Mediterranean Palmiers

Mediterranean Palmiers

Pepperidge Farm: Puff Pastries

Ingredients

1 package (17.3 ounces) Pepperidge Farm® Puff Pastry Sheets, thawed
1/4 cup prepared pesto sauce
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese OR goat cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Directions

Unfold 1 pastry sheet on a lightly floured surface.  Spread 2 tablespoons pesto on the pastry sheet to within 1/2 inch of the edge.  Top with 1/4 cup cheese, 2 tablespoons tomatoes and 2 tablespoons walnuts, if desired.  Starting at the long sides, fold the pastry towards the center, leaving a 1/4-inch space in the center.  Fold one side of the pastry over the other, making a 4-layer rectangle.  Repeat with the remaining pastry sheet.  Cover the pastry rectangles with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 45 minutes.

Heat the oven to 400°F.  Cut each pastry rectangle into 15 (1/4-inch) slices.  Place the slices, cut-side down, onto 2 baking sheets.

Bake for 15 minutes or until the pastries are golden brown, turning the pastries over once halfway through baking.  Remove the pastries from the baking sheets and let cool on wire racks for 10 minutes.

Razz-ma-tazz Bars

Mom and I make these at least once a year. They're very tasty and very addicting. So much so that we finished them all at our game night last night before any pictures could be taken. 

*Click here for the recipe online*

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
• 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Premier White Morsels, divided
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
• 1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds

Directions

PREHEAT oven to 325° F. Grease and sugar 9-inch-square baking pan.

MELT butter in medium, microwave-safe bowl on HIGH (100%) power for 1 minute; stir. Add 1 cupmorsels; let stand. Do not stir.

BEAT eggs in large mixer bowl until foamy. Add sugar; beat until light lemon colored, about 5 minutes. Stir in morsel-butter mixture. Add flour, salt and almond extract; mix at low speed until combined. Spread 2/3 of batter into prepared pan.

BAKE for 15 to 17 minutes or until light golden brown around edges. Remove from oven to wire rack.

HEAT jam in small, microwave-safe bowl on HIGH (100%) power for 30 seconds; stir. Spread jam over warm crust. Stir remaining morsels into remainingbatter. Drop spoonfuls of batter over jam. Sprinkle with almonds.

BAKE for 25 to 30 minutes or until edges are browned. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars.

Florentine Souffle Rolls

ingredients

• 4    green onions, finely chopped
• 2  cloves  garlic, minced
• 2  tablespoons  olive oil
• 1  6-ounce package  fresh baby spinach
• 1/4  cup  snipped fresh basil
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  ground black pepper
• 1  13.8-ounce package  refrigerated pizza dough
• 1/4  cup  crumbled feta cheese (1 oz.)
• 2  tablespoons  toasted pine nuts
• 1  tablespoon  butter, melted
• 1/4  cup  finely shredded Parmesan cheese

directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degree F. Grease twelve 2-1/2-inch muffin cups; set aside. In a large skillet cook green onions and garlic in 1 tablespoon of the oil until tender. Add spinach and basil; cook and stir over medium heat just until wilted. Drain off excess liquid. Stir in salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.

2. On a well-floured surface, unroll pizza dough and shape into a 12x8-inch rectangle. Brush surface of dough with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Spread spinach mixture to within 1 inch of the edges of dough. Sprinkle with feta cheese and pine nuts. Starting with one of the long sides, roll dough into a spiral.

3. Slice roll into 12 pieces. Place cut side up in prepared muffin cups. Brush with butter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand in muffin cups for 2 minutes. Carefully remove from cups and serve warm. Makes 12 rolls.

Better Homes and Gardens

Christmas Party

My Christmas party was yesterday, and it was wonderful for three main reasons:

1. I was able to catch up with some dear friends

2. We collected lots of non-perishable food and over 20 stuffed animals to donate

3. I made 7 new recipes!

Here are the stuffed animals I took to Children in Crisis. Thank you all for bringing them; the kids will love them. I dropped them off today :) 

New Recipe One: Sparkling Grape Juice-Lemonade

New Recipe Two: Muffuletta Skewers

New Recipe Number Three: Black and White Cheesecake Brownies

 New Recipe Number Four: Championship Bean Dip

New Recipe Number Five: Almond Pound Cake 

New Recipe Number Six: Chewy Oatmeal Peanut Butter Bars

New Recipe Number Seven: Chocolate Mint Creme Cookies

Chewy Oatmeal Peanut Butter Bars

CHEWY OATMEAL PEANUT BUTTER BARS

I'm about to get one of these of out the fridge. They're addicting. And a keeper. 

RECIPE:

1 cup butter or margarine, cut up 

4 cups old fashioned oats, uncooked

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1/3 cup light corn syrup

1 cup semisweet or milk chocolate  chips

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1. preheat oven to 350 and Grease jelly-roll pan

2. In microwave-safe large bowl, melt butter and stir in oats, sugar, and corn syrup until well combined

3. With fingers, press oat mixture evenly into prepared pan. Bake 20 minutes or unitl edges are set  and center is still jiggly. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. 

4. Melt chocolate and peanut butter and spread over oat crust. Cover and refrigerate until chocolate is firm. 

5. Cut: Can store in fridge up to 1 month or in freezer up to 3 months. 

They won't last that long. 

Championship Bean Dip

CHAMPIONSHIP BEAN DIP 

A keeper: So simple and a hit!

*Recipe*

Ingredients

• 1 can (16 ounces) refried beans
• 1 cup picante sauce
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 package (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• Tortilla chips and salsa

Directions

• In a large bowl, combine the first eight ingredients; transfer to a 1-1/2-qt. slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours or until heated through, stirring once or twice. Serve with tortilla chips and salsa. 

