These muffins are one of my favorite to make.  I found the recipe here  They are so easy and yummy!  Perfect for extra ripe bananas!

Equipment you’ll need:

• Muffin Pan
• Mixer

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 bananas, mashed
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon butter

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease 10 muffin cups, or line with muffin papers. 

In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.

In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Cut in 1 tablespoon butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.

Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

A great easy crockpot recipe! We prefer to use corn tortilla’s because they are more authentic. On our honeymoon, we went to Mexico and had amazing tacos, they always told us that it wasn’t a real taco unless it was with a corn tortilla! Of course, if you prefer flour tortillas use those!

Equipment you’ll need:

• Slow Cooker

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breasts
• 1/8 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 tsp. white sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• corn tortillas

Put all ingredients into the slow cooker and cook on low until chicken is tender enough to shred, around 4 hours. Take chicken out and shred it and put on tacos. We use onions, cilantro, and lime as garnish on top, you can use whatever you like!

This recipe comes to us from Rachael Ray. Love her or hate her, she has really changed the perception of cooking. I have to admit, when I was just starting out, I used a lot of Rachael’s recipes. This recipe is definitely one of our favorites, we make it all the time! These are chicken feta meatballs with a cucumber yogurt sauce. My version is a bit different, after making this dish so many times, I have tweaked it to our liking. It is very yummy and tastes just like the Greek dish, spanakopita (Spinach Pie)

Equipment you’ll need:

• Cookie Sheet
• Large Mixing Bowl
• Food processor

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil, plus some for liberal drizzling
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped and divided
• 1/2 C. chopped spinach, defrosted
• 3/4 C. crumbled feta cheese
• 1 pound ground chicken
• 1 Tbs. grill seasoning
• 1 1/2 C. plain yogurt, preferably Greek style (Greek style is thicker than regular yogurt, but can be hard to find)
• 1/3 seedless cucumber chopped
• 3 Tbs. dill
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 1/2 tsp. cumin
• 1 1/2 tsp. coriander
• salt

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a bowl, combine onion and 3 cloves garlic.  Squeeze the water out of the spinach until completely dry.  Separate the spinach as you add it to the garlic and onion.  Add feta, chicken, and grill seasoning to the bowl and a liberal drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.  Mix it all together and form the mixture into 1 1/2 in. meatballs.  Place the meatballs on a non-stick cookie sheet (I use aluminum foil over the cookie sheet, sprayed with non-stick spray to help with clean up).  Bake for 13-15 minutes until they are golden brown and juices run clear.

Place yogurt, left over garlic, cucumber, dill, lemon juice, cumin, coriander and a little salt in food processor and process until smooth.  Adjust seasonings and transfer to serving bowl.

Enjoy!

My husband LOVES the salty/sweet combination, and he also loves the peanut butter/chocolate combo. So I started making different types of cookies to find our favorite, and we have finally come up with a winning recipe, that I have named solely for him! I hope you enjoy “Erik’s Cookies”

Equipment you’ll need:

• Cookie Sheet
• A mixer (this is not necessary, but it’s easier!)
• 1 large bowl
• 1 medium bowl

Ingredients:

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 c. packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 3 T. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 bag peanut butter chips
• 1/2 bag chocolate chips

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, beat together the peanut butter, butter, white sugar, and brown sugar with your mixer until well blended. Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla one at a time, making sure each is incorporated fully before adding the next. In the medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Stir it into the creamed mixture. Stir in both kinds of chips. Roll tablespoonfuls of dough into balls. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto your cookies sheet. Press each ball with the fork to create the lines. Bake for approx. 8 minutes or until edges are just slightly browned. In my experience, cookies are usually better when you take them out when they still look a bit doughy, if you wait until they are completely baked, they always end up rock hard. This allows them to gently cool down and finish cooking on the baking sheet.

Serve with a big glass of milk!

