Well, here's granny's pasta salad, my presonal fav for fresh tomatoes: 1 LB shaped pasta (elbow, rigatoni, farfalle, etc.) 1 red bell pepper - sliced 1 green bell pepper - sliced 1/2 a red onion - chopped into .5 cm chunks 2 ripe cucumbers, halved and sliced 4 fresh tomatoes - wedged bottle of balsamic vinagrette (yes granny used bottled dressing) fresh grated pharmasiean Boil pasta al dente, drain and rinse in cool water. toss veggies, dressing and pasta into big bowl, refridge for an hour or so, grate on fresh pharm when serving. I make a huge bowl and we snack this for about 2 days, till it runs out.

Here are a few of my favourites. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Beef Tenderloin - Kabobs ======================== 2 pounds beef tenderloin, cut into Cubes (from 1 inch to 2 inches) 2 - 3 cloves of garlic minced 1 large shallot, chopped 2 tablespoons fresh thyme Chopped/ and/or Rosemary 2 tablespoons fresh parsley Chopped 1 cup red wine 1/2 cup olive oil Salt Black Pepper - Coarsely Ground 2 Green Peppers cut into squares 2 large white onions- cut into 1/4's (option: Large Cherry Tomatoes) . Cut beef tenderloin in to nice size cubes. Mix together all of the other ingredients and marinate the beef for about 4 to 6 hours. Par Boil onions and green peppers for less than one minute. Drain and cool in icewater. Remove meat from Marinade and thread onto metal or wooden skewers, placing a piece of green pepper and onion in between each piece of meat. Grill on high heat. Turn a few times. Tenderloin should be served rare to medium rare so these do not take long to cook, depending on your grill. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Chicken Souvlaki ================ Chicken breasts Fresh minced garlic Dried oregano Lemons Olive oil Salt Pepper . Cut chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes Place on wooden Skewers that have been soaked in water (prevents sticks from burning.. or on metal skewers. Rub with fresh minced garlic and dried oregano Squeese fresh lemons over chicken and some olive oil Salt and pepper Marinate for up to 1 hour. If marinating longer do not add lemon juice until the last hour. Lemon juice "cooks" the flesh and changes the texture. Place on hot grill and turn often until done. Serve with Greek salad and rice. NOTE: This recipe works well with Pork (I use Pork Tenderloin) and with Lamb Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Shish Taouk with Toum (Garlic Sauce) ==================================== Source: http://chichoskitchen.blogspot.com/2010/04/shish-taouk -grilled-chicken-kebabs.html Ingredients (around 15 skewers): 1-1/2 kg chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes 1 cup olive oil 3 tablespoons dijon or mild mustard 3/4 cup lemon juice 10 crushed garlic cloves 2 tablespoons salt 1 tablespoon white (or black) pepper 2 tablespoons tomato paste 4 tablespoons finely chopped thyme Mushrooms, (optional but highly recommended) 1 red and/or 1 green pepper (optional but highly recommended) Emulsify the mustard with the olive oil. This is done by whisking a little bit of olive oil into the mustard and continuing to do so until all the olive oil is incorporated. Add and whisk the lemon juice, salt, pepper, tomato paste, garlic and thyme until well mixed Marinate the chicken in the sauce overnight in the fridge. Skewer the chicken along with pieces of mushroom and red/green pepper and barbecue or grill until done. Dont over cook otherwise the chicken would dry out. Toum (Garlic Sauce) Http://chichoskitchen.blogspot.com/2010/04/toum-garlic- lebanese-sauce-recipe.html Ingredients: 5 cloves of garlic 1 egg white 1 cup of neutral oil (sunflower is fine) Juice of 1 lemon A good pinch of salt 1 cup of iced water of which you will use around 2 tbsp Put the garlic cloves along with salt and 1/4 of the lemon juice in the blender. Blend on medium and scrape the sides down when the garlic goes flying everywhere. Add the egg white and blend on medium. Add half the oil in bit by bit. A thin stream is not necessary, but dont go crazy. A reasonable, fine, steady pour is good. At this stage, the emulsification should have taken place. If it hasnt and the sauce looks like it has split, then something has gone wrong. You may need to remove half the amount, add another egg white, whizz away and re-pour what had already split. But if you take it slow without pouring the oil too quickly, it should be fine. Switch to a slow blend, and add the rest of the lemon juice in slowly too. Add the rest of the oil in the same fashion. Add 1 or 2 tbsp of water. You will see the consistency change into something wonderfully creamy and light.

I don't use a recipe, but this one is very close to what I use and how I make them. I will indicate where I differ in parens..... Alexa Clams Casino 24 littleneck or cherrystone clams, cleaned and shucked, bottom shells reserved Rock salt 4-6 slices of bacon 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon butter 1 shallot, minced 1 garlic clove, minced Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste ý cup minced white onion þ cup minced green and red peppers ý teaspoon dried oregano (I dont care for oregano in this) ý cup dry white wine 1 tablespoon minced fresh herbs oregano and basil are nice (I use parsley) 1 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs) ü cup grated Parmesan cheese (I dont use parm either) Procedure In a large sauté pan, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove from pan, drain on paper towels and crumble; set aside. Wipe out the sauté pan, but donâÂÂt wash it. Heat the pan over medium-high heat for a minute or two, then add the olive oil and butter. Sauté the shallot, garlic, onion and peppers with the oregano and a pinch of salt and pepper until softened. Turn the heat to medium high and add the wine. Reduce the pan liquid until only about ü cup remains. Cool the vegetables completely. Stir in the panko, reserved bacon, fresh herbs and half the Parmesan cheese. Taste and correct seasonings. Shuck the clams, reserving the bottom shells. Arrange them on a bed of rock salt on a rimmed baking sheet. Divide the stuffing equally among the clams, mounding it up slightly. Sprinkle the rest of the Parmesan evenly over the stuffing Bake at 500ðF until the clams are cooked and the topping is deep golden brown, about 7-10 minutes. Serve immediately.

In case you're interested in adding international recipes, here are my two favourite meatball recipes, one from Germany and the other from Mallorca, Spain. (Poached meatballs in lemon & caper sauce.) Here is a German dish which originated in Königsberg, former capital of eastern Prussia, now part of Russia and called Kaliningrad. Having a pleasant, mild flavour, these meatballs are also a low calorie dish as they are cooked in water. They're well known in most German households and are often a family favourite. Ingredients: 1/2 lb finely ground veal (225 grams) 1/2 lb finely ground lean pork (225 grams) 1 large onion - peeled and finely chopped 8 finely chopped + 2 finely chopped later for sauce (total 50 grams) 2 TBS capers finely chopped + 1 TBS whole capers later for the sauce 1 lg egg, beaten 3 slices firm crusts removed, soaked in water juice of 1/2 lemon - or juice of whole lemon if it is very small 2 bay leaves 2 whole cloves (aromatic spice cloves) 1/2 TBS oil for frying onion 2 TBS flour mixed with water salt & freshly ground pepper 1. Sauté onion gently until golden and put aside. 2. Mix the two ground meats with 8 of the chopped anchovies, 2 TBS chopped capers, beaten egg and the soaked bread which has been squeezed dry. Then mix in the cooled fried onion and some salt and pepper. 3. In a wide saucepan put 3 3/4 cups of water and add some salt, the lemon juice, bay leaves and cloves. Bring to the boil. 4. Meanwhile form large meatballs with hands and place on a plate - about 14 meatballs. If water boils, turn off until all meatballs are formed. and bring it slowly back to the boil then lower heat and let simmer gently for 30 minutes. Turn meatballs once or twice during this time. 6. When cooked, remove meatballs with slotted spoon to a casserole and keep warm. Mix flour and cold water to a paste and add to the cooking water, stirring to thicken. Add the last two anchovies, chopped fine and 1 TBS whole capers. Bring to the boil and simmer 2 - 3 minutes. Pour and serve with boiled potatoes and green beans. I actually had more sauce than what appears here in the photo. I kept the rest in the pot on the stove for keeping hot. Note: They turned out very well. My lemon was VERY juicy and as I used all the juice, it was a bit too much. Go easy on the lemon juice if it is a large lemon. SharonCb ************************************* Here's a favourite dish from the Island of Mallorca, Spain. - 4 servings 700 grams ground veal (I use 1/2 pork & 1/2 veal) 3 eggs - beaten 1 medium onion - minced 2 cloves garlic - minced flat-leaf parsley - lots 2 teasp oregano 2 teasp thyme 2 teasp sweet paprika powder 2 teasp salt fresh ground black pepper cooking oil 3 medium very ripe tomatoes - (skinning is optional) chopped 1/2 cup milk & 1/4 cup water flour 4 - 6 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into chips (french fries) Utensils needed: - small frying pan about 6 inches diameter - medium or large frying pan or chip fryer - earthenware or ceramic stovetop casserole with lid 1) Mix meat with beaten egg, minced garlic, 2/3 of the chopped onion, salt & pepper, herbs and paprika. Add a few stalks of parsley chopped fine. Mix all together. 2) Pour about 1 cm oil into small frying pan and put on medium heat. Put some seasoned flour (s&p) on a dinner plate and using a small spoon, scoop out meat mixture and begin forming meatballs with help of floured hands, rolling them in flour as needed. Put them on floured plate and when you have six and oil is hot, put them carefully using spoon into the small frying pan to brown. 3) After two or three minutes turn meatballs over using a small spoon. Continue forming more meatballs. 4) As meatballs brown, remove and put them into casserole dish, adding the fresh ones to the pan, six at a time. 5) When done, strain out any burned bits in the frying pan oil and put in the rest of the onion with the tomato, as well as a handful of minced parsley. Cook on medium heat. 6) After a few minutes add the milk and water. Taste and if tomato flavour is too sharp add a pinch of sugar, also some salt. Pour sauce over meatballs in casserole, (optional is pour it through a sieve for finer sauce) put on low heat with lid and simmer very gently 20 minutes, checking and turning them over once. 8) Prepare potatoes and in oil in large frying pan or chip fryer begin making the french fries a few at a time, salting them and keeping them hot in oven. Put a few chips on top of the meatballs, add a bit of chopped parsley and serve at table with extra chips on each plate. Source: Adapted from 'Cocina selecta Mallorquin' SharonCb