Schaeffer Girls' Grub

Coconut Whoopie Pies

2012-02-15T09:24:00.001-08:00

My husband and I are coming up on our 10 year anniversary, which is kind of mind blowing on several different levels. In some ways, of course it feels like we have always been together and yet I feel way too young to have been an old married lady for almost a decade.

Needless to say we have been through many Valentine's Day together, some a bigger deal than others. This year, he was working late and we don't have a ton of extra money to be doing special things anyway. However, I wanted to do something to make the day not just like any other day.

We all know how my husband will eat just about anything, but he does have his favorite things. Coconut is definitely one of those things. So when I saw these on Paula Deen a few weeks ago, I thought that Valentine's Day would be the perfect time to try these. Happy Valentine's Day to everyone, well a day late anyway.

Coconut Whoopie Pies

by Paula Deen

Batter:

2 1/4 c all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4c (4 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened

3 tbsp vegetable shortening

3/4 c sugar

1 large egg, plus 1 large egg white

3/4 c light coconut milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 c sweetened flaked coconut

Coconut Fluff Filling:

3/4 c (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 c marshmallow creme

1 c sifted confectioners sugar

1/2 c sweetened flaked coconut

2 tbsp light coconut milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp coconut extract

Cooking Directions:

Preheat oven to 375, with rack positioned in the center of oven.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt onto a sheet of waxed paper (I just used another sheet of parchment since I am out of wax).

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, shortening, and sugar with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Add the egg and egg white and beat until incorporated. Add half the flour mixture and half the coconut milk and beat until just blended. Then add the remaining flour, coconut milk, and the vanilla extract and beat until blended.

Using a 1/4 c ice cream scoop (or whatever you have), drop the batter into 12 mounds on the lined baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. If you want to make smaller pies, just use well rounded tablespoons and you can make 24. Sprinkle half of the mounds with coconut, or all of them if you choose. I, of course, chose to put as much coconut as possible on these bad boys!

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until they begin to crack and are firm to the touch, about 12 min for large cookies and 10 min for smaller ones. Slide the parchment paper with the cookies onto a wire rack to cool completely.

For the coconut fluff filling, beat the butter and marshmallow creme in a large bowl with a mixer at medium-high speed until fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Beat in the powdered sugar, coconut, coconut milk, vanilla, and coconut extract until smooth.

Gently lift the cookies off of the parchment paper and spread the flat side of the plain cookies (or either one depending if you put coconut on all of them) generously with coconut fluff filling. Top with the coconut topped cookies, pressing lightly to seal them together. Store in a air tight container in refrigerator.

Lasagna

2012-02-12T14:32:00.000-08:00

Just call me Garfield - I love lasagna! The prospect of making lasagna, however, has always seemed a little daunting. My good friend Lenae makes the most delicious lasagna and when she assured me that it was easy to make I decided to give it a try. Now I can have yummy lasagna whenever I want!
The recipe below includes hamburger meat but if you like your lasagna meatless, like I do, just leave it out.

Lasagna Recipe by Lenae Crowe

Ingredients:

1 lb lasagna noodles

1 lb hamburger meat

4 8oz cans of tomato sauce

14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes

1 packet McCormick spagetti sauce seasoning (Thick and Zesty)

3 cups cottage cheese

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 beaten egg

1/2 tsp salt

dash of pepper

4 cups Mozarella cheese

To make:

Cook 1 lb lasagna noodles according to package directions. Drain and spread onto foil so they don't stick together. Meanwhile, for the sauce, brown 1 lb of hamburger and drain fat. Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and packet of spagetti seasoning. Simmer for 5-10 minutes. In separate bowl mix the cottage cheese, parmesan cheese, egg, salt and pepper. Shred the mozarella cheese.

To layer:

Spray 9x13 pan with non-stick spray. Spoon enough sauce to cover bottom into pan, then top with three cooked and drained noodles. Cover with 1/3 of cheese mixture. Top with 1/4 sauce and sprinkle with approx 1 cup cheese. Repeat twice (three layers), then top with noodles, remaining sauce, and cheese. Cover pan with foil (from noodles) and bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake 15 more mins or until cheese is melted and starting to brown. Remove from oven and let stand 10 mins before cutting.

Creamy Chicken Taquitos

2012-02-06T08:51:00.000-08:00

When starting this post, I decided that I have actually made some progress in the kitchen! Who would have ever thought? And by progress, I mean that when first starting this blog, I posted these taquitos. They consist of opening a box, pouring some sauce and putting shredded cheese on it, and sticking it in the oven.

Now, I am totally not saying that I still don't make dinners just like that. I am just saying that I have gently expanded my ability to make a teensy bit more challenging stuff. I am still a huge novice and when I look at others' blogs, I feel a little silly that I even post things at all. However, I am trying hard not to compare and just be happy with where I am and be ready to try hard to improve.

These taquitos are something that my family loves and gobbles up quickly. They are extremely easy and really delicious. We have made them a ton over the last couple of years and I am finally getting around to putting them on the blog. They can be made with either corn or flour tortillas. I, for some weird reason, really prefer the corn to the flour. But both are really good. We usually have them as the main course but they are great as appetizers/finger food as well!

Creamy Chicken Taquitos

found on Our Best Bites

Ingredients:

1/3 c (3 oz) cream cheese

1/4 c salsa verde

1 tbsp fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp granulated garlic or garlic powder

3 tbsp chopped cilantro

2 tbsp sliced green onion

2 c shredded cooked chicken

1 c grated pepperjack cheese

small corn tortillas or flour tortillas

kosher salt

cooking spray

Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat cream cheese in microwave for about 20 seconds until it is soft and easy to stir. Place in mixing bowl with green salsa, cumin, onion powder, chili powder, lime juice, and garlic powder and stir to combine. Add green onions and cilantro. Then finish by adding chicken and cheese and combine all together (you can actually make this ahead and keep in fridge until you are ready to make the taquitos).

Working with just a few of tortillas at a time, heat in the microwave between two slightly damp paper towels until they are soft are roll without cracking. 20-30 seconds should do the trick. If they are unrolling right away or cracking, just heat them a little longer.

Place 2-3 tbsp of chicken mixture of bottom 1/3 of tortilla, keeping it about an 1/2 inch from the sides. Roll up as tight as you can (again, if your tortillas are cracking, heat them a little longer). Place seam side down on prepared baking sheet. As you lay all the rolled tortillas down, make sure they are not touching. Lightly spray the tops with cooking spray and sprinkle each with kosher salt.

Place baking sheet in oven for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown.

When done, you can dip 'em or use them as main meal.

Blue Cheese Burgers

2012-02-01T06:21:00.000-08:00

My husband is not a picky eater, to say the least. There have been many times throughout our marriage that I will ask him if he likes what he is currently eating and he says with a shrug, "Not really" and then continues to eat the whole thing. I am always amazed.

However, there is an experience from his teenage years that still haunts him. He was over at his friend's house for dinner and there in front of him was a heaping bowl of mashed potatoes, and really, what teenage boy doesn't love mashed potatoes? He, of course, helped himself to a huge portion and dug right in. And then, after his first big bite, he was horrified. What was that taste? His beloved mashed potatoes had turned into the devil right before his eyes.

And guess what that secret ingredient was? You got it, blue cheese. He had never had it before and will not eat it ever since. So, several years ago, when I told him I was going to make these burgers I found on Pioneer Woman, he was very skeptical to say the least. But I decided to chance it anyway. And we both ended up loving the burger! The onions and blue cheese along with the spicy mayo really has such great flavor. And when we were looking for a fun burger to do this weekend, this immediately popped into my mind. We hadn't made it since that day long ago in Florida. But our memories had not failed us and they were delicious!

As a side note, this pic is not the best. After telling my husband three times to put the onions on first, he went out and put the blue cheese first and covered it with onions. You couldn't even see the blue cheese! This was all that was left of my blue cheese so I just sprinkled a little on top. Generally, you add a lot more.

Blue Cheese Burgers

by Pioneer Woman

Ingredients:

2 lbs. 80/20 ground beef

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

tabasco sauce, to taste

1 whole red onion

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/4 c real mayo

Kaiser rolls, or any bakery type rolls

1 C crumbled blue cheese

Some sort of greens, whatever is your favorite

Instructions:

Place meat in mixing bowl. Add salt and black pepper. Add a few dashes of tabasco sauce. With your hands, mix meat and seasonings well. Put aside.

Next, slice onion, not too thick, not too thin. Heat medium skillet over low heat. Add butter and place in onions. Add brown sugar (you can do generous tbsps). Toss ingredients together and then allow onions to caramelize for twenty minutes, tossing occasionally.

When onions are caramelizing, make spicy mayo. Just put mayo in small bowl and add tabasco and mix together. I used several dashes, it is surprisingly how much tabasco you can use before it really starts to take over the mayo.

Cut rolls in half and spread them lightly with butter, then place them on grill or skillet face down. This will allow the spicy mayo, when put on later, to really adhere to the roll. Set aside to cool.

Form the meat into patties, however many you want, depending on how big you want them. Place on grill or skillet over medium to medium low heat. Cook for several minutes, then flip over to cook other side.

While patty is still on grill, add caramelized onion and blue cheese on top. This will allow the blue cheese to get soft. As the burgers finish cooking, spread your mayo on your cooled buns. Then put it all together with some greens and let your mouth thank you!!

Strawberry and Cream Cupcakes

2012-01-22T07:42:00.000-08:00

Probably along with a lot of you, cupcake wars is a favorite in our household. My seven and four year old daughters ask every Saturday if Cupcake Wars is new the next day and what it is about. We generally don't watch TV on Sunday so we always record it and then watch it on Monday when my kids get home from school. It is a really fun tradition that we have started. Lately, even when playing with play-doh, their imagination usually takes the form of cupcakes.

I decided to try a new cupcake I had seen in Betty Crocker and my girls started helping out. When it was time to try the batter, it needed something. We quickly started pretending we were on the show, jumping around, yelling, "What does it need? What does it need?"

My oldest daughter quickly named this her favorite cupcake I have ever made. When she said that, I knew I had to add this to the blog, just for her!

Strawberry and Cream Cupcakes

Slightly adapted from Betty Crocker

Ingredients:

1 box Betty Crocker SuperMoist white cake mix

1 1/4 strawberry carbonated beverage (such as Fanta, Crush, or I used Faygo!)

Vegetable oil and egg whites called for on cake mix box

about 5-6 big strawberries or to taste, chopped

Frosting:

Red food color

1 container (1 lb) Betty Crocker Rich and Creamy cream cheese frosting

candy sprinkles

Fresh strawberries, if desired (my kids ate the ones I was planning on garnishing the cupcakes with)

Cooking Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350.

Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

Make and bake cake mix as directed on box for cupcakes, substituting carbonated beverage for the water and using oil and egg whites. After tasting the batter, it didn't have a huge strawberry flavor so I chopped up about 6 really big strawberries and added them to the batter. It adds a little texture and flavor.

Cool 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Stir 1 or 2 drops red food coloring into frosting. Frost cupcakes.

Add whatever garnish you would like, be it sprinkles, fresh strawberries, or the like. Enjoy!

Football and Bagel Dip

2012-01-03T08:19:00.000-08:00

I have always loved New Year's Day, filled with football and food. Some of the best games were of course on yesterday, the day my husband dubbed as the fake New Year's Day. Usually, we have a huge spread of food and just chow down and watch other people burn calories while we just put on the pounds. But because it was on a Monday and really wasn't a holiday(my daughter had school), we just made this one dip.

I got this recipe from a girl I used to work with, she gave me a few of her favorite recipes when I got married. It sounds really weird when you read the ingredients but I'm serious, it really is good!

My youngest daughter had a friend over and they seriously ate more than my husband and I. And we always pair it with bagels but anything that floats your boat would be great, I am sure.

Bagel Dip

Source: Tracy Harney

one 8 oz. block of cream cheese, softened

one jar of Kraft Old English cheese (my grocery store has it by the Parmesan cheese)

1/3 to 1/2 cup of green onions, chopped

Mix cream cheese and cheese together, either by hand or with a hand mixer, until well blended. Mix in green onions. Serve with bagels.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

2012-01-02T06:40:00.000-08:00

Isn't life just sometimes sweet and sometimes sour? Ok, ok, I know that was like the most ridiculous line but I wasn't feeling any great inspiration for a story that goes along with this yummy, yummy meal, besides the fact that it is just really good!

I tried this a long time ago and have since made it over and over again. My dad has asked several times for the recipe so here it is dad! It is seriously so good and is even better than take out!

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Mel's Kitchen Cafe

INGREDIENTS:
Chicken:
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup canola oil

Sauce:
¾ cup sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
½ cup vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic salt

Mel says that if you would like, you can double the recipe for the sauce, pouring half over the chicken and follow the baking directions and then pour other half in small saucepan. Cook the sauce on the stove for 8-10 minutes at a simmer until it reduces and thickens and then serve on side. I have always done this, the more sauce the better!

DIRECTIONS:
For the chicken, cut boneless chicken breasts into chunks. Season with salt and pepper. Dip chicken in cornstarch and then in egg. Fry in a little oil until brown but not cooked through. Place in a single layer in a baking dish. Mix sauce ingredients together and pour over chicken.

Bake for one hour at 325 degrees. Turn chicken every 15 minutes so it is evenly coated with the sauce. Serve over rice.

Custard

2011-05-09T18:23:00.000-07:00

It is no secret that in my family, we are passionate about custard, especially my dad. My parents live about an hour away from Amish country and they make a custard pie that has my dad, who is a total healthy eater, throwing away his strict discipline regarding treats. My sister has also been known, while driving the long drive to visit my parents, to go out of her way to stop there and pick up several pies. Between her and my dad, the pies quickly disappear. And there might or might not be some good hearted accusations about where all the pie went when they are gone.

This is actually one of the very first recipes I ever attempted to make. You might think that is weird but realize that I did not even make anything by myself until I was well into adulthood. I would even cajole my college roommates into making boxed dinners for me. I was pathetic. But when I was ready to make my first real dessert, this was a natural thing for me to gravitate toward. As is my mantra for this blog, it is delicious and easy!

A quick note: the original recipe calls for grated lemon peel and I didn't have any when I first made it and so I just used a few splashes of lemon juice instead. Later on, I tried the lemon peel and found it to be way too lemony. If you want a more vanilla type custard, just add the lemon juice, if you want it to be lemon custard, use the lemon peel.

Custard

slightly adapted from Taste of Homes

1/2 c sugar

2 tbsp flour

1/8 tsp salt

1 1/2 c half and half

a few squirts of lemon juice (or 1 tsp grated lemon peel)

3 eggs yolks, lightly beaten

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp vanilla extract

In a saucepan, combine sugar, flour, and salt. Gradually add cream and lemon juice until blended. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks. Return all to pan; bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat, stir in butter and vanilla.

Pour into parfait glasses (or whatever glass you have will work, it tastes the same no matter what you put it in). Cool. I always add fresh berries and whipped cream to make it extra special.

Pistachio Cake

2011-04-07T19:15:00.000-07:00

Growing up, the ice cream joint we would frequent was good ol' Baskin and Robbins. I would inevitably get that bubble gum ice cream that had the actual gum pieces mixed in. I would sit there and eat the ice cream but spit out the gum onto a napkin so when I was done with the ice cream, I could eat all of the gum at once. I know, I was weird.

My dad, however, would get their pistachio almond ice cream. He finally convinced me to try it. And right then I decided that as much as I loved that pink bubblegum ice cream, I would give it up for that yummy pistachio. And then when Florida got Blue Bell ice cream and they had a pistachio almond flavor that became a staple in my freezer, I renewed my love affair with pistachios once again.

So even though I love pistachio ice cream and eating just plain pistachios, I have never really attempted to make anything else with that as the main flavor. I have seen plenty of recipes I wanted to try but haven't yet. So when I saw this and I had everything needed, I finally took life by the reins(or is it horns?) and just made it right then!

It is really yummy. I found it on Pioneer Woman. I do agree with her that it isn't a really strong pistachio flavor but when you add a glaze and chopped pistachios, it really rounds it out nicely. My oldest daughter is obviously following in her mother's footsteps. After I finally convinced her to try a piece, she ate like half the cake in 2 days. I am totally serious. Oh, does that say something bad about my parenting skills??? Oops.

Pistachio Cake

Recipe: Pioneer Woman

Ingredients:

Box of white cake mix

1 package (4 oz) Pistachio Instant Pudding Mix

1/2 c Orange Juice

1/2 c water

1/2 c vegetable oil

4 eggs

3/4 c chocolate syrup (like Hershey's)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour bundt pan.

Mix all ingredients but chocolate syrup and beat for two minutes on medium-high. Pour 3/4 of the batter into the bundt pan.

Add chocolate syrup to the remaining batter and mix well. Pour chocolate-laced batter on top of the pistachio batter.

Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees.

Note: You can use a knife to swirl chocolate batter into the pistachio batter for more of a marbled design.

She recommended a chocolate ganache but I made a vanilla glaze instead. I am sure it would be great with either!!

Banana Cream Pie

2011-02-21T11:31:00.001-08:00

Let me begin this post with a coming of age story about a young girl and a pie. I was 8 years old. My family had invited like 4 big families over to share in our Easter dinner with our family of 7. There was ham, a plethora of side dishes and rolls. Oh, and tons and tons of pies. In my memory, there was a table just filled with pies. A kids dream come true, especially since there were like 100 kids running around and the adults are otherwise occupied conversing one with another.

I meandered over to the pies. There were several banana cream which has long been a favorite of mine. I took a huge piece and ate it. I went back and got another huge piece and ate it. I went back and got another huge piece and ate it. This went on and on until the pie was almost completely gone, just a few crumbs and some filling that had fallen out. I then went on my way. Later that night I paid for my pigginess (Spell check confirms pigginess is indeed not a word but a totally appropriate made up one for this story).

Interestingly enough, that horrible night of throwing up banana cream pie did not have any lasting effect on my love for it. So when I saw this recipe and the description was that things don't have to be totally homemade to be good, I knew it was going to be a keeper. And it really, really is. I have made this pie over and over again. It is easy and so so good!!

Just a quick note here. The original recipe actually makes two pies. However, I am a pig (see above story) and just make one pie. I buy the big graham cracker pre-made crust instead of the smaller one. I follow all the same directions except that I put about 2/3rds of the pudding mixture into my crust and then eat the other 1/3rd while I am standing there in the kitchen. Also, I have only ever tried the vanilla version but I am sure the chocolate one is good as well.

Banana Cream Pie

adapted slightly from Our Best Bites

1 4-serving size box of instant chocolate or vanilla pudding

1 c. cold water

1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

2 cookie crusts. You can use anything--graham crackers, Nilla Wafers, shortbread, even Oreo.

Lots of bananas

1 pint whipping cream

1/3 c. powdered sugar

In a medium bowl, combine pudding mix, cold water, and sweetened condensed milk. Mix well and place in the refrigerator to chill for a few minutes.

Slice the bananas and layer them on the bottom of the crust, just until entire bottom is covered, although I do stack a few but just be careful. If you stack too many bananas, the crust doesn't get as moist. Set aside.

In another bowl, whip 1 c. of whipping cream until soft peaks form.

Remove pudding from the fridge and gently dollop the whipped cream on top of the pudding. Gently fold the whipped cream into the pudding mixture until well-combined. Place most of the pudding mixture on top of bananas. It doesn't all fit and it is fun to have some left to eat with cookies!

Be sure and save the plastic domes that come with the pie crusts, you will use them to cover the pie while it refrigerates.

Using mixer, whip remaining whipping cream and 1/3 c. of powdered sugar until soft peaks form. Spread over pie. Place the clear plastic shells back on the pies and allow to chill for several hours. This is actually really important, the banana flavor has to have time to seep into the pudding and the crust to get softened.

Go ahead and dig in. But maybe not eat a whole pie all in one sitting. Then again, maybe I could do it without throwing up this time. Something to think about.....

Cranberry Dip

2011-01-02T11:02:00.000-08:00

I am really not a lover of cranberries. At Thanksgiving, it is a dish, whatever form it takes, that I pass over. However, this year for Thanksgiving, we went to my sister in law's house and she had out this dip. I decided to be adventurous and try some. It was so good I couldn't stop eating it, even though I knew that we would be eating the main meal soon. And even though I was so stuffed after dinner, as we were leaving, I ran over and took a few bites more.

New Year's Day was spent over at my parents with my sister and her family. We decided to do a huge spread so we could just snack and watch football all day long. I knew this dip had to be included. Some of us loved it, some of us, well, didn't. It definitely combines different flavors than usual, but I just love it.

Cranberry Dip

Source: Rebecca Mebius

Ingredients:

12 oz. fresh cranberries

1 jalapeno pepper

4 green onions(I forgot these so they are not pictured)

1 bunch cilantro

juice of 1 lime

1/2 c sugar

3/4 tsp cumin

1/2 c sour cream

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

Pita chips

Using food processor, chop cranberries, pepper, onions, and cilantro.

Add lime juice, sugar, and cumin to the mixture and stir together.

Using hand mixer, combine sour cream and cream cheese. You can just mix by hand if preferred. Spread cream mixture into a glass dish, whatever size you want. Pour salsa mixture over top. Garnish with cilantro if desired.

