Apple Walnut Sticky Buns

I've been trying a couple new recipes for options of "breads" to bring to my Moms group. I ran across this recipe for Sandra Lee's Apple Walnut Sticky Buns. What drew me to them was that not only did they look super yummy, but in Sandra Lee fashion, they were also SUPER easy. You can check out the video of her preparing them HERE.

*Tip -- The Cinnamon rolls come in packages of 8. This recipe calls for 2 packages - to make 12 sticky buns and then to use the other 4 in another recipe. Just get 3 packages, increase apple/walnut mixture bit and then use 2 muffin tins to make 24 rolls. :)

Ingredients
1 Granny Smith apple
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup brown sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 (8-count) tubes refrigerated cinnamon rolls
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 to 2 teaspoons water

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Generously butter a 12-count muffin tin.

Peel, core and dice the apples into 1/2-inch cubes. In a medium bowl stir together the diced apples with the walnuts and brown sugar.


Divide the apple mixture evenly into the muffin tin. Put 12 cinnamon buns, cinnamon side up, on top of the apple mixture. Put the muffin tin on a baking sheet and bake until the tops are golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. (Bake off remaining 4 buns for Round 2 Recipe Cinnamon Roll French Toast.)


Remove the muffin tin from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Put a clean baking sheet on top of the muffin tin and flip to remove the sticky buns.


In a small bowl, combine 1 container of the vanilla frosting (save the other for Round 2 Cinnamon Roll French Toast) with the pumpkin pie spice and 1 to 2 teaspoons of water. Mix until very thick and of pourable consistency. Drizzle over buns and serve.

Lettuce Wraps

Tonight I made lettuce wraps. This was somewhat healthy (and even healthier if you use ground turkey or even tofu if you want to go vegetarian) and packed FULL of flavor! Here's the recipe and then my changes/variation afterwards as well as my friend, Abby's variation too:

Asian Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients
16 Boston Bibb or butter lettuce leaves
1 pound lean ground beef
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons minced pickled ginger
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
Asian chile pepper sauce (optional)
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts, drained and finely chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 teaspoons Asian (dark) sesame oil

Directions
1.Rinse whole lettuce leaves and pat dry, being careful not tear them. Set aside.
2.In a medium skillet over high heat, brown the ground beef in 1 tablespoon of oil, stirring often and reducing the heat to medium, if necessary. Drain, and set aside to cool. Cook the onion in the same pan, stirring frequently. Add the garlic, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger, vinegar, and chile pepper sauce to the onions, and stir. Stir in chopped water chestnuts, green onions, and sesame oil, and continue cooking until the onions just begin to wilt, about 2 minutes.
3.Arrange lettuce leaves around the outer edge of a large serving platter, and pile meat mixture in the center. To serve, allow each person to spoon a portion of the meat into a lettuce leaf. Wrap the lettuce around the meat like a burrito, and enjoy!
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My Variation:

Ingredients

• I used romaine lettuce instead of Bibb lettuce. Iceberg or Bibb would have been better but I got the Romaine on sale. :)
• I used peanut oil for the cooking oil
• I used fresh ginger instead of pickled simply because fresh was cheaper. I grated it in.
• I didn't have the pepper sauce so I just used red pepper flakes. I'm sure the cause would have been better, but I used what I had!
• I added cilantro
• I omitted the sesame oil since I didn't have any
• On the table I put out bean sprouts, grated carrots, and fresh cilantro to add into the wraps.

Directions:

• I followed the directions pretty much to a T. After the onions and everything were all cooked down, I added the beef back in and gave it a nice mix. The only thing about this was that it didn't create a lot of sauce. I had a bottle of Thai Peanut Sauce and Sweet Chili Sauce so I put those on the table to dd in as each person would like.

Overall this dish was wonderful!! It was a great thing for a warm summer night!

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My friend, Abby, makes chicken lettuce wraps. HEre's her recipe. It sounds great and sounds like it makes more sauce! :) I also like this because I could make it at any point during the day (like naptime) and then have it on hand when it's time to make dinner! Perfact! Thanks Abby!

OK so I don't really measure on this one; it was sort of a throw together whatever i had on hand sort of thing. I tried to guess on the amounts as best I could to give you an idea, but feel free to tweak them as necessary! Oh also, I use low sodium on everything otherwise it can get really salty.

