Friday, February 27, 2009

Dream Pineapple Upside-Down Cake


3 cans (8 oz. each) pineapple slices in juice, undrained
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
6 maraschino cherries, halved
1/2 cup PLANTERS Chopped Pecans
1 pkg. (2-layer size) yellow cake mix
1 envelope DREAM WHIP Whipped Topping Mix
4 eggs
1 cup cold water

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Drain pineapple, reserving 2 Tbsp. of the juice; set aside. Mix brown sugar and butter in 13x9-inch baking pan. Arrange pineapple slices in pan, cutting slices if necessary to evenly fit onto bottom of pan. Place cherry half, cut side up, in center of each slice. Sprinkle with the reserved pineapple juice and pecans.

BEAT dry cake mix, dry whipped topping mix, eggs and water in large bowl with electric mixer on low speed 2 minutes. Beat on medium speed 4 minutes. Carefully spoon into prepared pan.
BAKE 50 to 55 minutes or until top springs back when lightly pressed. Let stand 10 minutes; invert onto serving plate. Let stand 1 minute; remove pan. Serve warm or cooled.

Gnocchi with Broccoli Rabe, Caramelized Garlic, and Parmesan



Keep an eye on the garlic to be sure it browns but doesn't burn, which can make it unpleasantly bitter. Blanching the broccoli rabe helps tame its bitterness.
Total time: 25 minutes.
Yield 4 servings
Ingredients
3/4 pound broccoli rabe (rapini), trimmed
1 (16-ounce) box vacuum-packed gnocchi (such as Vigo)
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shredded Parmesan cheese

Preparation
1. Cook broccoli rabe in boiling water 4 minutes. Remove broccoli rabe with a slotted spoon, and place in a colander; drain. Add gnocchi to pan; cook 3 minutes or until done. Drain gnocchi in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup cooking liquid.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add garlic to pan; cook 3 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring frequently. Add broccoli rabe, gnocchi, and reserved cooking liquid to pan; cook 2 minutes. Stir in salt and pepper. Place 1 1/4 cups gnocchi mixture in each of 4 shallow bowls; top each serving with 1 tablespoon cheese.

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