baked s'more bars

did you know that last friday was national s'mores day and i missed it?
me- the girl with about 20 different s'more recipes?

i'm so disappointed in myself!
feel free to talk behind my back.....

anyway, today i make up for it.

in southern cal it's still that time. time to sit by a campfire, time to roast your marshmallows, time to lick melting chocolate off your fingers, time to make a big sticky mess.

or..... you can preheat your oven to 350 and follow the recipe below.

this is a very easy recipe and really really good. i thought maybe after they cooled like the next day that they wouldn't be as good but shane liked them better the next day and the kids, well, the kids will eat them morning noon and night.

grease a 9x9 pan

in a large bowl cream together:

1/2 cup butter

1/4 brown sugar

beat in:

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

add:

1 1/3 cups flour (you can use wheat flour)

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 tsp. baking powder

-divide dough in half and press one half into the bottom of the 9x9 pan.

-take 2 large hershey bars and lay on top of the cookie dough layer. (next time i will use the smaller thinner hershey bar and layer with those so it's not so chocolaty even though my family loved it)

-spread 1 jar of marshmallow fluff (don't over analyze what is in marshmallow fluff or you will waste at least 7-8 minutes like i did-it's one of those "better not to know" things) over the chocolate bars. regular marshmallows don't work the same.

-place remaining dough over the marshmallow layer. because it will be hard to layer put this last part of dough into a large ziploc or plastic bag and roll out by using a rolling pin. cut open two sides of bag, carefully peel it back and place your dough layer on top.

bake for about 30 minutes or until lightly browned on top.

enjoy!

* recipe courtesy of baked perfection. yep! it's perfection alright!!

waffle maker cinnamon rolls

man. i have really been trying to eat good. really.


i found this waffled cinnamon rolls recipe while blog hopping and couldn't wait to try it.
i mean, dontcha just bow down to this mom?


i will try anything to save time in the morning with 3 kids rushing to greet the bus by 6:45am and one bleary eyed mom i really am game for all the tips that help make my morning routine easier.
this definitely deserves a  5 second hug from mama to mama so i am sending it virtually and i sure hope she can feel it. heck, you're all getting one too-just coz. feel it? good. okay, so.....


i gave my belgium waffle maker away.
do not make the same mistake.
it was a novelty item for us that i used a few times then went back to eggo's-why?
time of course! only martha stewart has it so some of us gotta get real up in here!
i do however have a panini press which i thought can't be too different.
it worked.
it was awesome.
i, uh, ahem, i mean, they ate them right up!


i dug up the old panini press

you just buy regular old (well don't actually buy old one's-gross) pillsbury cinnamon rolls in the tube and lay them on the griddle. be sure to grease the griddle and although the cinnamon roll baking directions say 400 degrees i put my panini press on 300 degrees.

you can lift the top griddle up on the hinge side of the panini press so the rolls don't flatten on one side. i kept the press down for approx. 3 minutes.

take off press and frost.

best 3 minute breakfast eva'!! yeah!!! lick your fingers!

date night pb muffins with chocolate chips

friday is my day. friday night...not so much. i kinda fall apart somewhere between 7pm and 8pm. like, put a fork in me coz she's done!

it became pretty apparent somewhere around 6pm that it was gonna just be me and the littlest little for the night. the biggest little was on a date with her bf, the middle little was at six flags and shane was brawlin with his sinuses. 

we decided to go on a lady date. it was a perfect mix of what she wanted to do and what i wanted to do.

we started with a bike ride (my choice)

then discussed where to go to dinner. decided on johnny rockets (her choice) where we sat up at the bar coz we weren't rollin our normal 5 deep. it was just us two girls. so we did. we sat up at the old fashioned bar and swiveled our way through dinner talking about school and summer and hair and of course, boys!

we chose a few songs from the 1950's on the table top juke box but then maile decided last minute that the machine might eat her nickels so she allowed everyone else in the restaurant to gamble with that right there.

after dinner we went to michael's, (our choice) where we put all kinds of little things into the cart that of course I will use (eventually) but probably don't actually need.

we got home (before dark coz we are crazy like that) where mini peanut butter muffins with chocolate chips were baked (my choice) and green smoothies were mixed (her choice) then we listen to music and took fun computer pics.

it was a good date, i will probably ask for a second one....i got her number.

peanut butter muffins with mini chocolate chips

1 3/4 cup flour
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder ( this seems like a lot-i think it can be cut some)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
3/4 cup 2% milk (i used nonfat)
2/3 cup of chunky peanut butter (we are a smooth family)
1/4 cup canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2/3 cup mini chocolate chips


in a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients and set aside.

