Raspberry Almond Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Best. Ever. Yum! From my GraME's Highschool friend Joyce.

INGREDIENTS

Crumb Mix, cut in butter
2 ½ cups flour
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup butter

Reserve 1 cup crumb mix, then add:
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup Sour Cream
1 egg
1 tsp almond extract

Cream Cheese Mixture:
8oz cream cheese softened
¼ cup sugar
1 egg

Carefully spoon over:
½ cup Raspberry Preserves

Add Almonds to crumb mix and top:
½ cup sliced almonds

Grease and flour bottom and sides of a 9 inch spring form pan. Combine Flour, ¾ cup sugar, and cut in the butter. Reserve 1 cup crumb mix. To remaining crumb mix, add baking powder, soda, salt, sour cream, 1 egg and almond extract. Blend well. Spread batter over bottom and 2 inches up the sides of prepared pan. Batter should be about ¼ in thick on sides. Combine cream cheese, ¼ cup sugar and 1 egg. Blend well. Pour over batter in pan. Carefully spoon preserves evenly over cheese filling. Combine 1 Cup reserved crumb mix and sliced almonds. Sprinkle over top. Bake 350 45-50 min till filling is set and crust is golden. Cool 15 min. Removes sides of pan. Serve warm.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

I make these AT LEAST weekly. "Healthy" (whole wheat, and fruit) and tasty (chocolate chips). Garner asks for these EVERY DAY. So go ahead, make some. I know you probably have two banana's turning brown on your counter. I know I do.

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/banana-chocolate-chip-muffins-recipe

Just going to link it rather than type it from my book. Thank you KA website!

Vermont Oatmeal Maple Honey Bread

Very lightly sweet and moist. EASY. Smells INCREDIBLE when baking.
From "King Arthur Flour, Bakers Companion."

2 1/4 to 2 1/2 Cups Boiling Water
1 cup Rolled Oats
1/2 cup Maple sugar or brown sugar
1/2 tsp maple flavor (optional)
1 Tablespoon Honey (or Maple Syrup)
4 Tablespoon's Butter melted
1 Tablespoon Salt
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 Tablespoon instant yeast (or one packet)
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
4 cups all purpouse flour

In a large mixing bowl, combine the water, oats, maple sugar, maple flavor, honey, butter, salt and cinnamon. Let cool to lukewarm.

Add the yeast and flours, stirring to form a rough dough. Knead (about 10 min by hand, 5-7 my machine) until the dough is smooth and satiny. Transfer to lightly greased bowl, cover and let rise 1 hour it should be double in bulk.

Divide in half and shape each into a loaf. Place the loaves in two greased bread pans. cover and allow to rise till they've crowned about 1 in over the rim, about one hour.

Preheat oven to 350, bake 35-40 min. Remove from the oven when golden brown, Can check with thermometer, internal temp should be about 190.
ENJOY

Nutty Bar Cheesecake

This is to die for. Literally...cause there's cream, butter, cream cheese and candybars in it. Made this for Josh's birthday, it was a big hit. The filling was nice and smooth, not too sweet. Presentation was very cool!

Ingredients:

24 Nutty Bars (little debbie cakes, 2 boxes)

2 8oz packages cream cheese

1 4oz package Instant Vanilla Pudding

2 cups chunky peanut butter

2 cups milk

1 cup whipping cream

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup melted butter

Directions:

Unwrap 12 nutty bars, chop in blender until finely crushed, pour into bowl. Add butter and mix well. Press into bottom of a 12in spring form pan, set aside.

Unwrap remaining bars, and cut in half. Line the rim of the pan with the bars, standing up on end, creating the rest of the crust.

In a seperate bowl, whip cream cheese, milk, peanut butter and sugar together till fluffy.

Add whipping cream, pudding mix, vanilla to cream cheese mix and mix two min.

Pour filling into crust, Chill overnight.

Lemon Pancakes

EASY and delicious. Reminds me of the Lemon Pie in my previous post.
From Joy of Cooking (Keep reading Toni! It's worth it!)

