We've been SPARKLED!

         Our SPARKLING hostesses!
Bonnie & Janell went to so much effort to make this a special SPARKLING evening. Like Jennise and Kristin, they had planned to entertain outside-- but with our wacky Utah weather-- they wisely moved indoors. Their glamours tablescape & decor of black, apple green and white staged the evening for fun conversation and laughter -- as usual!
                 Thank you Bonnie & Janell!


Our Sparkling Group!
We are missing 2 ~ and you were so missed & we love you ladies. Our prayers were with our sparkling friend, Courtney, that evening.

Our SPARKLING table setting!

Notice the ROCK... I will be having mine mounted ;)

Bonnie & Janell's tablescape definitely added glitter & glam to our dog days of summer! There were hidden treasures to be found such as the FUN sparkler detail to our polka-dot napkin!

We had our own  "Sparkling" water bottles-- and the entry display was so darling. We each had a little adorable tag with our name and a description of why we Sparkle! Thank you ladies for making us feel so special! We were treated royally and sent home with a fun little carton filled with goodies! They really went all out on the detail-- not only do you ladies sparkle.... but you "ROCK!" ;)

I can't wait to try my MOCK Mojito!

Bonnie & Janell's Sparkling Recipes!

Grilled honey mustard chicken salad


1 box suddenly salad classic pasta
1/2 cup mayo
1 tablespoon honey mustard
2 cups grileed chicken
2 cups washed baby spinach
1 cup cherry tom., halved
1 stalk celery, chopped about 1/3 cup
1 cup cheddar cheese
3 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
3 sliced bacon, crisply cooked and crunmbled
cook pasta, and drain rinse with cold water, drain well.
In large bowl, stir together seasoning mix, mayo and honey mustard. Add pasta, and other ingredients. Stir well, serve or chill in frige for 1 hour.

                                    

Chicken kabobs
3 T soy sauce
3 T brown sugar
2 T pineapple juice
1 T sesame oil
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
3-4 boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 3 inch pieces
sprite
Mix in dish, had chicken. It is best to have enough chicken all covered, this is were you had the sprite, to make sure it is all covered. (about 2-3 cups sprite, give or take) All so best if marinaded over night.

Cheese bread

8 oz cream cheese
8 oz cheese whiz
8 oz sour cream
small can diced chile
green onions diced (as many or as little to your liking)
1 sheepherders bread (bread bowl)
Hollow out bread, put all ingredients in bread bowl, the cheese will be a little lumpy that is okay. Wrap in foil, bake at 350, cooks about 45 min. Stir cheese and possibly cook a little longer. If the cheese is still lumpy then cook longer, the cheese will look smooth and if its warm, then its done.

Fruit Salsa

1 cup fresh pineapple, diced
2 kiwis, peeled and diced
2 Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and diced
2 fresh ripe peach, diced into 1/4" chunks
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 tbsp white granulated sugar
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp brown sugar

Cinnamon Chips
10 (10 inch) flour tortillas
butter or margarine
butter flavored cooking spray
2 cups white granulated sugar
2-3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, mix together 2 cups granulated sugar and 2-3 teaspoons ground cinnamon. Spead thin, even layer of butter on a flour tortilla. Cut each into 8 wedges and place them in a single layer on a large cookie or baking sheet. Sprinkle the wedges evenly with the cinnamon sugar. Spray each wedge lightly with cooking spray to set the sugar in place.
You can do two pans at a time to make this go faster. Fill them up as close together as you can before sprinkling the cinnamon sugar on them. Bake for 8-10 minutes until lightly brown. Remove from the oven and let them cool 5 minutes in the pan and transfer them to a platter or plate to finish cooling for another 10 minutes.
While the first batch of tortillas are baking, begin cutting up each of the fruits as noted above. In a large bowl, combine the chopped fruit, granulated sugar, brown sugar and honey. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes or more.

Lemon Pepper Butter
½ cup butter, room temperature
1 tbsp lemon juice
¼ tsp grated lemon peel
¼ tsp garlic salt
Pepper to taste
Combine butter and seasonings. Beat until light and fluffy. Great on fish and vegetables.
Chile-Lime Butter
½ cup butter, room temperature
½ tsp Chili powder
2 tsp lime zest
Salt and pepper, to taste
Combine butter and seasonings. Beat until light and fluffy. Great on fresh corn.

Sweet Tangy Chicken Kabobs
6 tbsp soy sauce
6 tbsp brown sugar
5 tbsp pineapple juice
2 tbsp sesame oil
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp garlic powder
2 cups lemon lime soda – enough to cover chicken
6-8 boneless chicken breasts – cut into piece
Mix first seven ingredients together well. Add chicken and marinade in covered container in fridge for at least 3 hours or over night. Thread on skewers and grill for 15-20 minutes.

Brazilian Lemonade
4 juicy limes (try and find ones with thin, smooth skins; they're the juiciest and the thin skin cuts down on the chance of your drink being bitter)
1 c. sugar
6 c. cold water
6 Tbsp. sweetened condensed milk
Mix cold water and sugar very well and chill until ready to use. This step can be done ahead of time.
Wash limes thoroughly with soap (I just use hand-dishwashing soap or regular hand soap); you need the soap to get the wax and pesticides off of the limes because you're using the WHOLE lime, baby. Cut the ends off the limes and then cut each lime into 8ths.
Place 1/2 of the limes in your blender.
Add 1/2 of the sugar water, place the lid on your blender, and pulse 5 times. Place a fine-mesh strainer over a pitcher (the one you'll serve the lemonade in) and pour the blended mixture through the strainer and into the pitcher. Use a spoon to press the rest of the liquid into the pitcher. Dump the pulp and stuff in the strainer into the trash. Repeat with remaining limes and sugar water. Add sweetened condensed milk; You may want to taste test it at this point; I used giant, thick-skinned limes tonight and didn't test it and it came out a little bitter. If it's bitter, just add some more sugar and maybe a little more milk.

Serve immediately over lots of ice. This does not keep well, so don't make this in advance (although you can cut the limes, mix the sugar water, and measure the sweetened condensed milk in advance). Serves 4.

Creamy Vanilla ice Cream
12 servings
2 eggs
1 C sugar
¼ tsp salt 2 ½ C heavy whipping cream
2 C half-and-half
2 ¼ tsp vanilla extract
In a heavy saucepan, combine the first five ingredients. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat a metal spoon and reaches at least 160 degrees. Remove from the heat; cool.
Cover and refrigerate or freeze immediately. When ready to freeze, pour custard and add vanilla to the cylinder of an ice cream freezer. Freeze according to the manufacture’s directions. Makes about 1 ½ quarts.

Bonnie & Janell severed this frozen vanilla treat with cashews, carmel & grilled pinapple-- YUM (as seen demonstrated below!!) GIRLS CAN GRILL! GO JANELL!

CANDID MOMENTS!
Sonya's Sparkler moment--- the pictures say it all.
I didn't get a pic of Janell adding up Sonya's brain waves... "Sonya see sparkler. Sonay see flame. Flame see Sonya's sparkler!"
Bonnie's jaw dropped as she walked in from check the grill and spotted Sonya with the sparkler-- IN THE HOUSE!
Sonya: "MOM SAID I COULD!"

Heather: "Oh no she DI'NT!"
Stephanie: Oooohhhh-- it's so pretty!

Thank you for a SPARKLING summer evening, Bonnie & Janell!

~*~** S*p*A*r*K*L*e*~**~

I can't wait to add sparkle to my summer!!! Bonnie & Janell's glitter-glam invitation has created quite a buzz!!  I have caught myself gazing at the so cute invitation on my message board in anticipation of our next dining experience... can't wait to see you all then!

