Crock Pot: Brown Sugar and Balsamic Glazed Pork Loin

Slow-cooker recipes are always something I'm on the hunt for. I get an immense feeling of gratification when dinner is already in the works by 9 am. I especially love when a crock pot recipe doesn't call for me to chop vegetables or brown meat first. Just more or less toss in the ingredients and head off in pursuit of other things to scratch off the to-do list before the baby wakes up from her nap or I have to run and pick up her big brother from preschool.

Tonight I decided to invite my parents over to be guinea pigs...and to watch home movies from about 38 years ago. My parents and husband really liked the pork and especially the glaze that is brushed on the pork while cooking and then also served on the side. It smelt great while cooking. The pork shredded so easily. The only suggestion I received was to cook it for a shorter amount of time. That's the problem with crock pot recipes. This recipe instructed me to cook on low for 6-8 hours. Two hours is a big swing. I set the timer for 6 hours and we ate at the 7 hour mark. Shouldn't the pork stay tender for another hour...or even better, get even more tender with more time? They all said they'd enjoy it again so I've adapted the recipe for 6 hours on low. Only six.

Here's a question my Mother asked me during dinner...was this pork loin or pork tenderloin? Hum. I studied this in college but that I was a long time ago. I'm a vegetarian and I haven't retained a lot info regarding cuts of meat since I never eat them. Is there a difference? Yes. I'll let you google the question for the answer. This recipe calls for pork loin and I used pork tenderloin. Maybe, just maybe, my pork would've been moister had it been a loin. I guess I'll have to try it again to see. Anyone want to be a guinea pig? ;)

By the way - the preschooler ate it! He didn't give it the "thumbs up" or "thumbs down". He kept his thumb in the neutral position. I'll take it.

Ingredients

1 (2 pound) boneless pork loin

1 teaspoon ground sage

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/2 cup water

Glaze

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions

1. Combine sage, salt, pepper and garlic. Rub over roast. Place in slow cooker with 1/2 cup water. Cook on low for 6 hours.

2. About 1 hour before roast is done, combine ingredients for glaze in small sauce pan. Heat and stir until mixture thickens. Brush roast with glaze 2 or 3 times during the last hour of cooking. Serve with remaining glaze on the side.

http://www.candcmarriagefactory.com/2011/01/brown-sugar-and-balsamic-glazed-pork.html

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

I'm feeling indecisive today. I prepared these amazing muffins late this morning and I love more than one picture that I took. I've included them all. Please tell me which one you prefer.

I love banana and I love chocolate. A few weeks ago I made some stellar chocolate banana spring rolls. Today I made a recipe I found on AllRecipes.com. After reading through other people's suggestions, I had my game plan. I love that in this day & age you can do more than flip through a cookbook. I always read other people's comments and check out the photos they post so that I can make it as perfect as possible the first time. With this recipe I've adapted the ingredients, as I do with almost all the recipes I find. I cut out the oil and substituted in applesauce and yogurt. I've also combined AP flour with some whole wheat flour. I'm so glad I did because they are fantastic without all of the guilt.

My preschooler was so excited to try one that he actually asked me to take his picture with them. After he tried them he gave them the "thumbs up"!

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup applesauce
• 1/4 cup yogurt (plain, vanilla, or banana)
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
  
• 3 medium bananas (1/2 thinly sliced for garnish, 3 1/2 mashed)
  
• 3/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, combine the egg, applesauce, yogurt and vanilla.

2. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in bananas and chocolate chips.

3. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

*This recipe yielded me 17 muffins.

Enjoy!

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chocolate-chip-banana-muffins-2/detail.aspx

Panko Tilapia with Black Bean Salsa

I must start this entry with the words that rushed out of my husband's mouth when he came up for air as he was inhaling this meal. "Awesome". He said it three times. Then he called it "superb"! He said it was the second best part of the weekend. The first being our 20-week old daughter took a 3-hour nap today! I couldn't be happier!

I adapted this recipe from Kraft.com. Since it's a Kraft recipe, they call for lots Kraft products. I choose to use whatever I prefer. My husband loves seasoned Panko breadcrumbs like it's God's gift to the culinary world, so I chose to use it instead of Ritz crackers. He love that the fish was flaky on inside and slightly crunchy on the outside. A friend of mine highly recommended Duke's mayonnaise, so I used that instead of Kraft Real Mayo. I also used "spicy" black beans from Whole Foods.

Although the use of mayonnaise makes this a less than healthy dinner, it is simple to make and full of flavor! You could use light mayo or dredge the fish in egg instead of mayo. I will definitely be making this often.

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups seasoned Panko breadcrumbs

2 tilapia fillets

1/3 cup real mayonnaise, divided

1/3 cup pickled jalapeño slices, chopped

2-4 tbs olive oil

1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed

5 cherry tomatoes, quartered

3 green onions, sliced (optional)

Juice from 1 lime

Directions

1. Brush fish with mayo. Dip fish in crumbs, turning to evenly coat both sides of each fillet or toss in a plastic bag with panko. Mix remaining mayo and jalapeños.

2. Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add fish; cook 3 min. on each side or until fish is golden brown on both sides and flakes easily with fork. Remove from skillet. Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients.

3. Top fish with mayo mixture. Serve with bean mixture.

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/breaded-tilapia-black-bean-114985.aspx

Smothered Sirloin Steak in Parmesan-Peppercorn Sauce

I receive emails from a few food websites such as AllRecipes.com and Kraft. One day Kraft emailed me this recipe and after reading the reviews I thought I try it out on my husband. Back in my meat-eating days I loved a good steak and this recipe would've been right up my alley.

Many of the people reviewing the recipe raved about the parmesan-peppercorn sauce. I made it a day ahead of time and tried it. Wow! Amazing flavor. I used it to drip some sweet potato waffle fries in. The peppery goodness is fantastic. Next time I make it I'll probably double the recipe for the sauce.

I followed other people's advice and let the steak marinate overnight. The night I prepared this dish we ate dinner outside on the deck. The weather was awesome, but after the sun went down the temperature dipped. I mention this because I prepared the platter, spent a minute taking a few photos and then took it outside - where it quickly cooled off. Temperature aside, my husband loved it! It is something easy enough and tasty enough to serve to guests. I'll definitely make this again and might actually have my husband grill it outside.

Ingredients

1 cup Italian Dressing, divided

1 boneless beef sirloin steak (1 lb.), well trimmed

1/3 cup Sour Cream

4-1/2 tsp. Grated Parmesan Cheese

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 onion, thinly sliced, separated into rings

Directions

1. Pour 1/2 cup dressing over steak in a ziploc bag; turn to evenly coat steak. Refrigerate overnight to marinate.

2. Mix sour cream, 2 Tbsp. of the remaining dressing, Parmesan cheese and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

3. Heat 2-3 Tbsp. dressing in large nonstick skillet on medium heat. Add onions; cook 10 to 15 min. or until golden brown, stirring frequently. Remove onions from skillet; set aside.

4. Remove steak from marinade; discard marinade. Add steak to skillet; cook on medium heat 5 to 6 min. on each side or until medium doneness (160ºF). Remove steak from skillet and let it rest for about 5 minutes; cut into thin strips. Serve topped with the sour cream sauce and onions.

Adapted.

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/smothered-sirloin-steak-in-90959.aspx

Slow-Cooker Mediterranean Beef Stew

I kinda did a bad thing. I was in Costco one day looking at the magazines on the magazine rack. I found one with slow-cooker (aka crock pot) recipes in it. I flipped through the pages and when I found only one or two recipes that interested me, I put the magazine back on the shelf. Then I took it back off of the shelf, opened it up again, took out my cell phone and took photos of the recipes I wanted. I stole them. I still feel guilty about it.

After stealing this recipe and purchasing the ingredients, I didn't hold out much hope for this dish. It seemed very boring, but easy to make. I liked that the recipe didn't ask me to brown the meat first, like you need to with most stew recipes. My husband bought diced tomatoes with green chiles and not Italitan-style diced tomatoes that I had asked for so I used those. I doctored up the recipe a little bit by added about a tablespoon of Montreal Steak Seasoning and hoped for the best.

My. husband.loved.it! He raved and raved about it. He complemented the look, the flavor, the aroma. He was so excited that I thought it was going to eat the whole pot. I quickly got some ready for the freezer so that I could surprise him one day for lunch. It was totally worth it to swipe this recipe and now I'm encouraged to do it again after the winning review that I got! ;o

Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup

I bought some Sweet Italian Sausage at Costco and as you can imagine, there's a lot of it. I'm trying to find recipes that call for Italian sausage besides the standard Sausage with Peppers & Onions. My husband loves it, but I need to give him some variety.

I found this recipe on AllRecipes.com. I tweaked it a little (or a lot) based on what I had and didn't have on hand. The recipe calls for 1 sausage link. It didn't seem like enough, so I used three. Only 8 ounces of tortellini? I used 12! The recipe calls for 5 cups of beef broth, I only had 2 1/2 and the grocery store was sold out of the brand that I use. I substituted vegetable broth. It also called for red wine. When I went down to our wine cellar (aka laundry room ((a place the preschooler can't get into))), there was none to be found! I was a bit shocked and quickly added it to my shopping list. So I substituted more vegetable broth. It also called for tomato sauce but I had some tomato paste already open so I used that instead. Blah, blah, blah... I'd make sure I had red wine and enough beef broth on hand next time.

It turned out great! How do I know, being a vegetarian? Because my husband AND my preschooler loved it! They even ate it for left-overs the next night! No complaints out of the child and he finally ate tortellini for the first time! The only suggestion my husband made was to use a spicy sausage next time to kick up the flavor a bit.

Adapted.

Ingredients

• 3 links sweet Italian sausage, casings removed (or spicy sausage for more flavor)
  
• 1 cup chopped onions
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 cups beef stock
• 1/3 cup water
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 4 plum tomatoes - peeled, seeded and chopped
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1 zucchini, chopped
• 12 ounces cheese tortellini
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese for topping

Directions

1. Place the sausage in a large pot over medium high heat and saute for 10 minutes, or until well browned. Drain the fat except for about 1 tablespoon, add the onions and garlic and saute for 5 more minutes.
2. Next add the beef stock, water, wine, tomatoes, carrots, basil, oregano and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes, skimming any fat that may surface.
3. Add the zucchini, tortellini, green bell pepper and parsley to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes, or until tortellini is fully cooked. Pour into individual bowls and garnish with the cheese.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/italian-sausage-tortellini-soup/detail.aspx

Coming soon...

