Garlic Parmesan Baked Chicken Wings

I meant to get a better picture but we were halfway through the meal before I thought, "I need a picture of this!"

And by the end of the meal, there was nothing.

All gone.

Lesson learned.

When I make this again, I need to double the recipe.  Or at least the chicken wings...

I cannot remember exactly where I got this recipe but it is a keeper for sure!

Ingredients:

 

Garlic-Parmesan Chicken Wings 

1/4 cup butter
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan (I always use freshly grated)
24 chicken wings (baked- I baked ours in a baking dish at 375 for 45-50 minutes)

Directions:

Melt butter.

 Add garlic powder, onion salt, and pepper. 

Arrange hot fresh baked wings on a serving platter and drizzle with the butter mixture. 

Top with the Parmesan cheese.

We ate ours with new potatoes in white sauce and homemade parkerhouse rolls.

Enjoy! 

Reba

Cinnamon Roll Cake

I cannot believe it has been a month since I posted!

It isn't that I am not cooking. I really am.

Or that I haven't made recipes that we liked. I really have.

My life is just a bit chaotic right now.

As in seriously chaotic.

There is dust everywhere. Carpet pulled up. And I now have a stairwell I didn't have a few weeks ago.

We are adding on to our house.

Which hasn't really stopped my cooking, though we have had to call the builder a time or two to say, "Please get my stove turned back on!" (which thankfully he has).

It is just tiring to me.

I come home after a busy day, do the normal stuff like help kids with homework or cook dinner, and then there is extra stuff like vacuuming the kitchen and countertops which is truly futile but I feel like I must do anyway.

So when it is finally time to sit down, I can't stay awake. I am spent for the day.

I guess I have been on hiatus.

But I am back.  At least some.

When I am awake anyway.

So the other day I saw a recipe for a cinnamon roll cake.

I love cinnamon rolls.  And I have made several different kinds.

But they can be kind of a pain to make.

So a cake?

That sounded perfect.

The taste of cinnamon roll but not the work.

Okay, a little work.

But not as much work.

Yet just as much taste.

Between my family and the workers at our house, TWO cakes were gone before 10.

Delicious.

Here is the original recipe. I really didn't change much.  I actually didn't change anything on purpose, just forgot a thing or two and didn't always follow directions (accidentally).

Ingredients:
3 cups flour, plus 2 Tbsp divided  Okay, totally forgot to add the 2 Tbsp later. But it still worked.


1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp Kosher salt

1 1/2 Tbsp baking soda

1 1/2 cups milk

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup butter melted

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

2 Tbsp cinnamon

Icing:
2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease two 8-inch cake pans, then line with parchment paper. Okay, I technically used pie plates because I don't have good cake pans, AND I didn't bother with the parchment paper. I just "greased" (with cooking spray) really well.

Use the mixer to blend the 3 cups of flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, milk, eggs, and melted butter.

Divide the batter evenly between the two pans.

In another bowl, beat (with a mixer) the softened butter, the brown sugar, the cinnamon, and the 2 Tbsp flour (which I forgot).

Use a tablespoon to drop the butter mixture onto the cake batter, alternating between the two cake pans.  Or pie pans. However you roll. :)

Swirl in with a knife.

Bake for 25-30.

Remove from oven and let them cool for 10 minutes in the pan.

Flip cakes out onto serving plates. Which I discovered I had none of. :( Not big enough for this anyway.  I just improvised. Story of my life.

Whisk the icing ingredients and drizzle over warm cakes.

Enjoy!

The original recipe states that one cake can be frozen (pre-icing) then re-heated later.

In my house, we are not likely to have ever have any leftover cakes. :)

But it is a good suggestion.

Happy cooking!

Reba

Hamburger Buns

Oh wow.

I don't think I have ever had this much time between posts.

I am still alive. I am still cooking. I am just not posting much at this moment. No reason other than life. :)

I have actually made these before but haven't blogged about them.

(Note:  I have made other buns such as these but I find that this recipe is just a little quicker and just as tasty.)

These are called 40 minute buns.  And they can be made in 40 minutes.  BUT if I have time, I try to let them rise a little bit longer.

Oh, and you haven't had homemade buns, you need to know that the texture is a little different. They tend to crumble a little easier.  But they are also delicious and worth the effort.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp active dry yeast (I use rapid rise)
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp warm water (not too hot, not too cold)
1/3 cup vegetable oil (I used olive oil after reading some of the suggestions on the original recipe)
1/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp salt
3-3 1/2 cups all purpose flour (more as needed)

Directions:
Dissolve yeast in the warm water in a bowl.  Add the oil and sugar and let it rest for about five minutes.

Add the egg, flour, and salt to form a soft dough.  If it is too sticky, add more flour.

Knead for about 3-5 minutes. 

Divide into 12 pieces.  The buns will be fairly small so if you want bigger buns, divide into fewer pieces (8-10).  Shape into balls.  Place about 3 inches apart on a greased baking sheet.

