By Susan McClanahan

When it comes to recipes and ingredients, truly, the sky is the limit. Ingredients you normally would not have included in a recipe now are popping up in unusual places. From main dish to dessert, there are many recipes that call for carbonated soda as an ingredient. When I started looking, I found so many I could not decide which ones to include.

To end things on a sweet note, I also am sharing a quick bread recipe that calls for peanut butter cups as an ingredient -- it sounded too good to pass up.

Dr Pepper Meatballs

• Approximately 2 pounds frozen meatballs (store-bought or homemade)
• 1 can (12 ounces) Dr Pepper
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (dark or light)
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon granulated garlic

Combine everything except meatballs in a Dutch oven or similar pot on stovetop. Stirring constantly, bring just to a boil over medium-high heat.

Carefully add meatballs and stir to coat. Continue to cook over medium heat until sauce has reduced by at least half and is nice and thick (roughly 20 minutes), stirring every so often to prevent meatballs from burning. Serve on their own as an appetizer or over rice as a meal.

Teriyaki Chicken

• 18 ounces (about 4 pieces) chicken thigh fillets, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, grated
• 1 inch thick ginger, grated
• 1 cup cola soda (it doesn't have to be flat)
• Light soy sauce, to taste
• White pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted

Peel ginger and garlic. Grate them onto a bowl and set aside. Dice the chicken thighs.

Heat a stir fry pan over medium flame and dry toast 1 tablespoon sesame seeds until lightly brown. Remove from pan on a flat plate to cool. Add grated ginger, garlic and sesame oil over medium flame until it sizzles. Add chicken and white pepper. Stir to combine the chicken with the ginger-garlic mixture. Brown the chicken over medium heat. Remove the chicken and add 1 cup of cola. Allow the mixture to cook on high heat until it thickens and is reduced by half. Add chicken and season with soy sauce to taste. Over low heat, simmer the chicken until the sauce thickens a little more. Sprinkle the toasted sesame seeds just before serving. Best eaten with steamed rice.

The Best Grilled Chicken Marinade

• 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
• 1 cup Sprite
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• Vegetables to assemble: onions, squash, mushrooms, grape tomatoes or bell peppers
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Place all of the ingredients except for the vegetables in a medium bowl or large zip-top bag and stir to combine. Place bowl or bag in the refrigerator and let sit for 1 hour.

Preheat grill to 400 degrees.

Soak skewers in vegetable oil or spray down with nonstick cooking spray. Thread the chicken pieces onto the skewers, alternating with vegetables. Salt and pepper the vegetables. Place kebabs on grill and let cook for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through, until chicken is completely done.

Ginger Ale Marinated Ham Steak

• 1 large ham steak (you can cut it into servings before marinating to make them easier to handle while grilling)

For the marinade:

• 1 cup ginger ale
• 1 cup orange or pineapple juice
• 1â„2 cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons dry mustard
• 3â„4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1â„4 teaspoon ground cloves

Mix all marinade ingredients. Put ham and marinade in resealable plastic bag. Marinate ham steak a few hours or overnight. Fire up the grill or broiler or even heat in a pan on top of the stove. Cook ham until done and heated through. Baste during cooking.

Root Beer Brisket

This is good with a sweet-with-some-heat barbecue sauce if you can find one you like. The combination of a little bit of sweet with a little kick of heat makes this brisket very enjoyable.

• 1 brisket (3 1/2 pounds), trimmed
• Salt and pepper
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 can (4 ounces) tomato paste
• 1 cup sweet-with-some-heat style barbecue sauce
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups root beer

Trim the brisket if it has a lot of fat. Season well with salt and pepper on both sides.

Add the brisket to a very hot pan. Brown on both sides. (If your slow cooker has a browning feature, you can do it directly in the slow cooker.) Transfer the brisket to your slow cooker. Cover the top with sliced onions.

Mix together tomato paste, barbecue sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon, garlic and brown sugar. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the brisket. Pour over root beer. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. Slice and serve.

Lemon-Lime Pound Cake

• 1 box (18 ounces) lemon cake mix
• 1 box (3 1/2 ounces) instant lemon pudding
• 3â„4 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup lemon-lime soda pop (7-Up, Sprite, Sierra Mist, etc.)

Glaze:

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1â„2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1â„2 cup butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Combine cake mix, pudding and oil. Mix in eggs, one at a time, then add the lemon-lime soda. Pour in greased and floured Bundt pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 55 minutes. Let cook before glazing.

Glaze: Combine all ingredients and whisk until blended, adding drops of water or lemon juice to thin to desired consistency, if necessary. Drizzle all over cake.

Coca-Cola Cake

• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup Coca-Cola
• 1 1/2 cup small marshmallows
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, sift the sugar and flour. Add marshmallows. In a saucepan, mix the butter, oil, cocoa and Coca-Cola. Bring to a boil and pour over dry ingredients; blend well. Dissolve baking soda in buttermilk just before adding to batter, along with eggs and vanilla extract, mixing well. Pour into a well-greased 9x13-inch pan and bake 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and frost immediately.

Coca-Cola Cake Frosting

• 1/2 cup butter
• 3 tablespoons cocoa
• 6 tablespoons Coca-Cola
• 1 box (16 ounces) confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped pecans

To make frosting, combine the 1/2 cup butter, 3 tablespoons cocoa and 6 tablespoons of Coca-Cola in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and pour over confectioners' sugar, blending well. Add vanilla extract and pecans. Spread over hot cake. When cool, cut into squares and serve.

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Banana Bread

This recipe just sounded too good to leave out. Although it does not call for soda, it does call for candy in the list of ingredients. The combination of bananas, chocolate and peanut butter just sounds great.

• 1 gluten-free yellow cake mix (such as Betty Crocker)
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 2 bananas, mashed
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup chopped Reese's peanut butter cups
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 10x5-inch loaf pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl, place cake mix, water, butter, bananas and eggs. With an electric mixer, beat on low for 30 seconds, then turn up to medium and beat for 2 minutes. Stir in peanut butter cups (reserving a handful to sprinkle on top). Then stir in chocolate chips.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle reserved peanut butter cups on top. Bake 45 to 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into middle of bread comes out clean. Let cool. Slice and serve. Store covered at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for 5 to 7 days.

Have a great week and, until next time, happy cooking.