Banana Cheesecake

This cheesecake was a lot different from your normal cheesecake.  It has a very strong banana taste.

• 2 Large Ripe Bananas and 3 Small Red Bananas (or 3 large regular bananas if red bananas aren't available)
• 1 1/2 Cups Vanilla Wafers
• 1/2 Cup Macadamia Nuts
• 1/2 Cup Dark Brown Sugar
• 5 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Melted
• 24 Ounces Cream Cheese ( 3 - 8 oz. Packages) soft
• 3/4 Cup White Sugar
• 5 Large Eggs
• 1 Tablespoon Dark Rum  
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and have a 10-inch springform pan ready. Put the bananas (unpeeled) on a baking sheet and roast in oven until they turn black (about 15 minutes). Take out of oven and let cool. Peel and set aside.

Turn oven down to 325 degrees.

Put macadamia nuts in a food processor and give one or two short pulses. Add the vanilla wafers and brown sugar. Using short pulses, chop the ingredients until they are a uniform texture. It's ok if you have some big pieces left. Put mixture in a large bowl. Use a fork to mix in the melted butter. Press wet mixture into the bottom of the springform pan. You want an even layer across the bottom for your crust.

Using a hand or stand mixer, cream together the cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each egg. Add the roasted bananas, the vanilla, and rum. Beat until smooth.

Pour the filling into the springform pan over the crust you pressed in earlier. Smooth the top. Place pan on a baking sheet and put in the oven. Bake for approximately 1 1/2 hours. When done, the cheesecake will be a light golden brown on top and will pull slightly away from the sides of the pan.

Cool cheesecake in pan at room temperature for about 15 minutes and then place in refrigerator. Keep the cheesecake in the springform pan and cool for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. When you are ready to serve, remove springform pan and cut with a hot knife.

I topped mine with homemade whip cream.  Pour heavy whipping cream in a bowl and beat with hand mixer.  Add sugar and vanilla until it has a desired taste.  Gradually beat in 1/2 bag of gelatin.

Crunchy Baked Chicken

This is a very easy chicken dish to make.  Feel free to bread it the night before and just bake in the oven.  I match this with a baked potato and carrots.  It is also excellent with spaghetti.

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts, pounded out
2 cups Kellogs Corn Flake Crumbs
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 cup of milk
Salt & Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix together Kellogs, paprika, salt and pepper.
Pour milk into a separate dish. Dip chicken breast into milk and then coat with Kellogs mixture.  Place into a 9 x 13" pan, coated with non-stick cooking spray.

Bake for about 15 minutes, the chicken has been pounded and will dry out quickly.

Apple Bread with Streusel Topping

Recipe From Cooking in Style the Costco Way.

This is the first time I have made apple bread.  It turned out to be excellent and extremely moist.

Ingredients:

Bread

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter (one stick)

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 apples of your choice, peeled and chospped

Streusal Topping

4 tablespoons flour

4 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter

4 tables spoons brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare the topping in a small bowl. Cut dry ingredients into butter and set aside.

Cream butter and sugar in a mixing bowl, slowly beat in eggs, lemon juice and vanilla.  Add the flour mixture and stir until moistened.  Fold apple pieces into bread batter.

Place half of mixture into a greased 9 x 5" loaf pan.  Sprinkle half of topping.  Spoon remaining batter in pan, top with the rest of the topping.  

Bake for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

The Perfect Way to Figure Out Dinner

This isn't a recipe post, but is probably even better.  I had found this site 3 or 4 years, back when it first started.  This site helps to make planning dinner a lot easier. How many times have you come home to make dinner and can't figure out what you want, or have no time or energy to run to the grocery store?

On this site, you tell them what you have on hand and they give you dinner ideas!  Use up what you have on hand!

Check it out!  Supercook

I promise, you'll love it!

Sweet and Sour Chicken

This is a recipe found online awhile ago, not sure where. I have changed the recipe a lot and made it my own. Feel free to use pork in place of the chicken.  Serves 4.

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, sliced

1/2 onion, split into wedges

2 green onions

1 can pineapple, including juice

1/2 cup ketchup

1/4 cup distilled white vinegar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons cornstarch, blend with a tiny bit of water to avoid lumps

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon mustard powder

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

I used a skillet, but feel free to use a frying pan.  Cook the chicken that you have cut into strips, salt and pepper as desired.