Fiesta Recipes

Our Awesome Festive Group! :)
Our lovely Hostesses ~
* kRiStIn * jEnNisE *

Here are the recipes for our Bon Vivant Fiesta!
Appetizers:
Fresh Mango Salsa
(this is how much was made for the dinner, makes 1 1/2 gallons!)
1/2 gallon Tomato Sauce
1/2 quart Chopped Mango, added to 1/2 quart pineapple tidbits
3 cups quarter-inch sliced Green Onions
1 1/2 cups quarter-inch diced White Onions
2/3 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
2/3 cup White Sugar
2 TBSP Garlic Salt
2 TBSP Coarse Black Pepper
3 TBSP Minced Fresh Jalapeno Peppers
3 Quarts Diced Roma Tomatoes

Add together, stirring well in the bowl. Eat and Enjoy!

The sombero's were used to hold chips and the YUMMY Mango Salsa!!! (soooo good!)

Flautas
Ingredients:
2 lbs Ground Beef (the 80/20 fat content works best)
2-3 raw potatoes, peeled and chopped
Corn tortillas
1-2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
Pepper to taste
Toothpicks
Oil for frying
Brown the ground beef with the onion, garlic and pepper. You will want to chop it really fine while cooking it. If you are using a lower fat beef, add a little oil to help with the flavor and the consistency. Add the potatoes and mash the beef and potatoes together using a potato masher. Let it boil down, and absorb all the oil/grease. This step takes awhile. When the meat is somewhat mushy, you know it is done. When it is cooled enough for you to not burn your fingers, start to warm up the corn tortillas. The tortillas are much easier to work with when they are warm and doing it on a griddle works best but microwaving is fine. Spoon a helping of meat in the tortilla and roll up to where it is really thin. You will place 3 flautas on each toothpick. This will help during the frying to keep them rolled up! In a frying pan, heat up some oil in the bottom of the pan, you just need enough to let them brown in the pan, not deep fry. When the oil is hot, place your set of 3 in the pan and brown on the 2 sides that you can, then take out the toothpick and you can brown the other sides. Place on a paper towel to drain the grease off when they are done.

Festive table setting - with a maraca for a place card holder & we all donned our napkin rings-- so cute.

Chile Con Queso
Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter or margarine
2 onions, chopped
1 1/2 cups chopped green chile, I used a mix of Hot and Mild chile
2 lb block of Velveeta cheese, cubed
2 lb bag of the orange/white cheese(I used the Mexican blend already shredded)
Milk
Melt the butter in your stockpot, then add the green chile and onions. Let them cook on Med/Low for at least 30 minutes. You can cook it for longer, it helps with the flavor. Add the Velveeta and stir just a bit to mix it with the onions and chile. Let it melt down slowly. When the Velveeta is completely melted, add the other cheese. The key here is to just let it melt together, you can keep stirring so that it doesn't burn the bottom, but just let it keep going. After all the cheeses are completely melted, then you will add milk. It is hard to say how much to add because it depends on the consistency you want. I pour in about a cup then stir it together and let it just warm up and see what the consistency is, and I will add accordingly. Once it is where you like it, then turn it down LOW because you don't want it to boil. Eat with tortilla chips.

SALAD

Santa Fe Salad with Chile Lime Dressing(taken from Weight Watchers)

Ingredients

6 Tbsp reduced-calorie mayonnaise

3 Tbsp cilantro, fresh, finely chopped
3 Tbsp water
1 medium scallion(s), minced
1 1/2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp chili powder
15 oz canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cup(s) cooked corn kernels, fresh or frozen
2 cup(s) grape tomatoes
1 medium sweet red pepper(s), cut into thin strips (about 1 1/2 cups)

8 cup(s) romaine lettuce, cut into thick shreds (about 2 hearts)

Instructions

To make dressing, in a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, cilantro, water, scallion, lime juice, sugar and chili powder until smooth. Transfer to a jar or a plastic container with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate until ready to use.

In a large bowl or food storage container, layer remaining ingredients in order listed; cover and refrigerate.

To serve, spoon salad ingredients into a bowl. Shake dressing and then drizzle dressing over salad; toss well to coat. Yields about 2 cups of salad and 1 1/2 tablespoons of dressing per serving.

The Quesadillas were marked with "festive" imprints! Look close, there is a guitar on the one closest and maracas on the other one I believe.

