Applesauce Muffins

The girls found this recipe on NickJr.com the other day, and asked me to make it with them. Super easy and fun for the kids to help! The girls loved it!

Ingredients
2 C flour
3/4 C sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 lg egg, lightly beaten
1 C unsweetened applesauce
1/2 C (1 stick) butter, melted

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease or line with cupcake liners a muffin pan.
2. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a med. bowl. Whisk to blend.
3. Add the egg, applesauce and melted butter. Stir just until blended. Spoon into the prepared pan. Bake until puffed and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean; 18-20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool 5 minutes. Invert and cool completely.

We put some mini chocolate chip sprinkles on top before baking and they were YUMMY!

Easter Treats

Little Nests:
1/4 cup butter (Mama bird melts in sauce pan)
1 cup marshmallows (baby bird measures and adds to melted butter, Mama bird stirs until melted smooth, then removes from heat)
1 cup bran flakes (baby bird adds to pan and Mama Bird coats it in marshmallow mixture)
coconut, dyed green
candy eggs
Shape 'em out, let them firm up a little, then eat 'em up!

CROCKPOT CHICKEN ALFREDO

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts; cubed
2 cans of cream of chicken soup
1 c. parmesan cheese
1/2 c. melted butter
1/4 c. whole milk {not fat-free or 2%}
16 oz. sour cream
1 envelope of Italian dressing mix
1 lb. fettuccine noodles

Stir everything together in a crockpot except for the noodles. Cook on LOW for 6 hours. Then make the pasta according to package directions then drain. Stir the pasta into the crockpot and serve.

Delicious and so very easy!


-

*Merrianne

Rice Crispy Chicken

This was my childhood favorite. Now my kids and husband love it.

Dip chicken in melted butter, then in crushed rice crispies. Place in casserole dish. Don't crowd the chicken, or it takes longer to cook. Pour left over butter into left over crushed crispies and mix together, then sprinkle over chicken in dish. Bake at 350, uncovered, about 20-30 min for bone/skinless tenderloins or breasts, and about 1 hr. for bone-in chicken.

I serve this with mashed potatoes and a microwaved steamed vegetable.

Biscuits and Gravy

I grew up eating this for breakfast in Tennessee. It is delicious and a real Southern treat for kids and husbands. We usually had the hot country sausage but you can use whatever suits your taste.

1- 12 ounce roll of bulk Pork Sausage
2 to 3 Tbs. flour (try 2 Tbs. first)
2 cups milk
Salt and Pepper to taste
Homemade or Frozen Biscuits, baked and kept warm

Fry sausage in a cast iron skillet. Remove sausage and leave drippings in pan. Add flour and mix with a whisk until incorporated. Add milk, salt and pepper. Whisk over medium heat until bubbly, thick (but not too thick) and lump free. Crumble sausage and add to gravy. Serve immediately over warm homemade biscuits split and patted with butter.
Note: If the gravy seems way too thick, just add a little more milk.

Deluxe Chocolate Marshmallow Bars

I found this amazing recipe on a random recipe blog and I had to try it out. It got rave reviews from friends!

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter
1-1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-1/3 cups all purpose flour
3 tbsp baking cocoa
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts, optional
4 cups miniature marshmallows

Topping:1-1/3 cup chocolate chips
1 cup peanut butter
3 tbsp butter
2 cups crisp rice cereal

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until fluffy. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture. Stir in nuts if desired. Spread in a greased 15 x 10 x 1" pan. (Can also use a 13 x 9)

Bake at 350F for 15-18 minutes. Sprinkle marshmallows evenly over cake; return to oven for 2-3 minutes. Using a knife dipped in water, spread the melted marshmallows evenly over cake. Cool. (I didn't spread the marshmallows out, I just used enough to cover the whole thing in a single layer of marshmallows)

For topping, combine chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until melted and well blended. (I just did mine in the microwave) Remove from heat; stir in cereal. Immediately spread over bars. Chill

I didn't let the marshmallows cool enough after I put them in the oven, so when I tried to put the topping on it didn't work out so great. It ended up being a little bit of a marshmallow/topping swirl. But it looked fine and still tasted great! I kept them in the fridge because they were so gooey!

Breakfast Burritos

My husband loves breakfast burritos, but I've never been a huge fan. I came up with this simple and easy recipe that my whole family enjoys.


Ingredients:


1/2 package bacon
6-8 eggs
3 medium sized potatoes
Shredded cheese
Tortillas
Salsa


Cut bacon into pieces and cook in skillet over medium heat until fat renders. While bacon is cooking, peel and shred the potatoes. Rinse them off, then boil them in water for just a couple of minutes until they are pretty tender. Drain fat from pan, give the eggs a good stir in a bowl and add to bacon. Scramble the eggs. Remove eggs and bacon from skillet, drain potatoes and add to skillet. I add some seasoned salt and pepper to the potatoes and let them cook a little in the skillet. Add eggs and bacon back in and stir it all up. Warm up your tortillas, put on some of your egg/bacon/potato mixture, add shredded cheese and salsa to your tastes.


This recipe can easily be adjusted for more or less people. You could probably use frozen hash browns instead of doing your own potatoes, but I've never tried it. You can put this in the fridge for a few days and it reheats really well.

Sugar Cookie Cutouts

I absolutely hate making Sugar Cookies cutout but i've learned to love these because they stay soft!!!!!! (must be the whipping cream)

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla 

3 3/4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.  Stir in the eggs and vanilla.  Sift together the flour and baking powder, stir into the creamed mixture alternately with the heavy cream.  Cover dough and chill for 2 to 3 hours.  

Roll out dough (the thicker the better) Cut into shapes

Bake for 12 to 14 minutes.  

Tip---best with homeade frosting!!!!

Pumpkin Bread

I love pumpkin things, especially during the fall and holiday months. The other day though I had a hankering for this yummy bread and thought, what the heck, who cares if it's February, I can make it again.

Pumpkin Bread

Preheat oven to 350 F.

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin
3 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Cream together butter, sugar, and eggs. Mix dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Alternate mixing in dry ingredients and pumpkin until it's thoroughly mixed. Stir in chocolate chips. Spray pans with Pam and bake two large loaves for 60 to 65 minutes (5 small loaves for 50-55 minutes or muffins for 20-25 minutes).

I love making this bread in small loaf pans so I can use a few for our family and take a few others to friends.

Easy Homemade Bread

I was so excited when my sister-in-law Kristen gave me a fabulous book of her best recipes for Christmas which included her bread recipe, aptly titled "Best Bread Ever." We've made it several times, and we've always had success. The thing I love best is that it's super simple and it takes just over 2 hours, start to finish. We have LOVED having fresh bread with our dinners and for toast in the morning. With her permission, here's the recipe.

Best Bread Ever1 1/2 Tbsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 Tbsp honey
3 Tbsp oil
2 cups water
3/4 cup milk
6 to 8 cups flour (You can use all white flour, all wheat flour, or a blend of white and wheat. I have loved it with about 2 cups of white flour and 5 cups of wheat flour, freshly ground.)

Put all dry ingredients into a mixing bowl (I put the dry ingredients in my Kitchen-Aid). Put liquid ingredients into a microwave safe bowl and heat in the microwave until it's very hot to the touch. Pour liquids into the dry ingredients. Knead with hands or mix in mixer for 10-12 minutes. If dough is sticky, add flour sparingly. Let rise for 45 minutes. Punch dough to flatten. Remove from bowl and divide in half. Shape two loaves and put into greased bread pans. Let rise for 40-45 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes.