Hot Chocolate (Almost) Any Way You Want It

I'm trying really hard to keep my nose to the grindstone here. Book due and all that, But I just came across this on Pinterest and realized this information is vitally important to share -- and share now. And so, without further ado:

Your hot chocolate cheat sheet!








photo credit: Martin LaBar via photopin cc

Sugar Cookie Follow-up

Yesterday I posted about a recipe that caught my eye while I was poking around on Pinterest. It's a recipe for a sugar cookie bar that (allegedly) tasted just like one of my favorite guilty pleasures, the gas-station sugar cookie (also known as Granny B's). At the very moment I was blogging about my love of Granny B's most amazing cookie and the recipe I'd found that was supposed to taste just like it, some very dear friends (honorary nieces, really) were trying to stir up a batch of sugar cookies for the Wednesday night class they teach at church. Unfortunately, the project wasn't going all that well.

Their mom saw my blog post, printed off the recipe, and the twins started over. I'm delighted to announce that not only did the sugar cookie bar recipe work much better than the cookie recipe they were trying to follow, but (dear, wonderful young women that they are) they saved a couple for me so I could see whether they lived up to my hopes that they'd successfully satisfy a Granny B's craving.

The verdict? Yum!!!!!!!

Will the recipe satisfy a craving for those of us who live in locations where Granny B's isn't available? I say a resounding yes!

Thank you High Heels and Grills!

Guilty Pleasures: The Gas Station Sugar Cookie

Okay. I'll admit it. I love those sugar cookies you find at the gas station. You know the ones, don't you? They're slathered with thick pink frosting and individually wrapped. I'm not sure why I like them so much. I shouldn't like them, but I do. I never try to make them, even though I've thought about it a gazillion times. A homemade sugar cookie is bound to be better than the gas station variety, isn't it?

Trouble is, in order to make a sugar cookie good enough to satisfy my Granny B's craving, I'd have to make the cookie dough, roll out the dough, cut the cookies, and bake them. Then there's the whole frosting issue. Can I just buy it in a can, or would I have to make a homemade frosting? And if the frosting had to be homemade, did I even have a recipe that would be good enough to top the cookies if I went to all the trouble to make them?

So when I stumbled across this recipe for sugar cookie bars on Pinterest this morning, everything else flew right out of my head. I couldn't get back to work until I'd pinned the recipe and made sure the pin actually took me to the recipe (a consistent problem on Pinterest. Is there anything more frustrating than pinning a recipe or a DIY project, going back to it with hopes high, only to discover the pin takes you either to a warning that the page is unsafe or a picture without recipe and/or instructions???)

So, for anyone like me who would love to make a good pink-frosted sugar cookie without the muss and fuss, this link should take you right to High Heels & Grills, the blog where I found the recipe.

You're welcome :-))

Now it's your turn? What's your favorite guilty pleasure?

Foodie Friday: Chicken Bake

Chicken Bake

(Serves 8-10)

This recipe is cheesy and gooey and a definite comfort food in my house. In its original version (below) it makes a lot, but it's easy to cut in half!

2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cans cream of mushroom soup (can use cream of celery if you prefer)
2 cups sour cream
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
8-10 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Paprika

Rice, prepared according to package directions.

Preheat oven to 350.
Sprinkle the chicken breasts with paprika and place in large baking dish.
Mix the remaining ingredients together and pour over top.
Cover and bake (at 350) for 2 hours.

Serve over rice.

Foodie Friday: My Mom's Meatballs with Spaghetti

Meatballs with Spaghetti

For Sauce:

1 onion chopped

8 Tbs oil

1 large can (approx 2 ½ cups) tomatoes (can use whole tomatoes or diced)

2 6 oz cans tomato paste

2 cups water

1 tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

1 Tbsp sugar

1 bay leaf

For Meatballs:

1 pound ground beef

1 cup fine, dry bread crumbs

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 sprig parsley, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

½ cup milk

2 well-beaten eggs

Salt and pepper

1 8 oz package of spaghetti, cooked al dente (meaning "to the tooth." When pasta is cooked al dente, you should find a slight resistance in the center when the pasta is chewed.) If you don't like your pasta al dente, cook it until it sticks when you fling it at the wall. One piece should do it. No need to fling the entire pot!

Brown onion in hot oil. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, water, and seasonings. Stir together and cook slowly 1 hour. 

Combine remaining ingredients. Mix thoroughly and form into small balls. Brown in hot fat.

Serve separately, or add meatballs to sauce and simmer until heated through.

Serve over cooked spaghetti.

Note: You can, if you choose, make this recipe using ground turkey. My mother started doing that a few years ago and she's very happy with it. If you like ground turkey, I'm sure the recipe is fine. If, like me, the taste of ground turkey cooked in your favorite spaghetti recipe on your birthday is a bitter, bitter disappointment from which you may never recover, stick with ground beef.