I’m gonna go ahead and tell you that it is a 5 out of 5, a 10 out of 10, and 100%!  I was going to take off points for the high calorie content, but these little nuggets of deliciousness are just too good.  And I just can’t make myself care because they are that good.  AND they were good 2 days later.  I made it again tonight, experimenting with the amount of butter.

Paula’s recipe calls for one whole stick of butter.  I used a half stick of butter, melted it in the pan with the brown sugar like the recipe calls for, and added some water.  You pour this delicious goodness on the bottom of the bundt pan and between every layer of biscuits, so it worked out well with the water instead of the extra butter.  It made more of a candy coating on the gorilla bread instead of a more…buttery/greasy coating.

Here’s Paula’s recipe for Gorilla Bread posted on Food Network’s site:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
• 2 (12-ounce) cans refrigerated biscuits (10 count)
• 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. Mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon. In a saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar over low heat, stirring well; set aside. Cut the cream cheese into 20 equal cubes. Press the biscuits out with your fingers and sprinkle each with 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon sugar. Place a cube of cream cheese in the center of each biscuit, wrapping and sealing the dough around the cream cheese. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the nuts into the bottom of the bundt pan. Place half of the prepared biscuits in the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, pour half of the melted butter mixture over the biscuits, and sprinkle on 1/2 cup of nuts. Layer the remaining biscuits on top, sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon sugar, pour the remaining butter mixture over the biscuits, and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of nuts. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Place a plate on top and invert.

I have long been a fan of the mojito, and I am super excited that I now know how to make one the right way.

I have loved mojitos for as long as I can remember.  I have always tried to make them by some recipe I found online or in a cocktail book, but it just was not good.  We have SOOO much mint that grew back this year, so I really felt the pressure more than ever to make a good mojito.  It didn’t help my cravings when we were at the beach one day, and my sister-in-law mentioned how a cabana boy would make our little (almost) private beach perfect.  Because it so nearly is perfect already.  No high rise condos, no insane amount of people muddling up the water, and no tar balls.  Yet.

When Linda mentioned that cabana boy, I thought about that cabana boy bringing me a sweet, cool, minty Mojito.  When we got home, H found this mojito recipe from Jeffrey Morgenthaler. He also includes some do’s and don’ts which are also really helpful.   He has a pretty sweet blog about bartending and mixology in Portland, Oregon.  And y’all know I love Portland. We went on our honeymoon to Seattle and Portland last October, and I swear I would move there if it weren’t so dadgum far away from everyone I love.

So Jeffrey says that the secret to a mojito is the simple syrup.  Believe me when I say that he is totally right.  This recipe is so easy, it’s like 1,2,3.  Oh wait, it is!

Check it out:

• In a 16 oz. mixing glass, gently muddle together 1 large sprig of spearmint and .75 ounce of simple syrup.
• I use about 6 medium to large leaves and since  I don’t have that small of a measurer of ounces,  I just put in 3 tablespoons of the simple syrup (I like it sweet).  What is simple syrup you ask?  Boil a cup of water and add a cup of sugar until it dissolves.  Then let it cool.  He says it keeps for about a week in the frig.  We’ve had it for a week and a half.  I need to get a sweet little squeeze bottle to keep it in the frig so I won’t make a mess like I did yesterday.

Here comes the 1, 2, 3:

• Add 1 ounce lime juice and its spent hull.
• Add 2 ounces white rum. (He says Bacardi is as close to Cuban rum as he can find here.  I like that.)
• Add 3 ounces sparkling mineral water.

Top all that with crushed ice and mix. I give it a 10 out of 10 because it tastes just like the professional mojitos I’ve had here.

The sweetness of this is really up to you.  I like mine pretty sweet, so I use 3 tbsp.  Maybe you could put 2 tbsp and then add from there.  Make sure you mix it well.  Oh man, we’ve been sipping these on the porch in the late evenings, and they really hit the spot.  What’s your favorite summer cocktail?

This tropical fusion salad is just what you need to put an end to cooking monotony.

My version of this recipe is based on the April/May Taste of Home magazine.  After being sick and out of the kitchen for so long, I needed some inspiration.  Something new and tasty and fabulous.  I wandered around for awhile and just when I thought I was getting my swagger back, our kitchen was overtaken by ants.   Hoards of them.  Every. Where.  Even in my spice cabinet!  All of my spices have been on the dining room table for weeks while we tried to get rid of these varmints.  We finally resorted to calling a professional after using way more chemicals than I would like to admit.  I also slammed my finger in the car door,  so that definitely took some time to get over.  But that is a different story for a different time, my friends.
In the midst of all this, I found this Taste of Home magazine, and it didn’t require that I use too many spices and I could use the  tiny portion of my counter space that wasn’t an ant playground.  There is nothing worse than trying to chop cilantro and a feisty little ant trying to get in your space.  It makes me shudder just to think about it.  I am kind of a germ nazi, and the thought of a stray ant in my food makes me gag a little.

So I saw this salad on the cover on Taste of Home, and I gave it a whirl.  Well, in a Gabby Gourmand-style kinda way.

Here’s their recipe (which I give a 10 out of 10 for flavor and ease of preparation):

• 2 cups cubed peeled papaya
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 medium ripe avocado, peeled and cubed
• 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 2 serrano peppers, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp cider vinegar
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tsp ground ancho chili pepper, divided
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 corn tortillas (6 in) cut into 1/4 inch strips

Now here’s where my substitutions come in:

• Instead of papaya, I used mango.  I couldn’t find any papaya at our grocery store.
• The corn does not have to be thawed.  It will thaw out in the salad as you are chopping/prepping other stuff.
• Instead of serrano peppers, I used jalapenos and I roasted them first (deseeded of course).  It takes a little of the spice out, and adds that great roasty jalapeno pepper flavor.
• Instead of the ancho chili powder, I used chipotle chili powder that I found for 99 cents at World Market.  I could not find ancho anywhere.  Chipotle powder is spicy as all heck, so I mixed 1 tsp of it with regular chili powder.
• Instead of corn tortillas, I used flour tortillas because that is all we had in the pantry.
• To make this salad a meal, we added Morning Star “meat” crumbles.  I sauteed this easy protein in some EVOO with the leftover chipotle/regular chili powder mixture and the jalapeno peppers.  When the fake meat crumbles are all cooked up, you can dish them up and throw the cold salad on top.  Delish!
• One thing you should not subsitute is the raisins.  Definitely invest in the golden ones because you will be making this salad more than once.

Instructions:

1. Mix OJ, lime juice, vinegar, garlic, salt, sugar, and 1/4 tsp of chili powder mix in the bottom of a big glass bowl.
2. Throw in the beans, mango, corn, raisins, and cilantro.  You can add the avocado like the original recipe says, but it will get all guacamole on you with all the stirring.  Adding it at the end keeps it as pretty as the cover picture.
3. Cut tortilla strips coated with cooking spray and sprinkle 1 tsp of the chili powder mixture on them.  You can use more of your mixture if you prefer, especially if you aren’t cooking the crumbles.  Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes or until crisp.  Flour tortillas will burn real quick, y’all, so be careful.  We cooked up twice as much as the recipe called for because they are good to eat by themselves or on top of other stuff.  Yum!
4. Serve the salad with the spicy strips on top.

The OJ, lime juice, vinegar, and garlic would make a great dressing on other salads as well.

I found a great picture of the salad on another blog, and the author also includes ways to cut a papaya and an avocado.

She mentions pureed prunes.  I could not find non-dried prunes, so I used baby food prunes.  It was worth paying the $1.70 not to clean my heavy food processor.

Also, I reduced my balsamic vinegar to about 1/2 of its original volume.  What I didn’t use in the first recipe, I stored in the leftover baby food prunes jars.  Yay recycling!

Fat-Free Balsamic Fudge Cookies

These fudgy-but-fat-free cookies have three chocolate enhancers: cinnamon, prunes, and balsamic vinegar. You probably won’t be able to detect any of them in the finished product, but they lend the cookies a deeper, more chocolaty taste.

1 cup unbleached white flour (or use gluten-free baking flour)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
pinch cinnamon (optional)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
2/3 cup demerara sugar (or other vegan sugar)
1/2 cup prune puree (see note)
1/3 cup soy yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (see note #2)
Vanilla sugar (I did this the quick way by pulverizing a vanilla bean with sugar in my blender)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cover two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Mix the flour, soda, cinnamon, and salt together and set aside.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, mix the prune puree with the sugar and cocoa and stir to combine. Add the soy yogurt, vanilla extract, and balsamic and stir until mixed. Finally, add the flour mixture and stir just until it’s combined—don’t over-mix.

Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, drop tablespoons of the dough onto the baking sheets about 1 1/2-inches apart. Using the back of a spoon, flatten each cookie slightly and sprinkle with vanilla sugar. Place them in the oven. Bake for about 9 to 11 minutes—be careful not to burn the bottoms!

Remove from the oven and lift the parchment paper or silicone mats onto cooling racks. Allow to cool completely. These taste best cold and somehow even better the next day. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

*4 out of 5 for chocolatey goodness, but too cakey and sticky.

