Coconut Crust Chocolate Pie

I love this coconut crust because it is super easy to make...

for those of us who haven't mastered the pastry pie crust yet.

Plus, it tastes awesome.

COCONUT CRUST CHOCOLATE PIE

Crust:

2 c. coconut

1/2 c. chopped pecans

1/2 c. melted butter

Filling:

4 squares bakers semi-sweet chocolate (4 oz.)

2 c. mini marshmallows (or 16 large)

1/2 c. milk

3 oz. cream cheese

3.5 c. thawed cool whip

Heat oven to 350. Mix coconut, pecans, and butter. Press onto bottom and up sides of 9=inch pie plate. Bake 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool.

Microwave chocolate, marshmallows, and milk in large microwaveable bowl for three minutes or until marshmallows are melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Beat in cream cheese until smooth. Refrigerate until slightly thickened. Gently stir in whipped topping. Spoon into cooled crust. Refrigerate until firm, about three hours. Garnish with chocolate curls. Before cutting, dip bottom of pie plate briefly to loosen crust.

by Sarah, wife of Barbara's son Jared

Roasted Tomatoes, African Coriander Bread

Brenda, Karen and Cheryl at breadmaking class in Wisconsin

May 2010

Roasted Tomatoes

(to toss in pasta, top chicken or bruschetta, or serve alongside chicken or beef)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice and core tomatoes. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil; sprinkle with kosher salt, pepper and sliced garlic. Bake 30-60 minutes, until juices have evaporated. Store in a plastic zip-top bag in refrigerator or freezer. You can also slow roast tomatoes in a 250 degree oven 3 to 4 hours.

African Coriander Bread
(hands down, my favorite bread from our class)

2 pkgs. dry yeast
1-1/2 c. lukewarm milk
1/2 c. honey
1/2 c. butter, melted and cooled
1 T. ground coriander
2+ T. grated orange peel
1 t. salt
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
1 egg
1-1/2 c. whole wheat flour
4 to 4-1/2 c. all-purpose flour

Dissolve yeast in warm milk. Stir in remaining ingredients except flour. Stir in enough flour to make dough easy to handle. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead until smooth. Place in greased bowl, cover, let rise until double, about 1 hour.

Punch down dough; divide into halves. Shape each into a loaf. Cover and let rise.

Heat oven to 375. Cut slash in top of each loaf. Bake until loaves are folden brown, 35 to 40 minutes.

**Note: when baking the bread we always did the final rise on a parchment-covered, upside down cookie sheet. That way the parchment could easily be slid from the cookie sheet onto a preheated baking stone. Immediately after sliding in the bread, 5-6 ice cubes were tossed in a cast iron skillet kept in the bottom of the oven.)

by Brenda, Barbara's daughter

Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup, Mixed Apple Salad, Peanutty Noodles, Peanut Butter Pie & Spicy Mulligatawny

I have been deliberating all week,

trying to decide which recipe to contribute.

Now I can't seem to narrow it down!

Of course none of my pictures are relevant to any of the recipes,

but they are all of the kids with their food —

Preston's picture-perfect pancakes

and the normal pandemonium of dinner at our table.

Always fun, there's never a dull moment!

I know it's getting a little warm outside,

but on those rainy days I still love a bowl of soup.

My all-time favorites are always salads and pasta.

Here are my latest favorites, and just for fun,

I'll even throw in Tyler's favorite southern tradition for dessert:

Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup

Ingredients:

4 c.chicken broth

2 c. water

2 cooked, boneless chicken breast halves, shredded

1 (4.5 ounce) package quick-cooking long grain and wild rice with seasoning packet

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. ground black pepper

3/4 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. butter

2 c. heavy cream

Directions:

1. In a large pot over medium heat, combine broth, water and chicken. Bring just to boiling, then stir in rice, reserving seasoning packet. Cover and remove from heat.

2. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and flour. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in contents of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons, to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened, 5 minutes.

3. Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.

Original Recipe Yield: 8 servings

Mixed Apple Salad

Dressing:

1/4 c. fresh (or not fresh -- I'm not terribly picky) lemon juice

2 T. honey

1 tsp. olive oil

Dash of salt, pepper

Salad:

2 c. chopped Granny Smith apple

2 c. chopped Fuji, Honeycrisp or Braeburn apple

1/4 c. Crumbled bleu cheese, feta or Boursin cheese

2 bacon slices, cooked or crumbled, or 1/4 c. toasted pecans

4 c. mixed salad greens

Peanutty Noodles

Set aside:

2 carrots, julienned

Saute 30 seconds:

1 t. oil

2 t. ginger

3 cloves garlic, minced

Add:

1 c. chicken broth

1/2 c. peanut butter

1/4 c. soy sauce

3 t. rice vinegar or white wine vinegar

1 t. chili garlic sauce

1/4 t. salt

Simmer 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, then remove from heat.

Saute 5 minutes:

2 t. oil

2 c. red bell pepper strips

1 lb. snow peas, trimmed

Cook 1 lb. linguini according to directions on package.

Add carrots, peanut butter mixture, and bell pepper mixture to linguini, toss well.

Sprinkle with:

Cilantro

Peanut Butter Pie

Crust

Mix together:

1 pkg. graham crackers, crushed


6 T. butter


1/3. c. sugar


Bake 8 min. @ 350.
Sprinkle hot crust with 1 c. chocolate chips
 


Filling

Beat until stiff:

1 c. heavy whipping cream


Slowly add:

2 T. powdered sugar
 


In separate bowl, beat:

8 oz. cream cheese


3/4 c. crunchy peanut butter


Add:

1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk

whipped cream mixture


Spoon into crust, refrigerate over night.

Spicy Mulligatawny

Saute:

1/2 lb chicken, cut into bite size pieces*

Set chicken aside.

Saute 5 minutes in 2 tsp. oil:

1 c. chopped, peeled apple

3/4 c. chopped onion

1/2 c. chopped carrot

1/2 c. chopped celery

1/2 c. chopped bell pepper

Stir in:

2 T. flour

1 T. curry powder

1 t. ground ginger

1/2 t. crushed red pepper

1/4 t. salt

Cook 1 minute.

Stir in:

2 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth

1/3 c. mango chutney*

1/4 c. tomato paste

Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer 8 minutes. Add chicken. Cook 2 minutes until heated through.

*changes I made: I used a can of cooked chicken and 1/2 c. mango juice instead of the chutney —but then I had to put in a little less water with my chicken broth bullions so that it wouldn't be too liquid. I also tossed the entire thing in the crock pot to simmer after mixing in the tomato paste.

by Stephanie, wife of Barbara's son Brandon

Chicken Quesadillas, Red Beans & Rice, Balsamic Dressing & Salad

I love Mom this much!

I want Mom's cooking, not a stupid icicle.

I remember wanting to serve Mom or Dad breakfast in bed on special occasions. I have since realized that this is not very enjoyable or practical for the following reasons...

1) It is hard to sit up in bed when there is a window behind you and you have no headboard.

2) The food has a tendency to spill when it is on a cookie sheet (This is because you didn't want to spend money on a "bed tray".)

3) It is boring to eat alone. (Everyone else has left to fix their own breakfast.)

4) If someone does stay to chat, they sit on the bed and disrupt the food on the cookie sheet all over again.

5) There is usually something that I need so I have to call loudly to get someone's attention.

6) It is hard to get out of bed when I am done because I have a cookie sheet and other paraphernalia on my lap.

7) etc.

Chicken Quesadillas

1 c. shredded cooked chicken

1 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1/2 c. Hidden Valley® Original Ranch® Dressing

1/4 c. diced green chilies, rinsed and drained

4 (9-inch) flour tortillas, warmed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine chicken, cheese, ranch & chilies in a bowl. Divide the chicken mixture evenly between each tortilla; fold in half to seal. Place quesadillas on a baking sheet & bake for 15 min. or until cheese is melted. Optional: Cook quesadillas in a skillet

Yummy Red Beans and Rice

30 oz. can small red beans (or 2-15 oz. cans)

1/2 t. white pepper

1/4 t. garlic powder

1/4 t. paprika

1/4 t. salt

3 T. butter

Pour beans with liquid into a large saucepan. Add pepper, paprika, butter, garlic powder and salt. Heat on medium. When beans begin to boil, use a fork to mash some of them against the side of the pan. Stir constantly until they get to a smooth creamy texture with some whole beans. Cook your favorite rice and serve with the red beans on the side or on top of the rice.

Cheryl's Favorite Balsamic Dressing & Salad

2 pkgs. Good Seasons Italian Dressing® Mix (dry)

1/4 c. olive or canola oil

3 T. water

1/2 c. balsamic vinegar

Garlic powder, onion powder, dry basil and salt and pepper (to taste)

* a combination of mixed greens, baby spinach & romaine

* Feta cheese

* Craisins

* Toasted nuts (pecans, almonds or walnuts)

* Crispy won ton strips (optional)

by Cheryl, Barbara's daughter

Apricot Chicken

Bennetts at Canyonland 2010

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

One of the Bennett family favorites is also one of the easiest recipes on earth. Maybe that's why it's one of our favorites... ;-} . It is for Apricot Chicken and some of you may already have this recipe.

