Peanut Butter Swirled Snicker Brownies

So, this recipe was a definite first for me... the first time I ever made brownies in a saucepan! Stuff was flying everywhere! I made these delicious goodies for my Sunday school class on Sunday evening. We had our Thanksgiving Lifegroup, (aka small group) and there was a TON of yummy food! Ok, on to the recipe... pretty much copied from Two Peas and Their Pod blog.

Inside stuff:

1 cup butter

2 cups granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 large eggs

3/4 cup dutch processed cocoa

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups chopped Snickers candy bars

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

How to:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Place butter in medium saucepan on the stove. Heat over medium heat until butter is melted. Remove from heat and stir in sugar and vanilla extract. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well with spoon after each addition. Add cocoa; stir until well blended. Add flour, baking powder and salt; stir until combined. Stir in Snickers candy bar chunks. Pour batter into prepared pan.

3. Drop dollops of peanut butter over the batter. Using a knife, swirl peanut butter into brownies. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool brownies completely in pan on a wire rack. Once cool, cut into squares and serve.

*To reduce chance of a mess, I would use a larger saucepan... like the biggest you've got!! Remember... stuff.flying.everywhere!

Enjoy and eat well!!

Tailgating Tuesday: Italian Corn Salsa

I am always on the lookout for exciting new recipes for tailgating, parties, etc. If the word easy comes up, that is icing on the cake. I found the following recipe at plainchicken.com, but I changed it up just a bit. I made it for my Halloween party, and everyone liked it!

Italian Corn Salsa

11 oz can corn, drained
1 can Ro-tel tomatoes, drained
2 cups finely shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 to 1 c. Italian dressing

Dump the corn and tomatoes into a strainer to drain. Transfer to a bowl and mix the veggies together. Add the 2 cups of cheese and mix. Pour a 1/2 cup of dressing over the mixture and see if consistency is too thick. If so, add another 1/4 cup of dressing and check consistency again. Chill for 2 hours up to overnight and serve with tortilla chips or corn chips.

*I used the whole cup of Italian dressing when I made it the first time and found it to be a little "soupy."

Enjoy!! Eat well!

Pumpkin Layer Bars

So with all the "fall" themed baking posts I've seen lately, I decided to try a spicy, pumpkiny dessert. I got the original recipe from shakentogether.blogspot.com. However, it wasn't as sweet as I liked, so you know what happened... Here is my version!

Pumpkin Layer Bars

Go on and preheat your oven child, 350 degrees!

The Bottom Layer stuff:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

1 box yellow cake mix, reserve 1 c. of cake mix for later

2 eggs

- Mix together and spread into bottom of 9X13 prepared baking dish.

- By the way, prepared means greased, just in case ya didn't know!

The Middle Layer stuff:

2 eggs

2/3 c. evaporated milk

large can (30 oz) pumpkin pie mix (couldn't find anything that said pumpkin pie mix so just used the canned pumpkin)

3/4 c. sugar

- Mix together and pour over bottom layer

- By the way, this is layer that needed some sweetness, so oh yes I did!!

The Top Layer stuff:

1 c. reserved cake mix

1/4 c. brown sugar (packed)

1 tsp cinnamon

3 T. butter

-Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until crumbly. Sprinkle over the pumpkin layer.

Now, Bake it baby! Bake at 350 degrees for 40-43 minutes, or until cake is firm and toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Queso Chicken Pasta

I took this recipe to a friend and her family after they had their third child. I do believe it was a hit! I really enjoyed it as well. I hope you do!

Queso Chicken Pasta

8 ounces penne pasta

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 cup diced onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 jalapeno, minced*

1/2 teaspoon cumin*

1/4 teaspoon coriander*

1 tablespoon flour

1 1/3 cup milk, 2% or higher

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons cream cheese

6 ounces colby-jack cheese, divided

1/2 cup drained Ro*Tel tomatoes

2 cups cooked shredded chicken (make it easy on yourself and buy a rotisserie chicken)

* I left out the jalapenos because I don't like a lot of heat, and I didn't have those two spices in the cabinet so I left them out!

