Pool Party/Birthday Party Cake Pops

I made these for a pool party. They were chocolate cake with vanilla frosting. The outside is blue melts with blue sprinkles. The swimmer is a Teddy Graham in a gummy life saver.

These were made for a birthday party at my mom's work. They are carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. The outside is purple and yellow melts and the bows are purple and yellow sugar sprinkles.

Chiles Rellenos Casserole

Yield: 6 servings * Overall Price: ~$25 * Calories: 335

Ingredients:

1/2 lb ground turkey
1 cup chopped onion
1 3/4 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 16-ounce can fat free refried beans
2 4-ounce cans whole green chiles, drained and cut lengthwise into quarters
1 cup shredded colby-jack cheese
1 cup frozen whole kernel corn, thawed and drained
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups fat-free milk
1/8 teaspoon hot sauce
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
red onion slices

Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 350
2. Cook turkey and chopped onion in a non-stick skillet over medium high heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Remove from heat; add cumin and next five ingredients. Stir until well combined. Set aside.
3. Arrange half of green chiles in a 11 x 7 inch baking dish, and top with half cup of cheese. Spoon mounds of turkey mixture onto cheese, and spread gently leaving an 1/4 inch border around edge of dish. Top with corn. Arrange remaining green chiles over corn; top with 1/2 cup cheese.
4. Combine flour and salt in a bowl; gradually add milk, hot sauce, eggs, and egg whites, stirring with a whisk until blended. Pour over casserole. Bake at 350 for one hour and 5 minutes or until set; let stand 5 minutes. Garnish with onion slices.

Thoughts:
This was REALLY spicy! It was probably extra spicy because we have a whole freezer full of green chiles from Colorado and that stuff is legit. Despite burning my tongue off this meal was pretty good. My brother chowed down on two servings as if he was eating bowls of grapes (not sure if that makes any sense, but I'm going with it).

Whole-Grain Pasta with Chickpeas and Escarole

Yield: 4 servings * Overall Price: ~$20 * Calories: 540

Ingredients:
2 cups whole-grain penne
1 head escarole. roughly chopped
4 tbs extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to taste
1/4 cup capers, drained and patted dry
5 cloves garlic, sliced
1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed slightly, liquid reserved
1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained, rinsed and patted
salt and pepper
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions:
1. Cook the pasta according to the package directions; add the escarole during the last 2 minutes, cover and do not stir. Remove the escarole with tongs; set aside. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.  Meanwhile, if you're using capers, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the capers and fry until crisp, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
2. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons to the skillet. Cook the garlic, parsley and red pepper flakes until the garlic toasts slightly, 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, chickpeas, a pinch of salt and the bay leaves. Cook until the tomatoes and chickpeas brown, about 6 minutes. Add the escarole and reserved tomato juice and cook until the sauce thickens slightly, about 4 more minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaves.
3. Add the cooked pasta to the skillet and toss with the sauce; season with salt and pepper. (if the sauce is thick, add some reserved pasta water.) Stir in the cheese and top with fried capers, if using and more cheese.

Thoughts:
Instead of using escarole, I used a bag of spinach which turned out really well. If you're looking for something with a different taste than what you eat every other day than this is the meal for you. All the "odd" flavors add up to something totally awesome! I would make this again!

Taco Cake Pops

One of my best friends, Izzy, came over last week and was talking about how she really liked cake pops and wanted to know how to make them. I told her how to make basic cake balls and we later began to talk about more difficult designs to make into cake pops. My Mom jokingly said that we should make taco cake pops since Izzy works at taco bell. After she said that, I made it my mission to design and make tacos out of cake. Here's how they turned out...






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Huevos Rancheros

Yield: 4 servings * Overall Price: ~$7 * Calories: 272

Ingredients:

4 (6-inch) corn tortillas
Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons New Mexico chile powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
4 large eggs

1/4 cup New Mexican Red Chile Sauce
     (recipe to follow)
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350*
2. Coat tortillas with cooking spray, place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350* for 12 minutes or until crisp.
3. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion, bell peper, and garlic, saute 3 minutes. Add green chiles and next 5 ingredients. Bring to a boil, cook 3 minutes or until thick.
4. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add eggs to pan, cook 3 minutes or until done.
5. Place 1 tortilla on each of 4 plates. Top each tortilla with tomato mixture and egg. Spoon New Mexican Red Chile Sauce over each serving, sprinkle with cheese.

New Meixcan Red Chile Sauce:
Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon canola oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup New Mexico chile powder
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 (14-ounce) can vegetable broth
Directions:
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, saute 4 minutes. Add chile powder and garlic, saute 1 minute.Stir in tomatoes and remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Yield: 3 cups (serving size 1/4 cup)

Thoughts:
Having to make the sauce made this a little frustrating to make, so if I were to do it again, I'd make it beforehand instead of doing it all at the same time. I didn't get to eat this, but my family said they liked it.

Chicken and Mushrooms with Marsala Wine Sauce

Yield: 4 servings * Overall Price: ~$17 * Calories: 384

Ingredients:
1/2 cup dried porcini mushrooms
4 (6 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken beast halves
4 teaspoons all-purpose flour, divided
3/4 teaspoon salt, divivded
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Served here with mashed potatoes and green beans

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
11/2 cups thinly sliced shiitake mushroom caps
11/2 cups thinly sliced button mushrooms
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup dry Marsala wine
2/3 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup small fresh basil leaves

Directions:
1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound chicken to an 1/2 inch thickness using a meat mallet or a small heavy skillet. Combine 3 tsp. flour, 1/4 tsp. salt, and black pepper in a shallow dish. Dredge chicken in flour mixture.
2. Heat a large stainless steel skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 Tblsp. oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add chicken; cook 3 minutes on each side or until done. Remove from pan; cover and keep warm.
3. Heat remaining 1 Tblsp. oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add onion, red pepper and garlic; saute two minutes or until onion is lightly browned. Add remaining 1/2 tsp. salt, porcini, shiitake, button mushrooms and oregano; saute 6 minutes or until mushrooms release moisture and darken, Sprinkle with remaining 1 tsp. flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in wine; cook 1 minute. Add broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 1 minute. Return chicken breasts to the pan, and add cherry tomatoes. Cook for 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated, turning chicken once. Sprinkle with fresh basil.

Thoughts:
They didn't have porcini mushrooms at the store I shopped at so I replaced them with a different type. It turned out fine. This is one of the more harder meals I've made. It turned out pretty good though and I would probably make this agian.

Chicken-and-Corn Pies with Cornbread Crust

Yield: 5 servings * Overall Price: ~$15

Ingredients:

1 (10-oz.) can enchilada sauce
1 (10-oz.) can Mexican diced tomatoes with lime juice and cilantro, drained
2 cups frozen whole kernel corn
1 tsp. chili powder
3 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 (6-oz.) package Mexican-style cornbread mix
2/3 cup milk
1 large egg
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Mexican four-cheese blend, divided
Toppings: sliced pickled jalapeno peppers, sour cream

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375*. Stir together first 4 ingredients in a 31/2 -qt. saucepan over medium heat until combined; cook, stiring occasionally, 10 minutes. Stir in chicken.
2. Whisk together cornbread mix, next 3 ingredients, and 3/4 cup cheese in a small bowl just until blended.
3. Pour chicken mixture into 5 lightly greased (10-oz.) ramekins. Spoon cornbread mixture over hot chicken mixture. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Place ramekins on 2 jelly-roll pans.
4. Bake at 275* for 30 minutes or until golden and bubbly. Serve with desired toppings.

Thoughts:
This was pretty easy to make and it got rave reviews from my family. They all hope to have it again soon.