Slice of Pie Cookbooks & Entertaining: Caramelized Carrots & Stuffed Chicken Breasts

I love carrots and when I am roasting meat, I typically throw some in the dish to roast right alongside the meat. They soak up some of the meat juices ... shrivel up a little, but they caramelize and have a sweetness that you can't get in any other method of preparation! I think!

This recipe is really simple. My chicken breasts were boneless and skinless, but really thick and meaty. I simply slice through the side of the breast and make a pocket almost to the other side of the breast. Stuff the breast with goat cheese, studded with bits of papacelle peppers. Use wooden picks to close and secure the slit in the breast, then dip the breasts in an egg wash. Dip them in crushed Ritz crackers and roast in the oven at 375 degrees for 40 - 60 minutes, depending upon the size of the breasts. The juices should run clear and the internal temperature should be 165 degrees. Let the breasts cool down for about ten minutes, before serving. You can use any kind of cheese ... I frequently use sharp cheddar ... or cream cheese with bits of ground Rosemary in it ... or mozzarella and basil leaves.

Guess I was in a stuffing kind of mood the other day ... and since I had a couple bananas that were extra ripe ... It was time to bake banana bread! I'm sharing my recipe because it is a little unique. The bread is chocolate banana bread and it has a layer of stuffing/filling that is made with cream cheese and peanut butter. Keep any leftovers refrigerated because of the filling.

Chocolate Banana Bread with Peanut Butter Filling

Whip the sugar, butter, eggs and bananas together. Add the sour cream and the cocoa powder and blend well. Sift the flour, salt and baking soda together and add it to the creamed ingredients. Whip until creamy.

· 1 c sugar

· 1/2 c butter, softened

· 2 eggs

· 3 mashed ripe bananas

· 1 tsp salt

· 1 tsp baking soda

· 3 Tbsp cocoa powder

· 3 Tbsp sour cream

· 2 c flour

Make the filling by whipping the following ingredients together:

· 8 oz softened cream cheese

· ½ c creamy peanut butter

· 1/3 c sugar

· 1 egg

· 1 Tbsp flour

Pour half the batter into a greased loaf pan. Pour all the filling on top of that and spread carefully. Add the rest of the batter and smooth it over the filling. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 1 hour. You can use a wooden pick to test to see if it is done, but the filling will be creamy, so be careful how you do that! The filling sets up after it cools.

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