Sunday Supper -- Mini Monte Cristos and Farmhouse Salad

This past Christmas, I tried a new recipe for Mini Monte Cristos and well... they were a hit.  I adapted my recipe from the PET Evaporated Milk website, so I'll detail my adaption below.  Traditionally, Monte Cristos are made with Swiss cheese, but I substitute with Provolone.  They are also commonly sprinkled with powdered sugar and served with raspberry jam.  While they are insanely good this way, my family would prefer them with a Honey Mustard Dip (I've given this recipe before with my Pretzel Bites, but I'll reprint it below).  Tonight, I made up a batch of these little guys and paired them with what I have named a Farmhouse Salad with homemade Ranch Dressing.  Sit tight.  This is going to be a long post with a lot of goodness.  :)


Mini Monte Cristos

Ingredients:
8 slices soft white bread
8 very thin slices, fully cooked ham
8 very thin slices, fully cooked turkey
8 very thin slices, Provolone cheese
2 large eggs
1 (12 ounce) can PET Evaporated Milk
1 cup Hungry Jack Complete Buttermilk Pancake & Waffle Mix (Just Add Water)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
oil for deep frying

Directions:
Trim the crusts off each slice of bread (this is totally optional -- I've done it both with and without crust and either way works just as well) and then flatten the slices with a rolling pin.  Layer each slice of bread with one slice of ham, one slice of turkey, and one slice of cheese.  Roll each "half sandwich" into a tight log and wrap tightly with plastic wrap.  Chill the sandwich logs for at least 30 minutes to an hour.

Heat 1.5 inches oil in a deep skillet.  Whisk egg, evaporated milk, Hungry Jack mix, salt, and cinnamon in a small bowl until smooth.  Unwrap each sandwich log and insert 4 toothpicks in even increments.  Slice the logs into 4 equal pieces with a sharp knife.

Working with a few pieces at a time, soak each piece in the batter for about 15 seconds.  Fry in hot oil for 1 to 1.5 minutes or until golden brown; turn frequently.  Drain on papertowls.

Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree oven.  Suggestions:  Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with Raspberry Jam.  Or serve with Honey Mustard (recipe below).

Honey Mustard

Ingredients:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons prepared mustard
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:
Whisk together ingredients until smooth.  Store covered in the refrigerator.


Farmhouse Salad

I call this a Farmhouse Salad because it's a bit of everything fresh that you have laying around, plus some other goodness added in for good measure.  Tonight's addition of Farmhouse Salad included:

Romaine lettuce
spinach
kale
avocado
hard bolied eggs
red bell peppers
red onion
grape tomatoes
cucumber
chick peas
sunflower seeds
croutons
topped with homemade Ranch Dressing (recipe below)


Ranch Dressing
yields one quart

Ingredients:
1 cup buttermilk
1 ounce ranch seasoning mix
2 cups mayonaisse
8 ounces sour cream

Directions:
Whisk together until smooth.  Store covered in refrigerator.

Homemade Salsa

I love this salsa recipe.  It's so simple to throw together and the flavor is very full and... well, you can't stop eating this salsa!  It makes up quite a bit, which is a very good thing.  I've recently started using Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes, but I've also used just regular Diced Tomatoes.  I've considered using some of the tomatoes that have other flavors already thrown in, but since I use fresh green onions, cilantro, lime, and garlic, I usually end up getting plain tomatoes.  I'd love to try fresh tomatoes, but just haven't yet.  The bonus to that is it's usually easy to have the ingredients on hand.  Which is nice when you live 20 minutes from town!

Ingredients:
2 cans Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes
1 can Rotel
1 small can tomato paste
1/2 to 1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2-3 green onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 Serrano pepper, seeded and diced
sea salt, to taste
juice of one lime

Directions:
In a blender, blend tomatoes, Rotel, tomato paste, garlic cloves, Serrano pepper, sea salt, and lime juice.

Transfer to a large bowl and mix in (by hand) cilantro and green onions.

Store in clean mason jars or a glass refrigerator dish.

Pretzel Bites with Honey Mustard Sauce

Why, yes, this is another Pinterest find.  I can't help it.  But this doesn't even begin to cover the multitude of recipes and ideas I've been pinning.  It's a sickness, I tell you.

Anyway, these pretzel bites are just as good as they are in the mall stores!  They don't keep well, though, so you may as well eat them all at once.  Just throwing that out there.  You're welcome.

As for the Honey Mustard Sauce -- It's incredibly simple to throw together and is (rather surprisingly) really good!  Much better than the jarred stuff on the market, I think.

The pretzel bites come from the blog Two Peas and Their Pod.  They share an amazing sounding/looking and easy cheese dip here as well.  I'll definitely be trying that some day, but on this particular day I used a Honey Mustard recipe I found online somewhere.  This would also be great with chicken strips or as a dressing on a salad.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoon prepared mustard
2 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon lemon juice


Directions:
In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, honey, and lemon juice.  Store covered in the refrigerator.

Chicken Enchilada Dip

Here's a really great dip that's super easy to throw together -- and the best part is it warms up in a Crock-Pot.  It would be perfect for football bowl games, Christmas and New Year's parties, and family get-togethers this season!

Ingredients:
1 family size Cream of Chicken soup
1 bundle green onions, chipped
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 (16 ounce) tub sour cream
1 pound chicken fajita meat, cooked

Directions:
Combine the first 4 ingredients until well blend.  Add in the fajita meat.  Heat through in Crock Pot and serve with tortilla chips.

Guacamole

I used to be very simplistic with my guacamole.  Mash up the avocadoes, add some sea salt and call it done.  Sometimes I'd add tomatoes.  But, then I discovered this recipe.  And while I still revert to the "basic" guacamole when I'm in a hurry, I like to make this one when I have time and have the ingredients on hand.

Ingredients:
7 ripe medium avocados, peeled and halved
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 pint grape tomatoes, chopped
2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
juice from 1 large fresh lime
1/2 tablespoon Lawry's Seasoned Salt

Directions:
Sprinkle seasoned salt and crushed garlic over avacado halves.
Coarsely mash the avocados, leaving some chunks.
Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
 
Servings: 6

Corn Dip

Quite possibly my most requested recipe and dish. I kinda feel cheated that this is the one I get remembered by. I mean, a dip? Come on! sigh. ;) But, it is quite good.

It has great flavor (despite the intial thought -- corn dip??) and is so easy to make. It is best to let it sit in the fridge overnight or for at least 4 hours to allow the flavors to combine. Note: The cayenne definitely adds some kick and gets stronger as it sits in the fridge for a few hours, so use sparingly if you wish.

Ingredients:
2 (11 ounce) cans mexicorn
16 ounces sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 to 1 bunch cilantro
3 to 4 green onions
2 cups four-cheese Mexican blend cheese, shredded
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 lime
2 (12 ounce) bags tortilla chips

Directions:
Mix together the corn, sour cream, and mayonnaise.
Slice lime in half and squeeze the juice from one half over corn mixture; mix well.
Chop cilantro and green onions. Add to the corn mixture.
Blend in cumin and cayenne pepper.
Mix in shredded cheese.
Refrigerate overnight. Serve with tortilla chips.

Servings: 10 - 12