Blondies

1 cup all-purpose flour
3 whole sheets cinnamon graham crackers, ground
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups packed brown sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
3 egg whites
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350°. Line an 8 inch square pan with foil; coat with cooking spray. Combine flour, cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt; set aside. At medium-high speed, beat sugar and oil until combined. Beat in egg whites and vanilla. At low speed, beat in flour mixture. Stir in chips. Pour into pan. Bake 50 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool uncut blondies completely on wire rack; cut into squares.

Sweet Potato Casserole

This recipe is from my friend and neighbor, Rachel. I personally don't care for sweet potatoes, but my mom and dad enjoyed this at Thanksgiving.

3 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 egg
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pecans
1/4 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup flour
Beat egg and potatoes. Blend in sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon. Spread in a 2 quart casserole dish. In another bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Spread over filling. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.

Corn Bread Hamburger Pie

I just made this for dinner. It was delicious, although I do plan to increase the amount of filling next time I make it. Probably by adding vegetables - carrots, celery, green beans, etc. would all work well. Oh, and this isn't my picture, I borrowed it from allrecipes.com, where I got the recipe from.

1 pound ground turkey or beef
1 medium onion, chopped or 2 tablespoons minced dried onion
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed tomato soup, undiluted
1/4 cup salsa
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon steak sauce, optional
1 (8.5 ounce) package corn bread mix, prepared or 1 batch cornbread batter - my recipe is on this blog
dried parsley or cilantro

In a large ovenproof skillet, cook the turkey, green pepper and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the soup, ketchup and steak sauce if desired. Prepare corn bread batter; let stand 2 minutes. Spoon or pour over meat mixture. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes (it actually took 25 minutes in my oven) or until golden brown. Sprinkle with parsley or cilantro if desired.

Best-Ever Chocolate Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons baking cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups water
2/3 cup canola oil
2 teaspoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup cold rice milk
1 package (3.9 ounces) instant chocolate pudding mix
1 carton (8 ounces) whipped topping
In a mixing bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Add the water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Beat on low speed for 1 minute. Beat on medium for 1 minute. Pour into a greased 13-inch x 9-inch x 2-inch baking pan. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
For frosting, in a mixing bowl, beat the milk and pudding mix for 2 minutes. Beat in whipped topping. Spread over cake. Refrigerate leftovers.
Yield: 12-15 servings

This was Luke's 1st birthday cake. Delicious! Even Michael, who's not particularly fond of chocolate cake, liked it.

Turkey Vegetable Skillet

1 pound ground turkey
1 tablespoon dried onion flakes or 1 teaspoon onion powder
1 garlic clove, minced or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon oil
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
¼ pound zucchini, diced
¼ cup chopped dill pickle
1 teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon pepper
In a skillet, brown turkey, onion and garlic in oil. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer, uncovered, for 5-10 minutes or until the turkey is cooked and zucchini is tender.

This would be quite nice over rice or pasta.

Lemon Tea Bread

¾ cup rice milk
½ cup coconut oil
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon peel
Glaze:
½ cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
In a large mixing bowl, cream coconut oil and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. Stir in lemon juice and lemon peel.
Pour into a greased 9 inch x 5 inch x 3 inch loaf pan. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack.
In a small bowl, combine glaze ingredients until smooth; drizzle over bread.

Chicken Fajitas

4 tablespoons oil, divided
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 ½ teaspoons seasoned salt
1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
½ medium sweet red pepper, julienned
½ medium green pepper, julienned
4 green onions, thinly sliced
½ cup chopped onion
flour tortillas
shredded cheddar cheese, taco sauce, salsa, guacamole, sour cream, etc.
In a large resealable plastic bag, combine 2 tablespoons oil, lemon juice and seasonings. Add chicken. Seal and turn to coat; refrigerate for 1-4 hours. In a large skillet, saute peppers and onions in remaining oil until crisp-tender. Remove and keep warm. In the same skillet, cook chicken and marinade over medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes or until meat is no longer pink. Return mixture to pan; heat through.