Our Favorite Dinner Rolls

So, this Thanksgiving, we made these rolls from "Our Best Bites." AMAZING. We made two dozen for Thanksgiving day. There were twelve of us. There was hardly enough, since some of us ate three of them. (Good thing some of us shared!!!) So, I had to make another batch (2 dozen) the next morning to go with Thanksgiving leftovers. Again, literally 30 seconds, and they were all gone. So, in the space of two days, between 12 people we ate 4 dozen rolls. Slightly disgusting, but not surprising!! We hope you love them too!!!

2 Cups Whole Milk*
1/2 Cup PLUS 1 Tablespoon sugar, divided
1/3 cup butter
2 tsp. kosher salt
2 packages (4-1/2 teaspoons) active dry or bread machine yeast
2/3 cup warm (105-115 degrees F) Water
8-9 Cups all-purpose flour, divided
3 Beaten Eggs

Combine Milk, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until butter melts into salty-sweet perfection.

Remove from heat. Allow to cool to lukewarm. To hurry things up a bit, you can place the saucepan in a bowl of ice cubes. You want to make sure this mixture isn't too hot, otherwise it will kill the yeast.

While the milk mixture is cooling, dissolve the yeast and 1 Tablespoon sugar in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes. If the yeast hasn't bubbled, you'll need to repeat this step with new yeast.

In a large mixing bowl, combine 3 cups flour and cooled milk mixture. Beat on low for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Add yeast mixture and beat on high for 3 minutes. Add beaten eggs.

Stir in as much of the remaining flour as needed to make a soft dough. This dough should be very soft - it will be coming away from the sides of the bowl, but it will stick to your finger when you touch it. Don't worry, it will firm up during the rising process. Part of what makes these rolls so good is that they're so soft and light; if you add too much flour, they will be heavy and dense. Place the bowl in a warm place and cover with a clean towel. Allow to rise 1 hour.

Punch down dough. Lightly flour work surface and turn dough out onto surface. Divide in half. Spray two 9x13 inch glass pans with nonstick cooking spray. Roll first portion of dough into a rectangle and then cut it into 12 equal-sized pieces. A pizza cutter works well because it cuts right through the dough without sticking to the blade. This dough should be very easy to work with, almost like Play-Doh. Shape each piece into a ball and place in prepared pan. Repeat with remaining dough in the second pan. Use a kitchen scale if you want to ensure that the rolls are exactly the same.

Cover with a clean cloth and allow to rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes. When dough has about 15-20 minutes to go, preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown.

When done, remove from oven. Brush with melted butter. Or, better yet, just grab a stick of cold butter from the fridge, and rub it over the top of each roll. Make sure you grab one now and eat it while its still hot! This is your reward for making the best dinner rolls EVER!

24 Rolls.

Source: Our Best Bites

*TIP - The fat in whole milk is absolutely essential to the lightness and flavor of these rolls. If you're in a pinch, 2% works ok, but try to stay away from 1% or skim. If you're going to put all the work into these rolls, you want to make sure they taste amazing!

Breadsticks

This is a fantastic breadstick recipe. It is easy to make it is always turns out fantastic!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups warm (105-115 degrees F.) water

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon active dry or bread machine yeast

1/2 teaspoon salt

3-4 1/2 cups flour, divided

Directions:

1. In a large bowl (the bowl of your mixer, if you have one), combine water, sugar and yeast. Let stand for 10 minutes or until yeast is bubbly

2. Add salt and stir. Add 1 1/2 cups flour and mix well. Gradually add more flour (usually between 1 1/2 cups- 2 1/2 cups, depending on your elevation and your humidity) until dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and it barely sticks to your finger.

3. Spray a glass or metal bowl with cooking spray and place dough in bowl. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

4. Remove from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Roll dough into a rectangle 18-inches long and 9-inches wide and cut into 12 strips with pizza cutter.

5. Roll out a piece of dough into a snake and drape it over your forefinger and twist the dough. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining 11 pieces of dough. Try to space them evenly.

6. Cover the pan with a clean cloth and allow the dough to rise for another 30 minutes. When there's about 15 minutes to go, preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. When the dough is done rising, bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Rub some melted butter on top and sprinkle with garlic bread seasoning or with Parmesan cheese and garlic salt.

source: Our Best Bites

Peanut Butter Temptations

I found this recipe and knew that I had to make them. I have been having major chocolate/peanut butter cravings and this one satisfied! They are really close to the Cyclops Cookies but with a Peanut Butter Cup instead of a Hershey Kiss. I hope you enjoy them just as much as we did!

Ingredients:
About 40 Reese's Peanut Butter Miniatures
1/2 Cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
1/2 Cup granulated sugar
1/2 Cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 Cup Peanut Butter
1 Egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 Cups Flour
3/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees


2. Remove wrappers from candies



3. Line small muffin cups with paper baking cups, if desired



4. Beat Butter, sugar, brown sugar, peanut butter, egg and vanilla until fluffy in large bowl.



5. In another bowl stir together flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to butter mixture, beating until well blended.



6. Shape dough into 1-inch balls; place one in each paper-lined or ungreased muffin cup. Do Not Flatten



7. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until puffed and lightly browned; remove from oven.



8. immediately press peanut butter cup in center of each cookie. Cool completely in muffin pan.

tips:

• I don't have two mini muffin pans so I used a fork to help me remove the completed cookies from the pan, once they had set just a little, and put them onto a cooling rack. It worked just fine and then I was able to do the second batch of cookies in the same pan.

Cinnamon Bun Popcorn

I am always looking for a great popcorn recipe. I just think that popcorn is so versatile and you can do so much with it. I was lucky to come across this recipe from Our Best Bites. It is fantastic and totally worth the time that it takes to make it. It is a huge hit with everyone and great for parties.

Cinnamon Caramel Corn with Pecans & White Chocolate
{AKA Cinnamon Bun Popcorn!}

Ingredients:

12 C popped popcorn (about 1/2 C kernels)*

1 C roughly chopped pecans

1 C brown sugar

3/4 t cinnamon

1/4 C Karo syrup (or honey makes a good substitution)

1 stick real butter (1/2 C)

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. vanilla

3 squares almond bark

*You can use air popped or microwave popcorn. If using microwave, anything works, but I prefer a "natural" flavor that's low in butter and salt.

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees

2. Place popcorn and chopped pecans in a large bowl and set aside. And by large bowl, I mean like, twice as big as you think you really need. If you don't believe me, then maybe you will believe the scorching hot caramel goo that's splattered all over your hands while you're stirring in your not-so-big bowl. Just a thought.

3. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a big, microwave-safe bowl. Like a 2-quart bowl or Pyrex measuring bowl. It's really important to incorporate the cinnamon into the brown sugar at this point. For some reason, if you don't it does crazy things. I don't know why. Try it and then email Alton Brown and ask him if you really want to know.

4. Chop butter into chunks and place on top of sugar mixture. Pour corn syrup (or honey) over the top of everything. Microwave on high for 30 seconds (just to soften the butter a bit) and then stir to combine.

5. Return to microwave and heat for 2 minutes.

6. Remove and stir and then microwave for 2 minutes more.By this point it should be nice and bubbly. If it doesn't quite look like that you can microwave it a little longer, but just beware that if you over cook it, it will reach the hard candy stage and you'll end up with a giant clump of tasty concrete-like substance with little popcorn pieces stuck to it. Don't ask me how I know this.

7. Remove from the microwave and add in vanilla and baking soda. Now take that foamy science project and pour it right over the popcorn and pecans.

8. Stir right away, and stir lots. Take too long and the caramel will harden on you. Keep stirring until everything is well coated.Spread popcorn mixture onto a foil-lined jelly roll pan.Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.

9. After 30 minutes, take a piece out and let it cool. "Sample." If it's not crunchy enough, bake for another 5 minutes. "Sample" again. This will not be the end of "sampling."When it's done, give it a final stir and let it cool off for a bit while you melt your almond bark (just nuke it in the microwave according to the package directions) If you want, you can spread out your caramel corn on a clean piece of parchment, waxed paper, or foil.

10. Now, just use a fork and drizzle the melted almond bark over the popcorn mixture.When it's hardened (pop it in the fridge to speed that process along) break into chunks and enjoy!

Source: www.ourbestbites.com

Brown Bag Burritos

Another Taste of Home find! I have been looking for lunchtime solutions lately that are quick to fix, so when I have a moment to eat during the day, I don't just look blankly in the fridge, shrug my shoulders, and make myself another lame sandwich. These frozen burritos rock! I especially love them because I can take them to school with me in my insulated lunch pack, then microwave when I get there. They're ready anytime, and they're really tasty!!!

2 lbs. Ground Beef
2 Cans (16 oz. each) Refried Beans
3 Cups (12 oz.) shredded mexican cheese blend, or cheddar cheese
1-1/3 cups enchilada sauce
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 Tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
16 flour tortillas - 10 in. - warmed

Optional toppings:
shredded mexican cheese blend/cheddar cheese
sour cream
shredded lettuce
chopped tomatoes
sliced olives

In a dutch oven or large pot, cook ground beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Return to pan; add the beans, cheese, enchilada sauce, water, onion and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Spoon 1/2 cup filling off center on each tortilla. Fold sides and end over filling and roll up. Wrap individually in paper towels, then foil. Transfer wrapped burritos to a resealable plastic freezer bag. May be frozen up to 2 months.

To use frozen burritos:
Unwrap foil. Place paper-towel wrapped burritos on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave on high for 3-4 minutes or until heated through. Serve with toppings of choice.

16 burritos.

Source: Taste of Home

Peanut Butter Cereal Bars

Ok, so for those of you who don't know, Heather has an absolute obsession with Rice Krispie Treats. This is her ABSOLUTE favorite thing to munch on. Period. So, to no surprise, we recently received our latest Taste of Home issue, and I was thumbing through it, (unaware she was reading) when Heather let out a gasp behind me, and I hear a "wait! go back!" She saw these bars in the picture, and her pregnancy cravings kicked in with multiple oohs and yums. 1/2 hour later, I returned from a late night trip to the store with Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch in hand. The bars were devoured in record time by both of us, with lots of sticky fingers. Perfect late night snack (pregnancy or anytime!)

30 large Marshmallows
3 Tbsp. Butter
1 Tbsp. Peanut Butter
6 Cups Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch Cereal
1-1/2 cups Milk Chocolate Plain M&M's

In a large saucepan, combine the marshmallows, butter, and peanut butter. Cook and stir over low heat until melted. Remove from the heat. Stir in the Cereal and M&M's. Pat into a 9x13 pan coated with cooking spray. Cool. Cut into bars.

Cinnamon Bun Pancakes with Vanilla Glaze "Syrup"

So, we discovered that some friends in our ward and their family also have a food blog! We tried out these pancakes on Saturday morning from their recipes and they were SO good. They literally taste exactly like a cinnamon roll, fresh and hot out of the oven. Enjoy this one for your next weekend family breakfast!

