Recipe: Dump Cake

In an effort to affiliate coworkers and boost morale, some colleagues and I decided to start weekly cooking competitions.  The first of which was a "Matzoh Ball Cook-off."  This past week, we had a seasonally-inspired bake-off.  Everything, from potato latkes and the fixins to Calvin's Cookie Butter Bars, was submitted for our delicious holiday competition.  
"Ew," my coworkers asked, "why is it called 'Dump Cake?'"  By the fifth bathroom humor joke, I couldn't take it anymore.  I had to explain to everyone that the reason it's called a "Dump Cake" is because of the way the ingredients are added together.  "You just kind of dump them all on top of each other."
Not only is it one of the easiest and most fool-proof dessert recipes to make, "Dump Cake" is outrageously delicious.  Think cherry cobbler, only elevated and amplified to the nth degree.

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Ingredients
Serves 12

• 21 ounce can cherry pie filling
• 21 ounce can crushed pineapple, liquid drained
• 18 ounce box yellow cake mix 
• 8 ounces salted butter, sliced
• Optional: Vanilla or Dulce de Leche ice cream 

Method
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In an 11x17" baking dish, dump cherry pie filling and liquid-drained crushed pineapple.

Stir cherry pie filling and pineapple together to combine.  Spread evenly across pan.

Dump the cake mix on top of the fruit filling.  Use clean hands to distribute the mix so that no filling is visible.

Top with sliced butter.

Place the baking dish atop a foil-lined cookie sheet (in the event of spillage, this makes for easy cleanup) and bake for approximately 1 hour/1 hour + 15 minutes; until the topping is a rich, golden brown (like the color of brown sugar).

Serve warm with an optional scoop of ice cream.  Enjoy!

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Lindsay, Beverly Hills Bites

Recipe: Skenchiladas (Skinny + enchiladas)

If you know anything about me, then you know that a) I'm a total Mexican food whore (Pardon my French, but it's the truth: I'll do just about anything for some solid comida Mexicano.) and b) I constantly struggle with my weight; two characteristics that are always fighting each other.
So, what the hell does a Mexican food-loving chick with a slow metabolism do?  Make Skenchiladas!
What are "Skenchiladas," you ask?  They're a "skinny" version of my favorite Mexican dish: Enchiladas.  What makes them "skinny," if you will, is the fact that the corn tortillas are not fried.  And, believe it or not, you can't even taste the difference!  Promise.      

You know you want a piece of me.

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Ingredients
Serves one

• 3 corn tortillas
• 1/2 cup Frontera Red Chile Enchilada Sauce (or enchilada sauce of your choice)
• 3 slices Colby cheese (or cheese of your choosing)
• Optional 
• 1 tbsp. chopped sweet white onion
• 1/2 cup shredded chicken breast

Method
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
Spray a gentle amount of non-stick spray in to a glass pie pan or 8x8" metal pan. 
Pour 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on to small plate.
Microwave tortillas for 20 seconds, so they are warm to the touch.
Dip the first tortilla in to the enchilada sauce, fully immersing each side (the entire tortilla should be red from the sauce).
Place dipped tortilla in the middle of your baking pan and top with cheese and optional ingredients.  Repeat with remaining two tortillas, cheese, and optional ingredients (<-- if you did decide to add chicken, use 1/4 cup of the meat between tortilla stacks 1 and 2.  Do not crown on top tortilla, as this will dry out the meat.).
Set remaining sauce aside.  Do not discard! 
Cover pan with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from oven.  Using a spatula, carefully transfer the enchilada stack from the baking pan to your serving plate.
Microwave the remaining sauce for 20 seconds, then pour over enchilada stack.
Enjoy!

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Lindsay, Beverly Hills Bites

Recipe: Hot Crackers...When the Cool Ranch Dorito met the Ritz Cracker

It wasn't the twenty-four hour brined turkey - the mulled Honeycrisp apple cider - or those scratch-made cheddar + chive biscuits that had my Thanksgiving guests going back for seconds and thirds; it was the Hot Crackers!

Hot Crackers: When "Cool Ranch Doritos" met the "Ritz Cracker"

I knew that I wanted to keep the appetizer portion of the meal rather simple, both in terms of workload for myself and for everyone's appetites.  After all, it's just like my grandmother used to say, "You don't want to spoil your dinner!"  Although I never listened to that specific advice, I knew that whatever she said was probably pretty solid.
Why Hot Crackers, you ask?  Well, for one, they're outrageously delicious.  And, secondly, they're super easy to make.  I don't know about you, but just having the words "delicious" and "easy" so close together is reason enough for me!

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Hot Crackers
This is a tweaked recipe that I received from one of my best friends after she made them for a girl's road trip.  I went absolutely bananas over them and would not stop bugging my friend about these crackers until she gave me the recipe.
I hope you enjoy them as much as I - and everyone else - do!  

Ingredients
Serves approximately 15-20 guests, however, recipe can easily be divided in half

• 1 3/4 cups canola oil
• 1/4 cup crushed red pepper
• 2 packages dry Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix
• 1.5 boxes (6 sleeves) Saltine Crackers

Method
Whisk oil, crushed red pepper, and seasoning mix together in a bowl.  In a large, deep bowl or disposable aluminum roasting pan, empty sleeves of crackers.  Pour liquid mixture over the crackers and gently toss (taking care not to break crackers) in an effort to moisten as many crackers as possible.  Cover crackers and set aside, returning every 15-20 minutes to gently toss.  Crackers are ready when all of the liquid has been absorbed, 3-4 hours.
Store in air-tight container or plastic zip bags.
Believe it or not, these crackers get better with age; they should keep for approximately 2-weeks!

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Lindsay, Beverly Hills Bites  

Recipe: Umami-roasted Brussels sprouts

When it comes to roasting vegetables, I've learned through trial and error that, in order to achieve optimal flavor, you need both sweet and savory elements.  Having experimented with everything from maple syrup to soy sauce, I was delighted to come across The Saucey Sauce line of products.  Based on a Vietnamese family's recipes for various sauces and marinades, each bottle of 'Sauce truly captures that highly coveted, "je ne sais quoi" umami flavor.
For this particular recipe, I chose to roast my 'sprouts with The Saucey Sauce's Brown Sugar Ginger Glaze, as it perfectly encapsulates sweet, savory and, because of the fact that 'fish sauce' is in the ingredients lineup, salty and rich, too!         

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Ingredients
Makes two servings

• 2 cups halved fresh/raw Brussels sprouts
• 1/4 cup of The Saucey Sauce's Brown Sugar Ginger Glaze
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce

Method
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Combine first three ingredients and toss.
Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and toss again.
Lightly coat a 13x9" glass baking pan with non-stick cooking spray, and pour Brussels sprouts in to the pan.  Take care to evenly disperse the sprouts for uniform roasting.
Roast for 20 minutes, uncovered.
Remove from oven.  De-glaze pan with soy sauce and, using a spatula, move sprouts around the liquid to absorb.  Evenly distribute sprouts and return to the oven.
Continue to roast for another 20 minutes, uncovered.
Transfer from pan to a serving plate/bowl.  Serve immediately or allow to cool to room temperature and refrigerate.
*Note: I find that these 'sprouts taste even better after 24-hours; this "holding period," if you will,  allows for the flavor profile to continue to build and expand. 

Bon appetit!

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Lindsay, Beverly Hills Bites