Cassandria's Granola

My mom is an amazing cook. She's an artist so I think her food is like her art. She just creates. She doesn't have recipes. If you ask her for a recipe she usually comes up empty-handed because she just made it up. But, I've asked her to write some of them down for me. The first recipe I have is her granola. I love it so much that it's dangerous especially when Stoneyfield Farms Vanilla yogurt is involved.

Ingredients:

6 cups oats

1-2 cups mixture of chopped nuts and seeds (e.g. walnuts, pecans, almonds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup honey

In a saucepan combine sugar, vanilla, oil and honey. Stir over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. In a large bowl mix oats and the mixture of nuts/seeds. Pour the warm sugar mixture over the oat mixture. Stir well. Spread out into a roasting pan or jelly roll pan.

Slowly bake at 275 degrees for 20 minutes. Stir, bake another 10-20 minutes. Watch carefully to avoid burned edges. Remove from oven and place pan on a baking rack to cool. Stir frequently while granola is cooling to avoid clumps.

If you want to add raisins to the granola, add them after the granola has cooled.

Turkey Taco Salad

I found this one on Better Homes and Gardens years ago, modified it a tiny bit and it's become one of my regular standbys. In fact, if you ever need to drop-off dinner to someone, this is a great recipe (pack it up and leave the assembly to the recipient).


Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey
1 15-oz. can pinto or black beans, rinsed and drained
1 15-oz. can corn
1 cup salsa
4-6 cups romaine lettuce, torn
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 small tomatoes, chopped
1 bag of tortilla chips (I prefer Tostitos Hint of Lime Tortilla chips)

Directions:
1. Lightly coat a large skillet with cooking spray. Cook ground turkey on medium-high heat until no longer pink. Drain off any fat. Stir in beans, corn, salsa and 1/4 cup of water. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Simmer, covered for 2-3 minutes.

2. Line four salad bowls with lettuce. Top with turkey mixture. Sprinkle with cheese, tomatoes and chips. Serve immediately.

Strawberry Limeade

I have totally and completely been neglecting little Linoleum Dynamite. I'm sorry. I promise to take better care. Summer recipes are hard because all I really feel like eating are salads and things cooked on the grill. Grilled pineapple truly makes me drool.

To start off my re-commitment to posting recipes, I'm just going to tell you an easy way to keep your fridge filled with the essential summer drink - strawberry limeade.

Start out with Crystal Light lemonade. Make as directed. Puree or slice (slicing is much prettier) one cup of strawberries. Add the juice of two limes. Let sit in your fridge for a couple of hours.

We love this so much in my house, we go through it way too fast. But the great part is that you can use frozen strawberries (just put them in a food processor) or freeze fresh strawberries that you've already pureed. I freeze fresh lime juice in Ziploc baggies.