"Good Time Casserole"

Family!  Gotta love them, whenever we get together during the summer each family takes turns making meals.  Normally, there are the family favorites that get chosen and requested each year.  Aunt Margo's "Good Time Casserole" is one of those!  I guess it's a Canadian favorite but we enjoy it just as much in the states!  This hearty casserole is reminiscent of lasagna with the layers of noodles, meat and cheese.  I've served it when expecting guests and always get compliments!

 

Ingredients: (serves 7)
4 cups cooked noodles
2 pounds ground beef
4 7 1/2 ounce cans tomato sauce
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon garlic salt
2 teaspoons sugar
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups sour cream
5 green onions, sliced including tops
2 cups medium Cheddar Cheese, grated

Directions:

1. Prepare noodles as directed on package. Drain. Spread in bottom of 4 quart casserole.
2. Brown the beef in frying pan, stirring to break up chunks. Drain the oil
3. Add tomato sauce to meat. Measure in salt, pepper, garlic salt and sugar. Stir; bring to boil and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Spoon over noodles.
4. In bowl, mash cream cheese and sour cream. Stir in green onions. Spread over meat layer. Sprinkle cheese on top.
5. Bake uncovered in 350F oven for 35 minutes.

Note:  Pioneer Woman has a similar recipe that doesn't include the sugar and uses cottage cheese instead of cream cheese.  Her recipe uses 1/2 c. Sour Cream and 1 1/4 c. Cottage Cheese.

Chocolate and Peanut Butter Chip Pretzel Cookies

I've made these so many times in the past couple of weeks because they are so good!  My kids and husband love pretzels so we often have them in the house. In fact we buy them by the tub for now we need even more then before because of my obsession with these cookies!  I would suggest making sure you have some hidden or you won't get any.


Recipe: Chocolate & Peanut Butter Chip Pretzel Cookies
Makes 48 cookies

 

Ingredients:

3 cups of all purpose flour
1 tsp. of salt
1/2 tsp. of baking soda
1 cup of butter at room temperature
1 cup of tightly packed light brown sugar
2/3 cup of granulated sugar
2 egg (beaten)
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups milk chocolate chips
1 cup peanut butter chips
1 cup broken up pretzel pieces
Pretzel Salt or Sea Salt

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a larger bowl, beat the butter and sugars together on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). On low speed, slowly add the beaten eggs and vanilla extract. Beat to combine, scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. Add the flour mixture and beat just until there are no more streaks of flour. Stir in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and pretzels.
4. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out well rounded tablespoonfuls of the dough and sprinkle with pretzel salt. Leave about 2 inches between each ball. Bake for 10 minutes. If you prefer crispier cookies increase the baking time by 1-2 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before removing.

Note: One time I had a few toffee pieces left over and I dumped them in, fabulous.

Zucchini Banana Bread

It is the time of year when zucchini is in abundance but not everyone likes zucchini.  This bread has a more banana flavor with the moistness provided by the zucchini!  This recipe is from the Avrie Cooks blog and she included a recipe for icing which I'm sure is wonderful but I didn't have time for it.  I took 2 Tbs of buttercream icing from a can and threw it in the microwave for 10 seconds and stirred to make it more of a glaze.  It was fabulous drizzled over the bread since the bread is not super sweet.

Zucchini Banana Bread

Makes one 9-by-5-inch loaf (Note: I made as one 9-by-5-inch loaf but you may wish to divide batter among two 8-by-4-inch loaves and reduce baking time by about 10 minutes; or bake as 3 or more mini loaves, bake in a 9-inch square pan, as 10-cup Bundt cake, or as muffins; adjusting baking times as necessary)

Ingredients: 

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted (half of one stick)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 large egg

6 ounces vanilla or plain yogurt (one standard-sized small container; Greek yogurt preferred, or sour cream may be substituted – do not use fat free or light yogurt or sour cream)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 3/4 cup grated zucchini, loosely packed

1 to 1 1/4 cups mashed bananas (1 large or 2 small very ripe bananas)

one 3.4-ounce box vanilla instant pudding mix (not Cook ‘n Serve), optional see notes below

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt, optional and to taste

Preheat oven to 325F, spray pan (s) with cooking spray with flour or grease and flour the pan(s)s; set aside.

In a large microwave-safe mixing bowl, melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power. To the melted butter, add the sugars, egg, yogurt, vanilla, and whisk to combine. Add the zucchini, bananas, and stir to incorporate.

