Multicultural

Italian Bruschetta

INGREDIENTS:

2 large tomatoes, coarsely chopped 1/2 sweet onion, chopped 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano

1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley 1/2 (1 pound) loaf Italian bread, cut into 1 inch slices 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2.	In a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, onion, olive oil, oregano, basil and parsley. Place bread on a baking sheet, and top with tomato mixture. Sprinkle with Parmesan.
3.	Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or until bottom of bread is browned. Allow to cool 5 minutes before serving.

Barking Crackers

This is a kind of snack that is fairly traditional for Christmas in my house.

Ingredients:

40 (plus) soda crackers*
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar, packed
12 ounce package (2 cups) semi-sweet chocolate or butterscotch chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a jelly roll (15 x 10-inches with sides) pan with foil and grease lightly. Completely line pan with crackers. Boil butter and brown sugar for 3 minutes. Stirring constantly. Pour mixture over crackers. Bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven. Sprinkle chips over pan. Let chips soften so they can be evenly spread. Sprinkle nuts over top. Refrigerate for 1 hour and then break apart into bit-sized pieces. Store these in the refrigerator.

Nacho Dip

A very good tasting dip to go along with chips. May not be the healthiest thing but it's not bad.

Ingredients:

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons taco seasoning mix
3/4 cup salsa
3/4 cup shredded lettuce
3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions:

Combine the softened cream cheese, sour cream and taco seasoning on a large plate or in a pie plate.

 Spread the salsa on top of the cream cheese-sour cream mixture. Top with lettuce and cheddar cheese.

French Toast

This is always a good family breakfast on Sunday mornings.

INGREDIENTS:
4 eggs
2/3 cup milk
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
8 thick slices of 2-day-old bread, better if slightly stale
Butter
Maple syrup

Directions:

1 Beat eggs, milk, and cinnamon together. If using, add orange zest and/or Triple Sec. Whisk until well blended. Pour into a shallow bowl.

2 Dip each slice of bread into the egg mixture, allowing bread to soak up some of the mixture. Melt some butter (or use vegetable oil) over a large skillet on medium high heat. Add as many slices of bread onto the skillet as will fit at a time. Fry until brown on both sides, flipping the bread when necessary.

3 Serve hot with butter, maple syrup, and if available, fresh berries.

Blast From the Pasta

   This is a main dish that my mom makes all the time so I thought I'd try it. It turned out very well.

Ingredients:

1 ½ pounds extra-lean ground beef
1 cup each chopped bell pepper and chopped onions
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes (undrained)
1 can (10 oz) cream of tomato soup
1 can (10 oz) cream of mushroom soup
½ cup milk
1 ½ tsp dried oregano
1 tsp chili powder
½ tsp paprika
¼ tsp each black pepper and crushed red pepper flakes
8 oz fusilli pasta (uncooked – about 3 cups dry)

Directions:

* Cook beef over medium high heat until no longer pink. Break up any large pieces using a wooden spoon. Add peppers, onions and mushrooms. Continue to cook until vegetables begin to soften.

* Stir in diced tomatoes and their liquid, tomato soup and mushroom soup. Cook and stir until mixture is well blended. Add all remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve hot.

Rhubarb Crisp

I made this to sell at a fundraiser for my service trip in the Dominican.

Ingredients:

1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup quick cooking rolled oats
1/2 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 cups sliced rhubarb
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

In mixing bowl, combine brown sugar, flour, oats, butter and cinnamon; mix together until crumbly. Press half of the brown sugar and oats mixture into a buttered 8-inch square baking dish. Top with the sliced rhubarb.
In a saucepan combine 1 cup granulated sugar, cornstarch, and the 1 cup of water and vanilla. Cook together until clear, then pour over rhubarb.
Top rhubarb with remaining crumb mixture and bake at 350° for 45 to 55 minutes.

Christmas

Christmas Meringues 


      Ingredients

• 4 egg whites, at room temperature
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup (220g) caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
  
  
  1. Step 1
     Preheat oven to 120°C. Line two baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
  2. Step 2
     Use an electric mixer to whisk egg whites and salt until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, a tablespoon at a time, whisking well between each addition, until sugar dissolves.
  3. Step 3
     Once all the sugar has been added, continue to whisk on high for 3 mins. Whisk in the vanilla essence.
  4. Step 4
     Use two teaspoons to spoon meringue onto lined trays. Reduce the oven temperature to 90°C.
  5. Step 5
     Bake meringues for 1 hour 30 mins. Turn oven off and leave meringues in the oven to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
     
     
     
     
     
     Melt Chocolate with au bain Marie, and decorate the meringues with the chocolate and sprinkles. And hang a few in the tree :)