Sex in a Pan with a Twist

Surprisingly enough the first time I had this recipe it was brought to our home by a priest. I obviously did not grow up with wrath of God type priests. Imagine the shock of an 8 year old girl when a priest brought over Sex in a Pan. (followed by another version called Prostitute Pie, made with pistachio pudding)

This recipe is great and really very good, hence the name. I've added a little twist to the classic recipe that brings it up another notch. Using traditional recipe, I've added baby food apricots as an additional layer, and crushed skor bar.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter (melted)

1 1/2 cups graham crushed graham wafers

1 cup crushed pecans

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese

1 cup icing sugar (confectioners sugar)

1 package chocolate pudding instant

1 package vanilla pudding instant

1 jar apricot baby food

4 cups prepared whip cream (you can use a big tub of cool whip. I use fresh whipped)

1/4 cup crushed pecans and 1 crushed skor bar for the topping

Combine melted butter with graham wafer crumbs and crushed pecans. Flatten into a 9 x 13 pan to create crust and bake at 375 F for 9-10 minutes. Let cool completely

Whip cream cheese and icing sugar until smooth. Fold in 1 cup of prepared whip cream until well combined.

Prepare the vanilla pudding and chocolate pudding, placing in the fridge until ready to use.

Once the base crust is cooled, place first layer down. The cream cheese mixture goes first, followed by baby apricots. Place in fridge for 10 minutes to set.

Layer vanilla pudding over apricots and cool again for a few minutes. Place chocolate pudding layer over vanilla layer. Final layer is the balance of whip cream. Top with 1/4 cup of crushed pecans and crushed Skor bar. Place in fridge for minimum 4 hours. You can freeze leftovers as well.

Sinfully good!!!

To make prostitute pie, simply omit the apricots, vanilla and chocolate puddings, replacing with pistachio pudding. Top with slivered pistachios.

Roast of Lamb

I love lamb. I especially love it in Souvlaki, but I also enjoy roast of lamb.

I've never really found a decent way to cook lamb roast. Today I invented one. It actually was quite good. The lamb was deliciously moist and tender. I decided to try a little tzaziki sauce with it and that worked well too!!

Easy Lamb Roast.

1 cup lemon juice

1 cup white wine

3 teaspoons minced garlic

2 teaspoons rosemary

2 teaspoons greek oregano

2-3 lb lamb roast ( I use the ones wrapped in the twine, boneless)

Combine all of the ingredients into a ziploc bag and place the lamb into the bag. Remove as much air as possible and seal. Refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight.

Place in small roast pan and bake at 325 farenheit for an hour and a half, covered. Place about 1/4 of the marinade into the pan. Once the meat is cooked you can uncover and increase heat to 350 for 10 minutes or so to brown the outside of the roast.

An alternative to browning in the oven is to place on preheated bbq for a few minutes to grill the outside of the roast.

We served this with rice and steamed broccoli.

Easy and Delicious Meatloaf

This one isn't rocket science or gourmet by any stretch but it's an easy recipe that can be whipped together quickly. I don't usually add salt to this. I try to keep an eye on our sodium intake. You may find you want to add salt when it's finished but I never have.

Ingredients

2 lbs lean ground beef
6 tablespoons Kraft Chicken n Rib BBQ sauce
3 dashes of Worcestershire Sauce
1 large egg
approx 1/2 cup breadcrumbs. (the breadcrumbs help bind it together and also absorb the bbq sauce

Add all of the ingredients together in a large bowl and mix until thoroughly combined. This is one where I get my hands dirty and dig in. Form meat into a loaf type shape and place in a small roasting pan.

Sauce:
1/2 cup Kraft Chicken n Rib BBQ sauce
2-3 tsp of yellow mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Combine all the ingredients for the sauce together and cover the shaped meat loaf with the sauce.

Cover the meatloaf in the roasting pan and place in the oven @ 350 F for approx 40 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until cooked thoroughly.

Serve with Mashed potatoes and veggies on the side.

