Crispy Bars

I am a firm believer in ‘Everything happens for a reason.’  Like that one time when I dated a guy for a year, then was engaged for a year, then called the wedding off six weeks before the knot was tied.  All that happened so I could get my almost-mother-in-law’s Banana Crème Pie recipe.  I’ll share that recipe with you all one day, but you should know that the drama and heartache of that relationship has been well well worth an occasional slice of that pie.

Today though, I want to tell you about another time.  The time we moved to Minnesota.
 

We left our Air Force life, eager for my husband to go into private practice. (He was a young strappy dentist.)  In a cute little small town, we bought our first house, and with our three incredibly young children, decided that this was the place that we were going to raise our young family.

I’ll just some up our experience in few words.  Mosquito bites, mortgage, Life Flight, mid-life crises, poop, snow shovels, small town gossip, and 100 proof Southern Comfort.  All this in temperatures well below freezing.

But there are always diamonds in the middle of the coal, right?  (Like I didn’t marry the one guy, but I got a much better one. Yay me!)  So despite our lack of enthusiasm for the weather and mosquitos, we met some great neighbors who wanted to drink all of our Southern Comfort be our friends.   They would set up huge neighborhood block parties to watch the Packers and Vikings play football.  There were hot dishes (Minnesotan for casserole) galore, and don’t cha know…..Crispy Bars.  Yes.  The very reason we lost our life’s savings and almost our minds, was for these. 

Crispy Bars

My friend Dorie told me, “Oh this is soooo easy.  Just remember cuppa, cuppa, cuppa,", and she was right.  This recipe has stayed in my head for years.  You will need 1 cup of Karo Syrup, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 cup of peanut butter…..cuppa, cuppa, cuppa.  Melt these three ingredients in a saucepan on medium low heat until smooth.

  Pour this mixture over 6 cups of corn flakes and press into a buttered jelly roll pan.

Next, melt together one bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips and one bag of butterscotch chips in the microwave, stirring together until smooth.  Now pour this over the corn flake mixture and spread around until it is covered. 

Cut into small squares and serve when chocolate is set.

  (I usually end up putting mine in the fridge for about 30 minutes.)  Serves 24-36 depending on how small you cut them.

I’ll leave you with one more recipe.  A cuppa love, a cuppa detours in your path, and a cuppa God’s plan and not your own.  Mix together and you will get a sweet sweet journey.

Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

I’m always trying to make “new” recipes.  You know……something that no one else has the recipe for.  When people try what I make, I want them to be ahhhhhmazed by my flair and sophistication in the kitchen.

Who am I kidding?  I like to wrap stuff in bacon and go extra heavy on the caramel sauce.  Isn’t that what baking and cooking is really all about?

So yesterday I decided to go with an old stand-by.  A recipe I had long ago swiped from the lid of the Quaker Oats Oatmeal and tweaked up to my exclusive baking standards (i.e. extra chocolate chips and cinnamon).  For your eating pleasure I present to you……….

Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

·        1/2 cup (1 stick) + 6 tablespoons butter, softened

·        1/2 cup granulated sugar

·        3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

·        2 eggs

·        1 teaspoon vanilla

·        1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

·        1 teaspoon baking soda

·        1/2 teaspoon salt

·        1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon…just one if you like a little less cinnamon, but you really should just trust me on this

·        3 cups rolled oats

·        An ENTIRE bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Some people will chose to add raisins to their ingredient list.  I would personally rather stir in a couple of roaches…….gag.

Via Pinterest…..From korinacaffeine.livejournal.com

Moving on.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease two cookie sheets and set aside.

Beat butter, sugar, and brown sugar together on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until well combined. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, then add to the butter mixture and beat until combined. Stir in oats and chocolate chips. 

Scoop dough into rounded tablespoons and place on baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Lightly press down to flatten each dough ball. Bake for 9-11 minutes until done…slightly brown on the edges. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack and allow to cool completely. 

