Tornadoing and bad measuring

When you see a recipe that includes several things you already have in the house - that makes things a bit easier. This recipe is a bit of a guessing game. How much liquid do you add? Eh... until it makes sense. Isn't that the worst advice ever? I mean the way this recipe is written it's not really clear. I started with 2 cups of broth and added a little more... but also did milk instead of heavy cream. I didn't have fresh basil - well there's some growing in the garden but it was tornadoing outside so I opted to just run out and grab chives instead. That worked just fine. I loved this pasta. It was so flavorful and different from what I've made before. For sure when I see more Boursin, it's coming home with me! Last I saw at the weird grocery store it was 3 for $1! Maybe next time the weather won't be so lousy and I can add some basil... although our weather is pretty crazy...

Boursin Basil Rings
2 cups pasta rings or ditalini
4 tablespoons butter
1–2 garlic cloves minced
2–3 cups chicken broth or water
Salt and pepper
3/4 c heavy cream or milk
1 package Boursin Basil and chive flavor
Fresh sliced basil
Chopped chives

Melt the butter in a skillet and add the garlic. When the garlic sizzles add the pasta and 1 1/2 cups broth/water. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer and cover for about 5–6 minutes. Give it a stir and add more broth if needed. Stir in the cream and add the Boursin. Continue stirring until tender adding liquid as needed. Season with salt pepper and stir in the basil and chives.

16 pounds of chicken and a cookie recipe I didn't read

16 pounds of chicken in the oven and cookies to get baked too. Tossed the chicken in and started on the cookies. 20 minutes to let the butter and chocolate cool. Oof... Ok. Oh man... 45 chill to firm up? Ugh! Got those in the freezer. Who has time for recipes like this? I mean if I had read the recipe ahead, well that would have been smarter, but we know I'm not that great at that. These cookies are deeply flavored with chocolate and oh so good. I think the only tweak I'd make is adding some salt to the top. Learning to love extra salt here and there. oh and the 16 pounds of chicken? Turned in to 100+ Cheesy Chicken buns for Kids Camp Volunteers. Can't wait to bake those up too and enjoy them. Maybe I'll make a batch of these cookies to go with them.

Brownie Cookies
2½ cups semisweet chocolate chips
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
⅓ cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine 2 cups of the chocolate chips and the butter. Microwave on high in 20-second intervals, stirring thoroughly between intervals, until the mixture is completely melted and smooth. Scrape the chocolate mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and let sit at room temperature for 20 minutes to cool.
While the chocolate mixture is cooling, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a separate medium bowl. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Add the eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla to the cooled chocolate mixture and beat on medium speed until thoroughly combined. Reduce the speed to low, slowly pour the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture, and mix until all ingredients are thoroughly combined. Add the remaining ½ cup chocolate chips and mix briefly to incorporate fully.
Using a 1-ounce scoop, portion the dough onto one prepared baking sheet. You do not need to space them out. Chill until firm, about 45 minutes.
Working in batches, place the chilled cookies 2 inches apart on the other prepared room-temperature baking sheet.
Bake until the edges are set, 12 to 14 minutes. The centers of the cookies will appear and feel soft when hot but will set as they cool. Let cool on the baking sheet 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining cookie balls.
Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days

Dodging tornados and rain to get dinner on the table

I've learned that every week lately is a "make it through" this week and it'll get less busy... over and over until you realize it never gets less busy. I oddly thought Summer would be less crazy and yet I was very wrong. I swapped dinner plans Tuesday and Wednesday because I'm still not grilling anything, and burgers aren't something I'm making. I had arranged to make one stop on my way home instead of five... yes, five I told you things were busy... as I was about to leave for home - my phone alerted me there was a tornado warning at home... so I wasn't heading there yet. I waited around for that to clear and drove through the blinding wind and rain to get home to get dinner going to we could still get our girl to where she needed to be on time. As I raced through this recipe we heard word that the storm knocked out the power where she was going so phew! One less thing to do! Good thing, because my pork tenderloins must have been massive because they took like 40 minutes in the oven.... good thing we had extra time! This had a few steps but well worth it! Add some applesauce and delicious! Yes, always applesauce with pork.

Best Baked Pork Tenderloin
1 pkg. pork tenderloins, trimmed (comes with 2 pieces, 2 – 2 ½ lbs. total)
1/4 cup kosher salt
4 cups warm water
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 cup ice cubes
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons butter sliced into 6 pats
Spice Mix
1 TBS EACH chili powder, garlic powder
1 tsp EACH salt, onion powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon pepper
HERBS TO ADD LATER:
1/2 tsp EACH dried parsley, dried basil, dried oregano, dried thyme

Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 °F. Lay two long pieces of foil on a baking sheet – these will be used to fold up each tenderloin separately.
In a gallon-size freezer bag, mix salt with warm water until dissolved. Whisk in apple cider vinegar, brown sugar and ice, followed by pork. Brine for exactly 20 minutes then remove pork from brine, RINSE and pat very dry. The pork becomes mealy if left in the brine any longer.
Whisk together all of the Spice Mix ingredients (not the "Add Later Herbs") in a small bowl. Evenly rub pork all over with spice mix.
Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. When oil is very hot and just smoking, add pork tenderloins, you may need to work in batches. Sear each side of pork until golden, then transfer to foil.
Evenly sprinkle tops of pork tenderloins with remaining herbs (parsley, basil, oregano, thyme) then rub into pork. Evenly drizzle each pork tenderloin with one tablespoon of lemon juice (2 tablespoons total), then top each tenderloin with 3 pats of butter. Bring up the sides of the foil to completely enclose each tenderloin.
Bake at 400 °F until pork registers between 145- and 150-degrees F (63 and 65 degrees C) at the thickest part of the tenderloin, 15-25 minutes depending on thickness. This means the pork will be juicy and slightly pink in the middle. To check the temperature, carefully unwrap the foil, then wrap it back up if it need to continue baking.
When pork is done, loosen foil (so steam can escape) and let stand 5-10 minutes before slicing. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste (I like additional salt) and serve with accumulated butter sauce in the bottom of the foil.

Trifles for the win

The month of May has cruised right into the month of June and trying new recipes has gone right out the window. Making standby recipes and standard faire has been more top of mind than anything else. May was crazy – so many nights out and events to get to and a girl to get graduated. June has proved equally crazy with so many things to get planned and prepped for two weeks of camping in the middle of nowhere… it’s been… something. Somewhere in there I remembered that we had dinner with friends planned! Oh! I could bring a dessert! I’d promised something light and refreshing. Clearly you can see what I made wasn’t light, not in the least. The last time we got together I made a trifle, am I the trifle maker now? I decided to make a fudge brownie trifle! We got home the night before around 11:30 PM from a day in Wisconsin so I got up early to go walk, set the oven timer to turn on right when I got home – so all I had to do was toss the brownie mix together and get that in the oven before church. When we got home from church, I put it all together which went very quickly. This was a hit, an absolute hit. Brownies, pudding, Cool Whip, and Oreos… There’s nothing light about this – but it was delicious! Next friend dinner is at our house… I’ll be on main dish duty! I’ve got this! Can I make a main dish in a trifle bowl?

Oreo Fudge Brownie Trifle
1 box brownie mix *plus egg, water, oil, etc.
2 box instant chocolate pudding - mixed according to box directions
16 oz cool whip
1 box Oreos

Prepare brownie mix as directed on box. Once fully cooled, cut brownies into 1-inch small squares.
Crush Oreos in a gallon zip bag, set aside about ¼ cup.
Place ½ brownie pieces on first layer of trifle bowl.
Spread ½ of pudding mixture over brownie bites.
Pour ½ of cool whip container over pudding mixture.
Sprinkle ½ of Oreo cookie pieces over whip cream.
Repeat pattern a second time.
On top layer, sprinkle ¼ cup of Oreo pieces.
Refrigerate for an hour and enjoy!

Cinnamon Chip Bread Wins Hearts Everywhere

If I had to pick a favorite flavor, I think it would likely be cinnamon. Ask my allergist and she'll tell you I should pick something else, but we aren't asking her, are we?
I have made a version of this bread before - but I'm always willing to give another a try. This one I doubled so I could share some bread with others and oh man did it rise right out of my mixer! I buy my cinnamon chips from a place in Utah called Gygi - and last time I sure got a lot of them. the ingredients are simple and with my NutraMill mixer, it comes together in just a few minutes. This bread is best eaten toasted with some butter (or country crock or Aldi version) on it. So good. You know how else it's good? As French Toast. Yes... oh my... so very good. Try this one! Even if all you can get are Hershey Cinnamon Chips, it'll still taste good, just be a bit more orange.
We took some to a friend who just has surgery and to our neighbor who just came back from international travel. Don’t worry, that double batch meant we still had plenty for ourselves. Mmmm let’s toast a slice!

Cinnamon Burst Bread
Ingredients
5 ¼ to 5 ½ cups (745 to 781 g) all-purpose or bread flour, divided
2 tablespoons (27 g) granulated sugar
1 tablespoon instant or active dry yeast
1 ¾ cups (405 g) warm water, 105 to 110 degrees F.
¼ cup (49 g) neutral-flavored oil, like grapeseed, avocado, vegetable or canola oil
1 large egg
2 teaspoons table salt
1 ½ cups (270 g) mini cinnamon chips (see note)
Butter, for brushing tops of loaves

Instructions
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, add 3 cups of the flour, sugar and yeast. Mix. Add the warm water and mix until combined. Cover the bowl and let the mixture sit for 10 to 15 minutes.
Add the oil, egg, salt, 1 more cup of flour, and the cinnamon chips. Mix on medium speed, and continue to gradually add flour (up to another 1 1/2 cups, more or less) until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. Judge the dough by how it looks and feels, not necessarily by the total amount of flour added (humidity, elevation, how the flour is measured will all affect how much flour is needed).
Knead the dough for 4 to 5 minutes.
Cover the bowl and let the dough rise in a warm spot until doubled, about an hour. Alternately, you can transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let rise.
Lightly grease two 8 1/2-X-4 1/2-inch loaf pans with cooking spray. Set aside.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly greased counter and divide into two pieces.
Press each piece into a thick 9-inch square. Roll up into a tight log without stretching the dough. Turn the edges under and press all the seams to seal.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Make sure the oven rack is in the middle position.
Place the loaves in the prepared pans. Cover and let rise until the dough rises about 1/2 inch above the top of the bread pans. Don't let the dough rise too high in this step. It springs up quite a bit in the hot oven.
Bake the loaves for 32 to 35 minutes until golden on top and baked through. An instant read thermometer inserted into the center of the bread should register 195 degrees F.
Out of the oven, carefully turn the loaves out onto a cooling rack and brush melted butter on the tops of the loaves. Let the bread cool completely, before cutting into slices and serving.

Maybe I need a real wok?

Sometimes I make Asian dishes and I end up substituting things because my normal grocery stores just don't have it and I don't want to go to the local Asian grocery store because it's out of the way and honestly, the owner is scary. I mean maybe not scary, but crabby is fair. My sister in law told us about Weee! - an online Asian supermarket and we are hooked. They have everything we need for all our Asian cooking... which really isn't that much, but it's enough to love shopping and having things delivered to my front door the next day. My kids are in love with the single serve Korean rice packages, the seaweed snacks, and Andy likes anything and everything. The only thing I left out of this recipe was the chili because nope.... just nope. I could have ordered it from Weee! But nope.
I'll warn you... the fish sauce is something else. Whoa... I mean yes add it - it certainly adds to the overall flavor, but don't go dipping French fries in it. Whoa...
These noodles were loved by all and even eaten as leftovers by all! That's a win. We made a double batch and well worth it. Will for sure be adding these to the rotation.

Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao)
Ingredients
8 ounces wide rice noodles
Stir-Fry Sauce
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons lime juice
1 tablespoon water
Stir-Fry
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic (minced)
2-3 Thai red chilies (sliced (adjust to taste))
1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs (cut into bite-size pieces)
1 small onion (sliced)
1 medium bell pepper (sliced, red)
1 cup broccoli florets
1 carrot (julienned)
2 green onions (cut into 2-inch pieces)
1 cup fresh Thai basil leaves
Lime wedges (for serving)

Soak the 8 ounces of wide rice noodles in warm water for 15–20 minutes until they soften. Drain and set aside.
In a bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons oyster sauce, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce, 1 tablespoon fish sauce, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 2 teaspoons lime juice, and 1 tablespoon water until the sugar dissolves. Set aside.
Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Add the 4 minced garlic cloves and 2–3 sliced Thai red chilies. Stir-fry for about 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the 1 pound of chicken pieces to the wok. Stir-fry for 5–6 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and lightly browned.
Toss in the sliced onion, bell peppers, broccoli florets, and julienned carrot. Stir-fry for 3–4 minutes until the vegetables are crisp-tender.
Add the softened noodles and stir-fry sauce to the wok. Gently toss everything together, ensuring the noodles are well coated with the sauce. Cook for another 2–3 minutes until the noodles are tender and the sauce has been absorbed.
Stir in the green onions and 1 cup of Thai basil leaves. Cook for an additional 1 minute until the basil is wilted.
Garnish with extra basil leaves and serve with lime wedges on the side. Enjoy immediately!

Giant delicious cookies added to the calendar

It's been a busy year so far with weeks and weekends packed with a full calendar. We finally had a mostly free weekend and these cookies seemed like a great way to celebrate a free weekend. The wild part of this recipe is it's for eight cookies... a full cup of butter for eight cookies. I was pretty sure if I made them that big, we'd be cutting them into pieces to eat them, so rather than make eight giant cookies, I used an ice cream scoop and ended up with 27 cookies instead, still very large for our standards and very delicious. I could have used much more dark chocolate pieces on top, or the sides, but what was there was wonderful. Both kids wandered through, "Ooooh those look good!" they seemed surprised when I offered them one, oh yay! Plenty of chocolate all over hands and faces and rave reviews. I don't think these cookies will be around too long, which is the sign of a great cookie!

Thick Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
2 ¾ cups (330g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp cornstarch
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ¼ cups (267g) brown sugar
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 ½ cups (255g) high quality semi-sweet chocolate chips
3.5-4 oz high quality milk or dark chocolate bar chopped or broken into small pieces
flaky sea salt

This recipe yields eight 5.5-5.7 oz cookies. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium speed for 2 minutes, until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract. Beat for 30 seconds, until fully combined.
Gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing on low speed until just combined. Add the chocolate chips and mix until incorporated. I like to finish mixing with a spatula to ensure everything is evenly combined. The dough will be thick.
Using a kitchen scale, portion the dough into 5.5 to 5.7 oz balls. Roll each ball between your hands, then shape it so it’s slightly taller than it is wide.
Chop the chocolate bar into small pieces, then press the pieces and a few extra chocolate chips onto the outside of each dough ball.
Place 2 cookies at a time on the baking sheet. Bake for 15–18 minutes. I pull mine at 15 minutes—the centers will look slightly underdone but will set as they cool.
Sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet before transferring.

