Ila, Shirlea, Lory Watermelon and Cucumber Gazpacho... 2 Grilled Shrimp and Sausage Skewers w/smoky Paprika Glaze... 2 Lemon Tart with Almond Crust... 3 Lemon Tart Filling... 4 Fruit Punch... 4 Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles... 5 Nutty Wild Rice Salad... 5
Watermelon and Cucumber Gazpacho 1 3-pound watermelon, diced (about 5 cups), divided 1 small cucumber, diced (about 1 cup) 1 medium-sized red bell pepper, diced (about 1 cup) 1 medium-sized yellow bell pepper, diced (about 1 cup) 1 small jalapeno chili, seeded, minced 3 inner celery stalks, diced (about 1/2 cup) 1/2 small red onion, diced (about 1 cup) 1/4 cup finely chopped mint 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar 1/4 teaspoon salt creme fraiche or sour cream Puree 4 cups watermelon in blender or food processor until smooth. Transfer puree to large bowl. Add remaining cup diced watermelon and next 10 ingredients, stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate, at least an hour. Divide into 4 bowls, top with dollop of sour cream. Grilled Shrimp and Sausage Skewers w/smoky Paprika Glaze 3/4 cup olive oil 4 large garlic cloves, pressed 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme 5 teaspoons smoked paprika 4 teaspoons sherry wine vinegar (I didn't find this-used red wine vinegar) 3/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper 12 uncooked extra large shrimp, peeled and deveined 12 1-inch long pieces Andouille or other fully cooked smoked sausages (You can use most any sausage. If yours isn't precooked, boil until done, then cool and put on skewers.)
12 cherry tomatoes 12 2-layer sections of red onion wedges Nonstick spray Whisk oil, garlic, thyme, smoked paprika, sherry wine vinegar, salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper in medium bowl to blend for glaze. Transfer half of glaze to small bowl and reserve for serving. Alternately thread shrimp, sausage pieces, cherry tomatoes, and sections of onion on 6 skewers. (Can be made up to 6 hours ahead.) Arrange on baking sheet. Cover and chill skewers and bowls of glaze separately. Coat grill rack with nonstick spray and prepare barbeque (medium high heat). Brush skewers on both sides with glaze. Grill until shrimp are opaque in center, turning and brushing occasionally with more glaze, 6 to 8 minutes. Serve skewers with other bowl of glaze. Lemon Tart with Almond Crust CRUST: Process in food processor: 1 cup all purpose flour 1/3 cup sliced almonds 1/4 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt Pulse In: 6 tablespoons butter, cold and cubed 1/2 teaspoon almond extract Add and pulse to blend: 3-5 tablespoons ice water Process first four ingredients in processor until they resemble coarse sand. Pulse in butter and extract until butter is the size of peas. Add ice water; pulse to incorporate. (Add more water 1 tablespoon at a time if dough seems dry.)
Dump dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap, form into a disk, wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes before rolling out. After the 30 minutes of chilling, spray a 9" tart pan with removable bottom with nonstick spray. Roll out dough, place in pan, trim, then freeze. (This dough is soft and hard to work with. I flattened it into a bigger disk, put it in the pan with plastic wrap over it and pushed it into the bottom and sides of the pan with my hands. Then remove the plastic wrap, trim, and freeze.) Freeze about 20 minutes, then bake at 425 about 16 minutes, until golden brown. Reduce heat to 325 and make the filling. Lemon Tart Filling Whisk in large saucepan: 3 whole eggs 3 egg yolks 1 cup sugar 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice, strained (approx. 3-4 lemons) 2 tablespoons lemon zest pinch salt Add: 6 tablespoons butter, cubed Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly. Cook until filling thickens slightly but is pourable, 8-10 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into the prebaked crust. Bake tart at 325 until filling is just set, about 10 minutes. Cool completely before slicing and serving. This can be made and chilled until the next day or frozen. Let come to room temperature before serving. Fruit Punch Pineapple juice Orange juice Cranberry Juice
Something fizzy--club soda, tonic water, 7-Up and Fruit slices Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles Slice 6 English cucumbers and 2 onions into a plastic container. (The turmeric stains the plastic yellow, so don't use your favorite plastic container.) Combine and pour over: 1/4 cup salt 1-1/2 cups Splenda 1-1/2 cups sugar (you can use all Splenda, or all sugar) 3 cups vinegar 1/2 teaspoon turmeric 1 tsp celery seed 1 tsp mustard seed Stir and put in the refrigerator. (The juice won't cover the pickles at first, but the cucumbers quickly give up some liquid and they'll be covered.) The pickles are ready to eat in 3 or 4 days. Keep container in fridge and use from there. Nutty Wild Rice Salad ½ cup wild rice 1 cup canned beef stock 1 cup frozen peas 2 celery sticks thinly diced 4 green onions slice thinly ¼ cup slivered toasted almonds Lettuce cups 1 Tbs red wine vinegar 1 Tbs soy sauce 1 tsp sugar ¼ cup vegetable oil 2 tsp sesame seed oil
Cook rice in medium sauce pan; cover with water and bring to a boil and drain water off. Add broth and simmer slowly until liquid is absorbed, about 1 hour. Combine dressing ingredients, mix well. Toss dressing with wild rice while the rice is still warm. Cool and add remaining ingredients. Serve in lettuce cups.