~Sent in by: Larry Holmes, Ontario, Canada
HOLIDAY CRANBERRY PUNCH
CHUNKY SALSA WITH TORTILLA CHIPS
WINTER FRUIT BOWL
CLAM LASAGNA ROLL-UPS
AVOCADO & BIBB LETTUCE TOSS
CREAMY CAULIFLOWER AND BROCCOLI CRUNCH
RASPBERRY TRIFLES
HOLIDAY CRANBERRY PUNCH
2 pints raspberry sherbet
?? cup lemon juice
2 cups orange juice
?? cup sugar
1 ?? quarts cranberry juice cocktail
2 (28-ounce) bottles ginger ale, chilled*
*To make this more spirited, substitute sparkling wine for ginger ale
Soften 1 pint sherbet. In a punch bowl, combine softened sherbet, lemon juice, orange juice and sugar. Stir to dissolve sugar. Add cranberry juice. Refrigerate for up to 5 hours.
Before serving punch, add ginger ale (or wine) mixing well. Scoop remaining sherbet into balls and float on top of punch.
CHUNKY SALSA WITH TORTILLA CHIPS
10 medium-size tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 ?? cups chopped yellow onions
1 ?? cup chopped celery
?? cup chopped green pepper
3 4-ounce cans mild chopped green chilies, drained
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
5 tablespoons olive oil
5 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 ?? teaspoons mustard seed
2 ?? teaspoon salt
pinch pepper
?? teaspoon chili powder
hot red pepper sauce, to taste
In a medium-size bowl, combine first six ingredients.
In a small bowl, combine the remaining 6 ingredients; blend well. Pour over vegetables and toss until coated. Cover and chill at least 25 minutes or until ready to serve.
Serve with tortilla chips.
WINTER FRUIT BOWL
1 can (19 ounces) lichees*
1 cup dried apricots
?? cup golden raisins
6 grapefruit
1 honeydew or cantaloupe melon
2 cups cubed pineapple, fresh or canned
1 tablespoon candied ginger
liquid honey
Drain lichees, reserving juice in a small non-aluminum saucepan; cover and refrigerate lichees. Add apricots and raisins to saucepan; cover and soak for 1 hour or refrigerate overnight. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer
for about 10 minutes or until apricots are tender. Let cool.
Peel grapefruit; with sharp knife, pare off outer membrane. Holding fruit over large bowl, cut away sections from inner membranes; squeeze out juice from membranes.
Halve, peel and seed honeydew; cut into bite-size cubes. Add melon, pineapple, ginger, lichees and apricot mixture to bowl. Toss and add honey to taste. Chill for up to 4 hours.
*Publishers Note:
You may see this fruit spelled "lychee" or "lichee". It's all the same. The fruit is grown in the southern part of China (Guangdong and Fujian Provinces), but it's readily available in the canned fruit section of your grocery store with the outer shell and inner nut removed. You may be able to find the fresh version available in the summer and early fall in some Asian grocery stores. Look for a fruit with a knobby, reddish-brown shell about the size of a walnut.
CLAM LASAGNA ROLL-UPS
(All the different parts of this dish can be made ahead and the lasagna assembled several hours before baking.)
6 lasagna noodles
1 ?? cups B?©chamel Sauce (recipe follows)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (1/2 pound)
?? cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons fresh bread crumbs
Clam Sauce:
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (28 ounces) tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cans (each 5 ounces) baby clams, undrained
1 teaspoon oregano
?? teaspoon hot pepper flakes
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
salt and pepper
Ricotta and Spinach Filling:
2 cups packed fresh spinach
2 eggs
?? pound ricotta cheese
?? cup shredded mozzarella cheese (1/4 pound)
?? cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons each chopped green onions and fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil (or 1 teaspoon dried)
Clam Sauce: In heavy saucepan, heat oil over medium heat; cook onion and garlic, stirring, for 5 minutes or until softened. Add tomatoes, crushing with fork, and tomato paste. Drain clams, reserving ?? cup juice; add juices to saucepan and set clams aside. Stir in oregano and hot pepper flakes; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes or until thick enough that space remains after drawing spoon across bottom of pan; let cool. Add clams, parsley and salt and pepper to taste. (Sauce can be covered and refrigerated for up to 1 day or frozen for up to 1 month.)
