Delicious Lemon Cheesecake Pie

If you love cheesecake and lemons, you will love this pie!

For The Captain and I, it is a keeper.  The filling was slightly tart, slightly sweet with a creamy texture and so delicious.  Topping with whipped cream before serving is like icing on a cake.  I would not have it any other way!

The recipe is adapted from the website Real Simple . . . the photo is from Real Simple.  It shows a pre-made crust, but I wanted a graham cracker crust to make it more like a cheesecake.  Great choice!

Ingredients:

• Graham Cracker Crust
• 2-8 oz bars cream cheese (softened)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp salt
• whipped cream

Directions:

Combine all ingredients until smooth and pour into crust.

Bake at 325 degrees 40 to 50 minutes (filling will be set, but a bit wobbly).

Before serving, top with a layer of whipped cream.

Cannoli French Toast

Anything closely related to a cannoli gets my immediate attention!  This recipe sounds and looks delicious enough to become a regular on our breakfast menu.

You can add your own spin to the filling by adding chocolate chips or nuts, just like a regular cannoli.

Yum yum, I can't wait to make this!

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar plus more for dusting
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 12 slices sandwich bread, crusts removed
• 2 Tablespoons butter or extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

Sift confectioners’ sugar into a small bowl.

Stir in ricotta cheese.

In a separate bowl, beat together 2 eggs with 1/2 cup milk.

Trim the crusts off 12 slices of sandwich bread.

Roll out the bread to flatten.

Add 1 Tablespoon of the sweetened ricotta cheese to each slice.
 

Fold and pinch the edges together. (They will seal during cooking.)

In a large skillet, heat 2 Tablespoons butter or extra-virgin olive over medium heat.

Dip the stuffed bread slices in the egg mixture and place in the skillet.  Work in small batches.

Cook (turning one time) about 3 minutes, until puffed and golden.

Dust with more confectioners’ sugar or top with syrup before serving.


Recipe and Photo Source: Noble Pig

7-Up Pound Cake

Doesn't it look delicious?  It reminds me of a pound cake my southern neighbor I called Aunt Dot made when I was a kid.  She called it a "soda pound cake" and through the years I have regretted never getting that recipe, so I was thrilled to have found it while surfing the internet.

These old TNT recipes that have been handed down from generation to generation are the best!

• 1-1/2 cups shortening
• 3 cups sugar
• 5 eggs
• 1 teaspoon EACH of vanilla and lemon extracts
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup 7-UP soft drink OR Sprite or SunDrop

Cream together the shortening and sugar. 

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well as they are added. 

Add the extracts. 

Add the flour alternately with the 7-UP, beginning and ending with flour. 

Turn into a greased and floured tube pan and bake at 300 degrees for 1-1/2 hours or until cake tests done.



While cake bakes, prepare the glaze:

1 stick butter
2 cups sugar
1 tall can evaporated milk

Place in a saucepan and cook over low heat until thick (consistency of buttermilk), about 10 minutes. Be careful to not overcook. Pour over the cake while cake is hot.

Recipe and photo source 

Link to a similar pound cake, often called Baptist Pound Cake since it is bathed in glaze or State Fair Pound Cake since it appeared at the NC State Fair in 1981.

Johnnys All-Purpose Rub . . . and pulled pork

Ever since we brought our awesome smoker/grill home, I've been on a search for a spicy flavored rub to use on ribs, pork roast or chicken.  We have not tried this recipe yet, but it seems to be what I've been looking for thanks to The Food Network and Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.

Recipe courtesy of Johnny White, owner of Johnny's Bar-B-Q in Mission, KS.
SHOW: Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives
EPISODE: Kansas City Barbecue Tour


All-Purpose Rub

5 cups kosher salt
2 1/4 cups paprika (for color)
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons celery powder
2 tablespoons onion powder
1 tablespoons garlic powder
1 cup black pepper
1 tablespoon powdered vegetable oil
2 tablespoons cayene pepper (optional)

Add all of the rub ingredients to a small bowl or container and mix well.


Pulled Pork with Some Serious Bite

3 to 5 pounds pork butt, rinsed with cold water


Directions

Heat a smoker to 225 degrees F.

Generously rub the entire butt with 1 1/2 cups Johnny's All-Purpose Rub. Put it in a pan, cover and refrigerate overnight.

Remove pork from the refrigerator, uncover and put it in the smoker for approximately 7 to 8 hours. 

Cooks Note: This can also be cooked in a home oven at 425 degrees F for 2 hours. 

Remove the pork from the smoker or oven to a cutting board and pull pork apart while still hot. 

You are now ready to serve it your favorite way.


PROFESSIONAL RECIPE: 

This recipe was provided by a chef, restaurant or culinary professional and makes a large quantity. The Food Network Kitchens chefs have not tested this recipe in the proportions indicated and therefore cannot make any representation as to the results.