in another bowl whisk the egg, milk, peanut butter, oil and vanilla.

stir in the dry ingredients then fold in the mini chips.

fill greased muffin cups two-thirds full and bake at 350 for 13-15 minutes.

i defy you not to love these.

key lime mini tarts

i always make these around easter but am running a little later this year.
they are also great for summer and are the perfect two-bite treat.

this time i also made lemon which we all thought were pretty great but nothin beats the key lime in my house....so far.

you can make your own pastry but to save time i usually buy pre-made pie dough and just roll it out. i use a round cutter just a bit larger than the mini muffin tin.

bake following the pie dough instructions but cut the time down and watch them. poke holes in the bottoms so they don't puff up too much while baking.

make your curd filling:

1/2 cup sugar 

1/2 cup bottled key lime juice  

5 large egg yolks 

1 1/2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

combine first 3 ingredients in a medium, heavy saucepan. cook over medium heat 7 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly with a whisk. remove from heat. add butter; stir with a whisk until butter melts. place pan in a large ice-filled bowl for 20 minutes or until lime curd comes to room temperature, stirring occasionally. cover and chill.

you can make this ahead of time if you wish OR if you choose to make life easier on yourself you can go buy a jar of curd. i won't judge.

make your filling:

1 pkg. cream cheese (softened)

1 cup yogurt

3 tbsps. powdered sugar

 

mix in 1/2 cup of curd to cream cheese filling. because i made lemon and key lime i split the cream cheese filling mixture in half then added 1/4 cup of each curd flavor.

spoon into cooled mini tarts. top with whipped cream and a lime/lemon wedge.

consume quickly because if you blink-my kids will eat them.

green bread...that's not moldy

after my friend suzie posted that she was making zucchini bread (with secret sneaky healthy ingredients) on facebook awhile back it sounded so good i had to make some. i had been craving my sister tory's acorn squash bread for quite some time so this felt like it might hit the spot.

because shane has been all up in my kool-aid about us all eating organic as much as possible i went and bought all organic ingredients so he would eat it and i wouldn't have to get the look  and the shrug that says, "well, it's your body"....hate that look.
can someone please come up with an organic donut? it'd be helpful for my conscience on saturday mornings.

so, i took the original recipe by paula dean (thanks suzie for posting and thanks paula for knowing good food) and adapted it to make it my own and to try to make it as healthy as possible but still edible.

3 1/4 cups flour ( i used 3 cups of whole wheat flour)

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. nutmeg (daughter hates nutmeg so for whatever reason i decided to use cloves-meh)

3 cups of sugar (i only used 2 cups because i added a mashed banana and remember the whole healthy thing)

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs, beaten

1/3 cup water

2 cups grated zucchini

1 tsp. lemon juice

1 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans (i didn't use either)

secret ingredient:

purple puree

3 cups raw baby spinach leaves *don't use frozen (next time i will only use 2 cups)

1 1/2 cups blueberries

1/2 tsp. lemon juice

1-2 tbsp. water (i used 1)

put in food processor to get as smooth as possible. you only need 1 cup of this so if you have extra like i did you can freeze the remainder and use it in a smoothie later.

 oh, the puree looks like all kinds of gag but it tastes really good.

directions:

preheat oven to 350 degrees f. in large bowl combine dry ingredients.
mix all wet ingredients together- including puree (this is where i added a mashed banana) then slowly add dry ingredients.
fold in nuts. 

i baked 4 mini loaves for about 25 minutes each and 1 large loaf for about 35 minutes. this baked much faster than the original recipe stated-maybe it's my over acheiving oven??

my son thought it would be good on st. paddy's day-yep, it's definitely green.

results:

very good. kids wouldn't eat it coz it was green and brown. might as well feed them spinach by itself coz they will happily eat that. (throws hands up in the air)

shane and i loved it. it tasted like a morning type muffin but better.

my neighbors got 2 loaves coz it sure made lots.

cinco de mayo pinata cookies

 

these are fun but beware-you gotta be committed coz this is lots and lots of work. i tried to keep it all real up in my kitchen but honestly mustaches are itchy and the sombrero kept slipping and covering my eyes. its really tough being all authentic and stuff.....

this is a basic sugar cookie recipe until all heck breaks loose....

recipe:

1 cup sugar

1 cup powdered sugar

1 cup butter

1 cup vegetable oil (i know-this is alot of oil, this freaked me out too. i'd use less.)

