Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta with Basil and Fresh Mozzarella

I've wanted to try this pasta salad out ever since I saw it weeks ago on Pioneer Woman's website. I love the combination of fresh mozzarella, basil and tomatoes, and they make me think of summer. It's the perfect salad for right now. If you're a traditional pesto lover, you'll love this pesto as well with it's sun-dried tomato base. I used my own sun-dried tomatoes but jarred tomatoes work as well.

For the pesto:
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes (approximately), or a 7 oz jar of store-bought sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup olive oil (or more)
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1-2 garlic cloves

For the salad:
1 lb rotini pasta, cooked and drained
1/2 cup olives, roughly chopped (you can use black, kalamata, green or a mixture)
2 large tomatoes, diced
8 oz. fresh mozzarella, cut into chunks
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
10-15 basil leaves, chopped

In a small saucepan, cover sun-dried tomatoes with water and gently boil for about 5 minutes. Drain and add tomatoes to a small food processor or blender along with the rest of the pesto ingredients. Blend well.

In a large bowl, add the cooked pasta and pesto to your liking. Toss to coat well. Add the rest of the salad ingredients and toss again to coat. Garnish with extra grated parmesan cheese and basil.

Fauxstess Cupcake Trifle

I came up with this concoction the other night when I failed miserably at making chocolate cupcakes for a pot luck. By my third batch, and third recipe, I realized that my problem was an altitude adjustment. I haven't ever really adjusted for the higher altitude here (around 4,500-5,000 ft.) and it hasn't really been a problem in the past so that wasn't the first thing that came to my mind when things started to go wrong.

My first batch I had to throw away but I didn't want to trow away the other two because the cake tasted really good. So, I knew the only thing that the rest of the cake would be good for was trifle. I still had the rest of my ingredients I was going to use for filling and toping the cupcakes so I decided to use those as layers in my trifle rather than think of another trifle to make and go buy more stuff.

And thus, the fauxstess cupcake trifle was born! Once I got past all the mishap of the cupcakes, everything else went pretty smoothly and quickly and came together great. I even got my very own trifle bowl out of it! My husband came home from work with it for me. I couldn't believe how happy it made me.

This dessert will make you nostalgic for the old days you used take Hostess snacks in your lunch box to school. Make sure you have someone to share this will or you might get caught licking the bowl clean!

For the cake:(I used Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate Cake)
2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder (1/2 tsp for high altitude)
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda (1/2 tsp for high altitude)
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

Heat oven to 350 degrees F (375 for higher altitude). Grease and flour a 13x9-inch baking pan.

Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pan.

3. Bake 35 to 40 minutes (probably closer to 18-22 minutes @ 375) or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Cut or break into 1-inch pieces.

For the marshmallow cream layer:
4 tsp very hot water
1/2 tsp salt
2 (7 oz) jars marshmallow cream
1 cup shortening
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Dissolve the salt in the hot water and allow to cool.

Whip the marshmallow cream, shortening, powdered sugar, and vanilla until it begins to get fluffy. Add the water and whip well.

For the ganache layer:
1 cup heavy cream
16 oz. semi-sweet or dark chocolate, (chips or finely chopped)
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened and cubed

Heat cream in a medium saucepan over medium heat until steaming, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add butter and chocolate. Let sit for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth.

To assemble the trifle, layer 1/3 of the cake in the bottom of a trifle bowl. Next top with 1/3 of the marshmallow cream and 1/3 of the ganache. Repeat with other 2 layers, ending with the ganache. (For a garnish, you could reserve some of the marshmallow cream and pipe it into curlicues across the top).




SOURCE:Hershey's Kitchens for the cake and Evil Shinanigans for the cream.

Big Fat Spicy Saté Noodles

I love anything with peanut butter, and these noodles are no exception. There is quite a flavor combination going on here with the sweet and salty peanut butter, the red pepper flakes, the lime and the fresh cilantro, but it all works. The flavors are great together. These noodles would be perfect aside some Thai or Asian-style grilled chicken and steamed green beans.

1/2 lb. bucatini pasta (or other large tube pasta)
1-2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1-2 large garlic cloves, chopped
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/2 cup chicken stock
3 Tbsp temari (or soy sauce)
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
juice of 1 lime
1/2 cup unsalted roasted peanuts (optional)
1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped

Bring pasta water to a boil. Cook to al-dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water.

Return pot to stove. Add vegetable oil, ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook for 2 minutes. Add 1/4 cup reserved pasta water, chicken stock and temari and bring to a boil. Cook 2-3 minutes. Turn off heat and add peanut butter and whisk. If it's too thick, add more reserve liquid. Add lime juice, noodles and toss to coat. Add nuts, if desired, cilantro and toss.

SOURCE:Rachael Ray

Chocolate Sheet Cake

If you need to feed dessert to a crowd, then this cake is for you. It's deliciously chocolaty and very moist and who doesn't like chocolate cake anyway? Take it to your next pot-luck and you won't be bringing any home!

For the cake:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 Tbsp(heaping) cocoa
2 sticks butter
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp baking Soda
1 tsp vanilla

For the frosting:
1/2 cups finely chopped pecans
1 3/4 stick Butter
4 Tbsp (heaping) Cocoa
6 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.

