Wednesday, January 6, 2016

GINGERBREAD COOKIES with an ORANGE ZEST twist

I love this recipe, especially the orange zest twist. They remind me of the European biscuiti/keksz that I used to enjoy as a kid with a cup of hot tea. #timemachine #takesmebacktomychildhood

Image result for gingerbread

INGREDIENTS:   

  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 1/2 Tbs. orange zest
  • 2 Tbs. dark corn syrup
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 tsp. baking soda
  • 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp. salt


DIRECTIONS:

  1. Cream the butter and the sugar together. Add the egg and mix well. Mix in the orange zest and dark corn syrup. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, ground cloves, and salt. Mix until well combined. Chill dough for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.
  2. Preheat oven to 375 F (190 C). Grease cookie sheets. On a light floured surface, roll dough out to 1/4 inch thick. Cut into desired shapes using cookie cutters. Place cookies 1 inch apart in the prepared cookie sheet.
  3. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes. If you want them softer bake them for 7 minutes. I like them both ways. 

WHITE CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY CREAM CHEESE CUPCAKES

I made these cupcakes twice during the holidays because they were so delicious!!!! They are relatively easy to make, and they are super good refrigerated. Enjoy!!!




INGREDIENTS  
  • For the Crust:
  • 1½ cups Oreo cookie crumbs, cream centers removed (about 22-23 finely crushed cookies)
  • 6 TB salted butter, melted
  • For the Custard:
  • Half bag (6 oz) pure white chocolate chips
  • ¼ cup half and half
  • 1½ (12oz total) blocks whole cream cheese, softened to almost melted
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • For the Raspberry Sauce:
  • 5 oz frozen or fresh raspberries, or berry mix
  • 1 TB granulated sugar
  • 1½ tsp cornstarch dissolved in 3 TB water

DIRECTIONS
  1. Make Crust: In a large bowl, mix fine cookie crumbs with butter until well incorporated. Should resemble wet sand. Scoop 1 slightly rounded tsp crumb mixture evenly into 48 lined mini cupcake tins, or into 12 lined cupcake tins. Press down to form bottom crusts.
  2. Preheat oven to 325F, with rack on lower middle position.
  3. Make Raspberry Sauce: Combine raspberries or mix berries, sugar, and dissolved cornstarch in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring often. Once mixture is thickened, remove from heat and set aside.
  4. Make Custard: In heavy saucepan, melt white chocolate chips together with half and half on low heat, stirring often. Remove from heat. In large bowl, mix together nearly melted cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add vanilla and the melted white chocolate mixture.
  5. Scoop 1 rounded TB custard evenly into lined mini muffin tins. Dollop ½ tsp raspberry sauce over the custard. Gently use a thin knife to lightly swirl.
  6. Bake 20 minutes or until tops are puffy and no longer sticky upon light touch. Let cool to room temp and then cover and chill in fridge. If keeping longer than a couple of days, you can freeze them. Top with whipped cream and serve.
Serves: 48 mini or 12 regular size cupcakes

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Sour Cream Drops

The first time I made this they shortly disapeared. They are delicious and easy to make.


Ingredients:
1/4 cup shortening
3/4 cups sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpuse flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt


Burnt Sugar Frosting:
2 T Butter or margarine
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3 to 4 tsp hot water


  1. In a mixing bowl, cream shortening, sugar, and egg. Add sour cream and vanilla.
  2. Combine dry ingredients; add to the creamed mixture. Chill for at least one hour.
  3. Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 in. appartonto greased baking sheets.
  4. Bake at 425 F for 7-8 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire rack to cool.
For Frosting:
  • melt butter in a small saucepan until golden brown
  • stir in the sugar, vanilla and enough water to achieve a spreading consistency. Frost cooled cookies.
Yield: about 2 & 1/2 dozen.

Mexican Beef and Bean Stew

This recipe is one of my favorites. We had no left overs, wich rarely hapens in our family.


Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds beef for stew, cut into 1-inch cubes.
2 T all purpose flour
1 T vegetable oil
1 cup coarsely chopped onions
1 can pinto beans
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 can Campbell's Condensed Beef Consomme
1 cup chunky Salsa
2 T chilli powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. garlic powder or 2 cloves garlic, minced


  1. Coat beef with flour. Heat oil in skillet. Add beef and cook until browned.
  2. Place beef, onion, beans, corn, consomme, salsa, chilli powder, cumin and garlic in the Crock Pot
  3. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on High for 4-5 hours until done.
Serves:6


Scalloped Potatoes and Ham

This recipe turned out pretty good. My kids loved it too and aprove of it.


