Fresh Corn and Rice Salad

Fresh corn is so awesome this time of year, and you really can't beat having it right off the cob.  But if you're in the mood for something a little different, this salad is a nice way to go.  Especially if you've got some leftover rice you'd like to use up.

please try not to be jealous of my fabulous re-purposed Applebee's bowl

I ran across this recipe at the Better Homes and Gardens website, and did pretty much did everything they did.  Except I didn't have arugula, so just sprinkled some basil on top.  And I used brown rice instead of white.  This is really great leftover, either warm or cold.  

• 4
  ears fresh corn
• 1 1/2
  cups cooked rice, cooled
• 1
  pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 1
  cup fresh arugula
• 1
  small red onion, cut in thin wedges
• 1
  jalapeno pepper, thinly sliced
• 2
  tablespoons rice vinegar or red wine vinegar
• 2
  tablespoons olive oil
  
  
  
  . Husk corn and remove silk with a stiff brush; rinse. Cook corn in boiling, lightly salted water for 3 minutes. Remove corn; let cool. Cut corn off the cob in planks (I wasn't very good at the planking thing) Combine cooked rice, tomatoes, arugula, onion and jalapeno pepper. Transfer to serving bowl; top with corn. Drizzle with vinegar and olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature. Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Pineapple Ginger Agua Fresca

This is a very light and refreshing summer drink found at Epicurious.  If you're trying to get away from soda or other sugary things, this may work for you.  There's only a half a cup of sugar in the whole thing, and you could probably use splenda if you wanted.  My son really loved it.

Here's the recipe:

5 cups 1-inch cubes peeled ripe pineapple (from 1 large pineapple)

4 cups water, divided

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons (or more) grated peeled fresh ginger

Ice cubes

Puree pineapple, 1 cup water, and sugar in blender in batches until smooth. Pour into 8-cup measuring cup. Mix in 3 cups water and 2 teaspoons ginger. Cover; chill until cold, about 4 hours. Strain pineapple mixture into pitcher, pressing on solids in strainer. Add more ginger to taste. Fill tall glasses with ice. Pour agua fresca over.

If you didn't have any ginger I wouldn't sweat it, I really didn't taste it that much.

Going-Away Presents

There are so many people who are going away. With seemingly no thought to how I feel about any of it.  When I think about it I really can't blame them.  Living in the deepest pits of hell (aka Phoenix) really isn't what it's cracked up to be.  

So I will suck it up, be the bigger person and wish them well.  But they're leaving all at the same time pretty much!  Thank goodness Pinterest was here to guide me in getting them a little something to say goodbye.  

I am inexplicably drawn to these type of cups, they just make me happy.  So I got each one of them a cup and am filling it with things that will be nice to have for traveling (drink mixes, hand sanitizer, snacks, and a Starbucks gift card).   My flag making could use a little work, but overall, I like them.  

Homemade Lip Balm

I am a girl who loves her lip balm.  I always have.  As long as I remember I always use vaseline on my lips before I go to bed, or I just can't sleep.  (OCD perhaps?)  But is vaseline the best product to use, being all full of pesky chemicals and such?  After all, I suppose it is a by-product of making petroleum.  (please don't quote me, as I have no idea what I'm talking about).   Anyway, since I spend all my free (and un-free) time on pinterest, I started seeing people are making their own lip balm, and I thought HEY, that's something I'd like to do.

I wanted to make a recipe that used shea butter and cocoa butter, but this was cheaper.  I'll still try the other at some point.  And SO easy.  I really loved the end result.  Although it's just slightly firmer than I would have liked, which can most likely be remedied by using more of the oils in ratio to the beeswax.  

And it's totally *chemical free!

Here's the recipe if you want to try it too:

from delia creates

1-2 TBSP. grated beeswax
2-3 TBSP. coconut oil
1/2 TBSP. sweet almond oil
5-10 drops of essential oil {added off heat}

I found it kinda difficult to grate the beeswax, so instead just cut it into small chunks.  You probably want to use a cheap knife or grater that you don't care about because the beeswax really sticks.  Same goes for melting it (which you want to do in some small double boiler type thing).  

I didn't add any essential oils, I kinda like it plain, but if you do, the directions say to do that after the melting process or the essential oils will burn off.  

The hard part is finding suitable containers.  The ones I used are some re-purposed sample containers I already had, so I'm still on the search.  

So there ya go, hope you get a chance to make some for yourself :)

*as far as I know everything contains chemicals

Tuscan Chicken with White Beans and Spinach

Just a quick post to get this delicious chicken dish up for you.  All I can say about it is...make it!  

