Weekend Recipes

Finally, Friday. Here are today's weekend recipes. Enjoy

THE ULTIMATE CHEESECAKE

This is from Tyler Florence of The Food Network's Tyler's Ultimate. Total Time: 5 hr. 45 min; Prep: 30 min; Inactive: 4 hr. 30 min; Cook: 45 min; Yield: 6 to 8 servings; Level: Intermediate

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/the-ultimate-cheesecake-recipe.print.html?oc=linkback

Ingredients

Crust:

2 cups finely ground graham crackers (about 30 squares)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

Filling:

1 pound cream cheese, 2 (8-ounce) blocks, softened

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 pint sour cream

1 lemon, zested

1 dash vanilla extract

Warm Lemon Blueberry Topping, recipe follows

Warm Lemon Blueberries:

1 pint blueberries

1 lemon, zested and juiced

2 tablespoons sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

For the Crust:

In a mixing bowl, combine the ingredients with a fork until evenly moistened. Lightly coat the bottom and sides of an 8-inch springform pan with non-stick cooking spray.

Pour the crumbs into the pan and, using the bottom of a measuring cup or the smooth bottom of a glass, press the crumbs down into the base and 1-inch up the sides. Refrigerate for 5 minutes.

For the Filling:

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese on low speed for 1 minute until smooth and free of any lumps. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and continue to beat slowly until combined. Gradually add sugar and beat until creamy, for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla. Periodically scrape down the sides of the bowl and the beaters. The batter should be well-mixed but not overbeaten. Pour the filling into the crust-lined pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

Set the cheesecake pan on a large piece of aluminum foil and fold up the sides around it. Place the cake pan in a large roasting pan. Pour boiling water into the roasting pan until the water is about halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan; the foil will keep the water from seeping into the cheesecake. Bake for 45 minutes. The cheesecake should still jiggle (it will firm up after chilling), so be careful not to overcook. Let cool in pan for 30 minutes. Chill in the refrigerator, loosely covered, for at least 4 hours. Loosen the cheesecake from the sides of the pan by running a thin metal spatula around the inside rim. Unmold and transfer to a cake plate. Using a spatula spread a layer of Warm Lemon Blueberry topping over the surface.

Slice the cheesecake with a thin, non-serrated knife that has been dipped in hot water. Wipe dry after each cut.

Warm Lemon Blueberries:

In a small saucepan add all the ingredients and simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes or so until the fruit begins to break down slightly. Leave to cool before spreading on cheesecake.

LAZY CHICKEN

This is from the Tablespoon.com newsletter. It begins, “A healthy one pot dish with summer vegetables and chicken. Serve this right from the pan...it's lazy chicken after all.” Prep Time: 10 min; Total Time: 30 min; Servings: 4

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

1 pound chicken breasts, cut into one-inch cubes

2 red potatoes, sliced thinly

1 small white onion, thinly sliced

1 small zucchini, thinly sliced into disks

1 -2 teaspoons steak seasoning

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 (14.5 ounce) can Muir Glen™ organic fire roasted crushed or diced tomatoes

10 basil leaves, coarsely chopped

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella

Salt and pepper

Directions

In an oven safe skillet, sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper and brown on medium high heat for a couple of minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.

Add olive oil to the pan. Layer the sliced potatoes and onions in the pan and sprinkle with half of the steak seasoning. Cook potatoes and onions in a thin layer until brown, turning as little as possible to get a nice sear.

Add chicken broth to the pan. Spread zucchini in a thin layer on top of the potatoes and onion. Sprinkle zucchini with the remaining steak seasoning.

Place chicken in an even layer over the zucchini. Pour tomatoes evenly over the chicken. Sprinkle tomatoes with the oregano and basil. Cover and cook until the veggies and chicken are completely done.

Sprinkle with cheese and place under the broiler until cheese melts or starts to brown. You could also just cover the pan with a lid on the stove to melt the cheese.

Serve right away.

GUACAMOLE SALAD

This comes from Ina Garten, The Food Network's Barefoot Contessa. She writes, “Most of us love guac so much we would eat it all on its own. Now you can deconstruct the dip favorite into a colorful salad by tossing diced avocados with tomatoes, peppers, red onion, black beans and an invigorating lime vinaigrette. Go on, eat it by the forkful.” Total Time: 10 minutes; Yield: 6 servings; Level: Easy

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/guacamole-salad-recipe.print.html?oc=linkback

Ingredients

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and 1/2-inch diced

1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup small diced red onion

2 tablespoons minced jalapeno peppers, seeded (2 peppers)

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lime zest

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (2 limes)

1/4 cup good olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

2 ripe Hass avocados, seeded, peeled, and 1/2-inch diced

Directions

Place the tomatoes, yellow pepper, black beans, red onion, jalapeno peppers, and lime zest in a large bowl. Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, salt, black pepper, garlic, and cayenne pepper and pour over the vegetables. Toss well.

Just before you're ready to serve the salad, fold the avocados into the salad. Check the seasoning and serve at room temperature.

STIR-FRIED VEGETABLES

This came several years ago from the Weight Watchers website.

1 spray cooking spray

2 tsp sesame oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 C sugar snap peas or pea pods, trimmed (*)

2 C carrots, thinly diagonally sliced (*)

2 scallions, chopped (*)

1 1/2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce

2 Tbsp chopped cilantro (optional)

Coat wok or large nonstick skillet with cooking spray & set over medium-high heat. Add oil & heat. Add garlic & stir-fry 1 minute. Add sugar snap peas, carrots & scallions; stir-fry 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add soy sauce & cook until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 1 minute. Remove from heat & stir in cilantro. Yields about 1/2 C per serving.

Weight Watchers: 1 point/serving (old value). Serves 4. Adding 1 C each of baby corn & water chestnuts changes recipe to 2 points/serving. (*) foods are filling foods.

ORANGE BREAD/CAKE

This came from the infamous long-since-forgotten-emailing-lists. It was called Orange Bread, but it's closer to tasting like a cake. Whether you call it Orange Bread or Orange Cake doesn't really matter; after trying it, you'll call it Good!

1 c. sugar

1/2 c. oil

2 tbsp. milk

2 eggs

1 1/2 c. flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. fresh or frozen orange juice

Mix together. Pour into greased loaf pan. Bake 350 degrees 50-55 min.

While cake is still warm, make glaze:

2 tbsp. orange juice and 1/4 c. sugar.

Pour over warm cake.

BEEF STEW

I tend to be a vegetarian for a variety of reasons. But I wasn't always one; I do have fond memories of family gatherings where meat was served. This is one of my creations from years ago when the stew recipes that I'd run across seemed too bland. Granted, this one isn't spicy; for that, I go for spaghetti or chili. This is from my e-cookbook, Off the Wall Cooking. If you have a Kindle or other ereader that handles Kindle stuff, check it out.

2-3 lbs. stewing beef

3 T oil

1 C flour

2 C water

1 onion, chopped

8 oz tomato sauce

6 oz tomato paste

1 T soy sauce

1 clove garlic, minced

4 carrots, cut up

1 large potato, peeled & cut up

4 T vinegar

3 T honey

salt & pepper

Cut beef into bite-sized pieces. Trim fat & dredge in flour & brown in oil. Add everything except carrots & potato. Cook 15 minutes. Add carrots & cook 15 more minutes. Add potato & cook 30 minutes. Add water as needed. Serve over noodles.