Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Grilled Pineapple Up-side Down Cake

This recipe was so super easy and fast and delicious!
The sauce caramelizes on the BBQ...yummy!
Ingredients:

1 small pineapple cut into wedges (canned pineapple is okay too)
32 maraschino cherries
3/4 c. butter (1 1/2 sticks)
1 1/4 c. packed brown sugar
3 Tbs. lemon juice
1 pound cake (10.75 oz) cut into 8 slices (Wayne found individual pound cakes near wal-marts bakery)
whipped cream
16 skewers


*Make sauce in small saucepan - butter, sugar, and lemon juice. Bring to a boil and simmer until slightly thickened (about 5 minutes)
*Brush both sides of cake slices with sauce and grill for 1-2 minutes, until grill marked and warmed.
* Grill fruit on skewers for 2 minutes or until warm and grill marked
* Top cake with 2 skewers and drizzle with more sauce and a dollop of whipped cream

Note to self - if I ever take a photo of anything on the BBQ again.....let out the smoke before taking the photo so it doesn't fog up the camera lens =)

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Italian Sodas

1 bottle of Torani flavored syrup (usually in coffee/tea aisle)
2 liter bottle of Sprite (any brand works)
Quart of Half & Half

Pour half & half into a pitcher about 2/3-3/4 full. Pour in Torani and Sprite to taste. If you need more flavor, add more syrup and/or sprite, if you want it creamier add more half & half.
Good syrup flavor combinations: peach & vanilla or raspberry & vanilla, it tastes like peaches and cream, or raspberry cream. Or you can do flavors by themselves. Just play around with it. You can also make them individually in a tall glass if you are offering different flavor options. I get the Torani from Albertsons or Harmons. So far WalMart doesn't carry this brand. I haven't tried it with other brands.

Crock Pot Cream Cheese Chicken

Cream Cheese Chicken

6-8 boneless chicken breasts, fresh or frozen
1 cube margarine
1 package Good Seasonings Italian dressing mix
1-2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 8 oz. brick cream cheese
1/2 cup water if using fresh chicken (not frozen)
1 pkg bowtie or egg noodles, or rice, or potatoes

Slice margarine cube and spread around the bottom of the crock pot. Sprinkle dressing mix on chicken, both sides. Cook in crock pot 5-6 hours on low, 3-4 hours on high. Leave the cream cheese out all day (covered) so it's really soft and mix it really well with the soup. After the chicken is done cooking, if there is a lot of liquid you can drain some of it, (I usually leave most of it and may add a 2nd can of cream of chicken so there is more sauce) and spoon soup mixture over it. Cook for additional 30 minutes or until soup is heated through. Serve with rice, pasta or potatoes. So Yummy!!! (Sorry I don't have a picture to post...still don't have a digital camera...)

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Merinade

1 c. soy sauce
2 c. sprite
1 squirt lemon juice
1\4 tsp garlic salt
1\3 c. veg. oil
2 Tbsp Red Hot (by Tabasco sauce)
onion cut into pieces
mix and place meat in and let sit for anywhere from 3 hrs to overnight. Excellent on BBQ Venison and chicken

Sticky Rolls

2 frozen Bread loafs
thaw for 20 min then cut into walnut size pieces. Dip into mixture of
1 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
then make a mixture of
1 c. brown sugar
1 stick butter
1 pkg butterscotch pudding ( cooked no instant! )
place rolls in well greased bunt cake pan or two loaf pans refrigerate over night. In morning let rise 1-1 1\2 hrs then bake at 350 for 30-40 min

Coffee Cake

2 c. bisquick
2\3 c. milk or water
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 egg
Mix and pour in pie plate.
Topping:
1\3 c. bisquick
1\3 c. brown sugar
1\2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. margarine ( do not melt cut in )
( I usually double my topping I like a lot)
Mix until crumbly sprinkle on top and bake at 375 for 18-20 min

Cauliflower Salad

1 head lettuce chopped
1\2 head cauliflower chopped
4 oz mozzarella cheese grated
mix and refrigerate until right before serving then add sauce
Sauce:
1 C mayo
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp bacon bits
2 c. grated parmesan cheese
Mix well

Chicken Spinach Salad

Salad
1 6 oz bag baby spinach leaves
1 12 oz pkg broccoli slaw
1 med cucumber
1 sm red pepper
Chicken mixture
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
1\4 c. fresh basil cut up
1\4 c. chopped peanuts
cook in a little bit of oil til chicken is done
Dressing
3\4 c. poppy seed dressing
2 garlic cloves
1 1in piece of gingerroot chopped and juice squeezed out in dressing
mix well pour a little bit over chicken while cooking.
Mix all mixtures and serve

Easy Chicken Enchilada Cassarole

4-6 c. cooked and diced chicken
1 lg. Can cream of chicken soup
1 4oz can diced green chillies
½ c. milk
12 corn tortillas torn into pieces
1 c. grated cheese
Mix first 4 ing. Pour over tortillas in cassarole stir until coated . Bake at 350 for 30 min. Remove and top with cheese , bake another 5-10 min. until cheese is melted. The other way I do it is just leaving tortillas whole and layering like lasagna.

