Pomegranate Molasses

 Makes 1 cup of Molasses

Ingredients
4 cups pomegranate juice 
1/2 cup sugar 
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice 

Directions
For Molasses: Place the pomegranate juice, sugar and lemon juice in a 4-quart saucepan set over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has completely dissolved. Once the sugar has dissolved, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the mixture has reduced to 1 cup, approximately 70 minutes. It should be the consistency of thick syrup. Remove from the heat and allow to cool in the saucepan for 30 minutes. Transfer to a glass jar and allow to cool completely before covering and storing in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.

ORANGE - STRAWBERRY TIRAMISU

Ingredients
24 lady fingers (enough for 2 layers)  see notes below*
½  cup orange juice freshly squeezed from 2 oranges
2 1/2 cups strawberries, sliced
1/4 cup water
½ cup granulated sugar
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup mascarpone
1/4 cup orange zest
1 orange cut in half and sliced ( 12 slices)
6 large strawberries in cut  half (total 12 for top of Tiramisu)
       

Directions:

Make the strawberry sauce, by heating 2 1/2 cup sliced strawberries over medium heat with 1/4 cup of water.
When mixture begins to boil, add 1/4 cup sugar and let simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Take off heat and use a food processor to blend to a liquid. Set strawberry sauce aside.
Whip the cream together with the sugar till you have soft peaks.
Mix the cream together with the mascarpone until you have a smooth mixture.
Mix the orange juice with the strawberry sauce and dip the ladyfingers in the mixture.
Make a layer of the ladyfingers in the bottom of a 12 x 9 baking dish and add a layer of the mascarpone/cream and sprinkle the Orange zest  over this
mixture, repeat ladyfingers and mascrpone mixture.
Leave to stand in the fridge for  2-4 hours before putting on the last layer of strawberries and orange slices and serve
Makes 12 servings, place  strawberry half  and a orange slice  each serving.

* notes... The best lady fingers are found in the international sections at the grocery section or at a International market. The ones in the bread isle of the grocery are too soft and kind  of dissolve or get real mushy.

Classic Hummus

Chick peas are perhaps better known by their name garbanzo beans. They are a roundish, beige to light green members of the legume family grown primarily in part of West Asia, India, and in the Mediterranean. Most are familiar with chick peas as either used whole in salads, or ground up to make the popular Middle Eastern dish hummus.
Chickpeas are an excellent nutritional choice. A serving of chick peas has about 4 ounces (113.39 g) or half a cup has about 17 grams of dietary fiber and 19 grams of protein. They are also considered more digestible than most other beans making them a better choice for people who suffer from excessive flatulence after consuming beans.
Chickpeas are considered a starchy carbohydrate and are a great staple for people with diabetes They do not produce high glucose in the body when consumed. Thus they rate well on the glycemic index. 

Hummus
Ingredients
4 garlic cloves 
2 cups canned chickpeas, drained, liquid reserved 
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/3 cup Tahini (sesame paste) 
6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons) 
2 tablespoons water or liquid from the chickpeas 

Directions
Turn on the food processor fitted with the steel blade and drop the garlic down the feed tube; process until it's minced. Add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor and process until the hummus is coarsely pureed. Taste, for seasoning sprinkle with Za`atar or Sumac if you have it available and drizzle with a bit of Olive oil and serve chilled or at room temperature with flatbread and or cucumber slices.

Tuna Pan Bagnat

 A favorite in southern France, pan bagnat (pan ban-YAH) means "bathed bread.

For the vinaigrette:
1 small shallot, minced
1 Tbs red wine vinegar
3 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Ingredients :
1 round of country white  bread
Extra-virgin olive oil
6 leaves red-leaf lettuce, washed and dried
8 oz Brie cheese, in 1/4" flat slices
1/2 cup whole pitted Kalamata olives
1 large fresh tomato, cored, thinly sliced
1 sm. can  tuna packed  in olive oil ( do not  drain )

To make the vinaigrette, mix the shallot and vinegar in a small bowl, and gradually whisk . Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Cut the bread horizontally into even top and bottom layers. Turn the top over, then drizzle olive oil all over the cut sides of both layers, using 2 or 3 Tbs of oil on each.
Make layers of all the filling ingredients. First, completely cover the sandwich bottom with 5 or 6 lettuce leaves, then arrange the slices of Brie on top. Scatter the  olives and cover with the tomato slices in a single layer.
Spoon about half the vinaigrette over the tomatoes, then flake the tuna  with a fork  and distribute evenly. Drizzle the remaining vinaigrette and the oil from the tuna can all over the filling. Finally, replace the top layer of the bread to close the sandwich.
Wrap the sandwich well with several layers of plastic wrap and place on a cookie sheet or pizza pan or tray. Lay another tray on top of the sandwich and center some heavy items to press and flatten the loaf.