Vegan Balsamic Fudge Drops
(adapted from Habeas Brûlée)

*My changes are in italics and bold*
1 cup unbleached white flour (or use gluten-free baking flour)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons Earth Balance margarine I used Earth Balance shortening.  You could use butter if you’re not going for the vegan version.
1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 cup soy yogurt This is what replaces the egg.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar reduced is soooo good, even if you do have to open a window
Vanilla sugar (I did this the quick way by pulverizing a vanilla bean with sugar in my blender) I didn’t have a vanilla bean, so I just sprinkled with regular

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cover two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Mix the flour, soda, and salt together and set aside. In another bowl, mix the cocoa with the sugars and set aside.

Melt the margarine in a medium-sized saucepan. When it is completely melted, take it off the heat and add the sugar/cocoa mixture and stir to combine. Then add the soy yogurt, vanilla extract, and balsamic and stir until mixed. Finally, add the flour mixture and stir just until it’s combined—don’t over-mix. This is where I added the carob chips.  MMMMM double chocolatey flavor!

Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, drop tablespoons of the dough onto the baking sheets about 1 1/2-inches apart. Sprinkle lightly with vanilla sugar, and place them in the oven. After 5 minutes, switch the pans around so that the one on top is on the bottom and the front sides are in the back. Check again in 4 minutes. Be careful—depending on the type of pan you use, they can go from underdone to burned in seconds (I found out the hard way!) They shouldn’t need more than 11 minutes and will look soft on top, but they’ll harden as they cool.

Remove from the oven and transfer onto cooling racks. Makes about 2 dozen cookies. I don’t have cooling racks.  I just put them on some paper towels on the counter.  These come off the parchment paper way easier because of the butter/margarine/shortening.  P.S.  I’m getting big into Earth Balance products–all natural, lower fat, non-dairy.  Nice.

*5 out of 5!  These are soooooo good.  I realize that they have more fat, but they are still vegan (if you don’t use butter) and better for you than most cookies.  I highly recommend!

Don't mind me and the sloshed look of this yummy stew in the bowl. I guess I was really excited to taste its spice-happy goodness.

The spices really make this, so try not to leave too many out. Red lentils have become my new favorite protein source, but you could use regular ones and this would be just as tasty. My official review of this is a 5 out of 5 because it was a one pot meal, it was full of flavor, and it was low in fat. I added carrots because I had some from the organic produce store, and I thought they would be good. They were. If you don’t like any of the vegetables, you could probably substitute ones you like and it wouldn’t matter much. The spices and the lentils are really where it’s at. If you do use regular lentils, I might use less than this recipe calls for. This recipe comes from The Fat Free Vegan blog. She is from Mississippi (a definite plus, although I sometimes don’t know where she finds all of her ingredients down there!), and most of the stuff I have tried has turned out pretty good…with a few additions on my part, mostly in salt, oil, or other flavor additions. Also, she calls it soup. It was pretty thick, and I like it that way, so I’m going with “stew.”

(I’ve italicized my changes to the side of the ingredient)

Ethiopian-Inspired Red Lentil Soup

1 large onion, chopped
1 pound potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 + 1/4 cup red lentils (picked over and rinsed)
3 cups water
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2-3 tablespoons berberé spice mixture, below
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes (I keep forgetting to get these at the store, so I just used about 1/2 of a a big thing of tomato paste)
1 pound green beans, fresh or frozen, cut into bite-sized pieces (I only had canned so I drained them and added to the mix)
1-2 cups water
salt to taste
3-4 cups fresh spinach (I didn’t have this, so I chopped 3 carrots. I suspect the fresh spinach is really good, though)

Berberé Spice Mixture (mix all together and store in jar):
*I just added a pinch or two of each of these since I wasn’t sure if I would like the mixture.
1 Tbs. ground cardamom
1 Tbs. ground coriander
1 Tbs. fenugreek
1 Tbs. ground nutmeg
1 Tbs. ground cloves
1 Tbs. ground allspice
1 Tbs. cinnamon
1 Tbs. paprika
1 Tbs. turmeric
1 tsp. cayenne (use more to taste)
1 Tbs. ground black pepper
1 Tbs. ground sea salt (optional) (I probably added more, but I never really measure salt. I just eyeball it)

Sauté the onion in a non-stick pan until it starts to brown. Add the potatoes, lentils, 3 cups water, garlic, and spice mixture. Simmer, covered, over low heat until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the tomatoes, green beans, and enough additional water to create a thick soup. Check the seasoning, adding salt and more of the spice mixture if needed, and cook for about 15 more minutes. Just before serving, stir in the spinach. Serve immediately. Makes 6-8 servings.

