Mac and Cheese

Ukrop's Macaroni and Cheese

• 5 cups cooked macaroni (2 cups, raw)
• 2 cups small curd cottage cheese
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
• 8 ounce shredded cheddar
• 1/4 cup Parmesan
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine cottage cheese, sour cream, egg, salt, pepper, and mustard. Stir in cheddar cheese. Gently add cooked macaroni. Spoon into a greased 3-quart baking dish. Top with Parmesan and paprika. Bake about 40 minutes or until set. Do not over bake. Serves 8-10.

Cherry Snowballs

Recipe from allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter (no substitutes), softened
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 36 maraschino cherries, well drained
• COATING:
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 cups flaked coconut, finely chopped

Directions

1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar, water and vanilla. Combine flour, oats and salt; gradually add to the creamed mixture. Shape a tablespoonful of dough around each cherry, forming a ball. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees F for 18-20 minutes or until bottoms are browned. Remove to wire racks to cool. Combine sugar and enough milk to achieve smooth dipping consistency. Dip cookies, then roll in coconut.

Giant Turnover

Nothing beats a warm dessert on a cold day! Here is a recipe for a giant fruit turnover, big enough to share!

Ingredients:

1 lb (total) apples and pears, peeled and cored
1/4 dried cherries
1/4 cup chopped nuts
3 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp dry bread crumbs
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed (about 8 1/2 oz)
1 egg, lightly beaten

Directions:
1. Cut fruit into small cubes. Toss with cherries, nuts, sugar, bread crumbs, and cinnamon
2. Don't unfold pastry, but roll it into a 14 inch square on parchment lined baking sheet. Spoon filling onto bottom half of dough, leaving at least an inch border to close the turnover. Wet the edges with water, fold over and seal the edges with a fork. Brush the top with beaten egg. Prick turnover in 3 places.
3. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then lower temperature to 350 degrees and bake an additional 20 minutes, or until puffed and golden.

All of the fruit for this recipe can be found at The Red Barn. You can also buy a fruit corer/slicer/peeler there as well!

Recipe by Dorie Greenspan.

Cherry Granola Bars

Homemade Granola Bars

1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup butter
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup peanut butter
3 tsp vanilla

3 cups krispie rice cereal
3 cups other cereals {I used 1.5 cups of two different kinds}
3 cups quick cooking oats
4 TBSP flax
1 1/2 cups raisins, craisins, etc.
3/4 cup chocolate chips {optional}

In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients, leaving out the chocolate chips. Line a large jelly roll pan with foil and spray the foil lightly with non-stick spray.

Combine the brown sugar, corn syrup, butter, honey and salt in a saucepan. Heat until just boiling. Remove from heat and add in vanilla and peanut butter. Mix until smooth.

Pour over the cereal/ oat mixture and stir until combined. If you're adding chocolate chips, I suggest waiting about 5 minutes, until it's cooled slightly, then add them in. {I was in a time crunch here, so I just added them. They melted slightly, but it worked out just fine!}

Once mixed well, transfer to the foil-lined pan. Spread mixture evenly, pressing firmly with the back end of a spoon or your hand. I just take one of those little sandwich baggies and put it on my hand, then spray the bag with cooking spray and use my hand to press the mixture in. It's very effective and no clean up as you just discard the bag!

Cool completely before cutting. I stick the whole tray in the freezer for an hour or two. Once cut, you can individually bag them and store them in the freezer.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin patch pancakes

Pumpkin Patch Pancakes

Mix up your favorite pancake mix according to package directions. For every cup of dry mix used, mix in the following:
¼ cup canned pumpkin
½ tsp. pumpkin pie spice (If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice on hand you can make your own. See recipe below.) Cook pancakes as you normally would.

Apple Cider Syrup

1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
4 cups Red Barn apple juice

In a sauce pan mix together, sugar, cornstarch, and pumpkin spice. Stir in apple juice. Bring to a boil, remembering to stir occasionally. Boil until desired thickness. Remove from heat and serve over Pumpkin Patch Pancakes or give it a try over regular pancakes.

Pumpkin Pie Spice

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Mix and store.

Pumpkin Apple Muffins

• 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup diced apples, softened in microwave {2 minutes worked for me}

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray muffin tin with oil. Mix ingredients and spoon into muffin cups, filling them about 3/4 full. I like to make mini muffins because they bake in less time and they're fun for my kids to eat. Mini muffins take about 13 minutes to cook. Regular sized muffins take about 18-20 minutes to cook.
Cool and enjoy!

Apricot Fruit Leather

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 cups pitted and diced fresh Red Barn apricots
• 1/2 cup white sugar

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees F (165 degrees C), or the lowest setting you have.
2. Combine the lemon juice, apricots and sugar in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until sugar has dissolved. Transfer to a blender and puree until smooth.
3. Cover an 11x17 inch pan or cookie sheet with a layer of plastic wrap. Pour the pureed fruit onto the plastic and spread evenly to within 1 inch of the edge.
4. Bake for 4 to 6 hours in the preheated oven, using a spoon or a pair of tongs to keep the door slightly ajar, or until the puree has dried and is no longer sticky. Once dry, you can cut it into strips and store in an airtight container.

Hawaiian Zucchini Bread

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Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Tasty Tuesday: Blueberry French Toast

Today's recipe is from Real Mom Kitchen. You know it's a good one because she just landed her own cookbook deal - so snag this recipe while you can before it's no longer available for free!

Overnight Blueberry French Toast with Blueberry Syrup

French Toast:

* 12 slices bread, cut into cubes (Texas toast and cinnamon bread work well)
* 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, cut in cubes
* 1 cup Red Barn blueberries (fresh or frozen)
* 12 large eggs
* 1/3 cup maple syrup
* 2 cups milk (I use 1 cup milk and 1 cup cream)

Syrup:

* 1 cup sugar
* 1 cup water
* 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
* 1 cup Red Barn blueberries (fresh or frozen)
* 1 Tablespoon butter

1. Arrange 1/2 of the bread cubes in a greased 9 x 13 pan.
2. Sprinkle cream cheese cubes and blueberries evenly over the bread cubes.
3. Top with remaining bread cubes.
4. Mix together eggs, milk, and syrup.
5. Pour over bread cubes and cover pan with foil. Let chill in refrigerator overnight.
6. Bake covered with foil at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes or until fluffy and golden. Top with sauce. Serves 8.

Sauce: Cook water, sugar, and cornstarch until thickened. Stir in blueberries and simmer for 10 minutes. Add butter and stir until melted. Serve over the french toast.

*If you don't want to make your own syrup, make sure to try one of our many great syrup flavors. I think Red Barn raspberry syrup would be a fun twist!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Tasty Tuesday: zucchini bread

Now that our gardens are actually giving off produce, I thought it would be fun to do a recipe using a vegetable that most of us are able to grow in our gardens. Today I bring you a twist on the traditional zucchini bread. It comes from the Real Moms Real Views site. We wanted to thank them again for hosting our giveaway last week. I will share the Hawaiian Zucchini bread, but they also have one for chocolate zucchini bread as well that you can check out here.

Hawaiian Zucchini Bread

Ingredients:

3 eggs, beaten

2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups gated zucchini
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 cup coconut

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease two 9×5 inch loaf pans.

Step 1: In a large bowl mix together eggs, sugar, vanilla, oil, and zucchini. (I decided to do 1 cup sugar and 1 cup splenda to help cut down on the calories in case I end up eating both loaves. )

Step 2: In a separate bowl, mix together flour, soda, baking powder, and salt. Add to the zucchini batter and mix well.

Step 3: Stir in pecans, pineapple, and coconut. Pour into loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour, or until browned. (It only took mine 50 minutes).

Let cool in pan for 30 minutes before removing. Finish cooling on cooling racks. Eat and enjoy!

Blueberry French Toast

French Toast:

* 12 slices bread, cut into cubes (Texas toast and cinnamon bread work well)
* 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, cut in cubes
* 1 cup Red Barn blueberries (fresh or frozen)
* 12 large eggs
* 1/3 cup maple syrup
* 2 cups milk (I use 1 cup milk and 1 cup cream)

Syrup:

* 1 cup sugar
* 1 cup water
* 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
* 1 cup Red Barn blueberries (fresh or frozen)
* 1 Tablespoon butter

1. Arrange 1/2 of the bread cubes in a greased 9 x 13 pan.
2. Sprinkle cream cheese cubes and blueberries evenly over the bread cubes.
3. Top with remaining bread cubes.
4. Mix together eggs, milk, and syrup.
5. Pour over bread cubes and cover pan with foil. Let chill in refrigerator overnight.
6. Bake covered with foil at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes or until fluffy and golden. Top with sauce. Serves 8.

Sauce: Cook water, sugar, and cornstarch until thickened. Stir in blueberries and simmer for 10 minutes. Add butter and stir until melted. Serve over the french toast.

*If you don't want to make your own syrup, make sure to try one of our many great syrup flavors. I think Red Barn raspberry syrup would be a fun twist!

