The days are warmer and it stays light until almost 9pm. It must be summer! I love summer and summer foods. Lots of fresh berries, tomatoes, cooking on the grill. It is my favorite time of the year. So, if you are like me, I am always looking for light summer foods to make for my family. I have two recipes to share.
The first is the winner of the Kitchen Kettle May recipe contest and comes from Debbie in North Carolina. Try this at your next cook-out!
Hickory Bacon Shrimp
1-½ cups Kitchen Kettle Village Hickory Smoke Grilling Sauce
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 pound peeled shrimp
½ pound bacon
Cut slices of bacon in half. Cook bacon until about half done (should not be crisp). Combine KKV Hickory Smoke Grilling Sauce, lemon juice and garlic powder (pour half of mixture into separate bowl for use later). Dip shrimp into half of sauce to thoroughly coat. Wrap each piece of shrimp with ½ piece of bacon. Place on skewer (Soak skewers in water for 15 to 20 minutes beforehand; leave small space between pieces when placing on skewer). Brush grill with vegetable oil, place skewers on hot grill and baste with remaining sauce mixture. Grill for approximately 4 to 6 minutes.
The next recipe celebrates berries and comes from our Culinary Ambassador, Neal Mease, from The Kling House Restaurant. And did I mention that our Berry Jam Festival is next weekend on June 19th & 20th?
Creamy Chilled Strawberry Soup
Ingredients:
4 lb. strawberries
1 pt. jar Kitchen Kettle Strawberry Preserves
1/2 gallon water
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. cloves, ground
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 cups lemon juice
1/2 cup corn starch
1/2 cup water
2 quarts sour cream
1 quart milk
Directions:
1. Drain fruit. Reserve the liquid.
2. Combine sugar, 1/2 gallon water, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Mix cornstarch with 1/2 cup water and thicken liquid.
4. Add lemon juice.
5. Cool to room temperature. *should let the liquid sit in the refrigerator over night.
6. Blend liquid with sour cream, fruit, preserves and milk.
Holding procedure: place into serving vessel and cover with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator till needed.
Serving procedure: serve chilled with a fruit garnish and ½ tsp sour cream.
Yield: 1.5 gallons
Let me know how you make out with these recipes. And if you have a great recipe that you would like to share (that uses a Kitchen Kettle product) I would love to hear from you. For your efforts you could win a $25.00 Jam & Relish Kitchen gift card. So get cooking and enjoy summer!
