Oreo Cheesecake Bars

These were really easy and yummy! The only thing I can say about them is that you better grab one while you can! They go fast.

From Annie's Eats

For the crust:

23 Oreo cookies

2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

For the cheesecake:

12 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature

6 tbsp. sugar

6 tbsp. sour cream, at room temperature

½ tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. salt

1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk

12 Oreo cookies, roughly chopped

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325˚ F. Line an 8 x 8-inch baking dish with foil. To make the crust, place the Oreos in the bowl of a food processor. Process, pulsing, until the cookies are finely ground. Add in the melted butter and pulse until the cookie crumbs are moistened. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking pan. Press the crumbs into an even layer over the bottom of the pan. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then set aside and prepare the filling while maintaining the oven temperature. To make the filling, add the cream cheese to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until light and smooth, about 2 minutes. Mix in the sugar until well combined. Blend in the sour cream, vanilla and salt. Beat in the egg and egg yolk on medium-high speed until incorporated, scraping down the bowl as needed. Stir in the chopped Oreos with a rubber spatula. Pour the cheesecake batter over the prepared crust, smoothing the top with a spatula. Bake for about 40 minutes, until the cheesecake is set around the edges but slightly wobbly in the center. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool about 1 hour to room temperature. Cover the pan and refrigerate until well chilled, about 3 hours. To cut the bars, pull the cake from the pan by lifting the foil up out of the pan. Place on a cutting board, peel away the foil, and slice into bars. Clean the knife blade between each slice to keep the edges neat. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Pasta with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

This was a great change of pace pasta dish. I loved the red pepper sauce. I didn't even miss the meat in this dish. It was also so quick to make.

From Pioneer Woman Cooks

3 whole Red Bell Peppers
2 Tablespoons Pine Nuts (optional)
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
½ whole Medium Onion, Finely Diced
2 cloves Garlic, Minced
½ cups Heavy Cream (I just used 1 % milk to save on fat and calories)
Flat Leaf Parsley, Finely Minced
Fresh Parmesan, Shaved Or Grated
½ pounds (to 1 Pound) Pasta: Orecchiette, Penne, Fusilli, Etc.

Preparation Instructions

Roast red peppers, and then place in a Ziploc bag to allow to sweat. Peel the charred skins from the peppers, then removed seeds. Set aside.
Lightly toast pine nuts in a skillet. Set aside.
Puree peppers with pine nuts. Set aside.
Cook pasta according to package directions.
In a skillet or pot over medium heat, drizzle in olive oil. Add diced onions and garlic and cook until soft. Pour in pepper puree and stir together. Add plenty of salt.
Pour in cream and stir to combine. Taste and add more salt, if necessary. Add cooked pasta, and then stir together.
Place pasta into a bowl, top with chopped parsley and plenty of shaved Parmesan.

Chocolate Cake

I really love to try to remake restaurant dishes that I have tried. This is my first attempt to duplicate the best chocolate cake I have eaten from a small restaurant I love. I have to say this cake was delicious, but definitely not at all healthy!!!

Chocolate Butter Cake

From Joy of Baking:

4 ounces (120 grams) unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/3 cup (30 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-processed)
1 cup (240 ml) boiling water
2 1/4 cups (295 grams) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups (400 grams) granulated white sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup (240 ml) milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter, or spray with a nonstick vegetable spray, and line with parchment paper, two - 9 x 2 inch deep (23 x 5 cm) round baking pans. In a stainless steel or heatproof bowl place the chopped unsweetened chocolate and cocoa powder. Pour the boiling water over the chocolate and cocoa powder and stir until they have melted. Set aside to cool while you make the batter. In a separate bowl, whisk to combine, the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating until the mixture is fluffy (this will take about 3-5 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the vanilla extract and melted chocolate mixture and beat to combine. Add the milk and flour mixtures in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat only until the ingredients are incorporated. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans and smooth the tops. Bake for about 35 - 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops spring back when lightly pressed. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. Then remove the cakes from their pans and cool completely on a greased wire rack before frosting.

