Flourless Chocolate Cake

This is the Williams-Sonoma recipe--right out of their cookbook called "Baking."

We made it tonight and it was DELICIOUS. We topped it with strawberries.

Ingredients:
10 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used chocolate chips...)
3/4 c. butter, cut into pieces
2 t. vanilla
5 large eggs
1 c. white sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9" springform pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease the paper and dust with flour.

2. In a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, combine chocolate and butter. Heat, stirring until mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool. Whisk in vanilla.

3. In a large bowl, combine the eggs and sugar. Using an electric mixer set on medium-high speed, beat until the mixture lightens in color and triples in volume, about six minutes. Pour the chocolate mixture over the egg mixture. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold them together. Pour and scrap the batter into prepared pan.

4. Bake until the top forms a crust and cracks and a toothpick inserted in the center come out with some wet batter attached, about 45 minutes. transfer to a wire wrack. Immediately run a knife around the pan sides to loosen the cake; it will fall in the center. Press down on the edges to even the top. Let cool.

5. Release the pan sides and remove them. Trim off any crumbly edges. Invert a flat plate over the cake and then invert them together. Lift off the pan bottom and peel off the parchment paper. Frost if desire.

6. Refrigerate about 1 hour. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Sweet Potato Casserole

I've been meaning to post this on here for months, but just came across it again. I'm not the biggest fan of sweet potatoes cooked...well...sweetly. (I'm more of an oven-fries kind of girl).... So when I was assigned sweet potatoes at Thanksgiving, I panicked a little. Bless AllRecipes.com, though, where I found this recipe. It got lots of compliments, and even I enjoyed it! (That's saying a lot, for the record). =)

casserole
5 sweet potatoes
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used 2)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream

topping
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans

1. Boil or bake sweet potatoes until soft. In a large bowl, mash.
2. Preheat oven to 350
3. To the mashed sweet potatoes, add salt, butter, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, sugar, and heavy cream {I MIGHT have added an extra splash or two of cream...and it MIGHT have been mighty tasty to do so}. Mix together thoroughly.
4. Spread mixture in a lightly greased 9x13" pan
5. In medium bowl, combine butter, flour, brown sugar and pecans. Mix with a pastry blender to the consistency of coarse meal. Sprinkle over potato mixture.
6. Bake for 30 minutes, until topping is crisp and lightly browned.

Pear Bunnies

My mom used to make these for us. Kids think they are great. Not to mention they are pretty good for you. They would make a great Easter treat.

Ingredients:
1 Can Pear Halfs
Raisins
Cottage Cheese
Carrots (I used mini carrots)
Lettuce

Directions:
Take a leaf of lettuce and lay it nicely on the plate.
Place one pear half on top of the lettuce
Use the raisins to make eyes and a nose.
Put a dollop of cottage cheese at the large end of the pear half for a tail.
Take a vegetable peeler and "peel" the carrot (Not really peel it, but make strips of carrot). These are the ears.

Enjoy.

Chicken with Prosciutto, Mushrooms, and Cream Sauce

I got the basics of this recipe from Allrecipes, but modified it to fit my needs. It turned out great - both Chris and I LOVED it. It was actually pretty easy, too.

Ingredients:
3 T butter, melted
8 chicken thighs
salt and pepper to taste
8 slices prosciutto, thinly sliced (you can also use bacon)
8 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 tablespoons)
1 8oz. package of sliced mushrooms (I used baby bella, oyster, and shiitake mushrooms, and it was AWESOME)
1/4 c. dry white wine or low-sodium chicken broth (optional)
1 c. sour cream

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F. Drizzle butter into a casserole dish. Sprinkle mushrooms into dish. Season chicken with salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon garlic (don't go overboard on salt here, especially if you're using prosciutto, since it's already a salty meat). Wrap chicken thighs in prosciutto, and place in casserole dish on top of mushrooms. Sprinkle the remaining garlic on top of chicken.
Bake in a preheated oven until juices run clear, about 1 hour. Remove chicken and mushrooms to a platter, and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.
Pour drippings from casserole into a skillet set over medium-low heat. Whisk in wine/broth and sour cream, and cook until warmed through, about 5 to 7 minutes. Pour over chicken, and serve.

African Chickpea & Spinach Soup (Vegan)

2 Tbs olive oil
1 med onion, chopped (about 1 c.)

1 clove garlic, minced (or 1/2 tsp if you are using prepacked minced garlic)

1/4 c. smooth natural peanut butter

2 c. low sodium veggie broth, divided

1 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp coriander

1 15 oz. can chickpeas (AKA garbanzo beans), rinsed & drained

1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes

2 c. spinach, chopped

1/2 c. chopped cilantro

1) Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onion, sauté 5 minutes, or until soft and golden. Add garlic, and cook 2-3 more minutes until garlic is soft and lightly browned

2)Blend peanut butter and 1/2 cup broth in food processor (or blender) to make a smooth paste. Blend remaining broth into mixture.

