More cooking adventures

I have the misfortune of not having A/C in my house. We do have a window unit that keeps our house decently cool (we have not gotten over 80), for which I am enormously grateful, but it does defer me from wanting to cook much and risk heating my house any more than is necessary. I have recently decided that I want to avoid cooking at all costs. Matt's mother is a very good cook, and has been asked many times for different recipes by many of her daughters-in-law. The Christmas before she left on her mission, she gave each of her children all of her famous recipes. There are two in there that have come in very handy during the summer, when I have no desire to cook. I know of at least one other friend that is without A/C, so I decided to share my delicious finds.



First is Cold Roast Beef Sandwich Pizza.



1 Boboli crust (a previously cooked pizza crust)
1/2 C. cream cheese with chives and onion (in a tub)
1/4 C. mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. creamy horseradish sauce
1 1/2 C. shredded romaine lettuce
1/4 C. Italian salad dressing
1/2 C. deli roast beef, cut into strips
1 chopped tomato

Combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, and horseradish. Spread over pizza crust.
Combine remaining ingredients with salad dressing, toss together and spread over top of crust.


I added cucumbers as well and they tasted wonderful with it. I highly recommend it. Obviously you can alter the "sauce" to your taste and add whatever you think will taste good. It is a fun recipe and very refreshing and different.



Second is Chicken Pita Sandwiches. I don't have a picture of it to show you what it looks like.

1/2 C. mayonnaise
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 C. cooked chicken, cubed (I like to use canned chicken)
1/2 C. cooked rice (if you do not wish to cook the rice, just go buy some cooked rice at your local chinese restaurant)
1/2 C. chopped cucumber
1/2 C. chopped carrot
1/4 C. chopped radishes
1 chopped green onion
3 pitas, halved

Make dressing by combining mayonnaise, lemon juice, and garlic powder. Combine all other ingredients and mix with dressing. Serve in pitas.


This one is very refreshing as well. It is very good in tortillas as well.


If anyone else has any "no cook" recipes, please pass them along. I need all that I can get my hands on.

Scrumpscious recipe

So last Saturday, I had the lucky opportunity to attend a class about making easy, simple recipes that are ready in 30 min or less. Here is one that was my favorite and I will probably will do for Valentines Day: Chocolate Waffles. Just follow the recipe on the box, except add only a 1/4 cup oil instead of the required amount. Put the batter in your waffle maker and, presto, an amazing meal. You can top with ice cream and whatever sunday toppings you want. We sampled some of the waffles and they are amazing. I totally recommend them for any special occasion. I think the best part is they are so easy to make. Just sharing the love.

Who Knew?

Ever wondered what to do with your leftover meatloaf? Put it in spaghetti sauce. It adds a delicious flavor, very similar to meatballs. I think it tastes wonderful and it makes the meal that more easy. If you try it, let me know what you think of it.

An interesting blog

Okay, I have been slowly becoming more and more green. In some ways I think I drive Matt nuts (i.e. - constantly unplugging appliances that are not in use or turning off the computer instead of putting in sleep mode). I also am into clipping coupons and bargin shopping. My sister-in-law, Kim, sent me the link to her sister's blog that is all about being green and saving money. So I am going to post the link on my blog so that all of you can take a look. There are some really cool things on there, like a recipe for laundry detergent that costs about $0.02 a load. I am going to try it out and see how it works. She uses cloth diapers and it works really well for her, so I think it should work for my laundry. I'll let you know after I give it a try.

http://clippingcorners.blogspot.com/