Cheesy Million Dollar Baked Penne from Carlsbad Cravings

Prep Time 15 minutes  Cook Time 45 minutes  Servings  -12 servings INGREDIENTS 1 pound penne pasta, uncooked 6-8 slices provolone cheese 1 1/2 cups sour cream 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese more or less to taste 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese more or less to taste Sauce 1 pound lean ground beef 1 pound bulk Italian Sausage 1 onion, chopped 6-8 garlic cloves, minced 1  28 oz. can crushed tomatoes in puree 1  15 oz. can tomato sauce 2 tablespoons tomato paste 1/4 cup water 2 tablespoons sugar 2 teaspoons beef bouillon 1 TBS EACH  dried basil, dried parsley 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1/2 tsp EACH dried thyme, pepper 1/4-1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

INSTRUCTIONS

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1. Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions just until al dente – don’t overcook! Strain and rinse with cold water.
2. In a Dutch oven, brown ground beef, sausage and onion over medium heat. Add garlic and cook 30 more seconds. Drain grease. Add all remaining Sauce ingredients and bring to a simmer. Simmer gently uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Meanwhile preheat oven to 350 degrees F. When oven reaches full temperate, mix cooked pasta with Sauce. (We wait to mix so the pasta doesn't continue to cook in the sauce.)
4. In a 9x13 pan, layer evenly: 1/2 the pasta, 1/2 mozzarella, all provolone, all sour cream, remaining pasta, remaining mozzarella and top with Parmesan.
5. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted. Broil until cheese is golden. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired. 

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Peanut Butter Banana Bread

PEANUT BUTTER BANANA BREAD

total time: 70 MINUTES

 

prep time: 10

 

cook time: 60

The best banana bread ever!! Full of peanut butter and chocolate chips!

INGREDIENTS:

1 3/4 Cup Flour
3/4 Teaspoons Baking Soda
1 1/4 Teaspoons Cream of Tartar
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/3 cup Butter, unsalted, softened
1/3 Cup Jif Creamy Peanut Butter
2/3 Cup White Sugar
2 Large Eggs
1 Cup Mashed Bananas, ripe (2-3 Medium bananas that have gone freckly)
1 Cup Chocolate Chips
1/2 Cup Peanut Butter Chips

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the oven to 350.
In a small bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, with a handheld mixer or the bowl of a kitchen aide, combine the butter, and peanut butter until smooth. Make sure you used softened butter (leave it on the counter for 30-60 minutes). Add the sugar and eggs, and mix to combine.
Turn the mixer on medium speed and add a little of the dry mixture. Allow to mix until almost incorporated and add a scoop of the banana. Allow to mix again and then continue to alternate between dry ingredients and the banana, ending with the banana. Add the chocolate and peanut butter chips, stir to combine.
Spray a bread pan (I prefer light in color or glass pans), with cooking spray and add the banana bread mixture. Bake for 50-60 minutes, tenting with foil the last few minutes to avoid too dark a crust.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes and turn out onto a wire rack. Enjoy!

This recipe is from O Sweet Basil and was really yummy!  

Crockpot Mango Salsa Chicken

This recipe is delicious, easy and fast!  Win all around!


Ingredients:

3lbs frozen chicken tenderloins (original recipe calls for 4 boneless breasts)
2-3 C mango or pineapple salsa (Costco has a great Mango Peach Salsa)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp coriander
1 clove garlic

1.  Place the chicken in the slow cooker.  Add all ingredients over the top.  Cook on high 3 hours or low for 5 hours, shred chicken and return to crock pot for another hour, for a total of 4 to 6 hours.  For frozen chicken increase time by one hour.

2.  Serve over rice or burrito style.

Mel's note:  I served burrito style with black beans, cheese, romaine lettuce, tomato and cilantro avocado dressing.

Recipe Source:  Oh Sweet Basil

Yummy Steak Kabobs

Kabobs
1 1/2 lbs top sirloin or trip tip roast- cut in to 1 1/2 cubes
1 red bell pepper sliced in to 1 1/2 inch chunks
1 green bell pepper- sliced into 1 1/12 inch chunks
1 large onion- sliced into 1 1/2 inch chunks
salt and pepper

Marinade
2 Tbl- steak / grill seasonings- I love Spade L Ranch
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbl. Soy Sauce
2 Tbl Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbl lime juice

Marinade 4-6 hours or overnight

Soak wooden skewers in water before grilling.  Grill approximately 2-3 minutes per side

Great served with Carmelized grilled Pineapple, Cilantro Lime Rice or Steak Fries

Teriyaki Chicken Salad

Teriyaki Chicken
8 large chicken breasts

Marinade:

2 cups soy sauce

1 1/3 cup sugar

1 cup Asian sweet chili sauce- like Mae Ploy

1 cup cider vinegar

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

4 Tbl. minced garlic or 1 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp ground ginger

8 tsp cornstarch

1 cup olive oil 

Garnish:

green onions

sesame seeds

 Asian chili sauce

Reserve about half of marinade to put thicken on stove and put over chicken after grilling.  Marinate one hour or overnight  (overnight is best).  Grill

Salad

1 small head romaine lettuce, chopped

1/2 red cabbage, thinly sliced

1 cup pineapple,  bite size chopped

1 cup matchstick carrots

1 red bell pepper- julienned then cut into thirds

1 cup snow peas- julienned then cut in to thirds

5 green onions, thinly sliced

1 cup macadamia nuts, toasted

1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes, toasted

Pineapple Sesame Vinaigrette

 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple

3 Tbl honey

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 1/2  tsp toasted sesame oil

1 garlic clove, peeled

1 1/2 tsp freshly grated ginger

1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbl Mayo- optional for creamier

1/2 cup canola oil

1 Tbl  sesame seeds

Sweet Chili Teriyaki Chicken

8 large chicken breasts

Marinade:

2 cups soy sauce

1 1/3 cup sugar

1 cup Asian sweet chili sauce- like Mae Ploy

1 cup cider vinegar

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

4 Tbl. minced garlic or 1 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp ground ginger

8 tsp cornstarch

1 cup olive oil 

Garnish:

green onions

sesame seeds

 Asian chili sauce

Reserve about half of marinade to put thicken on stove and put over chicken after grilling.  Marinate one hour or overnight  (overnight is best).  Grill

Recipe from Carlsbad Cravings

Puff Pastry Almond Croissants

Puff Pastry Almond Croissants

yield: makes 6 to 8 croissants

 

total time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

• 2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed completely
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces and refrigerated
• 1 egg + 1 teaspoon water, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds
• powdered sugar, for sprinkling
• almond paste or pastry cream for filling, if desired

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Make sure the puff pastry is completely thawed! Take one sheet, cover it with the pieces of butter, and top it with the second sheet. Use a rolling pin to roll the pastry into a much larger, thinner rectangle - at least double the size if you can. Be patience and gentle with the pastry since it can easily tear! You need it to be as thin as possibly or inside will not cook. If this intimidates you, can you simply roll out 1 plain sheet of pastry, slice it into triangles, and roll it up. It won't be quite as flakey, but it will still be delish!

Once you have your large rectangle, use a pizza cutter or knife to cut triangles in the dough - like a "zig zag" pattern - from top to bottom. Take the bottom of each triangle and fold it up, rolling it up into a croissant-like shape. Place it on the baking sheet and repeat with the others.

Brush the tops of the croissants with the beaten egg wash. Place them in the oven for 20 minutes.

While the croissants are baking, heat the sugar and water over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves. Remove it from the heat, let it cool slightly, and stir in the almond extract.

After 20 minutes, remove the croissants and brush them liberally with the almond syrup, then press the sliced almonds onto the dough. Sometimes I brushed before AND after the almonds were on. Return the croissants to the oven and bake for 5 to 10 minutes, until the tops start to get really golden and the almonds are toasting. Gently cover the croissants on the sheet with a piece of foil so they don't burn and bake for 10 minutes more. You want to make sure the insides are done! You can even cut one open to see if you'd like. If it's still doughy, return the sheet to the oven for 5 minutes increments (still covered in foil) until done.

Let the croissants cool and then sprinkle them with powdered sugar and filling with almond paste or pastry cream if desired!

From:  howsweeteats.com

Slow Cooker Zuppa Toscana

 

Slow Cooker Zuppa Toscana

The classic zuppa toscana soup, in slow cooker form! It tastes WAY better than Olive Garden's, and is sure to be a crowd pleaser!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 4 hours

Total Time 4 hours 10 minutes

Servings 6 servings

Calories 513 kcal

Author The Chunky Chef

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground Hot Italian sausage (we have used ground and links browned, sliced and then halved, I prefer the links)
• 1 bag Simply Potatoes diced potatoes and onions (can substitute with 1 diced yellow onion and 4 russet potatoes, peeled and cubed)
• 2 cloves large garlic minced
• 32 oz chicken stock
• 1/2 bunch kale (a couple of handfuls) de-stemmed and torn into bite sized (we like baby kale)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 Tbsp flour
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Pinch of red pepper flakes optional (not for my crowd)

Instructions

1. Heat large saute pan over medium high heat and brown sausage.
2. Add minced garlic and stir to combine.
3. Drain off the grease and then add sausage and garlic to the bottom of slow cooker.
4. Add bag of diced potatoes and onion, cover with chicken stock and water (if necessary) to completely cover potatoes and sausage.
5. Cover and cook on LOW for 5-6 hours or HIGH for 3-4 (potatoes should be soft)
6. BEFORE SERVING:
7. Whisk together heavy cream and flour until well mixed. Pour into slow cooker, add kale and stir to combine.
8. Cover and cook on HIGH for 30 minutes until soup has thickened slightly.
9. Taste, season according to your tastes, and serve.

Recipe Notes

** if desired, top soup with slices of crumbled peppered bacon
** goes great with a nice crusty bread
STOVETOP INSTRUCTIONS

1. In your dutch oven or large soup pot, brown the Italian sausage and red pepper flakes over MED-HIGH heat. The last minute or two, add minced garlic. Drain.
2. Add chicken stock and bag of diced potatoes and onion (or substituted russet potatoes and diced onion), bring to a boil.
3. Keep at a low boil for about 20 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender (this time will vary based on your stove).
4. Whisk flour and heavy cream and add to pot, stirring to combine.
5. Add in kale, stir, reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for about 5-10 minutes (or until soup has thickened slightly).
6. Season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta

• 10-12 oz. penne or ziti pasta
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 (8 oz) block cream cheese
• ½ tsp. onion powder, more or less to taste
• ½ tsp. garlic salt, more or less to taste
• 2 cups shredded swiss cheese, separated
• 2 chicken breasts, cooked with garlic salt and a little paprika and chunked
• ¾ cup bacon, cooked and chopped
• ¾ cup diced ham
• Panic bread crumbs
• Butter

Instructions

1. Cook pasta according to its package's directions. Drain. I always add a little olive oil after I drain it and stir in around so the pasta noodles don't stick together or the pot.
2. Heat cream cheese on stove over medium low heat until melted. Stir in heavy cream. Stir until completely combined. Add onion powder and garlic salt until it tastes how you would like it to. Stir 1 cup of cheese until smooth consistency.
3. In a 9x13, layer noodles, chicken, bacon and ham. Pour sauce over top. Sprinkle top with ½ cup cheese and Panko bread crumbs that have been browned in some butter.  
4. I actually made this without the bacon or the ham and threw in some spinach.  It was yummy!
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes or until heated through.