1-½ cup All-purpose Flour
3 Tablespoons White Sugar
½ teaspoon Salt
4 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
2 whole Eggs Beaten
1 cup Milk
2 Tablespoons Corn Syrup
¼ cup Butter, Melted
1 Tablespoon Vanilla

In medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and cinnamon with a whisk. Whisk well to make sure everything is combined. In separate large bowl, beat together eggs, milk, corn syrup, butter and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium/low heat. Pour about 1/4 cup batter onto griddle. Brown on both sides. Serve warm with vanilla glaze over the top.

Vanilla Glaze:

1/3 cup butter or margarine
2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
2-6b Tlbs hot water

Melt butter over low heat in saucepan; remove from heat. Stir in powdered sugar and vanilla. Stir in hot water, one tablespoon at a time, until smooth and the consistency of syrup.

Yield: 12 pancakes (when 1/4 cup batter is used for each pancake.)

Source: Smithalicious.blogspot.com

Meatball Soup

In recent months, we have discovered that Lilly has an obsession with anything that has meatballs. Spaghetti and Meatballs, Saucy Meatballs, Sweet n' Sour Meatballs, you name it. She asks for meatballs CONSTANTLY. Heather and I have even had to limit meatball related items to about once every two weeks, for our sanity's sake. Recently, we found this recipe in one of Heather's mom's Betty Crocker Cookbooks. Meaballs? Check. Slow Cooker? DOUBLE Check. Soup? TRIPLE Check. (I LOVE all things soup.) This was the easiest soup to make, and it was so good! You probably even have about 90% of the ingredients on your shelf already!

1 bag (16-oz) frozen Italian-style meatballs
2 cans (14-oz each) beef broth
2 cans (14-1/2 oz each) diced tomatoes with italian herbs, undrained
1 medium potato, chopped (1 cup)
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1/4 teaspoon garlic pepper (none of this on our shelf. We ended up adding: a pinch of salt, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder and a few cranks of freshly ground pepper)
1 bag (1 lb.) frozen mixed vegetables
shredded parmesan cheese for garnish

Mix frozen meatballs, broth, tomatoes, potato, onion, and seasonings in slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until veggies are tender. Stir in frozen mixed vegetables, cover and cook on high for one more hour. Serve with parmesan cheese.

Serves 6

source: www.bettycrocker.com

Crunchy Ice Cream Dessert

Ok, this recipe is INDEED a find!!! One of Heather's friends served something like this to us several years ago, and she wouldn't tell us the recipe, only that it "had Chex in it." I have been wondering what exactly was in it for a long time. . . (fast forward to last week). . . we were unpacking our new house in Boise, and it was HOT outside. I happened to open up our cookbook box, and came across our Taste of Home "Cool and Creamy" book. I asked Heather if she wanted to try something with ice cream to celebrate the new house. She gave me a quick nod, and I opened up the book, and this recipe jumped right out. I was so excited because the picture looked like "that ice cream thingy with the Chex" that we tried so many years ago! I quickly jumped in the car and ran over to the store and bought a couple things, came home and made it. I'm not sure if it's the EXACT recipe that Heather's friend made, but it's really close. Needless to say, our first night in our new house, Heather and I lazily flopped on the couch after our unpacking marathon and had three pieces each. It was THAT good.

2 Cups crushed Rice Chex
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped peanuts
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream

In a large bowl, combine the cereal, brown sugar, peanuts and coconut. Drizzle with butter; stir until combined.

Press half of the mixture into an ungreased 9"x 13" dish. Cut ice cream into 3/4 in.-thick slices*; arrange evenly over crust. Top with remaining crumb mixture; press down lightly. Cover and freeze until serving. Yield: 12-15 servings

*If you don't want the mess from cutting your ice cream (like we did), we just softened it a bit and spread it over the crust. Spread very slowly and carefully though, so you don't pull up the crust off the bottom of the pan. Keep in mind you will also need to freeze it longer (probably overnight) before serving if you do this so it can harden.

Source: Taste of Home Cool and Creamy

Moving

We have been gone a while from our fun food blog. Sorry everyone! We are in the middle of moving, but just as soon as we get settled we'll be back to sharing our yummy goodies!

Apple Streusel Bars

These bars are absolutely AMAZING. They taste similar to apple pie, but much easier to make! We made them last weekend, and 4 of us devoured the whole pan (gross, I know, but you weren't there!) in less than an hour, they were SO good! To make things even easier, substitute the apple filling below for one jar of our homemade apple pie filling!

Sweet Pastry:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter (REAL butter here, people, no substitutions!)
1 egg, beaten

Apple Filling: (or one jar of our homemade filling)
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 cups (about 3 medium) sliced, peeled baking apples (Granny Smith or Gala work great)

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
About 3 Tablespoons milk (whole milk is best)

To prepare crust: mix flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or two knives until you have pea-sized crumbles. Gently mix in beaten egg.

Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray. Gently pat about 2/3 of the crumb mixture into bottom of pan and set aside. Preheat oven to 350.

To prepare apple filling: combine flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Toss with apples and spread apples out on prepared crust. Sprinkle reserved crust mixture over apples evenly and bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes. When finished, allow to cool completely.

To prepare glaze: whisk together powdered sugar, almond extract and enough milk to achieve desired consistency. Transfer glaze to a ziploc bag and cut off a very small portion of one of the corners. Drizzle glaze over cooled pastry and allow to harden (you can place it in the freezer if you want to hurry things along) Cut into bars and serve. Yield: 20-24 bars.