3) Add paprika, coriander, and cayenne to onion mixture, sauté one minute or until fragrant. Stir in peanut butter mixture, chickpeas, and tomatoes.

4)Simmer 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in spinach and cilantro just before serving.

***I would say this needs to simmer at least 5 minutes, but can simmer as long as you need it to; I simmered the soup for 20+ minutes. I added two can of chickpeas to give it more substance. I used only half of the spinach...oh, and I used frozen, prechopped spinach. And my cilantro was slimy, so I didn't use any. ***

***I pulled the coriander jar from my spice rack to find little dried seed pod looking things. I didn't know what to do with them, so I measured 1 tsp then kind of crushed them with the back of a spoon. Maybe you have skillz with coriander, but I don't...so that's what I did. Seemed to work***

***This was really good paired with cornbread. And I have found the cornbread of my dreams. I got it at Costco, it is Marie Callenders. So good. So tasty. ***

Seven Layer Jello Salad

Ok... I debated posting this because this recipe is next to sacred in our household... but for the sake of having it readily available, here you go. Rainbow Jello. A staple for holiday meals in our home.

Ingredients:
4 sm. boxes jello - cherry, orange, lemon, lime
2 c. milk
1 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 envelope Knox gelatin in 1/4 c. cold water
2 c. sour cream

Directions:
Dissolve lime jello in 1 c. hot water. Stir and add 1/2 c. cold water. Put in greased 13 x 9 glass pan. Refrigerate. Scald 2 c. milk, add 1 c. sugar. Remove from heat and dissolve Knox gelatin mixture. Add sour cream and vanilla and beat with beaters until smooth. When lime jello is set, add 1-1/2 c. sour cream mixture on top. Pour very gently to avoid disturbing jello. Make lemon jello next with 1 c. boiling water and 1/2 c. cold water. Set on cupboard until white mixture is set. Alternate white mixture and jello in the following order: lime, white, lemon, white, orange, white, cherry. Voila!

Number Of Servings: 6 - because we each eat about 4 squares each.

Preparation Time: All day

Cheesecake

Crust

2 cups Honey Graham Cracker Crumbs
1 stick butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
2 handfuls pecan crushed

1. Mix well
2. Press onto bottom and sides of springform pan
   

Filling

4- 8 oz. packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond flavoring

1. Mix well.
2. Spread into crust.
3. Place in cold oven and turn on at 350 degrees for 30 minutes

Topping

1 pint sour cream

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon almond flavoring

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

1. Mix well.
2. Take cheesecake out of oven.
3. Pour on topping and spread evenly.
4. Return to oven and bake for 8 more minutes.
5. Remove and allow to cool a little before placing into refrigerator.
6. Chill at least 4 hours, but best if chilled 6-8 hours or overnight.

Focaccia and Chicken Salad

Bread Ingredients

1 can refrigerated pizza dough *
4 large cloves garlic, minced

4 TBS olive oil

1 TBS dried rosemary

* I made dough in the bread-maker

Bread Preparation

1. Roll dough into a circle and place on greased cookie sheet.


2. Mix garlic, olive oil and rosemary, and brush 1/2 the mixture onto the bread dough.


3. Cut the dough into quarters (making one horizontal cut and one vertical cut.)Fold each quarter over, making a triangle out of each piece.


4. Brush remaining olive oil mixture over the tops.


5. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until light golden brown.

Chicken Salad Ingredients

1 Avocado, peeled and sliced

3 boiled chicken breasts, shredded (The recipes actually calls for a drained 12 oz. can of dark and white meat chicken.)

2 Celery stalks, chopped into small bits

Red wine vinegar

Mayonnaise

2 Green onion stalks

(I think sliced grapes or chopped almonds would be fun to add sometime.)

Chicken Salad Preparation

1. Mix chicken, celery and green onions with desired amount of mayonnaise. (The recipe calls for 1/3 cup, but I bet I used more than that.)


2. Add a few dashes of Red Wine vinegar to a create a subtle flavor. (Probably just about 2 teaspoons.)


3. Let refrigerate while focaccia is baking. (Even more flavorful and delicious the second day.)

Sandwich Preparation

Peel open baked focaccia and add sliced avocado, sliced tomato and desired amount of chicken salad. (I think a small amount is best, so the focaccia's flavor can come through.)