Nanaimo Bars

1 c. butter, softened, divided

5 T. unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 c. sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 3/4 c. graham cracker crumbs

1 c. flaked coconut

1/2 c. finely chopped almonds, optional

3 T. heavy cream

2 T. dry custard powder (or dry instant vanilla pudding mix)

2 c. confectioner's sugar

4 (1 oz.) squares semisweet baking chocolate (or 3 T. chocolate chips)

2 t. butter

Combine 1/2 c. softened butter, cocoa, and sugar in double boiler. Stifr occasionally until melted and smooth. Beat in egg and stir until thick, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and add graham cracker crumbs, coconut, & almonds. Press in bottom of ungreased 8x8 pan. Beat remaining 1/2 c. butter, heavy cream, and custard powder until light and fluffy. Mix in confectioners sugar until smooth. Spread over bottom layer in pan. Chill to set. Melt chocolate chips and butter in microwave until smooth. Spread melted chocolate over chilled bars. Let set before cutting into squares.

*from allrecipes.com

Shortbread Crust

 Crust:

2 c. flour

1/3 c. sugar

1/4 t. salt

2 sticks butter, cubed

Stir flour, sugar, and salt together. Cut in butter with pastry blender until coarse crumbs appear. Pour in sprayed 9x13 pan. Pat evenly in pan. Bake at 350 for 7-8 minutes until golden brown. Add whatever topping you'd like. I've made this with lemon bars, cranberry shortbread cookies, etc... works much better in a 9x13 pan, than rolling and freezing dough before slicing.

*The taste of the crust is delicious!

Lemonade

5 c. cold water

ice cubes

2 2/3 c. lemonade syrup base (recipe below)

thin lemon slices for garnish

Lemonade Syrup Base:

1 1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. boiling water

1 lemon

grated lemon peel

1 1/2 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (approxiamately 6 -7 large lemons)

Add sugar to boiling water. Stir to dissolve. Simmer 5 minutes. Cool. Add lemon peel and lemon juice. Store in covered container in refrigerator. When ready to serve, add all ingredients together. Stir well. Serve immediately. Very refreshing, especially on a hot day. Makes 8 servings.

Mexican Cornbread

2 1/2 c. SR cornmeal

1 c. SR flour

2 T. sugar

1 t. salt

2 c. shredded cheese, mexican or colby jack, your choice

1 onion, chopped

3 eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. oil

16 oz. cream style or mexican style corn

chile or jalapeno peppers, optional (assorted color peppers can also be used, if desired)

Combine all ingredients and place in sprayed 9x13 dish. Bake at 400 for 35 minutes. 

Oreo Poke Cake

1 chocolate cake mix, I used Devil's food cake mix + 2/3 c. yellow or white cake mix*

14 oz. sweetened condensed milk

4 oz. box cookies and cream pudding mix, dry

1/2 c. milk

20 oreos, crushed

8 oz. whipped topping, thawed

Make cake as directed on box for 9x13 dish. Let the cake cool for at least 30 minutes before proceding. Take the end of a wooden spoon and poke holes throughout the cake. Open condensed milk and pour all over cake, making sure some gets in every hole. In a bowl, add dry pudding mix with1/2 c. milk and whisk to combine. Stir in whipped topping until well combined. Take 10 oreos and crush in a ziploc bag with a rolling pin. Add crushed oreos to bowl. Stir gently until all mixed. Spread on cake. Crush remaining oreos and place on top of cake. Chill for 1 hour before serving. Store in refrigerator.

*Cake mixes used to be 18 oz, but now they are 15 oz. Adding the additional 2/3 c. white or yellow cake mix to chocolate cake mix will make the cake turn out right without altering the taste.

1st picture: baked cake with holes and sweetened milk. 2nd picture: completed cake ready to chill. 3rd picture: oreo poke cake ready to eat! Yum!

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

8 T. butter, softened to room temperature

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 t. vanilla

1 egg

1 1/2 c. SR flour

3/4 c. milk chocolate chips

Combine butter and sugars in large bowl. Beat on low until smooth and creamy. Add egg and vanilla. Mix until combined. Add flour 1/2 c. at a time, beating on low until combined. A few lumps is fine. Stir in chocolate chips. Chill dough for 1 hour (2-3 hours is even better). Preheat oven to 350. Scoop 2 T. batter from bowl and roll into 2" balls. Place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper at least 2" apart. Don't press down. Bake 10-12 minutes. The cookies will have a soft center inside and will look puffy outside at first. Once they cool, they will set well and the texture inside remains soft, chewy, and buttery. Cool for 5-10 minutes before removing from pan. Enjoy!

Big Fat Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/3 c. sugar

10 T. butter, softened

2/3 c. brown sugar, packed

1 egg

2 t. vanilla

2 1/3 c. SR flour

12-16 oz bag milk chocolate chips

In a large bowl, beat sugar, brown sugar, and butter until fluffy. Add egg and vanills. Beat until smooth. Add flour. Beat until well mixed. Stir in chocolate chips until combined. (Dough will be crumbly but should come together as a ball. They did not!! I had to add water to make them stick together.) Make balls of dough using a 1/4 c. measuring cup and place on a greased baking sheet. Place in refrigerator for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350. Remove cookies balls from refrigerator and place in oven for 15 minutes, until edges begin to brown and the middle is set. 

*Do not omit the step to refrigerate the dough balls. 

**Other flavors of chips can be used.

1st picture : before baking; 2nd picture: after baking

Honey Butter Sweet Corn

24 oz. frozen sweet corn

1/2 stick butter

2 1/2 T. honey

4 oz. cream cheese

1/2 t. pepper

1 t. salt

In a large skillet, melt together the honey and butter. Add in frozen corn and stir over medium heat for 6-8 minutes. Add cream cheese and cook an additional 4-5 minutes, til cream cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper if desired. The corn will become thicker the longer it sits. If you don't want it as thick, cut back on the cream cheese. Enjoy! 

Perfect with chicken or BBQ.

Easy Monkey Bread (using frozen bread dough)

16 oz. loaf frozen bread dough, thawed in refrigerator overnight (Rhodes is a good brand, but any will work fine. I have also used ones I bought from the boy scouts)

1 stick butter, melted

1 c. packed light brown sugar

2 t. cinnamon

2 T. chopped pecans, optional

Once bread is thawed, turn out into lightly greased cutting board and pat into an 8" square. Using a large knife, cut into 64 pieces. Roll into balls. (It's ok if they're not all the same size.) Combine brown sugar and cinnamon. Dip the balls into butter, and then roll in the brown sugar mixture. Place in sprayed bundt pan. Cover the pan with a towel and place pan in a warm place to rise for 1-2 hours. It should rise to almost the rim of the pan. Bake at 350 for 20-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown. (Dark coated pans cook faster so keep an eye on yours if using one.) Cool in pan for 5 minutes only and invert onto a serving platter. Serve warm with a sprinkle of chopped pecans, if desired. Yum!

Unfortunately it didn't stick together well when I inverted it from the pan, but it still tasted yummy!

Crockpot Creamy Italian Chicken Pasta

1-2 lbs. chicken breasts, cubed

1 1/4 c. chicken broth, divided

1 pkt dry Italian salad dressing mix

1/2 c. onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 can cream of chicken soup

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

16 oz. box rotini or penne pasta, cooked and drained

chopped parsley, optional

chopped sun-dried tomatoes, optional

Place chicken in lined crockpot and sprinkle dry Italian dressing mix over top. Add 3/4 c. chicken broth over top. Gently stir. Cover & cook on low for 4 hours. Spray a large saucepan with spray, saute onion and garlic for a couple of minutes until fragrant. Add cream of chicken soup, 1/2 c. chicken broth, and softened cream cheese to saucepan. Stir until cream cheese is melted and texture is smooth. Add mixture to chicken in crockpot, cover amd cook on low an additional hour. Add cooked pasta to crockpot just before serving. Mix thoroughly. Top with chopped parsley and sun-dried tomatoes if desired. Serve with Caesar salad and bread.