Christmas eve Profiteroles

I'm totally just copying this post from my sister-in-law's blog. She served these on Christmas eve and they were so delicious. My husband who is usually not a big dessert eater had 3 of them. So I want to make sure I have this recipe easily at my fingertips because I will be making it again. Of course you can substitute the ice cream for any other flavor and serve any time of the year but the Farr's peppermint ice cream was delicious and very fitting for Christmas eve.

Step 1:

Cream Puffs

1 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs

In a medium saucepan combine water, butter, and salt. Bring to boiling. Add flour all at once, stirring vigorously. Cook and stir until mixture forms a ball. Remove from heat. Cool for 10 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well with a wooden spoon after each addition.

Drop dough by 12 heaping tablespoons onto a greased baking sheet. Bake at 400 degree for 30-35 minutes or till golden. Cool on a wire rack.

Step 2:

Fill Cream puffs with Farr Better Peppermint Stick Ice Cream

Step 3:
Drizzle with Hot Fudge Sauce. Recipe follows.

Hot Fudge Sauce

1 cup butter
1/2 cup cocoa powder
3 cups sugar
1 can evaporated milk

Bring the above ingredients to a boil and continue to boil for 7-8 minutes. Then remove from heat and add

1 tsp vanilla

Serve warm to hot.

Chocolate drizzled caramel popcorn

I found this recipe on My hombased mom last year. I instantly loved it because there was no messing with candy thermometers and no goopy caramel topping (although that kind of caramel popcorn is good too). Plus it turns out just right every time. It also reminds me of my first trip to New York City when I first tried chocolate drizzled caramel popcorn. I think this popcorn is just as good, if not better because I use dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate.

Ingredients:
16 cups popped corn (I use my air popper)
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup Karo syrup
1/2 cup butter

Cook sugar, syrup and butter in a glass bowl in microwave on high for one minute. Stir and repeat for a total of five minutes. Should be hot and bubbly.

Add:
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla

Mix until foamy. Put popped corn into a brown grocery bag. Pour syrup into bag. Stir to coat. Fold bag over. Place in microwave and microwave for one minute and shake. Repeat. Microwave 30 seconds and shake. Repeat. (sprinkle with cinnamon sugar if desired and shake again--I never do this cause I like chocolate drizzle)

Pour popcorn out to cool on wax paper


Melt 1 cup ghirardelli 60% chocolate chips in the microwave--first for 1 minute and stir then for another 30 seconds and stir until there are no lumps. Then I take the chocolate and drizzle over the cooling caramel popcorn. I then place the pan into the refrigerator to let the chocolate set.

Gingerbread cookies

Photo courtesy of my 3 yr old : ) This is a delicous gingerbread recipe. Many years ago we used to make gingerbread houses and this was a great recipe to use for those as well.

Ingredients:
5 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
1 tsp ginger
3 T cinnamon
1 1/8 tsp baking soda
1 cup shortening
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup molasses
1/3 cup water

Directions:
Sift together 1 cup flour, salt, spices, and soda into a bowl. In mixing bowl cream shortening, sugar, beat until light and fluffy. Add egg then slightly warmed molasses. Stir water into mixture. Stir in flour and spice mix gradually. Add remaining flour a cupful at a time just until dough is soft and moist to the touch. Chill dough 6-8 hours ( I chilled for maybe an hour and it was fine). Remove dough, roll out onto waxed paper until 1/8 inch thick. Cut into shapes and bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. Bake as dark as you can without burning (more important for crispy cookies or gingerbread houses I think--I wanted mine more soft so I just cooked for 8 min)

Royal Icing (for use for gingerbread house) Beat 2 egg whites, 1 tsp cream of tartar, 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar on high for 7-10 minutes. Put in a tightluy covered bowl or bowl covered with a wet cloth.

Peanut Butter cup cookies

Oh my, these cookies are soooo good! I saw these on Annie's Eats website and knew I had to try them right away. Imagine all my favorite things in one cookie--it was divine. I changed the recipe up just a little by using my sister-in-law's recipe for the cookie part and then used the idea of melted marshmallows topped with ganache and m&m's from Annie's Eats. Seriously, you must try these cookies.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
Reese's mini peanut butter cups
mini marshmallows
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp water
mini M&M's

Directions:
Combine white sugar, light brown sugar, and softened butter; beat until light and fluffy. Add peanut butter, egg (room temp), and vanilla; blend for several minutes. Add flour, baking soda, and salt; fold in. Batter will be fairly loose. Chill for a couple hours (I didn't do this and my cookies were fine). Preheat oven to 350. Scoop 1/2"-1" balls into cup of mini muffin pan. Bake for 6-7 minutes or until edges turn brown. While cookies are baking make sure candy is unwrapped, easier to do if candy is cold. Remove pans from oven (cookie will be puffed). Firmly place buttercup into middle of each cookie. Edges should be even with or above candy. Top each cookie with 3-4 mini marshmallows. Return the pan to the oven and bake 2-3 minutes more, until the marshmallows have puffed up. Transfer the pans to a wire cooling rack and allow the cookies to cool completely in the pan before removing them. (This is important! I tried removing them while still slightly warm – not a good idea.)

Once the cookies are completely cooled, transfer them to a wire rack over a sheet of wax paper or aluminum foil. Place the chopped chocolate in a small bowl. Bring the cream, sugar and water to a boil, then pour the liquid over the chocolate and let sit for 30 seconds. Gently whisk the mixture together until smooth. Leave the glaze to sit until it thickens a bit to your desired consistency, then drizzle over the tops of the cookies. Sprinkle with mini M&Ms before the glaze hardens.

Refried Beans

First I'll apologize for the picture. I don't know how to make refried beans look good? I'm sure there is someone out there that could do it, but I don't have that skill. This is a very healthy version of refried beans and so easy to make. I made them in a crockpot but I just bought a pressure cooker and my sister says they are very good made in the pressure cooker and a lot faster. I will be trying them out for sure! This recipe is courteous of allrecipes.

