Sugar Cookie Bars

These sugar cookie bars are a game changer!  They're baked in a jelly roll pan/cookie sheet so they feed a huge crowd!  They are so easy to make and don't require a lot of ingredients.  Plus they are so delicious- but anything with cream cheese I'll devour!

What you need:

cookies:

1 cup butter- softened

1 1/2 cup sugar

8 oz cream cheese- softened

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

1 tsp baking powder

2 1/2 cup flour

frosting:

1/2 cup butter- softened

8 oz cream cheese softened

2 tsp vanilla extract

3 1/2 cup powder sugar

- Preheat oven 350 degrees.

- Cream together butter, sugar, cream cheese, egg, vanilla, and almond extract.  Add baking powder and gradually add in flour.  Spread evenly into a greased jelly roll pan/cookie sheet.

- Bake for 20 minutes.

- For frosting- beat together butter and cream cheese then add vanilla and powder sugar (add food coloring if desired).

- Wait for cookies to cool then spread frosting on.

Summer Kabobs

It is grilling season people! Hamburgers are great and all, but there's more to summer than just grilling up hamburgers.  Shish Kabobs are my new favorite thing to cook!  It's so easy to throw together a marinade for any meat you want.  This chicken marinade is bomb.  It's got a chili lime taste that everyone will love.  The steak marinade was delicious and I'm already craving it and might have to make it again really soon.

Steak Marinade:

1 lb steak- cut into cubes

1 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup vinegar

1/8 cup brown sugar

2 Tbs olive oil

1 tsp finely chopped garlic

1 tsp ground ginger

some salt & pepper

- Mix all the ingredients except the steak together.  Put steak in a large ziploc bag and pour sauce over.  Shake really well covering all the pieces of steak.  Let it sit in the fridge for at least 2 hours.  Add each piece of steak onto a bamboo skewer and grill for at least 10 minutes.

Chili Lime Chicken Marinade:

1 lb boneless chicken breast- cubed

1 tsp finely chopped garlic

3 Tbs freshly squeezed lime juice

1 tsp red pepper chili flakes

3 Tbs fresh cilantro- chopped

2 Tbs olive oil

salt

- Add all ingredients except chicken.  Put chicken in a large ziploc bag and pour sauce over.  Shake it well and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.  Put onto bamboo skewers and grill for at least 10 minutes.

**TIPS**

- If you pierce each piece of meat, the juices from the marinade will soak into it making it more flavorful.

- Soak the bamboo skewers in cold water for 30 minutes so that they won't burn on the grill.

Lemon Poppy Seed Bread

I took the previous month off the blog to buckle down and focus on school.  Now I'm all done and I get to graduate this coming week!  I'm back to cooking and baking without the stress of homework and it's just so great!  This lemon poppy seed bread is yummy, but what really makes it delicious is the glaze over top of it.  It's easier and quicker than other breads so it's a must try! 

What you need:

1 2/3 cups flour

2 Tbs poppy seeds

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup sugar

2 Tbs lemon zest

1/2 cup (1 stick butter) softened

3 eggs- room temp.

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup & 2 Tbs sour cream

1/4 cup milk

2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

Glaze:

1/4 cup sugar

3 Tbs fresh lemon juice

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray with non-stick spray a 8x4" baking pan and sprinkle all sides with flour.

- In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, poppy seeds, salt and baking powder.

- Add sugar and lemon zest and mix with a hand mixer.  Add butter until well combined.

- Add eggs one at a time then the vanilla.

- In a microwave safe bowl, add sour cream and milk and heat for 20-30 seconds.  Stir and add to mixture.  Add lemon juice and mix well until there are no lumps.

- Pour mixture into pan and cook for 55-65 minutes checking by putting a knife through the center of the bread.  If it comes out doughy, it needs more time.  If it comes out clean then it's done.

- Quickly heat lemon juice and sugar in the microwave with 20 second increments until boiling hot.

- Let bread cool in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack and immediately brush glaze over the top of the bread doing several coats.  

- Cool before cutting and enjoy!  

Holiday Cookie Sandwiches

I'm so excited to share with you all my new favorite cookie!  I had a couple of my nieces and nephew come over to help me make some cute Easter cookies.  Needless to say, it will be a new tradition.  It was so easy because the cookies are pre made, there was hardly any work and it was an easy clean up (the best with kids)!  I know I'm not the only who loved these Pillsbury sugar cookies as a kid, and I still love them.  I decided to make them a little fancier and added frosting to the center and rolled it in some festive sprinkles.  These cookies come out for every holiday, so I'm already excited to make them for the next holiday.  It was such a fun activity to do and was nice to not have the huge mess of making and decorating sugar cookies like we usually do.  Defiantly a must try!

