Devil Bars

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My mom used to make these little beauties when I was young, and I always loved them. I have since adopted this recipe into my list of go-to dessert recipes and make them ALL the time, especially for family events. They were originally called Oatmeal Carmelitas, but Eric's family has appropriately renamed them Devil Bars because they are just that delicious. Hope you enjoy!

Crust
2 cups flour
2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
1 1/2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups butter, softened

Filling
6-8 oz pkg chocolate chips
12 oz jar caramel ice cream toppinh
3 Tbsp flour


1. Combine all crust ingredients in mixer at low speed until crumbly.
2. Press half of mixture (about 3 cups) into a greased 13x9 pan. Reserve remaining crumb mixture for topping.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
4. Sprinkle warm base with chocolate chips (you can add 1/2 cup chopped walnuts if desired).
5. Combine caramel topping and 3 Tbsp flour in small bowl. Pour evenly over chocolate chips.
6. Sprinkle with remaining crumbs.
7. Return to oven and bake 18-22 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely (refrigerate if needed) and cut into bars.

Stuffed Shells

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This was always a family favorite growing up. It is one of my favorites!

1 lb ground beef
1 jar 32 oz spaghetti sauce (32 oz)
1 box jumbo pasta shells
1 pkg mozzarella cheese (12 oz)
Parmesan cheese

1. Brown ground beef, drain, and add sauce. (Instead of spaghetti sauce, I sometimes use a can of tomato sauce, a can of Italian seasoned diced tomatoes, and mix in some Italian seasoning.)
2. Cook pasta shells and fill with mozzarella.
3. In 9x13 pan, spread 1 cup sauce. Then arrange shells in a single layer.
4. Cover shells with remaining sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
5. Cover loosely with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 min with foil then 15 min without foil. Let stand 5-10 minutes.

7 Layer Dip

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Ok, so there's more than 7 layers to this dip... but it is another family favorite growing up that my mom would always make. There was never a super bowl party or family barbecue without this delicious dip!

1 can refried beans (16 oz)
1 small contained sour cream
1 small contained avocado dip or 2-3 avocados, mashed
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 bunch chopped green onions
1 chopped bell pepper
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
2-3 chopped tomatoes
1 small can shopped olives

Layer ingredients in 9x13 casserole dish in order given.
Enjoy with tortilla and Nacho Dorito chips.

BEST French Toast

I've never made french toast with anything besides eggs and milk, but I decided to branch out and try this amazing recipe I found on allrecipes.com (LOVE that site. It gives great reliable reviews and the comments under each recipe give great alternatives to try). Eric said it was the best french toast he had ever tasted and that he never wanted to eat french toast again unless it was this recipe. So I guess you could say it was a success! Enjoy!

Best French Toast
1/4 c flour
1 c milk
1 pinch salt
3 eggs
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp sugar
Thick slices of bread (I used Texas Toast bread and it was delicious!)

1. Measure flour into a medium mixing bowl. Slowly whisk in the milk. Whisk in the salt, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla and sugar until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly greased griddle over medium heat.
3. Soak bread slices in mixture until saturated. Cook bread on each side until golden brown. Serve hot.

Delicious Pork Chops

I like making pork chops because they are easy and delicious. I found this amazing pork chops recipe a few weeks ago that both Eric and I LOVED. I will definitely be using this one again.

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Pork Chops
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp milk
1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 1/2 Tbsp dried parsley
2-3 Tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
4 pork chops

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F
2. In a small bowl, beat together the eggs and milk. In a separate small bowl, mix the bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and parsley.
3. Heat the olive oil in a large skill over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and cook until lightly browned. Remove garlic, reserving for other uses.
4. Dip each pork chop into the egg mixture, then into the bread crumb mixture, coating evenly. (I dipped the pork chops in flour before the egg mixture to help keep the breadcrumb coating on better.) Place coated pork chops in the skillet and brown about 4-5 minutes on each side.
5. Place the pork chops in preheated oven and cook 25 minutes.

Bagel Dogs

Sounds maybe a little weird, right? Well, I found this recipe a few months ago (I can't remember where...) and decided to give it a try the other night, mostly because I hadn't been grocery shopping in weeks and was looking for something to make that required only ingredients we already had. Ha!

