Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Went to a cooking class and had this...you don't have to wait until the Fall to make it!

Caramel Apple Cheesecake

1/3 c. butter, room temperature

1 c. sugar, divided

4 eggs, room temperature

1 1/3 c. flour

1/2 c. sour cream

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and chopped
1 t. cinnamon

1/2 c. caramel sauce, divided

2 - 8oz. pkgs. cream cheese, room temperature

2 T. flour

1/4 c. chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cream butter and 1/3 c. sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in 1 egg; add 1 1/3 c. flour and mix well. Press dough in bottom of a 9-inch springform pan, and up sides as far and as evenly as possible. Bake 10 minutes and remove from oven. Reduce heat to 350 degrees.

Beat cream cheese and 1/3 c. sugar until creamy. Beat in 2 T. flour. Add remaining 3 eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in sour cream by hand.

Toss apples in remaining 1/3 c. sugar and cinnamon. Stir apples into cream cheese mixture. Pour into crust. Swirl 1/4 c. caramel topping into cream cheese mixture. Bake 45 minutes. Turn off oven, and leave in oven for 1 hour - DO NOT open the oven. Loosen cake from rim and chill for 4 hours or overnight.

To serve, drizzle remaining caramel sauce on top and sprinkle with pecans.

Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Apricot Sauce

Delicious flavor! This recipe is from the PW: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/05/grilled-chicken-sandwich-with-apricot-sauce/

Change it up how you want - I omitted the red onion (just because I didn't have any, but will put it in next time), used a hearty whole wheat bread, and added a slice of Provolone cheese. This is a great hot summer night dinner, and it's super easy.

Grilled Chicken Sandwiches with Apricot Sauce (2 sandwiches)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to even thickness

4 slices sourdough or other crusty bread

1 T. apricot preserves

1 T. mayo

1 T. dijon mustard

Baby spinach

Red onion, sliced thin

2 slices provolone or mozzarella

Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and grill until cooked through. Combine equal parts apricot preserves, dijon, and mayo. Spread sauce on all four pieces of bread. Top with chicken breast, baby spinach leaves, red onion slices, and cheese (optional). Drizzle pan with olive oil and brown on a panini grill, grill pan, or skillet (like a grilled cheese).

Easy Grilled Shrimp

Everyone loves this shrimp recipe - it's super easy and really good! Don't use small shrimp...they'll fall through the cracks on your grill.

Easy Grilled Shrimp

2 lb. shrimp

1 lemon

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 T. fresh parsley, minced

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt & pepper

Rinse shrimp under really cold water. Remove shells & devein (if you didn't buy them that way). I keep the tails on so they are easy to turn on the grill. Sprinkle shrimp with 1 tablespoon kosher salt and a sprinkle of fresh ground black pepper. Set in a bowl or ziplock bag with the juice of 1 lemon, minced garlic, parsley, and a good drizzle of olive oil (about 1/4 cup). Let it marinate for at least 15 minutes or up to 2 hours. Grill on medium-high heat for about 2 minutes per side. They cook quick, so watch 'em! Serve as an appetizer or as a meal with tomato bread and a fresh veggie.

Coconut Cream Pie

I realize not everyone loves coconut cream pie as much as my husband and I do...it's a love-hate relationship for most people. But, if you love coconut cream pie - you just have to try this! We've always had it with a traditional pie crust, but recently had it in a restaurant with a graham cracker crust and it's amazing. It's not a quick throw together pie, but it's easy and well worth the effort.

Coconut Cream Pie

Crust:

1 1/2 c. graham cracker crumbs

6 T. butter, melted

2 T. sugar

Filling:

1 c. sugar

1/2 c. cornstarch

1/2 t. salt

3 c. hot milk
3 egg yolks, beaten

1 t. vanilla

1/2 t. almond extract

2 c. grated coconut, divided

Topping:

1 c. heavy cream

1/4 c. powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter for crust. Press into a 9-inch pie plate. Bake for 20 minutes and cool.

Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in small bowl. Heat milk in medium saucepan and gradually add the sugar mixture, stirring until smooth. Heat over medium heat until thick and just about to boil. Remove from heat. Place beaten egg yolks in a bowl, and stir half the hot mixture in with the yolks to temper. Return egg yolk mixture to pan and cook over low heat, until just boiling again and very thick. Remove from heat and pour filling into a bowl; stir in the vanilla, almond extract, and 1 cup of the coconut. Cover with wax paper pressed on top and refrigerate 1 hour. Pour filling in prepared graham cracker crust and refrigerate 3 hours.

Take the remaining 1 cup of coconut and lay evenly on a sheet pan. Bake at 325 degrees about 10 minutes, until just brown and toasted, stirring occasionally. Let cool.

Whip heavy cream with powdered sugar until thick and soft peaks form. Spread over filling and top with toasted coconut before serving.

Tomato Basil Pizza

Still on a pizza kick... This is just a quick idea that you can make into a mini just for yourself if your husband is gone, or make a BIG one for your whole family.

Tomato Basil Pizza

1 pizza crust

store-bought pesto

fresh mozzarella

ripe tomatoes, sliced

parmesan

Spread a thin layer of pesto on the pizza crust. Lay thin slices of fresh mozzarella on top and sprinkle with salt. Layer tomatoes on top and sprinkle the whole thing with a snow shower of fresh parmesan! Bake at 450 degrees for 10-15 minutes until golden brown. Enjoy.

Caramelized Onion & Prosciutto Pizza

Oh. My. Goodness. If salty & sweet are your weakness, you MUST try this pizza. It's super fast, easy and really different. The flavors are perfect! Again, inspired by the "Pioneer Woman" (http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/03/caramelized-onion-prosciutto-pizza/) I had a couple roma tomatoes on hand, so I sliced them and added those on top. Make it your own and add what you want!

*A good place to buy fresh mozzarella, parmesan, and prosciutto is Sam's Club or Costco!

Caramlized Onion & Prosciutto Pizza

1 Pizza Crust

Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for drizzling

1 large red onion, halved and sliced thin

1/4 c. brown sugar

Parmesan Cheese, grated

10 oz. fresh mozzarella, sliced thin

8 slices Prosciutto

2 roma tomatoes, sliced (optional)

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Heat 2 T. olive oil in a large skillet. Add onions and brown sugar and saute several minutes until soft. Set aside.

Roll out pizza dough on floured surface. Drizzle a little olive oil over the top of the crust followed by a sprinkle of Parmesan and kosher salt. Lay slices of mozzarella evenly over crust. Arrange caramelized onions over mozzarella, followed by the prosciutto and tomatoes.

Bake 15-17 minutes until crust is golden brown. I baked mine on a cookie sheet that was dark, so I would move my oven rack up a little next time. A pizza stone is probably ideal for this.

Chicken Parmigiana

One of my favorites! This recipe was inspired by my new favorite, Ree - http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/10/chicken-parmigiana/

I made her recipe, but used basil instead of parsley. I got a quick picture of what was left before it went in the fridge...I'm already thinking about eating the leftovers tonight. Delicious!

Restaurant Style Salsa

It's been WAY too long since I've posted something new. My new obsession is The Pioneer Woman...she has an awesome blog and a new cookbook and I love her! Her recipes are simple and delicious - check out her website, she's very fun to read (and hilarious in my opinion; I relate to her in a lot of ways) http://thepioneerwoman.com/. Anyway, this is one of her recipes. Personally, I love pico de gallo the most but if you don't have the time to chop all that up, this is a delicious, fast and easy alternative with just enough kick.

Restaurant Style Salsa

1 28oz. can whole tomatoes with juice

2 10oz. cans Rotel (I use one original and one mild)

1/4 c. chopped onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1 jalapeno, chopped

1/4 t. sugar

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. cumin

1/2 c. fresh cilantro

1 lime, juiced

Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Pulse until you get the consistancy you like; refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving. ***If you do not like spicy - use mild Rotel and seed the jalapeno completely to get the heat out!

Chicken Enchiladas & Chocolate Lava Cake!

For Valentine's Day there's nothing better, in my opinion, than making dinner and spending the evening IN! This year, I tried a new recipe I've been wanting to make - Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas (from Tyler Florence), yum! The actual recipe is very long with lots of ingredients, but I scaled it down a bit, took a few shortcuts, and the results were absolutely delicious.

I also made a special dessert that looks and always sounds fancy, but is SO easy and quick to make. Give them both a try!

Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas

Extra virgin olive oil + 1 T. butter

1/2 medium sweet onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 t. ground cumin

1/4 c. flour

2 c. chicken stock

Chopped cilantro

Salt & pepper

1 jar thick tomatillo salsa

1 rotisserie chicken (meat pulled off), or 3 chicken breats (cooked & shredded)

10 flour tortillas

1/2 lb. shredded Monerey Jack cheese

Chopped tomatoes, sour cream, guacamole, and chips & salsa for garnish

*Note: I made all the filling and put half in a bowl to freeze since it was just the 2 of us. This probably serves 4-6 people.

Preheat oven to 350.

Heat 2 T. olive oil + butter in medium pan over medium heat. Add onion and cook until soft - about 10 minutes. Add garlic & cumin and cook one minute more. Sprinkle in the flour and stir for about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in chicken stock and continue stirring until liquid thickens. Turn off heat and add about 1/2 the jar of tomatillo salsa, chopped fresh cilantro, and the shredded chicken.

Smear the bottom of a large baking dish with some of the tomatillo salsa. Put a scoop of the chicken filling in each tortilla followed by a sprinkle of cheese, roll up, and place in baking dish. Finish assembling all tortillas, pour rest of tomatillo salsa over top with the remaining shredded cheese. Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes until melted & bubbly. Top with fresh diced tomatoes, sour cream, and fresh guacamole.

Chocolate Lava Cakes

4 (1-ounce) squares bittersweet chocolate

4 (1-ounce) squares semisweet chocolate

10 T. (1 1/4 sticks) butter

1/2 c. flour

1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

3 large eggs

3 egg yolks

1 t. vanilla

2 T. chocolate liqueur

Preheat oven to 425.

Butter 6 custard cups/ramakins well. Melt chocolates and butter in microwave in 1-minute incriments, or over double boiler. Take off heat and add flour and sugar (it will be very thick). Stir in eggs and yolks and stir until smooth. Stir in vanilla and liqueur. Divide batter evenly between the 6 cups. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 10-14 minutes. The edges will be firm but the center will be runny. Run knife around the edges to loosen, place a small plate on top and invert onto plate. Serve warm with fresh berries (I recommend raspberries) and a scoop of ice cream.

Spinach & Artichoke Mac and Cheese

This was another top 10 on Rachael Ray. I'm a big fan of spinach & artichoke dip, so I couldn't wait to try this. Loved it! Especially the crusty cheesy top...enjoy!

Spinach & Artichoke Mac and Cheese

1 lb. penne (regular or whole wheat - I like Ronzoni)

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

3 T. butter

1 medium onion, finely chopped (I used 1/2)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 T. flour

1/2 c. white wine

2 c. milk

Freshly grated nutmeg, about 1/4 t.

1 10oz. box frozen spinach, defrosted and wrung dry in a kitchen towel or paper towels

1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained

Salt & pepper

1 1/2 c. shredded Fontina cheese (I used sharp white cheddar), plus more for sprinking on top

1 1/2 c. grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, plus more for sprinking on top

Bring large pot of water to a boil, salt water liberally, add pasta and cook.

In a medium saute pan over medium-low, heat EVOO and butter. Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft. Turn heat up and sprinkle in the flour. Cook for about 1 minute then whisk in the wine, cooking for another minute to burn off the alcohol. Whisk in the milk and bring to a bubble. Add the nutmeg, spinach, artichokes, salt and pepper and simmer until thick. Add 1 cup of each of the cheeses and stir until melted.

Preheat broiler. Toss the sauce with the cooked pasta (drained) and transfer to a casserole dish. Sprinkle more cheese on top and place under the broiler until golden brown and bubbly.