Bon Bons

*Ingredients
1 boxed cake mix of any flavor
1 can of coordinating frosting
Dipping chocolate

*Directions
*Prepare cake mix according to directions (baking included).
*Let the cake cool for about 15 minutes and then crumble into a large bowl.
*Pour in the frosting and mix until all the cake is moist (I put the frosting in the microwave for a few seconds so it would pour and mix more evenly). Cool in the fridge for 10-20 minutes.
*Form the mixture into balls of desired size and put on wax paper. Freeze for about an hour.
* Melt desired chocolate and dip balls into it. (It took us a while to find a method that worked but we left the ball on the wax paper and would pour about a tablespoon of chocolate over top of the ball and spread it around with our spoon. It was a lot less messy!!)

Some of the flavor combinations we did:
Lemon Cake with Lemon Frosting dipped in White chocolate (YUMM! This was a favorite)
Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting dipped in Milk Chocolate or melted Mint chips.

We did't do this but thought it would be yummy to dip the chocolate cake balls in those reeces chips.... Yum! The combinations are endless!!

WORD TO THE WISE: we tried to dye our white chocolate red with my water based food coloring... NOT a good idea! You must use the paste form of food coloring or the chocolate will sieze up.

Twice-Baked Sweet Potatoes

2 large sweet potatoes
2 oz cream cheese
2 TBS milk
1 TBS brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup pecan pieces

Preheat oven to 425. Cut potatoes in half, lengthwise. Place cut sides down on cookie sheet lined with foil. Bake 30 mins or until tender. Scoop out centers into a bowl. Add cream cheese, milk, sugar, and cinnamon. Mash until well blended. Spoon mixture back into potato shells. Top with nuts. Bake 8 mins or until heated through and nuts are toasted.

*So yummy! I think I might make them again tonight! The sweet potatoes I bought were a little small so I did 3 of them and only cooked them for about 25 mins.

Lemon & Garlic Chicken Pasta

This is one of my go-to recipes. I always have the stuff on hand, it's SUPER easy and tastes exceptional! The original recipe calls for shrimp in stead of chicken, but I always have chicken on hand and Kyle prefers it so we sub it for the shirimp. But either is tasty! I was going to take a picture last night when I made it but my camera was dead. Sad.
I don't measure... I will give you ingredients and a rough amount but feel free to alter to your liking :)

*Ingredients
Angel hair or Spaghetti Pasta
1-2 Chicken breasts
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper
2-3 Tbs Lemon Juice
1 tsp Minced Garlic (I buy in the jar)
1 tsp chopped fresh Parsley
1/4 cup grated Parmasean Cheese (you may want more... this stuff is good in this dish!)
1 tsp Butter (optional)

*Directions
Get your pasta boiling.. however much you need for howmany you are feeding, I just guess :)

Slice chicken into bitesize pieces salt and pepper them and put in a saute pan with enough olive oil to coat the pan. Add Lemon Juice and cook until chicken is done and browned on the outside.
Drain pasta and put back in the pan you cooked it in. Add chicken, chopped parsley, garlic, salt and pepper, and grated parmasean cheese. Toss together and if it's still a little dry (which it usually is) I like to add a little more lemon juice, some butter, a dash of olive oil and toss again. I used to cook the Garlic with the chicken but then it always ended up burning. I resorted to adding it after and it still tastes just as good!
The cheese melts and give this dish the perfect consistency! And the parsley makes it taste fresh! We absolutely love it. And the best part is... it doesn't get any easier than this recipe!

Easy Pizza Crust

My sister gave this recipe one day when I was short on time. Okay, I took a nap and forgot to make the dough and I didn't have to wait for it to rise, but this one is pretty good!

Mix together:
1 TBS yeast
1 TBS oil
1 TBS honey
1 cup warm water

Add 3 cups of flour and mix well and knead. Roll out on lightly floured surface to fit pizza pan.
Makes one large pizza crust. Cover with toppings and bake!

Bake on greased cookie sheet 475 10-12 mins

I always forget to grease my pizza pan, but its non-stick :) And I use a little less than 3 cups, I find 3 is a bit too much, but if I forget, then I just sprinkle it with water as I knead and roll it out.
I also substitute 1 cup whole wheat flour. Oh, and I just use my Kitchen Aid to mix it up. We like our crust a little thinner so I roll it out as thin as I can, place it on the pizza pan, cut off the excess and then press it even thinner, removing the extra dough as I go. It still rises pretty good in the oven. And then I have enough dough to make another smaller pizza. Our favorite is BBQ chicken.

