Macaroons

I know, I know two posts in one day! Am I on roll or what?! But, the basic fact is this....these are a must with the chocolate fondue I just posted! I love that these stay soft in the middle. This is a small batch, only about a dozen cookies so plan accordingly! So here you go, happy Friday! Oh yeah, I found these on allrecipes.com, but I modified a little.

Macaroons

1 1/3 cups flaked coconut

1/3 cup sugar

2 T flour

1/8 t salt

2 egg whites

1/2 t vanilla

1/4 t almond extract

In a small bowl combine coconut, sugar, flour and salt. Add egg whites, vanilla and almond extract and mix well. Drop by the rounded teaspoonful onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 325 for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Mexican Chocolate Fondue

This is the kinda stuff I could drink by the gallon! Having kids and a tight budget keeps us at home a lot for date nights but that is just fine when you have THIS! There really is nothing better than snuggling down on the couch with my love and devouring anything and everything that we can find to dip in chocolate!

Mexican Chocolate Fondue

1 cup whipping cream

3 whole sticks cinnamon

1 1/2 cups Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup Ghirardelli milk chocolate chips

1/2 t vanilla

a dash of salt

Things to Dip

fresh strawberries

bananas

macaroons

marshmallows

pineapple

pound cake

(I really could go on and on, but you get the idea right?)

In a sauce pan heat the whipping cream and cinnamon sticks until right before it boils, but don't let it boil! Turn off the heat and let the whipping cream and cinnamon sticks sit for about 20 minutes. Remove cinnamon sticks and add both kinds of chocolate chips. You may need to turn on a very low heat to get them to melt, stir continuously until smooth. Add the vanilla and salt and stir to combine. Dip anything and everything into it!

Mexican Rice

I found this recipe on the internet, I don't remember the site. I modified it a bit to my liking. It turned out so great and I loved how easy it was to make!

Mexican Rice

1 cup Basmati rice

1 T olive oil

1 can chicken broth (about 2 cups)

1/2 cup salsa, the fresher the better (I love Chuck and Dave's from Sam's club)

1 t ground cumin

1/2 t minced garlic

salt and pepper to taste

Cook rice in oil on high until white or opaque, be careful not to let it burn. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer with the lid on for about 20 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is cooked.

Sopapilla Cheesecake

I wanted a new yummy dessert for Cinco De Mayo and I found one! This is so easy and way yummy! We had it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, perfection! I got it off of allrecipes.com. Give it a try, it is sure to be a hit!

Sopapilla Cheesecake

2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

1 t vanilla

2 (8 oz) cans refrigerated crescent rolls

3/4 cup white sugar

1 t cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, softened

honey

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 pan. Beat the cream cheese with 1 cup of sugar and vanilla until smooth. Unroll the cans of crescent rolls and roll each sheet into a 9x13 rectangle. Place one rectangle into the bottom of prepared 9x13 pan. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture on top of the dough. Place the second sheet of crescent dough on top. Mix together 3/4 cups of sugar, cinnamon and butter. Dot the mixture on top of the cheesecake. Bake at 350 until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden, about 30 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes or completely. Serve with honey drizzled over the top and with vanilla ice cream, if desired.

Fudge Cookies

OH . MY . GRACIOUS . Are these ever good. But honestly, fudge cookies! What is there not to like! My 4 year old said they taste like fudge AND chocolate. What more is there to say. I got this recipe from The Worldwide Ward Cookbook, you can get it at Deseret Book. I did make a few changes to the recipe however, so here is my version.

Fudge Cookies

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup milk

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 cups quick oates

1 cup coconut

1/2 t vanilla

dash of salt

In a heavy saucepan, combine sugar, brown sugar, butter and milk. Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally. Boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add oates, coconut, chocolate chip and salt. Beat for 2 minutes with electric mixer on medium, until thick but still shiny. Add the vanilla once the chocolate is melted. Drop by teaspoonful onto wax paper and let cool until firm.

Mac and Cheese

I got this recipe off of the The Pioneer Woman (love her!) and it is really good! But then again, I am a succor for good, fattening comfort food. Especially when it is something that my kids like too!

Mac and Cheese

4 cups dried macaroni (I used penne)

1 egg

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

2 1/2 cups whole milk

2 t dry mustard

1 pound cheese, grated (I used sharp cheddar)

1/2 t salt

1/2 t season salt

1/2 t pepper

Cook macaroni until still firm. I bite into one and if it is still a little white inside than it is good to go. Drain noodles. In a small bowl, beat egg. In a large pot, melt butter and whisk in flour. Continue whisking over medium low heat for 5 minutes, being careful not to let it burn. Pour in milk, add mustard, and stir until smooth. Cook for 5 minutes until it is thick. Reduce heat to low.

Take 1/4 cup of sauce and slowly, while whisking, add to egg. Pour egg mixture into sauce again whisking constantly so as not to cook the egg. Stir until smooth. Add cheese and stir until melted. Add salt, seasoning salt and pepper. Taste sauce and add more salt if needed. Pour in cooked, drained noodles and stir to combine. You can eat it just like this, it will be pretty creamy. I put it into a greased 9x13 and topped it with bread crumbs and more cheese and then baked it for about 20 minutes at 350. It should be lightly browned and bubbly around the edges.

Chewy Soft Pretzels

I have been looking for a good recipe for big soft pretzels and found this one on My Kitchen Cafe. It is so good, just what I was looking for! The are easy, fun to do with kids, and so Delicious!

Chewy Soft Pretzels

Makes 8 pretzels

Dough:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
7/8 to 1 cup warm water

Topping:
1/2 cup warm water
2 tablespoons baking soda
Coarse salt (optional)
3 tablespoons butter, melted

Place all of the dough ingredients into a bowl and beat until well combined. Knead the dough, by hand or machine, for about 5 minutes, until it is soft, smooth, and quite slack. Lightly flour the dough and place it in a plastic bag; close the bag, leaving room for the dough to expand, and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 500°F. Grease 2 cookie sheets, or line with parchment paper.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface, and divide it into eight equal pieces. Allow the pieces to rest, uncovered, for 5 minutes. While the dough is resting, combine the 1/2 cup warm water and the baking soda, and place it in a shallow bowl or pie plate. Make sure the baking soda is thoroughly dissolved; if it isn’t, it will make your pretzels splotchy.

Roll each piece of dough into a long, thin rope (about 28 to 30 inches long), and twist each rope into a pretzel. Dip each pretzel in the baking soda wash (this will give the pretzels a nice, golden-brown color), and place them on the baking sheets. Sprinkle them lightly with coarse, kosher, or pretzel salt. Allow them to rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Bake the pretzels for 8 to 9 minutes, or until they’re golden brown.

Remove the pretzels from the oven, and brush them thoroughly with the melted butter. Keep brushing the butter on until you’ve used it all up; it may seem like a lot, but that’s what gives these pretzels their A-mazing taste. Eat the pretzels warm.