Ingredients:
6 large russet potatoes
1 ham steak (about 1 1/2 pound), cut into cubes
1 can (10.3/4oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 soup can water
1 cup sredded Cheddar Cheese
Grill seasoning, to taste


  1. Layer potatoes and ham in Crock Pot slow cooker.
  2. Combine soup, water, cheese, and seasoning in a large mixing bowl. Pour mixture over potatoes and ham.
  3. Cover and cook on high 3 1/2 hours until potatoes are fork tender. Turn crock pot slow cooker to low and continue cooking 1 hour

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Hungarian Fried Potatoes

This is another recipe that transported me to my childhood. My father used to make the best fried potatoes ever and I remember eating them often. It is so easy and fast to make. My daughter even told me that I should make it more often because she likes it. It is good with pickles or sauerkraut.

Ingredients:
  • 1 onion, finelly chopped
  • 2 T rendered bacon fat (or oil)
  • 4 medium potatoes, sliced or diced
  • 2 tsp. paprika
  • salt to taste
  • 1/2 cup water
  • dash of pepper
  • 1 cup or more Kielbasa (optional)
In a large frying pan, brown onion in the bacon fat. Add kielbasa, potatoes, 1 tsp of paprika, and salt. Cover tightly; cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat, add water. pepper, and remaining paprika. Cover and cook for 10 minutes longer or until potaoes are tender. Serves 4

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Animal cracker roulade: Keksz Szalami, Salam de Biscuiti.

 
 
I have to brag about this recipe: it has taken me back to my childhood. I have found this hungarian recipe and I tried it out. I converted the ingredients and I also put my own twist to it. I also copied the picture; I just don't seem to be very good with the camera lately. Did I say that I LOVE This Recipe!!!! Enough said, :D
 
 
Ingredients:
  • 1 pound animal crackers
  • 10 oz water or milk
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup cocoa
  • 1- 1/4  cup butter
  • 1/2 cup nuts (or a bit more)
  • 1/2 cup turkish delight (or a bit more
  • Rum extract (you can find it at European stores; Rum Aroma)
  • (you could also put raisins instead of the turkish delight, I never made it woth raisins, but others have)
Mix togerhter the milk, sugar, and cocoa; bring it to boil. Add the butter and boil till the butter is melted. Add the crackers, the nuts, the turkish delight, and the rum extract. The nuts and the turkish delight are optional, but I don't think they taste as good without it.
Roll it into 2 roulades and place them, one at a time, on a clear plastic wrap. Roll them up tightly. Refrigarate for at least one hour.

 
And this is the original recipe in Hungarian; I want to keep it for future reference. I modified it a little bit to make it just as I remember it growing up. :D
 
 
_______________________________________________________________
Hozzávalók: 50 dkg háztartási keksz tördelve (fele porrá törve, fele darabosra törve), 3 dl víz vagy tej, 20 cukor, 4 dkg kakaó, 25 dkg margarin (vagy vaj), 10 dkg mazsola vagy dió, rumaroma ízlés szerint

Elkészítése: A tejet a cukorral és a kakaóval elkavarjuk és felforraljuk, hozzáadjuk a margarint és felolvasztjuk. Végül hozzákavarjuk a kekszet és a mazsolát. Egy fóliát kiterítünk és a masszából kis rúdnyi (két rúd lesz ebből a masszából) formát alakítunk és szorosan feltekerjük. Néhány órára hideg helyre rakjuk, majd tálaláskor szépen szeleteljük.

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Zucchini Brownies

Ingredients
    For the brownies:
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups shredded zucchini (1 large or 2 small zucchinis)
  • 1 tablespoon water*
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional
  • For the frosting:
  • 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened*
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. Directions:
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13 inch baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  4. Using an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the oil, sugar, and vanilla until well combined. Add the dry ingredients and stir. Fold in the zucchini. If your mixture is still very powdery, add up to 1/4 cup hot water (start with 1 tablespoon and work up from there, stirring well after each addition). The batter will be crumbly, but shouldn't be powdery. Add walnuts, if desired.
  5. Bake 25-30 minutes until the brownies spring back when gently touched.
  6. To make the frosting: Mix softened butter, cocoa, and powdered sugar with a hand mixer. Mix in milk and vanilla. Spread over cooled brownies. Cut into squares.

