Melon Grape Juice in Vitamix

Simple 3 ingredient juice that can be made in any blender if you are using seedless grapes 
Source: improvised

Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 1 (out of 5)

Ingredients:
- 3/4 lb / 300 g honey dew melon peeled and cubed
- 3/4 lb / 300 g watermelon peeled and cubed
- 3/4 lb / 300 g red grapes
- 6 ice cubes
Total: 4 servings

Directions:
Place all ingredients in your Vitamix, process for 30 seconds on speed 5, using the tamper to push the fruit down. When there are no large fruit chunks left, set the blender to high and process for about 1 minute for grapes with seeds, or for 30 seconds for seedless grapes.

Afterthoughts:
- Very sweet and refreshing juice, only raw fruits and vitamins, what can be better?
- If you are using seedless grapes, any blender can do. But using Vitamix
will completely crash the seeds and get you all those vitamins hidden in them (or so their sales people say).

Love my Vitamix :-)

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Chanterelle Stew

Amazingly delicious, perfect fall comfort food, vegetarian and can be vegan too, but will satisfy any carnivore
Source: my mom

Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 2 (out of 5)

Ingredients:
- 1 lb chanterelle mushrooms
- 1 large yellow onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 6 medium russet potatoes
- 2 tbsp canola oil (or use another vegetable oil)
- 2 tbsp butter (use vegetable oil for vegan version)
- 1 tbsp cognac or rum
- 1 cup vegetable or beef stock (or 1 tsp Better than Bullion paste dissolved in 1 cup of hot water)
- 3-4 bay leaves
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Total: 4 servings

Directions:
1. Clean the chanterelles. You are supposed to clean the mushrooms with a paper towel or a brush, and not wash them, so that they don't absorb moisture, but I do wash them, especially wild mushrooms like chantelles.
2. Roughly chop the onion.
3. Preheat a Dutch oven or a large pot over medium heat, warm up the oil and add the butter, if using. When the oil warms up and the butter melts, add the onions and sautee for about 10 minutes until translucent, stirring occasionally.
4. Peel and chop the garlic and add to the onions. Sautee for another 2 minutes.
5. Add the mushrooms, the cognac, the bay leaves, the pepper and the salt. Let cook for about 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so.
6. Peel the potatoes, chop them into 1 inch cubes and add to the mushrooms. Add the stock, stir the ingredients, increase the heat to medium high and bring to simmer.
7. Reduce the heat to slightly below medium, cover and let cook for another 20 minutes. Gently stir once or twice during this time, try not to mash the potatoes (the stew will still be delicious, but it will look even more rustic).
8. Total cooking time would be about 1 hour. When the potatoes are cooked, your stew is ready. Serve with crusty bread and salad.

Afterthoughts:
- This is simply the best imaginable dinner on a cold autumn night.
- This stew would work with other mushrooms as well. Champignons and portabellas will do for sure, with exactly the same directions. For other wild mushrooms one might need to adjust the cooking times.

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Potato Salad

Yummy, simple and great for any occasion
Source: Japanese Potato Salad from Nami's Just One Cookbook

Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 2 (out of 5)

Ingredients:
- 2 Russet potatoes
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 2 1/2 inch carrot
- 1/4 cup corn kernels
- 2 inch English cucumbers
- 2 slices of ham or bologna
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 2 sprigs of parsley
- salt
- black pepper
Total: 8 servings

Directions:
1. Peel potatoes and cut into 1 inch cubes. Boil them on high heat, and after the water boils, let cook for another 10-15 minutes until done. Drain the water and mash the potatoes but leave some small chunks for texture. Sprinkle with salt and transfer into a big bowl.
2. In the meantime prepare a boiled egg. Peel and mash the egg with a fork in a small bowl.
3. Cut carrots into 1/8 inch cubes, put them in a microwave-safe container and cover with water. Microwave for 30 seconds on high and drain.
4. Cut the cucumbers and the bologna or the ham into 1/8 inch cubes.
5. If using canned corn kernels, drain them. If using frozen, place into a small microwave bowl, add 2 tablespoons of water and microwave on high for 1 minute. Drain the water.
6. Roughly chop the parsley.
7. Add all the ingredients into the mashed potatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and mix well. Add mayonnaise and mix until incorporated.
8. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Will keep in refrigerator for 2 days.

Afterthoughts:
- This is a pretty simple potato salad, mashing the potatoes, as opposed to slicing them, saves some time.
- You can also add pickled cucumber, green onions or green peas, depending on your preferences.
- Check out Nami's blog for step by step photos, and add Japanese mayo to make this salad Japanese :-).

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