BBC Chicken Pizza
Cover dough/crust with fav BBQ sauce, sprinkle mozzarella cheese, top with diced grilled chicken, red onions, cilantro and a sprinkling of smoked gouda (or any smoked cheese, I think last time all I could find was a blend of smoked swiss and chedder). YUM!

Oh one more thing! Lately the boys have been wanting Hawiian, which is good, but kinda bland to me so I put seasoning on it. Mrs. Dash makes a really good seasoning for pizza. It's the Tomato, Basil, Garlic one, (red lid) and its really yummy on pizza!

Okay, I think I'm done rambling...

Sweet Dinner Rolls

My boys (Dallas included) can't get enough of these! Super easy and yummy!

Place into bread machine in order:
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1/3 cup soft butter
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
3 3/4 cups flour
1 packet of yeast (2 1/4 tsps)

Select dough cycle. When done, dump out dough onto lightly floured surface. Divide in half. Form 12 inch circle, spread with melted butter. With pizza cutter slice into 8 pieces, roll up, big end to little end (like Jan does). Place on ungreased cookie sheet, cover lightly with plastic wrap, let rise 1 hour. Bake at 400 for 10 mins. Brush with melted butter.

Yum, Yum, Yum!! These don't last long! This last time I made them, I made the circle bigger, rolled it out so they were a little thinner and cut 12 slices I think? And they were still pretty big when they came out of the oven. Also, I made orange rolls with 1/2 of the dough (somewhat followed Lion House directions) and they were yummy!!!!

Spinach Chicken & Pasta Salad with Teriyaki Vinaigrette

Recipe from My Kitchen Cafe

Plan ahead... pasta needs to marinate in the dressing for at least an hour.

*Dressing:1 cup canola oil

1/3 - 2/3 cup bottled teriyaki sauce

1/3 cup rice vinegar

1/3 cup cider vinegar

6 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

*Salad:16 oz. bow tie pasta, cooked al dente, drained and cooled

1 bag fresh spinach (9 - 10 oz)

6 oz. craisins

2 (11 oz.) cans mandarin oranges,

drained1 (8 oz.)

1 can water chestnuts, drained and slivered

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

4 green onions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)

1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted

6 oz. honey roasted peanuts

2 cups cooked chicken, tossed with 2-3 tablespoons teriyaki sauce

In a blender, combine all the dressing ingredients and blend until well combined and smooth. Mix about 1 cup of the dressing with the cooked pasta in a large bowl and marinate for at least one hour (You can leave this step out and it will still have good results). Combine the remaining salad ingredients in a large bowl. Just before serving, add pasta and toss. Add dressing to taste and toss. Serve immediately.

I havent tried this but I really want to!! :)

Chicken Wild Rice Chowder

Ingredients:
2 cups sliced fresh carrots
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) chicken broth
2-2/3 cups cubed cooked chicken breast
1 package (8.8 ounces) ready-to-serve long grain and wild rice (Uncle Ben's Ready Rice)
1/4 cup half-and-half cream
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
In a large saucepan, saute the carrots, onion and celery in butter until tender. Stir in flour until blended; gradually add broth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in the chicken, rice, cream and pepper; heat through. Yield: 4 servings.

*This is one of Dall's favorites. So yummy and easy and if I would have planned better, I could have made your breadsticks to go along!

Copy That: Olive Garden Breadsticks

Aother recipe courtesy of my wonderful Foodnetwork Magazine!! (Love it!)

Ingredients

For the Dough:
1 package active dry yeast
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour,plus more for dusting
2 tablespoons unsalted butter,softened
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon fine salt

For the Topping
3 tablespoons unsalted butter,melted
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Pinch of dried oregano

Directions
Make the dough: Place 1/4 cup warm water in the bowl of a mixer; sprinkle in the yeast and set aside until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the flour, butter, sugar, fine salt and 1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons warm water; mix with the paddle attachment until a slightly sticky dough forms, 5 minutes.
Knead the dough by hand on a floured surface until very smooth and soft, 3 minutes. Roll into a 2-foot-long log; cut into 16 1 1/2-inch-long pieces. Knead each piece slightly and shape into a 7-inch-long breadstick; arrange 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with a cloth; let rise in a warm spot until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Make the topping: Brush the breadsticks with 1 1/2 tablespoons of the butter and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt. Bake until lightly golden, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt with the garlic powder and oregano. Brush the warm breadsticks with the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter and sprinkle with the flavored salt.

