Warm Chocolate Skillet Cake

We had this for Mother's Day and it was delightful.  I'm always a fan of chocolate.  And hot/cold desserts.  Mmmm!  It was reminiscent of Texas Sheet Cake, but with ice cream.

Warm Chocolate Skillet Cake

Yields: 4-6 servings

• For the Cake:
• 1c flour
• 1/2t baking soda
• 1c sugar
• 1/4t salt
• 1/4c butter
• 1/4c canola oil
• 2T cocoa powder
• 1/2c water
• 1/4c buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 1/2t vanilla
•  
• For the Frosting:
• 1/4c butter
• 2T cocoa
• 4T milk
• 1/2c pecans, chopped
• 2c powdered sugar
• 1/2t vanilla
•  
• For Serving:
• Vanilla Ice Cream

Preheat oven to 350. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, sugar, and salt. Set aside.

Place a 12-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat. Melt the butter. Whisk in the oil, cocoa powder, and water and bring it to a simmer. Remove it from the heat and mix in the dry ingredients until well combined. Whisk in the buttermilk, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Place the skillet in the oven and bake 15-20 minutes or until just set.

As soon as the cake is out of the oven, begin making the frosting. In a saucepan over medium heat, whisk together the butter, cocoa, and milk and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and whisk in the powdered sugar, pecans, and vanilla. Pour the warm frosting over the warm cake and spread gently with a spatula to cover.

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Turkey Lettuce Wraps

Lettuce wraps aren't Dave's favorite but I loved these! They have just enough bite for me using 1 tsp sriracha sauce but if you like spicy you can use more. I also decided to try the Boston lettuce for these rather than iceberg and it really does work better. I served this with Sesame Noodles. Delicious dinner!

Turkey Lettuce Wraps

2 tsp peanut oil
1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped
4 oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained and chopped
1 1/4 lb ground turkey
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 green onions, chopped
1 tsp fresh minced ginger (scant 1/4 tsp powdered)
1-2 tsp sriracha sauce (to taste)
3 Tbsp hoisin sauce
3 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
12 Boston or butter lettuce leaves, washed and dried

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the red bell pepper and water chestnuts and saute until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the turkey, garlic, green onions, ginger, and sriracha and cook, stirring and breaking up the turkey into small crumbles, until no longer pink. Drain any liquid or fat. Combine the hoisin, soy sauce and vinegar; pour over meat mixture and stir until everything is well combined.

Place turkey mixture in a serving bowl and serve alongside lettuce leaves.


Recipe from Handle the Heat.

Sesame Noodles

This makes a perfect side dish for Asian food. Love the flavor!! And they're super easy to make. I served them with Turkey Lettuce Wraps.

Sesame Noodles

1 lb linguine noodles
1/4 C soy sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger (or 1/2 tsp ground ginger)
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp sriracha sauce
1/2 C thinly sliced green onions
Toasted sesame seeds
Optional garnishes: extra green onions, freshly ground black pepper

Cook pasta al dente according to package directions in generously salted water.

In a small mixing bowl combine remaining ingredients, except for garnishes, and whisk until combined. When pasta is ready drain then toss with dressing. Toss until evenly coated. Serve with garnishes, if desired.

Can serve hot or cold.


Recipe from Gimme Some Oven.

Naan Pizza

Naan bread always looks enticing to me but I mostly don't know what to do with it. One day I picked up a package and it had a recipe for Naan pizza on the back that sounded really good so I bought some to try. We liked it so much we had it twice within one week! Dave said we don't need Virgilio's any more. Haha! The recipe calls for grilled chicken but I didn't have chicken breast or a grill so we used shredded. That was fine but I do think grilled would be better. We'll try it this summer. Don't be afraid of the goat cheese - it's so good!

Naan Pizza

1 pack Stonefire Original Naan
1/2 C basil pesto
1/2 C shredded Asiago cheese
1/2 C grilled chicken, diced into small pieces
1/4 C roasted red peppers, diced into small pieces
1/4 C sliced black olives
1/4 C grumbled goat cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Spread pesto sauce onto each naan (bubbly side up). Sprinkle each with Asiago, chicken, red pepper then top with goat cheese, olives and salt and pepper to taste. Place naan on middle rack of oven preheated to 400 and heat for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese melts and crust is golden brown. Slice and serve immediately.

Serves 2

Cold Slaw and Hot Slaw

Becky and I were discussing how we both like cabbage so I thought I'd share an easy old pioneer recipe. It's originally from The Skillful Housewife's Book, 1846, but it's updated here by The Old Sturbridge Village Cookbook. :) I think it's good both ways, cold or hot.

Cold Slaw and Hot Slaw
1 head (2 pounds) cabbage
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. cider vinegar
1 tsp. salt
1 - 1 1/2 tsp. pepper

Slice or shave cabbage very thin, cutting out the core.
In a large pot, scald together butter, vinegar, salt and pepper.

For hot slaw: Add cabbage to hot mixture and cook over moderate heat, stirring frequently until just tender, about 10-15 minutes.

For cold slaw: Pour warmed dressing over cabbage and toss to mix.

Bear Claw Brownies

I made these for the girl's "Brave" birthday party today and they turned out really cute.  Maybe I'll post a picture one day...
I tried these with a mix other than Pillsbury and they were not the right consistency - they basically turned into blobs.  The Pillsbury mix allows them to hold their shape really well.  These would be fun for a camp out.

Bear Claw Brownies

1 Box of Pillsbury Brownie Mix

1 Egg

1/3 Cup Oil

2 Tablespoons of Water

Slivered Almonds

Preheat your oven to 350. Combine the brownie mix, egg, oil, & water.  Scoop out spoon fulls of the mix onto a cookie sheet that is lightly greased. Shape into footprints. Then press in the slivered almonds (three in the end of the “foot” for the claws). Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes.

Note: Pillsbury mix is necessary – other mixes don’t have the same consistency.

Baked Ziti

I've been making this for awhile and keep meaning to post it. For me, it rivals lasagna. It is creamier and cheesier than lasagna, which I love. The sour cream doesn't make it taste sour, it just makes it creamier. It originally called for ground beef too, but I prefer dishes like this to be meatless.

Baked Ziti
1 pound dry ziti (or any tube pasta)
1 onion, chopped
1 T. oil
2 (26 oz) jars spaghetti sauce
6 ounces sliced provolone cheese
1 1/2 c. sour cream
1 1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
fresh or frozen spinach (thawed if frozen), to taste
2 T. grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Cook the ziti until al dente, according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile in a large skillet, cook the onion in the oil over medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce and simmer 15 minutes (or less if you're in a hurry).

Grease a 9x13 dish. Layer as follows: 1/2 of the ziti, provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, spinach, remaining ziti, mozzarella and remaining sauce mixture. Top with grated Parmesan.

Bake for 30 minutes or until cheeses are melted.

Altered slightly from allrecipes.com