Recipe #26 July 2, 2013

Baked Ziti and Summer Veggies

Ingredients

• 4 ounces uncooked ziti
• 1 tablespoon olive oil $
• 2 cups chopped yellow squash $
• 1 cup chopped zucchini $
• 1/2 cup chopped onion $
• 2 cups chopped tomato $
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/4 cup (2 ounces) part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten $
• Cooking spray $

Preparation

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain.
2. Preheat oven to 400°.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan. Add squash, zucchini, and onion; sauté 5 minutes. Add tomato and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in pasta, 1/2 cup mozzarella, herbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper.
4. Combine ricotta, remaining salt, and egg. Stir into pasta mixture. Spoon into an 8-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until bubbly and browned.

Recipe #25 July 2, 2013

Carmelitas

Ingredients

• 32 caramel squares, unwrapped
• ½ cup heavy cream
• ¾ cup butter, melted
• ¾ cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease an 8×8 pan or you can line with aluminum foil or parchment paper for easier removal. The carmel can get sticky. (can also be made in a 9×13 just double the ingredients)
2. In a mixing bowl, combine melted butter and brown sugar. Add flour, oats, and baking soda. Mix until combined.
3. Divide the cookie mixture in half and pat half of the mix into the bottom of the 8×8 pan. Bake for 10 minutes and remove.
4. While baking, combine the caramels and heavy cream and stir until completely smooth. Can also be melted in the microwave, just stir after every 30 seconds being careful not to let it burn.
5. Remove pan from the oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over the crust. Pour carmel mixture over the chocolate chips and crumble remaining cookie dough on top.
6. Return to oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until the edges are lightly brown.
7. Once removed from oven allow them to completely cool and the carmel to set up. The carmel is like molten carmel right out of the oven and you want to let it cool. You can speed up the cooling process by putting it in the fridge if needed.

Recipe #24 June 25, 2013

Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon/Sugar Chips

Ingredients

• 2 kiwis, peeled and diced
• 2 Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and diced
• 8 ounces raspberries
• 1 pound strawberries
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons fruit preserves, any flavor
• 10 (10 inch) flour tortillas
• butter flavored cooking spray
• 2 tablespoons cinnamon sugar

Directions

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, Golden Delicious apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
3. Coat one side of each flour tortilla with butter flavored cooking spray. Cut into wedges and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle wedges with desired amount of cinnamon sugar. Spray again with cooking spray.
4. Bake in the preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with any remaining tortilla wedges. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit mixture.

Recipe #23 June 5, 2013

Loaded Potato and Chicken Casserole

Ingredients

2	pounds boneless chicken breasts, cubed (1")
8-10	medium potatoes, cut in ½" cubes
⅓	cup olive oil
1	&½ tsp salt
1	Tbsp. black pepper
1	Tbsp. paprika
2	Tbsp. garlic powder
6	Tbsp. hot sauce
Topping:
2	cups fiesta blend cheese
1	cup crumbled bacon
1	cup diced green onion

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Spray a 9X13” baking dish with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl mix together the olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder and hot sauce. Add the cubed potatoes and stir to coat. Carefully scoop the potatoes into the prepared baking dish, leaving behind as much of the olive oil/hot sauce mixture as possible.
3. Bake the potatoes for 45-50 minutes, stirring every 10-15 minutes, until cooked through and crispy and browned on the outside.
4. While the potatoes are cooking, add the cubed chicken to the bowl with the left over olive oil/hot sauce mixture and stir to coat.
5. Once the potatoes are fully cooked, remove from the oven and lower the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Top the cooked potatoes with the raw marinated chicken.
6. In a bowl ix together the cheese, bacon and green onion and top the raw chicken with the cheese mixture.
7. Return the casserole to the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the topping is bubbly delicious.

Recipe #22 May 27, 2013

Corn and Zucchini Orzo Salad

I halved this recipe and it still made an entire bowl to feed a family!