Recipe from For the Love of Cooking

• 4 slices of lean bacon, cooked and chopped
• 2 tsp olive oil (divided)
• 5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of any fat  (I used breasts)
• Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
• Garlic powder, to taste
• Dried basil, to taste
• 1/2 sweet yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 15 oz can of white beans, rinsed & drained
• 2 cups of baby spinach

Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the bacon is cooked, drain it on a paper towel then chop it up. Remove all but 1 tsp of bacon grease from the skillet. Add 1 tsp olive oil to the bacon grease in the skillet over medium high heat. Season the chicken with sea salt, freshly cracked pepper, garlic powder, and dried basil, to taste on both sides. Once the skillet is HOT, add the seasoned chicken thighs and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Remove the chicken from the skillet, cover with a tin foil tent, and set aside.

Add the remaining teaspoon of olive oil to the skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes or until tender. Add the minced garlic, and cook stirring continuously for 1 minute. Add the drained diced tomatoes and white beans. Stir and cook for 4-5 minutes. Add the spinach, season with sea salt, freshly cracked pepper, and dried basil, to taste. Pour the juices from the chicken into the pan and mix well. Ladle the beans and spinach onto a serving dish then top with chicken. Serve immediately. Enjoy.

Next post I'll show the lip balm I made myself...I'm loving it!

Root Beer Fudge

This was supposed to be Root Beer Float Fudge, but the root beer flavoring I used didn't give me the color contrast I needed, so I lost the "float" effect.  No matter, it was still scrumptious!  

And that's saying a lot coming from me, as I am pretty skeptical of desserts that aren't chocolate.  I took these to work and everyone there seemed to like them.  One girl said they were "ridiculous".  I think that's good.

Here's the recipe for you that I found at The Traveling Spoon. Easy as pie.  Well, way easier than pie actually.

3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup butter
1 cup heavy cream
pinch of salt
3 cups white chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups marshmallow cream
3 teaspoons root beer extract

Line a 9x13-inch baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a large saucepan over low heat, stir sugar, butter, salt and cream until melted and well combined. Bring to a boil and stir continuously for 4 minutes.

Remove saucepan from heat and quickly stir in white chocolate chips and marshmallow creme. Stir until well combined and smooth. Mixture may be thick so don't be afraid to stir hard for a couple of minutes!

Working quickly before the mixture hardens, pour half into the prepared baking dish and spread with a knife or spatula. Stir root beer extract into remaining fudge mixture until well combined. Pour over white fudge and swirl the two layers using a knife. Refrigerate at least four hours. Cut into small squares and enjoy cold or room temperature.

Homemade Flour Tortillas

It seems I had tried making flour tortillas before, I must have blocked it from my memory but I'm sure I've tried.  Most likely they were nothing to write home about.  Then I saw this recipe at Homesick Texan and new I should give them a try.

They were easy and beautiful, and went perfectly with our roast pork. 

 They held together great without being too tough.  What more could you ask for?  Oh the recipe...here it is.

Flour Tortillas from the Homesick Texan

Ingredients:
Two cups of all-purpose flour (can make them whole wheat by substituting one cup of whole-wheat flour for white flour)
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of vegetable oil
3/4 cups of warm milk

Method:
Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and oil.
Slowly add the warm milk.
Stir until a loose, sticky ball is formed.
Knead for two minutes on a floured surface. Dough should be firm and soft.
Place dough in a bowl and cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap for 20 minutes.
After the dough has rested, break off eight sections, roll them into balls in your hands, place on a plate (make sure they aren’t touching) and then cover balls with damp cloth or plastic wrap for 10 minutes. (It’s very important to let the dough rest, otherwise it will be like elastic and won’t roll out to a proper thickness and shape.)
After dough has rested, one at a time place a dough ball on a floured surface, pat it out into a four-inch circle, and then roll with a rolling pin from the center until it’s thin and about eight inches in diameter. (If you roll out pie crusts you’ll have no problem with this.) Don’t over work the dough, or it’ll be stiff. Keep rolled-out tortillas covered until ready to cook.
In a dry iron skillet or comal heated on high, cook the tortilla about thirty seconds on each side. It should start to puff a bit when it’s done.
Keep cooked tortillas covered wrapped in a napkin until ready to eat.
Can be reheated in a dry iron skillet, over your gas-burner flame or in the oven wrapped in foil.
While you probably won’t have any leftovers, you can store in the fridge tightly wrapped in foil or plastic for a day or so.
Makes eight tortillas