The Best Brownies Ever with Fudgy Frosting

3 cubes butter

2/3 cup cocoa

6 eggs

3 cups sugar

1 tsp salt

3 tsp vanilla

3 cups flour

 

Melt butter and cocoa together in a pan. Add all other ingredients and mix. Grease a cookie sheet/jelly roll pan (9 1/2 x 13 x 1) Bake at 350 for 20-25 min.

 

FROSTING

 

1 cube butter

5 tbsp milk

3 tbsp cocoa

1 tsp vanilla

4 cups powdered sugar

pinch of salt

 

Melt butter, milk and cocoa on medium low heat until it starts to thicken (3 - 5 minutes). Add vanilla, powdered sugar and a pinch of salt.

 

ENJOY!!!

*D: These are so stinking delicious. The brownie is light, yet still has the density of brownie rather than cake. The frosting really tastes like a layer of fudge to me.

When making the brownies, I added all the ingredients into my mixer, melted the butter and cocoa on then stove, then added that to my mixer. I dirtied two pans, but I think the process was smoother that way.

A note on the frosting. When I added the 4 cups of powdered sugar, it was too thick to stir. I added a tsp of milk and tried again. I probably ended up adding 4 tsp of milk before the frosting turned smooth.

These are delicious and dangerous. Look at the recipe. It takes an entire pound of butter! Luckily it makes a TON. So instead of hoarding them, cut them up and share them. Your thighs, and your friends, will thank you. :)

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Creme Brulee French Toast

1/2 cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 TBSP corn syrup
1 loaf Texas toast bread
5 eggs
1 1/2 cups half & half
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

In a small sauce pan, melt butter, brown sugar and corn syrup over medium heat until smooth - stirring occasionally. Pour mixture onto a lare greased jelly roll pan (18x13x1). Spread to cover surface. Place 12 slices of Texas toast bread in a single layer to cover pan. Mix together eggs, half & half, salt and vanilla. Spoon mixture over each piece of bread. Bake uncovered at 350* for 30 minutes. Remove from pan and serve with syrup butter.

*D: This is such a delicious, SWEET treat of a breakfast! It takes a little preparation, but it's so worth it.

The "jelly roll pan" is just a cookie sheet.

We used Texas toast, but we didn't get 12 pieces to fit. Just squish in what you can. Any sides that touch will stick together. It's no big deal because you can just cut them apart with a spatula.

When the toast is done, I flip it over so the sugary side is on top and custardy side is on the bottom. My husband didn't like that the two sides were different at first, but then I explained that's why it's called creme brulee. There is custard on the bottom and a burnt sugar layer on top.

Really, this is decadent and divine. So worth trying at least once. Pin It

Minty Bells

2/3 c. brown sugar (packed)
1/3 cup of butter (I have only used real butter)
1 TB water
1 c. of semi sweet chocolate chips
1 1/4 cup flour
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 package of Andes mints

On medium heat, stirring constantly, melt brown sugar, butter and water. Add chocolate chips and stir until melted. Remove from heat and let cool 10-15 minutes.  Then add flour, egg and baking soda.

Beat thoroughly.  Cover and chill 1 hour. Shape in balls (I use a cookie scoop) and bake on greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes (they are better cookies soft rather than crunchy--my oven takes 10 min).  Remove from oven and while still on cookie sheet place an Andes mint (or part of one depending on how big your cookies are) on each cookie and gently press down.  Once it has melted use a knife to 'frost' each cookie with the melted mint and move to cooling racks.

Enjoy!

*D: Oh. My. Goodness. These cookies are DELICIOUS!!! You will want to double the batch - at least - every time. SO good.


Use real butter and semi-sweet chips for best results. Once the mint is melted onto the cookie, you can eat it. But, when the mint cools, it forms a bit of a hard frosting, and that is almost better.


Seriously, these are so good. Pin It

Cream Cheese Chicken

4 chicken breasts cubed
1 stick of butter
1 pkg dry Italian Salad Dressing mix
1 8oz pkg of cream cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup

Put chicken, butter and dressing mix in a crock pot on low for 3 hours. Watch it, it cooks fast.

Then turn on high for half an hour. After cooking on high, add the cream cheese and cream of chicken soup. Cook for another half an hour on high.

Serve over rice or noodles. (Penne or egg noodles are yummy.)

