Kale Salad with Peanut Dressing

This is a great Pinterest find.  My sister Susan made this for a family BBQ and I loved it!  I have since made it twice and everyone who tries it raves about it and wants the recipe.  I've altered the original recipe slightly but you can see the original recipe here at Kitchen Fiddler.  This is a copy kat recipe of Houston' Kale Salad.

Ingredients:

4 cups finely chopped kale
2 cups finely chopped savoy cabbage
1 scallion finely chopped, white and green parts
1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1/4 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
1/2 cup peanut oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey


Preparation:

In a large bowl combine, kale, cabbage, scallions, cilantro and roasted peanuts

In a small bowl, combine peanut oil, sesame oil, rice vinegar, honey and whisk to combine. Pour dressing over kale and toss well to coat.  Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.

Fig Banana Bread

 

I was so excited to discover a gorgeous fig tree in my backyard this year that I didn't even know I had.  A friend of mine pointed it out to me one day at the end of the summer and to my surprise at closer inspection the tree was covered with about a hundred figs which in a few weeks would be ready to pick.  Ever since that moment I have been slightly obsessed with this tree and going out daily to inspect it and impatiently waiting for one of those hard little green figs to ripen to a big, juicy purple fruit.  Well the other day I was so thrilled to find about a dozen beautiful ripe figs ready to be picked.   So now over the next few weeks I will be testing as many fig recipes as I can find!!  The first of which is this delicious super moist Fig Banana Bread!! YUM YUM YUM!

My fig tree!

 

Figs before they start to ripen

 

Figs starting to ripen

 

 

Nice ripe figs ready to be picked!!

 

Perfect

 

The most deliciously moist Fig Banana Bread straight from the oven.....it smells amazing!

 

Ingredients:

 

4 small very ripe bananas

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

6 ripe figs, quartered

6 ripe figs, diced

2 eggs

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups all purpose flour (or 1 cup white flour 1 cup whole wheat flour)

 

Preparation:

 

In a large bowl beat together coconut oil, brown sugar, bananas and vanilla until combined well.  Add to the mixture 6 figs which have been quartered and beat into the mixture until they are broken down and part of the batter.  Next, beat in eggs until combined.  Sprinkle in baking soda, baking powder and salt and mix.  Add flour one cup at a time until batter is smooth.  Lastly to add more fig flavor and texture mix in the final 6 figs that you have diced.  Mix these in with a spoon to avoid breaking them up completely.  Pour batter into a loaf pan that has been greased with non-stick cooking spray ( I use coconut oil spray).  Bake at 350 degrees F until bread is set in the middle, about 50 minutes.  Allow to cool before slicing.

 

 

 

 

Quick & Easy French Toast Casserole

 

 My daughter wanted french toast for breakfast so I took out the huge frying pan and then I thought.....I don't want to stand at my stove and make french toast for everyone and then they are all done eating while I'm still cooking.  So I decided to make a casserole instead.  The only problem is usually you need to soak the bread in the custard overnight before you bake it and I needed something to be done from start to finish in 30 minutes.  So I decided to break the french toast casserole rules and just wing it.  It came out delicious and you would never know that it wasn't soaked overnight. 

 

**Update 9/7/13 - This is the most popular recipe that we have on our blog.  It continues to be a big hit so I thought I'd update the pictures and re-post it for anyone who is looking for something simple and quick to make for breakfast or brunch.  It's great for your family or a big crowd!! Enjoy, Ellen :) 

Ingredients:

4-5 cups of torn challah bread (or any thick sliced bread)
5 eggs
2 cups milk
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup maple syrup
*optional - sprinkle some brown sugar over the top before you bake for a nice sweet crusty top!

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Grease 9x13 casserole dish.  Pour about 1/2 cup of syrup in the bottom of the casserole dish.  Layer torn bread on top of the syrup.  In a large bowl beat eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, salt and cinnamon.  Pour egg mixture evenly over bread in casserole dish and press bread down to make sure it's completely soaked.  Drizzle remaining syrup over top of bread and custard.  Bake for 30-40 minutes until casserole is puffed up and golden brown on top.  Remove from oven and drizzle additional maple syrup on top and serve while hot.

Easy - Pot to Pan Double Chocolate Brownies

 

If you like dense, ooey gooey brownies with a deep chocolate flavor then these brownies are for you!  I love that you can make the entire batter in the same pot and then just pour into a baking dish to bake.  Easy and delicious!