Erik and I couldn’t figure out what exact “nationality” this food was, or what we should call it, so it doesn’t really have a name - or a good description. It is somewhere between Arabic and Thai It’s a really nice dish, especially if you enjoy coconut milk. I served the chicken with sauce over a bed of couscous, which I highly recommend!

Equipment you’ll need:

• Small sauce pan
• Large skillet

Ingredients:

• 1 cup couscous
• 4 chicken breast halves
• 2 t. cumin
• 2 t. cayenne pepper
• 2 t. turmeric
• 2 t. coriander
• 1 t. basil
• salt and pepper
• olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 jalapeños, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 T. freshly grated ginger
• 1 can whole tomatoes, chopped
• 1 can coconut milk

Instructions:

Cook the couscous according to directions. I like to add about 1/4 cup of coconut milk to the couscous just to give it a slight sweetness. It is optional though.

Take out your large skillet, put a little olive oil in the bottom and turn on medium. Mix up the spices and salt and pepper. Spread over each side of the chicken breast and when each is coated with the spices, place in the hot skillet. Once you put the chicken down, just let it sit, don’t move it around this will help it develop a nice crust. Cook the chicken on each side about 7-10 minutes or until cooked through. Once it is done, remove from the pan and set aside.

If there is no more olive oil in the pan, add some more. If you still have some left, great. At this time, you want to drop in your onions, jalapeños, garlic and ginger. Cook for about 5 minutes or until onions become nice and soft. Next, add in the tomatoes and cook for another 5 minutes. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan! So much flavor there! Now it’s time to add the coconut milk. Cook until heated through. To serve, make a big mound of couscous, add a chicken breast and top with the coconut milk sauce.

To make up for not taking a picture of the chili from earlier, I decided to try a new recipe. Something earlier in the day, made me have a sudden craving for rice pudding. Now, I’m not typically a huge fan, but something in me just needed some! I mentioned it to Erik, who (of course) was delighted with the idea! This recipe made enough for us for dessert and enough for both of us to have some for dessert today at lunch! And so … I bring you… Rice Pudding!

Equipment you’ll need:

• Medium Saucepan
• Large Saucepan

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 c. uncooked rice
• 4 c. whole milk, divided
• 2/3 c. white sugar
• 1/2 t. salt
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 T. butter
• 1 t. vanilla
• cinnamon
• nutmeg

Instructions:

Cook the rice according to package for 1 1/2 cups rice in the medium saucepan. (I used Jasmine rice, because it was all I had, it was wonderful, any short or med. grain rice will make it nice and creamy) This can be done ahead of time, I made mine earlier in the day and stored it in the fridge until we were ready to eat.

Once you are ready to eat, in your large saucepan (you can re-use your medium, but I like lots of room, so I prefer to just use a different pot) combine the cooked rice, 2 1/2 cups milk, salt and sugar. Let this cook over medium heat until thick and creamy, it may take around 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once that has happened, add the rest of your milk and the eggs. Cook for about 5 more minutes over med-low heat. Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla. Scoop into bowls and top with cinnamon and nutmeg!

Note: If you prefer this chilled, just make ahead of time, and store in the fridge until you’re ready to eat!

Erik had a craving for chili, so I decided to cook up a big batch. (Comes in so handy for lunches!) And even though it was a fairly hot day, we both enjoyed a big bowl of slow cooked chili. We were so excited to eat it - I forgot to take a picture! So you will have to use your imagination! Here is my recipe for slow cooker chili.

Equipment you’ll need:

• Slow Cooker
• Large skillet

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. ground beef
• Olive oil
• 2 cans chili ready tomatoes with onions
• 1 can tomato sauce
• 1 can petite diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1 can pinto beans
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 jalapeño, chopped (optional)
• 1/8 t. cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1/2 t. white sugar
• 1/2 t. oregano
• 1/2 t. black pepper
• 1 t. salt
• 1 T. cumin
• 1/4 c. chili powder

Instructions:

Take out your large skillet and over med-high heat place 1-2 T. of olive oil in the bottom and add the ground beef. Cook until browned and crumble.

