Cherry Pecan Bread

Have you ever made a recipe and just not been sure if you like it or not, yet you seem to keep going back to the plate, picking pieces off and eating it? Then before you know it, it's gone? That was me with this cherry pecan bread. I think the thing that threw me for a loop was that it was baked in a bundt pan, yet it only filled the pan halfway. So I ended up with this shorty bundt when I really think it should have been baked in a loaf pan to begin with.

Pasta with Garlic Roasted Broccoli

I've been making a lot of pasta without red sauce lately. I still like red sauce, but have grown pretty tired of the same old same old, so trying recipes with broth or olive oil based sauces has been wonderful. Hubby won't eat a white sauce, so Alfredo is out. This particular recipe is a little different than any of the others I've tried. It calls for roasting the broccoli in the oven then at the end tossing in broth and cheese with the hot pasta. I'll try anything (well, almost anything) once.

I love the addition of walnuts in this dish. It's simple and tasty, but I think it needed a little something extra. Maybe something as simple as a little salt or garlic salt would do the trick, but you could play with it easily enough. I always sprinkle garlic salt on my pasta dishes, so that was good enough for me. :)

Peach Almond Bread with Cinnamon Topping

I'll start by saying I've never been big on peaches. Almonds, on the other hand, are a completely different story. I decided to be adventurous and try this recipe which combines the two topped off with cinnamon because frankly, it sounded good! I don't hate peaches, they just aren't up there as a favorite. I don't usually buy them, so for this recipe I grabbed a bag of frozen peaches. The verdict? Divine!

Shredded Beef and Chile Enchiladas

It's no secret that I love Mexican food. I don't mean enchiladas made with condensed soup or tacos made with powdered taco seasoning packets. I love authentic Mexican flavors; fresh cilantro, roasted chile peppers, and plenty of fresh grated cheese. Earlier this year I found one of those BHG special interest publications called Ultimate Mexican. I've made several recipes from it. You might remember the sweet conchas (Mexican sweet bread), or the champurrado (thick Mexican hot chocolate), or the delicious spicy grilled chicken with baja black beans and rice. I also have a chalupa recipe waiting in the wings that I still haven't posted yet! Everything I've made from this magazine so far has been phenomenal.

Almond Butter Cake

Anything with almond is good in my book. I have to admit though, when I first read this recipe and it said to fill it with blueberry filling and then top it with vanilla cream cheese frosting, I was having a hard time wrapping my brain around all those flavor combinations. I mean really, would a simple glaze or maybe something cherry flavored make more sense? I had successfully made a recipe for Sunflower Whole Wheat Quick Bread from this cookbook (Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook) before, so I decided to trust the author's judgement and forge ahead.

I think it's time for me to actually buy this cookbook. Two recipes down, both successes, always a good sign! I originally checked this book out from the library and copied a few recipes down before having to return it. Think I'll be buying it now. :)

Mediterranean Chicken

Absolutely delicious! The pictures of this fabulous chicken dish are awful, so I apologize in advance. While the pics don't do it justice, I can tell you that the flavors in this dish all play off of each other so well, and it smells so good while it was cooking. I served it with some vegetable rice and ate every morsel of the yummy sauce. So good! This is on the must make list.

Lemon Cornmeal Cake with Blueberry Sauce

Up until a couple of weeks ago, I hadn't yet made a cake with cornmeal. I had been holding on to the recipe, a page I pulled out of my Bon Appetit magazine over a year ago, and finally decided to make it. It's strangely addicting. I found myself taking bite after bite trying to determine if I really liked it or not. Before I knew it, the piece was gone. I never told anyone there was cornmeal in it, yet my oldest son, daughter, youngest son and my husband all had a piece or two and enjoyed it. Some used the blueberry sauce, some didn't. After all, it was good with just the glaze, but the sauce pushed it over the top.