Pasta with Bolognese Sauce

This recipe comes from the "Real Simple: Meals Made Easy" cookbook (as in the magazine.) It is a great way to sneak in vegetables into your meal, and has a wonderful flavor. Also, you can freeze it for up to 3 months. It calls for white wine, but you can use alcohol-removed cooking wine from any gourmet grocery store, and it works great. It also calls for pancetta, but I have never put it in due to how expensive it is! I also use ground turkey instead of ground beef, but you can use whichever according to your preference. 

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
3 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 pound pancetta, finely chopped
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup whole milk
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 pound dry fettucine
Grated parmesan


Heat the oil in a dutch oven or large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes. Add the celery, carrot, and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Add the pancetta and cook for 5 minutes. Add the beef and cook, crumbling it with a spoon, until no trace of pink remains, about 7 minutes. Spoon off and discard any excess fat. Add the wine, milk, tomato paste, tomatoes, red pepper flakes, oregano, parsley, salt, black pepper, and nutmeg and bring to a simmer. Cover partially, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain and transfer to individual bowls. Top with the sauce and parmesan.
To freeze...Omit the pasta and parmesan. Let the sauce cool, then ladle it into resealable freezer bags. Store up to 3 months.
To reheat...Thaw the sauce overnight in the refrigerator or thaw partially in the microwave. Warm in a covered saucepan over medium-low heat for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the pasta. Spoon the sauce over it and sprinkle with the parmesan.

Chocolate Chip Date Cake

This cake has been a Dunn family favorite for many years. When I was little, I thought it was called "Chocolate Chip Date Cake" because it was something to eat when you went out on a date. As I got older, I realized that there are actually dates in the batter, and they are the secret to its moist consistency and good taste. It is a great chocolate cake that is delicious, and not super-sweet. I've added pictures to my recipe (a la "Pioneer Woman Cooks") because I had made this cake wrong for so many years, and then finally, after talking to my mom one day after another failed attempt, I realized what I was doing that was making it not quite as I remembered it growing up. So, forgive my feeble attempts to be creative or funny with my pictures, but I didn't want the same mistake to happen to anyone else! Ok, so let's get started!

The "cast of characters": sugar, flour, vanilla, chopped pecans, chopped dates (found by the raisins in the grocery store), chocolate chips, cocoa, eggs, butter, baking soda, and boiling water (not pictured.)

Start by taking 1 cup chopped dates and putting it in a bowl

then add 1 tsp. baking soda

and 1 cup boiling water

and let stand for 40 minutes. Go for a walk, go play with your kids, watch some "Oprah", whatever.

In the meantime, add 1 Tbsp. cocoa to 1 cup sugar.

Mix well.

Then cream the sugar/cocoa mixture with 1 cup (2 sticks) of butter. Don't even think about substituting it with something else, and heaven forbid, lower in fat.

Add 2 eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.

Then add 1 & 3/4 cups flour, gradually.

Your batter should be pretty thick after you've added the flour.

Now, here comes the key part (and the thing I had been doing wrong for so long): Add the dates, with the liquid, to the batter. For so long I had been just adding the dates, sometimes straining it, and wondering why my cake was so dry and didn't ever taste like my mom's. The liquid and the plump dates make your cake so moist and good. Oh, and don't worry if you're not a big date fan; you can't even taste them in the cake, they just help with the consistency of the cake.
Now add 1 tsp. real vanilla

and 1/2 cup chocolate chips, and 1/2 cup chopped pecans to the batter. Mix gently.

Now grease and flour an oblong cake pan, this one is 13x9.


Spread the gooey yummy batter in the pan evenly.

Now add another 1/2 cup chocolate chips to the top,

and 1/2 cup chopped pecans to the top.

Bake at 325 for 30 minutes until a toothpick or knife comes out clean.

Let cool and cut into pieces and serve. This cake is really good warm with some vanilla ice cream, and needs no icing! Enjoy!

Amy's Apple Dip

My mom got this recipe from our cousin Amy Dunn Jacobsen, or so the story goes, and we've been calling it "Amy's Apple Dip" ever since. But seeing that none of you know Amy (or me, for that matter) I thought I'd call it what it is. 

1 can sweetened condensed milk
6-8 oz. butterscotch chips
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vinegar
Melt in a double doiler on low heat. Serve warm with granny smith apples, or any other apples you prefer, but, the more tart the better!

Chicken Waikiki Beach

This is one of those great tried-and-true recipes from a ward cookbook. The recipe calls for whole chicken legs and breasts, but you can also use like 3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts instead, just eyeball it. It also says to bake it for a total of 1 hour, but you can skip the first step and add all the ingredients together and bake it about 40 minutes, or until the chicken and pineapple and pepper are tender.

2 whole chicken legs
2 whole chicken breasts
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Sauce:
1 cup sugar
1 large can pineapple chunks
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1 chicken boullion cube
1 large green pepper cut into cubes

Heat oven to 350. Wash chicken, pat dry. Coat chicken with flour.

Heat oil in a large skillet, add chicken, and brown on all sides. Remove as browned to shallow roasting pan, skin side up. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Sauce: Drain pineapple, pouring syrup into 2-cup measuring cup. Add water to make 1 1/2 cups. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, pineapple syrup, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger and boullion cube. Bring to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil 2 minutes. Pour over chicken. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Add pineapple and green pepper. Bake 30 minutes longer or until chicken and vegetables are tender. Serve with fluffy white rice (jasmine is my favorite.)

Spinach Pasta Salad

I had this at a church activity in my old ward and ate about 4 plates of it. It is definitely a "girl's salad", great for bridal or baby showers, bookclubs, or any other activities where guys aren't in attendance. This recipe is halved, which feeds about 6-8 people, but for bigger crowds, double it for 12-16 people.

1 bag (10 oz) spinach
1/2 bunch green onions, sliced
1/4 C. fresh parsley
3 oz. craisins (1/3 C.)
3 oz. honey roasted peanuts (about 1/3 c.--I used honey roasted cashews)
1-2 cans mandarin oranges, drained
2 C. cooked, cut-up chicken (about 2 large breasts)
1/2 box (12-16 oz) bow tie pasta (about 4 cups cooked pasta)

Dressing:
1/2 C. vegetable oil
1/3 C. Teriyaki Sauce
1/3 C. Rice Vinegar (Nakano original seasonal brand)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Prepare dressing ahead of time and refrigerate overnight. Mix all salad ingredients together and add dressing just before serving.

Amazing Coconut Refrigerator Cake

This is for a couple of friends who requested the recipe. We made it for Easter dinner this year and joked that it was a "true" Easter cake because it's best if you leave it in the fridge up to 3 days. But the longer the better!

Cake:
1 package white cake mix
1 1/3 cups water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 large eggs

Coconut frosting:
2 cups sugar
2 cups sour cream (16-oz. container)
3 1/2 cups grated coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease and flour two 9-in. round cake pans. Place the cake mix, water, oil and eggs in mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low for 1 minute; stop and scrape the bowl and then mix on medium speed 2 minutes more. The batter should look well-blended. Divide the batter between the two pans. Bake the cakes until they are golden brown, about 27 to 29 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the frosting by combining the sugar, sour cream and coconut in a bowl, and let the mixture rest in the refrigerator until the sugar dissolves, about 1 hour. Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool 10 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edges and invert onto a rack and let cool another 30 minutes. When the cake is cooled, carefully slice the cake layers in half horizontally using a long serrated bread knife or a long piece of unflavored dental floss. You will have four layers. Assemble the cake by spreading some frosting on the bottom half, topping with another half, and so on until the four layers are assembled. Frost the top and sides with remaining frosting. Chill the cake, uncovered, until the frosting is firm, about 1 hour.

You can store the cake, covered with wax paper in the fridge for up to one week. The whole eggs in the batter and the sour cream frosting soaks down into the cake, making it improve as the cake chills. The coconut flavor also increases daily.

