Heath Bars

40 saltine crackers
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter
2 cups milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400.
Line cookie sheet with crackers so they are flat and close together.

In saucepan bring butter and sugar to a boil on medium heat for 5 minutes. Pour mixture evenly over crackers then place in oven for 5 minutes.

Remove from oven, sprinkle with chocolate chips, and place back in the oven for 1 minute. Lastly, take out of oven and spread chocolate evenly over the toffee.

Let sit in fridge for 2 hours then brake up and enjoy!

IHOP French Toast

Ok, this is super easy and the main reason I am posting it, is because until a couple months ago I didn't have a good french toast recipe and now I have two! So here is the first one. The second one will be up soon!

IHOP French Toast

2 eggs
½ c milk
1 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
3 tsp butter
6 slices thick-sliced bread
1 tbsp powdered sugar

Beat eggs in a large shallow bowl. Add milk, vanilla, flour, and salt to the eggs. Beat the mixture with an electric mixer. Be sure the flour is well combined. Dip the bread into batter, coating both sides. Drop the bread into a hot skillet. Cook 2-3 minutes per side. Butter the toast and sprinkle powdered sugar or use syrup. Enjoy!

Oven Baked BBQ Ribs-EASY!!

Ribs: 1-2 Rack of Ribs, Spare Ribs, Boneless or Bone-In (can use any kind of ribs)
1 Bottle of Sweet Baby Ray's Regular Flavor BBQ Sauce (regular size or medium sized bottle)
1 Cup Orange Juice
Garlic (about 1 tsp powder or 1 clove-use to desired taste)

Put Ribs in a disposable baking pan. Mix remaining ingredients together. Pour over ribs. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake on 350 for 2 - 2 1/2 hours. These will be nice and tender. If you want them to be a little crispier remove the tinfoil for the last hour. Delicious either way!!! We like to spoon the sauce over mashed potatoes. You can thicken it if you want to.

chocolate dipped peanut butter pretzel bites

I saw these on www.stephanieskitchen.com and loved them. I made her version and didn't really like the peanut butter filling. It had brown sugar in it which made it seem like I was eating sand. So, I found my favorite peanut butter filling recipe from my Mrs. Fields cookbook and now we have the perfect pretzel bites.

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Peanut Butter Filling:

1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter

1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter, softened

3 cups confectioners' sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

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Blend peanut butter and butter together until smooth. Slowly beat in confectioners' sugar and then add the vanilla. Beat until smooth. Roll into one inch balls and squish between two square pretzels. Dip into melted chocolate. I used almond bark this time, but I prefer to work with Wilton's candy melts.

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I have also used this filling to spread over cooled brownies and then spread melted chocolate on top of it. You can also take a small chocolate chip cookie (like Chips Ahoy or you could use the mini vanilla wafers) and press a ball of peanut butter filling on top then dip in chocolate. Kind of like a bonbon type of treat. Really, there are so many possibilities with this filling. I'd love to hear your ideas!

Banana Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

banana cake ingredients:

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2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

dash of nutmeg

1 cup sour cream

1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

2 large eggs

1 cup mashed very ripe banana (2 medium bananas)

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directions: In a large bowl, whisk together all dry ingredients. Using a mixer, beat the eggs, sour cream, butter and bananas; slowly add the dry ingredients and blend just until moistened. Divide batter between two 8-inch cake pans sprayed with cooking spray and dusted with flour. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 30-45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack and top with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting. Add some chopped walnuts if desired.

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Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

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4 ounces softened cream cheese

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup milk

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 cups confectioners sugar

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Using a mixer, mix the cream cheese, butter and vanilla until well blended. Add half of the confectioners sugar and mix until creamy. Add the milk, cinnamon and remaining confectioners sugar and beat until creamy and smooth.

Bacon and Veggie Quiche

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Ingredients:

8 oz. bag frozen hash browns, thawed and drained

3 eggs

1/2 cup half-and-half

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup diced red pepper

1/4 cup diced onion

1/4 cup chopped broccoli

8 slices turkey bacon, cooked and chopped

1/2 cup shredded cheese

pinch on cayenne pepper

pinch of salt

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1. Preheat oven to 450. Spread defrosted hash browns in bottom and up sides of a buttered pie or quiche dish. Pat hash browns with a paper towel to remove extra moisture. Bake until potatoes are golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and lower the temperature to 350.

2. While crust bakes, whisk eggs, half-and-half and milk together. Add veggies, bacon, cheese and seasonings. Pour into potato crust and bake uncovered for 30-45 minutes at 350. (mine took almost an hour) Cool for 10 minutes before serving. Serves 6.
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* For softer veggies, saute in a bit of olive oil for a few minutes before adding to quiche mix.

chicken and calico beans

This dish is sweet and tangy and a great way to stretch the family budget by making use of any leftover meat. Try using leftover turkey, ham or pork roast in place of the chicken. Delicious!

