Friday the 13th

Last Friday was Friday the 13th and I had been looking forward to it for a while.  Why?  Because I was  going to be providing Friday lunch to the ministry team students and staff of The Well.  Each Friday a different person/small group/church etc. brings a home cooked meal to The Well House and the students come and everyone gets to enjoy a great meal while simply being together - no schedule or agenda, just being together.  This was always a highlight of the week, and way back in the spring I decided I wanted to provide one of the meals for this semester.  Friday, September 13th was the date I'd be doing it and I couldn't wait!

We used to get a lot of the same meals over and over so I wanted to make something they wouldn't be likely to have again, and I decided on doing breakfast for lunch.  I made breakfast casserole, hash brown casserole, fruit salad, biscuits, and muffins.  Cooking for 50 by myself was a little intimidating and there were times that I thought "What in the world have I gotten myself into?" but I managed to pull it off and everything was a hit!

Two of the reasons that I was able to pull it off was that 1) I'd made all the muffins the weekend before and then froze them, pulling them back out Thursday night to thaw and 2) I did the hash browns in the crock pot.  That way I only had to cook one thing that morning, the breakfast casserole.  Both casserole recipes were new, so I was a little nervous trying them out for the first time on a crowd of hungry, eager students, but like I said, they were a hit.  And really the hash brown casserole wasn't so much a casserole as it was cheesy hash browns, but still good.  The muffins I made were Pumpkin Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chip, and Apple Cinnamon Butterscotch.

Sitting on the front porch of The Well House, just like old times!

I had to work that night, and something happened that I knew would sooner or later - I spilled a drink on a customer.  She was so nice though and as I was down on the floor wiping it up she looked down and said, "Don't worry about it dear, it's Friday the 13th!"  I'm so thankful she had a good attitude about it, otherwise I probably would have a been a wreck the rest of the night.

Rainbow Chicken

I pinned this last weekend, made it a day a later, and I know I'll be making it again.  There are four reasons this is a great recipe: 1) Easy - not necessarily quick though, because there are lots of veggies to cut.  2) Super flavorful.  3) Healthy.  4) It's all in a one dish...What more could you want in a recipe? 

Rainbow Chicken

Ingredients 

Spice Rub

2 teaspoons sweet or smoked paprika

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon kosher salt 

1/2 teaspoon black pepper 

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar 

1 teaspoon olive oil 

2 cloves garlic, minced

1-1/4 pound chicken thighs or legs, bone-in, skins off or on*

1 potato, skin on, diced small 

1 sweet potato, peeled, diced small 

1 medium onion, cut into lengths 

1 bell pepper, cut into lengths 

1 zucchini, cut into chunks 

2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks 

1 lemon, sliced thin cross-wise

Directions  

Preheat your oven to 425F. 

Mix the spice rub ingredients in a large bowl. 

Rinse the chicken pieces under running water, pat dry with paper towels, then drop into the Spice Rub and turn to coat.

Arrange the chicken in a single layer in an oven-safe skillet or casserole dish. 

Drop the vegetable into the remaining spice rub (there won't be a lot, but it will be just enough!), give it all a stir and then scatter over the top of the chicken. Top with lemon slices.

Cover and bake for 45 minutes (add up to 20 minutes longer if using a baking dish covered with foil) or until no pink remains in the chicken pieces. Let rest for 5 minutes.

*Mine were boneless, but it didn't seem to matter.

from: Just Us...and the many "Miles" traveled

 

Blueberry Baked Oatmeal

I made this several weeks ago and forgot about it until I came across the pictures on my camera!  If you like oatmeal, than I really don't know why you wouldn't like this.  It's kind of like a big, thick oatmeal cookie! 

Meyer Lemon Blueberry Baked Oatmeal
Ingredients
1 Meyer lemon, zested and juiced*
2 cups nonfat milk
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar
2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
* I just used a regular lemon
 
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray an 8-inch square baking dish with nonstick spray.

Zest lemon; set zest aside. In a bowl, combine milk and juice from the zested lemon to make “buttermilk”.

In a medium bowl, combine the oats, baking powder, salt, spices, and lemon zest. In a small bowl, whisk together the “buttermilk”, butter, egg, and sugar.

