Strawnana Bread

Ingredients

4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups white sugar
1 1/2 cups strawberries, mashed
1 cup mashed bananas
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease two 9x5 inch pans.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg.
3. In a large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, strawberries, bananas, orange peel, and oil. Beat with an electric mixer at medium speed for 2 minutes. Add flour mixture, and stir just until moistened. Stir in walnuts.
4. Bake for 1 hour, or until loaves test done. Remove to wire rack to cool.

Sue

Hi Everyone! I'm home from the hospital. All is well, but if you don't mind, I'd appreciate it you continued to start the thread for a while longer. The meds I'm on have me sleeping alot. But I will contribute when I can.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

8 oz Cream cheese, softened
1 tsp Salt
3 sticks Butter, softened
2 tsp Vanilla or lemon extract
3 cup Sugar
1 cup Fresh blueberries or peaches
6 Eggs
3 cup All purpose flour

Do not preheat oven. Lightly butter a 10-inch tube pan, and line the
bottom with parchment paper; set aside. Combine butter and cream
cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment,
and beat on medium speed until smooth.

Add the sugar, increase the speed to high, and beat until light and airy,
about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition
and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.

Add the vanilla, then the flour and salt all at once. Beat just until blended.
Fold in fruit. (*see note)

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and tap lightly to even out the top.
Place in cold oven. Bake at 325 degrees F until cake is golden brown and
a cake tester inserted in the cake comes out clean, 75 to 90 minutes. Place
the pan on a cooling rack, and cool for 20 minutes. Remove cake from pan,
and let cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

*You can add just fruit and let them speak for themselves, or
with the flavorings. Use lemon with blueberries and the vanilla with
peaches.

Boy that was quick trip from the hospital. I am so glad you seem to be doing so well! Wishing continued speedy recovery.

Sue

Well I was wondering what this hospital thing was all about so I did a search. I guess I missed the original post. August 8 was DH's birthday and I was out all day, and then we went out at night to celebrate. Glad to hear the surgery went well and computer withdrawal didn't last long.

Seems like you've been gone forever! Glad to hear the surgery went well. Been thinkin' about you! Welcome back!

small version of Baked Alaska I'm making for gs's birthday party I am having tomorrow.

Baked Alaska

This is the most efficient and easiest way I know to make Baked Alaska. Keep the frosted Alaskas in the freezer until just before baking. While some folks are clearing the table of first course dishes let one person be in charge of baking the dessert.

6 sponge shortcake cups
6 scoops mint chocolate ice cream (or other favorite flavor)
4 egg whites
Dash of cream of tartar
1/2 cup sugar

1. Put a scoop of ice cream into each shortcake cup. Freeze until firm while preparing meringue.

2. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until frothy. Continue beating and slowly add sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form.

3. Remove ice cream cups from freezer. Cover completely with meringue. Return to freezer.

4. Just before serving, remove Alaska from freezer and bake 2-3 minutes in a preheated 500 degree oven.

Hi LuckyGardnr! Glad to see you!
Don't worry, we'll be here to start the daily thread.

Here are a couple of recipes for pre-cooking chicken to have on hand anytime you want a quick meal. I've never done it, have any of you? It makes sense, to me.

One is to slow-cook chicken thighs, and use in shredded meals like barbecued chicken on a bun, quesadilles, etc.

The other is to poach chicken breasts and you can shred, slice or chunk the chicken to use in future recipes.

SHREDDED CHICKEN MASTER RECIPE

Place 4-1/2 to 5 pounds chicken thighs, skinned, in a 4- to 5-quart slow cooker.

For bouquet garni, cut an 8-inch square from a double thickness of cheesecloth. Place 4 thyme sprigs, 4 parsley stems, 2 bay leaves, 2 cloves garlic, halved and 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns in the center of the cheesecloth. Bring up corners of the cheesecloth and tie with string. Add bouquet garni to slow cooker.

