Cowboy Caviar, A San Antonio Favorite

Oh caviar!  The savory snack of the rich and famous.  I wouldn't have thought there was any food from the sea that I didn't like but I can do without caviar.  Little black, salty fish eggs, you either love it or hate it.

So when I heard about a neighbor's BBQ where Cowboy Caviar was to be one of the dishes, I assumed

that would be one dish I steer away from.  But once there, I saw the dish of color and beauty that you see here and was pleasantly surprised by the Mexican spices and fresh bounty of vegies in season. 

If you like the basic recipe, make sure to experiment with substituting other types of beans, adding salad sized shrimp, prepared pasta, serving as a side dish with meats or its traditional use, served with big tortilla chips for scooping.  Remember, you can also leave out a spice or vegie you don't like or have on hand.

 Ingredients:

2 c corn or 1 can
1/2 onion, chopped
1 c green or other color bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 c diced celery
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 (8 ounce) bottle zesty Italian dressing (or 1/2 c oil and 1/4 c red wine vinegar plus salt and pepper & 1/4 c sugar)
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander (seeds from cilantro plant, ground)
1/4 teaspoon cumin or to taste (optional, not in the original recipe but it makes a nice addition) 
1 bunch chopped fresh cilantro or to taste


Instructions:

Chop the vegies rather small so they are consistent with size of the corn kernels.  In a large dish, mix everything together except the cilantro . I like to use a 9 X 13 dish because more of the vegies get more of the marinade. Cover and chill in the refrigerator 4 hours or more. I like to drain off the dressing and return a couple teaspoons just to keep it moist.  This cuts down on the calories from the oil in the dressing.  Toss with desired amount of fresh cilantro to serve.

Makes about 10 cups

Teri Blaschke is the RV Park operator of family owned HiddenValley RV Park in San Antonio, TX and writer of the park blog “A Little Piece of Country in San Antonio.” Teri contributes to various other blogs with a focus on either travel or social media and how it relates to the outdoor hospitality industry but her passion is serving the RV travel community by providing a memorable RV camping experience and growing the Hidden Valley RV family.  Connect with Teri on Google+, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter@HiddenValleyRV and our RV Country Daily Magazine and don't forget to Say hello to the voice of Hidden Valley 

Where East Meets West

Our recent San Antonio RV Park Spring Fling BBQ Potluck gave me a stockpile of wonderful recipes to try and test.  My personal favorite is perfect for RV living and traveling because it's so easy and the ingredients are always in my cupboards.  The Napa cabbage is the only ingredient I needed to buy.  Although I love soy sauce and make it a staple even in the RV, ya'll may need to think about getting some for this recipe because it's a must for the dressing but I think you could successfully substitute teryaki sauce if you have it by chance.  


Our thanks go out to Jeanette Z for this addition, Oriental Napa Cabbage Salad, to our potluck.  A true case of eastern cuisine meeting South Texas western BBQ fare.

Ingredients

   Salad:
2 pkg Ramen Noodles (reserve seasoning packet for future use)
1 c. sliced almonds (my preference) or slivered 
1 stick butter or margarine
1 head Napa cabbage
1 bunch green onions

   Dressing:
1/4 c vinegar
1/2 c sugar
3/4 c salad oil
2 Tbsp soy sauce

Directions

1.  Chop cabbage, not too fine but in easy bitesize pieces.  Chop onions.  Set aside
2.  Melt butter; add raw Ramen noodles and almonds, saute until light brown but watch closely as they tend to burn easily.
3.  Put dressing ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil and boil 1 minute only.

Store all three steps in separate containers till ready to serve them combine them.

Note:  Do not refrigerate the dressing as it will crystallize.

This was so crispy and delicious.  Jeanette didn't include this in her ingredients but I distinctly tasted dried cranberries and it was a perfect addition both for the color and the texture of the salad.  Needless to say there was very little left. 

Let us know how you like it and any variations you made.

Sweet But Healthy...Is it Really So?