Spoon half of the oat mixture into the baking dish, and then half of the blueberries. Add the remaining oat mixture and scatter the remaining blueberries on to the top, pressing them in slightly. 

Pour in the milk mixture and place in oven.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the mixture is a light golden brown along the edges, and the center has set up.

from PreventionRD.com

Broccoli and Ramen Noodle Salad

This was the salad I made over the weekend to take to dinner at Jillian's.  It's one of those dishes that sounds a little odd, but most people love it.  It's super easy to make - no cutting or cooking - you just measure a few things and dump it all together!  It's light and nutty, and I think it's a great side dish for the spring.

Broccoli and Ramen  Noodle Salad

Ingredients
1 (16oz) package of broccoli slaw mix*
2 (3 oz) packages of chicken flavored Ramen noodles
1 cup of unsalted peanuts
1 cup of sunflower seeds
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup cider vinegar

Directions
1) Crush the Ramen noodles (I think it's easiest to do this while they are still in the package) and mix them with the broccoli in a large bowl.
2) In a small bowl whisk together the two Ramen seasoning packets, sugar, oil, and vinegar.
3) Pour over salad and toss to coat.
4) Refrigerate to chill; add nuts and mix again before serving.

*Kroger only has a 14.5 oz. bag, so I just always use that instead.

Taco Soup

I like tacos and I love soup, so why in the world it took me this long to make taco soup is beyond me!  But I did recently and it was easy and delicious, so of course I had to share it with you!

Taco Soup 

Ingredients 

1 lb. ground beef

1 onion, chopped

1 (16 oz.) can of chili beans, with liquid

1 (15 oz.) can of kidney beans, with liquid

1 (15 oz.) can of whole kernel corn, with liquid

1 (8 oz) can of tomato sauce

2 cups of water

2 (14.5 oz.) cans of peeled and diced tomatoes *

1 (4 oz.)  can diced green chile peppers

1 (1.25 oz.) packet of taco seasoning mix

Optional - Sour cream, shredded cheese, and tortilla or corn chips for toppings.

Directions

1. In a medium skillet, cook the ground beef until browned over medium heat. Drain, and set aside.
2. Place the ground beef, onion, chili beans, kidney beans, corn, tomato sauce, water, diced tomatoes, green chile peppers and taco seasoning mix in a slow cooker. 
3. Mix to blend, and cook on Low setting for 8 hours.   

*  I wasn't sure if you were supposed to include the liquid of the tomatoes, but I did because I wanted this to be like soup, and not chili.   

 

From allrecipes.com

Brownie Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

This was another Pinterest recipe for the band.  Honestly I didn't think they were that great, but the band loved them so I decided to put them on the blog.  The brownie cupcakes were fine, it was the peanut butter frosting that I had problems with.  Now don't get me wrong, I love peanut butter (a lot), but I thought this frosting was too much like straight-up peanut butter and not enough like frosting.  It was still quite dense, and in my opinion not fluffy enough to be frosting.  I don't know if it's just the recipe or if I didn't mix the ingredients correctly or what.  I guess you'll just have to take a chance and try it for yourself!

Brownie Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

Ingredients

• cupcakes
• 2/3 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 8 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• frosting
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room temp
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350. Line a standard 12 cup muffin tin with paper cups. Line an 8 inch square pyrex dish with parchment paper and grease.
2. Mix canola oil and butter, add cocoa and stir until well blended.
3. Beat eggs with a mixer. Add sugar and vanilla, beat well. Add flour and salt. * Stir in chocolate chips. 
4. Fill the muffin tins about 3/4 of the way full, using about half of the brownie batter. Spoon the other half into the prepared pyrex dish.
5. Bake the cupcakes for about 8-10 minutes and the pan brownies for about 18-23 minutes. Allow to cool completely before frosting. Using the parchment paper lift the brownies from the pan and allow to cool before cutting into shapes.
6. Frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment (or an electric handheld mixer), add the peanut butter, confectioners sugar, butter, vanilla and salt. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy and smooth. Slowly add the cream and beat on very high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy.
7. To assemble the cupcakes take the cooled brownies and using a 1 inch heart shaped (or any other fun shape you may desire) cookie cutter and cut out 12 hearts. Frost or pipe as desired and top each cupcake with a heart.
8. If you do not want to make brownie hearts, just use the remaining batter to make 12 more cupcakes and double the frosting recipe. 
9.  * I realized in the directions that it never says when to add the baking powder, so I just added it with the flour and salt.

from Half Baked Harvest

Chewy Toffee Blondies

What is one of the most valuable things a baker, especially a single baker like me, can have?  Guinea pigs.  No, not the furry kind.  The hungry, human kind.  I'm always wanting to try new recipes, and I'm thankful I have people who I know will gladly try them.  If I didn't, I would either make a lot of treats that I would end of throwing away, or I would eat them all and weigh 300 pounds.  For me, these guinea pigs are usually The Well band; they practice on Tuesday nights and I often make snacks for them. 

