Red-Plaid Cookies

These were a little tricky. The picture that was on the recipe had circle cookies, and I imagine they were supposed to come out square, but, I guess I didn't do them right... =) I kinda like the rectangular shape though. And, they were yummy! 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup butter, softened - I used unsalted.
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 
• Red paste food coloring

DIRECTIONS
1. In a mixer, beat butter on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping the sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and vanilla. Beat in the flour.
2. Divide dough in half. Tint one portion of the dough with red food coloring. Knead in coloring until it is well distributed throughout dough. Leave other portion of dough plain. 
3. Shape each dough portion into a rectangular log that is 6 inches long and 2 inches wide. Wrap each log in waxed paper or plastic wrap and chill until dough is very firm (at least 2 hours). With a sharp knife cut each long lengthwise into four slices. (From each color of dough, you will have 4 pieces that are each 6 inches long and 2 inches wide.) 
4. Stack 4 pieces of dough together, alternating colors. (You will have 2 rectangular logs, each with 4 layers.) Press dough together to seal layers. Wrap logs in waxed paper or plastic wrap. Chill for 30 minutes or until firm. 
5. Using a sharp knife, cut each log lengthwise into 4 strips. (Each strip will have 4 layers in alternating colors.) Stack 4 strips of dough together, alternating colors, for a plaid effect. Trim edges to straighten. Wrap the 2 logs in waxed paper or clear plastic wrap and chill 30 minutes until firm.
6. Preheat oven to 350. Cut logs crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. (For round cookies, cut slices into rounds using a 2-inch round cutter.) Place slices 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. 
7. Bake in preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are light brown. Cool on cookie sheet 1 minute. Transfer to a wire rack; cool. Makes 48. 


TO STORE: Place cookies in layers separated by waxed paper in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. 

Recipe Source: Better Homes & Gardens Christmas Cookies 2003 

Green Beans with Bacon

I know what you're probably thinking. Green beans = healthy, boring food. NOT these. I can imagine these aren't the healthiest being all the bacon and bacon fat, BUT they are the best green beans I've ever had. I wouldn't make em without the bacon. NO WAY! The key to them being really good is getting really fresh green beans. They are always a hit, and both of my parents have requested they be at every holiday table. I always make too much so I have leftovers. =) They are that good. Promise. You have to try them!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/8 pound slab bacon, diced
• 1/2 onion, minced - I use regular ole yellow/Vidalia.
• 1 pound green beans, trimmed - I snap the ends off.
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes - More or less for your taste, but this much does make it kinda spicy.
• Salt
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 Tbsp white vinegar
• Freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large deep skillet, cook the bacon over moderate heat, stirring, until golden. Transfer the bacon with a slotted spoon to a plate. 

2. Add the onion to the skillet, and cook, stirring, until softened.

3. Add the beans, pepper flakes, and salt; saute over moderately high heat, stirring, for 2 minutes.

4. Add the boiling water and cover the skillet immediately. Steam the beans, shaking the skillet occasionally, for 15 minutes, or until just tender.

5. Add the butter, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Toss until combined. 

6. Sprinkle with the bacon, and serve.

Recipe Source: Georgia Downard via FoodNetwork.com

Yesterday was National Candy Corn Day...

...and I forgot to post! Sorry! Just a quick little treat I did up for our Halloween party. 

CANDY CORN CUPCAKES!!

These are easier than you think to put together. I just used a box cake mix. I colored half of the batter yellow, and the other half orange. In the cupcake liners, I put some yellow in, then covered with orange batter. Then just bake as the package says, and VOILA! Candy Corn Cupcakes! 

(Not the best picture, but you can see the yellow on the bottom and orange on top)

Super easy. I topped them off with some of my homemade vanilla butter cream (HERE), some candy corn colored nonpareils, and a candy corn. Too cute! They were a hit!

Halloween Caramel Corn Mix

As you can see by my recent posts, it has been all about simple, easy, go-to recipes for this Halloween season. My 17-month-old is ALL over the place, and I, like many other busy mommies and daddies, need easy recipes to satisfy even the pickest eaters. Wow..that sounded like a commerical...sorry. =) Anyways, my mom brings home this HUGE bag of homemade popcorn the day before our Halloween party...I'm thinking PERFECT. I had this idea to mix in some candy corn to it, and make it like a snack mix for the party goers to munch on while playing games. Then, she added in some Fall colored M&M's and some cocktail peanuts that we had extra of. It turned out delicious! Besides the caramel corn being the most amazing caramel corn I have EVER tasted, the candies and nuts added that little extra something. Enjoy! 