Waving cupcakes make kids smile and have blue teeth!

Wave cupcakes were on the menu for an event for girls club as our them has been Walk on Water.
I found a video that had 5 different shades of blue water, big sugar clams with pearls, graham cracker crumbs for beach - this is what I have. I realized my ability to make different blues wasn't happening and my time also wasn't going to work for 5 different blues. When I shopped for the supplies the store didn't have graham crackers and until that night in bed I forgot I was going to use some from home, totally forgot. You know what? These were great, the girls loved them, they knew what they were and enjoyed them all the same!  (Note: these are blue so my no blue food rule still applies, but kids LOVE blue food, why?  I have no idea.)

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
1 1/2 cups butter, at room temperature (3 sticks)
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 - 4 Tbsp heavy cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, using the paddle or whisk attachment whip butter on medium-high speed (if using whisk attachment whip on high speed) until nearly white and very fluffy, about 7 - 8 minutes, frequently scraping down the sides of the bowl.
Add in powdered sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla extract and mix on low speed until blended, then increase speed to medium and beat until very light and fluffy, about 5 - 6 minutes, frequently scraping down the sides of the bowl.
Immediately spread over cooled cake or cupcakes.

One giant puff is easier than a bunch of small puffs

I love to bake, sometimes I think I'm pretty good at it. Something I cannot figure out are cream puffs. They've brought me to tears on more than one occasion. I just cannot figure them out. I saw this cake version and decided to give it a try. It was honestly very easy and the pan of puff was very impressive coming out of the oven! I filled it will pudding and cool whip, topped with chocolate syrup and our guests couldn't get enough!
Something I tried with this recipe that I failed at something else recently - mix your pudding and milk together first before adding to the cream cheese... trust me, it will mix in smoother and your filling will be perfect. No weird lumps of pudding mix or cream cheese floating around in there.

Cream Puff Cake Recipe
½ cup unsalted butter
1 cup water
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
2 boxes instant vanilla pudding mix, 3.4 ounce each
2 ½ cups milk
8 ounce cream cheese softened
8 ounce Cool Whip thawed
¼ cup chocolate syrup

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a 13×9 baking dish with baking spray. Set aside.
In a small saucepan, add the butter and water. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Remove from heat and whisk in flour.
Pour flour mixture into a mixing bowl and add in eggs one at a time until well blended. Add vanilla extract.
Spread into prepared baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven and cool completely.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the pudding mix and milk until blended. Beat in softened cream cheese (for about 3-4 minutes).
Pour into cooled crust. Top with cool whip. Drizzle with chocolate syrup.
Refrigerate for at least one hour. ENJOY.

A float or a punch - either make happy faces

"Should we serve punch?"
"Oh that would be nice!"
We were having an event for our girls club that included the prayer partners and girls - and lots of fun themed treats. I was trying to see what else we should serve and punch was brought up. I asked my mom for her punch recipe. "Oh my mother always did the punch and I don't have any of those recipes." Hrm... She's my go to for things like this. So off to the internet. The thing about almost all punch recipes is I'm allergic to something in all of them. I finally found this recipe and figured it was workable and ingredients would be easy to find, I mean... maybe... I subbed orange sherbet for the rainbow because I could only find orange.
Oh... Ok... here's the challenge... who has a punch bowl anymore in the year of our Lord 2026... no one I tell you... no one. Could I have gone and found one at Goodwill? Probably but then I'm stuck storing a punch bowl! I found a big bowl at church and what I thought was a big glass bowl at home. When I brought mine to church, suddenly it looked small, but it worked!
I didn't get any pictures of the actual bowls of punch because I was running around the whole night but the girls loved the punch and one even told me how much she loved the "float". Huh... yeah, she wasn't wrong, it was very much like a float! I recreated it for my family so they could have a try and they agreed it was pretty tasty!

Rainbow Sherbet Punch
Sprite
Hawaiian Punch
Rainbow Sherbet

Mix equal parts Sprite with Hawaiian Punch. Then, top it with the rainbow sherbet ice cream and serve.
Note that these ingredients are best served cold, so its a good idea to chill the punch and sprite before using.

Measure your dough balls, or don't - whatever

Easter Sunday is my holiday to host for my family, we love it. We get to have an egg hunt, have a ham, and enjoy some fresher foods with spring in mind. I decided these dinner rolls looked pretty good to try for Easter. I was able to make them the day before and put them in the fridge over night for a slow second rise. What I should have done was measured my dough and weighed each doughball. It's certainly not what I actually did. We had some giant rolls and some cute rolls. Rolls for everyone to pick a size. I took them out of the fridge in the morning before we left for church and set them on top of the warm oven (with ham inside) to come to temp and rise a bit more, they baked up beautifully, add some butter and big flakey salt on top and there you have beautiful rolls for Easter or whatever meal you are enjoying.

