Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins -- posted by Jessica

So, I was at Starbucks a couple months ago and saw they had pumkin cream cheese muffins. They looked delicious, so I bought one and it was really good! Now, of course, anything at Starbucks is way overpriced so I figured I should try to make them myself. So thanks to Google, I found their recipe! I did use less sugar in the muffin batter and in the cream cheese as I thought the one from Starbucks was a bit too sweet. I also used 1/2 cup applesauce for 1/2 cup of the oil as I didn't want them to be too greasy. They turned out really well. Very moist, good spice and pumkin flavor and I love the cream cheese middle! I did not make the pumpkin seed topping as I did not have any around. I'll have to try that next time. I can't remember the website I found this recipe, but thanks to whoever originally posted it!

Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Cream Cheese

• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Candied Pumpkin Seeds

• 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup pepitas (raw shelled pumpkin seeds)

Muffin Batter

• Muffin Batter
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup canned pure pumpkin puree
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 12 cup muffin pan
• Paper muffin cups

• Cream Cheese:
• Using an electric mixer combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla extract until smooth. Cover and chill until firm
• .
• Preheat over to 350 degrees F
• Line 12 cup muffin pan with paper muffin cups.
• Candied Pumpkin Seeds:
• Spray large baking sheet with cooking spray. Heat seeds in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, 5 minutes or until the seeds begin to pop. Add sugar, and stir constantly about 1 minute or until sugar begins to liquefy and caramelize; add cinnamon and salt. Spread seeds on prepared baking sheet, and cool. Break apart the seeds that are stuck together, once they have cooled.
• Muffin Batter:
• Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
• Using an electric mixer, combine eggs, sugar and vanilla, mix on low speed just to combine ingredients. Add pumpkin and oil and continue to mix about 1 minute. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until batter is smoother, about 30-60 seconds.
• Baking Muffins:
• Spoon batter into paper muffin cups, making batter level with top of the muffin cup. Add approximately 1 tablespoon of cream cheese mixture to the top of each muffin and press cream cheese down into the middle of each muffin cup of batter. Sprinkle muffins with candied pumpkin seeds. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until slighly browned on top. To test for doneness insert a toothpick into center of muffin (not cream cheese), will come out clean.

Here's a pic of how mine turned out:

Carrot Cake -- posted by Jessica

One of my favorite cake flavors is carrot cake. I love the moist cake with the cinnamony taste and the sweet cream cheese frosting! I'm not a big fan of super sweet frosting so when I make this recipe I use a third of the powdered sugar and it turns out wonderful. I have made this cake several times with great success and good compliments! Thanks to Cooking Light for this amazing carrot cake recipe!

Notes: I usually cut the sugar in the cake down as well as the coconut and pineapple add sweetness. I also add cinnamon to the frosting as it is my favorite spice!

Cake:
11/2 c flour
1 1/3 c sugar (3/4 to 1 cup is fine)
1/2 sweetened flaked coconut (sometimes I sub. in raisins)
1/3 c chopped pecans
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 Tb oil
2 large eggs
2 c grated carrot
1 1/2 c canned crushed pineapple, drained

Frosting:
2 Tb butter, softened (I use 1 Tb)
1 8 oz block 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
3 cups pwd sugar (I use 1 cup)
2 tsp vanilla
A couple pinches of cinnamon if desired


Combine flour, sugar, coconut, pecans, soda, salt and cinnamon. Combine oil & eggs; Stir egg mixture, carrot and pinepple into flour mixture. Spread in greased 9 x 13 pan. Bake 350 for 35 minutes or till done. Cool on wire rack.

For frosting: combine butter and cream cheese. Beat till smooth Beat in pwd sugar and vanilla (and cinnamon if using) just till smooth. Spread on top of cake.

Yield: 16 servings.

Tandy Kakes -- posted by Jessica

These taste just like Tasty Kakes peanut butter kandy kakes without the preservatives and are pretty quick and easy to make. Yum!