Place the weighted sandwich in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours or overnight. Before serving, remove the weight, unwrap the compressed sandwich, and let it come to room temperature.  Cut into 8 serving-size wedges  and  serve.

Greek Vegetarian Sandwich

     This sandwich is so flavorful, you will never miss the  meat!

Ingredients:
French Bread
1/2  of a  English cucumber thinly  sliced
1/2 of   med. sized Red onion  thinly sliced
3  Roma Tomatoes thinly sliced
Kalamata Pitted Olives
Mild Bananna Peppers
Feta cheese crumbles
Olive Oil
Cavender`s Greek All  Purpose Seasoning
Salt and  Pepper

                                               Cavender`s Greek All Purpose Seasoning

Directions:
Cut the French  loaf horizontally, creating a top and a bottom half, place in the oven  at 350* to light   toast abt. 10 min..

    On the bottom half of the  bread place the thinly  sliced cucumbers  to cover the  bread, drizzle with Olive  oil and  sprinkle  with  Cavender`s Greek All Purpose Seasoning.
  Next place the  sliced Tomatoes on the cucumbers and lightly salt and pepper, add the Bananna Peppers, then  the Red Onion  slices, and  now the  Kalamata Olives, you can place the olives in the onion slices to help hold them on the  sandwich as you are making it and add your Feta cheese crumbles, finally  sprinkle a  bit little more of the Greek Seasoning and  drizzle a  little more Olive  oil, put the top on the sandwich and  slightly  press it  down and cut  into  thirds and serve.

* Note
Cavender`s Greek All Purpose Greek Seasoning can be found at most groceries.  If not it can  be ordered from their website.   Cavender`s in  made in the Ozark  Mountains in  NW Arkansas

Cavender`s All Purpose Greek Seasoning

Kitchen Organization

You ever have  one of those  base cabinets in your kitchen that is real deep and  you  have to get on your hands  and  knees and almost crawl in  to find the  right pan?  That was me, I dislike this cabinet very much and  it  did not work for me.   Im sure my husband got  tired of hearing me  complain about it. 

Anyway, I have this hallway between my  kitchen and dining room with a very high  ceiling that  I just  kept  looking and thinking  what a waste of  space, so I went on the hunt for ideas.  I saw these very nice looking shelves at Ikea posted on Pinterest, so I saved them to show my husband, he also liked the look and he knows  when I am on a mission to watch out . So to Ikea  we went.  Ikea has so much to  chose from as  far  kitchen shelving and organizational  items, the possibilities are endless.

I chose the  IKEA's Grundtal shelving system, very simple to  install.  I  only spent $65.00  for the 2 shelves and hooks and it looks awesome and I am so pleased and very happy with my choice.   Now I have a couple more problem areas that I believe Ikea  can help with, so I will be back soon.           Ikea                                

Turkish Spiced Cod

Ingredients:
2 pounds  Cod fish fillets
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 red  bell pepper diced
2 teaspoons Turkish seasoning
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
 Remove any pin bones from the fillets and pat them dry. Salt the fish fillets well and set them aside. Heat the olive oil, 1 teaspoon  Turkish  seasoning and diced peppers in a saute pan and set it over medium heat for 2 minutes . After 2 minutes place the fish fillets on top of the peppers and  cook undisturbed for 90 seconds.
When you see the bottom of the fish fillets turn opaque, tilt the pan and using a large spoon baste the tops of the fish with the hot oil and  season with  1 more  teaspoon of Turkish  seasoning and spoon some of the peppers on top of the fish. Constantly  baste top  of the fish with  oil until the top of the fillets begin to flake, about 3 minutes.
 Cover pad with the  lid and cook for  90 seconds. Turn off the heat
Put a fish fillet on everyone's plate.  Spoon out some peppers and sauce to pour  over the fish and serve.

* I got my  Turkish seasoning  from http://www.penzeys.com/