Keep Calm and Cook On - July Features

Hello everyone! 

Thank you SO MUCH for sharing all of your FABULOUS strawberry recipes in the July edition of Keep Calm and Cook On.  Here are the top 3 strawberry recipes as chosen by you (based on clicks).

Raspberry Strawberry No Cook Frozen Cheesecake from Call Me PMC

Angel Food Trifle from Baking in a Tornado

Strawberry Pudding Cookies from The Velvet Moon Baker

Come back tomorrow to see what the August theme will be!

Surf and Turf Dessert - Guest Post by Susan from Love in the Kitchen

Howdy Addicted to Recipes readers!  I'm Susan from Love in the Kitchen.  I'm a lawyer by day and you'll most likely find me negotiating contracts.  But in my free time, you'll find me where my heart lies - either in the kitchen or the garden.

At Love in the Kitchen, I share my passion for cooking easy and tasty homemade food with fresh ingredients with you.  Today I'm guest-posting here at Addicted to Recipes!  I think found the perfect recipe to share here as well - I hope y'all think so too!

The Mr and I saw something similar to these recently, but they were made with goldfish instead of Swedish Fish.  We decided to modify them to be all sweet (dessert should have candy after all.) And while we were shopping for the ingredients, we saw Teddy Grahams and The Mr (who has a great imagination) knew right then that we had to make this into A Surf and Turf Dessert.

A Surf and Turf Dessert

Ingredients (makes approximately 40 pops):

• 1 bag light blue chocolate melts (found in the baking aisle of most craft stores)
• 1 bag green chocolate melts
• 2 – 10.5 ounce bag large marshmallows
• 1 box graham cracker crumbs
• 1 package Swedish Fish
• 1 box Teddy Grahams
• Large white pearl nonpareils
• 2 cups shredded coconut, tinted green
• 40 lollipop sticks

Directions:

First we'll make the "Surf"

Melt blue chocolate melts according to package.  Do not over-melt or the chocolate will be difficult to work with.

Place lollipop sticks in marshmallows. Dip marshmallows into the chocolate. Tap excess chocolate off the marshmallow (or spread additional chocolate where it does not cover the marshmallow) before proceeding.

Before the chocolate dries, dip the bottom in graham cracker crumbs. Add a Swedish Fish and 2 white pearl non pareils to the side.

Set aside to dry while you make the "Turf".

Now let's make the "Turf"!

Melt green chocolate melts according to package.  Do not over-melt or the chocolate will be difficult to work with.

Place lollipop sticks in marshmallows. Dip marshmallows into the chocolate. Tap excess chocolate off the marshmallow (or spread additional chocolate where it does not cover the marshmallow) before proceeding.

Before the chocolate dries, dip the bottom in the shredded coconut "grass" and dip one side in graham cracker crumb "tree trunk". Add two Teddy Grahams to each marshmallow.

Allow to dry and then enjoy!

This is the sweetest Surf and Turf you'll ever eat - and the cutest.  One word of caution - kids LOVE these!  You'll need to keep one aside for yourself if you've got kids around.

I sure hope you make and enjoy this dessert. And THANKS so much Dawn for the opportunity to show this to your readers!

Peanut Butter Rolo Cookies - Guest Post from DeDe at Designed Decor

Hello, My name is DeDe and I blog over at Designed Decor.

 

I am a wife, mother of 4 boys, a blogger who blogs about baking, repurposing  crafting and all things in and around my house. I am super excited to be invited to share my recipe with all of you here at Addicted to Recipes.   I am a lover of all things peanut butter! So of course I needed to try this recipe, Peanut Butter Rolo Cookies.  

I made these Peanut Butter Rolo cookies for a bake sale for the High School Band, they were a hit. I love to bake so I will always volunteer to make cookies for a bake sale. I also like to try new recipes, and this was the perfect cookie to make.

 

Rolo Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies: 

1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter*, softened to room temperature 
1/2 cup dark brown sugar 
1/4 cup granulated sugar 
1 egg 
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter 
1 tsp vanilla extract 
1/2 tsp baking soda 
1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 
24 rolos 

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugars together. Stir in the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla (in order). 

Slowly mix in the baking soda and flour. Do not over mix. 

Chill the dough for 30 minutes. 

 Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. 

Take a scoop of the chilled dough and split in half. Stick a rolo on the bottom half of the dough. Top the rolo with the other half of the d

ough and seal down the sides so that the rolo is fully covered with the dough. Repeat with the rest of the dough and all 24 rolos. 

Bake for 9 minutes. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

 

*You may use unsalted butter in this recipe. If so, add 1/4 tsp salt with the flour.

RECIPE SOURCE: SALLYSBAKINGADDICTION.COM Warning: You cannot eat just one!

I hope you will stop over to my blog and see some of the other great things I have made like these Blueberry Muffins

And this great repurposed clipboard

I want to thank Dawn for letting me share this recipe with you. Please stop by to say Hello, and you can find me on these social media sites; Pinterest - Facebook - Twitter

   

Curried Salmon

Grilling season is upon us, and while we do tend to use our BBQ year round, summer of course is where it's at and we grill 4-5 times a week.  Also where it's at is when my hubby decides it's his turn to try a new recipe for me to write about (yes, HE did the cooking!)...so here it is, a new taste for grilled salmon!

Curried Salmon (Source: Barbecue Plus 2005)

1 1/2 - 2 lbs salmon fillet (with or without skin) - ours was without
1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons mild curry paste
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preheat your grill - medium-high.

In a bowl, combine the greek yogurt, lemon juice, curry paste, salt and pepper.  Mix well.

Place the salmon in a shallow dish or in a ziploc bag and pour the marinade over the fish.  Coat well.

Reserving the marinade, place the salmon on the grill (if you are using salmon with skin, place skin side down).  Brush the top with the marinade.  Close the lid on your BBQ and grill for 5-7 minutes.

Turn the salmon over on the grill, and cook until the fish is cooked (will be opaque and will easily flake) - approximately 8-10 minutes.

Remove from grill onto a serving plate, sprinkle with the chopped cilantro, serve and enjoy!

VERDICT:
This was a nice change for our salmon.  Great flavour, nice tang.  A hint of curry - not overwhelming at all.  Though being the curry fan that I am, I might be tempted to add a little curry powder to the marinade next time!  We devoured the meal, and my hubby and oldest son were "fighting" over the last morsels.  This was perfect with a nice green salad, chock full of vegetables.

Dawn's Baked Beans (Homemade, Slow Cooker)

Our youngest is on a bean kick.  He is loving loving LOVING beans.  As far as I know, I have only ever had beans from a can, which I do typically purchase...but now that I am on summer holidays, I figured it was time to come up with a homemade version so to try.  I also wanted the recipe to be a slow cooker recipe (thinking ahead to hockey season!).  After reading several recipes and thinking about the flavours that my family would like, this is the recipe that I have come up with:

Dawn's Baked Beans

2 cups navy beans
6 slices bacon, cooked crispy and crumbled
3/4 - 1 cup onion, diced
1/2 - 3/4 cup green pepper, diced
1 cup molasses
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 156 mL can tomato paste
6 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
3 teaspoons ground mustard
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon chipotle spice
1-2 drops liquid smoke
Dash red pepper flakes

Rinse the navy beans and soak overnight in cold water.

In the morning, strain the beans and rinse them out.  Put the beans into a large saucepan, cover with water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 45-50 minutes. After 45-50 minutes, drain off any excess water.

Meanwhile, cook the bacon.

In a small bowl, combine the molasses, brown sugar, tomato paste, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, ground mustard, garlic, paprika and red pepper flakes.  Mix well.  Set aside for a moment.

Cover the bottom of the slow cooker with beans.  Layer in some of the bacon, green pepper and onion.  Add the remaining beans, bacon, green paper and onion on top.  Top with the molasses mixture.  Cover, and heat on low for 5-6 hours.

VERDICT:
Big big BIG hit!  Our toddler ate these for lunch and dinner (and lunch and dinner again and again), and hubs had two giant helpings at dinner.  Keeper!

Easy Apricot Dessert Recipe with a Twist - Guest Post by Jessie at Cake Decorating Video Tutorials

Please join me in welcoming Jessie from Cake Decorating Video Tutorials for this week's guest post!

Easy Apricot Dessert Recipe With A Twist

We are in the middle of the summer and if you haven’t tried baked fruit desserts yet, then now is the best time to start! Fruits like apricots, peaches and nectarines are just coming into the season and you can find them in any fruit shop or stand.

Apricots are sweet and delicious on their own but when baked they can be an unexpected surprise for your garden party guests or a treat on a summer Sunday afternoon.

Today I would like to share a delicious apricot dessert recipe that is also super easy and quick to make.

You will need the following ingredients:

• 6 ripe apricots, halved and pitted
• 2 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 20g of chocolate (it could be dark or milk chocolate with some nuts)
• 1/4 cup sugar (learn how you can convert this and any other of your favourite recipe into sugar-free dessert recipes that are suitable for diabetics, weight loss and those who are just watching their sugar intake)
• 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 6 scoops of ice cream of the flavour of your choice (optional)

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350° F.

Wash and dry apricots and then cut them into halves and remove the pits. To make the apricots stable cut a thin slice from the round side of each apricot half and place them in the glass or porcelain baking form.

Twist: Put some small pieces of chocolate in the middle of each apricot half.

Meringue:

Separate the egg yokes and whites. Beat egg whites using an electric mixer until foamy and then gradually start adding the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time. Beat the mixture until stiff and glossy and then add vanilla extract.

Place the meringue on top of each apricot half completely covering it and enclosing the chocolate.

Put the apricots into the oven and bake for about 20 minutes until the meringue is golden brown. The apricots will be softened but still hold their shape.

Serving Ideas:

This easy apricot dessert is best when served immediately when it is warm right out of the oven. However, you can also place it into an air-tight container and keep refrigerated for up to 3 days to serve it cold later.

Baked apricots go well with ice cream and can also be sprinkled with some shaved chocolate on the top. Enjoy!

Jessie B. Werner is a cake enthusiast who loves to decorate cakes and make desserts. On her blog you can read more about how to start your own home based cake business and watch cake decorating videos to learn necessary skills to make your dream come true.

Recipe Recap #24

Welcome back to this week's recipe recap!  I love this stroll back through my recipes, I always seem to find one that I have forgotten about, even though we loved it!  Here are the recipes from July 14-20, 2012 (link to recipe in titles):

Homemade Hamburger Helper

Funny, hubs and I were just watching Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, and someone was talking about their pulled pork recipe, which sounded very similar to mine! This one is very popular at our house:
Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork Sandwiches