Chocolate Custard Icing: (For in between the layers of cake)

From CDKitchen

**Makes 6 Cups**

2 cups sugar

6 tablespoons cornstarch

2 dashes Salt

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate -- grated

2 cups boiling water

6 tablespoons butter

2 teaspoons vanilla

Mix sugar and cornstarch; add chocolate and salt. Add water. Cook until mixture thickens. Remove from heat. Add butter and vanilla. Spread on cooled cake.

Chocolate Ganache (For outside of cake)

8 ounces (227 grams) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized stainless steel bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth. If desired, add the liqueur.
Makes enough ganache to cover a 9 inch (23 cm) cake or torte.

To Cover a Torte or Cake:
Note: If covering a cake with ganache that is to be refrigerated, make sure the cake is cold before covering with the ganache. This will ensure that the ganache does not dull when stored in the refrigerator. Brush any loose crumbs from the cake and place cake on a wire rack. Put the wire rack on a baking sheet. In this way if the ganache drips it will end up on the baking sheet, which makes clean up easier. Using a cake spatula, cover the sides and top of the cake with about 2 tablespoons ganache. This is called a crumb coat and seals in any cake crumbs so that your cake will have a smooth finish. Refrigerate cake for 5 minutes to set the crumb coat. If you have any air bubbles or crumbs in your ganache, pour through a strainer. To cover cake, pour the remaining ganache into the center of the cake. Working quickly, spread with a spatula, using big strokes to push the ganache over the sides of the cake, to create an even coating of ganache. If there are any bare spots on sides of cake, cover with leftover ganache.

Spicy Shrimp Po' Boys

From Annie's Eats

Ingredients:

For the remoulade sauce:

½ cup plus 2 tbsp. light mayonnaise

2 tbsp. stone ground mustard

1 clove garlic, minced

1½ tbsp. pickle juice

½ tsp. prepared horseradish

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

¼ tsp. hot paprika

Dash of hot sauce

For the sandwiches:

1 lb. medium-large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. Cajun seasoning blend

1 baguette (or 4 sandwich rolls) (I used Focaccia Bread)

Shredded lettuce

Sliced tomato

Directions:

To make the remoulade sauce, combine all of the sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. (If you don’t have a blender or food processor, you can just mix it in a small bowl with a spoon.) Adjust seasonings to taste. Chill until ready to use.
To prepare the sandwiches, combine the shrimp with the olive oil and cajun seasoning in a medium bowl. Toss well to coat the shrimp. Heat a grill pan to medium-high and grill the shrimp just until opaque, about 2 minutes per side. Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside.
Slice the baguette into 4 servings, and cut horizontally to open the bread. Spread some of the remoulade sauce onto both pieces of the bread. Layer the bottom slice of bread with shrimp, then top with lettuce and tomato as desired. Top with the remaining piece of bread and serve immediately.

Focaccia Bread

From Ann Burell, Food Network

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups warm water
1 package active dry yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
5 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for kneading
1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus coarse sea salt, for sprinkling
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Directions

Combine the warm water, yeast and sugar in a small bowl. Put the bowl in a warm, not hot or cool, place until the yeast is bubbling and aromatic, at least 15 minutes.
In the bowl of a mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flour, 1 tablespoon of kosher salt, 1/2 cup olive oil and the yeast mixture on low speed. Once the dough has come together, continue to knead for 5 to 6 minutes on a medium speed until it becomes smooth and soft. Give it a sprinkle of flour if the dough is really sticky and tacky.
Transfer the dough to a clean, lightly floured surface, then knead it by hand 1 or 2 times. Again, give it another sprinkle of flour if the dough is really sticky and tacky.
Coat the inside of the mixer bowl lightly with olive oil and return the dough to the bowl. Cover it with plastic wrap and put it in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, at least 1 hour.
Coat a jelly roll pan with the remaining 1/2 cup olive oil. (Chef's Note: This may seem excessive, but focaccia is an oily crusted bread. This is why it is soooooooooo delicious!).
Put the dough onto the jelly roll pan and begin pressing it out to fit the size of the pan. Turn the dough over to coat the other side with the olive oil. Continue to stretch the dough to fit the pan. As you are doing so, spread your fingers out and make finger holes all the way through the dough. (Chef's Note: Yes, this is strange. But when the dough rises again it will create the characteristic craggy looking focaccia. If you do not make the actual holes in the dough, the finished product will be very smooth.)
Put the dough in the warm place until it has doubled in size, about 1 hour. While the dough is rising a second time, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Liberally sprinkle the top of the focaccia with some coarse sea salt and lightly drizzle a little oil on top. Bake the dough until the top of the loaf is golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove the focaccia from the oven and let it cool before cutting and serving.

