My Aunt's Lemon Pie

I'm not an individual who is typically big on sweets or any type of baked goods. I'd prefer an actual meal to candy, pies and cakes. But in the spirit of Thanksgiving and to feel closer to my family, I made one of the only pies that I could eat for days, my Aunt's lemon pie.

Now this is so unlike a typical lemon or lemon meringue pie. Like my sweet potatoes, it's simple and easy to make. I love how the simple things in life bring the most joy. The same can be said about food. I've often found the best tasting foods are not elaborately made or filled with a million and one ingredients and steps.

Try this one out and let me know what you think.

Ingredients

• 1 small tub of regular Cool Whip
• 1 can of sweetened condensed milk
• 1 8 oz block of Philadelphia Cream Cheese
• Lemon juice
• Lemon extract
• 1 regular sized pie shell

Directions

1. Alright now here comes the complicated part, take the Cool Whip, condensed milk and cream cheese and mix it all together. *One could use a bowl and mix manually, but I save time and labor by using a blender to mix it all together.
2. Transfer mixture to a bowl or keep in a blender and add the lemon juice and extract. *You can adjust the amount of lemon additives according to your taste. I love a lot of lemon in this pie, which may be too much for others.
3. Add the mixture to your pie shell and smooth over.

4. Cover and let the pie sit in the refrigerator for at least 3-4 hours, overnight is preferred (this 
    allows for the mixture to settle and solidify).
5. Then serve.

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Ultimate Vegetarian Nachos

This has got to be one of my favorite and most fun dishes to make. It's simple, quick, easy and allows creativity.

It does not take much to make nachos right? Just take some tortilla chips and pour some queso on top and wallah! NOOO! At least not for me. Derived from nachos I had in Thailand, I have mastered the art of nacho making.

After looking at the ingredients list and the pics, tell me my nachos aren't a masterpiece?!?!?!

Ingredients

• Tortilla Chips
• Mexican/Fiesta Cheese Blend (cheddar, monterey jack, pepper jack)
• Tomatoes
• Red Onions
• Seasoned Black Beans
• Avocadoes
• Yellow Corn kernels
• Green Olives
• Jalapenos (fresh or canned)
• Fresh Cilantro

Directions

1. Cut, slice and dice all of your vegetables (tomatoes, onions, avocadoes, olives, jalapenos and cilantro) *You can add or subtract whatever you like more or less.
2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
3. Take an aluminum pan (ones used for baking cornbread or cakes) and fill with a small layer of chips.

     4. Then add a healthy layer of cheese first and then your onions, beans, corn, olives and
         jalapenos, if they are fresh.

     5. If you're hungry, repeat step 4 for a second layer.

     6. Place in the oven for 2-3 minutes or until cheese is melted.

     7. Then add tomatoes, avocadoes and jalapenos (if canned)
     8. Finally garnish with freshly chopped cilantro and serve.

Variations

1. If you prefer black olives to green those can be used instead.
2. You can also substitute any beans you like or take them out all togther.
3. This dish can also be served with salsa and sour cream if you'd like.
4. Get creative, change it up. I've used Black Bean and Jalapeno flavored tortilla chips instead of plain and the nachos were just bursting with flavor.

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Simple Sweet Potatoes

This Thanksgiving was the first one I have spent alone. Ironically, I wasn't lonely. Why? Thanks to technology and food. Although I was alone, I was able to record videos to send to my friends and family and communicate with them throughout the day.

I know this may sound weird, but I find an extreme comfort in food, mainly cooking it. It's a stress reliever for me. Simply put it make me happy.

So for this Thanksgiving, I spent the entire day, cooking talking with loved ones and watching Harry Potter :-)

My Thanksgiving meal including vegetarian dressing with cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, baked macaroni and cheese and a homemade tofurkey (that didn't go all that well).

I would like to share with you the recipe I used for the sweet potatoes. Now many people like to get fancy and add marshmallows, cinnamon, brown sugar and in some cases walnuts or pecans. But not me. I like my sweet potatoes simple and sweet. So here you go...

Ingredients

• 2 medium sized sweet potatoes
• 1 stick of butter
• Sugar
• 1/4 cup of water

Directions

1. Wash, peel and cut your sweet potatoes.
2. Add water to your pot on medium high heat.
3. ONce you start to see your water begin to boil, add your sweet potatoes and a butter.
4. Then add your sugar, pour until there is a good layer of sugar on top (for the most part everything is white ;-)
*I never measure here. I typically pour sugar on top until just about all the potatoes are covered.
5. Cover and cook on medium high heat until sweet potatoes are tender. Usually around 20 minutes or so.
6. *Due to the heat, I would suggest letting the final product chill and then reheat before serving. This way the syrup has time to thicken up a bit.

Here is just a pic of my 2011 Thanksgiving Dinner Spread!

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