Warm Bean Dip

Recipe adapted from: allrecipes.com

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 cup sour cream

2 cans (16 ounces, each) refried beans

1 packet taco seasoning

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

2 cups monterey jack cheese, shredded

DIRECTIONS:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together cream cheese and sour cream in a large bowl. Mix in refried beans until combined. Stir in taco seasoning.

Spray a 9x13 baking pan with cooking spray. Spread mixture evenly into the bottom of the baking dish. Sprinkle the top with both cheeses.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cheese in melted and slightly browned. Serve with tortilla chips.

Too easy Banana Bread

1 box yellow cake mix

2 eggs
3-4 overripe bananas

Add all ingredients to a large bowl and mix well. Fill two small, greased loaf pans or one large loaf pan. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes (longer if using large loaf pan.)

Even though I have a banana bread recipe that I really like I found this one on the web and thought I'd post it for those times when there just wasn't time to make banana bread the real way, but you have over-ripe bananas and you want to use them up.  I haven't tried this but it looks pretty easy.  Plus you could probably do these in a muffin tin pan too.  (I'd bake them at the same temperature for about 20 minutes, test for doneness.)

Pulled Pork

1 large onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 pickled jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
2 teaspoons of Chipotle chile powder
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
3/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon paprika
1/3 cup ketchup
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup light brown sugar

Salt
3 lbs of pork butt shoulder roast, trimmed of excess fat

Put all of the ingredients except salt and roast in blender and puree to create sauce. Put sauce and pork into a large pot and add 1 quart of water. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer, covered, turning frequently, for 2 hours or until the meat pulls apart easily with a fork. Remove from heat and cool pork in the sauce. When cool, remove the pork from the sauce and shred into small pieces. Set aside. Reduce the sauce by two thirds. Add the pork back to the sauce. Salt to taste. Serve hot on hamburger buns or ciabatta rolls.

This can be made in a crock pot by omiting water and cooking on low for 8 hours. (Pork will give up enough liquid for cooking in crock pot.) Shred pork, and if necessary reduce on stovetop before salting to taste and serving.

Serves 6 to 8.

Hard Cooked Eggs – Steaming Method

What you will need:

about 1.5 quarts of water
up to a dozen eggs (single layer in pan)
a pan with a steamer basket and lid

1. Put the eggs into the steamer basket.
2. Fill the pot with about 1.5 quarts of water, enough that you can simmer for about 20 minutes, but not so much that the level of the water is higher than the bottom of the steamer basket. 
3. Set the steamer into the pot and turn on the heat.  Cover the pan with the lid.
4. Bring the water to a boil, and then turn down the heat to a simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Allow the eggs to cool enough for you to handle – you can peel them immediately or whenever you are ready to eat them. and apparently they're so easy to peel you can do it with one hand. Eggs will not have that dark green ring around the yolk either.

Chipotle Butter

1/2 c butter, softened (one cube)

1-2 canned chipotle peppers, diced (seeds removed, if desired)

2 Tbsp sauce that comes with the peppers

1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

1 Tbsp chopped, fresh cilantro

Dash garlic powder

1

In a small bowl whip the butter, with an electric mixer, until smooth and fluffy. Add the minced peppers, chipotle sauce, lime juice, cilantro, and garlic powder. Whip until incorporated. Transfer to a serving bowl, cover and chill. (The longer it sits, the deeper the color and richer the flavor.) Just before serving put a teaspoon of the cold butter on cooked steak or burgers and allow it to melt over the top. For bread, leave softened for easier spreading. Makes 24 servings.

It might sound weird to put this on meat, but when I worked at Lone Star, they "jucied" every steak before it was served, and their "juice" consisted of equal parts lemon juice and butter.  (Actually, I believe it was a butter substitute, but you get the main idea.)  Anyway, this sounds good and I think it'd be great spread on an opened sourdough loaf and grilled under the broiler.  

Ginger Crinkles (Cookies)

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 ½ sticks butter, slightly softened

¼ cup Molasses

1 large egg

Scant ¼ cup finely diced crystallized ginger

1 1/3 cup granulated vanilla sugar

1. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and salt in a small bowl.

2. Whip the butter and sugar until lightly and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl frequently.

3. Add the flour mixture and beat until just combined.  Fold the crystallized ginger into the cookie dough with a rubber spatula. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.

4. Preheat the oven to 375˚F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.  Put the Bourbon Vanilla Sugar into a small shallow bowl. Shape dough by tablespoonfuls into balls and roll lightly in the vanilla sugar. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets 2-inches apart and bake on the lower middle rack in the oven for 7 to 9 minutes. The cookies should be golden brown and still slightly soft in the center. Let cookies cool on the baking sheet set on a baking rack for 2 minutes then remove cookies to a baking rack to cool a few minutes longer.

Yields:  About 3 dozen 

Kentucky Butter Cake

3 c all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 c real butter

2 c sugar

4 eggs

1 c buttermilk

2 tsp vanilla extract

BUTTER SAUCE

1 c sugar

1/4 c water

1/2 c butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour bundt pan. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, set aside. Cream: 1 cup butter, 2 cups sugar, and then blend in eggs, mix in buttermilk, and vanilla, adding alternately milk and flour mixture into creamed mixture. Pour in bundt pan and bake for 1 hour.

2.  Butter Sauce: In medium sauce pan on medium heat mix sugar, water and butter, bring to low boil , stirring until sugar is dissolved, add vanilla, When cake is still very hot, leave in bundt pan, poke small holes in top and drizzle butter sauce over cake, Transfer to dish and dust with powder sugar, serve warm.  Oh so good, If you prefer your cake with more sauce , just make a double batch. (one cube of butter = ½ cup.)