Creamy, crunchy sweetness

Do you like toffee? I absolutely love it. It is a great partner to ice cream. My mother-in-law makes wonderful homemade toffee during Christmastime, but I can't wait around for that. This toffee ice cream crunch cake is a delicious and irresistible alternative!

THE RECIPE:

2 1/2 c. crisp rice cereal
1 1/2 c. sweetened shredded coconut
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 stick butter, melted
2 8-ounce bags English toffee bits (from the baking aisle)
1 half-gallon vanilla ice cream, very softened*

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In 9x13 pan, mix cereal, coconut, brown sugar and melted butter. Stir in toffee bits and spread evenly in pan. Bake for 30 minutes, or until toasty and browned. Let cool completely. Remove half of mixture, then spread out remaining mixture in bottom of pan. Carefully top with softened ice cream, then with reserved mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until firm.

*I let my ice cream sit out for two or three hours. I then stirred it in a mixing bowl so it was thick and creamy and evenly spreadable. Otherwise it would have been melty on the outside and stiff on the inside.

Fancy french toast

The gal at Smitten Kitchen came up with an innovative way to make french toast. She calls it cinnamon toast french toast, and it tastes fantastic. You can make it ahead of time, even the night before, then have breakfast ready to go in a flash. I would never have guessed regular, cheap sandwich bread could make such great french toast.

THE RECIPE:

1/2 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
16 slices white sandwich bread
1 stick butter, softened and spreadable
6 eggs
3 c. whole milk
 1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix sugar and cinnamon. Lay bread in single layer on two cookie sheets, then spread butter on each slice. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar. Toast bread in oven for 7 to 10 minutes, or until bread is golden and crisp.*

Butter a 9x13 baking dish. Cut two slices of cinnamon toast in half. Arrange toast in two rows, starting with a half slice, then fanning out whole slices and ending with a half slice.

Whisk together eggs, milk, salt and vanilla, then pour evenly over toast. Sprinkle any remaining cinnamon sugar on top. Let stand as little as 15 minutes or as long as overnight. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, or until puffed and until no liquid seeps out when toast is nudged around in pan. Cut into squares and serve with syrup.

*Switch cookie sheets halfway through if they are on different racks to ensure even cooking. Bake time in this case is more like 10 to 15 minutes.

Fresh from the garden

My mother-in-law introduced me to this delicious angel hair pasta for using tomatoes and basil from my garden. It is very easy to pull together, and it tastes light and fresh. I could eat it every week. For variation, try adding artichoke hearts or pine nuts.

THE RECIPE:

3/8 c. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 c. finely chopped green onion
2 c. diced garden-fresh tomatoes
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh basil

8 oz. angel hair pasta

Grated Parmesan cheese

In skillet or saucepan, heat oil. Add garlic and onions, and saute for about 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, salt, and pepper. Cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently. Meanwhile, cook angel hair according to package directions. Drain, then toss thoroughly with tomato mixture and basil. Let stand about 5 minutes to absorb liquid, then toss again. Top individual servings with grated cheese.

An apple a day

When my 7-year-old was little, she used to tell people, "We're apple farmers!" She was right alongside us when we planted our apple trees, and in the past couple of years she has helped thin and harvest. This season, we have been enjoying huge and sweet honeycrisp apples. These babies are 4 inches in diameter. My husband's favorite way to eat them is just plain, off the tree, in all their glory. But, sometimes it's fun to do something different. How about a crunchy, tangy Waldorf salad? Yes, please.

THE RECIPE:

1/2 c. mayonnaise*
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/8 tsp. salt
3 apples, cored and chopped
1 c. diced celery
1/2 c. chopped walnuts, toasted if desired
1/2 c. raisins or dried cranberries

Combine ingredients and refrigerate until ready to serve.

*I used the reduced-fat olive oil kind.

Pacify your chocolate addiction

This week, my husband took all three of my children -- this includes a 6-week-old -- to the library by himself. I thought about running wild around the empty house. But then I thought about this French silk chocolate pie, and I had to make it. The recipe comes from Cook's Country, so you know it will be good. It is rich and thick and creamy and silky. My 7-year-old remarked that she loved the way her teeth felt sinking into its chocolatey goodness. The only drawback is the tired arm from all the mixing.

THE RECIPE:

1 c. heavy cream
3 eggs
3/4 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. water
8 oz. semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 Tbsp. vanilla
1/2 c. butter, softened
1 cooked deep-dish pie shell*

Whip cream until stiff peaks form. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Combine eggs, sugar and water in large heat-proof bowl (I used a glass mixing bowl). On stove top, set bowl over medium saucepan containing half an inch of simmering water. Don't let bowl touch water. You are making a kind of double boiler. Beat egg mixture with electric mixer until thickened and heated through, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove bowl from heat and continue to beat several minutes more, until mixture is cooled and fluffy.

Add chocolate and vanilla to cooled egg mixture and beat until incorporated. Beat in butter. Using rubber spatula, fold in whipped cream until no streaks of white remain. Scrape mixture into pie shell and refrigerate at least three hours to set.

*Next time I'll try an Oreo crust.

Heavenly breakfast

This pile of beauty you see before you is called heavenly breakfast*. It is a yummy twist on biscuits and gravy. The recipe came from the Brewer family, who lovingly introduced it to my family years and years ago. It's comfort food at its best. Serve it with a side of fresh seasonal fruit and enjoy!

THE RECIPE:

1 16-ounce can jumbo flaky refrigerator biscuits
6 hard-boiled eggs
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 c. milk
Pepper
Paprika

Bake biscuits according to package directions. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Mix flour, salt, and pepper to taste, then add to melted butter, stirring until smooth. Whisk in milk, then cook until thickened, stirring frequently to prevent sticking or burning.

Meanwhile, separate hard-boiled yolks from whites. Slice or roughly chop whites, and crumble yolks. Stir egg whites into finished sauce.

To assemble heavenly breakfast, break up a biscuit into chunks, then spoon white sauce over top. Sprinkle with crumbled egg yolks and paprika to taste.

*Dishes similar to this are traditionally known as eggs goldenrod.

Creamy goodness

For the Fourth of July, we had to have some red-white-and-blue food. But these yogurt Jell-O cups would work for any party or holiday. Just change the colors and toppings according to your preference. They taste creamy and delicious, they are very cute, and they are beyond easy to make. Next time, however, I won't use paper muffin liners. They weren't firm enough to make a good mold. I will either try the foil liners or just put the Jell-O in individual clear glass dishes for serving.

THE RECIPE:

1 6-ounce package Jell-O, any flavor
1 32-ounce container low-fat vanilla yogurt
12 muffin tin liners
Homemade whipped cream
Berries

Combine dry Jell-O powder and yogurt in microwave-safe dish. Microwave 2-3 minutes, or until powder is completely dissolved. Spoon mixture into muffin tin liners or glass dishes and refrigerate several hours. Decorate as desired.