Recipes Discovered

Pulled Pork Sandwiches Recipe

I think Seth is getting a little impatient waiting for summer to come. He has been asking for everything barbecued recently. Who can blame him - with all the dreary weather we have had, I am ready for some sunshine as well. I made these pulled pork sandwiches last week, and I like to think they brought the nice weekend weather we just had. The pork was roasted in the oven for a couple hours, making it super tender before I pulled it apart and it in homemade BBQ sauce. Neither Seth or I really enjoy the vinegar based sauces typical of pulled pork sandwiches, so I opted for a ketchup based sauce. The cole slaw was especially for Seth, who loves it piled on his sandwiches. The creamy cole slaw did pair nicely with the smoky BBQ sauce. The sandwiches turned out great, and they also brought a sunny weekend, so who can complain about that?

Barbecue Sauce Recipe

Cole Slaw Recipe

Oreo Cheesecake Recipe

There is something about the simplicity of this cheesecake that makes it absolutely delicious. It’s a basic cheesecake recipe, with the addition of Oreo cookies. It’s a very creamy, and the cookies add just the right amount of texture. It’s also a good balance of the rich cheesecake with the slightly bitter-sweet chocolate cookie. It was a pretty easy cheesecake to make as well, just make sure to put a cookie sheet on the oven rack beneath the cheesecake pan because mine did leak some butter. It makes a very tall 9-inch cheesecake, so the recipe would easily fit in a 10-inch pan, just add some more cookies to the crust.

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BBQ Turkey Meatloaf Recipe

Sometimes, Seth tells me, it’s nice to have old fashion comfort foods, like meatloaf and mashed potatoes. While I’m not the biggest fan of meatloaf and mashed potatoes, I do agree with his basic statement, so I made him an updated version of the old fashion meal. The meatloaf is made with turkey instead of beef, and before you dismiss the recipe, let me tell you that I’ve never had a moister meatloaf. Seth, who usually shuns ground turkey, loved this meatloaf. Instead of ketchup or tomato sauce, the meatloaf is made with a tangy BBQ sauce that is amazing. It gives the meatloaf a ton of flavor while keeping it moist. I really liked the individual portions of meatloaf because then everyone got more of the crispy outside crust. As for the mashed potatoes, I went with roasted sweet potatoes, smashed with some butter, sugar, and orange juice. I was unimpressed with the potatoes, but will definitely be enjoying the meatloaf again.

Orange Smashed Sweet Potatoes Recipe

Hummingbird Cake Recipe

While browsing through some old magazines that my aunt gave me, I came across a recipe for this Hummingbird Cake. A cross between carrot cake and banana cake, it incorporates bananas, pineapple, and pecans into the batter. I’m not sure where the name came from, but according to Internet folklore, it’s because of its intensely sweet taste, much like hummingbird nectar. The recipe originally came from Southern Living magazine back in the 70’s, and is still a very popular in the south. The cake is really easy to make, and requires no mixer. Just combine the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients, and then fold them together. For the frosting, I mixed in toasted pecans with cream cheese frosting, which gave it a unique, caramely taste. Just how sweet is the cake? I am still waiting for Seth to bring me a piece home, but I’m anxious to find out!

Update: Yum! Hummingbird cake taste like a super moist banana cake. If you like banana bread or banana cake, you must try this recipe. It’s delicious!

White Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Back to desserts. This cookie recipe is adapted from Alton Brown’s “The Chewy” recipe. I did add some extra vanilla though, and swapped out regular chocolate chips for white chocolate chips. I also scoop the cookies out while the dough is still soft and then refrigerate the dough balls overnight. Although they aren’t as good as the Doubletree cookies, these cookies turned out really well. They are just slightly crisp on the outside, very chewy in the middle, and have an incredibly rich flavor. If you are looking for a basic chocolate chip cookie, this is definitely the recipe to go with.