Muffuletta Skewers

Muffuletta Skewers 

These were so tasty and easy I made them again for lunch today!

Note: I coated them with 1/2 store-bought Italian dressing and 1/2 my own concoction of dressing. 

Black and White Cheesecake brownie

BLACK & WHITE CHEESECAKE BROWNIES

This one looks like it was cut out before I was born, but I found the recipe: 

*Here*

These were yummy! And I thought I didn't like cheesecake. 

Sparkling Grape Juice-Lemonade

SPARKLING GRAPE JUICE-LEMONADE

A twist on the original, yet I prefer the original. 

*Get the recipe here!*

Don't let the 4 hour preparation time fool you; forget the grapes as garnish, and this takes 2 seconds to whip up! 

Chocolate Mint Creme Cookies

CHOCOLATE MINT CREME COOKIES

*Click Here for the Recipe*

Isn't it weird how mom cut these recipes out of magazines years ago, yet I can find them all online within five seconds? 

This one I have picked out every year at Christmas, yet we have never made it before now.

They've always looked daunting, but I only made a half recipe, and am used to making mint frosting on a weekly basis. Sadly, the anticipation that has built over the years wasn't matched by the cookies. They seemed a little hard, when I just wanted them to be chewy. Still yummy, though! 

Almond Pound Cake

ALMOND POUND CAKE 

Better Homes and Gardens: April 2007

*Click Here for the recipe*

Consensus: 

Nice flavor, kind of dry texture. 

We won't keep the recipe because there are far too many pound cake recipes out there to keep one that is not perfect! 

Chicken Bruschetta

Dinner tonight...

Chicken Bruschetta 

Kudos to Good Housekeeping (September 2010)

__Recipe__

Gingerbread Pumpkin Muffins (and substitutions for pumpkin pie spice)

Christmas Cooking: Day Two

 Gingerbread Pumpkin Muffins 

Mom cut this recipe out of a 2006 edition of Cooking Light Magazine. 

Click here for the recipe. 

While searching their website for the recipe so I didn't have to type it out, I came across this recipe for pumpkin muffins that are slightly different. Sour cream instead of buttermilk, more pumpkin, and no molasses, pumpkin pie spice, or ginger. So they would be more like pumpkin muffins whereas ours were a cross between pumpkin and gingerbread. Hence the name change. 

Also, 

Tip of the Day: 

When you don't have 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice, substitute: 

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp cloves

Cooking Light's Recipe for 

Pumpkin Muffins

(note: I made half a recipe (8). I substituted for the pumpkin pie spice and added more cinnamon instead of ginger. We skipped out on the golden raisins, and I sprinkled them with cinnamon sugar before baking)

Yield: 18 servings (serving size: 1 muffin)

Ingredients

• 2 1/4  cups  all-purpose flour (about 10 ounces)
• 2  teaspoons  pumpkin pie spice
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  baking soda
• 1  teaspoon  ground ginger
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1  cup  golden raisins
• 1  cup  packed brown sugar
• 1  cup  canned pumpkin
• 1/3  cup  buttermilk
• 1/3  cup  canola oil
• 1/4  cup  molasses
• 1  teaspoon  vanilla extract
• 2  large eggs
• Cooking spray
• 2  tablespoons  granulated sugar

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, ginger, and salt in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Stir in raisins; make a well in center of mixture. Combine brown sugar, canned pumpkin, buttermilk, canola oil, molasses, vanilla extract, and eggs, stirring well with a whisk. Add sugar mixture to flour mixture; stir just until moist.

Spoon batter into 18 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove muffins from pans immediately; cool on a wire rack.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

202 (23% from fat)

Chocolate Covered Yummies

Christmas Goodies, Day One:

White Chocolate Covered Pretzels 

Ritz Crackers filled with
peanut butter or raspberry jelly 
and 
covered in chocolate 

Vegetable Lasagna

12 pasta sheets from 1 box of oven ready lasagna
6 cups of marinara sauce
4 T olive oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 bunch asparagus, sliced thin on bias
2 large zucchini, diced
salt & pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 (15 oz.) container ricotta cheese
1 egg
2 cups shredded mozzarella

1. Preheat oven to 375*. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and saute until golden.

2. Add vegetables and saute for 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Combine ricotta cheese, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese and an egg in a large bowl. Mix well. Spray a 13 x 9 in. baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1 cup marinara sauce on bottom of the pan.

4. Add a layer of 3 uncooked lasagna sheets. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture on top. Add 1/3 of the begetable mixture and top with 1 cup of marinara sauce. Layer 3 more sheets of lasagna, 1/3 of the ricotta and 1 1/2 cups of marinara sauce.

5. Layer 3 more lasagna sheets, the rest of the ricotta mixture and vegetables and 1 cup sauce.

6. Finish with 3 lasagna sheets, remaining sauce, and top with mzzarella and the rest of the parmesan cheese.

7. Bake covered for 50-60 minutes. Uncover and bake until cheese melts, about 5 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes. Serve!

Baking, Baking, Baking!

Home sick. Watching the food network all day in my pj's, eh, not so bad. 

My gingerbread house this year. 

Cooking with my brother; we also made homemade applesauce :)

Cupcake Order, yum!

Gingersnaps

Walnut covered thumbprint cookies with blackberry filling

We also made Chewy Chocolate Cookies with Peanut butter Chips. 

And, being sick doesn't mean I can't make sweet potato fries for lunch. :)