The Nifty Foodie

Amy

Snickerdoodles

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Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Imperial Sugar, as a part of #GiveAFriendACookie campaign.

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I can’t believe we are a month away from the holiday season! This is the time of the year where I start to finalize my ideas for my huge bake-palooza that happens every December, so I’m always up for trying new cookie recipes. 🙂

Now I know it’s not exactly the holidays yet, but I find that sharing something homemade with someone you care about is one of the best gifts. I feel like baked goodies can easily bring a smile to someone’s face. Since it’s been a tough year all around this country (and the world), a small gesture (like baked goodies for a neighbor) can mean so much! If you love to bake for others around the holidays, why not surprise someone you care about with a dish full of cookies this week? No one will be expecting it, but I’m 99.9% sure the gesture would be well-received! <3

For me, I decided to bake these snickerdoodles for my neighbors and coworkers. A simple, classic cookie that is a favorite of mine. 🙂 This is the first time I’ve ever made this recipe, but it’s from my favorite baking book, so I knew this wouldn’t let me down!

Look at all of these amazing cookies from other bloggers participating in #GiveAFriendACookie:

Snickerdoodles from The Nifty Foodie
Fall Flower Cookies from The Decorated Cookie
Peanut Butter Cookies from The Bearfoot Baker
Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars from Baked Bree
Apple Pie Wedge Cookies from Munchkin Munchies
Peppermint Crunch Sugar Cookies from The Domestic Rebel
Pecan Chocolate Fudge Chunk Cookies from Country Cleaver
Everything Cookies from Confessions of a Cookbook Queen
Chocolate Chip Cookies from LilaLoa
Lemon Cardamom Crinkle Cookies from Fifteen Spatulas
Apple Cinnamon Cookies from Dine and Dish
Triple Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies with Sea Salt from A Farmgirl’s Dabbles
Fall Wreath Sugar Cookie from Tikkido
Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pie Cookies from A Southern Fairytale
Chocolate Turtle Cookies from Bake at 350

For nearly 175 years, Imperial Sugar has been helping people communicate thanks, appreciation, love, and sympathy through home-baked treats. At the heart of baking for others is the very act of giving, and Imperial Sugar encourages everyone to bake and share, both in times of celebration and in times of crisis. Together we can make someone’s day just a little bit sweeter. If you are looking for cookie inspiration, visit the Imperial Sugar website for 350+ time-tested cookie recipes.

For nearly 175 years, Imperial Sugar has been helping people communicate thanks, appreciation, love, and sympathy through home-baked treats. At the heart of baking for others is the very act of giving, and Imperial Sugar encourages everyone to bake and share, both in times of celebration and in times of crisis. Together we can make someone’s day just a little bit sweeter. If you are looking for cookie inspiration, visit the Imperial Sugar website for 350+ time-tested cookie recipes.

Snickerdoodles
Source: Cooks Illustrated

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, plus 1/4 cup for rolling
  • 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp. cream of tartar
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 8 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
  • 8 tbsp. vegetable shortening
  • 2 large eggs

Directions:

  1. Place the oven rack on the middle rack, and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare 2 cookie sheets by lining them with either parchment paper or a reusable silicone liner.
  2. Prepare the rolling mixture by combining 1/4 of the granulated sugar with the cinnamon in a shallow dish and mix well with a fork or spoon.
  3. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the butter, shortening and remaining 1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, for about 3-6 minutes. Mix in the eggs, one at a time, for about 30 seconds (or until incorporated). Scrape down the bowl.
  5. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Turn off the mixer, and give the dough a final stir to make sure no flour pockets remain in the dough.
  6. Using a medium-sized cookie scoop, scoop the dough out and roll them into balls. Roll half of the dough ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture, and place the non-cinnamon side down on the prepared cookie sheets. Place cookie dough balls 2 inches apart on your cookie sheets.
  7. Bake your cookies one sheet at a time in the oven, until the edges of the cookies are set and are barely beginning to brown (with the centers still looking soft/puffy), about 10-12 minutes, rotating the cookie sheet halfway through the baking time.
  8. Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for about 10 minutes, and then transfer them to a cooling rack to finish cooling. Once they are completely cooled, enjoy!

Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup #PumpkinWeek

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Disclosure: This recipe is a part of a blogger event, called #PumpkinWeek.