-Honey Soy Tilapia

-Black Bean Lasagna

-Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

-Mini-Caprese Bites

-Coconut Chicken Tenders

-Tortellini Ranch Salad

-Tequila Lime Chicken Fajitas


Feel free to follow me on Pinterest at: http://pinterest.com/joanne_fulmer/

Chocolate Banana Spring Rolls

Oh my goodness. I am on a roll. I'm three for three on my last...well...three recipes. I was feeling so confident about using egg roll wrappers that I decided to give this dessert a try. It was fast and easy to make and it tasted just as good as PF Chang's Banana Spring Rolls. If only I had served it with ice cream. That would've been amazing!

I adapted the ingredients and directions to a recipe I found on Pinterest and was able to make this recipe my own. Try it! You won't be sorry.

Ingredients

2 bananas, diced
6 egg roll wrappers
mini chocolate chips
cream (heavy cream/whole milk/2% milk)
1 egg, beaten
oil
powdered sugar

Directions

1. Heat about 1/2" of oil in a frying pan. I set the stove to 6.

2. Place egg roll wrapper facing you in the shape of a diamond. Brush egg around all four sides.

3. Place 2-2 1/2 tablespoons of diced bananas 1/4 of the way up from the bottom. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 tsp of mini chocolate chips. Roll half way up and tuck in sides, then roll all the way up.

4. Place in oil and cook until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes each side. Remove and place on paper towel to drain off any excess oil.

5. Heat chocolate chips and approximately 1-2 tablespoons of cream in a microwave safe bowl until melted. Drizzle on top of spring rolls.

6. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with ice cream, as desired.

Yield: 6 Spring Rolls

You can also sprinkle butterscotch chips inside and drizzle with caramel sauce.

Homemade Mozzarella Sticks

So I feel like I'm on a bit of a roll after recreating that amazing Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese and now recreating this tasty appetizer. Neither item is healthy but both are incredibly tasty and super easy to execute.

I found this lovely recipe on Pinterest. I might spend a few hours here and there on the site, but it's quality time! I made this yesterday afternoon and surprised my husband with this treat while he was outside playing with our son. We ended up tailgating in the truck of my SUV in our garage. It was a fun time.

After reading the recipe and combing over other people's reviews I came up with a game plan on how to execute this. I felt pretty confident using these egg roll wrappers after overcoming my fear of frying wonton wrappers a couple of weeks ago.

The outcome was fantastic. I fried them as the recipe called for, but I might try and bake them next time. I hesitate to though because I worry about the texture. Texture is really important for this treat. The flavor is mild so you need the texture to compensate a bit. Serve it with a really good quality marinara sauce. This also helps compliment the mild flavor. I had no issues with the cheese melting out of the egg roll wrapper.

I've adapted the recipe.

Ingredients

• 12 pieces string cheese
• 12 egg roll wrappers
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1-2 cups Italian flavored Panko breadcrumbs
  
• Oil for deep-fat frying
• Marinara or spaghetti sauce

Directions

• Place a piece of string cheese near the bottom corner of one egg roll wrapper. Fold bottom corner over cheese. Roll up halfway; fold sides toward center over cheese. Moisten remaining corner with egg; roll up tightly to seal. Brush egg all over the outside of egg roll wrapper and roll in panko. Press down firmly to make sure panko sticks, as needed. Repeat with remaining wrappers and cheese.
• In an electric skillet, heat 1/2 in. of oil to 375°. I set the dial to 6.
• Fry sticks, a few at a time, for about 1 minute or so on each side or until golden brown. Keep a close eye on them so they don't over cook. Drain on paper towels. Serve with marinara sauce.
  
• Yield: 1 dozen.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/Mozzarella-Sticks-2?pmcode=IKLDC05S&_mid=838832&_rid=838832.650200.781355/

Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese

I have not been this excited about something I've prepared - ever! This one really knocked my socks off...and my husband's too! I found a photo of a Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese sandwich on Pinterest. I followed the "pin" back to a blog called "Becky Bakes" where she made the sandwich created by the blog "Closet Cooking". If you venture to the other blogs you'll see that these people are wonderful photographers. I totally need tips!

Anyways...after reading "Becky Bakes", I decided that the recipe was more involved than I wanted to commit to preparing. Why? Because I really didn't want to spend time broiling my jalapenos and then peeling them. That's just too much work for a sandwich. And Becky also mentioned that she only used one jalapeno but she'd use two next time to punch up the flavor. I had an idea! Why not try pickled jalapenos? No broiling, no peeling, use as much or as little as you like depending on the amount of kick you can handle.

I really never even read the recipe on the other sites. I just got too excited and prepped it the way I wanted to. I bought some sourdough bread, buttered the outside, slathered the insides with cream cheese, tossed a piece of real cheddar cheese on there and placed a single layer of pickled jalapenos on top. I picked out the seeds as you can see on the side on the photo below. I grilled mine on the pre-heated George Foreman grill for just over 4 minutes.
The bread came out crunchy on the outside and the inside literally tasted just like a jalapeno popper - but with bread and no frying. It was so good that I made a second one for lunch! I can't ever imagine making a plain old grilled cheese sandwich again. You've gotta try this!

