Strawberry Cheesecake Trifle

Oh My Gosh....This is HEAVEN! I made this for mother's day weekend and there were no leftovers (we did share it with my sister's family)! This will definitely be a Mother's day tradition at our house!

Ingredients:
2 qts. strawberries, sliced
1 c. sugar, divided
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
3 Tbsp. lime juice (fresh squeezed is better if you can)
3 c. whipped, whipping cream (be sure to whip it before you mix it with the cream cheese mixture)
1 loaf (10 oz.) pound cake cubed (Sara Lee in the freezer section works great)
1 large chocolate bar grated, divided
Chocolate swirls and strawberries to garnish.

Directions:
1. Toss strawberries with 1/2 c. sugar. Allow to chill in refrigerator until juicy (for about an hour).
2. Cream together the lime juice, cream cheese and the remainder of the sugar. Add whip cream and blend until creamy (make sure you blend the cream cheese, lime juice and sugar first, or the acid will curdle the whipped cream.).
3. Drain juice off the strawberries and drizzle onto the cake cubes.
4. Layer in trifle bowl as follows:
1/2 cake cube on bottom
1/3 cream cheese mixture
1/2 strawberry mixture
chocolate shavings

the rest of the cake cubes
1/3 cream cheese mixture
the rest of the strawberry mixture
chocolate shavings

the rest of the cream cheese mixture
chocolate shavings
Strawberries to garnish.

And serve! This awesome recipe is from KSL's Studio 5 website.

Cafe Rio; Pork

4-5 pound Roast

2 c. brown sugar

1 (14 oz.) jar salsa

1 (12 oz.) can of coke

Optional things to serve with:

Black beans

Pinto beans

Grated Cheese

Romaine lettuce

Salsa

Avocados

Place the roast in a slow cooker. Mix the brown sugar, salsa and coke in a blender and and pour over the roast. Cook on low for about 9 hours. Remove meat and shred and discard fat. Put meat back into the slow cooker, mix and serve.

Serve with Cafe Rio Ranch dressing and Cafe Rio Rice, other recipes on this blog.

This recipe is from Jen.

*You can freeze the excess meat.

Cafe Rio; Rice

6 c. water

4 Tbsp. chicken bouillon mix (or 2 cubes)

4 Tbsp. garlic

1/2 bunch of cilantro

1 can green chili's

3/4 tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. butter

1/2 c. onions

3 c. uncooked rice

Boil the water and dissolve cubes. Blend the garlic, cilantro, green chilis, salt, butter and onions in a blender. Then add blended mixture in with the water and add rice. Bring everything back up to a boil and then let simmer for 30 minutes or until rice is cooked through.

Make with Cafe Rio Pork and Cafe Rio Ranch Dressing, recipes that you can find on this blog.

This recipe is from my friend Jen, very good.

*You can also double the blender batch and freeze 1/2 of it for the next time that you want to make it, so it's easier the next time you want to make it.

Cafe Rio; Ranch Dressing

1 Ranch packet

1 c. butter milk

1 c. heaping cup mayonnaise

1 (7 oz.) can of salsa verde

1/4 bunch cilantro

1 clove garlic

juice of one lime

1 jalapeno (without the seeds)

Blend all of the above in a blender and chill in the refrigerator. This is really good with veggies, crackers or on salads when you have leftovers.

Serve with Cafe Rio Pork and Cafe Rio; Rice, recipes on this blog.

This recipe is from from my friend Jen. Super good.

*You can make your own buttermilk by mixing 1 Tbsp. of vinegar with 1 c. of milk and let it set for 5 minutes.

*If you love it so much you can double the batch from the salsa down, blend altogether and then divide in half and freeze half of the fresh mix for another time.

Rosemary Lemon Chicken with Prosciutto

Tastes better than it looks.
Ingredients:
Extra-vigin oil
4 oz. thinly sliced prosciutto, chopped
Leaves from 2 small sprigs fresh rosemary
1 whole chicken, quartered (about 3 pounds)
Salt and pepper
3/4 c. chicken stock
1/2 lemon, juiced

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Warm your dutch oven or cast iron skillet in the oven to get it nice and hot. Drizzle the pan with a 3-count of oil. Add the prosciutto and rosemary and cook, stirring, until the prosciutto is crisp and lightly browned, 3-4 minutes. Push to one side of the pan. Season the chicken on both sides with a generous amount of salt and pepper and add it to the hot pan, skin side down, in a single layer. Cook for about 5 minutes until the skin begins to set and crisp. Turn and cook 3 more minutes. Turn the chicken again, stick the pan in the oven and roast until the chicken is tender and cooked through, about 30 more minutes (I put the lid on my dutch oven while it cooked).
Take the pan out of the oven. Remove the chicken onto platter and sprinkle prosciutto on top of the chicken, keep warm while you prepare the pan sauce. Pour out all but about 1 Tbsp. of the rendered chicken fat and return the pan to the stove top. Stir in the stock and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, scraping the flavors stuck to the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon, until reduced to a syrup, 3-5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the pan sauce over the chicken and serve.
This recipe is from the food network.
Sounds complicated but it was super easy and tasty.

Broccoli Cheese Soup even better!

1 can chicken broth (~ 1 3/4 c. of broth)
1 small onion, diced or to taste

1/3 c. flour
1/4 c. butter
Pepper to taste

2 c. milk
1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese (the sharper the better for flavor)
1/2 c. shredded Swiss cheese
2 1/2 to 3 c. of broccoli florets, cut then steamed (if you don't like a lot of broccoli you can add less).

Simmer chicken broth and chopped onion for 15-20 minutes in a covered sauce pan, until onions are soft. Heat milk in microwave for 1-2 minutes. Ina separate medium size stockpot, melt butter then add flour and pepper. Cook together for a couple of minutes, then whisk in warmed milk. Stir and heat together on medium-high heat until soup starts to thicken. Next add chicken broth and continue to stir until well blended. Add cheeses and stir until smooth. Add steamed broccoli and serve.
This recipe is from http://sowethinkwecancook.com , it is the best with the fresh sharp cheddar cheese and Swiss cheese. My kids LOVE it, and it's a great way to get them to eat their veggies!

Baked Asparagus with Balsamic Butter Sauce

1 bunch fresh asparagus
cooking spray
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp. butter
1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1-2 tsp. Balsamic Vinegar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Snap ends off of washed asparagus and place on baking sheet. Coat with cooking spray and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 12 minutes or until tender. Melt the butter and stir in soy sauce and Balsamic vinegar. Pour over asparagus and serve.
This recipe is from http://sowethinkwecancook.com