Cloverleaf Dinner Rolls Recipe
3 Tbsp warm water, (115˚F)
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast, (1 packet yeast)
1 cup low-fat milk, warm (105-110˚F)
5 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted or very soft, plus more for the pan
3 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 tsp fine sea salt
3 1/2 cups bread flour, divided (add an extra 1/4 cup if needed)
For the Topping:
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, divided, melted
1 tsp kosher salt

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add 3 Tbsp very warm water (115˚F). Sprinkle the top with 1 packet of yeast, whisk to combine, and let rest uncovered for 7 minutes until foamy on top.
Add warm milk, melted butter, sugar, egg, and salt. Whisk until blended, then gradually whisk in 2 cups of flour then switch to the dough hook attachment and add the remaining 1 1/2 cups of flour in thirds, letting it incorporate with each addition. Add more flour a little bit at a time until the dough feels moist to the touch, but it shouldn’t stick to clean/dry fingertips.
Knead 10 minutes on speed 2 of a stand mixer, or knead by hand. The dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl as it kneads and will be smooth and elastic.
Transfer dough to a large oiled bowl, turning the dough to coat in oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place (90-100˚F) for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in volume.
Transfer dough to a smooth, clean work surface. You should not need any additional flour at this point. Divide the dough into 12 even pieces then divide each piece of dough into 3 small pieces. Cup your hand over each of the small pieces and roll over work surface to form a ball. Butter a 12-count muffin pan and place 3 little balls of dough into each muffin cup.
Oil a sheet of plastic wrap and place the oiled side loosely over the rolls. Let rest in a warm place for 30-45 minutes until visibly puffed. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425˚F with a rack in the center.
Once rolls have risen, brush the tops with 2 Tbsp melted butter and bake in a preheated oven at 425˚F for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. As soon as they are out of the oven, brush with more melted butter and sprinkle with kosher salt. Transfer to a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes and serve warm.

Really crunchy, or worms... no in between

I'm from the Midwest, we enjoy our salads with mayonnaise and Cool Whip. Oh, you want some leafy greens in your salad? You clearly aren't from the Midwest! One of my favorite midwestern salads is Pretzel Magic. Mind you, as a kid I refused to eat this dish that was at almost every monthly birthday celebration on my mom's side of the family. As an adult - I have no idea WHY I didn't try it, it's fantastic! This Strawberry Crackle Salad is a riff on Pretzel Magic. No Jell-O in this salad, and you can add chopped pecans, which I did not mostly because I wasn't sure they'd be appreciated by all my guests. I did use gluten free pretzels since I have some GF family members. The pretzels baked with butter and brown sugar were crunchy, I mean CRUNCHY! Wow. I was worried too crunchy, but everyone agreed they were good. This makes a giant bowl of salad, I sent some home with everyone knowing there was no way we'd get it all eaten. The next day I was told the pretzels had lost their crunchy and had the texture of worms. Um.... gross. So make this and eat it right away. Adjust the ingredients if you want to make a smaller version because it will not keep overnight. But if you like the texture of worms... make it a day ahead, but I'm not sure that's what anyone really wants in life... wormy textured food. Blech!

Strawberry Crackle Salad Recipe
Crust and Topping
2 cups crushed pretzels
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter, melted
Filling
2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
16 oz Cool Whip
Fruit
4 cups sliced strawberries

Preheat and Prepare Baking Sheet: Preheat your oven to 400°F (205°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking and for easy cleanup.
Mix Pretzel Topping: In a medium bowl, combine the crushed pretzels, chopped pecans, and brown sugar. Pour the melted butter over the mixture and stir until everything is evenly coated and well combined.
Bake Pretzel Mixture: Spread the pretzel mixture evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes until the mixture is bubbling and golden. Remove from the oven and allow it to cool completely on the baking sheet before breaking into small pieces.
Prepare Cream Cheese Mixture: In a large bowl, beat the softened cream cheese with the granulated sugar and vanilla extract until smooth and creamy. Gently fold in the Cool Whip until just combined. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the mixture until you are ready to serve.
Assemble the Salad: Just before serving, spread the cream cheese mixture in a serving dish or bowl. Top evenly with the sliced strawberries, then sprinkle the cooled pretzel crunch mixture over the top. Optionally, mix some pretzel crunch into the cream layer or reserve extra for garnish.

Delicious Sandy Dollars

Our theme for girls club has been Walk on Water this year and with a fun event with treats, I decided to go all in on the treats. These Sand Dollar cookies were a hit. I mixed and rolled them out a few weeks in advance then froze them. I used a straw to make little holes for the sand dollars. I was busy frosting cupcakes so Andy ended up baking these for me. He egg white washed them, sprinkled cinnamon sugar, and placed each almond with love. You do really have to take them out at 3 minutes to push the almond back in then bake the rest of the time. They came out perfect and taste wonderful. They were the sleeper hit of the night.

Sand Dollar Cinnamon Sugar Cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
2 eggs whole
2 eggs separated
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 pinches of kosher salt
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
cinnamon sugar
sliced almonds

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350° F.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and powdered sugar; Mix until very creamy. (I may or may not have taken a lick after this step – HA! ;)
Add the 2 whole eggs and 2 yolks only (reserve the whites for later from the egg separation above); Beat until well combined.
Add vanilla and salt; Blend well.
Add flour and baking powder; Stir until the dough is very soft.
Form a ball with the dough; Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours (I left mine in the fridge overnight).
Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll out the dough to 1/4" thick on a floured surface and cut out 2 5/8” circles.
Brush the circles with the reserved egg whites.
Sprinkle each circle lightly with cinnamon sugar and press 5 almond slices into the center of each circle to make a sand dollar (like the pic above).
Bake at 350° F for 3 minutes.
After 3 minutes, remove the baking sheet from the oven and press the almonds in again, making slight indentations in the circle.
Add more cinnamon at this point too, if need be, to adjust the overall coloring of the final cookie.
Place the baking sheet back in the oven and bake until the edges are golden brown, another 10 minutes (this time will vary depending on how thick you cut the circles, so just keep an eye on them around the 7 minute mark).
Remove from oven; Let rest on baking sheet for 3 minutes.
Transfer to cooling racks to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container to keep up to 5 days (Yeah right, these won’t last 5 minutes!)

Magic cookies leave happy people

Growing up I remember Magic 7-Layer Bars being a popular dessert brought to events. It wasn't something I ever liked, or probably tried. Someone brought them to work and I gave them a try and they were wonderful! I tried making them at home and it was a disaster. Something about just layering things in a pan and tossing them in the oven with a hope and prayer didn't really work for me. So when I saw the option of the flavors of the 7-layers but in cookies, oh, that sounded good to me. I was bringing a dessert for 13 people and figured I'd add some cookies too! These turned out to be chocked full of fun ingredients that everyone loved, even the coconut! That gets people sometimes. My mixer was working extra hard to add all those chips and addins but it worked out great and the cookies are fantastic.

Magic 7-Layer Cookies
1 cup Butter (softened)
1 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Sugar
2 large Eggs
1 teaspoon Vanilla
2 1/2 cups Flour
1 teaspoon Cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Salt (if using salted butter, reduce to 1/2 teaspoon)
1 1/2 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 cup Butterscotch Chips
1 cup Sweetened Flaked Coconut
1 cup Chopped Pecans or Walnuts
Sea Salt

Preheat oven to 385 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter, brown sugar, and sugar for 4 minutes or until light and fluffy.
Add eggs and vanilla and mix for 1 minute longer.
Fold in flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.
Fold in butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, coconut, and pecans or walnuts.
Use a light-colored baking sheet. Place 2 ounce balls of cookie dough on baking sheet, several inches apart. Press extra butterscotch or chocolate chips on the cookie dough balls before baking in the oven. If you desire, sprinkle the cookie dough balls with Maldon Sea Salt Flakes.
Bake for 9-12 minutes. Don't overbake.

Zesty 11 year old helps with cake for the 70 year olds!

Our church was having a special luncheon for our over 70 crowd and Andy was helping serve but also needed to bring a dessert. Luckily, he's married to someone who loves to bake. Now what would old people like for dessert? I have this recipe for death by chocolate cupcakes, but that seemed not something they'd go for, what about lemon cake? My old people always liked Lemon Fluff cake, but I couldn't find a good enough knock off recipe for that. Lemon Bundt would work! Why is the girl who is allergic to lemon always making lemon baked goods? Fantastic question, I do enjoy lemon even though I can't have it. Anyway... I got Nicholas up from his doom scrolling on YouTube to help me with the zest and the juice, he's fantastic at this! Great helper. Then got the cake in the oven! Andy went to go help setup for the event and I told him let them know I had a bundt in the oven, not to be confused with a bun in the oven... see what I did there? No more buns in our oven... whoa! This cake came out of the pan perfectly, the frosting was an absolute dream but was filled with lemon zest so I didn't even taste test. Andy said everyone had some at his table and enjoyed it, he did too! So, Lemon Bundt Cake for the win, for 47-year-olds and 70+ year olds!

Lemon Bundt Cake
Cake
1 cup salted butter soft
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3 cups all purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp lemon zest
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
4 oz cream cheese softened
¼ cup salted butter soft
3 Tbsp lemon zest
4 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp lemon juice or more if needed

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl for 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each one.
Sift together dry ingredients. Add alternately with buttermilk; mixing well. Stir in lemon zest and lemon juice.
Spread into a well greased and floured 12 cup Bundt cake pan or tube pan.
Bake at 325° for about 1 hour or till a toothpick comes out clean. (Don't over bake or the cake will be dry.)
Let sit in pan for 10 minutes, then carefully dump out onto a cooling rack. Cool cake completely and frost with lemon cream cheese frosting.
Frosting: Beat cream cheese and butter till smooth. Beat in remaining ingredients, adding enough milk or cream to achieve spreading consistency. Frost cooled cake.

