Sweet Treats!

Summer has arrived and that means potlucks and visitors. I have some favorite 'go-to' recipes but always like to try something new, especially if I can use fresh fruit.

I was looking for a new recipe to use some of our raspberries for a potluck dessert and came upon a recipe  for 'Raspberry Pretzel Salad'.

I remember having a Raspberry Pretzel 'Salad' either when I lived in Utah or visited family in Idaho and Utah. Can't quite remember where or when - but I do remember how good it was. While I know this kind of salad is quite common among our Mormon family members, serving this as a salad seems odd in Canada!

I was excited to find the recipe and it was a big hit at our potluck supper. I took a couple of different recipes and combined them - and used whipped cream instead of cool whip - if I am splurging - it better be real whipped cream! Enjoy!

Raspberry Pretzel Dessert

Crust:

• 1 ½ cups crushed pretzels
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup butter, melted

Press into 9X13 inch pan and bake at 325 for 5 -6 minutes. Cool.

 Middle Layer:

• 8 oz pkg. cream cheese, softened
• ½ c sugar
• 3 cups whipped cream (measure after whipping about 1 500ml carton)

Cream together cream cheese and sugar. Then add whipped cream. Spread on top of cooled crust.

Top layer:

• 6 oz pkg. raspberry jello
• 2 cups boiling water
• 3 cups fresh raspberries

Pour boiling water into jello and stir until dissolved. Add raspberries and mix well. Place in refrigerator until it is thickened. Then pour on top of middle layer. Refrigerate until firmly set.

Summer is finally here!

I was making supper tonight and was thinking that one of the things I like best about summer is that we can eat outside on our deck. Not to mention all the fresh vegies and the smell of the BBQ. I guess that is three things I really like about summer.

I love sitting on our deck, enjoying dinner and taking in the neighbourhood - the kids on their bikes, neighbours walking their dogs and the smell of other BBQs.

I made two new salads this week - the soba noodle salad was leftover from Tuesday and tonight I made a radish salad - thankfully Robb and Brenda had an excess of radishes they were willing to share!

Here is the recipe for the noodle salad - I found a few on the web - but they all had something Barry didn't like, so I combined a few recipes and tweaked it a bit to get a salad both Barry and I would enjoy (and he did except he said less vinegar next time )

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup rice-wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 4 tablespoons safflower oil
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 12 ounces soba noodles
• 1 english cucumber, peeled and julienned
• 1 medium carrot, julienned
• 3green onions, thinly sliced on the bias

                                     

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix together vinegar, ginger, soya sauce and lime juice. Slowly whisk in oils until well combined; season with salt and pepper. Set dressing aside.
2. Fill a medium pot of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add noodles and cook according to the package directions, until al dente, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water.
3. Transfer noodles to a large bowl and add cucumber, carrot and green onions. Season with salt and pepper; toss to combine.
4. Drizzle with dressing; you may not need to use all the dressing.

Radish Salad

3 bunches of large radishes, scrubbed, trimmed and very thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

2 - 3 tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp olive oil, or more to taste

a generous pinch of coarse salt

Drizzle lemon over the radishes, then add the olive oil and a pinch of the salt. Toss, taste, and adjust.

Let the salad sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes. The radishes will give off some liquid, which will combine with the lemon juice and oil to make the dressing (note: the dressing is a pretty pink).

 Looking forward to trying some other new recipes - now the sun is here, we should have lots of fresh vegies to eat.