Add the dry pudding mix, and stir to combine (Note: You are not making pudding; simply add the mix as a dry ingredient. You don’t have to use pudding mix but it creates wonderful moisture and flavor in the bread. If omitting, you may wish to add an additional 1/4 cup granulated sugar and an additional 1/4  to 1/3 cup flour, based on taste preference and how your batter looks). Add the flour, baking soda, salt, and stir until just combined, taking care not to over-mix or bread will be tougher as the gluten will over-develop. Pour batter into prepared pan(s) and bake for about 60 to 65 minutes (this is for one 9-by-5-inch loaf), or until top is golden and set, and a wooden skewer, cake tester, or knife inserted in the center comes out clean. If bread is browning a bit fast on the top, you may wish to lower your oven temperature to 300F midway through cooking, at about the 30-minute mark if your oven runs hot or tent the pan with foil in approximately the last 20 minutes of cooking. Allow bread to cool in the loaf pan for at least 30 minutes before removing from the pan and transferring to a rack to finish cooling.

Baked Pasta with Italian Sausage

Often recipes look great but often I don't have everything needed.  I'm getting more confident in guessing good substitutions or additions and this recipe is one that turned out great in it's modified version!  Here it is below.

1 (12 oz) package dry (penne or bow tie work well) pasta
2 tsp olive oil
1 pound mild Italian sausage (not in casing)
1 clove chopped garlic
1 c chopped onion
1 tsp basil
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (14.5 oz) pizza sauce
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
2. Heat oil in a large, deep skillet. Place sausage, garlic, onion and basil in skillet and cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain excess fat. Stir in tomato sauce, pizza sauce and tomato paste. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Toss with cooked pasta, and place in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle top with mozzarella.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Maple Nut Tart

A recipe has to be good if that's the first thing someone asks you about, after having not seen you for two years!  I was at Llama Fest yesterday and our former pastor's wife asked if I still had the recipe from  a pie I made them for Pastor's Appreciation Month back in 2009!  I remembered of course because it has two of my favorites: Maple and Pecan.  She said she would love the recipe so I found it again for her and decided to put it up here as well.  I didn't have a tart pan so I made it into a pie when I made it last.
 
Maple Nut Tart

Ingredients:
2 large eggs
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup pure maple syrup
1 1/2 cups pecan pieces
1 1/2 cups walnut pieces

Yields 8 servings.


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F. On lightly floured piece of wax paper or parchment paper, roll pie dough into 12-inch circle. Carefully fit into 9-inch removable-bottom tart pan, gently lowering dough into bottom and sides of pan without stretching. Roll rolling pin over edge of tart pan to cut off excess dough; set tart shell aside.

In medium bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar and salt; whisk in maple syrup. Add nuts, and mix filling to combine. Place tart pan on rimmed baking sheet, and pour in filling. Bake tart until filling is set and crust is slightly golden, 55 to 60 minutes. Cool completely in pan. Remove tart from pan before serving.

- From Everyday Food, November 2007

 Pie Crust
 

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces
2 to 4 tablespoons ice water
 
 Yields 1 single crust.



In large bowl using pastry blender, combine flour, salt and sugar. Add butter, and cut in with pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal, with just a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining.

Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons ice water, and continue to work dough with pastry blender until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed with fingers. (If needed, add up to 2 tablespoons more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.) Do not overwork dough.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface; form into 3/4-inch thick disk. Wrap tightly in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour. (Or wrap in plastic, place in a resealable plastic bag, and freeze up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before rolling.)

Amazing Brownies

Last year Fig tutored a student through the Kids Hope program.  Once a week for one hour Fig would leave his office and go into a local school and spend time with his student.  He'd help with homework, play games and occasionally do things with the whole class.  Often Fig would bring a snack to share.  I made them brownies one of the last weeks they met.  This recipe is amazing and I actually put all the dry ingredients into Ball jars and had them in my cupboard with directions attached to give away or use in a pinch!  Thanks to the How to Cook Like Your Grandmother blog!

Gotta love farm fresh eggs!

Fig's bag and his snack ready to go!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. flour
3/4 c. cocoa powder (high quality)
3 eggs
3/4 c. salted butter (melted)
3/4 c. chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325.
Combine all ingredients but the chocolate chips in a bowl by hand until the dry ingredients are just incorporated into the wet.
Stir in chocolate chips.
Line 9x13 pan with parchment paper.
Pour batter into pan and push it into place with a rubber spatula.
Bake for 25-30 minutes.
Once out of the oven lift the brownies out by the parchment paper to cool and then slice and enjoy!

Reeses Krispies

One of the nights we had the mission trip team over.  They watched the Jesus film they would show to the villages in Guatemala to help prepare their hearts and minds for the trip.  I made these cookies but they had trouble setting because of how hot it was!  In fact in order to cut up the Reeses I had to throw them in the freezer for a few minutes before the wrappers would come off without most of the chocolate sticking to them.  This is a different kind of no-bake cookie!  The recipe is from the Sweet Basil blog.

Reeses Krispies
Ingredients:
1 C. Sugar
1 C. Corn Syrup
1 1/3 C. Creamy Peanut Butter
4 1/4 C. Rice Krispes
1 Pinch of Salt
4 large Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, chopped
1/2 C. Chocolate Chips

Directions:
In a large sauce pan over medium heat, melt the sugar, corn syrup, and peanut butter until smooth and evenly combined.
Remove from heat.
Quickly add the salt and cereal and stir to combine thoroughly. Add the chocolate chips and stir again. Wait about 1 min and add the candy, quickly folding the mixture together so as to not smash up the candy.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and drop rounded tablespoons onto the sheet. Let cool and devour!

Berry Cobbler

This is another great recipe that I tried thanks to Pinterest!  I made it a night when the mission trip team was over.  I served the leftovers to guests for dessert the next night but think it at least looked more appetizing the first night.  This was a nice change since I normally do a lot of chocolate desserts!  This was also posted on a blog of someone who has made a completely new lifestyle change in regards to healthy eating. . .so it's better for you!  Check out her blog: Living a Changed Life.

Ingredients
Two 12-oz bags frozen mixed berries
1 box white cake mix (no pudding)
1 can of 7-Up or Sierra Mist (clear soda)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350.
Place frozen fruit in a 9x13 dish.
Sprinkle dry cake mix over the top. Pour soda slowly over cake mix. DO NOT stir the cake mix and the soda- this will give you a 'crust'. If you stir the two, you will have a cake like topping.

Bake 350 for 45-50 min.

You may be able to use frozen peaches instead of mixed berries.

Walnut Chocolate Blondies

I found this recipe on Pinterest and hats off to blogger Mel from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.  She calls these Applebees Knock Offs and they are fantastic. This has been my "go-to" recipe when unexpected groups come over.  All the ingredients are in the house and it is a quick and easy recipe.  They are similar to a chocolate chip cookie bar but better!

Ingredients:
2 c. flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
10 Tbs butter
2 c. packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
3/4 c. semisweet or milk chocolate chips
3/4 c. chopped walnuts (or pecans)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13-inch pan with foil and lightly grease with cooking spray.
Melt the butter. Add the brown sugar and mix well.
Add the eggs and vanilla and mix. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda and blend until combined.
Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Sprinkle the chocolate chips and nuts over the batter.
Bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.

Andes Mint Cookies

Okay, confession time.  My major sweet tooth kicked in last week and I made this batch just so I could eat them.  It made about two dozen which was good because anymore and I would have eaten those too.  These were so good and I kept trying to sneak them but got caught fairly frequently by the kiddos!  Best with a glass of milk because they are incredibly rich!  Recipe found on the SixSisters blog!

There isn't an after picture with the chocolate all smeared. . .once we started tasting them we forgot to take pictures!

Ingredients
Devil's Food Cake Mix
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1 package of Andes Mints


Directions
Mix cake mix, oil, and eggs together. Drop spoonfuls of dough onto baking sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees for 8-9 minutes.
Take sheet out of oven and while the cookies are still very hot, place an Andes Mint on top of each cookie. In about 5 minutes, the mint will be melted. Take a spoon and smooth out each mint like frosting.

Note: I used Andes Mint baking bits, they fell off but when they melted a little I just took the back of the spoon, lifted the melted mint and then smeared them all over the top

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

Last weekend was the final fundraiser for the Guatemala trip!  It was a combination yard sale with bake sale.  I thought this recipe was so cute!  They were perfect for the bake sale and the ones I brought the workers were demolished too!  

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies!

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

Recipe taken from BakedPerfection.com
Makes 40 brownies as adapted

Ingredients
1 box of your favorite brownie mix
1/2 cup peanut butter chips
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray or grease 40 mini-muffin cups.

Prepare boxed brownie mix as directed. Spoon batter evenly into muffin cups (about 1 heaping teaspoon). Bake for 13-15 minutes or until top is set and a toothpick inserted into center comes out slightly wet. After brownies are out of the oven, wait for centers to fall. This will happen upon cooling. If not then tap the centers with the back of a teaspoon (or your thumb) to make a hole for the peanut butter.

Place peanut butter in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 45 seconds then stir. While brownies are still warm spoon about half a teaspoon of peanut butter into the center of each brownie. Top with semi-sweet chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Cool completely in pan.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Ahh Meijer, my fav.  I love Meijer.  Not having grown up in Michigan it was quite the attraction for me.  My first visit to Meijer was actually during the time I flew to Grand Rapids with my sister to check out Reformed Bible College!  A friend of ours came to pick us up and took us there before we met up with more people we knew.  I'm not normally a huge fan of store brand products but for the most part I like Meijer brand.  I made the Oatmeal Cookies on the back of the canister of Oatmeal and they were the most delicious cookies not at all dry like some Oatmeal Cookies are. 

