Fudge and Marshmallow Topped Cocoa Cookies

YUM! You can't go wrong with chocolate and marshmallow. These cookies come together very easily and are not nearly as difficult as the name sounds.



Fudge and Marshmallow Topped Cocoa Cookies
Source: Betty Crocker
Ingredients:
For the cookies:
3/4c sugar
3/4c butter, softened
1/2tsp vanilla
1 egg
1 1/2c all-purpose flour
2tbs unsweet baking cocoa
1/2tsp baking soda
1/4tsp salt
large marshmallows

For the frosting:
1c sugar
1/4c butter
1/4c milk
6oz semisweet chocolate chips (1c)
1-2tbs water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375.

In a large bowl, beat 3/4c sugar, 3/4c butter, vanilla, and egg. Stir in flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.

Shape dough by slightly rounded teaspoonfuls into 3/4in balls (I used my cookie scoop). Place about 2in apart on ungreased cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until set. Immediately top each cookie with 1 marshmallow. Return to oven for about 2 minutes or until marshmallows are softened. Lightly press each marshmallow to flatten slightly. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cook 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in small saucepan, heat 1c sugar, 1/4c butter and milk over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture boils. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat and cool 5 minutes. Stir in chocolate chips until melted. Slowly stir in enough water until frosting is smooth and spreadable. Add more water to retain consistency as frosting sets. Swirl about 1 tbs frosting on each cookie.

Chicken Stir Fry

This is one of the easiest and tastiest healthy meals. If you're short on time and don't want to hit the unhealthy drive thru try some stir fry.

Chicken Stir Fry
Source: Modified from Betty Crocker's Healthy New Choices
Ingredients:
8oz chicken breast, cut in to bite sized pieces
1 bag frozen snap pea stir fry veggies
1 c frozen broccoli
1/2 c stir fry sauce

Directions:
Spray skillet with non stick spray. Cook chicken until no longer pink. Add veggies and stir fry sauce. Stir fry until veggies are tender crisp. Serve over rice.

S'more Bars

These things are heaven on earth. Seriously. If you have a husband like mine who will eat mini marshmallows out of the bag and begs for the $1 pack of chocolate covered santas and bunnies from WalMart then you should make these. He will love you extra for it. Plus, they are so darn simple to make.



S'more Bars
Source: My Mom
Ingredients:
1 box (12 oz, I think) Golden Grahams
1 bag (10.5 oz) mini marshmallows with 1 c separated
1/4 c light corn syrup
9 oz milk chocolate chips
5 tbs butter
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Pour cereal in to a large bowl.

Grease bottom and sides of a 9x13 baking dish.

In a large saucepan melt butter, chocolate chips, corn syrup, and all but 1 c marshmallows. Once melted add the vanilla. Pour mixture on top of cereal and add the extra marshmallows. Stir it all up and then press in the greased pan with the back of a greased spoon. Let sit until set up.

Pasties

I got the idea for these from Mary. I had never heard of Pasties before but they sounded really good so I gave them a shot. I'll be honest, they didn't turn out quite how I expected. The filling just didn't get cooked long enough and I used crescent rolls which did not hold the amount of filling I wanted to use. I am confident that with a few modifications in my ingredients and cooking method, they will turn out perfect next time. So, I will give you directions based on how I will do it next time.



Pasties
Source: Modified from Life on 19th
Ingredients:
Puff pastry
1/2 lb ground beef
2 small potatoes, cut in to small cubes
1/2 bag frozen peas and carrots
1/2 c onion, finely diced
Garlic powder
Salt
Pepper

Directions:
Cook ground beef and onion over medium heat until brown. Drain. Combine with the rest of the ingredients in the skillet and cook about 15 minutes until potatoes are slightly tender.



Spoon filling over half of puff pastry. Fold over remain pastry and crimp edges to make a pouch. Bake according to the directions on the pastry package.

Serve with brown gravy.

Crock Pot Chicken Pot Pie

This recipe from the Crock Pot Lady Exceeded my expectation. I changed it to fit our tastes and the only thing I will do differently next time is add more filling. The recipe below reflects how I made it.

Ingredients:
For the filling:
1-2 chopped up boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 bag frozen peas and carrots
1/2 bag frozen corn
1 tbs onion powder
canned cream of chicken soup
2 tbs milk

For the topping:
2 c biscuit mix
3/4 c milk

Directions:
Spray crock pot with cooking spray. Place cut up chicken, veggies, spices, soup, and milk in crock pot. Mix up.

Mix together biscuit topping in separate bowl. Spread over filling mixture.

Cover and cook on high 3-5 hours or low 6-7 hours. My crock was just about half full so I can home at lunch and set it to cook 4 1/2 hours on low. It came out perfectly.

Sausage Breakfast Casserole

Long time no post! I'm happy to say that this is an excellent dish for my first post in a while. I made this for supper tonight and it was sooo good. I've tried to make breakfast casseroles before and they have never turned out well. I kept trying, determined to find a good one, and I have it. The breakfast sausage (Bob Evans brand) makes the difference. I did forget to add salt and pepper to the egg mixture before baking so next time I will add that. I expect it to just add to the goodness. I also thinks I will put in a bit more hashbrowns next time and bake them separately for a little bit longer to get them nice and crispy. Otherwise, this is a nice addition to my recipe box. I imagine I will make is for more suppers in the future. It will also be nice to make on a Sunday night and have to heat up in the mornings during the week for breakfast.

Sausage Breakfast Casserole

Source: allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

1 lb breakfast sausage (I recommend Bob Evans brand regular)

3 c shredded potatoes (thawed if frozen), patted dry

1/4 c butter, melted (I used Country Crock light spread)

2 c cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2 c onion, finely diced

1 (16 oz) container small curd cottage cheese

8 large eggs, beaten

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Light grease 13x9 in baking pan. Combine potatoes and butter in pan and press to make crust. Cook in oven while preparing "filling", about 15-20 minutes.

Brown sausage in skillet, drain, and crumble. Combine sausage, cheddar cheese, onion, cottage cheese, and eggs in large bowl. Pour over potato mixture. Make sure to leave a little room on the edges so that the potatoes form a kind of crust like in the picture below.

Bake 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until eggs are cooked through (use the clean toothpick trick). Let cool 5 minutes before serving.