Makes about 3 dozen cookies. 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

 Like every mom, I could tell you how busy I am.  I am the treasurer of this and I am the president of that.  I have social engagements on top of laundry, housework, swim team, and homework.  Oh yeah, I have a husband too.  He needs a haircut and his underpants washed. 

See, I am the busiest woman on earth.  That’s why I haven’t emailed you back, taken you up on your lunch date, or been blogging……because I know you have been waiting for a new blog post.

Really though, on top of the busy mom stuff, I’ve just been playing on Pinterest. 

I am addicted.

So I made these cookies, not just because they are good, but more because they would make an attractive Pin.

I know.  I have lost my mind.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Ingredients:

·        1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

·        2 squares (1 ounce each) unsweetened baking chocolate

·        1 cup sugar

·        ½ cup Butter Flavor Crisco

·        2 eggs

·        ½ tsp salt

·        1 tsp vanilla

·        1 ½ cups flour

·        ½ tsp baking soda

·        ¾ cup finely chopped peanuts

·        36 Reeses miniatures peanut butter cups

·        1 cup melted peanut butter chips for drizzle

Combine chocolate chips & chocolate squares in bowl and microwave at 50%.  Stir after 2 minutes.  Repeat for an additional 30 seconds until chocolates are smooth & melted.

Combine sugar and ½ cup shortening in a large bowl.  Beat at medium speed until blended and crumbly.  Beat in eggs, one at a time, then salt and vanilla.  Reduce to low speed.  Add chocolate slowly.  Mix until well blended.  Add baking soda & flour until you have moldable dough.

Shape dough into 1 ¼ inch balls.  Roll in crushed peanuts. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.  DO NOT OVERBAKE.  Cookies will be soft.  When you remove them from the oven, immediately press a peanut butter cup into the center.  Let cool on pan for 1 minute, and then move to cooling rack.

When cookies are cooled you can add the drizzle.  Melt the peanut butter chips at 50% in the microwave for about 1 minute.  Stir until smooth.  Add the melted chips to a plastic sandwich bag and cut off a small corner.  Squeeze out and drizzle over cookie.

Yummy, chewy, chocolaty, peanut-buttery goodness.  Perfect for a fall bake sale.  Plus, they will look fabulous on Pinterest don’t you think?

To follow my pinning adventures……CLICK HERE!

Owl Cupcakes...They Are A Hoot!

If you take these to a school bake sale everyone will say to you, “Nice hooters!”

Cute huh?

I made these for the daughter of a VERY good friend.  I say VERY, because I don’t normally take a lot of time to decorate things I bake or cook.  I tend to make big messes and get frosting all over everything. 

So, wearing a pair of white shorts no less, I got all down and dirty and chocolaty for my friend.  Turns out, it was worth it.

Owl Cupcakes

What you need:

·        12 cupcakes (I used Chocolate & Vanilla)

·        1-2 cans chocolate frosting

·        24 Oreo sandwich cookies twisted apart

·        Junior Mints

·        Candy Corn

Step 1: Frost all of your cupcakes with the chocolate frosting and be sure to drop a glob on your white shorts.

Step 2:  Twist your Oreos apart.  Mine came apart easily, but the cupcake book I used said to zap some in the microwave for about 3 seconds if you are having trouble.

Step 3: Press the Oreo halves, frosted side up, into the upper half of the frosted cupcakes.  (It is at this time you somehow get chocolate in your hair.)

Step 4: Score 12 of the unfrosted Oreos into 3 parts with a serrated knife.  This way they can easily snap apart.  It should look like this.

Step 5: Stick the round edge Oreo pieces into the top of each cupcake above the Oreo halves.  These will be the owl’s ears.

Step 6:  Next, you will pipe more chocolate frosting on the ears and in between the eyes to create the look of feathers.  I have no pictures of this because I had too much chocolate frosting on my hands and shorts.

Step 7: Pipe a dot of frosting on top of each Oreo half and stick a Junior Mint on it for the owl’s eye.  Make sure to drop a Junior Mint on the chair you are sitting on and get the back of your white shorts all chocolaty too.

