Cinnamon Roll Cake

CINNAMON ROLL CAKE
recipe from: Grin and Bake It

CAKE:

• 3 cups Flour
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 1 cup Sugar
• 4 teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1 1/2 cups Milk
• 2 Eggs
• 2 teaspoons Vanilla
• 1/2 cup ( 1 stick)  Butter, melted

TOPPING:

• 1 cup ( 2 sticks) Butter, softened
• 1 cup Brown Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Flour
• 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

GLAZE:

• 2 cups Powdered Sugar
• 5 Tablespoons Milk
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 glass baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

In an electric or stand mixer add the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, milk, eggs, and vanilla. Once combined well , slowly stir in the melted butter. Pour into the prepared 9×13 baking pan.

For topping, In a large bowl mix the 2 sticks of butter, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon together until well combined and creamy. Drop evenly over the batter by the tablespoonfuls and use a knife to marble/swirl through the cake.

Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes or when a toothpick inserted near the center comes out nearly clean.

FOR GLAZE:  In a medium bowl, mix the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla together with a whisk. Drizzle evenly over the warm cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe found HERE

Mini Fruit Pizzas

What a great idea!  Mini fruit pizza's.

Chocolate Wacky Depression Cake Recipe Chocolate Wacky Depression Cake Recipe

This recipe has been around longer than I have.  Chances are your granny or great granny may have made this in the Depression era.  Some may know it as “Wacky cake” or “Depression Cake”.  During the Great Depression, someone figured out how to make a moist, delicious cake without eggs, milk, or butter because these ingredients were expensive and hard to get.  I call this a timeless generational recipe – passed down from generation to generation.

Since then, this cake has become quite popular for people who are vegan or allergic to dairy… like my daughter, Abigail.  She is allergic to dairy and like her mama, she loves her cake but can’t always eat it.  This cake  taste remarkably good with great flavor and texture – very similar to chocolate cakes made with boxed cake mix.People are always surprised to discover there is no dairy when I tell them.  Top off with your favorite chocolate frosting or a dusting of powered sugar and you’re good to go!  Enjoy! [/donotprint]

Chocolate Wacky Depression Cake

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup cocoa powder

6 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 cup water

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium mixing bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together by hand.  Add all the wet ingredients until well combined.  Pour into a 8×8 pan which has been prepared with non stick spray.

Bake for 30 until done.  Allow to completely cool before serving. Cake is even better if eaten the next day.  Enjoy!

Recipe found HERE

Ranch Roasted Red Potatoes

Ranch Roasted Red Potatoes Recipe

This easy Ranch Roasted Red Potatoes recipe not only tastes amazing, but it’s a great accompaniment to a variety of meals. The pre-made Ranch Seasoning makes preparation a snap and adds fantastic flavor.

Ingredients

• 12 oz red potatoes, washed and quartered
• 1 packet Ranch Dressing Dry Mix
• Non fat, olive oil cooking spray
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a large bowl add potatoes and spray lightly with the cooking spray. Then, add in the Ranch mix and salt, and toss well to coat each potato piece evenly.
3. Spray a baking sheet with non stick cooking spray and spread out potatoes evenly on sheet.
4. Bake in oven until potatoes are cooked through, and edges start to turn very dark brown, approximately 20-25 minutes. Serve immediately.

Preparation time: 5 minute(s)

Cooking time: 25 minute(s)

Read more: http://www.laaloosh.com/2011/01/24/ranch-roasted-red-potatoes-recipe/#ixzz1o4WcNT6P

Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup

Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup Ingredients:

• 5 pounds russet potatoes, washed but NOT peeled. Diced into 1/2 inch(ish) cubes
• 1 medium/large yellow onion, diced
• 10 cloves of garlic, minced (if you use jarred, it's a 5 teaspoon equivalent)
• 64 ounces (8 cups) chicken stock or broth
• 16 oz cream cheese, softened (I use low fat)
• 1 tablespoon seasoned salt (I use Aunt Cora's Soulful Seasoning)
• optional garnishes: crumbled bacon, shredded cheese, green onions

Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup Directions:

1. Add potatoes, onion, garlic, seasoning, and chicken stock to slow cooker.
2. Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 10 hours.
3. Add the softened cream cheese and puree soup with an immersion blender until the cheese is incorporated and about half the soup is blended. (Alternately you could remove half the soup and the cream cheese to an upright blender, then re-incorporate).
4. Stir well, top with your choice of garnishes & enjoy!

Yields about 10-12 servings.
Recipe found HERE

Chicken Taquitos

BAKED CREAMY CHICKEN TAQUITOS
recipe from: Our Best Bites and Pennies on a Platter

Yield: 12 taquitos

• 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup green salsa
• 1 Tbsp fresh lime juice (juice from half a lime)
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 Tbsp chopped cilantro
• 2 Tbsp sliced green onions
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
• 1 cup shredded Mexican flavored cheese
• small flour or corn tortillas
• kosher salt
• cooking spray

Preheat your oven to 425˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, ground cumin, chili powder, onion powder and garlic. Once combined, stir in the cilantro and green onions. Add the chicken and cheese; mix thoroughly.

(If you decided to prep this in advance, refrigerate the mixture at this point until ready to continue.)

Working with a few tortillas at a time, heat them in the microwave between two paper towels until they are soft enough to roll (about 20 – 30 seconds).

Spoon 2-3 Tablespoons of the chicken mixture onto the lower third of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla as tightly as you can.

Place the rolled tortilla seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas until the mixture is gone.  Make sure the taquitos are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt.

Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until crisp and golden.

Serve with salsa, sour cream or guacamole.

**To freeze:  Before baking, flash freeze the taquitos in a single layer on a baking sheet then place in a labeled freezer bag and store up to 3 months.  To bake a frozen taquito (no need to thaw first): Preheat oven to 425˚F and bake for 20 minutes.  (Flash Freeze means freezing the taquitos in a single layer for 15-20 minutes (until hardened) so that when you add them to the freezer bag, they will not all stick together).

Recipe found HERE

Chicken Roll-Ups

• 1 pkg cream cheese (8oz)
• 1 pkg crescent rolls (6 ct)
• 2 shredded cooked chicken breasts
• 1.5 C grated chedder cheese
• 1 C grated Monterey Jack
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/4 t pepper
• bread crumbs
• 1/4 stick melted butter

Combine chicken, cheeses, salt and pepper. Spoon onto crescents. Roll them up making sure they are sealed around the chicken mixture. Brush tops with butter and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. To reheat, just place in a 325 degree oven for 15 minutes.

First, I boiled 2 chicken breasts. I just pulled them straight out of the freezer and threw them in warm water, and let it boil for about 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, I let a block of cream cheese thaw out. Hey, I never promised it was an overly healthy recipe.

I mixed the cream cheese with 1 1/2 cups of cheddar and 1 cup of Monterey jack and some salt and pepper.

Once the chicken was cooked, Chris shredded it for me with his hands of steel, and we mixed it into the cheese mixture.

Then I put the mixture on big, buttery, flakey crescent rolls.And rolled them up. Oh, and then brushed them with melted butter and topped them with bread crumbs. I guess you could skip the butter part, but you only live once.Finally, bake them at 350 for 20-25 minutes!

Recipe found HERE

Homemade Jalapeno Poppers

Recipe found HERE

 a can of Pillsbury Crescent dough

about 2 tablespoons of cream cheese (give or take, depending on how much you want to use)

1-2 fresh jalapeños

and about 3 strips of bacon (if you want... I always want bacon.) 

These amounts make 16 poppers.

Oven pre-heated to 350 degrees F. 

Chop the jalapeños into small pieces. Clean out the seeds. Don't stick your fingers in your eyes or mouth for the rest of the day.

Cut the bacon into pieces and then cook it up. I usually cut it up first cuz then you have nice, neat pieces and it doesn't get too crumbly. Just watch it so it doesn't burn. Unless you like burnt bacon. But that's weird.

Roll out your dough. It's perforated into triangles, but I cut each triangle in half with a pizza cutter and do one popper on each half. Does that make sense? Sorry I didn't take pictures of that part. You can do it without cutting the crescents in half, and they'll just be a little bigger than bite size (and then the recipe will yield 8 larger poppers).

Layer a small dollop of cream cheese, a piece or two of jalapeño, and bacon. 

Bring the corners of the dough together and twist them together at the top. Press the edges of the dough together so the insides don't gush out.

Bake 10-15 minutes at 350 and munch away! 

Homemade Twix

shortbread layer

• 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

caramel layer

• 2 cups caramel, cut into small chunks
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream

chocolate layer

• 3 cups chopped milk chocolate or dark chocolate, melted
• 1 tablespoon vegetable shortening (optional)

1) FOR THE CRUST: Preheat your oven to 300°F. Spray a 9" x 13" pan lightly with cooking spray, or line with parchment, and set aside.

2) In a medium-sized bowl, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla. Add the flour. At first the mixture may seem dry, but will come together as you continue to beat at medium speed.