This one is really good as leftovers for meatloaf sandwich as well. (My kids like with homemade macaroni and cheese)

Shrimp in White Wine Lemon Sauce

Tonight I tried to invent a recipe. I'm going to call it, Shrimp in White Wine Lemon sauce.

I sort of pulled a little of this, and a little of that and developed it. I think it's probably similar to shrimp scampi but I've never actually had shrimp scampi so I can't say for sure. It was tasty though. Light and full of flavours.

The kids ate it pretty quickly and were asking for seconds so I guess I did alright in the end of the day. If you try this recipe and alter it let me know, I'd love some recommendations for improvements.

Ingredients

2 lbs shrimp, deveined, shells removed (you can leave the tail on if you like)

1 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic

1 or 2 shallots. (1 large, or two small)

3/4 cup white wine

1/4 cup cream

3/4 cup shrimp stock (made through initial cooking of shrimp)

salt and pepper

1-2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

Juice of one lemon

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1/2 cup shredded parmagean cheese (grated)

Salt and pepper the shrimp.

Heat skillet and add the olive oil. Add the shrimp to the skillet and cook until just pink. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and pour the juices into a measuring cup. I had more than a cup of juices as I used frozen shrimp.

Place skillet back on heat, add the butter and melt. Add the onions and cook until soft (about 2 minutes), add the garlic and cook for another thirty seconds.

Add the wine, add the stock from your measuring cup, and add lemon juice. Bring to a boil and reduce by about a third. Add the cream and reduce again by another 1/3. Add the parmagean, and mix well until melted. Return the shrimp to the pan and add the parsley. Adjust the salt and pepper if needed. Simmer for another minute or so (longer if you need it to thicken a little more)

Serve over angel hair pasta.

Lamb Souvlaki

I love Lamb Souvlaki. I`ve not yet found a fantastic recipe that makes me think I`m sitting on the Danforth but this one has sufficed in our family. It`s quite good. The secret is to let the meat marinate for several hours in the fridge to allow the flavours to infuse into the meat. I don`t really measure this so I`m kind of winging it here.

Ingredients.

1 Leg of Lamb Roast
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/8 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 Shallot, finely diced
1-2 cloves of finely diced garlic
1 tablespoon Greek oregano
1 tablespoon rosemary

Trim excess fat from the lamb roast and cut the lamb into 1 1/2 inch – 2 inch cubes. Place in an airtight container and mix in all the other ingredients. Mix well and cover. Place in the fridge for several hours (about 5-6). Heat up the bbq and grill turning periodically for approx 10-15 minutes until meat.

Serve with rice and vegetables with Tzatziki on the side for dipping. MMMMM

Creamy Key Lime Pie

One thing about traveling is you experience local flavours in cuisine. One of my favourite culinary taste sensations came from a trip to Florida where we tasted Key Lime Pie for the first time. A little diner called Nellie's in Springhill is where we found this gem.

My entire family loved key lime pie and after coconut cream pie adventure the other day my son and husband wanted me to try a key lime pie.

I surfed recipes online and settled on one that I think is the closest to what I was looking for. Thank you Kelly at Recipezaar for sharing this recipe. It's easy peasy to make and delicious. I added a little lime zest into the recipe as well and made it in a 10" springfoam pan. A regular pie pan would suffice as well.

Ingredients
6 egg yolks
2 cans condensed milk (I use Eagle Brand)
1 cup fresh squeezed key lime juice (or bottled, I used fresh and it was about 7 limes)
whipping cream (sweetened)
lime for garnish

Directions:
Gently whisk the egg yolks until smooth. Add the two cans of condensed milk and continue whisking slowly to combine well.
Slowly add the lime juice, again, whisking slowly until thoroughly combined.
I used the low setting on my kitchenaid mixer to combine the above.

Prepare your shell using 1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs with 1/4 cup of butter and 1/4 cup sugar. As mentioned I used a springfoam pan, but you can use a premade graham pie shell from the grocer as well.

Once well combined (see picture below), place in a preheated oven of 325 degrees Fahrenheit for about 40-45 minutes. Remove from the oven and place in the fridge for 4-6 hours and top with whipping cream.

It's tangy and sweet at the same time. The texture is fabulous and it's definitely a keeper here. Ridiculously easy to make.
Filling before baking

This is the pie baked (excuse the fingermarks courtesy of our 7 year old)

Now with whip cream

Chicken Florentine

My husband found me Giada De Laurentiis's cookbook Everyday Italian today. Whilst hanging out in William Sonoma he also saw Margarita mix, which made him flashback to our trip to Mexico and he couldn't resist. I have been drinking margarita's for about two hours prior to attempting this recipe.

I am typing this while attempting this recipe. It says it should only be 20 minutes prep time but truth be told. I'm at that already and the chicken is still in the skillet. I am doubling the recipe as well as the size of our family warrants it. I did have to skip out to the store to get some more wine which forced me to call my 16 year old son up to drive me over as the margaritas have left me incapable of that little feat. He is giggling away at him mommy who never drinks.

So here we are.. (spellcheck is definitely going to be used for this one!!) This recipe source Is Giada De Laurentiis. Everyday Italian on the Food Network.

Ingredients

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• All-purpose flour, for dredging
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons shallots, sliced
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 1 1/2 cups dry white wine
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen cut-leaf spinach, thawed, drained

Directions

Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the flour to coat lightly. Shake off any excess flour. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate and tent with foil to keep it warm.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in the same skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and saute until the shallots are translucent, stirring to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet, about 1 minute. Add the wine. Increase the heat to medium-high and boil until the liquid is reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the cream and boil until the sauce reduces by half, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Stir in the parsley. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper. Add the chicken and any accumulated juices to the sauce, and turn the chicken to coat in the sauce.

Meanwhile, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in another large skillet over medium heat. Add the spinach and saute until heated through. Season the spinach, to taste, with salt and pepper. Arrange the spinach over a platter. Place the chicken atop the spinach. Pour the sauce over and serve.

Was it close to 20 minutes? Evaluation

Fast forwarding to and hour later. This recipe was quite good. There are a few things to remember while making it. Most importantly is that you really need to let the sauce simmer down and reduce. I followed the 3 minutes as per directions and it really hadn't reduced much. I added another 6 minutes and served. While it was tasty, it wasn't nearly as tasty as the chicken and sauce I left on the stove for another 10 minutes or so. THAT was delicious. The flavours were all beautifully melded by then and very very good. So keep in Mind...be sure to really let it reduce before serving. I served it over a bed of linguine, placed the spinach, topped it with the chicken and a small ladle of sauce. I did top with more fresh ground pepper and parmigiana cheese.

Will I make it again? I'm not sure. It was tasty but not one I'd call an instant favorite.

For the photos.

The chicken coated with flour, salt and pepper.

Chicken being sauteed in pan

Shallots and parsley

Finished Dish

Ravioli Caprese

One of my favorite shows on television is Everyday Italian on the Food Network. I have tried so many of Giada's recipes and all have turned out fabulously. This one in particular is excellent. It's very light tasting but filling at the same time. I have trouble finding it on the food network site so I've taken notes from my pvr.

This recipe is not a 30 minute meal by any stretch. Preparing the raviolis take time. I can usually whip them off from start to finish in about an hour. Well worth the time though. My kids love it and I certainly can't complain. One of my favorite salads is Caprese salad so this just seems appropriate.

I don't have a picture of this one as I haven't made it for a couple of months but will take one and add it next time I make it. (Probably next week)

Dough:
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
1 cup very hot water.

Filling:
3/4 cup whole milk ricotta
1 egg
1/2 cup finely shredded store bought rotisserie chicken
1/4 cup grated parmesan
2 tblsp finely chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Sauce:
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
2 tsp grated lemon zest
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

For the dough:
In a large bowl combine the flour and water. Using a wooden spoon, stir to combine into a large ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for about 10 minutes. * I toss the flour into my kitchenaid mixer and using the dough hook start adding water. It's easier.