Chicken Wild Rice Salad

This is one of my favorite cold summer salads. And in posting this, I am hoping you all will post some good summer recipes of your's seeing that I am in a rut and want to eat good cold things! It sounds weird when you read the ingredients, but trust me, it is so good. I love it really cold with maybe some watermelon or other fruit for an easy meal.

4 cooked chicken breasts (I usually grill mine, but you can cook them any way you want)
2 boxes Uncle Ben's Long Grain and Wild Rice (it calls for original, but I use the fast cook to save time)
1 green pepper, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 cup snow peas, cut in smaller pieces
1 bottle Brianna's Blush Wine Vinaigrette dressing
Cook rice and chicken. Cut up chicken and vegetables. Combine in a bowl. And whole bottle of salad dressing. Toss and enjoy!

Mississippi Mud Cake

This is one of my favorite cakes. It is not for the faint of heart. It is a gooey, sweet, sticky mess but you will lick it up and beg for more. And please, share it. With all the butter and sugar in it your thighs will thank you. Here it is:

1 package (18.25 ounces) plain devil's food cake mix
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) butter or margarine, melted
1 1/2 cups buttermilk (if you don't have buttermilk, just add 3 tsp. white vinegar to 1 1/2 cups milk)
2 large eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 jar (7 ounces) marshmellow creme or 1 1/2 cups mini marshmellows
Chocolate Pan Frosting (recipe below)
1 cup chopped toasted pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly mist a 13 x 9 inch baking pan with vegetable oil spray. Set aside.
2. Place the cake mix, melted butter, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and blend on low speed for 1 minute. Stop and scrape down pan. Then blend on medium about 2 minutes more until the batter is blended and light and fluffy. Pour it into prepared pan.
3. Bake the cake until it springs back when lightly pressed with your finger, about 40 to 42 min. Remove the pan from oven and place on wire rack to cool. Spread the warm cake with the marshellow creme or mini marshmellows.
4. Prepare the chocolate pan frosting.
5. Pour the hot frosting on top of the marshellow creme and spread it out with a spatula so the frosting reaches the edges of the cake. Scatter the top with toasted pecans. Cool the cake for 20 minutes before serving.
Note: To toast pecans, preheat oven to about 325. Spread the pecans on a baking sheet in an even layer, and place in oven for about 5 minutes or so, just until you can smell them and they're not burnt.
This cake can also be stored, covered at room temp. for up to 1 week. Or freeze it, wrapped in foil, for up to 6 months. Thaw the cake on the counter overnight before serving.

Chocolate Pan Frosting:
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) butter
4 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 cup whole milk
4 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted
1. Place the butter in a medium saucepan and melt over low heat, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in cocoa powder and milk. Let the mixture come just to a boil, stirring, and then remove the pan from the heat. Stir in confectioner's sugar until the frosting is thickened and smooth.
2. Pour the warm frosting over the top of a cooled cake of your choice, spreading it with a spatula so that it reaches all the sides of the cake. Work quickly because this frosting goes on best while still warm.

easy easy cobbler for 1, 2...

1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup quick oats
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup walnuts (optional)

[mix all together (at this point i put in a Ziploc and put what i don't use in the fridge then when i want some cobbler i just take out what i need) take out 1/2 cup of mixture and put in microwave safe bowl cook for 1 minute (bubbly) stir. then get out some fresh or canned peaches (or any fruit you like) and put in bowl microwave for 30 seconds then add topping and micro for 30 more...
voila! yum yum!

My Thanksgiving Must---Yams!

So we all have our own Thanksgiving favorite recipes, you know, the one that if it weren't there it wouldn't feel like Thanksgiving. Mine is yams. My mom has been making these yams ever since I can remember, and they are the BEST!

