Chocolate Zucchini Bread

This fabulous recipe comes from Sister Lisa Bezzant, in the cookbook "Our Best Recipes: a Taste of Heaven from Lindon 8th Ward".

Sift together and set aside:

• 2 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 2 Tbsp cocoa

Beat until well blended:

• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup oil
• 3 eggs
• 3 Tbsp. vanilla
• 2 cup shredded zucchini

Add dry ingredients; beat until well blended. Stir in 1 bag small chocolate chips. Pour into greased loaf pans. Bake at 350* for 40 to 60 minutes, depending on pan size. Makes 2 loaves.

Note: I used a glass bread pan and a silicon one. The glass was still doughy on the center top when the silicon one was done.

Cafe Rio Rip-Off Salad/Burrito

Now that you've got all the recipes you need, here's how to put together your salad or burrito:

• Tortilla
• Grated cheese
• Black beans (I like to warm them on the stove with cumin, garlic, onion, and a little cayenne pepper)
• Rice
• Pork
• Lettuce, shredded (if you're doing the salad)
• Pico de Gallo
• Tomatillo Dressing

Add family. 'Cause it just taste best that way. (Cheesy, I know, but seriously).

Pico de Gallo

I take it back. This is my favorite part of the Cafe Rio equation. I think I quadrupled this for our meal.

3 large tomatoes, diced

1/2 bunch cilantro, minced

1/2 sweet onion, minced

1 green pepper, minced

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup vinegar

salt and pepper

Mix well and refrigerate. Oh so, so good!

Tomatillo Dressing

Very possibly my favorite part of the Cafe Rio equation. I loooove this dressing!

1 pkg ranch dressing mix

3 tomatillos, roughly chopped

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup of chopped cilantro

3 cloves garlic

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp green Tabasco sauce

juice from 1 lime

Dump everything in a blender and blend until smooth. Refrigerate in an air-tight container.

Barbacoa Pork

This is the first of the Cafe Rio rip-off recipes from the cabin, per request. I can't guarantee it's going to taste as ridiculously awesome as it does at the cabin, but hey, it's sure worth a try!

5-6 lb pork roast

20 oz Dr. Pepper

3/4 cup white sugar

1 clove garlic, minced

7 oz. can chipotle chilies in adobo sauce (we used three chilies and all the sauce)

6 oz. red taco sauce

1 tsp dry mustard

1 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Place roast in crockpot and cover halfway with water, then cook on low until soft. (Or throw it in a dutch oven on 300 degrees for a few hours if you're winging it at the cabin...) Drain off the liquid (we left a little of it in), then mix in remaining ingredients until sugar dissolves. Continue to cook the pork until it's fork-shredding-soft. Shred the pork, then add it back into the sauce. Mm mmm mm!

Holiday Chicken Salad

This is the chicken salad from our beach trip to Stanley Lake. My only real modifications from the original allrecipes version were adding dried blueberries and using a red bell pepper instead of green. Enjoy!

4 cups cubed chicken breast

1 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon paprika

1.5 cups dried cranberries

1 cup chopped celery

2 green onions, chopped

1/2 cup minced bell pepper

1 cup chopped pecans

1 teaspoon seasoning salt

pepper to taste

In a small bowl, mix mayonnaise, paprika, seasoning salt, and pepper. Mix remaining ingredients, then fold in the mayonnaise mixture. Chill for an hour before serving. Ellie thinks this is best eaten with wheat thins on a blanket as part of a "picnic."

Grandma Jo's Frappe

[fra-pey; Fr. fra-pey] adjective, verb, –noun
1. a fruit juice mixture frozen to a mush, to be served as a dessert, appetizer, or relish.

My first memories of this deliciousness came from my early childhood. Mom (aka Grandma Jo) would serve this goodness in her pretty blue, stemmed glasses. It was usually reserved for special events and equally special guests. Don't let its ease distract you from its yummy possibilities. We have enjoyed it for many summers.

1 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen
1/2 gallon pineapple sherbet (64 ounces)
2 diced bananas
optional: mini marshmallows or pecans

Slightly thaw the sherbet in a large mixing bowl. (I like to cut the sherbet out of the cardboard container and slice it into about 8 pieces to thaw more quickly and uniformly.) When the sherbet is malleable, add the raspberries and bananas. Use a large spoon to incorporate the mixture well. Spoon mixture into serving size dishes if it is to be served the same day. Maintain in the freezer until serving time. Garnish with a few perfect berries or mint leaves.
If the frappe is to be served later on, spoon mixture into a plastic container with a tight fitting lid; store in the freezer. Allow to stand at room temperature to thaw slightly for service.
Fresh raspberries will lend a more pink coloring. Frozen raspberries will maintain a more yellow finished product and extend the berry season well. Mom assures me that this is not an exact recipe; it always depended on how many bananas she had on hand
I don't remember ever adding the marshmallows or pecans. If you try it that way, let me know what you think!