Fast & Easy FLUFFY Dinner Rolls

So I don't know if anyone even still checks this blog, but if you do you're in for a real treat with this recipe. I just discovered it on this blog. I always want to have fresh rolls for dinner, but I hardly ever make them because they take forever and most recipes make a million rolls. Well this recipe today makes only 12 rolls - perfect for a small family's dinner. AND it's a way fast and easy recipe. I really don't think you can go wrong if you just follow the instructions. They're really big and fluffy and pretty - they turned out prettier than any rolls I've ever made without my mom's help. I think you could make up to 24 rolls if you wanted smaller ones. Seriously, you guys gotta try these.

Time: about 1 hour 10 minutes
Yield: 12 rolls
Recipe from Jamie Cooks It Up!

3/4 C milk
4 T butter
3/4 C hot water
4 T sugar
1 t salt
4 - 4 1/2 C flour
1 heaping T yeast (active dry or instant)

1. Pour your milk into a microwave safe container. Pyrex glass measuring cups work fabulously. Add your butter to the milk and put it in the microwave for 1 1/2 minutes.
2. Preheat your oven to 170 degrees. While the milk is getting nice and toasty, turn on the tap to get your water hot. Temperature is important to making these rolls rise quickly. If you add cold water, your rolls are going to rise at a snail's pace, and you'll feel like cursing. I put my hand in the water to test it. You want it to be just on the edge of unpleasant.
3. Put your milk/butter and hot water in the bottom of your Mixer. Add the sugar and salt. Then add 2 C of the flour...let it mix for 1 minute.
4. Add the yeast. Turn the mixer on and add the rest of the flour 1 C at a time.
5. You have enough flour when the dough scrapes the side of the bowl clean - don't add too much. Mix on medium speed for 5 minutes.
6. Cover with plastic wrap (or leave lid on mixer if you have a Bosch) and let sit for 5 minutes. You need the plastic wrap/lid to trap the heat.
7. Coat the inside of a 9x13 pan with butter or cooking spray.
8. Spray your counter, or a cutting board with cooking spray. Lay your dough on top of it.
9. Take a sharp knife, spray it with cooking spray and cut your dough into 12 pieces. Make them as equal as you can....perfection is not necessary.
10. Gently round them into balls, and put them in your buttered 9x13 pan.
11. Put the pan into your warm 170 degree oven. Let them rise for about 20 minutes or until they have risen slightly above the rim of the pan.
12. Leave your pan in the oven and turn the heat up to 350 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes. This time includes the time it takes the oven to increase in temperature. If your oven takes a long old time....you will of course need to increase the baking time. Bake until golden brown.
13. Brush with a little softened butter and serve warm.

Way easy. Way good.

Comforting Chicken Noodle Soup

Ok, if you like chicken noodle soup you gotta try this. It's seriously creamy yummy goodness and way fast and easy to make.

2 qt (8 C) water
8 chicken bouillon cubes
6 1/2 C wide egg noodles
1 large or 2 regular cans condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
3 C cooked chicken, cubed
1 C sour cream
minced fresh parsley (if desired)

Bring water and bouillon to a boil. Add noodles; cook uncovered until tender (don't overcook noodles!). Do not drain. Add soup and chicken; heat through. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream. Sprinkle with parsley if desired. Serve with yummy breadsticks or rolls.
Yield 10 servings.

The recipe doesn't call for vegetables but I add them just to add some color, flavor and nutrition. I like to use carrots, peas and corn but you could add anything that sounds delicious to you. I also like to use canned chicken in a pinch. I've never made this with homemade noodles but I think it would be delicious! This recipe makes a whole big pot of soup, so you could easily half it for less people.

German Pancake

If you haven't made this before, you'll see that it puffs up really big like this when first taken out of the oven.   It's so pretty and fun to make if you have an urge for something different, or have just about run out of enough milk for cereal!   Although this recipe calls for at least 1/2 cup of milk.  In my house growing up we called this breakfast dish Dutch Babies.  But, I've seen it called other things including the puffy pancake, or a Bismarck.  It's all the same.  So, here's the simple recipe.  

2 T butter                    *maple syrup

1/2 flour *fresh raspberries, blueberries, or strawberries

1/2 cup milk *confectioner's sugar

2 eggs

Preheat oven to 475.  When the oven is hot and close to ready, put the butter in a 10-inch round pan and heat until melted and slightly bubbling.  Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, milk, and eggs, then pour into the pan over the melted butter.    Bake for 12 min. or until the batter is puffy and golden brown.  You are now ready to drizzle the whole thing w/ warm maple syrup, your favorite berries, and confectioner's sugar.  My favorite way to eat this is to squeeze a generous amount of freshly squeezed lemon juice over the top, sift next with powdered sugar then add some berries if you have them.  You can cut into quarters and fold in half to eat w/ your hands, too.  Serves 2, enjoy! 

 P.S.  Thanks for letting me join your blog!  I've referred to it several times and enjoyed many delicious meals!..so, As they say in Sweden, varsagod!  'Help yourself' to this delicious treat!

Bowtie pasta with Sausage, tomatoes, mushrooms and navy beans

Recipe found here


[Note: This recipe could be altered in a thousand different ways based on what you've got lying around. Me? I just used what I had on hand, so don't feel beholden to the ingredients list. Experiment, have fun, and don't be afraid of the "I" word!]

3 oz. whole wheat penne (or any non-spaghetti whole wheat pasta)
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup canned navy beans, drained
1 link Aidells Portobello Mushroom Chicken/Turkey Sausage, sliced into thin rounds
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
Several sprays of Pam

1) In a medium pot, cook the pasta in boiling water for about five minutes.

2) Heat a medium-sized pan coated with cooking spray over a medium flame, until hot. Lay the sausage in the pan in one even layer, and cook until the first side browns, about five minutes. Flip to cook the other side until just brown, several minutes more, and remove to a separate bowl.

3) Pour a small amount of pasta water into the sausage pan, and over lowered heat, scrape the fond (that awesome brown gunky residue) off the bottom with a wooden spoon to form a murky brown liquid that just covers the bottom of the pan.
[Note: I know it looks a little gross, but trust me--the flavor it imparts is worth it. - Rachel]

4) Add the tomatoes and mushrooms to the sausage pan, and simmer until softened and most of the liquid has been absorbed, about 10 minutes.

5) In the pasta pot, replace the water with the vegetable broth. Simmer the pasta in the broth until the liquid is reduced by half, about 10 minutes. 
[Note: If your veggies are starting to dry out, you can add in some of this broth.] 
[Other note: The whole wheat penne I use tends to be pretty tough, so even a longer submersion still leaves it pretty al dente. Feel free to adjust times according to your texture preferences. - Rachel, again.]

6) Drain the pasta, and add to the tomato/mushroom mixture. Add the beans and sausage, and cook to warm through, about two minutes. Combine and serve.

tasty. cheap. easy

Raspberry Mousse Tres Leches

White Almond Sour Cream Cake (WASC)

Ingredients

1 box white cake mix

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 teas. salt

4 egg whites

1 1/3 cups water

2 Tbls. vegetable oil

1 cups (16oz carton) sour cream

1 teaspoon clear vanilla flavor

1 teaspoons almond extract

Instructions

Mix all dry ingredients by hand using a whisk in a very large mixing bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and beat on low speed for 2 minutes. Bake at 325 degrees

Raspberry Mousse

Ingredients

3 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup confectioners sugar

2 cups raspberries (I use frozen,thawed)

1/2 cup sugar

1 TBL lemon juice

1 TBL unflavored gelatin

Ice Water

Instructions

Chill heavy cream for ten min in the freezer, then put in the fridge. You want it COLD. 

In a small pan, add raspberries, sugar and lemon juice. Cook on med low until the sugar dissolves. As it's cooking, press raspberries against the side of the pan to remove the fruit from the seeds; kind of puree. Let it come to a small boil, then remove from the heat. Press the raspberries through a fine sieve into a metal bowl. You want to get as much raspberry puree as possible without the seeds so you'll have a smooth mousse. Put the metal bowl into a bowl (or sink) of ice water; be carefull not to let any water get into your raspberries. Whisk the unflavored gelatin into the raspberries as it cools, until it thickens into a thick sauce. Let it cool down completely in the icewater. 

As the raspberry puree is cooling, whip your heavy cream into soft peaks. Add the confectioners sugar and continue to beat until stiff peaks form. Gently fold your whipped cream into your raspberry puree. 

2 cups raspberries

Sweetened Condensed milk

Evaporated milk

Cream

Dessert Assembly

Put your first layer of cake down. Drizzle all three types of milk on the cake. And a thin layer of raspberries. Top with a layer of raspberry mousse. Repeat.

Fish Lentils

Sounds gross. I know. But it's actually really good. Even Deco likes it, and that's saying something!

2 cups lentils (one small bag)
7 cups broth (or water with boullion)
2 sticks celery
2 large carrots
Sage, Lemon Pepper, Parsly and Coarse Ground Pepper
2-3 fish filets (any fish would work, but I use tilapia. You could always use chicken or beef too; I'm sure that would taste just as good.)


Add the lentils and broth. Heat to a simmer. Grate celery and carrots; add to lentils. Season to taste. Cut raw fish into chunks and add to soup. Simmer for 30-35 min.

So easy, cheap and tasty! (Healthy too, right?) I love to puree the leftovers into a 'split-pea' texture for another night.

Risotto with Asparagus

So I always see risotto recipes on cooking shows, but wasn't really sure what risotto was all about or if I'd ever even eaten it. Then I stumbled across this recipe and since I LOVE asparagus and was already curious about risotto I thought I'd try it out. It's a tiny bit time-consuming and high maintenance to make this recipe but it was way good. The recipe says it's for 12 servings so cut it in half or quarter it if you don't want to make a ton.

1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
7 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cups uncooked Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine (if you don't want to use white wine you can just use more chicken broth)
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

1. Place asparagus in a large saucepan; add 1/2 in. of water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and set aside.
2. In a large saucepan, bring broth to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and maintain at a simmer. In a large heavy skillet, cook onion in oil over medium heat until tender. Add rice and stir to coat well; cook 3 minutes longer. Add wine (or 1 cup chicken broth) and cook until absorbed.
3. Stir in 1 cup simmering broth. Cook until broth is almost completely absorbed, stirring frequently, then add another cup of simmering broth. Repeat until only about 1/4 cup of broth remains (discard remaining broth); the process should take about 20 minutes. Rice should be slightly firm in center and look creamy.
4. Add asparagus; heat through. Remove from the heat; add the butter, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Brownie Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies

As I mentioned in my last post with the orange cookies I did not like chocolate during my pregnancy, so it's a good thing I just found this recipe recently. I probably wouldn't have given it a second look a few months ago. These were delicious. How could you mix brownies and chocolate chip cookies and not turn out awesome? I'm going to print the recipe as I found it, but I added a little more brownie batter than the recipe called for cause I thought I would want them a little more chocolatey. Then the dough seemed a little too wet so I added some flour. Just play with it so the cookies turn out how you like them. I thought mine turned out pretty darn good.

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup prepared brownie mix, chilled
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line a large baking sheet with a silpat liner or parchment paper. (I used my stoneware cookie sheets without a liner or paper, so I'm not sure if they're really necessary with metal pans...)
2. Beat the butter and sugars until well combined. Add eggs and vanilla until well combined. Add brownie batter, mixing until well combined.
3. Place flour, salt and soda into a large bowl, mixing to combine. Add to wet ingredients, mixing to combine and then add chocolate chips to combine. With a medium cookie scoop, scoop dough onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until cookies are cooked through. Let cookies cool slightly before transferring to a cooling rack. Enjoy with a large glass of milk.

Orange Creamsicle Cookies

During about 8/9 of my pregnancy I had a STRONG aversion to chocolate, which was actually kind of awful but it helped me to discover the deliciousness of some other flavors I'd been shunning my whole life. I absolutely loved and craved everything citrus the whole pregnancy so this recipe came in my searches for delicious citrus recipes. These cookies are way good!

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 firmly packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons orange zest (for me that was the zest of 2 oranges)
1 tablespoon fresh squeezed juice of an orange (add more or less depending how orangey you want cookies)
2 cups white chocolate/vanilla Chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla until smooth. Gradually add flour mixture until combined. Stir in orange zest, juice and chips. If dough seems really wet make a couple of test cookies. If they come out flat add 1/4-1/2 cup flour.

Drop rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Do not flatten cookies; it will make them dry. Bake 8 - 10 minutes. Do not overcook! Cookies should be a little plump. Cool slightly before transferring to rack to cool completely. Store in airtight container.

Homemade Laundry Soap

Now...Do NOT make this for dinner...but because I love you all so much I thought I would share a super fun recipe with you all. Some ladies in my ward make their own laundry detergent and I thought I'd give it a try. It was so easy, works great and is sooo inexpensive. Laundry detergent can be super expensive, so if you want to save some money, try this out...you can thank me later :)

Ingredients: (all found in the laundry section at walmart or WinCo, ect.)
1 Fels Naptha Bar
1 Cup Borax
1 Cup Arm&Hammer Washing Soda

Grate the Fels Naptha bar on the small side of the grater (do it on the small side because it saves time later). Put 3 Cups of COLD water in a saucepan. Add grated bar soap to this water and let soak a few minutes to soften. Then, bring the water to a boil, turn to medium heat and cook until it dissolves, stiring the whole time. Make sure you get out any lumps, takes about 10 minutes.

