Who would have thought that tangy blue cheese, salty prosciutto and sweet dates would make such a great and easy appetizer?

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Here’s how you do it – take the pit out of the date.  stuff with a small amount of blue cheese.  then roll 1/2 a slice of prosciutto around the date.

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get your frying pan really really hot.  pop the dates into the frying pan, and rotate frequently, allowed the prosciutto to carmelize on each side.

sorry, no picture of the finished product – we ate them too fast!!!

Every summer, we get a 5 pound basket of figs from a neighbor who has several large fig trees.  We gobble down about 1 pound of them, and then look at the rest until, sadly, they get moldy and have to be thrown out. 

Determined to make this year different, and in my Suzy Homemaker mode, I decided to make fig jam.   I went out to my local Ace Hardware and bought all of the equipment that i would need – a large metal pot to boil in, a pair of canning tongs, and ball jars.  

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A quick internet search of Fig Jam led me to a 2008 recipe on epicurious.com called Drunken Fig Jam.  I had all the ingredients – brandy, sugar, figs, and lemons.  So off I went on my merry canning way.

It was a really easy process – rinse and cut the figs into quarters,

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 add the rest of the ingredients, and boil for about 30 minutes.

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 Then, after sterilizing the jars, I put the jam mush in, sealed the jars, boiled the jars some more, and voila! 

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 Six half pints of drunken fig jam.

Next up, fresh Georgia peach jam…..yum.

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Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1/2 cup of seasoned flour (flour with 2 tsp dried herbs and freshly ground black pepper added)
• 1/2 cup fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup sliced carrots, steamed
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 cup of fresh green beans, cut into small pieces and steamed
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 3/4 cup red wine

Preparation:

Dredge chicken thighs in seasoned flour. Heat oil on medium heat in large Dutch oven. Brown chicken thighs for 3-4 minutes. Transfer browned chicken to a plate. Add 1 tbsp chicken broth followed by veggies and garlic, and sauté for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add red wine and chicken broth, cover and cook for 15 minutes until chicken thighs are cooked through and vegetables are tender.

Serves 4.

Ok, I’ll admit it.  I like Kraft 1000 Island Lite Salad Dressing.    For whatever reason, by the time I get done making dinner and fluffing the salad, I just can’t seem to pull together a decent homemade salad dressing.    

But they’re so easy!  And so fresh and yummy!  Yes, you’re right, and just for you, I’m going to give it another try this summer.   The proportions of oil to vinegar are 3 to 1.  A little shake of salt and pepper, and voila, you can be done.  

Or you can add all kinds of extras to put a great, unique taste in the dressing.  Try adding shallot, honey, garlic, mustard, soy or fresh herbs.  And let me know what works for you – there’s nothing I like better than emulating someone’s kitchen success.