Easy Blueberry Pound Cake

Ingredients

2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 box yellow cake mix with pudding
1 small box vanilla instant pudding
3 eggs
1/2 Cup vegatable oil


Directions

Mix all ingredients together except the berries. Fold in the blueberries and bake at 325 degrees in greased bundt pan for 1 hour. Cool about 15 minutes; transfer to serving plate. Dust with confectioner's sugar.

Cheesy Baked Chicken and Pasta

Prep15 min
Cook40 min
Total: 55 min

Ingredients

2 bags Farfalle pasta (or any pasta)
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups half and half
3 cups cup cubed chicken breast (1-inch cubes)
1/2 cup diced onion (about 1/2 a small onion)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (14.5-ounce) jar Sundried tomatoes in oil
¾ can box frozen green peas
2 cups shredded mozzarella
3 TBS butter
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 TBS flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup plain bread crumbs
1 cup grated Parmesan or Asiago cheese
4 tablespoon butter, plus more for buttering the baking dish

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until just tender and drain.
Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add the onions and garlic, add salt and pepper and stir to combine, and cook until the onions are soft and the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Put the chicken mixture into the bowl with the cooked pasta. In the sauté pan add 3 TBS butter and flour, whisk it until it gets thick and slowly add the half and half until you get a thick sauce. When sauce is blended and thickened add in the cup of grated cheese and the parsley and mix well. Chop up the sun dried tomatoes, add them and the peas in.
Stir all to combine. Lastly add the mozzarella. Place the mixture in a buttered 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish. In a small bowl mix together the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle over the top of the pasta mixture. Dot the top with small bits of butter. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Italian Fresh Purple Grape Cake

"Grape cake is an ideal match for vin santo, the rich, smooth, aromatic sweet wine prepared in small quantities on many Italian estates"

PREP TIME 15 Min
COOK TIME 1 Hr
READY IN 1 Hr 15 Min
Original recipe yield 1 - 9 inch springform

INGREDIENTS

2 eggs
2/3 cup white sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 pinch salt
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons grated orange zest
10 ounces small purple grapes

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Generously butter and flour the 9 inch springform cake pan, tapping out any excess flour. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk, beat the eggs and sugar until thick and lemon-colored, about 3 minutes. Add the butter, oil, milk and vanilla extract, and mix until blended.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add the lemon zest and orange zest, and toss to coat the zest with flour.
Spoon the flour mixture into the bowl of batter and stir with a wooden spoon until thoroughly blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix once more. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow the flour to absorb the liquids.
Stir in about 3/4 of the grapes into the batter. Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth out the top with a spatula.
Place the pan in the center of the oven at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bake for 15 minutes, then sprinkle the top of the cake with the remaining grapes. Bake for about 40 minutes more, until the top is a deep golden brown and the cake feels quite firm when pressed with a fingertip.
Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. After 10 minutes, run a knife along the sides of the pan. Release and remove the side of the springform pan, leaving the cake on the pan base. Serve at room temperature, cut into thin wedges.

Beef Bourguignon (Beef Stew) by Barefoot Contessa

I am a tremendous Barefoot Contessa fan. She is such a talented cook and entertainer. I make this stew many times a year and leave out this or that ingredient depending on what I have. You can serve it over a mound of mashed potatoes or use the whole ones. I almost always make it without the mushrooms and the bacon. Everything else is a necessity for just the right combination of rich flavors. A good quality wine is a must. This time I used a bottle of good Tuscan wine that we received for a gift. The flavor that a good wine puts into the meat is unbeatable!

Prep: 30 min

Cook: 1 hr 15 min

Total: 1 hr 45 min

Servings: 6

Ingredients

1 tablespoon good olive oil

8 ounces dry cured center cut applewood smoked bacon, diced

2 1/2 pounds chuck beef cut into 1-inch cubes

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 pound carrots, sliced diagonally into 1-inch chunks

2 yellow onions, sliced

2 teaspoons chopped garlic (2 cloves)

1 (750 ml.) bottle good dry red wine such as Cote du Rhone or Pinot Noir

1 can (2 cups) beef broth

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (1/2 teaspoon dried)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature, divided

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 pound frozen whole onions

1 pound fresh mushrooms stems discarded, caps thickly sliced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the bacon and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is lightly browned. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a large plate.

Dry the beef cubes with paper towels and then sprinkle them with salt and pepper. In batches in single layers, sear the beef in the hot oil for 3 to 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove the seared cubes to the plate with the bacon and continue searing until all the beef is browned. Set aside. Toss the carrots, and onions, 1 tablespoon of salt and 2 teaspoons of pepper in the fat in the pan and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Put the meat and bacon back into the pot with the juices. Add the bottle of wine plus enough beef broth to almost cover the meat. Add the tomato paste and thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and place it in the oven for about 1 1/4 hours or until the meat and vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.

Combine 2 tablespoons of butter and the flour with a fork and stir into the stew. Add the frozen onions. Saute the mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of butter for 10 minutes until lightly browned and then add to the stew. Bring the stew to a boil on top of the stove, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste.

***To serve, toast the bread in the toaster or oven. Rub each slice on 1 side with a cut clove of garlic. For each serving, spoon the stew over slice of bread sprinkle with parsley.