Heat the oven to 350 F and spray a medium casserole dish with non-stick spray.
Cook the pasta according to the package directions, but reduce the cooking time by two minutes. In a medium pot heat the oil over medium heat. Once it begins to shimmer add the onion, garlic and peppers. Cook until they begin to soften, about three minutes. Add the cumin, coriander and salt and cook for an additional two minutes, or until the spices become fragrant. Add the flour and cook for three minutes, stirring constantly, until all the flour is moist. Gradually whisk in the milk and stir until smooth. Bring the mixture to a simmer and allow to thicken. Turn off the heat and add the cream cheese and 4 ounces of the shredded cheese and whisk until melted. Stir in the Ro*Tel tomatoes. Pour the pasta into the prepared casserole dish, stir in the shredded chicken and sauce. Top with the remaining shredded cheese. Bake 20 to 30 minutes, or until the pasta is bubbly and the cheese has melted. Let stand five minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Bubble Up Enchiladas

So, I don't cook meals a lot at home. It's just me, and I don't usually feel like being in the kitchen when I get home from work. Frozen pizzas, frozen meals, and fast food do get old after a while though. So when I saw this quick and easy recipe, I thought why not! I got the recipe from Plain Chicken, which is an awesome blog with many quick and easy recipes. I just changed one thing, cause... I like the cheese, people!!

The Stuff:
1 lb lean ground beef
1 packet taco seasoning
8 oz can tomato sauce
10 oz can enchilada sauce
1 can refrigerated biscuits (10 small biscuits can)
*And here's where I changed things up

1 c. shredded Velveeta

1 c. Mexican cheese blend

How to:
Preheat oven to 350 and spray casserole dish with cooking spray.
Brown meat and drain excess oil. Add taco seasoning, tomato sauce, enchilada sauce, and Velveeta cheese. Stir until well combined.
Cut biscuits into fourths and stir into meat mixture. Pour into casserole dish and bake for 25 minutes. Remove and add the other cup of cheese, plus a little extra... if you like the cheese :).
Then pop it back in the oven for another 10 minutes, or until cheese melts. Let stand about 5 minutes before scoopage ensues.

*The original recipe uses 2 cups of Mexican cheese blend, but I just knew that wasn't going to be cheesy enough.

Hope y'all enjoy! :)

Snicker-stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

Got lots and lots of smiles with these cookies! I tell y'all what, that Picky-Palate lady is something else! She came up with these awesome cookies! It's a really easy cookie to make, too. So get busy trying them!

Snicker-Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 sticks butter, softened

1 c. sugar

3/4 c. brown sugar

2 eggs

1 T. vanilla

3 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

1 bag chocolate chips

24 "fun-sized" Snicker bars

Preheat oven to 350 and grease cookie sheets. Preferably in a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugars until well mixed. Add eggs and vanilla. mixing until combined.

In a separate bowl, add flour, soda, and salt. Mix. Add flour mixture gradually into wet ingredients, mixing well. Fold in chocolate chips. Using a cookie scoop, place one scoop of dough onto top and one scoop of dough on bottom of a small Snicker bar. Seal edges around Snicker bar by pressing and cupping dough in hand until candy bar is enclosed. Place cookie on baking sheet and bake 9-13 minutes, (I baked about 10 minutes). Let cookies cool for 5-10 minutes before transferring to cooling rack. Enjoy!

Here's some right out of the oven!

Easy Peasy Peanut Butter Pie

I made pie Saturday morning! Easiest pie I ever made! Mainly, because I bought and used a pre-made pie crust. :) Shhhh!! Don't tell Paula or Martha! Here's the recipe, slightly adapted from Picky Palate, (picky-palate.com).

Pie Crust:
Pre-made graham cracker crust
*or*
9 whole graham crackers, finely ground
3 T. sugar
4 T. melted butter

Creamy inside stuff:
8 oz. softened cream cheese
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. creamy peanut butter
1/4 c. heavy cream
Ice Cream Shell Topping

Baking the pie crust - Preheat oven to 350 and spray a 9-in pie plate with non-stick cooking spray. Place graham crackers, sugar, and melted butter in a large bowl, mixing to combine. Press into bottom and up sides of pie plate. Bake for 10 minutes, remove and cool for 10 minutes before adding the "creamy inside stuff."

No-Bake part - Place cream cheese, brown sugar, peanut butter, and heavy cream into bowl and beat with electric mixer until well combined. Scoop into pie crust and spread evenly. Now, for the good part!! There are a few brands that make a "shell" topping for ice-cream, which gives the ice cream a yummy, crunchy coating. This shell topping works really well on this pie, so pick out your favorite kind and drizzle all over the top of the pie. "Lord, save me now!!" My favorite is the Heath Bar Shell topping! Refrigerate the pie for 20-30 minutes before serving!

If this doesn't knock your socks off, I don't know what will! Enjoy!