Cherry Almond Bundt Cake

This month has been quite stressful.  Between work and a few personal agreements I have been running around like crazy.  Baking has been a great stress reliever for me.

I was going through my my list of desserts that I want to bake.  If you have been following the blog then you know that I love cherries and Almonds.  This one was a no brainer.  The cake was moist and sweet.  The icing was the perfect complement to the cake.  

I am sure you could substitute the maraschino cherries for fresh ones.  It would make the cake less sweet but still very delicious. 

http://www.thenovicechefblog.com/2015/01/cherry-almond-bundt-cake/

Cherry Almond Bundt Cake
Cake Ingredients:
16 oz jar maraschino cherries
3 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
4 oz almond paste
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk

Glaze Ingredients:
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 tablespoons (leftover) cherry juice

Directions:
Remove cherries from juice, saving the juice for later use in this recipe, and chop cherries. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 10 inch bundt pan with baker's joy or butter and flour it. Set aside.

Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In stand mixer, cream together the butter, almond paste and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the almond extract and vanilla extract.

Beat in the flour mixture alternately with milk and 1/2 cup cherry juice that you saved from earlier, mixing until combined. Fold in chopped cherries. Pour batter into pan.

Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool for 20 minutes and invert on a wire rack. Allow to cool another 10 minutes.

For glaze: Whisk together powdered sugar, almond extract and cherry juice until smooth. If too thick, add more cherry juice as needed. Drizzle on top of the cake and serve!

Lemon Thyme Chicken

I am always looking for new recipes that are quick, easy and most importantly tasty.  This chicken dish hits the mark! I would easily serve this for company.  It has great flavor and the chicken was very moist.  I think I would serve this with roasted or mashed potatoes alongside of asparagus.

http://momssrecipe.blogspot.com.au/2014/03/lemon-and-thyme-chicken-breasts-recipe.html

Lemon and Thyme Chicken

INGREDIENTS:
1-2 tbsp olive oil
6 cloves of garlic, minced
2/3 cup of chicken broth
Zest from 1 lemon
Juice from 1 lemon
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
Two sprigs of fresh thyme
1 lemon cut into 4 wedges


DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Coat a baking dish with cooking spray.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; add the minced garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute, making sure not to burn the garlic. Add the chicken broth, lemon zest, lemon juice, oregano, and thyme leaves to the pan. Pour the mixture into the baking dish. Season both sides of the chicken breasts with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Place the chicken in the baking dish along with the lemon wedges and the two sprigs of thyme.  (Tuck the thin skinny edge of the chicken under itself so that
Place into the oven and bake, basting occasionally, for 30-40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear. Remove from the oven and let the meat rest for 5 minutes before slicing. Drizzle the pan sauce on top of the slices of chicken and serve. Enjoy!

Peach Pound Cake

I made this loaf out of the need to make friends.  I was going to meet some new people.  It's a fact that I am pretty socially awkward.  I find that making friends is significantly easier when you bring treats.  It creates a reason to start a conversation.

I ended up making two of these loafs.  I drizzled cream cheese frosting on the top of the loaf.  My husband took one to his game night and I took one to my rehearsal.  They were well received!

Fresh Peach Pound Cake

http://amothersshadow.com/2014/09/09/fresh-peach-pound-cake/

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
6 eggs
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup sour cream
3 cups diced fresh or frozen peaches (6–8 peaches) I used frozen as they are not in season.

Directions:

Pre­heat oven to 350 degrees.
In a bundt pan, butter the pan well with the 3–4 Tbl. covering all areas.

Dust with the ¼ cup sugar, turning the pan to coat well.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Beat in the extracts.
In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking soda and salt; add to batter alternately with sour cream; beating well after each addition. Fold in the peaches.

Pour the peach batter into the prepared bundt pan.Bake for 60–70 minutes, or until the tooth­pick comes out almost clean. Cool for 15 minutes before removing from the pan to a serving plate. When cooled dust with confectioner’s sugar if desired.

Copyright, Recipe by Carrie Groneman,  A Mother’s Shadow, 2014

One Pot Mexican Rice Casserole

I often forget how amazing one pot rice dishes are.  I think I get a bit overwhelmed by the idea that I have to get my liquid to rice ratios right and not end up with mushy veggies. This was a delightful easy week night meal that I would easily add to my dinner menu rotation.  Try it for yourself!
Adapted from damndelicious.net

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 kielbasa sausage
1 cup corn kernels, frozen, canned or roasted
1 (14.5-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup white rice*
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
INSTRUCTIONS

Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium high heat. Add garlic, onion and bell pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until onions have become translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in zucchini, kielbasa and corn until tender and heated through, about 2 minutes.
Stir in diced tomatoes, rice, chili powder, cumin and 1 1/2 cups water; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer until rice is cooked through, about 15-18 minutes.
Stir in cheese until melted through, about 1-2 minutes.
Serve immediately, garnished with cilantro, if desired.
NOTES

*Brown rice can be substituted but cooking time may have to be increased as needed.*

© Kim Bohme and A Bohme Cooked Meal