I made these for one of the desserts that was before The Faithful Journey Quartet Benefit Concert.  The Quartet, their families and the Guatemala Team ate together before the fundraising concert.

Faithful Journey Quartet

Amazing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Ingredients:
1 c.Vegetable Shortening
1 c. Sugar
1 c. Brown Sugar
2 Eggs
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 1/2 c. Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Salt
3 c. Oatmeal
1 c. Chopped Walnuts (optional)
1 c. Raisins

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 and lightly grease cookie sheets.
Beat shortening and sugars til creamy. 
Add eggs and vanilla mixing well.
Combine flour, baking soda and salt, add to shortening mixture and mix well.
Stir in oats, nuts and raisins. 
Using rounded tablespoons, roll into balls.  Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets.
Flatten with fork.  Bake 10-12 minutes or til lightly browned.
Let stand a minute before removing to wire rack 

Note:  I didn't flatten them and they were amazing. I may do it another time.
If you add the nuts I can imagine they will be more dry.

Butter Pecan Crunch

The bottom layer of graham crackers and the pecans in the middle of being chopped up.

The Brown Sugar, Butter and Vanilla melting together.

The recipe scanned by someone at the King Arthur Flour Company and emailed to me :).

The finished product that was delicious and the perfect marriage of my past (Virginia) and my "pastpast" (Vermont)!!!

Oreo Stuffed Brownies

Oh my, the combination of  beautiful weather, busy projects and cute kids has led to not very much blogging lately.  To remedy that I'm just going to have to binge blog.  This recipe is off Pinterest from ahensnest.com but it didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped.  It seemed an easy and for the most part it was but I'll include my tweaks so the same mistakes aren't made again.

Oreo Stuffed Brownies.

JO shows us the proper way to eat an Oreo

Brownie mix and Oreos, all ya need.

Prior to baking.

Ingredients:

Brownie mix
24 Oreos

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.
Dunk Oreos completely into brownie mix place in bottom of well greased muffin tin.
If there's a bit of batter left spoon into each muffin cup.
Bake 10-12 minutes and then let cool a few minutes before taking out and cooling on wire racks.
Don't wait too long to pull them out of tins.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

The King Arthur Flour Company is based in Norwich VT.  It's only 15 minutes away from where my family will be this summer!  So while the boys are hiking some mountain I say the girls take a tour of their facilities and enjoy some baked goods and coffee from their cafe!  At the Hudsonville library I was able to check out their cookie cookbook which is about the size of a dictionary and really is an amazing resource.  I've made these cookies twice.  Once for the Sunday School kids and once for friends of ours who came for games.  They take two surprising ingredients: unsalted butter and vinegar.  After looking at more of the recipes in the cookbook all of them used unsalted butter which isn't what I'd normally use.  The other is vinegar which reacts with the baking powder to make the cookies fluffy.  These are awesome.  The recipe below is from their blog there's over 2,000 recipes!

Baking is tiring!

The amazing cookbook, surprising ingredients and the jumbo size cookies.

Ingredients
2/3 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, right from the fridge, or at room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract, optional
1 teaspoon vinegar, cider or white
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg
2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.

1) In a large bowl, combine the sugars, butter, shortening, salt, vanilla and almond extracts, vinegar, and baking soda, beating until smooth and creamy.

2) Beat in the egg, again beating till smooth. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl with a spatula to make sure everything is thoroughly combined.

3) Mix in the flour, then the chips.

4) Use a spoon (or a tablespoon cookie scoop) to scoop 1 1/4" balls of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2" between them on all sides; they'll spread.

5) Bake the cookies for 11 to 12 minutes, till their edges are chestnut brown and their tops are light golden brown, almost blonde. Remove them from the oven, and cool on the pan till they've set enough to move without breaking. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Sausage and Cheese Crescent Squares

Last Saturday was VOLT.  It stands for Volunteer Orientation and Leadership Training.  Twenty five youth and childrens' ministry volunteers were being trained and during the break would get breakfast!  These (also found on Pinterest from Pillsbury's site) were a huge hit.

Ingredients

2 cans (8 oz each)  crescent dinner rolls

1 lb spicy or mild bulk pork sausage

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese

2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (8 oz)

Directions

1 Heat oven to 375°F.  

2 Unroll 1 can of dough into 2 long rectangles. Place in ungreased 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish; press over bottom and 1/2 inch up sides to form crust.  

