Yummy Sweet Potato Casserole

Oh, my!  This was so delicious!  No wonder it has 1800 5-star reviews on allrecipes.com!!  I made this for Thanksgiving.  It's so tasty, and I don't even really like sweet potatoes!!

8 cups sweet potato,peeled & cubed 1 cup white sugar 4 eggs, beaten 1 teaspoon salt 8 tablespoons butter, softened 1 cup evaporated milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract   Topping:  1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons butter, softened 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Steam cubed sweet potatoes (I used 1 yam, 1 sweet potato) on stovetop for 20 min, until fork tender.  Mash with fork.
2.	In a large bowl, mix together the sweet potatoes, white sugar, eggs, salt, butter, milk and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth. Transfer to a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3.	In medium bowl, mix the brown sugar and flour. Cut in the butter until the mixture is coarse. Stir in the pecans. Sprinkle the mixture over the sweet potato mixture.
4.	Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes, or until the topping is lightly brown. J wanted me to make more topping, but I thought it was great the way is was. :)  Seriously, call me if something doesn't make sense.  I adapted it from the recipe. :)

 

Pesto Cream Tortellini

Family favorite and so fast, not to mention it looks fancy and it's easy. Best combination! Highly recommend. We love this recipe.

Simmer 1 cup heavy cream with 1/4 cup pesto in a skillet until slightly thickened. Stir in 1/4 cup grated parmesan. Toss with 12 ounces cooked tortellini and 2 cups steamed broccoli.

Feast.

Shrimp Stir Fry with Snow Peas and Coconut Curry Sauce

I'm a big fan of the "ethnic" foods so get ready for a wave of these delicious recipes I've been hoarding :)

This one was delicious with the slightly sweet and creamy coconut sauce. We absolutely LOVED all the veggies that filled this up. Lots of great color and delicious!

INGREDIENTS

Shrimp Stir Fry:
• 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined (I used frozen and thawed them beforehand)
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 bell pepper, cored, seeded, and sliced (any type will do)
• 8 ounces snow peas, strings removed
• 1 cup bean sprouts
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (scared of fresh ginger? don’t be…it can be peeled and frozen easily to be used at anytime)
Coconut-Curry Sauce:
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1-2 teaspoons red curry paste (I used 2 teaspoons for a doubled recipe – this paste can be found in most grocery stores in the Asian foods aisle near the Thai ingredients)
• 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch

DIRECTIONS

1. For the sauce, combine the sauce ingredients in a medium bowl (I doubled the sauce because we love extra sauce in our family). Set aside. Toss the shrimp with soy sauce. Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up any clumps, until curled and lightly browned, about 1 1/2 minutes. Transfer the shrimp to a clean bowl.
2. Add 1 more tablespoon of oil to the pan and return to medium heat until shimmering. Add bell pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in snow peas and bean sprouts and cook for one more minute.
3. Clear the center of the pan and add remaining 1 teaspoon oil, garlic and ginger. Cook, mashing garlic mixture into the pan with the back of a spatula, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in cooked shrimp. Whisk sauce to recombine and add to pan, bringing to a simmer. Cook until the sauce thickens, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve immediately.

Coconut-Pecan German Chocolate Pie

So, this is a fun twist on German Chocolate Cake. It's kind of exactly like you'd imagine it from the pictures.  The pie is a creamy, dense, fudge-like filling that's deliciously chocolatey with nuts sprinkled in and topped with a gooey coconut and pecan frosting. Very rich and truly delicious if you're in the mood for a good German Chocolate fix. From here.

Maybe a new pie for Thanksgiving?

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 6 tablespoons cold lard

• 3 to 4 tablespoons ice water

• FILLING:

• 4 ounces German sweet chocolate, chopped

• 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

• 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk

• 4 egg yolks

• 1 teaspoon McCormick® Pure Vanilla Extract

• 1 cup chopped pecans

• TOPPING:

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

• 1/4 cup butter, cubed

• 2 egg yolks

• 1 cup flaked coconut

• 1 teaspoon McCormick® Pure Vanilla Extract

• 1/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix flour and salt; cut in lard until crumbly. Gradually add ice water, tossing with a fork until dough holds together when pressed. Shape into a disk; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 30 minutes or overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 400°. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; transfer to a 9-in. pie plate. Trim pastry to 1/2 in. beyond rim of plate; flute edge. Line unpricked pastry with a double thickness of foil. Fill with pie weights, dried beans or uncooked rice.
3. Bake 11-13 minutes or until bottom is lightly browned. Remove foil and weights; bake 6-8 minutes longer or until light brown. Cool on a wire rack. Reduce oven setting to 350°.
4. In a microwave, melt chocolates in a large bowl; stir until smooth. Cool slightly. Whisk in milk, egg yolks and vanilla; stir in pecans. Pour into crust. Bake 16-19 minutes or until set. Cool 1 hour on a wire rack.
5. Meanwhile, in a small heavy saucepan, combine brown sugar, cream and butter. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat.
6. In a small bowl, whisk a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks; return all to pan, whisking constantly. Cook 2-3 minutes or until mixture thickens and a thermometer reads 160°, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in coconut and vanilla; cool 10 minutes.
7. Pour over filling; sprinkle with pecans. Refrigerate 4 hours or until cold. Yield: 8 servings.

