Pickled Grapes

These go great with pork.

NEED:
3 cups stemmed red seedless grapes
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup white wine vinegar
3 ( 3 inch ) cinnamon sticks
1 tablespoon minced onion

Wash the grapes and divide them into three pint sized canning jars.
In a small saucepan, bring the sugar, vinegar, cinnamon and onion to a boil, then simmer 5 minutes. Pour syrup evenly over the grapes and insert a cinnamon stick in each jar. Seal tightly and refrigerate at least 8 hours.

Servings: Make 3 cups.

ENJOY!

Some tips I found on line

All cooks look for tips. I found these recently. Go to this site and check them out. There are some really good tips to avoid problems.
copy and paste the link into your browser

http://www.cookinglight.com/cooking-101/techniques/cooking-questions-tips-00400000064986/

Easy Key Lime Pie

As requested by HH.


NEED:
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup key lime juice or lime juice
1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 (6 ounce) package chocolate crumb pie shell or graham cracker pie crusts
lime zest (optional)

Beat milk and lime juice in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and thickened.
Fold in whipped topping.
Spoon lime mixture into pie crust.
Cover and refrigerate about 1 hour or until set.
Garnish with grated lime peel.


ENJOY!

Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed peppers are a favorite and very easy to make. You can do a basic stuffed pepper or you can "jazz" it up a bit.

NEED:
This recipe is for 3 peppers.
One green pepper per person ( use big peppers ) You can use red peppers if you like.
ground beef ( about 1 to 1 1/2 cups per pepper )
onion
salt
pepper
shredded cheese
tomato sauce or spaghetti sauce
rice

Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the seeds. Rinse the peppers and set aside. Fill a pot with water and bring to a boil. Place the peppers in the water, return to a boil and boil for 10 minutes. Remove from water, with tongs,drain and place in a baking dish. The baking dish needs to be big enough for the peppers to sit next to each other, to hold each other up.
Brown the ground meat and drain. Add diced onion, the amount you want to add...I use about 1/2 cup. Add 1 1/2 cups of instant rice and 1 cup of shredded cheese, salt and pepper to taste and 1 1/2 cups of the tomato sauce. If it seems a bit dry, add more sauce. Stir and simmer for about 3 minutes.
With a spoon fill each pepper. Press the mixture down, lightly.
Top each pepper with some cheese and a spoon of tomato sauce.
Place in 350 degree oven for 35 minutes.

To add some flavor and veggies to the peppers go to the fridge. Have any left over veggies? Corn, peas, carrots, mushrooms..anything you want. Make sure to cut the carrots to small size and the same with the mushrooms. Add them all or add a few. It is a great way to get your family to eat more veggies and serve a wonderful, family favorite.

ENJOY!

No Crust Apple Pie

This is from my friend Kathy, in Boston. It's fast to make and very yummy.

NEED:
6 - 8 apples
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter (melted)
1 egg
cinnamon

Directions:
Peel and cut up apples and place in pie dish
Sprinkle cinnamon on top of apples
Mix melted butter, sugar, flour, and egg in mixing bowl
Plop it on top of apples and spread carefully
Sprinkle a little cinnamon on top

Bake in preheated oven 350 degrees for 50 - 55 minutes

ENJOY!

Egg Salad

Egg salad can be a very simple sandwich or you can change it into something amazing.

NEED:
Hard boiled eggs - 2 per sandwich
salt
pepper
mayo

Place the eggs in a pot of water, enough water to cover the eggs. Bring to boil and boil for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat, drain and rinse with cold water. Peel and place in a bowl.
With a knife or fork cut the eggs into small pieces.
Salt and pepper to taste. Add the mayo 2 tablespoons at a time. You want just enough to make the mixture hold together.
Place on the bread of you choice. I like to lightly toast mine.

NOW to jazz it up.
You can add bacon bits, finely shredded cheese, Cajun spice, Italian seasoning, lettuce, pickle relish, etc. Anything you want can be added to make it so much more than just an egg salad sandwich.

ENJOY!

Easy and Pumped Up Fried Potatoes

I love potatoes...hey, I'm Irish, what else can I say. I do hate to fry them. I can never get the texture I like and have often burned them trying. Finally, I found the answer. Peel and dice them and then par boil them for 6 minutes and then put them in the fry pan. They are nearly done and doing them this way they are melt in your mouth potatoes.

NEED:
4 to 5 medium to large potatoes
Peel and dice them
Put them in a pot large enough to cover them with water
Cooking oil - about 4 to 5 tablespoons - if it seems dry while cooking add one more spoonful
Salt to taste
Cook on medium heat
Once water reaches a boil, cook for 6 minutes then drain and place in fry pan.
Fry pan should be warm to hot. This will keep the potatoes from sticking.
Keep in mind, there will be a bit of splatter as the water hits the oil. It is best to have the pot right against the skillet when pouring the potatoes in. This helps avoid excess splatter.

The best fry pan for cooking potatoes is a heavy one. I use cast iron. Cook over medium heat until done. About another 5 minutes. DO NOT COVER and turn occasionally.

For pumped up potatoes:
I keep leftover for a few days. If no one eats them I'll find a way to to use them.
While the potatoes are boiling, add oil to the fry pan and heat. Dice onion ( use an amount to your taste ) I used about an 1/8 of a cup. Add to fry pan and stir. Then I went to the fridge and found some left over peas and carrots and put them in the fry pan. Now add the potatoes and stir together.
The potatoes are done perfectly and the onion and veggies just gave them a kick.

ENJOY!