Peanut Butter and Banana Stuffed French Toast

These were so easy to make.  One morning I woke up and was really craving stuffed french toast.  The only image in my mind was of the delicious, fruity stuffed french toast at IHOP.  That's the only kind that I've ever had...and until this particular day that was alright by me. 

I was about to settle for regular old french toast when I saw the fresh bananas on the counter that I bought a couple of days earlier.  The gears started turning and the obvious combo was bananas and peanut butter. 

Maybe some people would call it layered rather than stuffed, but these were delicious!  You really don't even need any syrup.  

I will be making these again!  Maybe next time I'll add a little honey on top or as an additional stuffing ingredient.

Simple Ravioli? It Can Be Done!

I considered attempting to make ravioli from scratch on numerous occasions.  Then I read the recipe and realize that it requires a ravioli press and refuse to purchase a kitchen tool that I will only use once every year.  Then one day I subscribed to Pinterest and came across a great idea for super simple ravioli.

Enter...Won Ton Wrappers!

Mix 16 ounces of low fat ricotta cheese and one egg with your favorite veggie and/or cooked chicken/beef.  I used pureed broccoli and diced onions. 

Each won ton wrapper will hold about a tablespoon of the mixture.  Be careful to not over-stuff them or they will not hold together while cooking. 

Simply wet the edges of the wrapper and press them together to close them up.  I also used a fork to gently press the edges like pie crust.  Just don't poke or tear the wrapper as you work.  They will leak when you cook them if you do.

Boil the water while you are making the ravioli so it's ready when you have finished.  I found that about 5-6 ravioli will fit in the boiling water at once.  They only need about 4 minutes to be fully cooked. 

I topped my ravioli with a little mozzarella cheese and bacon!  Any sauce would be great, too...I just wanted something a little lighter. 

So won ton wrappers = excellent 'from scratch' ravioli dinner option. 

Not Your Average Stuffed Peppers

For as long as I can remember, stuffed pepper recipes were limited to some kind of seasoned rice and ground beef or sausage mixture (not that there's anything wrong with that).  Growing up this is the version that my mom served.  Recently, I have seen a few intriguing recipes involving Tex-Mex ingredients like black beans and corn.  In my household this would not go over very well, so I got to thinking, "what could I incorporate to make an interesting stuffed pepper that everyone in my house would like?"  This is what I came up with:

"Tuna Casserole Stuffed Peppers"

• Basmati Rice
• Cream of Mushroom Soup
• Large can of Tuna Fish (drained)
• Diced onions
• Fresh Broccoli (peas if you prefer)
• Swiss Cheese
• Salt, pepper, garlic

After choosing flat bottomed peppers that will likely stand up without assistance, be sure to properly clean the peppers (i.e., wash, cut off the top, remove membrane).  I always boil the peppers before stuffing and baking them.  It makes them softer and in my opinion enhances their flavor. Be sure to fully submerge the peppers in the water while they boil.  If they can't be fully submerged, just rotate them every couple of minutes.  They're ready when the outer skin looks like it's blistered.

I cooked the rice using a rice cooker and steamed the broccoli for a few minutes to lessen the baking time.  Then I combined everything in a large bowl and stuffed the peppers. 

The peppers stand up nicely in a lightly greased small glass casserole dish.  I then covered them loosely with foil and baked at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  The bake time depends on how large your peppers are, if you precooked the stuffing ingredients, and how tightly you stuff the peppers.  Once all the ingredients have had time to heat up and 'mesh' flavors, I remove the foil and place one slice of swiss cheese on top for about 5 additional minutes. 

And that's it...super easy to make.  You could make different versions using a different type of pepper, various cheeses, or even decide to mix cheese in the stuffing rather than melting over the top.  My household tends to be impressed with 'gooeyness', so I went for the wow factor.  These make a pretty large portion, so if you prefer smaller portions, cut the peppers into halves prior to boiling.

Do you have a unique stuffed pepper recipe that you created?  How would you change the recipe to impress your family? 

And so it begins...

For a while now I've been thinking about starting a blog to share my cooking adventures (or lack thereof).  I am often inspired by things that happen to be in my pantry and refrigerator.  If not inspiration it's desperation and avoidance of a trip to the grocery store.  Most of the time my culinary experiments work - at least according to my husband.  I plan to share my best and worst attempts so stay tuned.