In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together. Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.

In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.

While cake is baking, make the icing: Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.

Allow to cool before slicing into squares.

*You can also half this recipe and bake it in a 9x13 pan.

SOURCE: Lick the Bowl Good

Pizza Rolls

I have been dying to post these pizza rolls for a LONG time, but the last time I made them and took pictures, the pictures didn't turn out. Now, I know this is probably not a novel idea to most but I hadn't ever seen anyone do it and I thought it was pretty cool. They turned out so delicious too. We love these pizza rolls.

1 recipe perfect pizza crust
1 cup Easy Pizza Sauce
1 cup (more or less) mozzarella cheese
3-4 Tbsp. melted butter
3/4 Tbsp. garlic butter seasoning (I use Johnny's from Costco)

Make pizza crust according to directions and let raise once. After it has risen, turn it onto a counter sprayed with cooking spray and roll it out thin, in the shape of a rectangle. Spread sauce; you may only need 1/2-3/4 cup but you can use the rest for dipping after the rolls are cooked. Add cheese and start rolling the dough tightly in a neat line. When there's about an inch of dough left, stop rolling and pull the edge up and over, pinching it closed.

With a piece of dental floss (preferably not the mint kind), slide it under the roll and pinch of pieces about 1-inch thick (for a visual, see photo on my orange roll recipe). Lay the rolls in a 13x9-inch baking pan, sprayed with cooking spray. You should get 12 rolls out of the dough. Cover lightly and let raise until about doubled.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine melted butter and Johnny's seasoning and brush over the tops of the rolls. Bake for about 17-20 minutes.

Serve warm either plain or with extra pizza sauce for dipping.

This recipe linked to Potluck Sunday @ Mommy's Kitchen

Chocolate Rootbeer Bundt Cake

I'm still trying to get recipes up from our family 4th of July celebration. I was in charge of rolls and dessert. I must like to make things complicated because while one dessert would have sufficed, I made 3. Yes THREE! And guess who got to eat all the leftovers?

Anyway, I'm actually glad I got to eat these leftovers. I think this is my new favorite chocolate cake. I loved the genuine root beer flavor it had. Just plop a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top and it tasted just like a root beer float. Really, it did.

Since I decided to use root beer flavoring, I decreased the amount of root beer in the original recipe and swapped it out for some sour cream. It was great because it made for an incredibly moist and dense cake; just like I like it. Hmm, maybe that's why me and brownies get along so well.

Oh, and let's not forget about the frosting. I love it. It's so creamy and very chocolaty-a chocolate lover's delight. This recipe does make quite a bit of frosting. I generously frosted the entire cake and still had about a cup leftover.

I will definitely be making this again and I will also be using it as my base chocolate cake and frosting recipe (minus the root beer flavoring). You should be able to swap out the remaining liquid with milk or buttermilk and have it turn out fine.

Chocolate Rootbeer Bundt Cake
1 cup root beer (not diet)
1 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp. root beer flavored candy and baking oil

Preheat even to 325 degrees F. Spray the inside of a 10-inch Bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray, or butter generously and dust with flour, knocking out the excess.

In a small saucepan, heat the root beer, cocoa powder and butter over medium heat until butter is melted. Add sugars and whisk until dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.

In a small bowl whisk the eggs until just beaten. Then whisk into the cocoa mixture until combined.

Gently pour the cocoa mixture into the flour mixture, whisking as you pour, just to combine. Add sour cream and root beer oil and whisk until just combined.

Pour the batter into prepared pan and cook for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely then loosen edges with a butter knife and turn out onto a cake plate.


Rootbeer Fudge Frosting
2 ounces 60% cocoa, melted
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
dash salt
1/4 cup root beer
1/4-1/2 tsp. root beer flavored cooking and baking oil
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

In the bowl of a stand mixer, or using an electric hand mixer, beat softened butter and cocoa powder. Once combined add the melted chocolate, salt, powdered sugar, root beer and root beer oil. Beat together until smooth. Spread on top of the cooled cake. Slice and serve with vanilla ice cream.


SOURCE: Adapted from Baked:New Frontiers in Baking

Linked to...
Sweets For A Saturday @ Sweet As Sugar Cookies

Cooking Class: Butter Crescent Rolls

My mom started making these rolls years ago in place of these Two-hour rolls we grew up on (that I still love). I loved them so much, I also adopted the recipe and now it is my go-to roll recipe whenever we have a family gathering or a pot luck dinner to attend. They are so light and airy and practically melt in your mouth.

*I had previously posted these years back but I make them a little differently now and I thought I'd also show some step-by-step instructions to demonstrate just how easy they are to make.

1 cup milk
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
8 cups bread flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. instant yeast (If you don't have instant yeast, you'll have to dissolve the yeast in the cup or warm water)
1 cup warm water
2 large eggs, beaten


Heat milk until bubbles from around sides. Remove from heat and add butter. Stir until mixture cools and butter is melted. In a mixing bowl, fitted with a dough hook, add the flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Pulse to combine. Add water and eggs and gently pulse, then add the milk mixture. Knead for about 30 seconds. Dough should be sticky. If it's too dry, add more water.

