Catching Up: Easter Recipes

Last weekend, we spent Easter with some very good friends here in Stuttgart.  It had been a while since I'd whipped up anything homemade in the kitchen; even then, I wasn't trying to kill myself.  You guys know how I love to keep things simple!

I was asked by the hostess to help her out by bringing a few dishes. Naturally, I agreed to do a side dish as well as a dessert. 

I wanted to do a side dish that I thought would go well with the ham that we were going to have.  The hostess already told me that she was going to have a salad as well as some sweet potatoes.  So I went with a green bean casserole...only this recipe was kicked up a notch.  I didn't think it would be noticeable.  I mean, it's green bean casserole, after all.  However, it was a hit.  Even I thoroughly enjoyed it and intend to make every green bean casserole this way from now on.

~Classy Green Bean Casserole~

{via allrecipes.com}

3 (14.5 ounce) cans French cut green beans, drained

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 cup coarsely crushed buttery round crackers

2 tablespoon butter, melted

1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2.In a medium bowl, mix together the green beans, sour cream, condensed soup, salt and pepper. Spoon into a 2 quart casserole dish. Stir melted butter into the crushed crackers, then sprinkle over the top of the casserole.

3.Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned and bubbly.

For dessert, I wanted to have something light and I knew that I wanted to use strawberries.  Enter Kraft Foods' Strawberry Pretzel Squares recipe.  It's similar to a recipe that my cousin always makes back home, only this one incorporates fresh strawberries and a pretzel crust.  I love that sweet and salty combination!  Because we had so many desserts that evening, including a fabulous carrot cake that the hostess made, I had tons leftover (although I was told it was delicious).  No problem though, because I took it to work the next day and it was polished off in no time.  I am definitely making this one again too!

~Strawberry Pretzel Squares~

{via kraftfoods.com}

2 cups finely crushed pretzels

1/2 cup sugar, divided

2/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

1-1/2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

2 Tbsp. milk

1 cup thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

2 cups boiling water

1 pkg. (6 oz.) JELL-O Strawberry Flavor Gelatin

1-1/2 cups cold water

4 cups fresh strawberries, sliced

HEAT oven to 350°F.

1.  Mix pretzel crumbs, 1/4 cup sugar and butter; press onto bottom of 13x9-inch pan. Bake 10 min. Cool.

2.  Beat cream cheese, remaining sugar and milk until blended. Stir in COOL WHIP; spread over crust. Refrigerate.

3.  Add boiling water to gelatin mix in large bowl; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved. Stir in cold water. Refrigerate 1-1/2 hours or until thickened (spoon drawn through leaves definite impression).

4.  Stir berries into gelatin; spoon over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm.

Enjoy!

Now I'm off to find the perfect Cinco de Mayo recipe for a potluck we're having at work.  Any ideas out there?

~Simple Skillet Pork w/Green Beans~

Wow!  I can't believe the last time I posted it was Thanksgiving!  Where've I been since then?  Well, just about everywhere.  If you go to our family blog, you can get all caught up if you'd like; but in the last few months, we managed to spend the holidays with both our families (in UT and CO), and moved to and got settled into our new home in Stuttgart, Germany. 

Now that we're pretty much settled in, I'm starting to spend more time in the kitchen again (especially since my work schedule has allowed this to happen as of late--early nights, gotta love 'em!).  However, I just haven't felt like blogging about cooking lately.  I just thought that tonight, I'd give it a try.  Maybe this will inspire me to dust off my other cookbooks...perhaps to bake up something nice and sweet!

So you guys know how I LOVE simple recipes?  Well, this particular recipe is just that..  If you were to make it for your friend's they'd mistake it for something you spent the entire evening slaving away to make.  It makes for a wonderful presentation, yet you use very few ingredients--some of which you probably have just lying around in your kitchen.  Chicken is really played out in our house, so pork was a nice change.  And mushrooms are a favorite.  It's always nice when you get to decide just how many mushrooms to put in the sauce.  The recipe called for 2 cups, but I LOVE mushrooms and loaded them in.  This cream sauce was the bomb too....oh my goodness....just take the recipe and try it!

Simple Skillet Pork with Green Beans

by Kraft Food & Family (Spring 2011)

1 lb. pork tenderloin

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp black pepper

2 tsp olive oil

1/2 lb. thin fresh green beans

2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup Kraft Light Honey Dijon Dressing

2 oz. Philadelphia Neufchatel Cheese, cubed

1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard

1.  Cut meat into 3/4 inch thick slices; flatten to 1/2 inch thickness.  Season with garlic powder and black pepper.  Heat oil in large non-stick skillet on medium heat.  Add meat; cook 2 minutes on each side or until done.  Transfer to platter; cover to keep warm.

2.  Add beans to skillet; cook and stir 4 or 5 minutes until crisp-tender.  Transfer to platter with meat.

3.  Cook and stir mushrooms in same skillet 1 minute.  Add next 4 ingredients; cook and stir 2 to 3 minutes or until Neufchatel is completely melted and sauce just comes to a boil.  Serve over meat.

I subscribe to the Food & Family magazine and without fail, they've got several recipes that I'm dying to try.  And ALL of the recipes are as simple as this one, yet utterly delicious.  I'll be making a few more dishes out of this month's issue this week!