Lemon Bars

These are to die for.

Recipe courtesy of Alice Medrich (from her book Alice Medrich's Cookies and Brownies)

Ingredients:

Crust:
8 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup all-purpose flour

Topping:
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
1.5 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1/2 cup strained fresh lemon juice
2 to 3 Tbsp powdered sugar for dusting

Directions:1. Line an 8-inch square pan with foil on all 4 sides. Preheat oven to 350 F. Position a rack in the lower third of oven.

For crust: melt butter in medium saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add the flour and mix just until incorporated. Press the dough evenly over the bottom of the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the crust is well browned at the edges and lightly browned in center.

For topping: while the crust is baking, stir together the sugar and flour in a medium bowl until well mixed. Whisk in the eggs. Stir in the lemon zest and juice. When crust is ready, turn the oven down to 300 F and slide the rack out without removing the pan. Pour filling over hot crust.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until the topping is puffed at the edges and no longer jiggles in the center when pan is tapped. Set on a rack and cool completely in pan. When cooled, lift the foil liner and transfer to cutting board and cut into 16 bars. Sieve powdered sugar over bars just before serving.

Jane's Cake

That is not the official title, but it should be :) My mother-in-law, Jane, loves this cake and I had hoped to make it for her on her birthday, but I couldn't get to the store to purchase the mixes it called for (I'm usually a 'from-scratch' kind of person so I don't stock these sort of items). However, the cake is so good it's worth planning for.

This is super chocolately and brownie like. The reason I like this recipe is because it's thick and rich like a brownie, it still holds itself like a cake! It's easy to put together and never a piece goes to waste...at least that's true in our house.

INGREDIENTS
1 (18.25 ounce) package devil's food cake mix
1 (3.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips



DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan. Have all ingredients at room temperature.

2. In a large bowl, stir together cake mix and pudding mix. Make a well in the center and pour in eggs, sour cream, oil and water. Beat on low speed until blended. Scrape bowl, and beat 4 minutes on medium speed. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pan.

3. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.

Taco Soup

1 lb. hamburger
1 med. onion- chopped
1 can of Pinto Beans (Do not drain)
1 can of Kidney Beans " "
1 can of Hominy " "
2 cans diced tomatoes " "
1 can Rotel tomatoes " " (we use mild, but feel free to go with hot)
1 dry pack of Taco Mix
1 dry pack of Ranch dressing
1 tsp. chili powder
1 cup water (if needed)


Brown Meat with onions

Mix all ingredients together in a slow cooker (yes everything is already cooked, this just helps the flavors meld)

Add hambuger mixture and stir well

When this has had time (at least 2 hours on low) to meld; serve with Fritos cornchips in the bottom of bowl and top with your favorite cheese. (sour cream is a good addendum to the cheese).

Strawberry Cheesecake Trifle

2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese
2 C. powdered sugar
1C. sour cream
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract (divided use)
2 T. plus 1/4 t. almond extract (divided use)
1/2 pint whipping cream
4 T. sugar (divided use)
1 angel food cake, torn into bite-size pieces
2 quarts fresh strawberries, cleaned, stemmed and thinly sliced

In a large bowl, cream together cream cheese and powdered sugar. Add sour cream, 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla and 1/4 teaspoon of the almond extract. Set aside.

In a small, deep bowl, whip the whipping cream, 1 teaspoon of the vanilla and 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Fold whipped cream into cream cheese mixture. Fold in cake pieces and set aside.

Combine strawberries, remaining 3 tablespoons sugar and remaining 2 tablespoons almond extract.

In a large glass serving bowl, layer ingredients in this order: one-third of the strawberries, one-half of the cake mixture, another third of the berries, remaining cake mixture, remaining strawberries.

Cover and chill well before serving.

So-Easy Cherry Fudge Cake

1 (18.25-oz) package devils food cake mix
1 (21 oz) can cherry pie filling
2 large eggs
1 tsp. almond extract
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup milk
5 Tbsp. butter
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat first 4 ingredients at low speed; increase speed to med and beat 1 minute.
Pour batter into a greased and floured 13x9 pan

Bake at 350 for 27 to 30 min. or until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool cake on wire rack for 10 minutes

Bring sugar milk and butter tio a boil in a heavy 2-qt. saucepan over med-high heat, stirring occasionally; boil 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in chocolate morsels until melted and smooth. Quickly spread frosting over warm cake. Cool completely(about 1 hour) Enjoy

We're missing desserts

We seem to be slim on desserts...do you have any yummy, easy favorites to share? I know my parents have a new favorite chocolate cake that gets better every day it sits. I am waiting for that recipe *hint, hint for my dad*

I do not often make dessert and I do not enjoy baking very much so I have few desserts in my recipe collection. And the one I make the best is made with strawberries which aren't very tasty or cheap this time of year. However, I'll post it anyway just to get you thinking about tasty treats you enjoy :)

Balsamic Chicken

This goes right along with the Dijon chicken as it is super simple and quick with minimal ingredients.

Chicken Breasts
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper

Cut chicken breasts into 4oz portions (a lot of chicken breasts found in the grocery are 11-12oz which is 3 full adult size portions per breast). Salt and pepper each chicken piece. Spray saute pan with cooking oil and and heat over medium high heat. Once pan is hot, add chicken pieces and cook until brown on each side and almost cooked through. Add balsamic vinegar and chicken broth to the pan and reduce. Careful not to over cook the chicken while the broth is reducing, if necessary remove the chicken from the pan and return to sauce once thickened.

I also double this sauce as my family loves the sticky sweetness of the balsamic.