Knead for about 4 minutes. Put dough into a large greased bowl and let sit, covered, until doubles. Punch down and divide in fourths. (I am terrible at evenly dividing dough so I use my kitchen scale to make sure all my dough balls weigh about the same.)

Let dough rest for 10 minutes. Take one dough ball and roll it into about an 8-9-in circle.


Cut into eighths (like a pizza); a pizza cutter is the easiest way I have found.




Starting at the wide end, roll the dough up to the tip.


Place either in a greased cake pan or cookie sheet (metal pans work better; you will need several), making sure to put the tip side down so it doesn't unroll while it raises.


Repeat with the remaining dough balls. Cover with a light kitchen or pastry towel and let raise again until doubled in size.


When the rolls are just about done raising, preheat the oven to 400°F.


Bake rolls for 12-15 minutes.


*NOTES:There are so many fun things you can do with these rolls! I have divided the dough into 8 balls, rolled it into smaller circles and made crescents half the size. These are great for bridal/baby showers or for parties. You could also make them bigger, make 3 balls instead of 4, and make larger rolls for chicken or egg salad sandwiches.

Another fun thing is to put fillings into them. I have made ham and cheese roll ups, put pizza sauce and cheese inside, of course cinnamon and brown sugar, sugar and orange zest with a little orange glaze...the possibilities are endless. Have fun with it and enjoy!

Red-White-and-Blue Lemon Berry Bars

When I saw these a while ago on another blog, I knew they would be the perfect addition to my fourth of July menu. I had already chosen a chocolate dessert, and needed something fruity and colorful to go with the holiday.

I don't just like all things lemon, I LOVE them; especially when it comes to desserts. One of my most favorite lemon desserts that I grew up eating is this Lemonade Cake that is simply light and delicious. I was also introduced to this Sour Lemon Pie by my friend several years ago on Thanksgiving and now no Thanksgiving is complete without it! One of my husband's most favorite desserts is classic lemon bars, which, I have to say, I have never made for him. Oh, and if you're into lemon too, you'll love this Lemon Linguini. It's a perfect summer meal.

Now, onto these bars. They're delicious. The graham cracker crust is crunchy and sweet and I love how the lemon is infused into it as well as the creamy filling. You could really use just about any berry or combination of berries in this filling; I think most berries pair pretty well with lemon. I chose red raspberries and blueberries to complete the red-white-and-blue theme.

For the crust:
3 cups graham cracker crumbs
12 Tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
Zest of two lemons

For the filling:
4 large egg yolks
2-14 oz. cans sweetened condensed milk
1 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
2 tsp. lemon zest
3/4 cup fresh raspberries
3/4 cup fresh blueberries

Preheat the oven to 350F. Spray a 13x9-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, sugar, and lemon zest. Stir until graham cracker crumbs are moist. Press crumbs into the prepared pan, pressing the crust mixture one inch up the side of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

For the filling, combine the egg yolks and condensed milk until well mixed. Stir in the lemon juice and lemon zest. Stir until mixture begins to slightly thicken. Gently fold in the blueberries first then the raspberries. Fold carefully so you don’t break the raspberries (or your filling will turn pink).

Pour the filling evenly over the graham cracker crust. Bake for 15 minutes.

Cool to room temperature, then chill for at least one hour before serving. Cut into bars and serve. Keep bars in the refrigerator-up to five days.

*Notes:
-You can also use frozen berries. I used frozen raspberries from my garden, but they bled a little bit as they thawed and cooked.

-This makes a lot of bars. You can half the recipe and make it in an 8x8 dish.

SOURCE:Adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod

Celebrating the 4th

We had a great day today with family celebrating the 4th of July. Although it was a little unseasonably cool and quite windy, we enjoyed swimming, picnicing in the park for dinner and, of course, yummy treats.

I hosted everyone at our home and was in charge of dessert and rolls. I started getting things ready last night. My 3-year-old loves to be in the kitchen with me whenever I'm making something. I thought it would be a fun project for her and I to make homemade suckers for all the kids to take home. We decided on red watermelon and blue rootbeer flavors. They turned out great and was a short enough project for my daughter to complete with me.

The other things I made were a chocolate rootbeer cake, butter crescent rolls (tutorial coming) and some cool berry-lemon bars. Everything was delicious and I couldn't be happier just spending time with my family. What a great day!

Giant S'mores Cookies

Boy were these fun to make! I had my girls help me with them and I think they got a sugar high from stuffing as much chocolate and marshmallows into their mouths as they were putting on top of the cookies.

A lot of people around here like to go up the canyon for the 4th of July to do their barbecuing. I don't know about you, but for me, a campfire just cannot be put out without first making s'mores. Since we're not going to be in the canyon this year, I think these cookies make a good substitute. They were delicious.

2 sticks softened butter
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla
4 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 regular size Hershey’s Chocolate Bars, broken into pieces
3 full graham crackers, broken into pieces
5-6 large marshmallows, cut into fourths

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place butter and sugars into a stand or electric mixer; beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla until well combined. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined.

Using a large scoop, or a 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop dough out onto cookie sheet. Flatten out with the palm of your hand. Gently press the chocolate, graham cracker pieces and marshmallows into the dough.


Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly golden. Let cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan.

Makes 18 giant cookies

SOURCE:Picky Palate

July Monthly Menu

Another month has come and gone. Just the other day I was realizing that we're halfway through the year already. Wow! As I was gearing up for this month's menu, I wanted to go back through my recipes and try some old favorites that we haven't had in a while. I like to try new things a lot but it's sad when something is so good and it only gets made once then forgotten about. So you'll see many links this month to those previous recipes that I've already blogged about (well, I can't say I really blogged about some of them because they were from the very early days of Sweet Luvin' In the Kitchen and back then it was basically a recipe box).

I tried to keep about half of my recipes meatless and include a lot of fresh veggies and whole foods. I'll be making a few extra things this month, meals for mom's with babies and the 4th of July, but I haven't quite figured it all out yet so there may be a few surprises here and there.

Here's what's for dinner:
Honey-lime Chicken and Orzo with Spinach and Pine Nuts
Greek Chickpea Salad, eggplant foccocia and fresh oranges
Hamburgers w/ steak fries and green salad
Veggie Pasta Salad and fresh fruit
Orange Cashew Chicken with Broccoli and Ginger Noodles

Barbecue Chicken Bacon Pizza with Caramelized Onions
Pecan Apple Chicken Salad with Peanut Sauce
Mexican Rice Bake
Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta w/Fresh Mozzarella and zucchini
Spicy Mango Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Spanish Rice

Asian Slaw with roasted peanuts and Whole Wheat Bread
Pecan-Crusted Chicken Tenders with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce and steak fries
Basil Chicken Burgers and steamed green beans
Bean Curry and Thai Coconut Rice
Pizza Rolls and fresh fruit

Lemon Linguini
Brown Sugar Bourbon Pork with Tomatillo Brown Rice and steamed veggie
Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Apricot Sauce, homemade bread and zucchini
quesadillas and sauteed fresh corn
Stuffed Poblanos and pico de gallo


Other things I'll be making:
Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake
Quinoa Granola
David Lebovitz's Top Granola
Cracked Wheat Blender Pancakes
Homemade Burger Buns

Pecan Crusted Chicken Tenders with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce

I think my ears were deceiving me the other night when I served this because my 3-year-old asked for THREE servings of this chicken! Wow, that's amazing for her, especially because I haven't seen her eat more than a morsel of chicken in I don't know how long. My husband said it was also better than the restaurant food we had the last time we ate out. This was super easy and really quick to prepare. By the time the oven was preheated (about 6 minutes) I had the chicken cut, dipped, rolled and ready to go in the oven. The chicken comes out really moist and cooks quickly because it's cut thin.

For the chicken:
4 chicken breasts, cut length-wise into tenders (about thirds or fourths depending on how big the breast is)
1/2 cup bread crumbs (Italian-style, plain, panko or homemade, whatever you have)
1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped
1 egg
2 Tbsp. water
flour (for dipping)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Set up your breading station with three shallow dishes (like a pie plate) next to each other. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and set it after the last dish in your breading station. Add flour to the first dish. Mix the egg and water and put them in the second dish, then mix the pecans and the bread crumbs and put them in the last dish.

Dip the tenders into the flour, then egg mixture and last, the pecan mixture, turning so that they are coated on all sides. Lay them in the prepared baking sheet. Repeat until all tenders are breaded.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes or until cooked through.

Serve with honey-mustard dipping sauce.

For the sauce:
Mix one part honey to one part honey dijon mustard and add a little squirt of mayo. Mix well.

SOURCE:Adapted from This Mommy Cooks

Whole Wheat Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

These pancakes are right up my alley! For one, I love breakfast; two, I love pancakes and three, apples and cinnamon are a great combination. You can feel extremely good eating a short stack of these for breakfast. They are very fresh and very healthy. I like that they are not too sweet, especially if you plan on eating them with syrup. I really love using all whole wheat as well. It just feels good going down and the nuttiness of the wheat goes well with the apples and cinnamon. I make a double batch of these and then freeze the extra for a quick breakfast another time.

1 apple cored and grated
1 T lemon juice
2 cups freshly milled whole wheat flour (regular ww flour is fine too)
2 T sugar
2 t baking powder
3/4 t salt
3/4 t baking soda
2 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1 1/2 C buttermilk
1/2 C applesauce (no sugar added)
2 eggs
2 T oil

Core apple and either in a food processor, or a hand-held grater, shred (I leave the peel on). Put the shredded apple in a bowl and add the lemon juice to it. Stir to coat, preventing oxidation.

In large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix together the wet ingredients and slowly add them to the dry ingredients, mixing until well-incorporated. Let batter rest while griddle heats up.

Pour batter, by the 1/4 cup, onto a hot griddle and cook until bubbles on top start popping. Flip and cook another minute or two longer. Remove to a plate.

Serve with your favorite preserve or syrup.

Makes about 1 dozen.

SOURCE:Adapted from Jaime Cooks it up

NOTES:In Jaime's original recipe, she used 1 1/2 cups water and 6 Tbsp. powdered milk instead of the buttermilk. That may be a good alternative for you if you want or need to use shelf-stable products from food storage. Otherwise though, I just LOVE buttermilk in my pancakes.