These were REALLY yummy! And they tasted so much like the real thing! I didnt have white flour the day I made them so I used wheat flour and they still tasted super good!! Im sure your boys will love them! :) Its a mini loaf of bread for Carter so he doesn't have to eat your frecnh bread loaf :) haha!

Pumpkin Waffles with Nutmeg Syrup

I made these for dinner tonight, so yummy!!

Pumpkin Waffles
1 cup plus 2 TBS all purpose flour
2 TBS brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 TBS butter, melted

In a large bowl, combine first six ingredients. In another bowl, combine eggs, milk, pumpkin, and butter; stir into dry ingredients just until combined. Bake in waffle iron until golden brown.

Nutmeg Syrup *This makes a ton! Definetely half it.*
1 cup sugar
2 TBS all purpose flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 cups cold water
2 TBS butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and water until smooth. Bring to a boil, cook and stir for 2 mins until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. (I stored the extra in the fridge, we'll see how it reheats...) *Oh, and I didn't have nutmeg, so I just added a dash of cloves and allspice.

Just add some bacon or sausage, and voila! A yummy breakfast or dinner. I love breakfast for dinner! The boys will always eat it and they definetely loved these!

Pumpkin Muffins

1 package spice cake
1 small can pumpkin
1/4 milk

Topping
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup butter
(I used a fork, but I really need to get a pastry blender!)

Mix together. Drop by spoonfuls into paper-lined muffin tin. Sprinkle lots and lots of topping on. Bake 350 for 13-15 mins in a mini pan, or about 20 in a regular pan. (I guess.)

This weekend I make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, using the same recipe, minus the milk and topping and Carter loved them! So I thought I would make him "cupcakes" for breakfast. Totally experimental, but I think they turned out yummy! I got 2 batches cause I used the mini muffin tin. One problem I had, nobody will eat them but me........

Southwestern Chicken

Crockpot Southwestern Chicken courtesy of Sisters Cafe
1 small bag frozen corn
1 can black beans
2 large frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used 6 chicken tenders cause I was using my smaller crock pot and they fit better)
1 16-oz jar medium salsa, such as Pace medium picante sauce
shredded cheddar cheese
tortilla chips
sour cream
chopped cilantro
diced avocado
Pour bag of frozen corn in bottom of crockpot. Place frozen chicken breasts on top of corn and cover with rinsed and drained black beans and jar of medium salsa. Cook on high for 1 hour, and then on low for 4 hours. Shred chicken with forks. Serve with tortilla chips and add toppings to individual servings.
Her notes - **It is very important that you use MEDIUM salsa in this. Mild simply isn't flavorful enough. Be sure to serve with tortilla chips, and not tortillas. The salty crunchy chips make this so good!
My notes - I am not a big fan of regular salsa, like Pace. I did use it and it turned out good, but next time I think I will use my favorite one, a roasted red salsa. This was really good! We ate it like a taco salad. So easy to put together! I shredded the chicken and then let it sit another 30 mins before we ate.

Candy Corn Cookie Bark

Mmmmm this was Soo good! I got it from Your Home Based Mom I made a batch and ate the whole thing myself! Not kidding. Kyle had a tiny bowl full and I devoured the rest. Thank you very much. I am going to make another batch and give it to my visiting teach-ees in celophane or a cute halloween cup (seen below from home based mom).

But for myself, I got a cute cookie jar, tied some halloween ribbon around it and put my Halloween Cookie Bark in, and well, thats my haloween decor haha. But really - You should try this! Be ware - Its addicting!!

Candy Corn Cookie Bark

14 whole Oreos, broken up. I used the Halloween ones with the orange filling but regular will work fine

1 1/2 C pretzels, broken into pieces. I used the small stick pretzels

1 lb. white chocolate, almond bark or melts found in the bulk food section, or white chocolate chips

1 C candy corn

brown and orange colored sprinkles

Cover a large cookie sheet with wax paper. Spread broken cookes, pretzels and about 3/4 C of the candy corn onto the waxed paper. Place white chocolate in a container and microwave for 1 1/2 minutes. Stir and then microwave for another 30 seconds until melted and smooth. White chocolate melts faster and burns easier than chocolate.

