing bowl, with a little room to stir.
1 head garlic
1/2 onion, chopped and sauteed
olive oil
a few splashes of white wine
salt and pepper to taste
herbs

Select roots to roast. In this particular instance, the vegetable culprits turned out to be potatoes, part of a celeriac bulb, a rutabaga, carrots, and half a very large fennel (yes, I know fennel is a modified stem and not a root, but fennel and roots tend to very congenial with each other). Other yummy roots include a variety of beets, parsnips, turnips, sunchokes, and um, any number of other vegetables that I'm not thinking of at the moment.

Once you have chopped your selected root vegetables, mix with all other ingredients, pour into a large baking dish, and roast for 50 minutes at 375-400. Stir sometime around 30 minutes. 


Recipe compliments of tofunutloaf.

The Recipe Corner - Cornmeal Raspberry Cookies

Makes 40

The Cookie:

1 cup Butter, softened 

1 cup Sugar 

1 Egg

11⁄4 cup Flour 

1 cup Cornmeal

 1 tsp. Baking Powder

 1 tsp. Salt 

Raspberry Filling 

Confectioners' Sugar

1. Beat butter and sugar until fluffy with an electric beater. Beat in egg, flour, cornmeal, baking powder and

        salt.

2. Transfer dough onto a floured surface and divide in half. With floured hands, shape each half into a block 

        7 inched long 11⁄2 inches wide and 11⁄2 inches high. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least two hours 

         until well chilled.

3. Cut dough into 1/8 inch slices and arrange one inch apart on a cookie sheet that has been sprayed with

        non-stick spray. The cookies will spread a bit. Bake in 350° oven for 8 minutes or until edges are 

        beginning to turn gold. Place cookies on a wire rack to cool.

4. Sandwich two cookies together with raspberry filling and sift confectioner's sugar over the tops.

Raspberry Filling:

2 cups Raspberry Jam 

2 tbs. Cornstarch

1. Place jam and cornstarch in a small pan. Cook, stirring, until the cornstarch is dissolved and the mixture comes to a boil. Set aside to cool before using.

Enjoy this recipe compliments of Whimsy Fish. 

Check her holiday sweets book in her shop for other great cookie recipes: CD or PDF 

The Recipe Corner - Shocking Pink Bean Dip

This one is not for the faint of heart!

2 cans white or navy beans
4-6 anchovies (I use the ones packed in oil in the little jars.)
2-6 cloves garlic
1 medium roasted beet, peeled
1/4 cup yogurt
about 4 tbsp olive oil (or oil from the anchovies)

Blend 'till smooth.

Serve with carrots, celery and fresh green beans, 
or corn chips and crackers, 
or try it as a yummy sandwich spread!  

From ClockworkCrow

The Recipe Corner - Beachcomber Seafood Chowder

This isn’t a real recipe because a friend from Maine just told me how to do it while we were in the pool in water aerobics. Couldn’t exactly write it down, but its easy & tasty.

Dice one medium red potato. Place in saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Here you can add salt, pepper, onion, garlic, bacon bits, thyme, whatever you like. 

Before potatoes are done lay a fish filet (or 2) on top and continue to simmer. After a few minutes you can add crab meat, shrimp, scallops, clams, any other seafood you like or have on hand. 


When the seafood is about done, I stir in 1 can of evaporated milk (with 1/2 can water) and 1 can of cream-style corn. You can add you own “heat” to taste. I add some creole seasoning, red & green tabasco, and some finely cut jalapenos A teaspoon of sugar or splenda is a nice touch, also. 


Simmer the whole thing a little longer just to blend all the flavors together. Its great with oyster crackers & a little more Tabasco.


From Beachcomberscove.

The Recipe Corner - Forest Fruit with Basil

Our first recipe is a very simple one. It's a basic mushroom dish that can can be eaten by itself or combined with other dishes such as rice pilaf or as an addition to stew. I usually use wild mushrooms such as Wine Caps but, unless you know what you're doing, you are better off using fresh mushrooms from the store.

Stropharia rugosoannulata "Wine Cap"

Olive oil

Butter

3/4 Cup Red onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 Cup dried Basil

1 1/2 Cup chopped mushrooms

In a non-stick pan, warm a tablespoon each of olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add to that the red onion, the garlic, and the dried basil. Sauté for about 2 minutes. Now add  the mushrooms and sauté until onions are transparent and just starting to brown.  You may need to add a bit more oil. 

Serve hot or add to any other dish you are making. If you make up a large batch, you can be freeze some of it and then have them on hand as needed.

From AuntMartha.