Christmas Cookies

I love to decorate Chrismas cookies! I had some new cookie cutters to try out this year so here they are..
I tried to spruce 'em up a bit with some sugar crystals :)

The snowmen didn't turn out quite how I had envisioned, but they were still fun to play around with.

Merry Christmas and happy baking!

Sausage Pinwheels

These little things are delicious! Perfect for a party or to whip up when company is coming over.

Here's what you'll need:

• 1/2 lb breakfast sausage
• 1 package croissant dough
• grated cheddar cheese
• chopped green onions

First, roll out the croissant dough and piece together each triangle to form a solid rectangle. Roll this out a bit to thin the dough...I'd guess it's around 11x13 or so in size...

Now with your sausage (it's 1/2 of the package of the standard breakfast sausage), spread it out over the croissant dough.

Sprinkle on a handful of grated cheese and top with chopped green onions.

Roll your creation up like you're making cinnamon rolls (roll the longest side), and slice into about 1 inch thick pieces.

Place on a cookie sheet and bake following the directions on the croissant package.

Serve and enjoy!

Turtles

This is a super quick (and delicious) treat for the Holidays.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place mini pretzles (I used the square ones since the holes are smaller) on a baking sheet. Top each pretzel with a Rolo and bake for 4 minutes.

As soon as you take 'em out of the oven, press a pecan half down on each one and transfer to wax paper to cool.

Oreo Rice Krispie Treats

Rice Krispies are probably my favorite dessert in the universe. I *love* rice krispie treats! I'll take a rice krispie treat over a fancy smancy dessert any day.

I usually do a sprinkle of cinnamon when I make them, but this time I thought I'd try oreos. I had some oreos left over from these chocolate chip cookies, so to keep Danny and I from eating them all, I decided to make rice krispies. Why I thought this would be better for us than just eating the oreos, I have no idea. It's how I justify things.

So it's plain and simple. I made the Rice Krispie treat recipe off the cereal box and substituted 1 of the cups of Rice Krispies with 1 cup crushed oreos.


Serve and enjoy!

Creamy Rosemary Potatoes

I absolutely love au gratin potatoes, so when I saw this recipe in my Pioneer Woman cookbook I had to try it. Not the healthiest, but come on, are potatoes ever healthy??

Here's the recipe with a few minor changes.
Ingredients:

• 5-6 potatoes
• 1/2 stick butter (4 tablespoons)
• 1 small/medium onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup half & half
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons rosemary
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
• pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Thinly slice your potatoes.

Combine the milk and half & half. Place all the sliced potatoes in a large bowl, and pour half of the milk mixture over them and set aside.

In a large skillet, melt the butter and then add your garlic and onion. Cook about 4-5 minutes or so over medium low heat.

Add the softened cream cheese to the skillet. Cook and stir until the cream cheese is smooth and combined in. Pour in the remaining half of the milk mixture then add your salt and pepper to taste. Now throw in your green onions and rosemary.

Stir in 1/2 cup of the Parmesan.

Spray a large baking dish with Pam and add your soaked sliced potatoes. Pour the skillet mixture over the potatoes, and sprinkle the last 1/2 cup of Parmesan on top.

Bake for about an hour, or until it's nice and golden brown.

Add some parsley on top before serving to give it some color. :)

Enjoy!

Mom's Butter Baked Chicken

My mom calls this creation of hers butter-baked chicken. Can't go wrong with that! This chicken is super delicious. It's easy to throw together and it comes out nice and moist!

Here's what you'll need for 4 servings:

• 4 chicken breasts (I use boneless skinless)
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 can Cream of Chicken soup
• 1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 425

First, pour a little of the evaporated milk in a small dish...just enough to dip your chicken in. After you dip each piece of chicken in the milk, roll it in the flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Melt butter in 13x9 pan and cook the chicken in the melted butter for 30 minutes at 425.

Mix water, can of soup, and what's left in your can of evaporated milk together. Turn chicken over after 30 minutes of baking and pour soup mixture on top. Bake for 30 more minutes until nice and golden brown.

The gravy this creates is delicious! It's great if you want to cook some mashed potatoes to go along with it. Mmmmmm....

Golf Cookies

These are the cookies I made for my dad's 50th birthday party. Super easy to make!

Here's my sister - queen of the cupcakes!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Baby Cookies

I love decorating cookies, so any excuse I can find works for me! Here are some cookies my mom and I made when she was in town for the weekend. Hope you enjoyed them Kacie!


You can find the recipe for the cookies here. Happy baking!

Green Goddess Dressing

This salad dressing is delicious. It makes me want to eat salads every night for dinner. Seriously. Aaaand Danny wants to eat salads for dinner too. Now that's saying something. :)

What you need:

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup chopped green onions, white and green parts
• 1 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
• 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup sour cream

Add everything except the sour cream to a blender...

Blend until nice and smooth...

Now add the sour cream in and blend just until mixed in...

Refigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!

Cheeseburger Soup

I love this soup. It's perfect for this cooler weather we're finally getting!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1 small chopped onion
• 3/4 cup shredded carrots
• 3/4 cup chopped celery
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 3-4 cubed potatoes
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups cubed Cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/4 cup sour cream

Start off by chopping the onion and celery, and grating the carrots. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large pot and then add your veggies.

Cook your veggies in the melted butter for a few minutes then add your ground beef and cook until brown.

Stir in basil and parsley and then add the broth and chopped potatoes. Bring to a boil and then simmer until potatoes are done...about 10-12 minutes or so. In a separate bowl, mix the flour and milk together. Add this mixture to the pot while stirring constantly. This will thicken up the soup a bit. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer. Add cheese...when melted, throw in the sour cream. Continue simmering on low for a few minutes and then serve up and enjoy!

• On a side note...I actually used leftover queso for the cheese. You know, the velveeta and rotel queso? I had quite a bit of queso leftover from the weekend before and thus the reason for making this soup. The recipe I was semi-following said 2 cups cubed cheddar, so it's up to you. I'll probably use velveeta next time I make this, well, because I just love velveeta.
  
  
  
  

Cookies and Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies and oreos? What a great combination! I absolutely *love* these cookies.

First, start out by making your favorite chocolate chip cookie dough...

Put about 20 oreos in a food processor until they're all crumbs...

Mix your oreo crumbs with 3oz softened cream cheese...

Make a hole in the center of each cookie dough, and with a spoon make little balls with the oreo mix and place in the dough...

Continue doing this for all your cookies, and then cover the oreo part with the cookie dough...

Bake at 350 for about 13-15 minutes until done.

Check out these beauties!!