3 In 12-inch skillet, cook sausage over medium heat, stirring frequently, until no longer pink. Remove sausage from skillet; discard drippings. To same skillet, add cream cheese. Cook over low heat until melted. Add cooked sausage; stir to coat. Spoon evenly over crust in baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese.  

4 If using crescent rolls: Unroll second can of dough on work surface. Press to form 13x9-inch rectangle; firmly press perforations to seal. Carefully place over cheese. 

5 Bake 21 to 26 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 15 minutes. Cut into small squares.

 

Note: If you're planning on using this for an appetizer make small squares.

If you're planning on using this recipe for breakfast scramble 4-5 eggs and add to sausage and cream cheese, then bake a minute or two longer to compensate for the extra moisture.  Cut into more generous squares. 

Carmalitas

I didn't get pictures of this one. . .it went too fast.  Batch number one (yes there were multiple batches this weekend) was cooling on the counter and Fig after a busy morning at work came home, asked if he could have a snack. He took two pieces back to work!  They were finished that night by a group of friends we had over for games.  I made a double batch (9x13 size) for the Sunday school kids and that night one of the moms came over and said, "Mrs. Fig my son wants me to get the recipe of those bars you made!"

Carmalitas
Ingredients
32 caramel squares, unwrapped
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Directions
Combine caramels and cream in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until completely smooth; set aside. In a separate bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar, flour, oats, and baking soda. Pat half of the oatmeal mixture into the bottom of an 8x8" pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over crust. Pour caramel mixture over chocolate chips. Crumble remaining oatmeal mixture over caramel. Return to oven and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.
*A stint in the fridge will help them cool off if you're pinched for time. They shouldn't be served cold, but all of that molten caramel takes a long time to cool down. They should be stored and served at room temperature.
**To make a 9x13" version, simply double the amounts.

Irresistible (Peanut Butter Chocolate) Bars

I've been baking so much I haven't had time to keep the blog updated!  This recipe I got at a bridal shower my church through for me while I was engaged but I found it again on Pinterest!  These are for the Profession of Faith class will be teaching tonight.  Bottom cookie crust, fudge middle, crumble top nuff said.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars
by Greta White

1 (18.25) package plain yellow cake mix

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 cup creamy peanut butter

2 eggs

1 (12 oz) package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 Tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2) Combine cake mix, melted butter, peanut butter, and eggs in a large bowl using a mixer or spoon. Press this into a 9X13 pan reserving 1 1/2 cup of the mixture to crumble on top.

3) In a small pot, melt chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and butter. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and coconut.
4) Spread chocolate mixture over the mixture pressed in the pan and then crumble the 1 1/2 cups of reserved cake mixture on top evenly.
5) Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Chocolate Chip Toffee Cookie Bars

Spring break is here which means lots of kids hanging out at the house!  I've been making lots of snacks for the teens.  I wanted to make chocolate chip cookie bars but I had some toffee bits left over and  knew it'd be a good mix.  The brown sugar caramelizes really nicely and adds a nice crunch!

Ingredients:
2.5 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
1tsp. baking soda
1 c. butter
1.5 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
1 c. toffee bits
1 c. chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.
Combine flour, salt, baking soda in a small bowl.  Set aside.
Cream butter, sugar and vanilla.

Add eggs and  mix one by one.

Slowly incorporate the flour mixture and mix well.
Mix in the toffee and chocolate chips.
Place mixture in greased 9x13 and bake in oven for 30 minutes.
Place on bottom rack for 10 minutes so it won't burn on top but will be baked all the way through!

Vegetable Beef Soup in Bread Bowls

Though the weather was amazing for March (75-85) it quickly turned cold again and has been back in the 40s and 50s.  I decided to make some soup for dinner last night because it was cold and gray outside!  The bread bowls were made using Rhodes frozen bread dough, the recipe is on the package.  The soup was one of the make-ahead freezer meals.  I threw all the ingredients in a plastic bag and threw it in the freezer a while ago with the label telling me what I needed to add (water and broth) before putting it in the crockpot.  It's so much easier to make dinner in the morning when people aren't tired and hungry and having melt downs!  The recipe below reflects making two bags of soup.  Easy and delicious.