Source: Our Best Bites

Dijon-Crusted Fish

Yet another amazing, easy, quick meal! We bought some tilapia at Costco a while back when it was on sale, and we've been wondering what to do with it. Here's our answer!! It gets TONS of flavor from the creamy sauce and lightly crispy topping. Heather usually isn't much of a fish person, but this is so mild, we all love it!

3 Tbsp. mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. horseradish
4 tilapia fillets (approx. 5 ounces each)
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs (we happened to have Italian seasoned variety on hand)
2 tsp. butter, melted

In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, 1 Tbsp. cheese, lemon juice, mustard, and horseradish. Place fillets on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Spread mayonnaise mixture evenly over fillets.

In a small bowl, combine bread crumbs, butter and remaining cheese; sprinkle over fillets. Bake at 425 for 13-18 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Yield: 4 servings.

Source: Taste of Home Most Requested Recipes

Amazing 15 Minute Meal: Creamy Tortellini Marinara

Every once in a while, you happen to come across a meal that is a life saver that you can whip together in a hurry and avoid the dreaded "I don't know what to make fast, so lets go get McDonald's" nights. This is one of them that we made last night. Literally this comes together faster than it takes to get the kids to set the table. Toast up some garlic bread from the grocery store and open a bag of salad, and you've got a meal!

1 9-oz. package refrigerated cheese tortellini
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp. butter
4-1/2 tsp. flour
1 cup milk
1 15-oz. jar marinara sauce
4 oz. cream cheese, cubed
2 green onions, sliced - (we didn't have green onions on hand when we tried it, so we just threw in some dried minced onion).
salt and pepper to taste

Cook tortellini according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, saute the garlic in butter for 1 min. Stir in flour. Slowly add milk and bring to a boil. Add marinara sauce, cream cheese, green onions, salt and pepper. Cook and stir until cheese melts. Serve over tortellini.

6 servings.

Source: Taste of Home June/July 2011

Pistachio Cake

So this is another yummy treat that we discovered some time ago. Unfortunately, like many recipes before, we ate the whole thing before we could get a picture. . . so we had to make it again just so we could get one! This moist bundt cake has has the perfect amount of sweetness, and is also a really cool shade of green, so it would be PERFECT for St. Patrick's day.

1 pkg. (18-1/4 oz.) yellow cake mix
1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) instant pistachio pudding mix
4 eggs
1 cup club soda
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

ICING:

1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup cold milk
1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) instant pistachio pudding mix
2 tsp. powdered sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, soda and oil; beat on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium 2 minutes. Stir in walnuts

Pour into a greased and floured 10-in fluted tube (bundt) pan. Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

In a large bowl, beat the cream, milk, pudding mix and powdered sugar on high until stiff peaks form. Frost cake. Sprinkle with Walnuts.

Yield: 12 servings

Source: Taste of Home Simple and Delicious February/March 2011

Our Amazing Kitchen Discovery

Ok, so have you ever seen this stuff in your Mom's or Grandma's pantry? I did too, but I never really what it was or what it did. WELL, I saw on a website what you actually do with it. This stuff is actually powdered buttermilk!

So, we've all had this experience, i'm sure: we want to make pancakes, breads, etc. that call for buttermilk. We open the fridge, and the buttermilk that was there was expired, curdled, and nasty. We don't want to make an unneccessary trip to the store for more. Well, now you can make your favorite buttermilk recipes without having to worry about having buttermilk on hand all the time!

Here's what you do. . .

When recipe calls for:

2/3 cup buttermilk: use 2-1/2 Tbsp. powder, and 2/3 cup water

1 cup buttermilk: use 4 Tbsp. powder and 1 cup water

To use it: First mix the measured buttermilk powder (above) with the other dry ingredients in your recipe, then add the appropriate amount of water when the recipe calls for liquid buttermilk. It's that easy!!

The can will store unopened on your pantry shelf for about 3-4 years or so, but they recommend refrigerating once the can is open.

Some of our favorite buttermilk recipes from this blog include our favorite pancake syrup, and Aebleskivers

ENJOY THIS TRICK!!!!

Chicken and Asparagus Kabobs

Well, we actually had a day of sunshine last week, so we took advantage of it and got out the grill. We decided to try out these awesome asian-inspired kabobs with a tasty dipping sauce. They were so good, we devoured them ALL before we had a chance to take pictures! So, next time we make them (most likely soon) we will plan on taking pictures BEFORE we eat rather than AFTER.

DIPPING SAUCE:

2 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp. sesame seeds, toasted*
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon white pepper

KABOBS:

1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. water
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon minced fresh gingerroot
1-1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-1/2 inch pieces
1 pound fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt

In a small bowl, combine the dipping sauce ingredients. Cover the sauce and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.

In a large ziploc bag, combine soy sauce, brown sugar, water, sesame oil, pepper flakes and ginger. Add the chicken; seal the bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 2 hours, turning occasionally. Drain and discard marinade. In a large bowl, toss the asparagus with olive oil and salt. On six metal or soaked wooden skewers, alternately thread one chicken piece and two asparagus pieces.

Grill, covered, over medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side or until chicken is no longer pink and asparagus is crisp-tender. Serve kabobs with dipping sauce.


*To toast sesame seeds: put seeds in a heavy ungreased pan and place over medium heat. Shake the pan occasionally until the seeds turn golden brown (about one minute). Remove from heat immediately and serve.


Yield: 6 kabobs

Source: Taste of Home Most Requested Recipes

Rainbow Jello

*NOTE: I have made a correction to this recipe. You begin your layers with the yogurt jello not the plain.

