Fun Monday - A pinch of salt...

Lisa the Food Snob is hosting this week's Fun Monday. She wants to "to see your favorite recipe, be it either because your grandmother wrote it, it's the easiest thing you can slap together that everyone likes, it makes you feel healthy, it's cheap, etc. You don't have to make it (although you could if you want) but let us see the index card, cookbook, printed paper from the web, and why it's a favorite in your house. If you have a lot, just pick one, I know I'll have to!"

I read and reread the rules to be sure there was no mention of it having to be a food recipe. It doesn't.

SO, since we were all discussing martini recipes last week, I decided I'd give you all my favorite martini recipe. I'm such a cheat! But the truth is, I don't really cook from recipes, I just cook from whatever I have lying around, creating my own recipes as I go along. Therefore, it's hard for me to pick a favorite recipe.

Even for the martini recipe, I realized I didn't have my favorite martini mix in the house, so I created my own martini...I present to you Karina's Starbucks and Chocolate Martini:

Looks good right? I make apologies now if some of this post doesn't make sense, but after making that martini I was FORCED to drink it, so...um...yeah. (And I'm writing this on Sunday night, so no, I did not drink before work on Monday). Anyway, for the recipe, which I created myself tonight...it is two parts vodka, two parts Starbucks coffee liquor and two parts milk (skim milk for me), coat the glass with Hershey's chocolate syrup, and you are good to go.

As I was making the martini, I was also making myself dinner. Yet another creation borne of my imagination. I present to you my "chicken and cheese dumplings".

Again, I just made this up as I went along, discovering what was in my fridge and cabinets. It is ground chicken, green chillis, salt, pepper, garlic, a bit of ginger paste, some habanero hot sauce, and some shredded cheese insterted into the middle of the dumplings before they are rolled. Fry them up, and I sprayed some "truffle" oil on them to finish with. The maccaroni is wheat with a Ginger Peanut Sesame Pesto sauce, made with a store bought pesto and coconut milk. It was delicious.

I do, however, have one recipe that I've made several times this summer, and as it is the only recipe I can recall following in its entirety, here it is:

Hopefully you can click on that picture to enlarge for the actual recipe. It is delicious and refreshing for a summer salad option.

Well, this was a fun and delicious assignment. Thanks Lisa! Go to her site (link above) for more entries. I have a little extra martini mix left to polish off...finish this vacation off right!