I linked up to: 

Mini Caramel Apples

Caramel apples are a quintessential Fall and Halloween dessert. You can't go without one during this season...or at least I can't. 

For our Halloween party, we had decided to make some. Then....I came across this post for mini caramel apples...who woulda thunk it? I absolutely loved the idea of bite-sized mini caramel apples, and can't believe that I didn't think of it myself. 

We ran into really only one problem with these delicious baby bites. No matter how much we buttered or greased the wax paper or tray that they sat one, they still stuck like crazy. We had to pry them off with a metal scraper. So, next time we will either dip the bottoms in sprinkles or chopped nuts. Just a lil FYI for those of you who have never made them. 

This recipe is so simple that I'm not even going to put it in traditional recipe format. All you need is a bag of wrapped caramels or the cool lil caramel bits. I used the wrapped caramels, and followed the directions on the bag melting. As that was melting, I used the larger side of my melon baller to scoop out lil balls of apple. We used Granny Smith apples, and I made sure that I got the skin of the apple on every ball. I got about 6-8 balls out of each apple, and we used 5 good-sized apples. Then, in each apple, I put a little cocktail pick. I've seen people use toothpicks, lollipop sticks, and mini pretzel rods. After that, just start dipping! 

Again, to prevent sticking, you might want to dip the bottoms in sprinkles or nuts. This doesn't have to just be for caramel. You could also do chocolate covered apples, or go super decadent and do caramel then chocolate. YUM! ;) Enjoy!

Bloody Good Cranberry Punch

I love me a good punch...I think every party should have something besides cokes and water. I found this recipe in All You magazine, and I thought it would be perfect for our Halloween party...plus, look how easy! Only 3 ingredients...that's what I'm talkin about! 

INGREDIENTS
- 1 64-oz bottle cranberry juice cocktail, chilled
- 1 cup orange juice, chilled
- 2 cups club soda, chilled


DIRECTIONS
Pour ingredients into a punch bowl and serve. 


Recipe Source: All You magazine, October 2010

I linked up to:

Been A LONG Time!

I am so sorry that I haven't posted in months. I have been EXTREMELY busy with being a SAHM to an active little 17-month old boy, my lil at home business, and just life in general. I am not promising I will be able to post as often anymore, but I will try to post as much as I can. Which brings me to this post. This past weekend, my mom & I threw a lil Halloween party for a few friends, and played some games. So, I will be posting this week some of the recipes we used. I am also going to start posting on my new crafting blog For A Rainy Day. Of course, same goes for that blog, I'll only be able to post when I have free time, which is few and far between these days, but I don't want to get rid of either blog. Anyways, I hope you enjoy these Halloween-ish recipes! 
So, for the recipe, I have seen these cute lil "Mummy Dogs" on a few sites, and thought they would be too cute and super easy for our Halloween get-together. Most of the recipes I saw for this, they used the whole hot dog, but we cut them in half for bite-sized versions then served them along with bowls of ketchup and mustard. A little tip from me, most of the recipes I saw used a toothpick to put mustard on them for the eyes. Well, I put a tiny bit of mustard in a zip bag, snipped a TINY hole in the corner, and piped the eyes on. So much easier! Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS
- 1 package of 8 hot dogs in your favorite brand
- 1 package of 8 refrigerated crescent rolls
- Mustard, for mummy eyes


DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven according to package directions (I think it was 350 for ours.), and grease, or spray with a nonstick spray, a cookie sheet. 
2. Cut hot dogs in half, if desired.
3. Take crescent dough out of package and unroll. Cut the crescents into small strips.
4. Wrap the small strips around each hot dogs to look like mummy strips. Make sure the keep a little opening for the mummy's eyes.
5. Bake according to package directions. Ours said 9-13 minutes, and we baked them for 10. 
6. Serve with ketchup and mustard, and enjoy!


Yes, it's that simple!

Banana Pudding Bites

I'm wrapping up "Week of Banana Recipes" with this fun, bite-sized take on traditional banana pudding. This recipe is so simple it's ridiculous! Ridiculous in a good way. =) There is a recipe to this, but I figure you don't even really need one. You can use all of the ingredients, or not, it's up you. I love that about this. How come I never thought of banana pudding in a bite?