You can serve with anything you want but pita chips are so good!

Easy Oreo Truffles

2010-12-03T09:05:00.000-08:00

So, Christmas is fast approaching and lots of people are madly baking. Baking is my favorite thing to do in the kitchen because I of course have a huge sweet tooth. But with Ryan being gone so much and with three very needy little kids, I don't get much time to do it. Making dinner usually consists of me trying to cook while my one year old cries and pulls on my legs. Is it any wonder that I just have the kids eat mac and cheese and cereal a lot?

But these are such a breeze to make and so good that I have already made them twice in the last couple of weeks. Once just because I wanted to eat them and again yesterday when I had a dinner to go to. They taste like a lot of work went into them but it didn't. My kind of dessert!

Oreo Truffles

found on: The Girl Who Ate Everything

1 package of Oreos (I used regular but double stuffed probably would be good and I also want to try mint)

1 8 oz. block of cream cheese, softened

1 package of Baker's semi sweet chocolate for dipping (or whatever you want)

If you have a food processor, place Oreos in there and crush into small pieces. I crush mine pretty good. If you don't have a food processor, place Oreos in a ziploc bag and crush with whatever instrument suits you.

I assume you can mix the Oreos and cream cheese in your food processor but since mine is little, I do it by hand. I place the Oreo crumbs in a large bowl, add cream cheese and just knead and mix together until they are combined.

Roll into 1 inch balls and place on tray or baking sheet. Refrigerate for about 3 hours or freeze for about an hour.

You can melt the chocolate in the microwave or use a double broiler.

Dip the balls in the chocolate and place onto waxed paper to harden. Chill and serve!

Apple Butter Pumpkin Pie

2010-12-02T05:52:00.000-08:00

I know Thanksgiving is totally over but I wanted to post this recipe anyway. I mean, I am always running on my own time frame and I really don't think the 3 people reading this blog care.

This was a really nice twist on the traditional pumpkin pie. I really love pumpkin pie so I wanted to try this. It had the nice pumpkin flavor along with the crunch of the streusel topping. Perfect for the pie party that I made this for!

Apple Butter Pumpkin Pie

by Tidymom.net

Crust:

1 pie crust (as always, I used store bought!)

Filling:

1 cup solid pack pumpkin

1 cup apple butter

1/4 c packed dark brown sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup evaporated milk

Streusel Topping:

3 tbsp butter

1/2 c flour

1/2 c dark brown sugar

1/2 c chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 375.

Put crust in 9 inch pie plate.

In a large bowl, mix ingredients for filling in the order given.

For the streusel topping, combine sugar and flour. Cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in chopped pecans and set aside.

Pour filling into crust lined pie pan. Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until knife inserted in middle comes out clean.

Remove pie from oven and sprinkle streusel topping over pie.

Return pie to oven and bake for additional 15 minutes. She does say to cover crust with foil before returning the pie but I always cover the crust with foil after like 15 to 20 minutes of baking. So I did that step while the filling was baking. Whenever you want.

Cool completely, about one hour.

Rain=Soup

2010-12-01T06:18:00.000-08:00

Yesterday it rained all night and all day. It really didn't stop for one little minute. And today it is snowing. I guess winter is actually upon us which is kind of a bummer. Oh well, I will really appreciate spring this year!

Last night I felt like a nice warm soup and pulled out this recipe that I have had for over 8 years but never tried. It is from my sister Tricia who is an amazing cook along with an amazing wedding cake designer. She has her own company and everything and makes beautiful cakes. She definitely got the talent in our family in that arena.

This soup was really creamy and had great flavor. It definitely will hit on the spot on a cold winter evening. And it is really easy!!

Chicken Noodle Soup

by Tricia Mason

2 tsp chicken bouillon granules

3 c Swanson chicken broth

2 c chopped carrots

2 c chopped celery

3/4 c chopped onion

2 cans (10 0z.) cream of chicken

1 can evaporated milk

2 c cooked chicken, cut into pieces

4 c cooked noodles (I used egg noodles)

salt and pepper to taste

Heat first two ingredients together. Add next 3 ingredients and simmer until tender. Add soup and milk. Add chicken and noodles. Add salt and pepper.

Loaded "Baked Potato" Soup

2010-10-27T06:16:00.000-07:00

Sometimes all I feel like for dinner is a nice bowl of soup and some yummy bread, especially on cold nights. Yesterday my daughter stayed after school and then we had a church activity so we were in a rush around dinnertime. It had been raining and storming all day, bringing a chill to the air. What a perfect time to try making some soup.

There are a lot of recipes out there for soups that I want to try. Most of them are at least a little involved and I just didn't have the time last night. Then I remembered a recipe I had seen on Kraft Foods that was a baked potato soup that you cooked in the microwave. I was pretty skeptical but figured I would at least give it a try.

I followed the basic recipe but I added more of everything. It actually had a nice flavor. It made enough for my family of four plus a baby and then we added a salad and bread to go with it. I definitely want to try other soup recipes but this one was so easy.

Loaded "Baked Potato" Soup

adapted from Kraft Foods

3 medium baking potatoes, unpeeled (I peeled mine)

1 can (14 1/2 oz) fat free reduced sodium chicken broth

1 cup milk

4 slices bacon, cooked, crumbled, and divided

1 c shredded cheddar cheese, divided

2 stalks sliced green onions, divided

1/4 c sour cream

Pierce potatoes; microwave on high 5 minutes, turning over after 2 1/2 minutes. Cut potato into chunks. Combine potatoes, broth, and milk in large microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high 6 minutes, stirring after 3 minutes. Slightly crush potatoes with a potato masher.

Reserve 2 tbsp each of bacon and cheese and 1 tbsp green onions for topping; set aside. Add remaining bacon, cheese, and onions to soup.

Serve topped with reserved bacon, cheese, onion, and sour cream.

Makes 4 servings, about 1 cup each.

Tuna Casserole

2010-10-25T06:12:00.000-07:00

Growing up, this was definitely one of the staples in my house. My mom would actually add peas to this which I lovingly leave out when I make it. I mean really, peas? I would rather eat cardboard.

And the great thing about this is that my kids love it and it gives them some good protein with the tuna. We of course have to add fried onions to it, it adds a nice contrasting flavor and some crunch. It does get cold really fast so I would definitely serve it right away. We always serve it with blueberry muffins and fruit. Again, that is always what my mom would serve with it so I just carry on the tradition.

Tuna Casserole

by Terri Schaeffer

1 bag of egg noodles (I use half a bag for my family of 5)

1 can or packet of tuna

1 can cream of chicken

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp sour cream

fried onions

Make noodles according to package directions. Drain. Add butter to allow hot noodles to melt. Mix in sour cream, cream of chicken, and tuna(and if you really want, the dreaded peas). Add fried onions on top and serve.

Smokey Chipotle Meatloaf

2010-10-19T18:58:00.000-07:00

So, one thing that will not have me running to the table is meatloaf. Um, yuck is all I can say. I haven't liked it since forever. Whenever I have had to eat it, I have lathered it up with ketchup so I couldn't really taste it. Nothing against your cooking skills mom! I think it is a texture thing, I don't know.

Anyway, Ryan has always been such a great sport about my less than stellar performances in the kitchen throughout our marriage. He has never come home asking what is for dinner, he probably actually expects that he will have to cook. I can't tell you how many times he has come home and I have just looked at him and said, "oh, I haven't even thought about dinner." He always smiles and says no problem. (and then we would go to Chick-Fil-A!)

A little while ago, we were talking about different foods and he mentioned that he really likes meatloaf. Well, since he has always been so sweet about not caring about my cooking I thought I would try it once again. I found a recipe that contains chipotle and since I love chipotle I tried it and hoped for the best. It actually wasn't too bad for me and Ryan loved it. He better appreciate it too because one of the things I hate most in life is squeezing raw meat with my bare hands! And by the way, I am sure there are those out there that can do it, but I had no luck making meatloaf looking pretty!

Smokey Chipotle Meatloaf

found on allrecipes.com

Ingredients

2 eggs

1/3 cup hickory smoked bbq sauce plus more for topping

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 chipotle chilies, minced

2 tbsp adobo sauce from chipotle peppers

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp coarse ground black pepper

1/2 tsp celery salt

1/2 tsp cumin

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 onion, chopped

1/2 cup dry oatmeal

2 lbs lean ground beef

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a 9X5 loaf pan with cooking spray.

Beat two eggs until smooth in large mixing bowl. Add everything except oats, meat and onion and whisk together until smooth. Mix in meat, onion, and oats and work with hands until everything is worked through evenly. Put in loaf pan and brush with extra bbq sauce. They suggest 2 tbsps, I just poured it on.

Bake until no longer pink, about 1 hour. Cut and serve.

Tostadas

2010-10-16T08:22:00.000-07:00

When I first discovered food blogs, I was astounded. Call me totally ignorant if you will but I had no idea of the amount of blogs dedicated to eating well. Actually, I still find them kind of overwhelming. I will be perusing and wanting to try so many different things that my head starts to spin. But they are so great, I have found and tried so many great things that I never would have.

So this was actually one of the first recipes that I tried off of a food blog. I don't even know if you can call it a recipe but it is really good regardless. My kids love beef so that is what I usually make this with but I think some seasoned shredded chicken would be awesome. I know most people could put this together without someone telling them what to do but that is another thing I love about food blogs. So many times the posts that start "everyone already has this but here it is anyway" are the ones that I haven't ever heard of. I am one of the kitchen challenged people out there who really appreciate those bloggers who add recipes that people assume everyone already knows or has!

And I have to apologize but since it was one of my first tries off a food blog, I had no idea I should remember where I got it from so I could give them credit!

Tostadas

from: a good food blogger!

Ingredients

corn tortillas

vegetable oil for frying

seasoned ground beef (you can season your own or use a packet)

refried beans

grated cheddar cheese

lettuce

tomato

sour cream (optional)

guacamole (optional, I just added sliced up avocado)

Preheat oven to 350. Set a cookie sheet next to your stove to collect hot tortillas.

In a small frying pan, pour enough vegetable oil (or whatever oil you want) to cover bottom. Heat oil to medium high heat. Carefully slide tortilla into hot oil with tongs. When tortilla puffs up and turns golden, flip it. This shouldn't take too long. Place on cookie sheet and transfer to oven to keep warm while you're preparing the rest of the ingredients. (I actually do the tortillas last so I don't worry about putting them in the oven)

Take tostada shells from oven. They are hot, so be careful. Apply a thin layer of refried beans to each tortilla, then top with seasoned ground beef. Sprinkle with cheese and return to oven until cheese is melted.