1 c milk
1 Tb butter
2 c flour
2 c sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
4 eggs
1/2 pound peanut butter (1 cup)
12 oz chocolate chips

Scald milk and butter. Blend flour, sugar, bk pwd, salt, vanilla & eggs. Add milk mixture; blend well. Batter will be thin. Spread batter in greased and floured 15x10 pan. Bake at 350 for 20-25 min (don't overbake as they tend to dry out really fast). Cool completely. Spread with p.b. (helps to microwave the p.b. for 30 seconds or so to make it easier to spread). Once p.b. hardens, melt chocolate chips and spread over top. Cut into squares while chocolate is still warm. Let  chocolate set and enjoy!

Summer Blackberry Cobbler with Vanilla-Rum Creme Anglaise--Posted by Joy

Taken from Cuisine at Home

Summer Blackberry Cobbler 
with coconut-pecan topping


Toss Together:
8 C blackberries fresh or frozen (thawed slightly if frozen)
1 C sugar (to taste, in my opinion--much more sugar if using wild blackberries from my experience)
1/4 C instant tapioca
Juice of 1/2 lime
Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 375; toss berries with sugar, tapioca, lime juice and salt. Spoon into a 2qt baking dish.

Combine; Knead In:
1 C all-purpose flour
1 C sweetened shredded coconut
3/4 C sugar
1/2 C pecans; coarsely chopped
1/2 t. baking power
1/4 t. table salt
1/2 C cold unsalted butter, cubed (1 stick)

Combine flour, coconut, sugar, pecans, b. powder and salt; with fingertips knead in butter until blended; mixture should look like coarse sand.

Blend In; Top Berries With:
1 egg

Blend egg with berries; top berries with topping in clumps. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until topping is golden and crisp and filling is thick and bubbly. Cool on rack for at least 1 hour before serving.

Serve With: 
Vanilla-Rum Creme Anglaise

Vanilla-Rum Creme Anglaise


Warm: 
2 C half and half
2 T. sugar
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped; pod chopped into 1' pieces

Warm in saucepan over medium heat until steaming; about 5 minutes.

Whisk Together; Temper Milk Into and Cook:
5 egg yolks
3 T. sugar
2 T. light or dark rum
1/4 t. kosher salt

Whisk yolks, sugar, rum and salt together in a bowl; when milk mixture is steaming, temper into the eggs whisking constantly. Pour the custard back into the pan and return to burner. Cook over med-low heat, stirring constantly, until custard coats the back of a spoon, 5-8 minutes.

Blend and Strain; Add:
1 t. vanilla extract

Blend custard and vanilla bean pod in a blender for 1 minute. Strain into a bowl, add the extract, cover and chill.

MY NOTES: This recipe felt like a lot of work at the time, though reading it now I'm not sure why other than the tediousness of watching the anglaise carefully. I also picked my own blackberries and they were quite tart so it really needed at least double the amount of sugar the recipe called for. It was late in the season and the blackberries had large seeds in them as well so I didn't enjoy that so much. I had made a much simpler blackberry cobbler some years before that I loved. If I can ever find that recipe I'll post it as well. The Creme Anglaise was AWESOME. I made it a few times for other things--it was just as good with extract and not the hassle of the vanilla beans, but of course the bean made it very rich and pretty to look at as well. The topping was good--I would probably tweak it with a bit more sugar or...something. Not sure what. But worth playing around with if you have the motivation and time :-) 

Chocolate Banana Zucchini Bread

I wanted to find some new zucchini bread recipes to try and found this one from a google search. I already have a good chocolate zucchini bread recipe I like to use, but thought this one sounded good too. I alterred it a bit. The original recipe did not call for an egg I suppose to make it vegan. I added an egg and a half cup of oats and a 1/4 cup sliced almonds. It turned out well, very moist. Next time I would use less oil though. 

Chocolate Banana Zucchini Bread

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups shredded raw zucchini
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 large banana
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1 egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup nuts
Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Shred zucchini to get 1 1/2 cups. Set aside.
3. Mix the flour, oats, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices.
4. Mash the banana with the sugar, oil, and vanilla and egg. Fold in the grated zucchini. Stir in the dry ingredients and then mix in the dried cranberries and nuts.
5. Pour the batter into a lightly greased loaf pan and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

10 - 12 slices

Chocolate Chip Orange Zucchini Bread

Here's another good way to use up end of summer zucchini. The only thing it needs is more orange flavor; maybe more orange zest or a little orange extract.


