Cook

Cake Batter Rice Crispy Treats

Pinterest led me to Gimme Some Oven which revolutionized how rice crispy treats will be made in this house from now on. Instead of sprinkles I added a little colored sugar to the top. 

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp. butter
• 1 (10 oz.) bag of mini-marshmallows
• 1/3 cup yellow cake mix (the dry cake mix, not prepared into a batter!)
• 6 cups crispy rice cereal
• 1 (1.75 oz.) container of sprinkles

Method:

Melt butter in a large saucepan over low heat and add marshmallows. Stir until they begin to melt, adding in (dry) cake mix one spoonful at a time so its combined. Stir in cereal so it is completely coated with marshmallow mixture. Sprinkle in half of the sprinkles and mix. Press into a baking dish (any size will do) and top with remaining sprinkles. Let sit for about 30 minutes before cutting. Spraying a knife with nonstick spray helps to cut them.

Garlic Noodles

I made this for the first time tonight and it officially makes the list of favorite family recipes. Mac even asked me to make it for his birthday party, which of course the most important day of the year.

The recipe came from this site (and was found on Pinterest). Make sure you follow the link to check out her site since she has photos of the steps and more information about the recipe.

I added a little more sugar, an extra garlic clove and next time I make it I'll add a dash more soy sauce. I was also able to find the sesame oil and oyster sauce easily (actually it was even at Target)

Garlic Noodles

INGREDIENTS
8 oz. (1/2 lb.)	angel hair pasta
4 cloves	minced garlic
1/2 bunch	green onions
4 Tablespoons	butter
2 teaspoons	soy sauce
2 Tablespoons	brown sugar
1 teaspoon	sesame oil
2 Tablespoons	oyster sauce

STEP 1: In a large pot, bring water to a boil to cook the noodles according to the directions on the box (enough water to cover noodles, boil for approximately 5 minutes).
STEP 2: While the pasta cooks, mince the garlic and chop the green onions. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the butter is melted and bubbly, add the garlic and onions and saute until they are soft but not browned.
STEP 3: While the pasta, garlic and onions are cooking, mix the oyster sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce and sesame oil together in a bowl.
STEP 4: Once the pasta is done cooking, drain it in a colander. Remove the skillet with the sauteed garlic and green onions from the heat. Add the drained pasta and oyster sauce mixture to the skillet and stir well to coat the pasta. If your pasta is stiff or sticky making it hard to stir, mix in a small amount (1/4 cup or less) of hot water to loosen them up.

To Die For Snack Mix

I had this for the first time around Christmas and immediately started begging my mom's best friend for the recipe. I was surprised to hear the ingredients like the popping oil, but it magically soaks in to the crackers and everything stays crunchy...even when it's stored in the fridge. She suggested instead of the cookie sheet just using big ziplock bags. I substituted Cheez-its for Chex and added extra dill because I love it. Please know this recipe will make an obscene amount so you really might want to cut the ingredient amounts in half.

 

To-Die-Fors

24-30 oz. each of Oyster Crackers, Crispex, Pretzels and Chex

12 oz. Orville Redenbacher's Popping Oil

1 package of Hidden Valley Original

1 tsp crushed dill

Mix all seasoning, pour everything in a bag to mix it all together

Put on cookie sheet over night in the refrigerator

Mix together

Serve

Pistachio Pudding

My mom would make this for us when we were kids...super simple and perfect for St. Patrick's Day. 

I usually use chunks of pineapple, but all I had in the house was crushed. You pour the dry pudding mix into a bow and drain the liquid from the can of pineapple into the bowl to mix together into a paste.

Add in the tub of Cool Whip to mix with the pudding.

Then finally mix in the pineapple. Sometimes it might need a little while in the fridge to really set up, but usually it's ready to eat.

Or to package up as surprise in someone's lunch on St. Patrick's Day.

Country Style Chocolate Chip Cake

I'm a big fan of cakes that start out with cake mix. I've made this several times since orginally finding the recipe on Design Sponge and it always turns out perfect.

Country Style Chocolate Chip Cake

Ingredients:

1 box instant yellow cake mix
1 box chocolate jell-o instant pudding (small package)
8 oz of sour cream
4 eggs
3/4 cup oil
3/4 cup water
1 pack of semi-sweet chocolate chips (small package)

Instructions:

Mix all together (near the end of mixing, pour in 1 pack of semi-sweet chocolate chips and fold into batter). Grease bundt pan. Pour batter into pan. Bake at 300 degrees for an hour. Let cake cooldisplay on pretty platter!Finish off bundt cake with confectioner’s sugar.

Penne with Braised Short Ribs

I have made this recipe from Giada De Laurentiis three times now and it is an all-time favorite. I changed a bunch of things though which I noted at the bottom.

Penne with Braised Short Ribs

Ingredients

• 4 pounds beef short ribs
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 5 Roma tomatoes, cut into eighths
• 1 cup red wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 cups low-sodium beef broth
• 1 pound penne pasta
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Place an oven rack in the lower 1/3 of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Season the ribs with salt and pepper. In a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or ovenproof stock pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. In batches, add the ribs and brown on all sides, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the ribs and set aside. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, wine and mustard. Bring the mixture to a boil and scrape up the brown bits that cling to the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Return the ribs to the pan. Add the beef broth, cover the pan and place in the oven for 2 1/2 hours until the meat is fork-tender and falls easily from the bone.