Ricotta and Spinach Filling: Rinse spinach but do not dry. In saucepan over medium-high heat, cook spinach with just the water clinging to leaves for 4 minutes or until wilted. Press out as much moisture as possible; chop finely and place in bowl. Mix in eggs, ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, onions, parsley and basil. (Filling can be covered and refrigerated for up to a day.)
In large pot of boiling salted water cook noodles until tender, about 8 minutes. Rinse in cold water. (Cooked noodles can be placed in large bowl, covered with cold water and refrigerated for up to 1 day.)
Assembly: Spread about ?? cup of the clam sauce in 13-x9-inch baking dish.
Drain and pat noodles dry; cup in half. Working with one half at a time, spread with about 3 tablespoons of the Ricotta and Spinach Filling, leaving 1 inch uncovered at one end. Spread about 2 tablespoons clam sauce over
filling. Starting at covered end, roll up and place, seam side down, in two rows on clam sauce in dish. Spread any remaining clam sauce around rolls.
Pour B?©chamel Sauce over rolls; sprinkle with mozzarella, Parmesan and bread crumbs. (Lasagna can be covered and refrigerated for up to 4 hours.) Bake in 350?° F. oven for 45 minutes or until sauce bubbles and top is crusty and golden. Let stand for 10 minutes.
B?©chamel Sauce:
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
?? teaspoon salt
pepper
1 ?? cups milk
In small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Blend in flour, salt and pepper to taste; cook, whisking constantly, for 1 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk; cook, whisking constantly until sauce boils and thickens.
AVOCADO & BIBB LETTUCE TOSS
1 head Bibb lettuce, separated
2 Belgian endives, separated
1 small head radicchio, separated
half of a sweet red or green pepper
half of a white or Spanish onion
2 avocados
Citrus Dressing:
?? cup orange juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
?? teaspoon Dijon mustard
?? teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic, minced
dash hot pepper sauce
?? cup olive oil
Citrus Dressing: in bowl, stir together orange juice, vinegar, mustard, salt, garlic and hot pepper sauce; whisk in oil. (Dressing can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days.)
In large salad bowl, arrange Bibb lettuce, endive and radicchio. Cut red pepper into thin strips and onion into thin rings; add to bowl. Peel and pit avocados; cut into bite-size cubes and sprinkle over salad dressing. Drizzle with enough dressing to moisten; toss well.
CREAMY CAULIFLOWER & BROCCOLI CRUNCH
5 cups sliced broccoli florets (1 bunch)
4 cups sliced cauliflower florets (1 small head)
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup light mayonnaise
1 cup light sour cream
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon white vinegar
?? teaspoon salt
?? teaspoon pepper
dash Worcestershire sauce
In large bowl, combine broccoli, cauliflower and onion. Stir together mayonnaise, sour cream, sugar, vinegar, slat, pepper and Worcestershire; pour over vegetables and toss. (Salad can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 hours.)
RASPBERRY TRIFLES
2 10-ounce packages frozen raspberries (in quick-thaw pouch)
8 1-inch-thick slices pound cake
4 ounces dry sherry or orange liqueur
2 cups prepared instant vanilla pudding
whipped cream or thawed cream topping
mint sprigs
Thaw raspberries according to package directions. Cube pound cake slices and divide among eight individual glass serving dishes. Drizzle cake cubes with sherry. Divide berries and their syrup over the cake cubes. Pour instant vanilla pudding over berries and cake cubes. Garnish each trifle with a dollop of whipped cream or cream topping and mint sprigs.