Ingredients:

3 cups flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
3 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
2 cups chopped walnuts
1 cup chocolate chips
1 Tb orange zest

Heat oven to 350.  Grease two 9x5 loaf pans. Sift together flour thru nutmeg. In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and fluffy. Add the sugar and continue to beat until well blended. Stir in oil, vanilla, zucchini, nuts, chocolate and zest. Blend in the flour mixture. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 50 min or till done.
Yield: 2 loaves, 12 slices each.

Zucchini Cornbread Casserole

What to do with an over-abundance of zucchini? Try super easy and delicious zucchini cornbread casserole!

4 cups shredded zucchini
1 onion, chopped
2 eggs
1 (8.5 oz) corn muffin mix
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded, divided

Heat oven to 350. Mix all ingredients (half the cheese). Pour into greased 2 qt. casserole dish. Top with rest of cheese. Bake 60 minutes. 7-8 servings

Rice Pudding with Marmalade Sauce

This is a really yummy homemade rice pudding recipe from a Southern Cooking cookbook. The first time I had it was the original recipe. This time I used peach jam in place of the marmalade. It tuned out great! Next time I may try Ameretto with peach jam or raspberry jam. Also, I think it needs more vanilla flavor, maybe add 1/2 to 1 tsp more vanilla extract.

Pudding:

6 cups milk
1 cup uncooked medium grain rice
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla

Sauce:

1 tsp cornstarch
1/3 cup cream sherry
10 oz orange marmalade
1/4 cup chopped pecans
pinch cinnamon (or more!)

Bring milk to boil; add rice and salt. Stir till returns to boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 40 minutes. Stir in sugar. Beat eggs till thick. Gradually stir 1/4 hot mixture into eggs. Slowly stir egg mixture into pudding mixture, stirring constantly. Cook on low 5 minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in butter and vanilla. Spoon into greased dish. Chill 8 hours.

For the sauce: Combine cornstarch and sherry until dissolved. Stir in jam, pecans and cinnamon. Cook over low heat till heated. Serve over pudding.

8 to 10 servings

Tiramisu -- Posted by Jessica

So, I had ricotta cheese, egg yolks and whipping cream left over from the Hazelnut Cream Casatta and was looking for recipes to use them in. I came across this tiramisu recipe that if I cut in half would used up the egg yolks, whipping cream and most of the ricotta I had left so I decided to give it a try. I had it on good authority from my sister that it was a good recipe! Traditionally, most recipes of tiramisu seem to use mascarpone cheese so I'll have to try one of those versions sometime as well. But this turned out pretty well. I was short about 4 ladyfingers so it was a little more soft, though it did set up better as it sat overnight than from the intial 2 hour chill time. Also, I didn't have brandy and didn't want to buy some as I was cutting the recipe in half and would only need a few tablespoons so I substituted hazelnut flavor coffee syrup I had on hand and just reduced the sugar called for as the syrup is plenty sweet. I have recently discovered bottled Bolthouse Farms hazelnut latte flavored drinks (found in the produce sections of some grocery stores) that I really like (again courtesy of my sister!) so I figured substituting the hazelnut syrup should be good. And it did turn out good! And I had a little individual packet of instant coffee I had brought back from a hotel in Ireland that was exactly the 1/2 Tb I needed so I didn't have to buy any extra ingredients for this recipe except the ladyfingers, so this recipe worked out really well for me! Here is the full recipe:

Ingredients:

6 egg yolks
1/2 c sugar
1/3 c cognac or brandy
2 c ricotta cheese
1 c whipping cream, whipped
32 ladyfingers, split in half
1 Tb instant coffee disolved in 3/4 cup boiling water
1 Tb unsweetened cocoa powder

In top of double boiler, whisk together egg yolks, sugar and cognac. Place pan over simmering water in bottom of double boiler. Cook, whisking contantly, about 2 to 3 minutes until mixure is thickened. Remove top of double boiler; cook yolk mixure completely. In large bowl of electric mixter, beat yolk mixture and ricotta cheese on medium speed until blended. Fold in whipped cream.