Chicken and Salsa Quesadillas

2 cups shredded chicken

1 can chopped green chile

Garlic Salt and Onion Powder to taste

Salt and Pepper to taste

1/2-1 cup Salsa

Shredded Colby/Jack cheese to liking

Flour tortillas

Mix all the ingredients, except tortillas together. Spoon the meat onto one half of the tortilla. Fold the tortilla over and generously spray each side with cooking spray(this is the key for the crunchy tortilla). Place quesadillas on a cookie sheet. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes on each side. The longer you bake them the crunchier they will become.

MAIN COURSE
Sal Picon(brisket meat)
Bake 4 lbs of brisket with 4 bay leaves and 1 chopped onion, wrapped in foil. Bake at 350 for 4-5 hours.
Pull out the meat and let it cool a bit. Shred the meat and pull the fat off if there is any on the brisket, it is easier while it is still warm.
In a blender add:
7 oz can Chipotle with Adobo Sauce
1/4 cup vinegar
1/3 cup oil
Mix together and set aside. Add 1/3-1/2 cup of the mixture to the meat and let it sit overnight. When ready to serve, you want the meat at room tempurature.
Then add:
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 c. Pepperjack cheese, cubed small (we used just Jack cheese to cut down the "heat")
2 cups cubed tomatoes
8 oz. can Garbanzo beans
Stir the meat together with the above ingredients. If it needs more spice, add a bit more of the Adobo Sauce mixture. Serve at room tempurature with warm corn or flour tortillas.

The ladies had the dinner set up out side and we are told it was just so beatiful and breath taking! They did a WONDERFUL job moving inside... due to inclimate weather... (and by inclimate, I mean UTAH SPRING at it's finest!!!)

Pinto Beans with Jalapeno
1 lb bag of Pinto beans
1 onion, chopped
1 jalapeno
1/2 can tomato sauce
Salt
Soak the pinto beans in warm water overnight. You will need enough water to cover the beans up to 2-3 inches of water above. We used our crock pots for each step. The next morning, cut off the top of the jalapeno and place the jalapeno in with the beans, add the chopped onion and tomato sauce and stir. Cook on Low for 8 hours or High 5-6 hours. When the beans are soft they are ready to eat. You will add the salt at the very end, and salt to taste. (Side note: if you don't want to soak the beans overnight, they will just take longer to cook the next day. You can also boil them in a stockpot on the stove for a few hours if you don't have a crockpot, or don't have the time. The key is getting them to boil hard for a few hours so they will get soft)

Our sweet little take home gifts, a "Fiesta Mix" cd, wedding cookies & more spanish cookies, a pepper growing kit! (I can't wait to grow mine!) and a cute little basket to hold it all.

Spanish Rice
2 cups rice
1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
4 cups water
1 can tomato sauce
Chicken Buillon
2 TBSP Cilantro, chopped
Salt
In a frying pan, heat up enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Brown 2 cups of rice in the oil and add the chopped onion and garlic. Add the water and tomato sauce. Let it boil a bit and when some of the water is gone, add the Cilantro on top of the rice, do not stir in. Add salt to taste when the rice is cooked.

Not pictured: HORCHATA!

DRINK
Sunrise Punch
2 liter Lemon Lime Soda (we used Shasta)
1 can frozen Hawaiis Own Frozen Concentrate(we made a different kind each time, ex. Paradise Punch, Guava Raspberry, etc)
Ice
Thaw the frozen punch in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds. Pour in the punch bowl with the Soda and ice. Stir it all together, making sure to dissolve the punch and serve!

Horchata

Ingredients
1 cup uncooked white long-grain rice
5 cups water
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2/3 cup white sugar
Directions
Pour the rice and water into the bowl of a blender; blend until the rice just begins to break up, about 1 minute. Let rice and water stand at room temperature for a minimum of 3 hours.
Strain the rice water into a pitcher and discard the rice. Stir the milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar into the rice water. Chill and stir before serving over ice.