So, this is probably our most asked for recipe. We make it for every special occasion. (It became known affectionately in Heather's family as "baptism jello" because her mom made it for every family baptism). We have made it every year at Lilly's birthday party, and we think it tastes awesome, and looks even better!!!! Be warned that this recipe, while really quite easy, takes a good 5-6 hours to make, since each layer of jello has to set individually, so plan your time accordingly.

16 ounce carton plain yogurt

one three-ounce package of jello in each of the following flavors:
1. Black Cherry
2. Raspberry
3. Strawberry
4. Orange
5. Lemon
6. Lime

To Start: Dissolve the package of Black Cherry Jello in 1 cup of boiling water. Set 1/2 cup of dissolved jello aside and add 3 tablespoons cold water. To the remaining 1/2 cup, add 1/3 cup of the plain yogurt and stir. In a 9x13 pan, pour the dissolved jello (with yogurt) into the pan, popping any bubbles that appear with a toothpick or fork. Chill for 20-30 minutes or until set. When set, carefully pour dissolved black cherry jello (without yogurt) over top, again popping bubbles that may appear. Chill another 20-30 minutes, or until set.

Repeat this process with each flavor of jello (in exact order- important in order for the jello to look right!), ending with lime layer on top. We usually top it with Cool Whip. We hope you love it as much as we do!!!

Bread Machine Cinnamon Rolls

I love cinnamon rolls, and while Heather does too, we dislike the mess that they make, and the endless cycles of kneading, rising, etc. It can be really time consuming and labor intensive. Well, we discovered that all that is easier when you let your bread machine do the work! All you do is roll out the finished dough, let rise once, and bake!

DOUGH:

1 egg, room temperature, PLUS enough lukewarm water to equal 1 cup

3 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1/3 cup sugar

1-1/2 tsp. salt

3-1/2 cups bread flour

2 tsp. active dry yeast

FILLING:

1/3 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts (optional)

1/4 cup raisins (optional)

GLAZE:

1/2 cup powdered sugar

3 Tbsp. milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

For dough, place all ingredients in bread machine pan. Select dough cycle. Set loaf size for 1-1/2 pounds (if using a variable loaf size bread machine). Push start. Check dough after 5 minutes of mixing. If too sticky, add a teaspoon or so of flour. If too dry, add a teaspoon or so of water.

When cycle is complete, place dough on a lightly floured surface. Roll into a 12-inch by 6-inch rectangle and brush with butter. Combine remaining filling ingredients and sprinkle over butter. Roll up tightly, jelly-roll style, starting with a long side. Pinch seam to seal and cut roll into 1-inch slices.

Place slices onto a greased baking pan, about 1/2 inch apart and let rise in warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled in size. Bake at 350 for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool sightly. Mix glaze ingredients together and drizzle over rolls while still warm.

Sweet Lemon Puffs

These tasty treats are absolutely scrumptious! We are visiting Aaron's sister this week and we made these for dessert. We couldn't even wait until we got home from California to post the recipe. To make enough for everybody, we doubled the recipe posted below. Enjoy!!!

1 sheet puff pastry dough (Pepperidge Farm), thawed
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Unfold pastry sheet and cut into 9 squares. Put each individual square into a greased muffin tin, pressing gently into cup. Beat remaining ingredients together until smooth. Divide the filling between the 9 pastry squares. Bring corners of puff pastry together in the middle to enclose filling. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes. Remove from pan and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Yield: 9 puffs.

Source: Lauren Nash (Aaron's Sister).

Oreo and Ritz Cracker Pops

When I was growing up, I had one of those super cool Moms who made the thing that no one else was. I have seen several versions of the Oreo sucker or "pop" out there, but so far these are the best. They are easy, they hold together well and they are delicious. Besides, they have a lot of years of experience behind them, and nothing can beat that!

I haven't yet seen a Ritz cracker version so you'll have to take my word for it.... they are surprisingly delicious. I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "what! A Ritz cracker? No way is that good." Well my husband said the same thing until I made him try it and now he loves it just as much as I do. In fact the Ritz cracker version was my favorite growing up. I know this recipe is a little behind schedule, obviously, but I still wanted to share it with you all. I made these to go with my daughters Valentines at preschool. The greatest thing about them is that they are inexpensive to make, so you can make a lot of them for very little! I remember my Mom made different versions throughout the year. For Easter she would put a sugar duck or bunny on top. So, ready to find out how to make your own Oreo and Ritz cracker pops? Well, here we go! Oh, and if you can't tell, the Oreo Pops are the picture on the left and the Ritz cracker pops are on the right. OK now, here we go!

RITZ CRACKER POP

Ingredients:

Ritz Crackers

Prepared Lemon Icing (I use the Betty Crocker one)

White Candy Melts (you can use almond bark, but I prefer the melts)

Sucker stick

Any candy or sugar embellishment

Directions:

1. Ice the back of a Ritz cracker. You really can't have too much icing, but you know, don't over do it. Place a sucker stick in the middle and then top with another Ritz cracker. Don't press down really hard because you'll break the cracker. Just enough so it will stick.

2. Repeat step one until you have as many pops as you would like. Then either let them set out until the frosting is firm enough to not fall apart, or to speed up the process you can put them in the refrigerator. This is what I would suggest doing.

3. Once the cookies are set up, Melt your white chocolate. Dip the cookies in the white chocolate, covering completely. This can get a little tricky. You really need to be as gentle as possible. Get off as much excess chocolate as possible. Place on wax or parchment paper to dry and set. If you want to add an embellishment, do so before the chocolate sets.