Ingredients:
1 onion, peeled and halved
3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed
1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and
chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic 5 teaspoons salt
1 3/4 teaspoons fresh ground black
pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin, optional
9 cups water

Directions:
1. Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.
2. Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency.

Chicken Feed aka Chex Mix

Ingredients:
1 box Cheerios
1 box wheat Chex
1 box Rice Chex
1 box Corn Chex
1 bag pretzels (straight)
2 lbs mixed nuts (we left this out : )

Melt together and pour over the above
1 lb butter
1 cup oil
2 T Worcestershire
2 tsp garlic salt

Directions:
Mix dry ingredients together. Stir in sauce. Bake in oven for 2 hours at 250 degrees. Stir every 15 minutes.

Biscuits and Gravy

When I was sixteen my parents took me to Georgia to visit extended family. It was on this trip that I fell in love with a good southern breakfast. Every morning my great aunt would have sausage, eggs, bacon, pancakes, and new to me and my new favorite--biscuits and gravy. I've never made it myself. It's been a special treat when I go to a restaurant for breakfast. I saw this recipe on allrecipes and decided it was time I tried to make it myself. I'm so glad I did because it was so good. I won't mention how many calories it has though...kind of ruins it a little bit.

Ingredients1 pound breakfast Sausage Roll
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
Salt and black pepper to taste
8 prepared biscuits

Directions
1.Crumble and cook sausage in large skillet over medium heat until browned. Stir in flour until dissolved. Gradually stir in milk. Cook gravy until thick and bubbly. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot over biscuits. Refrigerate leftovers.

7 layered lettuce salad

This recipe comes from my mother in law. Anything with bacon is great in my opinion. It's easy to put together and a little different from the usual green salad.

Ingredients:
2 cups chopped celery
1 green pepper, chopped
1 cup green onions, chopped
1 package frozen peas, uncooked

1 head of lettuce
6 hardboiled eggs, chopped
1 cup cheese, grated
6-7 pieces crisp bacon, crumbled

Sauce:
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream

Directions:
Mix together: celery, green pepper, green onions and frozen peas.
Layer half the lettuce (torn or chopped) on bottom of 9x13 pan. Layer half the celery mixture, the entier 6 eggs, chopped. Then layer the remaining lettuce, remaining celery mixture. Top with mayonnaise mixture. Then sprinkle with cheese and bacon.
Can be refrigerated overnight.

Ribbon Salad

This is my favorite jello salad. I love to have it at Christmas time because of the fun Christmas colors, although anytime is a good time for this salad. I have never been able to successfully make it look pretty myself--for some reason my top layer of jello has never completely covered the middle layer. It still tastes good, it just doesn't look good. So while my mom was in town I asked her to make it for me so I could see where I was going wrong. We decided I was either using the wrong size pan or forgot to add the 2nd bit of water to the red jello. So we will see if I've got it figured out the next time I attempt to make this jello salad.

Ingredients:
1 pkg each 3 oz size Jell-O: Lemon, Lime, and Raspberry or strawberry
3 cups boiling water
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1 1/2 cup cold water
4 oz cool whip
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 20 oz can crushed pineapple

Directions:
Dissolve jello flavors separately, using 1 cup boiling water for each. Stir miniature marshmallows into lemon Jell-O, set aside. Add 3/4 cup cold water to lime Jell-O; pour into 13x9 inch pan. Chill until set but not firm. Add 3/4 cup cold water to raspberry Jell-O, set aside at room temperature. Then add cream cheese to lemon mixture; beat until blended, chill until slightly thickened, then blend in mayonnaise, whipped cream and crushed pineapple. Chill until very thick; spoon gently over lime Jell-O. Chill until set, but not firm; meanwhile chill raspberry Jell-O until thick, pour over lemon Jell-O. Chill.

Oatmeal Cookies

This is a recipe from my sister in law. It actually calls for raisins or craisins but I'm not a big fan of either. But I love chocolate so I used chocolate chips in mine.

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
3 cups quick oats
1 cup raisins or craisins
1/2 cups chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Beat together butter and sugar until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well. Combine flour, baking soda, and cinnamon. Then add to creamy mixture. Stir in oats and raisins. Mix well. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes until edges are lightly brown. Cool on baking sheet for 1 minute before removing to wire racks.

Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients:
3 cups Mashed potatoes
1 14oz can green beans or frozen green beans
1 chopped onion
1 1/2 lb ground beef
1/4 tsp thyme
1 clove garlic
1 can cream of mushroom soup

Directions:
Brown the ground beef and onion in a skillet. Drain the grease. Add the can of mushroom soup, thyme and garlic. Pour into 9 inch casserole dish. Place drained green beans on top of the meat mixture. Place the mashed potatoes on top of the green beans. Bake in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes.

Breakfast Casserole

This is my favorite breakfast casserole recipe so far. Mainly because it has my favorite ingredients--bacon, cheese, and potatoes. Plus it's super easy to make. I like to make it the night before and pop it in the oven for a no fuss warm breakfast.

Ingredients:
1 pound bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
9 eggs, lightly beaten
4 cups frozen shredded hash brown potatoes
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups cottage cheese
1 1/4 cup shredded swiss cheese

Directions:
In a large skillet cook the bacon until crisp. Drain most of the bacon grease, leaving just enough to cook the onion until translucent. Crumble the bacon. In large bowl combine the bacon, onions, eggs, hash browns, and cheeses. Transfer to a greased 9x13 pan. Bake uncovered at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until set and bubbly. If you want--broil it for just a few minutes to brown the top just a little. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

slow cooker mashed potatoes

I'm not sure how these are so much a crockpot dish when it really just serves as a way to keep the potatoes warm but they are really ready to eat without going in the crockpot. But they are very good and it was nice to be able to make the mashed potatoes ahead of time and kept warm until the rest of the meal was ready.