Peachy Brean

3 cups sliced fresh peaches	1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons sugar	1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour	1/2 cup shortening
1 teaspoon baking powder	2 eggs
1 teaspoon soda	1 cup finely chopped pecans
1/4 teaspoon salt	1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Place peaches and 6 tablespoons sugar in container of electric blender; process until pureed. (Mixture should yield about 2 1/4 cups.) Combine flour, baking powder, soda, salt and cinnamon; set aside. Combine 1 1/2 cups sugar and shortening; cream well. Add eggs and mix well. Add peach puree and dry ingredients, mixing until ingredients are moistened. Stir in nuts and vanilla. Spoon batter into 2 well greased and floured 9x5x3-inch loaf pans. Bake at 325° for 55-60 minutes or until done. Cool 10 minutes in pan; turn out on rack, and let cool completely. Perfect when topped with Red Barn jam!
Yield: 2 Loaves

Fresh Peach Dessert

Ingredients:
Graham cracker crust
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
2 Tbls corn starch
1 small package peach jello
1 package cream cheese (softened)
1 large container cool whip
5 large Red Barn peaches
Directions:

Make or purchase a graham cracker crust. In a small bowl, blend cream cheese and half of cool whip. Pour and spread over cooled crust. Now add a layer of fresh sliced peaches. In a sauce pan bring to a boil the water, sugar, and corn starch. Add peach jello. Once dissolved, pour mixture over the peaches and refrigerate until set. Top with remaining cool whip if desired.

Caramel Apple or Peach Topping

Ingredients:
6 Red Barn peaches, peeled and sliced
2 tsp lemon juice
1 cup packed brown sugar
3 tbsp melted butter
1/4 cup whipping cream
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Red Barn vanilla ice cream (optional)

In a bowl, toss together peach slices and lemon juice. In a slow cooker, combine brown sugar, butter, cream, and cinnamon; mix well. Add peach slices and toss to coat with sugar mixture. Cover and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours until fruit is bubbling. If desired, serve over vanilla ice cream. Serves 4 to 6.

Note: Sliced apples can be substituted for peaches.

Caramel Apple Bars

Here is a great back-to -school bake sale recipe from Laura at RMK.

Caramel Apple Bars

1/2 cup cold butter
1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker® oatmeal cookie mix
1 egg
1 cup finely chopped peeled Red Barn apple
3/4 cup caramel topping
1/4 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour

Heat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom of 13×9-inch pan with cooking spray.
In large bowl, cut butter into cookie mix using fork or pastry blender. Stir in egg until mixture is crumbly.
Reserve 1 1/2 cups cookie mixture (I would do 1 1/4 cups) . Press remaining cookie mixture into bottom of pan. Bake 15 minutes. Sprinkle apple evenly over crust. In small bowl, mix caramel topping and flour; drizzle over apples. Sprinkle reserved cookie mixture over apples.
Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely, about 2 hours. For bars, cut into 9 rows by 4 rows.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Heat oven to 375°F. In step 4, bake 23 to 28 minutes.

Pumpkin Praline

Ingredients:
16 oz. pumpkin
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 can evaporated milk
3 tsp. pumpkin spice (I use pumpkin pie spice)

Whip all ingredients with a whisk. Set aside.

1 yellow cake mix (dry)
3/4 cube of melted butter
3 oz of your favorite nut, chopped

Spray a 9 x 13 pan. Pour pumpkin mixture on the bottom. Spread the yellow cake mix on top. Sprinkle with nuts and spread the butter on top of the entire cake. Bake for 55 minutes at 350 degrees.

Once slightly cooled, this is great with Red Barn vanilla ice cream, whip cream, or just plain. I bet it would be great with a spice cake. Try adding a tsp of cinnamon for extra holiday flavor!

Berry Parfaits

Mixed Berry Parfaits

Ingredients:
¾ cup fresh blueberries
¾ cup fresh blackberries
¾ cup fresh raspberries
2 cups yogurt (vanilla, strawberry, or other favorite flavor)
2 crunchy granola bars

1. Divide berries among 4 parfait dishes, top with ½ cup yogurt.
2. Crumble granola into coarse pieces, sprinkle over fruit and yogurt. Serve immediately.

*This can be made with thawed frozen berries, like the ones from The Red Barn freezer.

Strawberry Frosting

Strawberry Jam Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
5-6 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup Red Barn Strawberry jam
red food coloring (enough to make it a pretty pink color)

Place butter and jam in a mixing bowl or an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream until well incorporated, about 2 minutes.
Add powdered sugar, one cup at a time, until you reach desired consistency. If frosting gets too thick you can add a little milk to thin it out. Put on your favorite treat, pictured above is Devil's Food Cake cupcakes.

