Banana Cake

WARNING! This cake is extremely moist, delicious, and
highly addicting. If you make this for a loved one you
will be a hero.

Banana Cake
1 stick of butter
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 banana's, mashed
1/2 cup sour cream
2 1/2 cups of flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder

1) In a large bowl mix together butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla,
Set a side.
2) In another bowl mix together flour, salt, soda, and powder.
Add the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture. Add the
sour cream and bananas and mix.
3) Put into a greased 9 by 13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for
30 to 35 min. Cool.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
1 8oz package cream cheese, room temperature
1 stick of butter, room temperature
3 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 to 2 teaspoons cinnamon.
Mix and pour over cake.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Penne

I just kinda threw this pasta together and wow it was
good. I love when you whip up something and it turns
out perfectly.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Penne
2 chicken breasts, cubed and cooked
1 ham steak, diced
1 onion, diced and sauteed
1/2 cup mushrooms, sauteed
1 jar of alfredo sauce
1 1/2 cup swiss cheese
1 box penne cooked and drained
1 cup of bread crumbs
salt, pepper and other spices

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook and drain pasta.
Put the pasta back in pan and add the cooked chicken,
ham, onions and mushrooms. Add all the other ingredients
except the bread crumbs. Spray a 9 by 13 pan. Add the
ingredients and top with bread crumbs and bake for
until golden.

Weekend Re~Cap

I had another wonderful weekend! It's was over 100 degrees

all weekend long and we made the most of it!

* I loved how my orange juice matched the fresh sunflower.

* I made my best attempt to eat a breakfast burrito but

failed and only ate a quarter of it.

* Went to the Sweet Factory and wanted all the candy.

* The Strawberry Shortcake packaging was adorable.

* Drooled over the brown purse on the right of the pic.

* Bought a bottle of King Estate, Pinot Noir. It was delish.

* Had lunch and ate a Filet Mignon sandwich with Sweet Potato

Fries and both were incredible.

* Cooled down with some Strawberry Cheesecake Gelato.

* Avery loved the Raspberry Gelato.

I hope you all had a great fall weekend!

Caramel~Chocolate Bars

Be prepared for lots of Caramel recipes. I adore
anything that has caramel in it. Have you ever had
The Caramel Chicken at The Cheesecake Factory?
I don't order anything else cause it's that good. These
bars are kinda salty and sweet. I only use salted butter.

Caramel~Chocolate Bars

Crust
1 Box of Betty Crocker chocolate fudge cake mix
1/2 cup of butter, softened
3 eggs
1 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips
Filling
1 bag of caramels, unwrapped
1/4 cup of butter
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
Topping
1/2 cup of reserved cake mix
1/2 cup of quick cooking oats
3 tablespoons of butter

1) Heat oven to 350. Reserve 1/2 cup cake mix topping.
In a large bowl, beat remaining cake mix, 1/2 cup butter
and the eggs with electric mixer on medium speed until
dough forms. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread into a greased
9 by 13 pan. Bake 16 min.
2) Meanwhile, in a 2 quart saucepan, heat caramels, 1/4
cup of butter and the condensed milk over medium heat
about 8 min. Stirring until smooth.
3) Spread the caramel filling evenly over the partially baked
crust. In a small bowl, mix reserved 1/2 cup of cake mix, the
oats and 3 tablespoons of butter with fork until crumbly.
Sprinkle over caramel filling.
4) Bake for 18 to 22 minutes. Cool completely. Cut into bars.

Fall

Happy first day of Fall!! I love this time of year. The smells. The
air. It's time to break out the scarves, sweaters, cute boots and
start baking some amazing goodies. I see lot's of pies and hearty
soups in my future. Do you love this time of year?

It's also time to head to Starbucks and enjoy Pumpkin Spice Latte's
and warm Apple Fritter's. Be still my heart!

Lemon Cheesecake Bars

Lemons, oh how I love citrus fruit. These were so tasty that I
had to give most of the entire pan away. I had envisions of me
eating a piece for breakfast, lunch and dinner so they had to go.
I had a lot of fun taking these photo's and trying to be some what
creative with food pics. Go make some bars before summer is over!

Lemon Cheesecake Bars
1 box lemon cake mix
1/3 cup butter, softened
3 eggs
1 (8oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1) Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, beat cake mix, butter
and one egg with electric mixer on low speed until crumbly. Press
in the bottom of a sprayed 9 by 13 pan.
2) In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese on medium speed until
smooth. On low speed, gradually beat in powdered sugar. Stir in
lemon peel and lemon juice until smooth. Reserve 1/2 cup for
topping. Refrigerate. Into remaining cream cheese mixture, beat
remaining 2 eggs on medium speed until blended. Spread over
cake mixture.
3) Bake 25 to 28 minutes or until set. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
Spread the reserved cream cheese mixture on top. Refrigerate
about 3 hours or until firm. Cut into bars.

Fresh Corn Salad

This is a perfect late Summer salad. It is one of our favorite's.

I did all the prep work out side in the sun. Ahh, it was glorious.

Fresh Corn Salad

10 - 12 ears of corn

1 red bell pepper

1 orange bell pepper

bunch of fresh basil

1 red onion, diced

Dressing

4 to 5 limes, juiced

1/4 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon garlic

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon parsley

2 tablespoon red wine vinegar

salt and pepper

Whisk the dressing and mix in with veggies. You are gonna

love this and it's so good for you.

Coffee Treat

If you were born and raised in New England you know that Dunkin

Donuts is in your blood. It's your life line. I'am not joking. The

town I grew up in had a DD at every corner. The lines are long

but, you don't mind because they are mostly drive-thru and you

have your jammies on anyways. The only problem I have now

living in California is this.... We have no Dunkin Donuts here.

"Long Sigh" That means no bfast sandwich, no maple frosted

donuts, no medium coffee regular and no coffee coolatta, Nada,

Zilch, Nothing.

What's a East Coast girl to do? Well, she finds a way to make

these things at home.

Coffee Coolatta
1 1/4 cups very strong coffee
1 cup milk ( I used half and half)
5 tablespoons of granulated sugar
2 tablespoons of Hershey's syrup
1 tablespoon Torani hazelnut syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon of almond extract
2 1/4 cups of ice cubes

1) Brew strong coffee by using twice the amount of grounds required
by your coffee maker. That should be 2 tablespoons of ground coffee
per each cup of coffee. Chill before using.
2) Combine the cold coffee, milk, sugar, chocolate syrup, hazelnut syrup,
vanilla and almond extract in a blender and blend one minute on low to
dissolve sugar.
3) Add the ice and blend on high until ice is crushed and drink is smooth.
Pour into 2 glasses and serve with straws. Top with Whip Cream.

Baked Eggs In Tomatoes

Baked Eggs In Tomatoes? What? Yeah, so good! I served
these over Browned Butter Corn and Grilled Chicken!

Baked Eggs In Tomatoes
4 large beefsteak tomatoes
salt and pepper
garlic powder
1/2 cup of fresh corn or frozen
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons of snipped fresh chives
1/4 cup of grated parmesan
1/4 cup of cheddar cheese

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-inch baking dish
or pie plate with parchment. With a serrated knife, cut off
top 1/2 inch from the tomato. With a spoon of melon baller,
gently remove seeds and membrane, being careful not to
break through flesh of tomato. Place tomatoes in dish and
season with salt and pepper.
2) Divide corn among tomatoes. In a medium bowl, whisk
together eggs and chives and season with salt, pepper and
garlic powder. Divide egg mixture among tomatoes and
top with cheeses. Bake until egg mixture is set, 45 to 50
minutes. Serve warm. Everyday Food.

Wining And Dining In Santa Barbara

                                   Santa Barbara is such a beautiful place to visit...Very chill and
                                   laid back!