Caprese Pasta Salad

Caprese Salad is one of all-time favorite things. So I naturally gravitated to this recipe. It’s a nice light side dish, perfect for a warm summer day…….ahhh who am I kidding? I would eat this morning, noon and night, every season of the year. Yes, it’s THAT good!

• 2 cups of Pasta, cooked and drained
• 1 container of cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 container of Bocconcini cheese
• ½ cup of fresh basil, chopped finely
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Dressing

• 1/3 cup of balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbsp of olive oil
• 1 tsp of garlic

1. In a large bowl, toss together the pasta, tomatoes, and basil. Set aside.

2. In a small bowl whisk together the ingredients for the dressing. Drizzle onto the pasta. Add as much or as little as you like. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for at least 20 minutes before serving.

The Perfect Cesar

Have you noticed that when you order a Cesar these days, it pretty much comes with a meal made from garnish. I’ve seen them come with pepperoni sticks, shrimp, onion rings, even mini sliders, all protruding out of the top of glass. And while that’s all fine and dandy, what really matters is the taste of the beverage itself. With it being patio season I decided it was the best time to perfect this classic drink. And boy was it fun!

First things first, keep it simple.
I didn’t stray too much from an originally recipe, why mess with a good thing?
I also never rim my glasses with salt or other seasoning as I feel like it always makes a mess. But if that’s your thing, then I say go for it!
But most importantly, you MUST use Mott’s brand clamato juice. In my mind this is not negotiable. Not for any other reason than for the fact it just tastes the best. Just like boxed mac and cheese, it’s gotta be Kraft Dinner, and clamato juice has gotta be Mott’s.

• 1 oz. Of vodka
• 2 dashes of Tabasco Sauce
• 4 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp of pickle juice (the secret ingredient)
• Celery Salt & Pepper, to taste
• 4 to 6 oz. Of Mott’s Clamato juice
• Celery Stick for garnish

1. Pour pickle juice into a tall glass. Add the Tabasco, Worcesterhsire, Celery Salt & Pepper, mix well.

2. Add the vodka, some ice cubes, and celery stick. Top the glass with Clamato until full. Enjoy!

Lemon Velvet Pie

For me, the most depressing thing about summer is not being able to bake as often as I like. When it’s 30 degrees outside, and even hotter inside, turning the oven on is the last thing I want to do.
However, this recipe looked so good, I bit the bullet and made an exception. (you actually only really bake it for about 25 minutes so it’s not that bad)

While shopping for ingredients I grabbed some Meyer lemons over regular lemons as they are in season. For this recipe you could use either. Regular lemons will give you a more tart taste, while the Meyer lemons will have a sweeter taste.

Overall this pie was the perfect the complement to our BBQ dinner. Sweet and refreshing.

Graham Cracker Crust

• 3 cups of graham cracker crumbs (I used a whole box)
• ¼ cup of sugar
• 1 stick of butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix together all of the ingredients until well combined, press firmly into the bottom, and half way up the sides of the 9’’ spring form pan. Bake for 6-8 minutes only. (We are slightly under baking the crust as it will be baked again once the filling is added in) Set aside to cool.

Filling

• 1 tsp of unflavored gelatin
• 2 tbsp of cold water
• 6 egg yolks
• 1.5 cups of sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4  cup of whipping cream
• 1/4 tsp of salt
• 3/4 cup of fresh lemon juice
• Whipping cream and lemon peel slivers for garnish

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a small bowl soften gelatin for 5 minutes. Heat in microwave for about 14 seconds and set aside.

3. In a large bowl, combine egg yolks, and sweetened condensed milk. With an electric mixer, beat on high speed 2 -3 minutes until well combined. Beat in gelatin, whipping cream, and salt on low speed. Add lemon juice and beat on low speed for 30 seconds. Pour mixture into prepared graham crust.

4. Bake 22- 25 minutes or until center of pie looks set when gently shaken; cool on wire rack for 1 hour. Cover loosely and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

5. Top with whipping cream and lemon slivers before serving.