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If you know me at all, I’m always anxiously awaiting the arrival of pumpkin-spiced coffee drinks. I absolutely cannot get enough of them, but at $5/drink, it really adds up! I have a Nespresso machine at home, so I thought, what if I made my own pumpkin spiced drinks at home?

Yes, y’all. This syrup is SO good! Lately (since it’s 90+ degrees outside), I just take a cup full of ice, and add a couple of shots of espresso, a small amount of this syrup (maybe just under a full tbsp. for me), and then I fill up the rest of the cup with milk. Easy peasy pumpkin spice iced coffee!

Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup
Source: mildly adapted from Cook Like a Champion

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 tbsp. pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 2 tsp. pumpkin spice
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp. ground ginger

Directions:

  1. Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan, and cook the mixture over medium-high heat. Cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has completely dissolved in the water.
  2. Whisk in the pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, nutmeg and ground sugar. Cook the mixture for about 10 minutes on medium-low, stirring frequently, making sure to not let the mixture come to a boil (if it’s necessary, reduce the heat more).
  3. Allow the mixture to cool for 10 minutes. An optional step is to strain the mixture through cheesecloth, but I decided against it. (The more spice, the better for me!) Enjoy!
  4. Use a small amount of this (anywhere from a tsp. to a tbsp.-ish, depending on sweetener preferences) in your coffee drink of choice and enjoy!

Want more pumpkin recipes? Here are today’s #PumpkinWeek recipes:

Pumpkin Drink Recipes:

Pumpkin Spice Coffee Syrup from The Nifty Foodie

Savory Pumpkin Recipes:

Blackened Steak Tacos with Roasted Pumpkin, Sweet Corn and Red Bean Salsa from Bacon Fatte
Chicken and Pumpkin Curry from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
Pumpkin Beer Bread Pudding from Forking Up
Pumpkin Habanero Salsa from Rants From My Crazy Kitchen
Pumpkin-Poblano Salsa from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Pumpkin Risotto with Garlic and Sage from Making Miracles
Pumpkin Sausage Mac and Cheese from Daily Dish Recipes
Pumpkin Sausage Skillet Dinner from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
Pumpkin Walnut Sage Pierogi from The Crumby Kitchen
Savory Pumpkin Sage Biscuits from Kudos Kitchen by Renee

Sweet Pumpkin Recipes:

Healthy Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins from Feeding Big
Maple Pumpkin Monkey Bread from The Bitter Side of Sweet
Pumpkin Chess Pie from The Spiffy Cookie
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies from Amy’s Cooking Adventures
Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins with a Pecan Oat Crumble from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
Pumpkin Cream Puffs from Mildly Meandering
Pumpkin Dump Cake from Seduction in the Kitchen
Pumpkin-Nut Crumble Cake from Hardly A Goddess
Pumpkin Praline Cheesecake from A Day in the Life on the Farm
Spice Cookies with Pumpkin Dip from An Affair from the Heart
Stuffed Pumpkin Cupcakes from The Freshman Cook
Whipped Pumpkin Pie Honey Butter from Love and Confections.
White Chocolate Pumpkin Biscotti from The Redhead Baker

Pumpkin Cranberry Oatmeal Bars #PumpkinWeek

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Disclosure: This recipe is a part of a blogger event, called #PumpkinWeek.

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Anddddd, just like that, it’s October!

My husband and I have been so busy, which really isn’t like us. Most of our weekends involve meal prepping in some sort of fashion. We actually used to purchase 5-day meal plans through a local company, and then we quickly realized that not only was it spend-y, but since we love to cook, we were totally missing that aspect in our day-to-day lives.

Since we’re new to the meal prep side of things, we are quickly learning what works and what doesn’t. Hopefully, I’ll be able to share some tips and tricks with y’all, but for now, it’s a work in progress!

This past weekend was one of the first weekends in a while that I baked something sweet. Well, two sweet dishes (as you will see later this week). It was ALLLL for #PumpkinWeek. 🙂 This blogging event was just MADE for me, since I love everything pumpkin! My first recipe that I’m going to share with y’all are these fantastic Pumpkin Cranberry Oatmeal Bars! These are cake-y bars, loaded with pumpkin spice, oatmeal and dried cranberries…topped with a maple glaze. It’s just fantastic! I shared these with our neighbors, and one of them mentioned that they could totally eat a whole pan of these. 😛

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Pumpkin Cranberry Oatmeal Bars
Source: adapted from Chowhound

Ingredients:

For the bars:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
  • 1 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice
  • 1 tsp. fine salt
  • 2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, at room temperature
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin purée (not pie filling; about 1 3/4 cups)
  • 1 cup dried cranberries

For the glaze:

  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
  • 3 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. milk (not nonfat), plus more as needed
  • 2 tbsp. maple syrup

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F, and line a 9×13 inch baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
  2. Whisk the dry ingredients (flour, rolled oats, baking powder, pumpkin spice & salt) together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
  3. Place the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, and beat the mixture well on medium speed until lightened in color and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Stop the mixer, and using a rubber spatula, scrape down the bowl.
  4. Add the egg and vanilla extract, and then, return the mixer to medium speed. Beat the mixture until just incorporated, about 30 seconds. Stop the mixer, and scrape down the bowl.
  5. With the mixer on low speed, add half of the reserved flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Then, add half of the pumpkin puree and mix until just incorporated. Repeat with the remaining flour mixture and pumpkin puree. Fold in the dried cranberries, until just incorporated.
  6. Spread out the batter evenly into the 9×13 inch baking pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the bars to cool.
  7. To make the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk & maple syrup in a bowl. Drizzle the glaze over the bars, and enjoy!

 

Are you in a pumpkin mood lately, too? Here are today’s #PumpkinWeek recipes:

Pumpkin Drink Recipes:

Pumpkin Pie Moscow Mule from Love and Confections.

Savory Pumpkin Recipes:

Chicken Enchiladas with Pumpkin Sauce from Hardly A Goddess.
Goat Cheese and Sage Pizza with Pumpkin Crust from The Spiffy Cookie.
Kaddo Bowrani (Afghan Pumpkin with Yoghurt Sauce) from Caroline’s Cooking.
Pickled Pumpkin with Sage and Autumn Spices from Culinary Adventures with Camilla.
Pumpkin Beer Bread from Forking Up.
Pumpkin Beer Cheese Soup with Herbed Croutons from The Crumby Kitchen.
Pumpkin Chili from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures.
Pumpkin Corn Chowder with Shrimp from Kudos Kitchen by Renee.
Pumpkin Focaccia Bread from Cookaholic Wife.
Pumpkin Ravioli with Parmesan Sage Cream Sauce from Rants From My Crazy Kitchen.
Pumpkin Rosemary Hummus with Sizzled Garlic from Amy’s Cooking Adventures.
Pumpkin Stew with Chicken and Black Beans from Palatable Pastime.

Sweet Pumpkin Recipes:

Brown Butter Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies from The Redhead Baker.
Cheesecake Stuffed Pumpkin Bundt Cake from Cooking with Carlee.
Easy Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake from Daily Dish Recipes.
Jumbo Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Pecan Streusel Topping from Family Around The Table.
Pumpkin Blondies from It Bakes Me Happy.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars from The Bitter Side of Sweet.
Pumpkin Coffee Cake from The Chef Next Door.

Pumpkin Cranberry Oatmeal Bars from The Nifty Foodie.

Pumpkin Madeleines from Mildly Meandering.
Pumpkin Pie Energy Bites from Making Miracles.
Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal from Seduction in the Kitchen.
Pumpkin Pie Tassies from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings.
Pumpkin Scones from The Freshman Cook.
Pumpkin Spice Donuts from A Day in the Life on the Farm.
Pumpkin Spice Donuts from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks.
Pumpkin Zucchini Streusel Bread from An Affair from the Heart.
Ridiculously Good Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Cake from Bacon Fatte.

Pumpkin Dulce de Leche Pie

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Disclosure: This post is sponsored by OXO. I received free products in exchange for this post. A charitable donation was also made to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer in exchange for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

Pumpkin Dulce de Leche Pie
According to the dollar spot at Target, as well as the baristas at Starbucks, it is FALL Y’ALL!

FINALLY.

(Yes, I know calendar-wise, it’s not TECHNICALLY Fall…but I’ll take what I can get!)

I’ve officially switched my home decor to Fall, and I’m currently warming ALL of the Fall Scentsy fragrances I can get my mitts on.

Also, I’m in full-on Fall baking mode. HELLO, pumpkin pie. <3
Pumpkin Dulce de Leche Pie

I decided to make a classic pumpkin pie with a slight twist. While I was at the store, I came across some dulce de leche, and thought that it would be PERFECT with this pie. Caramel + Pumpkin go really well together. It worked beautifully in this pie. I used my favorite all-butter pie crust, and adapted one of my favorite pumpkin pie recipes to make this fantastic dessert. I got a handful of compliments from coworkers the other day when I made this. It was a winner!

I highly encourage you to make your own pie crust from scratch, by the way. It’s super easy, doesn’t take much time at all, and the flavor in this crust is just so rich and buttery. It’s worth it!

Pumpkin Dulce de Leche Pie

OXO sent me some amazing products to make the perfect pie! One thing I really love about OXO is that they really, truly make the cooking & baking experience easier on the home-cook! I’ve loved the OXO brand for years, and these products are a great addition to our kitchen tools.

I received the following products to use/review:

I have always been really cautious about glass bakeware lately, because of the risk of it shattering. However, OXO put me a little more at ease with their thermal shock resistant borosilicate glass. OXO claims that this means that it can go from freezer to oven without the need to thaw, which is awesome! I didn’t test this out, but the pie plate performed really well for me!

I also especially loved the measuring tools that they included. I already have (AND LOVE) the full set of their angled measuring cups, so getting another 4-cup one is awesome! The measuring spoons are especially awesome, because they connect via a magnet vs. constantly having to take them on/off loops to keep them all together. It’s GENIUS.

The double pastry wheel and silicone pastry brush seem really well-built, and they also performed really well. All in all, I really enjoyed all of these products!

Pumpkin Dulce de Leche Pie

Pumpkin Dulce De Leche Pie
Source: Pie Filling adapted from Libby’s & Pie Crust is from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:
For the crust:

For the filling:

  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
  • 3 large eggs, divided
  • 1 15 oz. can pure pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
  • 4 oz. dulce de leche

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Roll out your pie crust into two even-sized circles, that would fit into the pie dish. Rub butter on the inside of a 9″ pie dish, and press one of the crusts into the pie dish.
  2. To make the filling, mix the granulated sugar, salt, and pumpkin pie spice in a small bowl. In a large bowl, beat two of the eggs together, until well-mixed. Add in the pumpkin puree and sugar/spice mixture, and mix well. Then, gradually stir in the evaporated milk.
  3. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the pie shell-lined dish, and then drizzle the 4 oz. of dulce de leche on top of the filling (not on the crust).
  4. Optional: Using a pastry wheel, cut the last pie circle into 1/2 inch strips, and place over the pie in a lattice pattern.
  5. Place the last egg in a small bowl or mug, and beat until well-mixed together. Using the pastry brush, brush the edges of the crust, as well as the top of the crust (if you are using a double crust) with the egg wash.
  6. Bake the pie in the oven for 15 minutes at 425 degrees F, and then reduce the temperature down to 350 degrees F. Bake the pie for another 40-50 minutes (checking the pie every 10 minutes or so to see if the pie crust edges need to be covered with a pie shield to prevent burning), or until a knife inserted into the center of the pie comes out clean. Cool the baked pie on a wire rack for 2 hours, and serve immediately or refrigerate.

Shrimp, Corn, and Avocado Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

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Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Amaize Sweet Corn. I was compensated for my post, and all opinions are 100% my own.

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Oh man, y’all. This summer has been BRUTAL. The other day, I was helping my husband cut the grass, and it just got to be too much. I’m just going to hug the AC vent until October. I’m not built for this heat and humidity!

One of the few things that summer has going for it is that it’s grilling season! I love grilled foods! Meats, veggies, you name it! I’m a fan! The a-MAIZE-ing folks at Amaize Sweet Corn reached out to me to create a recipe using their corn, and I couldn’t wait! The last time I worked with them, I shared this delicious Grilled Corn Guacamole with y’all.

Amaize Sweet Corn is a non-GMO breed of sweet white corn, grown and harvested in the warm summer months (June – September). It was in development for 22 years, and during that time, over 10,000 variations of corn were tested until the perfect balance of texture and taste were found. Amaize Sweet Corn is only available in the US. In Louisiana, it is found exclusively at Rouse’s (for other states, here is the store locator).

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Since Amaize Sweet Corn prides itself in their flavor and texture, I had to let it be the star in a dish. This Shrimp, Corn & Avocado salad puts Amaize Sweet Corn front and center. We enjoyed this as a side dish, but you could easily put this over a bed of lettuce as well. I seasoned the shrimp with lemon pepper to bring a bit more fresh flavor to the dish and also tossed the salad in a fresh basil vinaigrette. It just screams summer! I absolutely loved this dish! Just turn on the grill, and this salad is ready in no time!

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Shrimp, Corn & Avocado Salad with Basil Vinaigrette
Source: Nifty Foodie Original

Ingredients:

  • 2 ears of Amaize Sweet Corn
  • 1/2 ripe avocado, cubed
  • 1 1/2 lb. shrimp, deveined and peeled
  • 1 1/2 tsp. canola oil
  • 2 tsp. lemon pepper
  • 1 tbsp. fresh basil, chopped
  • 1 1/2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
  • 1/2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
  • 5 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 tsp. pepper
  • 1 tsp. sugar

Directions:

  1. Preheat your grill. Place your corn on the grill, and grill the corn for about 2 minutes on each side, until it shows grill marks (about 10 minutes total). Set the corn aside to cool.
  2. Season your shrimp by tossing it in the canola oil with the lemon pepper and place them on the grill. Grill the shrimp for 2 minutes on each side, until the shrimp turn hot pink and opaque.
  3. Once the corn has cooled, cut away the kernels from the ear, and place in a medium bowl with the cubed avocado and grilled shrimp.
  4. In a mason jar, place the fresh basil, white wine vinegar, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, and sugar. Close the lid and shake the mixture well until everything is mixed together.
  5. Toss half of the basil vinaigrette in the medium bowl with the corn salad. Enjoy!

Cheesy Asparagus Bacon Quiche #brunchweek

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This post is sponsored in conjunction with #BrunchWeek. I received product samples from sponsor companies to aid in the creation of the #Brunchweek recipes. All opinions are mine alone.
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TGIF, y’all! I can’t believe we are near the end of #brunchweek! It’s been a delicious week, indeed! Have y’all seen the recipes?! If you’re planning a Mother’s Day brunch, it’s definitely worth checking out some of the posts that have been shared so far! 🙂

Today, I’m sharing an amazing quiche with y’all. It’s made using ingredients from these generous #brunchweek sponsors – Cabot Creamery Coop and Michigan Asparagus. This quiche is not only delicious, but with the addition of the asparagus, this quiche also makes for a nice presentation.

For the crust, I used puff pastry dough, which takes away the prep of having to make your own crust. Then, the mixing of the ingredients is a cinch, too. No one has to know that this quiche is easy to make – they will be so impressed by the flavors in this quiche! I mean….cheese, asparagus, bacon? You can’t go wrong here!

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Apple Berry Smoothie #brunchweek

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This post is sponsored in conjunction with #BrunchWeek. I received product samples from sponsor companies to aid in the creation of the #Brunchweek recipes. All opinions are mine alone.

Brunch Week

My husband and I have been on our weight loss journey for a few months now. While my weight has gone down 20ish lbs, I’m also excited to see the non-scale victories. I was having random aches/pains, my jeans were tight, none of my dresses fit and I just felt so blah. I also can’t eat nearly as much as I used to be able to. The portion control has been helping! I love being back on track again and enjoying healthier foods, like this great smoothie!

Since the weather is warming up, I just had to fork out the blender. I love the combination of apples with berries, so I had to make this into a smoothie! The wonderful thing about using frozen berries is that you don’t even need to use ice! So it’s chock-full of fruity flavors! After I drank this, I actually felt super full afterwards. This simple smoothie includes Rainier Fruit’s Lady Alice Apples, frozen berries, vanilla yogurt, milk & honey. It couldn’t be any easier to make, and it’s absolutely delicious!

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Strawberry Rolls with Orange Icing #brunchweek

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This post is sponsored in conjunction with #BrunchWeek. I received product samples from sponsor companies to aid in the creation of the #Brunchweek recipes. All opinions are mine alone.

Brunch Week

It has been a crazy year so far. I decided to let my blog sort of fall in the background of my life again, and I’m a bit bummed about it. So many things have been happening this year, which is a bit crazy for me. I’m used to me and my husband sort of having quiet evenings at home, and well…I kind of made myself SUPER busy the past few months.

To re-motivate myself back into blogging, I am joining up with some amazing bloggers for #brunchweek! The sponsors were ridiculously generous with us bloggers, and I’m excited to feature 3 recipes using products from the sponsors for #brunchweek!

This first one just screams spring/summer to me! Fluffy rolls with plenty of strawberry filling, topped with a sweet orange icing. It’s just SO good! I used Dixie Crystals Sugar, Red Star Platinum Yeast and Nielsen-Massey Almond Extract to make these rolls, and y’all..these rolls are just spectacular! If you want a fruity twist on the average cinnamon roll, give this a try! Another perk to this recipe is that the rolls come together fairly quickly, considering it’s a yeast-based roll recipe!

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Slow Cooker Tex-Mex Cheesy Sausage Dip

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Cheesy Sausage Dip

Hello y’all! I can’t believe we are finally officially in SPRING! It’s time to plant new flowers, have the semi-annual fight with pollen (ha), fork out the warm weather clothes, and well…have more parties!

When it comes to hosting family and friends in our home, I’ve learned that simpler is better. I used to make elaborate meals for parties, but it’s hard to enjoy a party when you’re stuck in the kitchen the whole time! I really only go all-out for Christmas or Easter. Other than that, I prefer to stick with easier recipes. I especially love spring, because typical spring parties = crawfish boils in Louisiana. However, sometimes the guests come hungry (way before the crawfish are finished), so a quick/easy dip recipe that stays warm in the slow cooker is just the ticket!

I like to make this dip just before the guests arrive, so the cheese on top is nice and melty for everyone to enjoy. It’s ridiculously simple to make and it’s always a crowd pleaser! 🙂

Slow Cooker Tex-Mex Cheesy Sausage Dip
Source: adapted from Southern Bite

Ingredients:

  • 16 oz. sweet Italian sausage
  • 16 oz. Velveeta, cubed
  • 8 oz. cream cheese, cubed
  • 10 oz. can RoTel Diced tomatoes and chiles, drained
  • 11 oz. can Mexican corn, drained
  • 1 tsp. taco seasoning
  • 1 cup shredded taco blend cheese

Directions:

  1. Brown the sausage fully in a pan. Once the sausage has fully cooked, drain and discard the leftover fat.
  2. Add the cubed Velveeta and cream cheese to the pan with the sausage, and cook/stir on low heat until the cheeses have melted.
  3. Add the drained tomatoes, corn and seasoning to the pan, and mix until fully incorporated.
  4. Transfer the dip to your slow cooker and set the slow cooker to warm. Sprinkle the cheese over the top of the dip. Cover, and serve with tortilla chips after the shredded cheese starts to melt.
  5. Enjoy!

 

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Thick & Chewy CC Cookies

A while back, I realized that quite a few of my recipes lost their pictures when my previous website hosting company lost a bunch of my photos. I’m making it a mini goal of mine to update the pictures. I’m going to try my hardest not to edit the original wording on the posts (so you may see fiance in there…we’ve been married for almost 8 years now haha!).

I do have to admit that this recipe is STILL my go-to recipe years later, and I’ve passed it to many friends as well. 🙂 Give this recipe a try, if you’re looking for a classic chocolate chip cookie recipe. I sometimes add in M&Ms to add something extra to these cookies (pictured above).

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I’ve read a lot of great reviews about this recipe for Chocolate Chip cookies. The only reason I made these (since they are SO not diet friendly) is because our over-generous neighbors were landscaping at the same time as my fiance and I. They gave us ALL of their leftover top soil (which was more than what we needed.we didn’t even have to open any bags that we purchased at Lowe’s). So, my fiance suggested that I bake them something. Any excuse to bake works for me! AND it felt good not to use applesauce haha!

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Source: Brown Eyed Baker from Baking Illustrated

Makes about 18 large cookies.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (10 5/8 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
  • 1 cup packed (7 ounces) light or dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1-1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate chips)

Directions:

  1. Adjust the oven racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or spray them with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.
  3. Either by hand or with an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed just until combined. Stir in the chips to taste.
  4.  Roll a scant 1/4 cup of the dough into a ball. Hold the dough ball with the fingertips of both hands and pull into 2 equal halves. Rotate the halves 90 degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, join the halves together at their base, again forming a single ball, being careful not to smooth the dough’s uneven surface. Place the formed dough balls on the prepared baking sheets, jagged surface up, spacing them 2 1/2 inches apart.
  5. Bake until the cookies are light golden grown and the outer edges start to harden yet the centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the baking sheets front to back and top to bottom halfway through the baking time. Cool the cookies on the sheets. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets with a side metal spatula.

I will admit, these are some crazy procedures on this recipe (jagged edges on top, what?). However, follow them to the T! The cookies will come out a little gooey, but if you leave them on the baking sheet, they will finish baking into a perfect cookie! The jagged edges do bake into a neat looking top as well.