Sweet Vanilla Cashew Cream

This is healthy, yummy, dairy free and sugar free!  Almost doesn't seem real?! But it totally is! This is so yummy on fresh berries, in Choffy (if you don't know what this is, click here!) or any drink you want to be creamy and sweet! Or just eat it by the spoonful (I obviously DON'T do this). You should totally try this!

Sweet Vanilla Cashew Cream

makes about two cups

1 cup raw, unsalted cashews

1/2 cup almond milk

2-4 T pure Maple Syrup (depending on sweet you want it)

1 t vanilla extract

a pinch of salt

Place the cashews in a bowl and cover with water. Let them soak for at least two hours.

Drain the water and place the cashews in a blender. Add the almond milk, syrup, vanilla and salt and blend on high for 30 to a minute or until smooth.  Refrigerate to thicken. Will keep in the fridge for unto 5 days or freeze.

Texas Caviar

I am such a huge fan of Mexican food!  It is my go to for dinner, snacks and just about anytime!  I came across this recipe and couldn't get enough! I found the recipe here. And no, it doesn't have fish eggs in it!

Texas Caviar

1 (15 oz) can black eyed peas for black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (15 oz) can corn

1 avocado, pitted, peeled and diced

1/2 cup diced red onion

1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced

1 jalapeño (2 if you want it spicer)stemmed, seeded and finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 1/2 T fresh squeezed lime juice

1 T extra virgin olive oil

1/2 t salt

1/4 t paprika

1/8 t pepper or cayenne if you like the heat

Whisk together oil, lime juice, paprika, salt and pepper.

Toss all the other ingredients together in a bowl.  

Pour the dressing on top and toss until mixed together.

Serve with tortilla chips!

Hot Chocolate Bombs

This is such a fun way to do a Hot Chocolate Bar! My boys love a good cup of hot chocolate and I love that they can just heat up milk and drop one of these babies in!  I found the recipe here. 

Hot Chocolate Bombs

(about 15 balls)

2 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 T sugar

1/4 t salt

2 t vanilla extract

cocoa powder, crushed candy canes, mini chocolate chips, mini marshmallows for rolling

Place all ingredients in a pot (except the items for rolling) and melt together on low heat until smooth.  Stir constantly.  

Let cool in the fridge until stiff enough to scoop (I left mine over night).

Make small scoops, about 2 Tablespoons each.  I used my cookie scoop. Place on wax paper and freeze for an hour.

Roll each scoop into a ball and then roll in your choice of decoration.  Crushed candy canes, cocoa powder, mini chocolate chips, mini marshmallows or anything you want! You will need to push the bigger things in to make them stick.  

Keep chilled until ready to use. (I leave mine in the freezer)

When ready, drop 1 hot chocolate ball into 1 1/2 cups of hot milk and stir until completely dissolved.

Yum!

Brioche French Toast

You can make French Toast with any kind of bread, but you really haven't lived until you make it Brioche!  Trader Joe's has heavenly thick sliced Brioche that is so perfect it makes me want to cry! But if you don't have a Trader Joe's close, any thick sliced bread will do!

Brioche French Toast
(about 10 thick slices)

5 eggs
3/4 cup milk
1 t cinnamon
2 t vanilla
thick sliced Brioche (or any kind of bread)

Heat griddle over medium heat.  In a shallow bowl, whisk together the first four ingredients. Dip bread slices in egg mixture letting each slice absurd the mixture on both sides. Place on hot, buttered griddle.  Cook for about 1 minutes per side or until they are golden brown and spring back to the touch.  Repeat until all the slices are cooked. Serve hot with your favorite toppings.

Peach Hand Pies

My husband LOVES hand pies! It is a good thing I know how to make them or I would fear he loved them more than me! There is just something so amazing about being able to eat pie with your hands! If you haven't done that, you haven't lived! These are a breakfast food as well as dessert in my house!  I found the recipe for the peaches (the best!) here. I always use my favorite pie crust (see below). Now, get going!

Peach Hand Pies
(about 20)

Pie Crust

(adapted from Bon Appetite)

2 1/2 cups flour

2 t sugar

1/4 t salt

1 cup (2 stick) cold butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

6 T ice water (or more)

1 egg

1 T milk 

whisk this together

(this is for brushing on the dough)

Whisk together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.  Add butter, rub with your fingertips until the mixture resembles course meal.  Add 6 T ice water and toss with a fork until moist clumps form, add more ice water, 1 teaspoon at a time if the mixture is too dry.  Gather dough into a ball and flatten into two disks.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.  Roll out one disk at a time on a lightly floured surface until about 1/8 inch thick. Cut out as many 4 inch circles as you can. Repeat with other disk.  While the dough disks are in the fridge, make the peach filling. 

