Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

I hate to even call these little treats "brownies", because to me they resemble a cookie bar more than anything. I made these guys for my friend Julie last week and she thinks that they tasted just like a brownie, but sometimes I think she's crazy and can only say nice things and it's like an illness or something. :-)

But.......David and I both concur that these guys taste like a really soft, thick cookie. I would've added waaaay more chocolate chips and mini reeses-peanut butter cups than they called for, but other than that - they were great! If you like peanut butter and you like chocolate - you'll be set!!



After I pulled these guys out of the oven - I stuck several rows of the mini reese's in there to melt and get all happy.

Here's the recipe I found off of a blog called "Buns in my oven". Her pictures suck you in and make you HAVE to try her recipes. Or, um, maybe that's just me. :-)

Parents Review: It needed more chocolate inside, otherwise we really liked these.
Kids Review: More please.

Creamy Caprese Pasta

In my searching through the internet and my recipe books for something new to cook in the kitchen - I came across this recipe for Creamy Caprese Pasta on a fun blog called How Sweet It is. I've posted a few from here before.

I started out by mixing all of the yummy ingredients together.

Then I poured it in the dish and added more cubed fresh mozzarella on top.


Then I baked it all warm and bubbly. I even threw it under the broiler at the end of baking to give it the brown crunchy top.


I baked some chicken separately and then made up my kids plates. They don't like things all mixed together like me and the hubby.


I served this dish up with more fresh chopped basil on top and then I put some garlic butter all over some leftover french bread I had on hand. I threw them under the broiler for 1 minute per side. So good.


Here's the recipe - again with WAY better pics and details.

Parents Review: We liked it for sure, but it lacked a little "kick" that screamed "CAPRESE" like we are used to with tomatoes, mozzarella and loads of basil. We would definitely add a lot more fresh basil in this recipe and even a little spice or balsamic twist would be fun too.

Kids Review: They liked the way we sectioned everything out. We just marinated the chicken in a balsamic dressing and broiled it on the side for all of us.

Blackberry Crumble

We were comparing a "Crumble" to a "Cobbler" this weekend and this is the Crumble recipe we decided to give a whirl.

The Crumble definitely focuses more on the fruit in this dish and the topping was just an accent piece. I prefer it with a little more "bread-i-ness" or topping-to-fruit-ratio, but the flavor was awesome.

Here it is a-la-mode after the ice cream got all melty from the heat of the crumble.


Parents Review: David loved this. I loved the flavor - needed more crumble or more texture for me.
Kids Review: Both of them loved it even though LG declared she wouldn't like it before trying it. Typical girl.

And, for Julie, my dear friend who was searching for a great cobbler recipe. I think both of these 2 variations are really, really good, but that doesn't mean I won't keep searching. :-) Thanks for giving me a reason to bake!

Blackberry Cobbler

I made 2 Blackberry recipes this weekend. This is the first one. I wanted to compare "Cobbler" to a "Crumble" in the whole fruity dessert department.


Here's the recipe I tried for the cobbler. I actually had a different planned out to make and then I realized that it involved rolling out dough and many other things that I knew I wasn't in the mood for this weekend, so I went with this one because it looked both yummy and easy. 2 great things. :-)

We, of course, served it with cold vanilla ice cream on top of the hot cobbler. So good.


Parents Review: I liked the texture of the cobbler, but the fresh blackberries were a little bitter maybe?? I'm not sure. I've never tried frozen blackerries or even ones from the can, but I've heard that's a whole different flavor. What do you guys think? We really enjoyed it, but thought it could've been a little sweeter.

Kids Review: Baby Boy gobbled it up. Little Girl was all about the Crumble. She wouldn't touch this one.

Baked Buffalo Chicken Pasta

Wow. I saw this recipe on one of my favorite recipe blogs and since my hubby LOVES all things spicy, I thought this would be a winner in our house.

It did not fail.

Here's the recipe from How Sweet it Is, with very detailed instructions and way prettier pictures than I can offer if you want to give this one a try. I think you'll love it!

