Kit Kat Bars

Some people calls these homemade Kit Kat bars. I call them sugary goodness!!! I don't think these taste like a real Kit Kat bar-but whatever they taste like, they are good! Believe me, you won't be able to stop after one...two, three or four for that matter!

Kit Kat Bars

Grandma's Desserts

80 club crackers

1 cup butter

2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup milk

1/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup butterscotch chips

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Line a 9x13 pan with foil, making sure you leave it hanging over the sides. Line bottom of pan with a single layer of crackers. In a saucepan, melt the butter. Add graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, sugar and milk. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, boil 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once that is done cooking, pour half of the mixture over the crackers. Make another layer of crackers over sugar mixture. Pour rest of sugar mixture over crackers and top that with another layer of crackers.

In a small saucepan over med-low heat, melt butterscotch chips, chocolate chips and peanut butter. Stir constantly to make sure it doesn't burn.

Pour melted chocolate mixture over crackers and make sure to distribute evenly. Place in fridge for at least 2 hours before serving.

Remove foil from pan and cut into pieces with a sharp knife.

Kielbasa and Caramelized Onion Pizza

Sorry about the lack of posts. I cooked myself sick the week of Christmas and while I have been making some really good things that I really wanted to share the last two weeks, I have had a hard time getting back into the swing of things. I think life is somewhat back to normal now and I am back to posting.

I have been promising my husband I would make this pizza for about 3 weeks and I finally made it last night. Eric gave it one hundred thumbs up. I think we will be adding this to his "favorite dinner's" list. That list is getting to be a bit long:) If you like meat or have a man in your life-this is the pizza for you!

(sorry about the picture-I pulled it out of the oven and ran out the door to get to work on time.)

Kielbasa and Caramelized Onion Pizza

adapted from Rachael Ray

2 tbsp olive oil

1 lb kielbasa, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise

2 onions, thinly sliced

salt and pepper

1 1/2 tsp dried thyme

1-2 cups mozzarella cheese

pizza dough

Add 1 tbsp olive oil to skillet and heat over med heat. Add kielbasa and cook, stirring until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Add remaining olive oil and onions to same skillet and cook until onions are golden brown, about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add kielbasa back to skillet and season with salt, pepper and thyme.

Prepare your pizza dough (whatever kind you like to use) and arrange on baking sheet or pizza stone (worth the money!!). Arrange kielbasa/onion mixture over dough and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 425* for about 14-17 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

Lasagna Burgers

All I need to say about this recipe is....YUMMY!!! If you love lasagna, you will love this burger. You get the flavors of lasagna without feeling like you are eating pasta on a burger. Pair this up with some homemade fries and you have a new favorite meal!

Lasagna Burgers

adapted from Rachael Ray

1 lbs ground turkey

salt and pepper

2 tbsp olive oil, plus more for drizzling

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 (14.5 oz) can Italian crushed tomatoes

1 tbsp dried basil

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

1 cup milk

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

4 hamburger buns

In a large bowl, season the meat with salt and pepper. Form into 4 patties, thinner in the middle for more even cooking. Drizzle with olive oil. In a saucepan, heat 2 tbsp oil over med heat. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes; add the garlic and cook 2 minutes more, then stir in the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Lower the heat and simmer 5 minutes; stir in the basil.

In a large skillet, heat a drizzle of oil over med-high heat. Add patties and cook, turning once, about 7-8 minutes.
While patties are cooking, in a small saucepan, melt the butter over med heat. Whisk in the flour for 1 minute, then whisk in the milk. Season with salt and pepper and the nutmeg, then cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the ricotta and the parmesan.

Spoon some of the red sauce on the bottom bun, then top with the patties. Dollop the cheese sauce on the patties and set roll tops in place.

Serves 4

Chicken and Spinach Tortilla Bake

Now that things are starting to slow down after the holidays, I can catch up on some blogging. We tried this dish a couple of weeks ago and really liked it! I never would have thought to put spinach in a Mexican dish, but this was really good! This is a great dish if you want to trick your kids into eating spinach. My 3 year old loved it!

