The Year of The Cookie

Cookies N Cream Cake Mix Bars

2012-02-12T23:37:00.000-08:00

I was thinking of doing a Valentine's Day dessert round up, but then I went through the index and decided that would just be too hard. You can pretty much make anything heart shaped and I have tons and tons of chocolate in there, so if you're still looking for any ideas, that's where to go! This recipe is super easy and they taste just like brownies. A lot like these brownies, in fact (which would also be great for Valetine's day, especially if you can still find the winter oreos!) Or you could easily sub in your favorite candy bar for the cookies n cream.

Cookies N Cream Cake Mix Bars

Ingredients:
1 box chocolate cake mix
5 oz. evaporated milk
1/4 butter, melted
3 large cookies n cream bars, broken (i forgot how many oz. the bar was, it wasn't a regular or king size but the big jumbo one, and you shouldn't need all of it)
white chocolate for drizzling over top (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 deg F and line or spray a 9x13 pan.
Mix together cake mix, milk and butter. Divide the batter in half and press half into the bottom of the pan.
Bake about 9 min. or until set. Remove from oven and sprinkle candy bar pieces over the top. Flatten remaining dough into discs using your hand and place on top. Bake 20-25 min. more. Cool and drizzle with white chocolate, if using. Cut and serve!

Pecan Pie Cookies

2012-02-09T20:15:00.000-08:00

Its 70 degrees outside..in February. We've been planning to go play in some snow today for the last 2 months but obviously that didn't happen. Instead we took our bikes out and rode across the golden gate bridge, wearing t shirts. It's 9pm and I am beat! It was a busy day, but I wanted to share this recipe before I call it a night. I made a half batch of these (since thats all the pecans I had enough for) the other night and by the next afternoon I had eaten them all. It's hard not to eat a cookie whenever you walk by! These are ones i'll be looking for reasons to make. And when I don't find one, i'll make them anyway. Seriously, good stuff. I'm going to bed now!

Pecan Pie Cookies

Bakers Royale

Makes approximately two dozen 2 inch cookies
Ingredients:
Cookie portion:
½ cup butter
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup confectioner sugar
1 egg
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups flour

Pecan Filling:
1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
4 ¼ oz chocolate, 65% cacao, melted
1 tablespoon of corn syrup
¼ cup heavy cream
½ teaspoon cinnamon

Drizzle Finish:
2oz. chocolate, melted

Instructions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment.
Cream butter, brown sugar and confectioners sugar until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl lightly beat egg, vanilla, baking soda and salt. Add egg mixture to creamed butter mixture and mix to combine. Using a wooden spoon or sturdy spatula fold in flour. Chill dough for at least 45 minutes.
While the dough is chilling, place pecans, melted chocolate, heavy cream, corn syrup, and cinnamon in a bowl and mix to combine.

To assemble:

Scoop out approximately 1 ½ tablespoon of dough and flatten it into one hand, then scoop out one heaping teaspoon of pecan filling and place it in the center of flatten dough. Bring the edges of the dough to the center press dough together so that it seals the filling in. Place dough stuffed cookies, seam side down on parchment lined bake sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for about 10-12 minutes or until edges start to turn golden brown. Remove from oven and allow cookies to rest on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
Finish cookies with chocolate drizzle.

Cheese Ball

2012-02-01T12:08:00.001-08:00

Game day is tomorrow, I guess. I know for some people it's a huge deal, but not in this house. And boy am I glad! In case you're in need of any last appetizers or dips, this cheese ball is sure to please! Seriously delicious cheese ball! Don't forget the steak sauce. I know it may sound a little odd but it really adds some good flavor. It kind of reminds me of a huge meatball in the picture..

Cheese Ball
Recipe from my mil

Ingredients:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup butter, soft
1 TBLSP A1 steak sauce
1 tsp. grated onion
Fresh chopped parsley
1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans here)

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl except nuts. Form into a ball (you can put it in the freezer for a few minutes after mixing to make it a little easier to work). Roll in nuts and cover with plastic wrap or foil. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Best Chicken Pot Pie

2012-01-31T14:22:00.000-08:00

The title says it all, people. I've been meaning to post this one for some time but I just got around to making it again for dinner today. So as I sit here eating it, I can't wait any longer to share this recipe. This really is the best chicken pot pie i've had and I sort of want to make it for everyone I know. You can make this in one large dish or smaller single serving sized ones. I like the smaller dishes because you get more crust to filling ratio. If you make too small though, you'll end up needing another roll of pie crust. Here I did 3 small (3.5 inch/8 oz.) ramekins and 2 larger ones (5 inch) and had the perfect amount of dough to do a bottom layer up the sides and a top. Instead of slits on top, you could also use cookie cutters or just a knife to carve out whatever you'd like. Enjoy!

Best Chicken Pot Pie

I don't remember where I originally saw the recipe, but i'll list as soon as I find it!

