♫♪Fruit Pizza - Yummy Yummy♪♫

I have a wonderful SIL Jesica who sent me this recipe for Fruit Pizza and I just had to try it!☺ It was very easy and Ohhh so TASTY!! Take the refrigerator Sugar Cookie dough and bake at 350° for 12 minutes - Let cool completely!
Than take 1 1/2 c. Powdered Sugar, 1 c. Cool Whip and 1-8oz. pkg Cream Cheese - blend together till smooth. Spread over top of cooled cookie.
Add your favorite FRUIT!!
VOILA!! A tasty dessert...
Oh than you can't forget to add a dash of one sweet taste tester!!
Doesn't it look good enough to EAT...well grab your fork and dive right in!!

Thanks Jesica for a very YUMMY new dessert we will be having A LOT at our house!!☺

CAR BAKED COOKIES☺

Even though when I first found this I thought baking in your car was just a joke...I actually think it would be fun and I agree it won't heat up your house!! So if you would like to try making cookies and baking them on the dashboard of your car check out this link --
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Oatmeal Choco Chip Cookies
Tips for Baking in the Car!!
They sound really yummy and when I get a chance I think we need to whip up a batch!!☺

♥MY NEW TOY!♥

I have this wonderful SIL who gave me this fun little dipping pot for my birthday...
I am in LOVE-it's AWESOME!!
Works great for melting, dipping and keeping the chocolate warm throughout the process.
It helped me make these YUMMY chocolate covered strawberries this weekend☺
Highly recommend it to those that are addicted to dipping like I am!!

---Cookin' Up A 4th of July Celebration---

Nothing is more fun than having a great BBQ on the 4th of July with good friends!!
This year I wanted to make a festive cake to go along with our Celebration.
So I baked a Red Velvet Cake and topped it with blueberries and raspberries (another alternative is strawberries☺) to make a beautiful flag!:)

Red Velvet Cake and Frosting Recipe:
1 cube Butter
1 c. Sugar
Beat together till fluffy.
2 Eggs - add one at a time and beat well.
Make a paste of 2 TB. Cocoa and 2 oz. Red Food Coloring (2 bottles). Add to above mixture.
Add:1 tsp. Vanilla
1 c. Buttermilk
2 3/4 c. Flour (sifted)
Alternate the milk and flour.
Last add 1 TB. Vinegar and 1 1/2 tsp. Soda
Mix really well - Bake 300* for 25-30 minutes.
Frosting:
Cook together -
1 c. Milk
5 TB. Flour
Cream 2 cubes Butter and 1 c. Sugar.
Add 1 tsp. Vanilla to cooked mixture, cool and than add to sugar mixture. Beat till smooth and creamy - this takes quite a long time to fluff up. Frost and add fruit on top.
Enjoy!!

Adding to the theme of the fun cake we served refreshing drinks...
Red Tampico Tropical Punch
White Pina Colada's
Blue Berry Kool-Aid

Another fun recipe I like to make in the summer and take to BBQ's --
Italian Spaghetti Salad:
1 pkg. Cooked Spaghetti Noodles
1 jar Creamy Italian Dressing
1 can Olives - drain and slice
2 cans Diced Tomato's rinsed and drained
1 pkg. bite size Pepperoni
Optional veggies that you might like - carrots, celery, green onions.
Cool spaghetti and add about 3/4 of the bottle of dressing or till well coated (too much dressing may cause it to go runny). Than add other ingredients. Mix well.
Chill before serving. I like to make the night before-tastes better the longer it sits.
Enjoy!!

Warm Gooey Home Made Brownies - MMMM!

My mom used to make home made brownies when I was growing up...I don't even think I saw her use a box mix. I loved them!! All warm, gooey, chocolatey - melt in your mouth goodness:) So I was excited to come across this yummy looking recipe and can't wait to try them...

Brownies from Amy’s Bread
Recipe from The Sweeter Side of Amy’s Bread.
3 & 1/3 cups (20 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup unsalted butter
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 & 3/4 cups chopped nuts, toasted (optional)
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9″x 13″ baking pan. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper.
Melt butter, half of the chocolate chips, and unsweetened chocolate in a double boiler (or microwave). Let mixture cool to warm.
Whisk sugar, eggs, and vanilla just until mixed. Over-mixing will cause crumbly brownies. Fold in warm chocolate mixture.
Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Fold dry ingredients into chocolate mixture until just combined. Stir in remaining chocolate chips and nuts (if using), mixing just until combined.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Spread to an even thickness. Bake 32-36 minutes. The edges will be slightly firm and the center will be soft when they are fully baked. Do not over bake. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.
Makes 12 large or 24 small brownies. These brownies may cut better if they are chilled first.

I AM AN ADDICT!!

Hi my name is Shannon, and I am an addict. They say the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. My addiction is CHOCOLATE!!
Not just any chocolate or some fancy, expensive, imported stuff - NOPE just good old WF, inexpensive, store bought, delightfully delicious CHOCOLATE!! They call it Almond Bark but I call it HEAVEN♥
When I love to dip - anything - I reach for this...Well I needed to make chocolate covered Oreo's for a friend and of course when you have to make them for someone else it never fails you have a catastrophe!!
I used good old Oreo's and they just crumbled when I put Popsicle sticks in them, so I sent my wonderful hubby to the local grocer. He is an amazing man you know!! He solved my problem by buying DOUBLE STUFFED OREO'S - they worked like a charm. They were the WF brand that had a fun flower design on them and I loved how they looked after being dipped.
So if you have a sweet tooth try these out...
After sticking sticks in them place the Oreo's on a wax paper covered cookie sheet and let them harden in the freezer for about 20 minutes.
Melt your chocolate squares in the microwave at 30 second intervals so it doesn't burn and stir till smooth. Dip them and tap off excess chocolate...
Line them up on a foam block to harden...

And than devour their CHOCOLATELY goodness!☺ I am not an Oreo fan but OMG these are so so good!!
Other wonderful things to dip:
Marshmallows
Strawberries
Cinnamon Bears
Graham Crackers
Cake Balls
Cheese Cake Balls
Brownie Balls
I think in a perfectly chocolately world you could dip anything!!
Well maybe not veggies☺

!Go NS BRAVES!

Last week I was given the opportunity to make brownie bites for a friend's daughters MS graduation. I had the worst experience with them and it took me days to figure out!! I had bought a Betty Crocker brownie mix that called for 2/3 cup oil and I under cooked them to avoid the crunchy edges I have had in other batches. So they turned out a gooey mess. I ended up at the last minute making another batch with the same mix (that's all I had) but I over cooked them and added less cream cheese. They turned out OK, but I suggest using another brand that contains less oil when using them for balls to be dipped.
But on a more exciting note, I purchased this really cool new tool at Micheal's. It worked so well dipping and making neat swirls on top of the chocolates. Like I said I had a tough time so it worked only when they were really cold. I made the best of my situation and double dipped the ones that ended up too gooey to dip and turned the rest into brownie cups with a mold I got (I will post more on that after I finish making up those☺). Their colors are purple and gold so I had fun experimenting with this fun gold dust that a friend of mine gave me. I had purchased golden yellow that turned out looking orange...the kids told me it looked like fry sauce - LOL!! So the dust was a great alternative. I thought they turned out amazing and for the first time was rewarded graciously for my hard work.

SuPeR eAsY SoFt PrEtZeLs

Super Easy Soft Pretzels as seen on Kara's Kitchen Creations:1/2 cup warm water2 Tbsp yeast (I use SAF)
1 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp sugar
4 cups flour
Add yeast to warm water. Add milk, salt, and sugar. Stir in flour to make a stiff dough. (Unlike most bread recipes, you want plenty of flour. That makes the pretzels chewier.) Knead on floured counter a few times. Let dough sit for about 5 minutes. Form into pretzels following the instructions below. Bake at 400 for about 15-18 minutes. Yum! -Makes about 10-12 pretzels
Pinch off a small ball of dough.
Roll it into a rope about 14" long.
Cross the ends over.
Now bring the ends down to the bottom of the pretzel.
Place the pretzel on a greased cookie sheet and tuck the ends under.
Keep forming pretzels till you run out of dough. Then brush all of them with milk.
If you want, you can sprinkle toppings on the pretzels.
We have tried poppy seeds, sesame seeds, garlic salt and Parmesan, and cinnamon/sugar. Or you can sprinkle them with salt. Most of the time I just leave them plain-and they are still heavenly!
Notes:
-Sometimes I replace some of the white flour with freshly ground whole wheat flour and it works wonderfully and is more healthy.

Are Those Eggs Still Good To Use?

I found this on Tip Junkie today and thought I would share. I am always wondering if my out dated eggs are still good to eat or cook with.

