Roasted Lime Chicken

•1/2 cup Dijon mustard

•1/4 cup lime juice

•1/4 cup soy sauce

•2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley or 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes

•2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary or 2 teaspoons dried rosemary, crushed

•2 tablespoons minced fresh sage or 2 teaspoons rubbed sage

•2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme or 2 teaspoons dried thyme

•1 teaspoon white pepper

•1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

•1 roasting chicken (6 to 7 pounds)

•4 medium limes, cut into wedges

Directions

•Combine the first nine ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate 1/4 cup marinade; pour remaining marinade into a 2-gallon resealable plastic bag. Add the chicken; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

•Drain chicken and discard marinade. Place lime wedges inside the cavity. Tuck wings under chicken; tie drumsticks together. Place chicken breast side up on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Brush reserved marinade over chicken.

•Bake at 350° for 2 to 2-1/2 hours or until a thermometer inserted in thigh reads 180°, basting occasionally with pan juices. Cover loosely with foil if chicken browns too quickly. Let stand for 15 minutes before carving. Yield: 6 servings

Coconut Bread

2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour, more for dusting pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 or 2 teaspoons cinnamon (optional)
1 cup  sugar
5 ounces flaked coconut (about 1 1/2 cups)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil or nonstick cooking spray
Butter, optional
Confectioners' sugar, optional.

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, milk and vanilla.

2. In a medium bowl, sift together 2 1/2 cups flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Add sugar and coconut, and stir to mix. Make a well in the center, and pour in egg mixture. Gradually mix with dry ingredients, until just combined. Add melted butter, and stir until smooth. Do not over mix.

3. Oil and flour a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Pour batter into pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Cool in pan 5 minutes, remove bread from pan, and finish cooling on a rack.

4. To serve, cut into 8 to 10 thick slices. If desired, toast lightly, spread with butter, and dust lightly with confectioners' sugar.

Chicken Gumbo Soup

3 chopped carrots
1 small onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
salt (to taste)
pepper  (to taste)
1-1/2 lbs. cooked chicken
2 cloves garlic, minced
32 oz. chicken broth (plus more for reheating)
14 oz. crushed tomatoes
14 oz. diced tomato
1 t. dried thyme
2  cups cooked  long grain  brown rice
10 oz. bag frozen okra
.

1. Heat a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add extra virgin olive oil.  Add onion, carrots, and celery then season with salt and pepper and saute for 5 minutes, or until veggies are softened.. Add garlic then cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
2. Add cooked chicken.  Add okra, tomatoes, thyme.  Simmer for about 15 minutes.
3. Add cooked rice and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Pesto Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 8 ounces, Short Fusilli Or Rotini (corkscrew) Pasta
• 1/3 cup Prepared Pesto
• 1/2 cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
• 1/2 cup Mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup Sour Cream
• 1/4 cup Milk, More For Thinning
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon Pepper
• 1 head (large) Romaine Lettuce, Sliced Into 1-inch Pieces
• 1 cup Grape Tomatoes, Halved
• 1/2 cup Black Or Kalmata Olives, Halved
• 4 ounces,  Mozzarella Cheese, Cut Into Cubes
• 4 Tablespoons Pine Nuts (optional)
• Extra Parmesan, For Sprinkling

Preparation Instructions

Cook the pasta in salted water according to package instructions. Then drain it and rinse in cold water. Allow pasta to dry slightly, then toss in a bowl with 4 tablespoons pesto. (Add more if you want the pasta to be more coated.) Add Parmesan and toss. Cover and refrigerate pasta until cold.

Make the dressing by whisking together the mayonnaise, sour cream, and milk with the rest of the pesto. Add salt and pepper, then taste and adjust seasonings as needed. The dressing needs to be somewhat thin and pourable in order to coat the lettuce and pasta later. Set the dressing aside.

If you're using pine nuts, toast them over medium-low heat in a small skillet until they brown slightly. Set them aside.

To assemble the salads, make a bed of lettuce in a large bowl, then add a generous layer of pesto-coated pasta. Add tomatoes, olives, and chunks of cheese. Spoon a good amount of dressing all over the top; it should be thin enough to seep down into the salad, not so thick it will stay on top of everything.

Sprinkle salads with pine nuts and a little extra Parmesan and serve!

from Pioneer Woman

Cappuccino Punch # 2

3c.  strong brewed coffee
2c. sugar
1 pint  French vanilla creamer
1 quart milk
2 tsp. vanilla 
mix coffee and sugar until dissolved and cool
mix creamer, milk and vanilla and freeze
thaw 2 hrs
Mix together.

Cappuccino Punch

• 1/2 cup sugar (or granular Splenda)
• 1/4 cup instant coffee granules (regular or decaf)
• 1 cup boiling water
• 8 cups milk
• 1 quart vanilla ice cream, softened
• 1 quart chocolate ice cream, softened

• Directions

• In a small bowl, combine the sugar and coffee; stir in boiling water until dissolved. Cover and refrigerate until chilled.
• Just before serving, pour coffee mixture into a 1-gal. punch bowl. Stir in milk. Add scoops of ice cream; stir until melted. Yield: about 1 gallon.

Fruit Tea

2 c. boiling water

1/2 c. mint leaves

5 teabags

1 c. Splenda (or sugar)

6 c. water

1/3 c. lemon juice

1 c. orange juice

1 c. pineapple juice

Pour boiling water over teabags.  Cover and let steep for 5 minutes.  Remove teabags.  Stir in Splenda and remaining ingredients.  Serve over ice.

About Time Beach Cooler

1/2 Lemon, sliced
1/2 Lime, Sliced
2- 12 oz. diet Sprite
13 oz. diet Ginger Ale
1 T. Apple cider vinegar

Squeeze lemon and lime over ice in 2 large glasses.
Add diet soda, ginger ale and vinegar.
Mix well.
Yield:  2 servings

Grilled Grouper with Watermelon Salsa

• 4 (4-oz.) grouper fillets
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt, divided
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided 
• 2 cups chopped seedless watermelon 
• 1/4 cup chopped pitted kalamata olives
• 1/2 English cucumber, chopped 
• 1 small jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
• 2 tablespoons minced red onion
• 2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar

Preparation

1. 1. Preheat grill to 350º to 400º (medium-high) heat. Sprinkle grouper with pepper and 1/2 tsp. salt. Drizzle with 2 Tbsp. olive oil.
2. 2. Grill fish, covered with grill lid, 3 to 4 minutes on each side or just until fish begins to flake when poked with the tip of a sharp knife and is opaque in center.
3. 3. Combine chopped watermelon, next 5 ingredients, and remaining 1/2 tsp. salt and 1 Tbsp. olive oil. Serve with grilled fish.

Cucumber Dill Tea Sandwiches

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian salad dressing mix

2 loaves French bread, cut into 1/2 inch slices or any bread

2 medium cucumbers, sliced (you can use them peeled or unpeeled)

1 pinch dried dill weed

In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, mayonnaise and Italian dressing mix. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, or preferably overnight.

Spread the cream cheese blend onto slices of bread. Top with a cucumber slice, and sprinkle with dill. You can make as many or few as you like. The cream cheese mixture keeps for about a week in the refrigerator so you can make them over and over again!

Tip: If you are not sure you will be eating all of the sandwiches, put a thin layer of unsalted butter on your bread, then your sandwich mixture. This prevents sandwiches from getting soggy. 

Chocolate Lasagna

INGREDIENTS

1 package regular Oreo cookies (Not Double Stuff) – about 36 cookies
6 Tablespoon butter, melted
1- 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons cold milk
1- 12 ounce tub Cool Whip, divided
2 – 3.9 ounce packages Chocolate Instant Pudding.
3 1/4 cups cold milk
1 and 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Begin by crushing 36 Oreo cookies. I used my food processor for this, but you could also place them in a large ziplock bag and crush them with a rolling pin. When the Oreos have turned into fine crumbs, you are done.
2. Transfer the Oreo crumbs to a large bowl. Stir in 6 tablespoons melted butter and use a fork to incorporate the butter into the cookie crumbs. When the butter is distributed, transfer the mixture to a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Press the crumbs into the bottom of the pan. Place the pan in the refrigerator while you work on the additional layers.
3. Mix the cream cheese with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add in 2 Tablespoons of milk, and sugar, and mix well. Stir in 1 and 1/4 cups Cool Whip. Spread this mixture over the crust.
4. In a bowl, combine chocolate instant pudding with 3 and 1/4 cups cold milk. Whisk for several minutes until the pudding starts to thicken. Use a spatula to spread the mixture over the previous cream cheese layer. Allow the dessert to rest for about 5 minutes so that the pudding can firm up further.
5. Spread the remaining Cool Whip over the top. Sprinkle mini chocolate chips evenly over the top. Place in the freezer for 1 hour, or the refrigerator for 4 hours before serving.

Strawberry Cake

Ingredients

• 1 package white cake mix (regular size)
• 1 package (3 ounces) strawberry gelatin
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 4 egg whites
• 1/2 cup mashed unsweetened strawberries
• Whipped cream or frosting for your choice (recommend cream cheese frosting)

Directions

• In a large bowl, combine the dry cake mix, gelatin powder, water and oil. Beat on low speed for 1 minute or until moistened; beat on medium for 4 minutes.
• In a small bowl with clean beaters, beat egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites and mash strawberries into cake batter.
• Pour into three greased and floured 8-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
• Frost with whipped cream or frosting. If frosted with whipped cream, store in the refrigerator. Yield: 12-16 servings.