Frozen Margarita Pie

Another spectacular Grandma Lavon creation! Here is a classic Heininge recipe that I did not find in the archives. Anybody who has tried this can tell you it is total perfection, especially after a great Mexican meal in the summer time. It's also an incredibly easy recipe, practically fool-proof. No need to bake, and you can make it the night before for extra ease.

Ingredients
1 cup - Butter
2 & 1/2 cups - Crushed Pretzels (about a 10 oz. package).
2 tablespoons - Sugar
3 quarts - Vanilla Ice Cream
6 oz. - Frozen limeade concentrate, or to taste. I used 12 ounces and it was great!
4 oz. - Tequila (the best you can afford)
1 oz. - Cointreau Liqueur (or Grand Marnier.  As a last resort, Triple Sec.)
2 whole limes - grated and juiced
Extra limes for garnishing/decorating
Whipped Cream (optional)

Directions
1. Melt butter on medium heat on stovetop.
2. Using a food processor, crush pretzels. I prefer a chunkier pretzel crust, but careful not to make it too chunky or it won't mix well with the butter.
3. Once butter is completely melted, stir in pretzels and sugar. Mix until combined.
4. Press pretzel mixture onto the sides and bottom of the pans.
5. In a large bowl or Kitchen-Aid mixer, combine ice cream, limeade, tequila, Cointreau, grated lime peel and juice with a whip attachment. Mix until fully combined.
6. Pile the filling into each pie pan equally. Cover with plastic wrap, and freeze until firm.
7. Serve with fresh cut limes and whipped cream.

Here is my version I made. We ate it last night after having Carnitas.

Enjoy!

Cowboy Caviar

This is an easy recipe that is suprisingly yummy.

1 can corn - drained

2 cans black beans - drained & rinsed (some recipes say 1 can black beans and 1 can black-eyed peas)

Chopped tomatoes - 1 large- or you can use a can of chopped tomatoes - drained

red onion - chopped
cilantro to taste - finely chopped (I use a mini food processor to do this)

fresh jalapeno or serranos to taste - finely chopped (ditto)

1 cup italian salad dressing - make your own or use your favorite bottled
avocados - 1 or 2 depending on size

Combine first 7 ingredients and refrigerate overnight. This step is important to allow the flavors to marry. Just before serving dice the avocado and add to the salsa. Serve with tortilla chips.

Makes a boatload of salsa so be prepared to share.

Linda's Frijoles Borrachos

This is a simple yet delicious bean soup. The name means "drunken beans", since half a beer is added towards the end for flavor and to soften the beans. They are also called frijoles charros in some areas of Mexico.

Ingredients:

1 pound of pinto beans

1 large pot of water

1 onion, coarsely chopped

1/2lb - 1 lb of bacon, coarsely chopped

2 bunches of fresh cilantro

1-3 chiles serranos or jalapeños

1/2 can or bottle of a smooth Mexican beer (feel free to drink the other half if your religious and/or dietary restrictions permit)

4-5 cloves of garlic (optional)

pinch of salt

1. Bring the pot of water to a rolling boil while...
2. Rinsing the beans, picking out any rocks or other rubbish. (Consider soaking them for several hours or overnight, rinsing again before boiling)
3. Add the beans, onions, and bacon, and reduce heat to medium.
4. Cook for several hours until the liquid begins to turn thick and brown from the ruptured beans, stirring occasionally and adding a few cilantro leaves throughout the cooking time. Add more water if needed. (Note that the beans in the picture are nowhere close to being done).
5. Add the chilies toward the end because they will lose their kick if cooked for too long.
6. About 20 minutes before finishing, add the beer. Avoid any beers with strong or bitter flavors. I used a whole bottle of Pilsner Urquell once with disappointing results.

Pico de gallo

This is a very basic, simple, easy-to-make fresh accompaniment to traditional mexican food. It is not, strictly speaking, a salsa, since salsa means sauce and this is not a liquid. It makes an excellent topping for simple authentic tacos (no iceberg lettuce or sour cream), goes great with high-quality corn tortilla chips, and you can stir some into a bowl of crushed avocadoes for an authentic guacamole. Note that if served with chips, this will disappear quickly, so set some aside for the main course if necessary. Other ideas: mix with canned tuna or pre-cooked shrimp for what I call poor-man's seviche, or mixed with canned or pre-cooked beans for a delicious cold bean salad.


Ingredients: (adjust proportions according to your taste)

4-6 tomatoes (preferably roma or plum tomatoes)

1 bunch of fresh cilantro

3-4 fresh green onions (freshness is very important here. Use half a white or yellow onion if the green onions at the store don't look fresh enough)

1-2 chiles serranos (these look like skinny jalapeños; jalapeños can also be used)

juice of 1-2 limes

pinch of salt

drizzling of olive oil (optional)

Finely chop all the ingredients, stir together in a large bowl and serve. I recommend chopping the onions, then the chiles (very finely), then squeezing the limes on top of these to mellow the flavor of the onions and let the lime juice take on the heat of the chilies. This will help spread the flavors and heat evenly throughout every bite.

There are five ingredients (aside from the salt), and I find this makes it easy to remember to pick up all of them when shopping. (Hint: there are most likely five fingers on your hand, which can be used for counting purposes)