Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies!

Hello again! So it is time for something sweet. As I said last time I had family coming into town so I wanted to make something sweet to bring over to my parents house! I came up with these and they were such a hit!! The perfect combination of sweet and salty! Super easy! Enjoy!


Ingredients:
-3/4 cup of granulated sugar
-3/4 cup of packed brown sugar
-12 Tbsp of butter or 3/4 of a cup (softened)
-2 eggs
-2 tsp of vanilla
-2 1/4 cups of flour-(you can always add more if you think it looks sticky)
-1 tsp of baking soda
-1/2 teaspoon of salt
-1 bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
-2 cups broken pretzels

First thing you need to do is cream together your butter and sugars. Then add in your eggs, vanilla, baking soda and salt.

Next you need to gradually beat in your flour. This shouldn't be too hard just turn the mixer up a notch or two! Next crush your pretzels in a large Ziploc. I just used my fists, you want them to be broken into pieces but not smashed to smithereens! Now add in the chocolate chips and pretzels.

Now hand mix these in so you don't crush the pretzels anymore!
Drop onto no stick or parchment lined baking sheets. Use a tablespoon they don't expand too much.

Bake at 350 degrees for 11 minutes! Then devour them yourself before anyone else figures out how good they are! ;)

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Crab Au Gratin


I know I know I am taking forever to get these posts up but its a big week! Tuesday was Matt's birthday and Sunday is mine but we are celebrating tomorrow because my brother and his fiance are coming in town!!

Anyways tonight Matt had kick ball so I decide to make Crab Au Gratin from a Cajun cook book my mom gave me! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 stick butter
1 medium onion
2 celery stalks
1 green pepper
4 Tbsp of flour
2 large egg yolks (whisked)
1 can carnation evaporated milk
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 cans Lump Crab meat
1 jar sliced mushrooms
salt and pepper to taste
1 block sharp cheddar cheese

First chop up the onion, pepper and celery
Next add them to a skillet with the melted stick of butter. This is what the Cajun's call "the holy trinity". It is the basis for most Cajun dishes. Next add in the flour, milk and soup let it thicken for a minute or so then put on another burner and allow to cool for around 5 minutes.

After it cools add in the 2 egg yolks. Now you will stir in the the crab (drained)

As well as the salt and pepper, mushrooms and cheese. Save some of the cheese for the top.

Butter a quart casserole dish. Put gratin into dish and top with cheese. Heat oven to 350 degrees and bake until brown on topped. Serve with crackers or crusty french bread.

I promise I will have another update ASAP!


Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Tortellini Bake

Sorry it has been so long since my last post I promise they will be closer. However, we took an impromptu trip to Tallahassee to watch the Aggies win a bid to the College World Series. While we were there we ate the best Cuban food ever so if you ever make it to Tallahassee go to Gordo's on Pensacola St. YUM!

So since its our first full day back I decided to do something super easy but very yummy my Tortellini Bake!



Ingredients
- 1-2 Tbsp of olive oil
- 1/2 onion
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 8 slices of pepperoni
- 8 slices of Genoa salami
- 1/4 cup of Philadelphia Cooking Creme Italian and Herbs
- 1 package fresh or frozen tortellini ( I prefer the bertolli four cheese)
- 1/2 cup of pasta sauce of your choice
-3/4 cup of Mozzarella

First go ahead and boil your tortellini and set it aside while your prep everything else. Also preheat the oven  to 350 degrees.
Next you need to put the olive oil into your skillet and get it hot. Then go ahead and mince your onion and garlic and throw it in the skillet.

Next slice up the pepperoni and salami I usually cut it into strips and then squares.

Add the salami and pepperoni to the skillet and allow it to simmer. Next add the Philadelphia cooking creme! I love this stuff so versatile when cooking Italian dishes!

After adding the creme go ahead and add your pasta sauce and about a 1/4 of the mozzarella grated.

Now it looks somewhat like a rose sauce. Now take the tortellini and mix it into the sauce and put into an 8x8 baking dish. Add the rest of your grated mozzarella over the top and bake for 10-15 minutes. Now you have a delicious easy dish! You can put anything you want into this from grilled chicken, sausage or veggies! Make it your own!

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

My first Post

Well I finally followed through and decided to start the food blog that I have been talking about doing forever! Lately I have started cooking a lot more and not going by recipes so the things that have come out well I decided to blog about!
First up is Creamy Black Bean Soup. This was super easy and really delicious! It makes a lot so its something you could make on a Sunday or Monday and have again later in the week! I hope you enjoy!

Recipe:
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion diced
2 cloves of garlic minced
3 cans of Bushes Black Beans (drained)
2 cups of chicken broth/stock-whichever you have is fine
1 can of Rotel (I prefer it with the lime juice and cilantro)
1 teaspoon of chili powder
1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon of oregano
1 tablespoon of cumin
1 avocado
sour cream
grated white cheddar

First go ahead and get your garlic and onion chopped. Put it in a skillet with the olive oil. Simmer for about 5-6 minutes.

In a pot put the 3 cans of drained beans, the chicken broth and the rotel. Heat over medium heat for about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

You will need to blend the beans in batches adding a small amount of the onion and garlic mixture to each.Once all is blended put it back into soup pot and heat on medium for about 5-10 minutes.

Garnish with avocado slices, sour cream and cheese! DELICIOUS! Very healthy with a large amount of protein!

Let me know what you guys think! Feedback is awesome!