Hard Lemonade

Ingredients

• 2 cups water
• 1 cup sugar
• 8 cups ice
• 10 ounces vanilla-infused vodka or lime vodka
• 1 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 lemon, sliced into rings
• 1 lime, sliced into rings

Directions

In a small saucepan, bring water and sugar to a simmer. Cook until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and let cool.
In a large pitcher, fill with ice. Stir in simple syrup, vodka, juice, lemon and lime slices.
Can use regular vodka and infuse the simple syrup with a vanilla bean or just leave out the vanilla all together.

Salmon Rotini Salad

 
Feeling fishy?  Try this yummy cool summer salad.
Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound (about 2 cups) rotini pasta
• Salt
• 1 large can pink salmon or 2 small
• 1/2 can green peas or frozen if desired (optional)
• 1 can water chestnuts, chopped (optional)
• 2/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/3 cup chopped red onions, or green onions 
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• 1 Tbsp chopped fresh dill (or 1/2 teaspoon dried dill)
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• Tabasco to taste (about 10 drops)
• freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:
Bring a pot of water (2 quarts) to a boil. Add 2 teaspoons salt. Add the dry pasta and cook, uncovered, in a rolling boil until the pasta is al dente (slightly firm). Remove from heat, drain. 
In a large bowl mix the salmon, mayonnaise, mustard, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Mix in the onions, parsley, dill, and celery.  Add the pasta to the salmon mayo mixture when it is still warm so that it will absorb the flavors better.  Gently fold in peas and water chestnuts if desired.
Add Tabasco and freshly ground pepper to taste. Adjust seasonings.   Chill before serving. This can be made the day before and will be even better.
Wash it down with a glass of Pinot Grigio.

Sweet Summertime

Sweet Angel.

Coconut Pie

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, melted
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 (3 1/2–ounce) can shredded sweetened coconut (about 1 cup)
• 1 cup milk
• 1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine melted butter, eggs, flour, sugar, coconut, and milk. Pour into pie shell. Bake until firm, about 45 to 60 minutes.

Smokey Hominy Hamburger and Rice

• 1 lb ground meat
• 1 small chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 1/2 tbsp smoky paprika
• 1 tsp season salt
• fresh ground pepper
• 1 pinch red pepper flake
• 2 cans hominy, drained
• 1 can pinto beans, drained
• 4 oz tomato sauce
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup rice

I threw this together the other night because that was what I had in the pantry.   It’s sort of a homemade hamburger helper.  Make sure you use SMOKEY paprika because I’m not sure it would be that great using regular paprika.  I could put Smokey Paprika on cardboard and we would probably eat it and like it.  It has a flavor of it’s own.

Brown ground meat with onion and bell pepper, drain renderings.  Add all other ingredients and cook until rice has absorbed almost all the liquid.  Serve it with a salad for a quick weeknight meal.

Kalua Pig in a Crock Pot

Aloha and let’s get this pig in the ground.  Try this pulled pork recipe for the flavor of Hawaii, it’s the next best thing to being on the island.
Ingredients:

• pork butt (shoulder)  I don’t know why they call it a butt when it’s really a shoulder, weird
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1/2 cups liquid smoke
• 2-3 tbsp Hawaiian  sea salt (regular sea salt will work)
• 2 tbsp onion powder
• 1 tsp ginger

Directions:
Rub your butt down with the Hawaiian sea salt , ginger and onion powder.  That just sounds funny, doesn’t it?  Place the butt in the crock pot.  That sounds funny too!  Add the juice, liquid smoke and cook for about 2 hours on high then reduce to low and cook for 6-10 more hour depending on how big your butt is.  LOL!  Mine is pretty big so it may take awhile.  Hehe, I don’t why that is SO funny (I’m just not right).
I can hear the ocean and Hawaiian music from here.  My feet are in the sand and I have Mai Tai in my hand.
Aloha A hui hou kakou (means goodbye until we meet again).
Kipa hou mai (means y’all come back)  I love that…

Cheesy Hash Brown Casserole

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs frozen hash brown potatoes, thawed
• 1/2  cup margarine or butter, melted
• 1 can Cream Of Chicken Soup
• 1/2  cup onion, chopped
• 2 cup cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 pint sour cream
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup crushed corn flakes
• 3 tbsp melted butter

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix all ingredients except for the corn flakes and melted butter.  Place in 9x13 baking dish, sprinkle with corn flakes and drizzle with melted butter.  Bake for an hour or slightly longer until top is golden brown.