Aunt Ruby's Baked Beans

1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. bacon, chopped up
1 chopped onion
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1 tsp salt
4 TBSP mustard
4 TBSP molasses
1 tsp chili powder
3/4 tsp pepper

2 16 oz. cans red kidney beans
2 16 oz. cans pork and beans
2 16 oz. cans of butter or Lima beans

Instructions:

Brown beef, bacon and onion. Drain. Combine rest of ingredients and add to the drained beef mixture.
Bake 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Comments:  The thing I love about hand written recipes is that they are often written in the hand of the person who gave them to you, or there is a little tag line on the recipe card that says who it's from. Typed Internet recipes just don't have that personal touch.

This recipe is from our beloved Aunt Ruby, who is no longer with us. I always think of her when I make them. She was a great cook!

Note: I usually don't add the meat, but that is how I originally had them and it sure makes them delicious.

Twiced baked baby potatoes

24 baby Yukon Gold or red potatoes, each about 2 inches across (2 to 2-1/4 lb.)
2 Tbs. olive oil
2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
 3 oz. bacon (about 3 thick slices), cooked until crispy and crumbled
 6 Tbs. thinly sliced fresh chives
1/2 cup crème fraîche or sour cream
1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

 Heat the oven to 425°F. Put the potatoes on a large baking sheet and toss with the olive oil. Sprinkle with 1 tsp. of the thyme, 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. pepper, and toss again. Bake the potatoes until they feel perfectly tender when pierced with a skewer, 20 to 25 minutes. ( It took my potatoes 45 to 50 minutes to be fork tender.)

Remove from the oven and let rest until cool enough to handle, about 10 minutes. You need to mash the potatoes while they are warm or they will be lumpy or turn into glue.  If you step away too long and they get cold, gently reheat the pulp of the potato in water on the stove-top, do not boil and then mash.

 If not working ahead, increase the oven temperature to 450°F.

Carefully hollow out each potato: Begin by slicing off the top; use a small spoon or a melon baller to scoop out most of the flesh inside, transferring it to a large bowl. Discard the tops. Mash the potato flesh with a masher or a fork, then combine it with the bacon, 1/4 cup of the chives, the crème fraîche, the remaining 1 tsp. thyme, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Season to taste with more salt and pepper. Using a small spoon and your fingers, fill the hollowed potatoes with this mixture; it should mound a bit. Sprinkle on the cheese.

Return the potatoes to the 450°F oven and bake until the filling heats through, 8 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining chives and serve warm.

 Make Ahead Tips You can stuff the potatoes up to two days ahead as long as you wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate them; bring them to room temperature before the second baking.

 Recipe from: http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/tiny-twice-baked-potatoes.aspx

Comments: I made 50 of these for my daughters high-school graduation party and by the time dinner was over there were only 5 left!  Needless to say, they are fun to look at and delicious to eat.  And really not that hard to make. I made them the night before.  The melon ball scoop is a must as the skin on a Yukon potato or red potato is fragile.  I let my potatoes get cold and had to reheat them.  I wasn't sure how this would work out, but it worked out fine.  If you love bacon, it could use a little more.  Rolling the potatoes in the kosher salt , pepper, thyme and oil made them extra delicious so don't skip this step.

Mango and Black Bean and Rice Salad

1 1/2 cups chopped peeled ripe mango
1 cup thinly sliced green onions, include stems
1 cup cooked rice, original recipe calls for brown or wild rice.
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
2 tablespoons salsa
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drain

Instructions:
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Toss gently to mix.

Recipe is from Cooking Light

Comments: This was delicious!!! The combination of flavors was great, the texture was wonderful, the presentation was beautiful.  We ate it slightly warm, but my daughter took it for lunch today cold and was the envy of her lunch table. The men in my house don't like cilantro so I left it out, but I think it would be a good addition.  This was so easy to make for the amount of taste it provided.  Please don't skip the lime juice, it really added a freshness that came through in the dish.