Large pie serves 4-5, mini pies serve 6
Ingredients:
2 homemade or store-bought pie crusts (about 9-inch each)
2 cups water
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 carrots, peeled and cubed
2 ribs celery, sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup butter
4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup frozen peas
1 egg
1 tbsp. water

Directions:
In 4-quart saucepot combine water, chicken, carrots, celery and onion. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chicken bouillon, pepper and butter. Dissolve cornstarch and flour into whipping cream and stir into chicken mixture. Simmer 3 minutes, stirring frequently until thickened. Add peas and set aside.
Roll out two 9-inch pie crusts. I roll them out a little thinner to get more out of it. Place bottom crust into six ramekins or one 9-inch pie plate, and shape with your fingers. I like to extend the bottom crust up the sides to the top.
Pour filling into bottom crust. Roll out top crust; cut slits for steam to escape. Cover filling with top crust. Seal crusts and wave edge with your fingers. Whisk egg with water, and brush top crust with egg wash. Place on a foil lined baking sheet and bake in a 400 degree oven for 35-40 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling. If top crust is browning too quickly, cover loosely with aluminium foil. Let stand 15-20 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Tasting

2012-01-27T23:11:00.000-08:00

With all the wine influence in and surrounding the bay area, wine tastings are everywhere. Matt and I have mentioned several times that it would be much better if they were chocolate tastings instead. When I spotted a deal for chocolate tasting I was all over it even though I wasn't sure what to expect. Let me just say, it was a lot of fun! Not only did we get to try pure, high quality chocolate, but we learned a lot about it as well. The tasting was done at Alegio Chocolate in Berkeley. We tried about 10 different selections including a plain cocoa bean (not the best tasting thing). I never realized how many flavors there are to chocolate! We learned about some of the things companies do to make chocolate cheaper, like removing the cocoa butter to sell to companies and replacing it with something cheaper, and adding lots of vanilla. We also learned that Michael Pollan and Steve Jobs are/were regulars of Alegio. Not so important, but Matt's read some of Pollan's books so there was a small discussion about them and food quality now days. I would love to eat this kind of chocolate more often, but at about $12 for less than 2 ounces, I think I would go broke pretty fast :) But it's definitely worth it now and then. Afterwards we even decided to go to the store and buy a few different kinds of chocolate and have our own little tasting at home! This was a fun activity for us both and would even be great for Valentine's Day!

some of our goods..

Cinnamon Roll French Toast

2012-01-22T20:07:00.000-08:00

Once when we were on a trip, Rylee had to go to the bathroom so we stopped at Black Bear Diner and Matt took Rylee in there to use the restroom. There were a TON of people there and after Matt saw someone's huge plate of food, we knew why. Ever since we've wanted to try the place and last weekend we were finally able to. First of all, we thought the food was really good! Especially for a diner. One of the things on the menu that struck my attention was cinnamon roll french toast. I love french toast. In fact it's my favorite breakfast food. I reallyy wanted to try it but I was in the mood for pancakes, so that's what I got. I'm not able to comment on theirs, but here's my simple homemade version that went over well. Obviously homemade cinnamon rolls would be so much better..but I went the easy route this time.

Cinnamon Roll French Toast

Ingredients:

1 can of 8 cinnamon rolls (or homemade)

2 eggs

scant 1/4 c. milk

Directions:

Bake cinnamon rolls according to package directions.

Meanwhile, mix together eggs and milk in a shallow dish.

When cinnamon rolls are finished, dip in egg mixture then place in preheated and buttered skillet or griddle. Cook on each side until golden brown.

Microwave cup of icing (included in cinnamon rolls) about 10 sec. or until just pourable. How long you heat it will determine how thick the icing will be. The top 2 photos it was heated slightly longer than the last one so you can see the difference.

Serve with drizzled icing and maple syrup.

*The canned cinnamon rolls have a little bit of a hard crust on them so the egg mixture doesn't soak up so well. I'm thinking homemade, or atleast a softer roll, would work a lot better, although this way still tasted really good!

Blueberry Pecan Coconut Breakfast Quinoa

2012-01-20T14:30:00.000-08:00

I'm always looking for new ways to use quinoa. I don't have many recipes with it yet that we really like and i'm even more limited since Matt doesn't like it cold. I haven't got his opinion on this one yet because he hasn't tried it, but he doesn't care much for coconut so I don't know how it's going to go over. And he says he isn't picky... :) I'm going to be honest..I don't love quinoa. It's good, but in most cases I find it pretty bland. But i'm reallly trying to love it seeing how it's all the rage these days. With that said, I thought this was a good one. As soon as I made it I had a few bowls. This is the first time I tried a breakfast version and I kept thinking it should be oatmeal. You could use whatever fruit/nuts you wanted, these are just what I happened to have. I have another breakfast recipe that hopefully i'll be posting next week, if all goes well, that i've been dying to try all week!
Blueberry Pecan Coconut Breakfast Quinoa
Beantown Baker

Ingredients:
2 cups milk
1 cup uncooked quinoa
pinch salt
2-3 Tbsp dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup chopped, toasted pecans
1/4 cup toasted unsweetened coconut

Directions:
Bring milk to a boil in a small saucepan. Milk will boil and bubble over very quickly, so keep an eye on it. Add quinoa and salt, and return to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered, until three-quarters of the milk has been absorbed, about 15 minutes. Stir in brown sugar and cinnamon. Cook, covered, until almost all the milk has been absorbed, about 5 minutes. Stir in blueberries, nuts, and coconut. Cook until warmed through, about one minute more.

Brownie Covered Oreos

2012-01-17T21:47:00.000-08:00

I started writing this post last week, but I had the flu at the time. Thinking about food with the flu is not a good idea and i'll just leave it at that. Sometimes you want something simple and easy without having to make the same usuals, and that's what I liked about this. By no means are oreos and brownies a new dessert, but it is a new way (to me atleast) of going about it which made it fun and gave me some ideas of other things to try. I used the red winter oreos which would also look good for Valentine's day!

Brownie Covered Oreos
Picky Palate

Ingredients:
1 Box Brownie mix
1 Package Oreos
White chocolate, melted for drizzle

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare brownie batter according to package directions. Leave in mixing bowl. Dip Oreos in brownie batter then place in bottom of cupcake tin that has been generously sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until brownies are cooked through. As soon as you remove, take a plastic knife and run along edges.
2. Let cool for 5 minutes, remove, drizzle with melted white chocolate.

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

2012-01-10T21:52:00.000-08:00

Happy 7 months to Landon! That's just crazy. I swear we just brought him home! He's been crawling and pulling himself up on everything (including me!) So in honor of him, I give to you his new favorite cookie. I'm kidding! He doesn't eat cookies. He hardly even touches baby food! Really though, I have a line up of things to be posted, but as soon as I tried these they immediately made their way to the top of the list. They are dangerously good. They're big and rich and every pb and chocolate lover's dream cookie come true. Not only is it chocked full of pb cups, but the batter is also made up of peanut butter and chocolate. Double whammy. I can already see this one being on next year's "top" list.

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
Annie's Eats

Yield: 16 large cookies
Ingredients:
1½ cups plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
6 tbsp. Dutch-process cocoa
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. coarse salt
¾ stick (6 tbsp.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¼ cup plus 2 tbsp. creamy peanut butter
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tbsp. milk
2 cups coarsely chopped peanut butter cups, divided

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, peanut butter, and sugars. Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. Add in the egg, vanilla extract, and milk. Blend until smooth. With the mixer on low speed, mix in the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Add in 1½ cups of the chopped peanut butter cups and fold in gently with a spatula.
Use a large dough scoop (about 3 tablespoons) to drop rounds of dough onto the baking sheets, spacing 2-3 inches apart. Gently press a few pieces of the reserved peanut butter cups into the top of each of the dough balls. Bake 12-14 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking. They will be very soft but will firm up after cooling. Let cool on the baking sheets about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Baked Chicken Pesto with Quinoa

2012-01-04T16:44:00.000-08:00

As promised, here's a recipe to help out with your new year's resolution. Lately i've had a VERY needy baby on my hands, so the only things i've been cooking are things that are quick that I can do in the small amount of time that he allows me to do anything without him. Even naps haven't been going so good lately. Help. I NEED nap time! It's also a little frustrating since I actually do like to cook that i'm not having the time i'd like to spend doing it (among a ton of other things i'd like to do). That's ok though. I just have to remind myself that one day i'll be wishing he was begging for my attention. Like I said, it's easy. Doesn't get much easier than dumping some pesto and cheese on chicken and tossing it in the oven. Alternately, you could serve this with rice or noodles, by itself, or whatever else you see fitting.

Baked Chicken Pesto with Quinoa
Kalyn's Kitchen

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and fresh ground black pepper for seasoning chicken
1/2 cup basil pesto
2 oz. (1/2 cup) grated low-fat mozzarella cheese

1 c. quinoa
2 c. water
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375F. Trim all visible fat and tendons from chicken pieces, then cut each chicken breast lengthwise into 2 or 3 pieces. Spray a 9" x 12" baking dish with non-stick spray, then spread 1/4 cup basil pesto over the bottom of the dish. Lay chicken strips over the pesto, then spread 1/4 cup more basil pesto over the chicken.
Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake the chicken for 25-30 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare your quinoa according to package directions.
When chicken is barely cooked through, remove foil and sprinkle chicken with 1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese. Put dish back into the oven without foil and cook 5 minutes more, just until cheese is melted. Broil for an additional 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Spoon juices over chicken and quinoa (or whatever else you might be serving with it).

Faves from the past- 2010

2012-01-01T03:00:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!! Last Year (I guess it wouldn't be "last" year anymore!) I didn't do a roundup post of favorites from the year. I did a lot of baking since i started the blog to the end of 2010 and a lot of those recipes are my "staples." So I thought i'd do a quick shout out to my good ol standbys from 2010.

In chronological order..

Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies- When I want to make a reliable chocolate based cookie, this is it.

Smore's Cookie Bars- One of my all time favorites. I could eat the whole pan myself.

Easy Peanut Butter Marshmallow Topped Krispie Treats- These are rich and decadent, everyone will love them!

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread- I like to make these in a mini muffin pan. They freeze great for quick little snacks.

New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies- I'm a chocolate chip cookie LOVER. And this is probably my favorite recipe yet. Just make sure to plan ahead as it does require some resting time.

Big Apple Baked Pancake For 2- Easy and a great way to use up lots of eggs.

Ham and Cheese Pretzel Bites- I don't often make these mainly because I like to stick with quick things since I have 2 little ones who need constant attention, but we love them.

Toffee Roca Cookies- Like a broken record.. here's another really good cookie that's quick and easy, not to mention really tasty.

Steak Gorgonzola Alfredo- Matt's favorite OG dish made at home! This is one of our go-to's for when we have company.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars- I find something to make these for every year.

There's a lot of other really good ones as well, but these are some that I keep coming back to.

Some 2011 Favorites

2011-12-30T13:54:00.000-08:00

The holidays are just about over. It came and went way too fast, but that's how it usually goes. In a couple days everyone will be on a health kick for a couple weeks (hopefully more!), then it'll be time to start drooling over Valentine's day yummies. I know this is the time of year food blogs have their list of favorite recipes from the year. And I wasn't going to do it. Do you know how hard it is to choose a few favorites when there's SO many?? My friend told me a couple months ago that I should just send her my favorite recipes and ever since i've been thinking I should do a little roundup of favorites. I figured now would be the time to stop procrastinating it. So without further delay, in no particular order, here they are..

