Beet Jello Salad

First off let me just say that my friends are really awesome, and really tolerant to try some of the stuff that I am proposing making. I brought this one to Thanksgiving Dinner, in an attempt to make a root veggie more, um, welcome? and add a little zip to the traditional foods.

um. ya.

I found the recipe in Grandma Melusines Largest (of 3) Recipe indexs, it was had written, so at some point in time, she thought it was good enough to write down and include in her collection...

anyway - Here I give you:

Beet Jello Salad

6oz Raspberry Jello

1 1/2 c beet juice - add hot water to make 1 1/2 c.

1 1/2 c pineapple juice

Lemon juice (it does not say how much)

2 tbs sugar

1/4 c cider vinegar (add all to jello cool)

2 c crushed pineapple

2 cups juliene beats

chopped nuts

9x9 mold

There weren't a lot of directions, so Ibasically dumped it all together, squirted in some lemon juice and hoped for the best.

I am not sure ANYTHING would make this actually taste good. It didn't really thicken either and the pecans just sorta floated on the top. Tri Anything girl said it wasn't THAT bad.. so I left the entire dish at her house. I hope her dog doesn't hate me.

Technical stuff: makes 12 or so servings

Difficulty: If you can boil water...

Served with: anything?

Reheat Well?: i wouldn't recomment

Comments: I like beets. Alot, I wouldn't torture beets by putting them in this dish again.

Lemon Pasta with Crab

6oz (dry) angel hair pasta cooked el dente

3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons lemon zest
1/4 cup basil chopped
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
2 cloves garlic - minced
1/2 of a cayenne pepper, seeds removed
2 tablespoons capers
1/4 cup shaved parmasean cheese

optional 2 diced tomatoes

in bowl add all ingredients, toss with pasta

** also optional Crab

Crack entire crab.

Toss in pan with 2 tablespoons of butter and a little garlic and lemon juice. Heat until warm, mixing frequently, serve over pasta. (we just had the crab on the side...)

Technical stuff: makes 4 servings
Difficulty: Easy, easy, easy.
Served with: bread and caprese salad
Reheat Well?: Yup. yup. yup.

Comments: Uber easy to make, this is one of the chief commentators favorites. This is a great one, if you have basil in the garden because you can make it less than 10 minutes. Super flavorful, and always a crowd pleaser. This is the #1 recipe I have made out of my cookbook and make it over and over. You can totally increase or decrease the quantity as needed.

Lime Jello with Marshmallows

This one is a blast from the past. I definately remember my Grandma Melusine making this one all the time. It was a staple Sunday dessert.

Lime Jello with Marshmallows

1 pk lime gelatin

1 cup boiling water

1 cup minature marshmallows

1 cup crushed pineapple

1 cup pecans

1/2 pint whipping cream

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Stir in marshmallows until dissolved. Cool but not set. Stir in pineapple, nuts & whipped cream. Pour into mold, chill until set.

Technical stuff: makes a goodsized pan full.

Difficulty: moderate, ya, jello should be easy, but really, mixing everything in evenly, it falls more into the moderate catagory.

Served with: nothing. but I bet some sparkingling wine would be yummy.

Reheat Well?: Lets not go there, but once it's set, you can have it over several meals.

Comments: Chief Commentator says: Whipped limey cool childhood delight with a nutty attitude. He liked it so much, he wants to make it for Thanksgiving Dinner. For me it too was a walk down memory lane.

Next time, I would add more pineapple, cause I like it.

Raisin Banana Bread

This one is actually written out in my Grandma Melusine’s handwriting, which means either she made it a whole bunch, or she thought about making it ?? Maybe?? Who knows. I do remember her making banana bread when I was a kid, but I wouldn’t touch a banana until I was about 30, so I can’t say that I remember eating it.

Raisin Banana Bread

1/3 c Butter or Margarine softened.
2/3 c Sugar
2 Eggs
3 Tablespoons of milk
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed banana
1 cup chopped raisins
½ cup chopped nuts

Beat together butter, sugar & eggs. Add milk. Sift flour with baking powder, salt and soda. Stir into wet mixture just until moistened. Then blend in bananas, raisins and nuts.

Turn into a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

** I did make one change to the recipe, I like a sugar crust on the top of my breads, so before baking, I sprinkled raw sugar on the top to give it that nice crunchy coat.

Technical stuff:
Makes 1 loaf.

Difficulty: easy, although the dough is really thick, so have some arm power for the blending of the final ingredients by hand.

Served with: honey butter & hot coffee

Reheat Well?: yes. Nuked with honey butter, it’s amazing.

Comments: Chief Commentator: Good banana flavor, little dry but nice outside crust. Canadian Tri Anything Girl: It’s “comfort food dry” which means you know it’s not from a commercial producer because it doesn’t have that weird oily texture. CTAG also hearts the top sugared crust and says that it’s a good addition. Me: I like the nuts and raisins, of course like the crust. I am ok with the dry texture,

Things I'd do differently next time: I might try adding some chocolate chips to make it a little different.