Cielito Lindo

The traditional Puertorican dip comes in different variations. This recipe, courtesy of Aixa Colon Semidey, is probably the best one out there for us meat lovers. It's very easy to do and will make you very popular when taking it to a party.

- 8oz cream cheese
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1lb ground beef
- 1 taco seasoning packet
- 3/4 cup of water
- 1 jar of Mexican Salsa
- 4 diced tomatoes
- 8oz shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro

Preheat the oven at 325 degrees

Brown the ground beef in a sauté pan with the garlic on medium high heat

Once the beef is browned, add the taco seasoning and mix it thoroughly. Add the water and let it evaporate moving the beef occasionally so it doesn't stick.

Spread the cream cheese in a glass dish evenly so that the bottom of it is completely covered.

Add the beef into the pan and spread it evenly.

Add the salsa from the jar.

Add the tomatoes.

Add the cheese and put it in the oven for 20 minutes.

Take it out of the oven and sprinkle the cilantro.

Start dipping away and make sure to wipe your chin : )

Rum Punch

The Rum Punch has evolved nicely from its origin... in college we called it Jungle Juice and let's hope it never comes back.

This is good for big parties such as pig roasts, block parties or even Super Bowl parties.

It makes about five gallons so you can adjust accordingly. Try to serve it in an open container so you can enjoy the fruit simmering in all the punch juices.

The recipe is courtesy of Eric Santiago:

- 1.75 L Ron Rico or Palo Viejo - use a cheap rum
- 1 L Triple Sec
- 0.5 L Peach Brandy
- 12 oz Grenadin
- 2 16 oz orange concentrate cans
- 2 12 oz fruit punch frozen concentrate cans
- 2 12 oz de lemonade frozen concentrate cans
- 1 can 16 oz de pineapple frozen concentrate can
- 1 32 oz de cranberry juice cocktail
- 2 18 oz de crushed pineapple cans
- 3 lemons thinly sliced
- 3 lime thinly sliced
- 4 oranges regular sliced
- 2 green apples sliced in cubes of 1" x 1"
- 2 red apples sliced in cubes of 1" x 1"
- 4 peaches sliced in cubes of 1" x 1"

Put all the fruit in the serving bowl/cooler and add half of the triple sec and peach brandy. Make sure to mix the fruit with the alcohol so that the fruit absorbs it for 15 to 20 minutes.

Pour the cranberry juice. Add the frozen concetrate juice while adding the necessary water (usually the can will give you the water quantity on the side of the label). Dissolve each concentrate before adding the next one. After all the juices are mixed, add the rest of the ingredients - rum, triple sec, grenadin and peach brandy and stir it again.

Cover for another half hour and serve.

DO NOT put ice in the mixing bowl as this will water down the punch.

Enjoy!

Spaghetti Carbonara

This is my favorite Italian dish.

1lb dried spaghetti
1/2lb pancetta diced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
handful flatleaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
3 large free-range eggs, beaten
1/2 cup pecorino romano grated
1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano grated
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Follow the directions below:

Pico de Gallo

4 Tomatoes
1 White Onion
1 Jalapeño
1 Lime
1 Bunch of Cilantro
Salt & Pepper

- Chop the onion using the Vidalia chopper and put it in a bowl.
- Take half a lime and pour its juices over the chopped onion.
- Cut the tomatoes in quarts and chop them using the chopper. You might want to throw some of the juice it before adding to the onions
- Add chopped tomatoes to the mix with the onions.
- Peel the jalapeño and remove the seeds.
- Cut the jalapeño pieces as small as you can.
- Add chopped jalapeño to the mix of onions and tomatoes.
- Take the cilantro and cut the bottom of the stems out.
- Rough chop the rest of the cilantro.
- Add the cilantro to the mix.
- Using a spoon, mix the pico de gallo so the ingredients get thoroughly mixed.
- Pour in the rest of the lime juice and mix again.
- Add salt and black pepper and mix again.
- Put on Tupperware and refrigerate for half hour.
- Serve on nice bowl and enjoy with tortilla chips.

Kitchen Gadgets - Vidalia Chop Wizard

One of the gadgets we constantly use is the Vidalia Chop Wizard. It is essential when making salsas or cutting vegetables. Easy to use, easy to clean and no more crying when chopping onions. This will be useful for recipes we'll be posting soon.

Fred's Slow Cooked Barbecued Country-Style Ribs

Karen and Fred cooked this one at our ski trip in Stratton this past January (2010).

3 to 4 pound boneless pork country stule ribs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large onions, halved, thinly sliced
1 cup apple juice
1 - 2 bottles of "Bullseye" Barbecue sauce
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne red pepper
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/8 cup honey

- Lightly grease the crockery insert of a 5 to 6 quart slow cooker.
- Wash pork, trim excess fat and pat dry with paper towels.
- Put the sliced onions in the bottom of the slow cooker and then place the pork on top.
- Sprinkle the pork with all spices (salt, pepper, cayenne, cinnamon and cumin), brown sugar and minced garlic; turn the pork ribs to coat all pieces.
- Pour apple juice evenly over the pork, along with honey.
- Cover and cook on LOW for seven hours.
- Drain liquids from the pork.
- Pour Barbecue sauce over the pork and stir slightly to distribute the sauce.
- Cover and cook on LOW for two hours longer.

Submitted by Fred Roberts