Place half the ladyfingers in bottom of 13x9 inch pan, cut sides up. Brush with half the coffee and top with half the ricotta mixure. Repeat layers. Chill 2 hours. Dust with cocoa powder using fine sieve.
16 servings

Hazelnut Cream Cassata - Posted by Jessica

This is one of the BEST cakes I've ever had! I highly recommend it! It is a little bit of a project as it is 3 layers (but it does use cake mix so that helps in prep time) and whipping cream can take a little while, but it is totally worth it! Thank you Better Homes and Gardens for this amazing recipe!

Ingredients:

1 pkg 2-layer-size white cake mix or lemon-flavor cake mix (I used white)
1 Tb. finely shredded lemon peel (only if using white cake mix)
1/3 cup Nutella
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
1/3 cup red raspberry jam
2 1/2 cups whipping cream
2 Tb sifted pwd sugar (I forgot to sift it and it was fine!)
Toasted chopped hazelnuts (I used 2 Tb)

Grease and flour three 9" round cake pans (I also put parchement paper on the bottoms to make sure the cake wouldn't stick - spray bottom of pan, cut parchement paper or wax paper to fit, put in bottom of pan and spray paper and sides of pan, then dust with flour).
Preheat oven to 350. Prepare cake mix according to pkg directions. (If using white cake mix, stir in lemon peel). Divide batter among prepared pans. Bake about 15 minutes or till done. Cool in pans on wire rack 10 minutes. Remove cake from pans and cool completely.

For filling, stir together the nutella and ricotta. Place one cake layer on serving platter; spread with half of the jam and half of the nutella mixture. Top with 2nd layer and spread with rest of jam and nutella. Top with 3rd layer. In a chilled bowl beat whipping cream and pwd sugar with chilled beaters of electric mixer on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream over top and sides of cake. Top with hazelnuts. Cover and chill up to 24 hours. Slice and serve.

Makes 12 servings (I cut it into 16 slices and they were perfect size.)

Coq Au Vin -- posted by Jessica

Fancy name for chicken and vegetable stew! This recipe is really good, but it is a project. Next time I will used boneless skinless chicken breasts to make it a little faster! I found this recipe in a Cooking Light cookbook and wanted to try something new.

Ingredients:

1/4 c flour
1/4 tsp black pepper, divided
1/8 tsp salt
2 chicken breast halves, skinned
2 chicken thighs, skinned
2 chicken drumsticks, skinned
1 Tb olive oil (I had to use more)
2 Tb diced shallots
1 pound small mushrooms
1 1/4 c diced plum tomato
1 c diced carrot
1 c diced celery
1 Tb chopped fresh tarragon (I used parsley as I has a bunch on hand)
1 bay leaf
2/3 c dry red wine
1/2 low salt chicken broth
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tb finely chopped fresh chives

Combine flour, 1/8 tsp pepper and 1/8 tsp salt in shallow dish. Dredge chicken in flour mixture.

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chicken and shallots. Cook 5 minutes browning on all sides. Remove chicken. Add mushrooms; saute 3 minutes. Add tomato, carrot, celery, tarragon and bay leaf. Cook 1 minute, stirring contantly. Stir in wine and broth; scrape pan to loosen browned bits. Return chicken to pan and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Stir in 1/8 tsp pepper and 1/4 tsp salt. Discard bay leaf. Garnish with chopped chives.

Yield 4 servings (more like 6 servings I think)

Raspberry Streusel Muffins -- posted by Jessica

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c flour
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c packed brown sugar
2 tsp baking pwd
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/4 c plus 2 Tb milk
2 Tb butter melted (vegetable oil works too)
1 1/4 c raspberries (if frozen, do not thaw)
Topping:
1/4 c chopped pecans
1/4 c packed brown sugar
2 Tb flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp grated lemon peel
1 Tb butter, melted
Glaze:
1/4 c pwd sugar
1 1/2 tsp lemon juice

Combine 1st 6 ingredients in bowl. Combine egg, milk and butter and lemon peel. Stir into dry ingredients just until moist. Fold in raspberries. Fill greased or paper lined muffin cups 3/4 full.
Combine topping ingredients; spring 1 Tb on each muffin. Bake at 350 for 18-22 min or till done. Cool 5 min then remove to wire rack. Combine glaze ingredients and drizzle over warm muffins.

