easy baked ziti

from here



There was a large Italian community in New York where I grew so baked ziti was a popular meal I was raised on. It was served at virtually every carbo-load team dinner in high school, and recipes were quickly passed between families. My version is super easy to prepare and really delicious. I don't really have amts in this recipe, here's my best attempt:

Layer the following ingredients in a casserole dish (bottom to top):

homemade marinara sauce or good quality store bought (my mom uses a meat sauce)
slightly undercooked ziti noodles
small spoonful drops of ricotta cheese (not too much)
thin layer of mozzarella cheese (not too much)

Repeat this layering sequence at least twice and top with more mozzarella cheese. Bake covered at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes, removing the top and broiling the last few minutes to make sure the top is crunchy and sauce is bubbling up.

banana amaretto cake

from here


Weekend before last my family visited the NC mountains for my grandfather’s birthday. Not wanting to give him a completely store-bought cake, or spend hours making one from scratch, my Aunt Anita came up with this for his birthday cake. It was so delicious that I decided to make it again and share the recipe with you! I’ve also made some recipe cards that you can download and print at home.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 angel food cake (I bought mine at the grocery store)

• 2 bananas

• 1/2c golden raisins

• 1/3c sliced almonds

• 1 qt. vanilla ice cream

• 1/2c amaretto liqueur

time: 25 minutes plus 20 minutes of freezing


1. Take ice cream out of the freezer to soften.

2. Slice bananas thinly. Mix with raisins and liqueur in a medium bowl and set aside to soak.

3. Slice the angel food cake into three layers using a bread knife. (Make long, slow cuts to avoid breaking the layers).

4. Spread ice cream about 1/2″ thick over first cake layer. Spoon banana mixture on top. Place second cake layer on top and repeat.

5. Place top layer on cake. Spoon banana mixture on top. Garnish with sliced almonds.

6. Freeze for 20 minutes or until serving to firm up the ice cream. (Note: cake settles and gets a little lopsided if it stays in the freezer for much longer than 20 min. Still tasty, just not as pretty!)

You can download a pdf of the recipe cards I made here. There are four to a page, so you can share with three friends!

malted vanilla milkshake

from here


Looks delish, don't you think?

Servings: 2

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup chilled milk
1 TBS vanilla bean paste (or substitute pure vanilla extract)
2 1/4 cups vanilla ice cream
2 tablespoons malted milk powder
1/4 cup malted milk balls, crushed
malted milk balls, garnish

DIRECTIONS
Place 2 glasses in freezer to chill.

Pour milk into blender. Add vanilla bean paste. Cover and blend 15 seconds. Add ice cream and malted milk powder and blend until thick and creamy, stopping to push down ice cream as necessary. Divide milk shake between chilled glasses. Top each with crushed malted milk balls and serve. adapted from here

apple oatmeal flax cookies

from here


Fall is officially here and that means it's apple season. Take a trip to your local orchard and pick a peck of McIntosh, Cortland, or Empire apples and give this recipe a try. With chunks of apples, oats, flax meal, and walnuts, these are packed with fiber and a taste that'll warm your soul.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup flax meal (ground flaxseed)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup Sucanat (or sugar)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups quick oats
2 medium apples, peeled and chopped
1 cup walnuts

Directions

* In a bowl, mix the flour, flax meal, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
* In a separate bowl, beat together oil, Sucanat, eggs, and vanilla until fluffy. Stir in the oats, apples, flour mixture, and nuts.
* Spoon out cookies onto a lightly greased cookie sheet. Cook seven to eight minutes, or until edges are slightly brown. Place cookies on a cooling rack.

Makes three dozen cookies.

apple puff pancake

from here


After recipe testing round number 4 I think I found a winner for an Apple Puff Pancake recipe. This German favorite is great for a special occasion breakfast or dessert. I like the custardy inside with the sweet yet savory apples that provide a nice balance of flavor.
Would you like the recipe? Help yourself.

Apple Puff Pancake
Yield: 4-6 servings

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups granny smith apples, peeled & diced
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 eggs
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
powdered sugar for dusting

DIRECTIONS

Put oven rack in middle position and prehead oven to 400°F.

Place 8x8 inch baking dish in oven to melt butter. Remove and add apples to bottom of dish and sprinkle with brown sugar.

In a blender or food processor, whip eggs, flour, milk, vanilla, sugar, cinnamon and salt on high for 1 minute. Pour batter over apples.
Bake in oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Generously dust each serving with powdered sugar and top with maple syrup if desired.