Peach Filling

5 medium to large peaches
1/2 cup sugar
2 T corn starch
1/2 t cinnamon
dash of salt
juice of 1/2 a lemon
a few drops of almond extract (this enhances the peach flavor!)

Peel and dice the peaching into 1/2" pieces. Place the diced peaches in a bowl and sprinkle with the sugar. Toss to combine.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for an hour. After an hour, drain the juice into a medium sauce pan.  Set aside the diced peaches. Whisk in the cinnamon, cornstarch and salt.  Cook over medium heat until the syrup boils. Whisking constantly, cook for about 2 minutes or until the syrup thickens. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and the almond extract.  Gently fold in the diced peaches and any extra juice.  Set aside to cool while you roll out the dough.

Icing
1 cup Powdered Sugar
1 T milk
a few drops vanilla extract
a few drops almond extract


Putting it all together:

Preheat oven to 350. Take a 4 inch dough round to a lightly floured surface and brush it with the egg and milk mixture.  Place a Tablespoon of peaches in the middle and fold the sides up like a taco. Gently pinch the sides together starting at one end and working to the middle. Lay the hand pie on its side and seal the edges using the tines of a fork.  Poke a couple of holes in the top, using your fork, to vent it.  Place the hand pie on a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper and repeat with the remaining dough circles.  Bake the pies for 30 minutes or until golden at 350.  While they are baking, whisk together the icing.  When they are hot out of the oven, gently brush the pies with the icing.  Cool as long as you can!  They are so yummy warm!

** If you have left over peach filling (I always do) place the peaches in a small oven safe dish.  Mix together a couple tablespoons oats, a couple tablespoons melted butter, a dash of cinnamon and a couple tablespoons brown sugar.  Put this onto of the peaches and bake at 350 until bubbly and lightly browned!

Corn and Zucchini Chowder

Such yummy soup! It is still so hot here in Texas, but I am so ready for soup! Sorry family, we are eating soup even if it is nearly 100 degrees! I found this recipe here.

Corn and Zucchini Chowder
(about 6 servings)

1 T Butter
2 strips bacon, chopped
1 cup diced yellow onion
2 celery ribs, chopped (about 1/3 cup)
1 medium carrot, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 t dried thyme
2 medium russet potatoes (about 1 lb.) peele, and diced into 1/2-inch cubes
4 cups of water
1 bay leaf
4 ears of fresh corn, husk and silk removed and kernels cut from the cob (about 2 3/4 cup)
1 medium zucchini, diced into 1 inch cubes (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 cup half and half
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
cayenne pepper, to serve

In a large heavy bottomed pot or dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add bacon and cook until bacon renders its fat and begins to brown. About 3-4 minutes.
Add onion, celery, carrots, garlic and thyme. Cook until veggies begin to soften, stirring multiple times.  About 5 minutes.
Add potatoes, water and bay leaf. Raise the heat to medium high and bring to a simmer, then lower the heat back to medium and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the potatoes are halfway cooked.
Add zucchini and corn.  Season with salt and pepper to taste, and simmer for an additional 8-12 minutes or until the veggies are completely tender.
Discard bay leaf and then transfer 2 cups of the soup to a blender or food processor. Puree until smooth. Stir the mixture back into the pot.  Add half and half and cook until heated through. Adjust seasonings and serve with fresh parsley and a sprinkle of cayenne pepper.

Perfect Biscuits

I haven't posted in Forever! But I just HAD to post these most amazing biscuits!  They are so quick and EASY! No buttermilk? No Problem! Don't have time to make perfect layers? No problem! I wanted to cry when these came out of the oven looking and tasting so perfect! And on the first try! So go on already and make some biscuits! I found the recipe here! (I could kiss this girl, I am so happy!)