Apricot Chicken

1 pkg. chicken thighs with bone in (i.e. from Costco, 8 - 10 thighs) with skin and fat removed

Mix:

1 jar (10 - 12 oz) apricot jam

1 jar (8 oz) Russian dressing

1 envelope Lipton Onion Soup Mix

Place chicken in a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Cover with the above sauce. Bake for 1-1/2 hours at 325 degrees (loosely covered with foil for the 1st hour). Turn thighs over and continue baking uncovered for 1/2 hour.

Serve over rice:

3 c. oriental rice

4 c. water

by Kirsten, Barbara's daughter

Beef Nacho Casserole

Beef Nacho Casserole

2 lb, ground beef (pre-cooked)

2 c. salsa

2 c. corn (about one can)

½ c. mayonnaise

1 T. chili powder

8 oz. Colby jack cheese

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Serve with corn chips and salad (like a taco salad).

by Allison, wife of Barbara's son Doug

Navajo Tacos

Erik sharing with Ian

One of our traditions—when we are at BYU—is to go to the Cougareat (old name, I know) for Navajo Tacos. A long while back, we got the recipe we've used for years (see below). Recently, BYU Magazine had an article on tastes from BYU. If you click on Cosmo, on the sidebar, you can find the "real" recipe for Navajo Tacos, Mint Brownies, and other campus favorites. I really don't like to make these Navajo Tacos as much as my guys really like to have them (because of the hot oil/frying smell, and 'healthiness'). Scott will even volunteer to do the frying. I think a better choice is to use pita or flatbread in place of the fry bread. I know I would hear much murmuring if that happened at our house.

cousins Joel, Sarah and Kyle

Navajo Tacos

1 (1 lb.) can refried beans (we usually rehydrate some of our church cannery dried refrieds)

1 c. colby or cheddar cheese, grated

2 c. lettuce, shredded

2 med. tomatoes, diced

4 green onions, chopped

Salsa

Sour cream

Indian Fry Bread (recipe below)

Heat refrieds and prepare other ingredients. Set aside while you prepare Fry Bread. For each Navajo Taco, top with warmed beans, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and onions. Garnish with salsa and sour cream.

Indian Fry Bread

1 c. flour

Oil for frying

1-1/2 t. baking powder

1/2 c. hot water

1/2 t. salt

Heat 1/2” oil in skillet over med-high heat. In med. bowl, combine ingredients. Blend well. This will be sticky. Turn out on lightly floured board. Turn once to coat with flour. Knead dough until smooth, about 10 turns. Roll out to about 1/8-1/4” thick. Cut into squares or rectangles. (Or you can roll balls out into circles.) Stretch each square or circle slightly. Fry to light golden brown on one side. Turn and fry on other side. These will still be fairly soft after frying. Makes 6-8 breads.

Easter

We are definitely not as inventive as the Asays in the way of Easter traditions! I did not like the idea of baskets filled with tons of toys, as the retailers try to commercialize on the order of Christmas. Sometimes we'd do a church-related gift, but usually it was just a Bread Bunny (click here for recipe), colored hard-boiled eggs and colored, speckled malted chocolate eggs. Thankfully Scott was in charge of the malted chocolate eggs this year...so they'd last until Easter morning! Sunday morning we usually get up and have bread and eggs before church. I can't even remember how many years it's been since we've hidden eggs. I'm guessing it will happen again by this post; I'm sure Ian will enjoy finding them. Happy Easter to all!

Experimental Dinners

Finally, I thought I'd end with telling you about the sufferage my guys have had to endure over the years. And it continues to this day. I'm always wanting to try new recipes. They would prefer "standard fare." I like new tastes, and want to try to have healthier options than years prior. Kyle would be happy with straight meat most days. Nothing green or weird or healthy. Scott is usually a good sport about things, though when he says "it was OK", that usually means "I'd rather not suffer through that again." Recently I tried a vegetarian enchilada recipe with black beans and yams and zucchini...yum! Kyle came out of his room and said "I smell something green." After tasting them, he said that he just needed something to chew on...like meat. Doesn't he think you can chew on vegetables? Last week I made BBQ Chicken Pizza, with a whole wheat crust. Kyle thought it was weird, Scott endured, and I loved it. I'm trying Lime Coconut Cupcakes with White Chocolate Frosting for my book group in March. Bon Appetit!

p.s. After writing this, we had a simple dinner of red beans and rice with avocado, tomatoes, sour cream and Tabasco for toppings. Kyle ate it. And liked it. Scott too. Except for the green!

by Dee, wife of Barbara's son Scott