Happy Monday to you! Canadian Thanksgiving here at home, Columbus day in the US and what I think is a regular Monday in the rest of the world. I have a special post for you today. Not only do I have a thanksgiving recap from the zesty in laws on Saturday night I have a cheesecake that Sister in Law zesty made that will blow your mind. Do you get excited about food like I do? When I saw the spring form pan makes it way to the table at around 7:36pm Atlantic time on Saturday night, I may have gotten a few chills down my back with excitement. Spring form in my simple mind means cheesecake. Cheesecake means HOLY YUM.

This was know exception.  Pumpkin Marble Cheesecake! Yeah I know  – ridiculous.  I could not wait to sink my fork into this piece of work.  But give me a minute and I will tell you how she made it.  She altered the recipe slightly from all recipes and the details are below.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 Cups crushed gingersnap cookies
• 1/2 Cup finely chopped pecans
• 1/3 Cup butter, melted
• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 Cup white sugar, divided
• 1 Tsp. vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• 1 Cup canned pumpkin
• 3/4 Tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 Tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/4 Tsp. ground cloves
• 1/4 Tsp. allspice

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a medium bowl, mix together the crushed gingersnap cookies, pecans, and butter. Press into the bottom, and about 1 inch up the sides of a 9 inch springform pan. Bake crust 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Set aside to cool.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, and vanilla just until smooth. Mix in eggs one at a time, blending well after each. Set aside 1 cup of the mixture and place in the fridge.
3. Blend 1/4 cup sugar, pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg into the remaining mixture.
4. Spread the pumpkin flavored batter into the crust, and drop the plain batter by spoonfuls onto the top.
5. Swirl with a knife to create a marbled effect.
6. Bake 55 minutes in the preheated oven, or until filling is set. Run a knife around the edge of the pan.
7. Allow to cool before removing pan rim.
8. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.
9. ENJOY!

This is my small portion.... do note the butter tart pie that was also amazing! Maybe I will share that later on this week for you to try.

Zesty Tip: Zesty in law did mention that putting the extra one cup of mixture aside in the fridge was something she would do again.  Also remember with spring form pans and cheesecake, always wait until the cake has cooled before removing.  makes life easier.

OK, so as you can see that was delicious… and I realize I started backwards with the dinner recap.  But that is OK.  I am going to do a picture recap of the entire meal right now so you can enjoy in all it’s beauty.  I will start off with a picture of the menu so you can related to the pictures.  If you want any recipes just let me know in the comments and I will get them for you.

As you can see, this is no ordinary turkey dinner that you would have on Thanksgiving. This is high end folks and I know that I am super lucky to be part of this so bear with me and get thru this masterpiece.

Brussels prior to plating. This could win an award for taste

Parsnips prior to hitting the wood oven

rumbling beets getting ready for the big dance

A little stuffing.... oh dear I can feel my pants getting tight again

Caramelized onions that you could add to whatever you wanted.

An action pea shot... before the bacon.

Honestly, these brussel sprouts! Unbelievable!

WOW, as I review these pictures, I am hungry again and think back to how amazing this dinner was.  I am actually going to make some chocolate chip pancakes for the kiddos here now and than maybe do some house work before heading to Momma Zesty’s for another turkey day.

Have a great day wherever you are in the world and I will come back on Wednesday for more excitement.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Remember a while back we were doing Help the Student event, and I received this guest post from Jenny at Picky Palate?  Well I had to bring this one back because when I actually made these I thought I was never going to stop raving about them.  Then I thought to myself, wouldn’t this be a HUGE idea for a super bowl party.  They are different, delicious and down right simple to prepare.

This turkey burger has minimal ingredients with massive flavor.  You may have to shop around to find the right slider buns of your choice.  My only piece of advice is to try and find a bun that is not tough and hard to bite through.  You know what I mean right?  Sometimes you get rolls that you feel like you are chewing on the sole of your shoe.  With those you will have a problem keeping the burger in tact.  A fresh soft roll is the way to go.

Hope you try Jenny’s  little sliders.

