Sylvia's Scenario

This is a good dish for a summer potluck or for a quick dinner like we had tonight. Medium shell-shaped pasta will also work in place of orecchiette. Serves 4 8 ounces uncooked orecchiette pasta 1 cup frozen peas 1/2 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined 1 cup thinly sliced radishes Dressing 1/2 cup mayonnaise 1/4 cup buttermilk 3 Tbsp. minced fresh chives 1 Tbsp.chopped fresh dill 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper 1/8 tsp. ground red pepper 2 garlic cloves, minced 1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water; drain. Combine pasta, peas, shrimp and radishes in a large bowl. 2. Combine mayonnaise and remaining ingredients in a small bowl; stir well with a whisk. Pour over pasta mixture, tossing to coat. 3. Cover and let stand 20 minutes. Serve at room temperature, or cover and chill until ready to serve. `

It's triple digit weather around here but not too hot to eat!  Fire up the grill and throw on some chicken breasts.  I don't consider barbecuing really cooking (because my husband always does it!)  This recipe will surprise your boring chicken breast burger, it's not your usual chicken burger because of the tasty aioli!    Aioli is simply mayonnaise with the addition of minced fresh garlic.  It is a classic french garlic sauce.   I like to add a few more tasty ingredients to it like fresh herbs from the garden. Serves 4 1/4 cup mayonnaise 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil leaves 2 tsp. lemon juice 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken cutlets or chicken breasts sliced lengthwise to make thinner 4 hamburger buns butter 4 slices tomato 4 thin slices red onion 4 lettuce leaves 1.  Combine mayonnaise, basil, lemon juice and garlic in a small bowl; set aside. 2.  Grill chicken, turning once, 4 minutes or...

There are lots of goodies from the garden in this recipe, appropriate for this time of year.   It's a pretty popular summer salad...and I love it.  Goes especially well on a hot day, common for this time of year.  I took it to a spaghetti potluck dinner that I knew would already have green salad there so I figured the coolness of cucumbers and fresh basil and parsley from the garden would blend in perfectly with the menu. Serves 6 3 cucumbers, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and thinly sliced (about 3-1/2 cups) 1/2 cup vertically sliced red onion 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh or 1 tsp. dried basil 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh or 1 tsp. dried parsley 2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar 1 Tbsp. olive oil 2-1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard 1/4 tsp. salt 1. Place cucumbers and onion in a bowl.   2.  Combine basil and remaining ingredients, pour over cucumber mixture.   3.  Toss gently.   Cover and chill.  

Warm scones from the oven for breakfast is such treat. And today I got the urge since Lauren is home for a few days. My motherly instinct kicks in and the thought of smelling scones baking in the oven while you wake up was too delightful to resist. When she and Nick were little, I always bought fruit-juice sweetened scones from our neighborhood bakery and we ate those on a regular basis, so good. These aren't fruit juice sweetened but I have another rule of thumb... you can eat sweets, "white" carbs and "junk" food if it's homemade...and these are definitely homemade. You can't buy scones that taste as good as these. Makes 8 scones 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for the counter 3 Tbsp. sugar 1 Tbsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes and chilled 1 tsp. grated lemon zest 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries 1 cup heavy cream 1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to...

I've traveled far and wide but I've finally found my Ultimate Burger. Yes, the All-American meal of burger and fries, it's something I don't promote, but lets face it, we all eat it!  Right?!  And I was craving it after a week of eating fish and seafood.  I'm in Kona, Hawaii right now, soaking up the rays, sunshine, the constant smell of flowers and listening to all the tropical birds fluttering around, paradise for sure.  And the delicious food... We've been here 6 days now and I've ordered seafood for every meal that we've eaten out except breakfast.  I did have Portuguese sausage for breakfast instead of bacon which is delicious.  Not to mention the Oatmeal Brulee... We have all our favorite places since we've been coming here for 30 years, in fact, we are here for our 30th wedding anniversary.  We honeymooned here 30 years ago.  That's hard to image but it's true.  It's changed in 30 years, of course, but we don't th...

Here is another caprese recipe, this time - sandwiches. This recipe was in the August issue of Cooking Light. We have been enjoying zucchini from the garden now but are still eagerly waiting for our tomatoes to ripen since I can't bring myself to buy the tasteless tomatoes from the grocery store. (There's a reason why its so hard for people to eat the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables - because they are tasteless in the grocery store and its not just tomatoes) You will find tomatoes and zucchini at your local farmers market if you aren't growing your own - the second best way to obtain these two delicious pieces of produce. Makes 4 sandwiches 1 medium zucchini, trimmed and cut lengthwise into 6 slices 4 tsp. olive oil, divided 1 clove garlic, minced 1-1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar 1/8 tsp. kosher salt 1/8 tsp. black pepper 4 (2 ounce) ciabatta rolls, split and toasted 8 large fresh basil leaves 1 medium tomato, thinly sliced 6 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, th...

I love this recipe.   If you have a favorite meatloaf recipe or family favorite recipe you can easily substitute that meatloaf recipe instead of this one but the whipped sweet potato frosting is a keeper. Adapted from: Joy Bauer, 2011 Serves 8 (2 cupcakes per serving) Meatloaf Cupcakes  1 yellow onion, finely chopped 1 red pepper, finely chopped 2 carrots, peeled and chopped 1.25 lbs lean ground turkey 2 egg whites 1 package taco seasoning mix 1. Preheat oven to 425F.   Liberally coat a muffin pan with oil spray and set aside. 2. Coat a large skillet with olive oil spray and saute the onions for about 3-5 minutes over medium heat. Add the peppers and carrots and saute for another 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. 3. In a large bowl, add the ground turkey, egg whites, and taco seasoning mix. Mix the ingredients together until they are combined well.  4.  Portion the turkey mixture into 8 muffin cups, smoothing the tops of ea...