In fact, I'll make it for you if you'd like! Here's a contest of sorts...If you live in the DC Metro area, leave a comment in the comment section of this blog entry and tell me why you'd like me to make this sandwich for you. If I only get a comment or two, your chances will be great that you'll be a winner! So easy.

Here's another nugget - I've got a Tummy Temptations Facebook page in the works. I don't know what I'm doing and it's sloppy, but I'm sure if you search for it you'll find it. If you are one of the first two "local" people to "Like" it, I'll make you a surprise treat!

Update: 3/26/12.
I made this again today using Mt. Olive brand pickled jalapenos. Not impressed. Definitely use Old El Paso brand. Thicker, spicier slices of jalapeno.

http://www.closetcooking.com/2011/04/jalapeno-popper-grilled-cheese-sandwich.html

http://www.beckybakes.net/2011/04/13/jalapeno-popper-grilled-cheese-sandwich/

Glazed Pecans

My sister-in-law had us over for dinner some time ago. She served salad with the entree. And I don't know if it was because I was hungry or not, but that salad was the best salad I had ever had! Come to think of it, I now know that it was more than about being hungry. I've had the salad many times since then. We joke that I like the salad so much because of all the "candy" in it.

In her salad is mixed greens, a diced apple, a handful dried cranberries and a handful glazed pecans. She serves it with honey mustard dressing. I started serving this during dinner so often that the cost glazed pecans was driving me into the poor house. I decided to start making my own and I went out and purchased a huge 2 pound bag of pecans from Costco. If you've been reading my blog every once in a while, you'll see this salad on a few of my dinner plates...most recently on my January 18th entry of Pecan Crusted Chicken Tenders. I substituted pears for apples that night.

So feeling like I was spending all of my money on pecans instead of saving for retirement, I did an internet search and found a recipe from Pillsbury. I've made four batches of glazed pecans and I thought it was time to share this tasty treat. I need to mention that they are so yummy that you might want to sprinkle them over ice cream or just eat them out of the airtight container that you store them in. It's all natural and kind of "healthy" dessert or snack. At least it is until you glaze them! They would make a nice little hostess gift during the holidays.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons organic butter

2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar

2 tablespoons real maple syrup

2 cups pecan halves (6-7 oz) <--8 oz is too much

Directions

1 - Heat oven to 350°F. Line cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper. In 12-inch skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add brown sugar and syrup; mix well. Cook until bubbly, stirring constantly.
2 - Add pecans; cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until coated. Spread mixture onto parchment-lined cookie sheet.
3 - Bake 6 to 8 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely, about 30 minutes. Store in tightly covered container up to 2 weeks.

Pillsbury Note

Pecans are more than 70% fat and can become rancid easily. Store shelled pecans in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.

Transfer cooled pecans to a tightly covered freezer container. Freeze for up to 3 months.

http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/glazed-pecans/a53aa7a8-efd1-42bf-886a-2d70be56f363/

Birds' Nests

Who's ready for Spring? The Robins are out in large numbers. The temperature here in the D.C. Metro area is above-average with today's high being around 66 degrees and my flowerbed is in bloom. I think the Groundhog was wrong, which is alright with me. I just wish I could return my son's new snowsuit and gloves. They'll be too small for him to use next year.

So in honor of Spring I decided to try and make a treat that I made a long time ago intermediate school home ec class. No cooking/baking makes this super easy. Use pastel M&Ms or for a fancier, more accurate looking nest use Cadbury mini eggs as your bird eggs.

Ingredients

pan spray or unsalted butter, for greasing the muffin pan

4 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

4 oz butterscotch chips

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

5 oz chow mein noodles

36 pastel M&Ms or mini Cadbury eggs

Instructions

1. Grease the wells of a muffin pan with pan spray or butter.

2. In a large microwave-proof bowl, heat the chocolate and butterscotch chips in 30 second intervals until thoroughly melted, stirring after each increment. (It only took me three 30-second intervals).

3. Once melted, add the peanut butter to the chocolate/butterscotch mixture, mixing well until smooth and completely mixed.

4. Add the chow mein noodles, stirring gently with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, until completely coated.

5. Using a large spoon, mold the mixture into the wells of your muffin tin.

6. Chill the nests until hardened, for at least 1 hour.

7. Once chilled, gently remove the nests from the muffin tin.

8. Place three eggs on the tops of each nest.

Homemade Shells and Cheese

Who doesn't like mac and cheese? Come on...you know you're the 99%! Who likes it made with processed cheese vs. real cheese? The processed stuff tastes great, but it's not so great for you. Here's my attempt at homemade shells and cheese made with a blend of real cheese. I used a blend of regular shredded hormone-free cheddar and smoked mozzarella. It’s pretty easy to make since you make it on the stove top and there is no baking.

It turned out great! Very creamy and very smokey. My 4 1/2 year old son had never tried mac and cheese until tonight...and he ate it! He didn't inhale it like I did, but then again he's not really a pasta lover.

