Quick and Simple Brownies

{Recipe & pic from} The Sisters Dish

Brownies
Ingredients:
1 3.4 oz package instant chocolate pudding mix
milk, amount indicated in pudding directions
1 18 oz box of chocolate cake mix (I used Devils Food Cake)
1-2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips or other mix-in (optional)
Directions: Prepare pudding according to package directions. Stir in cake mix, careful not to overbeat or incorporate too much air. Stir in chocolate chips or other mix-in. Pour into a greased 9x13 baking pan. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until the top springs back when lightly touched.

Ice cream Pie

OH YUMM.....I cannot wait to make this recipe....I have never been a fruity pie fan...but ice cream pie....oh yes!

{recipe & pic from} Cheat Day Cafe

Ice Cream Pie (Makes 2 pies)
What you will need:
2 chocolate cookie crusts
(2) 1/2 gallons of ice cream (I usually put chocolate on the bottom and a different flavor on top)
1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup whipping cream (not whipped)


Spoon 1/2 the container of chocolate ice cream in each pie crust. You might need to let the ice cream sit on the counter 5 minutes or so until it is soft before you scoop it into the crust. Put pies into the freezer to harden.
While pies are in the freezer make your chocolate sauce by putting your chocolate chips and whipping cream in a heavy sauce pan. Melt the chocolate until smooth and then let mixture cool to room temp.


Take pies out of the freezer and drizzle chocolate sauce over the 1st ice cream layer. Place back into the freezer to harden chocolate sauce.


When sauce is hardened, remove pies from freezer and spoon 2nd flavor of ice cream on top. I like to mound it more in the center so that it is kind of "dome" like. Drizzle with remaining chocolate sauce. Place in freezer to harden.


When hardened you can put it in a large Ziplock freezer bag to store. Your second pie can keep really well in the freezer until you need it. (if it lasts that long)


This time I put cookies and cream on my first pie and Moose Tracks on my second pie. I had some Reese's Peanut Butter Cups on hand so I chopped them up and put them between the layers and on top of the Moose Tracks pie. It was delicious!

Coconut Cupcakes

{recipe & pic from} food network

barefoot contessa's coconut cupcakes
ingredients

3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

2 cups sugar

5 extra-large eggs at room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons pure almond extract

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup buttermilk

14 ounces sweetened, shredded coconut

for the frosting:

1 pound cream cheese at room temperature

3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract

1 1/2 pounds confectioners' sugar, sifted

directions

preheat the oven to 325 degrees

in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. with the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix well.in a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. in 3 parts, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry.

mix until just combined.

fold in 7 ounces of coconut.

line a muffin pan with paper liners.

fill each liner to the top with batter.

bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. remove to a baking rack and cool completely.

meanwhile, make the frosting.

in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed, cream together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. add the confectioners' sugar and mix until smooth.

frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining coconut.

Cake Mix Cinnamon Rolls

Here is the recipe for the Cake mix cinnamon rolls I made and fell in love with. I actually got my recipe out of the Worldwide Ward Cookbook, but I didn't know if I could copy that one, so I found this one on Recipezaar and it is almost identical. These are so delicious and I can't wait to make them again!

Cake Mix Cinnamon Rolls
5-6 cups flour
1 (18 ounce) package yellow cake mix
2 (1/4 ounce) packages yeast
2 1/2 cups warm water
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon



Frosting
6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2-3 tablespoons milk

Directions
In a mixing bowl, combine 4 cups of flour, dry cake mix, yeast and warm water until smooth.
Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes (I did this step with my Kitchen Aid Mixer).
Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top.
Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.
Punch dough down.
Divide dough in half and let rest covered 10 minutes.
Turn onto a lightly floured surface.
Roll each portion into a 14 X 10 rectangle.
Brush with butter; sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar (I prefer brown sugar myself, so I used about 3/4 cup brown sugar with a teaspoon and half of cinnamon).
Roll up jellyroll style, starting with long side.
Cut each roll into 12 slices; place cut side down in two greased 13 X 9 baking pans. Cover and let rise until almost doubled, about 20 minutes (this is where you can put them in the fridge over night).
Bake at 400 for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool for 20 minutes.

Fruit Salad

This is such a yummy salad. We had it this weekend and it reminded me how yummy it is!

Fruit Salad

1 Lg. cool whip

2 pkg. instant cheesecake pudding

1 bag frozen strawberries

2 lb. strawberry yogurt (5 small)

1 bag blackberries or raspberries

Add 5 bananas sliced last

SO YUMMY!

Thanks Aunt Phyllis!

Marshmallow Surprise Cookies

{Recipe & Pic from} My favorite Recipes

Marshmallow Surprise Cookies
1 3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla
12 large marshmallows, cut in half horizontally
--Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg, milk, and vanilla, and beat until well combined. Add reserved flour mixture; mix on low speed until combined. Using a tablespoon or 1 3/4 inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto un-greased baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies begin to spread and become firm, 10-12 minutes. Remove baking sheets from oven, place a marshmallow, cut side down, in the center of each cookie, pressing down slightly. Return to oven, and continue baking until marshmallows begin to melt, 2-2 1/2 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting. Spread about 1 tablespoon of frosting over each marshmallow, starting in the center and continuing outward until marshmallow is covered.