Ingredients5 pounds red potatoes, cut into chunks
1 tablespoon minced garlic, or to taste
3 cubes chicken bouillon
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
In a large pot of lightly salted boiling water, cook the potatoes, garlic, and bouillon until potatoes are tender but firm, about 15 minutes. Drain, reserving water. In a bowl, mash potatoes with sour cream and cream cheese, adding reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency. Transfer the potato mixture to a slow cooker, cover, and cook on Low for 2 to 3 hours. Just before serving, stir in butter and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Footnotes

Texas Sheet Cake

Ingredients
FOR THE CAKE:
2 cups Flour
2 cups Sugar
¼ teaspoons Salt
4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
2 sticks Butter
1 cup Boiling Water
½ cups Buttermilk
2 whole Beaten Eggs
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Vanilla
_____
FOR FROSTING:
½ cups Finely Chopped Pecans
1-¾ stick Butter
4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
6 Tablespoons Milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 pound (minus 1/2 Cup) Powdered Sugar

Directions:
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.

In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.
Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.

In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.

While cake is baking, make the icing. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Pour over warm cake.

Lemonade

This drink always reminds me of my dad. We had a lemon tree in our backyard growing up and I always looked forward to the freshly squeezed lemonade my dad would make every year. It's simple but so so delicious. It makes me think of summer--so I'm not sure why my lemons ripen in the fall. Do all lemons ripen in the fall and thus the lemonade I had as a kid get made in the fall too? It seems like a very summery drink to me so this really has me perplexed :/

Ingredients:
1 cup lemon juice
1 cup sugar
2 quarts water

Directions:
Mix together in a pitcher and refrigerate until cold. Enjoy!

Lemon Raspberry Muffins

The lemons on my lemon tree are ripe so it's time for a few lemon recipes. I love lemon-y breads and cakes so first up is this muffin recipe. I can't remember where I found it exactly--I just know it was in a magazine in my Drs office. It may have been Rachel Ray? I know I was looking at her magazine but I'm not positive that is the source.

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk (a substitute is 1 Tbsp lemon juice in 1 cup milk)
1/2 cup oil
1 lemon
1 1/2 cups raspberries (fresh or frozen)

Directions:
Zest and juice the lemon. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt together. Add in the eggs, buttermilk, oil, lemon rind, and juice from the lemon to the dry mixture. Mix together. Fold in the raspberries. To make them a little yummier Combine 1/4 C sugar and zest of one lemon, mix together well and sprinkle over top of each muffin. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes.

Homemade Chocolate Ice Cream

Ingredients:
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup light cream
1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Directions:
In med. saucepan over low heat, cook and stir condensed milk and cocoa until smooth and slightly thickened. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Stir in heavy cream, light cream, and vanilla. Refrigerate until cold ( I was impatient and did not do this--no harm done that I could tell). Pour mixture into the canister of ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's directions.

Sour Cream-Cinnamon Coffee Cake

This recipe is from my brother-in-law. It is so delicious. I added a few things to his recipe just to make it more fattening and sugar-y.

Ingredients:
1 pkg yellow cake mix
1 pkg instant vanilla pudding
1 stick butter
1 cup sour cream
4 eggs
Filling/topping:
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup butter
Glaze:
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1-2 Tbsp milk

Directions:
Thow in a mixing bowl: cake mix, pudding, butter, sour cream, eggs. Beat 7 minutes. Meanwhile mix filling--mix the cinnamon, brown sugar, and flour. Cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Grease 10 inch tube pan. Place 1/3 of the cinnamon filing along the bottom of the pan, then put half the cake batter into the pan on top. Take 1/4 of the cinnamon filling and sprinkle it on the batter. Put the rest of the batter into the pan. Put around in spoonfuls and leave bumpy. Sprinkle with the rest of the cinnamon filling. Bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes. If you'd like a little more sugar you can make the glaze by mixing the powdered sugar, vanilla and milk and drizzling it on top of the cake when it is cooled.

Black Bean Soup

Ingredients:
1 cup salsa
2 cans black beans
1 can black refried beans (optional)
1 can vegetable broth
2 tsp lime juice
2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped
sour cream--as topping
Optional:
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 tsp garlic, minced
2 tsp cumin
1/2 jalapeno, chopped

Directions:
Saute onion and garlic. Add in salsa, beans, broth, lime juice, cilantro, onion, garlic, and cumin. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve in bowls and top with sour cream, cheese, and/or green onions.

Meal in a Pumpkin

My mother-in-law introduced me to this recipe many years ago. It is a fun one to make for Halloween. We have had this every year since the kiddoes were very small. I personally love it.

Ingredients:

1 10" pumpkin

1 onion, chopped

2 T oil

1 1/2-2lbs ground beef

2 T soy sauce

2 T brown sugar

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 8oz can water chestnuts, drained

1 4 oz can mushrooms, drained (I like fresh)

1 1/2 cups cooked rice

Directions:

Saute onion in oil, add meat and brown. Drain and add all ingredients but the rice, water chesnuts and mushrooms. Simmer 10 minutes. Add rice, water chestnuts and mushrooms. PUt in cleaned out pumpkin. Bake at 350 for 1-1 1/2 hours with lid on. You'll know it's done when the pumpkin is soft.

Pumpkin Seeds

This is such an easy, yummy, good for you snack.

Ingredients:
pumpkin seeds
Tony Chacheries
Cooking Spray

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300. Take the pumpkin seeds out of your pumpkin and rinse them off. Pat them dry. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Lay the pumpin seeds out in a single layer. Spray the seeds with the cooking spray. Sprinkle with Tony Chacheres. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes. About halfway through stir the seeds so they can get browned on both sides.

Zuppa Tuscana

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup ground Italian sausage

2 medium potatoes cut in half lengthwise and cut into 1/4 inch slices

3/4 cup diced onions

6 slices bacon

1 1/2 tsp minced garlic

2 cups Kale leaf, cut into half and then sliced

2 T chicken base

1 qt water

1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Cook ground sausage in skillet until done. In separate saucepan, cook bacon and onions. When bacon is crisp remove bacon. Leaving onion. Add garlic to onion and cook for 1 minute. Add chicken base, water, and potatoes and simmer for 15 minutes. Add crumbled bacon, sausage, kale, and cream. Simmer for 4 minutes.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie

This cookie was sooo yummy and sooo easy to make. Fall foods are really my very favorite type of comfort food. I love making all the pumpkin, apple treats this time of year. I needed a fast and easy yet yummy treat to serve to my daughter's girl scout troop and this fit the bill. The girls all raved about how delicious they were and came back for more and more.

Ingredients:
1 box spice cake mix
1 15 oz can pumpkin puree
chocolate chips to taste
Optional: (I used these)
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 eggs
1/4 cup softened butter

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together adding chocolate chips last. Place heaping Tbsp on greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 10 min.

Chocolate Overdose Cake

This is a very rich, very chocolatey cake. It is also a bit time consuming to make with all of the different parts. In fact I would only spend this much time making this cake for a very special occasion. That occasion this time was for a very dear friend's birthday. I love this cake and almost can't wait for the next special occasion. My favorite website for baked goods is Annie's Eats which is where I found this recipe.


Ingredients:

For the brownie base:
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. cake flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped fine
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
1 1/8 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
For the chocolate mousse filling:
6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, broken into 1/2-oz. pieces
1 7/8 cups heavy cream
1 tbsp. sugar
For the chocolate cake:
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/8 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
1/4 cup hot water
7/8 cup sugar, divided
7/8 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, soft
For the ganache:
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
18 oz. semisweet chocolate, broken into 1/2-oz. pieces

Directions:
To make the brownie base, line the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with a round of parchment paper and spray the sides with nonstick cooking spray. Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine the cake flour, salt and baking powder. Stir with a fork to mix. Melt the chocolate and butter in a large heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of almost-simmering water, stirring occasionally, until smooth.

When the chocolate mixture is completely smooth, remove the bowl from the saucepan and gradually whisk in the sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking after each addition until thoroughly combined. Whisk in vanilla. Add in the flour mixture in two additions, folding with a rubber spatula until completely homogenous.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula. Set aside, prepare the cake batter, and bake the two layers at the same time.

To make the cake, line the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan with a round of parchment paper. Grease and flour the sides of the pan. Combine the chocolate, cocoa and hot water in a medium heatproof bowl; set the bowl over a saucepan containing 1-inch of simmering water and stir with a rubber spatula until chocolate is melted, about 2 minutes. (Note: at this point, my mixture was pretty thick and I thought I had ruined it, but mixing in the sugar was like magic and it made it smooth and liquidy again.) Add 1/4 cup of sugar to the chocolate mixture and stir until thick and glossy, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove bowl from heat and set aside to cool.

Whisk flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl; set aside. Combine buttermilk and vanilla in a small bowl.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the eggs and yolks on medium-low speed until combined, about 10 seconds. Add remaining sugar, increase speed to high, and whisk until fluffy and lightened in color, 2 to 3 minutes. Replace whisk with paddle attachment.

Add the cooled chocolate mixture to the egg/sugar mixture and mix on medium speed until thoroughly incorporated, 30-45 seconds, pausing to scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Add softened butter one tablespoon at a time, mixing about 10 seconds after each addition. Add about one third of the flour mixture followed by half of the buttermilk mixture, mixing until incorporated after each addition (about 15 seconds). Repeat using half of remaining flour mixture and all of remaining buttermilk mixture (batter may appear separated). Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add remaining flour mixture; mix at medium-low speed until batter is thoroughly combined, about 15 seconds. Remove bowl from mixer and fold batter once or twice with rubber spatula to incorporate any remaining flour. Pour into prepared pan; smooth batter to edges of pan with an offset spatula.

Bake the brownie and cake layers at the same time: the brownie for 25-30 minutes and the cake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of each comes out clean. Transfer the pans to a wire cooling rack. Allow the brownie to cool completely in the pan. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then invert onto the wire rack and allow to cool completely.

Once the brownie layer has cooled, run a knife around the edges to separate it from the pan. Remove the sides of the springform but leave the brownie layer on the springform base. Form a ring of parchment paper around the brownie layer and extending up the sides of the springform pan – reclose the springform so that the parchment is fitted tightly to the sides.

To make the chocolate mousse filling, place a stand mixer bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer or fridge. Heat 1-inch of water in the bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat. Place the semisweet chocolate in the top half of the double boiler. Tightly cover the top with plastic wrap and allow to heat for 8-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir until smooth. Transfer the melted chocolate to a stainless steel bowl and set aside until needed.

Place heavy cream and sugar in the well-chilled bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the chilled whisk attachment. Whisk on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 1 1/2 minutes. Remove the bowl from the mixer. By hand, whisk to combine 1/4 of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate until smooth and completely incorporated. Add the combined whipped cream and chocolate to the remaining whipped cream and use a rubber spatula to fold together.

Spread the mousse over the top of the brownie base evenly. Use an offset spatula to smooth the top. Place the cooled cake round over the mousse, pressing down lightly. Chill for at least 1 hour.

To make the ganache, heat the heavy cream and the butter in a saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil. Place the semisweet chocolate in a 3-quart stainless steel bowl. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Chill 1 cup of ganache for 1 hour. Allow the remaining ganache to come to room temperature (about 40 minutes).

Remove the springform ring and parchment collar from the assembled cake. Carefully transfer the cake to a serving platter, removing the springform base and parchment round. Use a spatula to smooth the room temperature ganache over the cake top and sides, covering evenly.

Place the chilled ganache in a pastry bag fitted with a shell tip and pipe a shell border around the base of the cake. Pipe 12-16 rosettes around the top of the cake to indicate servings. Serve chilled and store leftovers in the fridge. Cut the cake with a hot, dry knife.

Source: adapted from Confections of a Foodie Bride

Chili Cheese Dip

I recently saw this on someone's blog--but I can't remember which one to give them credit. It was so simple I had to try it out. It was really good and the pure simplicity of it will ensure that I make this again and again.

Ingredients:
8 oz cream cheese
1 can chili

Directions:
Place both ingredients into a small crock pot and heat on low. Stir occasionally until completely heated through. Serve with Tortilla chips

Pumpkin Muffin

I made these muffins and thought they were delicious. One of the reasons I thought I'd like them so much was the cream cheese filling--but that part was really disappointing for me. My cream cheese filling was just like a disc of cheese--not melty or even soft. I used 1/3 less fat type so I'm wondering if that is why? If anyone knows let me know. If the cheese was softer I still think that could be a really good filling. As it is for me right now I would just totally skip the cream cheese filling. The rest of the muffin was delicious. I found this recipe on Annie's Eats.

Ingredients:
For the filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
For the muffins:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups pumpkin puree
1¼ cups vegetable oil
For the topping:
½ cup sugar
5 tbsp. flour
1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Directions:
To prepare the filling, combine the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl and mix well until blended and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log about 1½-inches in diameter. Smooth the plastic wrap tightly around the log, and reinforce with a piece of foil. Transfer to the freezer and chill until at least slightly firm, at least 2 hours.
To make the muffins, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line muffin pans with paper liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda; whisk to blend. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil. Mix on medium-low speed until blended. With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.
To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon in a small bowl; whisk to blend. Add in the butter pieces and cut into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or two forks until the mixture is coarse and crumbly. Transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use.
To assemble the muffins, fill each muffin well with a small amount of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner (1-2 tablespoons). Slice the log of cream cheese filling into 24 equal pieces. Place a slice of the cream cheese mixture into each muffin well. Divide the remaining batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely. Sprinkle a small amount of the topping mixture over each of the muffin wells.
Bake for 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving. (It may be hard to resist immediate consumption, but the cream cheese filling gets very hot!)
Source: adapted from BakeSpace

Veggie Melt

I found this on Annie's Eats and immediately thought of what a perfect sandwich this would be for my vegetarian daughter. It was so delicious and I loved it as much, if not more, than she did.
I love that this sandwich can be so versatile using whatever vegetables, cheese, or bread you have on hand.

Ingredients:
1 small head broccoli, cut into small florets
1 tbsp. olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper
4 portobello mushrooms (stems removed), sliced ½-inch thick
2 red bell peppers, seeded and sliced ½-inch thick
¼ cup light mayonnaise
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
4 thick slices country bread (I used Sour Dough)
2-4 oz. provolone cheese, thinly sliced

Directions:
Preheat a broiler with a rack placed 4 inches from the heat source. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place the broccoli on the baking sheet, drizzle with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Broil until the broccoli begins to brown, tossing once or twice, about 4-6 minutes.

Add the sliced mushrooms and peppers to the pan with the broccoli and toss to combine. Broil, tossing once or twice, until the vegetables are tender, 8-10 minutes more. Set aside.

Meanwhile, combine the mayonnaise and garlic in a small bowl; season with salt and pepper. Place the slices of bread on a work surface. Spread each slice of bread with 1 tablespoon of the garlic-mayo mixture. Top with the cooked vegetables, then the cheese. Line the baking sheet with a new piece of foil. Transfer the assembled sandwiches to the baking sheet. Broil until the cheese is melted and lightly browned, 2-4 minutes.

Quiche Lorraine

This is a recipe from my mother-in-law. It made a fantastic dinner and the leftovers made a fantastic breakfast.

Ingredients:

pastry for a 9 inch one crust pie
8 slices bacon, crisply crumbled
1 cup shredded swiss cheese (I don't like swiss so I used cheddar)
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
4 large eggs
2 cups whipping cream or half and half
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne


Directions:

Prepare pastry for a 9 inch one-crust pie. Sprinkle bacon, cheese, and onion in pastry lined pie dish. Beat eggs slightly, add remaining ingredients. Pour into pie dish. Bake for 15 minutes at 425. Reduce oven temperature to 300 and bake 30 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.

Garlic Red Potatoes

I recently saw these on the Real mom kitchen blog. And ever since I upgraded my internet explorer I haven't been able to correctly link to other blogs--so annoying. These potatoes were a big hit with everyone and they were so super easy to make.

Ingredients:
2 pounds red potatoes, quartered (I use half red and half yukon gold potatoes)
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place potatoes in an 9 x 13 inch baking dish, lined with tin foil to make an easy cleanup. In a large bowl, combine melted butter, garlic, salt and lemon juice; add
the potatoes and stir to coat. Pour potatoes into the baking dish and sprinkle Parmesan cheese over potatoes. Bake in preheated oven for 25-35 minutes.

Easy Pumpkin Waffles (or pancakes)

This is an easy way to make a pumpkin pancake or waffle when you don't have too much time! Plus they are really good! I adapted this recipe from ourbestbites.com.

Ingredients:
2 cups pancake mix (the kind where you just add water like Krusteaz)
1 1/2 cups water (I added 2 cups--I added flax meal and wheat germ)
2/3 cups pumpkin puree
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp oil (only if you make waffles)
optional add-ins: 1/4 cup flax meal and 1/4 cup wheat germ

Directions:
Mix all ingredients. Add more water if batter is too thick (if pancakes are still gooey in the middle after outside is browned). I try to make mine "healthier" by adding the flax and wheat germ.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:
1/2 cup diced carrot
1/4 cup celery
1/4 cup onion
1 tsp butter
6 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups diced cooked chicken (I used 1 can chicken)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp marjorum
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp parsley
1/8 tsp pepper
1 1/4 cups egg noodles
1/2 cup frozen peas

Directions:
In a large saucepan saute carrot, celery and onion in butter until tender. Add broth, chicken and seasonings; bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Add noodles and frozen peas; cook for 10 minutes or until tender.