The Sweets:

Brownie Ice Cream Cake

This is what I made for my birthday this year. I though it would be too much for the 2 of us, so I shared some of it. And the greedy side of me regretting it when it was gone way too fast.

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

Super soft and moist, topped with the perfect cinnamon cream cheese frosting. I'm looking forward to fall again-just for these.

Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake

This was recently just made again last week for Christmas. It's light in texture, rich in flavor, and all around delicious.

Fruit Tart

A little effort required, but well worth it if you're looking for an amazing fruit tart that you won't be able to put down.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

All the flavors of the best cookies combined into one. These are one of my go-to's that I often find myself looking for reasons to make.
Smore's Pie

You should know by now that I have an undying love for smore's that extends beyond summertime. It's December, you say? Sounds like a great time to make smore's to me! Or atleast a smore's pie. Even my own mother who claims to not like smore's was pleasantly surprised with this one.

Chocolate Pecan Bars

Nothing fancy here, but that's what I love about them. They're a cinch to make and are a good part of why my diet starts tomorrow. But then again, my diet always starts tomorrow..

Real Food. Look at that:

Spaghetti and M eatballs

I have a thing for spaghetti and meatballs. I hardly ever make it but it's on my mind a lot. The reason it's not often made though is because i'm too lazy to make meatballs. Sad, but true. Of all the recipes i've tried, this is the one.

Asiago Ciabatta

I love bread. Love it. It's even better when you put cheese in it.
Cucumber Sandwiches

You're probably wondering why I put this one in here. It's nothing real fancy or real amazing. But they're practical, and really good. And perfect for such occasions as bridal showers or baby showers (and you know there's a lot of those going on right now).

Bloomin Bacon Onion Bread

(I didn't have a pic. for this one so I featured his just as delicious brother, the bloomin' pizza bread). Again with the bread love. And cheese. And bacon?? This would be a typical Friday night around here..
Stuffed French Toast

French toast is probably my all time favorite breakfast. This is an awesome version of stuffed french toast and perfect for special mornings (say...Valentine's day??)

**Have a great New Years! I know you're all going to want something a little more healthy come Sunday, so i'll be back next year to help you out with that :) Atleast for a day..then i'll probably be back to posting something with chocolate. Sorry.

Peanut Butter Toffee Bars

2011-12-21T03:00:00.000-08:00

I know, i've already got a toffee bar recipe on here. But this is a little different version, as the shortbread here contains peanut butter and oatmeal. Both are equally delicious to me, it just depends on what you're wanting! Great addition to your holiday cookie plates.

Peanut Butter Toffee Bars
from cookbook: Chocolate Therapy, seen in Family Fun magazine

Ingredients:
1/2 c. butter, at room temperature
1/2 c. peanut butter
3/4 c. packed brown sugar
1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 quick oats
1/2 t. salt
3 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 c. toffee bits

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 deg F. Line a 9x13 in. baking pan with foil so ends extend over the edges of the pan 2 inches.
In large bowl, beat the butter, peanut butter, sugar, and egg yolk on medium-high speed until the mixture is smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Add the flour, oats and salt and beat the mixture on low until the ingredients are just blended, about 30 sec.
Press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared plan. Bake the crust until it's golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes (be careful not to overbake).
Remove the pan from the oven and scatter the chocolate chips evenly over the crust. Return the pan to the oven for 1 minute. Remove the pan and spread the chocolate evenly over the crust. Sprinkle the toffee pieces over the chocolate, gently pressing them into place.
Set the pan on a wire rack to cool until the chocolate has set, about 2 hours. Using the edges of the foil, life from pan and cut into rectangles.
Makes: 32 bars

Chocolate Pecan Bars

2011-12-18T21:32:00.000-08:00

My friend and I have baking 'dates' once in a while, and these are what we made during one of them. I liked them so much I even made them again a couple weeks later and ate about 1/4 of the pan by myself. In one sitting. Maybe I shouldn't disclose that kind of stuff...but let's be honest. They're good. They're even better still warm from the oven on top of some vanilla ice cream. These are so easy to make, the hardest part is waiting for them to cool. But since we're on the whole honesty thing..I don't actually let them cool. They come out of the oven and i'm waiting with a spoon in hand. Skip the traditional pie this Christmas and just go with the bars :)

Chocolate Pecan Bars

Brown Eyed Baker

Ingredients:
For the Crust:

1½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened

¼ cup packed brown sugar

Filling:

3 large eggs

¾ cup corn syrup

¾ cup granulated sugar

2 Tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1¾ cups coarsely chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (I just used chocolate chips)

1½ cups chopped pecans

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.
2. For the crust, mix together the flour, butter and brown sugar until crumbly. Press into the baking pan and bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly brown.
3. For the filling, beat the eggs, corn syrup, sugar, butter and vanilla extract with a wire whisk. Stir in the chunks and pecans. Pour evenly over the baked crust and bake for 25-30 minutes or until set.
4. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. Cool completely and cut into bars. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Praline-Pumpkin Cake

2011-12-16T03:00:00.000-08:00

I mainly decided to make this cake because I happened to have a yellow cake and some extra pumpkin on hand when I wanted to bring a 2nd dessert to a church dinner. It actually turned out really good and I had several people tell me that. Matt didn't know I had made this cake and when he went to choose a dessert (there were about a million, too) he ended up picking this one. However, I don't know if i'll be making it again since i'm a chocolate girl. It takes a lot to win my heart over if it's not chocolate. Be warned though, that this cake feeds a small army. Originally the recipe calls to be made in 2 8x8 pans, but after reading some people's reviews and some problems they had with it, I decided to just do a single layer in a 9x13 pan.
Praline-Pumpkin Cake
Betty Crocker

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans
1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® yellow cake mix
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 container Betty Crocker® Rich & Creamy cream cheese frosting
Caramel topping, if desired
Additional coarsely chopped pecans, if desired

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 325°F. In 1-quart heavy saucepan, stir together butter, whipping cream and brown sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, just until butter is melted. Pour into two ungreased 9- or 8-inch round cake pans; sprinkle evenly with 3/4 cup pecans.
2 In large bowl, beat cake mix, pumpkin, water, oil, eggs and 1 teaspoon of the pumpkin pie spice with electric mixer on low speed until moistened, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Carefully spoon batter over pecan mixture in each pan.
3 Bake 41 to 47 minutes or until cake springs back when touched lightly in center. Cool 5 minutes; remove from pans to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
4 Stir remaining 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice into frosting. To assemble cake, place 1 layer, praline side up, on serving plate. Spread with half of the frosting. Top with second layer, praline side up; spread remaining frosting to edge of layer. Drizzle with caramel topping and additional pecans. Store loosely covered in refrigerator.

BBQ Chicken Fettucine

2011-12-14T03:00:00.000-08:00

Here's a real quick and simple meal for ya. Not to mention deeelicious. It's a fun twist on traditional alfredo with bold flavor and a little spice. It's not often I repeat recipes, but this is one i've made a couple times now, so that's telling you somethin.

BBQ Chicken Fettucine
adapted from Patio Dadio BBQ

Ingredients:
1/2 lb Fettucine
3 Grilled boneless/skinless chicken breasts, sliced in 1/4" slices
1 can (14.5 oz) Diced tomatoes with onion and green pepper
1 jar (15 oz) Classico Four Cheese Alfredo
1/4 cup BBQ sauce
1/4 cup Water
2 tsp Hot sauce
1 tsp Smoked paprika
1/2 tsp Black pepper, ground fresh
1 9. oz bag fresh spinach

Directions:
Cook the pasta according to the package directions while you prepare the sauce.
Heat a large pan over medium-high heat and add the can of tomato/onion/pepper. Saute until about half of the liquid has reduced, then add the chicken. Continue sauteing until almost all of the liquid has evaporated.
Reduce the heat to medium and add all of the remaining ingredients, except the pasta. Cook this for about five minutes, stirring occasionally. Be careful to not let the sauce scorch. If that starts to happen, reduce the heat.
Add the drained pasta to the pan and toss well for several minutes. You want the sauce to nicely coat the pasta without becoming too dry. If it starts to get too dry, just add a splash or two of milk.

Peanut Butter Cups

2011-12-12T03:00:00.000-08:00

Matt's favorite candy is peanut butter cups, so I knew eventually I would try my hand at a homemade version. I was pleasantly surprised with how close these tasted to the real thing. Even the texture was pretty spot on. The biggest things I noticed were that the real Reese's pb cups taste saltier and the pb to chocolate ratio was just a tad more in this version. Overall, they turned out great and my plans to share them..well, atleast I had good intentions.
Peanut Butter Cups
Brown Eyed Baker

Yield: About 3 dozen peanut butter cups
Prep Time: 45 minutes Chill Time: 1 hour, total
Ingredients:
1 cups creamy peanut butter
¼ cup unsalted butter
¼ cup light brown sugar
1¼ cups powdered sugar
4 cups milk chocolate chips (two 11.5-oz bags)
¼ cup vegetable shortening

Directions:
1. Line a mini-muffin tin with paper liners; set aside. Line a baking with parchment paper; set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine the peanut butter, butter and brown sugar over medium heat. Heat until completely melted and starting to bubble a little, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat. Add the powdered sugar a ¼ cup at a time, stirring until completely combined with the peanut butter mixture after each addition. Set aside and let cool.
3. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate chips and shortening together in the microwave on 50% power in 30-second increments, until completely melted, stirring after each burst.
4. Using a small cookie scoop or a couple of teaspoons, spoon melted chocolate into the bottom of each lined muffin cup.
5. Use a heaping teaspoon to scoop out the peanut butter mixture. Roll it into a ball, and then flatten it slightly into a disk. Place on the prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Once finished with all of the peanut butter mixture, refrigerate both the muffin tins and the peanut butter patties for about 30 minutes.
6. Place a peanut butter patty on top of each chocolate-lined muffin tin. Then use a scoop or spoon to add more melted chocolate on top and around each peanut butter patty.
7. Refrigerate again for 30 minutes, then they’re ready to serve! Store in the refrigerator or freezer. You can keep at room temperature in an airtight container if you’re going to serve them the same day, but they’ll start to get soft if not at cool room temperature

Homemade Marshmallows

2011-12-10T03:00:00.000-08:00

Homemade marshmallows are a cinch to make. I'm not a fan of eating them plain straight out of the bag (and that goes for either store bought or homemade), but roasted over a fire or in hot chocolate and i'm all over it. I thought this homemade version made hot chocolate super creamy and delicious, more so than the store bought ones. In fact, since making these I keep finding myself making hot chocolate just for the melted creaminess of the marshmallows. The recipe makes plenty so be prepared to share!

