The Fresno Bee du lieu suivant : Fresno, California • 115

THE FRESNO BEE WEDNESDAY JUNE 28 2000 E3 CLICK HERE TABLE TALK a forum for our readers by Guy Keeler Pack this salad for your picoic Green peapicnicsalad Makes 5 cups The Fourth of July is just around the corner and that means picnics We find ourselves in the same pickle every year searching for the proper portable picnic food It seems that no matter where we go we need to take a side dish to add to Mama tidal Join the Italian Cooking Club an e-mail recipe dub and receive an easy recipe and family dining tip weekly Visit wwwcontadina com to sign up for the free service AdsBathome The Jewish Delicatessen Cook- book (wwwcelebrity-'delicomrecipes htm) has all your deli favorites Stop by the site often to catch the featured weekly recipe IlESPEltATlOV IIIWERS Peel and finely mince the garlic adding it to the bowl If using basil chop the leaves and add them to the bowl Seed and chop the pepper adding it to the bowl as you chop Peel and chop the onion adding it to the bowl as you chop Add the sour cream mayonnaise lemon salt and pepper to this bowl Stir well to mix with the vegetables Add the green peas and toss to coat and mix well Serve at once or cover and chill up to 24 hours the bounty For us desperate cooks this is as much of a challenge as feeding the family midweek Whatever we take it has to go together fast or ready to pop in a cooler for transport It complements a salad buffet perfectly and great with chicken beef or pork be proud to serve this salad alongside the most popular potato salad or slaw Using frozen green peas is the real Desperate advantage though Since easy to keep on hand in your Desperation freezer always be set to throw this quickie side dish together Fresh basil is optional but if you happen to have a plant or two out back an easy fresh addition that adds depth to the already tasty salad face it just because heading for the great outdoors to dine we cant expect our hectic way of life to change that much when grateful for simple salad side dishes that taste as though slaved for hours Send your tales of woe or everyday success stories including recipes to Desperation Dinners 2212 The Circle Raleigh NC 27608 1 pound frozen groan peas 1 medium Kirby cucumber cup chopped) 2 cloves fresh garlic cup fresh basil leaves I optional 1 medium rod bell pepper (for 1 cup chopped) 1 small onion (Vz cup chopped) 2a cup light sour cream Vs cup light mayonnaise Juice from Vs a lemon (2 tablespoons) V2 teaspoon salt or more to taste V4 teaspoon pepper or more to taste Place peas in a colander and run cool water over them i to thaw Set aside to drain well Cut the cucumber in half and using a spoon scrape I out the seeds Chop the cucumber and place it in a 2-quart or larger bowl It must be presentable when we get there and it must be based on staple pantry KLUTZ Butter boosters items Nutritional Information per serving: 152 calories (41 from fat) 7 grams fat (3 grams saturated) 13 milligrams cholesterol 6 grams protein IBgrams carbohydrates 4 grams dietary fiber 403 milligrams 5 no mean feat for a simple side dish What dish could possibly fill all those requirements? recipe for green pea picnic salad fits the bill In less than 20 minutes this bright fresh salad is ready to serve sodium MftSMIMMtllMNtWIIMINIINHNHM GRILL IT VALLEY FRESH from field to market At wwwButteris- 1 bestcom all of your questions are answered in an exhaustive FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section the best way to thaw butter? Get the lowdown here The recipe section has treats (example: butter cookie pretzels) soups breakfasts and brunches (oatmeal raisin biscuits) and main courses (Kentucky Derby turkey hash) There are cooking-with-but- ter tips too 1- Knight Rlddwn Newspapers When the cantaloupes get ripe the ripe get going tn market Listen up! We located the Sperry Tamale Pie recipe A big thank-you to Jo Audino of Visalia and to Fresnans Nancy Decker Carol Lewis and Claudia Wendel all of whom sent tamale pie recipes in response to a request for Sperry Tamale Pie from Gloria Schiebelhut sisters and I were just discussing Sperry Tamale Pie last writes Jo mother Wilma Brackett made it at least once a month and it was a family favorite The original recipe called for can sizes no longer available so substitutions have been made It also called for 2V2 teaspoons of salt and 2 tablespoons of oil for browning the ground Based on the recipes we received more than one way to make tamale pie The original Sperry recipe printed below calls for cream-style com Some of the others use whole kernel com Spices and seasonings also vary Nancy sent us three recipes including one from the book Recipes from the Backs of Boxes Bottles Cans and which originally appeared on boxes of Yellow Corn Meal The book notes that tamale pie was popular during the Great Depression because it made a great-tasting inexpensive meal Tamale recipe features the same big four ingredients of beef tomatoes com and olives but calls for two cups of shredded Monterey Jack cheese to be sprinkled on top Claudia shared a recipe she found in Martha Planner published in 1939 This recipe uses Sperry Yellow Com Meal and a long list of other ingredients including chopped green pepper a couple drops of Tabasco sauce a teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce cayenne paprika and one slightly beaten egg Taste buds alert Mark your calendar for a tomato-and salsa-tasting festival July 8 at the Garden of the Sun 1944 Winery just north of McKinley Avenue The event is sponsored by the Master Gardeners of Fresno County From 9 am-l pm visitors will have a chance to Bample an assortment of locally grown tomatoes as well as different salsas complete with recipes There also will be activities for children refreshments a plant sale and a country store Admission is $5 for adults $3 for youth ages 12-16 Children under 12 will be admitted free Send requestsresponses to Guy Keeler The Fresno Bee Fresno CA 93786 fax 441-6457 e-mail gkeelerfresnobeecom Include name and daytime phone number The summer cantaloupe harvest began last week in the central San Joaquin Valley according to the weekly crop report from the Fresno County Department of Agriculture These sweet-tasting and sweet-smelling melons and their cousins the Persian Crenshaw Casaba and Honey Dew are native to Persia They spread to Europe where the Roman Emperor Tiberius supposedly built greenhouses where they could be grown year round Christopher Columbus brought melon seeds to North America and Kited them on March 29 1494 a he recorded in the log of his journey Cantaloupes are a good source of vitamins A and and make a wonder jj Mmp We all know that milk is rich in calcium (as are such milk products as ricotta and Parmesan cheese and yogurt) But what other foods are rich in calcium that our bodies need for proper bone development? Mackerel salmon and sardines are I good choices For 1 i veggie fans the I- possibilities Include kale broccoli turnip I greens and collards Healthy by Brenda Adderiy and Catherine Pagano i Fulde (Bristol $1995) ful addition to a fruit salad in chunks or balls or cut in wedges as a breakfast entree When picking out cantaloupes in the store look for melons with a raised covering its whole surface Reject ones that have or spots Cantaloupes Bhould have a slight give when you squeeze them but stay away from ones that are soft The stem end of the melon where it was attached to the vine should be nice and smooth The presence of rough fibers at the stem end is an indication the melon was picked too soon Area orchards were busy last week as workers picked apricots peaches nectarines plums navel and Valencia Grilled poitobeMo and spinach salad with feta Makes 6 servings CALEKMR IX Wine tasting 5 fpm Friday Bailey- Cannon Wine -1 I Merchants Fig Garden Village Champagne from France and spar- klers from Califbr- nia Cost: $10 Details: 230-0120 oranges Valley fields yielded a harvest of blackberries boysenberries strawberries blueberries basil bok choy bittermelon leaves broccoli beets carrots Swiss chard chives cilantro cucumbers dill green beans gailon gai choy mustard greens green onions kohlrabi leaf lettuce lemon grass mint ong choy okra leaf onions parsley squash sweet com peas radishes spinach turnips tatsoi and yam leaves Guy Keeler The Fresno Bee Drain discard dressing Grill mushrooms until cooked through 8-10 minutes Cut into slices Toss mushrooms with remaining ingredients in large bowl Variations: Prepare as directed substituting 3 boneless skinless chicken-breast halves (about 3 pound) for mushrooms Prepare as directed substituting 12 ounces beef sirloin steak 'z- to s4-inch thick for mushrooms -Athenos Foods 1 cup Italian salad dressing divided 1 pound portobello mushrooms 1 1 package (10 ounces) torn fresh spinach I 8 ounces feta cheese crumbled 3 plum tomatoes sliced Vs cup thinly sliced red onion Pour zs cup of the dressing over mushrooms in shallow dish cover Refrigerate 1 hour to I marinate i fljjxfofletherT1 a large-bowl combine: eeeeeee eoeneoeeeeoeee Sperry tamale pie 1 clove garlic minced V2 cup chopped onion 1 pound lean ground beef 1 can creamed com (15V2 ounces) 1 can tomatoes (28 ounces) 1 tablespoon chill powder 2 cupe Sperry yellow eommeal 2 cups tomato juice 1 can pitted ripe olives (15V2 ounces) Salt and pepper to taste Brown ground beef with onion and garlic add salt and pepper to taste Stir in creamed com tomatoes and chili powder 1 Cover and simmer slowly for 20 minutes Uncover pan and add eommeal tomato juice and olives Pour mixture into a greased 9-by-13-inch baking dish Bake for 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees until heated through r- Wine tasting 10 am Saturday Bailey-Cannon Wine i Merchants Cham- pagnesparklers Cost: $8 Details: 230-0120 River Parkway Prom 6 pm Sunday San Joaquin Country Club Dining and dancing fund-raiser i for the San Joaquin River Parkway and 4 Conservation Trust (part of parties for the Parkway series) Cost: $100 Reserva- I cupfl Vz duo to 1 cup vrown sugar cups Quartered strawberries (m Itsp ginge Msr 'A- cup granulated Sugar U4- cup -flour 3ut butter until wuxture resembles small pea? Bake at 400 -for until lubfe I tions: 299-4607 1.