Top with whatever ingredients you would like, lettuce, tomato, more cheese, sour cream and guacamole. One thing that I did add was squeezing some fresh lime juice over the tostada. It adds a nice flavor.

White Chicken Chili

2010-10-10T18:08:00.001-07:00

I forgot how crazy and spastic the weather can be here. The high last Sunday never got out of the low 50s with the low being in the 3os. Today? Well, we have our a.c. running yet again. It was 87 degrees today. So even though the weather doesn't exactly correspond to this dish, the season certainly does. And I am sure it will be snowing here in like 3 hours.

When I had Ashlyn, one of my friends Tricia brought over this dish to us. I just remember gulping it down it was so good. We have made it several times since then and it is still just amazing, although I don't make it as good as her. Ryan's mom has a white chicken chili recipe that is similar but still different enough that I want to try it and compare it. But this recipe will always be a favorite, no matter the weather!

White Chicken Chili

by: Tricia Thomas

1 large onion, chopped (I used white)

1 large clove of garlic

combine and cook in butter (she didn't tell me how much so I just throw some in there) until soft, but not brown

Make a rouix: melt 2 cubes of butter, add 1/2 cup flour, whisk together and boil for 3 minutes

Add the onion and garlic

Then add 4 cups half and half and 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth (she uses chicken stock which may account for her better tasting chili!)

Simmer for 3 minutes or until thick (mine does take longer)

Put mixture in crock pock and then add the following:

4 cans of white beans (any but I use great northern)

2-3 cans (4 oz. each) green chilies

4 boneless skinless chicken breast, cooked and cut into small pieces (she boils a whole chicken)

2 cups grated Monterrey jack cheese

1-2 tsp Tabasco sauce

1-2 tsp of chili powder (depending on how spicy you want it)

1 tsp cumin

simmer for 20 minutes or until warm.

Right before serving, add 1 cup sour cream, salt and pepper to taste and garnish with cilantro

Caramelized Onion and Prosciutto Pizza

2010-10-06T17:18:00.000-07:00

Well, it is official. I really do live in the smack dab middle of the country. After three months of living here, we finally tried to order pizza from Papa John's last Friday night before we went to Disney Princesses on ice (really cute by the way). Anyway, we came to find out that they did not deliver to our house. I looked at Ryan and told him I might as well get it over with and buy myself some overalls. And I better learn how to make pizza!

Ok, so you might read the directions and ask yourself why the title has the word prosciutto in it but the pizza itself contains no prosciutto. Well, when I saw this on Pioneer Woman, I tried it with what she used, prosciutto. And you know what I found out? I did not like prosciutto in the least little bit. But the combination of the caramelized onion with the mozzarella was really nice, and besides, the pizza was pretty easy and you know me and easy when it comes to cooking! So I thought I could just substitute another meat and give it another try. It was so yummy. I used Pesto Parmesan Ham. But I felt like that really ruined the title so I kept it the same, and besides, other people probably really like prosciutto.

1 pizza crust (store bought or homemade, Pioneer Woman has a great one)

Olive oil for drizzling

1 large red onion, thinly sliced

1/4 cup brown sugar

kosher salt to taste

Parmesan cheese, grated

10 0z. mozzarella, thinly sliced (I read a tip once to freeze mozzarella for just a little bit before cutting since it can be hard to slice)

8 slices of Boar's Head Pesto Parmesan Ham

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in skillet. Add onions and brown sugar and stir until onions are soft and brown. Set aside.

Roll out pizza dough into rectangular shape on sheet pan or pizza stone. Drizzle olive oil, sprinkle kosher salt, followed by some Parmesan.

Put mozzarella slices evenly the top of the crust. Arrange onions over top, and believe me, they are so good, you will want a lot! Then place ham on the pizza as well. See, super easy!

Bake 15-17 minutes in lower half of the oven, or until golden brown. Remove and serve immediately.

Snappy Pumpkin Cheesecake

2010-10-04T13:49:00.000-07:00

I have found that this blog has turned into a "pretty soon I will be diabetic" blog. I have barely anything but sweet, sugary treats. Oh well, that is what I love. Good thing I married a doctor, he can help me in my decline.

I have a huge list of fall treats that I want to try. There is no way I am going to fit them all in this year if I don't want to enter the holiday season already needing to lose like 100 pounds. But I wanted to try this one this year for sure because I love pumpkin and I have never made a cheesecake.

So, this was my first plunge into making a cheesecake. This one was fairly easy. When I first looked at the recipe, I was a little intimidated because I usually do pretty straight forward things. But even though this seemed like a lot of work at first glance, it really came together quickly. My cheesecake did end up with a few cracks, just on one half, but that is the beauty of whipped cream.

Really, this was good. I cut huge slices for my husband and I. About half way through, he looked at me and told me it was really good but he couldn't finish it. I said I couldn't either. But we just sat there. And took one more bite. And then another. And another. And before you know it, we had eaten the whole huge piece, even though we were totally full.

Snappy Pumpkin Cheesecake

slightly adapted from Taste of Homes

Crust

1 1/2 cups crushed gingersnap cookies (about 30 cookies, I used a few more)

1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

1/4 c butter, melted (I used 1/3 c because my crust was still way too crumbly)

Filling

2 packages cream cheese (8 oz. each), softened

3/4 cup sugar, divided

1 tsp vanilla

3 eggs, lightly beaten (oops, just realized I forgot to lightly beat my eggs before adding them!)

1 cup canned pumpkin

1tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Garnish:

Whipped cream (store bought or home made)

Additional cookies, optional

Preheat oven to 325.

Place a greased 9 inch springform pan on a double thickness of heavy duty foil. Securely wrap foil around pan; set aside.

Crush cookies in whatever manner you want. I used a food processor but putting them in a bag and beating them to bits works too!

In a bowl, combine cookie crumbs and pecans; stir in butter. Press onto the bottom and 1 inch up the sides of the pan. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until set. Cool on a wire rack.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar until smooth. Beat in vanilla. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined.

Place 1 cup filling in a small bowl; stir in pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and remaining 1/4 c sugar. Remove 3/4 cup pumpkin filling and set aside. Pour remaining pumpkin filling into the crust; top with the plain filling. Drop reserved pumpkin filling by spoonfuls over top; cut through filling with a knife to swirl.

Place pan in a large baking pan; add 1 inch of hot water to larger pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until center is just set and top appears dull. Remove springform pan from water bath. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight. Remove sides of pan. Garnish with whipped cream and cookies if desired.

Pineapple and Watermelon Salad

2010-10-01T06:11:00.000-07:00

I am not very creative when it comes to sides when cooking dinner. I like to go easy, I usually just chop up some fruit or open a can of veggies and nuke them. Horrible I know. I just have a hard enough time putting a main dish on the table. Well, I used to. But with my new found like of cooking, I am trying to explore new ideas and add flavor to my meals. Don't get me wrong, I still want to go easy most nights. That's why when I saw this on Christy's blog I was excited. I mean, it was a super easy fruit salad, but it wasn't just chopping up fruit and putting them on people's plates. Just by adding lime juice and some basil made it special. And it really had a great flavor. My kids and my husband and I all loved this salad. We will definitely be making this often.

Pineapple and Watermelon Salad

By My Green Diet

1 pineapple, chopped up into bite-sized pieces

1/3 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced (I kind of just chopped it up)

1 lime juiced

1/2 watermelon, cut into bite-sized pieces

In large bowl, add pineapple with basil and lime juice. Place watermelon in serving dish and pour pineapple over top. Do not stir together.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

2010-09-28T08:49:00.000-07:00

I love sugar cookies. I love anything pumpkin. So when I saw these, it was a no brainer. They actually look really dense when you make them but are pretty light. The perfect treat for fall.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

from Betty Crocker

Cookies:

1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz.) sugar cookie mix

1 tbsp flour

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1/3 c butter or margarine, softened

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 egg

Filling:

2/3 cup marshmallow creme

1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened

2/3 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 375.

In large bowl, stir together cookie mix and flour. Add remaining cookie ingredients; stir until stiff dough forms.

Onto ungreased cookie sheets, drop dough about 2 inches apart. I use a ice cream scoop like the rest of the world to try and get uniform size cookies. Lightly press tops with fingers to flatten slightly. You can dip your fingers in flour before flattening to cut down on the mess.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Cool 2 minutes and then move the cookies to wire rack to cool. Cool them completely, about 15 minutes.

In medium bowl, beat filling ingredients with electric mixer until light and fluffy. For each whoopie pie, spread about 2 tsps of the filling on bottom of one cookie. Top with second cookie, gently press together. Sprinkle with powdered sugar right before serving.

Bubblin' Swamp Juice

2010-09-27T13:58:00.000-07:00

Oh my, is it cold here. It has been in the low 50s all day and raining. The kind of weather that makes me just want to grab some hot chocolate, a good book, and crawl in bed all day. Not really feasible with three kids in the middle of the afternoon. However, the hot chocolate is. I picked my daughter up from school and she started begging for some hot chocolate. That is her favorite thing about being in cold weather. So we ran home and tried this. It is a Halloween twist to the traditional hot chocolate. It really does have strong vanilla flavor. But kids are easy to please. Add some food coloring and they are telling you that you are the best hot chocolate maker in the world. Totally not true, but sweet all the same!

Bubblin' Swamp Juice

by Taste of Home

4 cups milk

1 cup vanilla or white chips

12 drops green food coloring

8 drops yellow food coloring

1/4 c mini marshmallows (I used regular cause that is what I had)

centipede gummies for garnish (I didn't have those so they didn't make an appearance)

In a large saucepan, heat milk and chips over medium heat. Whisk until chips are melted and mixture is blended. Do not boil. Remove from the heat; stir in food coloring. Garnish with marshmallows and gummies if you want.

Pumpkin Napoleons

2010-09-25T14:52:00.000-07:00

Growing up, I didn't get to spend a ton of one on one time with my mom. So the weekend when I was about 11 years old and just my mom and I went and spent the weekend with my grandma really sticks out in my mind. We had a great time eating ice cream, watching movies, and just talking. To top it all off, on the way back to our house, we stopped at one of our favorite places, Solvang. It is a little Dutch town in So Cal. We spent several hours just roaming the streets, perusing the shops. I still remember my mom bought me a watch and a troll(remember those weird troll doll things? I loved them). To top it all off, as we were leaving, we stopped at the bakery and got the amazing Napoleons available there. It was a heavenly day.

Since running to Solvang on a regular basis wasn't an option, my mom decided to try her hand at recreating the yummy treats. To this day, whenever she makes them, I am reminded of that day.

Traditionally, when we make these, they are made with store bought frosting and red raspberry preserves, sprinkled with sugar on top, which is so easy, yet so good. However, I was bored the other day and when I decided to make these, I thought I would try and put a fall twist on a favorite treat. I tried to create my own pumpkin filling, it turned out ok, although I am sure there are better ones out there. Instead of using store bought frosting, I had seen on Christy's blog the recipe for the best ever frosting, so I decided to try that. And since I was being so darn domestic, I also made the Pioneer Woman's caramel sauce to drizzle on top. Overall result? Light, flaky, delicious! Bring on fall!

Pumpkin Napoleons

Puff Pastry (I'm sure you can make your own but I used good ol' store bought)

Thaw pastry according to package. Roll out a little on lightly floured surface. Cut into even size squares (as close as you can get). Brush lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Cook at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Let cool.

Caramel Sauce

by Pioneer Woman

4 tbsp butter

1/2 C brown sugar

1/2 c half and half

pinch of salt

1 tbsp vanilla

Mix butter, brown sugar, half and half, and salt in saucepan over medium low heat. Cook while whisking gently, 5-7 minutes until thickens. Add vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further. Turn off heat and pour sauce into jar. Refrigerate until cold.

Best Ever Frosting

by Pioneer Woman

5 tbsp flour

1 cup milk (she used whole, I used 2%)

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup sugar

1 cup butter

In saucepan, pour flour into milk and whisk together. Place on medium heat and whisk as it heats, until it thickens. It should become very thick. Take off heat and cool completely. When it is totally cooled, add vanilla.

Meanwhile, whip sugar and butter together until light and fluffy.

Then add the cooled milk/flour/vanilla mixture to sugar/butter mixture. Whip together until it resembles whipped cream.

Pumpkin Filling

3/4 c canned pumpkin

4 oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 c brown sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

Add all ingredients together in medium bowl. Whisk together until combined.

Just a quick note: I am fairly confident this is what I put in the filling, however I just made it up as I went along and I made it several days ago.

To assemble Napoleons:

Take two pastries, slather one with frosting, slather the other with pumpkin mix and place together lightly. Drizzle caramel sauce over and enjoy!

Soccer Spaghetti

2010-09-22T11:58:00.000-07:00

or better known as chicken tetrazzini.

Have you seen the movie 17 again? I love that part where Zac Efron is eating everything in sight and says I am So hungry! I just think that it really portrays reality. Teenage boys' appetites really inspire wondering amazement.

My husband had that type of appetite when younger (and now too but don't tell him I said so). His mom used to make two dishes or two pies, etc of his favorite things; one for my husband and one for the rest of his family. At our anniversary dinner several years ago, the waiter, when Ryan was done with his dinner, actually shook his hand. It was kind of embarrassing. But my husband likes to eat. (It is kind of amazing he married me!)

Growing up, Ryan was very into soccer. He played on all sorts of teams but on one of the teams, this dish was tradition. The moms rotated who made it and the boys all consumed it before games. He loved that his own mother was a "soccer spaghetti purist" as he calls her. He said all the guys would be pumped up to eat this dish and then a mom would show up having added red peppers and peas and it just wasn't the same. It didn't stop them from shoving it in their face I am sure.

Soccer Spaghetti

1 stick butter or margarine

1/2 c flour

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 cups fat free chicken broth (I don't use fat free, it goes against all of my beliefs!)

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/4 c cooking sherry (I leave this out)

1 one pound package regular spaghetti less 2 oz. (14 oz. total), cooked and drained

4 cups cooked and cut up chicken breasts (about 4-5 breasts)

1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Paprika

Preheat oven to 350.

Melt butter in large saucepan over low heat. Blend in flour and seasonings. Cook over low heat, stirring until mixture is smooth and bubbly.

Remove from heat and stir in broth and cream.

Return to burner and heat to boiling, stirring constantly, over medium to low heat. Boil and stir for 1 minute.

Add cooking sherry, stir until alcohol evaporates (just a few seconds).

Add spaghetti and chicken.

Pour into a 9x13 pan and sprinkle Parmesan over top.

Sprinkle Paprika on to.

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Brown briefly under broiler.

Just a few notes: If refrigerated before baking, allow to come to room temperature before baking. Also, I was told never to make it with thin pasta however, I didn't realize I was out of spaghetti when going to make this. I used angel hair and I thought it tasted basically the same.

Homemade Oreos

2010-09-19T13:30:00.000-07:00

I am a girl who kind of likes to be taken care of. I am not really high maintenance, I just appreciate people doing things for me that I don't really like to do myself. My girls even know about the "magic" chute that exists at my mom's house still; you put dirty clothes down it and they magically appear clean and folded in your room without much delay.

I have always really liked to eat good food but never motivated enough to actually have to cook it on my own. My family had a really good laugh when a few months after getting married, someone told Ryan that he looked like he had gained a few pounds and that it must be all of my good cooking.

But eight years into marriage and three kids later, I have discovered that I actually don't mind to cook that much. Baking is my favorite because, hey, I have a huge sweet tooth, and I get to eat the end product, but making good meals for my family has grown into something that I actually don't abhor.

Anyway, this avoidance of cooking has led me to be lacking in knowledge about many things in the kitchen. The first time I saw these were at a church fundraiser. I was like, you can make homemade oreos? Are you serious? The girl who made them said, "yeah, they are from Paula Deen." I just smiled and thought to myself, Should I know who that is? So when I saw this on my friend Christy's blog, I knew I had to try them. Especially since I know who Paula Deen is now!

Homemade Oreos

by Paula Deen

2 boxes Devil's food cake mix

4 eggs

2/3 c vegetable oil

1 8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened

1/2 c butter, at room temperature

3 c powdered sugar

1/2 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, eggs, and oil with a mixer. The batter will be very stiff. Pinch pieces of the batter and roll into 1 inch balls. Place 1 inch apart on prepared cookie sheets and flatten slightly with your fingertips. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until a slight indentation remains when lightly touched. Remove immediately from the cookie sheets with a spatula and cool on a wire rack.

In a small glass bowl, combine the cream cheese and butter until completely blended. Gradually add in the sugar and vanilla and mix until the icing is smooth. Spread half of the cookies with the icing and top with remaining cookies. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container.

Coconut Cream Bars

2010-08-30T07:55:00.000-07:00

Summer is almost gone and I am now living in a place that will soon see the changes of fall taking place. I have several different desserts that I associate with summer and wanted to try out before the sweaters and jeans really make an appearance. My husband's birthday was a few days ago and since he had to work a 24 hour shift leading up it, he said not worry about a cake. But he does love coconut so I decided to make him these bars. They are really light and really good. And really coconutty. (I don't think that is a word). They fit the bill perfectly.

Coconut Cream Bars

From Martha Stewart

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

3 boxes (5.3 ounces each) shortbread cookies, coarsely broken (I just bought a 15 oz. box)

1 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar

6 tbsp cornstarch

1/2 tsp salt

4 1/2 cups whole milk

6 large egg yolks

6 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

3 tbsp confectioners' sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spread coconut in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring once or twice, until golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool completely. Leave oven on.

2. Process cookies and 1/2 cup coconut in a food processor until finely ground and mixture begins to clump together, about 2 minutes. Transfer mixture to a 9 x 13 inch rimmed baking sheet; press into an even layer on bottom. Bake until golden and firm to the touch, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on sheet on a wire rack.

3. Whisk together the granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a large saucepan. Whisk in milk and egg yolks. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until mixture comes to a boil, 5 to 6 minutes. Continue to cook, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 3 minutes more. Remove from heat. Add butter, whisking until combined. Stir in 1 1/2 cups coconut.

4. Spoon the custard onto cooled crust; smooth top with offset spatula. Press plastic wrap directly onto custard surface, to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until set, about 3 hours.

5. Beat cream and confectioners' sugar in a large chilled stainless steel bowl until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

6. Cut custard-filled crust into bars. Spoon whipped cream into a pastry bag (use ziplock bag if no pastry bag) fitted with a medium star tip. Beginning at one corner, pipe a zigzag pattern over each bar. Sprinkle bars with remaining 1/2 cup coconut.

California Salad

2010-08-16T13:26:00.001-07:00

This salad brings back so many memories for me. It was such a staple of summer nights, it literally drags my thoughts right back to our old California home, swimming all day, being threatened and cajoled to come into dinner, wolfing it down, and heading right back to the pool where we dangled our feet in while the requisite 20 minutes went by. (you know, cause you would drown if you went in right after eating....I actually believe that is quite false, thanks mom and dad).

My mom said that when she was growing up, her mom made this salad and called it Hawaiian salad. As she grew older, she suddenly switched and called it California salad. By either name, it is one of my favorites!!

California Salad

1 8 oz. can of crushed pineapple

1 11 oz. can of mandarin oranges

1 cup sour cream

1/2 c-1c coconut (depending on your preference)

1-1 1/2 cups of marshmallows (again, your preference although the more marshmallows, the drier the salad)

1-2 dozen maraschino cherries (optional)

Drain cans of fruit. Mix all together in large bowl. Cover and refrigerate for approximately 2 hours. Serve.

Yummy Caramel Popcorn

2010-08-08T18:45:00.001-07:00

One of the most dangerous things that my mom makes is caramel popcorn. It seriously is very highly addictive. My girls absolutely love it. And whenever my kids are around her, they always talk her into cooking with them. They recently made a batch together which we promptly used for one of our family movie nights. We totally went old school with the Crush!

Caramel Popcorn

2 sticks butter or margarine

2 cups firmly packed brown sugar (My daughter has actually requested to eat a whole bag of brown sugar for her birthday. Wow is all I can say.)

1/2 C corn syrup

1 tsp salt (My mom uses salted butter and then skips adding this but it is up to you)

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

24 cups popped corn (about 2-3 bags microwave popped)

Boil butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Stir constantly, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in baking soda and vanilla. Gradually pour mixture over popped corn and mix well.

Pour into shallow pans (my mom uses 2 9x13 pans)

Bake at 250 degrees for one hour. Stir every 15 minutes. Cool completely, and break apart. You can store in tight containers if you have any leftovers (highly doubtful).

Impossibly Easy Coconut Pie

2010-08-05T15:23:00.000-07:00

My dad LOVES custard pie. He also loves coconut anything. And although it doesn't say it, this really is basically a custard pie. When I came across it, it was appealing to me for two reasons: we were currently staying with my parents and I thought my dad might like it and it had the words impossibly easy in the title. I was pretty much sold.

Impossible Easy Coconut Pie

adapted from Bisquick

cup flaked or shredded coconut

3/4

cup sugar

1/2

cup Original Bisquick® mix

1/4

cup butter or margarine, softened

cups milk

1 1/2

teaspoons vanilla

eggs

1.	Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 9-inch pie plate with shortening or cooking spray.
2.	Place all ingredients except the coconut in a blender and blend for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Pour into pan and then sprinkle coconut on top. (I probably used more coconut)
3.	Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until golden brown (mine didn't take nearly as long, and I wasn't keeping a close enough eye on it, hence, the slightly darker golden brown) and knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cover and refrigerate any remaining pie.

I got this adaptation of the Bisquick recipe from a reviewer online. The actual recipe calls for adding all the ingredients today in a bowl, stirring, and then pouring into the pan. Several other reviewers talked about how eggy it was and the blender really helped you not to feel like you were in a Stallone movie! (you know, cause he drinks raw eggs!!)

Cookie Dough Truffles

2010-06-13T13:14:00.000-07:00

Is there anything better than chocolate chip cookie dough? I swear like half the time I make cookies it is because I want the dough! As soon as I saw these on annie's eats I knew that I wanted to try them. I actually made them for my Sunday School class because, really, who could eat all of them on their own? (me). Anyway, after I made them, Ryan made the executive decision that we would not be taking them to church and that we would be eating them all. So we didn't take them. And I am sure I gained 10 pounds in like 2 days because of it. Every time I walked by the kitchen for anything, I would pop one in my mouth like a bon bon. I might as well have turned on a soap opera and called it good.

Cookie Dough Truffles

found on annie's eats

Ingredients:

8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature

¾ cup light brown sugar, packed

2¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

½ cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

1½ lb. semisweet (or bittersweet) chocolate, coarsely chopped

Mini chocolate chips (for garnish)

Directions:

Combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the flour, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla until incorporated and smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the mixture has firmed up enough to form balls.

Shape the chilled cookie dough mixture into 1-1½ inch balls. Place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Cover loosely, transfer the pan to the freezer and chill for 1-2 hours.

When ready to dip the truffles, melt the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water. Dip each chilled truffle, one at a time, coating in chocolate and shaking gently to remove the excess. (If at any point during dipping, the cookie dough balls become too soft, return to the freezer to chill for 30 minutes.) Transfer to a wax-paper lined surface. If using mini chocolate chips for garnish, sprinkle on top quickly after dipping each truffle before the chocolate sets. Once all the truffles have been dipped, store them in the refrigerator until ready to serve

Week 1 - Tuesday - Hawaiian Haystacks

2010-05-30T06:02:00.000-07:00

Here are the ingredients needed (this is for a family of 4 eaters):

2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup of sour cream
4 tblsp butter
3/4 cup milk
1 1/2 cups rice, cooked
assortment of toppings, including:

shredded cheddar cheese
mushrooms
chinese noodles
olives
green onions
pineapple chunks
raisins
mandarin oranges
peanuts
coconut
whatever you like and want to add on top

Heat the butter in a saucepan. Add the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and milk. Stir until all ingredients are mixed. Add shredded chicken. Stir until heated through. Each person puts rice and sauce on his or her plate, then he/she can add whatever toppings he or she might want.

Twice Baked Potatoes

2010-05-28T19:40:00.001-07:00

Have you ever asked yourself how you can make a potato really unhealthy?

If so, look no further, you have found your answer!

Seriously, these are really good, but they might leave your arteries a teeny bit clogged. I have seen many people when blogging, give a warning with the recipe to run, not walk to their treadmill after eating whatever it was. I would have to say that these would fall under that category as well.

Thanks to my friend Christy for the pics. I forgot my camera when taking them to her house for Sunday dinner and she was nice enough not just to let me borrow hers, but to actually take the picture. She is an amazing photographer.

Twice Baked Potatoes

Found on allrecipes.com

Ingredients

4 large baking potatoes
8 slices bacon (use one slice of bacon for each potato half if you are not worried about a heart attack)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
8 green onions, sliced, divided

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Bake potatoes in preheated oven for 1 hour. (Ok, I microwave the potatoes instead because it is way faster and they taste just as good. About three minutes per potato, just check for tenderness).

Meanwhile, place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.

When potatoes are done allow them to cool for 10 minutes. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop the flesh into a large bowl(leave about 1/4 inch of flesh so the potato maintains it's shape); save skins. To the potato flesh add sour cream, milk, butter, salt, pepper, 1/2 cup cheese and 1/2 the green onions. Mix with a hand mixer until well blended and creamy. Spoon the mixture into the potato skins. Top each with remaining cheese, green onions and bacon.

Bake for another 15 minutes.

Week 1 - Monday - Sub Sandwiches & Pasta Salad

2010-05-28T10:08:00.000-07:00

I feel like I'm always serving my family the same 10 meals, week in and week out. So, after seeing this idea on a friend's blog, I decided to follow suit and make up a 6 week meal schedule. I actually was able to extend it to a 7 week schedule (hopefully one of these days I'll make it 8) and I only repeated 2 of the meals twice! So, here is Week 1 - Monday's meal: Sub sandwiches, pasta salad, chips, and a pickle.

Later on, when I viewed this picture, I realized how unappetizing this view might look, so I promise to do better with the picture taking in the future.
The recipe for this particular pasta salad is already posted on this website. (And if you need a recipe for sub sandwiches, I hate to break it to you, but you're in serious trouble in the kitchen department.) You might not want to follow the same schedule as us but at least it will help keep me posting on a regular basis and you might just get a few new recipes!

Mix N Match

2010-05-25T20:11:00.000-07:00

So, I know that everyone has a cookie pizza recipe. But I found this forever ago on Kraft foods and I really liked it because it gave you different options to choose from. I have made several of them and have liked some better than others but that is the beauty of cookie pizzas. You can mix and match depending on whatever you are craving at the moment.

Cookie Dessert

by Kraft Foods

1 pkg (18 oz.) refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough (I actually make my own dough)

1 pkg (8 oz.) cream cheese

2 cups thawed Cool Whip (or homemade whipped cream)

1/3 C sugar

Then mix and match as you would like from the following flavoring options, fruit choices, and topping possibilities:

Flavoring options:

1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. grated orange peel

Fruit choices:

2 cups sliced strawberries

2 apples, very thinly sliced

2 bananas, thinly sliced

1 can (20 oz.) pineapple tidbits, drained; 1/4 c maraschino cherries

Topping Possibilities:

Semi-sweet chocolate chips

caramel flavored dessert topping

chocolate dessert topping

sweetened shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350. Press cookie dough into 12 inch pizza pan. Bake 20 min. or until golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack.

Beat softened cream cheese, sugar, and flavoring in large bowl with electric mixer on high speed until well blended. Gently stir in whipped topping.

Spread cream cheese mixture over crust; top with fruit and 1/4 c topping. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Cut into 16 wedges to serve. (or less if you are like my family and like our portions BIG!)

Note: I have always matched up according to order. For example: vanilla, bananas, and chocolate, or cinnamon, apples, and caramel. But really, whatever you want!!

Still Dreaming.....

2010-05-19T20:11:00.001-07:00

about this burger. It seriously is one of the best burgers I have ever had. I ate it in like 3 bites. I wasn't going to take a picture at first so I just started eating it. After the first bite, I ran and got my camera, turned my plate so the partially eaten side would be hidden, and clicked right there at the table in the bad light and all. I could not be bothered to go and find good light and waste precious moments that could be used eating.

I got this off of Our Best Bites, which is one of my favorite food blog sites. Everything I have made from those two girls has been delicious.

This is their Southwest Chipotle Burger. It is a little hot so if you have kids, keep that in mind. One of my kids didn't like it but my 3 year old pounded it, almost as fast as me. In her little voice she announced that when her mouth got too spicy, she would just drink her water.

The Chipotle-Lime Mayo was A-MA-ZING! You have to add that when making this. And including the avocado, tomato, and lettuce really rounds it out nicely. Ryan said it was like a flavor explosion in his mouth.

Southwest Chipotle Burger

Our Best Bites

Burgers:
1 1/2 lb ground chuck or ground sirloin (I used 80/20 ground chuck. I mean if you are going to have a burger, you might as well make it from the good stuff!)
1-1/2 chipotle peppers canned in adobo sauce, cut up
1 1/2 T adobo sauce (from the chipotle chili can)
1/4 C grated onion
1 t garlic powder
1/2 t cumin
1 1/2 t kosher salt
1/4 t pepper

Chipotle-lime Mayo:
1/2 C Mayo
2 t lime juice
1 1/2 t adobo sauce (from the canned chipotle chilis)
2T chopped fresh cilantro

4-6 good quality buns
1 tomato
1-2 avocado
lettuce
optional: jack, cotija, or queso fresco cheese (I just added a little grated Monterey Jack)

To make the mayo, just put ingredients in a small bowl and mix together. Place in the fridge until ready to use. You can also make this ahead of time.

Gently crumble meat into a bowl. Add the other ingredients and gently work together. They give a great tip that if you overwork it, the meat gets a gross texture, so just mix until it is worked through.

Then divide into 4 patties (or 6 small patties) and place on your preferred cooking surface, be it grill, indoor grill, or skillet.

In the last few minutes of grilling, add your cheese. When done, remove from grill and let cool for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, toast your buns and lather the prepared mayo on both sides. Then place burger on bun, add avocado, tomato, and lettuce and eat away into bliss!

Salad....The Bulgarian Way

2010-05-17T18:33:00.000-07:00

Have you ever met someone and they say their name and you say "What was that?" and then they say it again and you say "oh, ok" because you still have no idea what their name is but you don't want to be rude and ask again? My friend Krassimira is like that, and the above is pretty much how our first conversation went. I would listen closely every time she would tell other people what her name was until I had it down.

Now, keep in mind that I did not have the luxury of having it written down in front of me and she does have a slight accent. However, we got over my lack of knowing what her name was for the first few months of meeting one another and now are great friends.

Our families decided to go on a quick overnight campout and we were discussing the menu when she came out and said she was going to bring a salad. I am proud to say that I managed to keep a straight face. I then went home and told my husband and we both had a good laugh about bringing a salad camping.

So, there we were, surrounded by all of the normal camping fare; chips, soda, hot dogs, chilli, smores, and then there was the.... salad. And after the first bite, all I wanted to eat was the flippin' salad!!! (by the way, that did not prevent me from having one or two or seven smores)

This is apparently the salad that graces every table at any kind of dinner in Bulgaria. It is so easy but SOOOO good. She eyeballs everything which I yelled at her about, but I found as I made it that eyeballing isn't too bad.

Cucumber, Tomato, and Feta Salad(I don't think this is the name, I just made it up)

One European cucumber, peeled and cubed (this means seedless- the one I got was from Canada)

3-4 Grape vine tomatoes, cut into medium sized cubes (this can be any juicy tomato, but just not Roma)

1 bunch of green onions, cleaned and diced

package of feta cheese (she uses Bulgarian sheep's milk and yeah, I couldn't find that so I used just regular feta)

extra virgin olive oil

red wine vinegar

kosher salt to taste

Combine cucumber and tomato and onion. Add olive oil. I drizzled and counted to 5. Really, just however much you want. Add red wine vinegar, again to taste. I used like 12 splashes. Add salt to taste as well. Put in crumbled feta and mix well. Serve.

Wow, there were a lot of parentheses in this post!

Strawberry Bruschetta

2010-05-12T18:45:00.000-07:00

Strawberries, Strawberries, everywhere! I know I just posted a strawberry recipe, but really, what says summer more than fresh, vibrant, juicy berries? Case in point, I went to a baby shower recently and almost every dish contained strawberries. Many people brought things and I guess strawberries were on everyone's minds.

I first had this recipe at Kelly's wedding shower. There was a great spread, including this recipe from Pampered Chef. I felt bad because when I made it this time, it was so hot outside that just bringing it from the car to the shower made the cream cheese mixture totally melt. Oh well, it still tasted pretty good. The picture just isn't the greatest. And I was in a huge rush so when I sprinkled the powdered sugar on the top right before walking out the door, it was totally clumped together. I know, excuses, excuses......

Strawberry Bruschetta

By Pampered Chef

20 slices French bread, cut 1/4 inch thick
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 lemon
1 container (8 ounces) cream cheese spread
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 1/2 cups strawberries, hulled and coarsely chopped
1/3 cup toasted sliced almonds
Additional powdered sugar (optional)


Preheat oven to 375°F. Brush butter over bread slices. Combine granulated sugar and cinnamon.  Sprinkle evenly over bread slices. Bake 12-14 minutes or until golden brown; remove and place onto cooling rack.  If you have a stone, you can use that to bake the bread.  Otherwise, just use a regular cookie sheet.

Meanwhile, zest lemon to measure 1 teaspoon zest. Juice lemon to get 2 teaspoons. In small bowl, whisk cream cheese, powdered sugar, lemon zest and juice until smooth using whisk. Hull strawberries; coarsely chop.

Scoop cream cheese mixture over bread slices; spread evenly. Top with strawberries. Sprinkle bruschetta with almonds and powdered sugar, if desired. Serve immediately.

Strawberry Pie

2010-04-25T15:51:00.000-07:00

Whenever I see strawberries, I am immediately transported back to my youth. The youth that was filled with the four letter word that was gardening. Ok, so it really isn't a four letter word, literally or metaphorically speaking. But when you are young and it is sweltering outside, and there beside you is a sparkling cool pool in which you are not allowed in until you have finished weeding the strawberry patch, it sure seems like it.

Now, I wish I had a strawberry patch to weed in, and yes, I would even implement the same strategy to get my kids to do their fair share of the work. Funny how things change, huh?

There are so many great recipes with strawberries. However, my mom's simple but absolutely yummy strawberry pie is among my favorites. I think it is the cream cheese addition that really puts it over the top. Whenever it is just becoming summer, I have a craving for strawberry pie and weirdly enough, weeding.

Strawberry Pie

1 pie crust (homemade or store bought)

1 cup of sugar, divided

1/2 c water

1 2 lb. carton of strawberries (I usually use a 2 lb one, plus several of another carton)

3 tbs of cornstarch

4 oz. cream cheese ( I usually add a little more, but I like my cream cheese!)

Begin by cooking your crust so it has ample time to cool.

Then go on to cutting up strawberries and placing in pan, keeping 15 -20 for the top. With hands, mush strawberries. Add water and a 1/2 cup of sugar.

In separate bowl, combine remaining sugar (1/2 c) and cornstarch. I usually use pretty heaping tablespoons, but again, that is just me. I like my pie a little thick.

Pour a little of the strawberry mixture into the sugar and cornstarch. Mix until it forms a paste, then return it to the mixture.

Over medium heat, cook until boiling and mixture thickens.

On cooled crust, spread cream cheese. On top of that, pour boiling mixture. You can refrigerate and then add the strawberries to top or if you are impatient like me, just add them right away. I have found it doesn't make too much of a difference. Refrigerate for a little while, just to settle the pie. You can always add a little whipped cream to make it extra special!

Add a little "Magic" to your Day

2010-03-03T13:57:00.001-08:00

I saw these recently on Lick The Bowl Good. They were called "Magic Cookie Bars", and I was craving something sweet. I had everything in my pantry, which is just about the craziest thing ever and thought I would whip some up. Ryan just about passed out from shock from me making dinner and a dessert on a Tuesday night! Really, making dinner is about enough of an oddity! But these were really good and really easy. I called them endless possibility bars because with using the first layers, you could use so many different ingredients. On Lick the Bowl Good, she talked about omitting the nuts and adding dried fruit which I thought sounded good. I think next time I will try white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts only.

Magic Cookie Bars

found on Lick The Bowl Good

1 1/2 c graham cracker crumbs

1/2 c butter, melted (one stick)

1 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk

2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 1/3 c coconut flakes

1 c chopped nuts

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13 x 9 baking pan with non-stick spray.

Combine butter and graham cracker in bowl and mix together. Press into bottom of baking pan. Pour condensed milk evenly over crust. Layer with chocolate chips, coconut, and nuts. Press down firmly with fork.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned. I just cooled them in the pan, although you are supposed to remove them to a wire rack to cool. Just cut and enjoy!

Sugar Cookies with a Twist

2009-12-24T12:13:00.001-08:00

I was watching Dear Food Network and they were featuring holiday cookies. Robin Miller (I think that is her name) did a quick segment with these cookies. I jotted it down and tried them today. The cherries and chocolate go really well together. I didn't put the whole 1/2 c of pistachio in the cookie and I think it is hard to taste them. So I would try the whole amount next time.

1 package of sugar cookie dough
1/2 c dried cherries
1/2 c pistachios (either pulsed a few times in food processor or broken into pieces by other methods, aka a ziploc bag and skillet)
2 bars of white baking chocolate

Roll out cookie dough on a piece of plastic wrap. Add cherries and pistachios and work through the dough. Wrap the dough with plastic and reform into log. Cut off chunks of dough and form into balls (whatever size you want them to be). Place in 350 degree oven for 7-11 minutes. Cool completely.
Meanwhile, microwave chocolate in 15 seconds intervals, stirring after each time. When melted, dip half of cookie into chocolate.

Horseradish-Crusted Filet Mignon

2009-11-15T09:24:00.000-08:00

Growing up we only had our steaks one way- marinated in soy sauce and grilled. While this is probably my favorite way still, I have since ventured out and had my steaks prepared many different ways. Ryan and I decided to combine old with the new this time. We still marinated our steaks in soy sauce but we added a horseradish crust. The result was delicious!!

Found on cooking.com
6 tbs salted butter, room temperature
3 to 4 tbs grated fresh horseradish or prepared white horseradish
1/2 c panko (japanese bread crumbs)

Cream butter. Once butter is light and fluffy, add horseradish and season to taste with salt and pepper. Add breadcrumbs and mix until they have incorporated. Use hands to shape butter and breadcrumb mixture into flat disks the diameter of your filets. Place on plate, cover with plastic, refrigerate at least one hour.

Preheat broiler or oven to highest temperature. Place oven rack on the top third of oven. Over medium-high, heat a large, heavy ovenproof frying pan. Season the filets with salt and pepper. Sear filets until dark golden, 2 to 3 minutes on the first side. Turn over and sear other side. Cook another 3 to 4 minutes for medium rare. Place horseradish breadcrumb topping over each filet and place in broiler until the crust becomes golden.

You can wrap the filets with one piece of bacon, securing the ends with a wooden toothpick. Before searing the filets, sear the bacon by standing the wrapped filets on their sides until the bacon just begins to brown and become crispy, about 30 seconds per side.

Baked Beans

2009-11-15T09:18:00.000-08:00

Okay, I have had several different types of baked beans over the years but my mom's recipe is still the best I have ever had. Whenever I bring them to any event, I am always asked for the recipe. They are really versatile as they make a great side dish to an Easter meal as well as at a bbq!

Baked Beans

By Terri Schaeffer

Can of Campbells Pork and Beans (It needs to be Campbells, it is not as good with other brands)
4-6 pieces of bacon
1/2 c white onion
1/2 c ketchup
1/2 c firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp chilli powder (add to taste)

1 tsp ground mustard

Fry bacon in skillet-remove bacon but leave drippings in pan. Saute onion on low until clear. Crumble bacon back in skillet, add beans. Add ketchup, brown sugar, and chilli powder. Bake in 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
I then usually place in crockpot to warm until bbq or meal. They are so good!

Apricot-Glazed Chicken Breats with Almond Couscous

2009-06-19T15:47:00.000-07:00

I have a confession to make. Even though I don't really like to cook, I love to buy those Pillsbury and Betty Crocker type books that are in line at the grocery store. I love when a new one comes out. I actually haven't made much that is in them, so one day, when I was feeling really inspired, I decided to go through and write down all the recipes that I wanted to try, what books they were in and what page number for easy reference. So the other night, we finally tried one! It was really good, though Ryan put some more pepper than the recipe called for on the chicken and it was pretty hot. So I would just follow the recipe. It was easy, good, and only 400 calories. And I discovered that my girls absolutely love couscous. Who knew?

Chicken
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp ground red pepper (cayenne)
2 tbsp apricot preserves

Couscous
1 cup chicken broth
1 tbsp butter or margarine
1 cup uncooked couscous
2 tbsp slivered almonds, toasted if desired

Set oven to broil. Spray broiler rack with cooking spray. Flatten each chicken breast by placing between 2 pieces of plastic wrap or waxed paper. Working from center, gently pound chicken with rolling pin or flat side of meat mallet until 1/4 inch thick.

In small bowl, mix garlic powder, pepper and ground red pepper. Sprinkle on both sides of chicken; place on rack in pan.

Broil 4 to 6 inches from heat 5 to 7 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center. Brush with half of apricot preserves; broil 1 minute longer or until preserves are bubbly. brush with remaining preserves before serving.

Meanwhile, in 2 quart saucepan, heat broth and butter to boiling. Stir in couscous and almonds. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff couscous with fork before serving with glazed chicken.

Homemade Whipping Cream

2009-06-08T10:46:00.000-07:00

Okay, you guys aren't probably challenged as I am, but I thought I would include this anyway. Whenever I want to make homemade whipping cream, I can never remember how much is needed of whipping cream and sugar. I swear, I must have called my mom like 8 times for this. So when I couldn't remember AGAIN last night and had to call her to come to my rescue, I was determined to put it on the blog, just so I don't have to bug her anymore regarding this! And have I mentioned that I love summer because you can get the most delicious peaches ever?! And mixed with angel food cake and homemade whipping cream, life couldn't get much sweeter. This picture is proof that I am totally impatient, I under whipped this a little but I just couldn't wait to start eating!

