Dessert Nachos? I think so.

Dessert Nachos? These fruity, not too sweet, just right snacks are the most delicious thing and everyone kept coming back for more! A great conversation piece, a fabulous food to bring to a friends house, and a fun project to make with kids! Thanks to my wonderful roomie Sarah for introducing me to these glorious delights! They look a little complicated, but I promise, easy as pie!  Enjoy!

Fruit Salsa:

2 cups strawberries, hulled and diced
2 large kiwi, peeled and diced
1 can mandarin orange slices, drained

Mix together in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

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Cheese Sauce:
1 8 ounce package of Neufchatel cream cheese
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
3 Tablespoons honey

In a 1 quart pan, combine Neufchatel cheese, orange juice and honey. Whisk (important to use a whisk because it will be lumpy if you don’t) over low heat until sauce is smooth (about 3 minutes)

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Nacho Chips:
You need about 8 6-inch tortillas and about 1/2 cup sugar and some cinnamon to taste.

In a shallow bowl, mix sugar and cinnamon. Working with one tortilla at a time, brush both sides lightly with water; Dip one side of each wedge in sugar mixture. Cut into about 6 wedges using a pizza cutter. Arrange wedges in a single layer, sugared sides up, on baking sheets. Bake, one sheet at a time, in a 500 degree oven until tortilla wedges are crisp and golden (watch closely but in my oven it takes about 4 minutes. It depends on the tortillas. Some burn quickly). Remove wedges from baking sheets and let cool slightly on racks.


And there you go! Viola! Delish! Combine! Gorge! Partake!
Let me know how it goes :)

Rice Pudding -For Breakfast?

A few weeks ago while staying at the ADC Gastinsza (a “Hotel” in Zavolzhye) we were served this delightful dish -actually, every morning for breakfast. I personally thought it was absolutely delicious, and reminiscent of something I have had before. So I consulted my Russian friend and she said that it was probably just rice boiled in milk.

I made my way to the Spar grocery store across the street and bought the best kind of rice I could come up with, as well as some good old 2.5% milk. Then something clicked- Holy moly! It’s Rice Pudding! So I looked for a recipe online to guide me and marched forward, excitedly anticipating the results.
Since they don’t have half the ingredients here that are called for in this original recipe (which I encourage you to check out HERE) I will give you my Russian interpretation:

• 2 1/2 cups of any kind of milk
• 1/3 cup of uncooked short grain white rice
• Pinch of salt

1. Put the rice, milk, salt in a pot, bring to a boil, stirring frequently to prevent burning.
2. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for about 20-30 minutes, until rice is tender, continuing to stir.
3. Eat your heart out.

Can you say easy and cheap and delicious- and exactly what we were eating last week! Due to my low budget and lack of resources, I am literally going to make this weekly. (Can someone ship me some cinnamon or nutmeg? I will love you forever.) It’s almost as good as my grandma graham’s recipe.