Homemade Marshmallows

The Smitten Kitchen

Makes about 96 1-inch cubed marshmallows

Ingredients:
About 1 cup confectioners’ sugar

3 1/2 envelopes (2 tablespoons plus 2 1/2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin

1 cup cold water, divided

2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large egg whites or reconstituted powdered egg whites

1 tablespoon vanilla

Directions:

Oil bottom and sides of a 13- by 9- by 2-inch rectangular metal baking pan and dust bottom and sides with some confectioners’ sugar.
In bowl of a standing electric mixer or in a large bowl sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold cold water, and let stand to soften.
In a 3-quart heavy saucepan cook granulated sugar, corn syrup, second 1/2 cup of cold water, and salt over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to moderate and boil mixture, without stirring, until a candy or digital thermometer registers 240°F, about 12 minutes. Remove pan from heat and pour sugar mixture over gelatin mixture, stirring until gelatin is dissolved.
With standing or a hand-held electric mixer beat mixture on high speed until white, thick, and nearly tripled in volume, about six minutes if using standing mixer or about 10 minutes if using hand-held mixer.

In separate medium bowl with cleaned beaters beat egg whites until they just hold stiff peaks. Beat whites and vanilla (or your choice of flavoring) into sugar mixture until just combined. Pour mixture into baking pan and don’t fret if you don’t get it all out. Sift 1/4 cup confectioners sugar evenly over top. Chill marshmallow, uncovered, until firm, at least three hours, and up to one day.
Run a thin knife around edges of pan and invert pan onto a large cutting board. Lifting up one corner of inverted pan, with fingers loosen marshmallow and ease onto cutting board. With a large knife trim edges of marshmallow and cut marshmallow into roughly one-inch cubes. Sift remaining confectioners’ sugar back into your now-empty baking pan, and roll the marshmallows through it, on all six sides, before shaking off the excess and packing them away.
Do ahead: Marshmallows keep in an airtight container at cool room temperature 1 week.

Christmas Sugar Cookies

2011-12-08T14:25:00.001-08:00

It's Christmas time, what better time to decorate cookies? I wanted to try my hand at decorating sugar cookies with royal icing again. I think it's a lot of fun, but it's a little difficult to get them to look flawless, as you can tell by mine. It was only my 2nd attempt, so i'm still learning. The "pink" on the trees was supposed to be red. Last time I tinted using a hot pink coloring and I put to much so after drying it turned almost red. This time I had the opposite reaction where I put too little, thinking it would dry a lot darker. Which I guess means next time it should be right on. Atleast I hope. They take some time with all the drying and decorating, but well worth it in the end. I found that the squirt bottles you can purchase for cheap at stores like Michaels help a ton.
The cookie recipe was really good. In fact, Matt kept sneaking the extra cookies, a little more so than normally. The icing..not so much..but that's expected. Not that it was bad, but we're going for presentation over taste on that one.
Here's the sugar cookie recipe and royal icing I used, from Bake at 350.
Now get in the kitchen and show Santa some love!

Layered Toffee Cheesecake Pumpkin Pie

2011-12-05T14:29:00.000-08:00

They (whoever "they" are) say pie's going to be the new cupcake, I hear. Personally I don't think I would take it that far, but to each their own. As I promised in the last post, here's the other pie I made for Thanksgiving. I'm not into pumpkin pie..at all, really. But layered with the toffee cheesecake and a graham cracker crust turned it into something I could eat (not only eat, but love) without completely submerging it in whipped cream. It also looks pretty fancy too, you would never think it was so easy. Be sure to add this one to your pie list this season.

Toffee Cheesecake Pumpkin Pie
Our Best Bites

I swear I had a picture of the inside.. the bottom layer is the cheesecake with the pumpkin pie on top, they're distinctive layers.

Ingredients:
2 cups cinnamon graham cracker crumbs (just short of 2 sleeves)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
2 8-oz packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
5 eggs, at room temperature
1 bag toffee bits
1 15-oz can pumpkin
3/4 cup whipping cream
2/3 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie seasoning
1/8 teaspoons salt
Cool Whip or sweetened whipped cream for topping

Instructions:
Heat oven to 300 degrees. Spray a 9 or 10″ springform pan with cooking spray. In a small bowl, mix crumbs and butter. Press in bottom of pan. Bake 15 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
In large bowl, beat cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Beat in 2 of the eggs. Stir in 1 cup of the toffee bits. Spread over crust.
In a new bowl, Mix pumpkin, whipping cream, 2/3 cup sugar, the cinnamon, pumpkin pie seasoning, salt and remaining 3 eggs just until blended. Slowly and carefully spoon over cheesecake layer.
Bake for 2 hours or until edge of cheesecake is set at least 2 inches from edge of pan but center still jiggles slightly when moved. Turn oven off; open oven door at least 4 inches. Leave cheesecake in oven 30 minutes. Run spatula around edge of pan. Cool 30 minutes. Refrigerate 6 hours or overnight. Run spatula around edge of pan; remove side of pan. Pipe whipped topping or whipped cream around edges of cheesecake; sprinkle with remaining toffee bits.

Chocolate Cream Pie

2011-11-30T12:19:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Ours was so fun, and relaxed. As opposed to the hectic Christmas season we've just entered. For dessert, my brother in law thought it would be fun if everyone brought a pie. There were a lot of people..and even more pies! I'm not a huge pie person but they were all so good. I brought 2 (the other i'll post next time). I'm a chocolate person so to ensure there would be some chocolate I decided on this chocolate cream pie i've been waiting to make. I loved it and it must have went over pretty well since it all got eaten. Thanksgiving might be over, but Christmas is coming up and if you're in need of a pie, this one won't make you sorry.

I think I forgot to mention before, but the Index is FINALLY updated. Wow it was overdue. But every recipe is now in it and hopefully it'll never again get that far behind.

PIE!

Chocolate Cream Pie

Bumbleberry Cakes

(Ok, so not the prettiest picture, but it was the only one I got that shows the inside)

For crust:

1 1/3 cups chocolate wafer crumbs

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1/4 cup sugar

For filling:

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 large egg yolks

3 cups whole milk

5 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), melted

2 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

For topping:

3/4 cup chilled heavy cream

1 tablespoon sugar

Make crust:

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.Stir together crumbs, butter, and sugar and press on bottom and up side of a 9-inch pie plate (1-quart capacity). Bake until crisp, about 15 minutes, and cool on a rack.

Make filling: Whisk together sugar, cornstarch, salt, and yolks in a 3-quart heavy saucepan until combined well, then add milk in a stream, whisking. Bring to a boil over moderate heat, whisking, then reduce heat and simmer, whisking, 1 minute (filling will be thick). Force filling through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, then whisk in chocolates, butter, and vanilla. Cover surface of filling with a buttered round of wax paper and cool completely, about 2 hours.

Spoon filling into crust and chill pie, loosely covered, at least 6 hours.

Make topping: Just before serving, beat cream with sugar in a bowl using an electric mixer until it just holds stiff peaks, then spoon on top of pie.

Skirt Steak Salad with Blue Cheese

2011-11-20T19:25:00.000-08:00

It's a few days before Thanksgiving and I got a cold today. I really hope this is over soon! It's bad enough to be sick, but let's not have it during a holiday, please! Last Thanksgiving I was busy recovering from getting my appendix removed. (Which was the most painful thing i've ever experienced and i'm glad I won't go through again.) On a good note, I got a Kitchen Aid stand mixer!! I scored an awesome deal and i'm very excited about it, if you can imagine. And it's red. That just adds to the awesomeness.
Having nothing to do with baking, here's a salad for ya! I first made this last year and Matt dubbed it one of the best salad's he's ever had. He's a steak guy, if you didn't know. I'm not a blue cheese person (or atleast I didn't think I was..) but I loved it here.
Skirt Steak Salad with Blue Cheese
Smitten Kitchen

Serves 4
Ingredients:
1 pound skirt steak, trimmed of excess fat if necessary, halved crosswise, at room temperature
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pint (2 cups) cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup (about 4 ounces) crumbled blue cheese
1/2 pound baby arugula (I used spinach)
Vinaigrette (below)
3 tablespoons minced chives, 2 thinly sliced scallions or 3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion, for garnish

Directions:
Pat steak dry and season on both sides 1/2 teaspoon salt and many grinds of black pepper.

In a cast-iron skillet: Heat skillet on medium-high to high and add olive oil. When oil begins to shimmer, place steak in skillet and do not move it for 5 minutes. Turn it once, and cook for another 3 minutes for medium-rare. You may need to cook your steak halves separately, depending on the size of your pan.

On a grill: Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over hot charcoal or high heat for gas. Oil grill rack, then grill steak, covered only if using a gas grill, turning once, 4 to 6 minutes total for medium-rare.

Transfer steak to a cutting board and let rest, loosely covered with foil, for five minutes. Arrange arugula on a large platter. Thinly slice steak on the diagonal, across the grain. Arrange over arugula then toss with tomatoes and blue cheese. Add viniagrette to taste and sprinkle on chives.

Steakhouse Mustard Vinaigrette
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon coarse Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon honey
1/3 cup olive oil

Directions:
Whisk ingredients. Season with salt and pepper and adjust ingredients to taste

Giant Cookie

2011-11-17T10:17:00.000-08:00

Some things are just more fun really big. Or really small. When it comes to cookies though, the bigger the better, I think. I've wanted to make a really big cookie for a long time but haven't had the right occasion. So when my friend's birthday was coming up I knew immediately I wanted to make it. Now I can't vouch for how good (or not) this cookie is because I wasn't about to give someone a cookie with a slice taken out. But if there's any lack of flavor, I think the giant factor would make up for it. It's a little trickier making a large cookie as opposed to small ones. The edges definitely start to set up before the rest of the cookie, so just keep your eye on it to make sure they don't get too crispy before the rest of it even gets cooked. Now go make someone's day!

Giant Cookie
From Mel's Kitchen Cafe, seen on Tasty Kitchen

Ingredients:
½ cups White Sugar
½ cups Brown Sugar
½ cups Butter, Melted And Cooled Slightly
1 whole Egg
½ teaspoons Soda
½ teaspoons Salt
½ teaspoons Vanilla
1-½ cup Flour
½ cups Chocolate Chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, cream together the sugars and butter. Add the egg and mix. Add the dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Line a large (11X17-inch) baking pan with foil and press the cookie into a circle. Press the cookie into a 9-inch circle, about 1/4 to 3/8-inch thick. When it bakes, it spreads to about 11 inches, which fits perfectly onto a 12-inch round cardboard circle you can find at most craft stores.
If desired, top the cookie with M&M’s or any other garnishes.
Bake for 13-16 minutes until the cookie is lightly golden brown. Let the cookie cool completely on the baking pan. Once cool, gently use the foil to lift the cookie off the pan.