Cover and let rest for about 10 minutes.  As I said, I usually let them sit longer if possible.

Preheat oven to 425.

If desired, brush the top with olive oil or melted butter and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.

When ready, bake for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown.

Split in middle when cooked/cooled.

Enjoy!

Reba
PS I read that these can be formed into hot dog buns but I haven't tried those yet...

French Dip on Homemade Sub Rolls

The other day I really wanted to make French Dip. And that is fairly easy.  But the hard part for us is finding the rolls for sandwiches that don't contain a lot of things we avoid (like preservatives).

So I did a quick search via Internet and found this recipe.  It had great reviews.  And it didn't look too hard.

So one night, after a long day of school and parent/teacher conferences, I threw them together.

A little while later I had this most amazing scent coming from my kitchen.

Homemade rolls.

When I took them out of the oven, I just had to have a little nibble.

Yum.

My teenager wandered in, ready to sample.  Or devour.  Whichever I would allow.

The next night we ate our French dips on these rolls.

And they were still delicious.

Here is the recipe for the rolls...
Ingredients:
2 packages (or 5 tsp) active yeast (I use instant)

3 cups warm water (divided...1/2 cup and 2 1/2 cups)

2 Tbsp sugar divided (1 and 1)

1/4 cup vegetable or olive oil (I used olive because I LOVE olive :)

1 Tbsp salt

5-9 cups all purpose flour (I think I used close to 8 but I lost track)

sesame seeds (optional)

Directions:
 Dissolve the yeast in 1/2 cup water.  Add 1 Tbsp sugar.  Let it sit for about five minutes.  It should kind of "foam" up.

After a few minutes, add the remaining water and sugar.  Add in the oil and begin adding flour (about 4 cups).  Add in the salt.

Knead to make a soft dough, adding flour as needed until it is "not sticky", about 6-8 minutes.  Do NOT over-knead.

Form into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl (again, I used olive oil).

Cover and let rise, about 45 minutes.

Punch down the dough and divide the dough into small pieces.  The original recipe called for 18 pieces; I decided 16 was easier so my buns were just a bit bigger.  Shape the pieces into an oval.  I need to work on my shaping skills but thankfully that doesn't affect taste. :)  Place on a greased baking dish, about 2 inches apart.

Use scissors to cut a small slash across the top of the buns.

Cover and let rise for about 20 minutes.

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Add sesame seeds if desired.

Bake for 12-18 minutes, until golden brown.

Enjoy!

They were my favorite "sub" roll that I have made so far.  The original recipe is A LOT so if you don't want that many, I would just halve the recipe. I ended up freezing our leftovers for future meals.

Onto the French dip.

I had a recipe I liked for French dip but with changes in diet around here, I had to re-think some recipes. That was one.  Thankfully one day a good friend of mine posted this recipe.   Perfect!  All things I could use or improvise.

So, here is my version based on her version. :)

French dip
Ingredients:
1 lb thin cut sirloin steak  (I actually use a bigger sirloin though I have never weighed it)
14 oz beef broth (though I add a whole container since I am using a bigger sirloin)
1 packet onion soup mix...this is where I have to improvise.  I make my own using the following recipe instead of using a packaged mix:
  8 teaspoons dried onion flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper 

Directions:
Combine soup mix and beef broth and pour over the sirloin in the crockpot.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Shred meat with a fork.

I had provolone cheese on hand for those who wanted cheese.

We then ate it on our buns (which we toasted slightly in the oven).

And of course, we used the "au jus" from the crockpot for the dipping part.

Yum.

Easy and yum.

Enjoy!

Reba

Chocolate Chess Pie

Last night we had company over.  I wanted to have some sort of dessert but couldn't decide what to have.  I checked out this recipe from my Pinterest Sweet Treat board and decided to give it a try since it was simple and I had all ingredients on hand.

I know, it is always a risk trying a new recipe with company coming over. BUT I figured with chocolate, how could I go wrong?

And the answer is...? You can't.  Not with this.  It is easy and delicious. Almost sinful.

Ingredients:
Crust-
1 sleeve graham crackers crushed (the original recipe used chocolate graham crackers but one of my kiddos can't do that so I used regular)
1 stick butter.  Yes, a whole stick.
1 Tbsp sugar

Filling-
1 stick butter (yes, another stick)
1 oz unsweetened chocolate (or 3 Tbsp cocoa powder...I used the unsweetened chocolate square)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp kosher salt

Directions:
Pre-heat the oven to 350. 

Melt the butter. I just stuck it in the microwave.  Mix with the sugar and graham cracker crumbs until well combined.  Press into a 9 inch pie pan (I did spray mine first), forming the bottom/sides of the pie.

Bake for 8 minutes.

Let it cool for a bit then chill for an hour or more.

When ready, preheat the oven to 325.  Meanwhile, melt the butter and chocolate over low heat in a sauce pan on the stove.  Stir.  Remove from heat and add sugar, again stirring until well-combined.  Next add the eggs, vanilla, and salt.  Again stir.

