Category Archives: potluck

Summer salad easy to tote to Independence Day picnics.

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If you’ve been to a Twins baseball game at Target Field on a Sunday afternoon, you may have satisfied your hunger pangs with a refreshing healthful salad from the Roots for the Home Team Garden Goodies Cart.

A couple of weeks ago, along with with other members of the Minneapolis-St. Paul Chapter of , Les Dames d’Escoffier International, I had an opportunity to have a taste of one of the salads created by young people who are participants in the Community Design Center of Minnesota (CDC), a youth development program on the east side of St. Paul.

Bryan and Ly’s Epic Quinoa Salad was tossed together on an outdoor patio at Swede Hollow Bakery and Cafe by two young CDC program participants who work in organic, sustainable vegetable and flower gardens in several locations in east St. Paul. One of the gardens borders the Swede Hollow patio.

Garden at Swede Hollow Bakery and Cafe planted and cared for by Garden Corps interns with the CDC.

As they dumped prepared ingredients into a large mixing bowl, the girls told us that quinoa is an ancient grain that is very good for us. When all the vegetables, fruit and herbs had been tossed together, they added an Asian-inspired dressing. This salad recipe was created by CDC members.

Bryan and Ly’s Epic Quinoa Salad prepared on the Swede Hollow patio by youth participants in the CDC.

I made the salad over the weekend and packed it into jars. They traveled well in a cooler on my weekend road trip. The unusual, refreshing combination of quinoa, kale, vegetables, grapes and mint gets a little kick of heat from chili garlic sauce in the dressing. It was a very satisfying meal in the park on an afternoon with temperatures over 90 degrees.

This easy-to-tote salad is perfect for 4th of July picnics and meals on the boat.

The Twins still have several home games scheduled for Sundays at Target Field. Stop by the Roots for the Home Team Garden Goodies Cart and try one of the fresh, flavorful and healthful salads. Roots for the Home Team makes it so easy to eat well at the ballpark.

Dates you’ll find the Garden Goodies cart at Target Field:

  • July 15th and 29th
  • August 12th
  • September 9th, 16th and 30th

 Bryan and Ly’s Epic Quinoa Salad

(recipe from Roots for the Home Team Garden Goodies Cart)

Dressing

  • 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
  • 2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce
  • 2 tablespoons rice vinegar

Salad

  • 1 cup uncooked quinoa
  • 2 cups packed shredded kale leaves (remove thick ribs)
  • 1 cup red cherry tomatoes, quartered
  • 1 cup red grapes, halved
  • 1/2 cup chopped cucumber
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
  • 4 cups mixed spring greens
  • 1/2 cup roasted & salted sunflower seeds

1. Mix all dressing ingredients in large bowl. Cook quinoa according to package directions. Rinse with cool water; drain well.

2. Place quinoa in bowl; toss with half of the dressing. Add kale, tomatoes, grapes, cucumber and mint. Gently stir until well blended. Serve on top of spring greens. Drizzle each serving with remaining dressing and sprinkle with sunflower seeds.

Tips from the cook

  • I’ve discovered peanuts are a delicious substitute for sunflower seeds in this salad.

It’s not all about mushrooms at a Mushroom Club meeting — how about some Candy Bars?

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A few days before the Paul Bunyan Mushroom Club members were scheduled to assemble at my home for their monthly meeting, member Terry Schaedig sent me an email note. He explained that, along with everyone else who was coming to the meeting, he was planning to bring a dish to share. There was a problem, though. He needed crisp and buttery Nabisco Waverly crackers for the recipe. It seemed in the 10 years since he last prepared the recipe, Waverly crackers had disappeared from grocery store shelves. I hadn’t even noticed.

I did a quick check on the internet and discovered Nabisco no longer makes Waverly crackers. I suggested Schaedig use Keebler Clubs instead. I still had no idea what he was making with crackers. Maybe some kind of hardy mushroom topping piled on crackers?

Looking fit, happy, healthy and not one bit out of breath after pulling another member out of the ditch just down the road from my house, Schaedig came in with an aluminum foil-covered plate in each hand. With a wide smile on his face, he handed the plates over to me.

I lifted a corner of the foil covering one plate. As I peeked in, my eyes focused on a perfectly-cut square of layers of chocolate and yes, crackers. The sweet aroma of peanut butter mixed with butterscotch hit my nostrils. I began to salivate uncontrollably.

It was difficult to wait until dessert time to eat one of those bars that kept tempting me from the buffet of food contributed by all the members in attendance. It was a good thing lunch was the first thing on our agenda for that meeting.

One bite of one perfectly cut Candy Bar – think butterscotch, peanut butter, chocolate and crunch. Chewy. Just enough chocolate. And, nice crunch from buttery, crisp crackers. Schaedig told me that after a lengthy quest for Waverly crackers, he ended up using Club Crackers.  I’d say that was a perfect choice.

Schaedig told me the recipe came from his mother’s recipe box. “Mom made these when she felt the kids were deserving (very infrequently) or when we went on strike (at least once a day) and demanded fair labor practices, which included her homemade Candy Bars.”

After the group watched a DVD about mushroom identification and discussed a few items of Paul Bunyan Mushroom Club business, our meeting came to an end. I noticed some members grab a Candy Bar for the ride home. It was my lucky day. Schaedig left several for me. They didn’t last long.

Terry Schaedig shared the Candy Bar recipe from his mother’s recipe box. Lucky for you. And, lucky for me, Mushroom Club meetings aren’t all about mushrooms!

If you enjoy learning about mushrooms, foraging for mushrooms, eating mushrooms and eating things that aren’t mushrooms, you might like to get more information about the Paul Bunyan Mushroom Club. If you are interested, send an email to johnmike@charter.net.

Candy Bars

  • 8 ounces Waverly Crackers  (Terry’s note: good luck with this one — Club Crackers are a good substitute)
  • 1 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
  • 1 cup brown sugar (packed)
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup Butterscotch chips

 

Place a layer of crackers in the bottom of an ungreased 13- x 9-inch pan.  Melt butter in a heavy saucepan and add milk, graham cracker crumbs and sugars.  Bring to boil.  Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly.  Pour half of mixture over crackers.  Add second layer of crackers.  Top with remaining crumb mixture and followed by a layer of crackers.

In a saucepan over low heat, melt chips and peanut butter and pour over crackers.  Cool and cut into squares.

Notes from the back of recipe card:

  • Crumble graham crackers pretty fine
  • The graham cracker mix gets too thick if cooked too long.  Try to get it to start boiling sooner.

Note from Terry:

I know I have added raisins in the past and there is a note that says you have to put in a lot for them to be noticeable.  But, hey, why put anything healthy in with this belly buster?

Weekend (No) Baking: Caramel Krispies

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Surprised? I know. I wouldn’t normally post a recipe for sweet bars made with crisp rice cereal and marshmallows. I’m going to a family reunion. There will be lots of kids there — little ones and big ones, too, if you know what I mean. Kids love rice krispie bars. I’m taking a very light, bright and healthful cabbage salad, too. So, it will all balance out in the sugar and calorie department.

This recipe came to me from a friend sometime in the early 1980′s. My boys were at a rice krispie bar stage of their lives. That stage coincided with a “not-much-time-to-bake” time in my life.

No-bake Caramel Krispies are made by making two layers of the rice krispie, butter and marshmallow mixture in jelly-roll pans. A filling of caramel, more butter and a can of sweetened condensed milk is heated together and when the caramels are melted, the mixture gets poured over one of the layers that has been sprinkled with more mini-marshmallows.

It’s a good idea to keep these gooey, chewy, sweet and sticky bars chilled. They get pretty soft at room temperature.

I decided to even out the edges of the large rectangle, slicing about 1/2 inch away from each of the four sides. I thought I’d taste a bit. I wound up eating all the trimmings. It must be the absence of rice krispie bars in my life for so many years that made them taste so good to me. That soft caramel and marshmallow filling didn’t hurt one bit, either.