Ever have an egg in your fridge and you were not sure if it was still good or not? There is an EASY way to find out. As eggs go bad, gases are produced inside the egg. As those gases are produced, the egg becomes more and more buoyant.
Here’s what you do!
Fill a glass with water, place your egg inside.
If the egg sinks to the bottom, it is still good and will be for some time.
If the egg floats to the middle of the glass, it is still good but needs to be used soon.
If the egg floats all the way to the top, you need to throw it away.
I swear knowing this is going to really impress someone at some point in your life.

{Hats off to the Graduates of 2009}

My mom needed a treat for her graduates next week and thanks to Bakerella I found a really fun idea...

Graduation Cap Pops!!

I found Ghirardelli chocolates in squares, miniature PB cups, chocolate almond bark, mini M&M's, Twizzlers pull-n-peels, and sucker sticks.
Place the PB cups in the freezer for 15 minutes to harden, this makes the wrappers peel off better and the chocolate won't stick. This makes them look better around the edges. Than allow the pb cups to come back to room temp while you heat the chocolate according to package instructions. Dip your sucker stick in the melted chocolate and carefully insert into the pb cup about halfway. If they are still frozen they will break. Allow the sticks to set up.
Unwrap your squares, with a toothpick dab a small amount of chocolate on top, and place mini M&M over the chocolate. Than draw a line with your toothpick and place the licorice on top.
I wrapped the licorice around and under so it would take shape and hang better. Let set up well.
Last dip the end of your pb cup on the stick into some chocolate and place the chocolate square on top. Stick them into a foam block to dry. Mom my is going to bundle three of them in a sack and tie them up with ribbon and a tag. These are going to be so fun and tasty for her students. I thought they turned out so adorable and look yummy!!

++10 meals in 1 hour++

This week has been CRAZY!! But I found some great deals on meat and decided to do some freezer cooking. I purchased about 18 lbs. of chicken, 7 lbs. of hamburger and freezer bags.

I placed all but 7 chicken breasts in the crock pot and cooked on high for about 4 hours. After the chicken was cooked and cooled I spent about a half hour cutting, cubing, bagging and labeling the chicken. I than cooked half of the hamburger meat with a little dried onion, made patty's with the other half, bagged it and labeled it all. It took me less than an hour and about $25 for all the meals. Here is what I now have in my freezer:

1. - 2 chicken breasts marinated for grilling

2. - 1.5 lbs. cooked hamburger - Taco's

3. - 1.5 lbs. cooked hamburger - Mexican Manicotti

4. - 5 raw chicken breasts mixed with ingredients for Creamy Italian Crock-pot Chicken (see older post for recipe)

5 & 6. - 8 hamburger patties - stacked on wax paper ready for grilling

7. - cooked and cubed chicken - Chicken Enchilada's

8. - cooked and shredded chicken - Haystacks

9. - cooked and shredded chicken mixed with taco seasoning - Chicken Quesadilla's

10. - cooked and cubed chicken - Chicken Spaghetti

[Party Pleasers!]

This weekend I hosted a party and everyone really enjoyed the food so I promised to post the recipes. I made the cake pops and brownie/cake balls for dessert and I already posted them so check out this link for the recipe - CAKE POPS. I got creative using the left over chocolate and vanilla almond bark and double dipped the red velvet cake pops I had made and I thought they were easier and looked really fun:) I served these in a fun glass vase and the cake pops in fun cups full of sugar. The rest of my menu was spinach dip served with crackers and sourdough baguette, veggies with dip, fruit with dip and a lemonade slush

Spinach Dip
1 pkg Pic-A-Sweet chopped frozen spinach
1 16 oz. Sour Cream
1 c. Mayo
1 pkg Knorr Spinach dip
1/2 c. chopped water chestnuts (optional)
Place frozen spinach in pan, cover with water, bring to boil and boil for 3min. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 4 minutes. Drain well. Cool spinach in fridge and than add remaining ingredients. Chill for 4-6 hours. Serve with crackers and sour dough baguette.
(I didn't have time to chill that long so I made sure the spinach was nice and cold and chilled the dip for an hour before I served - it still tasted really good:))

Fruit Dip
2 pkg 8 oz. Cream Cheese
2 jars Marshmallow Fluff
2 tsp. Vanilla (optional)
Use blender to mix all ing. well. Serve with fresh fruit: Apples, strawberries, bananas, etc.

