A Little Food...Four Keeper Recipes!

This year one of my goals has been to get out of my recipe rut.  So I have been faithful over the last 12 weeks in making anywhere from one to four new recipes each week.  Some have been revolting, some so-so, but others have been great.  I thought I would share my four favorites in case you need a push out of your own same ol' same ol' routine!  Click the title for the full recipe if it isn't listed :)

Tortellini Gratinata with Mushrooms and Parsnip “Bechamel”

This recipes sounds like a doozy and it is has a lot going on so it takes awhile but it is WORTH IT!  It took about 2 hours start to finish, including baking and cooling time.  I was a little worried about the parsnip 'bechamel' because parsnips are so sweet and sometimes make a savory dish a little weird for me.  It ended up being great at cutting the strong flavors from the Gorgonzola.  (I used normal Gorgonzola instead of Gorgonzola Dolce because I'm normal and shop at regular grocery stores!)

Chicken Caesar Salad Wraps

This is really simple and you can throw it together in a few minutes if you have everything on hand.  I didn't measure, just started mixing and eyeballing it until is looked and tasted right!

Romaine Lettuce
Croutons, Cut in Half
Caesar Dressing
Bacon Bits
Grated Parmesan Cheese
Cooked, Cubed Chicken
Tortillas, Pitas or Wraps

Mix the lettuce through chicken in a bowl.  Spoon into tortillas, pitas or wraps.  Enjoy!

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Bars

MAKE THESE.  They are delicious.  I half-heartedly looked for fleur de sel (see recipe) but didn't see it so I just served these up with my sea salt grinder.  These are really good with that tiny bit of salt but also fine without it...the next day for breakfast. 

I did a water bath when I baked mine.  The recipe doesn't say to but I've heard it really helps with even baking.  I placed a large dish towel in a jelly roll pan, placed my unbaked cheesecake on it then slowly filled the jelly roll pan about half full with water.  Be careful not to get any water into your cheesecake.  I also rotated the pan several times while it baked.  Again, I've heard it helps with even baking so I figured, why not try it?  I baked it for 10 minutes, 1/2 turn, 10 minutes, 1/2 turn, 9 minutes, 1/2 turn, 9 minutes, done!  I didn't have a single crack and it was perfectly creamy.

Sticky Toffee Banana Pudding

My favorite thing about it is the toffee sauce.  It is perfectly caramelized and brown and buttery.  It would be heaven on vanilla ice cream...

Do you have any keepers you'd be willing to share?  Leave them in the comments!