3) Take the dough (it will be somewhat stiff) and press it evenly into the pan. Lightly flouring your fingertips will help with any sticking.

4) Prick the crust all over with a fork. The holes will allow steam to escape and the crust will bake evenly with fewer bubbles.

5) Bake the crust until it's lightly golden brown on top and the edges are deeper golden brown, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately run a knife around the edges to loosen the crust. Set it aside to cool completely.

6) FOR THE CARAMEL LAYER: Melt the caramel and cream over low heat in a small saucepan. Pour the caramel over the cooled crust and set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill and firm up.

7) FOR THE CHOCOLATE LAYER: Melt the milk or dark chocolate slowly in a double boiler or over very low heat. If it seems very thick, add a tablespoon of shortening to thin it. Pour evenly over the chilled caramel layer and spread to cover all of the caramel. Return to the fridge until the chocolate is well set. Cut into 2" x 2" squares to serve. It's best to store these bars in the refrigerator.

8) These bars can also be cut and dipped in milk chocolate to resemble Twix ® bars. After the caramel layer has chilled firm, cut down the length of the pan, splitting the bars into two long, narrow bars. Then cut each long strip into "fingers". Dip the chilled bars into melted chocolate and place on parchment paper to set for several hours.

Recipe found HERE

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Mexican Stuffed Shells

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 Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
1 package low-sodium taco seasoning (or better yet use this Taco Seasoning!)
4 oz. cream cheese
14-16 jumbo pasta shells
1.5 cup salsa
1 cup taco sauce (This is a smooth, tomato based sauce found in the Mexican section)
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 cup monterey jack cheese
3 green onions
Sour cream

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a frying pan cook ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions.  Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Blend well. Set aside and cool completely.  While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions; drain. Set shells out individually on cutting board/baking sheet so that they don’t stick together.

Pour salsa on bottom of 9×13 baking dish.  Stuff each shell with the meat mixture. Place shells in 9×13 pan open side up. Cover shells with taco sauce.  Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 more minutes, with the foil removed.  Top with any condiments you’d like (green onions, black olives, etc.) Serve with sour cream and/or more salsa.

Recipe found HERE

Adapted from:  A Pinch of This & That

Crispy & Cheesy Chimichangas

Recipe found HERE

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons canola oil
3 pounds boneless beef rump, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 yellow onions, chopped
3 teaspoons seeded and minced jalapenos
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
2 1/4 cups beef broth, plus extra if necessary
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup lime juice (about 3 limes)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
4 to 6 cups corn oil
10 (11-inch) flour tortillas, steamed
2 1/2 cups shredded pepper jack cheese
2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
3/4 cup salsa
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup seeded and diced tomatoes
1 avocado, diced

Directions:

In a small bowl, combine chili powder, cayenne, granulated garlic, and flour. Set aside. In a heavy bottomed, large stock pot, heat canola oil over medium-high heat. Add beef cubes and brown on all sides. Add onions and jalapenos and saute for 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute more. Mix in flour mixture, stirring frequently, for 2 to 3 minutes. Deglaze with beef broth. Then add vinegar. Stir well to combine. Bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium-low and simmer for 2 hours, adding additional beef broth, if necessary, to keep meat simmering in liquid. When meat is fork tender, remove to a sheet pan and shred with 2 forks. Add shredded beef back into pot, along with pinto and black beans, lime juice and half the cilantro. Cook until mixture is heated through. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large, deep-sided skillet, heat corn oil to 325 degrees F. While oil is heating, prepare chimichangas. Fill bottom half of a tortilla with 3/4 cup of the beef and bean mixture and 2 tablespoons pepper jack cheese (when filling tortillas, use a slotted spoon to scoop out beef if mixture is a little liquidy). Lift the edge of the tortilla and roll it over the filling to secure it. Fold in both sides and continue rolling until you reach the opposite end. Secure with a 6-inch skewer weaved through the seam side of burrito. Repeat with remaining tortillas. Slowly lower chimichangas into hot oil and cook 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. You can cook 4 burritos per batch. Remove from oil, drain on paper towels and keep warm in oven until all are cooked.

To serve, place a bed of shredded lettuce on each plate, then a spoonful of salsa. Place chimichangas on top and add a dollop of sour cream, sprinkle with diced tomatoes, avocado and remaining cilantro to garnish. Serve immediately.

Note: If tortillas tear while folding, make them more pliable by wrapping tortillas in a damp paper towels, then fully cover with foil. Place in 250 degree F oven to warm them up.