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Ingredients:
1 Tbs. olive oil

1 onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

1/2 cup ketchup

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 Tbs. prepared mustard

1 teas. white vinegar

1 teas. salt

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

1 (16 0z) can red kidney beans, drained

1 (16 oz) can baked beans

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Directions:

*Preheat oven to 375. Heat oil in a cast iron pan or dutch oven over medium-high heat; add onion and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally until tender, about 5 minutes.

*Combine ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, vinegar and salt in a small bowl.

*Add chicken and beans to skillet; stir well. Pour ketchup mixture over chicken and beans; stir to coat.

*Place cast iron pan or dutch oven into preheated oven and bake for 35 minutes. Serve with a side of corn bread.

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** You can also use white beans or pinto beans instead of the kidney beans. And I cooked the chicken in the iron skillet before I cooked my veggies so I didn't have to dirty another pan.

caramel glazed apple cake

Another great cake!

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cake:

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

3 eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teas. baking soda

2 teas. cinnamon

1/2 teas. nutmeg

1/2 teas. salt

5 apples, cored, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch chunks

1 1/4 cups chopped pecans or walnuts

2 1/4 teas. vanilla extract

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caramel sauce:

4 Tbs. butter

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

pinch of salt

1/2 cup heavy cream

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*or you can do what I did and just use the caramel ice cream sauce

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1. preheat oven to 325. Butter and flour (or spray with cooking spray) a 9x13 inch pan.

2. To prepare cake, beat both sugars and oil in a mixing bowl until well blended. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Gradually add to the egg mixture, mixing just until blended. Stir in apples, pecans and vanilla; pour into pan.

3. Bake for 50-75 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan while preparing the sauce.

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4. To prepare the sauce, melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. Stir in both sugars and salt; cook over medium-low heat for 2 minutes. Add cream and boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

5. Poke holes in the cake with a fork. Pour on the sauce. Serve warm or at room temperature. Top with whipped cream or ice cream if desired. Makes 12 servings.
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And it's healthy....right?

I mean, look at all those apples!

Chicken Pot Pie

It's been rainy and *chilly* here in good old Southern California for the past week, so I've been in the mood for warm comfort food. This recipe was made for us last year by a friend after my baby girl was born. It is SO yummy!


Chicken Pot Pie

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cubed

1 cup sliced carrots

1 cup frozen green peas (optional – I don’t like peas, so I leave them out)

1/2 cup sliced celery

1/3 cup butter

1/3 cup chopped onion

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon celery seed

1 3/4 cups chicken broth (one can)

2/3 cup milk

2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts (I like the premade Albertson's brand)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)

2. In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
3. Meanwhile, in another saucepan, cook onions in butter over medium heat until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust.
5. Pour hot liquid mixture over chicken.
6. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape. I always use a pie shield to cover the edges of the crust so that they don’t get too brown.
7. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

I can't believe I forgot to take a "finished" picture after it came out of the oven. My husband and his sister pounced and I was distracted by the kids. LOL

Whole Grain Apple Oatmeal Pancakes

This is one hearty pancake. I was stuffed after just two. And it has been 5 hours since breakfast and I am still stuffed. In fact, I may never need to eat again. :)

These pancakes are pretty healthy with the oats and whole wheat flour. They aren't really very sweet, but with all the syrup and peanut butter I like to dump on them....it totally sweetens these puppies right up.

Anyway, now that our church isn't until 11:00, we need something that will keep us full until dinner. And here they are. Give them a try.

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1 cup oats

1 cup flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 Tbs. baking powder

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup shredded peeled apple - I used a whole apple

1 1/2 cups milk

1/4 cup oil

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 Tbs. honey

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Whisk together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk all the wet ingredients together in a smaller bowl then add to dry ingredients. Then make them however you do pancakes....on an iron skillet, electric skillet or whatever you have.

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Can't you just see how thick these are? Seriously, don't plan on eating again for awhile.

Cheesy Potato Vegetable Soup

3 Cans Chicken Broth
Carrots
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Potatoes
1 Cube Butter
1 Small Package Velveeta Cheese
1 1/2 Quarts Milk
1 Cup Flour

Cut up and cook vegetables in broth until tender. In a separate pan, melt the butter and the velveeta cheese sliced up. Gradually add milk and flour. After cheese thickens, add in cooked vegetables with broth.

poppy seed lemon cake

I'm not sure I really loved this cake like I loved the gingerbread apple upside-down cake. It wasn't as sweet as I think a cake should be. So, I made a lemon/powder sugar glaze to pour over each slice to sweeten things up a bit. That helped a lot! I wasn't sure if I should even post it, but I thought....just because it isn't my "cup of tea" doesn't mean it won't "tickle your fancy". So, here it goes....a recipe that I'm not in love with, but maybe you will be.

ingredients: 2/3 cup of sugar

8 large egg yolks*

1 large whole egg

1 1/2 Tbls of finely grated lemon zest (2 lemons)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cornstarch

pinch of salt

2 sticks of unsalted butter, melted & cooled a bit

1/2 cup poppy seeds (3 oz bottle)

Directions: preheat oven to 325. Butter and flour a bundt pan generously. This cake really wants to stick, but don't let it. Butter the dull side of a large piece of foil (you need it to cover the top of your bundt pan).