On the stove, over medium high heat, mix together pineapple juice, ketchup, vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire, garlic, mustard and ginger.  Whisk as the mixture heats up.  Once it starts bubbling, gradually whisk in your cornstarch mixture.  Remove from heat.

Add sweet and sour sauce to your cooked chicken, then add in pineapple chunks, onion and green pepper.  Cover with lid and let the vegetable cook down until onions are almost completely transparent and green peppers are no longer crispy.  Serve over rice.

*karisa*

French Onion Soup

Recipe from Nordstrom's Friends & Family Cookbook.

I am not a huge French Onion Soup fan, but made this for my husband.  This is pretty good and was very easy to make.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 yellow onions, halved crosswise and thinly sliced

1 leek, white and light green part only, thinly sliced

8 cups canned low sodium beef broth

1/8 teaspoon Tabasco

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Salt & Pepper to taste

12 baguette slices, 1/2 in thick toasted

1 lb shredded Gruyere Cheese

1 teaspoon fresh snipped chives

In a 6 to 8 quart saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter.  Add garlic and saute, stirring frequently until tan, about 1 minutes.  Add the onions and leeks, stir frequently, until very soft and slightly caramelized.  This should take about 30 minutes.  Add the broth and bring to a simmer for 15 minutes.  Add Tabasco and Worcestershire, season to taste with salt and pepper.  Simmer for around 10 minutes longer.

While the soup is simmering, position a rack in the upper half of the oven and preheat to 425.

Ladle the soup into individual ovenproof crocks.  Place 2 baguette slices on top of soup in each crock.  Mound the cheese evenly across the top, covering the bread completely.  Place the crocks on a sturdy baking sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until cheese is slightly browned.

Carefully remove your baking sheet from the oven and allow the crocks to cool for a few minutes before serving.

*karisa*

Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies

Original recipe found here. 

I don't have a finished image of these brownies, but they were good and extremely quick and easy to make.  I recommend these if you want to put together and easy dessert.

Brownie Ingredients:

1/3 cup butter
2 squares unsweetened chocolate
2/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping:

1/3 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon flour
1 egg

Brownies:

Melt butter and chocolate together. Set aside to cool.

In a small bowl mix flour, baking powder and salt together.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together until light. Add the vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture, and the cooled chocolate mixture.

Pour into a greased 8 inch square pan

Topping:

Beat all ingredients together until smooth.

Drop spoonfuls of peanut butter mixture over the brownie layer. Run a knife through the cake to marble.

Bake at 350 degrees F. for 25 to 30 minutes. Cool, and cut in squares.

Red Velvet Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting

I wanted to find a different brownie recipe and started looking.  I came across this recipe on another blog and decided to give it a try.  I made thicker brownies in an 8 x 8" pan.  I would definitely suggest the 9 x 13" for thinner brownies. Mine ended up tasting more like fudge.  After they sat out for a day, they tasted a lot better and not as thick.  These brownies are VERY moist.  The cream cheese frosting recipe can be found here.

1 can dark red kidney beans
1 1lb. 2.3oz. box Brownie Mix
2 tablespoons Cocoa Powder
1 1oz. bottle red food dye
water

Preheat oven to 350'. Spray bottom only of a 9x13" pan. Rinse and drain beans well. Rinse can. Return rinsed beans to can, fill can with water to within 1/2 inch of top of can. Pour into blender and blend WELL, and then blend again, really well! You shouldn't see any grains or skins. Blend dye in with bean mixture. Poor brownie mix and cocoa into large bowl and add bean and dye mixture and mix well.  Your kidney beans are replacing the water, eggs, etc called for on the box. Poor into baking pan and bake on bottom rack of oven for 24-26 minutes. Allow to cool completely and then flip onto a cutting board and freeze for about an hour. They will be flat, but shouldn't be dry.

*karisa*

Easy Cream Cheese Frosting

This is the recipe that I used on the red velvet brownies.  It is extremely easy and makes enough to spread on the brownies in the 9 x 13" pan.

