Pistachio Pecan Party Cookies

½ cup powdered sugar

½ cup margarine

½ cup oil

1 tsp almond extract

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp cream of tartar

1 – 3 drop green food coloring

2 eggs

1 pkg. pistachio pudding mix

2 cups flour

1/8 tsp salt

½ cup chopped pecans

Combine powdered sugar, margarine, oil, extract, color, eggs and pudding mix. Mix well.

Add flour, soda, tartar, and salt. Mix well. Stir in pecans.

Refrigerate for easier handling.

Heat oven to 375° Shape into 1 inch balls and roll in sugar.

Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake 10 – 15 minutes.  Immediately remove and cool.

I've had the recipe so long that I don't know where I got it!

Chili-Lime Steak Salad

1½ lb. flank steak, cooked with lime-chili rub and sliced into 1/4″ slices

1 recipe Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing

1 large head romaine lettuce

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, sliced in half

1 red onion, sliced thin

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed in cold water

1-2 avocados, sliced

cilantro for garnish

optional: fried tortilla strips

Start with a nice bed of cold, crunchy lettuce, top with tomatoes (cut in half), sliced onion, black beans, avocado, steak and smother it in the best dressing ever.

Sprinkle on some cilantro and fried tortilla strips if you’re in the mood.   

This recipe can be found here.

Creamy Lime-Cilantro Ranch Dressing

1 pack (1oz.) Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix 
1 cup mayonnaise

½ cup buttermilk or milk 

1 lime

2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

½ cup roughly chopped cilantro

¼ cup green salsa

hot sauce

Place milk, mayo, and ranch mix in a blender. Juice the lime in there too, you should get about 2 Tbsp. juice.

Toss in the garlic, cilantro and green salsa. Blend 'er up.

Sample it and add hot sauce to taste.

Make it several hours ahead of time to allow it to thicken.

This recipe can be found here.

Chili-Lime Steak Rub

1 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. granulated garlic

½ tsp. cumin

½ tsp. coriander

½ tsp. oregano

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper or chipotle chili powder

¾ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. black pepper

1 lime (about 2 Tbsp lime juice)

1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1-2 lbs flank steak, or other good grilling cut (tenderloin, NY strip, and tri-tip all work well)

Juice the lime into a small bowl. Add oil and spices and stir to combine.

Place the steak in a shallow dish and pour the spice mixture on top. Use your hands to massage it in there.

Let it sit for 15 minutes.

Place meat on hot grill (bbq is best, but an indoor grill pan or broiler will work just fine too). If you’re using flank steak it should take about 5-7 minutes on each side

When steak is finished, remove from grill and let sit for 5 minutes before cutting into it

Slice in strips against the grain.


This recipe can be found here.

Cinnamon Streusel Muffins

1¾ cups all-purpose flour

2¾ tsp. baking powder

¾ tsp. table salt

½ cup brown sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. almond extract

1 large egg

¾ cup buttermilk

1/3 cup cooking oil

Streusel Topping

¼ cup sugar

2½ Tbsp. flour

½ tsp. cinnamon

1½ Tbsp. butter, softened to room temperature

Preheat oven to 400°. Line 12 muffin wells with liners. Set aside.

Lightly spoon the flour into measuring cups and level with a knife and combine it in a large bowl with the baking powder, salt, sugar, cinnamon, and nuts. Make a well in the center of the mixture. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, vanilla, almond extract, and oil. Add to the dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened.

Spoon the batter into lined muffin tins, filling all 12. Set aside.

To make the streusel topping, combine sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter until the mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over the batter and bake for 16-18 minutes or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean.

Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack. 


This recipe can be found here.