Labor Day weekend treats....

It was a gorgeous labor day weekend, and we were pretty lazy around the house, but I was busy in the kitchen trying out a few different recipes.... We had some friends over Sunday night, and Monday we cooked out at a family members house. I broke out some new cookbooks from the awesome website: https://www.frpbooks.com/store/store.aspx From the cook book: Seaboard to Sideboard the Junior League of Wilmington North Caroline I made Southern Sweet Tea. This tastes a lot like an Arnold Palmer, and my children and husband (my husband normally hates tea), LOVED it...

To make the Tea you will need:

8 cups of water

12 small tea bags

1 1/2 cups of sugar

1 12 ounce can of frozen lemonade concentrate

Mint leaves for garnish (who I am kidding, we skipped this part)

Bring the water and tea bags to a boil in a saucepan over high heat, let steep for 5 minutes, remove the bags. Add the sugar and the lemonade concentrate and mix well. Pour into a 1 gallon container, and fill with cold water. We had quite a ordeal over figuring out what a gallon contanior looks like, and even ended up googling how many cups are in a gallon.... (16 just in case your on the edge of your seat wanting to know) I wanted to make sure the tea wasn't overly strong or too weak. The tea was really good though, and I will make this again very soon!

Yesterday from the cookbook: Your Invited Back: A second helping of Raleigh's Favorite Recipes from Raleigh's Junior League I made a dip called Deacon Dip. This is quick and easy as well, and involves no cooking.

Deacon Dip:

2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

Sugar to taste

1 15 ounce can of black beans drained and rinsed

1 15 ounce can of white corn drained

1 10 ounce can of Rotel partially drained

4 ounces of Feta cheese crumbled

Mix the vinegar, oil, and a small amount of sugar in a small bowl. In a larger bowl combine the beans, corn, rotel, and cheese. Add the dressing and toss to coat well. Store in the fridge for at least 8 hours, and serve with tortilla chips. (I didn't have 8 hours to let sit, BUT it still tasted good, however when I had some with my lunch the next day it was amazing! The flavors had all come together and it was really good!

I am thrilled with my newest cookbooks, and look forward to cooking more from them soon! To get your own copies of these cookbooks for 40% off, please check out this website https://www.frpbooks.com/store/store.aspx and remember to use the code NAP40 to get the discount!