Chinese Fortune Cookies

Easy to make Home Made fortune cookies.
I serve these when having a Chinese meal.
You can add in some cocoa if you like for
making these chocolate fortune cookies.

Ingredients:
2 large whites
1/2 cup all-Purpose flour
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
1 teaspoons almond extract
2 teaspoons cold water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl.
Spread fortune cookie batter in a thin round
layer about 4" in diamiter on a baking sheet.
Bake in oven for about 8 minutes to brown.
Remove and shape into a fortune cookie.
Adding in a paper tape message is optional.

Oreo Cream Cookies

I use store bought thin chocolate wafers
and fill between them this sweet and tasty
Oreo cookie type copy-kat vanilla creme.
These are really easy to make and are a
fun to make kid friendly cookie recipe.

Ingredients:
48 chocolate wafers
2 sticks butter (room temperature)
2 cups confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Using a hand-held mixer with the beaters
cream butter at medium speed until light,
add half the confectioner's sugar and mix
on low for 30 seconds. Scrape down the bowl.
Add vanilla and mix on low for 30 seconds.
Again scraping down the bowl.
Gradually mix in remaining confectioners' sugar,
until you reach a speadable consistency.
Spread filling carefully with a small spatula.
Store in an air tight container.

No Mayonnaise Ham and Dill Pickle Salad

I make this ham and pickle salad
without using any mayonnaise.
If you wish you can spread mayo on
the slice of bread to make a sandwich
but this tastes great without mayonnaise.

Ingredients:
1/2 pound deli sliced ham
1/4 pound deli sliced P&P loaf
6 jarred whole dill pickles

Directions:
Using a food processor chop P&P loaf,
deli sliced ham and dill pickles.
Combine together in a large bowl.
Place ham salad in a covered container
and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Crunchy Cold Pasta SaladElbow Macaroni Cole Slaw

This combines two creamy salads for making
a great tasting crunchy macaroni salad.
I'm keeping this simple but go ahead and
get creative in adding in some of your
favorite ingredients like cooked bacon,
capers, grapes, apples or even anchovies.
Top the salad with some roasted nuts.
Ingredients:
6 quarts cold water
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound elbow macaroni
1/2 cup real mayonaise
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1 pound shredded cabbage
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:
Boil salted water and cook macaroni
just until done al dante, to the tooth.
Drain water from pasta, place in a bowl,
cover with plastic wrap touching right on
top of the pasta to keep from dying the pasta.
Refrigerate overnight or until really cold.
Mix all other ingredients in a big bowl.
Mix in the cooled cooked macaroni,cover
and refrigerate until ready to serve.
This will keep for a week if kept cool.

Hot Dogs and Baked Beans

This is a good make ahead meal.
Use the cheapest of canned bbq beans
and the best of all beef hot dogs.
This will keep in the refrigerator
for a good week until ready to serve.

Ingredients:
Depending on how many hot dogs:
6 all beef hot dogs
1 can of baked beans

Directions:
Saute or grill hot dogs until done.
Slice them on the bias about 1/2" thick.
Add the sliced hot dogs to a pot with the
can of baked beans, simmer and serve.

Corn & Red Pepper Saladwith Mediterranian Dressing

A yellow corn and red bell pepper salad
that tastes even better than it looks.
We made this corn salad thirty years ago
using some peeled roasted red bell peppers,
and called this colorful salad Mexi-Corn.
I think you can buy a canned version of that.
I make this using fresh not canned corn for
almost every one of our family summer picnics.
It really keeps well and can be left out at
room temperature in the heat of the day.
It's easy to prepare using frozen corn

Ingredients:
2 cups frozen yellow corn
1 cup black olives, chopped
1 cup Feta cheese, crumbled
1 large fresh red bell pepper
1 red onion, peeled and diced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:
In the largest mixing bowl you got,
Place in corn kernals, olives, chopped onion,
along with olive oil salt and black pepper.
Add in chopped red bell pepper, chese and vinegar.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap and serve.

Russet Potato Chips Cooked in Microwave

Crisp and browned in the microwave oven.
This really works for making some good
tasting freshly baked potato chips.
Flavor with fresh chopped herbs or some
grated cheese to make these special if desired.
These chips are done in ten minutes on high power
so there's no excuse for you not trying this.

Ingredients:
1 Russet potato
cold water for rinsing
paper towels for drying potato slices
vegetable cooking spray
a sprinkle of table salt to taste

Directions:
Rinse potato under cold water,
and pat dry with paper towels.
Prepare a microwave safe dish by lightly
coating with vegetable cooking spray.
Slice into chips as thin as you can.
Place slices on prepared microwave safe plate
and dry the chips again with paper towels.
lightly coat the top of potato slices with
cooking spray and place in the microwave.
Cook on high power setting for 10 minutes.
Season with salt to taste.

Perfectly Tender Pork Roast

It's Simple folks, Low and Slow is the Way to Go.
I've tried all types of herb infused and spice rubs
and found most seem to mask the taste of the pork.
So here is a recipe for roasting a pork shoulder
that tastes like pork with little other added flavors.
This simple recipe takes a 5 pound pork shoulder
and about 10 hours to roast at a temp of 250 F.
The meat is very juicy and Pork Tender.

Ingredients:
1 (5 pound) fresh pork shoulder
2 teaspoons table salt
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 cups water

Directions:
Rinse pork with cold water and pat dry.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Place pork on a metal rack in roasting pan,
and pour water in the bottom of pan.
Roast or bake covered in a 250 degree F.oven
for at least 10 hours until the internaltemperature
of the pork shoulder reaches about 200 degrees F.
Remove and let sit 30 minutes before serving.

Home Made Chocolate Fudge

This fudge is so good tasting that I almost
fell over backwards on the first yummy bite.
Easy to make in just a few minutes time.
Make sure you heat up the chocolate enough
so that it tempers and is able to re-solidify.
Choose your favorite chocolate, I like dark.
Pick up a can of sweetened condensed milk
at your grocery store and get ready to
make really good tasting home made fudge.
Make this your own by topping with what ever.
It's so creamy good and melts in your mouth.

Ingredients:
1 (14 ounce) can Condensed milk
14 ounces chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon sugar
1 tablespoon powdered cocoa

Directions:
Line an 8"x8" dish with parchment paper and
sprinkle the bottom with cinnamon sugar to taste.
Place chocolate chips in a glass mixing bowl
and melt them for two minutes in a microwave.
Stir in vanilla and condensed milk and cook
another 2 minutes or until heated through and
creamy enough to combine together well.
Pour chocolate mixture into dish and top with
a sprinkling of cocoa powder to taste.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate
for about 2 hours before cutting ans serving.