For the filling.
Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl and stir to combine. (I use a food processor to shred the chicken then mix the rest of the ingredients in with a mixing blade)

To form the ravioli. cut the dough into 4 evenly sized pieces. It should be slightly sticky. Add extra flour as necessary for rolling, but only use a little bit as needed. Form each piece into a 2 by inch rectangle. Recover the dough with the plastic wrap.  You can also use a ravioli mold.  I picked one up at a gadget store. 

Lightly dust the work surface and a rolling pin. Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, roll the dough into a 4 x 19 inch rectangle. Place 9 rounded teaspoons of filling about 1 inch apart down the center of the dough. Fold the dough over the filling. Press down around the edges of each of the ravioli with your fingertips. Cut the ravioli into small squares and press down around the edges again to seal. Place on a lightly floured baking tray and continue until you've exhausted the mixture.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add half the ravioli and cook until the ravioli float, stirring occasionally for about 3-4 minutes. Drain into a large bowl and cook the remaining ravioli. Pour the olive oil over the cooked ravioli, add the basil, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Gently toss the pasta to coat and serve immediately.

If you take the time to prepare this recipe you will not be disappointed. It is lovely. The combination of the lemon and the basil and salt is reminiscent of sitting at an oceanside trattoria in Italy. Truly delightful.

Coconut Cream Pie

I have a serious addiction to coconut cream pie. Key Lime pie is up there as well, but coconut cream pie is my downfall.

I've never actually made one before as I generally only indulge when we order chicken from Swiss Chalet (which is rarely).

I had a real hankering one night after online chatting with a friend, who was in the middle of making one. It was one of those had to have, need to have right now kind of cravings. I didn't have anything available to make one, the stores were all closed so I suffered.

Trying to find a good coconut cream pie in a grocery store is not an easy task so I decided to make one.

I looked at a few recipes online and decided to try one. It turned out alright but the filling was somewhat runny. I made some changes to the recipe and the following is my improved recipe.

This one is pretty good on the coconut cream scale. I may tinker some more or if anyone has any suggestions to improve this one I'll gladly accept but all in all, quite simple to make and very tasty.

Edited to add some details after watching my pretty coconut cream pie disappear in record time tonight. The changes I made were killer!!! Even husband who is not a big fan of coconut said it was absolutely delish!! YAY me. I had a slice and will admit...it was good...very very good.

Ingredients:
1 can coconut milk
approx 1 1/2 cups half-and-half
2 eggs plus one egg yolk
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup flaked coconut, toasted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Crust:
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup butter

Topping:
1-2 cups real whipped cream

Directions:
Pour coconut milk into a large measuring cup. Add half and half until you reach the 3 cup mark. Add the eggs and egg yolk and mix well.

Pour into a medium saucepan and add sugar, cornstarch, salt. Whisk this mixture completely until totally smooth. (I take some of the milk/half and half and combine with the cornstarch in a seperate bowl until smooth and add it to the saucepan to ensure no lumps.

Bring to a boil over low/medium heat stirring constantly and remove from heat when boiled or getting thick.

Add the coconut flakes, and vanilla, combine well.

Pour into prepared pie shell and cool for 2-4 hours until set.

Top with whip cream and sprinkle additional flaked coconut on top.

I pipe the whip cream on with a large tip on the icing bag just to make it look pretty.

For the crust: Combine graham crumbs with melted butter and press onto the bottom of a 9 inch pie plate. Refrigerate of put aside until you need it.

This has instantly become a family favorite. (My daughter is off school today and busy stirring the mixture in the kitchen while I type this) If you filling gets lumpy while on the stove whisk it well. One thing we have done in the past is take the handblender to it to before adding the coconut flakes and pouring into the prepared shell to ensure a smooth filling.

Here you see the mixture warming on the stove (Ignore my plank of wood, we had a piece of granite fall off the endcap, so this is my temporary solution until the granite comes in.

Once it’s thickened you pour it into your prepared shell

Once it has cooled for a couple of hours, top with whip cream, and sprinkle some more coconut on it.

My husband and oldest son have just requested I attempt a key lime pie next time. Perhaps that will be the goal next week. ….. in the meantime I need to finish preparing dinner, and make some Ameretto Almond Cupcakes.