Fantastic Food

This is our favorite sunday afternoon snack.  2 cans black beans 1 can black eyed peas 1/2 onion chopped 1 red bell pepper seeded & chopped 2 large tomatoes chopped (or two handfuls grape tomatoes chopped) 1 mango peeled, pitted, & chopped 1/2 cup chopped cilantro 1 avocado peeled, pitted, & chopped 2 Tbs. lime juice 3-4 Tbs. red wine vinegar 3/4-1 cup light zesty italian dressing (I use the cheapest brand at Walmart) 1-2 Tbs. sugar Salt & pepper to taste Mix all ingredients together and dig in with your favorite dipping chips (tostito's hint of lime tortilla chips or Juanita's tortilla chips are our favorites). You can adjust the amounts of each ingredient to your particular liking (e.g. more onion, more bell pepper, etc.) Be careful, it's addictive!!

As per request, I am putting this salsa recipe on the blog. You can't beat homemade salsa flavor-wise, and it is FAR cheaper than buying ready-made salsa. However, this salsa doesn't keep nearly as long as salsa from the store, so you'll want to make sure you can eat it all up within a week if you're going to make it. I've never tried freezing it--I'm not sure it would be as good once thawed though. Anyway, here ya go! Ingredients: 1 can diced tomatoes 1 jalepeno, seeded and diced (if you like it spicy, put a few seeds in the salsa) 1 green onion stalk or 1/2 an onion finely diced 1/8 tsp. garlic A dash or two of chile powder 1/2 tsp. season salt 1/2 tbs. fresh cilantro, chopped (optional) I don't often have cilantro when I decide to make salsa, but it's fine without it. Put tomatoes in a blender and hit the pulse button 2 or 3 times, just enough to make the tomato pieces smaller, but not pureed smooth (unless you don't like any chunks). Pour to...

This is a Paula Dean recipe with a few additives (more parmesan, and the cream cheese is not in her recipe). I wouldn't mind mixing in a bit of the pepper jack cheese either. This is a real crowd pleaser at parties, and really easy to make. And of course, it's DELICIOUS! 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach 2 (13 3/4-ounce) cans artichoke hearts 1/2 cup mayonnaise 1/2 cup sour cream 1 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan 1 cup grated pepper jack cheese 3 Tbs. cream cheese Directions Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a casserole dish with nonstick spray. Heat the spinach in a microwave oven on high for 5 minutes and squeeze dry. Drain the artichoke hearts and coarsely chop in a food processor (or with a knife). Combine all the ingredients except the jack cheese in a large bowl. Stir well. Scrape into the prepared casserole dish and sprinkle the jack cheese on top. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve with bagel chips or tortilla chips.

You better have a lot of apples on hand when you make this, because you'll want to eat ALL of it! You will need: 8 oz. Cream cheese 3/4 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup powdered sugar 1 Tsp. Vanilla extract 3/4 cup Heath toffee bits Mix all ingredients together, slice up some granny-smith apples (any will work, but I prefer the tartness and crispness of granny-smiths), and dip to your heart's (or stomach's) content!