Tropical Fruit Pasta Salad (Frog Eye Salad)

My mom put this recipe in our family cookbook.  When I was a kid, and my mom made this salad, I knew we were in for some good food and a lot of it.  This recipe is a potluck favorite and almost a church staple in some areas of our country.  This is a very yummy, albeit time intensive recipe.  You have to think in advance to make this recipe.  You have been warned!  Also, I don't make it like my mom, this my take.

 This is fruit and pasta together in the best way.

Ingredients for this Recipe Are:

1 lb. Acini de Pepe Pasta

17.6 ounces Coconut Juice

2 teaspoons Lemon Extract

1 Pineapple

2 large Mangos

1 cup Cane Sugar (can substitute White Sugar)

2 large Eggs

2 tablespoons Flour

2 cups Heavy Whipping Cream

1/2 cup Cane Sugar (can substitute White Sugar)

2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract

Pour coconut juice, lemon extract, Cane Sugar, beaten eggs, and flour in a small sauce pan over medium flame.

Cook sauce until thickened.

 Cook pasta according to package directions.

Drain pasta and rinse with cold water.

Place pasta in a large bowl.

 Cut pineapple and mangos into small bite sized pieces.

 Pour thickened sauce over pasta, stir, and refrigerate over night.

Pour Heavy Whipping Cream, Cane Sugar, and Vanilla Extract in bowl of stand mixer.

Using the whisk attachment beat the whipping cream until it thickens and is fluffy.

Add 8 ounces of whipped cream, and fruit to the pasta. Stir and then refrigerate until cold.

I love how bright and cheery this salad is, and letting the flavors come together before eating it really makes a difference.  

Enjoy!

Tropical Fruit Pasta Salad (Frog Eye Salad)

Printable Recipe Found Here

1 lb. Acini de Pepe Pasta

17.6 ounces Coconut Juice

2 teaspoons Lemon Extract

1 Pineapple

2 large Mangos

1 cup Cane Sugar (can substitute White Sugar)

2 large Eggs

2 tablespoons Flour

2 cups Heavy Whipping Cream

1/2 cup Cane Sugar (can substitute White Sugar)

2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract

Pour coconut juice, lemon extract, Cane Sugar, beaten eggs, and flour in a small sauce pan over medium flame.

Cook sauce until thickened.

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Drain pasta and rinse with cold water.

Place pasta in a large bowl.

Pour thickened sauce over pasta, stir, and refrigerate over night.

Cut pineapple and mangos into small bite sized pieces.

Pour Heavy Whipping Cream, Cane Sugar, and Vanilla Extract in bowl of stand mixer.

Using the whisk attachment beat the whipping cream until it thickens and is fluffy.

Add 8 ounces of whipped cream, and fruit to the pasta. Stir and then refrigerate until cold.

Enjoy!

Chinese Baked Haddock

While at Costco and picking this weeks fish, I found Haddock, another fish I haven't fed my family and decided to try it.  This recipe is based on a of couple recipes I read and also my own take on combining Chinese ingredients.  

 Fish and rice, so good together.

Ingredients for this Recipe Are:
2 lbs. Haddock

1/2 cup Soy Sauce

1/2 cup melted Butter

4 cloves pressed Garlic

1/2 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes

3 tablespoons Lemon Extract (Lemon juice can be substituted)

Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit.

Place haddock in oven safe oval dish.

 Pour soy sauce, butter, garlic, red pepper flakes, and lemon extract into a small bowl and mix.

Pour sauce over haddock.

 Bake haddock for 30 minutes.

Eat the haddock over a bed of steamed brown rice as we did or on white rice.

Enjoy!

Chinese Baked Haddock

Printable Recipe Found Here

2 lbs. Haddock

1/2 cup Soy Sauce

1/2 cup melted Butter

4 cloves pressed Garlic

1/2 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes

3 tablespoons Lemon Extract (Lemon juice can be substituted)

Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit.

Place haddock in oven safe oval dish.

