Turtle Cheesecake

http://barefeetinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2012/12/turtle-cheesecake-with-caramel.html
Turtle Cheesecake with Caramel, Chocolate and Pecans
recipe adapted from Philadelphia Cream Cheese
Yield: 16 - 24 servings

12 oreo chocolate sandwich cookies, about 1 cup finely crushed
3 tablespoons butter, melted
3/4 cup caramel sauce, I used this homemade caramel sauce
3 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 eggs
1/4 cup dark chocolate or semi sweet chocolate chips, melted
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted if desired

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Crush the oreo cookies in a large freezer weight ziploc bag. You can use a rolling pin or mallet to crush them. Or, you can quickly pulse them in a food processor. Combine the crumbs with the melted butter and press the mixture into the bottom of a spring-form pan. Pour 1/2 cup of the caramel sauce over this crust and spread it across the crust lightly with a spatula. Refrigerate this crust for 10 minutes.

Beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed just until each one is blended. Pour this mixture over the refrigerated crust. Place the spring-form pan on a large baking sheet prior to placing it in the oven. (If you line the baking sheet with foil first, clean up will be a breeze.) Some of the caramel in the crust will drip through the pan onto your oven if you forget this step.

Bake 65 - 70 minutes, until the center is almost set. Run a knife around the edges of the pan while it is still warm. Let cool at room temperature and then refrigerate 4 hours or overnight before removing the sides of the pan.

Once the sides of the pan have been removed, sprinkle the pecans across the top of the cheesecake and then drizzle with the remaining caramel and the melted chocolate. Store remaining cheesecake in the refrigerator. Enjoy!

Banana Bread Pudding

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Banana-Bread-Pudding

Ingredients
4 cups cubed day-old French or sourdough bread (1-in. pieces)
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 eggs
2 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sliced firm bananas (1/4-inch pieces)
SAUCE:
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Place the bread cubes in a greased 2-qt. casserole; pour butter over and toss to coat. In a medium bowl, lightly beat eggs; add milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Stir in bananas.
Pour over bread cubes and stir to coat. Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 40 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.
Meanwhile, for sauce, melt butter in a small saucepan. Combine sugar and cornstarch; add to butter. Stir in milk and corn syrup. Cook and stir over medium heat until the mixture comes to a full boil. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat; stir in the vanilla. Serve warm sauce over warm pudding. Yield: 6 servings.

Russian Solyanka Soup

http://easteuropeanfood.about.com/od/Russian-Soup-Recipes/r/Solyanka-Soup-Recipe.htm

Solyanka (also spelled soljanka), which comes from the word for "salt," possibly originated in Ukraine in the 17th century and became beloved by Russians. This is a hearty, thick soup with salty cured meats, sausages, olives, capers, pickles, cabbage, sometimes carrots, and dill and sour cream for garnish. Accompanied, of course, by whole-grained bread. There is a vegetarian version but meat solyanka is the most common. It can be considered an "everything-but-the-kitchen-sink" type of soup, but it tastes so much better.

Here is a larger photo of Russian / Ukrainian Solyanka Soup.
Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Yield: 8 servings Solyanka Soup

Ingredients:

Sachet:
2 bay leaves
6 black peppercorns
4 allspice berries
Soup:
10 cups water & 4 tablespoons beef base
-or- 64 oz beef broth and 4 c. water

1/2 head shredded cabbage
1 cup chopped celery
2 medium chopped onions
2 peeled and chopped carrots
1 tablespoon oil
1 pound Polish kabanosy sausage, sliced 1/4-inch thick
2 cooked chicken breasts, cubed
1 cup cubed ham
3 large chopped dill pickles
2 medium rutabegas, peeled & diced
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
2 tablespoons capers
3/4 cup sliced black olives
2 (14-ounce) cans stewed tomatoes
1 cup dry white wine
Salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
Preparation:

Make a cheesecloth sachet with bay leaves, peppercorns, and allspice and tie onto handle of large pot. Add water and beef base and bring to a boil. Add shredded cabbage and sliced celery, return to the boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes.

Put oil into large skillet and heat. Add onion and carrots, and saute until translucent. Add sausage, chicken, ham, pickles and tomato paste. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes. Transfer to soup pot.

Add capers, olives, stewed tomatoes, and bring barely to a boil. Add the wine and simmer gently for 20 minutes.

Remove the sachet and discard. Adjust seasonings. Ladle soup into hot bowls and garnish with sour cream and dill or pass them at table. Serve with multigrain bread.

Bret and Alex's Meatballs

Bret and Alex Meatballs

1 lb ground beef
1/3 c. flour
1 egg
2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 small onion finely chopped
3 tbsp oat bran

moosh all ingredients together.  roll into balls, fry in frying pan

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Stuffed Peppers

Original recipe makes 6 servings
 1 pound ground beef
 1/2 cup uncooked long grain white rice
 1 cup water
 6 bell peppers
 2 (8 ounce) cans diced tomato
 1 tsp cooking sherry
 2 tsp steak sauce
 1 tsp minced garlic
 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
 salt and pepper to taste
 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
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Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Place the rice and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and cook 20 minutes. In a skillet over medium heat, cook the beef until evenly browned.
Remove and discard the tops, seeds, and membranes of the bell peppers. Arrange peppers in a baking dish with the hollowed sides facing upward. (Slice the bottoms of the peppers if necessary so that they will stand upright.)
In a bowl, mix the browned beef, cooked rice, 1 can tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Spoon an equal amount of the mixture into each hollowed pepper. Mix the remaining tomato sauce and Italian seasoning in a bowl, and pour over the stuffed peppers.
Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, basting with sauce every 15 minutes, until the peppers are tender.

Alex Ginter's Racial Equality Butter Cookies

Oven @ 300 degrees F
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. organic shortening

-Cream the above ingredients together

1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cornstarch
3 egg yolks
1/2 tsp. vanilla

-add in

2 c. flour

-mix in the flour gradually

bake @ 300 degrees F.
Make cookies with 1 tsp measure
Bake for 11 minutes

Alex Ginter's Moon Cookies

Oven @ 325 degrees F

2 lb butter
1 lb ground almonds
2 scant c. sugar
8 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond or rum/brandy extract

mix all ingredients
shape into crescents on cookie sheet
bake 15 minutes