Lemonade Slush
3 c. Sugar
8 c. Hot Water
1 can Frozen Lemonade (or favorite frozen drink)
2 liter Sprite
Dissolve sugar in hot water, add thawed can lemonade, mix well and place in gallon freezer bag. Freeze. When ready to serve partially thaw, dump into bowl and pour Sprite over top. It will turn slushy. You can garnish with lemon wedges:)

--My Favorite Meatballs as seen on GTU--

This recipe was featured today on Good Things Utah and looks delicious. Check out Jenny Stanger's book called Dinner on Ice at her website FreezerDinner.com for more great tips and meals. I love bulk freezer cooking and can't wait for my copy to come in the mail to get more good ideas.

My Favorite Meatballs
Yield: 20 meatballs, Meatballs will last up to 4 months frozen

Ingredients:
1 large onion, finely diced
1 C seasoned breadcrumbs
1/2 C water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 lb lean ground beef
2 T parsley flakes
1 C grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
2 large eggs
2 t salt

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a hot skillet sauté diced onions with olive oil and cook for 5 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic and sauté another 2 minutes. Remove from heat and cool. In a large bowl, mix together the meat, eggs, cheese, parsley and bread crumbs. Add the onions and season with salt. Use your hands to mix it together. Add the water, it should be quite wet. Shape into golf ball size balls. Place meatballs in a hot skillet to brown the sides. Then place them on a cookie sheet and bake them for about 15 minutes. Cool and then use some right away and freeze the rest. Freeze on a cookie sheet for 1 hour (flash freeze) then pour all meatballs into a large zip top bag, label and freeze.To serve: Warm meatballs in the microwave and serve with spaghetti sauce on bread, over noodles, with a sour cream sauce or served as appetizers with a BBQ sauce etc...

Swedish Meatball Sauce:
Yield: Serves 4

Ingredients:
6 oz sour cream
1 (10 oz) can cream of chicken (or mushroom) soup
1 Cup of water

Method:
Mix together the sour cream, soup and water in a medium sauce pan and stir until boiling. Salt and pepper to taste (you can add in crumbled bacon and sliced green onions for freshness and flavor) add 8-10 defrosted meatballs to the sauce and serve over a cooked pasta of your choice.

*Pizza Crust*

I have been making homemade pizza's at our house a lot lately and would love to find a recipe so I don't have to keep buying the dough. I came across this one and heard it's the best. Can't wait to try it tonight:)

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. active dry yeast
1 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees F.)
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 1/2 cups flour
Directions:
Dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the oil, salt and sugar. Let yeast mix sit for about 5 minutes. Add the flour and mix well.
Dump onto a floured surface. Knead into a smooth dough (about 5 minutes). Roll out and press down on a greased pizza pan (if you have it, dust with cornflour after greasing the pan).
Add toppings.
Bake at 425 degrees for around 12-15 minutes, until the crust looks crispy and lightly browned.

~~You can never go wrong with CHOCOLATE and PEANUT BUTTER~~

I had this dilemma...
A smooth, milky, melted bowl of chocolate and a pan of smooshed up peanut butter bars.
What was a chocolate loving girl like me suppose to do?
Remind myself that everything dipped in chocolate tastes better!

Last week while trying to come up with other flavors of cake balls I made a pan of peanut butter bars and was going to try and shape them into balls, put them on sticks, and dip them in chocolate - Oh my goodness - Heaven! I love Reese's PB Cups! They are my absolute favorite treat!! So when I came up with these my mouth was watering just thinking of the combination on a stick. BUT...after adding more peanut butter to the cooked and crumbled bars it became a mess. All week I have been trying to think up something to add to the mixture to make it stick together and form balls. Well nothing came to me and I figured I had to do something with it.
So low and behold the ginormous PB Cup...
I took silver cup cake liners, spread a small dab on the bottom of the liner, sprinkled the PB bar mixture into the cup filling it about 2/3 full, and than spreading more chocolate over top.
I placed them in the freezer for about 5 minutes to set up and VIOLA -- HEAVEN!!!!
Well we will admit (my dear hubby was the taste tester) they are a bit BIG and RICH!
So not wanting to have 50 huge PB cups in the house with a PB cup addict I decided to whip up something a little less overwhelming.
I put wax paper on a jelly roll pan, spread 3/4 of the melted chocolate all over the wax paper....
Sprinkled the PB bar mixture (see recipe at the end) over the chocolate, smashing it down into the chocolate...
Take the remaining chocolate and drizzle over top...yours will look prettier:) I ran out of chocolate and attempted to make it look edible. They are a little messy so spreading more chocolate over top to create another layer instead of drizzling may help.
Put them in the freezer to set up and cut with knife or pizza cutter and ENJOY!! Thank goodness we are going to a BBQ tonight and I can share these. Because my diet just isn't going to work with a huge pan full of PB and Chocolate:)