If you are in a rice krispie bar stage of life, you may want to try these. Even if you’re not, I think you’d like these ooey, gooey delights. They’ll bring out the kid in you.

Caramel Krispies

  • 8 cups crisp rice cereal
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
  • 1 1/2 (10 1/2 – ounce) packages miniature marshmallows
  • 1 (14-ounce) bag caramels
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1 can sweetened condensed milk

In a large pot on the stove or in a large bowl in the microwave oven, melt 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter and 1 bag of marshmallows together. Add cereal and stir to coat. Pat mixture into two jelly roll pans, 10-inches x 15-inches each, that have been lightly coated with non-stick cooking spray. Refrigerate pans while making caramel filling.

Over low heat on stove or in microwave oven, melt caramels with 1/4 cup butter and sweetened condensed milk. When mixture is creamy and smooth, sprinkle remaining half bag of marshmallows on one pan of rice cereal mixture. Slowly pour the warm caramel filling over the marshmallows. Place second layer on top of the filling. Press down firmly. Chill before cutting.

 

Weekend Baking with Martha and the Boss

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It took a trip to Dunn Bros for a triple shot of espresso and an in-and-out at the liquor store for a bottle of sweet Marsala. It took a search through all the supermarkets in Bemidji for ladyfingers, little finger-shaped sponge cakes. My friend, Kelly, went the extra mile — extra miles, really. She lives way out of town. She was determined to create tiramisu using a recipe from her idol, Buddy Valastro, the Cake Boss. I was one of the lucky people who had that heavenly Italian dessert melting in my mouth last night.

Kelly never did find ladyfingers. She discovered the small round spongecakes designed to hold fresh berries worked well as a substitute. (Gosh, Kelly, you could have made ladyfingers from scratch. Just kidding :) I’ve actually used Twinkies in Tiramisu. Please don’t tell anyone.

Imagine layers of spongecake dipped in sweetened espresso and coffee liqueur, Marsala-spiked creamy mascarpone and whipped cream, dusted with cocoa powder. Not too wet, not too dry, not too strong of alcohol, this tiramisu is the best I’ve ever eaten — a balanced and harmonious blend of decadence. Thanks for your determination to get this recipe right, Kelly. It was soooooooooo worth your efforts.

The Italian word tiramisu means “pick-me-up.”  One serving will definitely make you happy. I was ecstatic — until I tried to get to sleep last night. It must have been the espresso and the cocoa that kept me tossing and turning. But, eventually, I was dreaming of tiramisu.

This Friday the 13th is your lucky day. I am directing you to this very uncomplicated recipe for tiramisu from the Cake Boss. Just click here.

Kelly’s tiramisu was only a small part of our monthly potluck with food-loving friends. Our hostess proclaimed it an evening of food prepared with recipes from our favorite Food Network star. Cake Boss, Buddy Valastro, is a star on TLC.

Ellen prepared the other dessert you see in the photo at the top of the page, Martha Stewart’s Simple Lemon Cake. It doesn’t sound all that simple to make, but then, everything is simple for Martha, right? Making the Lemon Cake requires slicing very thin rounds of fresh lemons and boiling them, then pureeing the mixture, which apparently intensifies the bright lemon flavor. Ellen served each slice with fresh berries and whipped cream.

We also enjoyed Bobby Flay’s Queso Fundido with Roasted Poblano Vinaigrette. It’s an awesome combination of spice, heat and sweet with plenty of cheese thick and gooey enough to hold a tortilla chip in place.

Ina Garten’s Chunky Blue Cheese and Yogurt Dip is healthful and so nice with blanched asparagus spears. The Barefoot Contessa rarely disappoints.

Ina’s Orzo with Roasted Vegetables, prepared with zucchini rather than eggplant, is a winner. It’s a salad that will will be a perfect go-together with anything off the grill this summer.

We also enjoyed Paula Deen’s Black-Eyed Pea Dip and Sara Moulton’s Turkey Meatballs with Pesto and Orzo from her “Everyday Family Dinners” cookbook. Sorry, no photos of these two dishes.

Happy Friday the 13th. May your weekend hold spoonfuls of tiramisu!