Step 8: Press a candy corn in the center of each set of eyes for the nose.

Step 9: Put on an apron to cover up the chocolate you got all over yourself.....or maybe you should have done that first....before you started with the chocolate?

You’re done!!  Whoo hoo!  (Or should I say Hoot! Hoot!!??)

Happy Birthday Kaylie…..hoped you liked them!!!

Chocolate Sea Salt Crostini....Bringing It Out With Nutella!

This Chocolate Sea Salt Crostini is all the rave.  It was on the MSN home page the other day and then I Googled it and EVERYONE who is ANYBODY is making it.  Surely I should have a plate of these savory appetizers for my holiday party!  But wait!!!  I always burn things in a broiler.  And is it sweet-n-salty but not too sweet because it is bittersweet chocolate but still good?  I was skeptical but I was also intrigued!  Baguettes and olive oil with chocolate?  Suddenly I was walking down the Champs-Elysées in Paris with the coolest sunglasses and trendiest bag to gather my ingredients for my fine guests.

And then I woke up and realized I was on a military base in Japan.  Nice.

I will link to the video of this fabulous recipe at the end of my post but first, you have to see how I tried.  I really tried.  I tried to buy the finest chocolate and sea salt and fresh baked bread.  I love my Air Force life but you can’t always find exactly what you need in a military commissary.  So, instead of Maldon sea salt and the finest finest bittersweet chocolates I improvised with Morton and several different chocolates….Lindt, Hershey’s, and (oh my goodness....), Nutella! 

Chocolate Sea Salt Crostini

Slice a baguette into even slices, about ½ an inch thick.  Remember when I said I always burn things in a broiler?  Well, that includes the bread in this recipe.  Don’t worry though.  It isn’t the fancy bakery French baguette.  I couldn’t find one here.  This is what I found for bread…..

Yes it was actually called a "crusty sub roll".  This is how I sliced it and the salt I used.

It is classy…I know.  The thing about the “crostini video”, is that it doesn’t say how long you should broil the bread, just that you should cut it evenly.  You really should cut it evenly, but  I am going to vote for the common housewife on this one and guess that, maybe we need an exact time to plug into our Pampered Chef timers, and an exact temperature. I will tell you, through trial and error,  that you put your broiler at 500 degrees (260 C)and you broil the bread for 2 minutes on each side.  If you smell the bread sort of burning…it is already burned.    This is what it should look like if you don’t burn it….

Turn the oven off.  Now drizzle the toasty bread with extra virgin olive oil.  Then press a piece of chocolate in the center.  I did a piece of 85% cocoa chocolate, a Hershey’s Special Dark, a Hershey’s milk chocolate, and a schmear of Nutella on different pieces.  I just didn’t believe that a bittersweet chocolate would work for this….no matter how “savory” the recipe was supposed to be.  Now put the chocolate covered bread into the cooling oven.  After one minute take it out and sprinkle each piece with a pinch of sea salt. 

How did the recipe work for me?  The video said that the higher the % of cocoa the better.  He is a picture of my husband when he tasted the crostini with the 85% cocoa chocolate….

I tried it and the look on my face was even worse (that is why I didn’t post it.) It was really bad.  We then both tried the other chocolates.  The plain Hershey’s chocolate covered ones were too sweet but the Special Dark was really good and the Nutella was even better.

We say Nutella….the reviews on YouTube say all sorts of things!  Read them.  It is funny.  I would serve these to guests with the Nutella or even the Special Dark.  The video says to serve with red wine, but I say no amount of red wine would make the bittersweet chocolate taste good. Do a blob of Nutella like this...

Here is the link I promised to the Food Wishes-Video Recipe .  They are the masterminds who came up with the recipe.  I posted a comment asking them what sort of chocolate they used.  We'll see if I get a response.

Please please please if you get the chance enter my Christmas cookie and craft contest.  I am feeling pretty pathetic because NO ONE has entered yet and it is for a $25 Visa gift card.  Click on this Santa link to enter and win!

I'm linking this recipe here: