Quick Cookies (or No-Bake Cookies, or Monkey Poos!)

Whenever I ask my husband if I should I make these cookies, his response is almost always the same—no! But I make them anyway because I love them, and, lo and behold, he goes on and on about how good they are and says "why don't you make these more often?" What a nut!

Quick Cookies

1 stick butter, melted

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

4 tablespoons cocoa

2/3 cup peanut butter (I like crunchy)

2 teaspoons vanilla

3 to 4 cups oats

In a large saucepan, mix together the first 4 ingredients and bring to a boil; boil for 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in the peanut butter and vanilla until thoroughly mixed in. Stir in the oats until desired consistency is reached (I usually do around 4 cups) and then drop spoonfuls onto wax paper. Let set for a while and then they're ready to eat!

TIP: My friend and I always made these cookies when we were growing up and could never wait for the cookies to completely set, so we'd scoop the warm gooey cookie into a mug and pour a little milk on top—try it and you'll love it!

Soft Chicken Tacos

These are pretty easy to throw together, especially if you have some leftover rice or buy the rice that you just stick in the microwave for a few minutes. We like to eat ours with sour cream, cheese, and salsa, of course!

Soft Chicken Tacos
1 to 2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed (or a large can of good-quality chicken, drained)
Black beans, rinsed and drained
Corn
1/2 to 1 cup chicken-flavored rice (or regular will work just fine too!)
1 can diced green chiles
Red and green bell pepper, diced
Onion, diced
Couple scoops of salsa or Rotel Tomatoes (the kind with chiles/jalapenos)

Combine all ingredients in a large frying pan and saute until heated through and thoroughly mixed. Serve on flour tortillas with desired condiments.

TIP: The great thing about these tacos is that you can add how much of whatever you want, and they always taste good! I usually throw these together when I don't use a whole can of black beans or have a little leftover rice. I usually have everything else, so it makes it extra easy!

Egg White Omelets

These can be a pretty HEALTHY breakfast (or dinner) depending on what you CHOOSE as your "fillers." We LOVE it with veggies, but bacon, sausage, and CHEESE do always taste good!

Egg White Omelets

8 egg whites

2–3 tablespoons milk

1/4 cup cottage cheese

Salt and pepper, to taste

1/2 cup or so of toppings, such as cooked bacon or sausage, diced ham, peppers, onions, tomatoes, spinach, mushrooms, grated cheese, etc.

Mix together the egg whites, milk, and cottage cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Pour half of the egg mixture into a heated saucepan that has been sprayed generously with nonstick spray and let cook, swirling the pan occasionally to move uncooked egg to outer edge. Just before the egg is almost cooked and starting to brown slightly underneath, top half of it with desired toppings, and then fold the remaining half of cooked egg over top. Let cook a couple minutes longer to finish off and then serve. Makes 2 omelets. 

TIP: Don't try to fold the cooked egg over the toppings too early or it will just fall apart! Run your spatula along the edge of the egg to loosen it up and take a peek to see if it is starting to brown. When it is, then flip it over the toppings. Also, if you want to try the exact combo above, I used sliced Canadian bacon, bacon crumbles, sauteed onion, julienned fresh spinach, and grated cheddar. SUPER GOOD!

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

My husband recently went on a HIKING trip and asked me to make these COOKIES for him and the guys. They are sooooo good I ate FOUR of them—one off of every pan FRESH from the oven!

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
3/4 cup butter, room temp
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 heaping teaspoon salt
3 cups oats
1 2/3 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Beat together the butter and sugars until blended and then beat in the eggs and vanilla. Mix together the flour, soda, cinnamon, and salt, and then beat into the butter mixture until well blended. Stir in the oats and chocolate chips. Drop large teaspoonfuls of dough onto cookie sheet and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly golden. (Cookies may look a little doughy in the middles still.) Remove from oven and let cool about 2 minutes on pan and then completely on a cooling rack. Makes a few dozen.