 

 

Ingredients:

1 12 oz bag semi sweet chocolate chips plus 3/4 cup extra
2 sticks butter or margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tablespoon instant coffee
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups flour

Preparation:

In a large saucepan melt butter and 12 oz. bag of chocolate chips together (reserve extra chocolate chips for the end).  Stir constantly until chocolate is completely melted.  Remove from heat and add vanilla and sugar and blend directly in pot with a hand mixer.  Next add eggs one at a time until completely combined.  Last, blend in coffee, salt and flour until combined and smooth.  With a wooden spoon mix in 1/2 cup of chocolate chips which will slightly melt and add more chocolate flavor to the batter.  Transfer batter into a greased 13x9 pan and bake at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.

Chicken with dried fruit and honey

This is the chicken dish I make every year for Rosh Hashanah, the jewish new year but of course it's delicious for anytime of the year. It is traditional to cook with honey for Rosh Hashanah because it is sweet and symbolizes that we should all have a sweet new year. This recipe combines honey and dried fruit and is always a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients:

1 3 1/2 to 4 lb chicken cut in 8ths

2 carrots, peeled and sliced into discs

1 onion, sliced

1/2 C golden raisins

1/2 C pitted prunes

1/3 C dried apricots

1/4 C dried currants

1/3 C oil

1 C honey

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 4oo degrees.

Place chicken pieces in roasting pan.

Combine carrots, onion, golden raisins, prunes, apricots, currants, and oil in a large bowl. Spoon mixture evenly around and over chicken.

Pour honey over chicken and vegetable/fruit mixture, lightly coating chicken pieces.

Bake for 30 minutes, baste, and reduce heat to 350 degrees. Bake for 1 hour, basting occasionally, or until chicken, vegetables, and fruit are tender and golden brown.

Linked to Everyday Mom's Meals

Grilled Asaparagus Quiche Breakfast Sandwich

I made this breakfast sandwich the other morning using leftover crust less asparagus quiche that I had made the day before.  My kids LOVED it. 

 

 

 

Ingredients:

for crust less quiche:
7 eggs
1 bunch of asparagus
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon fresh sage, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

for grilled cheese sandwich:
2 slices of any kind of cheese you like (I used American cheese)
2 slices of any kind of bread you like (I used whole wheat bread)
butter or margarine, softened

Preparation:

Cut off bottom 1/3 of asparagus and discard.   Cut asparagus into small bite size pieces and place in a microwave safe bowl and add a tablespoon of water.  Steam in microwave on high for 60 seconds.  Meanwhile, beat eggs with milk in a large bowl.  To egg mixture add chopped sage, salt and pepper to taste.  Now add steamed asparagus pieces and shredded cheese.  Mix everything together and pour into a small casserole dish that has been greased with non-stick cooking spray.  Bake at 375 degrees F. for 45 minutes, remove from oven and let cool slightly.

To assemble sandwich; cut a small square of quiche and set aside.  Spread softened butter or margarine on one side of each slice of bread.  Place a small frying pan on stove on med/high heat.  Add one slice of bread butter side down in hot pan.  Next, add one slice of cheese, then a square of crust less quiche, another slice of cheese and lastly add the second piece of bread butter side up.  Brown bread for a minute or two and flip and then brown the other side of bread.  Watch this carefully so you don't burn the bread.  Once both sides of bread are brown and cheese is melted remove from pan and cut sandwich in half or quarters and Enjoy!

Barbeque Glazed Turkey Roast

This is such an easy and delicious recipe.  Í make this any time of the year but I've also made it for Thanksgiving before when I wasn't having enough people for a huge turkey.  It's one of those recipes that takes just a minute to throw together but tastes like you've been cooking for hours.   It is so simple to make. Just mix ingredients and dump over a turkey breast and pop in the oven. Done!

Ingredients:

1 (3-4 lb.)boneless turkey roast, with skin, tied in a roll
1 C. firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 C. ketchup
3/4 C. water
1/4 C. oil
3 T. balsamic vinegar
3 T. soy sauce
1 small onion, diced

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place turkey breast in a roasting pan. Insert meat thermometer in center of meat, if desired. Combine sugar, ketchup, water, oil, vinegar, soy sauce, and onion; pour over turkey. Bake covered for 1 hour. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake uncovered for 30- 40 minutes or until done (temp on thermometer should reach 170 degrees).