Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

During the day when I'm not being forced to watch the Disney Junior channel, I immediately turn on the Food Network. I love watching others cook and I really love getting inspiration to try my own creating. One afternoon while watching the Barefoot Contessa make a batch of these, I just knew I had to give them a try. I made them for a family dinner at our house and everyone enjoyed them. Daniel proclaimed that they weren't really peanut butter and jelly because I made it with raspberry jam instead of grape but what can you do.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars
Source: Ina Garten

Ingredients:
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups (18 ounces) creamy peanut butter (She suggests Skippy, but I used a store brand and they were fine)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups (18 ounces) raspberry jam or other jam
2/3 cups salted peanuts, coarsely chopped (I left these out)

Sorry for the poor quality of the photo.

Directions:

 1.) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2.) Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch cake pan. Line it with parchment paper, then grease and flour the pan.

3.)In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light yellow, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the vanilla, eggs, and peanut butter and mix until all ingredients are combined.

4.) In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture. Mix just until combined.

5.) Spread 2/3 of the dough into the prepared cake pan and spread over the bottom with a knife or offset spatula. Spread the jam evenly over the dough. Drop small globs of the remaining dough evenly over the jam. Don't worry if all the jam isn't covered; it will spread in the oven. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown.

6.) Cool and cut into squares.

Turkey Bacon Crescents

I've been a real cooking slump these past couple of weeks. I just don't have the motivation to find new recipes, write grocery lists, and then spend time cooking elaborate meals in the evenings. I'm not sure what the problem is but I hope I get out of this slump soon.

Not only am I in a cooking slump but I'm having some complications with my ileostomy. One of the complications pretty much keeps me from lifting or bending over so the easier the meal the better for me. When I saw this one I just knew I had to give it a try. It was delicious and we all loved it. It's most definitely another keeper here in our house!

Turkey Bacon Crescents
Source: Plain Chicken

Ingredients:
1 can refrigerated crescent rolls
2 Tbsp honey mustard dressing
8 oz thinly sliced cooked turkey (from deli)
4 slices provolone cheese
8 slices precooked bacon

Directions:

1.) Heat oven to 375.

2.) Separate dough into triangles.  Spread each triangle with 3/4 teaspoon honey mustard. Top each with turkey, 1/2 slice of cheese and 1 piece of bacon. Roll up loosely.

3.) Place on cookie sheet.  Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and cheese is melted.

Yes my friends, it was that simple! If you have young children this is a must try recipe.

Italian Layer Bake

This meal was so good I can't even begin to properly describe it. It was easy to throw together and Daniel took one bite and proclaimed, "this is good!" I was afraid that it would be to bland so I threw in half a chopped onion with the roasted red pepper and I think it helped tie it all together. This is definitely going into monthly rotation here at our house!

Italian Layer Bake:
Source: mrfood.com

Ingredients: 
1 (8-ounce) container refrigerated crescent rolls 
8 slices (1/2 pound) deli turkey 
8 slices (1/2 pound) deli ham 
12 slices (1/2 pound) deli hard salami 
8 slices (1/2 pound) Swiss cheese 
1 (12-ounce) jar roasted peppers, drained 
4 eggs, beaten (I only used 3)
1/2 a small onion, finely diced

Ingredients:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Unroll crescent roll dough without separating triangles. Separate dough into 2 squares along center cut line.

2. Place 1 square of dough into an 8-inch square baking dish; using your fingertips, press dough to fit bottom of dish.

3.Layer with half of each of turkey, ham, salami, Swiss cheese, roasted peppers, and onions. Pour half of beaten eggs over peppers and repeat with remaining meat, cheese, and peppers.

4. Place remaining square of dough over peppers. Pour remaining beaten eggs over dough and cover lightly with foil.

5. Bake 20 minutes, remove foil, and bake an additional 20 to 22 minutes, or until golden and heated through. Let cool 15 to 20 minutes then cut and serve.

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole

Every now and then I come across a recipe that looks really good but then I compare it to other similar recipes and I end up getting nervous about making it.

This recipe is one of those that looked delicious but because I am used to making regular broccoli casserole with a jar of processed cheese, I automatically start comparing the two and wondering if they will taste the same.

I am here to say that I had no reason to be nervous. This dinner knocked our socks off and the best part was how simple it was to make. We all had multiple servings and the girls and I ate the leftovers for lunch the next couple of days.

Further proof at how delicious it was is the fact I didn't snap a picture of it. I was starving by the time I had gotten it prepared and that first bite was so tasty that I couldn't stop long enough to grab my camera. I highly suggest going to the recipes source to view a great picture of the dish. I used the same exact baking dish so my picture could have been twins with hers.

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole
Source: Pearls, Handcuffs, and Happy Hour

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
2 cans of cream of chicken soup
1 cup of mayo
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup of shredded Colby and Monterrey cheese
1 bag of frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
1/2 a small onion, finely diced*
salt and pepper to taste
garlic powder to taste*

*= my little additions

Directions:
1.) Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

2.) Mix all ingredients together. Add to a lightly greased, 2 quart baking dish and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is a light golden color and bubbly around the edges.

3.) Serve over rice or your favorite pasta.

We served ours over rice and it was awesome. It was so awesome that I'm putting it back on our two week menu for the second time in a row. I'm going to try adding the cooked rice to the mixture and then baking and someday I'll make it again using spaghetti noodles added and baked in with the mixture.

Tater Chips

Daniel has been after me for the past week to make some homemade potato chips. I've been putting it off for two reasons. The first one being that the thought of standing there and frying potato chips was a little overwhelming. The second being that I have never made them before.

I finally overcame my two issues tonight and I'm so glad that I did. They were so good that Addison and Cadence were eating them quicker than I could fry them. What is even better is how easy they were to make. I seasoned them with sea salt as I was taking them out and I can't wait to make them again and try different seasonings.

I sliced them by hand, but I would highly suggest using your food processor or a mandolin as they will be thinner that way. I got them as thin as I could without slicing my fingers so they weren't as crispy as I would like.

Sorry for the lousy phone picture, we ate these to quickly to grab a good photo.

Homemade potato chips

Ingredients:
4 Idaho potatoes, thinly sliced
Vegetable oil
Sea salt or favorite seasonings

Directions:
1.) In a medium sauce pan, bring two inches of vegetable oil to around 350-375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2.) Add thinly sliced potatoes one at a time to hot oil, stirring around every so often. Fry until they are a golden brown color.
3.) Take them out and place them into a large bowl lined with paper towels. Sprinkle with sea salt and allow to cool.

Serve right away or store them for up to a day or so. Four potatoes served the four of us so I would use one potato per person. Also, I don't have a thermometer, so I just tested the oil temp with a very small and thin potato to check the oil to see if it was hot enough. Remember, you want the oil to be ready because if you put the potatoes in before the oil is hot enough, the potato will start to absorb the oil instead of frying in it.

Chocolate Pudding Dump Cake

O.M.G.!!! There is no other way to describe this cake. I whipped this baby up in no time last night and managed to let it cool for about twenty minutes before I couldn't take it anymore and dove right in. It was delicious and still slightly warm which meant the chocolate chips sprinkled on top were still slightly melted.
The best part of this cake, besides its taste, was the fact I paid around $2.00 for it. Yes, two smackeroos! I bought a store brand cake mix at $1.19, I got the pudding on sale for 50 cents, and since there was a small amount of milk in it, I guessed that it came in around that two dollar mark.

This will most definitely get made again in our house with a glass of nice cold milk to go along with it. Try it, trust me when I say that you will not be disappointed.  Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to eat my second piece of the day...lol.

Chocolate Pudding Dump Cake
Source: eat, live, run

Ingredients:
1 box of chocolate cake mix
1 small box of instant chocolate pudding
1 3/4 cups of milk
1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips

Directions:
1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2.) In a medium mixing bowl add pudding and milk. Whisk until dry pudding mix has fully dissolved and becomes thick.
3.) Add dry cake mix into pudding mix and whisk until fully incorporated. Batter will be really thick!
4.) Lightly spray a 9x13 baking dish and add batter mixture. Spread evenly among pan.
5.) Bake for thirty minutes or until edges have begun pulling away from the sides.

Fiesta Taco Rice

I keep making these pretty delicious meals that aren't knocking Daniel's socks off so I've given up. He keeps telling me to keep it simple. Well, I don't know how much simpler I can get as this meal was beyond simple. I on occasion go to the grocery with my mother in law since Daniel has our vehicle during the day for work. She suggested making something like this when she has the girls with her so tonight I finally decided to give it a shot.

There are so many things you can add to this dish that would push it over the top. I added a fresh out of the garden, banana pepper and I would have added a small can of black beans and a can of diced tomatoes had I have had either one. This would also be good with a cooked, shredded chicken breast as well.

I topped mine with some cheese and I served it with lettuce, fresh tomato, and sour cream on the side. I ate mine without a tortilla shell, but Addison made herself a fiesta taco rice burrito. Daniel said it was okay, but once again I could tell it didn't knock his socks off. One of these nights that boy is going to be making dinner for me since apparently my breakfast of scrambled eggs, maple sausage links, and fried green tomatoes are the only things I can get compliments on around here.

Fiesta Taco Rice
Inspired by: My mother in law, Sue.

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained
1 pkg. Knorr's fiesta rice taco version
2 cups of water
1 cup of finely shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese

*Possible additions, small can of drained and rinsed black beans, diced onion, small can of diced tomato, and or your favorite peppers.

Directions:
1.) In a large skillet, brown ground beef. Drain excess grease.
2.)  Add package of rice to ground beef. Slowly incorporate two cups of water. Gently stir together and cover. Lower heat to around medium. Cook for five to seven minutes or until rice has absorbed liquid.
3.) Un-cover, gently stir once again, turn heat off. Add shredded cheeses to top and allow to melt.
4.) Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy!