Cheesy Bread

Cheesy Bread

Ingredients

• 8 oz shredded Mozzarella cheese
• 1 lb shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 to 1 cup chopped green onion (to taste)
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp sour cream
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 stick unsalted butter (1/2 cup, 4 ounces), softened to the point of being slightly melted
• 1 to 2 loaves of French or Italian bread (I used Ciabatta), depending on the size of the loaves

In a large bowl, mix together the cheeses and the green onion. Stir in the mayonnaise and sour cream. In a separate small bowl blend the butter and garlic until smooth. Add the butter mixture to the cheese mixture.

 

Preheat broiler. Slice loaf of bread in half horizontally, lay crust side down. Spread cheese mixture over the bread. Place under the broiler until nicely browned, about 3 to 5 minutes.

 

Remove from broiler and let sit for 5 minutes until cool enough to handle. Slice the bread with a bread knife. Serve.

Better Than Sex Cake-Yum!

Better Than Sex Cake

Ingredients:
1 box of chocolate cake mix
1 can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 bag of Health Bar Bits (or 5 candy bars chopped)
3 Butterfingerr bars (chopped)
1 tub of Cool Whip

Bake chocolate cake as instructed on the box. Remove from oven and poke holes throughout the cake. I slightly twist the fork when poking to make the holes larger. Pour entire can of Sweetened Condensed Milk over the cake. Let cool for approx 30 minutes. Frost with cool whip and sprinkle the Heath and Butterfinger pieces over the Cool Whip.

Chill for 2 hours. Enjoy!!!

If there are leftovers, store in the refrigerator.

Pepperoni Pizza Bites-So Yummy!

This recipe was found on my new favorite website, Pinterest. I love that site. They are delicious!

Pepperoni Pizza Bites

Ingredients:

3/4 cup flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

pinch of salt (my addition, optional)

pinch of red pepper flakes (my addition, optional)

3/4 cup whole milk

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup cubed pepperoni

1/2 cup store-bought pizza sauce

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, Italian seasoning, salt and red pepper flakes (if using) ; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella, Parmesan and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.

2. Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through. Serve the puffs with the pizza sauce for dipping.

NOTE: All my batter did not fit into the 24-mini muffin pan. So I made a full size muffin with the leftover batter. Some pans are larger than others so you may not have have an issue.

I hope my coworkers like them!

Recipe courtesy of: Lick the Bowl Good! via Pinterest! I love love love her recipes!

Stuffed Pepper Soup

Stuffed Pepper Soup

1/2 lb. Bob Evans Zesty Sausage. Cooked and drained

1/2 lb. Hamburger. Cooked and drained

2 c. green pepper, cut into 1" squares

2 tbsp. beef base or 2 bouillon cubes

1/4 c. brown sugar

2 c. cooked and cooled white rice

1 can tomato sauce-28oz can

1 can diced tomatoes-28 oz can (undrained)

2 tbsp black pepper

Brown meat and drain. Add remaining ingredients except rice. Bring to a boil and reduce heat and simmer for 30-40 minutes r until onions and peppers are tender. Add rice and heat thoroughly.

To make this extra soupy, add 1 can of tomato soup and 3/4 of the can with water.  

Goes great with a grilled cheese sandwiches on a cold rainy day! Enjoy!

Pea + Peanut Salad

This is one of those "you have to try it before you decide" recipes. It sounds weird; I was skeptical at first as well. But once I tried it, I was sold. It's sweet and crunchy, savory and creamy, all at the same time.

Pea & Peanut Salad

1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 lb frozen peas, thawed
1 lb Spanish or cocktail peanuts

In a bowl, combine everything except the peas and peanuts. Mix well. Gently stir in the peas and peanuts, ensuring everything is coated well. Chill at least one hour before serving.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars - a nice, different side dish. I served it with smoked sausage and noodles. As a bonus, my two-year old scarfed it down!

Iced Coffee

You know how some things just taste better when they are not homemade? That's how I've long felt about iced coffee. It just tasted better when I bought it vs. made it at home. I tried brewing super-strong coffee, buying instant coffee, using my Keurig, using a French press, etc.

But that was before I learned about cold-brewing coffee. The secret is so simple - letting the coffee grounds brew in cold water overnight. That's it. That is the secret to iced coffee at home. You and your fat wallet can thank me later.

