Tomato Parmesan Pasta

Here is a nice summertime dish, especially when you start getting those fresh tomatoes off your tomato plants!  This dinner is quick and easy to throw together and my family can't get enough of it!  I think your family will love it too.

Tomato Parmesan Pasta:

Ingredients:
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 medium tomatoes or 1 lb of cherry tomatoes
3-4 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 package spaghetti, fetuccini, or capellini pasta
1-1/2 cups finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp dried basil or 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil
1 cup milk

Directions:
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add tomatoes, garlic, and red pepper flakes, if desired.  Season as desired with salt and pepper.  Cook, covered slightly, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes blister and burst, about 10-12 minutes.  Press down on tomatoes with spatula to release more juices.  Remove pan from heat and set aside.
Meanwhile, boil pasta according to package directions, but stop cooking just before tender.  Drain pasta, reserving 1 cup of pasta cooking water.
Transfer pasta to skillet with tomatoes and set over high heat.  Add pasta water.  Cook, stirring and tossing often, about 1 minute.  Stir in cheese, basil, and 1/2 cup milk.  Add more milk a little at a time until sauce is a good consistency.  Toss until sauce coats pasta and pasta is al dente.  

Try topping with toasted breadcrumbs or sprinkling with some cheese and diced tomato.  Yum!

Banana Crumb Muffins

These are by far the best banana muffins I have ever made.  They are absolutely delicious!  I hope that you like them too.

Banana Crumb Muffins:

Ingredients:
MUFFINS:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3-4 medium very ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon (depending on how much you like cinnamon)
CRUMB TOPPING:
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter, barely softened but not melted

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Grease 12 muffin cups (or use paper liners).
2.  In a bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3.  In a mixer, beat oil, egg, and sugars until well blended.  Add vanilla, bananas, and cinnamon and mix well. 
4.  Add dry ingredients to the banana mixture and mix just until moistened.  Pour evenly into muffin pan.
5.  For the crumb topping, combine the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse corn meal or sand.  Sprinkle over the tops of all the muffins.
6.  Bake at 375 for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

Chocolate and Raspberry are always a good combination!  These are a chocolate cupcake filled with raspberry jam and topped with raspberry buttercream icing, drizzled with chocolate-raspberry ganache, and topped with a fresh raspberry.  If you are looking for something extra-special to make for mom for Mother's Day, you could try this recipe.  If you don't want to make the cupcakes from scratch you can always use a chocolate cake mix and then add the raspberry filling and frosting.

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes:

CUPCAKES:
Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar (not packed)
1 3/4 cup flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup boiling water

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour cupcake pans or use paper liners.
2.  Mix all the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl. 
3.  Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.  Beat with a mixer for about two minutes, occasionally scraping the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. 
4.  Add the boiling water, and mix just until blended.  The batter should be watery, so don't freak out!
5.  Evenly pour the batter into the liners, about 1/2-2/3 full.  Bake for 18-22 minutes, until a toothpick poked into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.  Cool and frost.

FILLING:
Ingredients:
1 cup seedless raspberry jam

Directions:
When cupcakes have cooled, microwave jam for about 20-30 seconds to make it easier to pipe, but be careful not to make it too watery or it will just ooze all over.  Dump jam into an icing bag with a pastry-filling tip (or you can use just a large icing tip).  Stick the tip into the center of the cupcake and squeeze about 2 tsp of jam into each cupcake.

RASPBERRY BUTTERCREAM ICING:
Ingredients:
1 cup softened BUTTER, no substitutes
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
1/4 tsp raspberry extract (optional)
6 cups powdered sugar
pink food coloring, if desired

Directions:
Beat butter on medium speed for about 3 minutes or until very creamy and fluffy.  Add jam and raspberry extract and mix well.  Gradually add powdered sugar, a little at a time, until it is all combined and a good consistency.  If you want you can add some food coloring to make your icing more pink. ( I did)  Frost cupcakes.

CHOCOLATE-RASPBERRY GANACHE:
Ingredients:
5 oz. semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/4 cup raspberry jam

1/4 tsp raspberry extract (optional)
1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Place jam, chocolate, and extract in a small bowl.  Heat cream to boiling in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Pour cream in bowl and whisk until chocolate is completely melted and smooth.  Cool about 15 minutes or until it is thickened enough to spoon over cupcakes.  Top cupcakes with fresh raspberries, if desired.

For an extra treat, try cooling ganache until it is thick enough to pipe into the raspberries to make little raspberry truffles to top your cupcakes.  YUM!