Mint Lemonade/Limeade by Suzie Romans

Mint and lemons/limes make for a very refreshing summer-time drink. Mint lemonade is a must for picnics. This recipe uses lemonade concentrate, so it can be made up in a jiffy.

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup of mint leaves, fresh and chopped
• 6 cups water
• 1 can frozen lemonade or limeade concentrate

Preparation:

Heat the mint leaves in 2 cups of water until boiling. Reduce heat to a simmer and leave for 5 minutes. Let cool, then strain out mint leaves. Combine mint liquid with lemonade concentrate and the rest of the water (4 cups). Refrigerate and serve over ice.

I also blend the mint leaves with crushed ice in with the lemonade.

Mexican Lasagna by Stacy Nehring

1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
4 scallions, coarsely chopped
Coarse salt and ground pepper
10 ounces fresh baby spinach
Nonstick cooking spray
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
1 (15.5 ounces) pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup prepared salsa (mild or medium)
8 ounces pepper Jack cheese, grated (about 2 cups)
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a food processor, combine cilantro, scallions, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper with as much spinach as will fit; pulse, adding remaining spinach in batches, until coarsely chopped.
Coat an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray. Lay 4 tortillas in bottom of dish (they will overlap slightly). Layer with half of beans, salsa, spinach mixture, and cheese; repeat with remaining ingredients, ending with cheese and pressing in gently.
Cover dish with foil; place on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes; remove foil, and continue baking until golden, 15 to 20 minutes more. Cool 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Black Bean and Sweet Corn Quinoa Salad by Amanda Cracroft

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa

1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup frozen sweet white corn

2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

In a medium pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When shimmering and hot, add the onions and saute for 4-5 minutes, stirring often. Add the garlic and stir for a minute or two until the garlic is fragrant, being careful not to burn the garlic.

Add the quinoa and cover with broth. Stir in cumin, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes (or until all the liquid is absorbed).

Stir in the frozen corn and black beans. Cover and let the pot sit off the heat until the corn and beans are heated through, about 5-6 minutes. Stir in the cilantro. Serve warm or chilled - it is delicious both ways!

Mexican Lasagna by KaLisi Trentadue

1 lb. ground beef (I used turkey)
1 large green pepper, chopped
2 c. Italian tomato sauce (I used prego)
1 1/2 c. Pace Picante sauce
1 T. chili powder
8 flour tortillas
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
2 cans (2 1/4 oz. each) sliced olives

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350. Cook the beef and pepper in a skillet until meat is well browned.
2. Stir the Italian sauce, 1 c. picante sauce and chili powder in skillet and heat to a boil. Reduce heat and cook for about 10 minutes.
3. Spread the remaining picante sauce in a 9x13 baking dish. Arrange 4 tortillas on the bottom, overlapping. Layer with half the meat mixture, half the cheese and half the olives. Repeat the layers.
4. Bake for 20 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Serve with sour cream and fresh tomatoes, if desired.

Strawberry Trifle by Jami Black

2 8-ounce Pkgs. Cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar

In large mixing bowl with electric mixer on low speed, cream together cream cheese and powdered sugar. Add:
1 cup sour cream
2 t. vanilla
1/4 t. almond extract

Mix just until blended. In a medium bowl whip until stiff:
1/2 pint heavy cream
1 t. vanilla
1 T. sugar
(whip the cream first until partially stiff then add the vanilla and sugar and continue to whip until stiff)

Fold this into the cream cheese mixture. Add:
1 angel food cake, cubed

Gently toss cake cubes to coat.

In a separate bowl, combine:
2 quarts fresh strawberries, thickly sliced
4 T. sugar
(I skip the sugar and just use sliced strawberries, makes this a low fat recipe Ha Ha)

Layer:
Strawberries
cake mixture
strawberries
cake mixture
strawberries

Celebration Dip by Rachael Carlson

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

3 tomatoes, diced

3 green onions, diced

1 can Green Giant Mexican corn, drained

2 avocados, diced

1/2 red onion, diced

1/4 cup vinegar

1 package dry Good Seasons Italian dressing

Mix everything together and serve with Frito scoops

Vanilla Sour Cream Pound Cake

3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup butter
6 eggs, separated
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup sour cream
3 cups all-purpose flour, sift before measuring
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream together sugar and butter, add the egg yolks one at time; beat well after each addition. Blend in vanilla and sour cream. Into a separate bowl, sift sifted flour, salt, and soda. Add sifted dry ingredients to batter; beat well. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites into the cake batter. Pour into a greased and floured tube pan and bake at 300° for about 1 1/2 hours or until cake tests done.