Lamb Chops

   

 INGREDIENTS:
                  
  • 3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried basil 
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  •  Salt and pepper to taste 
  • 4 lamb chops (3/4 inch thick) 
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil  
  • 1/4 cup minced shallots   
  • 1/3 cup aged balsamic vinegar            
  • 3/4 cup chicken broth                                                    
  • 1 tablespoon butter
 

Directions

  1. In a small bowl or cup, mix together the rosemary, basil, thyme, salt and pepper. Rub this mixture onto the lamb chops on both sides. Place them on a plate, cover and set aside for 15 minutes to absorb the flavors.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place lamb chops in the skillet, and cook for about 3 1/2 minutes per side for medium rare, or continue to cook to your desired doneness. Remove from the skillet, and keep warm on a serving platter.
  3. Add shallots to the skillet, and cook for a few minutes, just until browned. Stir in vinegar, scraping any bits of lamb from the bottom of the skillet, then stir in the chicken broth. Continue to cook and stir over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, until the sauce has reduced by half. If you don't, the sauce will be runny and not good. Remove from heat, and stir in the butter. Pour over the lamb chops, and serve.

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Pumpkin knot rolls

I made this Pumpkin rolls and although I think I forgot to put salt in it, it turned out pretty amazing. It is easy to make. I took the recipe out of my famous Halloween magazine that I have been using for at least 5 years. I can't believe I missed this recipe and many others that are on my list of musts for this year.



  • 2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
  • 1 cup warm milt (110*-115)
  • 1/3 cup butter softened
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 cup canned pumpkin
  • 3 eggs divided
  • 1-1/2 tsp. salt
  • 5 1/2 - 6 cups flour
  • 1 Tbs. cold water
  • Sesame seed or poppy seed
In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Add the butter, sugar, pumpkin, 2 eggs, salt, and 3 cups flower. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn unto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 to 8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turn once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Turn unto a lightly floured surface; divide in half. Shape each portion into 12 ball. roll each ball into a 10 inch rope; tie it into a knot and tuck ends under. Place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, beat water and remaining egg. Brush over rolls. Sprinkle with sesame seeds or poppy seeds. Bake at 350 for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks.

Yield: 2 dozen

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Slow cooker Roast Beef

INGREDIENTS:
Original recipe makes 6 servings       

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Zacusca/Zakuszka

Zacusca is a vegetable spread very popular in Estern Europe. When I was a kid my mom used to make it and I remember it took a long time. Now I have an easier way to make it and according to me it tasts just as good as the old fashioned one. My mom gave me this recipe and I love it. People usually cook all the vegetables in the oven and then they clean them and chop them, is quite messy. I use a meat grinder (probably you can use a food processor).

Ingredients:
1 or 2 Onions
Red, green, yellow, orange peppers (I used 2 bags of the colorful small peppers from Walmart, but you can use 10-15 big ones)
1 Eggplant
1 small can of tomatoe paste
salt
1 1/2 Tbs black pepper corns
4 pc. Bay leaf
up to 1/2 cup of oil

Wrap the eggplant in aluminiun foil and put it in the oven at 400 F. Leave it in for about 45 minutes to 1  hour; they have to be soft. After they are done, peel the black skin off and with a wooden knife (if you have one) cut it in small pieces. Gut the peppers and grind them (I think a food procesor would work as well). You can also put the eggplent through the grinder (foodprocessor). Brown the onions with some oil (not too brown though). Add all the other ingredients and boil it till everything is soft. Make sure you put enough oil, but also make sure it doesn't come out too oily. Serve on bread and enjoy!!!

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Energy bites

http://gimmesomeoven.com/no-bake-energy-bites/

I want to try this recipe this week. I am sure I will love it. :D

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Yellow Squash Casserole

 
What do you do when you have too much yellow squash? You try to find as many cool and delicious recipes as you can.  I found this awesome casserole that totally changed my thinking about squash. I never liked it as much because it seemed that I always had too much of it and never any good recipes. This is going to be on my list of favorite recipes. :D


Side note: This recipe can be made ahead of time and refrigerated. Add the stuffing mix just before serving.

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
  • 3 crookneck yellow squash, peeled and diced
  • 1/2 sweet yellow onion, diced
  • 2 tablespoons water, or as needed
  • 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
  • 1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
  • 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
  • 1/2 (6 ounce) box dry bread stuffing mix
What do you do when you have too much yellow squash? You try to find as many cool and delicious recipes as you can.  I found this awesome casserole that totally changed my thinking about squash. I never liked it as much because it seemed that I always had too much of it and never any good recipes. This is going to be on my list of favorite recipes. :D

Side note: This recipe can be made ahead of time and refrigerated. Add the stuffing mix just before serving. 

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a baking dish.
  2. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook and stir squash and onion until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add water and simmer to soften squash, 2 to 4 minutes. Stir cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and Cheddar cheese into squash mixture; mix well.
  3. Transfer squash mixture to the prepared baking dish; top with stuffing mix.
  4. Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is bubbling and stuffing is browned, about 30 minutes. 

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Zucchini Frittata with Herbs and Goat Cheese



I made THIS zucchini Frittata for lunch today and although it was good I thought that it was missing a few things so I decided to look up another one for next time. I have so much zucchini and it seems that people bring me some all the time; with that much zucchini I need to come up with some good recipes. This definitely looks tasty and I am pretty sure that any kind of cheese would be good with it. I personally love goat cheese and I am going to give this one a try.

Ingredients:
6 large eggs
1/4 cup buttermilk, well shaken
2 teaspoon oil

1 cup unpeeled shredded zucchini squash

1/2 cup chopped onion
2
garlic cloves, diced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes (any color or variety), halved
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, thinly sliced
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced

 Coarse salt or sea salt and freshly-ground pepper, to taste
1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese
1/4 cup
salsa
2 tablespoons chopped green onions (white and green parts)

Preparation:
Preheat broiler and move oven rack up to broiling position.
In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the eggs and buttermilk until well combine. Add salt and pepper; set aside.
In a large oven-safe frying pan or skillet over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add shredded zucchini, onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini is tender (do not overcook as zucchini can get mushy). Stir in the cherry tomatoes, mint, basil, salt, and pepper.

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Rasberry Trifle

Ingredients:

1 box white angel food cake mix (I used Betty Crocker)
1 1/4 cups cold water
2 cups boiling water
1 box (8-serving size) sugar-free raspberry-flavored gelatin
2 packages (10 oz each) frozen sweetened raspberries, thawed
3 containers (6 oz each) red raspberry yogurt

Directions: 

1. Move oven rack to lowest position (remove other racks). Heat oven to 350°F.
2. In extra-large glass or metal bowl, beat cake mix and cold water on low speed 30 seconds; beat on medium speed 1 minute. Pour into ungreased 10-inch angel food (tube) cake pan. Do not use fluted tube cake pan or 9-inch angel food (tube) cake pan, or batter will overflow.
3. Bake 37 to 47 minutes or until top is dark golden brown and cracks feel very dry and not sticky. Do not underbake.
4. Immediately turn pan upside down onto glass bottle until cake is completely cool, about 1 hour. Run knife around edges; remove from pan. Tear cake into about 3/4-inch pieces.
5. Pour boiling water on gelatin in large bowl; stir until gelatin is dissolved. Add raspberries. (If desired, remove several raspberries and reserve for garnish.) Refrigerate gelatin mixture about 15 minutes or until thickened but not set.
6. Layer half each of the cake pieces, gelatin mixture and yogurt in 3-quart glass bowl; repeat. Garnish with reserved raspberries. Refrigerate at least 2 hours until firm. Cover and refrigerate any remaining dessert.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft) Heat oven to 325ºF. Stir 1/3 cup cornstarch into dry cake mix. Increase water to 1 1/3 cups. Beat on low speed 30 seconds; beat on medium speed 3 minutes. Bake 53 to 58 minutes.
Substitution
You can use two 4-serving-size packages of raspberry-flavored gelatin instead of one 8-serving-size package. Or replace the sugar-free raspberry gelatin with regular raspberry-flavored gelatin.
Variation
If you are serving a smaller group, you can easily cut this recipe in half. Bake cake as directed on package for two 9-inch loaf pans and freeze


If you want to make your own angel food cake and use your fluted tube then you can use THIS recipe (at the very end of the post). I actually liked the home made one a little bit better, but it takes longer to make it. 

Friday, July 13, 2012

Carousel Birthday Cake



 I have not been on my food blog for a while which does not mean that I did not cook. LOL I have been cooking lots of the recipes that I already have on my blog and I have been busy with life in general. I was also on a cleansing diet and I lost over 20 pounds and got back in shape. Go Here if you want to see my story, or go Here if you want to know more about what I did.

My baby girl turned one this week and I decided to do a carousel cake for her. I googled carousel cakes, but I am not an expert at decorating cakes so I just had to come up with my own version and I did.
  • I made an angel food cake (out of a box this time), I put a vase in the middle,
  •  I made some ginger bread cookies out of scratch (LOL). Go Here for the ginger bread recipe if you want it. You could probably half the recipe unless you make more shapes out of it and let the kids decorate it as an activity. We bought my oldest daughter some moon sand and it came with Pony shapes so I used them to make the ponies on the carousel. They turned out pretty cute and I just decorated them with frosting and nerds for the eyes. 
  • I also sprinkled nerds on the angel food cake. 
  • I put licorice in the vase to give the impression of poles
  •  I used Lizzy's first tutu for extra decoration. 
  • I thought about filling the vase with strawberries or candies, but licorice seemed a good choice too. I put the strawberry syrup in another container for the angle food cake.
The carousel cake would have looked good even without the top layer of cake, but I thought that there would be more people coming to the party, so I made another cake as well and it was a nice way to write my daughter's name on it and put a candle on it (which we couldn't even lit up because of the wind). This way the cake did not look to overcrowded. I used a boxed cake again because I did not want to stress about making a cake out of scratch; I had too much to decorate. I used a little cupcake to put on the top and I gave that to my daughter as her own cake to eat.This cake is easy to make and you could even buy the cakes already made from the store, just decorate it your own way.
Happy Birthday our little Lizzy!!!! You are so Loved!!!!!

Here is a recipe for an angle food cake that I used a few weeks ago and I really loved it. It is not that hard to make and it tastes so delicious too.

Angel Food Cake
Ingredients
  • 1 1/4 cups cake flour
  • 1 3/4 cups white sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups egg whites
  • 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Directions
  1. Beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks, and then add cream of tartar, vanilla extract, and almond extract.
  2. Sift together flour, sugar, and salt. Repeat five times.
  3. Gently combine the egg whites with the dry ingredients, and then pour into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan.
  4. Place cake pan in a cold oven. Turn the oven on; set it to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Cook for about one hour, or until cake is golden brown.
  5. Invert cake, and allow it to cool in the pan. When thoroughly cooled, remove from pan.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Layered Pasta, Veggie, and Cheese Skillet

I want to try this recipe out for my family; they love cheese. :D


Ingredients

  • 1 (24 ounce) jar Prego® Veggie Smart® Chunky & Savory Italian Sauce
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 1/4 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 4 cups fresh baby spinach or arugula, coarsely chopped
  • 3 cups trumpet-shaped pasta (campanelle), cooked and drained

Directions

  1. Stir the sauce and water in a medium bowl. Stir the ricotta cheese, 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, egg and spinach in a medium bowl.
  2. Layer 1 cup sauce mixture, half the pasta and half the cheese mixture in a 12-inch skillet. Repeat the layers. Top with the remaining sauce mixture and the remaining Parmesan cheese. Cover the skillet.
  3. Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes or until the mixture is hot.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Pumpkin Cake Roll

This Pumpkin Cake Roll was on my wish list for quite a while and now I finally made it. It turned out pretty good and it was quite easy to make.

INGREDIENTS:
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2/3 cup canned or cooked pumpkin
  • 3/4 cup biscuit/baking mix
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 cup finely chopped walnuts
  • confectioners' sugar
  • FILLING:
  • 2 (3 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup confectioners' sugar
  • 1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a mixing bowl, beat eggs. Gradually add sugar. Stir in pumpkin; mix well. Combine the biscuit mix, cinnamon, pie spice and nutmeg; add to egg mixture and mix well. Line a 15 in. x 10 in. x 1-in. pan with waxed paper; grease and flour the paper. Spread the batter evenly in pan. Sprinkle with nuts.
Bake at 375F for 13-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes. Turn cake unto a linen towel dusted with confectioners sugar. Remove paper; roll up cake in towel, starting with a short side. Cool on wire rack.

For filling, in a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Unroll cake. Spread filling over cake to within 1 in. of edges. Gently roll up; place seam side down on a platter. refrigerate until serving. Yield: 10 servings.

Monday, October 31, 2011

Chicken Stir Fry

Ingredients

  • 4 (4 ounce) boneless skinless chicken breast halves
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 3 tablespoons cooking oil, divided
  • 2 cups broccoli florets
  • 1 cup sliced celery (1/2 inch pieces)
  • 1 cup thinly sliced carrots
  • 1 small onion, cut into wedges
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules

Directions

  1. Cut chicken into 1/2-in. strips; place in a resealable plastic bag. Add cornstarch and toss to coat. Combine soy sauce, ginger and garlic powder; add to bag and shake well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  2. In a large skillet or wok, heat 2 tablespoons of oil; stir-fry chicken until no longer pink, about 3-5 minutes. Remove and keep warm. Add remaining oil; stir- fry broccoli, celery, carrots and onion for 4-5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Add water and bouillon. Return chicken to pan. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.