Peanut Butter Cheesecake

After the Christmas Holiday I had a few cream cheese containers left over and I had no idea what to do with them. Then I had a craving for peanut butter. Which lead me to this wonderful recipe for a peanut butter cheesecake:

Crust:

1 c. graham cracker crumbs (44 wafers)
3 tbsp. sugar
3 tbsp. butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mix crumbs, 3 tablespoons sugar and butter in bowl. Press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan. Bake 10 minutes. Remove.

Filling:

2 pkgs. (8 oz. each) cream cheese, room temperature
1 c. sugar
1/2 c. peanut butter
3 tbsp. flour
4 eggs
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. grape jelly (for topping) or drizzle chocolate

Beat cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, peanut butter and flour at medium speed with electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in milk; pour into crust.

Bake in preheated oven 55 minutes. Remove. Loosen cake.

Stir jelly until smooth; drizzle over cheesecake in lattice design. Refrigerate.

Serving Size: 10.

(courtesy of cooks.com)

I highly suggest that after you make it invite tons of people over to share it. It is extremely rich and delicious. You'll only need a tiny sliver to enjoy this delectable treat.

I also suggest using chocolate instead of grape jelly as a topping. It makes it 100x better.

Valentine's Buche de Noel

I love Buche de Noel (Yule Log) at Christmas time. I tried it out at Christmas and failed horribly. For Valentine's Day I wanted to try to redeem myself but I didn't want the traditional yule log. I found the perfect recipe for the cake part:

Buche De Noel (from cooks.com)

4 egg yolks
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
4 egg whites
1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. sifted cake flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon colored; gradually beat in 1/4 cup of sugar and vanilla.

Beat egg white until almost stiff; gradually beat in remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and beat until stiff. Fold yolks into whites.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt three times; add to egg mixture and fold in.

Bake in greased, waxed-paper lined 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 x 1-inch jelly roll pan at 375°F for 12 minutes.

Loosen sides, turn out on towel sprinkled with confectioners sugar; remove paper, trim crusts, roll quickly with sheet paper on inside of roll and wrap in sugared towel. Let cool, then unroll and remove paper.

For the inside I used a Flavored Sweetened Whipped Cream recipe from Betty Crocker cookbook:

1 cup whipping (heavy) cream
3 tablespoons granulated or powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Mix together on high speed until soft peaks form (very important). I also added a little bit more cinnamon and a tiny bit of cinnamon extract to give it more kick. I added some food coloring to give it a more Valentine's look.

Then after you put the whipped cream on the inside of the cake, roll it back up.

For the outside I suggest a traditional chocolate butter cream frosting. Be careful not to make too much frosting (it's always been my problem). This time I added whipped cream instead of milk to the frosting to make it more light and fluffy. Turns out that was Cory's favorite part.

And this is the end result:


Don't forget that there is plenty of room for your own creativity. You can change the color to anything and add your own flavoring to any part of it. Enjoy!

Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

3 C low-sodium Chicken broth, I prefer Swanson's

1 medium onion, chopped

2 stalks celery, sliced

2 carrots, thinly sliced

1 16-oz. can sliced green beans, drained

1 small zucchini, sliced

1 16-oz can diced tomatoes

1 T. Italian seasoning

1 T. garlic powder, I prefer 1 t.

Salt and pepper, to taste

Cooking Instructions: In a large pot or Dutch oven, cook the onion, celery, and carrots in the chicken broth. Add green beans and zucchini; cook, covered, for 10-15 min, Add the tomatoes and seasoning; cook an additional 10 min.

Options & tips: Soup tastes better the next day. Serve soup with whole wheat crackers.

We really like this soup on cold days. My daughter will even eat this soup. It's great to cook in the crock pot for an easy meal as well, that way you can eat it anytime. Just cook on low setting and when everything is cooked though change setting to warm, if you have the option.

SQUASH! Spaghetti

1 medium spaghetti squash
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon cooking oil (I like OLIVE OIL best)
1 16-ounce can diced tomatoes
2 cups broccoli/cauliflower/spinach (you choose one or all, hehe)
1 teaspoon dried italian seasoning, crushed
Grated Parmesan cheese

1. Halve squash lengthwise; scoop out seeds. Place squash, cut sides down, in a large baking dish. Using a fork, prick the skin all over. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 to 40 minutes until tender.
2. Meanwhile, for sauce, saute onion and garlic in oil till onion is tender. Stir in undrained tomatoes, italian seasoning, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 10-15 minutes or to desired consistency, stirring often.
3. To serve, remove the squash pulp from the shell by scraping with a fork to get the spaghetti noodle look. Spoon sauce over squash. Sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese.

Hearty Vegetable Soup

6 C water
6 tsp beef bouillon
1/2 onion, chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 cans Italian stewed tomatoes (undrained)
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
4 medium carrots, chopped or sliced
2 large potatoes, diced
1 can corn (undrained)
1 (15 oz) can red kidney beans
1 (15 oz) can garbanzo beans
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 zucchini, sliced

In large pot, bring water and bouillon to boil. Add remaining ingredients except zucchini. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Add zucchini and cook another 10 minutes.

Overall, this is pretty easy to make and it makes a ton. It just involves a lot of chopping. Both of my kids will actually eat this - yipee! - so that's another reason why I like to make it.

Veggie Tales

And no, shockingly I am not talking about the cartoon. I am challenging y'all, within the next week or two, to post a fun recipe that is centered around VEGETABLES! Heaven knows my family needs more in their diet and this will be a great way to get past the Meat, Carb, Veggie box that I am stuck in! Have fun with this and lets see if we can generate some yummy meals that is of High Veggie Content! Oh! add a funny "Veggie Tale" - regarding your family and that dreaded...VEGETABLE! Thanks! and I can't wait! Of course...now I need to think of one.

Sopapilla Cheesecake

I received this recipe from a friend of my mother-in-law's...and it is absolutetly scrumptious! I made it for our Branch Christmas Party and before I got a picture of it...it was GONE!!! and about 4-5 women wanting the recipe. Yep! Its a favorite! So here is the recipe!

Sopapilla Cheesecake

2 cans crescent rolls
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 pkg. cream cheese (or use 2 for a thicker filling)
1 tsp vanilla
1 stick butter
cinnamon & nutmeg

Spread one can of crescent rolls across the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Mix cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, vanilla and a couple dashes of nutmeg and cinnamon. Then spread mixture over top of crescent rolls in bottom of pan. Top mixture with second can of rolls. Melt butter & pour on top of rolls. Mix 1/2 cup sugar (I use brown, but you can use either) and cinnamon (atleast 1 tsp...I like about 1 tablespoon) and sprinkle on top of butter. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes! Let it cool slightly and serve!

*Even tastes yummy fully cooled!