Cake Mix Fix-Up

On Sunday, I was craving a succulent dessert but was limited on ingredients. (Finals week = no grocery shopping) Of course, I turned to the trusty world wide web for inspiration. A few sites said that a great way to transform a boring boxed cake mix into something special is to replace the water and oil with milk and butter (eggs unchanged). Boy, were they right! This makes such a moist, rich, spongy cake! I'll never use the product instructions again!

Chicken and Peaches

Source: Rachael Ray

Serves: 2-4

Total Prep/Cook Time: 15 minutes

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 4 peaches, pitted and thickly sliced or halved
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1 2-inch piece of fresh ginger root, grated orminced
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 2/3 cup peach preserves
• 2 teaspoons hot sauce, such as Frank's Red Hot brand
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

PREPARATION

Heat a medium size skillet with the butter over medium heat. Add the peaches and the juice of 1/2 lemon and cook until tender and lightly golden, 10 minutes. Turn off the heat.

While the peaches cook, heat 1 tablespoon EVOO, a turn of the pan, in a large skillet over medium-high to high heat. Cut the chicken breasts in half across the center of each breast to make four equal portions. Add the chicken breasts and thighs to the pan and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook until the chicken is cooked through, about 12 minutes, then remove to a plate and cover with foil.

Drizzle the pan with the remaining EVOO, half a turn of the pan. Add the chopped shallot and the ginger and cook for 1-2 minutes. Stir in the stock, preserves, hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce and season with black pepper, to taste. Cook over medium heat for a couple of minutes to thicken. Arrange the chicken and peaches on a platter and douse with peach sauce. Serve one piece of light meat and one thigh per person.

Comments: No complaints. Absolutely delicious! (I didn't add the ginger. I think it would be heavenly either way.) I made the peaches and sauce on the stove, and Bret grilled the chicken outside. Together, a perfect summer Sunday dinner.

Summer Corn Fettuccine

Source: Rachel Ray

Servings: 4-6

Total Prep/Cook Time: 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

• Salt
• 1 pound fettuccine
• Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), for drizzling
• 6 slices smoky bacon, chopped
• 6 ears corn on the cob, shucked
• 3 shallots, finely chopped
• 1 small red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup half-and-half orcream
• 1/2 cup chicken stockor dry white wine
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped
• A few dashes of hot sauce or 1-2 pinches cayenne pepper
• 1 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese, divided
• 1/2 cup sweet basil leaves, torn or 1/4 cup tarragon leaves, chopped

PREPARATION

Bring a large pot of water to boil over medium heat. Salt the water, add the pasta and cook to al dente.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet with a drizzle of EVOO over medium to medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook for a few minutes until rendered and crisp.

Put a small bowl inverted into a large bowl, steady the corn cobs on the smaller bowl and scrape the ears. Add three-quarters of the scraped corn and any corn liquid to the pan with the bacon. Add the shallots and red pepper and liberally season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook until the vegetables are tender, 5-6 minutes.

Add the remaining corn and half-and-half to a food processor and puree until smooth.

Pour the stock or wine into the corn and vegetables and simmer over low heat for a minute to reduce. Stir in the thyme and corn-cream mixture and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently, to thicken. Add the hot sauce or cayenne and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Drain the pasta and add it to a large serving bowl. Pour in the sauce, add a couple of handfuls of cheese, about 1/2 cup, and toss. Top with torn basil or chopped tarragon and pass the remaining cheese at the table.

Comments: Absolutely delicious! A wonderful summer meal! My only complaint was that it didn't have a ton of flavor, but that could have been because I didn't have/use the red pepper.

Baked French Toast Casserole with Maple Syrup

Source: Paula Deen on The Food Network


Servings: 4-6
Prep Time: 10-15 minutes (plus overnight refrigeration)
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 8 hours, 50-55 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces)
• 8 large eggs
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Dash salt
• Praline Topping, recipe follows
• Maple syrup

Directions:

1. Slice French bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices.
2. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly.
3. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices.
4. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
5. The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
6. Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.

Praline Topping:

• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. Makes enough for Baked French Toast Casserole.

Comments:

This is actually a recipe I got from Mom, but I figure I'll post it so that's one less she has to worry about posting on here! (I'm anxious to see the whole wheat biscuits and blueberry muffin recipes on here, Mom!)

This casserole is amazing! Mom apparently got it from Ann and raved about it. This year, Mom made it for our family Easter Saturday brunch, and I had already bought the ingredients for our Wihongi Easter brunch on Sunday! It was fun to have a preview before I made it. However, Mom made hers with milk instead of half-and-half and used half the amount of butter. I, on the other hand, made it Paula Deen-style with all the full-fat ingredients. Pretty dang tasty. . .if not exactly waist-friendly!

Cheesy Ham and Hash Brown Casserole

Source: Allrecipes.com


Servings: 12
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 (32 ounce) package frozen hash brown potatoes
• 8 ounces cooked, diced ham
• 2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of potato soup
• 1 (16 ounce) container sour cream
• 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
2. In a large bowl, mix hash browns, ham, cream of potato soup, sour cream, and Cheddar cheese. Spread evenly into prepared dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
3. Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until bubbly and lightly brown. Serve immediately.

Comments: This is an amazing breakfast casserole I discovered when we hosted Kasey's homecoming brunch. Easily made the night before and cooked an hour before serving. I made this for our Wihongi Easter get-together this year, as well as the Sunday Brunch Bake and the Baked French Toast Casserole. . .quite the hit!