Broccoli Salad

 I have made some version of this salad for every holiday since I was a teenager. This is how it's ended. 

6 cups of broccoli, chopped small

1lb of bacon cooked crisp

1 red onion

1 box of raisins, golden or purple

3 ounces of sunflower seeds, roasted, hulled and salted

2 cups of mayo

1 cup of granulated sugar

4 tablespoons of white vinegar

Cut your broccoli, onion and bacon and put in bowl. Add the raisins and sunflower seeds. In a small bowl, mix the mayo, sugar and vinegar until the sugar has dissolved. Add to your broccoli bowl and mix until well coated. Chill. This is best made the day before, but keeps getting better. 

Mexican Street Corn or Elote

Another yummy recipe from Gracie. So good.  

4 T Butter

4c Corn Kernels (I used fresh and cut them off the cob but I’m sure you could also use frozen or canned) 2 Jalapenos, seeded and diced ¼ Mayonnaise ½ Cotija cheese (You can use crumbled or grated) 1 t Chili powder 2 T diced Garlic Juice of 1 Lime Melt the butter in a skillet, add the corn kernels and diced jalapeno and cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through and slightly charred. Add in the garlic for the last 1-2 minutes of cooking time. Stir in the cotija, mayo, chili powder, lime juice. Can be served immediately or kept warm in a covered dish in a low oven.

Queso Blanco

 This recipe is courtesy of my sister, Gracie. It is super easy and hands down the best homemade queso I've ever had. 

1lb White American Cheese (Any brand from the deli works, I always ask them to slice it in about ¼” slices and then crumble it) 1 cup Half and Half 4oz can Diced mild green chilies 2T diced pickled Jalapenos 1 T Pickled Jalapenos Juice For a milder queso, leave out the pickled jalapenos, but I recommend leaving in the juice if you have it on hand for more flavor.

This can be made on the stove, in a crockpot or in the microwave. I always do the crockpot. Combine all ingredients and melt in your chosen manner. If you use the crockpot, set it to low and stir every 15 minutes until melted and combined. For the microwave, stir every 1-2 minutes until fully melted and combined. If you use the stove just make sure the heat is really low so you don’t burn the cheese and stir frequently until melted.

Peach Pie

 7-9 peaches, peeled and sliced

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

1/3 cup of sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon of kosher salt

4 Tablespoon of cornstarch

1. peel and slice your peaches

2. Mix peaches with lemon juice

3. Add everything else

4. fill crusts

5. lattice or vent. (for lattice, make 12 strips.

Note: maybe my peaches were a little small this year, but it seemed to take 10 peaches per pie. 

Lemon Blueberry Pie

 This recipe came to me in the form of a lemon blueberry tart from my friend, Allison. Changes have been made slightly to "Americanize" it. But, because it is originally a French recipe, the measurements are in grams. You will need a kitchen scale to measure it out. That's okay; you should have one anyway. 

Blueberry Filling

Fresh or Frozen Blueberries 227 grams

Sucrose (sugar) 22.5 grams

Fresh Lemon Juice 5 grams

Cornstarch 6 grams

Pectin .75 grams

Boil the berries and sucrose mixed with the pectin at medium heat. Once boiling, add lemon juice and cornstarch to thicken. Then cook the berry mixture at low heat for about 10 minutes to cook the cornstarch taste away. 

Pour the berry mixture in a parbaked pie shell. (425 for about 10-15 minutes with fork holes)

Streusel Topping

Cold Cubed Butter 48 grams

Sucrose (sugar) 70 grams

flour 56 grams

Almond flour 56 grams

kirsh (optional) 5.25 grams

Make up your streusel topping with either your hands or a pastry blender. Then sprinkle over the top of your pie. Bake at 425 for about 10-15 minutes until lightly browned on top. So yummy. 

Vanilla Butter Cake

This is my go to fancy, vanilla cake recipe. It is very easy, but has amazing flavor. I usually serve it with a raspberry layer and a buttercream frosting. I usually spread it over a whole sheet pan, then cut it in half for my layers. Then you don't have to do surgery to split a cake. I'm not entirely sure where the original recipe came from, except her name was Rose. 

2 3/4 cups sugar

3/4 cup salted butter, softened

3/4 cup shortening

2 tsp. vanilla extract

5 eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1tsp. salt

3/4 cup evaporated milk

1/4 cup sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 325F.

2. Cream together the sugar, butter and shortening until smooth; then beat in vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time, until fluffy. 

3. In a separate bowl, sift together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and salt). Add this flour mixture and the evaporated milk to the original mixture alternately; ending with milk. Beat for 2 minutes on medium speed, then fold in the sour cream. 

4. Spread onto a parchment lined half sheet pan. Bake for 25-35 minute, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean (check at 25 minutes).