I cooked these burgers right on the stove top in a large skillet.  Was just too lazy to fire up the grill.  By all means, grill them if you’d rather. If you are a feta fan, beware…you could quite possibly eat many of these

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1/2 Cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 Cup sun-dried tomatoes, jarred in olive oil
• 1/2 Cup fresh baby spinach leaves, chopped
• Pinch of Kosher salt, fresh cracked pepper and Lawry’s Garlic Salt with Parsley
• Baby hamburger buns or dinner rolls, split and warmed
• 2 Cups fresh baby spinach leaves

Sun-Dried Tomato Mayonnaise

• 1 Cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes, packed in olive oil, drained

Method

1. Heat oil into a large skillet over medium heat.
2. Place turkey, feta, sun dried tomato, spinach and seasonings into a mixing bowl.
3. Mix until just combined.  Form 1/4 Cup little patty’s and place onto a cookie sheet.
4. Once all are formed, place batches in hot skillet.
5. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side or until golden brown and cooked through.
6. Place mayonnaise and tomatoes into a bowl; mix to combine.
7. Spread over insides of warm rolls.
8. Layer bottom roll with spinach and the burger.
9. Close with top roll and eat

Makes about 12 little sliders

Zesty Tip: To speed things up – feel free to make these ahead of time and let them sit in your fridge.  You could prep them the night before and then you can cook them off once you get home.  If you want to reheat them, I like to add a little drop of water on the burger before putting it in the microwave.

Freestyle Variation: Some people may not have access to sun dried tomatoes or kosher salt and garlic salt with parsley.  It is OK if you are missing those ingredients as the burgers will still turn out and taste great.  Don’t be disappointed if you find a recipe and you do not have all the ingredients – stay positive and improvise.

Alright, I am outta here but remember this.  It is Friday so keep smiling.  Enjoy the big game on Sunday if you like football and if not…. just eat lots.  Be on the lookout for my article in the upcoming release of the G! Magazine.  It is titled: Ad Hoc Dining: Don’t think about it – just eat it! such my style.  Have a great weekend.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Help The Students Event: Day 12

Happy Friday Eve Zesty Readers!  This is Danica from Danica’s Daily.  I LOVE that Zesty is helping out all of the students and am honored that he asked me to share with you all one of my FAVORITE recipes.

When I was in college the BIGGEST time saver for me was to take one day to prepare meals and snacks for the week.  I’d bake up casseroles like this Baked Cheesy Turkey Ziti, portion it out into single serving containers, freeze a couple and eat the rest for lunch/dinner all week.  It’s the perfect solution when you need something that is healthy that you can just grab and go.

This recipe is so easy to make and something that is perfect for to have during the week when you are short on time.  It has so much flavor that your “beef” LOVERs will not be able to that you “healthified” it by using Turkey and low-fat cheese.

Ingredients

• 1.5 lbs Lean Ground Turkey
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 2 c sliced mushrooms
• 1 can organic diced tomatoes, drained
• 2 cups of your favorite marinara sauce ( LOVE TJ’s Low-Fat Marinara) or make your own
• 2 pinches crushed red pepper flakes
• Garlic Salt & Freshly Ground Pepper to taste
• 6 oz uncooked Whole Wheat Penne Pasta (I used Barilla Plus)
• 3 oz low fat mozzarella cheese
• 3 Tbsp shredded parmesan cheese

Method

1. Cook your pasta according to the directions on the box.  While it is cooking, prepare your sauce and preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a 9×13 dish with nonstick spray.
2. Brown your ground turkey through mushrooms until the turkey is cooked through and no longer pink.  Drain if there is excess water and return to pan.  Sprinkle with garlic salt, freshly ground pepper and crushed red pepper flakes.  Add your diced tomatoes and marinara.  Heat through ~ about 5 –10 minutes.
3. Drain your pasta and add it to your turkey sauce.
4. Stir pasta and sauce together and pour into a prepared 9×13 dish.



5. Top with cheeses and bake for about 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted and slightly browned.
6. Makes 6 BIG servings or 8 regular sized servings.
7. ENJOY!

Freestyle Variation: You can make this vegetarian by using Veggie Crumbles or your favorite beans.  Follow the same process just eliminate the ground turkey.  Of course you can make it beefy for the beef lovers and add ground beef as well.

The BEST part of this recipe is having leftovers made up for the week so you only had to cook ONCE, but, eat all week.  There is just something about red sauce dishes that tastes so much better the next day.  Thanks again for letting me guest post Z!  If you all would like to see more recipes like this along with other ramblings by me, be sure to stop by Danica’s Daily!

Thanks Danica for a great simple recipe for everyone to enjoy.  I know myself – I would eat at least 3 servings of this one.  Have a super Thursday and talk to you tomorrow.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty