Warm Nutty Caramel Brownies

Warm Nutty Caramel Brownies
1 t. vegetable oil1 pkg.
(12 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
1 pkg. (18-21 oz) brownie mix (plus ingredients to make cake-like brownies)
3/4 c. packed brown sugar, divided
1 c. salted mixed nuts, divided
5 rolls of Rolos (40 pieces total), divided


1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease bar pan. Chop 1-1/2 c. chocolate chips. Combine brownie mix, water, oil, eggs, and 1/4 c. brown sugar. Fold in chopped chocolate. Pour batter into bar pan & spread evenly.

2. Chop nuts. Combine half of the nuts and remaining 1/2 c. brown sugar; sprinkle evenly over brownie batter. Bake 20-22 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

3. Meanwhile, cut 16 Rolos into quarters. Place remaining 1/2 c. chocolate chips in microwaveable bowl & microwave on high 1 minute or until melted, stirring after each 20-second interval. Spoon melted chocolate into resealable plastic bag; set aside.

4. Remove bar pan from oven. Immediately press remaining 24 Rolos evenly into brownie in four rows of six caramels each. Sprinkle quartered Rolos and remaining nuts over brownies. Trim corner of chocolate-filled bag; drizzle chocolate evenly over brownies.


Serve warm. Serve with ice cream, if desired. (I always laugh at that line..."if desired"-oh, okay, only if I want to?) :)

Chicken Tikka Masala

Oh my we loved this recipe. The original recipe called for a little more "heat" but I can't handle too much spice so I omitted a jalapeno and cut down the cayenne pepper. It was awesome! We grabbed some garlic naan from an Indian restaurant across the street and it was a great meal!


Chicken Tikka Masala
Adapted from My Kitchen Cafe

1 cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Combine all ingredients except chicken. Pour sauce over chicken and refrigerate for one hour. Chop chicken into bite sized pieces and grill or cook chicken in frying pan. Discard marinade

1 tablespoon butter
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 8-oz can tomato sauce
1 cup cream


Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic for one minute. Season with cumin, paprika and salt. Stir in tomato sauce and cream. Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Add grilled chicken and simmer for 10 minutes. Serve over hot rice.

Bacon-Cheddar Dip...

The first time I made this dip was for a Super Bowl Party and my hottie hubby loved it! I have made it a few times since for company, its a great and EASY dip!!

Bacon-Cheddar Dip
Kraft Magazine

1 container (16 oz.) Sour Cream
1 cup Shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup Bacon bits
Ritz Chips Orginal (I LOVE THESE)

Mix all ingredients (except chips); cover.

Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving

Serve with the chips

(Great substitute: use reduced fat or light sour cream and reduced fat cheddar cheese.)

Pumpkin Rolls....

This is probably my favorite dessert this time of year. I absolutely love these. Plus, they look so pretty when you cut them up and serve them on a platter! Great for a potluck or party!

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup canned pumpkin
3/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Filling

8 oz cream cheese
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Grease jelly roll pan. Line with wax paper - spray with cooking spray

Beat eggs and sugar together, add pumpkin.

Combine dry ingredients. Fold into pumpkin mixture. Beat until smooth not lumpy. Pour into pan and smooth. Sprinkle with nuts (optional).

Bake 12-14 minutes at 375

While baking, sprinkle large dish towel with powdered sugar. Remove cake immediately from pan to towel. Remove wax paper and roll cake in towel. Cool with seam side down

Mix cream cheese and butter (both should be room temperature)) until smooth. Add powdered sugar and vanilla. When cake cools, unroll and spread with cream cheese mixture. Roll again and cool overnight

Homemade Corn Dogs

Not the best picture, but trust me, read on....
I found this on allrecipes.com. My kids love corndogs, but we were out of them in the freezer. I had heard they were very easy and they were! These were delicious! At least as good as the frozen (and cheaper)! They are simple to make as is, but if you want it even easier, omit the "batter" portion and mix a box of Jiffy corn bread mix as directed and it would be the same thing. One important note- they will brown too quickly if the oil is too hot- that is why mine look so dark, the oil was too hot- but they were still good! Just watch the oil temp.

Batter:
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup white sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk

Other Ingredients:
small amount of corn starch
1 Quart Vegi oil for frying
1-2 pkgs hotdogs (depending on how thick you put better on- I used about 1 1/2 packs
wooden skewers or popsicle sticks

Directions:
1-Combine cornmeal, flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder. Stir in eggs and milk.
2-Preheat oil in a deep saucepan over meidum heat. Insert wooden skewers into hotdogs. Roll hotdogs first in cornstarch (helps hold on the batter) then roll in batter until well coated.
3- Fry 2-3 corndogs at a time for 8-10 min (I had the oil too high- it took, like, 2 minutes...) or until lightly browned. Drain on paper towels.

Enjoy!!!

Creepy-Crawly Cupcakes...

Oh my these are adorable. I picked up the 'all you' magazine in the grocery line the other day when I saw these cupcakes on the cover. So adorable and great for a Halloween party or a bug party. Cook and frost cupcakes with whatever recipe you desire, and then decorate.




MS. SPIDER
Use a Ferrero Rondnoir candy for body and an almond M&M for head. Pipe 2 dots of icing onto M&M and attach 2 M&M's Minis as eyes. Pipe icing as pupils and legs.








WIGGLY WORM
Place six peanut M&M's on cupcake for the body and head. Pipe icing on top of five and attach one M&M's Mini to each. Pipe two dots and attach two M&M's Minis to the head as eyes. Pipe icing as pupils and legs.









MR. SPIDER
Use a colorful malted-milk ball for body and an almond M&M for head. Pipe two dots of icing onto almond M&M and attach two M&M's Minis as eyes. Pipe icing as pupils and legs








SHOO FLY
Use a malt ball for body and a peanut M&M for head. Pipe icing onto M&M and attach 2 M&M's Minis as eyes. Pipe icing for pupils. Cut two pieces of Haribo Gummy Sour Fruity Pasta to make wings.








TASTY BEETLE
Use a chocolate-covered cherry for body and a peanut M&M for head. Use icing to attach M&M's Minis as eyes and to make pupils. Pipe a line and six dots on body. Top dots with M&M's Minis. Pipe icing for legs.









CRAZY CENTIPEDE
Use five peanut M&Ms for body and an almond M&M for head. Pipe icing on head and attach two M&M's Minis as eyes; pipe icing as pupils and to attach M&M's Minis to peanut M&M's. Use Good & Plenty as legs.









SWEET SLUG
Place a Circus Peanut candy in center of cupcake. Pipe two dots of icing at one end and attach two M&M's Minis as eyes. Pipe icing on M&M's Minis as pupils. Pipe icing all around Circus Peanut as legs.

Chicken Enchilada soup

Ingredients

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup diced onion

1 can diced green chilis
1 clove garlic, minced
1 quart chicken broth
1 cup masa harina
3 cups water, divided
1 cup enchilada sauce
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

DIRECTIONS
In a large pot over medium heat, cook chicken breasts in oil until well browned on all sides. Remove and set aside.
Cook onion and garlic and diced green chilis in remaining oil until onions are translucent. Pour in chicken broth.
In a bowl, whisk together masa harina and 2 cups water until well blended. Pour into pot with remaining 1 cup water, enchilada sauce, Cheddar, salt, chili powder and cumin. Bring to a boil.
Shred cooked chicken and add it to the pot. Reduce heat and simmer 30 to 40 minutes, until thickened.

This soup was really good. I served with extra cheese, sour cream, green onions, and cilantro on top.

My 3 year old ate three bowls.