I used lowfat milk in mine, so I'm sure it wasn't as thick as hers, but we still loved it. I didn't have gorgonzola either, so I threw some feta on top at the end and it gave it a fun kick. I also was running a little short on my Frank's hot sauce, so I barely made the 1/3 cup called for in the recipe. I would have loved it with even a little more than it called for. I loved the zing in this souped-up Mac-n-cheese dish. I baked the chicken in the oven for about 25 minutes (threw a little olive oil, s&p and garlic powder on it too). I then just shredded it up with my hands and threw it in the bottom of the dish.

I used fresh cilantro and green onions from my garden to throw on top and we LOVED what this added to the dish.


David even added a little extra Sirache sauce on top of his for more heat.


Parents Review: David said this is his new favorite dish. I am making it again very soon with more hot sauce next time. Perfect!
Kids Review: They don't do spicy, so I just gave them some plain pasta and baked chicken before I dolled it all up, then added a veggie on the side for them. They were happy. :-)


Let me know if you try it!

Mexican Fried Ice Cream

It's Cinco De Mayo and we are celebrating with food. Yay! Here's a great recipe that I made with the kids today and it was so much fun. Not only was it easy and the kids got to help out with all the fun, but it was really, really good.

Here's the ingredients - minus the ice cream.


First we scooped some ice cream into a plastic baggie and formed it into a ball. We did this for each of us (in different bags) and threw them in the freezer until we were ready to use them.

Then, the kids poured some frosted flakes into a bag and a good amount of cinnamon and then smashed it up with a rolling pin. They loved this. You want to really taste the cinnamon, but you don't want it spicy. Go ahead and sample it to see what you like.


When we were ready to eat them, we got out the flour tortillas, sprayed our pan with Pam butter spray and fried them up a little bit. After I cooked each side - I sprinkled it with a cinnamon sugar mixture.



Immediately throw your tortillas inside your bowl to "form a bowl" before it gets crispy. Then, take out your ice cream balls and throw them in your frosted flakes mixture and shake it all up. Add your ice cream ball inside your tortilla, drizzle with honey and your done. You can also add a little whipped cream and sprinkles on top if you want to.

Here's how ours turned out.



Parents Review: I could've eaten two of them. It was like yummy, cinnamon honey ice cream and the tortilla was super tasty.
Kids Review: They would like it to be Cinco De Mayo every day.

Taco Salad

I hate to even call this one a recipe, but I have to say that this is my favorite kind of meal and I could eat it every other night. Seriously.

Here's how you make a stellar taco salad and keep the calories down at the same time.

Put a few of your favorite tortilla chips in the bottom of your bowl (I used my Tostitos chipotle fire-roasted ones)
Then add a ton of chopped iceburg lettuce.
Cook some lean ground beef in a pan, throw in a little bit of water and a package of taco seasoning - then throw it on your lettuce.
Add some shaved corn on the cob, low-fat shredded cheese, home-made guacamole (we mash an avocado, add some salsa and a squeeze of half a lime - perfection), salsa verde and some regular salsa and DONE.

Then mix it all together and enjoy. So great.

Parents Review: Love
Kids Review: Hold the lettuce and they are all over it. :-)

No Bake Graham Cracker Cookies

My mom has made these little dreamboats every year for our family reunion for as long as I can remember. I can't picture any other time she makes them, but they are a treat to look forward to. I love the creamy frosting on top, the pecan-pie-like filling in the middle and the soft and yummy graham crackers mixed in. They are chilled and served sliced into little bars.

A-ma-zing.

Here's her recipe.

In a 9X13 pan, put whole graham crax to cover bottom of pan.

Filling:

Melt 1 Cup butter, add 1 Cup Sugar, 1/4 Cup milk and 1 beaten egg. Bring to full rolling oil. Remove from heat. Add 1 Cup chopped nuts (I used pecans), 1 Cup Coconut and 1 Cup crushed graham crax.

Spread this over the crax in the pan and cover with whole graham crax.

Cover with icing made of 1/4 Cup butter and 2 Cups sifted powdered sugar and just enough milk to mix. Beat well and ice the bars.

Put in fridge for 24 hours. Then cut into small squares.


Try not to eat them all at once. You will get sick. Trust me, I know from experience.

Parents Review: We love these.
Kids Review: Won't touch with a ten foot pole - just like pecan pie. :-)