Yield 12 muffins

*I only got 11 muffins; maybe because my raspberries were large. Next time I may cut them in half  so they spread out in the batter more. Also, I didn't have any nuts for the topping (I think almonds would be really good) so I used oats in place of the pecans in the streusel and it turned out well!

Banana Split Bread -- posted by Jessica

This is a really moist and delicious banana bread recipe; with the chocolate chips and fruit it could be a dessert! The original recipe calls for 2 cups of chocolate chips, but as much as I love chocolate, I found that it overwhelmed the banana and pinapple flavors so I reduced it to 1 cup the next time I made it. Also, green maraschino cherries are fine too. That is what I had in my fridge the last time I made this (strangely, they were cheaper than the red ones! I would think they would be more expensive as they are dyed green).

Ingredients:
2/3 c shortening or butter (I have also used vegetable oil)
1 1/4 c sugar
4 eggs
3 1/2 c flour
2 1/2 tsp baking pwd
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 c mashed ripe banana (4)
2 (8 oz) cans crushed pineapple, drained
1 - 2 c chocolate chips
1 (10 oz) jar red Maraschino cherries, well drained and chopped
1 c chopped nuts

Cream shortening and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine flour thru salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with banana and pineapple. Fold in the chocolate chips, cherries and nuts. Pour into 2 greased 9 x 5 loaf pans. Bake at 350 for 60 - 65 min or till done. Cool for 10 min then remove from pans to cool on wire racks.

Yield: 2 loaves 12 slices each.

Southern Style Sweet Tea--posted by Joy

This is an easy and really good recipe for sweet tea that I got from my friend Judy. I tried it out yesterday when I had friends over for dinner. I'm making more today :-)

Sweet Tea

Ingredients
1 pinch baking soda (a pinch is the amount you can grab between your thumb and first two fingers; a small pinch would just be your thumb and index finger. I had to google it to be sure lol.)
2 C boiling water
6 tea bags (I used a variety of black teas)
3/4 C white sugar
6 C cold water

Put the baking soda in a pitcher and add the boiling water and tea bags. Cover and steep for 15 minutes. Discard tea bags and add sugar. Stir until sugar is dissolved, add cold water and refrigerate or pour over ice. Makes about 2 quarts.

African Rice and Beans--Posted by Joy

This is a recipe from my friend Becky. She made this last time I saw her and I tried my hand at it this week. It's a very filling and good meal...I'll add my comments after the recipe:

Soak 1 cup black eyed peas over night.
Cook until tender
Pour out the water into a measuring cup.
Add 1 1/2- 2 cups rice to the beans.
Add 2 cups water for each cup of rice plus 1/4 cup water for each cup of beans (using the water poured off the beans and adding more as needed)
Add 1 tsp of salt for each cup of rice and 1/2 tsp salt for each cup of beans.
Bring to a boil and simmer until done.

Meanwhile
Cut 3 large onions into thin slices and fry in enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan with about 1/4 of an inch.
Add about 1 tsp crushed red pepper adjusting to taste
This takes a long time. Fry over medium heat until the onions are all dark brown. Watch carefully at the end because the line between done and burnt is pretty small.

Serve the rice and beans with the onions drizzled on top with the oil.

My comments: I used frozen black eyed-peas which require less cooking time. I also only used one onion because that is all I had and upon first taste the onions weren't quite done as well as Becky had done them, so I put them back on the burner and watched closely. There were a lot of left overs and I just mixed it all up together before putting it in containers. I like the left overs a lot and the taste of the oil and onions is all throughout with out being too oily/greesy. I used olive oil and suggest its use. It is about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of oil, at least for my skillet.