Cheesecake

I decided to attempt a cheesecake this week. I knew just the place to go for a recipe. You are probably thinking allrecipes and I did check there. But then I remembered Annie's Eats has always had out of this world desserts so I knew she would have a killer cheesecake recipe. This cheesecake was so delicious. She said to use a 9 inch springform pan but my smallest was a 10 inch so it should have been thicker than this. This will for sure be my go to recipe for cheesecake.

Ingredients:
For crust
5 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted plus 1 addtional tbsp melted for greasing the pan
4 oz (approx 8 whole) graham crackers, processed into fine even crumbs
1 Tbsp sugar
For cheesecake:
5-8oz pkgs cream cheese, cut into 1 inch chunks at room temp
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup sour cream
2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 large egg yolks plus 6 large eggs at room temp

Directions:
To make the crust, adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 325. Brust the bottom and sides of 9 inch springform pan with 1/2 Tbsp of melted butter. IN a medium bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs, 5 Tbsp melted butter, and sugar. Toss with a fork until crumbs are evenly moistened. Transfer the crumbs to the springform pan and use the bottom of a ramekin to firmly press the crumbs evenly into the pan bottom. Bake until fragrant and beginning to brown around edges, about 13 minutes. Cool on wire rack while preparing filling.
Increase oven temp to 500. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese at med-low speed to break it up and soften slightly, about 1 min. Scrape with rubber spatula. Add the salt and half of the sugar and beat at med-low until combined-abt 1 min. Scrape bowl, add sour cream, lemon juice, and vanilla. Beat at low speed until combined, abt 1 min. Scrape bowl, add the egg yolks and beat at med-low speed until combined 1 min. Add the remaining eggs 2 at a time, beating until combined and scraping the bowl between additions.
Brush the sides of the springform pan with the remaining 1/2 Tbsp melted butter. Set the pan on a rimmed baking sheet to catch and spills in case pan leaks. Pour the filling into the cooled crust and bake 10 minutes; without opening the oven door, reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees and continue to bake until the cheesecake read about 150 degrees in the center, about 1 1/2 hours. Transfer to a wire rack and cool until barely warm, 2 1/5-3hrs. Run a paring knife between the cake and the springform pan sides. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least 3 hrs. Let cheese cake stand at room temp about 30 min then serve. I like my cheesecake with strawberries on top and for those I just slice them and then mash them just a little bit and put them on top.

Carrot Cookies

I made these cookies for my daughter and her little friends. I thought they could be a safe cookie for me to make and not pig out. I have horrible self control when homemade cookies are around and I've been trying to eat healthier. Carrot cookies just didn't sound that good to me--how good could a carrot cookie be really? Well it turns out--very good. The recipe made about 30 cookies. My daughter and her friends ate maybe 10 of them. And me? Well I had the other 20 before my older kids got home from school. So 20 cookies within a few hours. I amaze myself sometimes. Hopefully the carrot in the cookies helped a little with the nutritional value. It was the frosting that took these cookies over the top for me.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup finely shredded carrots

Frosting:
2 oz cream cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
3 T orange juice
zest of one orange

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375. Mix butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add in flour, baking powder, salt. After those are combined add in the shredded carrots. Drop by Tablespoon onto baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or until set. Add frosting on while cookies are still warm.

Hot Fudge Sundae Cake

I have a cookbook that my sister-in-law put together last year with contributions of favorite recipes from the family. It's definitely my favorite cookbook so I am going to attempt to post each recipe on this blog. This is one of those recipes. I can actually remember making this cake with my husband when we were dating. This is a fun recipe to make with kids. Mine were amazed how the hot fudge sauce ended up on the bottom of the pan beneath the cake.
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 T cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
2 T vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup nuts (optional)
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1 3/4 cup hot water

Directions:
Turn oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, sugar, 2 T cocoa, baking powder. Then mix in milk, oil, and vanilla into dry ingredients until smooth. It will be like brownie batter. Pour into an 8x8 square pan. Then sprinkle brown sugar and 1/4 cup cocoa on top then pour hot water on it and put in oven. Bake for 40 minutes.

Mexican Chicken with Jalapeno popper sauce

This recipe came along just in time for my bumper crop of jalapenos. I found it on On my menu, where I find all kinds of great recipes. I was excited to try this one out and it lived up to all my expectations. Shane told me he wanted me to make it again. The next day I had more sauce and no more chicken but I was craving the sauce. So for breakfast I made myself an open faced scrambled egg sandwich with the sauce on top. It was soo good. I still have some sauce left and I can't wait to have the same breakfast tomorrow.

Ingredients:
3 Chicken Breasts
A Sprinkle of Cumin per Breast
A Sprinkle of Chili Powder per Breast
A Sprinkle of Salt per Breast
2 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
3 Jalapenos, Seeded and Chopped
8 Oz. of Cream Cheese
2 Cups of Chicken Broth
3 Slices of Bacon
3/4 Cup of Shredded Cheddar or Colby Jack
1 Tbsp of Fresh Cilantro, chopped + more for garnish

Directions:
Fry bacon until crisp. Remove to paper towel-lined plate.
Sprinkle chicken with seasonings (I mixed 1 tsp of the cumin, chili, and salt together and then sprinkled that on the chicken) while the bacon crisps. Add the chicken to the hot bacon fat in the skillet. Cook chicken, turning every few minutes, until juices run clear and no longer pink. Remove from skillet and keep warm.
Add chopped jalapenos to the skillet and cook for a couple of minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds to a minute more, until fragrant.
Add chicken broth, deglazing pan. Bring to a boil.
Add cream cheese and stir until melted and smooth. Add in shredded cheese and bacon, stirring until the cheese in melted. Turn off heat and stir in cilantro.
Serve chicken on a bed of Mexican or Taco rice (I made cilantro lime rice) and topped with sauce. Garnish with additional cilantro if desired.

