Cranberry Oat Cereal Bars

3 T. butter
1 bag (10 ounces) marshmallows
6 c. Cheerios
1 c. dried cranberries, or raisins

Spray a 10x15" rimmed baking sheet (like a jelly roll pan) with cooking spray. Set aside.

Measure the cereal and cranberries and put into a large bowl.

In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add marshmallows; cook, stirring occasionally, until marshmallows have melted, about five minutes. Remove from heat, and immediately pour on top of cereal/cranberries.

Transfer mixture to prepared baking sheet. Using a spatula (or your fingers) coated with cooking spray, press quickly and firmly. Let cool for about one hour. Cut into 24 bars. Store in airtight container.

Mexican Chicken Corn Chowder

1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1/2 cup chopped onion
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons butter
2 cubes chicken bouillon
1 cup hot water
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cups half-and-half cream or evaporated milk
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 (14.75 ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chiles
1 dash hot pepper sauce
1 tomato, chopped
fresh cilantro sprigs, for garnish (optional)

1. In a sauté pan, brown chicken, onion, and garlic in butter until chicken is no longer pink. Transfer chicken mixture to a large saucepan.
2. Dissolve the bouillon in hot water; Pour into the saucepan, and season with cumin. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in cream, cheese, corn, chilies, and hot pepper sauce. Cook, stirring frequently, until the cheese is melted. Stir in chopped tomato. Garnish with cilantro.

Tag - Megan's IT

So I was lucky enough to spend some days with Megan this past weekend. And also lucky enough to eat some of her yummy foods. So I am requesting (i.e, making) Megan post her yummy apricot chicken recipe and her yummy couscous recipe. Do it soon, Megs! Thanks.

Fortune Cookies

I made these on Saturday and they were soooo easy! I found the recipe online. They are easy, taste yummy and were way too much fun!

Just one tip: be patient and let them brown in the oven so they are crispy after they cool. If you remove them too soon, they may still be a little soft in the center. I think mine are too light--make sure yours are a little more golden than these. I used my seasoned stoneware so I didn't grease my pan, and made 5 at a time.

This recipe made about 15 fortune cookies.

2 large egg whites

1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. pure almond extract

3 T vegetable oil

8 T all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. cornstarch

1/4 tsp. salt

8 T granulated sugar

3 tsp. water

Prep:

Write fortunes on pieces of paper that are 3 1/2 inches long and 1/2 inch wide. (I printed mine on the computer) Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Grease 2 9x13 baking sheets.

In a medium bowl, lightly beat the egg white, vanilla extract, almond extract and vegetable oil until frothy, but not stiff.

Combine the flour, cornstarch, salt and sugar into a separate bowl. Stir the water into the flour mixture.

Add the flour to the egg white mixture and stir until you have a smooth batter. The batter should not be runny, but should drop easily off a wooden spoon. Note: if you want to dye the fortune cookies, add the food coloring at this point, stirring it into the batter. 1/2 tsp. food coloring is a good amount.

Place level tablespoons (I used the actual measuring spoon) onto the cookie sheet, spacing them at least 3 inches apart. Gently tilt the baking sheet back and forth and from side to side so that each tablespoon of batter forms into a circle 3-4 inches in diameter.

Bake until the outer 1/2 inch of each cookie turns golden brown and they are easy to remove from the baking sheet with a spatula (14-15 minutes) I used a metal spatula.

Working quickly, remove the cookie with a spatula and flip it over in your hand. Place a fortune in the middle of a cookie. To form the fortune cookie shape, fold the cookie in half, then gently pull the edges downward over the rim of a glass. Place the finished cookies in the cup of muffin tins so that it keeps it shape. Continue with the rest of the cookies.

You could chocolate dip these, or do other dang fun stuff with them for your kids/friends/husband/family for any occasion! So much fun--and sooo easy!

Really Easy Spanish Rice

2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 1/2 cups uncooked white rice
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup chunky salsa

Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion, and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Mix rice into skillet, stirring often. When rice begins to brown, stir in chicken broth and salsa. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes, until liquid has been absorbed.