Pour into the now chilled pie crust.

Bake for 40-50 minutes depending on how gooey you want it.

Let it cool for 20-30 minutes before serving.

You can serve it warm or at room temperature with whipped cream or ice cream.  However, I have to say that I have found that I like it best chilled from the fridge. Oh, yum.

Sinful.  Absolutely sinful.

And rich.

Oh, yum.

Enjoy!

Reba

Crockpot Corn on the Cob

I will give a disclaimer:  This is nothing fancy at all.  I don't know if I would even call it a "recipe". But I wanted to share because apparently it is good stuff.

Another disclaimer:  I do not eat cooked corn. I like corn in corn dip but beyond that, I just don't. I try it periodically because it looks good to me. But it doesn't taste good (to me).  However, the people in my family who DO eat corn have loved it this way.  Thus, I am sharing.

Ingredients:
Corn on the cob, husk removed and corn washed (I break mine in half to make it easier to eat, per hubby's request)

Melted butter (2-3 Tbsp)

Salt and pepper (I use sea salt and freshly ground peppercorns)

Directions:
After cleaning the corn, rub with melted butter.

Salt and pepper the corn cob.

Wrap in aluminum foil.

Place in a crockpot (no water added) on low for about 4 hours.

Enjoy!

Like I said, simple but apparently really tasty!

Reba

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars

 On occasion, I make "breakfast energy bites" which usually Child 4 and I eat ourselves.  But this week I saw this recipe (very similar but cooked and in "bar" form and gave it a try. 

Well, all I can say is that they were gone really fast.  And it was NOT just because of Child 4 and me.  The whole family (minus Dad who was gone) chowed down on them. I WILL be making them again, especially during the school year. They are quick, fairly healthy, and can be made ahead of time then just reheated (if preferred). 

Ingredients:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup peanut butter (I used creamy/natural)
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour (the original recipe used whole wheat, I just had all purpose on hand)
1 cup old fashioned oats (I am not sure how it would work with quick oats)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup other add in (original recipe used raisins, I used flax meal)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray an 8 x 8 baking dish with cooking spray.

With a mixer, mix the peanut butter and brown sugar on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. The original recipe called for using the paddle attachment.  My mixer does not have that so I just used the regular beaters and they worked fine.

Mix in the vanilla.

Continue mixing on medium speed, adding in the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt.  It will be thick. Just be patient. :)

Slowly pour in the milk.  Mix until a dough forms.

Fold in the chocolate chips and the other add in.

Once all is combined, press into the baking dish. 

Bake for about 17-20 minutes until gold brown. 

Allow to cool completely before cutting. 

I stored them in the fridge, but I am guessing they would be fine on the counter.

Enjoy!

Smores Bars

I am not a big marshmallow fan.  I can do without Rice Krispie treats.  And Rocky Road ice cream is NOT my favorite.

But Smores.

Oh, how I love smores.

In fact, I have a whole Pinterest board dedicated to them.  "More Smores". 

The unfortunate thing is my hubby is not the smores fan I am.

So I don't try out the smores recipes nearly as much as I want.  Well, due to that and the fact that I would weigh a LOT more if I did.

But every now and then I figure out a way to do it.

Like when we are going to a cookout.

Perfect time.

So this past week, I decided to try Smores Bars.

They looked easy.  Required little preparation.  And they could be made ahead of time.

The only "warning" I feel like I should give is to let people know ahead of time that they are cold.

My kids all complained a little at first because they think "smores" and think "warm".

Yet it didn't stop one of them from eating the bars.

Ingredients:
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted (plus a little more for greasing purposes)

1 cup graham cracker crumbs (I just threw a "sleeve" of crackers into the food processor and whirled away), plus 2 graham crackers broken into large pieces

3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk (not quite a whole can)

1 1/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt

1 cup mini marshmallows

Directions:
Line an 8 x 8 baking pan with aluminum foil and butter/grease.  I did do this but I actually think next time I would just grease the baking pan itself with the butter or cooking spray.

Mix the melted butter and the graham cracker crumbs together in a bowl with a fork until moistened. 

Press firmly into the bottom of the baking dish.

This is the only area I had trouble. I pressed as much as I could but my crumbs just never stuck together. I don't know if I should have used more butter, pressed more, or what.  Don't get me wrong, it was still tasty.  I just couldn't get it to gel.  I think next time I make these, I will do something similar to what I do with the pretzels for pineapple fluff.  I think I will "bake it" at 400 degrees for 5-7 minutes...just enough to make it a bit crunchier/more together.  I will let you know how that goes. :)

Next, heat the chocolate chips and the condensed milk over medium heat, stirring constantly until smooth.  Once smooth, remove from the heat and add in the salt and vanilla.

Quickly, pour over the graham cracker and spread. You have to work quick or it will start to harden.  I found that if I held the spatula vertically and started in the middle to spread to the sides, it worked much easier. Otherwise the graham crackers try to go with the chocolate. :)

Next, pour the marshmallows over the top and push down into the chocolate.

Finish by pressing in the broken pieces of the 2 graham crackers in the "holes" left by marshmallows.

Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or so before cutting/serving.

Enjoy!

Burrito Casserole

I almost didn't put a picture on because this sure does not do the dish justice.

I will direct you to the original recipe which has a MUCH nicer picture...just click here.

I saw this on Pinterest one day and thought, "We might have to try this..."

It is similar to another recipe I have made but I like trying new things.

SO glad I did.

Yum.

I wanted to eat the whole thing myself.

At least until I calculated calories.

One serving (more or less) was plenty for my waistline.

Even though my taste buds asked me to go back for more.

What doesn't help at all is that I served it with chips (and for me, guacamole).

Major calories.

But, oh, so good.

By the way, hubby used chips to scoop up the casserole...he really liked the added crunch.

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef or turkey (except in our case, we use 1.5 lbs since that is how our meat comes)

1/2 onion, diced

1 package taco seasoning (I actually make my own...will try to post that soon)

6 flour tortillas, torn into pieces

1 can refried beans

2-3 cups sharp cheddar cheese (I used Colby Jack; I think Mexican cheese would be good too)

4 ounces sour cream (I confess, I used 6-8 ounces)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350.

Brown the ground beef with the onion in a skillet over medium/medium high heat.

Drain (if needed).

Add the refried beans and the taco seasoning and continue to heat over low/medium heat.

Meanwhile, mix the sour cream and the cream of mushroom soup together in a separate bowl.

Layer in a large casserole dish:
half of the sour cream/soup mixture
half of the torn tortillas
the meat/beans mixture
half of the shredded cheese

Then repeat.

Bake uncovered for 20-30 minutes.

Like I said, it was good stuff.

We WILL be having this again.

(I had just enough for one bowl of leftovers which are now gone because I ate them up)

Happy cooking!
Reba

Garlic Toast

I have been looking for a good garlic toast/bread recipe. I have tried a few but none have quite worked for me.  I used to buy a certain frozen brand but with my food sensitive kiddo, I can't do that anymore.  Thus my quest...

Anyway, last week I was really craving some so I tried yet another recipe.

And this one worked for me...

What I really like about this recipe (though I haven't done it yet) is that I can make it ahead of time and freeze the pieces then pull them out to toast when ready.

That is a goal of mine this summer.

Anywho, here is the recipe.  It calls for French bread. I used a frozen homemade version I had. (I only used half which made plenty!)

Ingredients (for a whole loaf...I halved the whole recipe):
French bread, cut into 1 inch slices

1/2 cup softened butter

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese (I used finely shredded)

1 tsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Directions:
Mix butter, cheese, parsley, and garlic powder.

Arrange bread slices on a large cookie sheet.

Spread butter mixture over each slice.

If you want to freeze it, now is the time to stick that cookie sheet in the freezer for about an hour to let the bread freeze. Then throw them in a freezer bag and pull out as needed.

When ready to cook (from frozen or just made), preheat oven to 425.

Bake/toast for 5-7 minutes.

Enjoy!

Reba

Sesame Beef Wraps

We have become quite a fan of "Asian inspired" foods.  Toasted Sesame Oil is one of my new favorite ingredients forever. I LOVE the way it smells and tastes...worth every cent.

So when I saw this recipe (I think on Pinterest but I am not totally positive), I knew I had to try it.

I happened to have some flank steak in the freezer, not enough to make a steak dinner but enough for a meal like this. So I pulled it out for this recipe.

And it was good stuff.

We will have this again (though not too often; I can't afford flank steak very often).

Ingredients:
2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp sugar

2 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp sesame oil (YUM!)

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp rice vinegar

1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds

Freshly ground black peppercorns

1 lb flank steak cut thinly against the grain

oil

Butter lettuce leaves (I had a hard tine finding them...I had to buy a LIVE lettuce plant from the grocery store, roots intact. That being said, these are great leaves for wraps!)

Optional toppings:  Shredded carrots, brown rice (cooked), green onions, etc.

Sauce ingredients:

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 tsp sugar

3 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp rice vinegar

1/2 tsp sriracha chile sauce (I omitted due to food issues here)

1 tsp sesame oil

1 Tbsp green onion, chopped

1/2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds

1 Tbsp water

Note:  Since many of the marinade ingredients AND the sauce ingredients are the same or similar, I would make them both at the same time. I didn't pay attention to that part when I made it. :)

Directions:
Mix together the garlic, sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, rice vinegar, sesame seeds, and peppercorn.  Pour into a large ziplock bag and add the flank steak. Refrigerate 1-3 hours (or longer if needed).  Like I said above, it would make sense to go ahead and mix the sauce ingredients and refrigerate until needed.