INGREDIENTS
- Regular sized vanilla wafers
- Banana cream pudding (already made)
- Whipped cream or Cool Whip
- Banana slices (about ½" slices)
- Crushed vanilla wafers


DIRECTIONS
Place a banana slice on each of the vanilla wafers. Top with banana cream pudding. (I piped the pudding on for convenience.) Top with whipped cream/Cool Whip and crushed vanilla wafers, if desired. That's it! Enjoy!

Recipe Source: Adapted from Semi-Homemade by Sandra Lee

Banana Cupcakes with PB Frosting

Yet another recipe from Hungry Girl. I can't wait to make every recipe in every book! Haha! I wish! I loved how creamy and airy this frosting was. Reminded me of peanut butter butter cream a little. Yes, I know my cupcakes look a little...well....flat....BUT! So does Hungry Girl's! Don't believe me? Here is what  hers looks like:

I hope you try them. Enjoy!


INGREDIENTS
For cupcakes:
- 2 cups moist-style yellow cake mix (I used Duncan Hines.)
- 1 large banana, mashed
- 1/3 cup Gerber bananas (or another brand of pureed bananas in the baby foods aisle)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder


For Frosting:
- ¾ cup Cool Whip Free, thawed
- ¼ cup reduced-fat peanut butter, room temperature


Optional Topping:
- 12 slices banana


DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a small mixing bowl, combine peanut butter and Cool Whip, stirring until mixed well. Refrigerate until cupcakes are ready to be frosted. (I didn't refrigerate because the cupcakes don't take that long, and after the frosting is refrigerated, it's harder to frost the cupcakes.)
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix with baking powder (don't forget this! (= ) and 1 cup water until mixed well. Add pureed bananas and stir thoroughly. Mix in mashed banana.
4. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with baking cups and/or spray with nonstick spray. Evenly distribute cake mixture among the cups.
5. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
6. Once cupcakes have cooled completely, spread frosting evenly over the cupcake tops. Top each cupcake with a slice of banana, if you like. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Makes 12 servings.


PER SERVING (1 frosted cupcake): 143 calories, 3.75g fat, 193mg sodium, 25g carbs, 0.5g fiber, 13g sugars, 2g protein

Recipe Source: Hungry Girl 200 Under 200 by Lisa Lillien

Banana-Coconut Upside-Down Cake

I found this recipe in All You magazine. I didn't even have to read the recipe to wanna try this one. The picture did it for me. This is the recipe that made me wanna try a bunch of banana recipes. It looks so yummy. What do you think?

Photo from All You August/27,2010 issue

And this is mine:

Doesn't look quite the same does it? I wasn't disappointed at the overall appearance of it, nor the fact that all the banana slices stuck to the bottom of the pan when I turned it out. (Yes, I had to replace every single slice of banana!) I was disappointed that it fell apart when I cut into it. The taste was okay. Not what I expected. If you try this recipe, and it turns out great, please let me know. This was the first time I tried an upside-down cake...maybe I went wrong somewhere. I was so excited about trying this one, but was failed! Hope it turns out great for you! Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS
Topping:

- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

- ¾ cup packed light brown sugar

- 2 tablespoons lemon juice

- 4 bananas, sliced ¼-inch thick

- 2 cups loosely packed shredded coconut

Cake:

- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour

- 1½ teaspoons baking powder

- ½ teaspoon salt

- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened

- ¾ cup granulated sugar

- 2 large eggs

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

- ¾ cup milk (I used whole milk.)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Make topping: Melt butter over medium-high heat in a 10- or 12-inch ovenproof skillet at least 2 inches deep. Stir in brown sugar and cook, stirring often, until smooth, about 1 minute. Add lemon juice; stir until bubbling, about 1 minute. Arrange bananas in a flat layer over bottom of pan and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle coconut on top; remove from heat.

2. Make cake: Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. With an electric mixer, beat butter on high speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add sugar; beat until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce speed and add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Beat in vanilla. Alternate adding flour mixture and milk, starting and ending with the flour mixture.

3. Pour batter over bananas and coconut; spread evenly. Be careful not to mix bananas and coconut into batter.

4. Bake until cake springs back slightly when touched in center, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cake sit in skillet for 5 minutes to allow juices to blend into cake. Run a knife around outside of cake to loosen, then carefully invert onto a wire rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature, with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.

