Recipe Swap: Peanut Butter Snickers Cookies

Our recipe swap this time focused on desserts. I was assigned these peanut butter snickers cookies from Mrs. Reguieiro's Plate and I must say that I was pretty excited to make them. My mom used to make snickers cookies where 1 whole mini snicker was inside each cookie and they were fantastic. These were slightly different, but still similar in taste. As expected these cookies tasted great and made a nice after-dinner treat. The only problem I had was that they were pretty fragile to transfer to the wire rack, but it wasn't too big of a deal. I just got to eat some crumbs right away!

Peanut Butter Snickers Cookies
Source: Slightly adapted from Mrs. Regueiro's Plate -- Original source: Two Peas and Their Pod

Ingredients:
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup creamy peanut butter
¾ cup granulated sugar
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups chopped Snickers bars
¾ cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and peanut butter until smooth. Then add the sugar and light brown sugar and mix until light and fluffy. Add the egg, milk and vanilla extract and mix to combine.

4. Add the dry ingredients slowly into the wet ingredients. Mix to combine.

5. Stir in the chopped Snickers and chocolate chips.

6. Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, drop the cookies onto the prepared baking sheet. Press each down slightly with the back of a wooden spoon. Bake for 10-11 minutes until the edges start to turn golden brown.

7. Cook on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.





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Homemade Spaghettio's

It's funny that I wanted to try to make homemade spaghettio's because I've actually never really liked them. And apparently neither has my husband. My mom never allowed us to eat them (or any Chef Boyardee product) and I understood why when I tried them when I was older. Gross. However, after looking this recipe over I knew that I would like it because it was basically a tomato soup base with pasta. And when my son gets older and starts requesting things like this because his friends eat it, I can make him this instead and hopefully be able to fool him. I really don't want to feed him a meal that is laden with preservatives when I can just as easily make it myself. I was concerned that this was going to be too soupy, but I let it warm on low on the stove while we put our son to bed and it thickened up nicely.

Homemade Spaghettio's
Source: Pennies on a Platter

Ingredients:
8 oz ditalini pasta (or other small pasta)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
15 oz can tomato sauce
1 cup water
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
1. Make pasta according to package directions.

2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a dutch oven. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and heat for 30 seconds. Add the tomato sauce, water, tomato paste, salt, black pepper, sugar and butter. Stir until butter is melted. Add milk, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Add the cheddar cheese to the pan with the tomato base. Stir until melted.

4. Drain pasta and add into the tomato base. Mix well. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes on low heat to thicken.Pin It

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies

I've been slightly obsessed with both peanut butter and oatmeal lately. These cookies marry those two together beautifully. These cookies are honestly some of the best I have ever made. They are soft and the filling really pushes that peanut butter flavor over the top. They taste like a great homemade version of a Nutter Butter! Your friends will love them too. At least, that's what mine told me. :) And these cookies may look like a lot of work, but they really aren't. This recipe would also be really easy to double or triple if needed!

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies
Source: Slightly adapted from Annie's Eats, originally from All Recipes

Ingredients:

For the cookies:
¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup creamy peanut butter
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar, packed
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup old-fashioned oats

For the filling:
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
3 tbsp. heavy cream

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray or line with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a small bowl.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, peanut butter, sugar and brown sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy.

4. Add the egg and vanilla and blend to combine.

5. Add in the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined.

6. Stir in the oats.

7. Using a small cookie scoop, portion out the cookie dough (about 2 teaspoons each) and roll into a ball. Set each cookie on the baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, rotating pan half-way through the baking time, until cookies are light golden brown.

8. Cool the cookies for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough.

9. Once cookies are completely cooled, make the filling. Cream together the butter, peanut butter, and confectioner's sugar until combined. Add in the heavy cream and mix until smooth and fluffy.

10. Pipe a dollop of frosting on the bottom of one cookie, then add a cookie of similar size to the top and press together until the filling reaches the edges. Repeat with remaining cookies.

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Jalapeno Cheddar Buns

I've been really into baking bread lately. I'm sure this obsession will continue into the cooler months. I've had this recipe bookmarked for a long time and I definitely should have made these sooner! These buns are fantastic. The cheese melts into the dough to create a cheese flavored bun and the jalapenos add a touch of spiciness. These buns take a sandwich and make it ten times better. I am never one to eat things plain and now I'm not sure I can go back to regular old sandwich buns. (Who am I kidding? I probably will, but these buns were THAT good.) I actually didn't use these buns for burgers, but for french dip beef sandwiches. I just toasted the buns before adding the meat and they held up really well to the dipping. And for those of you who think baking bread is too time-consuming, think again. The only time-consuming part is waiting for the dough to rise!

