My Italian Ricotta Cheesecake

I am not Italian but sometimes I get this feeling that somewhere, sometime, and maybe in another life, I was Italian.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Lightly grease a springform pan

Ingredients:
1 lb of Ricotta cheese
1 lb of Philadelphia cream cheese
1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar
6 eggs
6 TB all purpose flour
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 TB freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 pint of sour cream
3/4 cup of white raisins

Mix Ricotta and Philadelphia cream cheese together at room temperature
Stir in sugar, eggs, flour, lemon juice and vanilla
Fold in sour cream and then white raisins

Pour into springform pan and

Bake in preheated oven for one hour, turn oven off and leave in oven for 1 hour.

Cool completely in refrigerator before serving.

Bon Appetit!

Lemon Curd

Ingredients

Zest of six lemons
Cut six lemons in half and squeeze to 1 cup of lemon juice, set aside
1/2 cup of softened butter
2 cups of sugar
4 eggs
 

Preparation
 

With mixer on low, cream butter and sugar, add one egg at a time to mixture
then add lemon juice slowly to the mixture (it will look curdled)

Pour this mixture into a large microwave safe mixing bowl, microwave 5 minutes on high setting, stirring every minute

Then at least 2 more minutes, stirring after each minute, until it becomes creamy and makes small peaks.

Cover the top of the warm lemon curd with plastic wrap so it doesn't form a film,

Cover tightly and refrigerate for four hours before use.

This can be kept in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

This curd can be ladled on anything such as broken up angel food cake and then topped with whipped cream, lady fingers in short glasses and spooned into the middle topped with rasberries.

Bon Appetite!

Enchilada Taco Chip Casserole

Ingredients:
1 large bag of Tostido taco chips
1 can of cream of chicken soup
2 lbs of ground meat
1 medium onion, diced
1 pound of grated sharp cheddar cheese
6 slices of mozzarella cheese
1 can of enchilada sauce
1 small can of green chilis

Instructions:
Spread tacos in a 9x13 glass pan
Brown ground meat with diced onions
Add cream of chicken soup, enchilada sauce and green chilis (undrained)
Simmer about three minutes
Add grated cheese and stir until cheese is melted
Pour over taco chips, cover with the slices of mozzarella
Bake in a 350 degree oven until bubbly.
Bon Appetit!

Rice Dressing

New Year's Day is not complete without this old Cajun French Menu,
Turkey, Pork or Beef Roast, Rice and Gravy, Rice Dressing, Cabbage Rolls, Black Eyed Peas, Yams, Potato Salad, and Rolls, not one pie, but three, Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Fig or Cream Cheese Pie and a Coconut cake.

So here is my Rice Dressing Recipe which is very simple...

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground pork
1 lb of ground beef
2 cups of chopped green onion tops
4 cloves of garlic minced
1 large chopped onion
1 rib of chopped celery
1/2 chopped bell pepper
Seasonings of salt, black pepper, paprika
2 or 3 cups of cooked whole grain white rice

Instructions:

In a black dutch oven saute ground pork, ground beef and all of the chopped seasonings until brown.  Lower heat and simmer about a 1/2 hour; stirring about every 10 minutes so it won't stick to the bottom of the pot.

Add seasonings of salt, black pepper and paprika. About  one Tablespoon of salt, one teaspoon of black pepper and a teaspoon of paprika or more if desired.

Add cooked white rice a large spoonful at a time to the meat mixture until blended to your desire.

Stir in some chopped green onion tops and use the green onions as a garnish topping.

Bon Appetit!



.

I bought some of those little yellow gel balls to clean my kitchen disposal. The citrus smell only stayed with the disposal less than a day and I didn't feel like it did the job of cleaning the blades.

So, I sliced a lemon and froze the slices on a cookie sheet in the freezer. After they were frozen, I bagged them and kept them in the freezer.

Drop a frozen slice in your disposal and voila, a clean smelling disposal!!!

Peach Brandy for an Aperitif.

My Grandmother Toussel's Peach Brandy is finally ready! She made this every year at Christmas time. The recipe is on page 3. It turned out a pretty mellow color with an undertone of orange.  Ready to enjoy over crushed ice as an aperitif. Remember the sweetness is perfect to make the palate ready for a savory meal.  Bon Appetit!

Gus Savant is now decorated and in his place shining brightly...