In this video, Betty demonstrates how to make a perfect (and healthy) Fourth of July dessert–her Strawberry-Blueberry Parfait! It is colorful (red, white, and blue), dramatic, and delicious! And super easy to make!!!
Ingredients:
2 cups fresh strawberries, washed, dried (with paper towel), and quartered
2 cups fresh blueberries, washed and dried
2 tablespoons Splenda (or sugar or other artificial sweetener)
1 carton strawberry glaze (I used sugar-free.)
8 oz. carton frozen whipped topping, thawed (I used fat-free.)
Instructions:
Add 1 tablespoon of Splenda to 2 cups strawberries and stir. Also add 1 tablespoon of Splenda to 2 cups of blueberries and stir. For a pretty parfait, you will need an appropriate clear glass. I used a sundae glass.
In the bottom, place a small amount of whipped topping. Next, put a few small strawberry slices, followed by strawberry glaze. Then, put a few blueberries on top of the glaze. When you put these layers in the glass, make sure that each layer can be seen all around the glass. Repeat this layering, up to the last layer.
For the last layer, place a generous amount of whipped topping, and then top it off with strawberry slices and blueberries (no glaze, because it would kill the effect of the whipped topping at the top). Done! It’s that easy! It is perfect for the 4th of July, but is very elegant for a fancy summer party!! Happy 4th!!!
This delicious Garlic Bread recipefills your kitchen with the wonderful aroma of garlic. It’s very simple and quite easy to prepare and is a very tasty accompaniment for soups and pasta dishes.
Everyone at your dinner table… whether guests or family… will find it impossible to resist! Be sure to have enough slices on hand because your guests will beg for more! YUM!
Set the temperature of the oven to 175ºC, 325ºF, or gas mark 3.5.
Make the garlic butter
Spoon the butter into a small bowl. Place some of the garlic cloves into the crusher, squeeze the handle tightly down and scrape off the crushed garlic into the bowl. Continue this process until all the garlic has been crushed. Next, pour in the parsley, season with salt and pepper and stir well.
Slice and fill
Place the baguette onto the chopping board and cut across diagonally, into 2-3 cm slices, without cutting completely through the bread. Create a gap between the slices, add a dollop of the garlic butter, and smooth it down. Finally spread any remaining butter over the top of the baguette.
Wrap in foil
Unroll the aluminum foil and tear off a large enough piece to wrap the baguette. Place the garlic bread into the center of the foil and wrap it up making sure that you seal the ends well.
Bake
Place the baguette into the center of the oven and cook for ten minutes. Turn it over, cook for a further 10 minutes and remove it from the oven.
Serve
Once cooked, unwrap the baguette, cut through into slices and serve.
These Garlic Shrimp Triscuit Appetizers will be fabulous for your New Year’s Eve party! They’re not only attractive… they’re also pretty delicious. Try them… you won’t be disappointed!
Ingredients
2 eggs
1/2 cup water
24 Triscuit Roasted Garlic crackers
2 oz Philadelphia Neufchatel cheese (softened)
1/4 tsp lemon zest (if you don’t have a zester… use a grater)
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp fat free milk (regular milk is fine)
24 deveined and rinsed shrimp (about a pound)
2 cloves minced garlic
2 tsp chopped fresh parsley
Directions
Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
Spray a 24 cup mini muffin tin with cooking spray and set aside (even if the tin is non stick).
Place eggs and water in a flat pie dish and beat well.
Add 12 crackers to the egg mixture and allow them to stand for 4 minutes bbefore removing. Repeat with the remaining 12 crackers.
Press each soaked cracker on the bottom and up the sides of your prepared mini muffin tin.
Bake the crackers for 8 to 10 minutes until they’re lightly browned.
Carefully remove the Triscuit cups from the pan with a mini spatula or a butter knife and place them on a baking sheet that has also been spraying with cooking spray.
Return the cracker cups to the oven and bake again for 30 to 35 minutes until they’re totally crisp.
Mix together the cheese, zest, juice, and milk in a bowl and set aside.
Clean, devein, and rinse shrimp. Pat dry.
Spray a non stick skillet with cooking spray and add the garlic and shrimp. Cook on medium heat for about 3 to 4 minutes until shrimp are beginning to turn pink. Remove from pan.
Place Neufchatel cheese mixture into thoroughly cooled cracker cups. Top each cup with a shrimp.
Here’s an easy, meatless New Year’s Eve appetizer for you to offer your guests. Although I haven’t prepared these yet… they look pretty tasty!
