I made this stuff up! Cooking with Mimi

Heidi's Baked Beans

I thought this recipe was on here but it wasn't so time to add it on here!

Heid's Baked Beans

• 2 16oz cans pork and beans
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp dry mustard
• 4 slices bacon
• 1/2 cup ketchup

Put half the beans in the 9x9 baking dish. Mix brown sugar and mustard together. Sprinkle half this over the beans. Add remainder of beans, then sprinkle the rest of the sugar mixture over beans. Lay cut up bacon pieces on top of beans and pour ketchup over top of beans and bacon. Bake at 325 for 2 1/2 hours. I usually stir up after cooking then serve. The beans stay hot forever, so it makes them really nice for taking somewhere. Enjoy!

Apple Salad

So no picture for this but trust me it's good. I made it for Kelly's baby shower but originally had a similar salad at Blue Heron at the coast. So I tweaked this recipe to make it more like I wanted it.

Apple Salad

• 4 honeycrisp apples, cored and chopped
• 1/4 cup pecans, toasted
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup chopped dried cherries
• 1 (8 ounce) container vanilla greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1-2 tsp cinnamon

In a medium bowl, stir together the apples, almonds, cranberries, cherries, cinnamon, honey and yogurt until evenly coated. Depending on the apples you are using you may want to add a bit more sugar or honey to meet your taste. Enjoy!

 

Coleslaw

We had pulled pork sandwiches yesterday for Maddie's birthday and made coleslaw to put on top of them for the grown ups. Here's the recipe.

Coleslaw

• 1 small head cabbage, shredded
• 3 medium carrots, shredded
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp horseradish

In a large bowl, combine cabbage and carrots. In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sugar horseradish, and vinegar. Pour over cabbage mixture and toss to coat. The mixture may look a little dry at first the mixture will get wetter as it sits. Serve with a slotted spoon.

Crunchy Chinese Chicken Salad

This is an old recipe and I had it last year at a gathering and wanted to make it for Tim's graduation weekend. I will be making it often. I shredded the cabbage in the food processor. It was so yummy no photo but it's worth the effort.

Crunchy Chinese Chicken Salad

For the Salad

• 1 head of Cabbage Shredded or thinly sliced
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves
• 3 tablespoons toasted almonds, sliced
• 2 (3 ounce) packages uncooked oriental flavor instant ramen noodles (save 1 seasoning mix packet for the dressing) crushed
• 2 cups chicken breasts, cooked and cubed

 

For the dressing

 

• 1/2 cup sesame oil
  
• 4 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 6 tablespoons rice vinegar
  
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger root, minced
  

Directions

1. Combine salad ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Mix all dressing ingredients and 1 Ramen noodle seasoning packet and pour over salad.
3. Mix well.
4. Refrigerate overnight or several hours.

Japanese-Style Sesame Green Beans

This was one of the side dishes I made for Christmas dinner. I didn't get a picture of them but they were yummy and easy to make. The recipe came from allrecipes.

Japanese-Style Sesame Green Beans

1 tablespoon canola oil 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil 1 pound fresh green beans, washed

1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds 1 handful of cashews optional

Directions:

1.

Warm a large skillet or wok over medium heat. When the skillet is hot, pour in canola and sesame oils, then place whole green beans into the skillet. Stir the beans to coat with oil. Cook until the beans are bright green and slightly browned in spots, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in soy sauce; cover, and let sit about 5 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and cashews.

Spinach and Pear Salad with Pomegranate Dressing

This is the salad we made for New Year's Eve. Very refreshing and different with the pomegranate in it! The original recipe called for walnuts, blech poor people nuts! I substituted pecan pie candied pecans. Yummy!
Spinach and Pear Salad with Pomegranate Dressing

1 medium garlic clove, minced

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 teaspoon white balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons pomegranate juice

1 teaspoon honey

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

5 ounces baby spinach

1 medium pears, cored and cut into slices ( Anjou or Bartlett)

1/4 cup candied pecans, chopped

2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds, fresh

1 ounce parmesan cheese, shaved

Directions

1. whisk together the garlic, oil, vinegar, pomegranate juice, honey, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Set aside.
2. Place the spinach in a large serving bowl, Add the pear slices and walnuts and toss gently.
3. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss again.
4. Divide the salad among 4 serving bowls. Sprinkle the pomegranate seeds and Parmesan evenly over each serving.