Pollo Grande Quesadillas

For Mother's Day I got this fantastic cookbook called, "The Worldwide Ward Cookbook". It is full of some great recipes that are really family friendly. This recipe is in the book. The recipe seemed pretty ordinary, but turned out surprisingly extraordinary. These quesadillas are definitley on our family favorites list. It was difficult to tear myself away from these. They also didn't last long enough to take a picture!

Quesadillas:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
1 large sweet onion, coarsely diced
5-10 T. oil, divided
Fajita seasoning to taste
2 bell peppers (any color), very coarsely chopped
8 0z. mushrooms, sliced (optional)

Jalapeno Cheese Sauce: (I doubled this portion of the recipe)

4 oz. Neufchatel cheese
1/4 c. fat-free sour cream
1/2 tsp. garlic (I used garlic powder)
1/4 C. milk
2-5 T. pickled jalapeno peppers, seeds removed

For assembly:

10-12 tortillas (I used whole wheat tortillas)
12 oz. cheese (Monterey Jack or cheddar), shredded

In a pan, fry chicken and onions in 1-2 T. oil and fajita seasoning to taste until chicken is cooked and onions are tender. In a separate in 1-2 T. oil unitl crisp-tender, adding the mushrooms to the peppers during the last 4-5 minutes of frying, if desired. In a blender, puree all Jalapeno Cheese Sauce ingredients. To assemble, layer one half of each tortilla with chicken mixture, peppers and mushrooms, 2 T. shredded cheese, and 1-2 T. Jalapeno Cheese Sauce. Fold over the other half of the tortilla, enclosing all of the filling. On a griddle or pan lightly brushed with the remaining oil, fry the quesadilla until the tortilla is light brown and the cheese inside has melted. Makes 10-12 servings.

**I didn't brush the tortillas with thet oil and I used my electric grill to cook the quesadillas.

Baked Lemon Pasta

This was my choice for Mother's Day. I wanted something light, but easy to make because I knew I would be cooking it. This was delicious and easy. I really loved the creamy but lemony sauce. Definitely a keeper and it tasted great the next day.

From Sister's Cafe

1 pound Thin Spaghetti

4 Tablespoons Salted Butter

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 cloves Garlic, Minced

1 whole Lemon, Juiced And Zested

2 cups Sour Cream

½ teaspoons Kosher Salt, Or More To Taste

Plenty Of Grated Parmesan Cheese

Flat-leaf Parsley, Chopped (I didn't have this so I just left it out and didn't miss it!)

Extra Lemon Juice

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook spaghetti until al dente. In a skillet, melt butter with olive oil over LOW HEAT. When butter is melted, add minced garlic. Squeeze lemon juice into the pan. Turn off heat. Add sour cream and stir mixture together. Add lemon zest and salt. Taste, then add more salt if necessary. Pour mixture over drained spaghetti and stir together, then pour spaghetti into an oven safe dish. Bake, covered, for 15 minutes. Then remove foil and bake for an additional 7 to 10 minutes. (Don’t bake too long or the pasta will dry out.) When you remove it from the oven, squeeze a little more lemon juice over the top. Top generously with Parmesan cheese, then chopped parsley. Give it a final squeeze of lemon juice at the end or feel free to add as much as you like.