Now I know what 80-90% of you are thinking...you don't like sweet potatoes, or yams. And this is why I'm posting this recipe, so I can convert the world into yam lovers! But first, a few clarifications: one of the reasons why people don't like them, is because they are buying sweet potatoes, not yams (yams are usually bigger, longer, and deeper in orange color, meaning, more flavor); the second reason they don't like them is because they are made the wrong way. Most people boil them. To think of that makes my stomach turn. The secret is to buy yams and to bake them, just as you would a baked potato. The baking seals in the flavor and doesn't boil it away. Also, too many people make them with too many ingredients: cream, cinnamon, milk, etc etc. For this recipe, you will need the following:

Yams (about 1-2 large per person, if you want leftovers)
Some orange juice
a 2-lb. bag of brown sugar
1 bag mini marshmellows
That's it!

So let's begin!

After piercing your yams with a fork, bake them in a 350-375 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes. Test them with a fork. You want them to be cooked and tender, but not too overdone. You want them to be firm, not mushy. Also, if you haven't already done so, I would line my oven with foil at the bottom, because once the yams start cooking, they drip their yummy juice and it can be a little messy. When they've finished cooking, I usually put them in the fridge for a few hours or overnight so they can firm up before I peel and cut them.

Peel off the skin and slice your yams. I like to slice mine lengthwise, but you can slice them any way you want!

Next, take a casserole dish...

and pour enough orange juice on the bottom just to coat the bottom of the dish.

Next, start layering your yams, and sprinkle brown sugar on them. Now I don't know how much sugar to use, but the more the better. You'll need a lot more than you think you will.

Yummy....

Then sprinkle some marshmellows on top. Repeat this process until all the yams are in the dish.

Now take your dish and bake it in about a 375 degree oven for about an hour or so. The sugar will carmelize, the marshmellows will melt, and it will turn into a sugary-yummy yammy treat.

The finished product. Now you can make this the day ahead, and then just reheat them the day of Thanksgiving dinner. I've also been known to taste them and add more brown sugar, which is what I did here. I like them sweet and when I say sweet, I mean icky sweet.

Gobble gobble! You must try them. Must! I will make a yam-lover out of you yet!

Nicki's Baked Ziti

My friend Nicki brought me this Ziti after I had Claire and it was DELICIOUS! I swear it was the best meal anyone has ever brought me!

INGREDIENTS
1 pound dry ziti pasta
1 onion, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef
2 (26 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
1 1/2 cups sour cream
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese


DIRECTIONS
1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes; drain.
2. In a large skillet, brown onion and ground beef over medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer as follows: 1/2 of the ziti, Provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, remaining ziti, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
4. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cheeses are melted.

yummy bread pudding

via picky palate While on our cruise I had the best bread pudding ever... this is the first that has even come close!! instead of chocolate chips use white chocolate... PURE HEAVEN!!!

1 lb loaf Cinnamon Swirl Bread, cut into 1 inch cubes

½ Cup semi sweet chocolate chips(I use white chocolate)

1 1/3 Cups 1% low fat milk

3 large eggs

½ Cup sugar

2 Tablespoons packed brown sugar

Pinch of salt

½ Cup powdered sugar

2 ½ Tablespoons 1% low fat milk

1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place bread cubes and chocolate chips into a large mixing bowl.

In a medium bowl whisk the milk, eggs, sugar, brown sugar and salt.

Pour over bread cubes. Stir to combine.

2. Spray a 12 cup muffin tin with cooking spray and spoon bread pudding mixture evenly into muffin tins. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from center of pudding. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack.

3. In a medium bowl whisk together powdered sugar, milk and syrup until well combined. Drizzle over bread pudding and serve warm. Enjoy!

Kyles Tikka Masaula

One Onion sautee in 2 TBS butter then add...
1Tbs garlic
1tsp cumin
1-2 TBs salt
2 TBS garum Masuala
Blend together over heat for a few minutes

1 lg can of crushed tomatoes (unflavored)
1 sm can of tom sauce

add chopped cooked chicn and boil to desired thickness.
add 1 pnt of whipping cream add honey to taste.


serve over rice with cilantro on top.

We first tried this at Kyle and JoEllens. It is a favorite. even picky E likes it.