Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookies

Found these here


•1 stick softened butter
•6 Tablespoons sugar
•6 Tablespoons brown sugar
•1 egg
•1 teaspoon vanilla
•1 ¼ cup flour
•½ teaspoon baking soda
•½ teaspoon salt
•11 broken pieces Oreo Cookies
•1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cream butter, and sugars until well combined. Add egg and vanilla until mixed well.
2. Place flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl, stir to combine. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients then stir in oreos and chocolate chips until just combined.
3. With a medium cookie scoop, scoop onto baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or until cooked, but still soft. Let cool on baking sheet for 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Old-Fashioned Blueberry Muffins

From Daily Herald (March 28)

2 c flour
2/3 c sugar
1 t baking powder
1/2 t nutmeg
1/2 t salt
1 1/2 c unsweetened blueberries, partially thawed if frozen
2 eggs
1/2 c milk
1/2 c butter

In large bowl mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Add blueberries; stir to coat evenly. In small bowl beat eggs with fork; beat in milk and butter. Add to blueberry mixture; stir just until blended. Fill greased or paper lined cups 2/3 full. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake 15-20 minutes or until tops spring back when touched.

Simply BadAss Chicken Enchiladas

I found this recipe here. Looks like a good "addition" to my usual enchiladas. Hoping they turn out good!

Simply BadAss Chicken Enchiladas

What you'll need:

2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast meat - cut into chunks
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 1/4 cups sour cream
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, drained
1 (1.25 ounce) package mild taco seasoning mix
1 bunch green onions, chopped, divided
1 cup water
1 teaspoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
5 (12 inch) flour tortillas
3 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives

Directions

Place the chicken in a large pot and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the chicken pieces are no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Shred chicken by placing two forks back to back and pulling meat apart. Set the shredded chicken aside. Meanwhile, combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and chili powder in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, then turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded chicken, chopped green chilies, taco seasoning, half of the bunch of chopped green onion, and water. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the lime juice, onion powder, and garlic powder; simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Stir 1 cup of the soup mixture into the skillet with the chicken mixture. Spread the remaining soup mixture on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture. Sprinkle Cheddar cheese over the chicken filling before folding the tortillas, reserving half of the shredded cheese for topping the enchiladas. Fold tortillas over the filling and place seam-side down in the prepared pan.
Pour enchilada sauce evenly over the enchiladas. Cover with the remaining 1 1/2 cups of Cheddar cheese. Sprinkle the reserved chopped green onions and the sliced olives on top of the cheese. Bake in the preheated oven until filling is heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbling, about 25 minutes

Glazed Poppyseed Bundt Cake

Glazed Poppyseed Bundt Cake

from The Sister's Cafe

1 yellow cake mix
1 (3.5 oz) box of instant vanilla pudding
1 tablespoon poppyseeds
1/2 cup pinapple or orange juice (I used pineapple)
1/2 cup oil
1 cup sour cream (can use reduced fat)
4 eggs

Mix yellow cake mix, vanilla pudding and poppy seeds. Add juice, oil, and sour cream and mix. Add 4 eggs one at a time, mix well. Grease and flour a bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes (don't over bake).When the cake is about 10 minutes from being done start the glaze.Glaze:1 cup sugar1/4 cup water1/2 cup butter (1 cube)Bring ingredients to a boil and keep bubbling until ready to pour over cake. You can either pour the glaze over the cake while it is in the pan or turn the cake out onto a cooling rack and pour the glaze over the cake that way. It is really like syrup that soaks in. (Some commenters have said that glazing the cake in the pan makes it hard to remove because the glaze gets sticky. I glazed it out of the pan and it worked great.) Give it a few minutes to soak in and then turn it out onto a cake plate. Optional: dust top of cake with powdered sugar.

Chicken with Lemon and Capers

This is another recipe I found in AllYou magazine. Another quick, easy one with SOME normal ingredients I usually have around.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 5 oz. each)
Salt and pepper
1/3 c flour
3 T unsalted butter
3 T vegetable oil
1/4 c lemon juice
1/2 c white wine
1/4 c capers, rinsed

1. Preheat oven to 200F. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper and dredge in flour. Warm 1 T butter and 2 T oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 chicken breast halves; cook until browned, about 3 minutes. Flip and cook until browned on the other side, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer to a platter and tent with foil. Add 1 T oil to skillet; repeat with remaining chicken.
2. Add lemon juice and wine to skillet and bring to a boil, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pan. Boil, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5minutes. Remove from heat; stir in capers and remaining 1 T butter. Cook, stirring, until butter melts. Season with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over chicken and serve.
(387 cal, 18g fat (7g sat fat), 122mg chol, 1g fiber, 41g protein, 10g carb, 1,010mg sodium)

Pasta Carbonara Frittata

I pulled this out of an AllYou magazine. The picture looked really good, and the ingredients look like stuff that I generally have.

8 oz. spaghetti
2 T olive oil
4 oz. turkey bacon
6 large eggs
1/2 c grated parmesan
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Salt and pepper

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook spaghetti until just tender, about 8 minutes or as package label directs. Drain, transfer to a large bowl and toss with olive oil to coat. Let cool to room temperature.
2. Cook turkey bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp, about 6 minutes. Remove bacon to paper towels to drain. Discard all but 1 T of fat in skillet.
3. Preheat broiler to high. Whisk together eggs, parmesan, garlic, 1/2 t. salt, and 1/4 t pepper in a large bowl. Pour over spaghetti and toss to coat. Crumble bacon into bowl and mix well.
4. Place skillet on stove over medium-low heat and add egg-and-spaghetti mixture, spreading into an even layer with a spatula. Cook until bottom is well-browned, about 8 minutes, sliding a spatula underneath frittata occasionally to loosen.
5. Place pan under broiler and cook until top is golden and set, about 3 minutes. Cut frittata into wedges and serve.
(387 cal, 23g fat (8g sat fat), 359mg Chol, 1g fiber, 22g protein, 19g carb, 663mg sodium)

Sweets

Lots o' good desserts, especially Christmas ones!! Look here....

Brown Sugar Spiced Pork Loin

*Makes about 2 1/2 pounds of pork tenderloin, enough to serve 8-10 adults*

Rub Ingredients:
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 pork tenderloins (2 1/2 lb. total), each tenderloin cut into two chunks
2 tablespoons olive oil

Glaze ingredients:
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon tabasco sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, stir together salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and cinnamon, then coat the pork with the spice rub. Heat the oil in an ovenproof 12-inch heavy skillet that is ovenproof (I used my cast iron skillet) over medium high heat until the oil is hot and rippling. Brown the pork, turning, about 4 minutes total. Leave pork in the skillet.

Stir together the brown sugar, garlic, and Tabasco and pat on top of each tenderloin. Roast in the middle of the oven until a thermometer inserted diagonally in center of each tenderloin registers 140, about 25 minutes. Let pork stand in the skillet at room temperature for 10 minutes. The temperature will rise to about 155 while standing.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peppermint Buttercream Frosting

I will make these cupcakes this season. I know that it's December 23 already, but I'll make them someday.

For the cupcakes:
2 eggs 1 1/2 t baking soda
1 1/2 c sugar 3/4 t salt
3/4 c vegetable oil 1 1/2 c boiling water
2 1/4 c flour 1 1/2 t pure vanilla extract
1/2 c cocoa powder

Set oven to 350. Line two 12 cup muffin tins with cupcake liners and set aside. Combine eggs, sugar, and oil until smooth in a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to egg mixture while alternating with boiling water. Stir in vanilla extract. Pour a scant 1/4 c of batter into the muffin cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Completely cool cupcakes before frosting. (yields 24 cupcakes)

[bakers notes: you may not use all of the batter. do not overfill, or your cupcakes will sink.]

[bakers notes: even though you have liners, I suggest spraying the top of the

tins anyways. It will help the finished cupcakes not stick to the tins after baking]

For the frosting:

6 c powdered sugar 1 t pure vanilla extract

3/4 c butter, softened 3/4 t peppermint extract

7-9 T milk red food coloring

Fit a large pastry bag with a large star tip [kara's notes: I have a Wilton M tip that is for cupcakes] and set aside. In a large bowl with a hand mixer, combine powdered sugar and butter until butter is broken down into coarse crumbs. Add milk until desired consistency is achieved. Stir in vanilla and peppermint extracts. Scrape half of the finished frosting into a separate bowl. Color the other half with a few drops of the red food coloring using the hand mixer. Add large spoonfuls of frosting into the pastry bag, alternating colors. Twist the top of the bag and gently squeeze to pipe frosting onto the tops of the cupcakes. (yields enough frosting for 24 cupcakes)

Warm Homestyle Chicken Noodle Soup

2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 large onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, finely diced
4 celery stalks, diced
6 large carrots, peeled and diced
4 c fresh baby spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
4 cans chicken broth
4 oz boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
6 oz dry chow mein noodle
Pinch of salt and fresh cracked pepper

Heat oil in large dutch oven over medium heat. When hot, saute onion, bell pepper, celery, carrots, and spinach for 5 minutes or until veggies are softened. Pour in chicken broth and add chicken beast. Bring to high heat until just starting to boil. Reduce heat and add in noodles. Stir until softened, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low, season according to taste with salt, pepper and garlic salt. Simmer until ready to serve.
Makes 8-10 large servings.

Crock Pot Lemon Garlic Chicken

I found this here. I love me some crockpot meals, and this looks excellent.

Crock Pot Lemon Garlic Chicken
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp seasoning salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 chicken breasts
2 Tbsp butter

1/4 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp chicken bouillon
Combine oregano, salt, and pepper. Rub onto chicken. Brown chicken in butter
on both sides. Place in crock pot. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over.
Cool on LOW for about 4 hours. (Mine was done in 3 hours.)

Motherload Cookie Bars

I think these are my heaven...

Motherload Cookie Bars

Layer 1: Sugar Cookie

•1 Roll of Pillsbury Sugar Cookie Dough
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Press sugar cookie dough into bottom of a 9×13 inch baking dish that’s been lined foil and sprayed with cooking spray.

Layer 2: Double Chocolate Chip Cookie

•1/2 cup butter
•1/2 cup white sugar
•6 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
•1 egg
•1/2 tsp. vanilla
•3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. flour
•1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
•1 tsp. baking soda
•1/8 tsp. salt
•3/4 cup chocolate chips
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Slowly add egg and vanilla until well combined.

In another bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Slowly add to wet ingredients then stir in chips. Layer over sugar cookie layer, pressing gently.

Layer 3: Peanut Butter Cookie

•1 cup creamy peanut butter
•1/2 cup granulated sugar
•1 egg
Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix until combined. Press over chocolate cookie dough.

Layer 4: Chocolate Chip Cookie

•1 stick softened butter
•1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp.granulated sugar
•1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
•1 egg
•1/2 Tbsp. pure vanilla
•1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
•1/2 teaspoon baking soda
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•1/2 bag chocolate chips plus more for drizzling
Make sure oven is preheated to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer cream the butter and sugars until well combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Place flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl; mix to combine. Slowly add to wet ingredients along with chocolate chips. Spoon the dough evenly over peanut butter cookie dough but don’t press, just leave uneven. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until center of dough is cooked mostly through. Edges will be brown. I covered pan with foil during the last 15 minutes of baking.

Let cookies cool completely. Lift out of pan with edges of foil. Drizzle top with 1/2 Cup melted chocolate chips if desired. (optional)

NOTE: You can layer dough and refrigerate until ready to bake.

Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Soup

YUMMY!! Found it here...

Zuppa Toscana Soup:

Ingredients:
1 package sausage
3-4 Red or Russet Potaotes
1 garlic clove minced
1/4 finely diced onion or onion dry flakes
3-4 tbsp bacon bits *optional
2 Cartons 32 oz chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 bunch of kale

Directions: Slice up your sausage. Place sausage in frying pan with a little pam and fry till browned. Then add the chicken broth, sausage, onion, garlic, bacon bits and sliced potatoes to a crockpot. Slow cook for 4-5 hours. Add the Kale and heavy cream for the last 30 minutes. Serve and enjoy! Makes enough for 6 people.

Perfect One Bowl Brownies

I'm a boxed brownie kind of gal...but I can't wait to try these. I got the recipe from here.

Perfect One Bowl Brownies
submitted by Melanie
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
4 eggs
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cup flour
1 cup chocolate chips (although I never measure--I just sprinkle them on top)

Preheat oven to 350. In a medium bowl melt butter in microwave, then stir in oil, sugar and cocoa. With a wooden spoon stir in the remainder of the ingredients except for the chocolate chips. Spread into a 9x13 pan sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top. Bake in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes. If your toothpick comes out clean you have cooked them too long! DO NOT OVERCOOK!

Sweet & Tangy Meatballs

These look amazing! I'm going to try them this week...I bought the meatballs today. I'll post the recipe and my "vote" after I make them. :)

Cranberry Cheesecake Pie

A good idea for Thanksgiving???

Chocolate Fudge Butterfinger Cookies

Um...these look YUMMY! I got them from here...one of my favorite recipe blogs.

Chocolate Fudge Butterfinger Cookies!

1 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cups cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Dark Chocolate Cocoa Powder)
2 tsps. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

2 Full size Butterfinger Bars, crushed

1 1/2 Cups semi sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and use a cookie sheet with a silpat liner.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Slowly add eggs and vanilla until well combined.

3. In another bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Slowly add to wet ingredients then stir in crushed butterfinger and chocolate chips. Using a medium cookie scoop, drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheet.

4. Bake for 9-11 minutes, should still be soft in center. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

3 dozen cookies

Taco Soup

I am hoping to make this soon. It has very little ingredients and looks tasty and easy!! (perfect for me)

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 c. water
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can kidney beans
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1/2 pkg. taco seasoning mix

In a heavy saucepan cook ground beef with onion. Drain off fat. Then add water, tomatoes, un-drained kidney beans, tomato sauce and seasoning. Simmer together for 20 minutes!

Oreo Chunk Brownies

I will love someone FOREVER if they make me these. :) Don't they sound like the BEST thing ever. I'll let you know how they are when I make them (after my diet is over)

Poppyseed Bread

3 c. flour
2 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 t. baking powder
3 eggs
1 1/2 c. milk
1 1/8 c. oil
1 1/2 T. poppy seeds
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1 1/2 t. almond extract
1 1/2 t. butter flavoring

GLAZE
3/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. orange juice
1/2 t. vanilla
1/2 t. almond extract
1/2 t. butter flavoring

Mix together and beat 2 minutes. Bake in 2 large loaf pans (greased) at 350* for 1 hour. As soon as out of oven, pour glaze over bread after poking a few holes in bread with toothpick. Be careful to brush it on slowly so it can be absorbed. Take out of pans when cooled.