TIP: I can never decide what chocolate I like more, semisweet or milk, so I often use a combo of the two in these cookies. However, my favorite combo is milk chocolate chips and butterscotch chips. YUMMY!

Grilled Chicken Chili Salad

I've been wanting to TRY out some different ideas for SALADS the last few weeks, and this one ended up being pretty TASTY. Best part is that there is MINIMAL clean-up when all is said and done!

Grilled Chicken Chili Salad

4 chicken breast halves, rubbed with olive oil

Chili powder

Salt and pepper

Montreal Chicken Seasoning (optional)

4 thick slices onion (left as the whole "round" in one piece), rubbed with olive oil

Romaine or leafy green lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces

Frozen corn, thawed

1 can vegetarian chili, heated

Sour cream (I use light!)

Salsa

Grated cheddar cheese

Texas Toast Chili Lime Tortilla Strips (I found these at Walmart by the salad dressing!)

Sprinkle the chicken with the chili powder, salt, pepper, and chicken seasoning on both sides. Grill chicken and onions on the BBQ until done. Slice the chicken in thin pieces and cut the onion slice into quarters so you have bite-size strips.

Divide lettuce onto individual plates and sprinkle with a good handful of corn, followed by the grilled onion. Lay the sliced chicken down the center and then top with one-fourth of the chili. Add a line of sour cream and salsa over the chili and then top with the cheese and tortilla strips. Makes 4 servings.

TIP: The onions will be slightly charred and tender when done, but to make it easy we just usually grill the onions and chicken the same length of time. Also, if you can't find the tortilla strips, some crushed Tostito's Lime Tortilla Chips would work just as well, or any other chip that you think sounds good!

BONUS TIP: I like to stir my salad all together once I've plated it because everything gets nice and coated with the chili, sour cream, and salsa!

Fresh Blueberry Muffins with Streusel

I've been totally into buying BERRIES this summer, and the blueberries from Costco look so good, I can NEVER resist buying them when I'm there! Of course, the container is pretty BIG, so it's hard for me to go through it all FAST enough (because I also buy the strawberries and raspberries and blackberries too!). So, with all the excess berries, I find myself making all kinds of MUFFINS!

Fresh Blueberry Muffins with Streusel
Streusel
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons cold butter

Muffins
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 heaping cup fresh blueberries

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 6-cup jumbo muffin pan with nonstick spray; set aside.

Mix streusel ingredients together with a pastry blender until crumbly; set aside.

Whisk together the milk, oil, and egg. Stir in the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until moist. Gently fold in the berries. Divide batter equally into each muffin cup and then top with the streusel. Bake for 18 to 23 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool a few minutes in pan, and then run a knife around the edges and move to a cooling rack to cool completely. (This recipe is basically from Betty Crocker's Cookbook—the big red one—but with some minor changes on my part. Thanks Betty!)

TIP: If you have lots of blueberries hanging around, freeze them in little 1-cup increments so you can grab them from the freezer whenever you want to make these DELICIOUS and ADDICTIVE muffins!

Creamy Lemon Pasta

I was EXPERIMENTING the other night and put this YUMMY pasta together because I had some FRESH lemons I wanted to use. It definitely fits in the EASY category and tastes AMAZING, especially if you LOVE lemon!

Creamy Lemon Pasta
Olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 cups chopped rotisserie chicken
1 (14-ounce) can chicken broth

1 to 2 lemons

1 tablespoon cornstarch
3 tablespoons heaving whipping cream
2 to 4 cups frozen broccoli florets, warmed in microwave
1 bag frozen cheese tortellini, cooked according to package directions
Fresh Parmesan cheese

Heat the oil in a large frying pan and then add the garlic and chicken; stir and let cook together a few minutes. Pour in the broth and let come to a low boil. Juice the lemon(s) and then combine with the cornstarch; pour into pan and stir. Let come to low boil again; mixture will start to thicken. Once thick, stir in the cream. (If sauce is too thick, add a little more broth.) Add the cooked broccoli and tortellini. Serve with grated Parmesan over top. Makes around 6 servings.

