Banana Sheet Cake or Banana Bars or whatever.....

{BANANA SHEET CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING}

1/2 c. butter, melted

1 1/2 c. sugar

2 eggs

1 c. sour cream

1 tsp. vanilla

3 bananas, mashed

2 c. flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

Beat butter, sugar and eggs. Add sour cream, vanilla and bananas. Mix well. In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients and then incorporate into the banana mixture. Spread batter into a greased and floured sheet pan (yes, I'm talking about your big cookie sheet). Bake at 300 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Cream Cheese Frosting

6 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. lemon juice

1/3 c. soft butter

2 c. powdered sugar

Beat all frosting ingredients together until you have creamy, dreamy frosting. 

Wait for the cake to cool completely and then spread frosting on top. And then of course you need to finish it with little chocolate sprinkles. The cake is better if you keep it cool.

Made this for a brunch today and it was so good! 

Chicken Enchilada Soup

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
2 cups milk
1 cup chicken broth
1 (10 oz.) can red enchilada sauce
8 oz. velveeta cheese, cubed
2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed (I used rotisserie chicken)

Melt butter in stock pot. Add flour, stirring constantly. Add milk, broth and enchilada sauce. Cook over medium heat. Stir to remove any lumps. When mixture comes to a boil, add cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Add chicken. Serve with tortilla chips, salsa, tomatoes, onions, avocado, etc. as toppings.

Cranberry Jalapeno Cream Cheese Spread

Ingredients:

one 12 ounce bag of fresh cranberries
2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
3 green onions, sliced
handful of cilantro, roughly chopped
1/2 cup of sugar (to start, then add sugar to taste - I ended up using about 3/4 cup)
8 ounce package of whipped cream cheese

Mix first 5 ingredients in blender or food processor.  I put the cranberries in the blender first and pulsed a few times to get them started, then added the other ingredients.  Transfer mixture to container and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.  Don't be concerned if it looks pretty dry, after it sits there will be more liquid.  Serve with crackers over whipped cream cheese. 

The first time I had this, Adam's coworker made sort of a cheese ball out of the whipped cream cheese and then placed it in the middle of a pie dish and poured the "salsa" over it.  When I made it, I spread the cream cheese over the bottom of a pie dish, and then spread a layer of the salsa over it.  Adam said they also had just the salsa part at work once with tortilla chips, and that was good too. 

One Dish Dinner

You have probably seen this on Pinterest:

I made it tonight and it was so quick and easy.  And quite tasty.  So there ya go.  A recipe you may have already tried.

1. Cut green beans (fresh!) up. Line one side of the pan with green beans.
2. Cut potatoes up. Line opposite side of pan with the potatoes.
3. Line the chicken breasts down the middle of the baking dish.
4. Cut butter up and layer over the green beans, potatoes and chicken. Sprinkle Italian dressing over the entire pan. Cover with foil.
5. Bake, covered, for 1 hour at 350°

My notes:  I used just a wee less than half a stick of butter and don't be scared to throw on a whole packet of the Italian seasoning.  After 1 hour, my potatoes were not quite soft as I like them so I just put them in the microwave for 5 minutes and they were good to go.

Alex declared this "the best dinner ever!  Though he says that a lot.  He's always complimentary of my cooking and it is much appreciated.  :)

Breakfast Casserole

Here is the breakfast casserole we made at the Girls Getaway this year. It is super easy! I just used cheddar cheese instead of pepper jack.

Farmer's Casserole

Rated: Submitted By: Lorrie Starks Photo By: LDYLVBGR Prep Time: 25 Minutes Cook Time: 45 Minutes Ready In: 1 Hour 10 Minutes Servings: 6

"Ham, green onions, and hash browns baked with spicy pepperjack cheese make up this easy make-ahead breakfast dish."

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups frozen hash brown potatoes 3/4 cup shredded pepperjack cheese 1 cup cooked ham, diced 1/4 cup chopped green onions

4 eggs, beaten 1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/8 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 2 quart baking dish.
2.	Arrange hash brown potatoes evenly in the bottom of the prepared dish. Sprinkle with pepperjack cheese, ham, and green onions.
3.	In a medium bowl, mix the eggs, evaporated milk, pepper, and salt. Pour the egg mixture over the potato mixture in the dish. The dish may be covered and refrigerated at this point for several hours or overnight.
4.	Bake for 40 to 45 minutes (or 55 to 60 minutes if made ahead and chilled) in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Zucchini Muffins

Here is the recipe that I made for the Girls Getaway this year. I am going to try it with substituting applesauce for the oil and I'll let you know how it turns out.

2 c. peeled, grated zucchini (I use my food processor to grate it - easy!)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. baking powder
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. oil
2 c. sugar
3 c. flour

Mix all ingredients except sugar and flour in a blender. Blend until smooth. Add each cup of sugar slowly to blender (while blending) IF your blender is big enough to fit both cups. If not, pour blended mixture into a large bowl and add each cup of sugar - mix well. Then add flour and mix well. Pour into muffins tins, filling 2/3rds of the way. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min. (makes about 24 muffins)

Homemade Granola

This is what Emily Flake made for this years Christmas cookie exchange.  I loved it.  The perfect amount of sweetness with a touch of tart from the craisins.  I have had her little tag with the recipe, kicking around for months.  Time to jot it down here.  I just pulled a batch out of the oven.  Mmmmm......

5 C old fashioned oats
5 C rice crispies
1 C craisins
3/4 C slivered almonds
1 C coconut
2 cans fat free sweetened condensed milk

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, lay out on a baking sheet, and bake at 350 for 9 min.

YUM!