 When ready to cook, heat about 1/2 Tbsp oil in a large skillet.  Put about half the meat in the skillet and brown. 

Once it cooked through, place that meat in a serving dish.

Add about 1/2 Tbsp more oil to the skillet and cook the remaining meat.

I just put all of the foods on the table and let the family build their own. Some don't like lettuce, so they just put the meat on top of rice. I put some rice on lettuce then added the meat and carrots and dipped in the sauce. 

Very quick, very good!

Reba

Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffins

You may remember that I love pumpkin.  Especially pumpkin muffins. I used to make them all of the time.  A cake mix, a bag of cinnamon chips, a can of pumpkin.

That was it.

Except those cinnamon chips...they have dyes in them.  Evil dyes (at least for one of my kids).

And the cake mix? Full of preservatives/artificials...which we also cannot have.

So my pumpkin muffin baking days came to an end.

However, I find myself STILL craving some pumpkin muffins.

So not long ago I did a recipe search.

And I happened upon this.

So a couple nights ago, I decided to just make them.  (I baked them at night since they would take a while.  I have been keeping them in the fridge, and we heat them in the microwave as needed)

And they are rather tasty.

Not as easy or as simple as the ones I used to make, but that hasn't stopped me from eating them.  I mean, these have a crumb coating. You can't go wrong with that!

Ingredients:
Filling
8 oz cream cheese block (softened)
1 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Note-While the cream cheese definitely adds to this muffin, next time I will probably halve all of these ingredients so not have quite so much cream cheese involved.

Muffins
2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar (granulated)

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (I didn't have any and left it out...it was fine without it)

2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cup solid pack pumpkin (I just used one regular size can)

3 large eggs

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Topping

1/2 cup flour

1/3 cup sugar

3 tbsp butter (melted)

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:
Filling-  Combine the cream cheese fillings in a bowl and beat (I used my little hand mixer) until smooth.  Place on a large sheet of plastic wrap and roll into a "log".  Place in the freezer for about an hour. 

Topping:  Just before removing the cream cheese from the freezer, put the topping ingredients in a bowl.  Use a fork to mix it.  It will form little clumps.  Resist just sitting and eating the topping...good stuff.

Muffins:  Preheat oven to 350.  Line muffin tin with liners.  This recipe easily makes 16.

Mix the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, spices/salt) in a large bowl.  Stir together.

In another bowl, combine "wet" ingredients (pumpkin, eggs, oil, vanilla).

Make a "well" in the middle of the dry ingredients.  Pour "wet" ingredients into the hole.  Stir all ingredients together until mixed.  Do NOT over mix.

Add about 2 Tbsp of muffin batter to each muffin liner. 

Slice the cream cheese log into 16 equal size pieces.  Like I said, I think next time I will half that...it is a lot of cream cheese :).  Place a cream cheese "slice" in the middle of each muffin liner.

Top the cream cheese with remaining muffin batter.

Sprinkle the topping on top, pressing it down to ensure it sticks.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Caramel Graham Crackers

The other day, a co-worker at school was having a milestone birthday.  We were asked to bring snack foods.  If you know me at all, I don't typically just drop by the grocery store.  I try to go once a week.  That is it.

And this past week was particularly busy.  And exhausting.

What to do, what to do...

I remembered reading a recipe I found via Pinterest using graham crackers. I have lots of graham crackers. That sounded promising.  But when I looked at it, I was short an ingredient or two.

I considered making the brownie bites with peanut butter frosting.  But, alas, there was no cream cheese in the house (how did I let that happen?).

So I did a Google search and found just what I needed.

Chocolate caramel graham crackers.  

Quick, easy, and I had all of the ingredients needed.

I don't know that I totally agree with the title. It had more of a toffee taste to me than a caramel.  But otherwise, it was right on...and delicious too!

Ingredients:
12 (or so) graham crackers (the sheets)

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (3/4 cup)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/8 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans but almonds, walnuts, and probably even peanuts would be good)

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 375.

Line a cookie sheet (15 x 10) with aluminum foil.

Line the bottom of the cookie sheet with graham crackers, breaking apart when needed.

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter.  Add the brown sugar.  Stir constantly (for about 5 months) until it thickens.

Add in the salt.

Pour over the graham crackers, spreading evenly.  Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes until mixture is bubbling.

Remove from the oven and evenly pour chocolate chips over the top.

Return to oven for 2-3 minutes (until chocolate chips are VERY soft).

Remove from oven and use a spatula or a frosting spreader to spread the melted/soft chocolate over the top of the brown sugar mixture.

Press chopped nuts into the top.

Let cool.  (I put it in the fridge overnight to help it set).

Remove foil from the back of the crackers and break into pieces.

Then enjoy!

Reba

Brownie Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

I needed a dessert for a teacher meal at Child 1's school.

I needed something easy to transport.

Something I could make ahead of time.

Something I could get several servings from.

And something chocolatey of course.