This recipe linked to Potluck Sunday @ Mommy's Kitchen, and Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms.

Brownie S'mores

When the weekend rolls around, I am always in the mood to bake something fun for dessert. I had actually planned to make somthing different but I thought my girls would enjoy these brownies I spied on Picky Palate the other day. When we were buying the marshmallows, chocolate and graham crackers at the store, my three-year-old asked me if we were going camping because she recognized the ingredients for s'mores. I had to chuckle. This is a yummy treat that will be enjoyed by all!

1 box of your favorite brownie mix
4 1/2 full Graham Crackers
3 1/2 Full size Hershey’s Bars
16 large marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions. Spray an 8x8 inch or brownie pan with cooking spray.
Pour half the brownie batter into the pan. Layer graham crackers over brownies followed by Hershey Bars and marshmallows. Pour remaining brownie batter over the marshmallows. Bake for 35-38 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out mostly clean. Cool completely and cut into squares.

SOURCE:Picky Palate

Chinese Chicken Salad

This is really a no-brainer. We love this salad. It's quick, easy and very tasty. Lately, I'm all about throwing things together as quickly as possible. Ya throw the chicken on the grill and in the 5 minutes it takes to cook, you have the cabbage shredded, the onions chopped and the rest of it ready to throw on top. You could really use just about any leaf lettuce or cabbage for this salad. Try purple cabbage and mix it with another leaf lettuce for a more vibrant color! I just stuck with plain old cabbage because it's so healthy.

Did you know that cabbage is high in vitamins A, C, E, & B as well as fiber? It can also lower the risk of some cancers and inhibit infection.

1 head cabbage
2 chicken breasts
1 bunch green onions
Kraft Asian Toasted Sesame Dressing
mandarin oranges
Sliced Almonds
Chow Mein Noodles (optional)

Preheat barbecue grill on medium setting. While grill is heating up, brush the sesame dressing on both sides of each chicken breast. Grill 3-4 minutes per side, maybe more or less depending on thickness. While chicken is cooking, shred cabbage and put in a large salad bowl. Cut off just the tip from both ends of the green onions then cut them up on the diagonal, using both the green and white part. Toss green onions and oranges in with the cabbage. Place almonds and noodles separate serving dishes to add to individual salads.

When chicken is done cooking, let rest for about 5 minutes. Either cut into 1-inch strips or small cubes.

To serve salad, scoop cabbage, onions and oranges onto a salad plate and top with chicken, noodles (if desired), almonds and salad dressing.

Skillet Tacos

I've been making these skillet tacos for about the past 3 months. It's pretty much a homemade hamburger helper meal, only better. I try to stay away from the boxed stuff and a lot of processed foods, and this is pretty easy to put together. My kids and I really like American-style tacos, with hamburger and taco seasoning, so I'm all for cooking something they like and will eat. While my 3-year old would eat a taco in a shell, I would have to help her and it can get pretty messy. When I saw this version popping up on several blogs, I knew it would be a great alternative for our little hands to handle.

1 lbs. lean ground beef
8 oz. rotini
1/2 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
4-5 roma tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup taco seasoning (or 1 pkg. taco seasoning)
1/2 cup sour cream
Salt and pepper
Shredded cheddar cheese

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook pasta according to the package directions. Drain pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta water and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet or sauté pan, cook the ground beef over medium-high heat until no longer pink. A few minutes before the beef is cooked through, add the chopped onion to the skillet. Once the beef is cooked through, mix in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Mix in most of the diced tomatoes, reserving some for garnish, and taco seasoning and let simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Stir in the cooked pasta, sour cream and reserved pasta water, if needed, and continue stirring until the sauce is well blended. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and top with shredded cheddar cheese and fresh tomatoes.

SOURCE:Adapted from Annie's Eats

Orange Rolls

These orange rolls take me back to the honeymoon phase of our marriage. When my husband and I were first married, we lived in this little old 4-plex in the basement. I think we must have felt pretty invincible when it came to sweets because we ate them like there was no tomorrow! On our honeymoon in St. George, we discovered Ben & Jerry's Oatmeal Cookie Chunk and Chubby Hubby ice cream flavors. They were our favorite and still continue to be (although we restrain ourselves much better now than we used to).

Rhodes Orange Rolls were another treat we indulged in quite often. And what made it better was that there would always be a $1.00 off coupon on the package so we'd use it to buy the next one. Mmm, we would pop these rolls in the oven at night after work and school and snarf a couple of hot ones while watching TV. We'd always leave 2, one for each of us for breakfast the next morning. I'm not sure when we stopped doing that, but It was probably a good thing or we'd each be about 500 lbs!

I got this recipe from my sister years ago and I think it is every bit as good as those Rhodes rolls. I'm not sure where she got it, but it is just delicious! The dough is a basic sweet roll dough and really could be used for many different kinds of rolls. You could do cinnamon rolls, or even try cream cheese and chocolate chips rolled up inside. What do you put in your rolls?

