Baked Banana Oatmeal Pancake... An Inspired Breakfast

What to do with over-ripe bananas? I am not a big fan of Banana Bread, so I tried this Sheet Pan Banana Oatmeal Pancake today. It was super easy and surprisingly delicious. Amazing that something so simple could outshine traditional pancakes, but it does just that. This recipe was inspired by the Food Lion Supermarket website.

INGREDIENTS

Nonstick baking spray

1 Cup Old Fashioned Oats

1 Cup All-Purpose Flour

1 Tbsp. of Baking Powder

2 Ripe bananas (peeled and cut)

1/3 Cup Whole Milk

3 Large Eggs

3 Tbsp. of Sugar

3 Tbsp. Unsalted Sweet Cream Butter (room temperature)

1 Tbsp. Vanilla

For serving

Greek Vanilla Yogurt

Cup of Fresh Blueberries

Maple Syrup

Powder Sugar for Dusting

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 375°F, and spray a 9x13 inch baking pan or similar size casserole pan.

Combine the oats, flour and baking powder in a food processor or blender and blend until a fine powder.

Add 2 bananas, milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla and butter and blend, scraping down the sides as needed until just combined.

Pour the batter in an even layer into the prepared baking pan. Bake until light golden brown, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20-25 minutes. Cut the pancake into squares and serve.

Top the pancake squares with your favorite fruit (bananas, blueberries etc.) yogurt and syrup. Serve and enjoy. ENJOY!!! Express Your Love Through Food! #pancakes #bananapancakes #brunch #breakfast

Not Your Mother's Beef Stew ! A Warm & Comforting Anytime Dinner!

As a young child, I loved my mothers beef stew. It was among my 5 favorite dinners she would make. This past Sunday, I was in the mood for Momma's stew as I remembered the wonderful Sunday afternoon dinners growing up. Of course I can not leave any recipe alone without putting my own spin it. So here is my re-inspired Mother's Beef Stew recipe. Express Your Love Through Food!

INGREDIENTS

3/4 - 1 pound of cubed beef

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

1-2 Tbsp flour

2 bay leaves

1/4 cup vegetable oil

Two large white onions

Three large carrots

Three celery sticks

2 large russet potatoes

1 sprigs fresh thyme

4 cups chicken stock (or beef stock)

3 cups fresh kale leaves

1 medium zucchini

INSTRUCTIONS

Dry beef with paper towels or clean dish towel. Place beef, salt, pepper, paprika and flour in a ziplock bag and shake to coat.

Place oil in a heavy bottom pot or dutch oven on stove and heat to medium-medium high until the oil is shimmering but not smoking. Brown beef on all sides, do not overcook, once browned remove beef to paper towels or dish towel and set aside to rest.

Chop onions, celery and carrots into 1/4 in pieces. Reduce heat to medium and saute onions for 3 minutes until they begin to soften and become translucent. Add celery and carrots and continue to saute for 1-2 minutes. Add 1/4 cup of stock to deglaze the bottom of the pot. Do not add potatoes until later in the cooking process.

Return beef to pan and stir into vegetables. Add remaining stock, thyme, bay leaves and remaining and bring to a boil. Immediately turn down the heat and slow simmer for 15-20 minutes.

While simmering, peel and cut potatoes to medium-large chunks. After 15-20 minutes of simmering gently stir in potatoes and simmer for another 20 minutes.

Chop kale and zucchini. Once the potatoes are knife tender stir in kale and zucchini.

Continue to cook for another 3-5 minutes and remove from heat. Let the stew rest and the kale and zucchini to remain cooking. The goal is not to overcook the kale and zucchini.

Ladle into warm bowls, garnish with fresh parsley and Enjoy!

#myinspiredrecipes #beefstew #cosydinner #easydinner

Herb and Lemon Rack of Lamb... For that Special Dinner.

Rack of Lamb is always an eye-catching and remarkable centerpiece for a special dinner. This inspired and unique recipe takes advantage of the wonderful taste of lemon. A marinade of complex flavors result in an amazing, elegant roast that your family and friends will rave about. For a more sophisticated presentation purchase frenched* racks or have your butcher do it for you. Serve with my French Style potatoes and roasted asparagus.

The thing I love most about this recipe, is this method of roasting does not require browning the rack before roasting. Express Your Love Through Your Food!

Ingredients

1 Pound Frenched Rack of Lamb

3 Large cloves of garlic finely chopped (heaping Tablespoon)

1 Tablespoon grated lemon zest

1 Tablespoons chopped rosemary leaves

1 Tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves (no stems)

2-3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Teaspoon of brown Spicy or Dijon mustard

NOTE: **Frenched rack means all the excess fat, cartilage and meat are removed from the bones for a clean presentation.This recipe feeds four two chops each. If you have big appetites make two racks and double ingredients.

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees and place oven rack in the top 1/3rd position.

In a bowl combine olive oil, garlic, lemon zest, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper and mustard. If mixture appears too dry add more oil.

Sprinkle lamb on both sides with salt and pepper. With a knife or small spatula rub marinade mixture on both sides of the lamb and let rest for one hour covered with plastic wrap. You can prepare your marinating rack of lamb ahead of time. Cover and place in the refrigerator for up to 12-24 hours. Before roasting bring lamb up to room temperature.

Spray a roasting pan with non stick spray. Place roast in pan top side up and roast in the upper third of oven. Roast in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes for medium-rare; an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 125 degrees F (54 degrees C), or continue to cook to desired doneness. If the bones are burning or too brown cover with aluminum foil. Once done remove lamb to a cutting board and allow to rest for 5 to 7 minutes, loosely covered with foil. Carve roast between the ribs, serving either one or two ribs (I prefer two ribs).

NOTE: Regarding doneness of your lamb.

Allow the internal temperature to be 5 to 10 degrees less than you like because the meat will continue to cook while it sits.

For medium-well: An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 140 degrees F (60 degrees C).

For well done: An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 150 degrees F (65 degrees C).

Express You Love Through Your Food!!! Enjoy! #myinspiredrecipes #rackoflambwithlemon #roastrackoflamb #fancymaincourse #easyentertaining