Corn and Zucchini Melody

We've got a lot of Zucchini growing in our garden. Look for lots of recipes using it soon! This was a good one!

Corn and Zucchini Melody 

Ingredients:

4 slices bacon 2 cups chopped zucchini 1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels

1 small onion, chopped 1 pinch pepper 1/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Directions:

1.	Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Reserve 1 tablespoon of drippings. Drain bacon, chop, and set aside.
2.	Heat the bacon drippings in the skillet over medium heat. Saute the zucchini, corn, and onion until tender but still crisp, about 10 minutes. Season with pepper. Spoon vegetables into a bowl, and sprinkle with chopped bacon and shredded cheese

Tortellini pasta salad

We made this salad up for the 4th of July party we went to. We didn't really have a recipe just made it up as we went along. It turned out really tasty. I'm guessing at amounts we used but it's not rocket science you can add or take away as your taste suits you. Enjoy!

• 1 pkg dried or fresh tortellini
• 1 bottle italian dressing (caeser would work also) we used almost the whole bottle. It really depends on the tortellini you use to see whether it soaks the dressing up or not.
• 1/4 cup Pesto (If you don't have pesto it's okay to just use dressing but I like the pesto)
• 2 handfuls Arugula
•  Handful Fresh Basil
• 1 container Grape Tomatoes cut in half
• 1 Red, or Orange Pepper chopped up
• 1 Cucumber diced up
• 3/4 cup Feta Cheese (Bleu Cheese would work also)
• 1 can Black Olives sliced
• 1-2 jars Artichoke Hearts
• Salt to taste 
• Pepper to taste

Cook Tortellini as directed on package. After it's done, rinse it with cold water. If the tortellini is hot when you add the dressing it will make your salad dry out. Chop up the rest of the ingredients and toss your salad together. Chill for 4 hours. Check and see if it needs more dressing and add as needed. Enjoy!

 

Hot Corn Dip

This recipe while it may sound strange is really really good. So good that Tim and I had it for dinner last night. It's a great Sunday afternoon sit in front of the tv and relax sort of deal. I think it would be really good on a baked potato also. Enjoy! 

 

 

Hot Corn Dip

Recipe by Emeril Lagasse

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 3 1/2 cups corn kernels (from 4 ears fresh white or yellow corn, or frozen fresh corn)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup finely chopped yellow onions
• 1/2 cup finely chopped red bell peppers - I used roasted red bell peppers from a jar.
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions (green and white parts)
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/2 to 1 cup mayonnaise - 1/2 C was plenty for mine
• 4 ounces monterey jack or cheddar, shredded- I used jalapeno cheese and it was excellent!
• 4 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• Tortilla chips, for dipping

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the corn, salt, and black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the kernels turn deep golden brown, about 5 minutes. Note that if you're using frozen corn it probably won't get golden brown.  Just cook for about 5 minutes as the recipe states.  Transfer to a bowl. 

Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter in the skillet. Add the onions and bell peppers and cook, stirring often, until the onions are wilted, about 2 minutes. Add the green onions, jalapeno, and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, or until the vegetables are softened. Transfer to the bowl with the corn. 

Add 1/2 C mayo, cayenne pepper, half of the monterey jack and half of the cheddar and mix well. If you need more mayo to hold the mixture together then add it, but I found that 1/2 C was plenty, and I even added a little extra cheese.  

Pour into an 8-inch square baking dish, or something equivilant and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Bake until bubbly and golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve hot with tortilla chips or Fritos. 

Creamed Corn

I made this for Thanksgiving dinner. The recipe was originally from Cuisine at Home but I changed it a bit because the original recipe called for leeks. It was a great recipe.

Creamed Corn

• 1 large onion
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 10 cups frozen corn kernels
• 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• Kosher salt and cayenne pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat an 8 inch baking dish with nonstick spray; set aside.

Saute onions in butter in a large saute pan over medium high heat until soft about 2 minutes. Add corn; saute until kernels thaw, about 5 minutes. Pulse 4 cups of the corn mixture in a food processor until kernels are coarsely chopped; return mixture to pan.

Stir in 2 cups of chedder, cream, sugar, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish, top with remaining chedder cheese and bake until cheese is golden, about 30 minutes.