PEANUT BUTTER BAR RECIPE:
3/4 c. Margarine or Butter
3/4 c. Sugar
3/4 c. Brown Sugar
2 Eggs
1/2 tsp. Salt
3/4 c. Peanut Butter
3/4 tsp. Baking Soda
1 1/2 c. Flour
1 1/2 c. Quick Oats
Cream sugar and margarine. Add eggs and vanilla, and than peanut butter. Gradually add combined dry ingredients. Pat into a jelly roll pan and bake 350* for 10-12 minutes. Cool.
To make the PB mixture for the PB Cup Bars crumble the cooled bars and add 1 cup peanut butter. Mix together until very crumbly and prepare as suggested above.

Chocolate Strawberry Crispy Pie

Another recipe from GTU...sounds yummy!! I want to try it this weekend:) But I love chocolate and raspberries so I am going to use raspberry sherbet - HMMM! I will post some pics after I make it!

Ingredients:
½ cup chocolate flavored syrup
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups crisp rice cereal
¼ cup dairy sour cream
1 quart favorite flavor ice cream
Butter an 8” pie plate; set aside. In medium microwave-safe bowl combine chocolate syrup with chocolate chips; microwave on high for 45 seconds or until hot. Stir until smooth. Remove ¼ cup chocolate mixture to small bowl; set aside. Add cereal to remaining chocolate mixture and stir to coat; cool slightly and press mixture evenly into bottom and up the sides of pie place. Place in freezer for 20 minutes or until firm. Combine reserved ¼ cup of chocolate mixture with sour cream. Spoon half the ice cream into pie, drizzle with chocolate sauce. Top with scoops of ice cream and remaining sauce. Decorate with berries - raspberries, strawberries, etc.!

Ranch Pork Chops

4-6 pork chops (I purchase the center cut and not the assorted variety)
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup Ranch Dressing
1 teaspoon dried Italian Seasoning
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In one shallow container, mix together the flour and Italian seasonings. In another shallow container, pour in the Ranch dressing. Trim all fat from the pork chops and then dredge in the flour. Dip the pork chop into the dressing on both sides. Place pork chops on a greased baking dish and sprinkle the tops with a little Parmesan cheese.
Bake for 35 minutes.

Cafe Rio Salad - YUM!!

A friend of mine sent this to me today and I am so excited!! Really this is my favorite salad! Hope you all enjoy it!! YUMMY!!!!

CILANTRO-LIME RICE1 c. uncooked rice (long-grain, white rice)
1 tsp. butter or margarine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 can (15 oz) chicken broth
1 cup water
1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tsp. sugar
3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

In a saucepan combine rice, butter, garlic, 1 tsp. lime, chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil. Cover and cook on low 15-20 minutes, until rice is tender. Remove from heat. In a small bowl combine lime juice, sugar and cilantro. Pour over hot cooked rice and mix in as you fluff the rice.


BLACK BEANS2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/3 c. tomato juice
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro

In a nonstick skillet, cook garlic and cumin in olive oil over medium heat until you can smell it. Add beans, tomato juice, and salt. Continually stir until heated through. Just before serving stir in the cilantro. (**NOTE** we added a can of corn, drained, to the beans with a dash of cumin and chili powder, it was AWESOME! We recommend doing this even though it's not "traditional Cafe Rio")

Sweet Pork2 pounds pork (we use boneless pork rib meat)
3 cans Coke (NOT diet)
1/4 c. brown sugar
dash garlic salt
1/4 c. water
1 can sliced green chilies
3/4 can enchilada sauce (I use Old El Paso brand, medium spiciness but any will work)
1 c. brown sugar

Put the pork in a heavy duty ziploc bag to marinade. Add about a can and a half of coke and about 1/4 c. of brown sugar. Marinade for a few hours or overnight.
Drain marinade and put pork, 1/2 can of coke, water, and garlic salt in crock pot on high for about 3-4 hours (or until it shreds easily, but don't let it get TOO dry) or on low for 8 hours. Remove pork from crock pot and drain any liquid left in the pot. Shred pork.
In a food processor or blender, blend 1/2 can Coke, chilies, enchilada sauce and remaining brown sugar (about a cup, you can add a little more or less to taste..). If it looks too thick, add more Coke little by little.
Put shredded pork and sauce in crockpot and cook on low for 2 hours. That's it!

