Toasted Sun-dried Tomato Focaccia Sandwich with Canadian bacon

Ingredients:

• Sun-dried Tomato Focaccia bread, sliced horizontally
• 1/2 lb thinly sliced Canadian Bacon (or chicken or turkey sandwich meat)
• Slices of cheddar cheese
• Tomato slices
• Lettuce
• 2 tbsp Giardiniera
• mustard
• mayo

Sauce:

• 3 tbsp honey
• 3 tbsp dijon mustard 

In a small bowl mix together honey and mustard, set aside.

Spread mustard on the bottom of the focaccia bread, then arrange the sliced canadian bacon to cover the bread.
Spread  mayo on the top of the facaccia bread , then arrange the sliced cheese.
Place the bread on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for about 12 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Take the sandwich out of the oven when it’s done and pour the honey mustard sauce on the top of the canadian bacan. Top with shredded lettuce, giardiniera, sliced tomato and the top half.

 Enjoy immediately.

Baked Sweet-Potato Chips

Ingredients:

•  2 large sweet potato, sliced thinly with mandoline slicer
•  2 tsp olive oil
•  1 1/2 tsp salt
•  1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 

 Preheat oven to 225F.

Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Place sliced sweet potato in a large bowl. Drizzle olive oil over top; sprinkle with salt and cayenne pepper. Toss the potatoes with your hands to make sure all are covered.
Lay the sweet potatoes out in a single layer on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake for about 1 1/2 hours (may be longer), rotating the sheets halfway through until the sweet potatoes
are crispy.
Let cool slightly. Best eaten the day they are made.

Carrot and Zucchini Obsession Bars

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups shredded carrot
• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp baking soda

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp lemon zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
In another bowl combine add the flour, baking powder, ginger, and baking soda.  Whisk to blend together.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, oil, honey, and vanilla.

 Then fold in the carrot, zucchini, and walnuts.

 Add to flour mixture to the wet mixture. Stir just until combined. Spread batter into an ungreased baking pan.

Bake about 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

Once the cake is cooled prepare the frosting.   In a medium mixing bowl, beat the frosting ingredients with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy.
Spread or pipe the frosting over the cooled bars.

Sichuan Style Eggplant

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds Asian eggplant
• 2 tbsp chicken stock
• 2 tbsp chili bean paste
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp Chinese rice wine
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp peanut oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tbsp minced ginger
• 1/2 tsp  pepper
• Scallions, thinly sliced, for garnish

Slice each eggplant in half lengthwise, then slice each length into quarters. Cut each quarter in somewhat substantial, but still bite-sized, cubes (about 1 1/4-inch to 1 1/2-inch cubes).

Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, mix together the chicken stock, chili bean paste, soy sauce, rice vinegar, rice wine, sugar, and cornstarch. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a wok over high heat until a bead of water sizzles and evaporates on contact.
Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and swirl the pan to coat the base and sides.
Add the eggplants and stir-fry until outsides become golden brown and insides begin to soften, about 3 to 5 minutes.
Add the garlic, ginger, and  pepper and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Pour in the sauce mixture and mix well.
Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes to allow the eggplant to full cook and the sauce to thicken enough to coat the back of a spoon. 
Remove from the heat, plate, and sprinkle scallions on top.

Sautéed Kale With Onion & Garlic

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2  lb kale leaves, stem removed and leaves chopped, then washed and dried
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, finely sliced 
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

 

Chop the onion and finely slice the garlic, then heat oil in heavy frying pan until it's medium-not and saute onion 3-4 minutes until it starts to brown. When onion is turning slightly brown, add garlic and saute 1 minute more.

 

Raise heat to high, add the stock and kale and toss to combine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Remove cover, add vinegar and continue to cook, stirring until all the liquid has evaporated. 

Serve warm .

 

 

Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme

Ingredients:

• 6 large flour tortillas
• 4 small corn tortillas
• 1 pound ground beef
• 3 diced tomatoes
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 3 cups nacho cheese
• shredded lettuce
• sour cream

Brown the ground beef in a skillet, then add taco seasoning (according to package directions). Set aside.