Is it possible that one recipe can be a breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, snack, AND dessert food?  Just ask Luana who provided just such a dish for our Spring Fling BBQ Potluck.  It was the perfect accompaniment to the heavy brisket and beans main dish and the few leftovers were devoured by my teen daughter, who never eats breakfast, for breakfast.  What is this miracle dish?  Luana calls it Grape Salad, but we call it Sweet, Tart and Crunchy.

Here's Luana's version:

4 pounds of seedless grapes, washed, cut in halves, quarters or whole and dried in a colander.  (I shopped for small sized grapes and left them whole.)

Dressing:
8 oz cream cheese
8 oz sour cream ( I substituted vanilla yogurt)
1/2 c white sugar (with the yogurt I only added the sugar to taste at the end-about 1/8 c)
1 tsp vanilla (I omitted this since I used the vanilla yogurt)

Topping:
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c pecans (or walnuts)

In a large bowl, mix together the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar and vanilla. Add grapes and mix until evenly incorporated. Sprinkle with brown sugar and pecans, mix again and refrigerate until serving.  Made the day before, the brown sugar makes the sauce taste like caramel. You can use less brown sugar, if you wish.

Turkey Sandwiches of the Third Kind

TURKEY SALAD SANDWICHES   
    Since so many of us have extra time off during December and many celebrate the holidays, this season is popular for sharing good food with friends.    One of my standby entertaining foods are finger sandwiches. Now turkey sandwiches can become a little boring when your trying to finish up leftover turkey but I always like to freeze a little leftover turkey, de-boned and skinned, and save it for finger sandwiches at a moments notice.  Chicken works well for this too but moist marinated turkey makes a great turkey salad.  Just cut the pieces up enough to make them easy to fit in a freezer bag.  When you're ready, defrost it slightly then put in a food processor and coarsely grate.  You can grate it first then freeze but it seems to grate easier when it's slightly frozen.    
Once you've got your grated poultry, here's the finishing touches:
 
ADD:

• Mayonnaise or salad dressing to taste, a little at a time till it's the consistency you prefer
• Finely chopped celery (ground celery seed will work)
• Finely chopped onions
• Garlic Powder to taste
• Pinch of curry powder (optional-only add it if you like the scent-it tastes like it smells)
• Salt and pepper to taste

 
    Don't hesitate to add other spices or ingredients you like.  Some use pickles, finely chopped, radishes, sprouts, sliced green grapes or olives sliced.  It's best if the consistency is pasty.  Spread it evenly on bread slices and cover with another slice then cut in quarters.  Mixing bread types makes for a pretty platter.  Another option is spreading it on petite croissants, filling pita pockets or spreading a light layer on a tortilla and rolling it up.  Lettuce, spinach and tomato are great toppers too.
    We even have this for a light dinner on the road or after a long day of traveling in the RV or catching the local sights.  You can add a bowl of soup if you're real hungry.  This is great for a potluck contribution, too.
Please comment if you've got any additions or suggestions to add. 

Turkey Leftover No Brainer

There was a time when if mom said "Salad's ready, come and get it!" the whole family would laugh and think mom was kidding.  But with our heightened knowledge of healthy eating habits, namely lighter eating, especially in the evening, salads have become popular fare.  A chef's salad is so easy and a variety of add ins can give it enough protein for a healthy meal AND enough substance to satisfy a hearty appetite.
Start with:

6 cups torn mixed salad leaves (I like the the bag of baby field greens if I'm in a hurry)

4 ounces sliced or small cubes of meat, turkey (and ham, if desired.)

1 cup cubed cheese
 
2 medium tomatoes quartered or cherry tomatoes halved

2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped into quarters or slices

1 cup croutons


Other add ins: cucumbers, bell pepper, carrot slivers, avocado chunks, red onion slices, artichoke hearts, black olives, sprouts, sunflower seeds, parmesan cheese.

1/2 cup salad dressing of choice (dijon, ceasar, italian or ranch)

In a large bowl, toss the salad leaves. Arrange the remaining ingredients over the top. Pour the salad dressing over the top and toss to coat. Divide out into 4 bowls and serve.
A sourdough bread slice, corn bread muffin or artisan garlic bread will round out the flavors.