I was definitely intimidated at first by this recipe because of the many steps, and I was pretty nervous that these would not turn out because I'd never made anything like them before from scratch. But they turned out being seriously so good! I'll post the recipe that I found originally...  I ended up halving it to make only 6 and using a little less flour than recommended. It's not necessarily a quick dinner because it takes some time to let the dough rise a couple of times and there are quite a few steps, but it really is pretty easy. And soooo delicious!

Bagel Dogs

2 cups warm water

2 packages active dry yeast

3 Tbsp sugar

3 tsp salt

5 1/4 c flour

12 all-beef hot dogs

2 tsp baking soda

1 egg yolk plus 1 Tbsp water, lightly beaten

Sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or course salt for garnish

1. Pour warm water into bowl of electric mixer and sprinkle with yeast. Let mixture stand about five minutes or until foamy, then stir in sugar and salt. Gradually add flour on medium speed, beating until well-blended and you have a stiff dough. Use dough hook to knead thoroughly until smooth and elastic in texture. Form dough into a lump and place into a lightly greased bowl, then turn dough over to grease the top. Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and let rise in warm place for about an hour or until doubled in size.

2. Once dough has risen, punch it down and knead briefly to eliminate any air bubbles. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured board, and use a floured rolling pin to roll dough out into a 12x9 inch rectangle or until it's about 1/4 inch thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut 12 1-inch pieces of dough.

3. Dry hot dogs thoroughly. Start at one end of a hot dog and wrap dough around, overlapping slightly making your way to the other end. Place seam side down on a parchment lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining hot dogs. Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and let stand in warm place for 30-45 minutes.

4. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Fill a deep, heavy pot with water and add baking soda. Bring to a gentle boil. Working 2 to 3 bagels at a time, carefully drop the bagel dogs into the boiling water, turning frequently with a slotted spoon or spatula, for about a minute. Lift out of water and gently dry each bagel with a kitchen town. Arrange bagel dogs about 2 inches apart on parchment lined baking sheet, seam side down. Repeat with remaining bagel dogs.

5. Brush bagels with egg glaze and sprinkle with garnish of choice. Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until nicely browned and crusty (I only cooked mine for about 25). Turn pan about halfway through to cook evenly. Serve warm or let cool on wire rack!

Halloween Oreo Suckers

 

I made these to take to our young women's halloween party the other night, and they were really fun! I originally saw them here, and thought they were so cute and easy enough for my skill level. :) They're fun, easy, and most importantly, delicious! These would definitely be a fun thing to do with kids or to make to give away as a little gift. 

Melt a handful of white chocolate chips in the microwave to help hold the sticks in the middle of the oreo

 Melt chocolate chips in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds or so until they are smooth and melted

 Put a couple of little dots with black frosting for the eyes and add a few drizzle lines of frosting if you want to make mummies, and that's it!

Have a Happy Halloween weekend!

Homemade Oreo Cookies

My cute friend from nursing school, Emma, has the cutest blog (you can check it out here). She is such a wonderful cook and loves to bake, and she posted this amazing recipe that I had to try. I put a little halloween twist with orange food coloring for the frosting, but if you try this recipe you will discover that you will definitely want to use it all year round!

cookie ingredients:
1 devils food cake mix
1/3 cup oil
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix cake mix, eggs and oil. Roll into balls and bake for 10 minutes. Cool.

frosting ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tbsp milk

Cream butter and shortening until fluffy. Add vanilla. Slowly pour powdered sugar, then add milk while mixing. After the cookies are cool, frost the middle and put together.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

I have always loved the pumpkin chocolate chip bread at Great Harvest because it is so delicious! This recipe is the best homemade pumpkin bread that I have ever tasted, so hopefully you enjoy it as well!

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 cups sugar
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
1 cup canola oil
2/3 cup water
1 tsp vanilla
4 large eggs
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray three 9x5 inch loaf pans with cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl or mixer, combine sugar pumpkin, canola oil, water, vanilla and eggs. Mix until smooth.
4. Slowly blend in the flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chips. Evenly divide batter between the three loaf pans.
5. Bake for 55-60 minutes, or until browned and a toothpick comes out clean. Remove loaves from the oven and cool in pans on wire rack for 15 minutes.
6. With a knife, go around the bread and loosen the loaves from pan. Remove from pan and cool completely before slicing.