Because this side dish is so creamy and delicious, it really needs something to enhance the flavor and texture so thinly sliced green onions made the perfect topping. Breadcrumbs would work but I find them to often times be too heavy.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

8 ounces medium whole wheat shells
¼ cup butter
¼ cup flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 dash black pepper
2 cups organic milk
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup smoked mozzarella
sliced green onions

Directions

1 - Cook shells according to package directions.
2 - Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Slowly add the milk and cook while whisking out any lumps and stirring until the mixture becomes somewhat thick. Stir in the cheese until melted. Remove from heat.
3 - Drain shells and toss them to the cheese sauce. Stir to coat. Top with green onions for serving if desired.

(Makes 4 Servings)

Tortilla & Black Bean Pie

Something is wrong with me. While I was vacationing in Sandbridge, VA a few years ago I spent some time writing down some recipes. Who in the world spends their time at the beach writing down recipes? I'm not normal. I guess I can cut myself a little slack because we went after peak season and the temperature was a bit cooler and it was really windy, so I stayed inside one afternoon. I would now consider it crazy to write down a recipe. I've had a smart phone for about a year now and when I see a recipe I like, I take a photo of it.

This vegetarian recipe was found inside a Martha Stewart cookbook, or maybe it was a magazine...it's been a few years since I found it. This recipe is versatile. In fact, I would highly recommend doctoring it up to suit your taste. I prepared the recipe as written (substituting spicy black beans for regular) and my husband and I were pretty impressed with the presentation, but pretty disappointed with the overall lack of flavor. It has jalapenos and onions and cumin. How could it lack flavor?I loved seeing the layers; They turned out really well. I think the meal itself needed less corn, more cheese and more of a kick - like adding salsa and tomatoes inside. I topped mine with sour cream. I will make this again but with the suggestions I just made and if you're a meat-eater I'd recommend adding some marinated shredded pork tenderloin. I did not adapt the recipe.

Ingredients

4 flour tortillas (10 inch)
1 tbs canola oil
1 large onion, diced
1 jalapeno, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp ground cumin
S & P
2 cans (15oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
12 oz beer or 1 1/2 cups water
1 package (10oz) frozen corn
4 scallions, thinly sliced + more for garnish
2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Trim tortillas to fit 9" spring form pan.
2. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic and cumin. Season with
S & P. Cook stirring occasionally - 5-7 minutes.
3. Add beans and beer to skillet and boil. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer until liquid has almost evaporated - 8-10 minutes. Stir in corn and scallions and remove from heat. Season with S & P.
4. Tortilla on the bottom of the pan. Layer with 1/4 of beans and 1/2 cup of cheese. Repeat 3 times.
5. Use 1 cup cheese on top layer.
6. Bake until hot and cheese is melted. 20-25 minutes.
7. Unmold; sprinkle with scallions.
8. Slice into wedges and serve immediately.

Pumpkin Pillows

Have I mentioned in the past my love of pumpkin? I think it has something to do with my love of Fall. It's wintertime but since you can still find canned pumpkin in the grocery store I decided to try out this Kraft recipe.

I'm usually intimidated by any recipe that requires me to deep-fry something. I just have this idea in my head that deep-frying on top of the stove is difficult. I'm also not going to jump at the opportunity to make something deep-fried, knowing that no matter how healthy the ingredients, it's not going to be healthy after I cook it. But don't get me wrong. If you know me then you know I love fried foods. Doesn't everyone? I mean, you love it (admit it) but you attempt to avoid it because you know it is not good for you.

This recipe calls to wonton wrappers. Not being a fan of Asian food, in general, I didn't really know what wonton wrappers were. Well, it turns out they are this neat little thing that is kind of like pasta...at least to me. You can wrap stuff with sweet or savory ingredients and boil them for a semi-homemade ravioli. You can fry them or bake them. They seem quite versatile.

So I followed the recipe exactly except when it came to the temperature of the oil. How are you supposed to measure the temperature of the oil before frying? I'll tell you how I did it and then you can give me recommendations as to how to check the temperature in the future. I took out one of my thermometers that I got from work. Well, that only measured up to 300F. I needed to measure up to 350F. I took out my candy thermometer and it was taking so long to measure the temperature that I gave up after it hit 325F. It seemed well on its way to 350F.

I placed my first 4 "pillows" in the oil and the burnt immediately. Yay! I reduced the heat and let the oil cool for a minute or so and placed my next batch inside. By the time I got my fourth pillow into the oil the first one was ready to be flipped. By the time I had flipped my last pillow the first one was ready to come out. It was a very fast process. The recipe said it would take 2-3 minutes to cook, but for me and my hot oil it took about 30 seconds, tops.

They turned out great! The caramel sauce that you dip it in turned out great too! Definitely makes a fun presentation, definitely makes a bit of a mess in the kitchen, definitely reheats really well in the oven (pop them in, heat oven to 350F for 10 minutes and then remove - no need to preheat). I crimped my edges with a pastry wheel and that worked out really well.

Here's a photo I took with my phone. I forgot to put powdered sugar on the first batch.

Ingredients

12 Caramels

1 tsp. water

1/2 cup Sour Cream

1 tsp. ground cinnamon, divided

4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

1 tsp. flour

1/4 tsp. orange zest

20+ won ton wrappers

1 egg white, lightly beaten

2 cups oil

1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

Directions

MICROWAVE caramels and water in medium microwaveable bowl on HIGH 30 sec.; stir until caramels are completely melted. Cool 2 min. Stir in sour cream and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Refrigerate until ready to use.

WHISK cream cheese, pumpkin, brown sugar, flour, zest and remaining cinnamon until well blended. Spoon about 2 tsp. onto center of each won ton wrapper. Moisten edges with egg white; fold diagonally in half. Pinch edges together tightly to seal.

HEAT oil in large saucepan on medium-high heat to 350ºF. Add won tons, in batches; cook 2 to 3 min. or until evenly browned. Drain. Cool slightly or to room temperature. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with caramel sauce.

Make Ahead

Cook won tons as directed. Freeze up to 2 months. When ready to reheat, place frozen won tons on baking sheet. (No need to thaw first.) Bake at 350°F for 15 min. or until heated through.

Becky's Favorite Banana Bread

Once upon a time, a former neighbor shared her banana bread recipe with me. I am thankful to Becky Jackson for providing me with the only banana bread recipe I'll ever use. This banana bread is so incredibly moist that it's hard to imagine someone would bake banana bread any other way. Her recipe includes suggestions for add-ins. I've prepared this recipe a time or two before and I've always added in chocolate chips (I use the mini kind). I've also tossed in toasted coconut. And one day I'll try nuts. If you enjoy a nice slice of banana bread, this one tops the one they sell at Starbucks. Simple to make and easy enough to freeze - if you can manage to get it in the freezer before someone eats it!

Enjoy!

Heat oven to 325F. Lightly grease 2 loaf pans.

Mix together in a med bowl:
* 2 cups flour
* 1 tsp baking soda
* 1/2 tsp baking powder
* 1/2 tsp salt

In another bowl, cream together:
* 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
* 1/2 cup brown sugar
* 1/2 cup white sugar

Add to butter/sugar:
* 2 eggs, slightly beaten
* 2 cups mashed bananas (about 4 bananas - I mash them with a potato masher or fork)
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 1/2 cup light sour cream

Gently mix dry ingredients into wet - do not overmix.

Optional (add some, none, or all):
* 3/4 cup chocolate or butterscotch chips
* Toast 1 cup shredded coconut in a hot, ungreased frypan. Add 3/4 of coconut to batter, and sprinkle the rest on top of the loaves before baking.
* 3/4 cup raisins or dried berries

Fill pans 2/3 full. Bake about 60-70 min or until knife comes out clean.

Country Chicken Casserole

When my husband was a bachelor he didn't do a lot of cooking. I guess he still doesn't. When we married and merged everything from bank accounts to CDs I had to go through his small stack of cookbooks. They were literally all Campbells cookbooks. As a bachelor he needed super simple recipes with super simple directions such as open a can of soup, add chicken, bake. Here is one of the recipes I found on the Campbell's website. Do you think it turned out well? Yes, yes it did...especially after tweeking a few ingredients to suit my liking. I've adapted the recipe to reflect ingredients that I like to cook with.

My husband really liked this meal and was excited that there was left-overs. My preschooler wasn't thrilled the first night I served it. He wanted the corn picked out. The next night he eagerly ate the left-overs, corn and all. Definitely an easy winner that I'll make again next month.

Ingredients

1 can cream of celery soup
1 can cream of chicken soup ( or potato)
1 cup milk
1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves, crushed
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
4 cups cooked cut-up vegetables
2 cups cubed cooked chicken (or turkey)
-sprinkle with poultry seasoning for extra flavor
2 cups Herb Seasoned Stuffing Mix

Directions

1. Stir together first 7 ingredients in a 3-quart shallow baking dish. Top with stuffing.
2. Bake at 400F for 25-35 minutes or until the stuffing is golden brown.

*I just used 2 chicken breasts and a bag of mixed vegetables. I didn't actually measure those ingredients out. I also didn't measure the stuffing mix. I just sprinkled on a liberal amount.

Salted Caramel Chocolate Pretzel Bark

I cruise the Pinterest site...occasionally ;) ...and found this tasty treat. The directions were more complicated than they needed to be so I changed them. I have a similar recipe in my stash so I just borrowed a method from there and it worked. Very yummy and pretty easy to make. I recommend storing the bark in your refrigerator. You can freeze it as well.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter
1 cup light brown sugar
bag of mini pretzels
12-oz bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
sea salt

Directions

1. Wrap a baking sheet with tin foil and spray with nonstick spray. Do NOT substitute parchment paper instead of foil. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. As it melts, cover the baking sheet in an even layer of mini pretzels. (You may not use the entire bag.)
3. Once the butter is melted, add the sugar and stir to incorporate. Allow the sugar and butter to softly simmer and bubble, but don’t let it boil, so adjust the heat accordingly. Stir occasionally. The browning process should take about three minutes from when it starts to bubble.