For the dough:
4 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 Tbsp. dry active yeast
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 eggs, well-beaten
1 1/4 cup warm water

For the filling:
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
zest of 1 orange

For the glaze:
juice of 1 orange
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
powdered sugar

In mixing bowl fitted with dough hook, combine flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Mix for a few seconds. Add remaining ingredients and mix for about 30 seconds. Make sure it's not too wet or dry and add water or flour if necessary. Knead for about 5 minutes on low speed. Dough will be slightly sticky. Remove dough to another bowl, sprayed with cooking spray. Cover and let rise until doubled.

Gently deflate dough and divide dough in half. Roll one half of the dough out into a rectangle. Spread half of the butter onto the dough, followed by half of the sugar and orange zest.


Roll up and pinch off slices about 1-1/2 inches thick with a piece of dental floss.


Place rolls into 2 foil pie tins, about 7-8 per tin.


Bake at 375 degrees F for 13-17 minutes or until slightly golden on top.


Mix glaze in a medium-sized bowl and whip until smooth. Spoon over warm rolls.


*NOTE:By putting these in two different tins, they are perfect to give away. You could also bake one and freeze one to pull out later. No need to thaw frozen rolls, just stick them in a cold oven. Turn on the heat to 350 degrees F and bake for 30-35 minutes, until golden. Make all of the glaze at one time and just freeze half of it in a small tupperware with the rolls. Thaw completely before glazing rolls.

*This recipe linked to Potluck Sunday @ Mommy's Kitchen.

Cooking Class: Classic Baguette

I'd like to start a new segment on my blog (not sure about how frequently yet), featuring how to do different things so if there's anything you'd like to know, leave a comment and I'll see if I can help you out. Feel free to leave your feedback as well.

Today's Cooking Class I'd like to feature a simple and classic baguette.

As I've said before, making bread is not really that hard, it just takes practice and "getting it." Over a year and a half ago I endeavored to make bread for our family instead of buying it. I found a good recipe from my husband's great aunt in a family cookbook we had and since I actually knew her I gave her a call. I had her talk me through her recipe and I wrote down notes and I thought I was good to go. However, I made the bread and my loaves turned out like bricks!

For me, the "getting it" part didn't happen until I actually saw for my self how to do it. I took a bread-making class and my bread has been forever changed; for the better. Hopefully these step-by-step instructions and photos will help you "get it" as well and make beautiful bread.

This recipe takes some forethought and several hours from start to finish, but minimal effort on your part. Most of the time the dough will be sitting on the counter while you go about your business.


First of all you'll need to mix together the flour, water and a little yeast for the starter. Cover and let sit. You'll want to let this sit at room temperature on your counter at least 4 hours, up to 14 hours. I just do mine overnight. The picture above shows what it will look like after you've let it rest.


The next day, add your flour, salt and *yeast to your mixing bowl and whiz a second or two to mix it up. Then, add all of the starter and water.

*I use instant yeast and just throw it in with my dry ingredients. If you are using active dry yeast, you'll want to add the warm water to your starter then sprinkle the yeast on top to proof it. Stir it around a little bit to get the yeast off the sides of the bowl, then add it to your dry ingredients.

You may have to adjust the amount of water you use because it will vary depending on type of flour, yeast, weather conditions, etc. I measure approximately the amount in the recipe then when I've poured almost all of it in, I turn on the mixer for a second to see how it's coming together. You don't want it too dry so it's already pulling off the sides of the bowl at this point, you want it just wet enough to leave a little on the sides. Knead the dough in the mixer for about 5 minutes until it's cohesive and somewhat smooth.


Dump it out into a greased bowl and form a ball. Cover with either a lid, light dish towel or plastic wrap. Let raise about an hour (or until doubled).


Gently punch it down and flip it over. Replace cover and continue to let it raise. After about another hour, punch it down and turn it over again. Replace the lid and let it rise for the third time.


This was my dough at the end of the third rise.


Turn the dough onto a lightly greased work surface and divide the dough into 2 equal balls (you can do 3 if you want skinny baguettes). Cover with a light towel or greased plastic wrap and let rest about 10-15 minutes.


Roll out the dough into a rectangle. Fold the dough in half, flatten it and seal the edges. Fold the dough over again and seal the edges. Turn the seam under and gently roll it back and forth, starting from the center, to lengthen and shape it.


Pinch the ends closed and tuck them under if you wish.




Gently lay the loaf on a greased baking sheet. (Obviously I have trouble dividing my dough evenly. You could use a kitchen scale to weigh each dough ball if you wanted to get them the same size.)


Once the loaves have been formed, cover them again with either a light kitchen towel or greased plastic wrap. Let rise until puffy but not quite doubled. Near the end of the rise, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Liberally spray the loaves with warm water.


Take a very sharp knife and, holding it at 45 degree angle, make 3 diagonal slashes down the baguette.


Throw them in the oven and bake for about 25 minutes. Make sure you bake them long enough, they should look pretty golden.


When you take the loaves out of the oven you will hear them snap and crackle. Listen closely! From the cross-section here you can see, I rolled my dough up and didn't flatten it very well so air was trapped in between.

Typical artisan breads are holey. While these homemade loaves won't be quite as holey, they'll be holey enough to hold onto some garlic butter or herbed olive oil. Hope you enjoy!

