Easy Refrigerator Pickles

12-15 small pickling cucumbers
2 cups cold water
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 Tbl. sugar
1 Tbl. kosher salt
1 tsp. whole black peppercorns
about 10 twists of fresh ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, sliced

Scrub and rinse cucumbers.  Put cleaned cucumbers in a large ice bath(lots of ice) and let set for at least half an hour.  In a measuring cup add remaining ingredients except garlic and stir often to dissolve sugar and salt.  Remove cucumbers from ice bath, cut ends off and quarter lengthwise.  Put pickles in large gallon size ziploc type bag.  Add garlic and cold pickling mixture to bag.  Add fresh dill, jalapeno, citrus peels, or other flavor enhancers if you like. Refrigerate for 2 days before eating.  Will keep for 1 week after pickling is done.

I'm not a pickle fan, but I saw someone make some on t.v. and thought these looked easy enough and worth a try.  I'm SO glad I did!  What I did learn is that the ice bath is crucial to keeping the pickles snap crisp.  And they are!  I picked up these organic pickling cucumbers at our local farmers market.  

Fresh Herb Sauce(WW-0pts.)

1 bunch(es) watercress, tough stems removed, coarsely chopped or torn (about 2 cups)
3 tbsp parsley, fresh, leaves
1 medium scallion(s), chopped (about 2 Tbsp)
3 tbsp basil, fresh, leaves
1/2 cup(s) plain fat-free yogurt, Greek-style
1/2 tsp table salt

In bowl of a blender or food processor, place all ingredients and pulse until well combined. Pour into a bowl or plastic container and refrigerate until ready to use. Yields about 1/4 cup of sauce per serving.
Notes
This sauce will keep for up to 3 days, covered, in the refrigerator.

You can substitute any fresh herb for either the parsley or the basil. And consider swapping spinach for the watercress for a milder flavor. Or for a peppery flavor, use arugula instead of the watercress.

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

1 c. brown sugar
2 Tbl. Worcestershire Sauce
2 c. ketchup
1 lb. bacon
2 8oz. cans whole water chestnuts, drained.

Preheat oven to 375'. In a med. size mixing bowl, combine brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and ketchup. Cut bacon in half. Wrap one slice of bacon around each chestut. Secure the bacon with a toothpick. Arrange the water chestnut wrapsin a 9x13 inch baking dish. Bake the water chestnut wraps for 10-15 minutes. Remove from water chestnut wraps from the oven and drain some of the grease out of the pan. Pour the sauce over the wraps. Bake for 30-35 more minutes. Makes 8-10 servings.

Vegetable Egg Rolls(WW-1pt. each)

This recipe calls for 8 egg roll wrappers, but it's so much stuffing, I needed 16! I don't think this would change the point value though because the stuffing is all veggies. My entire family devoured these and did not miss the fried version.

1 head(s) Chinese cabbage, outer leaves removed, shredded
2 medium carrot(s), peeled and shredded
2 medium garlic clove(s), minced
2 medium scallion(s), white and green parts, chopped
1 tbsp ginger root, fresh, minced or 1/2 tsp dried
1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp sesame oil
8 average egg roll wrapper(s), about 1/2 oz each
4 spray(s) olive oil cooking spray, or enough to coat egg rolls

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

Place cabbage in a microwavable dish and cover. Microwave on high until wilted, about 4 minutes; drain and transfer to a large bowl. Add carrots, garlic, scallions, ginger, soy sauce, cornstarch and oil; mix well.

Arrange egg roll wrappers on a clean, dry surface. Spoon cabbage mixture diagonally onto each wrapper. Fold over one corner to cover filling. Fold up both corners. Moisten edges of remaining flap with water and roll up wrapper jellyroll style until sealed. Transfer egg rolls to prepared baking sheet and coat with cooking spray.

Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Serve hot.

Devil'd Eggs

Oh gosh, how to write down a recipe I just "do"? I've never measured ANYTHING, so this is how I see me doing it. You can cut it down, I make this much because they go really fast and any leftovers are turned right away into egg salad sandwiches or dip for wheat thins.

18 hard-boiled eggs*
Best Foods regular mayonnaise
Yellow Mustard
Sweet Pickle Juice(I use a few teaspoons from a jar of sweet pickles/relish)
salt & pepper to taste, paprika to sprinkle on top if desired.

*To boil the eggs, put them in a large saucepan with lid. Add tap water and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes, put lid on and come back to them 10 minutes later. Drain hot water, fill pot with ice and add enough tap water to make sure all the eggs are covered. "Chill" for 15-20 minutes. This "icing" shocks the eggs so the shells peel off easily and pretty. Cut eggs in half, dump cooked egg yolks into food processer bowl, and set whites on plate aside. Add a few Tbls. mayo(you can add more if needed) to bowl with yolks, a few tsp. sweet pickle juice, and around 1 Tbl. yellow mustard. Blend until smooth and there are no chunks. Add more mayo if needed, it shouldn't be chalky or dry, but it should be able to set up. Add salt and pepper as desired. Put mixture in a frosting bag with large star or round tip and pipe into white halves. Sprinkle with paprika if you like.

IF you have leftovers, chop up for egg salad sandwiches!