Oreo Cheesecake Cupcakes

From Beantown Baker blog and originally from Martha Stewart's Cupcake book

Not necessarily a cupcake so much as an individual serving of cheesecake. Also these froze surprisingly well. I wrapped two in saran wrap and then foil. Just thaw in the fridge to have a nice little dessert waiting for you when you come home. My only change was to not do a whole cookie in the bottom, just a half with the filling left on it. Then you get to eat the ones where the filling just didn't work out and use 12 of the other sides to coarsely chop.

42 cream-filled sandwich cookies, such as Oreos, 30 opened with filling left on, and 12 coarsely chopped
2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1 cup sour cream
Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 halfcookie in the bottom of each lined cup - with filling facing up

With an electric mixer on medium high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Gradually add sugar, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla.

Drizzle in eggs, a bit at a time, beating to combine and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in sour cream and salt. Stir in chopped cookies by hand.

Divide batter evenly among cookie-lined cups, filling each almost to the top. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until filling is set, about 22 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Refrigerate at least 4 hours (or up to overnight). Remove from tins just before serving.

Lasagna

From my sister

This is half the original recipe which feeds a good sized crowd. I make it so that I have one to bake and one to freeze in the foil lasagna pans from the store.

3lbs ricotta cheese
9 eggs
2c parmesan cheese (grated or shredded)
1 knot fresh mozzarella, sliced thin or shredded
fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste
2 boxes of no boil lasagna noodles
1 recipe of spaghetti sauce

Mix ricotta and eggs.

Add salt, pepper, parmesan and parsley.

Cover the bottom of the pan with a thin layer of sauce. Top with noodles.
Cover with ricotta mix and then a layer of mozzarella.
Repeat 2-3 times depending on pan size.

Top with sauce and some parmesan cheese.

Bake at 375 until bubbly - about 1 hour if fresh, 1.5-2 hours if frozen.

Creme Brulee French Toast

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1 (8 to 9) inch round loaf Challah bread
5 large eggs
1 1/2 cups half and half
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon Grand Marnier (optional)
1/4 teaspoon salt

In a small heavy saucepan melt butter with butter with brown sugar and corn syrup over moderate heat, stirring, until smooth and pour into a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish.

Cut 6 (1-inch) thick slices from center portion of bread, reserving ends for another use, and trim crusts. Arrange bread slices in one layer in baking dish, squeezing them slightly to fit.

In a bowl whisk together eggs, half and half, vanilla, Grand Marnier and salt until combined well and pour evenly over bread. Chill bread mixture, covered, at least 8 hours and up to 1 day. You can also freeze it once the bread soaks up the egg mixture. Remove from freezer night before and place in fridge - may take a little longer to cook if still a little frozen in the morning.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and bring bread mixture to room temperature. Bake uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed and edges are pale golden, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Chicken Pot Pie

This is a variation on the one from Kraftfoods.com. I have used the precooked chicken but it leaves kind of a funny taste. I like just cooking up a ton of chicken, cubing it afterward and freezing it in 2c amounts in ziploc bags for recipes like this. You can double the filling recipe and freeze half for later, especially since the premade pie crusts come in packs of two. This is supposed to be healthier than traditional pot pies since it only uses one crust, and light/fat free versions of other ingredients. - still tastes great though.

1lb boneless chicken breasts, cubed or shredded
1/2c Kraft Light Zesty Italian dressing
8oz Neufchatel cheese (fat free cream cheese), cubed
4tbsp flour
1c fat-free, low sodium chicken broth
10oz frozen mixed veggies, thawed
1 premade pie crust

Preheat oven to 375. Cook chicken in dressing, add cheese, cook and stir until melted, sprinkle flour over mix and mix well. Add broth and veggies, simmer 5 minutes.

Pour into casserole dish, arrange crust on top, cut 4 slits. Bake 30-45 minutes until crust is golden.

Tuna Casserole

12 oz pkg egg noodles
3 cups cheddar cheese
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup each frozen carrots and peas
3- 5oz cans tuna, drained
1 can each cream of mushroom and broccoli
1 cup crushed potato chips

Cook noodles al dente. Preheat oven to 425. Mix all but potato chips and 1.5 cup cheese (this freezes well). Transfer to 9x13 pan, top with cheese and chips. Bake 20 minutes.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Very yummy, but also a little salty (ham) and all that cheese can't be good for you. I have frozen after adding the broth but before the rice and cheese and it still comes out great.

1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 lb diced ham
2 cups of shredded chicken
4 tbl butter
1/4 cup flour
14oz can chicken broth (low sodium)
3 cups of cooked rice
2 cups shredded cheddar
2 cups shredded mozzarella

Preheat oven to 350. Cook onion and pepper in 2 tbl olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic, chicken and ham, cook 5 minutes. Add butter, after melted add flour, stir until combined. Stir in broth. Mix in rice, 1c cheddar, 1c mozzarella. Transfer to 9X13 pan, sprinkle top with remaining cheese. Bake 15 minutes uncovered, then 10 minutes covered with foil. Reheats well right in the 9x13 pan in the oven for leftovers.

Chili Con Carne

2lbs lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbl chili powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp baking cocoa
28oz can tomato puree
2-15oz cans red kidney beans, undrained

Brown beef with garlic and onion over medium heat, drain.
Stir in remaining ingredients except beans.
Heat to boiling, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 1-2 hours.
Stir in beans.
Heat to boiling, reduce heat to low, simmer uncovered 20 minutes or until desired thickness.