Double Chocolate Oatmeal Brownies

1 1/4 C Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips, divided

2/3 C butter, softened

1 C sugar

2 Large Eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/4 C flour

1 C uncooked oats (quick oat, rolled, etc.)

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 C white chocolate chips, divided (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. In large mixing bowl cream together butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla until smooth. In microwave safe bowl or mug, melt 1 C of the chocolate chips. (Melt 30 seconds on 50% power, stir. Repeat. Stir till smooth.) Add melted chocolate to creamed mixture and stir until smooth. In separate smaller bowl, combine flour, oats, baking powder and salt. Stir together with fork until evenly mixed. Add to creamed mixture and mix well. Batter will become thick. Add in 1/4 C of white chocolate chips. Spread into prepared 8x8 or 9x9 pan.* Bake 20-25 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Brownies will also pull away from sides slightly. Cool Completely.

Glaze: In separate microwave-safe bowls/mugs melt both the remaining white and semi-sweet chocolate, in turn, and drizzle over baked brownies. Let set before cutting.

Makes 1 dozen brownies.

*I like to line my pan with parchment paper. Then, after cooling I invert the brownies onto a cutting board before I drizzle the chocolate.

For "clean cutting" of brownies or bars, I always use my pizza cutter. Looks so much prettier!

Enjoy!

Cake Balls

Thanks to my friend Holli for teaching me to make these delightful little balls! Truly, they are SIMPLE! Some recipes will tell you to bake the cake the day before, but Holli must know what a slacker I am, 'cuz her recipe is even easier! For this batch-o-balls I used Strawberry cake mix and store-bought strawberry frosting.

Step 1. - Bake 9"x13" cake according to cake mix directions. Let cool just enough to touch, but not completely cooled.

Step 2. - While cake is still warm, empty into large mixing bowl. Add 1 tub frosting and mix well until frosting has "melted" into cake mix. (At this point I usually place in refrigerator to let "set" a little while I clean up and prepare my baking sheets for the next step.)

Step 3. - Using a spoon or ice cream scoop, form cake into approximately 24 - 2" balls. Place on cookie sheets lined with waxed or parchment paper. Place in freezer and freeze at least 1 hour. *I have actually left a batch in the freezer for 2 weeks and they were just fine.

Step 4. - Melt 1 lb. bakers/dipping chocolate. Using fork or candy sticks, dip balls into melted chocolate, using a spoon to help as needed. Remember the "flat" side of the balls as they chilled on the paper? Return the dipped balls to the paper, again on that flat side. Let chocolate set up.

Step 5. - (optional) Decorate dipped cake balls as desired.

Helpful hints:

* If you desire to bake the cake a day or two beforehand, that is fine. However, when mixing in the frosting, it will take a bit more work. I recommend using 2 forks to really get everything combined well.

* Using the chocolate baking "discs" from Orson Gygi's, Michael's, or Robert's is probably much cheaper than buying the baker's chocolate from the grocery store and you will have a lot more colors to choose from.

* For my "double broiler" I simply place a glass bowl over my pot of boiling water. It fits right in the top half of my pot perfectly!

* You can use any cake mix and frosting flavors you desire. I have even used German Chocolate Cake and German Chocolate Frosting and those were some of my children's favorite cake balls!

* Look at some other cool ideas for holidays or parties -- (I googled "Cake Balls" under the Image tab). Get inspired and get your balls on! :)

Mexican Casserole

A few weeks back I was in a pinch, needing something easy and "quick" (meaning, didn't need thawing) for dinner. I had almost all of the fixings for tacos, but no shells. Then I noticed about a half bag of tortilla chips in the pantry, and THIS recipe is what came to life. My kids absolutely loved this. I loved it so much I secretly hoped for leftovers so I could take it to work for lunch the next day. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did! I will definitely make this again!


1 lb ground beef
1 packet taco seasoning
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/4 C Sour Cream (or can substitute 2 Tbsp milk if preferred)
3-4 C Tortilla Chips (can use Frito's Corn Chips)
1 Jar Salsa
2-3 C shredded cheese

In skillet brown ground beef, draining fat. Add taco seasonings according to packet directions. Mix in cream of mushroom soup and sour cream. Combine well and set aside. In 9x13 pan or casserole dish start with layer of slightly crushed chips. Spoon salsa over chips. Spread layer of creamy mixture over salsa and top with half the cheese. Repeat layers ending with cheese. Cover tightly with foil and bake @ 350 F about 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake about 10-15 until cheese is melted. Serve warm with additional sour cream, salsa, guacamole, etc., if desired.

Since we still had plenty of chips left, we served this over crushed tortilla chips for some added crunch!

Cream Puff Croissants

I was craving cream puffs, but did not feel like baking. However, I had a plethora of croissants from Costco and got this idea. They were sooooo good. We used the "big" croissants and could hardly finish one. I think most of the kids ended up eating half and saving the other half for later. But they were De-Lish!!!

12 mini croissants (or 6 regular)
Glazed Icing {click here}
Vanilla Pudding (6 servings) or Vanilla Cream {click here}

Hershey's Syrup, or Chocolate frosting, melted

fresh berries, optional.

Cut opening in croissants, as if you would for a sandwich. Line baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper. One at a time, coat each croissant in glaze. Let set (refrigerate to expedite if desired). Fill each croissant with vanilla cream. Drizzle chocolate syrup or melted chocolate frosting. Garnish with fresh berries if desired. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Homemade Root Beer (for a crowd)

Ok, there are all sorts of root beer extracts out there. I've tried a few. And while one was sort of bitter tasting (wal-mart store brand), the others were all pretty good. My favorite bottle of extract is Big H. There is a local drive-in chain here in the SLC metro area called "Hires". Hires is known for their "Big H" just like McDonald's is known for their "Golden Arches", if that makes sense. Anywho... At Hire's they serve their own draft-style "Big H" Root Beer. Sooooo good! I realize they might not have this extract in other states, so I guess what I am saying is you get what you pay for :)

4 - 4 1/2 gal water

5 lbs sugar
1 bottle root beer extract

5 lbs dry ice

In a 5 gal cooler mix together the water and sugar till the sugar is somewhat dissolved. Add the bottle of extract and mix well. Using tongs, carefully place dry ice in cooler. Mix and let the dry ice do it's magic. Stir every once in a while to keep ice from sinking to the bottom and blocking the spigot.

*since it's hard to get exactly 5 lbs of dry ice, I usually tell them it's better to be a little over 5 lbs than under. No one like flat root beer... =D

Shrimp & Spinach Salad

There is a little shop around the corner from my work that has this salad on the menu. It is to-die-for. My mouth waters just thinking about it! They also happen to serve it with a crusty roll and real butter, which just makes it heaven... Anyway, I love this salad so much, I wanted to recreate it at home. After a few tries with the vinaigrette, I finally have it to my liking! It's refreshing and light and I never feel guilty eating it :)

1 bag fresh Spinach (9-10 oz)
1 small yam
1 C {Candied Pistachios}
1 1/2 C cooked shrimp, chilled and tails removed
{Lemon Vinaigrette}

Rinse and dry spinach leaves; place in salad bowl. Peel and slice yam into thin slices. Toss in pistachios and shrimp. Just before serving, pour vinaigrette over top, and toss well to coat. Store leftovers in refrigerator, covered.

Candied Pistachios

2/3 C cinnamon & sugar mixture*

3 Tbsp warm water

2 C pistachios, shelled

1 or 2 sprinkles of cold water

Line baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper. In saucepan over medium heat mix together cinnamon-sugar mixture and 3 tbsp warm water. Stir until combined. Add nuts and stir to coat. Bring to boil, stirring frequently, until there is no excess mixture left on sides of bottom of pan. Add splash of cold water with fingertips, give it another good stir and quickly spread on prepared baking sheet. Allow mixture to set and cool on nuts. Break into pieces.

Try this with other nuts too! Makes great holiday gifts!

*The first batch I made of this, I used just under 2/3 C sugar and made up the difference with cinnamon. I think next time I will use maybe only 1-2 tsp cinnamon and the rest sugar. It was still good and very easy!