Chocolate Strawberry Crispy Pie

Chocolate Strawberry Crispy Pie

½ cup chocolate flavored syrup
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups crisp rice cereal
¼ cup dairy sour cream
1/2 to 1 quart Red Barn *strawberry ice cream (however full you want your pie)

*Pick any flavor you want for a different twist to this recipe!

Butter an 8” pie plate; set aside (I used a 9″pie plate). In medium microwave-safe bowl combine chocolate syrup with chocolate chips; microwave on high for 45 seconds or until hot. Stir until smooth. Remove ¼ cup chocolate mixture to small bowl; set aside. Add cereal to remaining chocolate mixture and stir to coat; cool slightly and press mixture evenly into bottom and up the sides of pie plate. Place in freezer for 20 minutes or until firm. Combine reserved ¼ cup of chocolate mixture with sour cream. Spoon half the ice cream into pie, drizzle with chocolate sauce. Top with scoops of ice cream if desired and remaining sauce. (I put the whole amount of ice cream in the pie and then drizzled it with the sour cream/chocolate mixture.) Garnish with fresh strawberries before serving if desired.

Cran-Orange Almond Salad

If you are anything like me and ate WAY too much at yesterday's BBQ, and the left overs only remind you of how much you shouldn't have eaten, then this recipe is for you! A crisp light salad, good anytime of the year. This can also be altered to include your left over grilled chicken or other meats for a more hearty salad.

Cran-Orange Almond Salad

• 1 large head red leaf lettuce, washed, dried, and broken into pieces
  
• 1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings (the thinner the better)
  
• 2 – 3 Red Barn oranges, peeled and sliced then cut into chunks (You can use 2 cans of mandarin oranges, drained – but the fresh orange is fabulous)
• 1/2 jicama, peeled and cut into julienne strips (optional)
  
• 1/2 cup Red Barn dried cranberries

Serve tossed with orange dressing and sugared almonds. (recipes below)

Orange Dressing

• 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
• 1/3 cup fresh orange juice
• 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup canola oil (or vegetable oil)
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Good Seasons dry Italian dressing mix

Combine ingredients in blender or shaker jar.

Sugared Almonds

• 4 ounces slivered almonds
• 3 Tablespoons sugar

Place almonds in a small skillet and sprinkle with sugar. Cook over medium heat stirring until almonds are coated and starting to brown (a nice tan color) and sugar has dissolved. (Be careful not to burn) Allow almonds to cool.

Tasty Tuesday: Chicken and Asparagus Roulades

Ingredients

• 1 1/4-lb pkg thin-sliced boneless chicken breasts
• 12 thin sandwich-sized slices Swiss cheese (from an 8-oz pkg)
• 1 lb Red Barn asparagus, woody ends snapped off; spears simmered in salted water until tender, then cooled

Directions

Heat oven to 350°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil.

Place 1 slice chicken on each of 4 sheets of plastic wrap. Cut extra chicken in pieces; place, overlapping, on slices so each is about equal size. Cover with plastic wrap; pound to fuse pieces to slices and until evenly thick. Uncover; sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper.

Top each with 3 slices cheese to 1/2 in. of edge. Place 1/4 the asparagus at narrower end. Tightly roll up; secure with a wooden pick. Roll roulades in 1 1/2 Tbsp flour.

Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add roulades; brown on all sides. Place on baking sheet. Bake 10 to 15 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Carefully remove picks and slice.

This recipe provided by Real Mom Kitchen

Roasted Asparagus

• 1 pound Red Barn asparagus spears (the thicker the better for roasting)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Kosher/Coarse salt
• Black pepper
• Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. While the oven is preheating, gently break off the lower ends of the asparagus. This is the tough part that isn’t so great for eating. The asparagus should break naturally when you bend the asparagus about 1-2 inches up the stalk. Discard the lower, tough portion.
2. Lay the asparagus in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil. Using your fingers, gently roll the asparagus to evenly coat with the oil. Sprinkle the asparagus with cheese, salt, and pepper. Again, lightly roll the asparagus so the seasoning gets evenly distributed.
3. Bake for 10-12 minutes, checking often the last one to two minutes of baking, until the asparagus is tender when pierced with a fork. Serve immediately.

*The first time I made this I forgot to set the timer, and it was in the oven for about 20 minutes so it got a bit crispy, but truth be told, it was so delicious that way that now it's my preferred roasting method! You can use any seasonings you want to change up the flavor of this recipe. Asparagus is also great on the grill!