Pumpkin Spice Pull Apart Bread with Vanilla Glaze

2011-11-10T11:54:00.000-08:00

My baby boy is 5 months old today. Next month he'll be halfway to his first birthday and that's just crazy. Yes, it's still a while away, but I know it will approach far too soon and I refuse to let it happen! My husband, however, is planning all the manly things they'll get to do together when he gets a little older. Like camping and wild pig hunting.
Now for the recipe, I doubled it and made 2 loafs. It seems somewhat of a shame to go through all the work of making bread only to have it gobbled up so fast. Besides, I needed to take 1 loaf to something and I of course wanted a loaf for myself. Looking at the recipe it seems like a lot of steps. It really isn't too bad though. If you've ever made cinnamon rolls, it's a similar process and definitely similar taste. My glaze was a little clumpy, maybe I should have sifted the powdered sugar. It's funny how i'm not too lazy to make something like this, but when it comes to sifting, that's another story. I find slight joy in pulling the soft layers off, you'll understand once you try.

Pumpkin Spice Pull Apart Bread with Vanilla Glaze
Willow Bird Baking

Pumpkin Pull-Apart Bread Ingredients:

1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup white sugar

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon salt

2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) active dry yeast

2 1/2 cups bread flour

Filling Ingredients:

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Butter Rum Glaze Ingredients:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/8 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons milk

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Make the pull-apart bread dough:

Grease and flour a loaf pan and set aside. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, brown the 2 tablespoons of butter. Let it bubble and foam and when you see it start to brown, stir it so that it browns evenly. When it’s the color of dark honey, remove it from the heat and pour it into a large heat-safe mixer bowl to cool. In the same saucepan over medium-low heat, warm the milk until it bubbles. Remove it from the heat and pour it into the bowl with the butter. Let these cool until they’re about 100-110 degrees F. Set the saucepan aside for another use later. Stir the sugar and yeast into the milk/butter mixture and let it sit for about 10 minutes to proof. Stir in pumpkin, salt, and 1 cup flour. Add the rest of the flour 1/2 cup at a time, stirring between each addition. When the dough is combined, knead on low speed with a dough hook until smooth and elastic, or knead by hand. Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover it with a damp cloth. Let it rise in a warm place for about an hour until it doubles in size (After it rises, you can put it in the fridge overnight to use it in the morning, but let it sit out for half an hour before rolling if you do.)

Make the filling:

While the dough is rising, whisk the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a small bowl. Toward the end of the rising time, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter for the filling in the saucepan over medium-high heat and brown it as directed above. Put it in a small heat-safe bowl to cool for use later.

Shape and bake pull-apart bread:

Knead a sprinkling of flour into the dough, deflating it, and recover it. Let it sit to relax for 5 minutes. Flour a large work surface and turn your rested dough out onto it. Roll it out to a 20 inch long and 12 inch wide rectangle, lifting corners periodically to make sure it’s not sticking. If it seems to be snapping back, cover it with your damp towel and let it rest for 5 minutes before continuing. Spread the browned butter over the surface of the dough with a pastry brush and then sprinkle the sugar mixture over the top, patting it down to ensure it mostly sticks (I didn't use all of the cinnamon sugar mixture, it seemed like way too much to me).With the long edge of the rectangle toward you, cut it into 6 strips. Stack these strips on top of one another and cut the resulting stack into 6 even portions. Place these portions one at a time into your greased loaf pan, pressing them up against each other to fit them all in. Cover the pan with your damp cloth and place it in a warm place for 30-45 minutes to double in size. While dough rises, preheat oven to 350 degrees F or 325 if you have a glass loaf dish instead of a metal pan. When it’s risen, place the loaf in the center of the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until dark golden brown on top, if you take it out at light golden brown, it’s liable to be raw in the middle, so let it get good and dark. Cool for 20-30 minutes on a cooling rack in the loaf pan while you make the glaze.

Make the glaze:

In your saucepan, bring the butter, milk, and brown sugar to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove it from heat, add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract, and whisk it to a smooth consistency.

Assemble and serve:

Use a butter knife to loosen all sides of the bread from the loaf pan and gently turn it out onto a plate. Place another plate on top and flip it to turn it right side up. Drizzle glaze over top. Serve each piece slightly warm with a drizzle of glaze.

Pretzel Rods

2011-11-07T15:04:00.000-08:00

I wanted a quick snack to take to a girl's night and these were perfect. My favorite thing about them, other than they're super quick and easy to make and are a tasty little snack, is that you can customize them for any occasion. And if you don't want rods, you could just as easily use regular twisted pretzels. Next time I want to try a few other variations, especially one with a caramel drizzle. Options are endless!

Pretzel Rods

What to do: Get a bag of pretzels (rods or twisted) and line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Melt some chopped chocolate, candy melts or almond bark (I used almond bark) and dip the pretzels. If using rods, leave an inch or two of space at the bottom for the handle. If you're going to roll the pretzels in anything like sprinkles, or crushed nuts/candy, do that immediately after dipping so it sticks then place on the baking sheet. When you're finished dipping them all, put in the refrigerator until set. When they're set, you can drizzle over them if you wish, then place back in the fridge until set.

Also, Family Fresh Cooking is giving away a 7 qt. stand Kitchenaid Mixer. Go on over to enter!!