Pumpkin Cake Roll

I have been dying to make this recipe! I even used a REAL pumpkin for the pumpkin part of the recipe. There were directions on the bottom of it to make your own pumpkin puree. Totally simple. I'll add the directions for that at the bottom of this post. It was so cool using my own pumpkin puree but it took me 30 minutes just to get the seeds and string out. Probably not doing that ever again. Anyway, enjoy this recipe! We sure did!
Pumpkin Cake Roll
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 c pumpkin
1 tsp lemon juice
3/4 c flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Beat eggs on high speed for 5 minutes. Gradually add sugar. Stir in pumpkin and lemon juice. Stir together all dry ingredients. Fold in pumpkin mixture. Spread onto greased and floured cookie sheet. Top with nuts, if desired. Bake @375 for 15 mintues. (Watch it to make sure it doesn't over cook). *Turn onto damp dishtowel sprinkled with powdered sugar. Roll towel and cake together until cool. Unroll and spread with filling. Roll up (without towel) and chill.

Filling:
1 cup powdered sugar
6 oz. cream cheese
4 T butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
Beat together until smooth

*I didn't really know what "Turn onto" meant. All you do is remove the cake from the pan and set it on the damp towel.
TIP: Line the baking sheet with wax paper. It will make it easier to remove the cake from the pan.
Also, this was really sweet so it probably wouldn't hurt to use the entire 8oz package of cream cheese.

Pumpkin Puree: Cut the pumpkin in half (w/o stem), scrape out seeds and string. Place on cookie sheet lined with foil, then cover the pumpkin with foil. Bake at 350 for 90 minutes. Cool.  Spoon out flesh and mash with fork. Done!

Alfredo Sauce

Last night I waited until Sean got home from work to have dinner (around 8:30pm). We were both starving. After making that pizza I wanted to try making the sauce and using it over fettuccine noodles. Omg, it was DELICIOUS! Sean and I were huge fans of it. Sean said it was really good comfort food. It would be even more delicious with chicken and broccoli. It is so easy to make. I am never buying bottled Alfredo sauce ever again.

Alfredo Sauce
2 T butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T flour
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the flour and cook until light blonde in color. Whisk in the cream, reduce the heat to low, and let simmer until thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in Parmesan and season lightly with salt and pepper, to taste.

Pour over 8 oz. fettuccine noodles. Can add chicken and broccoli if desired.

Sorry...

I know the menu says I'm supposed to make Baked Spaghetti tomorrow but turns out it's not going to happen. So sorry. Maybe next week. But I posted a few recipes I've already made this year that were a hit at our house. I thought you would all enjoy them.

Chicken & Broccoli Alfredo

A great recipe I got from Campbellskitchen.com A healthy and delicious alternative to real alfredo.

1/2 of a 16 ounce package linguine
1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli florets
2 tablespoons butter
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 1 lb), cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

• Prepare the linguine according to the package directions in a 3-quart saucepan. Add the broccoli during the last 4 minutes of the cooking time. Drain the linguine mixture well in a colander.
• Heat the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until well browned and cooked through, stirring often.
• Stir the soup, milk, cheese, black pepper and linguine mixture in the skillet and cook until the mixture is hot and bubbling, stirring occasionally. Serve with additional Parmesan cheese.

Makes: 4 servings (about 1 3/4 cups each)

Nutrition per Serving

Calories: 526

Fat: 15g

Fiber: 4g

Protein: 39g

Sodium: 845mg

Strawberry Bread

I got this recipe from Studio 5

Ingredients:
* 3 c. flour
* 2 c. sugar
* 1 t. baking soda
* 1/2 t. cinnamon
* 1 t. salt
* 4 eggs
* 1-1/4 c. vegetable oil
* 2 c. fresh, sliced strawberries

Directions:
Mix the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Add the eggs, oil and strawberries and mix just until moistened. Spoon into 2 greased and floured loaf pans. Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 10 minutes. Cool in the pans for several minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Instead of oil, I used 3/4 cup of applesauce. It wasn't as moist as I would have liked so I would maybe use 1 cup next time. Or half oil and half applesauce or something. And I would add a whole teaspoon of cinnamon so it has more flavor. Also, it was ready after 45-55 minutes with the applesauce.

Baked Potato Soup

Baked Potato Soup

2/3 c. butter
2/3 c. flour
6 c. milk
4 c. baked potato cubes (I used 2 giant potatoes. It needed more. I would use 5-6 regular potatoes or 3 giant potatoes)
1 bunch green onions, sliced (I didn't have green onion so I just used a quarter of a regular onion.)
1 1/2 c. cheddar cheese, shredded
1 c. sour cream
1 12-oz. can evaporated milk
1 lb mushrooms, sliced (I hate mushrooms so I omitted this. Maybe that's why it needed more potatoes)
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter, add flour, and slowly stir in milk. Cook and stir until thickened. After mixture thickens, add remaining ingredients; serve and enjoy. Makes 4 servings. (Ha! This made at least 6-8 servings)

This would be so good with rolls or a bread bowl! Oh, and if you're counting calories, I'd say this has somewhere between 550-650 calories per serving.

Black Bean Soup

This recipe can be found here

1 can (10 1/4 ounces) Campbell's® Beef Gravy
3 cans (about 15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup V8® 100% Vegetable Juice
1/2 cup Pace® Picante Sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

1. Place the gravy and 1 can beans into a blender. Cover and blend until the mixture is smooth. Pour the gravy mixture into a 3-quart saucepan.
2. Stir the remaining beans, vegetable juice, picante sauce and cumin in the saucepan and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Serve with the sour cream and cheese.

We LOVED this. We ate it with tortilla chips and it was so yummy! I calculated the calories myself and one serving is about 417 calories.