The website below gives the other recipes I made ahead.. . note my kids weren't thrilled with the terriyaki chicken.  It doesn't look appetizing though it's not bad.  The goulash had too strong of a tomato paste taste so my family didn't like it.  I'd greatly reduce how much I add next time.
http://melissafallistestkitchen.blogspot.com/2011/09/freezer-cooking-slow-cooker-meals.html

Savory Vegetable Beef Soup (2 Bags)
Chop 1 Onion and chop 2 Cloves of Garlic- Brown in Pan with the pound and a half of Ground Beef- once cool divide mixture between bags
2 whole carrots chopped per bag
2 celery stalks chopped per bag
3 Red Potatoes chopped per bag
1 can v8 split between bags
1 28oz can diced tomatoes SPLIT between bags
1 cup frozen green beans in each bag
1/2 TBS Worcestershire per bag
1/2 cup Beef Broth per bag
1 TBS Parsley per bag
1 tsp Basil per bag
1/2 tsp Thyme per bag
1/2 tsp salt per bag
1/2 tsp pepper per bag
1 TBS Sugar per bag



Directions
Place in Crockpot with 1.5 cups of water and 15 oz Beef Broth. Cook on LOW 8 Hours.
Hollow out bread and spoon soup inside.

Zucchini Bread

This recipe is slightly different than the Paula Dean one I normally use.  It is from the Lake City CRC cookbook and submitted by Pam Joseph.  This is also for the youth for tomorrow's breakfast.  Instead of two big loaves I made five little ones.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 c. Flour
1/4 c. Powdered Milk
2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tbs. Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Nutmeg
1 c. White Sugar
1 c. Brown Sugar
3 eggs
1 c. oil
3 tsp. vanilla
2 c. shredded zucchini
1 c. chopped walnuts

Combine flour, milk, soda, cinnamon and nutmeg.
Cream sugar and eggs and beat in oil and vanilla.
Stir in zucchini.
Add dry ingredients and fold in nuts.
Bake in two well greased loaf pans (or five little ones) and bake at 350 for 1 hour (or 40 minutes for small ones).

Berry Oatmeal Muffins

I used to have a membership at Curves however since having three children and a husband whose schedule is crazy, I don't anymore.  While there though I did enjoy their magazine and especially some of their recipes.  This Berry Oatmeal Muffin recipe took a whole lot of dishes to make but they are very tasty!  These are for the Thursday morning breakfast with the teens.

Berry Oatmeal Muffins on the way to the Youth Building

Ingredients
Topping:
1 1/2 Tbs. Oats
1 1/2 Tbs. Brown Sugar

Blueberries;
1 C. Blueberries (Fresh or Frozen)
1 Tbs. Flour



Muffin:
1 C Oats
1 C Brown Sugar
1 1/2 C. Flour
1 Tbs. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1 C. Raspberry Yogurt
4 Tbs. Melted Butter
1 egg
1 tsp. Vanilla

Preheat oven to 400.  Line muffin tin with paper cups.
Mix topping in small bowl and set aside.
Gently mix blueberries and flour in small bowl.
Combine oats, sugar, flour, baking powder and cinnamon in large bowl.
In medium bowl combine yogurt, butter, egg, vanilla.
Gently stir yogurt mixture into flour mixture until dry ingredients are moist but lumpy.
Gently fold in berries.
Fill muffin tins to almost the top.  Sprinkle topping onto muffins.
Bake 18-20 minutes. Serve warm.

Pretzel Bites

 For book club I made this little snack.  They were pretty good and not too complicated just a bit time consuming.   I'd recommend eating them warm!

 

PRETZEL BITES

Texas size Rhodes Frozen roll dough

*as many as you like – each roll makes four bites

coarse salt, parmesan, garlic, cinnamon & sugar

Vanilla glaze (optional)

 

Directions:

Take a thawed roll.  Cut it in four equal sections.  Place dough bites on greased sheets. I placed five across and five down on large baking sheets.  Cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, and let dough rise until double in size. (about 35-45 minutes) Bring a large pot of water to a gentle boil.  When dough has risen, plop about 10 pieces into the boiling water, tossing gently for about 45 seconds. Remove with slotted spoon, and place bites on paper towels to drain slightly.  Move bites to greased baking sheets, and bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes or until done and golden brown. 

Brush bites with melted butter, sprinkle with Kosher or Sea Salt, garlic and toss in Parmesan cheese.  You can also make Cinnamon and Sugar bites. Make a mixture of Cinnamon and sugar:  About 1 cup sugar and 1 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon, and mix together well. After you butter the pretzel bites, toss in cinnamon and sugar mixture.

You can serve the Parmesan Pretzel bites with a cheddar dip, and the Cinnamon and Sugar Pretzel bites with Vanilla glaze.  So yummy . . . so simple!

VANILLA GLAZE

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon melted butter

1 tsp. vanilla extract.

Combine sugar, milk, butter and vanilla and mix well. 

CHEDDAR DIP

1 Tablespoon butter

1 Tablespoon all purpose flour

1 cup milk

1 1/2  to 2 cups of grated Cheddar Cheese.