Pour 1, 32-ounce box chicken broth over all. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 7 to 8 hours or on high-heat setting for 3-1/2 to 4 hours. Remove bouquet garni and discard.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer chicken to a large bowl. When chicken is cool enough to handle, remove meat from bones. Using two forks, shred meat. Add enough of the cooking juices to moisten meat. Strain and reserve cooking juices to use for chicken stock.

Place 2-cup portions of chicken and chicken stock in separate airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Makes 6 cups.

Ready for Anything Poached Chicken

Liquid ingredients: Water works well, but fruit juices, clear soup, white wine or canned tomatoes add flavour during the cooking process. Or try chicken broth or orange, pineapple or apple juices.

If you need a sauce, mix 1-4 tsp cornstarch with 1/4 cup water and at the end of the poaching process.

Herbs and Spices: Use a combination of the following: lemon pepper, poultry seasoning, paprika, chili, ground coriander, thyme, basil, rosemary, tarragon, parsley, garlic or fresh grated ginger.

Method:
Sprinkle the chicken with seasonings. Heat a non-stick skillet over high heat and spray with cooking spray. Add chicken and brown 3-5 minutes per side.

Add enough liquid to come *halfway up the sides* of the breasts and cover. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer for approximately 7 minutes for 2 breasts. Increase cooking time for larger quantities. Turn at least once.

Quickly add the thickening agent, and whisk and cook until liquid thickens.

The flavours in this dish are even better when the chicken is left in the liquid overnite in the frig. Serve with rice, potatoes or pasta.

I have often bought the rotisserie cooked chickens at the grocery store when they have a stack of them on clearance usually for $2 each, I either break them down into parts or I just shred all the meat off and then freeze the meat and the carcass to use for making soup or broth. The meat is good in so many recipes.

this is one of the recipes I made up for using them

Rotisserie chicken soup

1 store bought rotisserie chicken
1can sante fe veggies (corn,black beans etc)
1/2 head of cabbage chopped
1medium onion diced
1can rotel tomatoes and chilies
1can diced tomatoes
1can black beans with juice
2cups or so of carrots either the baby carrots or some sliced carrots
seasonings. Tony�s Cajun seasoning, garlic salt, pepper.

Cut all the meat off of the chicken then cut into bite size pieces include skin. Take the carcass and put in about 2 to 3 quarts of water and boil for 30-40 mins. Remove the bones from the stock, skim, and add all the remaining ingredients to the stock pot. Season to your taste. Cook on medium for about 15 mins then turn to lower temp and let simmer for 30 mins or longer. You can add some cut up Cajun sausage or tasso for flavor. If you want to add a hand full or 2 of dry macaroni or noodles you can.

I also use the rotisserie chicken meat in taco soup and tortilla soup when I make that.

Anne t posted this on the Cooking forum along with a yummy photo....

See's (Fudgy) Gooey Brownies (makes 24 large)

16 oz. chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 pound butter plus 2 tablespoons divided
1 pound brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
shot of espresso (optional)
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup toasted walnuts or pecans

Directions Place condensed milk, chocolate chips and half of the butter in a glass bowl. Microwave on medium for one minute. stir until smooth. You might need to place back in the microwave for a few more seconds. Be careful not to over heat. Set aside.
In a small pan (or microwave bowl) melt remaining 1/2 pound butter, stir in sugar. Add to chocolate mixture. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in vanilla (espresso optional) flour and salt. Fold in nuts.

Line a 13x9x2 pan with foil, leaving an overhang on each end. Butter foil. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes. Do not overbake. Place pan in freezer...this stops the baking process. When brownies have cooled use foil to remove from pan. Peel off foil, cut brownies into bars and then into squares. I wrap bars individually and freeze. Easy to pull a bar out of freezer when a brownie craving hits.
These are 'gooey' at first...following day they firm up to an amazing brownie...says Anne

(I wonder how they got the name See's...since here on the west coast we have a famous candy maker named See's, and they don't do brownies. They do have choc. chips tho and they are quite good.)Nanny98/Ellie

Nanny98, isn't AnnT talented--both behind the camera and in the kitchen? I just love her blog site!

Just saw her on this board too....trying this Brownie today. And Yes, her photo's of food make me hungry!