4. Once dry, everything holds together beautifully! I promise! I found some sucker bags at Wal-Mart, so I just packaged them up and tied them with a ribbon. You're all set to go! And believe me when I say that your kids will be the coolest ones in their class if they pass these little beauties out!

OREO POP

Ingredients:

Oreo Cookies

Any Color of Candy Melts (you can use chocolate or almond bark, but I prefer the melts)

Sucker stick

Any candy or sugar embellishment

Directions:

1. OK, so most people have a really hard time getting the stick into the middle without breaking the cookie, so here is the trick. You could buy Double Stuff Oreos, but it isn't completely necessary. Just take your cookies and put them in the microwave for about 5 to 10 seconds. If the middle is still not soft, microwave them again. It varies by microwave so I can't tell you an exact time. Once the middle is semi-soft, but not totally melted (watch that, it gets a little messy!) Slide your sucker stick into the middle.

2. Repeat this step until you get the number of cookies that you want. Put the cookies aside to firm up, or, to speed up the process, place them in the fridge. Make sure you don't skip this step no matter what. If you do, your cookie will most likely fall apart during the chocolate dipping. Don't ask how I know that, just take my word for it!

3. When the cookies are firm, melt your chocolate. I used Semi-sweet chocolate melts and white chocolate melts that I colored pink (the pink candy melts were gone - but they literally make almost every color!) Once melted dip your cookies into the chocolate, covering completely. Be as gentle as possible as you get off as much excess chocolate as you can. Place onto Wax or Parchment paper and let them dry. At this point, place any embellishment that you would like onto the cookie.

4. Once the chocolate is set you can package them up and give them out. I again used the sucker bags from Wal-Mart and ribbon. Once again, be prepared for the compliments, the adulation's, the praise, the.....well you get the picture!

Happy Making!

Fudge Puddles

So Aaron bought the cookbook that we got this recipe out of. I must say that I was so excited to try this one out. It is like chocolate and peanut butter decadence all rolled into one! These are definitely for those days when you just need that chocolate fix but you don't want to feel too bad about what you are eating. It is especially good for those days when you go to your closet looking to wear that pair of fat jeans you've been saving only to realize that your fat jeans are now your regular every day jeans, and now you have to eat your sorrow away. You girls follow me? Anyway, try them out. They are delicious.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

FUDGE FILLING:

1 cup milk chocolate chips

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

chopped peanuts

In a large bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter, and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Gradually add to creamed mixture. Chill for one hour.

Shape mixture into 48 balls, 1 inch each. Place balls in lightly greased mini-muffin tins. Bake at 325 for 14-16 minutes or until lightly browned. Using the end of a wooden spoon handle, make a 3/8-1/2 inch deep indentation in the center of each ball. Cool in pans for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

For filling, in a microwave or small saucepan, melt chocolate chips. Stir in milk and vanilla until smooth. Fill each shell with chocolate filling. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts. (Any leftover chocolate filling can be stored in the fridge and served later warmed over ice cream).

Source: TOH Most Requested Recipes

Hamburger Noodle Casserole

This is an easy version of "Homemade Hamburger Helper." It doesn't take very long, and you know exactly what's in it, without having to worry about preservatives and additives, etc. You can even make this in a lighter version by using reduced fat or fat free cream cheese, ricotta, sour cream and cheddar cheese, as noted below. This makes a great weeknight family entree.

5 cups uncooked egg noodles
1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cans (8 ounces each) tomato sauce (we actually thought it looked a little dry when we made it the first time, so we added an additional 1/2 can or so.)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese (reduced fat or fat free if preferred)
1 cup ricotta cheese (reduced fat or fat free if preferred)
1/4 cup sour cream (reduced fat or fat free if preferred)
3 green onions, thinly sliced, divided
2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese (more if you like it really cheesy. Again, low fat, if desired)

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook beef and garlic until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomato sauce, sugar, salt, and pepper; heat through. Drain noodles; stir into beef mixture.

In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, ricotta cheese, and sour cream until well blended. Stir in half of the onions.

Spoon half of the noodle mixture into a 9x13 baking dish coated with cooking spray. Top with the cheese mixture and remaining noodle mixture.

Cover and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 5-10 minutes longer or until thoroughly heated and the cheese is melted. Sprinkle with the remaining green onions.

Yield: Approx. 10 servings

Source: TOH Most Requested Recipes

Taco Chicken Rolls

Here's another tasty 5 ingredient fix for chicken! If you don't like the green chilies, you can replace it with finely chopped broccoli, or whatever you prefer.

1 cup finely crushed cheese-flavored crackers (Cheez-its, Goldfish, Better Cheddars, whatever).
1 envelope taco seasoning (about 1/4 cup-we buy this in bulk at Costco)
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4 ounces each)
2 ounces Monterey Jack Cheese, cut into six 2 inch x 1/2 inch sticks (we just used plain ol' cheddar to avoid an unnecessary trip to the store - worked great.)
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies

In a shallow dish, combine cracker crumbs and taco seasoning; set aside. Flatten chicken between two sheets of waxed paper or plastic wrap to about 1/4 inch thickness (we found the easiest way is just to whack with a rolling pin since we don't have a meat mallet). Place a cheese stick and about 1 tablespoon of chilies on each piece of chicken. Tuck ends of chicken in and roll up. Secure with a toothpick.

Coat chicken rolls with crumb mixture. Place in a greased 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. (Don't forget to remove toothpicks before serving!!)