Salad Dressing
1 packet TRADITIONAL Hidden Valley Ranch mix (not BUTTERMILK)
1 c. mayonnaise
1 c. buttermilk
2 tomatillos, remove husk, diced
1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro
1 clove garlic
juice of 1 lime
1 jalepeno (we like it SPICY so we kept the seeds in it, if you like it mild, just remove the seeds) Mix all ingredients together in the blender. That's it!

~CAKE POPS~

These cake pops are the most HEAVENLY little treat!! I came across them on BAKERELLA's blog and fell in love. She is an amazing, creative cook that is very talented. Mine are nothing compared to her creations. So check out her blog for more than a dozen ideas on how to make and decorate these fun new "pops"!!

I went crazy and made three different batches in one day. I baked basic boxed brownies, boxed strawberry cake with confetti frosting, and a homemade red velvet cake with frosting from scratch. That is why my pictures are all different. The recipe for each of them are at the end. I made a lot of mistakes and my last batch of pops turned out the best so please read and follow all directions if you want to learn from my mistakes - lol!!

I wanted to get them all baked fast, so I used a 13x9 pan, two round, and two heart pans. But any cake pan will do :)

Basic Cake Pop Recipe:
1 box cake mix (cook as directed on box for 13 X 9 cake)
1 can frosting (16 oz.)
Wax paper
1 pkg chocolate or vanilla bark (Kroger brand is good) or any color chocolate melts
Lollipop sticks

After cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl.
Mix thoroughly with 1 can frosting. (I use the back of a large spoon, but it may be easier to use fingers to mix together. But, be warned, it will get messy. Also, you may not need the entire can of frosting, so start out by using almost the entire can and add more if you need to.) I will admit I used the whole can and it made them too soft and not really cake-like, made it harder to roll and keep ball shape. So I prefer to use about 3/4 of the can:)

Brownie Pops:
I used a basic brownie boxed mix and after cooling I stirred in a 8 oz. pkg of cream cheese. I would suggest not using the full package if you don't want them to be as gooey as mine were (they sure tasted yummy though). They were harder to roll, keep shape, and dipping was a challenge. So use 1/2 of an 8 oz. pkg!! These were my favorite dipped in the white chocolate.

Red Velvet Cake and Frosting Recipe:
1 cube Butter
1 c. Sugar
Beat together till fluffy.
2 Eggs - add one at a time and beat well.
Make a paste of 2 Tbl. Cocoa and 2 oz. Red Food Coloring (2 bottles). Add to above mixture.
Add:
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 c. Buttermilk
2 3/4 c. Flour (sifted)
Alternate the milk and flour.
Last add 1 Tbl. Vinegar and 1 1/2 tsp. Soda
Mix really well - Bake 300* for 25-30 minutes.
Frosting:
Cook together -
1 c. Milk
5 Tbl. Flour
Cream 2 cubes Butter and 1 c. Sugar.
Add 1 tsp. Vanilla to cooked mixture and than add to sugar mixture. Beat till smooth and creamy - this takes quite a long time to fluff up.

Some other ideas and instructions for making cupcake pops click on the link below!! Have fun and ENJOY!!
cupcake pops

I had to take a picture of my RED hands from rolling the red velvet cake balls. Luckily it didn't stain! This was from the two bottles of red food coloring you add to the batter. Mine were a little gooey from using too much of the frosting though.

Roll mixture into quarter size balls or egg shapes and place on wax paper covered cookie sheet. (Should make 45-50) Melt chocolate in the microwave per directions on package. (30 sec intervals, stirring in between.)Dip the tip of your lollipop stick in a little of the melted candy coating and insert into the cake balls. (Insert a little less than halfway.)Place them in the freezer for a little while to firm up. This is a very important step...I learned the hard way and my balls kept falling off the sticks. My last batch I got fed up, went back to her blog and found out I was suppose to stick them in freezer. Wow did they work so much better!!

