Chocolate Filled Peanut Butter Bars

These bars are delicious! Hands down. The chocolate filling gives then a brownie like texture but stay just crisp enough to be called a cookie bar.

I originally got this recipe off the back of a Reese's baking cups and pieces bag, but changed a couple things.

p.s. condensed milk and evaporated milk are NOT the same! Condensed is sweetened and evaporated is not.

Chocolate-Filled Peanut Butter Bars

1 cup butter (2 sticks) softened and divided

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

2 cups packed brown sugar

2 eggs

2 1/2 tsp vanilla, divided

2 1/2 cups rolled oats

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2/3 cup powdered cocoa

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk

1 1/4 cups mini Reese's peanut butter cups and Reese's pieces (combined)

1/2 cup mini M & M baking pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a large mixing bowl, beat 1/2 cup butter, peanut butter and brown sugar until well blended.

Then, add eggs and 1 teaspoon of vanilla, beat until light and fluffy.

Stir in oats, flour, baking soda and salt. The mixture will be thick.

Reserve 2 cups on the dough and set aside.

Press the dough evenly into an ungreased 15 x 10 x 1 inch jelly roll pan.

Melt the remaining 1/2 cup butter in a medium size sauce pan over low heat. 

Then stir in cocoa and sugar. Add the sweetened condensed milk, stirring until smooth and thick.

Remove from heat and add the 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.

Spread chocolate mixture on the dough. 

Sprinkle the top of the chocolate with the baking cups and pieces and M & Ms. 

Crumble the remaining reserved dough evenly over the top.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely, cut into bars.

Depending on how you cut them they make up to about 4 dozen bars.

Taco Seasoning

Taco Seasoning

1 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/2 tsp. oregano

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Mix with 1 lb. ground meat of your choice. 

"Loaded" Peanut Butter Cookies

"Loaded" peanut butter cookies sound just as they are. Pack full of peanuts, peanut butter chips and Reese's pieces candies.

YUM.

This is what I call the ultimate cookie.

"Loaded" Peanut Butter Cookie

1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt 

1/2 cup whole roasted unsalted peanuts

1/2 cup peanut butter baking chips

1/2 cup Reese's Pieces

(or you can buy all the mix in together, Sam's Choice makes a great mixture called Peanut Lovers' Blend)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat together in a large mixing bowl (or mixer), peanut butter, butter and both sugars.

Then add eggs and vanilla, beating until smooth and creamy.

Next, add flour, baking soda and salt to the wet mixture until combined.

Finally stir in the mix-ins of peanuts, peanut chips and Reese's Pieces.

You can use a spoon or cookie scoop, place on cookie sheet, be it greased or silicone baking mat, 1 inch apart. 

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes (depending how hot your oven gets, mine runs hotter).

Allow to cool for a couple minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

This mix is great if you don't feel like or you find that all the mix-ins bought separately can be costly.

Butter Toffee Icebox Cookies

You know me, I cut to the chase. I wouldn't bore you with back stories or random stories.

With this one, I found a list of ingredients but no instructions. But it's icebox cookies, no brainer.
Enjoy!

You will need some plastic wrap for this recipe.

Butter Toffee Icebox Cookies

 

 

Preheat oven: 350 degrees

2 1/2 cups All-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 cup butter (softened)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1 cup Heath toffee bits

Cream the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl.

Then add the egg and vanilla, beat until smooth.

Next add the flour a cup at a time. 

Finally mix in the toffee bits.

 Take the dough and shape it into a foot and a half long log.

Lay a long piece of plastic wrap on a work surface, about 2 feet.

Wrap the log tightly in the plastic wrap and place in the fridge for two hours, or until firm.

Unwrap the dough and cut with a sharp knife into 1/4 inch slices.

Place the slices on a cookie sheet an inch apart. Bake for 9 minutes or until firm and light golden color.

Note: Keep unbaked slices in the fridge to keep cold in between batches.

Makes about 30 cookies.