Jalapeno Cheddar Buns
Source: Confections of a Foodie Bride

Ingredients:
1 package (2 1/4 tsp) yeast
1 cup lukewarm water
2 Tbsp oil (vegetable, canola, or olive) plus more for greasing bowl
2 large eggs
3 Tbsp sugar
3 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp salt
6 oz sharp cheddar, shredded
3 large jalapenos, seeded and chopped

Directions:
1. Put the water in the bowl of a stand mixer, then sprinkle the yeast over the top. Let stand 10 minutes until the yeast is foamy.
2. Add the oil, ONE egg, and sugar to the bowl. Then add the flour, salt, cheddar cheese, and chopped jalapenos. Mix with the hook attachment on low speed until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. You may need to add flour by the tablespoon if the dough remains too wet.
3. Increase the speed to medium and knead the dough for 5 minutes.
4. Grease a large bowl with a little oil and transfer the dough to the bowl. Cover with a damp towel and place in a warm spot. Let rise for one to one and a half hours until doubled in size.
5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two sections. Divide each section into 4-6 pieces.
6. Roll each piece into a ball, then flatten with the palm of your hand. Place each dough piece onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
7. Cover with a damp towel and let rise for 20 minutes.
8. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and allow the dough to continue to rest while the oven preheats.
9. Whisk the egg with 1 Tablespoon water in a small dish.
10. Brush the top of each dough piece with the egg wash.
11. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until golden brown. Let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

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Hawaiian Pizza with No-Rise Crust

When I was little my parents went bowling on Saturday nights and my grandma babysat us. Since my grandparents lived right across the street my grandpa would make us a pizza, then come "deliver" it through the front window of our house. I thought it was so cool that my grandpa did that. Now, my family always makes pizza on Friday nights and I have started to somewhat adopt that tradition as well. Even if we don't have pizza on Friday nights, pizza is often on our menu anyway because there are so many different combinations that you can make! I especially love Hawaiian pizza and like the twist of adding sweet chili sauce to the bbq sauce. Feel free to replace or add to these ingredients! You could use Canadian bacon and even add some red onions. I thought I bought a red onion at the store, but I can't find it at the moment. How one loses produce I will never know! Let's just blame that one on mommy brain. Also, this crust does not need to rise so if you decide to make a pizza at the last minute then you can just whip this crust up.

Hawaiian Pizza

Ingredients:
For the dough
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons canola oil
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (whole wheat works too!)
For the pizza1/4 cup bbq sauce
1/4 cup sweet chili sauce
3 slices thin sliced deli ham
3 slices bacon, cooked until crisp then broken into small pieces
1/4-1/2 cup pineapple chunks (or tidbits)
1-1-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

Directions for the dough:
1. Combine yeast and water in the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large mixing bowl) until foamy.

2. Add the sugar, salt, canola oil and flour, then knead on a low speed (or by hand) for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. It should feel tacky to the touch, but none should stick to your fingers.

3. Spread dough on a pizza stone.

Directions for the pizza:
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees and prepare pizza stone or pizza pan.

2. Combine the bbq sauce and sweet chili sauce and spread over pizza crust.

3. Add the ham, bacon and pineapple chunks, then sprinkle the cheese evenly over the pizza.

4. Bake for 12-15 minutes.Pin It

Recipe Swap: Mexican Sour Cream Rice

For our recipe swap this time we were given one blog and were allowed to choose anything we wanted to make from it. I received A Taste of Home Cooking, which just happens to be Sarah's blog who coordinates the swaps! She had so many recipes to choose from so I decided to look up a side dish that would complement the Mexican meal I planned to make this week. I have been making a lot of cilantro lime rice with dishes lately so I wanted to try something a little bit different. I chose this Mexican sour cream rice since I had all of the ingredients (except the green chiles, but I substituted something similar). After I made this dish and sat down to blog it, I realized that I have actually blogged about it before! Of course that was about 3 years ago so I completely forgot. And, I will blame mommy brain for part of it. :) However, this dish is so good that it deserves to be blogged about twice! The chiles in the salsa verde gave it a nice little kick and it went really well with the shredded chicken and black bean burritos we had with it. I encourage you to try a new side dish to enjoy with your Mexican food next time!

Mexican Sour Cream Rice
Source: Slightly adapted from A Taste of Home Cooking, who modified it from ...and a cookie for dessert

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
1 (14 ounce) can chicken broth
1 cup sour cream
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chile peppers (I used salsa verde since I didn't have any chile peppers)
2 cups shredded pepper Jack cheese, divided
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a small casserole dish.

2. Combine rice and chicken broth in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

3. Once rice is finished, add the sour cream, green chile peppers, 1 cup cheese, corn and cilantro. Mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

4. Transfer mixture to casserole dish, then top with remaining 1 cup of cheese. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, until the cheese is melted and golden brown.Pin It

BBQ Chicken Quinoa Salad

Quinoa is a food that many people have been talking about for a few years now and has been featured in most healthy living magazines and blogs. It is a healthy whole grain that is actually a seed. Now that I have finally figured out that my grocery store carries it in the bulk foods area, I am able to purchase it on a regular basis. And yes, I know I should have looked there multiple times, but I forgot every time I went to the store. I have had this recipe bookmarked for quite awhile and am glad that I finally made it. The flavors all worked really well together and made a filling meal. I hope to make more quinoa recipes I have pinned soon!

BBQ Chicken Quinoa Salad
Source: Slightly adapted from Iowa Girl Eats

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa
2 cups chicken broth
2 chicken breasts
salt & pepper
1 cup corn kernels
1/2 cup black beans, drained & rinsed
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream
1/4 cup BBQ sauce (plus more for chicken)

Directions:
1. Rinse quinoa with cold water in a fine mesh sieve and then transfer to large saucepan. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium low and cook the quinoa for 20 minutes, or until light and fluffy.

2. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Grill or poach the chicken, then shred and toss with BBQ sauce.

3. Combine the corn and black beans in a skillet and heat over medium heat.

4. Combine the sour cream and 1/4 cup BBQ sauce in a small bowl.

5. Spoon the quinoa into a dish, then top with the chicken, corn and black bean mixture, cheese, sour cream/BBQ sauce mixture and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

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