Because what kind of dessert isn't chocolatey? :)

I had pinned a recipe for brownie cupcakes on Pinterest.  And it looked yummy.

However, the frosting looked a bit too much for me.

I brainstormed other toppings (and by brainstorming I mean "Googled" :).

Then I happened upon this recipe.

Just what I was looking for.

I had to adjust a little (due to differences in measurements).  Once again, I was thankful for Google to help me convert grams to ounces.  And Celsius to Fahrenheit.

I don't know that I got it perfect.

But I do know that what came out of the oven and went into my mouth was oh so yummy.

I taste tested one of the "brownie cupcakes".

Then later I taste tested it with the peanut butter frosting.

Both delish.

Even the hubby who doesn't typically do a lot of chocolate with peanut butter raved about it.

Unfortunately for us, since these were for teachers, we only got one.  (And each kid got one)

I think I will be making these again soon.  For us.

Ingredients (Brownie Cupcakes):
1/3 cup butter (I used unsalted)

1 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

3 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped (if you use the squares, that would be three squares. And I totally forgot to chop it :)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup cane sugar (granulated)

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

Directions (Brownie Cupcakes):
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Line a regular (around 10) or mini (around 30 ) muffin tin with liners.  I did the mini. I honestly don't know if I could have eaten a regular size one even as good as they are. That would be REALLY rich!

Sift flour.  Set aside.  Okay, totally forgot to do that part. But it was fine.

Melt butter, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and unsweetened chocolate in a double broiler. Or if you are like me, put it in a microwavable bowl/measuring cup.  Put it in the microwave for a minute.  Take out and stir.  Return for another 30 seconds, then stir again.  Continue until the chocolate and butter are melted.  That was about 1 minute 30 seconds in all.  Note:  The original recipe called for only melting 1/2 cup of the semi-sweet chocolate chips.  Oops. I totally missed that and melted all of them. :)

Transfer butter mixture to a large mixing bowl.

Add in the brown and cane sugars.

Whisk/stir one egg at a time into the mixture.

Add in flour, vanilla, and salt.  If you didn't add all of the semi-sweet chips (like I already did), add the rest now.

Mix.  Divide into the muffin liners, filling about 3/4 full.  I used a "cookie" scoop for this part.

Bake for around 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the cupcake comes out clean.

As the cupcakes cool, prepare the peanut butter frosting.

Ingredients (Frosting):
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

8 oz cream cheese (room temperature)

1/2 cup butter (room temperature).  Again, I used unsalted.

1 cup creamy peanut butter

chopped peanuts (optional)

Directions:  
Mix all of the ingredients OTHER THAN the chopped salted peanuts with a mixer.

Spread or pipe onto the brownies once they have cooled off.

Top with chopped peanuts if desired.

We stored ours in the fridge.

Well, the ones we didn't eat anyway. :)

Reba

PS:  I ended up with leftover frosting, so I have been putting a little bit on graham crackers topped with a few chocolate chips.  Not quite the same as the brownie cupcake, but it works for me.  :)

Parker House Rolls

Not great pictures.

Sorry about that.

We were SOOOOO ready to eat some dinner, I was taking pictures on the go.

Literally.

I will say that if you can get past the really bad pictures, this is an awesome recipe.

One of my favorite roll recipes to date.

In fact, probably in the top 3.

Right along with the cheese stuffed rolls and the yeast rolls.  (I have French bread in a category all on its own...)

And why shouldn't it be good?

It has a stick and a half of butter in it. And half a cup of sugar.

Really, it has no choice BUT to be good.

Oh, and if you click on the original link (and if you are a fan of food shows), you will recognize the "author" right away...

Parker House Rolls
Ingredients:
1/2 cup warm water

1 packet dry active yeast (I just use about a tablespoon of instant yeast which is what is in my freezer)

1/2 cup sugar (I will admit, I thought that was a typo at first. I have NEVER seen a bread recipe with that much sugar in it!)

7 1/2 to 8 cups all purpose flour (I used my favorite King Arthur Unbleached All Purpose...I think I actually used closer to just 7.  I have learned with doughs and flour to just use a conservative amount and then slowly add to it until it is just right...not too sticky!)

12 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled (Okay, I didn't wait for mine to cool really.  And it still worked. That is a stick and a half of butter in case you are wondering...)

2 cups milk at room temperature (again, mine wasn't at room temperature because I didn't plan ahead...it still worked. The original recipe called for whole. I only had 1%. That worked.)

2 eggs, room temperature (unless you don't plan ahead like me :)

1 Tbsp Kosher salt

Additional softened butter and salt for the finished roll

Directions:
Add yeast and sugar to warm water in a LARGE bowl.  Stir and give a few minutes to "bloom". I do not check the temperature of the water anymore; I have learned it should feel a lot like bath water. Unless you are like me and prefer really hot water. In my bath, not in the dough.

