Tuna Does Vegas

For my birthday I went to the Grand Opera House in Galveston to see 'Tuna Does Vegas'. This is the fourth in a series of plays that Joe Sears and Jaston Williams play a variety of characters - both male and female. It is based in the fictional town of Tuna, Texas. The characters in these plays are so darn funny. I believe they are taking this play to the Golden Nugget in Vegas next. Very enjoyable. So, in keeping with the theme -- here is my recipe for tuna salad.

TUNA SALAD

2 small packages water packed Star-Kist tuna (I like the pouches as you don't have to mess with draining them).

3 hard boiled eggs chopped

3 green onions chopped with tops

About 10 green Spanish olives chopped

Salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste

Enough mayonnaise to bind together.

Mix all ingredients together. Chill for about half an hour. Serve on nice bread with chips and cold iced tea.

Little Debbie Who?

I started making these little pies as they reminded me of the Little Debbie individual pies you can buy. I started making them as a Thanksgiving or Christmas treat because each person could have their own pie without having to mess with cutting individual slices. It's the only way I do pecan pie now. I just use the Classic Karo Syrup Pecan Pie recipe. Easy as pie......:o)

PECAN PIE
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup Karo light or dark corn syrup
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup pecans chopped
2 packages Dutch Ann tart shells

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Beat eggs slightly with fork in a bowl. Add sugar, Karo syrup, butter and vanilla; stir until blended. Place tarts on a cookie sheet. Fill each tart with about 1 heaping tablespoon of pecans. Pour batter into each one until just to the top. Bake for about 30 minutes or until lightly browned.

Mushroom Fettuccine

I was hungry for Fettuccine Alfredo, but since that is usually like 'heart attack on a plate' I looked in my files for a lighter recipe and found this in my to-try file.

MUSHROOM FETTUCCINE

10 ounces uncooked fettuccine noodles
4 tablespoons butter (could use light)
1/3 cup flour
2 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup shallots or green onions, minced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1-1/2 cups milk (I used skim - you could use anything from skim to heavy cream here)
1/2 cup white wine (I used fat-free chicken broth)
2 tablespoons parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Prepare fettuccine according to package directions. Drain and rinse with warm water and keep warm. In a fry pan, melt butter over medium heat, stir in flour until crumbly. Add shallots, garlic, and mushrooms. Cook until mixture is browned, stirring frequently for about 10 minutes. Gradually add milk and broth (or wine). Stir continuously until mixture is smooth and comes to a boil. Stir for one minute. Add parsley. Toss with fettuccine. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.

Nanaimo Bars

I'm going to be visiting friends in New Westminster British Columbia at the end of this month. In looking around at recipes I came across a recipe for Nanaimo Bars, named after a city on Vancouver Island. Evidently about 35 years ago a Nanaimo housewife entered a cooking contest with this recipe and instead of naming the bars after herself or some other catchy name, she named them Nanaimo Bars.

I've never been to Nanaimo, but I can attest to the fact that I think British Columbia is a beautiful place. Coming from a small town in South Texas I was in awe of the surroundings and have been fortunate to visit there several times. My friends have been very patient with me over the years when I ask them dumb questions such as 'Do you have American television?' What can I say -- at the time it was ANOTHER COUNTRY to me, so I thought it a valid question -- LOL. Anyway, these bars are really easy to put together. They are very rich. I don't know what makes them 'Canadian' other than a Canadian woman created the recipe and they are named after a place in Canada, but no matter what -- they are good.

NANAIMO BARS

For the crust:

1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 egg
1 cup sweetened coconut
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (I used almonds)
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix ingredients together and pat in a greased 7 x 11 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. Cool completely before adding filling.

For the filling:

1 stick butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons instant vanilla pudding mix
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons milk

Cream the butter by hand in a medium bowl and add in 1 cup powdered sugar and the vanilla. In a separate small bowl, stir the milk and pudding mix together, then add to the butter mixture. Add in the remaining powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Spread over the cooled crust and refrigerate until cold.

For the icing:

6 ounces chocolate chips
2 tablespoons butter

Melt the chocolate and butter in microwave until smooth. Spread over cold filling. Refrigerate until set. Cut into squares.

Blondes Have More Fun........

Well, I really wouldn't know that as I have never been blonde. Most blonde brownies are made with chocolate chips. I don't care for chocolate (I know -- freaky huh?). These are not for me, but I had no chocolate chips in the pantry so just added extra pecans.

BLONDE BROWNIES

1-1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1-1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup toasted pecans
1 cup chocolate chips

Mix dry ingredients together. Add oil, add eggs, add vanilla. Stir until blended well. Add chocolate chips and pecans. Bake in a 7 x 11 pan at 350 for 20 minutes. Cool and cut into squares.