Corn Salsa (aka Cowboy Caviar)

From my friend Heidi Keller

3 roma tomatoes, diced
2 avocado, diced
2 green onion, diced
half bunch of cilantro
can of white corn, drained
can black eyed peas, drained
1 pkt zesty italian seasoning
juice from 1 lime

stir together and serve with tortilla chips

Egg, Ham, and Cheese Quiche

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 20 min. Bake: 35 min. MAKES: 12 servings (2 pies)

Ingredients

1 package (14.1 ounces) refrigerated pie pastry

2 cups diced fully cooked ham (we tried it with bacon and had the second pie as a sausage pie.  Both were delicious!)

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 teaspoons dried minced onion

4 large eggs

2 cups half-and-half cream

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Unroll pastry sheets into two 9-in. pie plates; flute edges. Line unpricked pastry shells with a double thickness of heavy-duty foil. Fill with pie weights, dried beans or uncooked rice. Bake 10-12 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove foil and weights; bake 3-5 minutes longer or until bottom is golden brown. Cool on wire racks.
2. Divide ham, cheese and onion between shells. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, cream, salt and pepper until blended. Pour into shells. Cover edges loosely with foil. Bake 35-40 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand 5-10 minutes before cutting.
   Freeze option: Cover and freeze unbaked quiche. To use, remove from freezer 30 minutes before baking (do not thaw). Preheat oven to 350°. Place quiche on a baking sheet; cover edge loosely with foil. Bake as directed, increasing time as necessary for a knife inserted near the center to come out clean. Yield: 2 quiches (6 servings each).

Easy Swedish Meatballs

Bake frozen meatballs in a 9x13 pan in the oven according to package directions.

While they bake, combine and heat the following in a saucepan:

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup sour cream

1/3 cup milk  

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Stir the meatballs into the sauce. Serve over rice.

Can also be made by browning the meatballs in a skillet, then adding the sauce and heating it up.

Lemon PoppySeed Salad Dressing

2 tbsp lemon juice
1/3 cup sugar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp poppy seeds

Frozen Butterbeer

In June 2015 we went on a family vacation to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

It was there we fell in love with frozen butterbeer. Here is our version.

2 cups vanilla ice cream
2 cups cream soda
1/8 cup butterscotch syrup or topping
1/4 cup ice

Blend together, then top with whipped cream (optional).

Microwave Brownie Lava Cake

Ingredients

• 1 brownie mix (family size for 9x13 pan) plus ingredients needed according to brownie mix instructions (normally oil, water, and eggs)
• 1 large egg (in addition to the eggs called for in the brownie mix instructions)
• 16 Dove Dark Chocolate Promise candy pieces (each piece weighs .3 oz), or similar
• whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, optional
• raspberries or strawberries for garnish, optional

Directions

Empty brownie mix into large bowl. Whisk to remove large lumps. Coat 8 (6 oz) custard cups with cooking spray. Add a small amount of dry brownie mix to each cup and rotate cups until completely lightly coated; tap and shake out excess back into brownie mix bowl. Set aside. In separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients called for in brownie mix instructions (oil, water, eggs), plus 1 additional egg. Add wet ingredients to brownie mix and stir until well combined.

Spoon batter into each custard cup or bowl until 1/2 full (approx. 1/3 cup of batter for 6 oz. cup/bowls).  Stack two Dove candies and press them down into the center of the batter; spoon batter over candy so it is completely covered.

Place in microwave and cook at full power for 1 minute for 1 cake (microwave power and times may vary). May cook up to 4 cakes at one time, adding 1/2 minute to cooking time for each additional cake.

To remove cake from bowl: Immediately, run a thin knife around the edge of the cooked cake. Place a small plate on top of the cake bowl. Flip the plate and bowl over, so the cake is inverted on top of the plate. Gently lift the bowl, leaving the inverted cake on the plate. If any melted chocolate remains in bottom of bowl, spoon it on top of inverted cake. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream; garnish with berries, if desired.

Cakes may also be eaten directly from the custard cup they are cooked in (without inverting them on a plate). May also be cooked and served in half-pint mason jars.
(If eating cakes directly from bowl or jar, it isn't necessary to spray or coat them before adding batter and cooking.)

MAKE AHEAD: Batter may be mixed and added with chocolate pieces to custard cups or jars in advance. Cover and refrigerate up to a week. Remove from refrigerator and warm to room temperature 30 minutes before cooking.

Nutritional Information per lava cake (portioned into 8 cakes per recipe): 397 calories, 21.3g fat, 217.5mg sodium, 56g carbs, 3.4g fiber, 48.2g sugars, 5.4g protein; Weight Watchers PointsPlus: 12

Corn muffins

Ingredients:
(makes 12 muffins)

 1 cup cornmeal
 1 cup all-purpose flour
 1/3 cup white sugar
 2 teaspoons baking powder
 1/2 teaspoon salt
 1 egg, beaten
 1/4 cup canola oil
 1 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease muffin pan or line with paper muffin liners.
2. In a large bowl, mix together corn meal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add egg, oil and milk; stir gently to combine. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
3. Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.