Mint Cookies

I shared this recipe today with a friend that wanted to make some easy cookies for the holiday.  Super simple, soft, minty cookies that will make a nice addition to any holiday platter:

Ingredients:

Devil's Food cake mix

1 egg

1/3 cup vegetable oil

Andes Mints

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix cake mix, oil, and egg together.  Roll batter into walnut sized balls and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  Bake for 8-9 minutes.  Take cookies are out of the oven and gently press half of an Andes mint on top of each cookie.  Let the mint melt then use the back of a spoon to gently swirl the melted mint.

Caramel Delights

'Tis the season for holiday baking!  Here are some simple bars that make a nice addition to the holiday platter.

1 white cake mix
3/4 cup melted butter
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup evaporated milk
6 oz. chocolate chips

Caramel Sauce
1 bag caramels
1/3 cup evaporated milk

Mix together the first four ingredients and spread 1/2 of the mixture into a prepared 9x13 pan.  Bake 6-8 minutes at 350º.  Remove from the oven, immediately sprinkle chocolate chips over the top and pour caramel sauce over top.
Flatten remaining dough mix and put on top of caramel.  Bake 15-18 minutes longer.  Cool for 1 hour and cut into bars.

Easy Cranberry Cake

I have been meaning to get back into my blog-writing mode for a few weeks.  I took a little vacation from writing.  I made this fresh tasting cake for my family for Thanksgiving.  I wasn't in the mood to deal with a layered cake the night I baked.  Therefore, I made cupcakes.  My family loved them.

Ingredients:

1 white cake mix

1 1/3 cups water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 Tablespoon orange zest

1 cup fresh cranberries, chopped

1 cup finely chopped pecans

Combine the first five ingredients well.  Stir in cranberries and pecans.  Pour into two prepared round cake pans.  Bake at 350º for 30 – 35 minutes.  Cool for 10 minutes then remove from pans to cool completely.

Frosting ingredients:

8 oz package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

3-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel

1/4 cup finely chopped pecans

Beat cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add sugar, vanilla and orange peel; beat until blended.  Spread between layers and over top and sides of cake. 

Super Simple Bars!

Last night I came home from work and decided I would like to make bars for a meeting for today.  I opened the cupboard and found a double fudge cake mix.  I had mini chocolate chips, cream cheese and eggs.  Yes!  I have ingredients to make very easy bars!

Ingredients:

1 chocolate cake mix of your choice (and ingredients to prepare the cake mix)
1 egg
1 - 8 ounce cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
other add-ins as desired:  chocolate chips, mini M&Ms, etc.

Prepare cake mix as directed and pour into a greased cookie sheet.  When I prepared my cake mix last night I added 6 ounces of mini chocolate chips too.  Cream together the egg, sugar and cream cheese.  Drop by spoonful onto the cake batter, and swirl into cake.  Bake at 350º for 25 to 30 minutes.
Cool and cut bars.

Easy, yummy and great "homemade" bars in a pinch!

Pumpkin Cake

Cold weather is blowing in.  I always love to have fall foods around the house when the fall weather blows in.  Hopefully this weekend we will have time to make some sugar cookies shaped like bats, pumpkins, and ghosts.  Along with those little treats, we will have some pumpki cake.  Yummy, easy to make, and fall in every bite!

Ingredients:
1 - 20 oz can pure pumpkin
1 - 12 oz can evaporated milk
3 eggs
1 cup white sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 yellow cake mix
3/4 cup butter, melted

Grease a 9x13 baking dish and preheat oven to 350º.  In a large bowl, mix pumpkin, milk, eggs, sugar, and cinnamon until well blended.  Spread pumpkin mixture in prepared baking dish.  Sprinkle cake mix evenly on top of the batter.  Pour melted butter over the top of the cake mix.  Bake for 50 minutes and serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

Orange Cranberry Bread

I walked into the grocery store to buy some items today and spotted cranberries.  Fall is here and I find myself wanting to bake and make comfort food.  The cranberries made me think of a refreshing bread, orange cranberry bread.  So, I grabbed a bag and plan on making some this weekend.  For now my family will just have to settle for the fresh banana bread I made this evening.  Nothing like the smell of something baking on a crisp fall day!

