I love recipes!

Hawaiian Fruit Dip

Ingredients:
3/4 cup milk
6-8 ounces sour cream (I used 6, but I think I could have used the whole 8)
1 package (3.4 oz) vanilla instant pudding
I can (8oz) crushed pineapple (in juice, undrained)
1/2 cup sweetened flake coconut (toasted)
1 lime (1 tsp juice, 1 tsp zest)

Directions:
Combine milk, sour cream and pudding mix and whisk.  Stir in pineapple and 1/2 of toasted coconut.  Stir in lime zest and lime juice.  Top will remaining toasted coconut.  Refrigerate 30 minutes before serving.

(To toast coconut:  Spread thin layer of coconut on cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 7-8 minutes.)

I believe this is a Pampered Chef recipe, but I am not sure from which book.
I tried this Hawaiian fruit dip at a party recently and it was fabulous!  It is great with all kinds of fruit: strawberries, grapes, pineapple, cantaloupe.  I loved it!  I didn't get a picture because it went so fast, but it is definitely worth trying.  You will have to resist the urge to just eat it with a spoon!

cranberry pie (pioneer woman)

I made this at our house for thanksgiving, and it was a HUGE hit!  It is delicious, a little bit tart and a little bit sweet.  Great on day one and great leftover (cold).  There will definitely be a repeat performance!

I increased this recipe by 50% and baked in a 9x13 casserole dish (rather than as a pie), and it still turned out great!

Here is the link to the original recipe!

Ingredients

• Butter, For Greasing 
• 2 cups (heaping) Cranberries
• ¾ cups Pecans, Chopped (measure, Then Chop)
• ⅔ cups Sugar
• 1 cup Flour
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1 stick Unsalted Butter, melted
• 2 whole Eggs, Lightly Beaten
• 1 teaspoon Pure Almond Extract
• ¼ teaspoons Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Sugar For Sprinkling

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Generously butter/grease a cake pan or pie pan. Add cranberries to the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle on chopped pecans, then sprinkle on 2/3 cup sugar.

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, 1 cup sugar, melted butter, eggs, almond extract, and salt. Stir gently to combine.  Pour batter slowly over the top in large “ribbons” in order to evenly cover the surface. Spread gently if necessary.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes. 5 minutes before removing from oven, sprinkle surface with 1 tablespoon sugar for a little extra crunch.  Cut into wedges and serve.

chocolate chip (or m&m) cookies!

I got this recipe several years back from a friend of a friend who I met at a girls night out in my old neighborhood where she brought these cookies!  I have never had chocolate chip cookies this good since I found out about these!  I made them for Ryan's birthday party this past weekend, and made one batch as stated, with chocolate chips, and the other batch exactly the same, but substituted m&m's instead of the chocolate chips, and at the end of the party we had TWO cookies left.  Out of five or six dozen!

3/4 c brown sugar
3/4 c white sugar
1 stick butter (the real stuff!  I use land o' lakes salted sweet cream butter)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 c flour
1tsp salt
1tsp baking soda
1 bag (11 or 12 oz) chocolate chips

Mix sugars and melted butter in mixer.  Add eggs and vanilla.  Mix well.  Add dry ingredients and mix.  Bake at (preheated!) 375 degrees for 10 minutes on an ungreased sheet.  DO NOT OVERBAKE.  The cookies will appear to be not done, but they are, especially after they cool and set!

shrimp pasta, chicken tortilla soup and some halloween goodies!

I have been trying some new recipes lately!  two fabulous and one fail, and it was not a failure due to the chef, it was a recipe/flavor failure (hawaiian chicken wings, not so good)!

delicious recipe #1 - shrimp pasta in a foil package (by the pioneer woman)
this was a win! win! win!  it could have used a tad more seasoning perhaps?  next time I may add some Old Bay or seafood seasoning, but even as is, this was fabulous!  (I made mine with whole wheat/grain pasta and it was still delish!)

