Caramel Pecan Dream Bars

This is the other recipe that uses the Heath Baking Chips. These are very good. I got this recipe from my cousins wife, Alisha. Soooo yummy.

Crust:
1 pkg. yellow cake mix
1/3 cup softened butter
1 egg

Filling:
14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup Heath Bit o' Brickle baking chips
1 cup chopped nuts
1 egg

--Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9 x13 pan. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, butter and egg. Mix at highest speed until crumbly. Press into prepared pan. In small bowl, beat milk, egg and vanilla until blended. Stir in pecans and bit of Brickle chips. Pour over crust in pan, spread and cover. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 35 minutes or until light golden brown. Center may appear loose but will set upon cooling. Allow bars to cool completely before cutting.
*For high altitude (above 3500), add 2 Tbsp. flour to dry cake mix. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-35 minutes.

Caramel Fruit Dip

I NEED to make this. It's from Our Best Bites, which is always an excellent food blog. I am really excited to have something to do with my Heath Toffee Bits, besides the Dream Bars. Which I haven't posted. lol, but I will. Cause I love them.

1 8-oz. package cream cheese (room temperature)

3/4 c. brown sugar

1/2 Tbsp. vanilla (you can add more to taste)

Toffee bits (look by the chocolate chips and try and find the chocolate covered ones if you can! Your dip won't be pretty, but it will sure taste good!)

With an electric mixer, combine cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla. When ready to serve, stir in about 1/2 a bag of toffee bits. Serve with fruit. They had fruit skewers with apples, strawberries and grapes.

Creamy Beef Noodles

I'm just going to go ahead and double this because that is how I always make it. And I leave out the onion, I've actually never had it in. But I hear it's really tasty.

1 lb. ground beef
1 jar Prego
8-oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
6 green onions, chopped
1 (16-oz.) package pasta (I usually use shells.)
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Brown beef in skillet. Pour in sauce and simmer for 10 minutes. Then sftened cream cheese and sour cream and blend in a small mixing bowl. Add green onions to cream cheese mixture. Boil and drain pasta. In a foil baking dish, layer. Put pasta on the bottom, then cream cheese mixture, then meat sauce. Repeat layers. Top with cheese. Freeze or refrigerate. Thaw and bake at 350 degrees, uncovered for 30 minutes.

Taos Chicken and Pasta

I got this recipe from my cousin Jenna who has her own, much more successful recipe blog. She got this recipe from her SIL or something like that. But I think this is one of my favorites of all time. I really like recipes that taste excellent just from the basic recipe and not because I tweaked it. This would be one of those. There is one other one I got from her that is that way. Maybe I'll get to that next.

1/4 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 Tbsp. dried basil leaves
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 large bell pepper*

1.) Combine soy sauce, broth, oil, basil, ginger and garlic powder. Marinate with chicken (cubed) for 2-3 hours. Refrigerated. Stir occasionally.
2.) Pour off marinade and save. In large skillet, coated with non-stick spray, cook chicken until lightly browned and no longer pink in center. Add bell pepper and saute 5 minutes. Remove from skillet and add marinade to skillet. Stir in cornstarch and cook until thickened. Add back chicken and peppers.
3.) Cook pasta according to package directions. Serve chicken and sauce over cooked pasta. Serves 8.



*I am not a green pepper fan. But if they are cooked all the way through they are OK. Well so this pepper cooks all the way through I cut it, mince it really, into very small peices. I use my Pampered Chef hand chopper in fact. And then they are perfect little bits of pepper that cook quickly.

Hot Broccoli Cheese Dip

This is one of my favorite dips. I make it a lot and really recommend it!

1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
1 envelope Good Seasons Mild Italian Dressing Mix
1 (10-oz.) package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed, well-drained
1 (8-oz.) package cheddar cheese, divided

Mix cream cheese, sour cream and salad dressing with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Stir in broccoli and 1 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. Spoon into 9-inch pie plate. Bake @ 350 for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with crackers or chips.

Avacado Egg Rolls

This is a recipe from Cheesecake Factory. It is very yummy and worth the cost! I love eating this!

Dipping Sauce:
1 Tbsp. white vinegar
1 tsp. Balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup honey
1 pinch saffron (optional)
1/2 cup chopped cashews
2/3 cup cilantro leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 green onions chopped
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. ground cumin

--Puree above ingredients in blender or food processor until mostly smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Filling:
2 or 4 avocados, diced
4 Tbsp. sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped
2 Tbsp. minced red onion
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
A pinch of salt
7 or 8 egg roll wrappers
1 egg, beaten

--Gently combine avocado, tomatoes, onion, cilantro, and salt. Place a few tablespoons of filling in the center of each egg roll wrapper. Position with point facing toward you. Fold up bottom corner 1/4 on the way over filling. Brush remaining corners with beaten egg. Fold in both sides and then the top. Press to seal. Repeat with remaining wrappers. Fry in 375 degree oil browning both sides quickly. Drain. Slice each egg roll in half diagonally and serve with prepared dipping sauce.

Hard Candy Suckers

I really like making hard candy. I don't know why, because people don't always like to eat it afterward, but I still think it's fun!