TIP: I use 2 lemons because my family likes a strong lemon flavor, but feel free to just use 1 lemon or about 1/4 cup lemon juice if you prefer a more subtle lemon taste. I actually also zest the lemons for even more lemony goodness!

Steakhouse Quesadillas

I've found that I whenever we COOK or grill steaks (like on the 4th of July!), there's always LEFTOVERS. My family thinks this is one of the MANY great ways to enjoy STEAK the next day!

Steakhouse Quesadillas
Leftover steak, cut into pea-size pieces
A1 or other steak sauce
Leftover baked potato, cut into pea-size pieces
Chopped onion
Tortillas (I use whole wheat)
Grated cheddar cheese
Gorgonzola crumbles

Toss the steak in some A1 sauce and set aside. Heat the potato and chopped onion in the microwave just until warm and then toss with the steak. Lay tortillas on the counter and sprinkle with a small amount of cheddar cheese. Top with the steak and potato mixture. Sprinkle the Gorgonzola over top (we like a lot!). Finish off with a touch more cheddar and then top with another tortilla. Heat on a quesadilla maker or on your stovetop in a frying pan until cheeses are melted.

TIP: If cooking in a frying pan, make sure to add a touch of butter to the pan so each side of your quesadilla is slightly crispy when done. Also, some thinly sliced green onions and sour cream make a pretty garnish, and more A1 on the side is great for some light dipping!

101 Things To Do With Cheese!

My newest book is here! I'm so excited for this cookbook, because, for one, who doesn't LOVE cheese? The recipes in this book are pretty darn tasty, even if I do say so myself. There are eight sections including breakfasts, appetizers, soups, salads, breads & sides, pizza & pasta, main dishes and desserts. Some of my favorites are:

Stuffed French Toast

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Spence's Cheesy Chip Dip

White Cheddar Broccoli Soup

BBQ Chicken and Smoked Gouda Salad

Gorgonzola Potato Salad

Dill and Cheddar Scones

Asiago Mashed Potatoes

Mexican Pizza

Swiss Stroganoff

Gooey Lasagna

Chicken Divan

Saucy Garlic and Blue Cheese Burgers

Jalapeño Turkey Burgers

Philly Cheese Steak

Enchilada Casserole

Sour Cream Cheesecake

Cream Cheese Brownies 

AND SO MANY MORE!!! 

I think the cover turned out pretty darn cute as well. If anyone would like a copy, please let me know!

Roasted Veggies

Mmmmm! My cousin Robin made these YUMMY veggies for us once when we went to VISIT her and her little family. It's the PERFECT side and, as always, is super easy and FULL of flavor. Hope you like!

Roasted Veggies

Olive oil

1 russet potato or a couple reds
1 yam or sweet potato
1 sweet onion
Couple handfuls baby carrots
Garlic, minced (optional)

Herbs (use one or a combo of: thyme, oregano, rosemary, basil, etc.)

Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Prepare a glass 9 x 13-inch pan with olive oil, just enough to coat.

Peel the potatoes and then cut all of the veggies into bite-size pieces. (I actually don't peel the red potatoes, but do what you want!) Toss veggies and garlic into prepared pan. Drizzle with a touch more oil and then sprinkle with herbs and salt and pepper. Bake for 25 minutes and toss veggies, checking to see if tender. Continue to check and toss every 5 to 10 minutes until done, probably about 45 minutes total cook time. NOTE: The time totally depends on how big you cut the veggies, so just make sure to watch them!

TIP: Make sure to cut all the veggies uniformly so they cook and get done at the same time. Mushrooms, zucchini, corn, Brussels sprouts, bell peppers, and basically anything else you can think of taste delicious cooked this way!

Meaty Spaghetti Sauce for the Crockpot

I know it seems too HOT to have a meal in the CROCKPOT, but it's actually smart to use the HANDY appliance during the SUMMER because it doesn't HEAT up your kitchen!

