Caramel Fruit Dip

I got this recipe from my sister in law (Melissa Wilkinson) - she comes from a large family and they have an amazing family cookbook. This is good recipe to take to a party or have around your house for a snack with your kids. I usually half the recipe if I am going to make it just for my family.

Caramel Fruit Dip

8 oz softened cream cheese
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Mix all ingredients together with a hand mixer. For best results let dip refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. Serve with any type of fruit.

Super Bean Burritos

I got this recipe from My Kitchen Cafe, and they are delicious! You don't really need to add chicken or pork, but you certainly could and it would be great. I just made it like the recipe says (with brown rice and pinto beans), and my kids ate them all up, even my picky 2-year-old.

Bean Burritos

My Kitchen Cafe

*Note: On several occasions, I've added leftover shredded pork to the bean filling for delicious results.

1 cup brown or white rice (or 2 cups already cooked rice)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 jalapeno, seeds and membrane removed, finely diced (can substitute 1 can of green chiles)
1 teaspoon cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cans (15 oz. each) pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups water
1 (10 oz) package frozen corn or 1 can whole kernel corn, drained
6 green onions, white and green parts finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

16 burrito-sized (10-inch) flour tortillas
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Cook rice; set aside. Meanwhile, heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, jalapeno and cumin; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened and golden, being careful not to let the garlic burn. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring for 1 minute.

Add one can of beans and mash gently in the pan (a potato masher or fork works great here). Add the second can of beans and the water and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 10-12 minutes, being careful not to let the mixture stick to the bottom of the pot. Add corn; cook to heat through, 2-3 minutes. Stir in onion and garlic powders. Remove from heat; stir in green onions and cooked rice.

Heat tortillas in microwave for about 30-45 seconds or until all are warmed through.

Fill each tortilla with about 2/3 cup bean and rice mixture and 1/4 cup cheese on one side of tortilla. Fold, and hold in sides. Starting from filled end, holding sides in as you work, tightly roll into a bundle. Place on a baking sheet, seam side down, and prepare remaining burritos.

Serve warm immediately, with salsa and sour cream if desired -- or, to freeze for later consumption, put the baking sheet of burritos into the freezer for at least 30 minutes, or until very cold so that they don't come apart in the wrapping process. Remove them from the freezer and wrap each burrito individually in plastic wrap and place all the wrapped burritos in a freezer-safe resealable bag and freeze up to three months.

To reheat from frozen:
Remove plastic wrap from the burrito. Poke holes in the top several times with a fork. Microwave on high for two minutes. Gently poke a few more holes in the burrito and microwave for another minute. Be careful as the burrito will be piping hot!

Gram's Dinner Rolls

If you are looking for a soft, moist, fluffy, no-nonsense, easy roll recipe that will have you craving more, then this is for you. I have personally made these rolls at least a dozen times and never ONCE have they gone wrong...they could not be easier- 1 1/2 hours start to finish, promise. A few tips: this dough is very sticky. It calls for 4-5 cups of flour- the less you use, the fluffier your roll. So, if you are feeling like its too sticky, add more flour, but its just going to make your roll more dense. Also, I have made these with (hard white) whole wheat flour and they turned out wonderfully as well. Taylor requested these today (she's home sick!)...besides donuts, these are definitely her food of choice. Please give these a try- they are the BEST rolls we've ever eaten.

picture courtesy Janette Davis

Gram's Dinner Rolls
Blogging- Its Whats for Dinner

2 Cups warm water
2 Tablespoons yeast
½ Cup sugar
1/3 to ½ Cup vegetable oil (I use Canola)
1 Tablespoon salt
2 Eggs
4 ½ to 5 Cups of flour - (do not use more than 5 cups)

Put warm water and yeast in large bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix until ingredients are incorporated- add more flour if needed, but beware! :) The dough will be messy and sticky, but its worth it. Turn oven to warm (I put mine on 180 F) and put dough in oven to raise- I use an oven-safe big bowl. It will take about 20 or 30 minutes, it should be double in bulk. Pour out on floured surface and sprinkle flour on top so that you can roll out the dough to about 1/2 inch thick- remember, the dough will be sticky/messy. Cut with a round cup or plastic glass, spread melted butter on top, fold the circle over and put on cookie sheet. Don't try to mess with the dough too much, don't try to make perfect-looking rolls like Mom's- they don't need to be Martha Stewart, just cut them out in whatever shapes/sizes work best without wasting too much dough. Put in pan just barely touching each one and let raise till double in bulk in warmed oven again. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 or 20 minutes. If you have questions, call me. I will be more than happy to help because you need to try these! Enjoy!

Fall-Off-The-Bone Ribs!

Okay, I've never done ribs before but I was itchin' to try something new. It was a hit

with the whole family! Fool proof and succulent way to

throw some man-ribs on the table!

Fall-Off-The-Bone Ribs!

from Somewhat Simple blog


Ingredients
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• Ribs (we used pork ribs, but you can use beef if you'd like)

Directions
Mix together the brown sugar, paprika, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
Trim off excess fat on your ribs.

Cut and pull off the thin membrane on the underside of the ribs.
(This helps it fall off the bone so much easier!) Here is Jason pulling off the membrane, in case you don't know what it looks like. I had never done this before so it was fascinating to me!

Rub the underside of the ribs with the dry rub mixture.
*You don't need to do too much on this side as most of the flavor will need to go on the meat which is on the other side.


Spread the Rub on the meat side of the ribs-
Pile it on and work the mixture into the meat as best as you can.

Wrap each rack in foil 2 times to insure no flavors drip out in the baking process.

Let marinate in fridge overnight.
(This recipe takes patience, which is something I am working on!)
Bake in the oven at 220 degress for 5 hours.


Take out of oven, smother in your favorite BBQ sauce and toss those bad boys on the grill for a few minutes. (Already cooked through just grilling for the satisfaction of grilling and getting some wetness on those ribs!

Enjoy because they are oh, so good!

Announcement: Demarle is Delish!

OK, everyone- I know you've all been waiting desperately for my announcement, right???:) Well, here it is: I am soooo excited to let you all know that I am now a representative for Demarle products! You might have heard of the Silpat, Roulpat, Flexipans, etc., etc. They have incredible cooking products and their products are frequently referenced on some of my favorite cooking blogs, My Kitchen Cafe, The Sister's Cafe, Bakerella, Picky Palate and many more. So, ever since I got my representative starter kit, I've been baking up a storm so that I could show you all a few of my faves. Here goes:

The Silpat. Non-stick as well as moisture-retaining (for example, you can "steam" veggies just by placing them on the Silpat and cooking them in the oven). Martha Stewart said this was the best cookie sheet ever. It's used for so much more than that, but since Martha said it, I'm going to show you cookies.

The Silpat makes the perforated baking sheet non-stick and allows it to cook completely evenly.

Voila! Baked perfection!

The peanut-butter filled centers make these cookies not only a sight to behold, but delight your tastebuds as well.

Magic in the Middle Cookies
from King Arthur Flour Blog

Chocolate Dough
1 1/2 cups (6 3/8 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (1 1/2 ounces) unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar (plus extra for dredging)
1/2 cup (3 3/4 ) brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk

Peanut butter filling
3/4 cup peanut butter, crunchy or smooth, your choice
3/4 cup (3 ounces) confectioners' sugar

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.
2. To make the dough: In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.
3. In another medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the sugars, butter, and peanut butter until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and the egg, beating to combine, then stir in the dry ingredients, blending well.
5. To make the filling: In a small bowl, stir together the peanut butter and confectioners sugar until smooth.
6. With floured hands or a teaspoon scoop, roll the filling into 26 one-inch balls.
7. To shape the cookies: Scoop 1 tablespoon of the dough (a lump about the size of a walnut), make an indentation in the center with your finger and place one of the peanut butter balls into the indentation.
8. Bring the cookie dough up and over the filling, pressing the edges together cover the center; roll the cookie in the palms of your hand to smooth it out. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
10. Roll each rounded cookie in granulated sugar, and place on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between cookies.
11. Grease the bottom of a drinking glass, and use it to flatten each cookie to about 1/2-inch thick.
12. Bake the cookies for 7 to 9 minutes, or until they're set and you can smell chocolate. Remove them from the oven, and cool on a rack.

***********

One of the other things I'm so excited to show you is the Flexipan straight muffin tray. With this (and anything in the Flexipan line), you'll never have to use non-stick spray again. And, again, on the perforated baking sheet, it cooks completely evenly as well as keeps things soooo moist.

Do you see how the muffin literally pops right out?

The cleanup is a cinch, too. Just rinse in warm, soapy water (No scrubbing needed!).

So, for all of you that want to know more, you can email me, call me, and/or visit the Demarle website and if you want to order something, be sure to enter in my rep i.d. #: 8394 or my name (Rebecca Bell). For all of you that live in New Mexico, I'm going to be hosting a launch party in the next couple weeks, so stay tuned!!!

Chocolate Mountains

Mmm....Just looking at these beauties is making me salivate. Literally, no joke, these are hands down the best cookies I've ever eaten. And...it's not just me! Everyone who tried them LOVED them! Please, do yourself a favor and whip some of these dreamies up!





Chocolate Mountains

from Yourhomebasedmom.com



1/2 C shortening

1/2 C evaporated milk

2 Tbsp water

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 C flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup sugar

1/2 C cocoa

1/2 C chopped walnuts, optional (I didn’t put them in)

24 large marshmallows, cut in half ( I didn't have any so I just used 4 mini mallows)



Beat well shortening, milk, water, egg and vanilla. Add remaining ingredients except marshmallows, blend well. Drop by teaspoonful on greased cookie sheet. Bake 350 degrees for 8 minutes. Quickly place marshmallow half (sticky side down) on each cookie. Let cool.



Frosting:

1/3 C soft butter

2 C powdered sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

About 2 Tbsp milk

6 Tbsp cocoa

2 Tbsp oil

Combine frosting ingredients and beat until smooth. Frost marshmallows like a mountain. Enjoy!

Homemade Blueberry Muffins

I made these this weekend because we just love homemade bread around here. I also love blueberries and was really looking forward to finding a great recipe because I absolutely adore the Betty Crocker box mix but am trying to eliminate processed foods from our family's diet. These muffins are just as fluffy and light as the box mix- though not as sweet, which is probably a good thing. I doubled the recipe and it made 3 dozen muffins (I froze the left-overs for quick snacks). Do NOT use your Bosch/Kitchenaid to mix these- the less you mix, the better. I really, really enjoyed these.

picture courtesy of Sisters Cafe

Blueberry Muffins
The Sisters Cafe

2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

zest of one lemon (optional- I used this, but could not taste it at all)

1 egg

1 cup milk

1/2 cup shortening (or butter*)

1 cup frozen blueberries

Topping (this makes extra - you can try cutting it down if you want):

(I didn't make this- saved some calories...you don't need it, but I'm sure it tastes great!)
1/2 cup butter, melted

1 Tb lemon juice (juice of one lemon)

1/2 cup sugar

Mix dry ingredients and set aside. Beat eggs, milk and butter/shortening with a hand mixer. Add dry ingredients and stir gently to combine- batter will be lumpy. Fold in blueberries gently. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Combine butter and lemon juice. While the muffins are still warm, dip the tops in the butter and lemon juice, then dip in sugar. Makes 12 muffins.

*I substitute butter because I love the taste! It works great either way.