For those interested, the approximate nutritional value of this meal (based on a cup of the rice and oil and onions all mixed together) can be found here: http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-calories.asp?recipe=1571530  The fat appears very high until you see how much of it is good/heart-healthy fat...and I like that!

Blueberry Cobbler - posted by Jessica

Here is a delicious way to get some antioxidants! This is a recipe from a Cooking Light (I know, surprising!) cookbook I have had for years. Saw that Sunflower had blueberries on sale, so decided to give it a try. I used white whole wheat flour and flax egg substitute with good results. I served it with some redi-whip but it would be delicious in the summer with vanilla ice cream. I only got 6 servings out of it than the 8 the recipe said it served. I only used about half of the cinnamon sugar topping which was plenty.

Ingredients:

4 c fresh blueberries
1 tsp lemon juice
1 c flour
1/2 c sugar
1 tsp bk pwd
1/8 tsp nutmeg
dash of salt
1 Tb veg oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
3 Tb sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Oven to 350. Combine blueberries and lemon juice in lightly greased 8 inch pan. Combine flour thru salt. Combine oil thru egg and add to flour mixture just till moist. Drop by spoonfuls onto blueberries to make 8 dumplings. Combine 3 Tb sugar and 1/2 tsp cinnamon and sprinkle on top. Bake 35 min or until bubbly and lightly browned.  Serve with whip cream or ice cream.
Yield: 8 servings.

Barbecue Meat Loaf from Cooking Light - posted by Jessica

I found this recipe on the Cooking Light website and decided to give it a try and was pleasantly surprised. It was moist and flavorful. My slices did fall apart a bit, probably because I only used 1 lb of meat and randomly decreased the other ingredients a bit, but was still really good. It was quick and easy to throw together as well. Thank you Cooking Light for a deliciously light version of meatloaf!

Barbecue Meat Loaf

 

Lee Harrelson

This easy meat loaf recipe gets its great flavor from barbecue sauce. Try experimenting with different homemade or bottled sauces to find your family's favorite.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 2 slices)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2  pounds  ground beef, extra lean (raw)
• 1/2  cup  dry breadcrumbs
• 1/2  cup  chopped onion
• 1/3  cup  barbecue sauce, divided
• 1  tablespoon  prepared mustard
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  chili powder
• 1  teaspoon  garlic powder
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 2  large egg whites
• Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.
Combine the beef, breadcrumbs, and onion, 1 tablespoon barbecue sauce, and remaining ingredients except cooking spray in a large bowl.
Shape meat mixture into a 9 x 5-inch loaf on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Spread remaining barbecue sauce over top of meat loaf. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a thermometer registers 160°. Let stand 10 minutes. Cut loaf into 12 slices.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

203 (24% from fat)

Fat:

5.4g (sat 2.2g,mono 2.2g,poly 0.5g)

Protein:

27.3g

Carbohydrate:

10.5g

Fiber:

1.1g

Cholesterol:

61mg

Iron:

3.2mg

Sodium:

517mg

Calcium:

26mg

David Bonom, Cooking Light, MARCH 2006

Banana Zucchini Bread - posted by Jessica

So I had some shredded zucchini in my freezer left over from the summer that I wanted to get rid of. I was going to make chocolate zucchini bread but also noticed I had some overripe bananas so thanks to a Google search, I found a yummy bread that combines two classic sweet breads into one! I cut the recipe in half to make just one loaf and used sliced almonds instead of the walnuts as that is what I had on hand. I also used a good portion of white whole wheat flour for the all purp flour with good results. And I decreased the sugar just a bit as the banana was overripe and would be very sugary. I turned out really good!

Ingredients:
3 eggs
3/4 c oil
2/3 c br sugar
1 c sugar
1 c grated zucchini
2 bananas, mashed
2 tsp vanilla
3 1/2 c flour
1 Tb cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp bk pwd
1 tsp bk soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 c craisins
1/2 c chopped walnuts

Oven to 325. Grease two 8 x 4 loaf pans. Beat eggs. Add oil thru vanilla. Beat well. Stir together flour and spices. Add to creamed mixture just till blended. (I had to add a little more liquid to get the flour to fully incorporate; used a tiny bit of soy milk). Fold in cranberries and nuts. Pour into pans and bake 50 to 60 minutes till done.
Super easy with delicious results!

