Pina Colada Upside Down Cake

Even if you are not a baker, I'll bet you will have no trouble putting together this easy and pretty quick to prepare Pina Colada Upside Down Cake. The fresh pineapple makes all the difference in a simple recipe like this, although you can use canned in a pinch. The cake is a very simple one-bowl recipe that anyone can easily prepare.

Combine

4 cups fresh pineapple, cut in small cubes
3 tbsp melted butter
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup dark rum
2 tsp vanilla extract

Pour into the bottom of a 9x9 inch baking dish.

Sift together:

1 & 1/3 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
3 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ cup fine unsweetened shredded coconut

Add
¾ cup milk
1 egg
1/3 cup very soft butter
2 tsp vanilla extract

Beat with an electric mixer for a minute or two until smooth. Pour the batter evenly over the pineapple mixture and bake at 350 degrees F for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Serve with ice cream or sweetened whipped cream.

Apricot Almond Stuffed chicken Breasts with Honey Orange Glaze

My 11 year old daughter calls this her new favorite meal. The 9 year old boy is just crazy for those oven baked crispy potato wedges, so everyone was happy and definitely not hungry after this meal.

The recipe for the potato wedges can be found here:

http://rockrecipes.blogspot.com/2008/01/meatloaf-bacon-and-onion-on-toasted.html

4 boneless chicken breasts, with or without skin, butterfly cut.

Sauté

1 clove chopped garlic
¼ cup butter
Until the garlic is softened but not browned.

Add
1 cup chicken stock

and boil to reduce the volume by half.

Meanwhile toss together:

4 cups good very coarse bread crumbs.
¾ cup chopped apricots
¼ cup toasted chopped almonds
4 sprigs fresh thyme, removed from stems
Salt and pepper to season

Add the reduced butter and chicken stock mixture and combine well. Cool slightly before using the stuffing to fill butterflied chicken breasts.

Place in a lightly oiled baking dish and bake for ½ hour at 375 degrees F. At this point begin to brush the chicken breasts with the Honey Orange Glaze about every 5 minutes. You may want to finish them under the broiler to brown for a minute before serving.

Honey Orange Glaze
Boil together until the volume is reduced by half:

1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup orange juice

Grilled Halibut with Strawberry Salsa and Honey Balsamic Drizzle

This simple summer-fresh fruit salsa makes a great accompanyment to grilled fish or chicken. The honey balsamic drizzle goes very well with it too.

Pictured with a pear and goat cheese spinach salad and honey dijon dressing.

Strawberry Salsa

1 pint fresh strawberries, sliced/chopped

1 clove minced garlic
½ small orange or yellow pepper, chopped
½ small red onion, chopped
½ jalapeño pepper, minced
Salt and pepper to season
4 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 tbsp honey
¼ tsp cumin (optional)

2 tbsp lemon or lime juice

Stir all ingredients together, cover and let stand a couple of hours before serving. A great accompaniment to grilled chicken or fish.

Honey Balsamic Drizzle

¼ cup honey
¼ cup balsamic vinegar

Simmer together in a very small saucepan until the volume is reduced by about half. Allow to cool to room temp before using. Drizzle over strawberry salsa on top of grilled chicken or fish.

Herb and Spice Brined, Lemon Thyme Roast Chicken

This simple brined roast chicken was Sunday supper for us this week. It is definitely the most flavorful roast chicken I have ever eaten. Our whole family loves this roast chicken and if leftovers are planned I have to make two of them for sure.

Boiling the lemon for the cavity is a great technique that I saw on one of Jamie Oliver's shows a while back, because it gives the lemon a head start in infusing the meat with flavour; it works really, really well.

The chicken is pictured here with a lemon thyme version of English style roasted potatoes and some roasted carrots as well. Plan this one for the weekend; you'll be glad you did.

In a small bowl combine:

3 tbsp peppercorns
4 tbsp dry thyme seeds
4 tbsp anise seeds or 4 whole star anise
1 tsp whole cloves
1 cup boiling water

Set aside to steep for a few minutes while you prepare the rest of the brine.

In a large bowl combine:

6 litres water
Juice of 1 whole lemon + peel
4 cloves chopped garlic
1 chopped onion
Few sprigs fresh thyme if you have them
¾ cup sugar ( Here you can experiment with flavours by using equal amounts of other sugars like honey, maple, molasses or brown sugar.)
½ cup kosher salt
Steeped herbs (above)

Stir until the sugar and salt are dissolved, then submerge

1 three pound whole chicken

entirely in the brine. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or preferably overnight.

Pull the chicken from the brine and pat the skin dry with paper towels. Rub the entire surface of the chicken with

2 tbsp olive oil
Season the skin with salt and pepper and some chopped fresh thyme.

Boil 1 lemon for about 10 minutes.

Stab the lemon about a dozen times with a fork and stuff it into the cavity of the bird along with:

About 6 sprigs fresh thyme
4 peeled cloves garlic

Roast uncovered on a rack in a preheated 375 degree F oven until a meat thermometer reaches 185 degrees when inserted into the thickest part of the breast meat ( approximate 1 ½ hours or longer depending on the actual weight of the chicken)

Spiced Pear Bread Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce

Spouse loves her bread pudding...and I mean LOVES her bread pudding. She thinks it is the best thing that it is possible to eat. Pears are also her favorite fruit and there were some ripening on the counter, so I decided while she was still in bed this morning to invent this version of her favorite dessert to have at Sunday brunch.

