Cashew Cake

Beat for 2 minutes:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup hot milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

In a separate bowl, beat until soft peaks form:
7 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Fold beaten egg whites into batter.
Pour into a greased and floured 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes and then shake to remove cake from pan. (I usually put the cake on an inverted cookie sheet.) Cool completely. Frost on all sides and top of cake, drizzle and sprinkle. . .

Frosting:
1/4 cup butter
1 pound powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
5-6 Tablespoons milk

Melt together, and drizzle over frosted cake:
3 chocolate bars (the Hershey kind that you use for s'mores)
3 Tablespoons milk
1-1/2 Tablespoons butter

Sprinkle cashew halves and pieces over frosted, drizzled cake

Salsa Pizza

Prep Time:15 min
Start to Finish:45 min
Makes:8 servings

1 pound lean ground beef
1 1/4 cups Old El Paso® Thick 'n Chunky salsa
2 cups Original Bisquick® mix *
1/4 cup mild salsa-flavored or jalapeño-flavored processed cheese spread **
1/4 cup hot water
4 medium green onions, sliced (1/2 cup)
1 cup shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese (4 ounces)

1. Heat oven to 375ºF. Grease large cookie sheet.
2. Cook beef in 10-inch skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until brown; drain. Stir in salsa; remove from heat.
3. Stir Bisquick, cheese spread and hot water until soft dough forms. Turn dough onto surface dusted with Bisquick; roll in Bisquick to coat. Shape into ball; knead 5 times. Roll into 14-inch circle; place on cookie sheet.
4. Spread beef mixture over crust to within 2 inches of edge. Sprinkle with onions. Fold edge over beef mixture. Sprinkle with cheese.
5. Bake 25 to 28 minutes or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted.

Garnish the pizza with chopped tomato and shredded lettuce.
Substitution: Use the jalapeño-flavor process cheese spread if you prefer a spicier crust.

*We did bisquick from scratch that was half whole wheat flour. Yum!
*We didn't bother to buy cheese spread, we just used cheese, & some seasonings.

Note: If you think your salsa that you have is too spicy, I don't recommend using it in this recipe. It's just as spicy, if not more spicy. Yes, I am speaking from personal experience!

Taco Seasoning

6 tsp chili powder

5 tsp paprika

4 1/2 tsp cumin

2 1/2 tsp onion powder

2 1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 1/2 tsp cornstarch

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix all ingredients. Store in an airtight container. 7 teaspoons is equal to 1 package of taco seasoning.

Pasta Salad

I was called out on not posting this recipe immediately.... Sorry!!! This is Blake's favorite salad that my mom makes. This salad is always asked for by her friends and... Blake. As a side note, the mushrooms, artichoke hearts, and 5 bean salad are all at Sam's Club.

Yummy Pasta Salad
12 oz bag of multi-color pasta curls - you might need two bags?? - cooked and drained
17 oz bottle of marinated mushrooms - sliced (MARINATED SHROOMS ONLY!!!)
16 oz bottle of marinated artichoke hearts - you might need to add more depending on taste and looks - coarsely chopped
32 oz bottle of 5 bean salad
12 oz can of sliced olives
red bell peppers, chopped
Light Italian Dressing by Wishbone
Salt and Pepper to taste
Feta Cheese Crumbles

Mix together pasta, sliced mushrooms, artichoke hearts, bean salad, bell peppers, and olives with squirts of Italian Dressing (based on taste). Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and feta cheese crumbles.

Banana Cake

1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
2 very ripe bananas, mashed
1 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Prepare yellow cake mix according to package directions.
Mash bananas with the baking soda and stir into the cake mix batter. Pour batter into one greased and floured 9x13 inch baking pan. Bake for 35 minutes. Let cake cool thoroughly and top with homemade pudding. Refrigerate.

Make-ahead Chimichangas

1 batch makes 14-16 chimichangas

Ingredients:
2-1/2 cups cooked ground beef
16 oz. salsa (your choice)
16 oz. refried beans
1 envelope Taco seasoning
14-16 8" flour tortillas
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Combine cooked beef, salsa, beans and seasoning. Cook and stir over medium heat until heated through. Heat a non-stick skillet on medium-low and spray with cooking spray. One at a time put the tortillas in the skillet, heating for about 30 seconds on each side. Put 1/2 cup meat mixture on each heated tortilla and top with some cheese. Fold in the sides and then roll it up.

To Freeze: Wrap each rolled tortilla in foil, plastic wrap or a sandwich baggie. Put the individually wrapped Chimichangas in a freezer bag or rigid container. Seal, label and freeze.

Serving: Revove the needed amount of Chimichangas from the freezer. If they're wrapped in plastic wrap or a baggie, remove and iscard the wrap/baggie. If they're wrapped foil, you can leave the foil on to reheat. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 40 minutes. Serve with sour cream, if desired.

Bacon Cabbage Stir Fry

(We love this fried cabbage! We buy cabbage just to enjoy the cabbagey, bacony goodness!)

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 25 min
(Ready in 45 min)

3 slices bacon
1 onion, halved and sliced
1/2 cabbage head, halved again and sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Remove bacon, and set aside. Leave bacon grease in skillet.

Cook onion in the hot bacon grease until tender. Add cabbage, and cook until cabbage is tender (or desired texture), about 15 minutes. Crumble bacon and mix in. Salt and pepper to taste.

*Note: we now add some garlic and we are trying it with 1 T dijon mustard tonight