Yield: 6 servings

Source: TOH Most Requested Recipes

"Can't Leave Alone" Bars

We have a lot of cake mix on hand in our pantry since we bought an entire case of it at a local case lot sale this fall. We started getting tired of just making cakes. Then, we discovered these amazing, gooey, chewy bars. You literally can't leave them alone. They are so good, have only 6 ingredients, and nobody will ever think that it starts with a white cake mix!!

1 box (18-1/4 ounces) white cake mix
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter, cubed

In a large bowl, combine cake mix, eggs, and oil. Press two-thirds of the mixture into a greased 9 x 13 baking pan. Set the remaining cake mixture aside.

In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the milk, chocolate chips, and butter. Microwave, uncovered, until chips and butter are melted; stir until smooth. Pour over crust.

Drop teaspoonfuls of remaining cake mixture over top. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool before cutting.

Yield: 3 dozen.

Source: TOH Most Requested Recipes

Chicken and Dumpling Casserole

Heather and I love warm, rich comfort food on a cold, snowy winter night. On just such a night a while ago, we gave this recipe a try. Absolutely delicious. Heather especially loved it because she is a big fan of basil, and this recipe has a lot of it!

1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 cups chicken broth
1 package (10 ounces) frozen green peas (we happened to have frozen peas and carrots on hand, it worked great.)
4 cups cubed cooked chicken

Dumplings:
2 cups bisquick
2 teaspoons dried basil
2/3 cup milk

In a large saucepan, saute the onion, celery and garlic in butter until tender. Stir in the flour, sugar, salt, basil and pepper until blended. Gradually add broth and bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 1 minute; reduce heat. Add the peas and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in chicken. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish.

For dumplings: in a small bowl combine bisquick and basil. Stir in milk with a fork until moistened. Drop by tablespoonfuls into 12 mounds over chicken mixture.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30 minutes. Cover and bake 10 minutes longer or until a toothpick inserted in a dumpling comes out clean. 6-8 servings.

Source: TOH Most Requested Recipes.

Breaded Ranch Chicken

This 5-ingredient treatment for baked chicken is a tasty change! Lilly declared it was officially her "new favorite chicken." We served it with Pasta Salad and green beans.

3/4 cup crushed cornflakes
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4 ounces each) - for our small family we only made 4 pieces chicken and just discarded the extra breading.
1/2 cup butter, melted

In a shallow bowl, combine the cornflakes, Parmesan cheese and ranch mix. Dip chicken pieces in butter, then roll in cornflake mixture to coat. Place in a greased 9 x 13 baking dish and bake, uncovered, at 350 for about 45 minutes, or until chicken juices run clear. 8 servings.

Source: TOH Most Requested Recipes

Apple Pie Filling

I love the fall. All those apples and the millions of things you can do with them. One thing in particular is the smell of apple pie. It's a warmth and smell that just fills your house with goodness. It's also a great time to get all that canning done that you've been meaning to do all summer, but have put off until the last possible second!?! No of course not, we are all perfect housewives who get all the ironing, cooking, cleaning, laundry, watching the children, running errands and darning done in one day. And if you don't know what darning is... well, never mind then, you must be the perfect housewife if you never have to darn a thing!

So anyway, I just really wanted to post this recipe before I lose it again in my perfectly clean house. (you can't see me right now, but I'm rolling my eyes) This recipe has nothing to do with the season. In fact you won't be able to use this recipe for probably a good...well when fall comes around again. It is delicious when you bake it into a pie and it would even be great warmed up and served with ice cream. It is easy to can, even for the newbie!

Ingredients:

Apples

1 cup corn starch

dash of cloves

4 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

3 teaspoons cinnamon

10 cups water

Directions:

• Peel, core and slice your apples. Place into jars, filling the jar to just the bottom of the rings.
• Mix together the corn starch, cloves, sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon.Add 10 cups water to the dry ingredients and mix well.
• Boil the mixture until the sugar dissolves.
• Pour over jarred apples.
• Process for 20 minutes

Makes 7 jars

• Tips: Don't boil your mixture too fast. Gradually bring it to a boil. I think it gets too thick too fast otherwise.
• I like to use my apple peeler/corer. They aren't expensive and they make the job go so much faster. Then all you have to do is slice the apples.

source: Claudia Clayson via April Clayson

Aunt Joan's Christmas Jello

So my Aunt, Joan Haws, shared this recipe with my parents several years ago. Growing up, we had it every Christmas eve. However, now Heather and I actually tend to have it at Thanksgiving with my family more than Christmas, but is still just as delicious and unique no matter when we have it. You may think it's weird looking at the ingredients, but trust me, it's DELICIOUS. Thank you to my sister Andrea for sending me the recipe! This will be included in our family recipe book forever.

1 large pkg. Cherry Jello
1/2 Cup Red Hots (Cinnamon Imperial Candies)
2 Cups water + 1-3/4 Cups water
1 red apple, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1/2 Cup chopped walnuts

Dissolve Red Hot Candies in 2 cups boiling water, then stir in Jello to dissolve. Pour into 9x13 pan. Stir in 1-3/4 cups cold water. Stir in apple, celery, and walnuts. Chill several hours, or until set.

Source: Joan Haws

Breadsticks

These are delicious bread sticks. They are soft, warm and buttery. Nothing is better than butter, as Paula Deen would say! We had these at our friends house. I love bread! We decided that we needed to get off of our little dessert kick that we have been on lately, and post some other recipes. So we hope that this is a sign of things to come!! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups warm water
1 Tbsp. Yeast
2 Tbsp. Sugar
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cube butter
garlic salt
Parmesan cheese
parsley flakes (optional)

Directions:

Mix together the warm water, yeast and sugar. Then add the flour and salt. Mix together and let rise for 1/2 hour.