4. Once the sugar and butter have caramelized, pour the mixture evenly over the pretzels on the baking sheet. Strafing it back and forth down the length of the sheet works well. The caramel hardens pretty quickly so it’s important to pour it as evenly as possible from the start. If you end up with any clumps, just use a spatula to spread the caramel as best you can. Bake the pretzel-caramel mixture in the oven for 5-7 minutes.
5. Remove from oven and immediately pour the chocolate chips over the pretzel-caramel mixture evenly. Let stand for a few minutes.
6. Spread chocolate with a spatula to coat evenly. Sprinkle sea salt over the bark. Place it in the fridge to cool and harden for about 2-3 hours.

Once it’s done, the tin foil should pull off easily and you can break the sheet into smaller, bark-like pieces. Store in refrigerator.

Pasta-Stuffed Bell Peppers

We've all had stuffed peppers before. For my wedding the vegetarian entree choice was stuffed green peppers. This is a different version and it is so good! Tonight I prepared a meal that I've made once before. I found this recipe while flipping through one of my Mother-in-Law's cookbooks while I was sick in bed one day. This is a vegetarian meal that the whole family can eat. I've adapted this recipe since the original version calls for bacon and olives - two unnecessary ingredients. I'll include them as an option and you can decide to use them or not. It also calls for mozzarella. I used regular mozzarella the first time I made this, but this time I decided to kick it up a notch and substitute smoked mozzarella. It was a great call; Just the boost it needed. The recipe serves 4, but here's my recommendation...one stuffed pepper per person if serving with a salad or other side, one and a half to two per person if you aren't serving a side dish. Use any color pepper you want. They all taste great. If you have larger peppers, use a little extra macaroni and/or mozzarella when preparing the ingredients. If you have a little extra of the mixture left over, just stuff a bit more into the peppers.

My husband and I gave this recipe a big thumbs up! Tasty, flavorful, colorful, filling. It doesn't get any better. This would be a great way to use fresh, local produce and easy enough to feed a crowd. I served mine standing up as shown in the photo, but you could cut the peppers in half length-wide and stuff them for a different appearance and to make them easier to serve a larger crowd. My preschooler thought it was edible if eaten with a blueberry for each bite. Eh, whatever it takes, right?

Ingredients

6 slices of bacon, chopped (optional)
1 small onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups organic crushed canned tomatoes
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup uncooked macaroni noodles
1 cup smoked mozzarella, small diced
12 olives, pitted & thinly sliced (optional)
salt & pepper to taste
2 red peppers
2 yellow peppers
EVOO

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350F. Lightly spray an 8" oval or square baking dish.
2. Cook bacon and drain, keeping bacon fat. Add onions to the bacon fat and saute for 5 minutes. Pour off any excess fat.
-If making the vegetarian version, just saute onions in EVOO for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in tomatoes and pepper flakes. Cook over medium-high to high heat until thickened, about 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, cook pasta. Put pasta in mixing bowl, (add bacon), tomato sauce, mozzarella (and olives). Toss to mix. Season with S&P to taste.
5. Cut stem off each pepper and reserve "lids". Remove seeds and ribs.
6. Divide pasta mix evenly among peppers. Put "lids" on. Brush peppers all over with EVOO and set in baking dish.
7. Cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake until peppers are tender, 25-35 minutes longer.

Jalapeno Kettle Chip Crusted Chicken with Jalapeno Ranch

Cruising around the now wildly popular site Pinterest, I found this recipe that I thought might be nice to make for my husband. I thought it might be too spicy for my preschooler so I decided to skip making him the chicken tender version.

I read that the jalapeno ranch dipping sauce might be too hot, in combination with the chicken, for some people so I decided to make the sauce without the pickled jalapenos. I should've put them in. My husband enjoyed the chicken but didn't feel it had the jalapeno-kick that the title would imply. He thought it needed a little something extra. The chicken was moist on the inside and the coating was crunchy on the outside, but the unique flavor of the ingredients used were lacking. This is a recipe that I will try again, but I'll kick up the cayenne and include the pickled jalapenos next time.

Ingredients

For the Jalapeno Ranch Dipping Sauce:
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup lowfat sour cream
1/4 cup (plus 2 tablespoons) lowfat buttermilk
1 tablespoon Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing (the powder)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
dash of cayenne
5-6 hot pickled jalapeno slices, finely chopped

For the Chicken:
4 chicken breasts (about 1 3/4 - 2 pounds total)
1 bag Jalapeno Kettle Chips, crushed
1 cup low fat buttermilk
1 teaspoon salt
dash cayenne

Directions

For the Jalapeno Ranch Dipping Sauce:
Mix ingredients together (adding additional buttermilk until desired consistency). Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the Chicken:
Preheat oven to 375º. Place an oven safe cooling rack in a large jelly roll pan and spray with non-cooking spray. In a bowl, whisk together buttermilk, salt, and cayenne. As needed: pound out chicken breasts to roughly 1/2" thickness and add to buttermilk mixture (toss to coat well).

Place crushed Kettle chips in a shallow baking dish. Pull one piece of chicken at a time out of the buttermilk and gently shake to remove some of the excess. Dip into the chips and coat thoroughly on both sides. Place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat until all chicken breast are thoroughly coated.

Place into oven and bake for 25-35 minutes, until cooked through (cooking times vary based on chicken thickness and actual oven temperature). Serve hot with jalapeno ranch dipping sauce.

Golden Lemon Panko Tilapia Sticks

I buy my son breaded fish sticks. I've tried to be a "good" Mom and bread my own fish sticks, but he has yet to give a recipe the thumbs up. I always use tilapia because of the mild flavor. How do I, being a vegetarian, know that the flavor is mild? Because my husband tells me so...and since he's eating it and I'm not, I'll trust him. So I use a mild flavored fish to try and win my son over. I found this recipe in Bon Appetit Magazine (November 2008). The fish sticks are pan-fried so I thought my little one would be more open to giving Mommy a "happy plate". Ya know...I didn't even attempt to get him to try one. Why not? Because I started dinner too late in the evening and I just quickly tossed something together for him. "Bad" Mommy.

My husband gladly ate it and he actually raved. I had the biggest smile on my face after hearing him describe the flavors and texture. At first he said it was really good (even though it wasn't hot because I took photos of it for 8 minutes). Then after a few more bites he said it was fantastic! He loved the panko coating and the lemon zest in the breading. He squeezed a little more lemon on it too. The batter is made with dark beer but it seems as though that flavor might have gotten lost as it competed with the lemon and cayenne pepper. When he went on to describe all of the effort it must take to pull off my dinners, I got the sense that he really appreciated the work that went into this meal, which to be honest wasn't any big deal. Overall, hubby gave it two thumbs up and asked me to make it again. Yay!

Adapted

Ingredients

2 pounds tilapia fillets, cut into rectangular sticks
3 ounces panko breadcrumbs
1 tbs finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tsp coarse kosher salt
2 tsp finely grated lemon peel
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 large egg whites
1/4 cup dark ale
3 tbs EVOO

Directions

1. Sprinkle fish with salt & pepper. In a large bowl, combine fish sticks with next 5 ingredients.
2. Whisk egg whites and ale in a medium bowl. Add fish to ale mixture and toss to coat. Shake off excess, then toss fish in panko mixture to coat all sides.
3. Heat 3 tbs EVOO in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the fish sticks. Cook until golden and just opaque in center; about 2 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining fish. Adding more oil as necessary.
4. Transfer fish to paper towels on a plate. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Serve immediately (don't take 8 minutes to take photos of it!).

Serve with lemon slices on the side and sweet potato fries.

Pumpkin Stuffed Shells with Hazelnut Cream Sauce

Oh how I love pumpkin. And cream. And pasta.

I get daily emails from allrecipes.com and about once a week a recipe catches my eye. This recipe had many ingredients that I enjoy. I had this recipe on my dinner calendar last month but I pushed it to this month, thinking it might be more involved than I had the energy for, especially after caring for my infant all day.

I decided to start early on dinner preparations in case something "baby related" interrupted me. I toasted the hazelnuts and boiled the pasta shells in the morning. I sauteed the ingredients in the afternoon. By evening, after my husband was off of work, I had time to stuff the shells while I had my husband stirred the sauce with my preschooler while the baby napped. This meal definitely took more coordination on my part than usual.

The results were outstanding. Let me be clearer. The results were OUTSTANDING! If someone had served me this in a restaurant, I'd go back immediately for more. The filling was savory and sweet, but not too sweet. The hazelnut cream sauce did not overpower the pumpkin filling, but rather complimented it. The nuts softened in the sauce but provided a nice texture to the meal. When I read reviews for the recipe, which is supposed to be made with pasta sheets and made into ravioli instead of shells, many people thought the hazelnuts were a waste of money and time (since they need to be toasted and rubbed). I disagree. They made the dish that much better.

I adapted the recipe based on online comments and what spices I already had on-hand.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
• 1 large carrots, cooked and pureed
• 2 onions, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (for inside of filling)
  
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander seed
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pumpkin pie spice
  
• 1 pinch ground cardamom
• 3 tbs unsalted butter
• 5 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons real maple syrup
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 box pasta shells
• salt to taste
• ground black pepper to taste
• 1 cup chopped hazelnuts
• 3 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 cloves garlic, minced (for sauce)
  
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 pinch white pepper
• salt to taste

Directions

1. Cook pasta shells according to instructions.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Toast the hazelnuts in a shallow pan on the middle rack for 10 to 12 minutes, or until brown and fragrant. When they are cool enough to handle, wrap the nuts tightly in a lint-free towel, and vigorously rub nuts against the towel. Continue rubbing until the nuts are almost blond.
3. Saute the onions, garlic, and spices in butter or margarine until the onions are soft. Stir together with the pureed vegetables. Add cheese, maple syrup, egg, salt, and black pepper. Adjust seasoning. Set the filling aside.
4. Cook the cream, garlic, cayenne, and white pepper over high heat; stir often, and adjust heat to keep the cream from boiling over. When the cream is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, add a pinch salt. Adjust seasoning. Remove sauce from heat until you're ready to use it.
5. Stuff the shells with the filling. Cover with sauce and sprinkle the top with half of the hazelnuts. Use all of the hazelnuts if you prefer them softer. I recommend doing this.
   
6. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining toasted hazelnuts, if you didn't use them all already. Serve with a nice salad and garlic bread.