Once firm, carefully insert the cake ball into the candy coating by holding the lollipop stick and rotating until covered. Once covered remove and softly tap and rotate until the excess chocolate falls off. Don't tap too hard or the cake ball will fall off, too.Place in a Styrofoam block to dry. During this process I was having problems and not enough sticks, so I just dipped mine into chocolate. I wanted them to look like speckled eggs so I added pink and purple sprinkles to the white, vanilla bark. If anyone knows a good trick to dipping chocolates and making them look pretty -PLEASE- let me know. Mine didn't look as well as I hoped!!

I packaged some of them in fun Easter/Spring bags and tied them with a pretty bow!

The fun speckled egg pops I put in flower pots with "Nest" Krispy Treats (basic rice krispy treat recipe that I substituted chow mien noodles instead of rice krispy's) and chick Peeps for decoration. These where a fun treat that we gave to our family and friends for Easter!!

{CREAMED EGGS ON TOAST}

This has been a tradition in my family since I was little and it just isn't Easter without making it. It's fun to serve for breakfast after searching for eggs all morning and the dyed eggs turn the mixture many exciting different colors. Hope you enjoy it as much as my family does!!

White Sauce:
1/2 c. Butter
3/4 c. Flour
Milk
1 1/2 dozen Hard Boiled Eggs
Melt butter in pan, stir in flour - it will make a paste. Stir in a little milk at a time to thin out, keep stirring till it gets thick, than add more milk. I don't really measure it, just keep adding little at a time till it gets smooth with no lumps. You need to keep cooking and stirring to cook down the flour mixture. This gets rid of the flour taste. Add salt and pepper to taste (my mom usually doesn't use as much salt but my husband likes it to taste not so bland so he adds quite a bit - up to you). Over the years I have played with my white sauce to get it as good as we like it, so if you have better measurements and directions for a white sauce let me know?!
Peel and grate your hard boiled eggs into the mixture and stir till warmed through.  Serve over toast.  I usually use about 1 1/2 dozen eggs for this amount. It feeds 5-6 people. ENJOY!!
(my brother-in-law enjoys this sprinkled with some tobasco sauce - hehehe)

++Quick Delicious Banana Cake++

This is a great way to use up your banana's that are starting to turn brown. Sorry the pictures do the taste no justice and I am still learning new tricks to taking food pictures (and listening to my hubby chuckle as I take snapshots of our food). It's very moist, yummy and makes your house smell so good while it's baking!!

Banana Cake:
1/2 c Sugar
1/2 c Butter - softened
1/2 c Banana's (3 medium)
2 tsp. Vanilla
1 tsp. Soda
1 c Sour Cream
2 Eggs
2 c Flour
3/4 tsp. Salt
Cream sugar and butter, add wet ingredients, mix together dry ing. and stir into batter. Mix well and bake at *375 for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

Frosting:
1/4 c Butter
2 c Powdered Sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla
3 Tbl. Milk
Melt butter over heat and stir till it starts to brown. This will caramelize it. Take off heat add vanilla, powdered sugar, and slowly add milk to get smooth consistency. If frosting is too runny or thick add more pd sugar or milk till you get it smooth.

Cool cake and frost. Enjoy!!

~PINK DEVILED EGGS~

Ingredients:
4 hard-boiled eggs
1 small can beets
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon mustard
Remove shells from hard-boiled eggs. Cut eggs in half lengthwise and scoop out the yolks into a small bowl. Pour juice from can of beets into a cup. Dip each egg half into the cup for 1 minute. Remove and turn upside down on a paper towel. Mix egg yolks with mayo and mustard. Fill egg whites halves (now pink) with yellow deviled egg mixture.
These eggs do not taste like beets!

♥CrOcKpOt BrEaKfAsT cAsSeRoLe♥

Recipe...
32 oz. frozen or freshly grated hashed browns (we baked our own potatoes first, then grated them)
1 cup of your favorite salsa
1 lb. turkey sausage (pre-cooked bacon would work too!)
2 C. shredded cheese
One dozen eggs
1 C. milk
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper
1 teaspoon of dry mustard
Grate/place the hashed browns in the bottom of a lightly sprayed crockpot. Pour salsa on the potatoes. Crumble sausage or bacon on the hash browns; sprinkle cheese on top. Mix the eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and dry mustard. Pour eggs over the entire mixture. Cover and cook on low for 10 hours - and ENJOY!
Give it a try! Or modify the recipe to make it tasty for your family!

--Parmesan Crusted Chicken--

A couple weeks ago I ate at TGIF and had this and it was to die for. So I got excited when I found a recipe over on Pioneerwoman.com and I can't wait to try it - YUM!!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Hellman’s Mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 chicken fillets (or boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
2 sun-dried tomatoes, jarred
1 tsp Italian herbs
1 tsp basil
cayenne pepper

Crumbs:
2 tbsp breadcrumbs
Lawry’s garlic salt
1 tbsp Parmesan
1/2 tsp oregano

Directions:
Preheat oven 425 F. I used thawed 4 chicken fillets and put them in an oven dish, spooned the mayonnaise mix on top, and covered them with the spiked breadcrumbs. Now just put the chicken in oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until done all the way through.

How to Soften Butter in a Jiffy...

I found this nifty little trick over on Be Different Act Normal's blog and wanted to share. I always wondered why my cookies end up flat? Now I know it's because I get in a hurry and melt my butter in the microwave and than cream the sugar with it. She suggests...
"You put the butter in between to sheets of wax paper and roll it flat like you would a pie crust. You then peel it off the wax paper and put it in the bowl to cream. For the best results, you have to have softened butter. Creaming the butter and the sugar is actually a really important step. You want the sugar to be able to punch a million little holes into the butter. These air pockets help the cookie rise and make them light. Her obsession with Good Eats is where she got that lovely piece of information and it has served her well."

TaStY ApRiL FoOlS DiNnEr...

What's for dinner this April Fools' Day? Cookie fish sticks and tart taffy peas.

Gelled Juice and Faux Fish Sticks
RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
Lemon-flavored gelatin
Red food coloring
1. Following the package directions, mix up a box of lemon-flavored gelatin (we added a drop of red food coloring to darken it). Pour the mixture into clear glasses and insert a drinking straw into each. Place the glasses in the refrigerator to set. When they're ready, serve the jiggling juice to the next parched target (or two!) looking for a cool drink.

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
Cornflakes
Sugar wafer cookies
Peanut butter
Green taffy candy (we used green apple AirHeads)
Seedless strawberry jam
1. For the fish sticks, place a couple of handfuls of cornflakes in a ziplock bag and crush them with a rolling pin. Cover 2 sugar wafer cookies with peanut butter, then toss them in the cornflake crumbs to coat. 2. For the peas, tear off and roll small pieces of the taffy candy into balls. If the taffy is too stiff to work with, microwave it for about 6 seconds. 3. For the ketchup, use a fork to stir a few teaspoons of the jam until it's smooth. (I even added red food coloring to make it look more red)

Colorful Cupcakes

The first surprise here: there's not a grain of sugar in these cupcakes. The second surprise: your kids will love them anyway.
RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
Meat Loaf
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup grated Monterrey Jack cheese
3 tablespoons ketchup
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Potato Frosting
3 cups mashed potatoes
Food coloring
1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 12 muffin tin cups with foil bake cups. 2. In a large bowl, mix together all of the meat loaf ingredients until well combined. Divide the mixture evenly among the lined cups (the liners should be about three quarters full). 3. Place the filled muffin tins on cookie sheets and bake the cupcakes for about 15 minutes or until cooked through. 4. Divide the mashed potatoes among three small bowls and stir a few drops of food coloring into each batch to create blue, yellow, and pink pastel frosting's. Spread a generous dollop on each cupcake.

All recipes courtesy of www.familyfun.com :)

Coconut Shrimp or Chicken with Dipping Sauces

Coconut Shrimp (or Chicken)
3 c. shredded coconut12 (16-20 or 26-30 ct.) raw shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1 c. flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 t. garlic powder
salt & pepper
Canola oil
Coconut Shrimp Method:Lightly toast the coconut on a cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes or until coconut is slightly brown.Butterfly each shrimp by splitting lengthwise down the center, cutting three-fourths of the way through. Dredge the shrimp in flour and then dip in egg. Press the shredded coconut into the shrimp and then fry in 350 degree canola oil until golden brown. (I found it was easier to brown in the oil and then finish cooking the shrimp on the bottom rack of my oven on broil for 1-2 minutes until cooked through).

Serve with Jalapeno Jelly or Pina Colada Dipping Sauce (or both!!).

Jalapeno Jelly:
1 c. red wine vinegar
1 c. water
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 green jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1 small red bell pepper, minced
1 package liquid pectin
Place all ingredients, except pectin, in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the pectin and bring to a boil again. Remove from heat and cool.

Pina Colada Dipping Sauce:
4 oz. liquid pina colada mix
3 oz. sour cream
3 oz. crushed pineapple, drained
Mix all ingredients together until smooth.