Recipe Source: All You magazine/August 27, 2010 issue

Banana Brown Betty

Before seeing this recipe, I never knew what a Brown Betty was. After searching to try and find out what it was, it seemed like it was kind of like bread pudding. Although apple is the most popular and usually how a Brown Betty is made, this banana version intrigued me. I absolutely love bread pudding. It's on my list of Top 5 favorite desserts. So, if this tasted like bread pudding, it was gonna be a winner. My verdict? This tasted amazing! I only WISH I could've had vanilla ice cream or whipped cream on hand. Sad, I know! =) The only thing that worried me when I was making this was that my custard never really got thick. But, after it came out of the oven, it was fine. I can't remember for anything where I got this magazine. I know it's from a magazine, just don't remember which one. If you like bread pudding, or even if you like brown betty's, you should really give this one a try. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

Crumb Mixture:

-2½ cups bread crumbs, plain or made from stale sweet rolls (I toasted some bread & ground it up in the food processor. I used 4 slices of regular white bread.)

- 1/3 cup granulated sugar

- 1 teaspoon cinnamon

- 1 stick unsalted butter, melted

Filling:

- 1 cup milk (I used whole.)

- 2 large eggs

- ½ cup granulated sugar

- 2 tablespoons cornstarch

- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

- ½ teaspoon salt

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

- ¼ cup dark rum, optional (I used Captain Morgan.)

- 4 firm-ripe bananas, sliced into ½-inch rounds

DIRECTIONS

1. Make crumb mixture: Mix together bread crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and butter.

2. Make filling: Position a rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 350°F. In a heavy pan, bring milk to a simmer. With an electric mixer, beat eggs, sugar, cornstarch, flour, and salt until thick and pale yellow. Gradually pour half of milk into egg mixture, whisking constantly. Then whisk this mixture gradually into milk in pan. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, until mixture has thickened, 1 minute (do not overcook). Remove from heat and stir for 1 minute. Add vanilla and rum, if desired. Fold bananas into hot custard.

3. Gently press half of crumb mixture into bottom of a 9-inch baking dish. Top with banana mixture, then remaining crumbs. Bake until top has browned and starts to bubble, 25 to 30 minutes. 

Week of Banana Recipes!!!

After seeing "Week of..." on a few blogs, I've decided to try my hand at it. I've decided to start off with bananas...for a couple reasons. One reason is that we had quite a few of them because they are always in our house. My hubby eats them all the time.  And the second reason is because I wanted to try and like them again. For a couple years or so, I haven't really been on the banana band wagon so to say. I don't know why, but I just stopped liking them. These recipes have, I guess you could say, helped change my mind a little. The first thing that I ate the made me start liking them again was banana pudding. We went to a family function and someone had made traditional banana pudding. It was devine! So, one day I will try my hand at good ole traditional banana pudding. For now, try these 5 recipes out. I will be adding more banana recipes down the line, but I had to narrow it to these 5 for the week. I hope you enjoy!

Overstuffed Peanut Butter & Banana French Toast (Hungry Girl Style)
INGREDIENTS
- 1/3 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters)
- 1¼ teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
- ½ teaspoon + 1 dash cinnamon, divided
- 1 no-calorie sweetener packet, divided (I used Splenda.)
- 1 tablespoon fat-free cream cheese, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons reduced-fat peanut butter, room temperature 
- 2 slices light white bread
- ½ small banana, sliced
- 2 teaspoons light whipped butter or light buttery spread
- ¼ cup sugar-free pancake syrup


DIRECTIONS
1. Combine egg substitute, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, and half of the sweetener in a bowl, and mix well. Transfer to a small plate and set aside. 
2. In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, peanut butter, ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, and the remaining half-packet of sweetener. Mix until smooth by stirring with the handle of a fork or spoon. (That's the easiest way to mix this!) (I used a small whisk.)
3. Gently spread cream cheese-peanut butter mixture evenly onto one slice of bread. (If needed, use your fingers, or spatula,  to help spread.) Top with banana and a dash of cinnamon, and then finish it off with another slice of bread. Press down lightly to seal.
4. Bring a skillet sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat. Add butter and allow to coat the bottom of the skillet. Meanwhile, evenly coat both sides of your sandwich with the egg substitute. Coat the sides of the sandwich as well. (You won't need to use all of the egg mixture.)
5. Place sandwich in the skillet and cook for 2 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Serve with syrup for dipping. Enjoy!


