Chicken Ranch Pitas, Toasted Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches with Cream Cheese, Easy Raspberry Trifle, Blueberry Buckle 2

Hi everyone!

Here are the sandwiches for this week plus a couple desserts I plan to make:

Chicken Ranch Pitas
Amy - amylz
Makes 4 sandwiches

8 ounces boneless skinless chicken breast strips
1/2 envelope (1-ounce) dry ranch salad dressing mix
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
4 pita fold breads (6 to 7-inch)
4 cups torn Romaine lettuce
1/2 cup red bell pepper strips
4 slices onion , halved, separated
1/3 cup Sour Cream
2 Tablespoons mayonnaise
3 Tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Coat chicken pieces with 2 teaspoons ranch salad dressing mix. Heat oil in 10-inch skillet and add chicken pieces. Cook over medium-high heat for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until lightly browned. Cover and continue cooking for 5 to 7 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Uncover and cool slightly. Next, wrap pita breads in aluminum foil. Bake for 4 to 5 minutes or until heated through. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine lettuce, red bell pepper and onions in medium bowl. Stir together sour cream, mayonnaise and remaining salad dressing mix in small bowl. Stir in milk and pour mixture over lettuce. Toss lightly. Add chicken and toss gently to coat. Spoon chicken mixture into warm pitas. Fold in half; secure with toothpicks, if desired.

Notes: Prepare and cook chicken mixture up to 1 day ahead. Just before serving, place chicken mixture in microwave-safe bowl; cover with waxed paper. Microwave on MEDIUM (50% power) for 2 to 3 minutes or until mixture is warmed. Heat pita breads as directed above. Continue making pitas as directed above.

Toasted Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches with Cream Cheese
Amy - amylz
Makes 4 servings

3/4 cup peanut butter
8 - slices sandwich bread (your choice), toasted
1/4 cup soft cream cheese
1/4 cup jelly or preserves (your choice)

On 4 slices of bread, spread peanut butter and then cream cheese. Spread another slice of bread with jelly. Place slices of bread together so spreads are on the inside. Cut sandwich into halves or fourths.

Easy Raspberry Trifle
Amy – amylz
Betty Crocker Makes:16 servings

1 box Betty Crocker white angel food cake mix
1 1/4 cups cold water
2 cups boiling water
1 box (8-serving size) sugar-free raspberry-flavored gelatin
2 packages (10 oz each) frozen sweetened raspberries, thawed
3 containers (6 oz each) Yoplait Original red raspberry yogurt

1. Move oven rack to lowest position (remove other racks). Heat oven to 350F.
2. In extra-large glass or metal bowl, beat cake mix and cold water on low speed 30 seconds; beat on medium speed 1 minute. Pour into ungreased 10-inch angel food (tube) cake pan. Do not use fluted tube cake pan or 9-inch angel food (tube) cake pan, or batter will overflow.
3. Bake 37 to 47 minutes or until top is dark golden brown and cracks feel very dry and not sticky. Do not underbake.
4. Immediately turn pan upside down onto glass bottle until cake is completely cool, about 1 hour. Run knife around edges; remove from pan. Tear cake into about 3/4-inch pieces.
5. Pour boiling water on gelatin in large bowl; stir until gelatin is dissolved. Add raspberries. (If desired, remove several raspberries and reserve for garnish.) Refrigerate gelatin mixture about 15 minutes or until thickened but not set.
6. Layer half each of the cake pieces, gelatin mixture and yogurt in 3-quart glass bowl; repeat. Garnish with reserved raspberries. Refrigerate at least 2 hours until firm. Cover and refrigerate any remaining dessert.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft) Heat oven to 325ºF. Stir 1/3 cup cornstarch into dry cake mix. Increase water to 1 1/3 cups. Beat on low speed 30 seconds; beat on medium speed 3 minutes. Bake 53 to 58 minutes.

Substitution - You can use two 4-serving-size packages of raspberry-flavored gelatin instead of one 8-serving-size package. Or replace the sugar-free raspberry gelatin with regular raspberry-flavored gelatin.

Variation - If you are serving a smaller group, you can easily cut this recipe in half. Bake cake as directed on package for two 9-inch loaf pans and freeze one cake for later. Use half the ingredients, and layer them in a 1 1/2-quart serving bowl.

Blueberry Buckle 2
Amy (amylz)
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2007

For the cake:
Nonstick cooking spray
9 ounces cake flour, approximately 2 cups
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
5 1/4 ounces sugar, approximately 3/4 cup
1 large egg
1/2 cup whole milk
15 ounces fresh whole blueberries, approximately 3 cups

For the topping:
3 1/2 ounces sugar, approximately 1/2 cup
1 1/2 ounces cake flour, approximately 1/3 cup
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
2 ounces unsalted butter, chilled and cubed

For the cake: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9 by 9-inch glass baking dish with nonstick spray and set aside. In a medium mixing bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and ground ginger. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, approximately 1 minute. Add the egg and beat until well incorporated, approximately 30 seconds. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and beat on low speed just until incorporated and then add 1/3 of the milk and beat until incorporated. Repeat, alternating flour and milk until everything has combined. Gently stir in the blueberries and pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish.
For the topping: In a small bowl combine the sugar, flour and nutmeg. Add the butter and work into the dry ingredients using a fork to combine. Continue until the mixture has a crumb-like texture. Sprinkle the mixture on top of the cake. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 35 minutes or until golden in color. Cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.
Amy