When Chocolate Chip Cookies are needed STAT!

The boys group Andy leads is doing their baking badge and the needed an easy cookie recipe that didn't require a whole lot of equipment. Last week they made cupcakes, next week cookies. The last time I let the boys use my mixer they started peeling my decals off of it... yes, my mixer is pimped out - are you surprised? you shouldn't be... it's been like that for almost 20 years. Anyway... something easier, but something quick. I found a no chill brown butter recipe which I converted into just a melted butter, modified ingredient amounts, then of course we needed a test. So, Friday after work I whipped up a batch of these cookies, they were gone by Sunday. So, you could say they were enjoyed, quickly.
So, if you need a quick batch of yummy soft cookies that get put together really quickly and even 5th and 6th grade boys can do it? These are great.

No Chill Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large cold egg
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Melt butter in microwave Add brown sugar, white sugar, and vanilla and whisk to blend. Add whole egg and whisk until incorporated. Then whisk in baking soda and salt.
Add the flour and fold it in until mostly combined, then fold in chocolate chunks.
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Use two spoons to scoop 14 pieces and roll into smooth balls. Place them onto prepared baking sheets, spacing them 3 inches apart. Flatten slightly and bake for 9-11 minutes until golden around the edges and still slightly gooey in the center (they will set as they cool). Let cookies cool for 1 minute on the baking sheet.

AI doesn't know how to cook or bake...

Another day another AI recipe. How did I get stung twice in one week? I usually get my recipes from very reputable people but this one just looked so good - guess why? AI... ugh. Once I realized the photo was made up and the directions made absolutely no sense, I started figuring it out on my own. First off, strawberry pie filling from a can? Hard pass, even if you can find it, that does not make a fresh and wonderful dessert. Gross. I have seen tubs of glaze in the produce section of some stores, just not any that I frequent. I found a recipe for glaze (it's listed below) it's easy and works great, also uses fresh strawberries. Here's another tip - be smart about your cream mixture... I mixed up my cream cheese, tossed in my pudding mix, THEN added milk and ended up with chunk wetness all over the place, don't be me. Mix your pudding ahead, then slowly add it - avoid the chunk shower. Ugh.
On to assembly - the photo I had was not at all what the instructions said, so I forged my own way. Originally it said to layer it in an 8 x 8 baking dish. So, an entire angel food cake cut into cubes, a vat of cream, and strawberry pie filling, tucked nicely in an 8 x 8 pan? Are you insane? Come on AI, do better. I used a giant glass dish that I never use and it worked perfectly, you could see the layers and it worked great. This ended up being a wonderful dessert, which a LOT of edits. This was great for a warm spring night - fresh flavors that everyone enjoyed.
Just remember, if a recipe looks weird and doesn't seem to add up, use your common sense and make the changes and don't trust random crap you see on the internet.

Heaven on Earth Cake
16-ounce box angel food cake mix
21-ounce can strawberry pie filling (or make Strawberry Glaze and fold in 1 pound of sliced strawberries)
8-ounce block cream cheese
3.4-ounce box vanilla instant pudding mix
1.5 cups milk
8-ounce container Cool Whip whipped topping

Prepare the angel food cake as directed on the package. Cut into 1-inch cubes.
Make Glaze and cool, add in strawberries
Mix together pudding mix and milk, set aside.
Beat block of cream cheese, slowly add pudding mixture, fold in cool whip.
In a large clear glass bowl, make three layers starting with angel food cake cubes, cream mixture, then strawberry mixture. Layer them until ending with strawberries on top.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3-4 hours until set.

Strawberry glaze recipe
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup water
1 (3-ounce) package strawberry Jello

In a small saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and water. Turn on the heat to medium-high. Bring the mixture tods a boil. Cook and whisk for 1 to 2 minutes, or until thickened.
Remove the pan from heat. Add in the strawberry gelatin. Whisk until completely dissolved.
Chill the glaze in the fridge for 15 to 20 minutes, or until just slightly cooled. Don’t let it chill too long or it will start to set. We’re just refrigerating it briefly to let it shed heat.
Use the glaze immediately while it’s still spoonable and pourable. Or transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate.

Worrying that AI may have got me...