Melt the butter in a med. size saucepan over medium heat.  Add the flour and stir until blended, and

butter has turned lightly golden brown.  Slowly whisk in the milk and cook until thickened slightly.  Remove from heat and stir in the Cheddar Cheese until smooth and all of the cheese has melted.  Season with salt and pepper.  Shake a few red pepper flakes into sauce for added zing!

Mini Lasagna Cups

This recipe was great!  They were a perfect size for the girls and Fig ate six!  I enjoyed the different flavor of the turkey since I normally use beef!  The recipe was also quick and easy to make. 

Ingredients
12 oz ground turkey
salt and pepper (to taste)
1 jar store bought pasta sauce (I used Muir Glen Organic)
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tsp dried oregano, divided
1 1/2 c part skim ricotta cheese
1 tsp dried basil
24 small square wonton wrappers
1 1/2 c part skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375
Brown the turkey in a skillet with a pinch of salt and pepper (more or less to suit your taste). When the turkey is cooked through, add garlic and stir constantly for 30 seconds.
Add jar of tomato sauce plus 2 tsp of oregano and heat thoroughly. Then, you can remove from heat.

In a separate bowl combine ricotta, basil and remaining oregano. Mix well.

Spray a muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray and line with wonton wrappers. Be sure to gently press them into the bottom of each cup.
Using half of the ricotta mixture divide it among the 12 cups, then layer with half of the turkey mixture and sprinkle with half of the mozzarella cheese.
Place a second wonton wrapper on top of the mozzarella layer and repeat the process by layering the mixtures a second time and topping with mozzarella.

Bake 10-12 minutes.
Allow the cups to cool and remove from pan. This step is important. If you don't allow them to cool they are more likely to fall apart.

Note:
I didn't use the ricotta mixture since I didn't have any!  I just layered the turkey/sauce mix and the cheese on top of the first wonton and then did another layer.

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

Fig and I are trying to eat healthier.  We're trying to cut back on the red meat and add more veggis to our meals.  I found this recipe on Pinterest and we loved it. Super easy to throw together and delicious over the rice!  Yummy. 

Ingredients

1 can black beans

1 jar of salsa

2 cups frozen kernel corn

1 can Rotel

1 can petite diced tomatoes

4 chicken breasts

brown rice

taco seasoning

cilantro 

salt

Directions

Put the chicken with taco seasoning in the crock pot. Add the black beans, salsa, corn, Rotel, tomatoes and salt and cook for 6 hours on low. Add in cilantro (about 1/4 cup) and cook one more hour on low. Serve over brown rice. 

6 WW points per serving

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

This afternoon our church is doing a game time with kids activities and nursery as an outreach tool.  Snacks are included so I made some brownies and then I also made these for this afternoon.  It made enough so the Sunday School kids are also getting these for class tomorrow! 

1  box of chocolate cake mix
2 eggs
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 tbs vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350.
In a bowl dump cake mix, add eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla mix with spoon. 
Add chocolate chips and nuts, stir.
Form balls and bake for 12 minutes on cookie sheets. Let sit 2 minutes before transferring to wire racks.
Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Note: If you want crispier cookies cook for 14 minutes instead!

Creamy Ranch Chicken

We had this for dinner last night.  I needed a recipe for the crockpot because Fig was coming home from Guatemala! His plane had already been delayed once because of snow so we I needed something that would be okay if it was left for a while.  This recipe is a bit altered from one I got from a cookbook.  It was delicious and made enough to probably feed six people.

1 stick of butter
1 pkg ranch dressing mix
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken
1 small can of cream of chicken soup
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese

1. Turn crockpot on high and melt butter on the bottom.  Mix in ranch dressing.
2. Cut chicken into strips one inch wide and put into crockpot then coat with dressing and butter mix.
3. Cook for 2 hours then stir in soup and cream cheese until fully melted.

Note: Serve over mashed potatoes, rice, pasta or noodles.
You could also use a package of Italian dressing mix.

Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter Pretzel Cookies

So one of the reasons this month only has (now) three entries is Pintrest.  I've spent a lot of time ogling recipes found there and have finally decided to make one of the recipes that really took my interest.  Sunday school kids and the Unity Game Club (Fig's a sponsor for them) will be receiving this batch.  I have modified the recipe a bit from the "Sugar Cooking" blog.  I found the way I made them the first time were too dry and I had problems forming the cookies without them crumbling.

Makes 6 dozen

Ingredients: 

 

• 4 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. of salt
• 1/2 tsp. of baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups of butter at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cup of tightly packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup of granulated sugar
• 3 eggs (beaten)
• 3 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1 cup peanut butter chips
• 1cup broken up pretzel pieces
• Pretzel Salt or Sea Salt

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a larger bowl, beat the butter and sugars together on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). On low speed, slowly add the beaten egg and vanilla extract. Beat to combine, scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. Add the flour mixture and beat just until there are no more streaks of flour. Stir in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and pretzels.
4. Preheat the oven to 350. Make balls of the dough using tablespoon and sprinkle with pretzel salt. Leave about 2 inches between each ball. Bake for 10 minutes. If you prefer crispier cookies increase the baking time by 1-2 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before removing.