*D: This is a recipe I've served and shared with my family. My sister hounded me until I finally put it on my blog to share with the world. :)

I love this dish. It's one of my absolute favorites. I make sure to always have cream cheese and Italian Dressing mix on hand, just in case. I usually follow the directions accordingly because, hey, they're easy.

If you don't have 4 hours, this can be made on the stove top. Melt the butter and cream cheese on low in a saucepan. Add the other sauce ingredients and let it simmer for a while. The chicken can be cooked on the stove top as well. Fry it in a pan - you don't need oil. Chicken creates its own juices. Just don't let it burn. If the pan starts to brown and the chicken is not done, turn down your heat and add a little water. Pin It

German Pancakes

1/4 cup butter/margarine, MELTED

6 eggs

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350*. Beat eggs for 1 1/2 minutes until mixed but not frothy. Add flour and milk, mix until incorporated. Pour melted butter into the bottom of 9X13 pan. Spread batter over butter. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, until puffy. Do not let it brown.

*D: So, Tyler LOVES German Pancakes. The other night we were trying to decide what to eat and a commercial for Denny's came on TV. I saw that stack of pancakes and said, "Breakfast for dinner!" My sister-in-law, Julie, told me once to never underestimate the power of breakfast for dinner. We had BF for dinner growing up, and it's so true. I, for one, don't eat big breakfasts because they make my stomach hurt. I always felt like I was missing out. But, if you eat breakfast for dinner, you actually get to enjoy those tasty meals.

I'd never had German Pancakes until Tyler and I were engaged. They are denser than a regular pancake, with an eggy flavor and feel. But they are softer and lighter than an omelet (and there's no cheese).

Some recipes call for 3/4 cup of both instead of a full cup. Those recipes are fine. I prefer this one because it's easier to remember and measure :). And the egg flavor isn't as strong. It's more pancake than omelet. However, it is a little denser. The recipe says not to let it get brown. Mine got a little brown and it was still fine. Don't feel like you have to throw it away if the edges are caramel colored.

I don't want you to freak out the first time you make these, so here is a quick picture of what it will look like when the timer goes off:

Looks like something from Ghost Busters or something. Don't worry, it falls almost as soon as you pull it out of the oven.


And I've had requests for more pictures so you know whether or not to make something. Here is the picture of German pancakes, ready to eat:

I debated whether or not to add it because, lets be honest, it doesn't look all that appetizing. But, you asked, so there it is.

You just cut it up and serve it with maple syrup. Healthy? Probably not. Delicious? Definitely!

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Peanut Butter Truffle Brownies

Brownie Base
1 box (1 lb 6.5 oz) Betty Crocker® Original Supreme brownie mix
Water, vegetable oil and eggs called for on brownie mix box

Filling

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons milk

Topping

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter


1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom only of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray or shortening. (For easier cutting, line pan with foil, then grease foil on bottom only of pan.)

2. In medium bowl, stir brownie mix, pouch of chocolate syrup, water, oil and eggs until well blended. Spread in pan. Bake 28 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inches from side of pan comes out almost clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

3. In medium bowl, beat filling ingredients with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Spread mixture evenly over brownie base.

4. In small microwavable bowl, microwave topping ingredients uncovered on High 30 to 60 seconds; stir until smooth. Cool 10 minutes; spread over filling. Refrigerate about 30 minutes or until set. For brownies, cut into 9 rows by 4 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Follow High Altitude directions for 13x9-inch pan on brownie mix box

*D: I got this message right off of the Betty Crocker website. I love it because it's easy and takes ingredients I usually have on hand. That makes it nice when I get called to bring a dessert to a dinner party or something. However, this recipe is not a quick one. You have to wait for the brownies to completely cool before to you top them with peanut butter goodness. I used a regular brownie mix but added an extra egg to make them "cake-like." Also, if you use milk chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet, be aware that because there is more fat in them they don't harden as well. I don't know if the butter helps with that or not, so you might just end up with a gooey topped brownie...and no one minds gooey brownies! Pin It

Scotcheroos

1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup light corn syrup
6 cups crisp rice cereal
6 oz chocolate chips
6 oz butterscotch chips

Combine sugar and corn syrup. Heat to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter. Pour over cereal. Press mixture into a buttered 9X13 dish. Melt chips together (approximately 3 minutes in the microwave). Pour over mixture in dish. Spread smooth. Refrigerate 15 minutes. Cut and serve.

