Thanks, cilantro, I have Elery's sister and BIL, his daughter and SIL and his son, DIL and their three children all coming to stay for three days over the 4th of July holiday. I think this would be good, although his sister will give me the lecture if I sweeten the cornbread.

Actually, I think I'd take the cornbread recipe and add some blueberries and make muffins, that sounds yummy.

New recipes? Not yet this month.....

Annie

Tonight was a sort of thrown together pasta dish using leftover items from the fridge and staples. Here is what I did:

~ sunflower and olive oil in my non-stick skillet, 1 small clove of garlic, diced and added to the oils in skillet
~ leftover cooked thin spaghetti added to the pan and heated up
~ salt, pepper and PenzeyâÂÂs Tuscan Sunset spice blend sprinkled on the spaghetti and blended in
~ dollops of whole milk ricotta added to pasta, leftover cooked boneless chicken thighs, skin removed, chicken cubed, skillet covered and the whole heated
~ lid off and Italian blend cheese sprinkled over, lid on, heat off to let cheese melt.

This turned out really delicious! The ricotta was a bit frozen, but still tasted fine; it was even on the middle shelf in the fridge, don't know why it froze. This would be good with some cubed salami or pepperoni, maybe cooked zucchini, roasted red peppers, cooked cubed pork, and just about any leftover protein or veggie.

...although his sister will give me the lecture if I sweeten the cornbread.

Annie....a couple of suggestions.

You could fib a little & tell her that Elery made the cornbread. :-)

Or, use unsweetened cornbread and a sweet-ish salad dressing in place of the Ranch. That is, if you want a sweet salad.

I wanted a sweet cornbread salad because the salad I had a hankering for was a sweet salad. And I like sweet cornbread because I always make cornbread with the idea of me hogging the leftovers for cornbread & milk.

Adding blueberries & making corn muffins is an excellent idea...blueberry season is just about upon us, isn't it? Except that, in my case, I have to have cornbread & milk. Just cornbread because I'm a purist when it comes to C &M...although I'm sure blueberry corn muffins & milk be an almost acceptable exception. And my cornbread has to be a little bit sweet because Mom, a Missouri gal, always added just a little sugar to cornbread.

That said, I used between 1/3 & 1/2 cup sugar in the above recipe and will reduce the am't of sugar to 1/3 cup next time because it was a bit too sweet for my taste. (I can't imagine using the full 2/3 cup called for in the original recipe.)

Oh yeh...I'm sure you noted that this is a make-ahead recipe which is great for when company is coming or for taking to potlucks, etc.

Teresa--thank you for the inspiration. Sometimes those improv dinners turn out soooo yummy, don't they? I would never have though to do the ricotta dollop thing but it's a great idea that I must remember. DSII is a pasta lover & often makes spaghetti topped with garlic, butter & olive oil when he gets in late from work. Your ideas will help us kick it up a notch & make it a bit more of a balanced meal!

I've been intrigued with jicama and have never bought it, until this recipe. The tenderloin and jicama slaw are winners!

Glazed pork Tenderloin with Pineapple Slaw (Real Simple)

1 lb pork tenderloin
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 tbsp ketchup
2 tsp honey
1/4 tsp ground chipotle chili pepper (I used 1 chipotle in adobe)
1 small jicama, 3/4 lb, peeled and cut into thin sticks
1/2 small pineapple, cut into thin sticks
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 tbsp fresh lime juice

Heat oven to 400 degrees

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large ovenproof skillet. Season the pork with salt and pepper and brown on all sides.

Combine the ketchup, honey and chipotle chile pepper. Brush the pork with half the glaze and transfer the skillet to the oven. Roast, turning once, until cooked thru, 10-12 minutes and temp reads 145-150 degrees. Brush with remaining glaze and let rest 5 minutes before slicing.

Meanwhile, combine the jicama, pineapple, red pepper, lime juice and 1 tbsp olive oil, and salt and pepper.

Now that the month is almost over...

I've been cleaning out the pantry and I found a couple of jars of harissa sauce from 2012. Also POOFed some ground lamb from 2012 that was hiding in the back of the freezer. Googled the two and came up with these patties. They were fast, easy and good, but next time I'll spice them up more. My harissa wasn't real hot...that always happens when I follow the recipe (from Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving, I'm sure).

Recipe calls for couscous, but I had a bunch of garlic scapes and some new yellow potatoes, so I roasted them with a little garam masala. Salad made from volunteer greens and thinnings, along with some of the first strawberries..with a balsamic, olive oil, dijon and maple vinaigrette. Yum.

Merguez Lamb Patties with Golden Raisin Couscous Gourmet : March 2008

1 1/4 teaspoons fennel seeds
1 1/4 pounds ground lamb
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons harissa (spicy North African condiment)
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/4 teaspoons ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Toast fennel seeds in a small heavy skillet over medium heat until fragrant and a shade darker, about 1 minute. Grind to a fine powder in grinder.

Mix together lamb, garlic, harissa, spices (including fennel), and 1/2 teaspoon salt thoroughly with your hands (do not overmix). Form into 4 oval patties (about 3/4 inch thick).

Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then cook patties, turning once, about 9 minutes total for medium-rare.

Serve patties on couscous.

Here is a link that might be useful: The whole recipe...w/couscous

Because I had knee surgery on June 10, I was forced to watch the cooking shows on TV during my recovery. I found this easy recipe for chicken wings from Siba's Table on the Cooking Channel.

I used 4 chicken thighs that I had in the freezer; the thighs were bone in and skin on, baked 20 minutes at 375F then the sauce was spooned over and the thighs were baked at 425F for 40 minutes with additional spooning of the sauce over.

Sauce:
1 cup smokey barbecue sauce (I used Kraft's Original)
1 cup Asian sweet chili sauce
4 TB soy sauce

Mix sauce ingredients well in a bowl and spoon over chicken pieces while baking.

I used half the sauce amounts for 4 thighs. You could glaze shoe leather with this sauce and folks would scarf it up!

Teresa