Warm up the flour tortillas in the oven; just wrap them in aluminum foil and heat them up for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Lay out the flour tortilla. Spoon some of the seasoned beef into the center of the tortilla. Top with some nacho cheese.

 

 Place the crunchy corn tortilla on top of the cheese/beef; spread a dollop of sour cream on top of it, then toss on shredded lettuce and diced tomatoes. 

 

Starting with the bottom of the tortilla, fold the edge up to the center. Continue doing this in a clockwise or counter-clockwise movement until all of the tortilla is folded over, and the filling is entirely enclosed.

Spray a frying pan with cooking spray.  Carefully place the crunchwrap, seam-side down, in the pan. Press with a spatula and cook on medium-low heat, for about 3 minutes, until the bottom is nice and brown. Flip it over and cook for another 3 minutes. Serve and enjoy :)

Pumpkin Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

Ingredients:

Bread:

1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 envelope active dry yeast
1/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups bread flour
1 cup sugar
2 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp fresh ground nutmeg
2 tbsp unsalted butter

Vanilla Glaze
1 1/2 Tbsp milk
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/8 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract

In a saucepan over medium-high heat, brown 2 tablespoons of butter, letting it bubble up and turn a dark golden brown but being careful not to allow it burn (turn black). Once browned, remove the pan from the heat and carefully add the milk, return to stove and heat through.
Pour the milk and butter into the bowl of standing mixer and allow to cool so it is no longer hot but also not cool (about 100-110 degrees F). Once it has reached a warm but not hot temperature add the yeast and 1/4 cup of sugar and allow to proof (this can take up to 8 minutes, the top will look foamy and the liquid cloudy). Then add the the pumpkin, salt, and 1 cup of flour. Stir until combined then add the rest of the flour 1/2 cup at a time and knead for 6 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic and just slightly sticky. If the dough is too moist, add extra flour 1 tablespoon at a time.
Move dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a clean towel. Allow to rise in a warm place for 60-90 minutes or until doubled in size.

While dough is rising, brown another 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix well. Set aside.
Grease and flour a 9×5 loaf pan and set aside.
When the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and flip out onto a clean floured surface and knead with hands for 1-2 minutes. Roll dough into a 20×12 inch rectangle.
Evenly sprinkle the dough with the cinnamon sugar mixture and press into dough with palms of the hand.

Cut the rectangle into 6 strips. Lay strips on top of each other and cut each strip into 6 even squares (cut in half then each half into thirds).

Stack strips vertically into the loaf pan.
Cover the pan with a clean towel and let rise for 45 minutes.

In the meantime preheat an oven to 350 degrees.
After rising in the pan bake for 40-60 minutes or until top is a very deep golden brown.

To prepare the glaze, heat the butter, milk, and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to boil then immediately remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and powdered sugar.

Mushroom Lovers' Pizza Bread

Ingredients:

• 1 french bread loaf (preferably whole grain), sliced in half, lengthwise
• 1 pound button mushrooms 
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3-4 cups shredded cheese
• 2 cups tomato sauce (pizza sauce)
• salt
• pepper 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Wipe mushrooms clean with a damp towel. Dice the mushrooms. Heat a deep skillet with extra-virgin olive oil over medium heat.Add the onion and cook until the onion starts to turn translucent, about 5 minutes. Then add mushrooms to the skillet. Cook until mushrooms are dark and tender 12 to 15 minutes. Season everything with salt and pepper.

Place bread on baking sheet and brush olive oil over each half.
Bake for 10 minutes.
Let it cool for 5 minutes.
Spread the tomato sauce on each half.

Fill bread with mushrooms onion mixture evenly on top of each half then top with cheese liberally.

Bake the pizza bread in the oven for about 15 minutes until it browns and bubbles then remove the pizzas from the oven and drizzle some ketchup on top.
Serve warm.