raspberry pretzel salad

Jeremy's grandma (sweet Effie) was an amazing cook, the food at her house was always delicious. Her rolls were so yummy because she dipped them in melted butter before baking them. Those were meals to remember. One of her recipes is more of a dessert, but we serve it as a salad:

Raspberry Pretzel Salad

8 oz. pretzels, crushed
3 Tbsp. sugar
3/4 c. butter, melted

Layer pretzels on bottom of 9x13 pan, sprinkle sugar over pretzels. Drizzle butter on top. Bake at 400 degrees for 8 minutes.

8 oz. cream cheese
8 oz. cool whip
1 c. sugar

Soften cream cheese. Mix well with cool whip and sugar and spread over cooled pretzel crust.

6 oz. raspberry jello
2 c. hot water
20 oz. frozen raspberries

Dissolve jello with hot water. Add raspberries. Let jello set slightly in fridge (about an hour) and then spread on top of middle layer. Refrigerate about 2 hours.

Yesterday I used strawberry jello and fresh (rather than frozen) strawberries and it set nicely. Besides being a tasty treat, it's very pretty and looks patriotic.

ranch burgers and apple salad

The technicians were here all day, and we now have a house that is filling with cool air; it's so refreshing!

Tonight for dinner we enjoyed Ranch Burgers and Apple Salad. Apple Salad is a favorite of mine from college (thanks, Jess), and although it isn't overly healthy, it is very easy, usually thrown together just before mealtime when I'm wanting to add a bit more to dinner, and it tastes cool and summery.

Ranch Burgers

1 1/4 lb lean ground beef
3/4 cup ranch dressing
3/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 c minced onion
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

In large bowl, mix all ingredients together. Shape into 6 patties. Grill. Serve on buns with lettuce, onions, and red onion slices. Yum!

Apple Salad

6-8 apples, cut into bite size pieces (I usually use different kinds of apples because that's what I buy and have on hand, it's pretty to have multi-colored apples in the bowl on the table)
8 oz. whipped topping, thawed
1 large candy bar (snickers and symphony are our favorites, chocolate chips are also tasty, we don't care for m&ms in this salad)

Mix all together. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

potluck

We enjoyed a rainy barbeque today at my mom's house. It was a classic Memorial Day menu: hamburgers and hot dogs and chips. Everyone brought a side dish: we had a veggie tray, fresh fruit, pasta salad, and potato salad. I brought one of the favorites, we call it:

Yellow Jello

1 6 oz pkg lemon jello
1 1/2 c water, boiling
2 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1 16 oz can crushed pineapple
1 12 oz tub of cool whip

Put lemon jello powder in a large bowl. Bring 1 1/2 c water to a boil. Pour boiling water over powder. Stir with a whisk for 2 minutes. Cut in cream cheese, until cream cheese is small. Mix in crushed pineapple. Fold in cool whip. Pour into different bowl (with a lid or a 9x13 pan). Let set in refrigerator all day.

I like this recipe because (1) it's tasty as can be, (2) can be made the night before or first thing in the morning (and then it's out of the way), (3) my 10 year old can make it, and (4) it's a pretty, canary yellow color.