Dice 1lb of boneless skinless breasts and put in a large plastic storage bag. Add about one cup of chicken stock or broth, 3-4 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons OJ (I've also done it with lime juice instead and it's pretty good, but I did only 1T), 2 tablespoons minced garlic (we love garlic so they are heaping!!), 1/4 c chopped water chestnuts and the white and light green part of 2 green onions. Seal the bag and mix it all together. Let marinade about 30 minutes.

Heat up about a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large skillet or wok over medium to medium-high heat Remove the chicken from the bag and add to the pan. While it is cooking add 1ish tablespoon of cornstarch to the marinade and mix together. Set aside. Once the chicken is no longer pink, scoot to the edge of the pan and add the marinade. Let come to a boil and lower the heat. Mix the chicken into the sauce and it will thicken up. Remove from the pan. There may be extra sauce because you don't want it too saucy in the wrap.

We just do it build your own style and lay out the lettuce, put the chicken in a bowl as well as a bowl of crunchy chow mein noodles.

Italian Roast Chicken with Orange and Oregano

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/italian-roast-chicken-orange-and-oregano/

This was on the RR show today and it just looks SO yummy. This picture didn't do the dish on TV justice. Hopefully, whenever I make this, it'll taste as good as it looks!

Ingredients
8 pieces of bone-in, skin-on chicken, your choice of cuts
Salt
4 heads of garlic
EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for liberal drizzling
Black pepper
4 navel or blood oranges
6 fresh bay leaves
3 medium red onions, peeled, root-end in tact and cut into wedges
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, 1/3 palmful
3 to 4 stems fresh oregano leaves, a couple of tablespoons, finely chopped
1 cup dry white wine, just eyeball the amount
1/4 cup good quality orange blossom honey
Crusty bread, to pass at table

Yields: Serves 4

Preparation
Wash and dry chicken and season with salt, then refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 425˚F.

Cut ends off the garlic heads and dress with a little EVOO, salt and pepper. Wrap in foil and place in oven, roast 45 minutes until golden and soft.


Meanwhile, in a roasting pan or large casserole, toss 2 sliced or wedge-cut oranges with red onions, bay leaves and a liberal drizzle of EVOO – enough to thinly coat the oranges, bay leaves, and onions (a couple of tablespoons). Season with salt and pepper and scoot the oranges and onions off to the sides of the pan.

Arrange chicken in pan and rub with EVOO to coat the skin. Season chicken with black and red pepper then scatter the oregano over the chicken, onions and oranges. Add wine to the pan, along with the juice of 2 oranges. Drizzle honey around the pan and place in the oven. Toast 45 minutes or until juices run clear.

Serve chicken with oranges and onions, and with pan juices spooned over top and a whole head of roasted garlic along side. Pop cloves away from skins as you eat your chicken or spread on crusty bread.

Rachel Ray's 7 Layer Cassarole

Rachel Ray's Super-Sized 7 Layer Cassarole

To see the video and other pictures, go to the website:

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/super-sized-7-layer-casserole/

**FYI this recipe is for 12 servings! I haven't made it but it looks GREAT. But it also looks like a lot of work -- or at least time consuming. So I would, at least, go to the webiste, and print out the recipe so you can have it in front of you. I also wonder if you could make it and freeze the first 3 layers. hmmmm....

Ingredients
1 package corn tortillas or any color corn chips
2 tablespoons vegetable oil or cooking spray
1 box elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 pounds ground beef
1 medium onion, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, grated, divided
4 jalapeño peppers, finely chopped, divided
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon coriander
1 tablespoon cumin
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 bottle of beer
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1 14.5-ounce can chopped tomatoes with chilies, drained
3 cups shredded yellow cheddar cheese, divided
2 cans vegetarian spicy refried beans
5 to 6 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
Salt
2 limes, zest of 1 and juice of 2
2 avocados
1 cup sour cream
Juice of 1 lemon
Hot sauce to taste
1/2 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
1/2 cup chopped olives with pimientos
1 bunch scallions, chopped
Yields: 12 servings

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400˚F.
If using corn tortillas, cut them into thin strips about 1/2 inch thick, and place them onto a baking sheet. Toss them with some vegetable oil or spray with cooking spray and season them with salt and ground pepper. Pop them into the oven and cook until crispy and golden, about 15 minutes.
Bring a large pot of water up to a boil over high heat. Salt the water then add the noodles and cook to package instructions.

