A Summer Chicken Fruit Salad and Yummy Dessert for My Gardner Guy tonight!!!

My sweet Gardner Guy mows a few yards on the side. He says it helps support his Hamburger habit. Tonight before he headed out I thought a delicious cool summer salad would be good for dinner. He likes it....and I like it when he likes it...
Oh and we had Dessert, no we did not eat the dessert first but it was so pretty that I decided it needed to be posted first:)

Yummy Orange Rhubarb Marmalade Cream Cheese Bars....yum, yum, yummy...(recipe below picture)



Ingredients

3/4 cup of butter, softened
3/4 cup of sugar
1/4 teaspoon of salt
2 cups of flour
1 1/3 cups of pecans or walnuts
12 Oz's. cream cheese softened
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups of My Gardner Guys Orange Rhubarb Marmalade or any Orange Marmalade

Directions

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees
2. Butter a 9 x 13 inch pan
3. Beat together butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy
4. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time allowing batter to get well blended each time
5. Stir in 1 cup of nuts and please note your mixture will be some what crumbly
6. Set aside 1/3 of the nuts and 1 cup of your crumbly mixture for the topping
7. Press remaining mixture in the bottom of the buttered pan. Bake 15 minutes. Cool
8. Beat cream cheese in large mixing bowl until smooth
9. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition
10. Add vanilla and 3/4 cup of marmalade
11. Spread the cooled cookie base with the remaining 3/4 cup of marmalade and then crumbly mixture
12. Pour cream cheese mixture over the top, spreading evenly
13. Top with the remaining 1/3 cup of nuts
14. Bake 20-25 minutes or until the center looks set
15. Sometimes I add powdered sugar to the top just for decoration
16. Cool before serving....


Summer Chicken Fruit Salad (recipe below picture)



Ingredients

3 cups cooked brown or white rice, cooled
2 cups of chopped grilled chicken
1 grilled Banana, sliced
1 red apple or any apple (red adds good color) cored and chopped
2/3 cup of crasins, rasins or dried cherries
1 cup of red or green grapes
3/4 cup of sliced celery
2-3 green salad onions diced
6-8 Oz's. of peach yogurt (can use vanilla or plain yogurt add peach puree for flavor) This is what I do as I can my own peach puree
2 Tbsp- of Orange Rhubarb Marmalade (I use My Gardner Guys brand) you can use just Orange Marmalade...But trust me My Gardner Guy's Orange Marmalade is great!!!
1 tsp. grated orange peel
Nutmeg to taste...

Directions

1. Combine rice, chicken, grilled bananas, apples, rasins, crasins or dried cherries, grapes, celery and onions in a large bowl. I hold the banana to the side and mix in last carefully as grilling them not only brings out their delicious flavor but they tend to get mushy...
2. Stir together yogurt, marmalade and orange peel.
3. Stir into rice mixture, carefully fold in grilled banana.
4. I like to chill this salad before serving...Can sprinkle on a little nutmeg to taste.

Notes: When grilling bananas cut in half then slice each half up the center length wise. Grill with skin on banana side face down.


These are great recipes to use for Marmalade lovers...Some say if life gives you lemons make lemonade. I say if life gives you lemons try Orange Rhubarb Marmalade!!!
See the following Link below for a recipe to make your own Orange Rhubarb Marmalade...My Gardner Guy...Grow, Create, Cook and Eat...: A treat for My Gardener Guy!!! Sweet Orange Rhubarb Marmalade and Barbecue Sauce...

Georgie