Strawberry Lime Marinade and Strawberry Salsa (Chicken Pitas)

This was the entry I submitted for the South Carolina Strawberry Festival recipe contest.  Although I did not win first place, I was honored to receive the "Queen's Choice" award and a yellow ribbon. The strawberries came from my own garden and I was lucky enough to have a plentiful amount of them to pick.

Strawberry-Lime Marinade

1 cup lime juice (freshly squeezed is best, but bottled can be used with success)

1 cup cooking oil* (I use  ½ cup veg. and  ½ cup olive oil)

2 tsp. ground ginger

1 cup fresh strawberries, stems removed and crushed

2 tsp. dill seeds

2 tsp white sugar

2 tsp honey

Mix & refrigerate

This marinade can be used on pork, chicken, and beef.  Marinate the meat at least 2 hours and also use to brush on during cooking.  Larger amounts can be made up and refrigerated for about 2 weeks.

Strawberry Salsa:

1/2 medium red onion, chopped

1 jalapeno pepper, de-seeded and minced

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 orange bell pepper, chopped

1/3 cup finely shredded fresh cilantro leaves

1 1/2  cups fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced (feel free to use up to 2 cups)

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.  This salsa is exceptional the day after, so if you have patience, make it the night before you plan to serve :)

After preparing the marinade and salsa, I took boneless, skinless chicken breasts and marinated them for about 2 hours before grilling them.  I brushed some marinade on the chicken during cooking to give it a nice pink color and wonderful flavor.  Take the grilled chicken and cut into strips small enough to fit into a pita that has been lined with fresh baby spinach leaves.  Top the pitas with the salsa and have a flavor explosion in your mouth!! <3 JLH

**forgot to mention that I served this with strawberry "tea"...here's the info:  http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=155774197823522&set=a.155774194490189.41594.154452341289041&type=1&theater

NuWave Oven - How did I ever do without this???

I must say, I absolutely LOVE my NuWave oven.  Don't buy it from the manufacturer's website because you'll spend a bunch on "handling"..get it from Amazon a lot cheaper!!  Here's the best deal I've found and you will be so happy you have one of these too.  I have put frozen chicken breasts and even an entire turkey breast in the NuWave and it always turns out perfect!!  Great Christmas gift as well, for those that have "everything"!!
xoxo and Happy shopping and cooking!!

What to do with all those gift cards you haven't used in a year

www.cardwoo.com

Ok, so if you're like me, you have 20 gift cards sitting around from LAST Christmas that you either haven't had time to use or have not need for the items offered where the card is issued from.  So what to do with them??  Sell 'em and buy the cards you REALLY want!!  I saw this on a mid-afternoon  TV talk show a few months back and thought the idea was pretty neat.   www.cardwoo.com

School Cafeteria Recipes by the USDA

Wow!  So, I was wondering just what was it in those school Salisbury steaks way back when that made you wonder if there was some "mystery ingredient" in there that you wish you'd never eaten.  I did a Google search for "school pizza" and found this site.  Now I'm drawn back to my childhood, wondering what I'd have traded for,  based on these recipes.  As an adult, I see they're not all bad, actually fairly good for you all around.  Just add a little spice here and there, and you've got a good basic list of "foods everyone will eat".  Enjoy, and I hope the lunchtime meal you remember the most is in this list!

http://www.nfsmi.org/Templates/TemplateDefault.aspx?qs=cElEPTEwMg==

And for a few hard to find recipes (not included in the NFSMI website list, but compiled by the author of Uncle Phaedrus' website) http://www.hungrybrowser.com/phaedrus/mpschoolcafeteria.htm

Missouri Cookies (chocolate no-bake cookies)

Servings  

36

Original Recipe Yield 3 dozen

 

Ingredients

• 2 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. butter
• 3 tbsp. powdered cocoa*
• 1/2 c. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 c. peanut butter
• 3 c. quick cooking oatmeal
• *If you do not have powdered cocoa, you can substitute 1 oz. unsweetened chocolate bar and reduce butter by 1 TBS*

Directions

1. Put sugar, butter, cocoa, milk, and vanilla into saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil 2 1/2 minutes. Stir in the peanut butter until melted/mixed then remove pan from heat and add the oatmeal. Mix well. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper. Let cool. Store in an airtight container once cooled.