A finished holiday beauty: The edges of this pumpkin cheesecake develop into a beautifully rich golden orange.

This comes straight out of The Taste of Home Cookbook.  I don’t know why I was always wary of cheesecakes.  Perhaps it was the disastrous efforts of trying to make my mom’s famous fudge.  Candy is a real doozy.  But I will perfect my mom’s fudge this year.  And of course I’ll be sharing the recipe.  Also look forward to some Martha Washington balls from my mom’s friend Ruby this Christmas.

I write this as my heart breaks about my oven.  The coil caught on fire earlier tonight, and I almost cried.  Especially since I had just deposited an Enchilada Verde Casserole with a homemade creamy cheese sauce.   It was vegetarian, and I think it was going to be amazing.  I wish I could just get a whole new oven/stove.  At least this didn’t happen yesterday when I was in the middle of cheesecake mania. Because that would have been a REAL tragedy.  Hooo doggy!

Pumpkin Cheesecake Dessert

3/4 finely chopped walnuts (I used pecans)
3/4 cup cinnamon graham cracker crumbs (about 12 squares)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/4 cup butter, melted

Filling

2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, divided
2 tbsp chopped walnuts (again, I only had pecans–my mom keeps me stocked)

• in a small bowl, combine the walnuts, cracker crumbs, sugar and spices
• stir in the butter
• press onto the bottom of an ungreased 10 inch tart pan with a removable bottom (I used a 9 inch spring form)

This is what my crust looked like after I pressed it into the bottom of the pan. It sure does smell good!

For the filling:

• in a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth
• add eggs and beat on low speed just until combined
• add pumpkin and 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• beat on low speed just until combined
• the book goes into great detail about not over-mixing because it would cause air bubbles, cracking, etc.  I followed these instructions exactly
• pour filling into crust
• sprinkle with nuts and remaining cinnamon (I did not have the 1/4 tsp reserved to the side.  I left it in the little sprinkler so it would sprinkle on evenly.)
• place pan on a baking sheet
• bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until center is almost set
• cool on wire rack for 10 minutes and run a flexible metal knife or icing spatula around the edges to loosen
• continue cooling on the wire rack for 1 to 1.5 hours (it continues to cook the inside as it sits)
• store in the refrigerator

Just pour the cheesecake filling into your spring form pan over the graham cracker crust.

Recipe Review Rating=10 out of 10!  Bake time was perfect, taste is simply incredible and multi-dimensional, crust is amazing.

*submitted by Melissa Davies of Clermont, Florida for the 2008 edition of The Taste of Home Cookbook

This New Orleans pineapple-apple bread pudding with bourbon sauce will make you want to slap yo grandma.

Holy crap, y’all! This is going to make you want to slap your grandma it is so good. My mom found this recipe from a Southern Living magazine. When she was making it the first time for herself, she talked about all the ingredients over the phone. And it became my mission to get a copy of this fabulous thing. She’s made it several times since, and she has started calling the bourbon sauce “dooky sauce.” Yes, Maxine is a trip.

I tried it out this past weekend, and we liked it so much that we had it for breakfast the next morning, too. Shoot, after I write this, I’m going to warm some up. It is GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD.

We made a half recipe because it is only the two of us. The recipe below serves 8.

Recipe Review: Pineapple-Apple Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce

1 (16 ounce) day old French bread loaf, cubed
2 (12 ounce) cans evaporated milk
1 cup water
6 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
1 large Red Delicious apple, grated
1 cup raisins (or leave them out if you don’t like them)
1 1/2 cups sugar
5 tablespoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup butter or margarine, cut up and softened
Bourbon Sauce

• In a big ole bowl, combine first three ingredients
• Stir in eggs, blending well
• Stir in crushed pineapple and next four ingredients
• Stir in butter, blending well.
• Pour mixture into a greased 13 x 9 inch baking dish
• Bake uncovered at 350 for 35 to 45 minutes or until set and crust is golden.
• Remove from oven
• Let stand 2 minutes.
• Serve with Bourbon Sauce

Bourbon Sauce

3 tbsp butter
1 tbsp all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp bourbon or whiskey
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp nutmeg

• Melt butter in small saucepan over medium low heat
• whisk in flour
• cook, whisking constantly for 5 min
• stir in sugar and cream
• cook, whisking constantly, 3 minutes or until thickened (you’ll know)
• Stir in bourbon, vanilla, and nutmeg
• Simmer 5 minutes

From Chef Leah Chase, Dooky Chase Restaurant, New Orleans, Louisiana

Published in Southern Living