1 cup heavy whipping cream
2-3 tbsp of sugar, to taste

Of course, if you need more or less, just adjust for size.
Put whipping cream and sugar in mixing bowl. Mix on medium for 2-3 minutes depending on speed, just until cream creates stiff peaks. Don't overwhip it to form cottage cheese but the cream does need to have a firmer consistency. Have fun!

Parmesan Chicken

2009-06-08T10:40:00.000-07:00

This is a fabulous dish! Ryan and I have had another recipe that we have been using, but decided to try one that was on my friend Christy's blog and it was so much better and easier! I was going to take a picture of ours from last night but I could not find my camera. I actually started freaking out a little thinking that I must have left it somewhere because I had torn the house apart and it hadn't turned up. Luckily, Ryan finally remembered that when we had gone to Cirque de Soleil on Friday they hadn't allowed cameras and he had put it in the Stow N Go of our car. If he had not remembered, I doubt we would have found it for a month. But by the time he remembered, the chicken was digesting in our bellies. So I stole this one off of Christy's blog again.

4 chicken breasts (We just used three, just depending on how many you are cooking for)

1/2 stick butter (melted)

1 c. Parmesan cheese

1 c. Italian breadcrumbs

1/2 t. garlic powder

Jar of Spaghetti sauce

mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking dish with foil and spray with cooking spray.

Mix the Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, and garlic powder in a shallow dish. *It really doesn't matter how much Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs you have. Just make sure it's equal parts. Melt butter in a shallow bowl. Dip the chicken in the melted butter, then the bread crumb mixture then place on the baking sheet. Cover the middle of the chicken with spaghetti sauce. Bake for 35-40 minutes. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top for the last 5 minutes of baking. Serve over spaghetti with extra spaghetti sauce.

Banana Crumb Muffins

2009-06-04T05:58:00.000-07:00

I have been trying hard not to be wasteful when it comes to food lately and when I saw that I had several bananas sitting on my counter going bad I was going to make banana bread. But then I remembered that my friend Christy had posted on her recipe blog a muffin recipe that looked delicious. So I tried that instead. Surprisingly, I had all the ingredients in my pantry. They are really good!

Batter:
1 1/2 C all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 C granulated sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 c butter, melted (5 tbsp)
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Topping:
1/3 C packed brown sugar
2 tbsp all purpose flour
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease 10 muffin cups, or line with muffin papers. (I only have a 6 muffin tin, I just made big muffins!)
In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.

In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.
Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.
For those, like me, who had no idea what cutting in meant, here is the definition!
To work a solid fat, such as shortening, margarine, or butter, into dry ingredients, usually with a pastry blender. (I just used a fork!)

Taquitos

2009-06-04T05:48:00.001-07:00

Ok, this isn't really a recipe per say, but it is quick, easy, inexpensive, and surprisingly, really tasty! I got this from Tracie and it has been a go to on nights when I have absolutely no ideas.

Box of Jose Ole chicken and cheese taquitos, rolled in flour tortillas
can of enchilada sauce
shredded cheddar cheese (as much as wanted)

Line up as many taquitos as wanted in glass dish. Pour enchilada sauce over taquitos. Then sprinkle as much cheese as wanted over top as well. Bake at 350 for 1/2 hour. See how easy that is. And it really is good!
I usually have refried beans as a side. I also either have a green salad or corn mixed with avocado on the side. A well rounded meal!

Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

2009-06-04T05:39:00.000-07:00

Mom's famous enchiladas! This is one of the reasons we wanted to start the blog, to have these great recipes down. You probably all have this recipe but just in case, here it is!

2 chicken breasts
2 tbsp butter
1/2 C chopped sweet or white onion
can of green chilies
can of cream of chicken
1/2 C sour cream
1/4 C milk
1 C to 1 1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese, divided

Bake chicken. In a skillet, melt butter and saute onions. In a bowl, mix onions, can of chillies, can of cream of chicken, sour cream, and milk together. Save 1/2 C mixture for the top. Then add 1/2 C cheese and chicken to bowl. Fill tortillas. Put in pan, add saved 1/2 C mixture over the top. Add 1/2 C to 1 C of cheese over top as well.
Bake at 350 for 1/2 hour. (You can add salt and pepper as needed).

Lemon Cream Cheese Pie

2009-06-04T05:34:00.001-07:00

This pie is infamous in Ryan's family. Whenever his mom would make it, she would make two pies, one being just for Ryan which he would promptly eat. It has great flavor and texture. I know a lot of people want to make things that take a lot of time and are difficult to test their culinary skills. Me, on the other hand, know fully well my total lack of skills, therefore am always on the lookout for easy things that taste great. This is both!

1 8 oz. block cream cheese
1 pkg Jello Lemon instant pudding
1 3/4 C milk
1 tsp of grated lemon peel

Soften cream cheese, put in blender and mix, slowly add milk as it blends until smooth. Add pudding mix and lemon peel and mix until yellow. Pour in pie crust and let set in fridge.

The crust is graham cracker crust. You can buy it from the store pre-made or make it on your own.

Oriental Chicken Salad

2009-05-30T16:45:00.001-07:00

For my wedding, Tricia gave me several of her recipes. This is one of our favorites! It is really light, crunchy, and tangy. We had it tonight as we are recovering from our recent jaunt into the wilderness....well, south Florida wilderness!

Enjoy!

2 Tbl butter
1 1/2 C sliced almonds (one small bag isn't enough but I really think it is worth buying 2!)
1 16 oz. pkg. coleslaw mix
1/2 C scallions, chopped
1 pkg ramen noodles oriental flavor
1 C chicken, cut up
2 cans mandarin oranges

In a small skillet, melt the butter over low heat. Add the almonds and cook until the almonds are browned.
In a large bowl, toss together the almonds, coleslaw mix, scallions, ramen noodles (broken up into small pieces) and chicken until combined.

Dressing:
3 Tbl vinegar (I didn't realize I was out of regular vinegar so I used apple cider vinegar tonight, it wasn't bad!)
1 Tbl sugar
1/2 C olive oil
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
packet of flavoring from noodles

In a small bowl, combine the vinegar, sugar, olive oil, sesame oil, salt, pepper, and contents of the flavor packet from noodles and mix well. Pour the dressing over the coleslaw mixture. Add mandarin oranges.

Gooey Potatoes

2009-05-28T09:13:00.001-07:00

This is one of Ryan's moms famous recipes! It is always included Christmas dinner with her amazing brisket, which I will be sure to include as well. They really are good and a great side dish to any meal. And again, really easy. Do you sense a theme in my cooking? (Again, I stole the pic off of Christy's blog. Thanks Christy!)

1 (2lb) bag of frozen cubed hash browns
2 cups sour cream
2 cups shredded sharp cheese, + ½ cup for topping
2 cans cream of chicken soup, undiluted
Small bunch of green onions, sliced
Corn flakes

Mix all ingredients together except the hash browns (and the ½ cup of additional shredded cheese) in a large bowl.

Add the hash browns and mix together thoroughly.

Mix the remaining cheese with 2 cups of corn flakes which have been lightly crushed.

Bake potatoes at 350⁰ for 30 minutes. (You can cook them a little longer to make sure they are done!) Cover top with corn flake/cheese mixture and bake an additional 15 minutes until potatoes are bubbling and top has browned.

Feta and Vegetable Rotini Salad

2009-05-28T08:41:00.000-07:00

This is one of my staple pasta salads. I really love it and it is really easy to make. And most of the time, I have all the ingredients on hand. I found it on Kraft foods and have made it every since. Sometimes I just make it and stick in the refrigerator so we can snack on it for several days. I actually took the picture off of my friend Christy's blog, who took it off of Kraft food website. The recipe calls for 3 cups of cooked noodles, I always use the whole box, my friend Christy uses three cups of uncooked pasta. I thought hers was a little better. It is a great salad for the summer!

3 cups tricolor rotini pasta, cooked, drained and cooled
1 cup feta cheese
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1 cup chopped cucumbers
1/2 cup sliced black olives
1/2 cup KRAFT Zesty Italian Dressing
1/4 cup finely chopped red onions

COMBINE ingredients. REFRIGERATE 1 hour

Broccoli Salad

2009-05-27T13:50:00.000-07:00

Okay, so another recipe with no picture but I'm not sure I would want to include a picture of this salad because the first time I saw it it didn't look all that appetizing to me. My friend who made it promised me that I would love it so I took a small portion just to make her happy. Boy, was she right! I really, really liked it. I have made it as a side dish or as the main meal.

Salad Ingredients:

4-5 cups of chopped broccoli (I just buy a bag of fresh broccoli florets)
1/2 LB bacon (crumbles)
1/2 red onion chopped
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

Dressing for Broccoli Salad:

1 cup mayo (I used Miracle Whip)
1/2 cup sugar
2 T vinegar (white wine or apple cider)

Mix sauce and let stand for 1 hour.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

2009-05-24T19:40:00.000-07:00

The first time I had this salad was at my wedding shower. I prefer not to dwell on how long ago that was! I am not sure who created it, it probably is one of those recipes that circulate through everyone. But it is delicious and tangy. I have never been a huge spinach fan but it is just really good in this salad. The sweetness of the strawberries, the crunch from the almonds, and the tang of the dressing really make this one of my favorites. And it is so easy, which makes it a winner for me!

Strawberry Spinach Salad

9 C torn fresh spinach

1 pt. fresh strawberries, halved
1/2 C slivered almonds, toasted

Dressing:
2 T sugar
1 T chopped onion (red or white, I used white)
1 t sesame seeds
1 t poppy seeds
1/4 t paprika
1/8 t Worcestershire sauce
1/4 C vegetable oil
2 T cider vinegar

In a large bowl, combine the spinach, strawberries, and almonds. Place dressing ingredients in a blender; cover and process until combined. Pour over salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Olive Garden Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

2009-05-22T14:43:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce

Diced cooked chicken breast

frozen or fresh chopped broccoli, cooked and hot

Add chicken and broccoli to Alfredo sauce and heat through. Serve over hot, cooked fettuccine.

Olive Garden Alfredo sauce:

1 stick real butter

2 c. heavy cream

1/8 tsp. garlic powder

1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. (I also saute minced garlic with the butter.) Add cream, garlic powder, and pepper. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 to 12 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. When sauce has reached desired consistency, stir in Parmesan cheese. Use for Chicken Broccoli Alfredo, or just serve as is over fettuccini. For our family of 5, I do half the above recipe...but it you want leftovers, go for the whole thing.