Jalapeno Snacks

Ingredients:
1 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 (1oz) pkg dry ranch salad dressing mix
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
20 large jalapenos, halved and seeded
1 lb sliced bacon, cut in half

Directions:
Preheat to 400. Stir together the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, mayonnaise, ranch dressing mix, and garlic powder in a mixing bowl until evenly blended. Spoon some of the cheese mixture into each jalapeno half, wrap with half a bacon strip, and secure with a toothpick (I didn't need to do this) Arrange the wrapped jalapeno halves onto a broiler pan (I put them on a cooling wrack on a sheet cake pan). Bake in oven until bacon is no longer pink and beginning to brown, about 20 minutes.

Yogurt Sauce on a Falafel Sandwich

I'm mainly posting for the yogurt sauce--it's the white stuff between the flat bread and the lettuce. This is a really yummy sandwich but there really isn't a recipe to it. I just had store bought falafels and flat bread. One day I may try to make them myself but I'm not up for it yet. In fact I barely tried a falafel this summer when I was visiting my sister in law and she made us these sandwiches. She found the recipe for the cucumber yogurt sauce on cooks.com. Which wow, I love this sauce so much. I've dipped veggies in it, put it on my quesadillas, and put it on these sandwiches. It's just kind of a great all around dip or sauce. I think what really wins it over for me is the cumin, I've realized I love the flavor of cumin. I've had this with the cucumbers added and without and it's great both ways.

Ingredients:
1/2 med. cucumber peeled, seeded & chopped fine
1/2 c. plain yogurt
1/4 tsp. minced garlic
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp. ground pepper

Directions:
Stir all ingredients together and enjoy!

Rice, Spice, and Everything Nice Creme Brulee

My daughter entered into a local rice cooking contest and her dessert won 1st place! She worked for weeks coming up with and perfecting her recipe. After tasting it I thought the judges would be crazy if they didn't give her first place. Of course they weren't crazy and that is exactly what she got! Here is her award winning recipe.

Ingredients:
1 ½ cups milk
½ cup heavy cream
1/3 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
½ habanero pepper
3 tablespoons cocoa
¾ teaspoon cinnamon
1 ½ cup cooked minute rice
1 egg, 2 egg yolks, beaten
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon butter
4 tablespoons Turbinado sugar (Sugar in the raw)

Directions:
Put heavy cream, 1 cup of milk, ½ cup heavy cream, 1/3 cup sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, and half a habanero pepper in saucepan. Cook on medium for 25 minutes, stirring often. Take out pepper and pour mixture into a handheld, fine mesh strainer. Pour back into another medium sauce pan, add 3 tablespoons cocoa, ¾ teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 ½ cup cooked minute rice. Cook on medium until thick and creamy. Add beaten eggs and ½ cup milk. Cook 2 minutes longer. Add ½ teaspoon vanilla and 1 tablespoon butter. When butter is melted, put the mixture into a blender and blend until smooth. Pour through another handheld strainer to ensure that there isn’t any unblended rice left. Scoop into six 3 inch ramekins, cover in saran wrap and cool for 2 hours. Take off saran wrap, sprinkle 2 teaspoons of turbinado sugar on top of each evenly, and torch to caramelize. Enjoy!

Snickerdoodles

I should probably rename my blog to my favorite recipes from Allrecipes.com. Unless they are old recipes that is usually where they came from. I just really like their rating system and most of the recipes that are 4.5 to 5 stars are really fantastic. I always like to read the comments too because they give you some good ideas on how to tweak the recipe for the better. These are another 5 star rated cookie from that site and they are so yummy.


Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp white sugar
2 tsp cinnamon


Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Cream together butter, shortening, 1 1/2 cups sugar, the eggs, and vanilla. Blend in the flour, cream of tartar, soda, and salt. Shape dough by rounded spoonfuls into balls. Mix the 2 Tbsp sugar and the cinnamon. Roll balls of dough in mixture. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 8-10 min, or until set but not too hard. Remove immediately from baking sheets.

Pumpkin Pancakes

I got this recipe from my niece, Lia. She's kind of a picky eater so the recipes she post on her blog are usually pretty good. At least I haven't tried a bad one yet. These pancakes were very good and so great as I'm trying so hard to bring on my favorite season, Autumn. Even though it very much feels like summer still, I'm still going eat like it's fall. She had a buttermilk syrup with hers, but I didn't have buttermilk when I made the pancakes. Next time I plan to try it because Lia said it was really good.

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cup flour
4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 cup milk
4 eggs separated
1/4 cup melted butter
1 cup canned pumpkin

Directions:
Stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, salt, and brown sugar. Combine the pumpkin, milk, and egg yolks. Add the flour mixture and melted butter. Stir to blend. Beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks and fold into the batter to blend. Preheat griddle at 350. Pour batter and cook until richly browned

Sour Cream Enchiladas

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef (you could use chicken too)

1 medium onion, chopped

1 small can chopped green chiles

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 pint sour cream

shredded cheese

corn tortillas

1 T oil

Directions:

Brown ground beef. I cooked my onions with the beef but I think my mother in law just uses raw onion. Place chicken soup, chopped chiles, and sour cream in a saucepan and heat to boiling point. Meanwhile, place tortilla one at a time in hot oil, let fry just until hot, place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil. On tortilla add sauce, cheese, onions, and meat. Roll tortillas and place in 9x13 baking pan. Pour leftover sauce over rolled tortillas, sprinkle with cheese. Place in 350 oven to heat through and cheese to melt.

