Monday, February 28, 2011

Double Peanut Butter Paisley Brownies

So last night I was starving. We had already eaten dinner and I just got in the mood to bake something because I needed something dessertish. So I looked through what I had and I ran across a bag of peanut butter chips. So I looked on the bag and this recipe was on it so I decided why not. I had all the ingredients so I went with it. I am so glad that I did. If you are a peanut butter chocolate fan you will love these! They are so yummy & just well perfect.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/4 cup of peanut butter (I put in a little bit more because i love peanut butter)
1 cup of granulated sugar (white sugar)
1 cup of brown sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
2 cups of all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of salt ( I don't put this in because it tasted like it had enough without it)
2/3 cup of peanut butter chips ( I added more lol)
1/2 cup of hershy's chocolate syrup (yes I added more of this too!)

Directions
 1. Heat oven to 350. Grease a 9*13 baking pan.
2. Beat butter and peanut butter in a large bowl. Add granulate sugar and brown sugar, beat well. Add eggs, one at a time, stirring well after each one.  Blend in the vanilla.
3. Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix into peanut butter mixture, blending well. Stir in peanut butter chips. Spread half the batter into prepared pan: spoon syrup over the top. Carefully top with remaining batter: Swirl with remaining batter; Swirl with metal spatula or knife for a marbeled effect. **Side Note- I just poured the chocolate syrup into the batter and mixed it all together and then just poured the whole batter into the pan and baked it that way. It came out so tasty.**
4. Bake 35 to 40 mins or until lightly browned. Cool and then enjoy.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Saturday, February 26, 2011

White Chicken Enchiladas

So Courtney over at sweet tooth posted this recipe and it looked really good so I wanted to try it of course changing the recipe to suit my tastes =D I am a huge homemade Mexican food fan. I don't like the food at regular Mexican restaurants for some reason but when I can make my own I love it. Strange I know. Anyways this recipe is super spicy so be sure to add or subtract spices to suit your own tastes. Enjoy

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Ingredients:

* 8 flour tortillas
* 4 ounces cream cheese ( I used 1/3 less fat kind)
* 1 tablespoon plus 1 cup milk, divided
* 1 teaspoon ground cumin ( Used less than this because its so powerful and I don't like how it tastes)
* 4 cups cubed cooked chicken breast ( I boiled my chicken and then shredded it)
* 1/2 cup chopped green onions
* 1/2 cup chopped red pepper
* 1/2 cup chopped green pepper (add in whatever veggies you want)
* 1 can (10-3/4 ounces) cream of chicken soup, undiluted
* 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
* 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped
* 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
* 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese ( I got a big block of cheese and shredded my own)

Directions:

1. Wrap tortillas in foil. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes or until softened. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, 1 tablespoon milk and cumin until smooth. Stir in chicken. In a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, sauté onions and peppers until softened. Stir into chicken mixture.
2. In another bowl, combine the soup, sour cream, jalapenos, cayenne and remaining milk. Stir 2 tablespoons soup mixture into chicken mixture. Place 1/3 cup of chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla; roll up.
3. Place seam side down in a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Top with remaining soup mixture. Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until heated through. Uncover; sprinkle with cheese. Bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. ENJOY!

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

So another Airman in my husband's section at work can not eat chocolate because it gives him migraines. Lets be honest most of the desserts and cookies I tend to make are chocolate overloaded because I love chocolate. So these are one of his favorite cookies and since most of the cookies I send to work have chocolate in them Fromm can not eat them so I made him these when he came over for dinner the other day. We also sent food to work for the soldiers on shift. I can bake/cook pretty well so that is how I personally support our troops mainly the guys who work with or are currently deployed with my husband ( who is home right now =D ). Giving back and supporting our troops is super important to me because the military is still under appreciated as well as their families. Unless you have walked in their footsteps are or the family who is left behind it is so hard to really understand. Anyways so I decided to make oatmeal raisin cookies. I do not like those crispy thin cookies I just never have. I like big soft pillowy cookies. So these are seriously so yummy and pretty much the perfect cookie. Enjoy and the next time you see a military member tell them thank you! They may not show you or tell you how much it means to hear that but trust me it makes a huge impact.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

* 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
* 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
* 1 egg
* 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
* 1/2-3/4 cup raisins (depending on your taste)
* 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°F

In large bowl, beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins (& nuts if using them); mix well.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Pin Wheels

So I remember my grandma coming to Germany to visit us when I was a child and she brought her then boyfriend named PJ. PJ introduced me to these little rolls of awesome that we call pin wheels. They are seriously amazing. I changed the recipe up alittle bit but its pretty true to form. The recipe I use the most calls just to use meat but I put mine in tortillas and roll them that way. I also add lettuce and other veggies sometimes. They are good with just the spread and meat though. I highly recommend getting the roast beef from the meat people at the commissary or for those who are not military at a place like kroger or walmart. I miss those places being overseas but we do have some great meat here in Belgium.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. horseradish
1 (4 oz.) or 2 (2 1/2 oz.) smoked beef or ham
1 tbsp. onion, grated
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
*tortilla shells (optional)

Blend cream cheese, onion, horseradish and Worcestershire sauce until of spreading consistency. Separate meat slices. Lay out five slices, slightly overlapping on an 18 inch piece of aluminum foil. Spread out two more rows to form a rectangle of meat. Spread with cheese mixture. Roll up as jelly roll using foil to bring up meat at beginning of roll. Use fingers to roll until complete. Chill. Just before serving, slice into one inch slices.