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Place one stick of butter on a cookie sheet pan. Place in heating oven to melt.

Put some flour on a board and roll out dough. Cut into bread sticks and dip them in the butter and arrange on the cookie sheet.

Sprinkle the tops with garlic salt, Parmesan cheese and parsley flakes. Put as much garlic as you would like.

Let raise for 15 minutes.

Bake for 20 minutes or until light brown.

• Tips: Grated Parmesan in a bottle is better than fresh shredded parmesan on these, but shredded will work just as well.
• It is OK to omit the parsley flakes. I think they would taste just as good without it.
• The more garlic salt you use, the more intense your garlic flavor will be.

source: Jennifer Holman via her sister Sarah Feil

The Cookie Monster!

When my husband and I were in college there was this pizza joint that we always used to eat at. It was called Craigo's. They had the best cheese bread sticks! But they also had a dessert that would feed like 10 of us girls who wouldn't eat much, because there are guys that you like around and so of course we ate before we showed up type deal!?! Nah! That wasn't me!! Anyway, it was called the Cookie Monster. It was like a little piece of heaven on your plate. So my husband and I have been on a dessert kick lately, if you couldn't tell and we decided to make our own cookie monster.

Ingredients:

Prepared cookie dough. (You can use whatever you would prefer!)

Caramel sauce

Chocolate Sauce

Vanilla Ice Cream

Whipped Cream

Nuts - optional

Directions:

Shape your prepared cookie dough on a round pan. Bake until golden brown. Let cool.

Slice your cookie like slices of pizza. Take a slice and top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, chocolate sauce, whipped cream and nuts. Enjoy!

Candy Crunch Pudding Pie

If you love chocolate then you will love this! I was in the store buying pudding for my Smore Cookies when I happened upon this recipe. This was an impulse buy if ever there was one and let's be honest, it probably had more to do with my sudden and inexplicable urge for chocolate! Of course my husband and I ran into some people we know at the store and he proceeds to tell them that it seems like with each child we have, I get more and more into chocolate. Well if that's the case, then I am going to be one big chocolate mess by the time I hit my mid-thirties! Anyway, this recipe ended up being fantastic. It was simple, fast and it wasn't too rich at all. In fact it was just right.

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups cold milk

1 pkg. (5.9 oz) chocolate instant pudding

1 tub (8 oz) whipped topping, divided

2 milk chocolate English toffee candy bars (1.4 oz each), chopped and divided

1 Oreo pie crust

1 square BAKER'S semi-sweet chocolate, melted

Directions:

Beat milk and pudding mix with whisk for 2 minutes. Stir in 1/2 the whipped topping and all but about 3 tablespoons of the candy.

Spoon the mixture into the crust.

Top with remaining whipped topping and candy. Drizzle with melted chocolate.

source: Jell-o brand Chocolate Instant Pudding Box

Nikki's Amazing Smore Cookies

This recipe comes to us from our Niece-in-law Nikki. She is chalk full of great recipes! This recipe is just one of many. They are so yummy and soft. Aaron and I both agreed that they were even better the next day. They reminded me so much of my many fun camping adventures with my family. Many of which ended with someone falling out of a hammock, or falling in the lake or falling out of a tent! Ah, the memories! So if you are missing out on that campfire ritual of smore's then you will love these cookies.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup butter, softened

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 (4oz) pkg. chocolate instant pudding (powder only)

1 tsp baking soda

2 1/4 cups flour 1 cup mini marshmallows

1 cup crushed graham crackers (makes sure it's not too fine you want some chunks)

1 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

Cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs, vanilla and pudding mix.

In a separate bowl mix baking soda and flour. Gently add to wet ingredients. Add marshmallows, chips and graham crackers

Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Tips:

• After I mixed the batter I put it into the refrigerator for 30-60 minutes, it makes the cookies fluffy.


• It's hard to mix in the marshmallows, so you may need to put them into each cookie as you roll it into a ball. I put in 3 marshmallows per cookie.


• I used parchment paper on my cookie sheet and also sprayed it with some Pam. I didn't want those marshmallows to stick!


• I cooked mine for 8 minutes and then let them sit on the cookie sheet for about 2 minutes before I transferred them to the cooling rack. They might not look done at 8 minutes but they will cook while they set on the pan and this way they will be soft and chewy!

Refreshing Raspberry Jello Salad

We re-discovered recently that we really enjoy jello salad. However, we don't have many on here except for Heather's Grandma's Jello and Rainbow Jello . We made this recipe the other night when we had lots of ripe bananas on hand. It turned out great! Somehow I need to get a hold of my Sister Andrea to get the recipe to my Aunt Joan's Christmas Jello recipe as well. One of my favorites! In the meantime, enjoy this one!

2 cups boiling water
1 (6 ounce) package raspberry flavored gelatin
1 (10 ounce) package frozen raspberries in syrup
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, undrained
4 bananas

Add package of gelatin to boiling water and stir until dissolved. Refrigerate until thick and syrupy (but not set). Thaw unopened package of raspberries in cold water for about 10 minutes. Carefully add to gelatin. Stir in crushed pineapple. Dice bananas and add. Pour into 9x13 dish. Refrigerate and let set overnight, if possible, or for several hours.

Yield: about 12 servings.

Source: The Essential Mormon Cookbook