Asian Lettuce Wraps

I'm sure glad that I stumbled upon this Asian Lettuce Wrap recipe from My Recipes. My family and I have often ordered this great Chinese dish and it's so simple to put together. The children also have fun wrapping their own food which is double bonus for this mum! Give it a try, I highly recommend it.

Ingredients 

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 pounds ground turkey

1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth

2 tablespoons hoisin sauce

2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce

1 cup bean sprouts (about 4 oz.)

2 carrots, shredded (about 1 cup)

24 large Boston or butter lettuce leaves

Soy sauce, optional

Preparation

1. Warm oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and saute until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic; saute 1 minute longer. Stir in turkey and cook, stirring, until almost cooked through, about 5 minutes. Add broth and hoisin sauce. Cook, stirring and breaking up clumps of turkey, until turkey is cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in teriyaki sauce, bean sprouts and carrots. (You should have about 6 cups of filling.)

2. Spoon about 1/4 cup of filling into center of each lettuce leaf. Serve with soy sauce, if desired.

My side notes: I added 1/2 red pepper and 3 celery stalks, omitted the bean sprouts, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, added 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to the broth and turkey at 5 minutes, and added 1 tablespoon of hoisin after removing from heat.

Summer Desserts

Happy summer everyone! I offered to bring dessert to a summer barbecue this past weekend and here was my dessert menu: chocolate pecan pie from True Confections, homemade creamy lemon crumb squares and flower shaped stained glass JELL-O.

The dessert restaurant offered to add a message on the pie so I requested the wording "Summer BBQ" which turned out beautifully. Did I happen to mention that this is my husband's all time favorite dessert?

I often treat myself to a lemon square at least every season from my local bakery. This is certainly a reason to covet a recipe of my own so I did a quick search and found a handful of recipes. I ultimately decided on this recipe from The Pioneer Woman.

Ingredients

• 1-⅓ cup
 All-purpose Flour

• ½ teaspoons
 Salt

• 1 teaspoon
 Baking Powder

• 1 stick
 (1/2 Cup) Butter, Slightly Softened

• 1 cup
 Brown Sugar (lightly Packed)

• 1 cup
 Oats

• 1 can
 (14 Ounce) Sweetened Condensed Milk

• ½ cups
 Lemon Juice

• Zest Of 1 Lemon

Preparation Instructions
PREHEAT OVEN TO 350 DEGREES.

Mix butter and brown sugar until well combined.

Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder.

Add oats and flour to butter/sugar mixture and mix to combine.

Press half of crumb mixture into the bottom of an 8 x 11 inch pan.

Mix together condensed milk, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Spread onto the bottom layer of the crumb mixture. Top with the other half of the crumb mixture, but don’t press.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

Allow pan to sit on counter for 30 minutes after baking. Cut into squares and refrigerate for a couple of hours or until cool.

Serve cool.

These creamy lemon crumb squares were absolutely fantastic! My compliments to Ree, thank-you!

The last dessert was strictly for the children. I've always wanted to try rainbow JELL-O but I'm often intimidated by the whole process - it sounds too time consuming. My latest attempt was no different because instead of layering the JELL-O, I did the stained glass (or broken glass) effect courtesy of The Food Librarian. 

4 small boxes (3 oz. each) of JELL-O 
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
Directions: For each flavor, dissolve one 3 oz box of JELL-O in one cup of boiling water. Pour into a container and chill. After chilling the four flavors, cut them into small blocks.
Please note: Only add 1 cup of water to each box of colored JELL-O. Ignore the instructions on the box of JELL-O (they say to use 2 cups of water). Use only 1 cup of water so the JELL-O is firm and can be cut into blocks.
Carefully mix the blocks in a 9 x 13 pan.In a separate bowl, sprinkle 2 envelopes unflavored gelatin into 1/2 cup cold water. After the gelatin blooms, add 1 1/2 cup boiling water and dissolve. Add the can of condensed milk. Stir and cool. Pour cooled milk mixture over JELL-O and chill overnight. (It is a good idea to skim off the bubbles for a nicer finished product.)

I was so pleased with the final result. This was the perfect ending a summer barbecue! Thanks Mary - this version is a breeze!