*Alternatively--Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion, and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Mix rice into skillet, stirring often. When rice begins to brown, take out and dump into rice cooker and let it do its magic. Enjoy with yummy enchiladas!

Red Enchiladas

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (I used one breast that was 16 ounces)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 (7 ounce) can chopped green chiles
1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1/2 cup sour cream (nonfat works fine)
2 cups cottage cheese (nonfat works fine)
1 teaspoon salt
1 pinch ground black pepper (I read this wrong and did 1 t., but it was fine)
12 (6 inch) corn tortillas
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 (10 ounce) can red enchilada sauce (I used the hot variety)
First, boil and then shred your chicken.

Then make the meat mixture. Heat oil in medium skillet over medium high heat. Add the already-cooked chicken, onion, and green chiles and saute until browned, then add taco seasoning and prepare meat mixture according to package directions. (Which is probably add one cup of water and simmer for 15 minutes.)

Then make cheese mixture. In a medium bowl mix sour cream with cottage cheese and season with salt and pepper; stir until well blended.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Next assemble the enchiladas. Heat tortillas until soft (microwave for about 20-30 seconds). In each tortilla place a spoonful of meat mixture, a spoonful of cheese mixture, and a bit of shredded cheese. Roll tortillas and place in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Top with any remaining meat and cheese mixture, enchilada sauce, and remaining shredded cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Notes from me: I used all the filling in the enchiladas. But because I filled them so much, I probably should have done 15 tortillas instead of 12. They easily would have fit in the pan. But they tasted great.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

1 c. vegetable oil
2 c. sugar
3 eggs
2 t. vanilla
2 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
2 t. cinnamon
2 c. zucchini, grated
1 c. walnuts, optional

Preheat oven to 350. Mix oil and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition; blend in vanilla. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and baking soda. Add dry ingredients to the first mixture; alternating with grated zucchini. Fold in chopped nuts. Pour into greased and floured 13x9 inch pan. Bake for 55 minutes.

E-notes: I got this recipe from my SIL, who said, "I feel all cakes should be chocolate and so added 1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa to the dry stuff and enjoyed it immediately." I added the cocoa and loved it. Ben LOVES it. The kids loved it too. I topped mine with powdered sugar. I didn't add nuts because I didn't have any. I also did 1/2 c. oil and 1/2 c. applesauce.

Zucchini Casserole

Chilequiles
Family Fun

2 T. olive oil
1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 c. chopped onion
14 oz. can whole tomatoes
2 t. minced garlic
3/4 t. cumin
2-3 c. grated zucchini
9 corn tortillas
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 350. Heat oil in pan and saute onions over med. heat for 3 min, until softened. Add garlic, zucchini, and salt 'n pepper and saute for another 5 min. Remove from heat. Tear the tortillas into bite-sized pieces. Place tomatoes and cumin in blender and puree. Spray an 8-inch casserole dish. Place 1/3 of the tortillas on bottom; next top with 1/3 of tomato mixture; next top with 1/3 of zucchini mixture; next top with 1/3 of cheese. Repeat 2 more times. Bake for 20-25 min., until bubbly.

Zucchini Cookies

Zookies
Family Fun

1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 t. salt
1 egg
1 small zucchini, shredded
1/2 t. vanilla
1 c. oatmeal
1 c. flour
1/2 c. shredded coconut
3/4 c. butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 350. In large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla and beat well. Sift flour, baking soda, and salt together and mix into wet mixture. Add zucchini, oatmeal, coconut, and butterscotch chips and mix. Drop by teaspoonful and bake for 12-14 min.

Garlic Breadsticks

1 1/8 cups water (70 to 80 degrees F)
2 teaspoons yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon butter or stick margarine, melted
2 tablespoons olive or canola oil
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon minced fresh basil
3 cups bread flour

Mix the water, yeast, and sugar in a bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes.

Add everything else, except the flour. Mix well. Add flour and then let knead for about 10 minutes.

Dump dough onto counter and divide into 20 portions. Roll into 9" breadsticks and place on greased cookie sheets. Cover and let rise until double in size, about 40-60 minutes, depending on the temperature of your house. Bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes. (I actually had them burn a little bit at 18 minutes so you might check them at 16 minutes.) Take out of oven and place on cooling racks. Brush with butter when still warm.

Chicken Caesar Salad Pizza

Use your favorite pizza crust for this recipe. It's a nice change of pace for pizza dinner.

Day 1:
Place 2 chicken breasts in a mixture of:
2 t garlic
1/2 c Caesar dressing
3 T balsamic vinegar
pinch of black pepper
Marinate chicken for 24 hours.

Day 2:
Wrap chicken in foil and bake at 400˚F for 20-30 minutes. While chicken bakes, slice 6 Roma tomatoes and season to taste with basil, salt and pepper. Place slices between layers of paper towel to draw out excess moisture. Shred baked chicken and set aside. Shred a head of Romaine lettuce and toss with Caesar dressing to taste.

Sprinkle pizza stones with cornmeal and press out prepared crusts. Cover with Caesar dressing. Top with chicken pieces and a combination of 1 lb shredded Mozzarella, 1 lb shredded Parmesan, and 1/2 c shredded Cheddar. Season with basil, minced garlic and black pepper to taste. Bake at 425˚F for 10-12 minutes. Immediately upon removing pizza from oven, place tomato slices on top. Top with dressed lettuce or serve on the side.

Yields 2 pizza pies.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

Crust:
2 cups Chocolate Cookie Crumbs
¼ cup plus 2 tbsp Melted Butter (divided)

Peanut Butter Filling:
8 oz. Soft Cream Cheese
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Peanut Butter
1 tbsp Vanilla
1 cup Whipping Cream

1. Combine cookie crumbs and ¼ cup butter. Press into 9” pie pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes.
2. Using an electric mixer, cream together the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add the peanut butter, 2 tbsp butter, and vanilla and continue mixing until light and fluffy.
4. In a separate bowl whip the cream. Fold the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture. Pour the peanut butter mixture into the cooled cookie crust. Refrigerate until set.

Topping:
4 oz Chocolate Chips
2 tbsp Butter
2 tbsp Oil
Chopped Peanuts

1. Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan on low heat until smooth. Spread the topping over the filling. Top with chopped peanuts. Refrigerate until set. If you prefer frozen desserts this pie is also good frozen.

(Pic added by erin; Becky's pie was probably much prettier.)

Request for Freezer Meal Recipes

Hi everyone. Now that I'm a mom-who-works-outside-of-the-home-as-well-as-inside-of-the-home (and a mom with an upright freezer), I think I'm ready to start trying freezer meals. Has anyone tried these? If so, do you have any recipes that you'd be willing to share here? Thanks!

Crème Brulee

1 extra-large egg
4 extra-large egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for each serving
3 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
1. With an electric mixer, mix the egg, egg yolks, and 1/2 cup of the sugar on low speed until just combined. Meanwhile, scald the cream in a saucepan until it's very hot to the touch but not boiled. With the mixer on low, slowly add the cream to the eggs. Next add the vanilla and pour into 6 to 8-ounce ramekins until almost full.

2. Place the ramekins in a baking pan and carefully pour boiling water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the custards are set when gently shaken. Remove the custards from the water bath, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate until firm.

3. To serve, spread 1 tablespoon of sugar evenly on the top of each ramekin and heat with a kitchen blowtorch until the sugar caramelizes evenly. I put mine under the broiler of my oven because I do not have a blowtorch. If you decide to use the broiler watch them VERY closely because the sugar caramelizes MUCH faster than you think it will. Allow to sit at room temperature for a minute until the caramelized sugar hardens.

Green Chile Enchiladas

1 28-ounce can green chile enchilada sauce (can be found at Hispanic markets, or, if you're lucky, your regular supermarket)
3 large chicken breasts, about 1.5 pounds
1 T. chicken base (or 3 cubes of bouillon)
8 ounces shredded cheese (mozzarella, monterey jack, or pepper jack)
1 c. chopped olives
1 c. sour cream (can use non-fat)
10 flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Boil chicken in water and chicken base until cooked. Cool and shred.