The Recipe

For the Starter
1/2 cup (4 ounces) cool water
1 cup (4 1/4 ounces) Bread Flour
1/16 teaspoon instant yeast

For the Dough
All of the starter
1 teaspoon instant yeast or 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 cup (8 ounces) lukewarm water*
3 1/2 cups (14 3/4 ounces) Bread Flour*
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

*If you use bread flour, increase the water to 1 cup + 2 tablespoons (9 ounces).


For the starter, mix together the flour, water and a little yeast for the starter. Cover and let sit. You'll want to let this sit at room temperature on your counter at least 4 hours, up to 14 hours (or overnight).

The next day, add your flour, salt and *yeast to your mixing bowl and whiz a second or two to mix it up. Then, add all of the starter and water. Knead the dough in the mixer for about 5 minutes until it's cohesive and somewhat smooth.
*I use instant yeast and just throw it in with my dry ingredients. If you are using active dry yeast, you'll want to add the warm water to your starter then sprinkle the yeast on top to proof it. Stir it around a little bit to get the yeast off the sides of the bowl, then add it to your dry ingredients.

Dump kneaded dough out into a greased bowl and form a ball. Cover either with a lid, light dish towel or greased plastic wrap. Let raise about an hour (or until doubled).

Gently punch it down and flip it over. Replace cover and continue to let it raise. After about another hour, punch it down and turn it over again. Replace the lid and let it rise for the third time.

Turn the dough onto a lightly greased work surface and divide the dough into 2 equal balls (you can do 3 if you want skinny baguettes). Use a kitchen scale to make them the same size if you wish. Cover with a light towel or greased plastic wrap and let rest about 10-15 minutes.

Roll out the dough into a rectangle. Fold the dough in half, flatten it and seal the edges. Fold the dough over again and seal the edges. Turn the seam under and gently roll it back and forth, starting from the center, to lengthen and shape it.
Pinch the ends closed and tuck them under if you wish.

Gently lay loaf on a greased baking sheet. Once the loaves have been formed, cover them again with either a light kitchen towel or greased plastic wrap. Let rise until puffy but not quite doubled. Near the end of the rise, preheat the oven to 450degrees F. Liberally spray the loaves with warm water.

Take a very sharp knife and, holding it at 45 degree angle, make 3 diagonal slashes down the baguette.

Bake the baguettes for about 25 minutes. Make sure you bake them long enough, they should look pretty golden.

Remove loaves to a cooling rack and let cool completely.


SOURCE:King Arthur Flour

Sticky Coconut Chicken

My cooking tends to go through themes and lately I've had this thing for coconut ANYTHING! I think it all started when I made this Thai Coconut Rice that I absolutely fell in love with, to go with my mom's Honey Curry Chicken. It's divine! Then, I saw this sticky coconut chicken from Amber @ This Mommy Cooks and I knew I wanted to try it. I love how moist this chicken is and the glaze makes it yummy and sticky. My husband doesn't usually say too much about the food I make, even though he eats it without complaint, but he said he really liked this chicken. This is so easy and quick to prepare; I'll be adding this to my menu more often.

Ingredients:
4 boneless chicken breasts
1 cup canned coconut milk
1/2 tbsp ground ginger
1 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1 tsp. red pepper flakes

Marinate chicken in coconut milk, ginger, pepper and red pepper flakes at least one hour (You could probably get away with marinating it overnight). Grill on barbecue.

Glaze:
3/4 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. red pepper flakes

While the chicken is grilling, bring above ingredients to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until mixture is reduced and thickened, about 8-10 minutes. Once it starts getting really thick, immediately take it off the heat. Glaze both sides of chicken the last few minutes of grilling.

SOURCE:This Mommy Cooks

Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

I am loving this salad lately. I have had it several times at my mom's house and finally made it for us. It's very quick to throw together, and so tasty. I love the feta and walnuts. Drizzle a little poppy seed dressing on top and it's heaven! The poppy seed dressing I tweaked a little from my sister's mother-in-law's recipe. It's one of the best poppy seed dressings I have had.

Throw some grilled chicken on top to make it a main dish salad, or serve it up as a side on any summer menu. Be ware though, if you take it to a pot luck, you'll come home empty-handed!


For the salad:
1 10-oz. bag baby spinach
feta cheese, crumbled
1 quart strawberries, sliced
walnuts

Put everything in a large salad bowl and gently toss. Add dressing and toss again. (Note: Add dressing to the whole salad only if you do not plan to have leftovers; otherwise it will wilt.)




For the dressing:
1 cup sugar
2 t salt
1 t dry mustard
1 t Dijon mustard
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
3 T red onion (about 2 slices)
1 cup vegetable oil
2 Tbsp. poppy seeds

Put everything but poppy seeds in a blender and whiz until well-blended. Add poppy seeds last and pulse breifly just to combine.

Store in fridge for 3–4 weeks

Garlic Rosemary Roast Chicken

Ok, I seriously did not want to post this recipe because I just could not get a good picture to save my life! But, it was so good, I couldn't NOT post it. I know the recipe is for a whole chicken, but I actually cooked a turkey breast, of about the same size, I have had sitting in my freezer; I think it worked just as well.

