Fresh Corn Salad

The original BC recipe can be found HERE.

Ingredients:
5 ears corn, shucked
1/2 cup small-diced red onion (1 small red onion)
3 T. cider vinegar
2 T. olive oil
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. fresh ground black pepper
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves

Instructions:
Cook corn for 3 minutes in boiling water. Drain and dunk in cold water to stop the cooking and to set the color. When cooled, cut kernals off the cob. Mix corn, onion, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Just before serving, add the basil. Serve cold or room temperature.

Slow Cooker Mexican Corn on the Cob

Original Recipe here

Ingredients:
6 ears of corn, husked
½ cup shredded Cotija cheese
¼ cup chili powder
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup mayonnaise or unsalted butter, softened
fresh limes
salt to taste
⅓ cup water

Instructions:

1. Place one ear of corn at a time in the middle of a foil sheet. Spread the butter or mayonnaise on top of the corn. Sprinkle the top with a ½ teaspoon-1 teaspoon of chili powder. Then sprinkle with 1 Tablespoon of Cotija cheese. Top with just a small sprinkling of cilantro.
2. Tightly wrap the ear in a sheet of foil. Repeat with each ear of corn.
3. Put ⅓ cup of water in the bottom of a slow cooker. Place each foil-wrapped ear of corn into the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.
4. Remove the ears with tongs. Open and sprinkle more Cotija cheese, salt to taste, and squeeze a bit of lime juice on top.

Black Bean Hummus

Recipe from monthly bunco group. Originally from here. It's a new favorite!

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked black beans

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 head iceberg lettuce, cut into wedges

Instructions:

Blend all ingredients, except the lettuce, in a food processor until almost smooth. Let sit for 15 minutes and then serve with iceberg lettuce. I like to serve with carrots, cucumbers, celery and chips to dip. Yum!

Southwest Stuffed Bell Peppers

Kelsy got me on this recipe blog and I tried my first thing. It's delicious!!! Here's the original recipe with lots of great pics. I'm going to copy it here for my own little recipe file.

Ingredients:
4 very large or 6 medium sweet peppers (red, yellow, or orange)
1 Tbs salt
1/2 C white rice (or brown if you want to take the time to cook it), quinoa also works
2 Tbs olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 – 1 jalapeno, minced (or you could sub a small 3oz can of mild green chilies)
1 14oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn kernels
2 green onions, sliced
1/2-1 tsp chipotle chili powder (you can start with 1/2 and add more to taste)
1 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 black pepper, plus more to taste
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, preferably fire roasted
1 1/4 C jack or pepperjack cheese, divided
3-4 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
tortilla chips, just a handful and more for serving if desired

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350. Prepare peppers by washing, slicing tops off, and removing insides. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil and add 1 tablespoon salt. Boil whole peppers for about 3-4 minutes, until they begin to soften. Remove from water with tongs and place on paper towels to drain.
Add rice to boiling water and cook until tender, about 13 minutes. Drain thoroughly.
Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, garlic, and jalapeno (or chilies) and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add corn, beans, green onions, chipotle chili powder, kosher salt, and pepper. Stir until corn and beans are heated through, about 5 minutes. Place peppers in a baking dish. Remove skillet from heat and add rice, tomatoes, 1 cup cheese, and cilantro. Stir to combine well and give it a taste. Add additional salt, pepper, and chipotle powder to your liking. Then evenly divide mixture between peppers.

Top peppers with remaining 1/4 cup cheese (or more if you can fit it on there :) and crushed tortilla chips.
Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.

Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Shells

(from Real Simple May 2010)

Ingredients:
20 jumbo pasta shells (about half a 12-ounce box)
1 24-ounce jar marinara sauce
2 15-ounce containers ricotta
2 cups baby spinach, chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan (2 oz)
salt and pepper
1 cup grated mozzerella

Instructions:
1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cook pasta according to package instructions; drain and run under cold water until cool.
2. Spread the marinara sauce in the bottom of a large baking dish.
3. In a bowl, combine ricotta, spinach, Parmesean 1/2 t. salt and 1/3 t. pepper. Spoon the mixture into the shells and place them on top of the sauce. Sprinkle with mossarella and bake until the shells are heated through, 10-12 minutes. Bake until cheese begins to melt.

Serve with side salad and garlic bread, if desired.

(Instructions tell you to broil too, an additional 2-5 minutes, until cheese turns a little brown. I did not do this, but maybe will try another time. You could also add other veggies to the ricotta mixture, like brocolli or whatever.)