Grilled Chicken Fajitas

I am usually not a huge fan of fajitas, but I am now a fajita lover because of this recipe. It was really easy and the flavors were awesome!

Adapted from Annie's Eats

Ingredients:

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

6 tbsp. vegetable oil, divided

3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1½ tsp. brown sugar

1 jalapeño, seeded, ribbed and diced

1½ tbsp. minced fresh cilantro

1 tsp. salt

¾ tsp. pepper

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

1 large red onion (about 14 oz.), sliced into ½-inch thick slices, rings not separated

2 large bell peppers (about 10 oz. each), stemmed, quartered and seeded

8-12 (6-inch) flour tortillas

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together the lime juice, 4 tablespoons of the vegetable oil, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, jalapeño, cilantro, salt and pepper. Reserve ¼ cup of the marinade; set aside. Place the chicken strips in the marinade, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Remove the chicken from the marinade and transfer to grill. I used my countertop grill (aka.George Forman); discard the left over marinade. Cook chicken on grill until browned and internal temperature is 160 degrees. Remove chicken and cover with foil. Place the onion rounds and peppers on the grill. Cook onions and peppers until spottily charred and crisp-tender, about 8-12 minutes, turning once or twice as needed. When the chicken and vegetables are done, transfer them to a large plate and tent with foil to keep warm.
In 2 or 3 batches, transfer the tortillas in a single layer to the now empty grill. Cook until warm and lightly browned, about 20 seconds per side. When the tortillas are done, wrap them in a clean kitchen towel or foil.
Separate the onions into rings and slice. Place them in a medium bowl. Slice the bell peppers lengthwise into ¼-inch strips and add them to the bowl with the onions. Add chicken to peppers and onions. Pour the reserved marinade onto the ingredients and stir to combine. Microwave for 1 minute to heat through. Arrange the chicken and vegetables on a large platter with the warmed tortillas and serve with toppings (sour cream, salsa, cheese).

Cafe Rio Chicken

This is a new favorite at our house. It is so good. We have made it twice in the last two weeks, which hardly ever happens. Port loves to take it and put it on salads or in wraps. My four year old said, "Mom, this is dad-blasted good!"

From Kitchen Cafe

1 (16 oz.) bottle Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp cumin
3 cloves garlic, minced
5 skinless, boneless chicken breast

Cook all together in a crock pot on low for 4 hours, shred meat and cook 1 additional hour.

Chicken Piccata with Artichoke Hearts

This was delicious. It was really light and a hit with our whole family. We left out the cream and a lot of the guilt when it came to eating this!

From Tasty Kitchen

2 whole Boneless Chicken Breasts
1 whole Shallot, Diced
1 cup White Wine
1 cup Chicken Stock
2 Tablespoons Fresh Lemon Juice (or More If You Want)
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Cream Or Half-and-Half --I used 1 % milk. We didn't miss the cream.
2 Tablespoons Capers (or More If You Want)
1 can Artichoke Hearts, Chopped (14 Ounce Can)
1 package Your Favorite Pasta, Cooked And Drained (13-16 Ounce Box) I used whole wheat spaghetti.

Pound your chicken out with something heavy. I used a rolling pin and it worked great. Salt and pepper both sides and saute in a hot skillet with a little olive oil until both sides are well browned. Take the chicken out and let them rest (they are tired after all that) on a plate with some paper towels.
While your skillet is still hot add the diced shallot and stir around a little – about 3 minutes. Pour in the white wine to deglaze the pan – this will pull up all the brown stuff that was stuck to the bottom of the skillet. Stir. Add the chicken stock and keep the heat pretty high for a few minutes. Add the lemon juice. Let reduce down for about 10 minutes. Add the butter and cream (or half and half) and stir. Add capers and artichokes. Stir. Add the chicken back into the mixture and keep on low heat.
In the mean time, if you’re serving with pasta, boil your water and cook your noodles. Serve in a shallow bowl and pour the sauce all over the noodles and chicken. You can also add a handful of spinach. And then write home to your momma about it!