This is another Pinterest recipe that I tried and was a hit with them, and will now be on my go-to list for desserts!

 

Chewy Toffee Blondies

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoons salt

1 c. Milk Chocolate toffee bits (plain toffee would work too)

Directions

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Beat in vanilla. 

 Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl.  Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture.  Stir in toffee bits.

Spread evenly into a greased 13×9 baking pan.  Bake at 350* F for 18-22 minutes, or until lightly browned.  Cool on a wire rack.  Let cool completely before cutting into bars.

 

from Happy Food Healthy Life

Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

I made this soup on Sunday, and while the original directions were for the stovetop, I decided to do it in the crockpot instead - bad choice.  It ended up with the orzo overdone, it expanded and was almost mushy, and the carrots weren't done enough.  That being said, the flavors were good and I would make it again, following the stovetop directions this time.

 

Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch thick
1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
8 cups of chicken broth
Zest of 2 lemons
Juice of 2 lemons (about 1/3 cup)
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 cups orzo pasta
2 cups cooked shredded chicken
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Sauté the onion, garlic, carrots, and celery until tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the chicken broth, lemon zest, lemon juice bay leaf and bring to a boil. Add the orzo and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6 to 8 minutes, or until orzo is tender. Add the chicken and heat for about 5 minutes.
3. Remove the pot from the heat. Discard the bay leaf and stir in the parsley. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve warm.
Note-You can use shredded rotisserie chicken in this soup.

from Two Peas and Their Pod

Loaded Potato Soup and Sweet Corn Bread

I like potatoes.  Baked. Mashed. Hash browned. French fried. And in soup!  This is a recipe a tore out of a Cooking Light magazine a while ago and finally got around to trying.  It was thicker than most potato soups I've tried, but it was still good!  And this was the first time I'd tried this corn bread recipe and it was deee-licious!  I think I actually said, "Oh my gosh, this is good!" out loud.  It's sweet, moist, just dense enough, and not gritty at all.

Loaded Potato Soup

from Cooking Light, November 2012

Ingredients

4 (6 ounce) red potatoes

2 tsp. olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 1/4 cups fat free, lower-sodium chicken broth

3 tbsp. all-purpose flour

2 cups 1% low-fat milk (divided 1/2  and 1 1/2)

1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

3 bacon slices, halved

1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

4 tsp. thinly sliced green onions

Directions

1. Pierce potatoes with a fork.  Microwave on HIGH 13 minutes or until tender.  Cut potatoes in half; cool slightly.

2. While potatoes cook, heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat.  Add olive oil to pan, swirling to coat.  Add onion to pan; saute 3 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add broth to pan.  Combine flour and 1/2 cup milk in a small bowl, stirring until smooth; add flour mixture to pan with remaining 1 1/2 cups milk.  Bring soup to a boil, stirring frequently.  Cook 1 minute.  Remove soup from heat; stir in sour cream, salt, and pepper.

3. Arrange bacon on a paper towel on a microwave-safe plate.  Cover with another paper towel; microwave on HIGH 4 minutes.  Crumble bacon.

4. Discard potato skins.*  Coarsely mash potatoes into soup.  Top with shredded cheese, green onions, and crumbled bacon.

*I had trouble removing the skins, and I was pressed for time, so there were still lots of potato pieces with skin on them, but I didn't mind.

Sweet Corn Bread

from allrecipes.com

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup cornmeal

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 cup sour cream

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Lightly grease an 8-inch square baking dish.
2. Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Mix egg, sour cream, milk, and butter in a small bowl. Fold egg mixture into flour mixture until just moistened; pour into prepared baking dish.
3. Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve warm.

