Hot Bacon Dressing

Lettuce and Spinach Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing

This salad brings back memories of my grandma's garden. We got to help pick the leaf lettuce and spinach. Sometimes we'd eat it with supper at grandma's house, and sometimes she'd send a bag of greens home for our supper. Whether eaten at home or with grandma and grandpa, garden lettuce was always served with Hot Bacon Dressing. Each summer I look forward to my garden's fresh lettuce and spinach as a conveyance for the Hot Bacon Dressing and as a spark for those great memories. Three of us call this something good; the other three only eat the bacon.

Hot Bacon Dressing
2 slices bacon, chopped
1 Tablespoon white sugar
1 Tablespoon cider vinegar
1 1/2 Tablespoons dark corn syrup
Salt and pepper to taste
Leaf lettuce and spinach

• Heat a small pan over medium heat. Fry the bacon until cooked.
• Transfer bacon and grease to a small bowl.
• Add sugar, vinegar, and corn syrup. Whisk to combine.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Serve tossed with leaf lettuce and spinach.

Notes: This recipe makes about 1/4 cup of dressing, but it's easy to double or triple. Also, make sure to wash the greens really well--I wash them in a tub of water, fish them out, drain the water, and repeat two more times.

Dill Dip

Dill Dip with Veggies

This dill dip is very easy. You can tell it is a big hit when it's almost gone by the time I get out the camera to take a picture.

Dill Dip
1 cup sourcream
1/4 cup mayo
4 teaspoons dried dill weed
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

• Combine all ingredients. Serve with veggies.

Notes: Make the dip a couple hours ahead of time so the flavors have a chance to blend together.

Lime Sorbet - Guest Blogger Neighbor Jen

Lime Sorbet

Guest post by Neighbor Jen
I love to have Becky as a neighbor, we reap the "extra goodies" aka: leftovers. Trading food back and forth is always fun. I never know what my plate will have on it when it returns. I feel like my family has the better end of this arrangement, Becky is a wonderful and gracious cook.
When I brought over my lime sorbet, and she asked me to blog the recipe, well... I must have done something right!
So, here is my best efforts for you to recreate it. (I tend to use what I have in the house. For me, a recipe is only a loose guide.) The original recipe came from a friend who pulled it off allrecipies.com. (My print out is from 2009. The link is long lost on the website.) It is a lemon sorbet recipe. The store happen to have a great sale on lovely-looking limes. So...lime sorbet it was!

ORIGINAL RECIPE:
3 C. water
1 1/2 C. sugar
1 1/2 C. lemon juice
1 T. grated lemon peel

Bring water & sugar to a boil. Cook about 5 min. until sugar is dissolved. Cool.
Add lemon juice and peel. Pour into ice-cream maker & freeze. Let warm on counter about 10 min before serving.

MY VERSION:  my changes are in itlaics
3 C. water
1 1/2 C. sugar - sometimes I will have a steeped sugar around. (Lavender or vanilla infused) I like to use some of that. I like to use about 1/2 cup of the flavored sugar and a cup of regular sugar. For my recipe I used lavender sugar. Just stick a stick of cinnamon or used vanilla bean, or my garden lavender in a jar of sugar and leave it for a while. "Hello, yummy!"
1 1/2 C. lemon juice - Squeeze it fresh. Do not substitute!
1 T. grated lemon peel -always double this. This is where the flavor is. Go for the BIG flavor!
Fresh mint sprig
Vodka- or other alcohol  about 2 T.

Bring water & sugar to a boil. Cook about 5 min. until sugar is dissolved. Add the fresh mint sprig to this. Clap the mint in your hand or crush it first. (Just like you would crumple a used piece of paper.) Cool. Remove the mint.
Add lemon juice and peel. Add a dash of liquor to the mix. We happen to have a lime vodka, so I added that. Just a tablespoon or two. This will help it not to freeze quite solid. I'm sure some chemist can explain why this works scientifically but I'm not sure exactly. It has something to do with the formation of ice crystals. (There is not enough alcohol in the mix for me to worry about feeding it to my kids. They love this sorbet! It is the same as when you add vanilla to your cookies. Vanilla has a VERY high alcohol content.)
Pour into ice-cream maker & freeze. Umm...too putzy for me. Throw it into an 8x8 glass pan & freeze. Then just scrape the top with a fork or spoon before you dish it up.  Let warm on counter about 10 min before serving.

A little goes a long way. It has BIG flavor and everyone finds it refreshing on a hot day. It is also a great recipe that can impress even the toughest of critics. You could make it days or weeks ahead of time and have no prep for company. If you toss some fresh raspberries & an fresh mint sprig on top when serving you too can pull off the "Martha Stewart" look!