LEMON PANCAKES
Prepare and preheat your griddle
Whisk together in a large bowl:
1 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Whisk together in another bowl:
3/4 cup sour cream
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
1 large egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and gently whisk them together, mixing until just combined. Fold in:
finely grated zest of 2 lemons
The batter weill be thick and bubly simialr to cake batter. Spoon 1/4 cup batter onto the griddle for each pancake nudging the batter into rounds. Cook until the top is spekled with bubles and some have popped, then turn and cook until underside is lightly browned. Serve immedieately or keep warm in a 200 oven.
Serve with
Honey or
Sweetened sour cream (with honey or sugar)

Chicken and Vegetable Rice-One skillet, and use up leftover chicken

This is one of Josh's creations, and a staple at our house. It basically chicken and rice soup, without the soup part. He was trying to re-create something he saw on a travel show about Thailand. A basic rice chicken and veggie dish that you can put any kind of sauce on. We like Hoisin, or Sweet Chili Thai sauce. Plain is great too.

Saute in a skillet in some olive oil:
1 onion
3 carrots
1-2 stalks of celery
Salt and pepper to taste
Chopping them small with a chopper makes the veggies cook quicker, also Garner will eat carrots etc if they are small enough.
When veggies are tender, put in 1 cup rice uncooked, and let it toast with the veggies on med high for a min or so.
Add 2.5 cups of whatever you prefer of a water/broth/stock combination.
Bring to a simmer, then cover and turn all the way to low. Let it cook about 15 min, or until all the water is gone. DON'T Stir it during cooking. That's the secret to great rice. Dig into a corner to check the water level if you simply must.
Stir in leftover cut up chicken or turkey, enough to warm it up.
Serve plain, or with any number of sauces!

The BEST Lemon pie EVER. Yes...ever.

Yes, it really is the best lemon pie ever. Maybe the best pie ever. Anyway...it's a recipe from my dear friend Toni who provides me with most of my totally awesome deserts. Enjoy!

Sour Cream Lemon Pie
From a Canadian Jr League Cookbook

Filling
1 cup sugar
3 T. cornstarch
1 T. flour
1 T. lemon rind/zest grated
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup light cream

Bring all this slowly to a boil, and stir constantly.
Add 4 T. Butter and cook until thick and smooth. Let cool. then add
1 cup sour cream.
Pour into baked pie shell. (traditional or graham cracker)

Whipped Cream Topping
Whip 1 cup heavy cream and 2 T. confectioners sugar

Fold in 1/2 cup sour cream. Spoon over filled pie. Sprinkle top with
Grated lemon rind.

SO SO SO Good!

Carrot Cake

Sarah’s Carrot Cake
Ok, so I’m calling this mine because it’s a combination of three recipes with a little of my own ideas combined, we voted it my best carrot cake ever.

Preheat oven to 325

In a large bowl whisk to combine well:
2 cups Flour
2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp freshly grated or ground nutmeg
½ tsp allspice

Add to dry ingredients:
4 eggs beaten
1 cup cooking oil (or applesauce)
2 cups shredded carrots
½ can of pineapple pulsed in food processor
1 cup (aprox) shredded coconut

Beat at med speed of your mixer for aprox 2 min.

Pour into greased pans
Bake at 325 for 50-60 min in a 13x9 pan, or 30 min in 2 9 inch cake rounds


Cream Cheese Frosting
(Joy of Cooking with a few additions)

In your mixer, beat until just blended:
8 ounces cream cheese: COLD
5 tablespoons butter: ROOM TEMPERATURE
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 to 21/2 cups powdered sugar

Optional additions: fresh grated lemon or orange zest, cinnamon or fresh grated nutmeg (highly recommended!) I love the orange zest and nutmeg combo. I also added a little coconut to the frosting.
Keeps refrigerated for 1 week, frozen for 3 months

Birthday Artichoke

Happy Birthday to ME! In our family you get to have WHATEVER you want to eat on your birthday (within reason...like I'll never get a "lobster gram" from Maine, which is an overnighted lobster in special packaging...cost over 100.00) no matter how annoyed everyone else gets by the smell etc... Pretty much every year I get an artichoke. Mmmmmm. I think it's an acquired taste, but if you've acquired it you know what I mean. So to make the perfect Artichoke...


Get out your steamer or steamer basket, and get the water boiling.
Cut off stem, and with a sharp knife (serraded bread knife works well) slice off the top inch or so, to make a flat spot. If you want to, clip off the remaining thorny tips with kitchen sissors.
Place upside down in the steamer, cover and steam for 45-50 min.
I like to drizzle it with olive oil and lemon.
Serve with melted salted butter.

Pork Tacos with Cafe Rio Tomatillo Dressing

Oh, wow. My Aunt Teresa made this when we were all in Raleigh for Harry's wedding, and we got the recipe and just made it this week. Wow this is so delicious! It makes A LOT, and it's pretty easy. Tomatillo's are kind of a weird mix between peppers and a green tomato. They have a husk on the outside you peel off, and it looks like an unripe tomato. We found them at walmart so they can't be THAT exotic. Oh, and it's pronounced tom-ah-tee-yo as I found out. If you say tom-a-tillo (rhymes with pillow) you may get slapped by any native spanish speaker within hearing distance.

Pork Taco's

MEAT: A big cheap cut of pork, like a shoulder, bone in or out. As long as it fits in your crock pot it will work.

In a blender or food processor puree:

1 Jalapeno w/out seeds

1 onion

3 stalks celery

1 cup water

1 tsp Chili powder

1tsp cumin

3 cloves garlic

1/2 bunch cilantro

1/4 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Pour it over the meat and cook in crockpot low for 8 hours or more. When it's done shred it, and leave it in the juices, or drain it out.

Cafe Rio Creamy Tomatillo Dressing

This makes A LOT too, but that's ok b/c you will want to put it on everything.

1 cup buttermilk ( you can make buttermilk by putting 1 Tablespoon of vinegar in 1 cup regular milk and let it sit for 10 min)

1 cup mayonnaise

1 package buttermilk ranch dressing mix

1/2 bunch cilantro

2 cloves garlic

2 Jalapeno's

2-3 Tomatillos

Peel husk from tomatillos, wash cut in quarters. Cut Jalapenos in half and take out seeds. Roast them on a tray at 400 for 20 min. (I totally did this in the toaster oven.)

Puree all ingredients in a food processor/blender. Chill for one hour or longer.

Assembling the Taco's

Heat corn tortilla's in a pan with some oil, or as desired.

put on shreded cabbage and shreded pork, and squeeze fresh limes juice over it.

Top with dressing.

We made simple spanish rice as a side dish.

Simple Spanish Rice

Saute a chopped onion in a sauce pan till soft, add 1/2 can of diced tomato's, or fresh and cook 2 min. Add rice and toast with veggies for a min. Add water (2 cups water to one cup rice) and 1/2 packets of seasoning like "Sazon Goya" if you have it. ( they have it at Kroger).

When rice is done, squeeze a little fresh lime on it, and stir in some chopped cilanrto.

Garlicky Chicken Chowder

That's right folks, I'm posting a recipe! This was an experiment gone RIGHT. My cooking experiments don't usually end that way.....it's a combo of a recipe from a magazine, a Rachel Rae and my friend Amber's. Try it out, it was way good, and a little twist on the normal chicken soup, but not so different that picky eaters would scoff.

Garlicky Chicken Corn Chowder

2 T. Olive Oil
Carrots
Celery
Onions
Potato
Shreded Chicken
1-2 Large Garlic Cloves crushed
Broth or Stock 1-2 quarts depending on how much soup you want
4 T. Butter
4T. Flour
1 can evaporated milk (or use regular milk)
1 can corn
Chopped fresh parsley

Heat oil in a large soup pot chop and sautee the Onions, Garlic (crush this) , Carrots, Celery, and Potato adding to the pot as you chop. Season with salt and pepper, and any other dried herb. Sautee until onions are translucent, and other veggies are getting soft.

Add broth (homemade, or canned, or whatever) and simmer on low until vegetables are desired consistency.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small sauce pan, add the flour and whisk together cooking on med high a couple min to get rid of the “floury” taste. Whisk in the can of milk until it begins to bubble and thicken. Add it to the soup.

Stir in the shredded cooked chicken, and can of corn till warmed. Stir in fresh parsley if you have it.

*Veggie amounts depend on how big a pot you want to make. I used 1 large celery stalk, 2 large carrots, 2 med potatoes and one med onion.