Pinterest Cook Day

I don't know what hit me yesterday...I had no plans for it to be a day of cooking....but somewhere after the banana bread that I had to make....I had a kitchen full of food!  I loved every second of it and I am pretty sure that Jake enjoyed my day of creating too!  There is something about mixing up a bunch of ingredients, which in turn becomes a delicious masterpiece, that lifts weights off my soul!  Nothing else in life brings me the feeling that cooking does.          

The banana bread that started it all!  This is my favorite recipe of banana bread that I have found so far!  I make it every week because Kylie Jo loves it for breakfast, and Jake loves it to snack on!  I've tried others but this one remains our all time fav!  

Better Homes and Garden Banana Bread Recipe

Preheat Oven to 350

Bake 50-55 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups banana (I usually use 3 or 4 browning bananas whatever I have on hand)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup walnuts (optional....I don't use them now because they are too easy for my daughter to choke on)

Mix dry ingredients together...then add bananas, oil, and eggs.

Grease loaf pan and bake away

Next up were my No Bake Energy Bites that I found somewhere on pinterest.  They were SO easy to make and they are such a healthy dessert!  These will be a regular out of my kitchen!

No Bake Energy Bites

1 cup oatmeal

1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut butter)1/3 cup honey1 cup coconut flakes(don't even taste it!)1/2 cup ground flaxseed1/2 cup chocolate chips (could skip these)1 tsp vanilla
Mix it all together and then let it chill in fridge for half an hour.Once chilled, roll into balls and enjoy.  Store in airtight containerand keep refrigerated for up to one week.

Next on my taste buds was this strawberry pie from Paula Deen that I have made before.  I know you are thinking.....this isn't going to be good for you.....all I can say is that there is no butter!  NONE!  Crazy...I KNOW!  Probably because she cooked it on her show but it was a friends recipe.  

Carolyn's Gelatin Cheesecake

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Ingredients:

1 (12 ounce) container low fat cottage cheese

2 boxes sugar free strawberry gelatin, plus one more box used later

2 ready made graham cracker crusts

1 pint fresh strawberries (I use more)

1 (8 ounce) container frozen light whipped topping, thawed

Directions:

Put cottage cheese in blender.  Make 2 boxes of the gelatin, using 1 cup of hot and 1 cup of cold water.  At once, before it jells, add to cottage cheese.  Blend until smooth.  Pour evenly into crusts and refrigerate until set.  Cut up fruit and place on top of pie.  Make remaining package of gelatin as per instructions on box.  Pour it on top of fruit and put it in refrigerator until set.  Put whipped topping on top.  Garnish with more fruit

So at this point I realized that I needed to start thinking about dinner.....I had fish that had defrosted so I knew fish was on the menu.  I rarely cook fish but in the summer I always try to eat lighter so I found this recipe http://www.rachaelraymag.com/Recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-search/five-ingredient-recipes/parmesan-crusted-tilapia  For fish it was actually pretty good!

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I didn't have freshly grated)
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 4 tilapia fillets (about 1 pound total)
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees . In a shallow dish, combine the cheese with the paprika and parsley and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the fish with olive oil and dredge in the cheese mixture. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake until the fish is opaque in the thickest part, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve the fish with the lemon wedges.

Next up were these potato wedges that I had seen on pinterest.  I had the potatoes and I needed to cook them before they went bad so another new recipe called my name!  I will for sure be making these again! 

Zesty Italian Potatoes! 

Red potatoes cubed with skin left on, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, coat with a package of zesty Italian 

dressing mix and stir to coat, add minced onion for flavor, salt and pepper to taste. Cook 400 degree oven 

for 45 minutes or until tender. Top with  Parmesan cheese

Finally.we have tons of fresh zucchini from our garden so I had to come up with a way to make it that Jake would eat it.  I LOVED it!  Kylie Jo even ate a little!   

 Baked Zucchini Fries

Ingredients
3 zucchini (1 lb.)
1/4 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 packet Shake & Bake Coating Mix (Didn't have any so I made my own from bread crumbs and spices)
1 small egg

Method
Heat oven to 450ºF.

Trim the zucchini -cut crosswise in half, then cut each piece into 1/4-inch sticks. Add cheese to coating mix in shaker bag; shake gently to combine.

Whisk egg in medium bowl. Add zucchini; toss to coat. Use tongs to place 1/4 of the zucchini in shaker bag; close bag and shake to evenly coat. Spread onto baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Repeat with remaining zucchini.

Bake for 12 to 13 min. or until golden brown, turning the baking tray 180 degrees after 7 min to facilitate even baking. Meanwhile, mix remaining ingredients.

I guess that about puts an end to my day of cooking!