Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Adapted from Koyle Family Cookbook, Recipe Submitted by Jill and Dan Baird

This recipe is great for using up some ripe bananas. I added whole wheat flour rather than white flour, just adding a little bit less of it, and they were scrumptious!

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour (2 cups if using white flour)

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3 ripe bananas, mashed well

6 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup sour cream

2 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla

chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk the dry ingredients together. Mix the wet ingredients together. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just moistened. Pour into greased muffin tins and bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in muffin comes out clean.

Fajita Pizza

I haven't made a homemade pizza for about 2 months!  I can't believe it!  My husband started bugging me to make one and when I asked him what kind he wanted he said a "mexican one".  So, I decided to do a fajita pizza. 

Ingredients:

• One pizza crust recipe (see Recipe Index)
• 2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
• 1-2 red bell peppers, cut into strips
• 1 onion, cut into strips
• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 1 fajita packet and recipe ingredients on back of package
• ½ cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded
• ½ cup Sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1/3  cup fresh salsa, divided
• 1 avocado
• 2 Tbs lime juice
• Salt, to taste
• Sour cream

Directions:

• Make pizza crust according to recipe directions.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.  Bake crust for 10 minutes. 
• In the meantime, heat olive oil in a heavy, large pan over medium heat.  Cook chicken, bell peppers and onions for 5 minutes in oil or until onion is tender.  Add the fajita mix and fajita mix ingredients to pan; mix thoroughly.  Allow the chicken and veggies to absorb the fajita mix for about 5 minutes. 
• When the 10 minutes of baking the crust is complete, remove from oven and add your toppings.  Cover the crust with the Mozzarella and Sharp Cheddar cheese.  Spread the chicken fajita mixture evenly over crust.  Return to oven and cook for 8-10 more minutes. 
• In the meantime, make your guacamole.  Mash avocado with fork.  Add 3-4 Tbs fresh salsa, lime juice and salt to taste.  Mix well.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• When the cooking time for pizza is complete, remove from oven and top evenly with remaining fresh salsa.  (Note:  you may need to soak up extra juices from salsa with paper towels after adding to pizza.) 
• Serve pizza with guacamole and sour cream. 

Note:  I meant to add black beans to the topping and COMPLETELY forgot.  I mustn’t forget next time, although it was still delicious without. 

Pear Feta Cheese Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette

Adapted from Allrecipes

I wanted a fun salad to serve with the butternut squash soup.  Besides being scrumptious the salad gave the meal a more summery, fresh feel.  The raspberry vinaigrette was a find.  A bunch of recipes I reviewed before settling on this one called for using raspberry vinegar, which is something I just don't have on hand and am reluctant to buy since I don't know what else I would use it for.  Anyway, the salad was delicious!

Ingredients:

• 1 can mandarin oranges
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 Tbs raspberry jam
• 1 Tbs red wine vinegar
• 1 (10 oz) package of spring lettuce mix
• 1 pear, chopped
• ¼ cup  craisins
• ½ avocado, diced
• ½ cup feta cheese
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Directions:

• Drain oranges, reserving ½ cup juice.  In a jar with tight-fitting lid, combine oil, jam, vinegar and reserved juice.  Shake well.
• In a large salad bowl, toss oranges, lettuce, pear, craisins, avocado, feta and pecans.  Serve with the dressing.

Note:  Peach juice may be used as a substitute for the mandarin orange juices. 

Curried Roasted Pear & Squash Soup

Adapted from Allrecipes

This recipe caught my eye because of the pear.  How would the sweetness pair (pear?  ha, ha!) with the curry and squash?  It was fantastic.  The sweetness was slight, but evident.  I really like curry and had made a curried butternut squash soup before, so I knew I would enjoy this part of the recipe.  I am somewhat assuming this will be my last butternut squash recipe until Fall since I am more in the mood for "Summer" food lately, but this was a great way to end the soup and squash season!

Ingredients:

• 1 (2 lb) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 2 firm, ripe Bartlett pears, peeled, cored and chopped
• 4 cloves garlic
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 Tbs butter
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 tsp ginger
• 1 Tbs curry powder
• 3 ½ cups chicken broth
• ½ cup milk
• Dash cinnamon
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil.  In a large bowl, toss squash, pear and garlic with enough olive oil to lightly coat.  Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Spread in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet.  Roast in preheated oven for 35-45 minutes, turning occasionally, until tender and golden brown.  Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
• Meanwhile, heat butter in a large pot over medium heat.  Sauté onion in butter until soft and translucent (about 10 minutes).  Stir in the ginger and curry powder and sauté  for 1 minute.  Add the roasted squash, pears, and chicken broth and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.  Cool slightly before pureeing in batches in a blender.
• Return the soup to the pot over low heat.  Stir in the milk.  Season with a dash of cinnamon and salt and ground black pepper, to taste.  Serve warm.

Serves 4-6

Fruity Curry Chicken Salad

Adapted from Allrecipes

The great thing about this recipe is the flexibility of the ingredients.  It calls for a lot of different kinds of fruit in the salad, but if you don't have some of them on hand it's not a huge deal; just add more of the other kinds of fruit.  This time making the recipe, I used pineapple tidbits, pear and craisins for the fruit.  The addition of curry to the typical chicken salad recipe is fantastic, but you really need to let it sit to let the curry flavor set in.  Serve on your favorite bread, over lettuce for a salad or in a wrap!

Ingredients:

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and diced
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 1 Golden Delicious apple, diced
• 1 pear, diced
• 1/3 cup craisins
• 1/3 cup seedless green grapes, halved
• 1/3 cup canned pineapple chunks, cut small
• ½ cup toasted pecans or almonds
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
• ½ tsp curry powder
• ¼ cup light Miracle Whip
• ½ cup light mayo
• 1 Tbs vinegar

Directions:

Combine all ingredients, mix well.  Allow to sit overnight for flavors to bend.  Serve!

Chili Rubbed Salmon with Red Pepper Salsa

Adapted from Cooking Light

Quick.  Fresh flavor. Lots of veggies.  Feel good at the end of the meal.  Check, check, check, CHECK!  We are all geared up for Spring/Summer meals in our household.  This one hit the spot.  I served with some wild rice on the side.

Ingredients:

Salmon:

• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 (6 oz) skinless salmon fillets
• Cooking spray

Salsa:

• 1 cup prechopped red bell pepper
• ¼ cup chopped tomato
• 2 Tbs prechopped red onion
• 1 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 ½ tsp fresh lime juice
• 1/8 tsp salt

Directions:

• To prepare salmon, heat a grill at medium-high heat.  Combine first 5 ingredients; rub evenly over fillets.  Coat grill grate with cooking spray.  Add fillets to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.  (Salmon should flake easily with a fork.)
• While fish cooks, prepare salsa.  Combine bell pepper and remaining ingredients.  Serve salsa with fillets.

Chicken Pot Pie

Adapted from A Taste of Richmond Cookbook, Eden Dixon

Sometimes you just can't go wrong when you serve the classics. This chicken pot pie recipe is delicious! I have yet to find a chicken pot pie recipe I like better. I make the pie crust from scratch, but you can also use store bought pie crusts. See pie crust recipe below.

Ingredients:

1 cup potato, diced

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup celery, diced

1 cup chopped carrot

1/3 cup melted butter

1/2 cup all purpose flour

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup milk

salt and pepper to taste

4 cups chopped cooked chicken

2 pie crusts

Preheat oven to 400. Saute onion, celery, carrots and potatoes in butter for 10 minutes. Add flour to sauteed mixture. stirring well. Cook one minute stirring constantly. Combine broth and milk. Gradually stir into mixture. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly. Stir in salt and pepper. Add chicken and stir well. Pour into casserole dish and top with pie shells. Cut slits to allow steam to escape. Bake for 40-50 minutes or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly and cooked through.

Basic Pie Crust:

Recipe from Eden Dixon

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose OR pastry flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup shortening

Ice water to make soft dough

Combine flour and salt. Cut in shortening to the size of peas. Gradually add ice water to form a soft dough. Divide into two disks, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 10 minutes. Shape as desired.