Easy Guacamole

2 avocados

1 small sweet onion, finally chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 ripe tomato, chopped

½ teaspoon Lime juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Cut avocados in half lengthwise, remove seed.  Take spoon and scoop out avocados in bowl.  Add chopped onion, minced garlic, chopped tomato and lime juice. Mix. Salt and pepper to taste.  Serve with corn chips, tortilla slices, or fresh vegetables (carrot or celery sticks).

Spinach and Artichoke Dip

1 10 ounce box frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1 can 14 ounce artichoke hearts

1 cup mayonnaise

1 clove minced garlic

1 ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350*.  Remove thawed spinach from box, wrap in paper towel and squeeze out excess liquid.  Place spinach in greased 11” x 9” EZ Foil pan or glass Pyrex dish. Drain and finely chop artichoke hearts.  Add chopped artichoke hearts to spinach and combine remaining ingredients.  Mix together and spread evenly in pan. Bake for 20 minutes.  Serve with crackers or tortilla chips.

Ramen Noodle Cole Slaw Salad

Salad:

1 16 ounce bag Cole slaw mix

1 cup sliced almonds

1 cup sunflower seeds

2 packages beef flavored Ramen noodles

Open Ramen noodle packages and remove seasoning packets. Put seasoning packets to side. Place Ramen noodles into gallon plastic storage bag. Crush Ramen noodles into small pieces with kitchen mallet or rolling pin.  Combine remaining salad ingredients.

Dressing:

1 cup vegetable oil

½ cup sugar

1/3 cup white vinegar

2 packets seasoning from Ramen noodles

Place dressing ingredients into plastic container, attach lid and shake to mix. Apply dressing to salad mix immediately before serving. After two hours or so, discard any left overs.  Do not store salad after adding dressing mix as Ramen noodles become soft and salad does not store.

Pulled Pork with BBQ Sauce Sliders

2 pounds pork roast (any cut)

2 cups ketchup

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 cup water

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

In a bowl, combine ketchup, vinegar, water, onion, garlic, chili powder, and Worcestershire sauce and stir well. Pour the sauce over the roast in slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat in slow-cooker 8-10 hours until the meat falls apart.

Remove the pork from the cooker and allow to cool slightly. Remove and discard any bones. Pull the meat into shreds using fingers or two forks. Return the meat to the cooker and stir into the sauce. Serve on “slider” buns.  For lighter version, use half a turkey breast instead of pork.

Applesauce Nut Bread

2 cups unbleached flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

½ cup olive oil

½ cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 ½ cup applesauce

1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Mix flour, baking powder, salt & cinnamon. Add oil, sugar, eggs, & applesauce.  Mix well. Fold in nuts.  Pour into a well-greased & floured 9x5x3 inch loaf pan. (May also use smaller pans if you want smaller loaves).  Bake at 350 * for one hour or until toothpick comes out clean. (Bake shorter time if using smaller pans.) Cool in pan 10 min. Remove & cool before slicing.