Homemade Marshmallows

I love marshmallows. I like to eat them as a snack while watching TV or reading.
S'mores are good too.
Melted in my hot chocolate is also great.
I love them so much that I decided to make them myself. And what I found out is that they are slightly sweeter then the store bought ones.

Marshmallows

thick ooey gooey yumminess

 

2 1/2 Tablespoons of Unflavored Gelatin {approximately 3 1/2 envelopes}
2 Cups Cold Water
1 1/2 Cups Sugar
1 Cup Light Corn Syrup
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Vanilla Extract
Confectioners’ Sugar (powdered sugar for dusting)

Combine unflavored gelatin and half of the cold water (1/2cup) into the mixing bowl. Let sit for 30 minutes.

In a small saucepan, combine granulated sugar, corn syrup, salt and the rest of the 1/2 cup of water. Over low heat, stir constantly until the sugar has dissolved.

Turn the heat to high and boil mixture, do not stir, until it reaches 244°on a candy thermometer. (Approximately 12 minutes) 

Immediately remove pan from heat.

Mix on low speed, slowly pour the syrupy mixture into the gelatin.

Turn up the speed to high and beat until very thick, white and nearly tripled in volume. (About 15 minutes) Add vanilla, mix until incorporated.

Now the, ahem, the fun part.

Spray a 13 x 9 glass pan with non-stick spray and dust with powdered sugar.  Pour marshmallow mixture into pan and sift/sprinkle a good layer of powdered sugar on top. Wet your hands (to prevent sticking) and gently press on mixture, making sure it is even in the pan and somewhat smooth. Sift/sprinkle another coating of powdered sugar on top and place uncovered in the fridge for about 3 hours or up to 24 hours.

Or until firm.

Dust a cutting board with powdered sugar. Run a knife around the edges of the pan and flip it over. You may need to use your fingertips to pull the marshmallow out. Be gentle or you may rip the block of marshmallow.

With a knife, cut into squares. Dust the knife before each cut with powdered sugar. A clean dry knife helps keep the cuts clean and square. Toss the cut marshmallows with powdered sugar to fully coat in a large gallon sized zipper baggie (or large bowl, but that tends to get messy). This helps to prevent them from sticking together. 

They will keep for several weeks in an airtight container.

I tried them out at a friend's house by making s'mores.

They were a hit!

Popovers

One of my childhood memories is my mom would make popovers in the morning for special occations. 

Although these are easy to make they do take a while to bake, but totally worth it. 

 

Popovers

Preheat to 400 degrees.

2 beaten eggs
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
(1 tablespoon shortening or cooking spray)

You can use an actual popover pan or muffin pan, grease (or spray) each cup, bottoms and sides.

Now start in a medium mixing bowl, whisk eggs first, then add milk and oil until combined the add the flour beat until smooth. The mixture will be runny.

Fill the prepared cups half full with batter.

Bake for 40 minutes or until very firm.

Remove immediately from oven and prick the tops with a fork to let the steam escape (the trapped moisture will soften the popovers and make them soggy).

For crisper popovers, return to the oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
Remove popovers from cups and serve immediately.
I used a muffin pan so it made 10 popovers, with a popover pan it should make about 6.

The version that I made are made with cinnamon.
Add 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon to the flour before pouring into the wet mixture.

Finally, you can fill with butter, jam or honey. Really, pretty much whatever you want.

Enjoy!

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies are one of my favorite cookies. EVER.

I may or may not have eaten half the batch already.

Here is a classic recipe of these yummy yum delicious cookies.

 Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

3/4 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon*

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 3/4 cups old fashioned oats

1 cup raisins

*I tend to put more cinnamon then what the recipe calls for. I'm a cinnamon freak.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, and both sugar until smooth.

Beat in the eggs and vanilla until fluffy.

Next, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

Slowly mix in the dry ingredients into the butter mixture.

Finally fold in the oats and raisins.

Use a cookie scoop or drop by rounded teaspoons onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.

Bake 8-10 minutes, I like my cookies on the soft side so I bake mine just until the start to brown around the edges, yet still soft and a tiny bit gooey in the middle.