Fresh Garden Recipes
July 20, 2022
With Ingredients From Your Garden
Chili-Stuffed Zucchini Boats
Ingredients
- 6 medium zucchini
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (more for brushing)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt separated by ½ teaspoons
- Black pepper to taste
- 1¾ pound ground beef
- 1 small onion, chopped
- ½ to 1 poblano chile pepper, seeded and chopped
- 2 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 8-ounce can tomato sauce
- ¾ cup water
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro (more for garnish)
- 1½ cup grated cheddar cheese
- Sour cream and sliced scallions
Time
- Prep time: 25 minutes
- Cook time: 50 minutes
- Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400°. Cut the ends off of the zucchini and slice in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, remove the seeds and hollow out the centers. Brush with olive oil and season with ½ teaspoon salt and some pepper. Set on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add beef, stirring and breaking up the meat. Cook until browned.
- Add the onion, poblano, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, garlic powder and ½ teaspoon salt.
- Cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables start to soften.
- Add the tomato paste to the skillet and cook until darkened, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomato sauce and ¾ cup water. Reduce the heat to low and simmer about 8 minutes, until very thick. Stir in the cilantro and let slightly cool.
- Fill the zucchini boats with chili and sprinkle with cheese. Cover with foil and bake 18 to 20 minutes, until the zucchini is tender. Uncover and bake 10 to 15 additional minutes until cheese is golden. Top with sour cream, scallions and cilantro.
Watermelon-Tomato Salsa
Ingredients
- 1½ cups chopped red onion
- 1 cup chopped cantaloupe, peeled and deseeded
- 1 cup chopped watermelon, peeled and deseeded
- 1 tomato, seeded and chopped
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Time
- Prep time: 25 minutes
- Total time: 4 hours 25 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings
Directions
- Mix all ingredients into a large bowl.
- Season ingredients with salt and black pepper.
- Refrigerate a minimum of 4 hours before serving.
Everything-Cucumber Smoked Salmon Bites
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon dried minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon dried onion flakes
- ½ teaspoon flaky sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill, plus small sprigs for topping
- ½ large cucumber
- 4-ounce package sliced smoked salmon, cut into 2-inch strips
Time
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Total time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings
Directions
- Add the poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried minced garlic, onion flakes, salt and pepper into a small bowl and then mix to prepare the everything seasoning. Note: you can purchase everything seasoning at your local grocery store as well.
- Place the sour cream into a small bowl; add the dill and mix.
- Peel the cucumber, leaving a small strip of skin remain between each peel (similar to a striped-design). Slice the cucumber ¼ inch thick on the bias, about 16 slices.
- Spread around ½ teaspoon of the sour-cream mixture on each cucumber slice.
- Fold the smoked salmon pieces and place on top of the sour-cream mixture.
- Sprinkle with the everything seasoning and add the dill sprigs.
Blueberry-Basil Limeade
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 5 cups water
- 3 large sprigs fresh basil (plus more leaves for garnish)
- 1½ cup fresh lime juice (about 12 limes)
- 6-ounce container blueberries
Time
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Total time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Directions
- Heat sugar and 1 cup water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Leave on stovetop until the sugar has dissolved.
- Add 3 sprigs basil to saucepan. Remove saucepan from heat and let steep for 30 minutes.
- Strain into a pitcher, discarding the basil. Add in the lime juice, 4 remaining cups cold water and stir.
- Chill a minimum of 4 hours or until ready to serve.
- Add the blueberries to the pitcher before serving. Pour into ice-filled glasses and garnish with basil leaves.
As we move into the second quarter of another exciting year, I want to take a moment to reflect on our accomplishments and share some of the new initiatives we are implementing in the realms of sales, marketing and community engagement. Over the past year, GBU Life has reached significant milestones thanks to the dedication and hard work of our team and the trust and support of our members. Our sales department has exceeded targets, and we have expanded our reach to more communities than ever before. We have launched several successful marketing campaigns that have not only increased our visibility but have also strengthened our brand's presence in the industry. For this year, our focus will be educating potential new members on the importance of securing their financial futures through life insurance and annuity products while serving their communities as part of our great Society. Looking ahead, we are committed to enhancing our sales strategies to better serve you. We are introducing some tools for our agents to enhance our products. One new tool is our Defined Benefit Annuity program which combines the Future Flex Fixed Index Annuity (FIA) with a software tool that can help determine retirement savings needs and break them down into contributions over time to help you meet your retirement goals. Be sure to keep in touch with your GBU agent to review your plans and products to see how adding an FIA to your retirement planning can help boost your savings efforts
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