Salted Peanut chews

{Recipe & pic from} My favorite Recipes

Salted Peanut Chews (Christmas bar cookie)
Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. soda
1/2 cup soft margarine
1 tsp. vanilla
2 egg yolks
3 cups mini marshmallows
Topping:
2/3 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup margarine
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups (12 oz.) peanut butter
2 cups rice krispies
2 cups cocktail peanuts
--Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine crust ingredients except marshmallows. Press in bottom of ungreased 9x13 pan. Bake @ 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes until light golden brown. Immediately sprinkle with marshmallows. Return to oven for 1-2 minutes until marshmallows begin to puff. Cool while preparing topping. In large saucepan heat topping ingredients until chips are melted and mixture is smooth, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in cereal and nuts. Immediately spoon warm topping over marshmallows and spread to cover. Chill, cut into bars.

Strawberry Delight

{Recipe & pic from} My Favorite Recipes

Strawberry Delight
9 Graham crackers, crumbled (approx. 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
1 (8 oz.) tub Cool Whip (or 3 1/2 cups)
4 cups strawberries, hulled and halved
1 (3.4 oz.) pkg. vanilla pudding
2 1/2 cups cold milk
--Combine crumbs, 1/4 cup sugar and melted butter. Press into 9x13 pan, chill (5-10 minutes). Beat cream cheese with 1/4 cup sugar and 2 Tbsp. milk until smooth. Fold in half of the Cool Whip. Spread over crust. Arrange strawberries in even layer. Prepare pudding with 2 1/2 cups milk. Pour over strawberries. Chill several hours or overnight. Before serving, spread remaining Cool Whip over pudding. Garnish with additional strawberries if desired. Serves 15. (Add more strawberries if you want to off-set the pudding and whip cream mixture balance. Or use 4 cups peaches for a variation from strawberries.)

Luau Fruit Salad

This sounds so delicious!

{Recipe from} Real Mom Kitchen

Luau Fruit Salad
1 small package coconut cream pudding mix
1 cup buttermilk
1 (8 oz) container cool whip
1 banana, sliced
1 diced apple
1 (15 oz) can pineapple tidbits, drained
1 (11 oz) can mandarin oranges
1/2 cup toasted coconut (I only do this if I am taking the salad somewhere)
Mix dry pudding mix and buttermilk together for 2 minutes. Fold in cool whip. Mix in fruit. Top with toasted coconut just before serving.

This is such a fun twist on the regular old pasta salad...I will definitely be trying it!

Fiesta Chicken Pasta Salad

{Recipe from} Real Mom Kitchen

1 pkg Hidden Valley Fiesta Ranch dip mix
½ c. oil (I used canola)
½ c. vinegar
1 lb cooked, shredded chicken (about 1 ½ to 2 breasts, but I left this out)
3/4 box garden rotini (I used an entire 12 oz box)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can black olives, halved
2 -3 tomatoes, chopped
Frozen corn, thawed (I used 2/3 of a 16 oz. pkg)
Mix dressing mix, oil, and vinegar in small bowl and set aside. Combine chicken, cooked pasta, beans, olives, and tomatoes in large bowl. Add dressing and frozen corn about 20 minutes before serving. Be sure to toss again just before serving, as the dressing will seep to the bottom.

QUESADILLAS!

{Recipe from} My Favorite Recipes

Bean and Corn Quesadillas
1 cup (more or less to taste) cheddar cheese, grated
2 burrito size flour tortillas
1/2-3/4 cup bean and corn salsa (or subst. with black beans, corn, tomato, etc.)
butter
--Spread butter on one side of each tortilla. Put butter side of one tortilla down on a flat skillet. Sprinkle cheese evenly on top. Sprinkle bean and corn salsa evenly over cheese. Place second tortilla on top of spread (butter side away from beans and cheese). Heat until golden. Flip quesadilla over and brown the other side. Serve warm, with BBQ-Ranch Dip.

BBQ Ranch Dip/Dressing
--Follow the link for directions on making the dip. Or, just mix 1 part BBQ sauce with 2-3 parts ranch dressing.

Noodle, Cheese and Broccoli Soup

mmm....mmm...good...I am ready to try this one!

{Recipe from} My Favorite Recipes

Noodle, Cheese, and Broccoli Soup
6 cups milk (don't use whole milk--it curdles)
1 1/2 head of fresh broccoli
1 lb. Velveeta cheese (don't use the imitation stuff, it doesn't melt right)
6 chicken bouillon cubes
8 oz. EXTRA FINE egg noodles (or subst. Cellentani pasta or any other pasta)
dash of garlic salt (or more)
6 cups water
dash of pepper
--Pour 6 cups of water in a big pot. Bring to a boil. Add bouillon cubes and dissolve them in boiling water. Add fine egg noodles, cook 2 minutes. Add broccoli (already chopped) and cook until barely tender. Add dash of garlic salt and pepper. Stir in 6 cups of milk. (I like to take 1/2 cup of the milk and add it to flour to make a thicker soup). Turn heat to medium. Cut up Velveeta cheese into small cubes. Add cubes of cheese to milk. Stir until melted. DON'T BOIL (it will curdle and look like little pieces of floating butter).