Chocolate Chip Muffins

I'm pretty sure these are the first plain chocolate chip muffins I've ever made, and I don't think I'll be looking for a new recipe - these were wonderful!  Easy to make, light, fluffy, and full of chocolate...what more could you ask for in a chocolate chip muffin?

Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2/3 cup whole milk
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners or spray the wells of the pan with non-stick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In medium bowl, whisk together melted butter, eggs, milk, and vanilla, mixing until well combined.
4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the liquid ingredients into the well. Stir until ingredients are just combined - do not over mix the batter. Fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Evenly divide the batter into the prepared muffin pan wells. Bake for 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
6. Remove muffins to a wire rack and cool for at least 5 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

from My Baking Addiction

Gooey Cinnamon Muffins

Don't let the pictures above fool you, this recipe proved to be quite the challenge.

The first mishap was with the filling.  In an effort to speed up the "softening" process I nuked the butter, which (not surprisingly) completely melted it.  I used it anyways but it made the filling way too runny, so I had to toss it and start over.

The second problem was that I filled the muffin liners too full.  Instead of just making the muffins taller, it made the tops spread over wider, and that made getting them out of the muffin tins quite difficult.  7 of them turned out like normal looking muffins, and 5 of them turned out like this...

Thankfully I was just making these for fun and didn't need the full dozen!  So why don't we just focus on the pretty ones again?

Gooey Cinnamon Muffins

via

Ingredients

Topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup all purpose flour
3 Tbsp softened butter
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Filling:
3 Tbsp softened butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3 tsp cinnamon
5 tsp water
Muffin:
1/2 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup milk
2 large eggs
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
2 Tbsp cornstarch
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
Glaze *optional:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp softened butter
2 Tbsp milk


Directions


1. Preheat oven to 400°
2. Line muffin tin with cupcake liners, or spray with cooking spray.
Topping:
3. Mix all ingredients together with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.
Filling:
4. Mix all ingredients together until consistency is similar to a loose frosting or pudding. Set aside.
Muffins:
5. In a large bowl whisk together butter, milk and eggs. In another bowl combine flour, oats, cornstarch, sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and white chips.
6. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and stir until just combined.
7. Using half the batter, fill each muffin tin with 2 Tbsp batter. Then drop 2 tsp of filling into each tin. Finish, by dropping another 2 Tbsp of batter on top. Depending on the size of the muffin tin, you may get more than 12 muffins.
8. Now sprinkle your topping evenly on the muffins (about 1 tbsp on each).
9. Bake 20-25 minutes until centers are set.
10. Cool on wire rack.
Glaze:
11. Combine butter, sugar and milk, stirring until there are no lumps, adding more powdered sugar or milk until desired consistency is reached. Drizzle on muffins when ready to serve.
12. Drizzle with glaze when ready to serve.

Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Crescent Cookies

Another Pinterest recipe!  These were super simple to make, and apparently very tasty to eat.  I made them for The Well band to have to munch on during their practice on Tuesday night.  Usually there will be leftovers and I'll go grab one for myself when I get there Wednesday afternoon to set up, but when I got there yesterday there was nothing but an empty plate!

I would make these again, but I would make one change - I wouldn't use all of the cream cheese mixture.  I like cream cheese, but I wish there had been a little bit less of it and more crescent role.

Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Crescent Cookies

Original

Ingredients

1 can seamless crescent rolls

1 (8oz) pkg cream cheese, room temp

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions

In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.

Unroll the crescent roll. Stretch out the dough into a rectangle. (If you can't find the seamless crescent dough then just make sure you pinch the seams together well.)

Spread the cream cheese mixture over the top of the crescent dough - leave a gap at the edge of about 1/2 inch.

Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. Roll the crescent roll up tightly and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill at least 2 hours, or overnight.

Once chilled - preheat oven to 350. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Slice the cookie log into about 1/4 inch slices. Bake on prepared sheet for 10 - 15 minutes, until golden brown.

Let cool on sheet for about 5 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely.

Pecan Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Not this past weekend, but the one before we had a women's retreat, and we brought all of our own food for the weekend.  We had a bunch of bananas left over and at the end of last week they were sitting on the dining room table at the office turning brown.  So what do you do when life hands you brown bananas?  Make banana bread of course! 