We never actually got to the brunch part, just the dessert because she insisted I bake it right away when she got up. She ate two pieces of this by 8 AM!! I think she's already planning the extra gym visits this week! ;)

5 cups bread cubes (Use any good quality bread. I’ve used Brioche here but French, Italian or Belgian bread is good too.)

Grease an 8x8 inch baking dish well. Toss in ½ the bread cubes in an even layer. Sprinkle the bread cubes with:

1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
3 medium size pears cut in large cubes

Repeat the layer with the remaining bread cubes, and the same amount of cinnamon and nutmeg.

Whisk together:

1 cup whipping cream
1 cup milk
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
Pinch salt

Pour the mixture evenly over the bread cubes, pressing down slightly to make sure all the cubes are soaked. Let stand for about a half hour or covered in the fridge overnight.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 45-50 minutes until the custard is set and no longer liquid in the center. Let the bread pudding stand for about 20 minutes before serving. Serve with Butterscotch Sauce.

Butterscotch Sauce

1 cup firm packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter
2/3 cup whipping cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp honey (or corn syrup)

Boil all together gently for about 5-6 minutes.

Goat Cheese and Capocollo Stuffed Chicken Breasts

In my continuing efforts to avoid studying for final exams next week, I made these delicious stuffed chicken breasts for supper last night. They were wicked good!

4 large boneless chicken breasts
4 ounces soft goat cheese
1 clove minced garlic
1 tsp chopped fresh oregano
½ tsp black pepper
4 tbsp chopped sundried tomatoes
8 slices lean Capocollo ham
1 egg +2 tbsp water (whisked together to form an egg wash)
1 ½ cups cornflake crumbs

Mix together the goat cheese, garlic, pepper, oregano, and sundried tomatoes. Divide into four equal portions and form into egg shaped balls. Wrap each cheese portion in 2 slices of the Capocollo ham.

Lay each chicken breast flat on a cutting board and season with salt and pepper on both sides. Using a very sharp knife, butterfly cut the breast in half, being careful not to cut all the way through.

Tuck the cheese and Capocollo stuffing into the chicken breast and dip the whole thing into an egg wash and then into the cornflake crumbs. Place stuffed breasts onto a lightly oiled baking sheet and bake in a 375 degree F oven for about 50-60 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 185 degrees F.

Sweet Potato Mash with Roasted Garlic and Honey

This tasty, roasted garlic flavored alternative to regular mashed potatoes is actually a hybrd of regular baked potatoes and baked sweet potatoes with a little honey to add a slight floral note. Some folks like more sweet potato in the mix than white pototo and some like just the opposite. Play with the proportions a little to find your favorite blend.

We had these with a Mustard and Demerara Glazed Baked Ham as pictured. You can find that recipe here:

http://www.rockrecipes.blogspot.com/2007/12/mustard-and-demerara-sugar-glazed-ham.html


2 large baked sweet potatoes
2 to 4 large baked white potatoes (about the same amount as the sweet potato)
4 cloves roasted garlic
3 tbsp dairy butter
3 tbsp honey
Salt and pepper to season

Mash all the ingredients together until well blended.

Strawberry Spinach Goat Cheese Salad with Easy Honey Dijon Dressing

Me mudder always said that she could live on salads if somebody else made 'em. When I came home from school the other evening and Spouse served this one up with supper, I started to understand what mudder was talking about! I think this one is going to make it into the permanent menu rotation in the upcoming grilling season!

The salad consists of:

Baby spinach leaves
Radicchio
Sliced Strawberries
Toasted almonds
Sugar cured smoked bacon
Goat cheese cut in small pieces
Red onion
Red pepper
Easy Honey Dijon Dressing
½ cup low fat mayo
3 tbsp Dijon Mustard
2 tbsp Honey
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
Salt and pepper to season
Whisk all ingredients together until smooth.

Chicken Caesar Burgers

I sometimes think the kids like these better than the adults. In either case these tasty burgers make a very quick and easy workday dinner. Use your favorite caesar salad dressing or make your own using the recipe found here:

http://www.rockrecipes.blogspot.com/2008/04/caesar-salad-dressing.html


4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 egg + 2 tbsp water whisked together to make an egg wash
1/2 cup plain flour
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
3/4 cup grated part skim mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated parmensan cheese
romaine lettuce
caesar salad dressing
8 strips cooked smoked bacon
canola oil for frying

Dip the chicken breasts in flour and then the egg wash, followed by the panko crumbs.

Heat 1/2 inch canola oil in a large skillet over medium low heat and fry the chicken breasts until golden brown. I like to take the internal temperature of the breasts to make sure they hit 185 degrees F to make sure they are fully cooked. If they are getting too brown finish them in a 350 degree F oven until the right temperature is reached.

Top with a mixture of the mozza and parmesan cheese and place under the broiler for a minute to melt the cheese. Toss the romaine lettuce with a little caesar dressing and serve along with the chicken and cooked bacon on toasted kaiser rolls.