Iced Coffee Concentrate

10 oz coarse ground coffee
4 L water

Dump the coffee grounds into a large container (I used a Pampered Chef pitcher.) Add water. Put in fridge overnight (at least 8 hours).

The next morning, give yourself an hour. Pour the coffee water through a fine mesh strainer lined with a coffee filter or cheesecloth.  Stir with a spoon to help it through. I cleaned the kitchen and did some other chores as the coffee slowly made its way into the new pitcher. I went through about 4 or 5 coffee filters along the way as they clogged up.

But it was worth it. I now have 4 L of iced coffee concentrate that will keep in the fridge for up to a month. I used it to make a Vietnamese iced coffee this afternoon, which is just iced coffee concentrate, ice cubes, and a few tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk. YUM

Rating: 5 out of 5. Perfectly tasty.

Delishmag.com

While reading my daily blogs (Oh the shame!), I stumbled across this link while reading No Big Dill (see Katie's tutorial on page 26). This online magazine has good recipes, cute decorating ideas and a whole page on homemade Popsicles.

Yes, a whole page! Yum!

Enjoy Delishmag.com!

Reese Cup Brownie Bites

Reese Cup Brownie Bites

Ingredients:

1 box of Dark Chocolate Fudge Brownie Mix (plus ingredients as the box indicates)

36 Mini Reese Cups

Mini muffin tin liners

Mix the brownie mix as instructed on the box. I prefer to only use one egg for a fudgier brownie. Place liners into cupcake pan. Place approximately 1/2 tsp onto the bottom of each liner. This will prevent the Reese cup from getting hard on the bottom. Center Reese cups into the liners on top of the brownie mix.

Cover the Reese cup with approximately 1 tbsp of brownie batter. I use the small scoop from Pampered Chef for easy measuring. Make sure all sides of the Reese cup are covered with brownie batter to prevent the Reese cup from burning.

 Bake at 350 for 11-13 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes

before removing from cupcake pan.

 I chose to give mine a little flare and frost with Peanut Butter Fluff. I used the Pampered Chef Easy Decorator to make little puffs on top.

Enjoy! Happy 4th of July!

Fruit Pizza

Fruit Pizza

My friend Jessica made this today. It's beautiful!

She was kind enough to share the recipe! Thanks, Jessica!

1 (18 ounce) package refrigerated sugar cookie dough

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed (Jessica substituted Marshmallow Fluff)

2 cups sliced fresh strawberries

1/2 cup white sugar

1 pinch salt

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 cup orange juice

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 cup water

1/2 teaspoon orange zest

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Slice cookie dough and arrange on greased pizza pan, overlapping edges. Press dough flat into pan. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Allow to cool.
2. In a large bowl, soften cream cheese, then fold in the marshmallow fluff. Spread over cooled crust. You can chill for a while at this point, or continue by arranging the fruit.
3. Begin with strawberries, sliced in half. Arrange in a circle around the outside edge. Continue with fruit of your choice, working towards the middle. If bananas are used, dip them in lemon juice so they don't darken. Then make a sauce to spoon over fruit.
4. In a saucepan, combine sugar, salt, corn starch, orange juice, lemon juice and water. Cook and stir over medium heat. Bring to a boil, and cook for 1 or 2 minutes, until thickened. Remove from heat, and add grated orange rind. Allow to cool, but not set up. Spoon over fruit. Chill for two hours, then cut into wedges and serve.               

I cannot wait to make this! Maybe I will go blueberry/strawberry picking this weekend! Thanks for sharing, Jessica!

Turkey-Avacado Clubs

This recipe is so tasty and very easy!
Courtesy of The Food Network

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 8 slices turkey bacon
• 1 Hass avocado, halved and pitted
• 1/2 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 8 slices whole-grain bread, lightly toasted
• 8 small leaves romaine lettuce
• 1 tomato, cut into 8 slices
• 12 ounces sliced low-sodium deli turkey breast
• 1/2 small English cucumber, sliced

Directions

Toss the onion with the vinegar and 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl. Let stand 15 minutes, then drain. Meanwhile, cook the turkey bacon as the label directs until crisp.

Mash the avocado with the yogurt in another small bowl until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

Lay 4 slices of bread on a cutting board and spread with half of the avocado-yogurt mixture. Top with the lettuce and tomato and season with salt and pepper. Add a layer of turkey breast, bacon, cucumber and red onion. Spread the remaining avocado mixture on the remaining 4 bread slices and place spread-side down on top of the sandwiches. Cut each sandwich in half to serve.