Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yep. A cookie in a cookie. Will I make them again? Eh, probably not. They were a bit messy. I don't like messy. And I had to measure. I hate measuring. LOL! But they were a hit!

They make big cookies. Like the recipes says. HOWEVER (my big complaint here) putting a scoop on top and on the bottom did not work AT ALL for me. Who knows, maybe I didn't add the right amount of flour (I don't like measuring partly because I'm absent minded and get distracted and lose count easy!!) but this dough was sticky and stuck to my hands, not the cookie. So I ended up taking my big scoop and pushing the Oreo into the dough and then plopping it on the cookie sheet. So the Oreo wasn't entirely stuffed in the cookie.

Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 sticks softened butter
3/4 Cup packed light brown sugar
1 Cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla
3 1/2 Cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
10 oz bag chocolate chips
1 bag Oreo Cookies

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer cream butter and sugars until well combined. Add in eggs and vanilla until well combined.
2. In a separate bowl mix the flour, salt and baking soda. Slowly add to wet ingredients along with chocolate chips until just combined. Using a cookie scoop take one scoop of cookie dough and place on top of an Oreo Cookie. Take another scoop of dough and place on bottom of Oreo Cookie. Seal edges together by pressing and cupping in hand until Oreo Cookie is enclosed with dough. Place onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet and bake cookies 9-13 minutes or until cookies are baked to your liking. Let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to cooling rack. Serve with a tall glass of milk, enjoy!
Makes about 2 dozen VERY LARGE Cookies

http://picky-palate.com/2011/01/06/oreo-stuffed-chocolate-chip-cookies/ 1

Cowboy Spaghetti

A twist on regular old spaghetti - there are 2, yes 2 sauces! Oh the craziness!!! It's hearty and filling. It can be made as spicy or not spicy as you like! Any cowboys that read this, is this really how cowboy's make spaghetti?

I left the jalapenos out of the cheese sauce because the only hot sauce we had in the house is called Death Sauce. 3 drops of it made the meat sauce HOT. Adding jalapenos would have been rubbing salt in an open wound!

Cowboy Spaghetti

1lb spaghetti
4 slices bacon - chopped
1lb ground beef
1 medium onion - chopped
4 cloves garlic - chopped
2tsp hot sauce
1T Worcestershire
1T chili powder
1/2T ground cumin
1/2 can beer
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
2T butter
2T flour
1C chicken stock
1C milk
2C shredded cheddar cheese
1/4C jalapenos - chopped

Sauce #1
In a large skillet brown and crisp the bacon. Remove from pan. Add the ground beef, onion, garlic, hot sauce, Worcestershire, chili powder and cumin. Once beef is cooked, drain any excess grease. Add the beer, cook one minute. Add tomatoes and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes.

Sauce #2
In a small pot melt the butter. Stir in the flour. Cook for one minute. Whisk in the chicken stock and milk. Slowly bring to a boil and cook until thicken. Stir in the cheese and jalapenos.

Cook the spaghetti according to package directions and add to the meat sauce. Pour cheese sauce over top. 1

Jalapeno Sour Cream Chicken

*spicy alert*  Ya know if you couldn't figure it out by the jalapenos being in the recipe! :-)

This was yum. I served it over egg noodles. It'd also be good over mashed potatoes. Or on a slice of bread. Or wrapped up in a tortilla...possibilities - endless.

Recipe says cubed chicken. I used shredded, I had some already pre-cooked that needed used.

Jalapeno Sour Cream Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 small onion - chopped
1 4oz can chopped jalapenos (I used 2, we like spicy!)
1T taco seasoning
1tsp season salt
8oz sour cream
1C pepper jack cheese - shredded (use monterey or cheddar to cut the spicy factor)
3/4C chicken broth

Cut chicken into 1 inch cubes. On medium high heat saute the chicken and onion for about 5 minutes. Add the jalapenos, taco seasoning, season salt and chicken broth. Cover and let simmer 5 minutes. Add the sour cream and cheese. Cover and simmer for 7 minutes. 1

S'more Cookies

A S'more in cookie form??!!! Thanks to my latest addiction (Pinterest) I'd seen 7080989 (roughly) pictures and 7098914 (again, an estimate) variations of these so I had to try them. What I learned (remember, I DON'T BAKE!!!) is that you want a SMALL amount of cookie dough on the cracker because they will spread like crazy. I'll post the link to the blog they came from...mine are no where near as pretty as her's BUT they did taste good!!

S'more Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
Cream together butter and sugar until incorporated

Add:
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
Beat thoroughly

Add:
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup chocolate chips, or one giant Hershey's bar, chopped
1 cup mini marshmallows
Stir to incorporate

The most fun part about these cookies is that you actually bake the cookie on top of a whole graham cracker.
Bake at F350°, for no more than 11 minutes (after 11 minutes, the graham cracker will burn).
Some of the marshmallow may toast off the cracker, but simply remove the cracker from your cookie sheet and quickly transfer to a wire rack.
Yields 4 dozen

Blog cookie recipe came from! 1

Caramelized Pork Slices & Elegant Scalloped Potatoes

Once again the hubs had to go out of town for work. The night before he leaves I always like to make a "nice" supper. This was a hit!!! And holy moly was the pork good - and neither of us are huge pork fans. At first I was scared - it didn't look like it was going to come together...it wasn't getting "caramelized" and definitely didn't look pretty! But I cranked the heat and walked away. I came back to perfection! So good!!! The chopped garlic almost gets candied...I could have just ate that!!! The pork would be great served over rice too. And you could easily sub chicken for the pork.

The scalloped potatoes were well scalloped potatoes. I don't know why I make them, I don't ever like them, but that's just my personal taste!  LOL! But they are good and my 2 year old ate them. That's saying a lot!

Caramelized Pork Slices

1lb pork tenderloin - cut into 1in thick slices
2tsp canola oil (I used vegetable)
2 garlic cloves - minced (I used 4, garlic is my fave!)
2T brown sugar
1T orange juice
1T dark molasses (I used dark Karo syrup)

In a nonstick skillet, brown pork in oil over medium-high heat. Remove and keep warm.
In the same skillet, saute the garlic for 1 minute, stir in the brown sugar, orange juice, and molasses. Return pork to the pan. Cook, uncovered until pork is cooked through. *I cranked the heat at this step. Get the sauce bubbling so it becomes all ooey and gooey! Turn the pork occasionally. I'm guessing it took probably 10-15 minutes for the pork to finish cooking.*


Elegant Scalloped Potatoes

8 large baking potatoes
6T butter
6T flour
1tsp garlic powder
3 1/2C milk
12oz Velveeta - cubed
6 slices bacon - cooked and crumbled
1C shredded cheddar

Scrub the potatoes. Microwave them until tender. Cool. In a saucepan melt the butter. Stir in the flour and garlic powder. Gradually whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil, cook until thickened. Add the Velveeta and bacon. Stir until melted. Remove from heat. Cut potatoes into 1/4in slices. Place 1/3 of the potatoes in a greased baking dish. Top with 1/3 of the cheese sauce. Repeat layers twice. Sprinkle with cheddar. Bake uncovered at 350* for 15 minutes or until heated through. 1

Chicken Tortilla Soup

My mom invited us out for supper...then called and said the ingredients are setting out on the counter, can you come out early and throw it together! Ha - so much for being invited over for supper! Buuut this was soooo easy it took 5 seconds to do!

PS - Cooking tip for ya...make sure the cord is OUT of the crockpot before dumping items in it. Oops.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

1lb cooked chicken - shredded or cubed
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can nacho cheese soup
1 can enchilada sauce
1 can green chilies
1 soup can of milk
corn chips, sour cream and shredded cheddar for garnish

Dump everything in the crockpot (minus garnish ingredients). Stir. Cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-6 hours. 1

Bavarian Apple Torte

I got a huge bag of apples from a friend and wanted something quick to throw together to go with supper last night. This was perfect!! Easy to do and delicious! A drizzle of caramel sauce and some vanilla ice cream would be absolutely perfect with this!!

Bavarian Apple Torte

1/2C butter - softened
1/3C sugar
1/4tsp vanilla
1C flour
8oz cream cheese - softened
1/4C sugar
1 egg
1/2tsp vanilla
4 medium apples - peeled and thinly sliced
1/3C sugar
1/2tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425*
Cream together the butter, sugar, vanilla and flour. Press in the bottom of a spring form pan.
In a medium bowl combine the cream cheese and sugar. Beat in egg and vanilla. Pour over crust.
Toss apples in cinnamon and sugar. Spread them over the cream cheese layer.
Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 400 and bake 30 minutes. Cook before cutting. 1

Chili Chickent and Cheddar Pasta

*WARNING* This IS spicy!!! If you like spicy, you will love this!! If you don't - leave out the jalapeno and adobo sauce and you'll still have a nice dish!

This was one of the very first meals I ever cooked for Dustin. He loved it! However, he's not one to ever throw anything out of the fridge so like 3 weeks later he ate some of the leftovers and got sick. He asked me to never make it again. I obliged...for 5 years. I clean out the fridge every Monday so he's safe this time!

Chili Chicken and Cheddar Pasta

1lb bowtie pasta
1T butter
1C diced red pepper
1C diced green pepper
1T minced jalapeno
1/2lb bacon - cooked and crumbled
1tsp adobo sauce
2T flour
1tsp chili powder
1/2tsp ground cumin
2C milk
2C shredded cheddar
2T cilantro
1 1/2C cooked chicken

Preheat oven to 400*. Cook pasta. In a large pot melt the butter. Add the peppers, jalapeno and bacon. Cook until the peppers are soften - about 4 minutes. Stir in adobo sauce, flour, chili powder and cumin. Gradually whisk in the milk and simmer until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese and the cilantro. Stir in the pasta and chicken. Spoon into a baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake until the cheese is melted. 1

Crowd Pleasing Taco Salad

I love this salad!!! It's a nice change from the regular taco salad. And yes...it pleases a crowd!