I searched around for some recipes, found one that sounded easy enough, and then tweaked it a little bit based on some ingredients I had on hand.  The original called for walnuts, but I used pecans because I had some left over from making these Pecan Pie Cookies, and I used up the rest of a bag of mini chocolate chips left over from something else.  The recipe also calls for sour cream, and you might think that sounds strange, but you can't taste it at all, and it makes the bread moist, but not soggy. 

I finally used my cute little thrifted dish, first seen here.

Pecan Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

2 bananas, sliced in fourths

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the melted butter and sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla, mix well. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt, stir into the butter mixture until smooth. Finally, fold in the sour cream, chocolate chips, pecans and bananas. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool loaf in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Pecan Pie Cookies

This is another Pinterest recipe that proved to be a great success!  These cookies were easy to make, and oh so yummy!  Sweet, soft, crunchy - exactly what a pecan pie cookie should be, and perfect for a fall party!

Pecan Pie Cookies

Original source

Ingredients

For Cookies:
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder

For Filling:
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350°F.
2. Combine all cookie ingredients except flour and baking powder in large bowl.
3. Beat at medium speed until creamy. Reduce speed to low; add flour and baking powder. Beat until well mixed.
4. Shape dough into 1-1/4-inch balls.
5. Place 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.
6. Make indentation in each cookie with thumb; rotate thumb to hollow out slightly.
7. Combine all filling ingredients in small bowl; fill each cookie with 1 rounded tsp. filling.
8. Bake for 8 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets.

Butternut Squash and Fettuccine

This is another Pinterest recipe that I made a few weeks ago.  It wasn't quite as good as I had hoped, but I think I know how to make it better and I'm definitely going to try it again.  For one thing, I over cooked the pasta, so that didn't help.  The recipe also called for either goat cheese, blue cheese, or shredded Parmesan.  When I went shopping for the ingredients the grocery store didn't have goat cheese, which I do like, they did have blue cheese, which I don't like, so that left me to use Parmesan.  But the Parmesan just melted into the pasta and you couldn't distinguish the taste at all.  Next time I make this I will find goat cheese, the sourness of it will be a good balance for the sweetness of the squash.  I also used the 4 teaspoons of sage like the recipe called for but I thought it was overpowering, I'll probably just use 2 1/2 next time.  But like I said, even with all these issues it was good enough for me to want to make it again.

Butternut Squash and Fettuccine

Recipe adapted by Dreamfields Foods

Ingredients

1/2 box of linguine *I actually used fettuccine

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
4 cups butternut squash pieces (about 1-inch pieces)
1/2 cup dry white wine or reduced-sodium, fat free chicken broth *I used the chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage or 4 teaspoons dried sage
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese, blue cheese or shredded Parmesan cheese *I used Parmeson
Crumbled cooked prosciutto or bacon, optional *Bacon is never optional in my book :)
Additional cheese, optional *I topped it with grated Parmesan

Toasted chopped walnuts, optional *Did not use

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and return to pan; cover and keep warm.
2. Meanwhile, in large nonstick skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in squash, wine and salt. Simmer 12 to 15 minutes just until squash is tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in sage.
3. Toss squash with pasta and cheese. Sprinkle with prosciutto, additional cheese and walnuts, as desired.

Cookies and Cream Cookies

These are the cookies I made for our Pinterest Party!  Since the Oreos are the only thing that give them the chocolate flavor, they're light, not dense; so they'd be perfect for those of you who don't like super rich, chocolatey desserts.

Cookies and Cream Cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 cup crushed Oreos

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment. In a stand mixer, beat together the butter, sugars, salt, vanilla, baking soda, and baking powder until well combined. Add the egg, beating until smooth.
2. Add the flour and milk and mix until smooth. Put about one cup of oreos in a plastic bag and crush them using a meat tenderizer or a cleaver. I crushed mine to the point where there were still some big chunks, but also most of it was smaller crumbs. Pour the crushed oreos into the dough mixture and mix again until oreos are thoroughly incorporated.
3. Shape cookie dough into balls about 1 inch in diameter and place them on baking sheet about 2 inches apart. If you want the cookies to spread more, you might want to flatten the balls with the palm of your hands before baking.
4. Bake the cookies for 11 to 15 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown at the bottom.
5. Remove from the oven, and move cookies to cookie rack to finish cooling.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Yesterday I made my most favorite fall food, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins!  These things are ahh-mazing; they're like a little edible piece of fall heaven!  You should get the recipe, make them, and spread some fall love by sharing them!

Banana Pudding

I needed to make dessert two weeks ago for Friday lunch and decided to make banana pudding, which I had actually never made before.  So I went to allrecipes.com and chose the first banana pudding recipe that came up, because it had 5 out of 5 stars.  Other than licking the beaters, I didn't even taste it, because when I went back to get dessert it was all gone!  I hate that I can't tell you exactly what it tasted like, but I'll let the dish that was scraped clean speak for itself!

Banana Pudding

via allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
• 3 cups cold milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 4 bananas, sliced
• 1/2 (12 ounce) package vanilla wafers

This looks like an ad for Kroger!

 

Directions

1. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in condensed milk, pudding mix, cold milk and vanilla until smooth. Fold in 1/2 of the whipped topping.
2. Line the bottom of a 9x13 inch dish with vanilla wafers. Arrange sliced bananas evenly over wafers. Spread with pudding mixture. Top with remaining whipped topping. Chill.  

I would have liked to have had more whipped topping on top, so in the future I'll get a 16 oz. container.  I also put some vanilla wafers on top, before the final layer of whipped topping.

Nanners!

Layered Chocolate and Peanut Butter Bars

I've made these twice in the past three weeks, and they have been quite a hit!  The first time I made them one of the guys said they were addicting, and Sunday night I made them for my ministry team and it was one of the guys that asked for the recipe.  So ladies, if you need to bake something to impress the fellas, this might be one to try!

Layered Chocolate and Peanut Butter Bars

adapted from Jif recipes

Ingredients

No-stick cooking spray

1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 c. packed brown sugar

2/3 c. creamy peanut butter

1/2 c. butter, softened

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 c. all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 c. quick rolled oats

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 13 x 9-inch pan with a no-stick cooking spray. Melt chocolate chips in dry, microwave-safe bowl on HIGH (100% power) 1 minute. Stir. Microwave at additional, 10- to 15-second intervals, stirring just until chips are melted. Set aside.
2. Beat together brown sugar, peanut butter and butter in large bowl with an electric mixer, until smooth and creamy. Add egg and vanilla. Beat until well blended.
3. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt. Add to peanut butter mixture. Beat just until combined. Stir in oats. Press 3/4 of dough into prepared baking pan. Spread evenly with melted chocolate. Dot chocolate layer with remaining dough.
4. Bake 24 to 26 minutes. Cool. Cut into 24 bars.

Creamy Corn and Potato Chowder

So, when I crave something, I pretty much have to have it.  This has resulted in lots of late night trips to the drive through at Cookout for milkshakes, or inconvenient, last minute trips to the grocery store for ingredients to make something, and that's kind of what happened yesterday.  All afternoon I was craving baked potato soup, so I decided I would just make some for dinner.  I remembered that a while ago I pinned a website on Pinterest that had a bunch of fall soup recipes, so I checked them out and found this one for Creamy Corn and Potato Chowder.  It wasn't baked potato soup, but it was close enough!

It took some time to prepare, but it was really good!  The corn and cream made it sweet, and the onions made it tangy.  I went ahead and put some in the freezer so I can enjoy it when I want a good meal and don't have much time.

Creamy Corn and Potato Chowder

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 rib celery, finely chopped
• 5 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
• 1 large all-purpose potato, peeled and diced

• 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon salt, to taste
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• Black pepper, to taste
• Fresh dill or parsley for garnish, chopped 

 Directions

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan or medium soup pot.
   
2. Stir in the onion and celery.
   
3. Partially cover the pan and cook the vegetables over moderate heat for 9 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
   
4. Add the chicken stock, corn, potato, and salt and bring the mixture to a low boil.
   
5. Lower the heat, cover the pot, and simmer for about 7 minutes, until the potatoes are just tender.
   
6. In a small bowl, whisk together the cream and flour.
   
7. Stir the mixture into the soup with the pepper.
   
8. Bring the soup back to a low boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 8 minutes.
   
9. Serve hot, garnished with herbs.
   

Not a great picture, I know.  But there was no more natural light, and I was hungry and didn't want to spend time messing with the camera!