Remove the ribs from the cooking liquid. Using a large spoon, remove any excess fat from the surface of the cooking liquid. Using a ladle, transfer the cooking liquid in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the mixture is smooth. Pour the sauce into a saucepan and keep warm over low heat. Remove the meat from the bones. Discard the bones. Using 2 forks, shred the meat into small pieces. Stir the shredded meat into the sauce. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the pasta and place in a large serving bowl. Using a slotted spoon, remove the meat from the sauce and add to the pasta. Pour 1 cup of the sauce over the pasta. Toss well and thin out the pasta with more sauce, if needed. Sprinkle the pasta with Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley before serving.

My Notes:

I used boneless short ribs. Instead of Roma tomatoes I used a can of tomato paste and one large can of diced tomatoes. I only used about half of the dijon mustard, added a generous spoonful of beef Better than Bouillon, and a small palmful of sugar. I cooked the ribs at a lower temperature for longer...300 degrees for 3 hours. I found that a fair amount of fat pools at the top after the ribs are braised so I soak some up with a few slices of bread. I used a stick blender instead of trying to transfer everything into a food processor. And if the sauce needs a little thickening I pour in a little Wondra flour mixed into beef broth.

Mud Pie Fudge Sauce

This is my mom's recipe that she'd use to top the mud pies she'd make during the holidays. The pies were a lot of work to assemble and she would watch all of us kids fight over every crumb of the oreo crust. So she wisely turned the pie into a sundae. Mix together ground oreos with melted better to freeze clumps of cookie crumbs...and then top a scoop of icecream with this chocolate sauce. That way you can have as many cookie crumbs as you want! We made this recipe ourselves for the first time over the holidays this past year. It comes together easily, reheats beautifully, and is the most wonderfully rich chocolate sauce you'll ever taste. 

Mud Pie Fudge Sauce

2 squares Bakers unsweetened chocolate

1/2 cup sugar

1 tablespoon butter

2/3 cup evaporated milk (whole carnation, not fat free)

Use a double boiler to start melting chocolate squares. Add butter and sugar. Slowly add evaporated milk. Cook over hot water until it is thickened. Stir occasionally…it takes awhile to thicken. This is a small recipe so you might want to make somewhere between two and four batches at once.

Chicken Spaghetti Casserole

I have to admit I have no recollection where I found this recipe. I tried to retrace my steps to find a source and had no luck. It definitely goes into the reoccuring recipe file...it's easy, delicious and makes great leftovers.

Chicken Spaghetti Casserole

1 lb. chicken breast meat

8 ounces spaghetti, broken into pieces

1 chopped shallot

1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 clove chopped garlic

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup

1/4 cup white wine

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

Put uncooked spaghetti in a large pot of salted boiling water.  Let simmer, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes or until pasta is al dente.  Drain.

In a large saute pan, cook the onion, shallot, garlic, and pepper in a little bit of butter or oil until soft and shallots start to brown.  Remove most of the veggie mixture from the pan, setting aside in a bowl (leave some small bits).  Add a little more oil or butter and saute the chicken breasts until well-browned on each side.  Shred or cube the chicken on a cutting board. 

In a large bowl combine the chicken, cooked spaghetti, onion mixture, soup, wine and 1/2 cup of the cheese.  Season with salt and pepper to taste and mix all together.  Spread mixture into greased 9x13 inch baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.  Sprinkle remaining cup of cheese on top and bake for another 15 minutes.

My Notes..

Brown chicken first, then sauté vegetables, then deglaze with wine

Also add about ¾ cup of chicken stock to thin the soup and make more sauce

Add a touch of sugar and a generous spoon of chicken Better than Bouillon.

Toss the pasta with a little bit of butter.

Garlic Cheddar Chicken

I saw this recipe here a couple of weeks ago and followed the original link to it's source. I omitted the oregano, parsley and black pepper and instead added a generous sprinkle of garlic and onion powders.  

Garlic Cheddar Chicken

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - pounded thin

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat, and cook the garlic until tender, about 5 minutes.
3. In a shallow bowl, mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, Cheddar cheese, parsley, oregano, pepper, and salt.
4. Dip each chicken breast in the garlic butter to coat, then press into the bread crumb mixture. Arrange the coated chicken breasts in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Drizzle with any remaining butter and top with any remaining bread crumb mixture.
5. Bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.

Orzo with Parmesan

I found this recipe in my All Recipes app and made it for the first time...but without the basil. I'd never had orzo before and was pleased to find it rich and creamy almost like a risotto, but really easy to make.

Orzo with Parmesan

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup uncooked orzo pasta
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Directions

1. Melt butter in heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in orzo and saute until lightly browned.
2. Stir in chicken stock and bring to boil. Cover. Reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender and liquid is absorbed, about 15 - 20 minutes.
3. Mix in Parmesan cheese and basil. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to shallow bowl. Garnish with basil sprigs.