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ cup of butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon grated orange peel

¾ cup orange juice

1 cup fresh cranberries, chopped

Combine the dry ingredients and set aside.  Cream butter and sugar together in a large bowl.  Beat in egg and orange peel.  Add dry ingredients and juice alternately to the butter and sugar mixture.  Fold in cranberries and pour into a greased 9x5 loaf pan.  Bate at 350º for 60 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.  Then, cool completely.

Upcycling: another reason to finish that bottle of wine.

Have seen this idea in magazines and craft fairs.  Love the idea of using it for a candle!  Beautiful and contained flame!

Upcycling: another reason to finish that bottle of wine. Middle Sister Wines

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Lazy Day Lasagna

• Ingredients:
  1 pound lean ground beef
  1 cup minced onion, optional
  2 garlic cloves, minced
  10 ounces fresh spinach, chopped
  8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
  1 teaspoon dried basil
  1 teaspoon dried oregano
  Salt and pepper, to taste
  12 ounces frozen cheese ravioli, do not thaw
  1 jar spaghetti sauce
  8-ounces provolone sliced
  1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces)
  
  
  Directions
  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  Brown the beef, drain and set aside.  Saute spinach in a little olive oil, with the onion, garlic, herbs, and salt and pepper in a large oven-safe skillet, remove from skillet and set aside.  Put the still-frozen ravioli into large skillet pan, breaking them up if they are clumped. Spread the ground beef and spinach mixture evenly over the ravioli, and ladle the spaghetti sauce evenly over the ground beef mixture. Over medium heat, without stirring, cook until the ravioli is heated through and beginning to brown on the bottom, about 10 minutes.
  Take the skillet off the heat, lay the provolone slices over the ground beef mixture, and sprinkle the whole thing with the Parmesan.  Bake for 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.  Serve hot.

Spinach and Pasta

I am still grilling meals.  I LOVE to grill and enjoy serving fresh and healthy side dishes with my grilled main course.  This simple pasta salad is a refreshing side for grilled shrimp or chicken.

Ingredients

8 ounces uncooked whole grain penne rigate pasta 

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons butter

1 package fresh baby spinach

3 tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

Cook pasta according to directions and drain.  In a large skillet, saute garlic in butter.  Add spinach and cook until starting to wilt.  Add lemon, lemon peel, salt and pepper.  Add pasta to spinach mixture, toss to coat and serve.

Squash Soup

Our garden reminds me of a favorite Sid Fleischman tale:  McBroom's Wonderful One-Acre Farm.  The squash and pumpkin vines have over-taken the back yard (and have started to invade our neighbors.  What to do with all that produce.... soup!  We love soup in the fall.  Here is a great squash soup recipe.

Ingredients

3 to 3 1/2 pounds squash

Unsalted butter, melted, for brushing

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

3 cups chicken broth

1/4 cup honey

1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Directions

Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the halved squash onto a baking sheet.  Brush the flesh of the squash with a little butter and season with 1 tablespoon of the salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Place in the oven and roast for 30 to 35 minutes or until the flesh is soft and tender.  Scoop the flesh from the skin into a large pot.  Add the broth, honey and ginger and place over medium heat and bring to a simmer.  Using a stick blender, puree the mixture until smooth.  Stir in the heavy cream and return to a low simmer and season with more salt, pepper (to taste), and nutmeg.

Simple Ice Cream Sandwich Dessert

A simple dessert that is yummy!  Easy to make and a hit for a family dinner or birthday party!

12 ice cream sandwiches

1 - 12oz. container of frozen whipped topping - thawed

1 - 12oz. jar of caramel ice cream topping

1 bag of Heath milk chocolate toffee chips

Arrange the ice cream sandwiches in the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.  Fill the pan, if needed cut some of the sandwiches in half.  Top with caramel ice cream topping.  Spread thawed whipped topping over the top.  Sprinkle with Heath chips.  Freeze.  Store frozen and thaw for 10 minutes before serving.