Delicious Crepes

Eric and I have developed the tradition of making yummy crepes together on at least one day every weekend. It's so much fun to have time on the weekends to cook and eat a delicious breakfast together. I whip up the batter and cut up the strawberries while Eric cooks the crepes- we have developed quite the system! The best part about it (besides spending quality time together, of course) is that they are super easy to make! Here's the recipe:

1 cup flour
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp butter, melted

-Combine all ingredients in a blender (I just whisk them together).
-Pour 1/4-1/2 cup of batter into greased frying pan on medium heat and roll slightly to cover the bottom of the pan. When set, turn and briefly heat the other side of the crepe.
-Fill them and enjoy! I love mine with whipped cream and strawberries, bananas, raspberries, and/or blueberries with a little powdered sugar on top. Eric indulges with a little chocolate sauce on top of his.

Makes about 6 large or 12 small crepes.

Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday!

Taco Tortilla Bowls

I made these homemade taco tortilla bowls a couple of weeks ago, and they were such a great way to spice up a taco night! I got the idea from My Kitchen Cafe, which I love! We filled our crispy little bowls with some ground beef, black beans, chopped lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, and some sour cream, and they were so good. Here's the recipe:

6 burrito-size flour tortillas
Olive oil or Canola oil
6 oven-safe cups or canning jars

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. On a rimmed baking sheet, place the cups or jars upside down, evenly spacing them to make room for the tortillas that will be draped over them.

Microwave the tortillas for about 30 seconds, until they are soft and pliable. Rub a teaspoon or so of oil on the front and back of the tortilla. I used my fingers so that I could make sure to coat the entire surface of the tortilla. It doesn’t need to be a heavy coating of oil, just enough to help the tortilla crisp up and not stick to the jar or cup. Drape each tortilla over a cup or jar. I softly pressed the sides down a bit to help them form more of a bowl shape.

Bake the tortilla bowls for about 8-10 minutes, checking often so they don’t burn, until the tortillas are nicely browned and crisp. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the tortillas cool for a few minutes before gently removing them from the cups or jars.

Enjoy!

Fresh Mozzarella & Tomato Pasta with Breadsticks

I bought some fresh mozzarella the other day and needed a great recipe to use it in. This was delicious! I would recommend it to anyone who is a pasta lover and needs a pretty easy idea for dinner.

Fresh Mozzarella & Tomato Pasta
8 oz fresh mozzarella, cut into small cubes
3 medium tomatoes or 5-6 Roma tomatoes, peeled and diced
3 cloves minced garlic
1/2 c. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 c. coursely-chopped fresh basil
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. course salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 (16 oz) package uncooked pasta (farfalle, penne, fusilloni...)
Freshly-grated parmesan cheese

In a large bowl, toss mozzarella cheese with tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, basil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Let stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Cook pasta, drain, and return to pan to keep warm. Add tomato mixture to pasta and toss to coat thoroughly.

These breadsticks were a perfect addition to this Italian feast. I got the recipe from Favorite Family Recipes, which I love!

Breadsticks
1 1/2 c. warm water
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. yeast

Let that sit for 5 minutes, then add:
3 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. salt

Mix until smooth then let raise for 10 minutes. Roll out dough into a large square on a floured surface. Brush with melted butter mixed with some garlic and Italian seasoning, then sprinkle with kosher salt. Fold in half and cut into 1 inch strips. Twist and place on a cookie sheet. Let sit for 15-20 minutes to raise. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately after baking, brush with more garlic butter and sprinkle with kosher salt and parmesan cheese.

Calzones!

I have been on a MAJOR cooking/baking spree lately. I have turned into a through and through blog stalker of some awesome cooking blogs. Two of my very favorites can be found here and here.

Luckily I have a husband who also likes to cook and never hesitates to help me with my experimenting with new recipes. We made some awesome calzones recently that turned out so yummy! It took some time to make the dough and let it rise, but it was tons of fun to put all of the final ingredients and fillings together, and they turned out delicious! If you want to give this fun recipe a try, you can find it here!

Stud muffin in the kitchen!

Yummmmm!