Also- We all know these cookies get eaten up fast, so I would double the recipe if you're planning on making them for more than a couple of people!

What you need:

1 pkg Pillsbury sugar cookies (for any holiday you choose)

1/4 cup softened butter

2 oz softened cream cheese

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 cups powder sugar

2 Tbs milk

festive sprinkles

- Bake sugar cookies according to package and cool completely.

- In a large bowl, cream together butter and cream cheese.  Add vanilla and mix.  Add powder sugar and mix.  Add milk and mix.

- Take one cookie and spread frosting all over the bottom side.  Take another cookie and press it into the frosting making a sandwich.  Squeeze the cookie from the middle to get enough frosting on the edges.  

- Put sprinkles in a bowl.  Roll the outside of the sandwiched cookie covering it with sprinkles.

And now you've just created your new favorite holiday cookie tradition!

Recipe adapted from: www.ohsweetbasil.com

Cheese & Chicken Stuffed Manicotti

It's amazing that I'm even posting during March Madness, but since it's spring break I thought I need to at least throw one post out this week.  This was the first time I've made manicotti and it turned out really good.  Adding chicken to the cheese mix made it even better.  I'm also a sucker for fresh basil!

What you need:

approximately 10 Manicotti- cooked according to package

1 8 oz pkg part skim ricotta cheese

3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 1/2-2 cup cooked shredded chicken

1 egg

2 tsp oregano

1 large can of crushed tomatoes or a jar of spaghetti sauce

1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 Tbs chopped fresh basil leaves

more parmesan cheese for top

4-6 fresh basil leaves

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 glass pan with nonstick spray.

- In a bowl, combine the chicken, ricotta cheese, 3/4 cup parmesan cheese, egg, oregano, salt and pepper and stir until mixed well.

- Carefully (as to not tear) stuff each manicotti with mixture and place each one into the pan.

- In a saucepan, add the tomato sauce/spaghetti sauce, a 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese and basil.  Stir on high until it bubbles then turn it down and simmer for a couple minutes.

- Pour sauce over stuffed manicotti.  Sprinkle more parmesan cheese and top with basil leaves.

- Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

St. Patricks Day is fast approaching, and while I'm not a huge lover of the holiday and don't deck out in green, I will participate in eating yummy things that are green.  These Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies are delicious and have the perfect balance of chocolate and mint.

What you need:

1 cup butter- softened

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 tsp peppermint extract

green food coloring

3 1/4 cup flour

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp cream of tarter

pinch of salt

3/4 cup Andes Creme de Menthe baking chips

3/4 semi sweet chocolate chips

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.  Add eggs, peppermint extract and a couple of drops of green food coloring.  Beat for a couple minutes.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cream of tarter.  Slowly add dry mixture to wet mixture until well combined.  Add in Andes mints and chocolate chips.
- With a cookie scoop, scoop dough onto a non stick baking sheet.  Bake for 8-10 minutes.  Cool and transfer to a cooling rack.

Recipe adapted from http://www.littledairyontheprairie.com

Sweet & Sour Chicken

I'm really loving this new recipe I found and tweaked from http://momsdish.com.  It's sweet, sour, sticky and full of flavor.  Any time we go to a Chinese restaurant, I always order sweet & sour chicken, and I must say that cooking it at home is just as yummy!

What you need:

Chicken:

3-4 chicken breast- thawed and cut into bite size pieces

1/2 cup corn starch

salt & pepper to taste

1 clove of garlic- chopped finely

1/2 cup oil for frying (more if you need)

Sauce:

1 egg

1 cup sugar

1 Tbs soy sauce

1/3 cup ketchup

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

- Heat up oil in a large skillet on medium high heat.  In a bowl, mix together corn starch, salt & pepper, and garlic.  In another bowl, whisk an egg.  Take each piece of chicken and roll it in the corn starch mixture covering it all.  Then dip it in the egg and transfer to the oil.

- Fry the chicken until all the sides are brown and crispy and transfer to a large baking sheet.

- Spread the chicken out evenly without touching.

- In a bowl, whisk together the sugar, soy sauce, ketchup, vinegar, garlic powder and salt.  Pour the sauce over all the chicken.

- Bake for 30 minutes turning over chicken every 10 minutes.

- Serve with rice and enjoy!