Add in eggs, milk, and melted butter.  You can use a mixer (and if you do, check out the original recipe for the proper order). I just hand mix. I do wear rubber gloves because of my long fingernails and to keep from having a big mess on my hands...literally.  And when I say hand mix, I actually use my hands to squish it and stir it. 

Add in the flour and salt. Like I said, add in flour conservatively (like 6 cups of flour) and then add additional flour slowly until it reaches the right consistency.

Knead for a few minutes until you form a large ball.

Most recipes call for buttering or oiling a different bowl and putting the dough in there to rise. I already make a big enough mess. I just use the same bowl.  I don't oil or butter it at all. There is usually a little stray flour and that keeps it from sticking. Anyway, cover and put in a warm place (if that is possible when it is snowing outside) to let it rise until doubled. The recommendation was 2+ hours which I did.  It might be shorter but I was I napping so I didn't check.

Once the dough has risen, preheat the oven to 375.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

Roll the dough out into a rectangle on a floured surface.  The rectangle should be about 8 x 16.  The dough should be about 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch thick. Don't use a rolling pan. Just use those trusty hands. :)

From short side to short side, cut the rectangle in half in the middle.  I just don't have knives that work well with dough. I used kitchen shears instead.

Then cut each half into 12 strips. 

Take each strip and fold into thirds.  It is like you are folding it in half but overdo it so you tuck the extra in underneath.  There are pictures on the original recipe (under "pictures") that show this better than I can explain it. :)

Put the roll seam-side down on the baking sheet in three rows (8 in each row). They should be "tightly" packed. 

You don't have to let them rise again but I did give mine a few minutes to rest before I baked them.

What I really like is you can freeze them at this point by covering with plastic wrap.  Then you can pull them out within 3 weeks to cook at a later time. I will definitely do that in the future if I know I won't have time to do the whole rising thing on a given day!

Bake 18-20 minutes at 375.  If doing it from frozen, then bake at 325 for 25 minutes followed by 375 for 10 more minutes.

Brush warm rolls with softened butter and sprinkle with salt (I used freshly ground sea salt for that).

Enjoy.

Oh, the bad news? They are 265 calories a roll. 

And that was using 1% milk!

But believe me, they are worth every bit of exercise I did for them. :)

Even Hubby who can be a hard sell on bread loved them. And my picky child 4 (who usually only eats Rhodes rolls) ate 2 of them...

Happy cooking!

Reba

Turtle Cheesecake Ball

Today we had Souper Bowl Thursday at school.  The teachers, that is. 

We had a sign up earlier this week for soups, salads, chips and dips, and desserts.

I signed up for dessert.

Then I did a quick search on my Pinterest Sweet Treats board to see what I wanted to make.

I wanted something easy that I could make ahead.  Something with chocolate (of course). 

And then I found it.

Turtle Cheesecake Ball.

I have made something similar but the word "Turtle" really got my heart racing.

I LOVE turtle desserts.  (As in the combination of caramels, nuts, and chocolate, not the animal)

So I did a quick grocery run (and totally did NOT count that for my January challenge since my family didn't get to enjoy any of it).

A few minutes of my time, and I had a turtle cheesecake ball chilling in the fridge. 

Then today, I took it to school, added some sliced apples and some chocolate graham crackers, and a few hours later, I had nothing but a plate full of crumbs.

It was good stuff.

(I won't say how much of the eating of it was done by me, but I did have others tell me it was good too...)

Ingredients:
 cream cheese (8 oz), softened
1/4 cup butter, at room temperature (I used unsalted)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1/2 package dry vanilla pudding mix
1/2 cup caramel (ice cream topping)

Directions:
Cream the butter and cream cheese together with a mixer.

Add the caramel and mix together.

Add the brown sugar and powdered sugar.  Cream together.

Add the vanilla and pudding mix.

Fold in chocolate chips and pecans.

Pat into a ball and refrigerate for at least an hour.  (I used plastic wrap sprayed with non-stick spray to help form the ball, then wrapped the ball up for the fridge.)  By the way, I refrigerated it overnight.

One neat suggestion that the original website had was to drizzle caramel over the top.  And I think adding a few chopped pecans and chocolate chips on top would be nice too.

But I totally forgot to take any of that.

So mine was just plain and not very pretty.

But tasty.

It was very tasty.

I enjoyed each and every bite.

I want to make it again.  And I probably will.  But not until I exercise all of these calories off. :)

Happy cooking!

Reba

Baked Chicken and Dumplins

I saw this on Pinterest the other day.

Baked Chicken and Dumplins.

No, not dumplings.

You have to say it the Southern way.

Dumplins.

I LOVE Dumplins.

When I go to visit Mark's family in Mississippi, his mom often makes a big pan of chicken and dumplins.

I attempted it once.

It was NOT the same.

So that is why I found this recipe intriguing.

It is LIKE chicken and dumplins but not.

So this morning I popped out of bed and boiled the chicken.

Then I stuck it and the broth in the fridge.

After school, I rushed home and I threw it all together and stuck it in the oven before running kids around.

