Grilled Flank Steak Pinwheels

These are so easy to make and the flavor is amazing. I make the roll the night before so dinner takes less than 15 minutes the next day! Even the kids ate this (my daughter thinks the filling is herbed cheese because she "doesn't like spinach")

• Ingredients:
• 
  
• 2/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, (not packed in oil)

• 2 cups boiling water

• 1 pound flank steak, trimmed of fat

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 3 tablespoons light herbed cheese spread, such as Boursin (see Variation)

• 1 cup baby spinach

• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions:



Preheat grill to high.

Place sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl; pour boiling water over them and let steep until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain and chop.

Meanwhile, place steak between 2 large pieces of plastic wrap. Pound each side of the steak thoroughly with the pointed side of a meat mallet until the steak is an even 1/4-inch thickness.

Rub garlic all over one side of the steak. Spread cheese lengthwise in a 3-inch-wide strip down the middle of the steak. Top with the sun-dried tomatoes and spinach. Starting at one edge of a long side, roll the steak up tightly, tucking in the filling as you go.

Carefully rub salt and pepper all over the outside of the steak roll. Turn the roll so the overlapping edge is on top. Push 8 skewers, evenly spaced, through the roll, close to the overlapping edge to hold the roll together. Slice the roll into 8 equal portions, roughly 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick, with a skewer in each. Lay the slices on their sides and push the skewer through so it sticks out about 1 inch.

Oil the grill rack. Grill the pinwheels 3 to 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Use a spatula when turning them to prevent too much filling from falling out. (Don't worry if the ends of the skewers burn. They will still hold the pinwheels together.) Remove the skewers; let the pinwheels rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Double Chocolate Lava Cake

Thank you Betty Crocker for this great recipe. It's a strange concoction but the end result is amazing. 

Ingredients:

1

  cup Gold Medal® white whole wheat flour

3/4  

cup granulated sugar

2

  tablespoons unsweetened baking cocoa

2

  teaspoons baking powder

1/4  

teaspoon salt

1/2  

cup milk

3

  tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

1

  teaspoon vanilla

1

  cup semisweet, bittersweet or milk chocolate chips (6 oz)

1/2  

cup packed brown sugar

1/4

  cup unsweetened baking cocoa

1 3/4

cups very hot water

  Ice cream, if desired

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. In ungreased 9-inch square pan, mix flour, granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa, baking powder and salt. Stir in milk, butter and vanilla with fork until smooth, making sure to incorporate dry ingredients in corners of pan. Stir in chocolate chips.2

Spread batter in pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar and 1/4 cup cocoa. Pour hot water evenly over batter.

Bake about 40 minutes or until top is dry. Cool 10 minutes. Spoon warm cake into dessert dishes. Spoon sauce from pan onto each serving. Top with ice cream.

Baked Sticky Chicken Legs

I created this recipe one day when me kids asked to go to Habachi and we couldn't afford to go. I used a Habachi-like sauce to bake the chicken in and served it with rice.

4-5 lbs Chicken Legs

1 tbsp corn starch

1/4 cup warm water

1 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tsp ginger

2 garlic cloves, crushed

Preheat oven to 475 degrees.

The Sticky.

Mix corn starch and water in a bowl until dissolved. Add soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger and garlic and mix until well combined. 

The Chicken. 

Place chicken legs in a large baking dish. Pour marinade over chicken toss to coat. Bake chicken legs for 40-45 minutes or until juices run clear basting with the sauce every 10-15 minutes.

COBB SALAD with HOMEMADE CEASAR DRESSING

This is a healthy and easily interchangeable recipe. It got my kids to enjoy salad night. The best part, you can use whatever ingredients you have laying around. Mix and match your families favorites.

Ingredients:

1 head Romaine lettuce chopped
2 cups baby spinach
1 cucumber diced
1 tomato diced
1/2 cup walnuts chopped
1/2 pound bacon cooked and chopped
1/2 cup feta cheese (or your favorite cheese)

Directions:

Wash and dry greens, place onto large platter. Arrange all other ingredients in stripes on top of greens.