Smoky Honey Mustard Pork Chops

The BEST pork chop recipe I have found in a long time!!  We just had this for dinner tonight and everyone loved it!  Relatively fast and easy.  Found this on ourbestbites.com -- they always have such great recipes.  

The only problem I encountered was when I was broiling them, I checked the temperature after the recommended time (8-10 mins) and they were far from being hot enough (165 degrees) so I ended up adding about 15 minutes (in smaller increments of time) until they were finished.  I would highly recommend slicing your pork chops thinner (1" thick at most) to avoid this problem.

Smoky Honey Mustard Pork Chops

4 4-6 oz. pork loin or sirloin chops

Kosher salt and pepper

Liquid Smoke

3 Tbsp. Dijon or whole grain mustard

1 1/2 Tbsp. honey

2 cloves minced garlic

Sprinkle pork chops with Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Give them a liberal dousing of liquid smoke (you can usually find this either near the seasonings or the BBQ sauce/condiments in the grocery store). Set aside.

Heat oven broiler to high or preheat grill. Combine honey, garlic, and mustard. Place pork chops on broiler pan/grill and cook for 4-5 minutes. Turn and cook another 4-5 minutes. You want the internal temperature to be at least 165 (that’s a little pink inside), but you also don’t want to overcook them because they’ll become tough. So you may need to adjust your cooking times a little, bearing in mind that they have two minutes to cook after the initial 8-10 minutes.

Baste with honey mustard mixture and cook an additional minute. Turn and baste other side; cook for one additional minute. Remove from heat and allow to stand a few minutes to seal in the juices.

Ella's Easy Chicken Curry

This comes out of the Ella's Kitchen Cookbook (kid-friendly recipes) and we all loved it!  Exotic taste that is still appealing to kids.

Serves 4
Prep 10 min
Cook 30 min

Ingredients:
2 T. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces
1/4 inch piece fresh ginger grated (I just used a tsp or so of powdered ginger)
1 t. mild curry powder
1 small sweet potato, diced
4 carrots, sliced
1 c. coconut milk
1/2 c. vegetable stock
1 small mango, cut into chunks
1 1/4 c. trimmed green beans
2 T. finely chopped flat leaf parsley

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onion and garlic.  Saute for 1 min. stirring, then add the chicken pieces and cook for 3-4 mins over med. heat, stirring every now and then until chicken pieces are golden brown all over.

Add the grated ginger and curry powder and cook for another 1 min, stirring all the time.  Add the sweet potato and carrots, then pour the coconut milk and stock and add the mango.  Mix everything together really well and bring the liquid to a boil.  Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20 mins until sweet potato is soft.

Add the beans and cook for another 3 mins until beans are just soft.  Finally stir in the parsley.  Serve immediately on a bed of rice or with a pita bread (we served ours on quinoa).

Cream Cheese Flan

I made this for Cinco de Mayo (got it from Kraft.com) and I didn't even get a picture because it got gobbled up by the friends we were having dinner with!  Seriously, if you've ever tried to make flan before, you know that it can be a huge pain and sometimes the flan is totally not even that delicious.  This recipe was fairly easy/simple and taste was delish!  Really people kept asking me for the recipe afterwards, so I thought I'd share it with my favorite people.  Make it now or save it for next Cinco de Mayo...:)

what you need

2 cups  sugar, divided

1 can  (12 oz.) evaporated milk

1 pkg.  (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, cubed, softened

5 eggs

1 tsp.  vanilla

HEAT oven to 350°F.

COOK 1 cup sugar in small saucepan on medium heat until melted and deep golden brown, stirring constantly. Pour into 9-inch round pan; tilt pan to evenly cover bottom with syrup.

BLEND milk and cream cheese in blender until smooth. Add remaining sugar, eggs and vanilla; blend just until smooth. Pour over syrup in pan. Place filled pan in larger pan; add enough hot water to larger pan to come halfway up side of small pan.

BAKE 50 min. to 1 hour or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool slightly. Carefully remove flan from water; cool completely on wire rack. Refrigerate several hours or until chilled. Unmold onto plate just before serving.

SIZE-WISE

Sweets can add enjoyment to a balanced diet, but remember to keep tabs on portions. One serving of this flan is 1/2 cup.

HOW TO UNMOLD FLAN

Bake and refrigerate flan as directed. Run metal knife around edge of flan. Invert onto plate; shake gently to loosen. Gently twist to remove pan. To soften any remaining caramel in pan, dip bottom of pan in hot water; spoon caramel over flan.

