Ingredients:
Crust:

• 1 1/2 cups gingersnap crumbs (about 25-30 small cookies)
• 6 Tablespoons real butter, melted
• 3 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 3/4 cup ground pecans

Filling:

• 3 8oz blocks cream cheese
• 3/4 cups canned pumpkin puree
• 8oz melted white chocolate (that's about 1 cup white chocolate chips, melted)
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon cloves

Toppings:

• Whipped Cream
• Caramelized Pecans
• Caramel Sauce

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Using heavy duty foil, securely wrap the bottom and outside of your cheesecake pan. This will prevent leaks when using the water bath.

For Crust:

1. Use a food processor to crush gingersnaps. Then do pecans. 
2. Combine gingersnaps, pecans, brown sugar, and butter and stir well to combine. 
3. Press into a 9" spring form pan. Evenly spread across the bottom of pan and up the sides about 1-1 1/2 inches.

For Filling:

1. With an electric mixer beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time. Add pumpkin, vanilla, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and melted white chocolate.

For waterbath:

1. Place cheesecake pan inside of a larger pan. The larger pan should be at least 2-3 inches in depth. Place in pre-heated oven.
2. With a kettle or pitcher filled with hot water, pour water into the larger approximately 1 1/2 to 2 inches deep.
3. Bake for about 50 minutes or until set. The center should be a little jiggly. 

When it's done, remove from oven and place on a rack until completely cool. Place in the fridge for at least 12 hours.

Top with whipped cream, caramelized pecans and caramel sauce! Enjoy!

(Great for vegetarians!)
-Serves 5-
 
Ingredients:
 

• 1/2 cup peeled baby carrots
• 4 small stalks celery, washed, ends cut off
• 1/4 medium sized onion (white or red)
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 whole, dried, large bay leaf
• 2 (29 ounce) cans tomato sauce (non store brands are better)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 1 lb pasta

 
Instructions:

1. In a food processor, blend carrots until they look like a puree. 
2. Add the celery and puree. 
3. Add the onion and puree. 
4. In a large sauce pot, heat the olive oil on low-medium heat.  Add the pureed vegetables to the pot. 
5. Add a rounded teaspoon of minced garlic (you don’t have to be shy with the amount of garlic you add). 
6. Gently sauté the vegetables and garlic in the olive oil until it becomes fragrant (you will know when it is fragrant), approximately 3-4 minutes. 
7. Add the two cans of tomato sauce.  Add the parsley, bay leaf, oregano, and basil.* 
8. Bring sauce to a gentile boil.  Then turn the heat to low and cover the pot, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Do not overcook because then the sauce will become bitter. 
9. After you have started simmering the sauce, cook the pasta (any kind you would like).
10. Pour the sauce over the cooked pasta, and ENJOY!

 
* If you want, you can add any other vegetable you would like, such as mushrooms or zucchini, sliced, to give the sauce more flavor and texture. 
 
 

-Serves 8-

Ingredients:

• 1 bag baby redskin potatoes (about 3 lbs.)
• 18 oz. prepared beef gravy
• 2 lbs. hamburger, fried and crumbled
• 2 cans corn, drained
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 1 cup milk

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2. Clean, quarter and boil potatoes (Do not remove potato skins.) until thoroughly cooked in large pot of water.
3. Drain water and in same pot, mash potatoes with butter and milk.
4. In a large casserole, spread fried, crumbled hamburger.
5. Pour gravy over top of hamburger.
6. Spread corn evenly over hamburger and gravy.
7. Spread mashed potatoes on top.
8. Heat in oven 45 mins 
9. Allow to cool 5 mins before serving.

-Serves 8 to 10- 

Ingredients:

• 1 unbaked pie crust
• 3 large tomatoes, cut into and sliced ½ in. thick
• Salt to taste
• 2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• ¼ lb. grayère cheese, cut into thin slices
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Ground pepper to taste 

Instructions:

1. Push out the seeds and watery juices from the tomato slices.  
2. Sprinkle the sliced tomatoes with salt and place in a large colander to drain for 30 minutes. 
3. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. 
4. Remove the tomatoes from the colander and pat them dry. 
5. Using a rubber spatula spread the mustard evenly over the pastry shell. Sprinkle with the chopped mint.  
6. Top evenly with the cheese, then place the tomato slices over the cheese. 
7. In a small bowl, beat together the eggs and cream until blended. Season with salt and pepper and pour over the tomatoes. 
8. Bake until pale gold and the custard is set, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, let rest for 10 minutes, then slice into thin wedges and serve. 

Taken from: William Sonoma Festive Entertaining Cookbook

-Serves 4-

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of fettuccine pasta
• 1 stick of butter
• 4 oz of cream cheese, in other words half of a block (stick with regular, not low-fat, it’s definitely worth the extra calories)
• A handful (or few) of freshly shredded Parmesan cheese (NOT KRAFT BRAND)
• A small container of Vitamin D milk (a pint)
• Italian seasoning

Instructions:

1. Start cooking the fettuccine.
2. While the fettuccine is cooking, melt the butter in a small saucepan.
3. After the butter is melted, add the cream cheese and whisk together until it’s creamy.
4. Add about a 1/4 cup of milk at first and a handful of parmesan and whisk until the cheese is melted.
5. Taste the sauce and add either more Parmesan and/or milk until it tastes good and it’s a smooth and creamy consistency.  
6. Add a dash of Italian season, mix it in and pour on top of the cooked fettuccine.
7. Enjoy!

Soothe that craving for summery, squashy, south-of-the-border savor with these calabacitas (“little squashes”) from Serious Eats. Cooking them is a simple, one-pan affair and the final dish is an elegant and surprisingly hearty alternative to the ordinary burrito.

- serves 4 -

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large or 2 small zucchini, quartered lengthwise and chopped into 1/2-inch chunks (about 2 cups)
• 1 large or 2 small yellow squash, quartered lengthwise and chopped into 1/2-inch chunks (about 2 cups)
• 1 poblano pepper or jalapeño, chopped
• 1 cup corn kernels (frozen
  
• 1 14.5-oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 4 whole wheat burrito wraps
• Grated cheddar or cotija cheese

Instructions:

1. Heat oil over medium-high and cook onions for 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Add zucchini and squash and cook another 4 minutes. Add poblano pepper and cook 8 to 10 more minutes. Add corn and cook until warmed, 2 minutes. Add black beans and cook until heated through and squash is tender enough for your taste, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste

2. Scoop calabacitas into burrito wrap, top with grated cheddar or cotija, and serve.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups coconut milk
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic chopped
• 1 teaspoon of black mustard seeds
• 4 dried red chilies
• 4 curry leaves
• 2 cups of dhal, washed and drained
• salt to taste
• 2 tablespoons of oil (can also be peanut butter oil)
• curry powder to taste

Instructions:

1. Wash dhal
2. Chop garlic and onions
3. Add in mustard seeds to oil in a pan
4. Add garlic and onions into the pan, cook until brownish
5. add in the chilies and curry leaves and sauté 
6. Add dhal
7. Add water (2.5 cups)
8. Add some coconut milk
9. Add curry powder
10. Leave to boil
11. Add rest of coconut milk
12. after dhal is cooked add salt