While chicken is cooking, heat 1/2 of the can of enchilada sauce in a skillet on medium heat. Dip tortillas in warm sauce one at a time, turning once to cover both sides with sauce. Don't leave them in the sauce too long or they become soft. Remove from sauce and place on a plate. Cover them with foil to keep them warm.

Mix the shredded chicken, sour cream, and olives together.

Fill tortillas with 1/10 of the chicken mix and about 2 T. of cheese. Roll and place in a 9x13 pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Cover enchiladas with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese. Bake for 45 minutes, or until completely heated.

4th of July Dessert

½ gallon vanilla ice cream
½ gallon chocolate
6 heath bars, or heath toffee bits (1 bag)
1 pkg mothers macaroon cookies
1 bottle chocolate fudge sauce (smuckers)

1. Crush the cookies and heath bars into chunks. Let the ice cream sit on the counter to soften (really soft).
2. Sprinkle the bottom of a 9 inch spring form or 9x13 in pan with a 1/3 of the cookies, then layer all of the chocolate ice cream on top of the cookies.
3. Next sprinkle a 1/3 more of the cookies and ½ of the heath bars on top of the chocolate ice cream. Next pour ½ bottle of the chocolate sauce on the heath bars.
4. For the next layers add the vanilla ice cream, then the rest of the cookies, and then the rest of the heath bars.
5. For the last layer drizzle the rest of the chocolate sauce on top.

Grilled Chicken Sandwiches

4 medium skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 recipe Marinade (recipe below)
2 medium onions (cut into 1/2 –inch thick slices (about 4 cups)
2 medium red peppers, cut into bit-sized strips (about 2 cups)
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 Tbsp butter, softened
4 sandwich rolls, split (ciabatta)
4 thin slices provolone cheese

Marinade: (combine the following)
3 Tbsp lemon juice
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp greek or italian seasoning (dried)
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper

1. Between two pieces of plastic, wrap, pound chicken to ½ inch thickness. Place in Ziploc bag. Add marinade; seal bag. Refrigerate 1-2 hours.
2. Drain chicken; discard marinade. In a large skillet cook onions and sweet peppers, covered, in hot oil over medium-low heat 13-15 minutes or until tender; stir occasionally. Uncover; add 2 cloves garlic; cook and stir over medium-high heat 3-5 minutes more or until onions are golden. Stir in vinegar and ¼ tsp each salt and black pepper. Cook until vinegar evaporates. Remove from heat; set aside.
3. Grill chicken on rack of uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 8-11 minutes or until no longer pink; turn once. Combine butter and 1 clove garlic. Spread on cut sides of rolls. Grill rolls, cut sides down, 1-2 minutes until golden. Place cheese on bottom halves of rolls. Top with chicken and vegetables. Add tops.

Makes 4 sandwiches

Chicken Sate

I got this recipe from Familyfun.com.

"This delicious chicken tastes better the longer it marinades. Consider letting it sit overnight for the best flavor.

Chicken and Marinade
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. OJ
1 T. honey
1 T. oil
1-2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 t. sesame oil
1 1/2 lbs. boneless chicken, cut into 1-inch cubes

Sate Sauce
3/4 c. chicken broth
1/4 cup. OJ
1 T. soy sauce
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 T. sugar
1/4 c. smooth peanut butter

1. For the chicken and the marinade: Whisk all the ingredients except the chicken together in a medium bowl.
2. Add the chicken cubes, turn to coat, and marinade in the fridge for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours (The sauce can be make ahead of time too and chilled for the same amount of time.)
3. Heat oven to 500 degrees. Thread the chicken on to skewers, if you're using them, or just put the pieces on a foil-lined pan. Bake for 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
4. Meanwhile, for the sate sauce: Whisk together everything except for the PB in a saucepan until the sugar has dissolved.
5. Over low heat, whisk in the PB (it will be messy at first) until smooth. Whisking constantly, heat the sauce until it has thickened, about 10 minutes.
6. Serve the sauce as a dip for the chicken. Serves 4."

e-notes: We just made this last nite and our whole family loved it - it is really tasty! The boys loved the dipping part - especially dipping it into PB sauce. How fun is that? I made up my marinade and sauce at about 9am that same day. Of course, for the sate sauce I didn't add the PB until I started cooking it over low heat.

I place mine on foil-lined pan. It probably took 15-20 minutes to cook. I didn't discard the marinade and so the chicken was "wet" looking. I think I'd discard the marinade next time.

I didn't "constantly" whisk my sate sauce for 10 minutes. It turned out good. It wasn't especially thick, but I think it was just fine.

We actually found some "fondue skewers" and let the kids even use them - scary. It was really tasty, different, and fun.

Cake Ice Cream

This really isn't a recipe, but just mixing together some stuff to make some yummy ice cream. I had made cupcakes one day (for our family's Cupcake Day, of course) and then decided to crumble the extra/un-eaten cupcakes a couple days later and put it in the freezer. Then we bought some cheap, fat-free, and sugar-free ice cream. I let it sit out until softened and then I mixed in the crumbled cupcake. Then I put the ice cream in a container and back in the freezer. It was oh-so-good. You can buy the totally cheap ice cream - and fat-free and even sugar-free (I usually hate the sugar-free stuff) - because you are adding the yummy cupcakes (I even did my cupcakes 3 parts applesauce and 2 parts oil - moister and less-fat). It's a very delicious treat.

Incredibly Good Meatballs

These meatballs have great flavor and texture and we find them very utilitarian. We put them in spaghetti, or serve with a sauce (white, brown or sweet & sour) over rice.

3 cloves of garlic
¼ c oil
1 lb ground beef
¼ c grated Parmesan
9 crushed saltine crackers
½ t salt
¼ t black pepper
¼ t oregano
½ t basil
1 T parsley
¼ c water
1 egg
1 t tomato paste

Heat a small skillet over medium high heat. Add 3 unpeeled garlic cloves and toast until skins are spotty brown, about five minutes. Remove from heat, peel, mince, and set aside.

In a big bowl combine meat, garlic, Parmesan, crackers, salt, pepper, oregano, basil, and parsley. Mix lightly with fingers. In a small bowl, whisk water and egg together with tomato paste. Add egg mixture to meat mixture, mix lightly with fingers.

Divide into 24 balls. Cook in batches in an oiled heavy skillet over medium-high heat until browned.

Alternatively you could place meatballs in a single layer on a cooking sheet and cover with a sheet of aluminum foil. Place in a 350° oven for ?? minutes or until meat is cooked through. Baking results in a softer texture, with more uniform browning and better retains the meatball shape.

Berry Dumplings

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 TBS sugar, plus 1 1/2 cups
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp lemon juice, optional
1 quart fresh or frozen berries of your choice (ex: mixed berries)
2 cups water
Vanilla ice cream or fresh cream, for serving

1. Stir flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, baking powder, and salt together into a medium bowl. Cut butter into dry ingredients, using a pastry cutter or fork.
2. Add milk and vanilla to form dough. Set dumpling dough aside.
3. In a large saucepan, combine berries, 1 1/2 cups sugar, lemon juice and water and bring to a boil. Drop dumplings into hot boiling berries by the tablespoonful (I roll them into balls).
4. Cover pot, reduce heat to low, and cook slowly for 20 to 30 minutes. Do not remove the lid before 20 minutes has passed, and do not stir dumplings.
5. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or fresh cream.

Serves 8

Notes: This recipe makes a lot of sauce. You may want to add a quarter or double more the dumpling recipe depending on how saucy you like it.

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

1-1/2 cups quinoa
1-1/2 cups canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1-1/2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1-1/2 cups cooked corn (fresh, canned or frozen)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
4 scallions, chopped
1 tsp. garlic, minced fine
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves, chopped fine
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/3 cup olive oil

1. Rinse quinoa in a fine sieve under cold running water until water runs clear.
2. Put quinoa in a pot with 2-1/4 cups water.
3. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer 20 minutes or until water is absorbed and quinoa is tender.
4. Fluff quinoa with a fork and transfer to a large bowl and allow to cool.
5. While quinoa is cooking, in a small bowl toss beans with vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. 6. Add beans, corn, bell pepper, scallions, garlic, cayenne and coriander to the quinoa. Toss well. 7. In a small bowl whisk together lime juice, salt, cumin and add oil in a stream while whisking. Drizzle over salad and toss well with salt and pepper. Salad may be made a day ahead and refrigerated, covered. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Serves: 8

Crunchy Coconut Chicken Fingers

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 1/2 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. flour
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 egg white, lightly beaten
3/4 c. crushed cornflakes (about 2 c. uncrushed)
3/4 c. flaked sweetened coconut, chopped
1 t. garlic powder
3/4 t. salt
1/2 t. curry powder
1/2 t. red pepper (I used black)

Cut chicken into 20 (1/4-inch strips). Combine chicken and buttermilk in a shallow dish; cover and chill one hour. Drain chicken and discard the liquid. Combine chicken and flour in a medium-sized bowl, tossing to coat.

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Place baking sheet in oven.

Combine egg and egg white in a small bowl. Combine crushed cornflakes and next 5 ingredients (though pepper) in a shallow dish.

Working with one chicken strip at a time, dip into egg mixture; dredge in cornflake mixture. Repeat process with all strips. Arrange chicken in a single layer on the preheated baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Lightly coat chicken with cooking spray. Bake for six minutes, or until done. Yield: four servings.

Notes from e: C and I really really liked these! The coconut flavor was mild enough for C, but "there" enough for me. And it really seemed like it made a lot; I easily got 20 strips. I'm guessing kids would love them. And I forgot to preheat the baking sheet and they turned out fine.

Tres Leches Cake

The next in what is turning out to be a series featuring naturalized ethnic foods - you can ask Google to explain to you the suspicious origins of this recipe - but it is nonetheless popular south of the border and undeniably delicious.

1 ½ c sugar
½ c butter, at room temperature
6 eggs
1 ¾ c all-purpose flour
1 ½ t baking powder
4 t salt
12 ounces evaporated milk
14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
2 c whipping cream, divided

Preheat oven to 350°. Beat sugar and butter in large bowl until fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition (lots of beating here). In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt. Add flour mixture to egg mixture. Pour into greased and floured (or use a circle of parchment) 9-inch springform pan. Bake until cake is golden and toothpick comes out clean, 55-60 minutes. While the cake is baking, mix evaporated and condensed milks together with half the whipping cream. When cake is done, immediately pierce with skewer, making lots of holes. Pour milk mixture over cake, about a third at a time, letting milks soak in. Cool. Refrigerate, tightly covered with aluminum foil, for two days. Remove from springform, and place on serving plate. Serve with remaining whipped cream and fruit. 12-16 servings.

Sorry I didn't get this posted in time for you to enjoy it for your Cinco de Mayo fiesta mañana. Maybe you can make the cake tomorrow then eat it on Siete de Mayo instead. That might be just as good.

Chorizo for Americans

This is nonauthentic chorizo, thank you very much. I'm sure this isn't as tasty as the real stuff, perhaps because it excludes some "varietal" ingredients. Google found this recipe for me at recipezaar dot com.

"Ingredients:
2 lbs ground beef or chicken or pork
3 1/2 teaspoons salt
6 tablespoons pure red chili powder
6-20 small hot dried red chili, crushed or 2 teaspoons paprika
4-6 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons dry oregano leaves
2 teaspoons whole cumin seed, crushed
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
4 tablespoons cider vinegar or wine vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons water

Mix well and cook through or add to your favorite recipe. This is great mixed up with scrambled eggs!"

This post is for informational purposes only and is not an endorsement of other recipe sites. The Foodees is where it's at.

Finnish Baked Pancake

from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book
(So not really going with the theme here, except it is an international food???)

* Makes 4 servings

1 1/2 c. flour
1 1/2 c. milk
6 eggs
1 T. sugar
1 t. salt
1/2 c. butter for the baking pans

In a bowl whisk together all the ingredients except for the butter - whisk until no lumps remain. Let stand 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450. Put butter into 1 large (14-16 inch) slope-sided pan or into 4 9-inch pie pans and preheat in the oven until butter is melted. Brush entire pan with the butter. Pour in the pancake batter. Bake for 15-20 min. until edges are puffed high and golden.

e-notes: We made the batter up the night before. We used 3 pie pans and 2 loaf pans because that is what we had. In my pie pan I just sprayed it with Pam and it was totally great without all that extra buttery fat. These remind me of thick crepes and are oh-so-very-delicious. We topped ours with just fresh-squeezed lemon juice and powdered sugar.

Cafe Rio

Alright sticking with theme......I thought some of you might want to try these out. They are in fact "copy cat" recipes of Cafe Rio, a Utah favorite. I've tried the dressing, but alas, not the pork. Either way I hope you enjoy and I hope this isn't already on there.....it might be or have been, my bad.......PS we make tons of dressing and keep on hand to dip anything and everything in, my boys are big dippers!!!!

Creamy House Dressing
1 1/3 cups sour cream
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 bunch of cilantro
1 package ranch dressing mix
4 tbsp. salsa verde (green salsa)
2 cloves of garlic
1/8 tsp. Tabasco sauce
juice of one lime

Mix together in the blender... and that's it!

CAFE RIO PORK

1 cup Pace salsa
1 cup brown sugar
pork sirloin roast (about 3-4 lbs.)

Mix salsa and brown sugar together and pour over a pork roast.

Cook on low in crock pot 6-8 hours................ENJOY!!!

Lemon Drop Cookies

1 1/2 cups shortening
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. lemon extract
1 tsp. lemon zest
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
4 cups flour
1 pkg. lemon drops, crushed (1 oz box of lemon heads)

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
Juice of 1 lemon (about 3 tbs, or use Minute Maid frozen lemon juice)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. Mix first 6 ingredients. Then add next 4 ingredients.
2. Stir in the lemon heads.
3. Roll into balls and place on lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes.
4. Let cookies cool 1-2 minutes on cookie sheet then brush with glaze.

Makes 6 dozen.

Crockpot Lasagna

I got this recipe from a friend way long ago and never tried it out until a few weeks ago. My family really liked it and so I made it again for the missionaries. I've tweaked it a liitle and so here is my version:

9 lasagna noodles
1 lb. ground turkey
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
28 oz. can of diced tomatoes
24 oz. can tomato sauce
1/2 t. basil
1/4 t. oregano
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 c. cottage cheese (I used low-fat)
1/2 c. ricotta cheese (I used part-skim)
mozarella cheese

Cook the ground turkey and the garlic until done. Add this to the cans of tomatoes (the ounces are slightly off - they might be a few ounces off or something. I can't remember what they are and my trash is already out. Sorry. It really doesn't matter though, of course). Stir in the basil, oregano, salt and pepper.

In another bowl mix together your cottage cheese and ricotta.

In the crockpot put 2 cups of the tomato/meat mixture. Next break up 3 lasagna noodles (1-2 inch sized pieces) and layer them on top. Next place 1/3 of the cottage/ricotta cheese mix in dollops over the noodles. Layer 2 more times with the tomato/noodles/cheese. Top the last layer with the last remaining 2 cups of tomato mixture.

Cook on high for 3 1/2-4 hours or on low for 6. (I have only done it on low since I make this up before church and start it cooking at 10:30. I don't want it done until 4:30ish and so I do it on low. I'm sure high would work well, too.)

You can top it with mozarella cheese. The original recipe calls for 2 cups. I probably shredded about 3/4 - 1 c. and let people top their own servings.

Chicken and Spinach Pasta Bake

8 oz. uncooked rigatoni
1 TBL Olive oil
1 Cup finely chopped onion
1 10 oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach THAWED
3 Cups cubed chicken breast
1 14 oz. can of Italian style tomato (use juice in can)
1 8 oz. chive and onion cream cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 cups Mozzarella


Spread oil on bottom of 11x7 baking dish. Bake onions at 375 for 15 minutes. Drain and press spinach. Cook rigatoni and chicken. Dice chicken and mix all ingredients together. Spoon into baking dish. Top w/ cheese. Bake 375 covered for 30 minutes and then 15 minutes uncovered. ENJOY!!!!