1/2 cup cream cheese, whipped

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup powder sugar

Whip the cream cheese and then add the rest of the ingredients in the order shown.  Sift powder sugar to avoid lumps.

*karisa*

Breakfast Egg & Sausage Casserole

This is a breakfast, or dinner dish that my mom has made in the past.  It is one of my favorites.  I substitute the sausage with ground turkey, and the eggs with egg substitute.

Ingredients:

4 slices white bread, cubed

1 lb sausage or ground turkey

1 tomato, chopped

1 bunch of green onion chopped

12 eggs, beaten

1 cup shredded cheese, use any cheese you would like

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix together all ingredients and put into a 9 x 13'' pan, sprayed with non stick cooking spray.  Refrigerate overnight.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake for an hour or until firm.

*karisa*

Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

lOriginal recipe found here.

 These cupcakes are excellent!  Please feel free you use any frosting, I thought chocolate sounded good with it.

Ingredients:
3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 1/8 cups canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, mashed
1 1/2 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a standard sized muffin pan with muffin liners or spray with cooking spray. In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients. Mix until just blended.Fill muffin cups a little more than 3/4 full. Bake for about 20 - 24 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool completely.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting recipe can be found here.


*karisa*

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Adapted from Schweet 'N Savory.

This frosting was really good and extremely easy to make.  It is  a great recipe for a quick chocolate frosting.

    •    2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
    •    3 tablespoons cocoa
    •    1/4 cup butter
    •    5 tablespoons heavy cream
    •    1 tablespoon vanilla

*karisa*

Mac N Cheese

 This is pretty basic homemade macaroni and cheese and very easy to make.

Ingredients:

1 package of pasta, your choice on noodles.  I use whatever I have, in this case, bow tie

1 cup sour cream (I used low-fat)

2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded

8 strips of bacon (bake in the oven at 375 for about 15 minutes, it will turn out crispy)

1 can of condensed cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional

Salt & Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook pasta as directed.  Lessen the time by a couple minutes to keep firm.  Mix pasta in with the rest of the ingredients.  Pour into a 9 x 13 in pan that you have sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.  Bake until cheese bubbles around the edges, should take about 45 minutes.

*karisa*

BBQ Nachos

Nachos are my favorite food, and on the BBQ they are even better.  It gives them a smoky BBQ flavor that is very unique.  Serves 4-6









Ingredients:

1 chicken breast

1 cup BBQ sauce
1 1/2 cups of cheese, your choice.  I used a mixture of pepper jack, mozzarella, and cheddar

1/4 onion diced

1 small tomato

1 can black beans, drained

1 small can of corn kernels, drained

2 tablespoons cilantro, diced

1/2 bag of tortilla chips, about 3 large handfuls

1/2 cup nacho jalapenos, optional

Cook your chicken breast in a crock pot with the BBQ sauce, you want to cook until it shreds easily.  This can be accomplished at a high temperature (250) for around an hour, or a low temperature (170) for a couple of hours.  Shred the chicken and set aside.

I use a charcoal BBQ and let it heat up for around 30 minutes, while I am preparing the nachos.

Take a baking sheet, round pizza pan, whatever you would like to place your nachos on and fits in your BBQ with the lid on.  I have a platter that I  received as a gift from Williams Sonoma.  Cover this with foil.

Place 1 1/2 large handfuls of tortilla chips on your tray.  First top with cheese, if you start with your other ingredients, your nachos will be soggy.  Then begin to add other ingredients, in whatever fashion you would like.  At this point only add half.  Repeat by adding the second layer of chips, and the rest of your ingredients.  Top with a handful of cheese and cilantro.  (The photo to the right used half of the ingredients that I put above, I only cook for two and did not need that amount of food)

Place the pan on your BBQ, directly over your coals.  Place lid down, with vents closed.  It will take 30-40 minutes and your nachos will be complete.  Serve with salsa, sour cream and guacamole.  This is an excellent appetizer, or use it as a dinner.

It is also incredibly easy, but different from your typical nacho flavor.  Enjoy!

*karisa*

Chicken Enchiladas

 These enchiladas are extremely easy and taste great.

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts
1/4 onion chopped
2 cans (12 oz) mild red enchilada sauce
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
8 flour tortilla shells

In a crock pot or slow cooker, add chicken breasts, onion, and 1 can of enchilada sauce.

Leave in the crock pot for 3-4 hours, until chicken shreds easily.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Take shredded chicken sauce and continue to add to each tortilla shell.  Roll up tortillas and place into 9 x 13 pan or dish.  Continue until you have filled each of the 8 tortillas evenly.  Top with 2nd can of enchilada sauce and cheese.
Place in the oven until sauce is bubbling on the sides and cheese is melted.

Personally, I like to switch to broil for a couple minutes to brown the cheese on top.  Serve with whatever toppings you would like.  Sour cream, guacamole and salsa!
*karisa*

Easy Calzones!

Feel free to add whatever you would like in your calzone.  The one that I made for the blog was pepperoni.  Get creative!  Add whatever you would like.  Note that if you are using vegetable, be careful not to add too many, it will make your calzone watery.

Ingredients:

1 loaf of Rhodes frozen bread dough

1 small can of tomato paste

1 cup mozerella cheese

Pepperoni

1 1/2 tablespoons pizza seasoning

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 tablespoon shredded Parmesan cheese


Let the rhodes bread dough un-thaw in the refrigerator over night.  Stretch the dough out onto a cookie sheet.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl, mix together tomato paste, garlic and pizza seasoning.

Spread paste onto one half of the spread out dough, then add a layer of pepperoni, 1/2 the cheese.  Layer again with pepperoni and then the rest of the cheese.

Fold the other half of the dough over the ingredients you just added.  Fold the dough in around the edge to form a half circle.

Brush the top with olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Place in the middle of the oven until golden brown.

*karisa*

Spicy Barbecue Chicken

Adapted from On the Grill
This recipe is pretty spicy, and recommend it only if you think you can handle it.

Ingredients:

4 lbs chicken breasts
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
2 tablespoons chile powder
1 teaspoon Thai chile paste
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
Salt & Pepper to taste

Whisk together all ingredients.  Marinate chicken for 1 hour sitting out, or 6 hours refrigerated.  Barbeque chicken breasts.  I flipped frequently to avoid marinade burning on chicken.


*karisa*

Chimichurri

Recipe adapted from On The Grill

This is a sauce/marinade originally from Argentina.  I added it on top of barbecue pork and it was excellent!

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh parsley

1 cup fresh cilantro

4 cloves garlic

4 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 red pepper - roasted, peeled seeded and diced

1 tablespoon red peppers flakes

Salt & Pepper

First start with roasting your red pepper.  I placed mine, skin down, on the barbecue for around 10 minutes.

In a food processor ( I used a blender, which worked fine) combine the parsley, cilantro, butter and garlic.  Pulse several times to combine the ingredients.  Scrape the sides of the bowl, add salt and pepper.  Add the vinegar and again pulse to mix in.  Keep your ingredient running and slowly add in the olive oil until emulsified.  Pour into a small serving bowl and mix in your red pepper flakes and roasted red peppers.

Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

*karisa*

Karisa's Quiche

I pulled this recipe together from watching a Food Network Show on Quiche's.  I took a little bit from each one they showed and turned it into my own.  It is excellent!

See Pie Dough Recipe

Quiche Ingredients:
4 eggs
1 cup half and half (I used fat free)
1 cup sour cream (I used fat free)
1 cup ham cut into cubes
1 cup bacon, diced
1/4 green bell pepper diced
1/4 red bell pepper diced
1/2 onion diced
1 cup mushrooms sliced
2 tablespoons minced cilantro
1/2 jalepeno pepper, minced
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese
1/2 stick butter melted (4 tablespoons)
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Beat together eggs, and half and half. Set aside.

Mix melted butter with mushrooms, onion and peppers.  Bake on cookie sheet for about 10 minutes, until browned.  Remove from oven

In a separate bowl, mix ham, bacon, peppers, onion, mushrooms, jalapeno, cilantro, butter, cheese and sour cream.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Once mixed, fill pie crust.


Top off with the egg mixture.  Place in the oven until browned, mine took about an hour.  Once you remove, let the quiche stand for 10-15 minutes.  I did not wait the full 15 minutes, and due to all the veggies, it was a little watery.  The pieces that stayed in the pan were perfect!

*karisa*