Alternative:  Use hot fudge topping and peanuts to make a peanut buster parfait dessert.  I have used mint ice cream sandwiches, hot fudge, and Andes mint shavings for a mint ice cream dessert.

French Dip

Super simple recipe that makes fantastic sandwiches!

Enjoy!

1 beef rump or round roast, about 3 pounds

1 packet Zesty Italian Salad dressing mix

10 ounce can condensed beef broth

10 ounce can water

French bread or sandwich rolls

Preparation:

Add all ingredients except bread to slow cooker.  Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 9 hours.  Slice the beef and place back into liquid.  Serve on toasted split rolls, hoggie rolls or bread.  Serve the liquids for dipping.

Cashew Crusted Tilapia

Tonight for supper, as per my husbands request, I made cashew crusted tilapia with steamed broccolini.  This is a fast, crunchy and extremely easy meal that my whole family enjoys.


Ingredients:

1/2 cup flour

1 tablespoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoon pepper

4 large eggs

2 cups finely chopped cashews

4 9 - 10 oz tilapia fillets

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons olive oil

Place flour, salt and pepper in a shallow dish and stir with a fork to blend. Whisk eggs and place them in a shallow dish. Place Cashews in a shallow dish.   Dredge fish fillets in flour mixture, dip in eggs to coat and then press both sides of the fillet into the nuts.  Melt butter and oil in heavy skillet over medium heat. Place fillets in the skillet and cook untill coating is lightly browned and fish is cooked through.  About 5 min per side.

I often squeeze fresh lemon juice on fish and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Special K Bars

Made a family favorite - an old stand-by that is good to the last crumb.  I like a lot of chocolate "frosting" on my Special K Bars!

1 c. sugar

1 c. corn syrup

1 1/2 c. peanut butter

5 c. Special K cereal

1 c. chocolate chips

1 c. butterscotch chips

Combine sugar and corn syrup in a saucepan, bring to a boil.  Add peanut butter and cereal.  Press in a 9"x13" pan.  Melt and combine both chips and spread over bars.  Chill.

Caramel Krispie Bars

Preparing for visiting friends and relatives last week, I made a couple different bars.  This one was a special request from my daughter.  It was a favorite - and disappeared quickly!

Caramel Krispie Bars

10 Tablespoons butter

10 cups mini marshmallows

10 cups Rice Krispies

14 ounce bag of caramels

14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk


Melt 5 Tablespoons margarine and 5 cups marshmallows.  Stir in 5 cups Rice Krispies.  Pat in buttered 9 x 13 inch pan.  Melt caramels and sweetened condensed milk together.  Pour over Rice Krispies layer in pan.  Cool completely.  Prepare another Rice Krispie mixture like the first.  Put on top of caramel layer.  Cool and cut into bars.

Healthy Food: 50 Of The Best In The World

Healthy Food: 50 Of The Best In The World:

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More Chicken Salad

I grilled chicken again today, and we had chicken salad sandwiches for supper.  We used a french bread for our sandwiches.  I buttered both sides of the bread and them grilled it to toast it.

Ingredients:
4 c. cubed chicken
1 c. cashews
1 c. halved seedless red grapes
(I didn't have grapes on had so I used cherries)
1 c. chopped celery
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. mayonnaise
freshly squeezed lemon juice 
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper


Mix ingredients together and serve on lettuce or bread.

Summer Chicken Salad

I love to grill in the summer!  Something about cooking outside makes cooking in the summer much more enjoyable.  When I grill chicken, I grill more than I will need for the meal and use the left-over chicken for quick, easy, and delicious summer salads.  Here is a simple summer chicken salad recipe:

Ingredients
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 cups diced chicken (left-over grilled chicken)
1 cup finely diced celery
1/3 cup slivered almonds

Directions
Combine lemon juice, mayonnaise, and salt.  Stir in chicken, celery and almonds.  Serve on bread or crisp lettuce. 

Meet Flipboard.

How do I check my Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, and News quickly each day?  I use Flipboard on my iPad to quickly flip through what is new!  I love the Magazine-like feel to this great app.

Beautifully designed for iPad and iPhone, Flipboard creates a personalized magazine out of everything being shared with you.  Flip through your Facebook newsfeed, tweets from your Twitter timeline, photos from Instagram friends, sounds from SoundCloud and much more.  As promised,  Flipboard recently launched an Android version of its news reader.  

Also announced was the partnership with Google+ and YouTube.  Users can add their Google+ account to Flipboard and see stories in their stream, updates from people in their Circles, and posts from pages they subscribe to, in a magazine-like format.  Flipboard fans will also be able to watch YouTube videos from friends and subscribers, add comments, like, share, or subscribe right from Flipboard.

Fill Flipboard with the things you like to read, from blogs to publications like Rolling Stone. Visit your account on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. You can flip through your newsfeeds and timelines from Google Reader, LinkedIn, SoundCloud, Tumblr, and Flickr, on Flipboard as well.

Flipboard creates a single place to enjoy, browse, comment on and share all the news, photos and updates that matter to you.  Check it out today: http://flipboard.com/

Fruit Smoothies

Smoothies are a nice cool and refreshing treat on a hot summer day.  We love smoothies for refreshing snack or breakfast at our house.  Dust off your blender and treat yourself to a great taste of summer.

Ingredients

1 medium banana, peeled and sliced

2 cups frozen strawberries, raspberries, or cherries

1 cup milk

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt

1/2 cup apple juice

Directions

Put all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Pour into glasses and serve.

Artichoke Dip

Ingredients

1 cup chopped frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and diced

1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed

2 tbsp water

4 oz reduced-fat cream cheese

4 oz Greek yogurt

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp low-fat milk

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1 pinch ground black pepper

Directions

Combine diced artichoke hearts and chopped spinach in a microwave-safe bowl with 2 tablespoons of water, cover bowl with plastic and poke a few holes in it to vent.  Microwave vegetables on high for 6 minutes.  Combine remaining ingredients in a small saucepan. Add the artichokes and spinach and cook over medium/low heat, stirring often for 10 minutes or until simmering.  Just before serving, broil the dip in an oven-safe dish for 1 to 2 minutes (on high) or just until slightly brown on top.  Serve with crackers, toasted bread, pita chips or raw vegetables.

Nutritional Facts

For 1 (1/2 cup) serving

230 calories 
14 g fat

Had this amazing salad at a party.  So refreshing with a fun crunch.  Just can't get over how simple this salad is to make!  Great addition to any summer time meal or picnic.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds seedless red grapes*
• 1 - 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
• 1 - 7 oz jar marshmallow creme
• 6 ounces slivered almonds
• 
  
• Wash grapes and remove all stems.  Place grapes in a large bowl.  In a separate bowl, stir together the cream cheese and marshmallow creme until smooth and creamy. Pour the mixture over the grapes and fold the mixture into the grapes until well coated.  Fold in the almonds. 
• *Can use green grapes or a combination of red and green grapes.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip

Spring celebrations, bridal showers, recitals, graduations, retirements...  It seems like spring brings all kinds of reasons to bring out dips and finger foods.  This is a sweet little dip to add to any party table.

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

 8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup powdered sugar

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Add brown sugar, wisk until sugar dissolves and mixture begins to bubble.  Remove from heat, whisk in vanilla.

Cream together cream cheese and powdered sugar for 1 minute.  With mixer on low, add in cooled brown sugar mixture.  Mix until combined.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Chill well.

Serve with mini graham crackers, cookies, fruit, or pretzels.

Raspberry Pretzel Salad

Raspberry Pretzel Salad

2 (3 oz) pkgs raspberry gelatin                  

2 cups boiling water                          

2 Tbsp sugar

2.5 cups raspberries

½ cup butter                           

½ cup crushed pretzels  

8 oz cream cheese                         

1 cup sugar

1 cup whipped cream

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water.  Refrigerate until it begins to gel.  Add berries, pour into a serving bowl and cool until set.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a separate bowl

mix the pretzels with the melted butter and sugar and spread in a 9 x 13 pan.  Bake 10 minutes, then remove, stir and cool.  After the gelatin has set, beat the cream cheese, sugar and the whipped cream together until it’swell blended.  Spread over the gelatin and top with the pretzel mix.  Pat pretzels onto cream layer.

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