Ingredients
cocktail rye, pumpernickel, or other deli style bread
1-1/2 c Hellman’s mayonnaise (DO NOT use Miracle Whip)
2/3 c finely grated Parmesan cheese
3 T finely minced onion
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp Lawry’s seasoning salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
3/4 tsp Worcestershiresauce
oregano
Directions
Preheat oven to broil (450 to 500-degrees) and place parchment paper on baking sheets to prevent extra cleanup.
Thoroughly mix all ingredients in a bowl. You can use a pastry bag with a fancy tip or just place a dollop on each round (or whatever shape you’ve cut).
Sprinkle oregano lightly on the tops and place under the broiler… (place your oven rack in the second slot from the top)… for 2 to 2-1/2 minutes until lightly browned.
Note: I apologize for not giving you the quantities of bread rounds or the final yield. What I recommend is to make up the mayonnaise mixture and make your bread cut-outs as you go… no left-over bread!
In this video, Betty demonstrates how to make her Sizzling Steak Fajitas recipe. Betty’s description is perfect… “Marinated in luscious herbs and oil, sirloin strips are spiced and browned to perfection, and then served with sautéed vegetables and Cheddar cheese in a soft flour tortilla. Muy Bueno!”
Ingredients
1 1/4 pounds top sirloin steak, cut into strips for sautéing
1 large onion, cut in lengthwise wedges for sautéing
1 large green bell pepper, cut into lengthwise wedges for sautéing
1 large red bell pepper, cut into lengthwise wedges for sautéing
juice of one lime (or 2 tablespoons lime juice)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, minced
1 package fajita seasoning (your favorite brand… I use Lawry’s)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (for browning steak)
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (for sautéing vegetables)
1 package of 10-inch flour tortillas
shredded Cheddar cheese
Directions
In a medium-sized bowl, mix the juice of 1 lime, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 chopped jalapeno pepper, and 1/2 cup minced cilantro. Place 1 1/4 pounds sirloin steak strips into this mixture and use your hands to rub the mixture into the steak. Cover the steak with plastic wrap, and put it in the refrigerator for about 4 hours to marinate. (If you do not have this amount of time, you may continue with the recipe.)
Add 1 package fajita seasoning mix to the marinated steak and blend thoroughly.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large, deep skillet. When hot, add all of the steak pieces and stir-fry until done. If the mixture becomes thick, you can add water to thin it to your desired consistency. The steak will cook very quickly—about 6 to 8 minutes.
When the steak is done, remove it from the skillet, and place it on a serving platter. Cover with aluminum foil to keep it hot while you prepare the remainder of your dinner.
Place the wedges from 1 onion, 1 green pepper, and 1 red pepper into the skillet that was used to brown the steak. Sauté the vegetables until clear and beginning to brown. Remove them from the skillet, and place them on their serving platter.
Place your flour tortillas on a serving platter and microwave them for a very short amount of time to soften them. To serve a fajita, take one warm flour tortilla and place some browned steak strips in a line near the bottom. Place sautéed vegetables over the steak, and then sprinkle shredded Cheddar cheese over the vegetables. Fold the bottom edge of tortilla over the meat, vegetable, and cheese, and tuck in both sides.
Roll the tortilla all the way up and place on a serving plate. Accompany a couple of fajitas with Pico de Gallo, guacamole, sour cream, and a refreshing glass of limeade to drink!
This delicious recipe for Maryland Crab Cakes with Homemade Tartar Sauceby Emma Feigenbaum (she’s a chef on Martha Stewart’s “Everyday Food” on PBS) is quite simple to prepare once you have measured and assembled your ingredients and utensils. Although not inexpensive… especially since I prefer fresh-cooked crabmeat from Whole Foods… it will definitely be a special treat for that special occasion.
Ingredients
1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1 T Old Bay Seasoning
1 T Dijon mustard
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice
1 large egg
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
coarse salt, to taste
1 cup fine saltine crumbs (from about 30 crackers)
1 pound smaller-size fresh crabmeat
1 pound larger-size fresh crabmeat, such as jumbo lump
4 tablespoons butter, melted (you can use salted or unsalted)
Directions
Place ingredients into a large bowl and stir until thoroughly incorporated.
Pick through crabmeat very carefully to remove shells and add the smaller-size crabmeat to other ingredients and mix.
Gently fold in the jumbo lump crabmeat and try not to break up the larger pieces.
Using your hands, place 8 crab cakes onto a greased cookie sheet.
Drizzle crab cakes with 4 tablespoons of melted butter.
Broil until golden brown. Allow to rest for a minute and serve with a slice of lemon and homemade tartar sauce.
Homemade Tartar Sauce Ingredients
1 cup light mayonnaise
4 chopped cornichons
1 shallot, minced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
freshly squeezed lemon juice
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
Mix ingredients until thoroughly combined, chill, and serve with crab cakes.
NOTE: Cornichons are the French version of American gherkins (small pickles).