Fill a 5 gallon bucket with HOT water (fill it within a few inches of the top) Put the liquid you just made from the saucepan in and the borax and soda. Mix, mix, mix, make sure you get out all lumps. (The recipe says to mix this for 15-20 minutes...when I made mine there weren't really many lumps, just make sure you mix it really good).

Let sit for 24 hours or more. It will gel like chicken fat. Mix it one more time and it will never gel again. (My kids loved this part, we just put our arms inside the bucket and mixed away. Radley was mixing some clumps and said, "I just want to hold this forever!") Store in old laundry detergent containers or clean milk gallons.

Shake bottle each time before using. Use 1/2 Cup per load. This soap doesn't make suds and can be used in front loaders. There's no smell or additives, so its great for sensitive skin. (You can use smelly fabric softners like downy,ect or just good smelling fabric softeners if you want). This is totally inexpensive, seriously ladies...I think it cost about 3-4 dollars to make FIVE gallons of laundry soap, that would cost like $100 if you bought it at the store! I've been using this for a few weeks now and it really works great.

Lemon cupcakes with lemon buttercream

Lemon cupcakes with lemon buttercream

Cake:
1 package lemon cake mix
1 cup sour cream
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup oil
4 eggs
1 small package lemon instant pudding

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients. Mix with electric mixer on medium speed for about two minutes. Use a strong mixer, this batter is thick. For cupcakes, bake them at 350 degrees for 20 minutes (I was able to get 24 very full cupcakes from the recipe). For regular cake, pour into a greased 9×11 pan or two round pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Don’t over bake or the cake will be too dry! The toothpick test works to check to see if they’re done.


Lemon Buttercream Frosting:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, very soft
6-8 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of sugar, then the juice and the zest. Beat until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, until icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency (I added 6 cups total). Use and store at room temperature. (Don’t refrigerate and it will last in a covered container for about three days.)

Garnish with berries, if desired right before serving.

Smore's cupcakes

Smore's cupcakes

Yield: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the graham cracker crust:

1½ cups graham cracker crumbs

¼ cup sugar

5 1/3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

For the cake:

2 cups plus 2 tbsp. sugar

1¾ cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup plus 1 tbsp. cocoa powder

1½ tsp. baking powder

1½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

½ cup vegetable oil

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup boiling water

For the frosting:

8 large egg whites, at room temperature

2 cups sugar

½ tsp. cream of tartar

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line two cupcake pans with paper liners. In a small mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter; mix well with a fork. Drop about 1 tablespoon of the graham cracker mixture in the bottom of each cupcake liner and press down to line the bottom. (Note: I found the bottom of my squeeze bottle to be the perfect size to do this job neatly and quickly.) Divide chopped chocolate on top of the graham cracker crusts evenly. Bake for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, and maintain the oven temperature.

To make the cake batter, sift together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on low speed just to combine. In a mixing bowl, combine the eggs, milk, vegetable oil and vanilla extract; whisk together. Add to the dry ingredients and mix on low speed for 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the boiling water and stir just to combine (batter will be thin).

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cupcake liners, filling each about ¾ of the way full. Return the pans to the oven and bake about 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, rotating the pans halfway through baking. Allow to cool in the pans 5-10 minutes, then remove and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, combine the egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar in the top of a double boiler. (Note: I just set my clean, dry mixer bowl over simmering water, to avoid dirtying two bowls.) Heat the mixture, whisking frequently, until it reaches 160° F with an instant-read thermometer. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk starting at low speed and gradually increasing to medium-high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form. Mix in the vanilla until combined. Frost cooled cupcakes as desired. Brown with a kitchen torch and garnish with chocolate and graham cracker segments.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies!

I'm warning you right now if you love PB and choc, you will NOT be able to stop eating these!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies! 1½ cups all-purpose flour ½ cup unsweetened cocoa ½ teaspoon baking soda ¼ teaspoon salt ½ cup granulated sugar (plus more for rolling) ½ cup packed brown sugar ½ cup unsalted butter, softened 1 cup creamy peanut butter, divided 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 egg ¾ cup powdered sugar Preheat oven to 375º F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Make the peanut butter inside FIRST. In a medium bowl, mix together powdered sugar and ¾ cup of peanut butter until smooth. Shape little balls and place them on a wax or parchment paper lined sheet, and freeze. While they’re freezing, make the cookie dough. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together sugars, butter and ¼ cup of peanut butter until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and egg, beating to combine. Stir in the flour mixture and stir to combine, blending well. Set aside. Pull off a heaping tablespoon of cookie dough and flatten with your hands. Remove the frozen insides (just a few at a time, They thaw quickly for shaping, rolling and squishing) and wrap the soft cookie dough around the hard middles, pressing to seal. Roll the cookie into a ball and roll the cookie in the sugar. Place cookies on the prepared baking sheet 2 inches apart. Using the bottom of a glass, flatten each cookie to about a ½ inch thickness. Bake in preheated oven for 7 to 9 minutes. Let stand on the baking sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to a wire rack.