And about an hour and a half later, we sat down to eat.

I should mention that after only 20-30 minutes, the kids were saying, "What is that smell? It smells so good..."

Anyway, an hour and a half later, we sat down to eat.

And we loved it.

Well, five out of six.

One of out six was her usual "It's okay..."

She is picky that way.

Five out of six works for me.

We WILL be having this again.

Oh, and my hubby is not a big dumplin guy but he LOVED this.  He thought it tasted a lot like a pot pie minus the veggies.

We both agreed it was comfort food at its finest.

This recipe makes a large pan.  I had to scoop just a little bit for my lunch tomorrow or the teenager would have finished it off.  I thought we would have a lot left over.

No such luck.

Ingredients:
4-6 large chicken breasts, boneless. I had frozen tenderloins on hand so I used that.

1 1/2 sticks butter, divided.  I used to use "light" but due to one of my kiddo's sensitivities, I am using the real stuff these days.  YUM.

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour (If I had to do it over again, I would have doubled the milk and flour)

1/2 cup sour cream

2 cups chicken broth (The original recipe called for 3.  I didn't use the third one and I still thought it was amazing.

1 can (or in my case, box) cream of chicken soup (The original recipe called for cream of celery. I didn't have any of that.

1/2 tsp savory (I didn't have that so I just sprinkled rosemary and thyme)

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Place the chicken breasts, 4 Tbsp of butter, salt, and pepper in a large pot.  Cover with water.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Then simmer for about 30-45 minutes until tender.

Remove chicken from broth.  Let it cool a bit then shred it (I just used two forks).

If you do this ahead of time (I have to or I run out of time), put your shredded chicken in the fridge.  Also store that chicken broth.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees when ready to cook.

Melt the remaining stick of butter in a large dish. I used a 9 x 13.

Spread the shredded chicken all over the bottom of the dish.

Mix together the flour and the milk. (As I mentioned before, the one change I will make next time is to double the flour and the milk.)

Pour over the chicken and spread out as much is possible.

Mix together the broth (I just used the broth that remained after boiling the chicken), sour cream, the cream of chicken soup, and savory (or thyme and rosemary for me..).  Spread over the top of the chicken/flour mixture.

Bake for 30-40 minutes.  Then let it cool for about 15 minutes.  At one point mine was getting a bit brown on top, so I stuck some aluminum foil over the top for the last 10 minutes or so...

Oh, you are supposed to pour one more cup of chicken broth over the top after it cooks but I didn't.

And know that it is never extra firm.  It will seem a bit runny.

But also know it is good stuff.

We had it with green beans and homemade bread.

It was SOOOO yummy.

I enjoyed every bite!

Happy cooking!

Reba

Homemade Sandwich Bread

I have tried making sandwich bread before but wasn't overly excited with the final product.

Yet I was inspired to try again with a different recipe.  

So when I saw this, I was ready to give it a whirl.

So glad I did!

This was easy and delicious!  Even better, it makes two loaves so I can freeze one for later while enjoying one now...

Ingredients:
2 cups lukewarm water

2 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp dry active yeast

2 Tbsp butter softened (I totally forgot to soften, so I just cut it apart into lots of pieces and then worked it into the dough) and cut into small pieces

5 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 Tbsp Kosher salt

Directions:
Whisk the sugar into the water.

When the sugar is dissolved, add the yeast in, stir thoroughly, and then walk away.  In about 10 minutes, the yeast and water will hopefully have created a nice little "foam".

Toss the flour and salt into the yeast mixture.  Add the butter.

Mix together.  Knead the dough for 3-5 minutes either with a mixer or by hand. (I just did it by hand. It is really relaxing to me)

Round the dough into a ball and cover in a lightly oiled bowl.  I actually used one bowl for the process and I didn't spray it or anything. It was fine.  Place in a warm spot (I just put mine on the stovetop under the microwave light and sometimes turn the oven on to warm).  Hopefully if it is a warm enough spot, the dough will double in size in about an hour.

Once it has doubled in size, punch the dough down and knead it a little more.  Form into a ball and place on a floured surface.  Cut or tear it apart to make two equal portions.  Knead each half and roll into a loaf shape (though it will look like a small loaf :) and place in a one pound lightly greased loaf pan.  Cover again and let it rise for about an hour.

After about 45 minutes, preheat the oven to 350.

The dough should have doubled again in the pan.

Remove the cover and place in the oven and let them bake for about 35-40 minutes until the crust is a beautiful golden brown color.

Once the bread is done, remove from the oven and let it sit for about 5 minutes in the pan.  Then dump it out onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.  It is highly suggested that you wait until the bread cools to cut it.

After it was cooled off, I wrapped one loaf up and placed it in the freezer.  The other loaf I wrapped and placed in the fridge until our breakfast for dinner night.  Then I sliced it and toasted it.  And it was good stuff.  Yummy.  In fact, I am not sure I will ever be able to go back to store bought again!

Happy baking!

Reba