Chocolate Zucchini Cookies

I got this recipe from my friend Lisa. My family really likes these cookies. They have a similar texture to pumpkin cookies. They are very moist. They taste best the second day. It gives the flavor time to set in. I didn't have cloves so I made mine without. I will be adding these to my regular cookie rotation. Thanks for sharing Lisa!

Here is the recipe:

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar

Mix together until light and fluffy.

Add:

1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup grated zucchini

Mix in.

In a separate bowl mix together:

2 cups flour
2 Tbsp. cocoa
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. soda

Add to the creamed mixture and mix in.

Stir in 1 cup of chocolate chips.

Bake at 350 for approximately 10 minutes. Let cookies cool on a wire rack. Cover and let sit overnight or for a day.

Blueberry Muffins

These muffins are so good! They are especially good served warm with butter and a glass of milk.

2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (If using frozen mix the blueberries with 2 Tbsp. of flour before adding)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 12 muffin cups or spray with non stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Add all other ingredients EXCEPT for 1 Tbsp sugar. Stir just until combined; be careful to not over mix. Fold in blueberries. Spoon the batter equally into the 12 muffin cups and sprinkle the tops with remaining sugar. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Fudgy Brownies

I found this recipe on a recipe blog called Kara's Kitchen Creations. If you have never checked out her blog you should! She has some great recipes. These brownies are very rich and delicious. I love how this recipe produces a crackly top like the box mix brownies. These are fast and easy to make. I added a little more then 1 cup of Reese's peanut butter chips to this batch. Next time I want to try them with chopped nuts. Thanks for sharing the great recipe Kara!

1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp oil
2 Tbsp water
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Bring sugar, butter, oil, and water to a boil. Remove from heat. Add semi-sweet chips and stir till melted. Cool slightly. Add eggs and vanilla and stir till smooth. Stir in dry ingredients and nuts. Pour into a greased 8" pan. Bake at 325 for about 25 minutes.

*Make sure the chocolate mixture is cooled before you add the eggs or you will have chocolate covered scrambled eggs.

Yummy Lemon Bars

Every once in awhile I start craving lemon bars. I found this recipe on allrecipes.com and have LOVED it! This recipe is easy to prepare, doesn't take a lot of ingredients and always turns out great. My husband loves these bars too.

Crust:

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour

Filling:

4 eggs
1 1/2 cups white sugar
4 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 cup and 2 Tbsp. lemon juice (or 2 lemons, juiced)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
   
2. In a medium bowl, blend together softened butter, 2 cups flour and 1/2 cup sugar. Press into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 inch pan.
3. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until firm and golden. In another bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups sugar and 4 Tbsp. flour. Whisk in the eggs and lemon juice. Pour over the baked crust.
4. Bake for an additional 20 minutes in the preheated oven. The bars will firm up as they cool. When cool sprinkle with powdered sugar and cut into squares.
   

Parmesan Chicken

When my husband asked me if I would make this I realized I had forgotten all about it. This chicken always goes over well with my family. It is very tender and tastes delicious. Another reason I love it is that it is so easy to prepare. It is kind of similar to my ranch chicken recipe but with a different flavor. I only put 1 to 1 1/2 tsp. of the garlic salt in because my husband doesn't like salt. I usually dip the chicken in melted butter instead of yogurt because that is usually what I have on hand. I also don't make the sour cream chicken sauce but thought I would share the recipe in case you are interested in trying it out. Give this recipe a try!

2 cups crushed Ritz crackers
3 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp. garlic salt
8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup plain yogurt or 1/2 cup melted butter
1/4 cup butter, melted

Combine cracker crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and garlic salt. Dip each piece of chicken in yogurt to coat and then in crumb mixture. Arrange in greased 9X13-inch baking dish. Drizzle with 1/4 cup melted butter. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Top with Sour Cream Chicken sauce, if desired.

Sour Cream Chicken Sauce

2 (10 3/4-ounce) cans cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 cup sour cream

In a small saucepan heat soup and sour cream together over low heat, stirring frequently.

Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies

These cookies are delicious!!! My kids both gave rave reviews after taking just one bite. I recommend eating one right out of the oven with a glass of milk. If you like peanut butter you will love these cookies!

1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
18-24 Hershey Kisses

Cream together the shortening, peanut butter and sugar. Add brown sugar, egg and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Roll into 1 1/2 inch balls and bake for 7-8 minutes at 375. (until a light golden color) Take out and add an unwrapped Hershey Kiss in the middle of each cookie. Return to the oven for 2 minutes.

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

I found this recipe in a family cookbook that I bought from a friend. These cookies are very soft and they melt in your mouth. They are a little different then the traditional crinkle cookies I have had in the past but I really liked them! Plan ahead because you will need to chill the dough before you bake these.

1/2 cup oil
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
4-5 ounces unsweetened chocolate or (3/4 cup cocoa and 1/4 cup oil)
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Powdered sugar

Whip oil, sugar, and eggs in a mixer then add all ingredients except the powdered sugar. Chill dough 2-3 hours or until firm. Form dough into balls and roll in powdered sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes on a greased cookie sheet.

Grasshopper Ice Cream Cake

This is a really yummy dessert. I have also made this with Oreo ice cream. You could use almost any flavor of ice cream for this dessert.

4 cups mint chocolate chip ice cream; softened (or any other flavor)
1 pkg. Oreo cookies
1 small bottle of hot fudge
2 cups cool whip
6 Mint Oreo cookies cut in half

Line a 9X2" round cake pan with plastic wrap, with ends extending over sides of the pan. Stand 14 cookies around the sides of the pan. Crush 10-15 Oreo's and layer bottom of pan with half of the crushed cookies. Spread about 2 cups of ice cream over the crushed cookies. Pour a layer of hot fudge over ice cream ( I use about 3/4 of the bottle), top with 1 cup cool whip and remaining crushed cookies. Next spread another 2 cups of ice cream over the cool whip. Freeze for 4 hours or overnight. Remove dessert from pan about 10 minutes before serving, using the plastic wrap as handles to lift dessert from pan. Carefully peel off plastic wrap; place dessert on serving plate. Let stand about 10 minutes at room temperature to soften slightly. Cut into slices, drizzle hot fudge over each slice and top each slice with half of a mint Oreo.

M&M Cookies

I have been looking for a good M&M cookie recipe for awhile now. I finally found a recipe that I love! These cookies are crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside. This is a fun recipe to make with kids.

1 cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/2 cups M&M's

Blend shortening and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Stir in half of candies. drop by teaspoon onto ungreased cookie sheet. Decorate cookies with remaining candies.
Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. I cook mine until the edges are light brown and then let them sit on the cookie sheet for 5-10 minutes before transfering them to a cooling rack.

Campbell's Cheesy Chicken and Rice Casserole

This dish isn't super fancy but it always goes over well at our house. My kids both like this dinner. I love the creamy rice mixture. This is a quick and easy meal to prepare. I was surprised to see that I had not posted this one yet because it has been a regular at our house for a while now.

Ingredients:

1 can (10 3/4 ounces)Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
1 1/3 cups water
3/4 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cup frozen mixed vegetables
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions:

Heat the oven to 375°F. Stir the soup, water, rice, onion powder, black pepper and vegetables in a 2-quart shallow baking dish.

Top with the chicken. Season the chicken as desired. Cover the baking dish.

Bake for 50 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the rice is tender. Top with the cheese. Let the casserole stand for 10 minutes. Stir the rice before serving.