In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk, beat the sugar and the eggs (1 whole egg and 8 yolks) at medium-high speed until the mixture is a pale yellow and very fluffy, about 8 minutes. Beat in the lemon zest. Sift together the flour, cornstarch and salt in another bowl and add to the egg mixture. Then beat in the butter and poppy seeds.

Pour into prepared pan and cover tightly with the buttered foil. Bake for 45 minutes or until the cake pulls away from the side of the pan and a toothpick comes out clean. Uncover and cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert the cake onto the rack and cool completely before serving, about 30 minutes. Sprinkle with powder sugar and if you are needing it a little sweeter....mix some lemon juice with some powder sugar until you get a glaze and pour over each slice. I'm telling you....it really needed the glaze.

And there you have it - a cake that is good, but not "knock your socks off" kind of good.

*Don't waste the egg whites. You can freeze them to use later. Here is a website with recipes for the whites..... www.davidlebovitz.com/archives/2007/09/recipes_to_use.html

s'more bars

I found the recipe for s'more bars on my friend's blog (wlichty.blogspot.com), but didn't have all the right ingredients. So, I changed it up a bit....it was so deliciously sweet. You may want to cut them into smaller bars than I did or you'll end up with a belly ache.....like I did.

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Ingredients: 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup flour

1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (I used chocolate graham crackers)

1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

1 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used 1 cup butterscotch and 1/2 cup semi-sweet)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (I used pecans)

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In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar. Add the flour and graham crackers. Press the crust mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 8x8 pan. Sprinkle the marshmallows, chips and nuts on top. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until marshmallows brown on top. Let cool on a wire rack or if you're impatient (like me) in the refrigerator on a wire rack.

Happy s'moring!

gingerbread apple upside-down cake

This recipe is now in my top 5 list of favorite desserts! We will be making it again really soon....I just need an excuse....anyone having a party and need me to bring dessert? ;)
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Topping:
4 Tablespoons butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
pinch of salt
4 apples (about 1 3/4 lbs), peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch wedges
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Batter:
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 lg. egg
1/3 cup dark molasses
1/3 cup honey
1 cup buttermilk (*see below)
2 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
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Make the topping: preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 10 inch cake pan or a 8x11 casserole pan. Melt butter in a small saucepan. Add brown sugar and simmer over medium heat, stirring for four minutes, then swirl in the salt. Remove from heat and pour into the bottom of your prepared pan. Layer on the apples in whatever pattern that pleases you.
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Make the batter: Using a mixer, blend 1/2 cup butter and the sugar on medium speed. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, molasses, honey and buttermilk. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon. Alternate mixing the flour and molasses mixtures into the butter mixture, adding the next one after the last has been incorporated.
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Pour the batter into the pan. Bake at 325 for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes before turning it onto a platter (or a cutting board in my case...I really need some nice serving dishes. It's kind of embarrassing.)
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Serve warm or cold with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Serves 12.
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*Buttermilk - if you don't have any on hand, which I never do, you can just put a tablespoon of lemon juice into a liquid measuring cup and add enough milk to make one cup. Let it sit for 5 minutes before adding to the recipe. It turns it into sour milk which also works for any recipe calling for buttermilk.
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Can't you just see the moistness of this cake?! You will not regret making it.

Reindeer Noses - or Holiday Preztel Treats

I love making these because my little boy can help with them. He can help lay out the pretzels, unwrap the hershey kisses or hugs, and then plop the M&M's on top when they come out of the oven.

What you'll need:
waffle shaped pretzels
Hershey kisses or hugs
M&M candies

1. Heat the oven to 180 degrees. Lay out a single layer of pretzels on a cookie sheet (you can line the sheet with parchment paper if you'd like).
2. Top each pretzel with a Hershey kiss.
3. Bake for 4-6 minutes (watch the Hugs because the white chocolate softens more quickly than the milk chocolate), or until the chocolates feel soft when touch with a spoon.
4. Remove from the oven and quickly press an M&M into the center of each Kiss.
5. Allow the treats to cool for a few minutes and then put them in the refrigerator to set for about 10 minutes.
6. You can bag them up in colorful Christmas bags, place on treat plates or just pop them in your mouth!