Creamy Lime Parfaits

I have a very bad case of spring fever.  We had a taste of nice weather the other week, but it is once again snowing today.  Ug.  I am hoping this yummy dessert will help lift my spirits!  Think:  it's a little bit like key lime pie, but creamier and a little less tart.  Oh.So.Good.

Creamy Lime Parfaits

Serves:  4 large servings or 6 regular servings.
Ingredients:

1 Cup Sugar

3 Tablespoons Corn Starch

1 Cup Water

1/3 Cup Lime Juice

Green Food Coloring

2 Egg Yolks, slightly beaten

4 oz. Cream Cheese, room temp and cubed

Whipped Cream (or Cool Whip)

Cookie or Graham Crackers (optional for garnish)

Step 1:  In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar and cornstarch;  mix well.  Stir in the water, lime juice and egg yolks.  Cook over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly.  Boil 1 minute.  Add cream cheese and stir until cream cheese is melted and mixture is smooth.  Add a few drops of green food coloring and stir until well combined.  Cool to room temp.

Step 2:  Once the lime filling has cooled, stir in 1/2 cup of the whipped cream.

Step 3.  Gather your serving dishes!  I used 4 small mason jars.  Add roughly a quarter cup of the lime filling to each jar.  Then an equal amount of whip cream.  And then more lime.  And then top with remaining whipped cream.  Garnish at own will.

Sweet and Sour Broccoli Salad

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh . . spring is in the air!  It finally hit 50 here recently . .which was completely decadent!  That's pretty much tanning weather here :)  With that in mind, I instantly craved fresh fruits and veggies and lots of salads.  And then, I opened the weekly circular for the grocery store and these items were on special:  broccoli and cheese.  I didn't need to see any more.  That meant one thing to me:  Sweet and Sour Broccoli Salad.  The remaining few ingredients needed for the salad, I already had in the pantry.

I absolutely love this salad because it's a good combination of sweet, green, creamy and just enough salt.  I've been known to eat a huge helping of this  . . .as my entire meal.  Yum.

Sweet & Sour Broccoli Salad

Ingredients:

10 Slices Cooked Bacon, Crumbled

1 Head Broccoli, cleaned and chopped into bite-size pieces

1 Small Red Onion, diced

1/2 Cup Raisins

1 Cup Unsalted Sunflower Seed Kernels

1 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 Cup Mayonnaise

1/4 Cup Sugar

2 Teaspoons White Vinegar

In a large bowl, combine the bacon, broccoli, onion, raisins, cheddar cheese and sunflower seeds.  In a separate bowl, combine the mayo, sugar and vinegar and mix well.  Add the dressing to the salad and mix thoroughly.  Chill 1 hour before serving.

Crockpot Steak Marsala

Here is a recipe I hope you'll really enjoy.  It's one that combines many things I love:  steak, mushrooms, marsala, garlic, paprika and thyme.  No fancy cut of steak needed here - use a round steak, which is typically inexpensive.  Let it slow cook all day . . .come home from work and bam! dinner is nearly ready :)

Crockpot Steak Marsala

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs Round Steak

8 oz. Fresh Mushrooms (sliced or quartered)

1 Large Onion, diced

1 Tablespoon Thyme
1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder

1/2 Tablespoon Paprika

1/4 Teaspoon Pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Salt

1/4 Cup Marsala

3/4 Cup Chicken or Vegetable Broth

2 Tablespoons Cornstarch

Step 1:  Place steak in your crockpot.

Step 2:  Add the mushrooms, onions, thyme, paprika, garlic, salt and pepper to the crockpot.

Step 3:  In a small bowl, combine the sherry and cornstarch.  Stir with a fork until smooth.  Add the broth and stir until combined.  Pour this mixture over everything in the crockpot.

Step 4:  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Step 5:  Remove steak from crockpot and place on platter.  Now, add the 1/2 and 1/2 to the crockpot.  Stir until well combined.  Ladle over the steak to serve.  Or, you can place the sauce into a serving dish to serve on the side.

Crazy Cake

Have you ever heard of crazy cake?  And what really makes it crazy versus a regular cake?   Well, let me first tell you that it's crazy because it doesn't use any eggs.  Wha--wha--what?  You read it right - no eggs in this recipe!!  As well, it's a one bowl recipe and you can even stir it with a fork.  I call that not-crazy . . or simply AWESOME!

And what's the perfect occassion for a crazy cake??  How about the craziest holiday of them all . . .St. Patrick's Day!  To give this cake a little holiday flair - I added some chopped Andes Mints.  I'm not entirely sure why we associate Irish with mint . .is it simply the green color?  Honestly, I'm not Irish nor have I ever been to Ireland.  Sounds like some crazy American theory (in my honest opinion)!

Crazy Cake

Ingredients:

1 Cup Sugar

3 Tablespoons Cocoa

1 and 1/2 Cups Flour

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

1 Teaspoon Soda

1/4 Cup + 2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil

1 Tablespoon Vinegar

1 Teaspoon Vanilla

1 Cup Cold Water

Optional:

1 Cup Andes Mints, Roughly Chopped 

Step 1:  Prepare an 8x8 baking pan and set aside.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 2:  Add all dry ingredients to a mixing bowl.  Stir together until well blended.

Step 3:  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.  Pour batter into prepared pan.  If adding the Andes Mints, sprinkle them on top of the batter (they will sink while baking).

Step 4:  Pour cake batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes.

Serving Idea:  Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzle with chocolate syrup and creme de menthe and a dollop of whipped cream.  

Pierogi Lasagna

Let's talk about pierogi's for a minute.  Pierogi's are stuffed little dumplings.  They are typically stuffed with potatoes.  Others things can be added to the potatoes, such as sauerkraut or bacon or cheese.  And then they are boiled, drained and lightly sauteed with butter and onions and often served with sour cream to top them off.  Now, you can probably see where there is a time investment when making these.  That's why I was so excited when I first discovered this recipe for pierogi lasagna.  It's got all the same components . . .just layered instead of as dumplings!  Pasta, cheesy potato, onions, bacon.  Oh boy.  YUM.  The original version is fantastic.  Head over there for a step by step tutorial.  I can't explain it any better.  They do a wonderful job on the tutorial.  

However, here's a picture of mine:

Root Beer Bars

This is one of my go-to faves.  It's unique yet delicious.  Always a crowd-pleaser and you can count on no-one else bringing them to the potluck.  They are reminiscent of a soft, chewy cookie-type-bar.  Many grocery stores carry root beer extract, but in case you have trouble finding it - I buy mine at our local beer/wine-making supply store.  Please note, this recipe also calls for actual root beer soda.  Use whatever kind you prefer.  

Root Beer Bars

Ingredients:

Bars

4 Cups Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking Soda

1/4 Teaspoon Salt

1 Cup Sugar

1 Cup Brown Sugar, packed

1 Cup Butter, softened

1/2 Cup Root Beer, flat

2 Large Eggs

2 Teaspoons Root Beer Extract

1 Teaspoon Vanilla

Icing

1 and 1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar

1 Tablespoon Milk, Flat

1 Tablespoon Butter, softened

1 Tablespoon Root Beer Extract

For the Bars:

Step 1:  Heat Oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  Meanwhile, in a medium sized bowl stir together four, baking soda and salt.

Step 2:  In large bowl, beat together both sugars, the butter, root beer, eggs, root beer extract and vanilla until well combined.  

Step 3:  Add the flour mixture to the sugary mixture and stir until just combined.  This will be a thick dough-like batter.

Step 4: Spread the dough evenly into a greased 9x13 baking pan.  Bake for 25 minutes.  Let cool before frosting.

For the Icing:

This is intended to be a thin icing, so do not be alarmed!  In a small bowl, combine icing ingredients and mix with a spoon until smooth.  Add more powdered sugar if too runny;  add more milk if it is too thick.   It should coat a spoon nicely.  Spread onto cooled bars.  The icing will sink into the bars and set nicely.  The hard part is waiting!  Be sure to store these in a covered container so that they don't dry out!

King's Favorite Bars

Growing up, these were known as "Lucy's Favorite Bars".  Whenever it was my turn to pick out what kind of bar my mom was going to bake for us that week . . .darn tootin' I always picked these.  They are moist, chewy, chocolaty and have three different layers.  Oh, and did I mention how EASY they are to make??  You will not be disappointed in these delicious babies.  Bust.Out.The.Fat.Pants.!

King's Favorite Bars

Ingredients:

For the Crust:
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Butter
1 Cup Flour

For the Filling:
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 and 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla
2 Tablespoons Flour
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
2 Eggs, slightly beaten
1 Package Chocolate Chips (11-12 oz)

1 Cup Chopped Nuts (optional)

Step 1:  For the crust, add all ingredients to bowl and mix together well with a fork.  Pat dough into an ungreased 9x13 baking pan.  Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes.

Step 2:  For the filling, combine the brown sugar, vanilla and dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Add eggs and mix well.

Step 3:  Pour above mixture over the crust;  sprinkle with chocolate chips and nuts.  Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Let cool before cutting.