Ingredients

• 6 medium zucchini, diced

• Coarse salt and ground pepper

• 1 pound orzo

• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

• 5 cups corn kernels (from 6 ears corn)

• 1 small red onion, chopped

• 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced

• 1 tablespoon lemon zest

• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 3 lemons)

• 1 cup fresh basil leaves, torn

• 4 ounces feta, crumbled (2 cups)

Directions

1. Wash and slice zucchini, then chop into small pieces. (I cut each slice into fourths or sixths.) Place zucchini in a colander and toss with salt. Place colander in sink and let sit 20 minutes. 

1. Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook orzo according to package instructions. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking; transfer to a large bowl.

1. Cut corn off the cob. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add corn and cook, stirring occasionally, until just tender, 4 minutes. 

1. Add corn to pasta (in large bowl) along with zucchini, 3 tablespoons oil, onion, jalapeno, and lemon zest and juice; season with salt and pepper. 

1. Rip basil and stir into salad. 

1. Stir in feta cheese or just top with it. 

 Refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Recipe #21 May 27, 2013

Summertime Fruit Trifles 

with Homemade Pound Cake

Pound Cake Ingredients

• 1 pound (3 1/4 cups) all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon coarse salt
• 4 sticks softened unsalted butter, 
•  plus additional 1 tbsp for pans
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 9 large, room-temperature eggs

Summertime Fruit Trifles RecipeFruit Trifle Ingredients

• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 cups whole milk
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
• 1 can (20 ounces) crushed pineapple, undrained
• 1 package (3.4 ounces) instant vanilla pudding mix
• 1 cup whipped topping
• 2 cups sliced peeled fresh or frozen peaches, thawed
• 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
• 1 cup fresh raspberries
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• For fruit I used 2 cups frozen peaches and 2 cups frozen mixed berries
• 2 loaves pound cake, thawed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• You can use frozen pound cakes - 10-3/4 ounces each

 

Pound Cake Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter two 5-by-9-inch loaf pans. Combine all-purpose flour and salt in a bowl.
2. Cream butter and sugar with a mixer on high speed until pale and fluffy, for 8 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl. Reduce speed to medium, and add vanilla extract.
3. Lightly beat eggs, and add to mixer bowl in 4 additions, mixing thoroughly after each and scraping down sides. Reduce speed to low, and add flour mixture in 4 additions, mixing until just incorporated. Divide batter between pans. Tap on counter to distribute; smooth tops.
4. Bake until a tester inserted into center of each cake comes out clean, about 65 minutes. Let cool in pans on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Remove from pans, and let cool completely on wire rack.

Trifle Directions

• In a large saucepan, combine sugar and flour; stir in milk until smooth. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat to low; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat.
• Stir a small amount of hot mixture into egg; return all to pan. Bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Gently stir in the orange juice, butter and orange peel. Transfer to a small bowl; refrigerate until chilled.
• In large bowl, combine pineapple and pudding mix; fold in whipped topping. In another bowl, combine peaches and berries.
• In individual parfait glasses, layer cake cubes, pineapple mixture and berry mixture; top with custard. Refrigerate until serving.

 
Makes 12 servings

Recipe #20 May 20, 2013

Banana Caramel Cookies

Ingredients

1 Caramel Cake Mix (Duncan Hines Signature Cake) (18.25 oz.)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup smashed banana (about 2 bananas)

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup white chocolate chips

1/2 cup caramel baking bits

(I couldn't find caramel bits and don't like white choc so I used 1 cup mini chocolate chips!!) 

Instructions

1. Beat butter, bananas, and vanilla. Add the cake mix and mix thoroughly. The batter will be very thick. Stir in the white chips and caramel bits by hand. Chill dough at least 30 minutes. This will help it from sticking to your hands.
2. Roll dough into 1 inch or 1 1/2 inch balls. Place on baking sheet that has been lined with a Silpat or parchment paper so the caramel doesn't stick. Bake at 350* for 10-12 minutes. Do not over bake. The cookies will look undone, but they will set up as they cool. Let cool on tray for a few minutes before removing to parchment paper to cool completely.Makes 30 cookies.