Yield: 2 loaves 12 slices each.

Poor Man's Lobster Thermidor

I got this recipe out of the Mennonite cook book More With Less. I have had tilapia in my freezer for the longest time and was looking for new recipes to use it in. I added celery to this recipe, as well as extra random spices. I topped it with buttered breadcrumbs mixed with spices and grated Parmesan cheese. It was really good1

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. chopped onions
1/2 c. mushrooms
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Dash of pepper
Dash of paprika
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. chicken broth
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 egg yolk
2 tbsp. cooking wine (optional)
2 c. cooked white fish pieces
Buttered bread crumbs
Grated cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Saute first 3 ingredients. Add next 4. Cook until bubbly, add next 3. Cook, stir until thickened, add egg yolk and wine and fish. Place in shallow baking dish, top with cheese and bread crumbs. Bake about 8 to 10 minutes until brown.

Nutella Fudge Brownies--Posted by Joy

Taken from savorysweetlife.com

Nutella Fudge Brownies*

Makes 12 Brownies

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Nutella spread
1 large egg
5 tablespoons all=purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts

Directions:
1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 12-cup mini muffin pan with paper or foil liners.

2.  Put the Nutella and egg in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth and well blended.  Add the flour and whisk until blended.

3.  Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins (about 3/4 full) and sprinkle with the chopped hazelnuts.
4.  Bake until a pick comes out with wet, gooey crumbs, 11 to 12 minutes.  Set on a rack to cool completely.  Serve immediately or cover and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.




 



*JOY'S NOTES: Nutella brownies?! Seriously, what could be better than that?! Only nutella brownies with whipped cream, a tall glass of milk and a friend to share them with!! Tessie came for dinner tonight and I was randomly searching for easy dessert recipes and happened across this one.  I didn't have chopped hazelnuts or mini muffin pans so I just mixed up the unbelievably easy batter, poured it into a lightly greased glass dish and baked it til they were set (probably 20 or so minutes). Totally easy recipe and totally a keeper!

Zuppa Toscana--Posted by Joy

Taken from Tuscanrecipes.com: 

Olive Garden® Zuppa Toscana*

This is a much requested recipe on the site given its name! Someone who used to work at the Olive Garden sent in the original recipe and I've adapted it to serve just 6-8. Try it since it is really yummy!

It is a very good soup and hits the spot on cold winter days. I've included this and a few other Olive Garden-inspired recipes on the site for all of our visitors that enjoy eating at the restaurant chain. In my opinion, making these recipes at home makes them even better than the ones you eat at the restaurant! :)

Makes: 6-8 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb ground Italian sausage
• 1½ tsp crushed red peppers
• 1 large diced white onion
• 4 Tbsp bacon pieces
• 2 tsp garlic puree
• 10 cups water
• 5 cubes of chicken bouillon
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 lb sliced Russet potatoes, or about 3 large potatoes
• ¼ of a bunch of kale

1. Sauté Italian sausage and crushed red pepper in a large pot. Drain excess fat, refrigerate while you prepare other ingredients.

2. In the same pan, sauté bacon, onions and garlic over low-medium heat for approximately 15 mins. or until the onions are soft.
3. Add chicken bouillon and water to the pot and heat until it starts to boil.

4. Add the sliced potatoes and cook until soft, about half an hour.
5. Add the heavy cream and just cook until thoroughly heated.
6. Stir in the sausage and the kale, let all heat through and serve. Delicious!

Buon appetito!



*JOY'S NOTES: This recipe is really good! I used hot Italian sausage so I didn't add as much red pepper. I didn't have bullion cubes, and I don't like them anyway, so I used 10 cups of turkey stock. I didn't have heavy cream so I used half and half. And I used baby spinach instead of kale. It turned out really yummy :-) A little bit time consuming, but I cooked a lot of extra sausage so that was the main work. Obviously not the healthiest soup...but really tasty :-)