*D: I also have another recipe that has you just put the first three ingredients in a pan together and heat until the sugar has dissolved. I have done it both ways and it works just fine. If you don't refrigerate, the chocolate will continue to be gooey/runny. If you cool the scotcheroos, the chocolate topping will be firm and delicious. These are my favorite treat! I could eat a whole pan if I had the stomach for it.


6 cups of rice cereal is about half a box, just FYI. Pin It

Chocolate Mint Brownies

1 cup white sugar (*D - I use 1 1/2 to 2 cups)
1/2 cup butter, softened
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups chocolate syrup
1 cup flour
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened - again
2 TBSP creme de menthe liqueur - or 1 1/2 tsp mint extract and some green food coloring
6 tablespoons butter - again
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9 X 13 dish.

In a large bowl, cream white sugar and 1/2 cup butter until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in chocolate syrup. Stir in flour until just blended. Spread evenly into greased dish.

Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool completely in pan.

In small bowl, beat powdered sugar, 1/2 cup butter or margarine and mint until smooth. Spread over cooled brownies, then chill until set.

In a small bowl over simmering water, or in microwave, melt remaining 6 TBSP of butter and chocolate chips, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Allow to cool slightly, then spread over the mint layer.

Cover and chill for at least one hour before cutting into squares.

*D - I follow this recipe almost exactly (using the mint extract instead of liqueur, of course). It's not very rich on the whole, but in my opinion the mint part is the richest. I melt my chocolate chips in the microwave, starting at 30 seconds and then going 20 second increments after that, stirring each time.


Very delicious! Pin It

Hillary's Carmel Sauce

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk (1/2 cup regular milk with a dash of vinegar)
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp baking soda
vanilla to taste - about 1 1/2 tsp

Melt butter, add buttermilk. Mix in sugar and vanilla. Add the baking soda. The sauce will rise, cook in a tall pan.

This sauce is more like syrup. It's divine on french toast, pancakes, ice cream...pretty much anything. Like I said, it's more like syrup than sauce.


When I was in Ecuador, I'd make myself french toast and carmel sauce every morning after a Noc shift (Noc was the night shift, so we'd go at night and leave when the next group of volunteers got there in the morning).


It's called Hillary's Carmel Sauce because Hillary was one of the project managers, and she introduced us to this recipe. I have since come across it in other cookbooks, but to me it'll always be Hillary's recipe. Pin It

Mom's Five Chip Cookies

1 cup Crisco shortening or butter
2 eggs
2 1/4 c flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 c brown sugar
3/4 c white sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
chips: butterscotch, milk chocolate, semi sweet chocolate, white chocolate, mini kisses or peanut butter or swirls or vanilla.

Beat together shortening and eggs. Add flour, salt and banking soda and mix. Add sugars and vanilla and mix. Stir in chips. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes.



These cookies are absolutely a favorite in our house! My mom sent them to me while I was in Ecuador. Every time we go on a family trip Tyler says, "Are you going to make your mom's cookies?" I think there would be mutiny if I ever tried to make a different kind.


If you notice, there are no measurements for the chips. That's because I don't know how much is supposed to go in. I usually just pour in a bit of all the chips until it looks like there are enough. Maybe a fourth to a half a cup of each. And I usually just use whatever I have in my freezer for variety. That means my cookies are usually four chip: milk, semi-sweet, and white chocolate and butterscotch. Yes, I always have those kinds of chips on hand because Tyler loves cookies, and he loves these cookies.


The recipe says to bake for 8 - 10 minutes. I pull them out right at 8 minutes because I've found that even at 9 minutes they flatten out and turn crispy. So if you like flat, crispy cookies (and some people do!) then you can let them go for a little longer.


Enjoy! Pin It

Dangerous Chocolate Cake

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips, optionals
mall splash of vanilla extract
1 large coffee mug





Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again. Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts (high).

The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired. EAT! (This can serve 2 if you want to feel slightly more virtuous).

And why is this the most dangerous cake recipe in the world?

Because now we are all only 5 minutes away from chocolate cake at any time - day or night!

I'm eating this right now. I'm surprised to discover that's it's light and fluffy. I expected it to be dense and rich. It's pleasant and I don't feel all that bad about eating it all because it's so light.

It may look gross, but trust me, it's delicious. I topped mine with a little chocolate syrup. Next time I'm going to put some cherries on top. Mmmm.

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New York Cheesecake

15 graham crackers (1/2 grahams, so 7 1/2 whole crackers)
2 TBSP butter, melted
4 packages of cream cheese, 8 oz each
1 1/2 c sugar
3/4 c milk
4 eggs
1 c sour cream
1 TBSP vanilla extract
1/4 c flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9" springform pan. This is a springform pan:



There's a glass, or metal, disc in the bottom or the pan and then the latch is released, the disc is removable.

Put the graham crackers in large plastic bag and crush them. I use a rolling pin and it works marvelously. In a medium bowl, mix the graham cracker crumbs and butter together. The mixture will be that of moist crumbs. It will not be wet, and it won't even clump together.

Press the crumbs into the bottom of the greased pan. Press them slightly higher along the edges to create a very shallow lip.

In a large bowl mix cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Blend in milk and then mix in eggs one at a time; just enough to incorporate them. Mix in sour cream, vanilla and flour until smooth.

Pour filling into prepared crust. As you can see, it's very near the top. Yes, it does rise. I have never had it over flow, but I'm not willing to risk it. I put a cookie sheet under the cheesecake just in case.

Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour. Turn oven off and let the cake cool in oven with the door closed for 5 - 6 hours. This prevents cracking.

Chill in refrigerator until serving.

Here you can see the cake has risen out of the pan.

Once it cools, it will condense again. It is important to read the instructions. But it's even more important to follow them. Leave the door closed on the oven, otherwise this will happen:

I wasn't too worried because it all tastes the same. But your cake will not crack if you leave the oven door closed. I promise.

It still looks good anyway, if I do say so myself.

Next you just need to slice it up and "doctor" it (as my in-laws say) to perfection. My drug of choice? Cherry pie filling and chocolate sauce.

Mmmm.

Tell me your mouth isn't watering right now...

Aren't you impressed? If you make this for company or your spouse or your in-laws, they will be impressed too.

And trust me, it tasted as good as it looked.

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Red Lobster Shrimp Scampi

**Warning, this recipe is not cheap, and you must be 21 or older to make it...or at least buy the ingredients.**

1 cup white cooking wine
1/2 c unsalted butter
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled, de-veined
3 tsp minced garlic.

Melt butter and mix with other ingredients. Cover shrimp with butter sauce and bake at 350* for 6-7 minutes. Be careful not to over cook the shrimp (or they will get rubbery). Shrimp is done when it has turned pink.

The last few times we have made this recipe, we have been disappointed that we can feel a burning in our throat as we eat the shrimp...aka not all the alcohol burned off. So we had to keep cooking it until it did burn off, and then the shrimp was over-cooked and it all went to pot.


So. Tonight I made this recipe again and I swore not to get my husband or myself drunk off our shrimp scampi. We value our temple recommends. What I did tonight was melt the butter, we used salted butter (I think it flavors better), and wine in a sauce pan. I cooked it to about boiling, and then I simmered for a few minutes. We also added the garlic while simmering to get the flavor in the sauce. Pour the butter sauce over the shrip and put it in the oven un-covered.


We've used the pre-cooked shrim a few times, so you just have to watch it to know when it's done (because it's already pink). We put the shrimp in the oven for about 8 minutes. We knew it was done when we could open the oven door and not feel like we were walking into a bar. Seriously, if all the alcohol isn't cooked off it smells like a drunk. A very garlicy drunk.


Enjoy! Pin It

Chocolate fondue in a CROCK POT!

I found this awesome recipe here. I knew I just HAD to try it out and I'm so glad I did. It's mondo easy and super good. Here's the recipe:

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (semi-sweet, dark, milk, or white. Your choice.)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
optional (*Note from Deborah: You know that I do not promote the use of alcohol, especially in recipes where the alcohol does not cook off. However, I told you I'd leave recipes in their original form, so I have. Furthermore, I think these may give you an idea of different ways you could flavor your fondue.)
you can doctor this up with:
1 T Grand Marnier
1 T rum1 T Peppermint Schnapps
1 T Bailey's Irish Cream
1 tsp peppermint, orange, coconut, etc. extract
pinch of espresso powder
The Directions.
The proportions here fit into a Little Dipper. Although the booklet that comes with the Little Dipper says that it only holds 1 cup of contents, I proved this wrong with my earth-shattering discovery that a whole can of Progesso Clam Chowder fits perfectly.

If you do not have a Little Dipper (psst. the holidays are coming...) you can put an oven-safe dish inside of a larger crock pot. Do not add water. There's no need to create a water bath for melting chocolate in the crock pot. It melts nice and slow. Or! you can quintuple the recipe and have a good ol' time.

Put chocolate chips in the crock pot. Add the heavy cream and teaspoon of vanilla. Cover. Plug in and cook on low (or the ON setting for the LD) for about an hour. Stir. Serve with apple chunks, banana slices, cubes of pound cake, strawberries, or marshmallows.

Isn't this the perfect recipe? It's easy, it's entertaining, it's delicious, it's impressive, and it is SO good! If I gave out gold stars, this would get five.

I tripled the recipe because we had company coming over. It was more than enough. But that's ok because guess what? It re-warms nice and easy and might almost be better the second day
.

Mmmmm, I love chocolate. Tyler prefers milk chocolate to semi-sweet, so that's what we used. But it might be a little too rich for the faint of heart.

I freeze my chocolate chips to make them last longer. I did put frozen chips in the recipe. It took a little longer for them to melt, but it was ok. It just meant that I had to stir every ten minutes or so to make sure the outside melted chocolate wasn't burning.

In goes the cream. Yes, we used heavy whipping cream like the recipe calls for. You'll only need a pint. Like I said, I tripled the recipe and had about a half cup left of cream.

The melted chocolate makes me think of Willy Wonka and the fat kid who gets sucked up into the tube because he fell in the chocolate river. If the river was made of this chocolate, let me just tell you that it'd be worth it!

And here:

We have Kadie, Kaleb, Ryan and Tyler. We just put the crock pot in the middle and made everyone swear on pain of death that they wouldn't double dip. We served marshmallows (strawberry and regular, but you honestly can't taste anything but fluffy chocolate), pineapple (canned, but you could use fresh if your ambitious), maraschino cherries, banana slices, and apple slices. They were all someone's favorite. We wanted to try strawberries, but they were outrageously expensive.

We're not fancy, we don't have fondue sticks. We just used forks (or hands as Tyler is demonstrating) and they worked swimmingly.

This is so good, you really should try it. It'd be a great dessert idea for company or for Valentine's Day.

Cheers!

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The World's Best Fish Recipe

If your house is like mine, your husband/father/brother/son likes to go out and bring home the bacon...or wild game of some sort. And then you're left scratching your head saying, "What do I do with a dead fish?" Or "how do I prepare elk meat?"

For years Tyler would bring home a fish and expect me to prepare it. And being the doting, loving, submissive wife I am (haha! *snort*), I always obliged. So for years we ate fish seasoned with butter, garlic and dill. Sounds good, right? No. Wrong. It's not good. Wild fish taste like what they eat. What do they eat in a lake or river? A lot of moss and bugs. Yeah. Ew. Butter and dill are great on a salmon or a halibut. But they don't go well with moss.

After that I dreaded Tyler going fishing because I didn't want to have to make whatever he caught. I think he dreaded it too because he didn't want to have to eat it. But then we found a couple of really good recipes, and now we LOVE when he brings home fresh fish!

This is his most recent spoil. Caught from Henry's Lake here in Idaho. Tyler was pretty proud of it. I always look at raw food suspiciously. If it still has scales and fins (or fur or feathers) it's not quite food yet. As soon as it's nicely packaged and sitting on the shelf at the grocery store, then I think of it as food. Anyway, here is the recipe that had no name, so I gave it one:)

The World's Best Fish Recipe

1 salmon fillet (we never catch salmon around here, so we use trout. I'm sure you could buy salmon and use this recipe. And when it says fillet, it's not talking a little chunk of fish, it's talking one half of the fish meat that has been cut away from the scales and bones to make a nice portion of fish.)
2 cups fresh lemon juice (we use concentrated lemon juice, so we only use about a fourth to a half of the called amount)
1 cube butter (yes, it pains me to say that Tyler uses real butter in this recipe. I didn't find this out until last night when he replied, "why do you think you like it so much?")
1 T Fish seasoning of choice (we use Old Bay, but you could use a designated fish seasoning, dill, garlic blend, thyme, a mixture of all kinds of seasonings...)
1/4 cup brown sugar (essential ingredient)
lemon zest (we do without)
black pepper

Preheat the over at 350*.
Make a tin foil bowl (on a cookie sheet) and place the fillet inside. Melt the butter and mix with lemon juice, seasoning, pepper, and brown sugar. Drizzle the butter mixture over the fish.
Once the oven is preheated, switch to broil. Put the fish on the upper rack. Check on the fish after 8 - 9 minutes. Pull the meat using a fork. If the meat is pink and flaky, the fish is done.
Once preheated, switch to broil.