Add the browned beef to the slow cooker and add the rest of the ingredients. Cook over low for 8-10 hours.

We love to top ours with cheddar cheese with a nice piece of hearty bread to dip with! Enjoy!

Erik and I absolutely love Mexican food! This is a very easy and yummy recipe that you can easily change to suit your tastes (We like things spicy!). This night, I served them with a side of guacamole and some corn muffins! Here is our recipe for Mexican Quesadilla’s.

Equipment you’ll need:

• Medium saucepan
• Cookie sheet

Ingredients:

• 2-3 chicken breasts
• 1/3 c. canned corn
• 1/2 c. canned black beans
• 1/3 c. spinach
• 1 jalapeño
• 2 Tbs. jalapeño juice
• 1/4 c. salsa
• 1 Tbs. cilantro
• 1/2 tsp. cumin
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 c. shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
• flour tortillas
• vegetable oil

Instructions:

Salt and pepper the chicken, and boil in sauce pan until cooked through. Once chicken is done, remove it and shred it with a fork. If this is your only saucepan, wash it out or if you have another one, grab that.

Preheat your oven to 425 and line your cookie sheet with aluminum foil (for easy clean-up).

Combine all the ingredients listed except the last three. If you wish to add or subtract anything from the recipe, now is the time! Stir over med-high heat until it is all blended. Take off the heat and stir in cheese. Spoon even amounts onto 1 side of a flour tortilla, fold in half, then fold in half again. Brush the outside with vegetable oil, this is going to help it from sticking to the cookie sheet and also give it a nice golden brown crust. Bake in the oven for approx 15 minutes, flipping them half way through to brown on both sides.

This was such an easy dinner and it tasted so good! My husband was even more happy that he was able to eat left overs for a week! (This makes a lot!) Serve with your favorite side!

Equipment you’ll need:

• Slow cooker

Ingredients:

• 1 (5 lb.) pork butt roast
• salt and pepper
• 1 big bottle bbq sauce - pick your favorite
• 1/4 cup brewed coffee

Instructions:

Place pork roast in the slow cooker and add salt and pepper. Pour approx 2/3 bottle of sauce onto and and add coffee. Let it cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-5 hours. When the pork is done, shred with a fork (it should fall apart easily!) and pour in the remaining bbq sauce. Let it sit on low for another 30 min-1 hr to let it heat back through.
Scoop out pork onto warm kaiser roll and enjoy!!

Equipment you’ll need:

• Cookie pan
• Skillet
• Food Processor

Ingredients:

• 4 medium zucchini - washed
• Olive oil
• Salt and Pepper
• 3 shallots
• Vegetable oil
• 2 cups chicken stock  *Substitute vegetable stock for vegetarian friendly soup!*
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut up zucchini into 1 or 2 inch pieces, you can leave the skin on (make sure you wash them!).

Spread the pieces out over a cookie sheet. (I use aluminum foil over the cookie sheet for easy cleanup) Toss with some olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper over them all. Roast zucchini for approx. 30 min. or until the edges are browned and zucchini is very tender.

While zucchini are roasting… Take a deep skillet pour about 1/2 - 1 in of vegetable oil in it. Turn on the heat to med-high. We are going to fry our shallots, so this oil needs to be very hot - but keep an eye on it! Cut the shallots into rings and once the oil is ready, start putting the shallots in. Fry until they are golden brown. This will probably take a few batches. I like to let these sit between a few sheets of paper towels to help draw out any excess oil. The zucchini should be just about done - so just put these shallots into the microwave or any other warm place.

Once the zucchini is done, scoop it out into a food processor. Pulse a few times to start. Now comes the fun and experimenting. I usually only add chicken stock and some heavy cream (half & half would work as well), but you can use whatever suits your taste. Just keep adding and pulsing and tasting! Once you have decided what works best for you, ladle into soup bowls and top with the fried shallots! We like to eat the soup warm, so you might have to pop it into the microwave for a few seconds to suit your taste.

I hope you enjoy it - It is one of our favorite spring/summer treats!