Drizzle the melted chocolate over the cookie mixture, spreading with spatula if needed to coat evenly. Sprinkle remaining candy corn and colored sprinkles over the chocolate while it is still wet. Do not let it harden. Place

cookie tray into refrigerator until set and firm. Remove and gently break bark into small pieces. Store in air tight container.

MMM Yum!

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas from Your HomeBased Mom
6 Tbsp honey
5 Tbsp fresh lime juice (1-2 limes)
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
2-3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
8 – 10 flour tortillas (depending on size)
1 lb of a Mexican blend cheese (monterey jack, colby, cheddar), shredded
1 large can of green enchilada sauce (or 2 small 10 oz cans)

Mix the honey, lime juice, chili powder and garlic powder together with the shredded chicken. Allow it to sit for at least 1/2 hour or you could do it hours before and just cover and refrigerate.
Pour 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce into bottom of a 9 x 13 pan. Place chicken and cheese into middle of a tortilla and spoon about 1 tablespoon of enchilada sauce over it and roll up. Place seam down in the pan. Reserve about 1-2 cups of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas. Pour enchilada sauce over the top of rolled enchiladas (reserve a little bit to add after they are baked) and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly.

*Dallas loved these! I put salsa (best salsa ever Aribba Fire Roasted Tomato Salsa, Mild, I get it at Fred Meyers, the best ever!) on mine cause I like my food a little spicier. They were really good. Funny story - I was talking to Candria this morning and she was making the same thing! Except she got her recipe from My Kitchen Cafe. So hers called for some cream. I haven't asked her yet how they turned out. I halved this for us and got 5 out of it.

White Chicken Chili

(I forgot to take a picture, but I copied this recipe out of one of Jans magazines.)

2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in half lengthwise then sliced crosswise (yup, that's what the recipe says!)
1 large onion chopped, about 1 cup (it seemed like alot so I just did half)
1 large red bell pepper, chopped, about 1 1/2 cups
4 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped (I just used the jar minced)
1 can (15.25 oz) corn, drained
1 can (15 to 16 oz) great northern beans, drained and rinsed (all I could find was simply white beans)
2 jars 8 oz each green taco sauce (I just bought a large jar, it was 15 oz)
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 tsp salt
Fresh cilantro

Spray 3-4 quart slow cooker with cooking spray. In cooker, mix all ingredients except cilantro. Cover; cook on low for 6-7 hours. Stir well and garnish with cilantro.

I was worried nobody would eat it cause it was kinda tangy? maybe? But Dall and Braden loved it! I topped ours with cilantro, lots of it cause I love it! and some shredded mexican blend cheese. Next time, I think I will stir some sour cream in to mellow it just a bit. The next day, I warmed the leftovers and served them in tortillas, like a burrito. I think it was better that way! Our SuperWalmart sells the uncooked tortillas like Costco, by the cheese. I wonder if yours does? If not, I am so bringing you some next time! They are the best!

Simple Fudge

Now that it has *SNOWED* I guess the only good thing about it is cozy food, and Christmas candy :) So I will try to keep my spirits up, even though it's Freezing outside, by posting a yummy fudge recipe I found on Kelsey Nixon's food blog (Yes the Kelsey Nixon who was on The Next Food Network Challenge, and Yes I found her blog! haha). I love this girl, she was even on a commercial for food storage after conference haha.
I have yet to try this fudge... but it looks Yummy! AND I bet you could substitute the milk chocolate chips for WHITE chocolate, or any other kind of "chip" would be good too. Although I like white chocolate best!
As Kelsey Says , it's "a basic fudge recipe that could act as a blank canvas making it perfect to customize to your liking. Robby would like nuts while I think I would enjoy just a hint of orange zest or crushed peppermint. Stick this one in the holiday file folks."

Servings: 32 bite size servings

INGREDIENTS
1 lb. quality chocolate, chopped
1/2 stick unsalted butter
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS
Line bottom of an 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper or wax paperHeat all ingredients in a metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.Pour into baking pan and chill, uncovered, until firm, about 3-4 hours. Run a knife around edges of pan and invert fudge onto a work surface. Remove parchment and cut fudge into bite size pieces. Serve chilled.

Sounds easy enough for me! :) YAY!