Pour soy sauce, butter, garlic, red pepper flakes, and lemon extract into a small bowl and mix.

Pour sauce over haddock.

Bake haddock for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Key Lime Pie

Today is Pi Day, get it 3.14 (month.day)?  Maybe you get it?  Okay anyway Happy Pi Day.  In honor of Pi I made pie, Key Lime Pie.  This was no ordinary pie.  I used my left over reject graham crackers from the Educator Appreciation Luncheon.   Remember the 200 S'mores I had to have graham crackers and marshmallows for?  During my baking/cooking extravaganza, I had a 1 gallon zip top bag of graham crackers, that from my own personal reasoning, didn't measure up whether they broke apart or were over cooked.  The graham crackers were perfect for a pie crust and my oldest daughter requested Key Lime Pie.  We don't have Key Limes in our grocery stores right now but we do have concentrate. I went to the store got the Key Lime Concentrate and went about making a pie.

 Mmmm pie, Happy Pi Day!

Ingredients for this recipe are:

Crust:

3 cups Graham Cracker Crumbs (I used homemade graham crackers, recipe found here)

2 sticks Unsalted Butter

Filling:

2 cans Condensed Milk

1 cup Key Lime Concentrate

6 Egg Yokes

Preheat Oven to 350 Fahrenheit

 If you used graham cracker crumbs, disregard this step. 

Chop graham crackers into crumbs in blender.

 Mix graham cracker crumbs and butter together in bowl with hands.

 Press graham cracker mixture into 2 inch x 10 inch tart pan or pie pan.  It is a very wet mixture.

Place crust and pan onto an aluminum covered cookie sheet and place in freezer for 15 minutes.

 Bake pie crust for 10 minutes, it will flatten and become soupy because of all the butter.

 Blend egg yokes in mixer with whisk attachment on medium until thick and light yellow.

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Add condensed milk slowly while whisking egg yokes on medium.  Whisk until combined.

Slowly pour Key Lime juice while mixer mixes on slow speed.

Pour key lime filling into zip top bag, and snip 1/2 inch corner off of bag.

Squeeze key lime filling into pie crust slowly.

 Place pie in oven and bake for 10 minutes.

 Remove pie and refrigerate until the filling becomes firm.

Enjoy!

Key Lime Pie

Printable Recipe Found Here

Crust:

3 cups Graham Cracker Crumbs

2 sticks Unsalted Butter

Filling:

2 cans Condensed Milk

1 cup Key Lime Concentrate

6 Egg Yokes

Preheat Oven to 350 Fahrenheit

Mix graham cracker crumbs and butter together in bowl with hands.

Press graham cracker mixture into 2 inch x 10 inch tart pan or pie pan.  It is a very wet mixture.

Place crust and pan onto an aluminum cover cookie sheet and place in freezer for 15 minutes.

Bake pie crust for 10 minutes, it will flatten and become soupy because of all the butter.

Blend egg yokes in mixer with whisk attachment on medium until thick and light yellow.

Add condensed milk slowly while whisking egg yokes on medium.  Whisk until combined.

Slowly pour Key Lime juice while mixer mixes on slow speed.

Pour key lime filling into zip top bag, and snip 1/2 inch corner off of bag.

Squeeze key lime filling onto pie crust slowly.

Place pie in oven and bake for 10 minutes.

Remove pie and refrigerate until the filling becomes firm.

Enjoy!  

Stuffed Cubanero Peppers

On Monday night I made roast beef for a crowd, sadly the crowd didn't show up, so I had leftovers. Tonight my son's Pack Meeting was meeting, and I needed to contribute to the potluck because if I didn't I would feel really guilty.  My husband is the Den Leader for my son's Wolf Den.  It is a family affair when we show up for Pack Night.  While out grocery shopping this morning, I came upon a bag of Cubanero Peppers and decided why not stuff them with my left over roast beef?  They look a little like Poblano Peppers.  This recipe is for the boys and men of Pack 90 here in Queens and it is a great way to use left over roast beef if you happen to have any left over from your Sunday Pot Roast dinner.