Smores Cookie Bars

Hello! That's what I said when I ate one of these little goodies. If you like smores then you are in for a treat!..and you better like smores or I don't know if we can be friends :)

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups flour

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 king-sized Hershey chocolate bars

1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff (not melted marshmallows)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease an 8x8 square baking pan.

In large bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Beat in egg and vanilla. In small bowl whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combined.

Divided dough in half and press half of the dough into an even layer on the bottom or the pan. Place chocolate bars over dough. Spread chocolate with marshmallow creme. Place remaining dough on top of the marshmallow (most easily acheived my flattening dough into small shingles and layering them together with hands)

Bake for 30 minutes, cool before cutting.

Lemon Drop Cookies

These are so good! They're the cookies Noelle and I made for Cassie's SLC shower and they were a big hit. One important tip is to take them out of the oven before you think they're done to ensure that they stay SOFT and deliciously chewy. Oh so good... Our cookies ended up a little flatter than we expected but they were still tasty as could be. I'm sure you could add a little flour to the dough and they'd probably plump up a little more. This recipe makes a lot of cookies - ain't nobody gonna complain about that!



Lemon Drop Cookies
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups butter flavored shortening
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon lemon extract
4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Grated or finely chopped zest of one lemon
1 (6-oz) package lemon drops

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
juice of two lemons (about 4-5 Tablespoons) - (You can use less if you want your glaze a little thicker)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In mixing bowl cream sugar, shortening, and eggs; then add vanilla and lemon extract. Stir in flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Crush lemon drops in blender or food processor. Add lemon zest and crushed lemon drops; mix well. Roll into balls, flatten slightly with your hand, and bake on a parchment lined cookie sheet (You must use parchment here to avoid sticking).

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool slightly on pan for a couple of minutes. Make the glaze by mixing powdered sugar with lemon juice to desired consistency. Brush glaze over cookie tops after cookies have cooled slightly. If the cookies are too hot the glaze will just melt off. Let cookies cool completely. ENJOY!

Makes 4 to 5 dozen cookies.

Apple Streusel Squares

(From Eagle Brand recipes)



These were kind of a lot of work, but pretty worth it when all was said and done - DELICIOUS! Just make sure to cook them long enough because the bars in the middle of my pan ended up a little runny even after they cooled. Obviously you don't want to burn them either, so find the perfect middle ground (that's easy right?). I left out the cranberries because I didn't have any and wasn't sure I wanted them in my bars anyway. Also, I didn't have as many pecans as the recipe called for, but it was still delicious with less.

Apple Streusel Squares
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 large eggs
1 (21 oz.) can apple pie filling
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup cold butter
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup chopped pecans

* HEAT oven to 350°F. Line 13 x 9-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
* COMBINE graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans in small bowl. Press evenly onto bottom of prepared pan.
* BEAT cream cheese in medium bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk and eggs until smooth. Pour over prepared crust. Spoon apple pie filling evenly over cream cheese layer.
* COMBINE brown sugar, flour and cinnamon in medium bowl. Cut in cold butter with pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in cranberries and 1/3 cup pecans. Sprinkle over apple layer.
* BAKE 35 to 40 minutes or until golden. Cool completely before serving - best served chilled.

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

This is a supposed knock off of Olive Garden's Chicken Con Broccoli. It was super yummy, the only problem was it didn't make enough sauce for an entire box of pasta. I think next time I'll double the sauce recipe and that should be perfect, maybe even a little extra sauce for dipping breadsticks!

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

Alfredo Sauce (recipe below)

2-3 cooked chicken breasts, diced

1-2 cups fresh chopped broccoli, cooked and hot

fettuccine, cooked according to package directions. (I used penne because it's what I had)

Cook chicken in method desired. I just cooked mine on the stove. Add chicken and broccoli to Alfredo sauce and heat through. Serve over hot, cooked fettuccine.

Alfredo Sauce:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

2 cups heavy cream

1/8 tsp. garlic powder

1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon (1 clove) minced garlic

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add minced garlic with the butter. Add cream, garlic powder, and pepper. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 to 12 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Trust me, it will thicken. When sauce has reached desired consistency, stir in Parmesan cheese. Use for Chicken Broccoli Alfredo, or just serve as is over fettuccine. Serves 4-6.