Tag: lime

Margarita Mousse … with Leftover Cake

A few months ago, I made a cake with a thin glaze that used Margarita non-alcoholic frozen concentrate.  It was OK, but nothing special, so I cut the leftovers into slices and stuck them in the freezer.  For this past Sunday dinner, I decided to thaw the cake to use as both crust and topping for a delicious mousse, also made with the Margarita concentrate.

I adapted an old mousse recipe I have been using since 1976 and it turned out great.  I loved being able to make use of a rather ordinary cake and create an easy dessert that the family really enjoyed.

Although the Margarita-flavored cake added a bit of punch to the dessert, I believe any plain or lightly glazed cake would work just as well, since the mousse has a strong lime flavor.

MARGARITA MOUSSE DESSERT

  • 3 cups leftover plain or lightly glazed cake
  • 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk (Eagle Brand Non-Fat)
  • 3 Tblsp. Margarita non-alcoholic frozen concentrate (Bacardi), thawed
  • 2 cups frozen whipped topping (Cool Whip), thawed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Spray or butter a 9-inch baking pan and a flat baking sheet

Take 2 cups of leftover cake and crumble coarsely.  Place in the prepared 9-inch baking pan and press down.

Bake @ 350 degrees F for 10 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack.

Take the remaining 1 cup of leftover cake and crumble into fine crumbs.  Spread on the prepared flat baking sheet.  Bake @ 350 degrees F for 5 minutes, stir and turn and bake an additional 5 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack.

Note:  The two pans can be baked at the same time.


In a medium bowl, whisk together the condensed milk, Margarita concentrate and whipped topping.

Spread this mixture over the cooled crust in the 9-inch baking pan.

Sprinkle the fine toasted crumbs over the top.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Cut into squares to serve.  Makes 6 servings.

The mousse alone also makes a nice dessert.  Spoon into dessert dishes and chill.

Yukon Chicken Salad

This is a combination of a couple of favorites, made with the little Yukon Gold potatoes.  My husband was growing Yukon Golds in his garden in the late 1990s, before they became so popular on all of the cooking shows.  We loved them then and I’m happy they’re available in all of the grocery stores now.  Combined with chicken, gorgonzola cheese and walnuts – what’s not to like?

YUKON CHICKEN SALAD

  • 10 small Yukon Gold potatoes (2-2-1/2″ diameter), unpeeled
  • 1 large tart apple, thinly sliced (Golden Delicious)
  • 1/4 cup sweet onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup toasted walnuts, coarsley chopped
  • 1/2 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese
  • 1 cup chopped, cooked chicken breast
  • 1 Tblsp. fresh basil, chopped
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp. honey
  • Salt/Pepper to taste

Wash potatoes and put in a large pot.  Cover with cold water and cook over medium heat until tender (30-45 minutes depending on size).  Set aside to cool.

When potatoes are cool, cut into bite-size pieces and place in a large bowl.  Add apple and onion slices, toasted walnuts, gorgonzola, cooked chicken and fresh basil.

In a jar or other container with a lid, mix the olive oil, vinegar and honey.

Pour over the potato mixture and toss to mix.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Makes 4-6 servings

This is not a very photogenic salad, but it sure is good.

Along with the salad, I served an old favorite summertime pie, Nancy’s Chocolate Lime Pie.

It was a nice summer lunch for my two daughters and two grandchildren.

A Good Sunday Lunch

I offered to fix lunch for my two daughters and two grandchildren before they headed for the large pool at Coney Island in Cincinnati.  One daughter suggested an oriental style pasta salad would be good and I found one on Allrecipes.  This is my edited version with a few changes.

SESAME PASTA CHICKEN SALAD

  • 1/4 cup sesame seeds
  • 8 oz bow tie pasta (Barilla Piccolini)
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1/3 cup Teriyaki sauce
  • 1/3 cup rice vinegar
  • 1 tsp. sesame oil
  • 3 Tblsp. granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • few gratings of black pepper
  • 2 chicken breast halves, baked and shredded
  • 1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves
  • 1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds

Heat a small skillet over medium high heat.  Add sesame seeds and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly toasted.   Remove from heat and set aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add pasta and cook for 7 minutes.  Drain pasta and rinse under cold water.  Transfer pasta to a large bowl.

In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine canola oil, Teriyaki sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, sesame seeds, ginger and pepper.  Shake well.  Pour dressing over pasta and toss to coat evenly.  Gently mix in chicken, cilantro and toasted almonds.

The three adults loved this salad – it was exactly what I was looking for in flavor and I would suggest that you not omit the fresh cilantro.  It just adds so much to the salad.

For dessert, I pulled out a recipe for a pie that myoldest daughter had made for a pie contest at the Hamilton County Fair (Cincinnati) in 1985.  She won an award and as soon as we tasted it, we could see why.  It’s incredibly rich, so plan on at least 8 servings.

NANCY'S CHOCOLATE LIME PIE

  • 16 chocolate sandwich cookies, crushed (Oreo)
  • 2 Tblsp. butter, melted
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 14 oz. sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated)
  • 2 envelopes of Nestle Choco-Bake pre-melted chocolate
  • 1/3 cup lime juice
  • 3 egg whites
  • 7 oz. jar of marshmallow creme

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

Crust:

In a 9″ pie pan, combine crumbs with melted butter.  Press onto bottom and up sides of pie plate.  Bake @ 375 degrees  F for about 8 minutes.  Cool while preparing filling.

Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees F.

Filling:

In mixer bowl beat egg yolks at high speed about 4 minutes.  Add condensed milk, pre-melted chocolate and lime juice, mixing well.  Pour into prepared crust.

Meringue:

Beat egg whites to soft peaks, gradually adding marshmallow creme, incorporating well and beating to stiff peaks.  Spread over filling.

Bake @ 350 degrees F for 12 minutes until meringue is golden brown.

Chill for 2-3 hours.

Note: It’s important to chill the pie well and to chill any leftovers to make the pie easier to serve.