DESSERT
Frosty Raspberry/Strawberry Squares
1 C. flour
¼ c. brown sugar
½ c. chopped nuts
½ c. melted butter
Mix together and spread into shallow baking pan.
Bake at 350 for 10 minutes, stir occasionally
Spread 2/3 of crumbs into 9X13 pan

Combine
2 TBSP lemon juice
2 egg whites
1 c. sugar
2 c.sliced strawberries/raspberries (or 10 oz pkg frozen &reduce sugar to 2/3 c.)
Mix together and beat fast until it forms stiff peaks. Fold in 1 c, WHIPPED whipping cream. Spread over cooled crust and top with remaining crumbs. Freeze 6 hours or overnight.

Jennise & Kristin's FABULOUSO Fiesta!

Happy Cinco De Mayo to us!!! AUTHENTIC CUSINE ~STRAIGHT FROM THE BORDER! Courtesy of Jennise & Kristin.
From our singing save the date to the cute invite cleverly scribed in Spanish--- to our festive take home goodie basket.... Kristin & Jennise put on a fabulous Mexian Fiesta tonight ~complete with our hostesses dressed in culture for the occasion!
 Upon arrival we were greeted with paper luminaries & the mouth watering aroma from the Mexican cooking.  Inside it was like stepping right in to Mehico ;)
Our fabulous hostesses had such fun and authentic decor! We were surprised to hear that much of the food and decorations had come from straight from Mexico... now that is spoiling your guests!
Our menu was cleverly written on a marker board & our cute floarl designed napkin rings doubled as a ring suitable to wear for the evening! (I should not be a hand model-- but the rings were so fun.) A maraca held our place-cards & a very festive fruit kabob display added so much fun to the bright tablescape - (the kabobs held in place by head of lettuce halves.... clever!) The food was absolutely delish. I am pretty certain I had my share of the fresh mango salsa... as well as the shares of everyone else sitting on my end of the table. *GULP* YUMM-E SALSA! :)The detail of the evening was so wonderful... especially for making last minute changes to the dining venue due to the inclimate weather... (a WISE choice indeed after the down pour we had last night!)
I confess, the lack of pictures might be due to the fact that I was too busy eating, drinking and being merry. But thank goodness others were diligent in their picture taking, we'll have more to post soon!
I might be able to skip my ab workout on evenings we have our Bon Vivant dinners as there is always some serious gut busting laughter going on!
Rachel's Anniversary was the same evening-- and she was given a beautiful "blue gem" ring in memory of the occasion... (You gals are so clever! That was very cute!)

~Recipes & more pictures to come~

Our Second Gourmet Dinner!

"Queen for an evening" By Heather & Aimee

It was so delightful! We were invited to be a queen for a night at "Sweet Lizzies" -- Darling candy store in Tooele, (owned by one of our fabulous hostesses for the evening!) We arrived and were led to the upstairs loft by the DARLING decor! Place settings and tablescapes had us feeling like we were sitting at a sweet little french cafe'!

We started out with a delicious cream of asparagus soup, cranberry fetta salad followed by tasty gourmet BLT+++! Scrumptious chicken salad croissant & pasta salad. We were then invited to sample from the GORGEOUS dessert buffet, filled with marshmallow lollies, coconut cream cake, baklava, too cute to eat cupcakes... raspberry lemon cheesecake bars--- my mouth is just watering like a fountain here! SOOO yummy! We had such a blast that evening... once again-- can't wait for our next night together!

Salad

Greens

Cranberries

Feta Cheese

Sunflower Seeds

Creamy Italian Dressing (alright, we cheated, and used our favorite Kraft Creamy Italian with Oregano



Cream of Asparagus Soup

1 lb. Fresh Asparagus

4 cups water

2 Tbsp. of Knorr Granulated chicken boullion

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup cream

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp black pepper



1. Trim off and discard ends of asparagus. Cut into 1 inch pieces. Combine asparagus and 1 cup water in medium saucepan. Add chicken boullion.



