Pistachio Delight, Watergate Salad, St. Patrick's Day Dessert

A nice fruity and sweet dessert for St. Patrick's Day! I used to have this growing up, but sometimes instead of fruit cocktail, we used a can of pineapple. I'm sure there are a lot of variations you could make and they would all taste good! Yum!

P.S. Remember, you can always make any recipe vegan by substituting those ingredients. For example, almond milk for regular milk, etc.

Easy Delicious Banana Pancakes

Want to make some really delicious pancakes the whole family will love? These are so easy to make too! Here goes:

One box of Aldi's Aunt Maple's Buttermilk Pancake Mix
Water
One banana

Mix together 2 cups of pancake mix, 1 cup of water, and 1 mashed banana. (Increase or decrease water if it's not the right consistency for you.)

Drop the batter in a buttered skillet. Cook on each side once, until browned and done. Turn only once.

Drizzle real maple syrup over it. Mmm, delicious!

Enjoy!!

(Alternatively, you can add bits of chopped apple, blueberries, raspberries, etc as well, if bananas are not your favorite fruit.)

Veggie Macaroni and Cheese Menu Plan Monday

Ingredients:
1 head of garlic, roasted
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 pound Cavatappi pasta
1 package of veggie bacon or ham
1 ½ cups fresh white bread crumbs (5 slices, crusts removed)
½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
8 tablespoons butter
¼ cup minced shallots
½ cup flour
1 quart whole milk
6 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated
8 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
½ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Directions: Preheat oven to 350°. Cook pasta according to package directions.

Combine breadcrumbs, veggie bacon or ham, Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, and 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 375°.

Sauté shallots over low heat for one minute. Add remaining 6 tablespoons of butter and continue to sauté shallots in butter until translucent.

Add flour and continue to cook for 1-2 minutes. Increase heat to medium. Stirring constantly with a whisk, add milk and roasted garlic.

Cook until sauce is thickened (coats the back of a spoon). Remove sauce from heat then add salt, pepper, nutmeg, Gruyere and Cheddar cheeses. Taste and adjust salt and pepper if necessary.

Stir in cooked pasta. Pour into baking dish. Sprinkle topping to cover entire top. Cover with foil and bake 15 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking until sauce is bubbly and topping is browned. Enjoy!

I changed this recipe from one I found on ABC News winning recipe-This morning on "Good Morning America," Emeril Lagasse announced the winner of his Best Mac 'n' Cheese Ever Challenge: Laura Macek! The recipe above is just changed a bit so it doesn't contain meat. Congratulations to Laura Macek!

Works for Me Wednesday

My granddaughter loves macaroni and cheese. A couple years ago, I wanted to make it healthier and hide some vegetables in it, so I experimented and found that broccoli really makes it taste SO good. I usually buy Annie's if I don't make it from scratch. Annie's has better and less ingredients in theirs. (Since eating Annie's, I can't stand Kraft.)

When I put the water in to boil, I also drop in about a half a bunch of broccoli (per box of macaroni), cut up. When the water starts to boil, I add the macaroni. When the macaroni is done, the broccoli is also nice and tender and done too.

I drain them, add the cheese packet, and also add some extra cheese-whatever I have in the fridge. Adding extra cheese makes it taste better too, because the broccoli kind of dilutes the cheese packet if you just use that. My granddaughter loves this so much, she will eat like three bowls of it! And she's little and only four. And, the best thing, she eats every speck of broccoli too!



Be sure to click on the Works for me Wednesday to visit Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer and see all the other blogs participating!

Menu plan Monday recipe

Easy, quick one pan Peach Walnut cake

In 13 x 9 pan, spread 1 can Peach pie filling
Sprinkle 1 box dry spice cake mix over filling
Combine:
2 whole eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
Pour over cake mix.
Poke it down in a little bit.
Bake at 350 degrees until done, about 40 minutes.
Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Cheese and Lentil Patties

2 cups cooked lentils
1/2 lb cheese, grated
1 small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon tamari
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1 cup italian bread crumbs
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon olive oil

Mix everything together, shape into patties, fry in olive oil until both sides are crisp. Serve on roll with honey mustard, tomato, lettuce, thousand island dressing and veggie bacon.

Veggie dogs with crescent rolls

1 package veggie dogs
1 package crescent rolls
Wraps dogs in rolls, bake. Yum! Easy and quick.

Baked carrots (Mennonite recipe from Finger Lakes Mennonites family favorites-Ella Mae Martin)

2 1/2 cups cooked mashed carrots
1 Tbsp. onion, minced
1 tsp. salt
dash pepper
3 eggs, separated
1/2 cup minced celery
1 cup bread crumbs
2 cups milk
2 Tbsp. butter

Cook onions in butter until soft. Add to carrots. Add beaten egg yolks, milk, celery, seasoning and bread crumbs. Beat egg whites and fold in. Place in greased baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

Go back to The Organizing Junkie!

Home

Menu plan Monday

This delicious recipe comes from the cookbook of Regina Campbell, who was featured on PBS. It comes from the PBS show (which I think is retired) and is in her book, "Regina's Vegetarian Table." It's a wonderful book and I highly recommend it. You can buy it from her site through paypal for only $11.95 and free shipping and she even signs it! What a great deal that is! If you can't afford it though, some of the recipes are on her website, so go and check them out.

I love her cookbook so much that I want to give her credit and encourage others to check it out too! You don't have to be vegetarian to use these recipes. And you won't even miss the meat!

Oh, and as for the other days' menus, I'm just not that organized to have that all planned out lol. That's what The Organizing Junkie is for-check out that site and the others who linked to there!

Smoked Mushroom Medley Lasagna

This vegetarian lasagna features a gourmet assortment of ingredients including smoked Gouda (yum!) and mixed mushrooms.

Ingredients

3 layers lasagna noodles (about 3 noodles per layer)
1 lb. mixed variety mushrooms, such as shitake and portabella
1 large stalk celery, chopped
4 green onions, chopped (including at least 2 inches of the greens)
2 Tbs. butter
1 Tbs. dried parsley (or 1/4 C. fresh chopped)
1 tsp. herbes de Provence (or Italian seasoning)
2 Tbs. white wine vinegar (or rice vinegar)
1/3 C. vegetable stock
1 C. half-and-half
Salt
8 oz. smoked Gouda, grated

Directions

1 Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Cook lasagna noodles until tender. Drain, rinse, and set aside.
3. Sauté vegetables in butter and a little water until tender. Add herbs and continue to cook for another minute or so.
4. Add vinegar and vegetable stock and cook for 1 minute. Add half-and-half and continue to cook until sauce begins to thicken. Do not overcook as moisture is needed for the lasagna. Season with salt to taste.
5. On the bottom of a 9-inch square baking dish, layer 1/3 of the noodles. Spoon 1/3 of the mushroom mixture on top of noodles. Sprinkle 1/3 of the shredded Gouda and repeat process starting with the lasagna noodles until all ingredients are used up.
6. Bake for 25 minutes until heated through. Serve hot. Enjoy!

Go back to The Organizing Junkie!

Home

Easy delicious cheese pizza

Here is some pizza I made last night that was really good! I had all this stuff already, so I didn't have to run out and buy anything. You could easily make your own crust, or add other toppings. I never measure anything, so use your own judgment!

Ingredients:
Wegman's Premade large pizza shell
1/2 jar spaghetti sauce (I used Aldi's brand which tastes pretty good!)
Fresh chopped basil ( I used some hydroponically grown-yum!)
Large handful of feta cheese
5 slices of Colby-Jack cheese
Handful of grape tomatoes sliced in half
Pinch of Garlic salt and pepper seasoning (optional) (*Important! Don't use too much! The feta cheese is already pretty salty! )

Start with pizza shell and put all ingredients on in order. Shove into 400 degree oven, watch closely-it only takes minutes until crust is crunchy on outside and soft inside and cheese is melted.

Back to Organizing junkie and Menu Plan Monday

Home

Mexican Hot Chocolate

Warm up with some Mexican Hot Chocolate!

Ingredients

1 and 1/2 cups milk

2 cups heavy whipping cream

8 oz. semisweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 tsp. cinnamon

2/3 tsp. almond extract

Directions

Combine milk, cream, cinnamon and vanilla in a pot and bring to a boil. Have chocolate on the side in a mixing bowl. Allow the heated liquid to sit off the heat for 5 minutes, then pour over the top of the chocolate. Stir the chocolate mixture until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth.

Serve immediately with whipped cream and a light dusting of cinnamon.

Serves eight. Try it with peanut butter-chocolate chips or caramel-chocolate chips for something different!

Snowflake cookies

This is an excellent, healthy, and fun recipe to make! It's from the FamilyFun website, go check it out.

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
	10 flour tortillas (fajita size)
	1 teaspoon vegetable oil
	1 cup chocolate chips
	l/2 cup confectioners' sugar

1. Heat the oven to 350°.

2. Fold each tortilla into quarters and then snip out shapes with clean scissors as if to make a paper snowflake; add a few decorative cuts but maintain some structural integrity (if your tortillas are stiff, soften them in the oven for a minute).

3. A few at a time, place the snowflakes on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake 5 to 7 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.

4. Remove the snowflakes from the oven, immediately dot each one with about a dozen evenly spaced chocolate chips, then return the flakes to the oven briefly to melt the chips.

5. Once the chips begin to melt, transfer the snowflakes to a cooling rack and use a butter knife to spread the chips a bit.

6. Pop the iced snowflakes in the fridge for 5 or 10 minutes to harden the chocolate, then put the confectioners sugar in a sieve and shake an even layer across them.

7. Serve on dark-colored plates.

8. Makes 10.

You could personalize this recipe in so many different ways. Use whole grain tortillas too. I used melted Earth Balance spread brushed on them, and then some sugar in the raw and cinnamon sprinkled on. Mmm. :)

Heart Healthy gingerbread recipe

Nonstick canola oil spray
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 Tbsp. minced crystallized ginger
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
pinch of salt
1 cup hot water
1 cup unsulphured molasses
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 large egg
2 Tbsp. canola oil
Confectioners' sugar

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray an 8-inch square nonstick baking pan with oil.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flours, crystallized ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, ginger, cloves and salt until well combined. Set aside.

In another medium bowl, beat the hot water, molasses, brown sugar, applesauce, egg, and oil until frothy, about 2 minutes. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid. Using a spoon, stir just until combined.

Spread the batter into the pan. Bake until the top springs back when pressed gently in the center, about 50 minutes. Do not overbake. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing. Serve warm or cool. Sift confectioner's sugar on the top.

Banana bread pudding

Pudding:
4 cups cubed day-old french bread or sourdough bread (1 inch pieces)
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 eggs
2 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sliced bananas

Sauce:
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place bread cubes in greased casserole dish. Pour butter over cubes and toss.
In a medium bowl, lightly beat eggs; add milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Stir in bananas. Pour over bread cubes and stir to coat.

Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Meanwhile, for sauce, melt butter in small saucepan. Combine sugar and cornstarch; add to butter. Stir in milk and maple syrup. Cook and stir over medium heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Boil and stir one minute. Remove from heat; stir in the vanilla.

Serve warm sauce over warm pudding. Makes 6 servings.

Optional: add chocolate chips and/or walnuts. Good with ice cream too!

Makes good use of leftover bread and bananas and is a good alternative to banana bread. :)

Excellent Chocolate Cake

My favorite recipe is a chocolate cake one I’ve been making since the early 1980’s. It’s right off a Hershey can (when they used to be metal) and is delicious and easy to make. Just thought I’d share in case anyone wanted to try it. It’s even good without frosting. They used to call it “Deep Dark Chocolate Cake.” Same recipe, different name now. Usually I use just the buttercream frosting recipe off the bag of confectioner’s sugar. I’ll have to try the one below for frosting. It’s really good too with coconut on top.

HERSHEY’S “PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE” Chocolate Cake Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

“PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE” CHOCOLATE FROSTING(recipe follows)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

Frost with “PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE” CHOCOLATE FROSTING. 10 to 12 servings.

VARIATIONS:ONE-PAN CAKE: Grease and flour 13×9x2-inch baking pan. Heat oven to 350° F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely. Frost.

THREE LAYER CAKE: Grease and flour three 8-inch round baking pans. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost.

BUNDT CAKE: Grease and flour 12-cup Bundt pan. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 50 to 55 minutes. Cool 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack. Cool completely. Frost.

CUPCAKES: Line muffin cups (2-1/2 inches in diameter) with paper bake cups. Heat oven to 350°F. Fill cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake 22 to 25 minutes. Cool completely. Frost. About 30 cupcakes.

“PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE” CHOCOLATE FROSTING

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter or margarine
2/3 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla. About 2 cups frosting.

Great Banana Bread

Banana bread

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup mashed ripe bananas
1/2 cup real butter
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
Combine all the above ingredients. Set aside.
Mix together dry ingredients:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup nuts (optional)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Mix together. Add to wet ingredients and mix by hand until blended.
Bake in 350 degree oven. Grease pans or use spray Pam, etc. Don’t overcook.
An old family recipe, tastes excellent, looks light colored before baking, but comes out a dark, deep, delicious banana bread and it’s easy to make.