2 eggs

1 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. almond extract

1 tsp. baking soda

5 cups flour

1 tbsp. vanilla

mini m&m candies

Frosting:

1/2 cup powdered sugar

2 tsp. milk

mix:

cream sugars and butter. beat in eggs. add oil.

add your dry ingredients.

mix in vanilla and almond extract.

split and color:

split the dough into 5 even balls and 1 smaller ball (this small one will be the black)

add your food colorings. i wished i had some more vibrant colors like for the purple for instance but eh, whatcha gonna do?!

layer:

use a container that is about the size (width AND height) of your donkey cookie cutter and line it with plastic food wrap.split all of your colored dough balls in half except for the black. start to layer the colors starting with the black dough on the bottom. alternate the colors so that you end up with two layers of each color by the time you are done.

wait it out:

cover the layered dough and freeze for four hours or overnight. i suggest when you take the container out of the freezer wait a few minutes before slicing or use a very sharp knife because this can get hard to slice evenly or may crumble. cut slices approximately 1/4" thick. place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 350 for about 10-12 minutes.

cut the donkeys: (doesn't sound right, i am aware of this but, cut the donkeys)

immediately after you bake the cookies you have to take your donkey cutter and working in sets of 3 quickly cut out 2 donkeys in the same direction and one in the opposite direction.  this way when you go to assemble the finished cookie will be pretty on both sides because the baked bottom sides will be hidden.

create the pinatas:

for the middle cookies in each set cut off the ears and the legs and cut out the center where the m&m's will be. if you have a small round or square cutter this works well but you can use a knife too.
try to work quickly because as the cookies cool they will become more likely to crumble. let the cookies cool on the sheet completely once you have them prepared before you remove the excess outer cookie.

assemble:

take the first pinata cookie and lay it upside down so that the baked side is facing up. outline the center of the pinata body with the "frosting glue". put the middle cookie on top of the frosting glue, fill the pinata then place the opposite side cookie on top with more frosting glue.
let this sit and harden so they wont fall apart. i waited 30 minutes. well, i tried.

this is a lot of work but pretty darn cute-it only makes about 6-8 cookies but thankfully may 5th only comes once a year!

ta-da! 
your pinata!!
i do realize this looks a little morbid but its a pinata-how awesome!
*originally found on sheknows.com. she DOES know!

Coconut Candy

if you've ever been to maui and been brave enough to drive the road to hana (i lovingly call this trek puke path) then you have probably had the luxury of eating some of the best coconut candy eva' and it was probably made by shane's auntie pearl (we LOVES pearl!). i don't like coconut however i will throw punches in order to get the last bag of this coconut candy. i'm not proud of that but the bag is mine!

i have been playing with making this candy and i think i am getting better. there are varying levels of toastiness and sugary goodness so you can sort of add as much as you'd like and keep it slow baking as long as you'd like-whateva' ya flava!

here is what i use:

2 coconuts- don't even do it with just 1 it isn't worth it

natural cane sugar (i use turbinado sugar)

natural dark brown sugar

hammer and nail to crack the coconut (i just use a real hawaiian-much more effective)

true story:

1st time i made this i told my hawaiian that i needed his help in the cracking of the coconut. i left hawaiian in the kitchen with coconut and went to the garage to get a hammer and nail. i couldn't find a nail so i went back to the kitchen to ask hawaiian where he keeps the nails. hawaiian was already draining the coconut juice and drinking it. i still have no idea what hawaiian used to crack open coconut and i am good with not having to know. (swoon)

-be sure your hawaiian has cracked the coconut in many smaller pieces so you can start to peel or cut away the outer brown shell. it's okay if the thin layer of brown shell is left on the meat.

-once you have all the chunks of meat you can either take a vegetable peeler and shave off pieces or you can cut them. i like to cut them because i like when some of the pieces have thicker edges. thicker edges just make the candy a little chewier in the end and that's how my family likes it.

-put the shavings in a zip-lock back with about 1/2 cup of the turbinado sugar and a sprinkle of the brown sugar. put this bag in the fridge for about 20 minutes so the sugar can melt. don't leave it much longer or it will get soggy and won't turn out.

-layer the shavings on a baking sheet and sprinkle with more brown sugar if you'd like. i do coz we are super good friends with sugar in my family.

-bake at lowest temp (i did 170) for about 6-8 hours. every hour you will turn the coconut over and you sprinkle it with a little more sugar. take it out when you feel it is as toasty as you want it. the last 3-5 minutes i pump that oven up to 350 to give it a last toast- but watch it if you do this- it can burn quick.

taaaa-daaaa!!!!

feel that inner aloha? good stuff brah!