I was worried I got AI-ed with this recipe… When I prepped the ingredients the weekend before I hadn’t read the instructions. Well, they were colorful to say the least… Very colorful. As I was pouring all that liquid into the veggies I realized maybe I should have cooked the orzo in that liquid, I did end up using maybe a half cup of cream, mostly because my container was frozen and that’s all I could get thawed in the time I was making this. Also, I pulled out some of the liquid and added some cornstarch to thicken things up a bit. So, this ended up being served like soup instead of a pasta. It tasted great, but it was not what I thought. Andy liked it, so did the kids! I think next time I’d probably toss the uncooked past into the pot and let it suck up all that liquid. In the end I think someone tossed this recipe into AI to make it sound great… it didn’t, it sounded dumb. No one talks like that. I updated the language to be less…. dumb. I’m sure I’ll get nailed by an AI recipe at some point, I try to use reputable sites, but every once in a while something just looks so good – too good.
Creamy Chicken Pot Pie Orzo Recipe
2 cups cooked orzo pasta
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 cup frozen peas
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)

Directions and Instructions
In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the cubed chicken and cook until it’s browned and cooked through, about 7-10 minutes. Once done, remove the chicken from the pot and set it aside.
In the same pot, add diced onion, minced garlic, diced carrots, and diced celery. Sauté vegetables until they soften and become fragrant, about 5-7 minutes.
Pour in the chicken broth, heavy cream, Worcestershire sauce, and dried thyme. Stir well and bring this mixture to a gentle simmer.
Now, bring back the cooked orzo, the frozen peas, and the sautéed chicken to the pot. Stir everything until well combined.
Season with salt and pepper to taste. Let the mixture simmer for an additional 5 minutes.
Remove the pot from heat and stir in the shredded cheddar cheese, allowing it to melt.
Before serving, garnish your pot pie orzo with a sprinkle of fresh parsley.

Pam's my girl! If she has flour...

If you are looking for all chocolate and nothing but the chocolate - this bundt cake is for you. Two mixes - a chocolate cake and a brownie mix make this one really simple, but also very heavy! I made this cake for a church dinner. Bundt cakes are great for feeding a crowd, easy to serve and eat. The frosting is an easy ganache, you could use canned frosting too if you wanted to go even easier.
Use one big bowl to mix up the cake batter and use Pam with Flour to very well coat the bundt pan. I use Pam with flour when I bake for my pans, the baked goods always come out easier than just regular Pam/spray. Pam's my girl! Ok that's weird. But legit... worthwhile... just don't use it for and gluten free baking! That would be dumb. But make this cake! Share with lots of people! They'll love it.

Chocolate Brownie Bundt Cake
For the cake
1 15.25 oz. chocolate cake mix
1 18.3 oz. brownie mix
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups water
1 cup oil
1 cup mini chocolate chips
For the ganache
1 cup heavy cream
12 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips or chopped chocolate

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease and flour a 10 cup bundt pan.
In a large bowl, beat both mixes, eggs, oil and water until mostly smooth. Stir in the mini chocolate chips.
Pour into the prepared bundt pan and bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Place on a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes before inverted the cake onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the ganache, place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan until it just begins to boil. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips. Let stand for a few minutes, then whisk until ganache is smooth and shiny.
Pour ganache over cake and serve.

Even cheap parm gets stinky

I've been wanting to make this Pizza Monkey Bread for a while, and my life doesn't really have an appetizer section in it... I thought I needed one to have this. If someone had told me as a kid that for the rest of my adult life, I'm responsible for planning, preparing, purchasing, making every meal I'd have for the rest of my natural life, I might have said no thanks. Trust me... it gets REALLY old. I decided this was dinner last Saturday. Nicholas and I were outside building a trellis in the cold wind, and I knew I needed to be somewhere at a certain time, so I abandoned my kid, ran in and tossed this together quickly. I'd found an older bottle of grated parmesan in the cabinet since we ran out... opened it - whoa... that stuff ages stinkily. Even a little was TOO much... Wow... note to self... pick up a new one! But I tossed that baby in the oven and ran back out. It came out of the pan with some coaxing, but we got it! Dipped it in marinara and it was great! Everyone really liked it, maybe less stinky parm next time, but it was a great snacky dinner.

Pizza Monkey Bread
32 oz refrigerated canned biscuit dough, quartered
6 oz pepperoni, sliced (cut in halves)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
⅓ cup melted butter
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon garlic salt
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
Fresh parsley, for garnish
Marinara sauce, for dipping

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
Grease a Bundt pan thoroughly to prevent sticking.
Cut biscuits into quarters
Slice pepperoni into halves
Smaller pieces ensure even baking and distribution.
In a large bowl, combine:
Biscuit pieces, Pepperoni, Mozzarella, Parmesan, Melted butter, Italian seasoning, Garlic powder, Garlic salt, Red pepper flakes (if using)
Toss until everything is evenly coated.
Spoon mixture into the prepared pan.
Lightly press down—but do not pack tightly. Airflow helps it bake properly.
Bake for 35–40 minutes.
If the top browns too quickly, loosely cover with foil during the last 10 minutes.
The internal dough should be fully cooked and no longer doughy in the center.
Let rest for 5–10 minutes.
Carefully invert onto a serving plate.
Sprinkle with fresh parsley.
Serve warm with marinara for dipping.