Dessert Week: Cake Batter Blondies

Cake Batter Blondies Recipe

1 Funfetti cake mix (or yellow)

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

1/3 – 1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup rainbow sprinkles (if you use a yellow cake mix, add these in)

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Combine the cake mix, oil, and egg in a large bowl. Add the milk slowly – you want the batter to remain as dense as possible. Then mix in the rainbow sprinkles and white chocolate chips.

Spray 9x9 baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Dump batter in pan and spread to the edges.

Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Allow to cool then frost and top with additional sprinkles.

Frosting:
1/4 cup margarine or butter, softened
2-3 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar

Mix all ingredients until well-blended. Pour on top of blondies.

Sausage & Egg Muffins

I use this recipe for a quick breakfast. 

I will put the muffins in individual baggies and freeze them, that way when I need breakfast on the go, all I have to do is pop them in the microwave for a minute and breakfast is served! 

Sausage & Egg Muffins

6 eggs

3 cups milk

1 cup baking mix

1 lb. sausage

1 cup shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large skillet, brown sausage. Drain.

In a separate bowl, mix together eggs and milk.  Slowly add baking mix.

Once baking mix is mixed well, fold in sausage.

Pour into greased muffin pans.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until set in center.

Allow to cool before removing from muffin pan.

Cake Batter Ice Cream

I love anything cake batter.  So when I found this recipe, I had to try it out!!  And I'm sure glad I did!!  It tastes just like Cold Stone's.

Cake Batter Ice Cream

1 cup whole milk , well chilled

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 cups heavy cream , well chilled

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2/3 cup cake mix

In a medium bowl, whisk the milk and sugar until the sugar is dissolved.

Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla.

Stir in cake mix, making sure there are no lumps.

Pour mixture into the freezer bowl and let mix until it has thickened (about 25-30 minutes).

TIP: Top with a few sprinkles.

Extra Cheesy Cheeseburgers

I love to put burgers on the grill.  However, I like to change things up... I add ranch dressing mix, BBQ sauce, etc.

Last night, I used a plain hamburger patty and topped it with a heaping handful of Mexican style shredded cheese.  Don't worry, when you think your handful is too much, add some more!! You can never have too much cheese on a burger!!



Frito Taco Salad

Frito Taco Salad

1 head iceberg lettuce

½ - 1 lb. ground beef

1 pkg. taco seasoning

1 can light kidney beans

¼ cup red onions, chopped

1 cup of frozen corn

1 can black olives, sliced

1 Roma tomatoes, chopped

2 cups of shredded Mexican or Taco cheese

2 cups of Fritos

Catalina Dressing (use your judgment on the amount)

Brown beef, add taco seasoning in towards the end. Remove from heat and drain if needed. Add beans onions, and corn to the meat, mix well.

Pour beef mixture into bowl, add olives and tomato.  Place in refrigerator until cool.

In a large bowl, mix everything together, adding the Fritos and dressing last, mixing well to make sure dressing is coating all ingredients.



Wine Glass Dessert with White Chocolate Mousse

Need something quick, yet eligent for  dessert?? Try this recipe. 

(okay, very upset that the picture won't change to a vertical position, my apologies)

Wine Glass Dessert

Make brownie cupcakes and allow to cool completely. 

Peel off the cupcake liner and put in the bottom of a wine glass. 
Slice strawberries and arrange on the side of the glass.

Pipe the White Chocolate Mousse (see recipe below) on top of the brownie.

TIP: I made my brownies and mousse the night before and stored in fridge.  I also sliced my strawberries the night before so all I had to do was put the dessert together.

White Chocolate Mousse

6 blocks White Chocolate

2 tbsp. milk, warm

1 cup milk, cold

1 pkg. instant vanilla pudding

1 tsp. vanilla

1 container whipped topping

Melt white chocolate and milk together.  Mix until smooth.  Add more milk if necessary.

Meanwhile, mix 1 cup milk and instant pudding.  Add vanilla, mix until smooth. 

Combine chocolate and pudding mixture.  Mix until smooth.  Then add whipped topping.

Allow to cool (I put it in the refrigerator overnight).

Transfer to serving bowl.

TIP: I put my mousse in a plastic baggie and put an icing tip (with a large opening) on the bottom.  Then it added a little bit more to the mousse instead of just a spoonful on top.

Week Night Quiche

There are some nights I come home from work and just want something quick and easy I can have already prepared and put right into the oven.  A quiche is perfect for this.  I make it up the night before, then when I get home I sit it out of the refrigerator for about 30 minutes (just to let the pan warm up a little) then put it into the oven.  Dinner is done!!  Serve it with a side salad and biscuits and you have a complete meal. 

This recipe is also very easy to substitute or add things.  Need to clean out your refrigerator of leftover vegetables?? Throw them in too!!  Need to use up the rest of your 1/2 and 1/2?? Use that in place of the milk. 

Ham and Cheese Quiche

2 cans of whole potatoes, sliced

1 cup cubed ham, cooked

½ cups onions, minced

1 cup shredded Colby Jack cheese

4 eggs

1 cup milk

1 tsp each: garlic powder, seasoning salt, pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place potatoes on the bottom of a greased 9-inch pie plate.

In a medium bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients and pour into pan.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until center is set.

Saturday Morning Pancakes

Getting tired of the same old pancakes on Saturday mornings??

Spice things up with this delicious Apple Pancake!!

Baked Apple Pancake

¾ cup baking mix

½ cup milk

3 eggs

¼ cup powdered sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

3 apples, peeled, cored, sliced

½ cup brown sugar

¼ cup butter

Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees.

In an oven safe skillet, melt butter.  Add apples and brown sugar.  Sauté until tender.

While apples are cooking, in a separate bowl combine baking mix, milk, eggs, powdered sugar and cinnamon.  Mix well.

Once apples are tender, spread apples out evenly in the bottom of the skillet.  Pour baking mixture over apples.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve with warm syrup.

Easy Comfort Food!!

Chicken 'n' Dumplings

1 bag shredded pre-cooked chicken (see previous post)

2 cans store-bought biscuits, quartered

Onion, chopped

2 pints water (more if desired)

3 chicken bouillon cubes

Spices: salt, pepper, garlic powder

In a large pot, saute onions until tender.  Add shredded chicken.  Cook together for about 3 minutes.

Add bouillon cubes and water.  Allow to come to boil.

Once water is boiling, drop quartered biscuits one at a time into pot.

Reduce heat and allow to simmer for at least 30 minutes.

Enjoy!!

Week Night Dessert

Need a quick week night dessert to satisfy your sweet tooth??

Try these simple & delicious cookies.

 

Thumbprint Cookies

1 pouch sugar cookie mix

1/3 cup seedless jam (any flavor)

1 cup white vanilla baking chips (optional)

Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

In large bowl, make sugar cookie mix as directed on package. 

Roll dough into 3/4-inch balls; place 2-inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Using thumb or handle of wooden spoon, make indentation in center of each cookie. Spoon about 1/4 teaspoon jam into each indentation.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are light golden brown.

Optional: In small microwavable bowl, microwave baking chips on High 1 to 2 minutes or until chips are melted; stir until smooth. Spoon melted chips into small resealable plastic bag; cut small hole in corner of bag. Squeeze bag gently to drizzle melted chips over cookies.

Oven Roasted Chicken

Oven Roasted Chicken Breasts with Carrots

4 chicken breasts
1 pound baby carrots carrots

1 large onion, quartered
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Seasonings: garlic powder, onion salt, pepper, salt, rosemary

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Place carrots and onions in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.  Season with seasonings and olive oil.  Mix well to coat vegetables.

Then place chicken on top of carrots and onions.  Sprinkle chicken with dried rosemary.

Roast until vegetables are knife tender and the chicken juices run clear, about 45 minutes.

Allow the chicken to set for 10 minutes before serving.

TIP: Below you will see that I drizzled balsamic vinegar over my chicken for a bolder flavor.

Grill Time!!

With grill season here, there is nothing better than a hot dog on the grill.

They are quick and easy.  Its one of the few things you can put on the grill when they are still frozen and then eat them within 5 minutes.  SO GOOD!!!

But not just any toppings will do...

HOT DOGS (Pickle style)

Hot dogs

Onions

Shredded cheese

Sliced pickles

Hot dog buns

Sautee onions until tender.

Grill hot dogs until done.

Place hot dogs on bun and layer with onions, cheese, and top with a sliced pickle.

YUMM....

Cake Batter Pancakes!

I know this is more of a breakfast recipe (and I usually post those on Saturday mornings), but I've had a lot of requests for this recipe after posting the picture on Facebook.

Cake Batter Pancakes

1 ½ cups cake mix (Funfetti or yellow)

2 tbsp. oil

½ cup milk

1 egg

Whisk together all ingredients until well blended.

Drop about ½ cup of batter onto hot pan (pancakes will rise and expand as they cook).  Cook on one side until top starts to bubble, then gently flip onto other side and cook for about 1 minute (or until golden brown on both sides).

Serve with maple syrup, whipped topping, or my favorite… powdered sugar icing with an extra “sprinkle” of sprinkles!!

NOTE: I froze the remainder of my cake mix (exactly 1 ½ cups) and will use it another time for pancakes.

Pork Cubed Steak

I love beef cubed steak, so when I saw a family value pack on sale at the grocery store I bought two packages.  However, when I got home I read the label and realized that I bought pork cubed steak instead.  Wondering what I'd do with it and how it would taste, I decided I'd cook it just like I would beef cubed steak.  It turned out to be just as good.

Pork Cubed Steak

Coat both sides of the steaks in flour.

Season with salt, pepper, or any other spices

Fry in oil until done.

I also used the left over grease to make a quick gravy. 

I added a little flour to grease and then enough milk until desired consistency.

Fried Pickles

A special thanks to Kristin for this wonderful idea!! 

Fried Pickles

1 jar sliced pickles

1 egg, beaten

1 cup milk

3 cups flour

To taste: salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, hot sauce

Vegetable oil, for frying

In a large skillet, heat oil.

Combine egg and milk in a bowl. 

In a separate bowl, Mix flour and seasonings.

Drain pickle juice from jar.

Add a few pickles at a time to the egg mixture.

Then remove them from egg mixture and put directly into flour mixture.

Put into oil and fry until golden brown.