2. Cook 12-15 minutes or until tender. Puree in blender.



3. Melt butter in separate pan and add flour to create roux. Add water to create creamy soup base.



4. Combine asparagus, roux, cream, salt and pepper to taste.



Lemon Blackberry Cupcakes



Cake

Lemon Cake Mix

Add Extra Egg

Add Vanilla Pudding Mix



Lemon Buttercream Frosting





1/2 c. of butter, room temperature

1 tsp. grated lemon rind

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

3 1/2 c. confectioners' sugar

1/4 c. milk

1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

In a mixer bowl, cream the butter, lemon rind, vanilla and salt until light and about 2 minutes. Add confectioners' sugar alternately with milk until the mixture is creamy and smooth, beating well after each addition. Beat in the lemon juice.



Top with blackberry for garnish.



Marshmallow Lollies



Sucker Sticks

Marshmallows

Strawberry Melting Wafers

Red Sixlets

Silver Dragees



Stick marshmallow on stick. Using a double boiler, melt the strawberry wafers. Coat top half of marshmallow, decorate with dragees and sixlets.

"Una Notte in Italia" Rachel & Tiffany's Cucina!!

Una Notte in ITALIA
Rachel ~ Tiffany
CUCINA!
Our first gourmet event it was SUCH fun, (and a lot of work! But worthy work!)
Our menu revolved around Italian dishes: Antipasti platter, homemade bread, Panzenella Salad, Maio Rigitoni, Sundried tomato stuff pork, White Chocolate Tirimisu & Polenta cookies!
We had fun creating this evening and can't wait for the next dining event!

The MENU

~Bevande ~ (beverage)

Cranberry Lime Bellini ~ The Rachel & Tiffany concoction!
Mix:
Cranberry Juice
Sierra Mist
Lime Sherbet
Garnish punch bowl with lime slices

~Antipasti ~ (before meal)
Tiffany’s Italian Stuffed mushrooms
1 package large mushrooms (your choice) washed, remove trimmed stems and chop fine w/remaining mushrooms.
3-4 T. butter or olive oil
3 green onions, whites & partial green, sliced
2 slices white bread, tear into small pieces
¼ cup Italian bread crumbs
3 oz. cream cheese
Sautee mushrooms in 3-4 tablespoons butter, 3-4 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Remove from heat and stir in cream cheese until melted. Add extra seasonings to taste: Italian seasoning, garlic/onion powder, parmesan cheese. Fill each mushroom w/heaping teaspoon of filling into each mushroom. Top with Italian blend grated cheese. Drizzle with a little extra butter. Bake at 350* for 25 min. or until warmed through & browned.

Fried Ravioli w/Marinara
Olive oil for frying (bring to frying temp med, med-hi)
1 bag frozen or fresh cheese ravioli
1 cup butter milk
2 cups Italian bread crumbs
¼ c. grated parmesan cheese
Marinara of your choice or recipe below.
Thaw ravioli slightly. Pour buttermilk over ravioli. Coat one at a time in bread crumbs. Fry until ravioli floats or browned. Drain on paper towel & sprinkle with grated parm cheese. Serve warm-Enjoy with warmed marinara sauce!
homemade marinara: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/marinara-sauce-recipe/index.html

Pyhllo Wrapped Asaparagus – Paula Deen
8 or 9 asparagus spears, depending on size
1/2 (16-ounce) package frozen phyllo dough sheets, thawed
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Snap off the tough ends of the asparagus. Unwrap the phyllo and cut the stack in half lengthwise. Reserve 1 stack for later use. Cover the phyllo with a damp towel to keep it from drying out. Take 1 sheet of phyllo and brush lightly with some melted butter. Sprinkle with some Parmesan. Place 2 to 3 asparagus spears on the short end of the sheet. Roll up, jelly-roll style. Place each piece, seam side down, on a baking sheet. Brush with more melted butter and sprinkle with more Parmesan. Repeat until all the asparagus spears are used up. Place baking sheet in oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy.

Pancetta Bites (Italian version of Ramaki)
On a tooth pick, skewer:
1 inch green onion (green part)
1 Kalamata olive wrapped in fresh mozzarella
1 water chestnut wrapped in pancetta (Italian bacon)
(1 can water chestnuts, drained. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar. Wrap each water chestnut in pancetta, or bacon, and bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until pancetta is crispy.)

Artichoke & Tomato Panzenella – Giada De Laurentiis
1 (10-ounce) package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed, approx 2 cups (We used canned artichokes)
3 cups whole-wheat bread, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces (we used Albertsons bakery: Sliced Labrea Whole Grain)
3 large, red tomatoes, cut into wedges (We used 1 basket grape tomatos)
1 cup pitted black olives, halved (we used the jumbo size)
3/4 cup chopped, fresh basil leaves (about 1 bunch)
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
Directions
Place a grill pan over medium-high, or preheat a gas or charcoal grill— (We used the broiler oven). Drizzle the bread and artichoke hearts with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the bread and artichokes until golden brown at the edges, about 6 minutes total, turning every 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the bread and artichokes from the grill and transfer to a large bowl.
Add the tomatoes, olives and basil to the bowl and toss to combine. In a small bowl stir together the 2/3 cup olive oil, white wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Drizzle the dressing over the salad. Toss to combine and serve immediately. (We reserved the dressing so that the bread wouldn’t get soggy, great leftovers!)

LORRIE’S BREAD
4 cups warm water
1/2 c sugar
2 T yeast
proof the yeast for 1/2 hour
1/2 c. veg oil
hand full of salt (2 1/2 Tbsps)
Add to yeast mixture and wire whisk til all incorporated
MIX IN: add 2 to 3 cups flour at at time until can’t stir with wooden spoon (up 8-10)
and then sprinkle work surface with flour and and knead & add more flour as needed until it’s smooth elastic (no longer sticky).
Grease bowl and put the dough in and let rise (in oven) for 45 min.
After 45 min. take it out and punch it down
divide into four sections and put into greased bread pans & let rise for 1 hour.
Bake at 350* for 1/2 hour.

 

~Primi~
“Tuscan dining is simplicity perfected!”
“Maio” Family Rigitoni & Rachel’s Cucina Pane (Italian bread- using her family recipe)
Rigitoni:
Mix in a sauce pan and bring to boil:
1 small can Contadina tomato paste + 1 can h2o
3 small (8oz) can Contadina tomato sauce + 3 cans h2o
2-3 cloves freshly minced garlic
2-3 Tbsp. sugar (cuts acidity)
add to taste: salt, pepper, garlic & onion salt or powder, oregano, basil, thyme.
Grated parmesan cheese (Kraft) Enough to cover surface of sauce.
In a crockpot or large pot on stove, place 4-5 chicken legs or thighs with skin and bone + 3-4 chicken breasts. Pour sauce over chicken. Simmer approx. 4-5 hrs. Skim fat as desired.
Discard skin, bones & shred chicken, return to pot. Cook rigatoni (stove pipe shaped noodles) according to package. Add pasta to chicken and sauce- let simmer for 30 minutes. Garnish with grated Italian cheese blend.

~Secondi~
Sun dried Tomato & Spinach Porco
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 sun-dried tomatoes, diced (we used sundried tomato tapenade, below)
1 (10-ounce) bag of frozen spinach, thawed and excess water squeezed out (we used fresh)
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup (2 ounces) goat cheese (we omitted the goat cheese, our taste buds for it must need maturing.)
1/3 cup reduced-fat cream cheese (we added 1/3 more cream cheese due to the lack of goat cheese, or you could use mascarpone cheese.)
4 (4-ounce) center-cut pork chops
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 lemon, zested
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Directions
Warm the 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, salt, pepper, and thyme. Cook until combined, about 2 more minutes. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl. Add the goat cheese and the cream cheese. Stir to combine and set aside.
Use a sharp knife to cut a pocket into the thickest portion of the pork chop. Stuff each pocket with 1/4 of the spinach and sun-dried tomato mixture and close the pork around the stuffing. Season the outside of the pork with salt and pepper.
In a small bowl combine the chicken broth, lemon zest, lemon juice, and mustard.
Warm the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot add the pork. Cook until golden and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the pork to a side dish and tent with foil to keep warm. Add the chicken broth mixture to the skillet over medium-high heat. Scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan as the chicken broth simmers. Reduce the broth by half to make a light sauce, about 8 minutes. Spoon some sauce over the pork before serving.
(We garnished with Italian flat leaf parsley & toasted pine nuts.)

~Dolici~
White Chocolate Tiramisu
White Chocolate Cream :
1/2 cup milk
4 ounces good quality white chocolate, broken into pieces
1/4 cup sugar
8 ounces mascarpone or cream cheese
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup raspberry liqueur (creme de cassis) or raspberry-flavored syrup
16 very thin slices sponge or angel food cake (we used homemade pound cake, recipe below)
4 tablespoons grated bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
8 whole strawberries
Chocolate Leaves, for garnish:
1/2 cup grated semisweet chocolate
8 firm, fresh, clean leaves (be sure they are nonpoisonous or lemon leaves work well- we used clean silk leaves)
6 ounces whole raspberries
4 strawberries, halved
Directions
To make the white chocolate cream: heat the milk over low-medium heat until bubbles form around the edges of the saucepan. Place the white chocolate pieces in a small bowl and pour the hot milk over. Whisk until the chocolate is completely melted.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk the sugar into the mascarpone. Set aside. In a small, chilled bowl, whip the cream with the vanilla until soft peaks form (do not overbeat.) Whisk the white chocolate mixture into the mascarpone. Fold in the whipped cream. The texture should be like lightly whipped cream; if it doesn’t “flow”, thin the mixture slightly by stirring in some milk, 1 tablespoon at a time.
Spoon the liqueur evenly over the cake slices. Place 1 slice of cake in the bottom of each goblet. Spoon half of the cream mixture over the cake slices (about 2 1/2 tablespoons for each slice.) Sprinkle each with 1/2 tablespoon of the grated chocolate. Slice 8 strawberries and place some slices over the chocolate in each goblet. Repeat the cake, cream and chocolate layers. Refrigerate for 4 to 8 hours.
To make the chocolate leaves: line a plate with waxed paper. In a double boiler over low heat, melt the grated semisweet chocolate. Remove the chocolate from the heat. Using a pastry brush, spread the underside of each leaf with a layer of chocolate. Place the painted leaves, chocolate side up, on the prepared plate. Freeze until the chocolate is set. Carefully peel the leaf off the chocolate, handling the chocolate leaf as little as possible. Return the leaves to the freezer if the chocolate is melting.
Just before serving, top each tiramisu with raspberries and garnish each with a strawberry half and chocolate leaves.

ITALIAN SANDWICH COOKIES
The polenta experience
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/italian-chocolate-sandwich-cookie-recipe/index.html
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (2 sticks)
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cornmeal or polenta
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 orange, zested
Orange Filling:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (1 stick) (we used ¼ c. salted butter and 4 oz. cream cheese)
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 orange, zested (we added 1 tsp vanilla)
Pinch salt
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
To make the Chocolate Cookies, in a large bowl use an electric mixer to cream together the butter and sugar until light in color and fluffy. In another medium bowl stir together the flour, cornmeal or polenta, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, and orange zest. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and stir to combine using a wooden spoon. Place the dough on a sheet of plastic wrap. Press the dough into a 1-inch high round. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day.
Roll out the dough to between 1/8 and 1/4-inch thick. Use a 1 3/4-inch round cookie cutter to cut out the dough. Bake on a heavy baking sheet for 15 minutes. Place the baking sheets on a wire rack to cool cookies.
Meanwhile, to make the Orange Filling, combine the butter, powdered sugar, orange zest, and salt in a medium bowl. Use an electric mixer to cream the ingredients together.
To assemble the cookie sandwiches, place about 1 teaspoon of the Orange Filling on a cookie. Top with another cookie and press the cookies together. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 day.

Buno Appetito!