Tempura

 Batter:

1 egg

1 C ice water

1 C flour

Beat egg in a bowl.  Add ice water in the bowl.  Be sure to use very cold water.  Add flour in the bowl and mix lightly.  Be careful not to over-mix the batter; it will be lumpy.

Items to fry

Choose any of the following:

*Sweet potato

*Broccoli florettes

*Carrots

*Zucchini

*Onion

*Green Beans

*Mushrooms

*Shrimp

Cut vegetables up into thick slices or chunks.  Dip the "wet" items into plain flour before dipping into batter so that the batter will stick.  Dip items just before placing in the hot oil.

Heat vegetable oil in a deep pan - around medium high heat (whatever temp you think that might be - 350ish?).  Drop dipped items into batter and let fry, turning over at least once, until veggies are tender.  Remove with slotted spoon and put on a cooling rack over paper towels to catch oil.

Dipping Sauce:

Plain soy sauce will do, but this is yummy!

2 T rice wine vinegar

1/2 C soy sauce

1 T ginger, grated

Mix together.  Ta da!

Serve all with a plate full of hot rice.

Hot Wassail

1 C. Tang

2 C. Sugar

1 1/2 C. Country Time Lemonade

1/2 C apple cider drink mix (10 envelopes)

1 T. cinnamon

1 t. nutmeg

Shake or stir all ingredients together well.

To serve: Stir 2 - 3 T of mix in 1 cup of hot water.

Fiesta Chicken Enchiladas

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 lb. cooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, shredded

1 C salsa, divided

4 oz. cream cheese, cubed

1 T chopped cilantro

1 t. ground cumin

1 C shredded cheese (Cheddar & Monterey Jack is yummy)

8 flour tortillas

1)  Heat oven to 350

2) Heat large skillet sprayed with cooking spray on medium heat.  Add onions and garlic; cook and stir 2 min.  Add chicken, 1/4 C salsa, cream cheese, cilantro and cumin; mix well.  Cook 5 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally.  Add 1/2 C shredded cheese; mix well.

3) Spoon about 1/3 C chicken mixture down center of each tortilla; roll up.  Place seam-sides down in 9x13 pan sprayed with cooking spray; top with remaining shredded cheese and salsa.

4) Bake 15 to 20 min or until heated through. 

Salmon Asparagus Pasta Salad

1 lb. of pasta (I use bowties - large or small - called Farfalle, I think)

1 bunch of asparagus (the thinner the spears, the better)

1 fillet of Salmon - around a pound

dressing: 

3 T mayonnaise

1/2 C sour cream

3 T lemon juice

1 1/2 T Dijon mustard

1/2 t dried dill

optional:

ground black pepper

green onions

1.  Cook the pasta until at dente, rinse, and drain well.  While the pasta is cooking, microwave or steam the asparagus for 3 minutes and either grill or broil the salmon.  (My hints:  I cut the asparagus up into bite sized pieces, put it in a microwave safe container with a couple tablespoons of water, put on a lid and vent the corner and microwave for 3 minutes.  The Salmon, I put into a tin-foil "box" that I make by folding up the edges of the foil.  I put a couple pats of butter, some garlic salt, & some onion powder on top and then grill outside so my house doesn't smell like fish.  When it's done, I flake it with a fork.)

2.  Combine the cooked pasta, asparagus, salmon flakes and green onions if desired, in a large serving bowl; toss to mix.

3.  Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Pour over the pasta salad and toss.  Add back pepper to taste.

4.  Serve right away, or it may be chilled and served cold as well.  (I like it warm better, but it's yummy both ways!)

Smoreos!

So, no - I didn't come up with this idea myself (you can thank Gilmore Girls for this), but a friend of mine came up with the name for them when I tried them out while we were camping over Thanksgiving.

You will need:

Marshmallows (the big kind)
A way to roast/toast the marshmallows (i.e. fire and roasting sticks)
Oreos

Think Smores. Twist open an oreo, toast your mallow, and smoosh between the oreo cookie. They are amazing. =)

The Easiest Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies - Ever!

1 Spice Cake Mix
1 Regular (small) can of pumpkin
1 Bag Chocolate Chips (I prefer milk chocolate)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix spice cake mix with can of pumpkin (don't add anything else!), add chocolate chips as desired.
Spoon on to an ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake for 10-15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out fairly clean.
Cool, eat!

Broccoli Cheese Potato Soup

The perfect ending to a cold day!

2/3 C Butter
2/3 C Flour
6 C Milk
1 T chicken bouillon
3/4 t salt & pepper
1 C sour cream
1 1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese (sharp is best)
4 peeled, diced baked potatoes
1 head of broccoli chopped finely and steamed
Optional toppings: crumbled cooked bacon, chopped green onion, shredded cheddar cheese

Melt butter in large saucepan and whisk in flour. Let bubble a minute or two. Add milk slowly, whisking the entire time. Add bouillon and salt and pepper. Over medium heat, allow the milk to warm before whisking in the sour cream. Once again, let soup warm up before adding the shredded cheese. Stir until cheese melts completely. Add potato pieces and chopped broccoli and heat through. Serve with toppings if desired!

Hint for potatoes: I start cooking my potatoes before I do anything else. I bake mine in the microwave - about 5 minutes a potato - so roughly 20 minutes total (my microwave has a potato button, so I don't pay close attention anymore.) As soon as they are done cooking, I quickly peel them with a paring knife - it's really easy - and then dice them up. Careful - they're hot!

Hint for broccoli: I wash the broccoli, cut off the flowers and chop them up finely using my pampered chef chopper. I like mine really fine. I dump it all into a microwave safe container, add a couple tablespoons of water, put a lid on leaving one corner up for venting and then microwave about 4 minutes as soon as I take the potatoes out. It is steamed and ready to go in the soup!