Berry Spinach Smoothie

This is a pretty self explanatory recipe but we make it a lot around here so I thought i would post it. This is very healthy and it doesnt even taste like it. You cant taste the spinach and my kids think its ice cream :)

Berry Spinach Smoothy

heaping 1/2 C. frozen mixed berries (or any frozen berries you like)

1/2 or full frozen banana

3/4 C. soy milk or Almond milk

1/4 C. cold water

1 or 2 big handfuls baby spinach

1/2 T. lemon juice

*just put all these ingredients in the blender and blend until thick and creamy

Melt away Button cookies

I LOVE these cookies. I always look for an excuse to make them. They are so cute for Birthday parties, baby showers, any holiday, etc... By adding a little food coloring, you can make them match whatever you are celebrating. By adding different extracts or flavorings, you can change the flavor for variety. The best part is they are delicious and literally melt in your mouth!

(Young Women Value cookies for our YW in excellence night)

Almond, Lemon, French vanilla. I know my pictures stink. I have an old camera or I use my phone camera

Melt away buttons:

3 cubes butter almost melted

1 1/4 C. corn starch

1 1/2 C. flour

2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 C. powdered sugar

pinch of salt

*Preheat oven to 350. Mix all ingredients just until blended. Roll into small balls (about 1/2 T. of dough) and bake on a cookie sheet for about 20 min. They should be light brown on the top and a little darker brown on the bottom. Cool and frost. Makes about 70 mini cookies.

Frosting:

1/3 C. butter

pinch of salt

3 C. powdered sugar

flavoring of choice (2 1/2 tsp. french vanilla blend, 1 T. lemon juice, 1 tsp. almond extract)(or you can do any flavoring to taste)

milk to consistency

*Beat until smooth and creamy. Add milk or powder sugar to make consistency you want.

NOTE: French vanilla blend is the secret ingredient if you want to make these vanilla flavored cookies. I have only found it at Wal-mart or online. It is McCormick brand and called FRENCH VANILLA BLEND.

Baklava

• 1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
• 1 pound chopped nuts
• 1 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 C. water
• 1 1/2 C. white sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3/4 C. honey
• 
  
• Make sauce before you do anything else: Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 50 minutes, until thick. Cool in the fridge while making the rest.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Lightly toast nuts then chop and toss with cinnamon. Set aside.
• Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.(I use a pastry brush for all the buttering)
• Unroll phyllo dough. You can cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to keep from drying out as you work. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered making sure to butter every 2 sheets. Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with 2 sheets of dough then butter then 2 more sheets, butter, then nuts. Repeat. The top layer should be about 10-12 sheets deep.
• Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes almost to the bottom of the pan. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
• Remove baklava from oven and immediately pour cool sauce over it. Let cool. Leave it uncovered. it gets soggy if
• it is wrapped up.

Cheesecake Tarts

16 oz. cream cheese

¾ C. sugar

1 Tbs Lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 dozen cupcake liners

1 can pie filling of your choice

1 can spray whip

Preheat oven to 350. Place 1 whole wafer in each muffin liner in muffin pan. Beat cream cheese, sugar, lemon, and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Fill each cup ½ full with cream cheese mixture. Bake 20-30 min. (until tops barely brown). Cool completely. Right before serving, top with pie filling and spray whip. Makes 2 dozen.

Cheese blob

Cheese Ball
• 8 oz cream cheese (slightly softened)
• ¼ C. grated mild cheddar cheese
• ¼ C flaked coconut
• 1/3 C. finely diced green onion-divided
• ¼ - ½ C. Pineapple apricot marmalade
• ¼ C. Craisins (softened…boil in microwave 1 min. drain)
• ¼ C. Chopped pecans
*Mix cream cheese, cheddar cheese, coconut and all but 2 T. green onions until well blended. Shape into a ball/log/blob/cat/dog/whatever☺
Top with marmalade, craisins, pecans, and 2 T. green onions. Refrigerate until serving. Dip with Flip Side pretzel crackers, Ritz, wheat thins, etc…

Pumpkin Roll

This is a family recipe and one of my Dad's favorite desserts so I made it for him for his Birthday last week. This is the only picture I got while we were eating it...