Place a large skillet over medium high heat with a tablespoon EVOO. Brown the meat, then add in the onion, 4 cloves grated garlic and 2 jalapeños, and cook until tender.

Season the meat and veggies with chili powder, coriander, cumin and tomato paste. Let the meat mixture cook for a minute or two with the spices, then add the beer and let that cook down for about 4-5 minutes. Reserve.

While the meat is cooking, make the cheese sauce: In a saucepot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and give it a stir to combine with the butter. Cook for a minute or so then whisk in the milk. Cook until thickened.

Drain the can of tomatoes with chilies and add them to the thickened milk mixture. Fold in 2 1/2 cups cheese and the reserved noodles. Season with salt and pepper, and reserve.
In another saucepot, heat up the can of refried beans with a little bit of water.

To build the casserole, spread the beef mixture out in the bottom of a casserole dish. Top with the refried beans and finish it off with the mac and cheeses and the remaining cheese. Pop the casserole into the oven and bake until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.
While the casserole is baking, make the salsa: Mix the plum tomatoes, remaining jalapeño peppers, red onion and cilantro in a small bowl. Season with salt, lime zest and juice, and reserve.
For the guacamole sour cream, scoop the flesh of the avocados into the bowl of a food processor and add the sour cream, lemon juice, remaining 2 cloves grated garlic and hot sauce. Process until creamy.

Once the casserole comes out of the oven, top it with the crispy corn strips and shredded iceberg lettuce. Top with the salsa, then the guacamole sour cream and finally the chopped olives with pimientos and scallions.

Kumquat Appetizer

Kumquat, Cheese Cheese and Candied Pecan Appetizer

So my best friend is getting married and at her lingerie shower , they served these YUMMY apps. Kudos go to Mrs. Jennifer Richman and her apparently amazing mother in law for this recipe! :)

If you haven't ever had a kumquat before, it's like a tiny (think cherry tomatoe size), tart orange or tangerine. You eat the entire thing (peel and all) and by itself, is just too tart for me. However, this recipe is SOOOO good! I couldn't stop eating them! First you're hit with the tart and tangy-ness of the kumquat, then the cream cheese acts as a nice smooth buffer and then you get a burst of sweetness and crunch from the pecan. They're easy to make, can be made ahead of time and sure to be a hit at your next summer party.

Ingredients:

Kumquats

Whipped Cream Cheese

Candied Pecans

Directions:

Cut Kumquat lengthwise, put a dallop of cream cheese on it and top it off with a candied pecan. Set out to be enjoyed!

Yup - it's that easy! Enjoy!

Buenos Aires Hearts of Palm Salad

This recipe is from Rachel Ray's magazine "Everyday with Rachel Ray" (Aug 2009, pg 70). For those of you who don't know what hearts of palm is - it's a canned veggie from a certain type of palm tree. The article described it as tasting like artichoke and has the texture of asparargus. It can be found in the canned food section next to canned and jarred artichokes.

This recipe is good and doesn't require a lot of ingredients or prep work. It's great for a BBQ or just a summer night. I did make some changes - so see those below!

Buenos Aires Hearts of Palm Salad
One 14-oz can of hearts of palm - thinly sliced
1 tomatoe - thinly sliced
1 Hass avacado, quartered and thinly sliced
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
1 Tbl fresh orange juice
1 Tbl fresh lime juice
Salt and Pepper

On a platter, arrange the hearts of palm, tomatoes and avacado in a single overlapping layer. In a small bowl, whisk together EVOO, orange and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle dressing over the salad.
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Ok now for my turn. When I was at the store getting hte hearts of palm, Sprouts only had an organic can for $5! Thinking that was rediculous, and knowing that I already had a can of artichoke hearts in my pantry, I skipped out on the main ingredient in this dish and substituted the palm for artichokes. It still tasted great!

An FYI about the EVOO. Man, 1/4 of a cup is A LOT of oil in my opinion. I didn't need that much at all. Not only did I have TONS leftover after I drizzled the dressing over the salad, but I felt like the oil made the dressing......just too oily. Next time, I'm going to use only 2 Tbls of EVOO and then add more if needed. I also salt and peppered it before I dressed the salad - I like salt and pepper directly on my avacado. It worked out fine. I don't know if it would really matter either way.

Try it out sometime and let me know how you like it. If you don't -- blame Rachel. :)

Happy eating!