*If you use tortilla shells just spread the mixture over one side of the shell. Then lay the meat down and whatever else you would like to put in it and roll up. Also when I cut them right before serving I stuck little toothpicks through them. They are really amazing and all the adults and kids at my son's class party loved them. A hit for sure!

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Red Velvet Cream Cheese Swirly Brownies

So I made these last night after some motivation from Elizabeth. It was her birthday today (Happy Birthday Elizabeth) so I thought whats a better gift than homemade calorie filled brownies? None better in my book. So I made them last night with some help from all my boys (including the hubby). They came out really good. I hope you guys find time to make them because everyone in your life will thank you.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Red Velvet Layer:
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup cocoa powder
Pinch salt
1 tablespoon red food coloring
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
2 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Cream Cheese Layer:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 by 8-inch baking pan.

Brownie layer: Add melted butter to a large bowl and add the sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder, salt, food coloring, and vinegar, mixing after each addition. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl and stir it into the cocoa mix. Fold in the flour until lightly combined. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan, saving 1/4 cup of the batter for the top.

Cream cheese layer: Blend together the cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Spread the cream cheese layer on top of the brownie batter in the pan. Dollop the remaining brownie batter over the cream cheese layer. Using the tip of a knife, drag through the cream cheese mixture to create a swirl pattern. Bake the brownies for 30 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely before cutting.

*I doubled this recipe and used a 13 by 9. Make sure you cook this for about 45-60 mins. Just keep checking the middle for done ness.

If you still have some left over, wrap remaining brownies tightly in plastic wrap and place in fridge.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Sour Cream Chicken

This recipe was given to me by my mother. It is now one of my favorite chicken meals =)


Ingredients


3 or 4 chicken breasts

Sour Cream

Cream of Mushroom soup

Red Pepper

Stick butter

Crispy French's Onions


Steps


1. Preheat oven to 350


2. Spray pam of some kind down on the pan.


3. Place chicken breasts in the pan and sprinkle with a little bit of red pepper. You do not want to do too much. You want it to have a bite of spicy to it not a truckload lol.


4. Cut little squares of butter and place them on the chicken breast. If they are bigger breasts I put two little squares of butter on them.





5. Cook Chicken for 40 mins. Pull the chicken out and in a separate bowl mix the soup and sourcream together.





6. You want to the take the sourcream mixture and glob it on the chicken. There will be melted butter in the pan I mix that all up together and pour it all over the chicken. When you have the chicken smothered in the sourcream mixture top it with generously with the dried onions.





7. Put the chicken back in the oven and bake for 20 or 30 more mins. The chicken should not be pink on the inside at all!





I make real mashed potatoes and bread rolls with this recipe =)





(yes we are still not unpacked from when we first moved to Belgium so pretty paper plates it is lol)

Italian Stuffed Shells

So I found this recipe flipping through a magazine the first time my husband was deployed and ever since then it has become a huge hit no matter who I make it for. In fact my husband begs for this dish almost once a month. Okay so the picture truly does not give it credit. I forgot to take a picture the night I made it because we had a new military family come into Belgium & my husband is their sponsor (someone who shows them the ropes) so we had them over for dinner. It was crazy with all the babies running around so I just forgot. This is actually a picture of the leftover LOL! It still tasted just as amazing just looks not as great. Oh well just trust me its yummy and well worth the effort. I am going to use this sauce next time I make spaghetti.

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Ingredients

* 1 pound ground beef
* 1 cup chopped onion
* 1 garlic clove, minced ( I use the kind that comes in a little jar already cut up)
* 2 cups hot water (add 3-4 cups if you use 2 cans of the tomato paste)
* 1 can (12 ounces) tomato paste ( use 2 cans trust me)
* 1 tablespoon beef bouillon granules
* 1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
* 1 egg, lightly beaten
* 2 cups 4% cottage cheese
* 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
* 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
* 24 jumbo shell noodles, cooked and drained

Directions

* In a large skillet, cook beef, onion and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the water, tomato paste, bouillon and oregano; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
* Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the egg, cottage cheese, 1 cup mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Stuff shells with cheese mixture.
* Arrange in a greased 3-qt. baking dish. Pour meat sauce over shells. Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.