I love brining my birds. It makes them so incredibly moist. My first experience with brining was with this Cider Roasted Chicken, which we loved. I think this is equally as good. I love the flavor of roasted garlic and rosemary is one of my favorite herbs to cook with; especially with poultry.


For the brine:
½ cup table salt
10 cloves garlic, unpeeled
3 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 cups hot water
1½ quarts cold water

1 whole chicken (3½-4 lbs.), giblets discarded

For the garlic-rosemary paste:
2 tsp. minced fresh rosemary
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1/8 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided

For the sauce:
10 cloves garlic, unpeeled
½ tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1¾ cups low-sodium chicken broth
½ cup water
¼ cup dry white wine
1 spring fresh rosemary
Salt and pepper, to taste

To prepare the brine, combine the salt, and hot water in a large bowl or stockpot. Smash the garlic with the flat side of a knife and add it, along with the rosemary, to the pot. Let stand 10 minutes to release the flavors. Mix in the cold water and stir to dissolve the salt. Immerse the chicken in the brine, cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (I did mine overnight).

Remove the chicken from the brine and pat dry with paper towels. With an oven rack in lower-middle position, preheat the oven to 450˚ F. With a rack inside a roasting pan, spray the rack lightly with cooking spray.

To prepare the garlic rosemary paste, combine the rosemary, garlic, salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon of the oil in a small bowl. Mix well. Rub 1½ teaspoons of the paste inside the cavity of the chicken. Gently loosen the skin over the breast and thigh on each side of the chicken. Divide the remaining paste between the two sides of the chicken, slipping it underneath the skin. Rubbing over the surface of the skin, distribute the paste over the breast and thigh on each side. Tie the drumsticks together with kitchen twine. Brush the surface of the chicken with 2 teaspoons of the olive oil. Season with freshly ground pepper. Place the chicken breast-side down in the roasting pan and bake for 15 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking, toss the garlic cloves with the oil for the sauce. After the chicken has roasted for 15 minutes, add the garlic cloves into the roasting pan and bake for 15 minutes more.

Remove the pan from the oven and lower the oven temperature to 375˚ F. Rotate the chicken so it is breast-side up. Brush the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil over the breast. Add the chicken broth and water to the roasting pan. Return the pan to the oven and continue roasting until the chicken is golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast reads 160˚ F. Transfer the chicken to a large serving platter and cover loosely with foil.

Transfer the roasted garlic cloves to a cutting board. Pour the liquid from the roasting pan into a liquid measuring cup (or a gravy separator); let sit a few minutes, then skim the fat off the surface. You should have about 2/3 cup of liquid (add water if needed). Peel the garlic and mash the cloves into a paste with a fork. Combine the roasting liquid in a small saucepan with the mashed garlic, the remaining ¾ cup broth, wine and rosemary. Heat over medium-high heat until simmering. Reduce heat and continue to simmer about 8 minutes, until partly reduced. Discard the rosemary sprig and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper to taste. Carve the chicken and serve with the sauce.


SOURCE:Annie's Eats

June Monthly Menu

Well, it's a new beginning. The start of a new month and a new menu. I don't have school age kids yet so I haven't been anticipating the end of the school year, but I sure have been anticipating the warmer weather. It has been so strange here. It's June 1st and it's in the low 60's, cloudy and rainy. I don't think we've had a really hot day yet this year. Well, I guess I shouldn't complain because I'm sure the days of summer will bring plenty of sunshine and heat. I'm so excited to have a pool where we live now so I can take my girls often. When I was growing up I was a "pool rat" and hung out at the pool all summer.

On to my menu for this month. I am excited to have so many fresh foods and a lot of variety. I'm trying to cut down on how much meat we eat and make lots of different salads. My menu will be shorter than usual because we're going on a week long vacation to Oregon for my husband's family reunion. I'm really excited, I've never been there and I hear the Redwoods are amazing!

Most of my recipes this month came from my Cooking Light Cookbooks. I know I've said it many times, but I LOVE those books. They have some great recipes. If you see something that sounds yummy make sure to check back for the recipe later in the month when I post.

Lunch Salads
Apple-Pecan Salad w/ Peanut Sauce (Making this w/o the chicken)
Orange Edamame Salad
Strawberry Mango Jicama Salad

Dinners
Sticky coconut chicken with rice and roasted cauliflower
Mexican Rice Bake
Bourbon steak w/ mashed potatoes and Strawberry Spinach Salad
Spaghetti Pie with green salad and whole wheat baguette
Pad Thai w/ tofu

Chopped BBQ Chicken Salad
Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Salad with Fresh Mozzarella
Baked Penne w/Caesar salad
Creamy Taco Mac
Pizza Rolls

Grilled portabellos, wild rice & Sugar Snap Pea Salad w/ Ginger-soy dressing
Pecan-Crusted chicken with honey-mustard dipping sauce, mashed potatoes & green beans
Greek Chickpea Salad w/ homemade whole wheat pitas and Feta Spinach Tarts
Honey-Lime grilled chicken w/ Creamy Parmesan Orzo
Stuffed Poblanos w/ Chipotle bacon cornbread

Other Things I will be making
Coconut French Toast
Apple Pancakes w/ Butter Cream Syrup
Ricotta-honey Mousse w/ berries
Apple-Walnut Flax Seed Bread