Makes 1 serving.


{PER SERVING (entire recipe): 327 calories, 8.5g fat, 700mg sodium, 48.5g carbs, 7.25g fiber, 11g sugars, 18g protein}


**You can substitute ingredients, like the cream cheese. I used Weight Watchers' reduced-fat cream cheese instead of fat-free. You just need to make sure you adjust the calorie & fat counts.**


Recipe Source: Hungry Girl 1-2-3 by Lisa Lillien

Guacamole

Mexican food has to be one of my favorites. I mean, who doesn't love Mexican food?? Though, I never really like guacamole much...until about a couple years ago. My husband's dad & his wife invited us over to her parents' house for dinner one night. Her parents' friends showed up, and the man had this huge bowl of guacamole. I asked him why such a big bowl for only a few people. He said it would be gone by the end of the night. I challenged him. He told me to just try it. I was hesitant at first because I've had some really horrible guacamoles. So, I did, and let me tell you, I LOVE it now. So, I decided to try my hand at it. This recipe I've made my own, and so far is my favorite. I love it because you can tweak it any way to your liking. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. My favorite way to eat it is the traditional tortilla-chip-way! (Sorry again for the less than great picture. This was taken the same night as the Strawberry Cream Trifle.) Enjoy!


INGREDIENTS
- 3 ripe Haas avocados
- Juice of 1 lime
- ½ cup red onion, diced
- 1 medium tomato, diced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper


DIRECTIONS
1. Slice avocados in half; remove pits. Scoop out flesh, and roughly mash in a medium bowl with lime juice.
2. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine.

Tex-Mex Deviled Eggs

What can I say about deviled eggs? They are one of those go-to's that everyone knows and loves...well, I love em. They show up at just about any event, right? Birthdays, BBQ's, reunions, even weddings. They're always the same. They usually have pickles or relish, mustard, mayo, salt, pepper, sometimes sugar, and the infamous paprika sprinkled on top. Why not mix it up every now and then? Don't get me wrong, I am a fan of the deviled egg. I can't help but help myself to a few every time I see them at a party or what not, but it gets monotonous after a while. I wasn't out to get a recipe for one when I saw this recipe. 

This one is a nice variation on the original. I love the cilantro in it. But, it was a tad too salty for me. I followed the recipe exactly. I would still cut the salt in half, at least. Also, I chopped up the jalapeno finely, but I would almost mince it next time. These might not taste anywhere near 'ole faithful,' but they do look like them. So, I would suggest putting out a sign or something letting people know that they aren't the regular ole deviled egg. 

If you are a deviled egg fan, I would recommend trying these. They are very good, unique, have great flavor, and that little kick of heat. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

6 hard-cooked eggs, peeled* (see note below)

1 TBSP diced green onions (approx. 1 green onion)

1 small jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped (I used half of a medium one.)

¼ cup mayonnaise (I used fat free.)

1 tsp prepared mustard (I used spicy brown.)
¼ tsp salt

Garnish: shredded Cheddar cheese and chili powder

DIRECTIONS

Cut eggs in half crosswise, and carefully scoop out yolks. 

Mash yolks, and stir in green onions along with the next 5 ingredients.

Spoon or pipe into egg whites. 

Sprinkle with cheese and chili powder.

Cover and chill until ready to serve.

**How to Get the Perfect Hard-Boiled Egg**

Boiling an egg...not too hard, right? Well, in some cases, wrong! I struggled with getting the perfect hard-boiled egg for a while. Some of you may, too. Now, my mom has one of  these awesome egg cookers. Me? Not so lucky. So, for those of you, like me, who have to use water and a pot, here is my tip for the best hard-boiled eggs I've ever had. Start off by putting how ever many eggs in the pot that you need. Then, fill will water to about 1-2 inches over the eggs. Set the pot on the stove and set to high heat (or whatever your setting is to boil the water). Once the water comes to a RAPID boil, take the pot off of the heat, and cover IMMEDIATELY. Set the timer for 12 minutes, not a minute more or less. When the 12 minutes is up, take the eggs out of the water and set in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking, and cool them down to about room temperature. They keep for about 5 days in the refrigerator.