Crowd Pleasing Taco Salad

1lb ground beef
1/2C ketchup
1tsp oregano
1tsp chili powder
1 medium head romaine lettuce - torn
2 medium tomatoes - diced
1C shredded cheddar cheese
1/2C may
1/2C taco sauce
1pkg corn chips

In a large skillet brown the ground beef. Stir in the ketchup, oregano and chili powder. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. In a large bowl combine the lettuce, tomato, cheese and beef. Combine the mayo and taco sauce. Pour over the salad and toss. Sprinkle in the corn chips and toss.

* I leave the tomatoes on the side cause I don't like them! 1

Italian Beef Sammies

This is hands down my FAVORITE way to fix a roast!!!! It's quick and easy (I say that a lot on this blog don't I?!) and the flavor is out of this world!!! It's not "spicy" so don't be scared to try it! And you don't have to make sandwiches...you can serve it over rice, noddles or mashed potatoes! Or if you love it as much as me - just eat it straight out of the crockpot! LOL! Thanks goes to my friend Aly who gave me this recipe a few years ago!

*My pics for this blog are in no way professional! This one I feel is execptionally not the best! LOL! But they are so good I just hurried and snapped a pic so I could eat!!

Italian Beef Sammies

4-5lb roast (use whatever is cheapest at the store!)
1 can beer (I use Miller Lite)
1 package Italian dressing mix
1 jar sliced pepperonchini's
sliced pepper jack cheese
crusty rolls

Throw the roast, beer, dressing mix, and peppers in the crockpot. Cook on low 6-8 hours. Remove the roast and shred. Return to the crockpot.
Put meat mixture on roll, top with pepper jack cheese. Place assembled sammies in a warm oven (200-250) until cheese is melted. Also makes a great pannini!

*We like to reserve some of the cooking liquid and use as an au jus! When I do this I like to put it in the fridge for a few hours to let the fat harden on top. Remove fat, reheat and dip! 1

Chicken Enchiladas

This recipe was good...not great...but good. Great for picky eaters who don't like a ton of flavor! LOL! I would definitely add more spices next time! But they were easy to make and filling! I'd say 3 out of 5 stars! Ha! And as I'm typing this out I realized I forgot to put in the taco seasoning! LOL! NO wonder they were lacking something!

Chicken Enchiladas

2lbs chicken - cooked and shredded
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 1/4C sour cream
1/4 tsp chili powder
1Tsp butter
1 small onion - chopped
1 can chopped green chilies
1 package taco seasoning mix
1 bunch green onions - chopped and divided
1C water
1tsp lime juice
1/2tsp onion powder
1/2tsp garlic powder
5 flour tortillas
3C shredded cheddar cheese - divided
1 can enchilada sauce

Combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream and chili powder in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, then turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded chicken, green chilies, taco seasoning, half of the green onion and water. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the lime juice, onion powder, and garlic powder. Simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350*. Stir 1 cup of the soup mixture into the skillet with the chicken mixture. Spread the remaining soup mixture on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.
Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the chicken filling before folding the tortillas, reserving half of the shredded cheese for topping the enchiladas. Fold tortillas over the filling and place seam side down in the pan.
Pour enchilada sauce evenly over the enchiladas. Cover with the remaining 1 1/2 cups of cheddar cheese. Sprinkle the reserved chopped green onions on top of the cheese. Bake in the oven until filling is heated through and cheese is melted and bubbling about 25 minutes. 1

Spaghetti

MAKE YOUR OWN SAUCE!!! It's sooo easy! It's cheap and it tastes 100 times better than from a jar/can! PROMISE!! This is my "basic" recipe. If I want a heartier sauce I saute chopped onion, carrots, peppers and celery until soft and then run them through the food processor until smooth and add them to the sauce. Feel free to adjust the herbs to your tastes! I tend to go heavy on the basil - it's my favorite!

Spaghetti

1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 can beef broth
1 cup red wine
1 can tomato paste
2T garlic powder
2T dried basil
2T dried oregano
2T dried parsley
1T crushed red pepper flake

Add all ingredients into a large sauce pan. Simmer on low for 2-3 hours.

*This makes enough sauce for 2lbs of hamburger and 2lbs of pasta. I usually reserve half of the sauce and freeze it in a ziplock baggie. It freezes GREAT! So feel free to double, triple, ect the recipe and stock up on spaghetti sauce!! 1

Beefy Tomato Mac

My mom made this a lot when I was younger...so it's comfort food to me! It's simple, it fills you up and I usually have all the ingredients on hand so it's great for those nights when the cupboards are looking a little bare!

Beefy Tomato Mac

1lb ground beef (cooked)
1 box mac 'n' cheese (prepared)
2T chili powder
1 can condensed tomato soup
1C shredded cheddar cheese

Mix together everything but the shredded cheese. Pour into an 8x8 baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese and bake at 325* until the cheese is melted and everything is heated through...about 20-30mins. 1