Hummingbird Cake and Cream Cheese Frosting

Hummingbird Cake

Preheat oven:

Bake 300° 50-70 minutes for a bundt cake

Bake 350° 20 minutes for 29 cupcakes

Mix or sift together:

3 C. All Purpose Flour

2 C. Sugar

1 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. Salt

1 tsp. Cinnamon

Dump the following into the dry ingredients and then stir – DO NOT beat!

2 C. Diced Bananas (3 large)

1 ¼ C. Oil

3 eggs

1 ½ tsp. Vanilla

6 Slices (8 oz.) Crushed Pineapple

Grease and flour pan. Pour in evenly. Bake until tester is clean.

Tip: Put sliced pineapple, eggs, and oil in blender to crush pineapple.

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz. Cream Cheese

½ C. Butter

½ tsp. Vanilla

1 C. Powdered Sugar

With an electric mixer, blend cheese and butter. It will stick to beaters. Add vanilla and sugar (a little at a time – about 1/3 cup at a time).

Frost cake or cupcakes. Decorate with crushed walnuts.

* Walnuts go very well sprinkled on top.

New York Cheesecake

New York Cheesecake

Crust: 1/2 C. Graham Cracker Crumbs

1 1/2 Tbsp. Sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp. Butter or Margarine (Melted or softened)

Filling: 4 Pkg (8oz each) Cream Cheese, softened, room temperature

1 C. Sugar

3 Tbsp. Flour

1 Tbsp Vanilla

1 Cup Sour Cream

4 Eggs

Crust:

Mix crumbs, sugar, and butter. Press onto the bottom of 9-inche spring-form pan. Freeze while making filling.

Filling:

Mix cream cheese, sugar, flour, and vanilla with an electric mixer on medium speed until well mixed. Avoid mixing more than necessary. Blend sour cream. Add the eggs and mix on low speed just until blended. Pour over crust

Bake @325 degrees for 65-70 minutes, or until the center is almost set, if using the silver spring-form (or at 300 degrees if using the non-stick pan). Run knife or metal Spatula around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool before removing rim of pan. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.

Tips:

http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Baking-Cheesecake-Step-by-Step/Detail.aspx

Baking Cheesecake, Step by Step

By: Allrecipes Staff

The way a cheesecake is baked is the key to its perfection.

Professional pastry chefs bake cheesecakes in a water bath. This method bakes the cake very gently so that it does not darken, curdle, or crack. A springform pan is the best choice for baking cheesecakes because you can remove the cake from the pan easily, but muffin tins or any other cake pan will work fine. If you use a plain cake pan, grease it well and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Preheat your oven to the temperature recommended by the cheesecake recipe you are following.

1. To prevent water from seeping into the removable bottom of the springform pan, wrap aluminum foil completely around the bottom and halfway up the sides of the pan. Place the cheesecake into a jellyroll pan (or any baking pan with sides) and place the pans into the oven. Use a teakettle to fill the outer pan with hot water. Cheesecakes usually bake for about 1½ hours, so check the bath after the first hour and refill if necessary.

2. Because cheesecake is very soft, it can be difficult to judge when it is done cooking. One way to check for doneness is to take the cake's internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer. The ideal temperature for a cheesecake is around 160 to 165 degrees F (70 to 72 degrees C). You can also insert a small knife into the center of the cake and if it comes out clean, the cake is done. Some bakers turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in it for an additional hour to ensure that it sets completely.

3. Once the cheesecake has been removed from the oven, it needs to chill thoroughly--preferably overnight. The cake will have pulled away the edges of the pan. Carefully run a small knife around the edge of the pan to loosen any bits that might stick to the pan.

4. Unclip the clasp at the side of the pan, watching for any areas that stick. Carefully lift the outer ring over the top of the cake. If you used a plain cake pan and don't want to serve dessert in the pan, invert a plate covered with a sheet of waxed paper over the pan. Tip the cake pan over the plate, and remove the pan. Invert a serving plate over the bottom of the cheesecake, and flip it over. Remove the top plate and paper, trying not to peel off the “skin” on the surface of the cheesecake. Any imperfections can be covered by chocolate ganache, a fruit sauce, or a layer of lightly sweetened sour cream.

5. For a seamless look, you can smooth the sides of the cheesecake with a hot, wet knife. Any toppings or garnishes can be added at this point.

For tips on slicing and serving, read Slicing Cheesecakes and Layer Cakes.

Mixing Matters

• The cream cheese should be at room temperature before you begin mixing, or you'll end up with lumps in your cheesecake.
• Using cold cream cheese also leads to overbeating--whipping too much air into the batter--which forms unattractive air bubbles on the surface of the cake.
• Unless the recipe instructions specifically note otherwise, you should beat the cream cheese by itself until it's smooth and light, before adding any other ingredients.
• If you end up with lumps in your batter, run the mixture through a sieve or give it a quick spin in the food processor and you'll have silky smooth results.

Cincinnati-style 5-way Chili

Cincinnati-style 5-way Chili

From May 2009 “Family Circle” Magazine modified by Laura Cannon

2 Tbsp. ground chili powder

1-2 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. dried oregano, crumbled

½ tsp. dry mustard

¼ tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground cloves

¼ tsp. ground ginger

¼ tsp. ground nutmeg

½ tsp. beef granules

2 Tbsp. olive oil

3 medium-size yellow onions, minced

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

1 medium-sized green bell pepper, chopped

2 lbs. ground turkey, plain or Italian-seasoned

29 oz. can tomato sauce

2 cans (15 oz. each) Kidney Beans or Red Beans, drained and rinsed

1 lb. Spaghetti, whole wheat or white

Shredded cheese, Cheddar or Fiesta Mix

Chopped onion, for serving (optional)

1) Combine list of spices from chili powder to beef granules. Set aside.

2) In a frying pan, heat olive oil until it begins to sizzle. Stir in onions and garlic, and sauté for 5 minutes. Add green pepper, salt, and ground spice mixture. Sauté for 2 minutes longer. Add ground meat and stir. Brown the meat.

3) In the slow cooker, add tomato sauce and beans*. Then add the ground meat mixture into the slow cooker as well and mix. Cook for 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low.*

4) About 20 minutes before you want to eat, bring a large pot to a boil. Cook spaghetti following package directions, about 10 minutes. After noodles are drained, add them to the slow cooker to mix in with the chili. Mix in cheese to taste or serve as a topping. I like to mix in about 1 cup of cheese into the whole thing.

* You may desire to wait to put the beans in until cooking the noodles.

* If you would like to make this a day ahead of time, the recipe suggests to refrigerate chili over night (minus noodles) to allow flavors to full meld. I think that it tastes great made the day of OR after refrigeration!

Makes 12 servings Prep 15 minutes Cook 2 (or 4) hours, 20 minutes

May Refrigerate overnight

Clafoutis

Clafoutis (Kla-FOO-tee)

Modified by Laura Cannon from May 2009 Friend

“Here’s a yummy new breakfast to try. In France people eat it for dessert, but it’s also delicious for breakfast. You can make it with your favorite fruit, and it’s good either warn or cold.”

Laura’s note: With the right ingredients, this makes a healthy yet tasty breakfast or dessert. In my opinion, it tastes better chilled for a few hours as it tastes much like a custard. Double the recipe if you are using for breakfast (for 4 people) or if for dessert for more than 4-6 people.

4 eggs

1 ¾ C. milk (to make even creamier, add 1 ½ times the amount of milk powder to make

milk)

1/3 C. Whole Wheat Flour

1/3 C. Honey

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract

½ C. fresh or frozen fruit of your choice (cherries, blueberries, raspberries, peaches,

strawberries, etc) Slice fruit if necessary

Place all ingredients except fruit into a blender or big bowl with a whisk. If in blender, blend on low speed for about 30 seconds. If whisking, whisk until all ingredients are mixed together. Then pour into a quiche dish or ovenproof glass dish. Put fruit on top (it will float to the top). Cook at 350°F for 45 minutes.

Steph Chows

http://stephchows.blogspot.com is a great blog from someone finding fairly healthy recipes and look yummy, too!

Steph Chows

http://stephchows.blogspot.com is a great blog from someone finding fairly healthy recipes and look yummy, too!

Lots-o-Beans Chili

Lots-o-Beans Chili
Makes 12-15 servings
1 lb. ground beef or sausage (better with sausage and leaving out the salt)
1 lb bacon, diced (optional...rarely ever do I use bacon)
½ cup chopped onions
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup sugar (or 1/2 tsp. of pure Stevia)
½ cup ketchup
2 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
2 15 oz. cans green beans, drained
2 14 ½ oz. cans baked beans
2 15 oz. cans kidney beans, drained
2 16 oz. cans black beans, rinsed and drained

Brown ground meat and bacon. Drain.
Combine all ingredients in slow cooker.
Cover. Cook on high 1 hour and Reduce heat to low and cook 7-8 hours. Or cook on high for 3 hours.