spicy asian chicken and noodle soup

Ingredients

3 cups, low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken breast
1/2 cup grated carrot (about 1 medium)
1/2 cup thinly sliced snow peas
2 tsp. Sriracha
2 tsp. low-sodium soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp. Thai red curry paste
1 (2-inch) piece peeled fresh ginger
6 cups water
3 oz uncooked wide rice sticks (rice-flour noodles)
1 tbsp. fresh lime juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions

Instructions

1. Bring first 9 ingredients to simmer in a medium saucepan; keep warm.
2. Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add rice noodles; cook 3 minutes. Drain. Place about 1/4 cup rice noodles in each of the 4 bowls.
3. Discard ginger. Add juice to broth mixture, stir. Ladle 1 1/3 cups broth mixture over each serving; top with 1 tbsp. each mint, cilantro, green onions.

*From Cooking Light

key lime pie

Ingredients

Filling:
4 large egg yolks
4 tsp. grated lime zest
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup fresh lime juice (5 limes)

Crust:
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
5 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
2 tbsp. sugar

Topping:
1 cup heavy cream, chilled
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Instructions

1. Move oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. For the filling: Whisk the yolks and zest together in a medium nonreactive bowl (stainless steel, glass, or ceramic) until the mixture has a light green tint, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk until smooth, then whisk in the lime juice. Cover the mixture, then set aside until thickened, about 30 minutes.
3. For the crust: Toss the graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar together thoroughly with a fork. Pour the crumbs into a pie plate. Use the bottom of a measuring cup to press the crumbs into an even layer on the bottom and side of the pie plate. Bake until the crust is fragrant and beginning to brown, 15-20 minutes. Leave the oven at 325.
4. Pour the thickened filling into the warm pie crust. Bake until the center is firm but wiggles slightly when jiggled, 15-20 minutes. Transfer the pie to a wire rack and cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until well chilled, at least 3 hours.
5. For the topping: Just before serving, whip together the cream and sugar in a chilled bowl until soft peaks form. Spread whipped cream attractively over the top of the pie.

*From America's Test Kitchen

corn salad

Here's a delicious recipe from my Aunt!
Makes a perfect side for a BBQ or Mexican dinner...

Ingredients

6 ears of corn

2 tbsp. olive oil

salt and freshly ground pepper

1 cup roasted red peppers, finely chopped.

1 large jalapeno, seeded and minced

2 tbsp. basil, chopped

1 tbsp. mint, chopped

1 tbsp. fresh lime juice

Instructions

1. Brush corn with oil and season with salt and pepper.

2. Wrap in foil and roast until tender, about 1 hour in 350 degree F oven.

3. Cut kernels from cobs into a bowl. Add the roasted red peppers, jalapeno, basil, mint, and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper.

chickpea cakes with cucumber-yogurt sauce

Ingredients

2 slices white sandwich bread, torn into pieces

1 cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and shredded

salt and pepper

1 1/4 cups plain Greek yogurt

6 scallions

1/4 cup cilantro

2 cans chickpeas, rinsed

2 large eggs

10 tsp. olive oil

1 tsp. garam masala

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 shallot, minced

lime wedges

Instructions

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Pulse the bread in a food processor to coarse crumbs, about 10 pulses. Spread the crumbs out over a rimmed baking sheet and bake, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and dry, 10 minutes or so. Let cool to room temperature.

2. Meanwhile, toss the cucumber with 1/2 tsp. salt in a colander and let drain for 15-30 minutes. Combine the drained cucumbers, 1/4 cup of the yogurt, 2 tbsp. of the scallions, and 1 tbsp. of the cilantro in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.

3. Pulse the chickpeas in a food processor to a coarse puree with large pieces remaining, about 8 pulses. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, 2 tbsp. of the oil, garam masala, cayenne, and 1/8 tsp. of salt together. Add the processed chickpeas, breadcrumbs, remaining 1/2 cup yogurt, remaining scallions, remaining 3 tbsp. cilantro, and shallot until just combined. Divide the chickpea mixture into 6 equal portions and lightly pack into 1-inch thick patties.
4. Heat 2 tsp. more oil into a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat until shimmering. Carefully lay half of the patties in the skillet and cook until well browned on both sides, 5-6 minutes per side.
5. Transfer the cakes to a plate and tent loosely with foil. Return the skillet to medium high and repeat with the remaining 2 tsp. oil and remaining burgers. Serve with the cucumber yogurt sauce and lime wedges.

* from America's Test Kitchen

fresh salsa

Ingredients

5 ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bunch of cilantro, coarsely chopped
2 limes, juiced

Instructions

1. In a food processor, pulse red onion, garlic, and cilantro. Remove contents from bowl and set aside.
2. In the food processor, pulse small batches of tomatoes until desired consistency, then set aside in large bowl. Repeat until all tomatoes are processed.
3. Drain any excess juice from the tomatoes until you have the desired amount of liquid.
4. Mix in onion and cilantro mixture.
5. Add lime juice.

guacamole

Ingredients

3 avocados, halved, seeded and peeled

1 lime, juiced

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. cayenne

1/2 medium onion, diced

2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 clove garlic, minced

Instructions

In a large bowl place the scooped avocado pulp and lime juice, toss to coat. Using a potato masher add the salt, cumin, cayenne and mash. Then, fold in the onions, tomatoes, and garlic.

*When storing, make sure you choose an air tight storage container to minimize browning. I like to line the very top of the guacamole with plastic wrap as well.

* Adapted from Alton Brown