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/12/linguine-with-shrimp/

 

delicious recipe #2 - Chicken tortilla soup (from The Mansion on Turtle Creek in Dallas)
I have never been to this restaurant, although if we were judging just based on names, it sounds delightful!  I found this recipe on another blog I read, and have had it in the archives to try for quite awhile now.  Oh my gosh, was it delicious!  and easy!

http://thebigmamablog.com/4251/represent-with-some-tortilla-soup/

3 tablespoons olive oil
4-6 corn tortillas, diced (I used 8-10 because I like my soups "chunky")
1 tablespoon of minced garlic
4-5 tablespoons of chopped cilantro (I am not a huge fan of cilantro in soups, so I omitted)
1 tablespoon of cumin
2 tablespoons of chili powder

Saute all of the above until tortillas begin to crisp.
Add the following to the above and simmer.

1 cup onion puree (I do not own a food processer, so I grated a small onion with my cheese grater and it worked perfectly. note to santa: I do not own a food processor. or a heavy duty stand mixer. and I love to cook. santa?)
1 large can (29 oz) of tomato puree
2 quarts of chicken stock
Salt and Pepper to taste
Cayenne Pepper to taste

To serve: top with any or all of the following: diced grilled or baked chicken (I mixed in 1/2 of a rotisseree chicken from HEB while it was cooking... probably could have used the whole chicken), avocado, shredded cheese (I used monterrey jack), and crisp fried strips of corn tortilla.

voila!

 

and one more idea for halloween goodies!  I am planning to make these for both kids preschool parties later this week!  I will post pictures of the ones I do, and let you know how they turned out.  I think it is a precious idea and the kids should love them!

http://www.howdoesshe.com/halloween-cookie-suckers

 

(pillsbury) halloween cookie pizza

 

I subscribe to a Pillsbury email newsletter and saw this halloween recipe, and wanted to share!  It looks delicious and I am sure the kids would LOVE it!  I plan on trying it this halloween season!

Here is the link to the original recipe.

INGREDIENTS

1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated sugar cookies

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup candy corn

1/2 cup raisins

1/4 cup vanilla ready-to-spread frosting (from 1-lb can)

 

 

DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 350°F. Line 12-inch pizza pan with foil; grease foil with shortening. Cut cookie dough into 1/4-inch-thick slices; arrange in pan. With floured fingers, press slices to form crust.

Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until deep golden brown. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Use foil to lift crust from pan. Carefully remove foil from crust; place crust on serving platter or tray. Spread peanut butter over crust. Sprinkle candy corn and raisins evenly over top.

In small microwavable bowl, microwave frosting on High 10 to 15 seconds or until thin and drizzling consistency. Drizzle frosting over cookie pizza. Cut into wedges or squares.

smashed potatoes (pioneer woman)

 

oh wow!  these were the BEST potatoes ever!

and don't let the sour cream scare you off if you think you don't like sour cream on your potatoes!  I cut the sour cream on everything, and I could not taste it on these, only made them creamy.  delicious!

Ingredients

• 5 whole Large Red Potatoes (I used 8-10 small ones)
• 1 stick Butter, Softened
• 5 slices Bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 2 whole Green Onions, Sliced
• ¾ cup Sour Cream
• Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper To Taste
• ¾ cup French Fried Onions, More For Topping

Preparation Instructions

Nuke potatoes or bake in the oven until fork-tender (I did mine in the microwave for about 10-12 minutes on HIGH).  Add to a large bowl and smash with a potato masher.  Immediately add softened butter, green onions, bacon, and sour cream and stir with a rubber spatula.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Add french fried onions and fold in.

Serve hot, sprinkling on extra french fried onions and green onions. Yummy with grilled steak or chicken!

quick sticky buns (by real simple)

Original Recipe on Real Simple website

These are delicious, and super easy!  You can make with nuts or without, depending on preference!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and thinly sliced into 10 pieces
• 1-2 medium bananas, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup (2 ounces) pecans, chopped
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 7.5-ounce tube refrigerated biscuits

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375° F.
2. Drop a piece of butter in the bottom of each of 10 compartments of a muffin tin. Arrange the banana slices on top. Sprinkle the pecans and brown sugar over the bananas. Top each compartment with a biscuit. Bake until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven.
3. Place a baking sheet on top of the muffin tin while the buns are still hot. Carefully flip the tin over, tapping the bottom to release the buns. Transfer to a platter. Serve warm.

lemon raspberry bars

Pioneer Woman has a link within her site to a place called Tasty Kitchen, where her followers (and some chefs and other great cooks) share their recipes.  Pioneer Woman recommended this one, and I tried it and loved it!  Click here to go to the original recipe (and reviews)!

Ingredients

FOR THE CRUST:

1-½ cup Graham Cracker Crumbs

6 Tablespoons Salted Butter, Melted

¼ cups Sugar

1 whole Lemon Zested

FOR THE FILLING:

2 whole Egg Yolks

1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk, 14 Oz. (regular or fat free)

½ cups Fresh Lemon Juice

1 teaspoon Lemon Zest

6 ounces fresh Raspberries

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350F. Spray a 8 by 8 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, sugar, and lemon zest. Stir until graham cracker crumbs are moist. Press crumbs into the prepared pan, pressing the crust mixture one inch up the side of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature.

Once the crust is cool, combine the egg yolks and condensed milk until well mixed. Stir in the lemon juice and lemon zest. Stir until mixture begins to slightly thicken. Gently fold in the raspberries.

Pour the lemon raspberry filling evenly over the graham cracker crust. Bake for 15 minutes, or until just set.  Cool to room temperature, then chill for at least one hour before serving. Cut into bars and serve.

Note: use fresh raspberries and make sure you gently fold the berries into the lemon filling, or you will have pink bars.

birthday party recipes!

I had several people ask, so I decided to post the recipes for some of the dishes I served at Riley's birthday party!

The "upcakes" pictured above can be found at bakerella's website, and I loved this idea!  This is the same site where I found the reindeer cake pops.  She is awesome and you should definitely check out her site!  I ordered the cupcakes (with the plain white icing) from Sam's (they have great cupcakes at great prices!), and then decorated them with the "upcake" myself.  I used cake donut holes from Dunkin Donuts coated in icing and rolled in sprinkles for the toppers.

 

Here is the link for the Louisiana Shrimp Dip, by Emeril.  F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!

 

Party Sandwiches

2 packages of 12 party rolls (I love King's Hawaiian rolls, white or wheat!)
1/2 stick butter, melted
4 tablespoons poppy seeds
4 tablespoons mustard
4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Sliced ham
Swiss cheese

In a bowl, mix together butter (softened, not melted), mustard, worcestershire sauce and poppy seeds.  Spread on one side (inside) of rolls, and add ham and cheese.  Put tops on rolls, wrap in foil, and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese melts.

Sounds simple, and it was!, but very unique and delicious!

 

Tortilla Roll-ups

1 package Philadelphia Cream Cheese
8-10 flour tortillas
4 ounces shredded cheddar or colby-jack cheese
Green Onions, diced (I used about 5, only diced the white portion)
Ham and/or Turkey
6-8 tbsp salsa (we love Julio's!)

Mix together softened cream cheese, shredded cheese, green onions, and salsa.

Spread on tortilla, and add one thin piece of ham and/or turkey on top of spread, and then roll up!  Make the end of the tortilla "stick" by adding some cream cheese "spread" at the seam if needed.  Cut off ends (not as much filling), and refigerate for several hours.  Slice and serve with salsa!

A few notes about this recipe... It can easily be doubled.  Ham and or Turkey can be shopped and added to spread if desired, instead of laid on as whole pieces.  I shred my own cheese, rather than buy pre-shredded, it is not as dry as the already shredded.  You can add additional salsa if desired, to loosen up the mixture if needed.

Enjoy!

pineapple upside-down cake

I made this recipe from the Pioneer Woman cookbook, which I love (the cookbook and the recipe)!

I have always made recipes from her website before, but I did gift myself the cookbook at Christmas, and I have found several recipes listed there that are not published anywhere on her website.  This is a fabulous cookbook, and if you do not have one, I would highly recommend doing what I did, and gifting one to yourself!

Here is a picture of the finished cake.  It tasted every bit as good as it looks!  I will post the recipe here soon when I have time to type it all out from the cookbook!