Chicken and Spinach Tortilla Bake

Rachael Ray

1 tbsp olive oil

3-4 chicken breasts or cutlets

salt and pepper

1 1/2 cups salsa verde

3/4 cup ricotta

4 large flour tortillas, cut into wedges

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

3 cups baby spinach

2 cups shredded pepper jack cheese

Preheat oven to 450*. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over med-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper, add to the pan and cook, turning once, until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Let cool, shred meat. (I just baked the chicken in the oven-then shredded it.)

Whisk together the salsa verde and ricotta; season with salt and pepper. In a greased 9 inch baking dish, layer one third of of salsa mixture, tortillas and chicken, onion, spinach and cheese; repeat twice. Bake until golden brown, 15-20 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

*Try using 3 cups crushed tortilla chips instead of flour tortillas

**Use 15oz can black beans or your favorite beans instead of chicken or add to salsa mixture for a different flavor

Dangerously Delicious Popcorn!!

I am so excited to do my baking this holiday season!! All of my sibling in-laws are coming into town next week and I am so excited! I am waiting to do my baking until next week so we will have lots of sugary goodness to enjoy over Christmas, but here is a preview! This popcorn is evil!! You cannot just have one bite and stop-it is literally not possible!! I have made it a couple times already this month and have a few more batches to go before Christmas is over. This will become an instant favorite-I promise!

Holiday (or any day) Popcorn

Carrie McCleary

2 bags microwave popcorn

12 oz vanilla almond bark

3 tbsp vegetable oil

4 oz colored candy coating chips

Pop popcorn and place in large bowl. Melt bark and oil in saucepan over medium heat and pour over popcorn. Shake or stir to coat popcorn. Spread popcorn onto wax paper to cool. Melt candy coating in microwave, 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each 30 seconds. (Get creative with your colors, I like to use red and green at Christmas time.) Drizzle over popcorn, cool and dry. Delicious!!!

Roasted Squash Penne with Autumn Pesto

I bought a butternut squash about a week ago so I could make ravioli-needless to say I ran out of umph this week. I made this dish for the first time a couple of months ago and loved it! I decided I wanted it one more time before all the squash is gone for a whileRoasted Squash Penne with Autumn Pesto

adapted from rachael ray

1 cup flat leaf parsley tops, packed

1 cup baby spinach leaves, packed

1 tsp ginger

1 tsp paprika

2 cloves garlic, grated

1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

1 tsp lemon zest plus juice of 1/2 lemon

salt and pepper

1/3 cup olive oil

1 butternut squash-peeled and cubed into 3/4 inch pieces

1 tsp sweet paprika

1 tsp nutmeg

salt and pepper

1 lb penne

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400*.

Place parsley, spinach, ginger, garlic, nuts, lemon zest and juice, some salt and pepper in food processor and turn processor on. Stream about 1/3 cup olive oil into processor to form pesto sauce.

Spread squash cubes onto baking sheet. Drizzle cubes with about 2 tbsp olive oil and season with salt, pepper, paprika and nutmeg. Roast 15 minutes, turn cubes over and roast 15 minutes more.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of starchy cooking water just before draining. Drain pasta and return to hot pot. Add reserved water and pesto and toss to coat. Gently mix in squash cubes and serve topped with lots of cheese!

Serves 6-8

Curried Chicken and Cider Soup

I think I have a new favorite soup~I made this on Sunday and have wanted more since! It is super easy, good for you and so filling. I changed the recipe a bit to fit my budget and schedule a little better. So, so good!

Curried Chicken and Cider Soup

adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 tsp ginger

1 tsp salt

2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp cumin

1 cup apple cider

4 cups water

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks

1 small head cauliflower, coarsely chopped

2 cups shredded chicken

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add the onion, ginger and salt and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add curry powder, cumin and cook for about 3 minutes. Add cider, scraping bottom of the pan. Add 4 cups water and sweet potato and bring to a boil. Add the cauliflower, lower the heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.

Using a blender or hand blender, puree the soup. (I pureed until a bit thick, but still chunky.) Stir in the chicken and heat through. Season with salt and pepper.