Super Cheesy Garlic Bread

I'm going to share my recipe for my very popular Super Cheesy Garlic Bread. This bread is soooo good but I must admit it is not the healthiest thing to eat. It will however put a smile on your face so it all evens out.

Ingredients
1 Loaf of Sweet or Sour Dough Bread
1 cp Parmesan or Three Cheese Blend (Parmesan, Romano, Asiago), shredded
1 stick Butter
1/2 cp Mayonaise
2 Tbls Parsley, finely chopped
1/4 cp Garlic, finely chopped or minced (or to taste)

Directions
Set oven to broil or 500º. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Cut loaf in half lengthwise and spread mixture thickly on both sides. Place on baking sheet with garlic spread facing up into oven for approximately 10 minutes or until mixture is melted and bubbly with slightly brown edges. Cut into thick slices and serve hot.

Potato Latkes

Fried Potato Pancakes, called Latkes in Yiddish and Levivot in Hebrew are traditionally eaten on Hanukkah in commemoration of the oil that miraculously burned for eight days when the Maccabees purified and rededicated the holy Temple in Jerusalem.

INGREDIENTS:
• 1 lb potatoes
• 1/2 cp finely chopped onion
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cp olive oil
• Sourcream or Applesauce

INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat oven to 250ºF
Peel potatoes and coarsely grate by hand, transferring to a large bowl of cold water as grated. Soak potatoes 1 to 2 minutes after last batch is added to water, then drain well in a colander.

Spread grated potatoes and onion on a kitchen towel and roll up jelly-roll style. Twist towel tightly to wring out as much liquid as possible. Transfer potato mixture to a bowl and stir in egg and salt.

Heat 1/4 cup oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Working in batches of 4 latkes, spoon 2 tablespoons potato mixture per latke into skillet, spreading into 3-inch rounds with a fork. Reduce heat to moderate and cook until undersides are browned, about 5 minutes. Turn latkes over and cook until undersides are browned, about 5 minutes more. Transfer to paper towels to drain and season with salt. Add more oil to skillet as needed. Keep latkes warm on a wire rack set in a shallow baking pan in oven.

Serve with sourcream or applesauce.

Note:
Latkes may be made up to 8 hours ahead. Reheat on a rack set over a baking sheet in a 350°F oven, about 5 minutes.

Grilled Shrimp Piri Piri

The recipes I have included are from Ana Patuleia Ortins' Portuguese Homestyle Cooking which she has collected over the years from relatives and friends.

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup hot pepper paste
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tsp finely chopped cilantro
1/4 cup white wine, lemon juice or wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound extra large shrimp, unpeeled, deveined
Wooden skewers presoaked in water 1/2 hour

DIRECTIONS:
Mix the first five ingredients in a bowl. Toss in the shrimp and give them a turn. Let stand ½ hour. Thread on the soaked skewers.

Place the skewered shrimp over medium coals and grill 1 ½ minutes. Turn over and grill the other side for 1 ½ minutes more, until the shrimp are lightly pink and start to curl.
Serve with tomato rice (see Portuguese Homestyle Cooking) on the side garnished with black Portuguese olives.

Ana's Tip: For this dish, you can sometimes get shrimp that has been deveined but the shells are left intact and are easy to peel. Keeping the shells on during grilling protects the shrimp from drying out.

Ecuadorian Stuffed Avocados

Avocados, native to the Caribbean, Mexico, South and Central America, are extremely nutritious albeit fattening. But, its good fat and full of nearly 20 vitamins and minerals making it a great food choice.


INGREDIENTS:

3 large, ripe avocados
3 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
1 cup chopped ham or other meat such as chicken crab, tuna or shrimp.
1 cup mayonaise or to taste
salt & pepper to taste
Lettuce leafs for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS:

Combine the chopped meat and hard-boiled eggs with enough mayonnaise to bind ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to use. Just before serving cut avocado in half and remove pit and peel. Add filling to avocado and place on top of lettuce on plate. Sprinkle with lemon or lime juice for flavor and to prevent discoloration.


Darlene's Tips:

• Fill with corn, carrots, raisins and shredded jicama for a veggie style.
• Cut the calories by substituting a vinaigrette for mayonnaise.
• Add 2 chopped chipotle chilies to your mayo for some extra spice.

 

Summer Ceviche

This is an exciting alternative to regular salsa and guacamole!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb halibut fillet, sea bass fillet or red snapper fillet (or use a mixture of fish and shrimp)
• 5-6 limes or lime juice to cover fish
• 1 cup diced fresh tomato
• 1 sweet green pepper, chopped
• 4 tbls fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1 or 2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
• 2 tbls white vinegar
• 1 med. onion, finely chopped
• 1 dash Tabasco sauce
• Lettuce leaf
• Avocado

DIRECTIONS:
Dice the fish. Place fish in bowl with lime juice. Marinate in refrigerator overnight to cook the fish. Stir often. Pour off most of the lime juice. Add remaining ingredients except lettuce and avocado a few hours before serving and refrigerate. Toss well and arrange in individual serving bowls that are lined with the lettuce leaves. Garnish with sliced avocados.

Bacon Wrapped Figs w/ Goat Cheese

These simple to make appetizers are not really pretty to look at, but omigod they are absolutely addictive and pair perfectly with our Chupacabra cocktails or a fine glass of wine.

INGREDIENTS
* 6 figs, halved (or substitute pitted dates)
* 6 ounces goat cheese
* 1/2 cup toasted, chopped pecans
* 3 slices bacon, cut in half (preferbaly parcooked)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the broiler.
2. Stuff fig halves with goat cheese. Press pecans into the cheese. Wrap each stuffed fig half with half a slice of bacon, securing with toothpicks.
3. Arrange on a medium baking sheet. Broil 5 minutes, or until bacon is evenly brown and crisp and goat cheese is bubbly and lightly browned.

!Buen provecho!

Tortas de Camaron

Rather than settling for a Filet-o-Fish, whip up something a little more interesting such as these Tortas de Camaron.

INGREDIENTS  
3/4 cup Dehydrated Shrimp (found in Asian or Mexican markets)
2 cups Bread or Tortilla Crumbs*
3 eggs
1/4 tsp. Salt
Vegetable Oil for frying

DIRECTIONS
Mix dried shrimps and bread crumbs in a blender or food processor. Mix until the shrimps are ground up and well blended with crumbs. Beat egg whites until fluffy fold in yolks, salt, shrimp & bread mixture mix until you have a batter the consistency of a cooked oatmeal.

Heat enough oil in a skillet to about a depth of 1/4". Put a tablespoonful of batter in the oil for each fritter, and fry until golden, turning once.

Serve on top of Nopales Guisados.

*To make tortilla crumbs, dry tortillas (about 12) in an oven on low heat until crisp. Grind up in a food processor or blender.