Chicken Caesar Wrap

This is one of my favorite Body For Life super fast summer meals. For added kick I slice up tomatoes and throw them in too!

Serves 2

Prep time: 10 min

2 portions of grilled chicken breast, sliced (to save boatloads of time buy the "pre-grilled" fully cooked strips at the store)

2 cups chopped romaine lettuce

2 Tablespoons low-fat Caesar salad dressing (or not low-fat)

2 Tablespoons reduced-fat Parmesan cheese

spinach tortillas

1. Toss together the chicken, lettuce, Caesar dressing, Parmesan cheese and tomatoes (if desired)

2. Microwave tortilla for about 20 seconds to soften. Spoon chicken mixture onto tortilla

3. Wrap tortilla around filling and cut in half. Serve and enjoy!

Mom's Zucchini Bread aka. The Secret Recipe

Patty passed this on to me a couple of years ago and I just made it again today. I still think mom's recipe is one of the best.


3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3 eggs well beaten
1 cup shortening or cooking oil (I've always used olive oil)
3 cups zucchini, grated
1 teaspoon vanilla


Sift dry ingredients in medium bowl. Mix eggs, shortening (oil), zucchini and vanilla together. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix well. Pour into two loaf pans. Bake at 325 for about 1 hour for large loaves. For mini loaves check after 20 minutes. I'm sure they'd make good cupcakes too. Same bake time as mini loaves, check after 15 to 20 minutes

Peanut Butter White Chocolate Popcorn

This is from the "Sisters Cafe" blog that Karen introduced me to. She made it while she was here and it is very good. Be careful, it's addicting and so easy to make. Perfect blend of salty/sweet.
2 bags microwave popcorn1/2 cup creamy peanut butter1 bag white chocolate chips (2 cups)1/2-1 cup Reeses Pieces
Pop the popcorn then sift through to remove all unpopped kernels. Soften the PB in the microwave over 30 seconds, stir into popcorn to coat evenly. Melt the white chocolate either in a double broiler or in the microwave (over 2 minutes on 50% power, then stir chips until smooth). Pour over popcorn and gently stir to coat popcorn evenly with chocolate. Add Reeses Pieces as you stir in the chocolate. Spread out popcorn on waxed paper to set. Enjoy!

Lemon Curd

This is to go along with Janette's recipe if you'd rather make it than buy it.

1 Cup Sugar
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
3 teaspoons finely shredded lemon peel
6 Tablespoons lemon juice
6 Tablespoons water
6 beaten egg yolks
1/2 Cup butter or margarine, cut up

In a medium saucepan stir together sugar and cornstarch. Stir in lemon peel, lemon juice, and water. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Stir half of the lemon mixture into egg yolks. Return the egg yolk mixture to the saucepan. Cook and stir over meduim heat until mixture comes to a gentle boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Remove from heat.

Add butter pieces, stirring until melted. Cover surface of the curd with plastic wrap. Chill at least 1 hour or for up to 48 hours. Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Or transfer to a freezer container; freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before serving.

Yields 2 cups.

Overnight Blueberry Cream Cheese French Toast

This was so good! Made it in the morning and had it for dinner instead of doing the overnight thing. Yum!

Ingredients:
12 slices day-old bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, cut into
1 inch cubes
1 cup fresh blueberries
12 eggs, beaten
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup maple syrup

1 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup water
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 tablespoon butter
Directions:
1.Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange half the bread cubes in the dish, and top with cream cheese cubes. Sprinkle 1 cup blueberries over the cream cheese, and top with remaining bread cubes.
2.In a large bowl, mix the eggs, milk, vanilla extract, and syrup. Pour over the bread cubes. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.
3.Remove the bread cube mixture from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
4.Cover, and bake 30 minutes. Uncover, and continue baking 25 to 30 minutes, until center is firm and surface is lightly browned.
5.In a medium saucepan, mix the sugar, cornstarch, and water. Bring to a boil. Stirring constantly, cook 3 to 4 minutes. Mix in the remaining 1 cup blueberries. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes, until the blueberries burst. Stir in the butter, and pour over the baked French toast

Banana Pancakes with Strawberry Syrup

This is a modification of a recipe I got from the blog "Sisters Cafe". They have tons of yummy recipes, especially pancakes and waffles. The original recipe called for bananas sliced on top of the batter while cooking, but I mashed it up into the batter--big improvement. It also served the pancakes with strawberry slices, but I changed a Lemon Syrup recipe that came from Malia's "Gingerbread Pancakes" to make this lip smackin' delight.

As always, the buttermilk gives these pancakes a light, delicious taste. Enjoy.

Banana Pancakes with Strawberry Syrup
(I made 1 1/2 times this recipe for my family andwasn't quite enough.)

1 C flour
1 TB sugar (white or brown)
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. soda
1 egg
1 Cup Buttermilk
2 TB oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 med. banana, smashed (I blended mine with a little juice from the strawberries)

Mix dry ingredients. Mix wet ingredients and add to dry ingredients. Whisk or stir until moistened. Add a little milk to batter if too thick.

Syrup
1 1/2 cup strawberries (about) processed in blender or food processor until smooth
3/4 Cup sugar (we often use splenda)
5 tsp. cornstarch
1 Cup water
1 TB margerine or butter

Mix sugar, cornstarch and water in saucepan. Cook over medium heat until thickened and bubbly (stirring often). One it begins to bubble, cook about 2 minutes longer.