Dressing Ingredients:

1/4 cup mayonaise
3 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic crushed
1/8 tsp black pepper

Directions:

Wisk all of the ingredients together in a medium sized bowl. Refrigerate for 1 hour to allow flavors to blend together. 
(I usually just serve it because I usually don't have an hour. Tastes just as good!)

Banana Bread Heaven

This is THE best banana bread recipe I have ever made! It is so moist and delicious. This loaf was completely gone in 3 hours!I think the people in my house are purposely not eating the bananas so I have to make more bread with them.

Ingredients:


1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter softened
3 mashed ripe bananas
1/4 cup milk
1/4 sour cream
2 large egg whites
2 cups flour (i used 1/2 white, 1/2 wheat)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt


Streusel Topping (optional):
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbs flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tbs butter


Directions:


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine sugar and butter in a bowl and beat at medium speed until well blended. Add banana milk, sour cream, and egg whites; beat well and set aside.


Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in separate bowl and mix well. Slowly add dry ingredients to creamed mixture beating until blended. If making streusel; mix all ingredients with a fork until crumbly. 


Spoon batter into a greased 9x5 loaf pan. Sprinkle optional streusel mixture evenly over the batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 1hour and 10 minutes. 

Stir Fry 1

This is a totally customizable recipe add or subtract any veggies or meat you like. And it's super quick to make in less than 20 minutes you can have this meal ready.

Habachi Sauce Ingredients:


1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 sugar
1-2 cloves garlic
1 tsp ginger
1 tbsp corn starch or flour


In small bowl, mix all ingredients together. I marinated my Dry-fry tofu in this mixture for 30 minutes prior to cooking. (do not marinate meat)


Stir Fry Ingredients:


1 bunch broccoli chopped
2 carrots grated
1 pkg baby corn
1 pkg extra-firm tofu, dry-fried (see recipe HERE) or 1lb meat of your choice cooked.


Directions:


In large wok or fry pan heat 1/2 cup water over med-high heat. Add broccoli, cover and steam for 5 minutes. Add baby corn and steam for another 2-3 minutes. Add carrots and steam another 2-3 minutes. Add marinated tofu including all habachi sauce to vegetable mixture (if using meat, add cooked meat and habachi sauce). Continue to cook over medium heat for 3-5 minutes until sauce has thickened and veggies are tender crisp. Serve over your favorite rice.

Dry-Fry Tofu

My first attempt at cooking (and eating) tofu went surprisingly well! I told the kids it was chicken and they ate the whole meal. This recipe is how to prepare the tofu for use in recipes. If you do not do this first it will come out soggy.


Tofu Dry-fry


Ingredients:


1 16 ounce brick of extra-firm tofu for every four people.


Directions:


Drain the tofu and cut it so that your pieces are a half an inch thick. For most recipes, you will want to then cut it into triangles, but some recipes call for strips. I used strips for my stir fry. Put the tofu pieces between two absorbent cloth napkins or woven dish towels (NOT terry cloth) and gently press, enough to get a lot of water out but not hard enough to squish it. 


Use a Teflon or well-seasoned cast-iron pan at medium heat on an electric range, low to medium-low on a gas range. Slow cooking is the key to keeping the tofu from sticking to the Teflon and insures that the water has time to evaporate out before the outside is browned. Do NOT use oil. Place your tofu in the pan leaving room around pieces. You may need to fry a few batches to give it enough room. 


As the tofu cooks, use a spatula to frequently press down on each piece. You will see the water seeping out and sizzling in the pan. Once the bottom sides are very firm and golden in color, flip the tofu pieces and fry the other side, again frequently pressing each piece with a spatula. When they are golden and firm on both sides, they are done.

Voila....finished product. 

This is now ready for any recipe. I used it in the tofu stir fry recipe HERE.