Note: The original recipe said you could cover and refrigerate for an hour before forming into the balls.  I tried it for one batch and didn't for the next.  I have no preference you might though!

Cream Cheese Oreo Truffles

Cream Cheese Oreo Truffles were also one of the amazing snacks a friend brought to book club.  We all couldn't believe how easy they were to make but how amazing they tasted!

 

1 (8 oz) pkg. Cream Cheese, softened

1 (15.5 oz)pkg.OREO Cookies, finely crushed (about 4-1/4 cups), divided

2 (8 squares each) pkg. Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, melted

 

  Mix cream cheese and 3 cups cookie crumbs until well blended.
Shape into 48 (1-inch) balls. Dip in melted chocolate; place on waxed paper-covered baking sheet. Sprinkle with remaining cookie crumbs.
Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm. Store in tightly covered container in refrigerator.

Chocolate Fondu

My book club always does "themed" food either to go along with the book (often it's location) or the holiday it's closest to.  It's a lot of fun and we get to try other people's recipes and compare notes!  And of course everything we have goes well with the wine someone brings!  This month the theme was obviously Valentine's Day!  So the base of our snack was chocolate fondu and many people brought stuff to dip it in.  Well, we ended up drizzling it over the food instead!  We had strawberries, pineapple, pretzels, marshmallows and brownie bites!

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (semi-sweet, dark, milk, or white. Your choice.)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
Combine in a small slow cooker, cover and heat on low for 1 hour.  Stir for a few minutes til thick and serve.

 

Warm and Creamy Bacon Dip

Fig and I had the youth leaders over for dinner last night.  The best part is that we discovered two additional leaves for the table allowing us to sit 10 adults quite comfortably at the table (the little girls sat at their table next to us).  We had a potluck and it turned out awesome.  Without too much coordination everything complimented each other.  For example, I made a bacon dip and one person brought chips and another brought fresh veggis both went quite well with it!  I served crackers and bread for people to spread the dip on!  What a great start to the weekend.

Warm and Creamy Bacon Dip

Prep Time: 5 Minutes  Total Time: 35 Minutes
Serves: 15 (5 tablespoons per serving)

Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups Sour Cream
3 ounces bacon bits
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup chopped green onion

Directions 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl, combine all ingredients. Place the mixture in a 1-quart baking dish. Cover. Heat the dip for 25-30 minutes or until hot. Serve with assorted fresh vegetables, crackers and/or chips. *Serving option: Dip may also be placed in hollowed round sourdough loaf, wrapped in foil and heated in 400 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Cowboy or Tatertot Casserole

My husband loves this casserole and though I don't make it often I could eat it as often as possible as well.  It's simple and delicious.

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1 chopped onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1-2 cups of cheese
1 bag frozen tatertots

Instructions
Brown meat in onion then drain.
 Mix in soup and pour mixture into an 8x8 pan.
Sprinkle cheese on top and put as many tatertots as possible on top!  Normally it turns out to be 3/4 of the bag.
Bake at 350 for an hour.

Note:  I serve green beans and/or peas with this and inevitably end up mixing them in, you should try it!

Baked Potato Soup

This week for our Dine & Sign we had an awesome dinner: Cheddar Broccoli Soup, Chicken Noodle Soup, Chili, Baked Potatoes, Salad and Desserts.  The leftovers were distributed to people in need or who could be blessed by them but we weren't exactly sure what to do with all the leftover baked potatoes.  Soup or chili we could freeze but not the baked potatoes.  Therefore I had to look up Baked Potato Soup recipes!  This is the one I chose from Allrecipes.com.  I tripled the recipe so we'll be able to eat this for awhile. . . or giving a bunch away since it doesn't freeze well!

Prep: 10 min    Cook: 20 min   Ready in 30 min

Ingredients:
3 bacon strips, diced
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 cups chicken broth
2 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 cup half-and-half cream
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
Shredded Cheddar cheese
Minced fresh parsley

Directions
In a large saucepan, cook bacon until crisp. Drain, reserving 1 tablespoon drippings. Set bacon aside. Saute onion and garlic in the drippings until tender. 
Stir in flour, salt, basil and pepper; mix well. Gradually add broth. Bring to boil; boil and stir for 2 minutes. Add the potatoes, cream and hot pepper sauce; heat through but do not boil. Garnish with bacon, cheese and parsley.