Pumpkin Roll:
• 3 eggs
• 2/3 C. canned pumpkin
• 1 C. sugar
• 2tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1tsp lemon juice
• ¾ C. flour
• 1 1/2 C. chopped pecans

Center Frosting:
• 4 oz. cream cheese
• 1 C. powdered sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon sugar
• 4 TBS butter softened
• 2 tsp real vanilla

Measure dry ingredients into a bowl. Mix pumpkin and lemon juice together in another bowl. Beat eggs on high 6 min. gradually beat in sugar. Fold in dry ingredients then fold in pumpkin mixture. Try not to over mix. Pour on to a large WELL GREASED cookie sheet. Sprinkle evenly with nuts. Bake at 375 for 30 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. While baking, lay out a large CLEAN dish towel and sprinkle with a generous amount of powdered sugar. Invert pumpkin roll on the towel immediately from the oven. Let it sit on there inverted for 5 min. tap bottom of cookie sheet with a knife or spoon to loosen. Pull off the cookie sheet. Your pumpkin roll should now be laying on the towel, in one piece, nut side down. Roll up the cake and towel and let cool COMPLETELY. When almost cool, beat all frosting ingredients on high 3 min. Once cool, unroll and frost (still nut side down) leaving a ½ inch boarder around entire cake. Roll up the cake again without the towel. Cover and refrigerate.

Coconut Shrimp and Pina Colada dipping sauce (like red lobster!)

One of my husbands favorite foods is coconut shrimp. Ive combined different recipes found online and changed/added a few things to make delicious coconut shrimp that tastes similar to his favorite coconut shrimp found at Red Lobster...

Coconut Shrimp:

• 6-8 cups frying oil (as required by fryer)

• 12 large shrimp or 24 small shrimp, cooked, peeled and deveined (about 1/2 pound)

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided

• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup milk

• 3 tablespoons captain morgan Parrot Bay coconut rum

• 1 cup panko Japanese-style bread crumbs

• 1/2 cup flaked sweetened coconut

Pina Colada Dipping Sauce:

• 1 container Yoplait original vanilla yogurt

• ½ 12oz can crushed pineapple, drained

• 1/3 Cup Polo Loco cream of coconut (best price at Wal-Mart)

Prepare Pina Colada sauce by combining yogurt, cream of coconut, and pineapple. Cover and let chill in the fridge while you make the shrimp.

Butterfly cut each shrimp before you start the battering: Use a sharp knife to slice through the top of the shrimp (where the vein was) so that you can spread the shrimp open.


Leave the tail intact.

Heat oil to 350 degrees.

Measure 3/4 cup of flour into a medium bowl.

In another medium bowl mix together the remaining 3/4 cup flour, sugar, and salt.

Stir milk and rum into flour mixture.

Let batter stand for five minutes.

While the batter rests, combine panko breadcrumbs and shredded coconut into a third medium bowl.

To batter the shrimp: dip each one in the flour, then the wet batter, then coat each shrimp with the panko/coconut mixture.

Arrange the shrimp on a plate until all of them are battered.


Fry the shrimp by dropping six at a time into the hot oil for 2 to 3 minutes or until the shrimp are golden brown.


Remove shrimp to a rack or paper towels to drain.


Serve shrimp with pina colada dipping sauce.

A few tips:

*Your oil only needs to be deep enough to cover ½ way up the shrimp. Just fry one side then flip and fry the other.

*Winco Foods (my new favorite grocery store) sells panko bread crumbs in bulk. So, you can buy just the cup this recipe calls for.

*You can also make your own bread crumbs by blending 2 or 3 pieces of bread in a food processor and baking them on a cookie sheet in a 250 degree oven until dry.

Battering the shrimp. Flour, wet batter, panko/coconut
Battered shrimp; ready to be fried

Fried and drained
Ready to serve with dipping sauce. Yum!
I decided to make a coconut shrimp sushi roll while I was at it. SOOO

Delicious!