Black Bean Salsa

Again, modified from a recipe on allrecipes.com. I've been looking for recipes with specific ingredients I've had around the house this summer, and the website has been a good go to for easy to modify recipes. This was originally a salad, but is way better as a salsa served with blue corn tortilla chips!

Ingredients

• 1 (15 ounce) can white hominy, drained
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 diced white onion
• 1 diced green bell pepper
• 1 diced red bell pepper
• 1 diced green onions
• 2 seeded and chopped jalapeno peppers
• 1 (24 ounce) jar salsa
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro

Directions

1. In a large bowl, gently stir together all ingredients. Refrigerate at least an hour before serving. Serve with tortilla chips.

Fried Pickles

My roomies were shocked I'd never tried fried pickles, so we made some! Recipe modified from a recipe on allrecipes.com. We veganized it and used different spices. We had left over batter at the end, so we also fried peaches and potatoes, which were delicious. The pickles were the best though.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup buttermilk (soy milk with 1 tsp lemon juice, let sit 5 minutes)
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 (16 ounce) jar dill pickle slices
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups fine cornmeal
• cayenne pepper to taste
• 1 quart oil for frying

Directions

1. Cover a plate with parchment paper or wax paper. In a shallow dish, combine buttermilk, salt, and pepper. Place pickles in mixture and set aside.
2. Pour the flour, cornmeal, and cayenne into a large, resealable plastic bag; shake to mix well. Add pickles a few at a time and tumble gently to coat evenly with the flour mixture. Remove and place on prepared plate.
3. Fry pickles in several batches until golden brown and slightly crisp on the outside with a moist interior, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels.

Roasted Tomatoes

Ok, the point of this post is the TOMATOES...so good!!! You should make them. And put them on whatever you want, because they're amazing. Thanks to my roomie Christina for teaching me how to do this!

Step 1: Slice Maters
Step 2: Coat Maters with Olive Oil
Step 3: Add Random Spices (i.e. Italian Seasoning, Salt, Pepper, etc.)
Step 4: Lay Maters on Broiling Pan and Broil until Done (brownish on edges)
Step 5: Enjoy
Step 6: Make More!

Bridal Shower Tea Party Style

I love throwing bridal showers! This one was super fun. See below recipes for Ginger Berry Lemonade, Lavender Lemonade, Orange Pistachio Cupcakes, and Cucumber Sandwiches! We also put fresh fruit in cute little cups with colored toothpicks.

Ginger Berry Lemonade

You'll need: 3 cups sugar, 1 1/4 cups finely chopped ginger, 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries and/or raspberries, 4 cups fresh lemons (from about 32 lemons), 4 cups cold water, and extra lemons/berries for garnish

What to do: In a large saucepan over high heat, combine sugar and ginger with 8 cups water. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally until sugar dissolves. Boil for 15 minutes. Transfer from heat, and let cool for 15 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve, discarding solids, and refrigerate until well chilled. Set aside about a third of the berries for garnish. In a blender or food processor, process remaining berries until smooth. Strain puree through a mesh sieve, pressing berries with back of a wooden spoon to extract as much juice as possible. Discard solids. In a pitcher, combine ginger syrup, strained berries, lemon juice, and water. Serve over ice, garnished with reserved berries and lemon slices.

Lavender Lemonade

You'll need: 2 cups sugar, 2 cups water, 1/2 cup tightly packed fresh lavender buds, 1 1/3 cups fresh squeezed lemon juice, 8 cups water

What to do: Bring sugar and water to a boil in a saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat and add lavender, simmer 5 minutes. Allow to cool completely or overnight. Combine syrup with lemon juice and water, and enjoy! This is also delicious served warm.

Orange Pistachio Cupcakes

You'll need: 1/2 cup vanilla soy yogurt, 2/3 cup soy milk, 1/3 cup canola oil, 3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar, 1-2 tsp orange extract, 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp flour, 2 Tbsp cornstarch, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp salt, generous pinch cardamom, 1/3 cup finely chopped pistachios, about 1/2 cup chopped pistachios and pink sugar sprinkles for decorating

For the frosting you'll need: 1/2 cup shortening, 1/2 cup vegan butter, 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp orange extract, 1/4 cup soy milk

What to do: Preheat oven to 350 degrees, line muffin pan with 12 cupcake liners. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together yogurt, soy milk, oil, sugar, and orange extract. Sift in dry ingredients, mix until relatively smooth. Fold in pistachios. Fill linters three-quarters of the way, bake 20-22 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

How to make the frosting: Beat the shortening and butter together until well combined and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat for about 3 more minutes. Add the vanilla, orange, and soy milk. Beat for another 5-7 minutes until fluffy.

To assemble: Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes, and sprinkle with chopped pistachios and sprinkles!

Cucumber Sandwiches

You'll need: rye bread, vegenaise or cream cheese, salt, pepper, oregano, cucumbers, and fresh mint or Italian parlesy leaves.

What to do: Spread your vegenaise or cream cheese on the bread. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and oregano to taste. Peel the cucumbers lengthwise with a vegetable peeler to produce thin cucumber strips. Layer the strips diagonally on the bread. Remove the crusts and cut the sandwiches into the desired shape. Place a mint or parsley leave in the middle for extra garnish.

Black Bean Taco Filling

I've been looking for a yummy taco filling for a LONG time...found one! And it's easy, which is even better. :) Also, I think it would be a good chip dip, and it's about a million times better than refried beans.

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 onion, diced

1 yellow bell pepper, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 15 oz. cans black beans, drained, rinsed, and smashed

2 Tbsp yellow cornmeal

1 1/2 Tbsp cumin

1 tsp cayenne

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp chili powder

1 cup salsa

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion, pepper, and garlic, cook until tender. Stir in mashed beans, then add the cornmeal. Stir in the spices and salsa. Cover and cook 5 minutes. See, easy peasy!

Jalapeno Poppers

These were my all time favorite growing up.  We got them on special occasions like Super Bowl Sunday and the random eat dinner in front of the TV nights.  I went broke in college because I bought these so stinkin' much!  Well my friends, no more! 

Unfortunatly we didn't grow jalapenos this year, BUT Bryan's mom did!  The last time I was there I snagged about 25 of them.  These were seriously so good it is killing me not to eat them all in one sitting. 

20-25 medium jalapenos
8 oz softened cream cheese
1 1/2 tsp worts sauce
1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese

4-6 bacon strips

Cut your peppers in half length wise, after cutting stems off.  Take the seeds and membrane out then blanch them in boiling water for 2-5 minutes.  The longer you boil them the less spicy they will be.

While peppers are cooling, combine your cheeses and sauce. 
Bake at 400 for 5-10 minutes depending on how melty you want the cheese.  ENJOY!!!

*Side Note*
Since these were so yummy I wanted Bryan to partake, but since he is gone hunting I couldn't very well save him any.  (ha ha)  So I tried to freeze them.  I assembled them and just left out the baking step.  I haven't tried them yet out of the freezer, but I will let you know if they worked or not.
Stuff jalapeno halves with cheese and then top with crumbled bacon!

**  Also - you can omit the worts sauce and instead put in some ranch dressing seasoning.  I would have done that but didn't have any on hand.