I love bananas. They are hands down my favorite fruit. I don’t know exactly what it is about them, but no matter what my mood, I can always go for something with banana flavor. With it being Memorial Day Weekend, I have been pondering what kind of dessert to make tomorrow. We will be grilling out like most people and I always like to end a good meal with a sweet treat.

While in search of something yummy, I headed over to Food Network. Sure enough on the first page they had burgers, fries, and shakes. The shakes led me to a banana recipe, which is listed below, and prompted me to look for other banana recipes. I am not sure which of these I will be making this weekend because I haven’t decided yet, but I am pretty sure one of these awesome recipes is going to be on the menu!

Bananas Foster Milkshake (Recipe by Bobby Flay)

Ingredients
1 overly ripe banana, peeled and cut into chunks
1/4 cup good quality caramel sauce (recommended: Fran’s), plus more for garnish
Pinch ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon dark rum, optional
1/3 cup whole milk
10 ounces vanilla ice cream
Whipped cream, for garnish
Banana slices, for garnish

Directions
In a blender, combine the banana, caramel sauce, cinnamon, rum, if using, and milk and blend until smooth. Add the ice cream and blend until incorporated. Pour into a tall glass, and garnish with a dollop of whipped cream, a few slices of banana and a drizzle of caramel sauce. Serve immediately.

You can never go wrong with a thick, frothy shake and considering what most restaurants will charge you, if you make them at home they often taste even that much better. I don’t know if this will be on the menu tomorrow, but if not, I am sure it will be on it soon.

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Ingredients:

1 1/2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 package frozen chopped spinach (10 ounces), defrosted and squeezed dry
A hint of Salt and pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, ground or freshly grated
4 ounces feta, crumbled into tiny bits
1 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons sour cream
4 sheets defrosted Fillo Factory’s Fillo pastry dough (13 x 18-inch)
3 tablespoons melted butter

Place oven rack in center of the oven and pre-heat to 400ºF.

Pre-heat a small pan over medium to medium-high heat. Add olive oil and onion and sauté 5 minutes.

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P’CHEEN INTERNATIONAL BISTRO & PUB INTRODUCES “MIKE’S BONE-LICK BBQ MONDAY MENU” BEGINNING TONIGHT, MONDAY, MAY 11

ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT RIBS EVERY WEDNESDAY

Atlanta, Georgia (May 11, 2009) – Old Fourth Ward favorite, P’cheen International Bistro & Pub, recently made a new addition to the team – an industrial meat smoker. BBQ aficionado and P’cheen Sous Chef Mike LaSage and Executive Chef Alex Friedman are proud to announce “Mike’s Bone-Lick BBQ Monday Menu,” launching tonight, Monday, May 11. The evening will kick off with complimentary Sweetwater 420 from 6 to 7 p.m., and will include a special performance by Mike LaSage and the Stumbling Troubadours.

“Mike’s Bone-Lick BBQ Monday Menu” includes melt in your mouth classics such as baby back ribs, pulled pork, chipotle-rubbed smoked chicken and short ribs. Meats can be ordered alone or in combo platters with two meats and two sides ($16) or three meats and two sides ($12). Side items ($3) include Southern staples like pork braised collards and jalapeno mac-n-cheese. All meats come with a choice of four regional-style sauces, including North Carolina vinegar, Kansas City thick-n-sweet, South Carolina mustard, and pepper vinegar.

Also beginning this week, P’cheen will replace its popular all-you-can-eat snow crab legs on Wednesdays with all-you-can-eat BBQ ribs for only $25. Buckets of Sessions Lager will also be available for $15 every Wednesday.

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Pasta can be a big thing in our house. It’s also a relative thing. It seems like we go through phases where that is all we eat or we’re just never eating it. When we eat it, most times we stick to the basics. We do manicotti quite a bit. Other sure fire options are spaghetti and meatballs and lasagna. Occasionally we will make baked ziti or stuffed shells, too.

One thing that we rarely do is buy frozen or packaged pasta dinners. Don’t get me wrong, like most working mom’s I will buy the pre-made pasta. I just don’t purchase the boxed meals that contain the sauce and everything in the box together.

When we were approached to do the Romano’s Macaroni Grill Review and Contest, Dominick was very excited. You see, where I grew up (and where we live today), there is no Romano’s Macaroni Grill. Dominick is quite familiar with the restaurant though, as he grew up in Ohio, and attended a college where he was able to order take out from Macaroni Grill right to his dorm room. He swears that he took me to one when he was in college though I don’t, for the life of me, remember.

Still, I had seen these in the store, prior to being approached about this review and had considered buying them. With that in mind, I figured why not? I try to be open minded when being offered reviews and in this case, it certainly paid off! We were sent the Creamy Basil Parmesan Chicken and Pasta, along with coupons to try the other three brands. Of the four brands we have tried the Creamy Basil, Chicken Alfredo with Linguine, and the Chicken Marsala with Linguine. We have yet to try the Garlic and Herb Chicken Penne.

If I recall correctly these were about four or five dollars at the store. The only thing you need to buy to complete your meal is the chicken that goes into the pasta. Everything else, minus small amounts of butter, is included in the box. You could easily pair this with a salad and some garlic bread or breadsticks for an authentic Italian meal at a truly inexpensive price.

I purchased the Romano’s Restaurant Favorites at Wal-Mart, though I have seen them in other stores, as well. Depending on your location these should be pretty easy to find and they are well worth it. The cook time is less than 30 minutes and as long as you can follow basic directions you can have a delicious Italian meal on the table with minimal work.

To give you an idea of what we have tried and our thoughts on each individual meal, I have listed some information on each style of pasta below.

Creamy Basil: The creamy basil also includes sundried tomatoes. The best thing about all of these meals is the pasta. While it is dried, once it is cooked it comes out plump and full. It’s delicious! I loved the basil sauce with this and so did Dominick. I wasn’t a fan of the sundried tomatoes, but that is normally the case with me. Dominick enjoyed the complete dish though and the tomatoes were my only complaint. Of the three, this was his least favorite though he enjoyed it immensely and would eat it again. I have to agree that I would eat it again, though I might toss the sundried tomatoes if I were making it for myself.

Chicken Alfredo: This was the first kind that we had and it was definitely the best. Not only was it so easy to make, it tasted just like we’d ordered it fresh and hot from a restaurant. I love eating out and this satisfied that craving for a much cheaper price than a typical Italian restaurant meal would have cost. The sauce is creamy, the pasta tasted fresh, and everything about this made me want to eat this more often. The pasta included in this meal was, by far, Dominick’s favorite. He said this reminded him of the noodles that came with the meals he ordered at Macaroni Grill.

Chicken Marsala: Like the others, if you can follow basic directions you will not have a problem making this. I admit that I did not try this because I am really anti-wine. For some reason my past experiences with Marsala sauce have been too wine-filled, so I decided to sit this one out. Dominick loved it though. The sauce was delicious and out of the three this was his second favorite.

If you have a chance, we highly recommend you give any (or all) of these a shot. They are affordable, tasty, and give you a chance to create a restaurant quality meal at home with relatively no hassles.

If you decide to check these out, make sure you visit the Restaurant Favorites at Home Website before you go shopping. The site gives you a chance to print out a $1 coupon off your purchase!

Taste/Flavor:
Prep Time:
Ease of Prep:
Instruction Quality:
Look:
Kid Friendly – to Eat:
Kid Friendly – to Make:
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Technorati Tags: Romano’s Macaroni Grill, Restaurant Favorites at Home, Dinner, Lunch, Pasta, Food Review, Chicken Alfredo, Creamy Basil, Garlic and Herb, Chicken Marsala

I guarantee that you will never taste anything with the flavor, depth, and tenderness of Lava Lake Lamb.

I’ve had lamb before. I like lamb. Still, it has never been my favorite food. If we’re going on meat, steaks have always had a huge place in my heart. At one point, I would have said that I could take lamb or leave it.

Where I am from the family restaurants (we call them Coney Islands) all serve Gyros. For those that aren’t familiar they are seasoned lamb or pork (or a mix) with tomatoes, onions, and a cucumber yogurt sauce wrapped in a pita bread. They are some of the most delicious Greek food you will ever taste (especially if you’re not too adventurous). So, for a long time my experience with lamb had to do with these amazing sandwiches. However, when it came to cooking lamb I have been skittish.

I purchased a lamb roast and some chops in the past and I have never found them to be as flavorful as I have wanted them to be. I wasn’t sure if I was a bad cook (I like to think I can hold my own) or if it was the lamb, but it just didn’t turn out the way I wanted.

Then one day Lava Lake Lamb approached me about doing a review of their meats. I have to admit, when they mentioned how much Food Network Iron Chef Cat Cora (my favorite IC by the way) loved their lamb, I knew that I had to try it.

They were nice enough to send me a small selection including some ground, some chops, and a small roast. First, let me mention that this is Organic. If you’ve never had organic meat (I had not before this arrived) you’re in for a real succulent treat. In fact, if you’ve never had it you should be prepared to be spoiled towards non-organic lamb. Whether this was just because it was organic or because it was Lava Lake Lamb, I don’t know. All I can say is that this was an eating experience I will never forget!

This lamb was juicy, flavorful, and more delicious than anything that I have ever tasted. It made me feel excellent when I cooked it because I realized that the mediocre lamb mentioned above was that brands fault more so than mine. At least, I have to imagine that is the case, considering that I cooked this Lava Lake Lamb and everyone in the house had their mouth watering for more!

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ENTRY GUIDELINES:
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GET AN EXTRA ENTRY:
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Visit Ashtyn’s Home Cookin and enter to win a Dinner Time with Romano’s Macaroni Grill Gift Basket http://snipr.com/h4vj9

You can post the URL to your Tweet in your initial comment for this contest.

To find out about all our latest contests feel free to add us to your Twitter:

@dominickevans
@ashtynevans

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Ingredients
1 1/2 cups fine chocolate wafer crumbs (from Oreo cookies or chocolate wafers)
6 tablespoons melted butter
1 recipe Dark Chocolate Truffles, recipe follows, whipped but not shaped into balls
6 fresh raspberries, plus extra for serving

Directions
Use a fork to mix together the chocolate wafer crumbs and butter. Spray the cups of a 6-muffin tin with a vegetable spray. Line the cups with strips of parchment or waxed paper, cut so that they are as wide as the diameter of each cup and long enough to overhang the sides (you’ll need this overhang to remove the tarts). Use the bottom of a small glass to press the crumbs over the bottom and sides of the muffin cups, building the sides up to only about 1 1/2 inches. Place a raspberry in the center of each crust and with a pastry bag or small plastic bag with the corner snipped off, fill the tarts with the truffle mixture. Smooth the tops and refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.

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Ingredients

Marinade:
32 ounces plain yogurt
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup minced garlic
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh marjoram leaves
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Lamb:
1 (5 1/2-pound) leg of lamb, boned and butterflied
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup plain bread crumbs
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons pitted brine-cured black olives, such as kalamata
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons pine nuts
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh marjoram leaves
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh mint leaves
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest

Directions
Combine the ingredients for the marinade in a large plastic freezer bag. Add the lamb and seal the bag. Shake to evenly distribute the marinade over the lamb. Refrigerate and marinate for 8 hours.

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French Toast fans will definitely want to check out Paula Deen’s recipe for this delicious looking French Toast Casserole. I wouldn’t think of this as a summer food, but while the mornings are still quite chilly this would be a fabulous breakfast or brunch for the whole family.

Ingredients
1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces)
8 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Dash salt
Praline Topping, recipe follows
Maple syrup

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Mario Batali’s Fresh Strawberry Bellini

Ingredients
1 bottle prosecco*
2 cups pureed and strained fresh strawberries
Special equipment: Blender, strainer, iced champagne flutes, pitcher and tall “swizzle stirrer” (for the pitcher)

Directions
Place 8 Champagne flutes in the freezer for 20 minutes. Open the prosecco and let it stand in an ice bucket for 5 minutes.

Into a pitcher, pour the 2 cups pureed strawberries. Gently pour in the bottle of prosecco and stir gently to combine. Divide among Champagne flutes and serve.

*For Kid Bellinis, substitute sparkling water for the prosecco

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