Baked ham

                                                                   So delicious!

Ingredients:
1 spiral ham 
2 cups of orange juice
2/3 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup of spicy brown mustard

Directions:
Pour one cup of orange juice over the ham and bake at 375 for about 1 hour. In a bowl mix the rest of the orange juice, the mustard and the sugar and pour this mix all over the ham and bake for 20 to 30 more minutes. Enjoy!

Rice with vegetables

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of white rice
1 1/2 cups of water
1 cup of frozen peas
1/2 cup of frozen corn
1 carrot
1/2 onion (chopped)
4 cloves of garlic (chopped)
olive oil

Directions:
In a pot with olive oil saute the onion and garlic, then add the peeled carrot, saute for about 3 minutes and then add the rice and let if fry for about 3 minutes always stirring, add the hot water and salt. Pour in a pyrex covered with foil and cook in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes. After 30 minutest take out the rice from the oven and mix the peas and the corn and bake for 5 more minutes.Easy and delicious!

Cod with mashed potatoes (Bacalhau)

One of my family's favorite!

Ingredients:
4 pieces of dry salted cod (pre soaked)
8 potatoes ( peeled)
1 1/2 cups of bread crumbs
2 egg whites
1 cup of olive oil 6 cloves of garlic (chopped)
butter
milk
salt

Directions:
In a pot with water and salt cook the potatoes, then mash the potatoes with butter and milk, check for salt.The mashed potatoes need to be soft. In a small pot pour the olive oil and the garlic and cook the garlic until translucent( 3 to 4 minutes).On a baking dish pour 1/4 of the olive oil , then dip the cod in the egg whites and then in the bread crumbs and put the cod in the center of the dish. Scoop the mashed potatoes around the cod and pour the rest of the olive oil and garlic on top of the cod and some on top of the potatoes. Bake in the oven at 350 for about 45 minutes.
For this dish you need to use a very good olive oil, I use Gallo Portuguese olive oil, my favorite.

Rice pudding (arroz doce) Portuguese style

This is one of my husband's favorite dessert!

Ingredients:
1 cup of white rice
1 cup of sugar
4 egg yolks
2 cups of milk (2%)
2 cinnamon sticks
lemon peel
2 tbsp of butter
cinnamon

Directions:
 Cook the rice with water, then drain it. On a separate pot pour the milk, butter, lemon peel and cinnamon sticks and let it boil, then add the cooked rice and let it cook for about 2 minutes and add the sugar, cook for 2 more minutes and turn it off. On a separate bowl beat the egg yolks and then add a little bit of the rice mix ( so the egg yolks are at the same temperature as the rice)  then add the egg yolks to the rice. Mix everything and pour on a platter and sprinkle with cinnamon. Serve it chilled!
I used 2% milk but it is good with skim milk, no difference in taste.

Broccoli salad

This is one of my daughter's favorite!

 

 Ingredients:

2 bunches of raw broccoli

1/2 cup of sunflower seeds

5 tbsp of sugar

1 1/2 cups of red wine vinegar

1 1/2 cups of mayonnaise 

3 ozs of bacon bits

1/2 pint of grape tomatoes cut in halves

Directions:

Wash the broccoli and cut in small pieces, put in a bowl. In another bowl mix the vinegar, mayonnaise and sugar, then add to the broccoli and mix,  then add the rest of the ingredients, mix well and serve cold.

Easy pot roast

Ingredients:
3.5 to 4 lbs of chuck roast
2 onions
5 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp of tomato paste
2 tablespoons of onion flakes
garlic powder
2 bay leaves
olive oil
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup of red wine
2 cups of beef broth
fresh parsley
salt
pepper

Directions:
in a frying pan with olive oil brown the meat on all sides, then add the sliced onion and the chopped garlic let cook for about 3 minutes. In a dutch oven pan put some olive oil, add the meat with the onions and the garlic and add the rest of the ingredients. Put in the oven at 400 for about 2.5 hours, covered and check every hour. Once cooked, take from the oven and let it rest for about 15 minutes, then slice the meat. This is a very easy recipe, but very delicious

Sangria

This is an amazing recipe my friend Liz gave me. Perfect for the holidays!

Ingredients:
2 cups Red wine
2 cups 7-Up (or Sprite)
2 shots of Peach Schnapps
2 shots of Banana Schnapps
2 shots of Triple Sec
1 orange (peeled)
1 apple
12 strawberries
peaches
grapes
pineapple

Directions:
Wash the fruit and chop everything into little pieces. Mix the fruit with all the liquids and refrigerate. Let it sit for a few hours so that the fruit has time to absorb the alcohol! Serve chilled and enjoy.
You can use different fruits, in this one I used canned peaches.