1 c. sugar
1/2 c. water
1/3 c. corn syrup
1/4 tsp. oil flavor
Food Coloring

Combine sugar, water and corn syrup.
Cook to hard crack (300 degrees).
Check your thermometer first to see if it is accurate with water boiling, as this burns easily after 300 degrees.
Remove from heat.
Add flavoring and food coloring.
Stir and pour into greased sucker molds arranged on a greased cookie sheet or a marble slab.
Makes 10 suckers.

(Double fruit flavors or add 1/4 teaspoon citric acid.)

"Red Hot" Boston Cream Pie

This is my favorite kind of pie. Note: I think I would take out the cinnamon. I don't think I actually want mine Red Hot. BUT, this is the best recipe I've ever seen. Courtesy of Zoe Bakes.

Cinnamon Sponge Cake:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (remove!)
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons hot water
3 large egg whites (you will need two yolks for the pastry cream recipe below)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 350° and prepare two 8-inch cake pans with butter and parchment rounds.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon, set aside.
In a stand mixer whip the eggs until light. Slowly add the sugar and whip until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the hot water and vanilla, beat for another minute. Remove from mixer and gently fold in the sifted flour.
In a clean bowl whip the egg whites until stiff peaks, but don’t let them get dry or they will be hard to fold into the batter. Gently fold the egg whites into the cake batter.
Divide evenly (they will not be very deep) into the prepared pans and bake for about 20-25 minutes or until the top is golden brown and a tester comes out clean. Set aside to cool completely.
Pastry Cream with whipped Creme Fraiche:
1 cup milk
1/4 cup sugar plus 1 tablespoon
pinch salt
2 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons cold unsalted butter
1/2 vanilla bean
1 stick cinnamon (remove!!)
1/3 cup creme fraiche

Chocolate glaze:
6 ounces high quality semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces (I ran out of unsalted and ended up using salted butter. I thought it was great!!! Take into consideration that I love the contrast of salty and sweet, especially with chocolate.)
3 tablespoons corn syrup
3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
Melt all together over a double boiler until completely smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. The chocolate should not be too hot and runny or it won’t cling to the cake nicely.

Monkey Bread

Courtesy of Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

• Leftover Bread Dough (or Refrigerated Biscuit Dough, Cut Into Thirds)
• Butter
• Sugar
• Ground Cinnamon
• Sweetened, Condensed Milk

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Add 1/2 teaspoon butter to muffin tins. Sprinkle in sugar and cinnamon.

Roll dough into walnut sized balls (or cut refrigerated biscuit dough into thirds). Place three into each muffin tin.

Top with 1/2 teaspoon butter. Sprinkle on more sugar and cinnamon.

Allow dough to rise, if applicable, or just go ahead and bake for 15 minutes, or until golden and bubbly.

Remove from oven and immediately drizzle plenty of sweetened condensed milk over the top of each one. Be generous! Allow rolls to sit for a little while to absorb sweet, sticky milk.

Scoop out with a spoon and serve to hungry humans.

Berry-Mi-Su

I got this recipe from Rachel Ray. We love it. And I'm making it on Friday so I need to put it some place easier. Someday I hope to adapt it to a large pan. This is a favorite of Matt's.

Note to self: I made this with mainly just a frozen berry blend and it worked very well because I got more juice to soak the ladyfingers in. I ended up just adding a few strawberries. This was SO much cheaper!

Ingredients

• 1 package ladyfingers
• 1 package frozen raspberries, defrosted, 10 ounces
• 8 large strawberries, sliced
• 1/2 cup fresh blackberries, a couple of handfuls
• 1 cup mascarpone cheese, available in specialty cheese case of supermarket
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions

Open the ladyfingers and separate them.

Strain the frozen berries over a bowl, reserve juice. Combine defrosted raspberries with sliced strawberries and blackberries.

Line 4 martini glasses with a single layer of ladyfingers, letting the cakes overlap a bit at the stem. Press the cakes down a bit to fit the lines of the glass. Paint the ladyfingers with raspberry juice, liberally. Beat cheese with cream and sugar on low, 2 minutes. Spoon berries, then sweetened mascarpone into glasses. Top glasses off with a cap of the ladyfingers dotted with berry juice and more mixed berries.

Breakfast Bruschetta with Strawberries and Tangy Cream

I got this from Noble Pig. Oh it sounds interesting.

Breakfast Bruschetta with Strawberries and Tangy Cream
adapted from Cuisine at Home

Combine, Sprinkle With, And Broil:
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 small ciabatta rolls or one small loaf, split, buttered on cut sides, and halved diagonally

Toss Together; Stir Together:
1 cup fresh strawberries, hulled and diced
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/4 cup sour cream
2 Tablespoons plain yogurt
2 teaspoons honey
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Garnish Bruschetta With:
Sprigs of fresh basil

Preheat broiler to High with rack 6" from the heating element.

Combine sugar and cinnamon in a dish. Sprinkle mixture on buttered sides of bread, then broil on a baking sheet until toasted, 2-3 minutes.

Toss strawberries with sugar, basil and lemon juice. Stir sour cream, yogurt, honey and vanilla together in a separate bowl. To assemble bruschetta, spoon 2 Tablespoons berries with juice on each piece of toast; dollop with 1 teaspoon sour cream mixture.

Garnish with basil before serving.