Italian Saute

This is a recipe I've had for a long time. I used to make it quite frequently but Shane started complaining about all of my spinach recipes. I'm a big fan of spinach, the rest of my family--not so much. It was nice pulling this recipe out of retirement. I liked it as much as I remembered and no one complained about the spinach.

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1/4 cup sliced fresh mushrooms (I put in a lot more than that)
1 0z can tomato sauce
2 T parsley flakes
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried basil leaves
1/2 tsp dried oregano leaves
1 tsp seasoned salt
1 10oz pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 cup low fat cottage cheese
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated

Directions:
In large skillet cook ground beef and drain off extra fat. Add onion and mushrooms and continue to cook until moisture is absorbed. Add tomato sauce, parsley flakes, garlic powder, basil, oregano, and seasoned salt. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Combine spinach and cottage cheese. Sprinkle 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese over meat mixture. Spoon cottage cheese mixture evenly over meat. Spread remaining mozzarella cheese on top. Cover skillet and simmer 15 min. Serve.

Chicken Tettrazzini

This is a recipe I've been making for years. It's a simple meal to put together that most everyone in my family will eat. The one that won't eat it is vegetarian so she doesn't reallt count.

Ingredients:
2 T butter
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 medium onion, chopped
1 26oz can cream of chicken soup
1 1/4 cup milk
3 cups cubed cooked chicken (I just used one can, we aren't big meat eaters here)
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/3 tsp pepper
4 cups hot cooked spaghetti (8oz)

Directions:
In skillet over medium heat, in hot butter, cook mushrooms and onion until tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. In bowl, combine soup, milk, chicken, cheese, parsley, pepper, and mushroom mixture. Add spaghetti; toss to coat. Spoon into 3 qt. Oblong baking dish. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbling. Stir. Sprinkle with additional cheese if desired.

Easy Taco Soup

Ingredients:
1lb hamburger (or shredded chicken)
1 small onion, chopped
1 pkg taco seasoning mix
4 cups water
4 cups spaghetti sauce
1/2 tsp pepper
3/4 tsp salt
shredded cheese
sour cream
tortilla chips

Directions:
Brown the hamburger. Place hamburger in crock pot. Add onion, water, spaghetti sauce, taco seasoning, salt and pepper. Stir. Cook on ow 3-4 hours. Serve in individual bowls, top with tortilla chips, cheese, and sour cream. This could also easily just be made on the stovetop and let it simmer for a little while with all the ingredients.

"MY" kind of potatoes

Today is my dad's birthday. In honor of him I'm posting his original recipe (I think?) for potatoes. When my mom wasn't home to make dinner, this is what my dad would make. Very possibly the only thing he really cooked. Actually, his looked a lot better than mine do. I'm thinking I should have cooked the corned beef longer, I remember his being more browned. My son absolutely loved them, I think he ate half of them himself. They are super easy to make too.

Ingredients:
5 potatoes, sliced
1 can corned beef
1 onion, diced
1 Tbsp oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Add potatoes and onions to skillet. Cook until onions are translucent and potatoes nearly done about 10 minutes. Add corned beef and chop up into small pieces. Cook an additional 5-10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Oreo Dessert

If you love Oreos, you'll love this dessert. And who doesn't love an Oreo?

Ingredients:
1 pkg Oreos
8 oz cream cheese
1 tub cool whip
1 cup powdered sugar
1 stick butter
1 pkg chocolate instant pudding (the bigger box)
2 1/2 cups milk

Directions:
Crush Oreos, reserve 1/2 cup of oreos for topping. Add 1 stick of melted butter to crushed oreos (but not in the 1/2 you've saved for later use). Mix well. Layer in the bottom of 9x13 dish with just a little pressure. Do not pack the Oreos in the crust as this will cause the crust to be too hard to scoop out. Beat cream cheese and powdered sugar. Add as next layer. Make chocolate pudding according to recipe for pie filling (beat with 2/12 cups of milk). Add as next layer. Spread cool whip on as the next layer. Sprinkle with remaining Oreos. Refrigerate one hour.

Lasagna

Ingredients:
1 lb sweet italian turkey sausage
3/4 lb lean ground beef
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
2 (6oz) cans tomato paste
2 (6.5oz) cans canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp white sugar
1 1/2 tsp dried basil leaves
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
12 lasagna noodles (I like oven ready)
16 oz ricotta cheese (or cottage cheese)
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 lb mozzarella cheese, sliced
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese


Directions:
In saucepan cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Drain out the fat. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, pepper, and 2 Tbsp parsley. Simmer for an hour 1/2.
If you don't use oven ready noodles this would be where you would boil the noodles until al dente and set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese (or substitute cottage cheese) with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 tsp salt.
Preheat oven to 375.
To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange noodles lengthwise. over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil. Bake in preheated oven for 25 min. Remove foil and bake and additional 25 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 tsp baking soda
1 cup canola oil
3 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla
4 eggs
1 can pumpkin (2 cups)
2/3 cup water

Frosting:
4 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup butter
1/2 lb powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp Nestle's quik (not vital for the recipe)

Directions:
Sift flour, salt, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, and baking soda in a bowl. In another bowl, beat the oil, sugar, vanilla, eggs-one at a time, pumpkin, and water. Add the first mixture to the second. Pour into a Bundt pan you've coated with baking spray (I love Baker's Joy). Cook at 350 for 60-70 minutes
Frosting:
Allow cake to cool. Soften 1/2 pkg (4oz) cream cheese and 1/4 cup butter to room temperature. Cream together with 1/2 lb of powdered sugar and 1 1/2 tsp nestle's quik. Add more powdered sugar if the frosting seems too thin. Frost cake.

Apple Dip

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Ingredients:
8oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup + of caramel ice cream topping
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup toffee bits

Directions:
Place cream cheese, caramel sauce, and vanilla in a bowl. Mix together until smooth. Stir in toffee bits and then sprinkle a few on top. Serve with sliced apples and enjoy!