Perfect Biscuits
makes about 12

3 cups flour
3 T sugar
1/2 t salt
4 t baking powder
1/2 t cream of tartar
3/4 cup COLD butter
1 egg
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 450.  Lightly grease a cookie sheet. Cut the butter into small pieces and place them in the freezer just while you mix the dry ingredients. Mix together the dry ingredients. Cut the butter in using a pastry cutter.  Mix together the milk and egg and add it to the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined (mine still had some four at the bottom and wasn't completely together). Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead about 10 times adding flour if it gets too sticky until you have a nice ball. Roll or pat the dough on a floured surface until it is about 1 inch thick. Cut with a biscuit cutter or a cup.  Place on a cookie sheet so the edges are almost touching. Bake for 10-15 minutes until they are older brown.  Brush the tops with a little melted butter. Prepare to be amazed!!

Honey Crisp Apple Sauce (NO sugar)

I keep finding amazing recipes that have vanilla beans in them, so I guess that is what I am into right now!  I had  bunch of Honey crisp apples that had been in my fridge and just weren't getting eaten, {GASP}, I KNOW! I blame it on all the yummy Holiday treats that were EVERYWHERE I turned!  So when I came across this NO SUGAR apple sauce recipe, I knew it had to be done! I didn't miss the sugar one bit, it is so sweet and yummy on its own! I found the recipe here.

Honey Crisp Apple Sauce

5 Honey Crisp apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
Juice of 1 lemon
1 cinnamon stick
1 T vanilla bean paste, or 1 vanilla bean scrapped

Put all of this in a pot and stir to combine. Let simmer on your stove on Medium low for about 1-2 hours or until the apples are super soft.  You can also put all this in your slow cooker on low for about 4 hours.  I used an immersion blender to blend to desired consistency.  It is great warm or cold!  It will store in your fridge for about 2 weeks or you can can it using a water bath! I doubled mine and got about 4 cups (I forgot to measure). I will definitely being doing bigger batches to can in the future!

Vanilla Bean Scones

I love scones!  And as much as I love them, I think my boys love them more! I literally hid these and totally kept them all for myself, after we ate them for breakfast one morning.  They are a copy cat recipe of Starbucks Petite Vanilla Bean Scones.  I got the recipe here.

Vanilla Bean Scones

(32 petite sones)

2 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar 

1 T baking powder

1/4 t salt

1/2 cup cold butter, cubed

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 egg

2 t vanilla bean paste (you could also use 1/2 a vanilla bean scraped and 2 t vanilla extract)

Glaze

3 cups powdered sugar

6-7 T heavy ream

1 t vanilla bean paste (or 1/2 vanilla bean scraped and 1 t vanilla extract)

1. Preheat oven to 400.

2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon mat.

3. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Whisk or pulse in a food processor to mix.

4. Add butter and cut in with a pastry cutter or pulse with a food processor until mixture resembles cornmeal texture.

5. In another bowl, whisk together cream, egg, and vanilla bean paste

6. Add liquid to flour mixture and pulse until just combined.

7. Put the dough on a floured surface and knead the dough briefly until the dough comes together.

8. Roll the dough to about 1/2 inch thickness.

9. Cut the dough into 8 rectangles or squares and then cut each on one diagonal and then the other creating 32 petite scones.

10. Place them on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges just start to turn brown.

11. Transfer the scones to a cooling rack to cool completely.

12. Whisk together the ingredients for the glaze adding the cream one tablespoon at a time until desired thickness. Dip the cooled scones in the glaze and place them back on the cooling rack to harden.

Apple Crisp Pie

I don't usually make pie. Not because I don't like it, I am just not very good at it. But this recipe has given me new hope! I LOVE this pie, it is probably the only one I will ever make again, it is that good! I can't for the life of me remember where I got the recipe, so please forgive me for not giving credit where credit is due, especially with such an amazing recipe! 

Apple Crisp Pie

(makes one pie)

1 homemade or store bought pie crust (I use this recipe)

5 1/2 cups peeled, cored and sliced apples (my fav is honey crisp)

1 T fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

3 T flour

1/2 t ground cinnamon

1/4 t nutmeg

Topping

3/4 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

1/3 cup butter, room temperature

Preheat oven to 375.  Fit pie crust into the pie plate.  

In a large bowl, gently mix sliced apples, lemon juice, both sugars, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Once it is blended well, pour into the pie crust.

Prepare topping by mixing all the ingredients for the topping in a medium bowl with a pastry cutter or a fork until coarsely crumbled and all the dry ingredients are incorporated.  Sprinkle the topping over the apple mixture in the prepared pie crust.

Bake at 375 for 50 minutes. (If your crust starts to get too brown, cover just the crust with foil and continue baking.  The pie will be bubbly around the edges when it is done.  Let the pie cool (if you can).  It will set up as it cools! Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream if you so desire, but why wouldn't you?!?

Roasted Tomato Marinara Sauce

I LOVE having a garden. I LOVE homegrown tomatoes. But there comes a time when all of a sudden you have 15 pounds of tomatoes ready all at once! That's when you can them!  I much prefer to have marinara sauce at the ready then just plain tomatoes.  And let's be honest, vegetables just taste better roasted! I found this recipe here.  It is simple, easy and in one afternoon I had beautiful jars of this perfect marinara sauce. All from my homegrown tomatoes!

Roasted Tomato Marinara Sauce

(about 8 cups)

10 pounds of fresh tomatoes

16 whole, peeled garlic cloves

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth

6 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves

2 medium onions, roughly chopped

1 T sea salt

2 t fresh ground pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Get out 2 large roasting pans or 3 large cookie sheets.

Wash tomatoes. Cut the tomatoes into large chunks. The core may need to be removed. Big chunks are good.  Place the tomatoes in the roasting pan.  Add garlic, oil, broth, oregano, onion, salt and pepper. Toss with your hands until mixed.  Place the pan in the oven and roast until the tomatoes have reduced by half and are starting to get a few black spots on the edges.  This should take about 45-60 minutes. Stir half way through.  If the tomatoes are really juicy, it will take longer. 

Remove pan from oven and let cool until you can handle it.  Carefully transfer the roasted tomatoes into a food processor or blender and pulse until desired consistency.  

The sauce is ready to serve. You can serve, freeze or can it.  

To can the sauce:

(You can NOT water bath this, it has to be done in a pressure canner)

Sterilize jars and fill leaving one inch head room.  Wipe the top rim and place the lid on.  We heat the lids in a simmering pot of water, be careful not to boil.  Place jars in a pressure canner.  Process for 25 minutes at 7 pounds of pressure. Don't forget to adjust for altitude.  Once the jars are processed remove from pressure canner and let them sit, undisturbed for 12 hours. 

Rosemary and Gruyere Cheese Bread

I love this artisan bread recipe!  I use it ALL the time, but this time I just wanted something a little different.  I may never go back!

Rosemary and Gruyere Cheese Bread

(1 loaf)

3 cups flour

2 1/4 t yeast

1 1/2 t salt

1/2 cup shredded Gruyere Cheese

1 T fresh chopped rosemary

1 T extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 cups water

Mix all ingredient EXCEPT water and oil together in a large bowl.  Add water and oil.  Stir until the dough forms a shaggy ball and all the flour is incorporated.  Cover and let sit at room temperature for at least 4 hours.  Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and fold over itself twice.  Form into a ball, cover and let sit for 30 minutes.  While the bread is sitting, heat oven to 450.  Place an oven proof, lidded pan (like a Le Creuset or Dutch oven) in the oven while it is heating up.  Once the oven and the pan are hot, place the dough seam side up into the hot pan.  Cover with the lid and bake for 25 minutes.  Remove the lid and bake for 5-10 minutes more or until desired doneness.  

Blender Pancakes (of the guilt-free variety)

I love a sweet breakfast! But when you are trying to eat better, there aren't that many sweet options.  When I came across this recipe, I was totally skeptical!  But thought I might as well give it a try!  So glad I did!  My kids even liked them! I am excited to have a healthy, sweet, breakfast without the guilt or added inches to my hips! I got the recipe here.

Blender Pancakes (of the guilt-free variety)

(makes about 10 pancakes)

6 egg whites

1 cup rolled oats, dry

1 cup cottage cheese

2 t sugar

1 t vanilla

1 t cinnamon

Place all ingredients into a blender.  Blend until smooth.  Cook on a heated griddle or pan sprayed with cooking spray or greased with a little butter and serve as desired.

Cinnamon Crumb Top Muffins

We have had a few snow days here is Texas and it brings out the baking monster in me!  There is no better way to spend a snowy morning than to fill your home with the smell of sweet baking goodness! When I saw these muffins they called to me!  I just had to try them, and they made our snowy day off of school so delightful!  You know calories don't count when the kids have a snow day, right?! I found the recipe here, changed it a smidgen and devoured these beauties!

Cinnamon Crumb Top Muffins

makes 12 muffins

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 t cinnamon

1/4 t baking soda

2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

1/3 cup oil (I used avocado oil)

3/4 cup milk

2 large eggs

The Crumb Topping

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 t cinnamon

1/4 t salt

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 1/2 cups flour

Glaze

1/4 -1/2 cup powdered sugar

1-2 t milk

Preheat oven to 375.  Prepare muffin pan by greasing or lining with paper liners, set aside. 

Make the crumb topping by combining sugars, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl.  Whisk in melted butter.  Add the flour and stir with a rubber spatula until moist.  Spread the mixture out on parchment paper to dry until ready to use.  

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.  In a large glass measuring cup whisk together milk, oil, and eggs. Pour the mixture over the dry ingredients and stir using a rubber spatula just until moist.  Scoop the batter evenly into prepared muffin pan.  Sprinkle with the crumb topping and gently press the crumbs into the batter.  Place into the preheated oven and bake for 15-17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.  

While the muffins are cooling whisk together the powdered sugar and the milk to make the glaze.  Drizzle glaze over the cooling muffins.  Serve while warm!

Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

There is just something so delicious about a deep, dark chocolate cake with creamy cream cheese frosting! Here is my version taken from this chocolate cake recipe (P.S. its the best, ever!). It definitely deserves its own post! My favorite way to enjoy this cake is when it is super cold right out of the fridge.  It makes it extra dense and moist!

Chocolate Bundt Cake

2 cups (250 g) cake flour
1 t (6 g) salt
2 t (10 g) baking soda
1 t (5 g) baking powder
3/4 cup (69g) unsweetened cocoa
2 cups (400 g) sugar
3/4 cup (180 ml) vegetable oil (I used avocado oil, it is healthier and you can't tell at all)
1 cup (240 ml) hot coffee (I am not a coffee drinker so I used Choffy.  It is roasted cocoa beans, seriously amazing stuff!)
1/2 cup (120 ml) buttermilk
1/4 cup (60 ml) cream
1/4 cup (60 ml) milk
2 large eggs
1 1/2 t vanilla bean paste

Preheat oven to 325.  Spray a Bundt pan with cooking spray and lightly flour.
Sift together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa, and sugar in a large mixing bowl.
Add the *hot coffee or Choffy, oil, milk, cream and buttermilk and beat for 2 minutes.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the vanilla and eggs. Beat for 2 more minutes. It will be very liquid-y.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for about 45-55 minutes.  The cake is ready when the cake springs back when lightly touched or when a toothpick comes out clean.
Let the cake cool for about 10 minutes in the pan.  Loosen the sides and remove to a cooling rack. Cool completely. Frost as desired.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1- 8oz package cream cheese

1/2 cup butter (at room temperature)

1 t vanilla

4-5 cups powdered sugar

Mix together cream cheese and butter until smooth.  Add vanilla and enough powdered sugar to desired spreading consistency.  I like mine thick so I can pipe it on.

Glazed Donut Hole Mini Muffins

Love these mini muffin donut holes!  They are so delish! Here is where I found the recipe.  Talk about easy and fast! I did change the recipe a little, here is what I did…

Glazed Donut Hole Mini Muffins
(makes 24 mini muffins)

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup milk
1 t baking powder
1 cup flour

Maple Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
2 T real maple syrup (I didn't have any so I used 2 t maple flavoring)
1-2 T milk

Preheat oven to 375. Grease 24 mini muffin cups. Mix together the melted butter and sugar. Stir in the milk, then add the baking powder and flour and stir until just combined.  Fill the prepared muffin cups equally.  Bake for 15-20 or until the tops a lightly golden.  Cool and drizzle with maple glaze.

Glaze:
Whisk together the 3 ingredients for the glaze until smooth and desired consistency is reached.

Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Meatballs

In the never ending quest to make something new for dinner, I occasionally come across a recipe that everyone in my family likes.  Ok, lets be honest, it rarely happens that EVERYONE in my family likes what I make for dinner but when it does happen it definitely becomes blog worthy!  So here you go, a recipe EVERYONE in my family likes!  Hooray for me! Here is where I found the recipe, I changed it a bit.

Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Meatballs
(makes about 20 meatballs)

1 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1 T butter, melted
1 egg
1 pound ground chicken
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1/2 cup diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T dried oregano
2 t dried basil
salt and pepper
20 small mozzarella cubes (I cut string cheese into 4 or 5 chunks)

Preheat oven to 400.  In a small bowl, combine panko, butter and 1/2 of the Parmesan cheese.  Mix until evenly coated with the butter and set aside.

In a large bowl, lightly beat the egg.  Add the chicken, red bell pepper, onion, garlic, oregano, basil, the other half of the parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper.  Mix well with your hands.  Lightly coat a mini muffin pan with cooking spray.  Place a couple of Tablespoons of chicken mixture into each well.  Place a chunk of mozzarella into the center of each and press down slightly and then cover with the chicken mixture.  Sprinkle the top of each chicken mound with the panko/parmesan mixture lightly pressing it into the meat.  Bake for 25-30 minutes until the panko is lightly browned and the chicken is cooked through.  Let it rest for 5 minutes after taking out of the oven.  Serve with noodles and your favorite marinara sauce.

*These would be great served with just marinara as an appetizer

Oreo Rice Krispie Treats

We like to have "snuggle nights" with our boys.  They get to stay up late and watch something fun or play games as a family.  It is a HUGE deal in our house and they will do almost anything to not miss out on these special nights!  Of course there are treats involved! It is usually some sort of milk shake, but when there is no ice cream in the freezer, you have to think quick!  I knew I had the stuff for Rice Krispie Treats but was in the mood for something a little more.  So, I added Oreos! Such a fun twist to an already quick and easy treat! They were a big hit with the "snuggle night" boys!

Oreo Rice Krispie Treats

4 T butter
5 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
5 cups Rice Krispie cereal
20 oreos, crushed
1 t vanilla

Grease a 9x13 pan and set aside. In a large bowl, combine Rice Krispies and crushed Oreos (I just smashed them in a large baggie). Set aside. Melt the butter and marshmallows in a large pan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Once the marshmallows are melted and the mixture is smooth, add vanilla and stir to combine.  Add the Rice Krispies and crushed Oreos to the melted marshmallow mixture.  Stir until evenly combined.  Press into prepared pan and let them cool and set.

Perfect Dinner Rolls

I am a little embarrassed at how many bread/roll recipes I have on here!  But lets be honest, I have a love affair with bread and LOVE trying new recipes.  Every couple of weeks I get an urge to try a new recipe and when I find a good one I just have to share!  These beauties are the perfect dinner roll, not too sweet, puff up perfectly and have a light, fluffy, buttery texture.  Pure heaven! I got the recipe here.

Perfect Dinner Rolls
(15 rolls)

1/4 cup lukewarm water
1 cup warm milk
1 T melted butter, plus one more T for brushing on the tops of the rolls
2 eggs
2 T sugar
1 1/2 t salt
 2 1/4 t yeast
4 1/2 cups flour

Combine the water, milk, butter, eggs, sugar, salt and yeast in the bowl of a mixer.  Add 2 cups of the flour and mix until smooth.  Add the remaining flour 1 cup at a time.  Mix until the dough forms a smooth ball.  You may not need all the flour.  Continue mixing the dough for 4-5 minutes.  The dough should feel elastic and slightly sticky.

Place the dough in a clean bowl sprayed with cooking spray.  Cover and let it rise until it has doubled about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Spray a 9x13 inch pan with cooking spray.  Gently deflate the dough and divide into 15 equal parts.  Shape the dough and place into the prepared pan.  Brush the tops with melted butter.  Cover the rolls and let them rise for about 30 minutes or until they are double in size.

Preheat oven to 375.  Bake the rolls for 15 to 20 minutes or until they are golden brown.

Herbed Sliced Potatoes

We harvested about 60 pounds of potatoes from our garden this year!  So I am always looking for new ways to cook up these beauties!  I found this recipe here and LOVED that I got to use fresh herbs from my garden to season them! They were so easy, beautiful and delicious!  They will be gracing our table time and again!

Herbed Sliced Potatoes

4 large potatoes or 6 smaller ones
4 T butter (about 1 T per potato)
1 t course sea salt
2-3 T chopped, fresh herbs (I used thyme, basil, rosemary, and flat leaf parsley)
1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan, I used asiago, romano and parmesan mix

Preheat the oven to 400.  Wash potatoes and peel if desired (I used Yukon Gold, very thin skin, and left the skin on). Place each potato between two wooden spoons and slice until you hit the spoons.  This will cause the potato to be sliced but still hold together on the bottom.  Mix the herbs into the melted butter and brush onto the sliced potatoes making sure to get the butter and herbs between the slices.  Sprinkle with the sea salt.  Bake for 45 minutes.  Once or twice while cooking, spoon the butter that has dripped off back onto the potatoes. Sprinkle the potatoes with the grated cheese and put back in the oven for about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are soft and the cheese is melted.