Easter Cooking

Easter is one of my favorite Holidays. We usually have the traditional food. I am sharing some of the recipes I will use.

This first recipe is a new one for me this year but we are diabetic and I can make it mostly with sugar free ingredients so that is good for us.

Banana Pudding Poke Cake

1 (10 oz.) box yellow cake mix

ingredients needed to make cake (eggs, oil & water)
2 (3.4 oz.) packages instant banana pudding
4 cups milk
1 (8 oz.) tub frozen whipped topping, thawed
20 vanilla wafers, crushed

Prepare cake mix according to package directions for a 9x13 cake.

Once cake comes out of the oven, allow it to cool for just a couple of minutes.

Then, with a wooden spoon handle or some other similarly-sized object, begin poking holes in the cake.

You want the holes to be fairly big so that the pudding has plenty of room to get down in there.

Be sure to poke right down to the bottom of the cake.

In a bowl,whisk together instant pudding with 4 cups milk.

Stir until all the lumps are gone.

Let the pudding sit for just about 2 minutes, so it has just slightly begun to thicken but not fully set, it should still be easily pourable.

Pour pudding over cake. Taking care to get it into the holes as much as possible.

Spread it all out and using the back of the spoon gently push pudding down into the holes.

Put the pudding into the fridge to set and cool.

Once your cake has completely cooled, spread on whipped

topping.

If you haven't done so already, crush your vanilla wafers.

I just place mine in a ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin.

Leave some of the pieces big. It's nice to have a bit of a crunch when you eat the cake.

Spread crushed wafers onto the top of the cake. You can do this part immediately before serving the cake if you like.

This will ensure the wafers are Crunchy when you serve it.

I think this cake gets more delicious over time.

To me, it's even better the next day so it's a great dessert to make ahead of time.

Serve with freshly sliced bananas. Keep refrigerated.

Chopped Salad with Creamy Lemon Dressing

I love salads, but many parents think kids won't go for them. This is one of the few salads most kids like because they can help choose what goes in it. I've found that my kids and their friends will go for crunchy romaine lettuce because of its great texture.

For the dressing:

3 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1/2 tsp lemon zest
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 egg yolk or 2 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 cup canola oil

For the salad:

2 hearts of romaine
1 carrot, diced
2 Roma tomatoes, seeds removed, then diced
1 cup croutons
3 hard boiled eggs, quartered
1/3 cup currants
3 green onions (scallions), minced
1 avocado, diced
Other ideas: crumbled blue cheese, chopped chicken, steak, or shrimp

Preparation

To make the dressing, combine the lemon juice, zest, 1/4 teaspoon salt and a fresh grinding of pepper in a small bowl. Add the egg yolk (or 2 tsp Dijon mustard, if you don\'t want to use raw egg) and whisk to combine. Slowly add the oil, whisking until it's incorporated. Taste and add more oil, lemon juice, or salt to balance the flavors. Set aside.

Place all of the salad ingredients in a large bowl, or on a large cutting board for fun. Drizzle 1/2 of the dressing over the top, mix with tongs or your hands, and taste. Add more dressing if necessary. Pile onto 4 plates and enjoy

I have had this dish before but first time making it..

Corn Casserole

1 can sweet corn, drained
1 can cream-style corn
1 package Jiffy corn muffin mix

1 cup sour cream
1 stick butter, melted
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together all the ingredient until well combined. Pour into a greased 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Sometimes I use my glass pie pan too. Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.

Serve warm with your favorite meal! Enjoy!

This is a new addition to my Easter preparation this year, I actually got it from Pinterest which has some wonderful ideas.

Easter Egg Dye

Instead of buying those dying kits, use kool-aid. One pack of Kool-aid and 2/3 cups water and you've got awesome egg dye. Two bonuses: it's cheaper than those boxes of egg dye and it smells great!!

*Side note: if you use the lemonade flavor, mix it with a little bit of orange to get a better yellow color, otherwise it's too light.*

Tomato, Cucumber and Red Onion Salad with Mint

I do not use the mint in this recipe but you may love it. I also use splenda instead of sugar.

2 large cucumbers - halved lengthwise, seeded and sliced
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 large tomatoes, seeded and coarsely chopped
2/3 cup coarsely chopped red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

In a large bowl, toss together the cucumbers, vinegar, sugar and salt. Let stand at room temperature for an hour, stirring occasionally.

Add tomatoes, onion, mint and oil to cucumbers and toss to blend. Season to taste with salt and pepper