Orzo and Vegetable Confetti Salad

My friend Wendy created this salad. That in itself blows my mind. I honestly have never created anything. I always follow a recipe exactly so that if it doesn't turn out it's not my fault, it's the recipe. Wendy had something similar to this at J. Alexanders. She loved it so much that every time she went there she would order this and try to figure out what was in it. Over time she came up with this. This salad is refreshing and vibrant...just like Wendy. There is something about this salad that you just can't stop eating it and I am not a huge rice or pasta fan. This picture does not do it justice. This is a regular dish at our get togethers out here in Florida. Perfect for a Labor Day BBQ!

Orzo and Vegetable Confetti Salad

by Wendy Weisenburger

2 quarts water
2 Tablespoons salt
1 ½ cups (11oz) orzo
5 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 (5 oz.) pkg. long grain and wild rice with seasonings
1 (3 oz.) pkg. slivered almonds
½ large red pepper, diced finely
½ large yellow pepper, diced finely
½ purple onion, diced finely
½ cup craisins
¼ cup capers (drained)
¼ cup finely chopped fresh basil
2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley

1. In a large pot over high heat, bring the water to a boil. Add the 2 Tablespoons salt and the orzo and cook until tender, 5-8 minutes. Drain the orzo and immediately toss it with 1 Tablespoon of the olive oil. Cover and cool completely in the refrigerator.

2. Prepare the long grain and wild rice according to package directions. Let cool.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining 4 Tablespoons of olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Add the almonds, peppers, onion, raisins, capers, basil, parsley, rice and orzo. Toss to mix well.

4. To serve, place in a serving bowl or divide among individual plates and garnish with the lemon slices.

5. Serve at room temperature (or cold is good too). Serves 6-8

Oreo Cheesecake Ice Cream

Please forgive the picture. I made the mistake of first trying to take a picture outside. For a second I must have forgotten how insanely hot Florida is right now. Within seconds it was a melted mess. This is one of my sister-in-law Laura's favorite ice cream recipes. It was good even with the generic Publix brand cookies. Can you believe Publix was all out of Oreos?




Don't be intimidated just because it's ice cream. I used to be until I got this...

This Cuisinart automatic ice-cream maker can be bought from Amazon for around $50. So easy to use and it makes a great gift. My kids and I had fun making this and John and I had fun eating it after our date last night. So good.

Oreo Cheesecake Ice Cream

by The Ultimate Ice Cream Book by Bruce Weinstein

1 cup sugar

4 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 egg

1/2 t. vanilla

3/4 c. milk

1 1/2 c. heavy cream

crumbled Oreo cookies

Beat the sugar and cream cheese together until smooth and creamy. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Set aside.

Bring the milk to a boil in a heavy medium saucepan. Slowly beat the hot milk into the cheese mixture. Pour the entire mixture back into the pan and place over low heat. Stir constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon until the custard thickens slightly. Be careful not to let the mixture boil or the egg will scramble. Remove from the heat and pour the hot cheese custard through a strainer into a large bowl. Allow the custard to cool slightly, then stir in the the cream. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Stir the chilled custard, then freeze in your ice cream machine according the manufacturers instructions (my machine took 30 minutes), adding the crumbled Oreos to the machine when the ice cream is semifrozen. We like a lot of Oreos in ours. Allow the machine to mix in the cookies. When finished the ice cream will be soft but ready to eat. For firmer ice cream, transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for at least 2 hours.

Grammies

If you need a quick fix to a sweet tooth these are great because you most likely have all the ingredients. It is easy to eat half a pan without thinking. Don't ask me how I know that. These reminded me of my grandma. She used to make these but with saltine crackers on the bottom. Both are good so give these a try.
Graham Break-Aways

by Kraftfoods

12 graham crackers, broken in half (24 squares)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks (or just use semi-sweet chocolate chips)
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

HEAT oven to 350°F. Arrange graham squares in single layer in 15x10x1-inch pan.

BRING butter and sugar to boil in medium saucepan on medium heat; cook 2 min. or until butter is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring frequently. Pour over grahams; immediately spread to completely cover all grahams.

BAKE 6 to 8 min. or until sugar mixture is lightly browned and bubbly; top with chocolate. Bake 1 to 2 min. or until chocolate is melted. Remove from oven; immediately spread over grahams. Sprinkle with nuts; press lightly into chocolate with back of spoon. Cool completely before breaking into squares.