Chocolate filled Poppy seed Cookies

I made these today and we all really liked them.

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

2 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups flour

3 tbsp poppy seeds

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted

In a bowl cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla. Add in flour, poppy seeds, and salt. Mix well. Roll into 1-in balls. Place 2 in apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Using the end of a wooden spoon handle, make an indentation in the center of each one. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Immediately make an indentation in the center again. Remove to wire racks to cool slightly. Fill with melted chocolate.

Cheddar and Broccoli Soup

I LOVE this soup. It's one of the easiest soup recipes I have and everyone will eat it.

6 cups water
1 pkg Lipton Onion Soup
1 1/2 pounds of fresh broccoli (I'm sure frozen will work)
2 1/4 cups 2% milk (I use skim and it turns out just fine)
3/4 cups flour
12 ounces sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp white pepper
onion salt

Boil water and then add soup mix and stir. Add chopped broccoli. Simmer for 15 minutes. Mix flour and milk together and then add slowly. Stir until thick. Add cheese, stir until melted and mixed in. Season with white pepper and onion salt.

I serve this with the amazing bread stick recipe on Our Best Bites and it makes a yummy meal!

To Die for Mixed Berry Muffins

After a good friend of mine brought some incredible blueberry muffins to a meeting, I went in search of a recipe to make them at home and luckily I stumbled upon this recipe at allrecipes.com. They are without a doubt the most incredible muffins I have ever tasted.

To Die for Mixed Berry Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 cup fresh blueberries (I use a good two cups of the frozen berry mix from Costco or Sam’s)
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup butter, cubed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners.
2. Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups right to the top, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture.
3. To Make Crumb Topping: Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking.
4. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done.

My only recommendation is that the more berry’s the better! The only problem I have found with using more berries is that if you do not use muffin liners they can be very difficult to get out of the pan.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies

I made these today and everyone loved them! I got the recipe from Better Homes and Garden.

Ingredients

12-oz. pkg. miniature semisweet chocolate pieces

2 Tbsp. milk

3/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1-1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 recipe Filling

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Set aside 1/4 cup chocolate pieces to sprinkle on cookies. In microwave-safe bowl combine 1 cup of the chocolate pieces and 2 tablespoons milk. Microwave on 50 percent power (medium) 1 minute or until melted; stir once. Set aside.

2. In bowl beat butter and peanut butter with electric mixer until combine. Add sugar, soda, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; beat to combine. Add eggs, 1/2 cup milk, vanilla, and melted chocolate; beat until combined. Beat in cocoa powder and flour until combined. Stir in remaining chocolate pieces. Drop by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Sprinkle with reserved chocolate. Bake 9 minutes or until tops are set. Cool on sheets 1 minute. Transfer to wire racks; cool completely. To assemble, spread flat sides of half the cookies with Filling; top with remaining cookies.

3. Filling: In bowl beat 1 cup softened butter, 1 cup creamy peanut butter, 1 cup marshmallow creme, and 2 cups powdered sugar with electric mixer until combined. If needed, beat in 2 tablespoons milk until spreading consistency. Makes 30 servings.

World’s BEST Waffles

Several years ago Ross bought me a giant Belgium waffle maker for Christmas. When one of my good friends found out, she gave me this recipe and I have been incredibly thankful ever since.

The recipe comes from a book called CookSmart by Pam Anderson. Read her article about waffle making, she’s a cooking genius!!

Buttermilk Waffles

3-1/2 oz. (3/4 cup) bleached all-purpose flour
1 oz. (1/4 cup) cornstarch
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup milk
6 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 large egg, separated
1 Tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

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Heat the oven to 200°F and heat the waffle iron. Mix the flour, cornstarch, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Measure the buttermilk, milk, and vegetable oil in a Pyrex measuring cup; mix in the egg yolk and set aside.

In another bowl, beat the egg white almost to soft peaks. Sprinkle in the sugar and continue to beat until the peaks are firm and glossy. Beat in the vanilla.

Pour the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk until just mixed. Drop the whipped egg white onto the batter in dollops and fold in with a spatula until just incorporated.

Pour the batter onto the hot waffle iron (mine takes about 2/3 cup) and cook until the waffle is crisp and nutty brown (follow the manufacturer's instructions for timing at first and then adjust to your liking). Set the waffle directly on the oven rack to keep it warm and crisp. Repeat with the remaining batter, holding the waffles in the oven (don't stack them). When all the waffles are cooked, serve immediately

I typically quadruple the batch and freeze the leftovers, making a great quick breakfast!

I think they are best served with berry compote and fresh whipped cream, or buttermilk syrup---YUMMY!

Berry Compote

I couldn’t post the waffles without a post about Trina’s berry compote. We LOVE it around here, Lilly and I are both guilty of eating it by the spoonful when no one is looking!

Berry Compote

2 c. frozen or fresh berries (I use the mixed berry mix from Costco or Sam’s Club)
1/4 c. Water
1/4 c. Sugar
1 T. Cornstarch
Dash of Salt
1 T. Lemon Juice

Combine all ingredients. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened. Stir in lemon juice if you are using blueberries.

Garlic Chicken Pizza

Last week my sister, Jamee, shared this recipe with me and I have been dying to try it ever since. Tonight I finally had a chance to make it and it was AMAZING!! 

Garlic Chicken Pizza

Sauce:
alfredo sauce (I used Classico)
ranch seasoning packet
minced garlic
parmesan cheese

Mix a few large spoonfuls of alfredo sauce with as much or as little of the remaining ingredients.  (when I made mine I was worried that it might be a little strong, but it was just right. So I would say make it a little stronger than you may think you want.)

Crust: (you can use any you like, I used my typical standby)
1 1/2 c. warm water
1 1/2 Tbls. yeast
2 Tbls. sugar
2 Tbls. oil
1 1/2 tsp. salt
3 1/2 c. flour
Dissolve yeast in water with sugar. Add remaining ingredients and mix for a few minutes. Let stand for at least 10 minutes (I think it does better if you give it at least a half hour, but it does fine either way.)
I use this dough for my pizza pockets and I think it is perfect!

Toppings:
fresh tomato
green onions
bacon bits
chicken (I used some frozen leftover panko breaded chicken I had and it was incredible! the panko crumbs toasted right up and gave it a little crunch.)
mushrooms

Roll dough out to desired thickness, spread sauce, sprinkle cheese, and add toppings. (I sprinkle a little cheddar or Colby jack on top for a little more flavor)

Bake at 400 degrees until the crust is brown and the cheese is melted.  (I bake my pizza on a sheet of parchment directly on the oven rack to get a good crisp crust. I spray the parchment with cooking spray and sprinkle with cornmeal.  I lost my pizza stone along the way somewhere!)

Enjoy!