Remove from heat, stir in butter. When butter is melted, stir in strawberry puree. Whisk until well mixed. Serve warm. Cover and refrigerate remaining sauce up to three days.

Pineapple and Pork Tacos w/ Avocado Crema

This one is GREAT. Loved it.

PORK AND PINEAPPLE

2 tsp sugar

2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground red pepper

1/4 tsp salt

12 oz pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into 1/2" cubes

1 TBSP olive oil

1/4 fresh pineapple, cored and sliced crosswise

2 TBSP chopped fresh cilantro

12 corn tortillas, 6" diameter, warmed per package directions

AVOCADO CREMA

1 avocado, mashed

2 TBSP fat free sour cream

2 TBSP freshly squeezed lime juice

1/8 tsp salt

To prepare the pork and pineapple: In a cup mix the sugar, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, pepper and salt. Mix half of the spices with the pork, then toss with the oil. Mix the remaining spices with the pineapple. Let stand at room temp for 15 min while preparing the avocado crema.
To prepare the avocado crema: Whisk the avocado with the sour cream, lime juice, and salt in a small bowl. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface to keep the crema fresh looking (or use the avocado seed).
Coat a large nonstick skillet with olive oil spray. Add the pork and cook over med high heat turning once or twice, for 8 min or until browned and cooked through. Add the cilantro and toss to combine. Transfer to a clean plate and cover loosely to keep warm.
Add the pineapple to the pan and cook, turning once or twice, for 3-4 min or until golden. Remove from heat.
To assemble each serving, place 3 tortillas on a plate. Divide 1/4 of the pork and pineapple between each tortilla. Top with the cream and roll up.

Chicken, Broccoli, & Cashew Stir-Fry

This is a good recipe if you don't overcook it. Lots of flavor and textures. Some may want to add regular soy sauce because this is lower in sodium and some don't like that.

3 c sm broccoli florets w/ short stems
2 lg carrots, cut into thin diagonal slices (2 c)
5 oz soba noodles (or whole wheat thin spaghetti)
1 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP minced fresh ginger
3 lg cloves garlic, minced
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, sliced crosswise
1 TBSP reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
3 med scallions, thinly sliced (I used green onions)
1/2 c reduced-sodium, fat free chicken broth
1/2 c raw, unsalted cashews, lightly toasted

Bring large pot of water to a boil. Add broccoli, carrots and noodles. Cover and cook until vegetables are crisp-tender, 3-5 min. Drain, transfer to medium bowl, and cover loosely w/ waxed paper.
Heat olive oil, ginger, and garlic in wok or large nonstick sillet over med-high heat. Cook, stirring until garlic starts to turn golden, 1-2 min. Add chicken, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Stir fry 4-5 min or until cooked through. Add scallions and stir fy 1 min.
Stir in noodles, veggies, and broth and heat through. Sprinkle each portion w/ 2 TBSP of the cashews.

Slow Cooker Caribbean Spiced Ribs follow up

OK! I just want to say that when I posted this recipe I had used no-bone ribs and a 6 quart slow cooker for a halved recipe (the posted recipe is not halved). Needless to say the meat was drier than dry. I made this again today with a 3 quart slow cooker for the halved recipe and I used bone-in ribs. When the recipe says "Cut ribs into 4-inch pieces" what it really means is if you use bone-in, cut the ribs apart. DUH! I'm a little slow. My ribs were ready for the BBQ sauce after only 7 hours. These babies are DELICIOUS! The taste the rub gives the ribs is phenomenal. Make it! Make it!!! :) You will not be disappointed. Just make sure you use the right size slow cooker :)

Cookies 'N' Cream Cake

I made this cake for Tim for Valentine's Day. It was really yummy!


Cake:
1 ¾ c. flour
2/3 c. cocoa
1 ½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
¾ c. unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ c. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 ¼ c. buttermilk

Filling:
4 ounces cream cheese softened
½ cup unsalted butter, softened
16 ounces confectioner’s sugar
3 to 4 tablespoons milk

Frosting:
1 ½ c. heavy cream
1/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups Crushed oreos

Heat oven to 350°. Coat two 8 inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and dust with flour. Shake out any excess flour.

Cake: In a medium sized bowl, mix flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt together until well blended, set aside.

In a large bowl, with mixer on medium speed, beat butter, sugar, and vanilla for 3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

On low speed, beat flour mixture into butter mixture in three additions, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour; beat 1 minute. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake at 350° for about 36 minutes or until toothpick inserted in centers come out clean. Cool cakes in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Turn cakes out onto racks; let cool completely.

Filling: In a large bowl, with mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar, then milk. Beat for 2 minutes or until light and fluffy.

When layers have cooled, trim off any crowned cake from the tops and discard. Cut each layer in half horizontally with a serrated knife. Place one cut layer on a cake stand and top with one-third of filling; spread evenly over top. Repeat with 2 more cake layers. Place last layer on top, cut side down. Refrigerate for 20 minutes or until filling is set.

Frosting: In a large bowl, with mixer on high, beat heavy cream, sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Generously spread whipped cream all over cake, using the back of a spoon to make swirls and peaks on top. Place chopped cookies in a large bowl and carefully hold cake stand over bowl. With cupped hands, gently press cookie crumbs onto the sides of the cake to cover. Brush excess crumbs off stand before serving.