FLAVOR VARIATIONS

Prepare as directed. Choose one of the following options: Guava: Add 1/2 cup guava paste, cut into pieces, or 1/2 cup canned guava shells in heavy syrup to cream cheese batter before pouring into prepared pan. Lime: Add zest from 1 lime to boiling sugar mixture; remove from syrup before sugar caramelizes. Pour into prepared pan as directed.Cajeta: Add 1/4 cup cajeta (Mexican goat milk caramel) to cream cheese batter before pouring into prepared pan. Chocolate-Orange: Add 2 oz. BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, melted and cooled, and 1 Tbsp. orange zest to cream cheese batter before pouring into prepared pan. Coconut: When serving adults, omit vanilla. Add 1/4 cup BAKER'S ANGEL FLAKE Coconut or 1/2 cup coconut milk, and 1 Tbsp. rum to cream cheese batter before pouring into prepared pan

French Cream Fruit dip

Just made this for a RS recipe swap--DE-LISH!!!  This is a new favorite for sure!!  The perfect summer fruit dish!  Thanks to Paula Deen for this!! (you can see it here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/fruit-tray-with-fruit-dip-recipe.html)

  

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese

1 cup powdered sugar

1 cup whipping cream

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 lemon, zested and juiced

Pineapple juice

 

Soften cream cheese and then whip with powdered sugar. Whip cream and sugar together until it forms soft peaks. Combine beaten cream cheese, whipped cream, lemon juice and zest; continue to beat, adding just enough pineapple juice to achieve desired consistency. Serve with fresh fruit tray or fruit salad.

 

Black Bean and Corn Salad

Serves 6 (I halved this recipe and it actually made enough for almost 2 dinners for my little family, over lettuce)
An explosion of contrasting flavors and textures makes this salad a feast for the senses.  Beans and corn combine to form a complete protein, avocado and flaxseed oil provide healthful fats, and the fresh ingredients burst with antioxidants.
I got this recipe out of a Cooking Light magazine but I've seen various versions online.  You can add red bell pepper, a variety of spices, scallions, etc.  I love how fresh and flavorful it is.  It is pretty spicy though so if your kids don't like spicy, you may want to add less chipotle chili.

2 c. fresh or frozen corn
1 (25) oz. can black beans, rinsed
2 c. grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 1/2 c. finely diced red or white onion
2 ripe, firm avocados, cut into 1/2 inch dice
2 c. chopped fresh cilantro
2/3 c. flaxseed oil (or half flaxseed, half extra-virgin olive oil; I only had olive oil so I used that)
1/2 c. fresh lime juice
2-3 tsp. finely diced chipotle chile (I just had chipotle chili powder so I used that but only 3/4 the amount)
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
6-8 c. (4-6 ounces) lettuce (optional)

1. Cook corn in a pot of lightly salted water for 2-3 mins until crisp tender.  Drain, refresh under cold running water, and drain thoroughly.
2. Combine corn, beans, tomatoes, onion, avocados, and cilantro in a large bowl.  Whisk oil, lime juice, chipotle, salt, and pepper in a separate bowl.  Pour about three-fourths (or to taste; I actually cut the dressing down by a 1/4 and it was plenty) over vegetables and toss gently to coat.  Serve on beds of lettuce, if desired.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

A fantastic, tasty, quick and easy recipe (by Brenda Jacobson)!  I actually got this from a "soup and rolls" Enrichment meeting I went to with Hilary in Vegas!  I've made this many times and love how easy and delicious it is.

Ingredients:

1 c. corn

1 c. chunky salsa

1 c. diced onion (dried can also be used)

1 T. lime juice

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. cumin

2 cans chicken broth

4 chicken breasts (or 3-4 cans chicken, makes is super fast and easy)

Tortilla chips

Monterey jack cheese or cheddar cheese, shredded

Saute onion in about 2-3 T. oil.  Cook chicken and cut into small pieces or shred.  Add all ingredients to chicken broth and simmer for 15-20 mins.  Serve over tortilla chips and cheese.

Chicken Teriyaki Pasta Salad

A delicious, simple recipe.  Always a favorite at lunches and get-togethers!  I just served this at a friends birthday lunch and people kept asking me for the recipe.

Ingredients:

2 bags (6 oz) baby spinach

12 oz bowtie pasta

1 bunch green onions, chopped

¼ cup chopped cilantro

2 bell peppers, sliced (I use red & yellow)

½ cup sliced almonds

4 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

Dressing:

½ cup oil

¾ cup soy sauce

¾ cup rice vinegar

1 cup sugar

1 tsp pepper

¼ cup sesame seeds (optional)
(You could probably cut the sugar down as well as the amount of dressing you use in general to make it healthier--I always have extra dressing at the bottom of the bowl once the salad is completely eaten.)

Marinate cooked chicken in dressing overnight then add dressing and chicken to remaining ingredients.  Toss and serve!