 I love the complimentary colors, red and green.

Ingredients for this Recipe Are:

3 lbs. Roast Beef (I used leftovers)

2 cups Enchilada Sauce (I used homemade, recipe found here)

8 Cubanero Peppers

2 Roasted Red Peppers

2 Tablespoons Better Than Boullion Beef Flavor (not pictured)

1 1/2 cups Water

 Dice roast beef into 1/2 inch cubes.

 Dice roasted red peppers.

Preheat 12 inch cast iron skillet over medium/high flame.

 Put beef, roasted red pepper, enchilada sauce, water, Better Than Boullion and cook until liquid boils.

 Cut stem side ends off of Cubanero Peppers and remove seeds and white veins inside.

Spoon as much meat mixture into peppers as will fit.

Place stuffed peppers on remaining meat and sauce.

Cover skillet with lid and cook for 5 minutes or until peppers soften.

Enjoy!

Stuffed Cubanero Peppers

Printable RecipeFound Here

3 lbs. Roast Beef (leftover)

2 cups Enchilada Sauce

8 Cubanero Peppers

2 Roasted Red Peppers

2 Tablespoons Better Than Boullion Beef Flavor

1 1/2 cups Water

Dice roast beef into 1/2 inch cubes.

Dice roasted red peppers.

Preheat 12 inch cast iron skillet over medium/high flame.

Put beef, roasted red pepper, enchilada sauce, water, Better Than Boullipn and cook until liquid boils.

Cut stem side ends off of Cubanero Peppers and remove seeds and white veins inside.

Spoon as much meat mixture into peppers as will fit.

Place stuffed peppers on remaining meat and sauce.

Cover skillet with lid and cook for 5 minutes or until peppers soften.

Enjoy!

Marshmallows

Yes Virginia, you can make homemade marshmallows, but seriously it was funny how many of the Girl Scouts were completely surprised by the thought of making your own marshmallows.  One Girl Scout did say her mom had made them and said they were too hard to make.  I am not a good judge of how hard a recipe is, personally I think this is a very easy recipe. Yes, it does involve some time and certain tools but very doable.  These are very yummy with the graham crackers I showed you how to make here and with Hershey's Kisses, for our Teacher Appreciation Luncheon we made open face S'mores with one graham cracker, marshmallow, and a Hershey's Kiss and toasted them together under the oven broiler.  These crackers are very addictive, each time I reach for one I want another one as soon as I have finished one.  I highly recommend these, the coconut oil puts them over the top.

 Mmmm, marshmallows.  Think of all the possibilities with these beautiful sugar clouds!

Ingredients for this Recipe Are:

1 cup Lite Corn Syrup

1 cup cold water

3 packets Unflavored Gelatin

1 1/2 cups Cane Sugar (white sugar also works)

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1/4 teaspoon Salt

1/4 cup Cornstarch

1/4 cup Powdered Sugar

 Pour 1/2 cup water and gelatin in mixing bowl with whisk attachment standing by.

Pour 1/2 cup water, corn syrup, cane sugar, and salt into medium sauce pan with lid over 
medium/high flame for 3 minutes.

Remove lid from sauce pan, attach candy thermometer and continue cooking until temperature 
reaches 240 Fahrenheit.

Turn off burner and begin slowly adding sugar mixture to gelatin, alternating between 
adding syrup and mixing on high until syrup has all been added.

Continue mixing on high for 12 minutes, add vanilla extract right before the time is over.

Mix cornstarch and powdered sugar together.

Place a piece of parchment paper in a 9 x 13 pan.  

Sprinkle 1/2 cornstarch/powdered sugar mixture over the entire bottom of the pan.

 Spread marshmallow fluff into prepared pan.  Allow to rest on counter over night.

Cut into your favorite shape, or just squares.

Eat them on S'mores, in hot chocolate, or whatever you would like.

Enjoy!

Marshmallows

Printable recipe Found Here

1 cup Lite Corn Syrup

1 cup cold water

3 packets Unflavored Gelatin

1 1/2 cups Cane Sugar (white sugar also works)

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1/4 teaspoon Salt

1/4 cup Cornstarch

1/4 cup Powdered Sugar

Pour 1/2 cup water and gelatin in mixing bowl with whisk attachment standing by.

Pour 1/2 cup water, corn syrup, cane sugar, and salt into medium sauce pan with lid over medium/high flame for 3 minutes.

Remove lid from sauce pan, attach candy thermometer and continue cooking until temperature reaches 240 Fahrenheit.

Turn off burner and begin slowly adding sugar mixture to gelatin, alternating between adding syrup and mixing on high until syrup has all been added.

Continue mixing on high for 12 minutes, add vanilla right before the time is over.

Mix cornstarch and powdered sugar together.

Place a piece of parchment paper in a 9 x 13 pan.  

Sprinkle 1/2 cornstarch/powdered sugar mixture over the entire bottom of the pan.

Spread marshmallow fluff into prepared pan.  Allow to rest on counter over night.

Cut into shapes.

Enjoy!

Graham Crackers

My daughter's and I are part of a Girl Scout troop nearby, and while at a meeting a few weeks ago I somehow ended up volunteering to teach the Girl Scouts how to make homemade graham crackers and marshmallows for S'mores.  The S'mores were to be desert at an Educator Appreciation lunch our troop was hosting.  This recipe is my take on graham crackers, since I don't have Graham flour.  Food fact for you, Graham Crackers were invented by Presbyterian Minister Sylvester Graham in 1829.  He believed that his parishioners should be eating less processed foods, and more whole grains in order to better serve God. For more information you can read about the invention of graham crackers here. Another interesting tidbit about graham flour and why it is not the same as whole wheat flour:  "The endosperm is ground finely, initially creating a fresh unbleached yellowish-white flour. The bran and germ are ground coarsely. The two parts are then recombined, creating a coarse-textured flour that bakes and keeps well." (reference found here).  FYI what I volunteered for was to make homemade S'mores for possibly 200 people, homemade graham crackers and marshmallows for that many people is a daunting task.  Just so you know I did make over 200 graham crackers to serve as part of the S'mores.  

 These are what graham crackers should taste like by the way.

Ingredients for this Recipe Are:

1 1/2 cups Oat Flour
1 1/2 cups Spelt Flour
1 cup Coconut Oil
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 tablespoon Molasses
3 tablespoons Raw Honey
2/3 cup Turbinado Sugar

Mix all the dry ingredients together: flours, salt, baking soda, sugar, cinnamon and salt  in a 
large bowl with a spoon.

 Add wet ingredients: honey, molasses, coconut oil, and honey.

 Using your hands or a mixer mix together until it comes together.

Refrigerate dough for 2 hours.

Preheat Oven to 350 Fahrenheit

Divide dough in half and roll flat between two sheets of parchment paper until it is 1/4 inch thick.

Cut dough into desired rectangles or squares.  

 Using a fork poke crackers three times.

Move paper and dough to a cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes.  

After removing crackers to counter, cut squares/rectangle again.

Enjoy!

Graham Crackers

Printable Recipe Found Here

1 1/2 cups Oat Flour

1 1/2 cups Spelt Flour

1 cup Coconut Oil

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Baking Soda

1 tablespoon Molasses

3 tablespoons Honey

2/3 cup Turbinado Sugar

Mix all the dry ingredients together: flours, salt, baking soda, sugar, cinnamon and salt  in a large bowl with a spoon.

Add wet ingredients: honey, molasses, coconut oil, and honey.

Using your hands or a mixer mix together until it comes together.

Refrigerate dough for 2 hours.

Preheat Oven to 350 Fahrenheit

Divide dough in half and roll flat between two sheets of parchment paper until it is 1/4 inch thick.

Cut dough into desired rectangles or squares.  

Using a fork poke crackers three times.

Move paper and dough to a cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes.  

After removing crackers to counter, cut squares/rectangle again.

Enjoy!