Mmmmm. Look at all that butter! That's liquid gold in our house!


It really is very tasty. It's sweet and tangy and you can't even taste moss:) I hope you get to use this recipe sometime. Pin It

Ranch Chicken with Cheese

1/2 c Hidden Valley Original Ranch Dressing
1 TBSP all-purpose flour
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1 pound)
1/4 c shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese

Combine dressing and flour in a shallow bowl. Coat each chicken breast with dressing mixture. Place on ungreased baking pan. Combine cheddar and Parmesan cheeses; sprinkle on chicken. Bake at 375* for 25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink in center and juices run clear.

First of all, can I just say YUM!!! I LOVE this recipe. Tyler...not so much. He tolerates it for my sake:) I got it out of a Ranch cookbook. All the recipes include Ranch. Heaven. I'm in heaven. Ok, back to earth. This is one of those recipes I've made so much and I changed so long ago that I really don't know what I do. But let me say this, 1/2 cup of Ranch dressing is NOT enough for 4 chicken breasts. I'd double it at least. Then if you need more you can always make more.


Also, who has shredded Parmesan on hand? Not me. I use the fake powder stuff and mix it in with the Ranch and flour.


You know how I am with coating chicken, I just pour the ingredients over the top, making sure there is enough extra sauce for dipping. Then I cover with cheese. I don't sprinkle. Sprinkling is for weaklings. I cover with cheddar cheese. Then I bake until the cheese is melted and the chicken is done. Absolutely delicious! Pin It

Tyler's Mac 'n Cheese!!

This is a coveted recipe, just ask my mom. And actually, for those of you who follow recipe's to the T, sorry, this isn't for you. Ok, so here's what you need to work the magic:


pasta shells (any pasta will work, but really only shells taste good)
green onions (two or three)
garlic (fresh is best, but bottled will do)
oil (olive or canola)
chicken bouillon (powder or cube)
grated cheese (we always use cheddar, but when Tyler was in Russia he used Gouda)

Dice the onions and garlic. Pour a little bit of oil in the pan. You want enough that it covers most of the bottom of the pan, but too much and you'll have very oily mac 'n cheese. Saute the onions and garlic in the oil until the garlic starts to turn a golden brown.

Then pour in the pasta shells. Yup, just pour 'em in. No water, no nothing, just shells. Cook the shells in the pasta for a few minutes, stirring occasionally - frequently. Coat the shells in the oil. After a few minutes, they should also start to brown just a little. You don't want them to burn, but you do want to see signs that they are cooking.

Fill the pan with water to the level of the pasta - just enough to cover the shells. You can always add more later but it's hard to take out, so less is better.

Sprinkle chicken bouillon over the water and stir it in with the pasta. I'd guess maybe a tablespoon or two. If you're using cubes, just one cube probably. Maybe two if you're making a big batch. You get a lot of your flavor from the bouillon, but also all of the salt. Too much and you'll have salty mac 'n cheese.

Bring the water to a boil, then let it simmer. The water should all boil down/off and the shells will be soft. If the water is gone and the shells are still hard, add some more water and boil a little longer. If you still have a lot of water left and your shells are are soft, pour out the excess water.

Pour the grated cheese over the top. I usually grate while the water is boiling. I can't even guess how much to use because it depends on how cheesy you want and how much pasta you've cooked. Mix the cheese in with the pasta (while it's still on low heat) until it melts.

Voila. A delicious meal that is so good! When it's Tyler's turn to cook my options are Hamburger Helper or mac 'n cheese:) Pin It

Sour Cream Potatoes a.k.a Funeral Potatoes

Sour Cream Potatoes

6 medium potatoes peeled, cooked and diced (russets are best)
1 pint sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 tsp. dry minced onion
2 cups cheddar cheese, grated (not sharp)
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix sour cream, soup, onion, and cheese together. Add potatoes and salt/pepper and pour into a 9X13 pan. Bake at 360* until hot and bubbly.

Any recipe that says to bake until bubbly has to be good! Trust me, it is. We usually sprinkle cheese on top since I'm a sucker for cheese. Anyway, it's easy and so good. It's relatively cheap, depending on the price of sour cream and cheese. It's what we call Soul Food. Pin It