Corn Salsa

1 bunch green onions
1 bunch cilantro
2 avocados
2 tomatoes
1 can black-eyed peas including juice
1 bag frozen sweet corn
1 envelope italian dressing
1\4 c. vinegar
wash and chop green onions, cilantro, dice tomatoes, cube avacados, stir in peas, corn vinegar and dressing mix. Serve with tortilla chips

Friday, May 8, 2009

Twisted Peanut Buter Cups

Holy Cow! These are so sinfully delicious. The granola on top adds just the right amount of crunch and the filling is so creamy.
You've gotta try these!


Twisted Peanut Butter Cups

Adapted from Pillsbury Best of the Bake-Off Winner Cookbook
24 cookie cups

Ingredients:

1 roll (16.5 oz) refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough(you can also make a homemade recipe or use a bag mix)
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
2 oats n honey crunchy granola bars (I used Nature Valley), crushed (3/4 cup)


Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 24 mini muffin cups with cooking spray. Cut cookie dough into 24 slices. Press 1 slice in bottom and up side of each mini muffin cup (dust fingers with flour or dip fingers in water if necessary).

Bake 10-15 minutes or until edges are deep golden brown. Cool in pans on wire racks 5 minutes. With tip of handle of wooden spoon or with a small baby spoon, press dough down in center of each cup to make room for 2 tablespoons of filling.
In 2 quart saucepan, melt white chips and 3/4 cup of the peanut butter over low heat, stirring constantly. Divide mixture evenly into cookie cups (about 1 tablespoon each). Refrigerate for 10 minutes.

In same saucepan, melt chocolate chips and remaining 3/4 cup peanut butter over low heat, stirring constantly. Divide chocolate mixture evenly on top of the white chocolate mixture in each cup (about 1 tablespoon each).

Sprinkle crushed granola bars over top of each. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour. Remove from muffin cups before serving.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Cheesecake Pops

This has to be the BEST dessert I have ever made! It's cheesecake on a stick dipped in chocolate and yummy toppings. My favorite was the cookies n' cream one. The Heath bar one was my second favorite. I basically did the yellow one just for looks. It wasn't nearly as irresistible as the other two.


Cheesecake Pops
Makes 30 – 40 Pops

Ingredients:
5 8-oz. packages cream cheese at room temperature
2 cups sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
5 large eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ cup heavy cream
Boiling water as needed
Thirty to forty 8-inch lollipop sticks
1 pound chocolate, finely chopped – you can use all one kind or half and half of dark, milk, or white (Alternately, you can use 1 pound of flavored coatings, also known as summer coating, confectionary coating or wafer chocolate – candy supply stores carry colors, as well as the three kinds of chocolate.)2 tablespoons vegetable shortening(Note: White chocolate is harder to use this way, but not impossible)Assorted decorations such as chopped nuts, colored jimmies, crushed peppermints, mini chocolate chips, sanding sugars, dragees) - Optional


Directions:
Position oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Set some water to boil.
In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, flour, and salt until smooth. If using a mixer, mix on low speed. Add the whole eggs and the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well (but still at low speed) after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cream.
Grease a 10-inch cake pan or a 8x11 glass casserole pan (not a springform pan), and pour the batter into the cake pan. Place the pan in a larger roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with the boiling water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is firm and slightly golden on top, 1 hour 10 minutes.
Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and cool to room temperature. Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

When the cheesecake is cold and very firm, scoop the cheesecake into 2-ounce balls and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Carefully insert a lollipop stick into each cheesecake ball. Freeze the cheesecake pops, uncovered, until very hard, at least 1 – 2 hours.

When the cheesecake pops are frozen and ready for dipping, prepare the chocolate. In the top of a double boiler, set over simmering water, or in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, heat half the chocolate and half the shortening, stirring often, until chocolate is melted and chocolate and shortening are combined. Stir until completely smooth. Do not heat the chocolate too much or your chocolate will lose it’s shine after it has dried. Save the rest of the chocolate and shortening for later dipping, or use another type of chocolate for variety.
Alternately, you can microwave the same amount of chocolate coating pieces on high at 30 second intervals, stirring until smooth.
Quickly dip a frozen cheesecake pop in the melted chocolate, swirling quickly to coat it completely. Shake off any excess into the melted chocolate. If you like, you can now roll the pops quickly in optional decorations. You can also drizzle them with a contrasting color of melted chocolate (dark chocolate drizzled over milk chocolate or white chocolate over dark chocolate, etc.) Place the pop on a clean parchment paper-lined baking sheet to set. Repeat with remaining pops, melting more chocolate and shortening (or confectionery chocolate pieces) as needed.
Refrigerate the pops for up to 24 hours, until ready to serve.

*I just used the Wilton's melting chocolate instead of all the fancy options that were in the recipe. You really can't go wrong with the Wilton's. Just don't cook it too long. I microwaved it in a mug instead of a double boiler for 30 seconds - stir - and another 10-30 seconds.