(P.S. I know the photo isn't amazing since it just looks like plain old spaghetti sauce, but I wanted to show how the sides of the crockpot get all toasty with sauce. I try to scrape it off and stir it into the sauce because those browned bits just taste sooooo good!)

Meaty Spaghetti Sauce for the Crockpot
1/2 pound ground beef, browned and drained
4 Colosimo mild Italian sausages, cut into bite-sized pieces
25 to 30 (or so) pepperoni slices, halved or quartered
1 jar meat-flavored spaghetti sauce (I prefer Prego)
1 can tomato sauce
1/4 cup water
Italian seasoning
Garlic salt

Put all of the meat in a 2- to 3-quart crockpot.  Pour the sauces and water over top. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and a few shakes of garlic salt. Stir everything together and then cook on low heat for 6 to 8 hours. Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles or any other pasta.

TIP: If you can't find Colosimo sausages in your area, just brown 1/2 pound Italian sausage and throw it in instead. You could also slice up some polish sausage as a substitute as well. Also, if you prefer your sauce to be a little more liquidy, just add more spaghetti or tomato sauce!

Bestest Veggie Enchiladas Ever

OK, so I know I've posted VEGGIE enchiladas before, but I'm always EXPERIMENTING and coming up with different versions. My FAMILY voted this variation the BESTEST ever! Hope you like them. :)

Bestest Veggie Enchiladas Ever
1/2 sweet onion, sliced
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper (I used mixture of red and green)

Extra virgin olive oil

1 russet potato, peeled and cut into shoestrings, matchsticks, or whatever you want to call them
Handful of baby carrots, thinly sliced
Handful of baby spinach
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can diced green chiles
Couple handfuls frozen corn
8 flour tortillas
Grated cheddar cheese

Bestest Sauce:
1 can medium enchilada sauce
1 can tomato sauce (I used Hunt's Garlic Roasted)
1 can petite diced tomatoes (I think mine had garlic and oil in it . . .)
2 to 3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

In a large frying pan, saute the onion and bell pepper in oil until browned on the edges and tender; remove from pan and set aside. Add a touch more oil and saute the potato and carrots until mostly cooked through and tender. Toss the onion and bell pepper back into the pan. Stir in the spinach, beans, green chiles, and corn; remove pan from heat and set aside.

In a bowl, mix together all of the sauce ingredients. Lay the tortillas on the counter and evenly spoon veggie filling over each. Top with a little of the sauce and sprinkle with a little cheese; roll up. Scoop a large spoonful of the sauce into a 9 x 13-inch glass pan. Lay the rolled up enchiladas over top. Pour the sauce over the enchiladas (I didn't quite use it all, just until everything was covered and moist). Sprinkle more cheese over the top and bake at 425 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until bubbling around the edges. Serve this with lettuce, sour cream, and salsa like in the photo above.

TIP: Don't be intimidated by the number of ingredients in this recipe. The great thing about it is that you most likely have everything in your fridge and/or pantry already. If you're missing one or two of the veggies, just leave them out and add more of something else. I'm sure it will still be good!

Blackberry Cream Filling (for Cakes!)

This filling is so YUMMY, I just want to eat SPOONFULS of it. However, it does TASTE really good on cake too, so it's a toss up on how to EAT it!

Blackberry Cream Filling
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/4 to 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup blackberry pie filling
3/4 cup sweetened whipped cream

Blend together the cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Blend in the pie filling until thoroughly mixed in. Fold in the whipped cream. Use as the filling in the middle of your favorite cake!

TIP: The picture above is a lemon cake with lemon-flavored whipped cream frosting. The blackberry filling was super yummy in this combo. It would also be delicious with white or chocolate cake. And, if you don't want to make a layer cake, I'm sure it would be good just spread over top of any cake baked in a 9 x 13-inch pan!

BONUS TIP: This might be kind of obvious, but you can make the same recipe using blueberry, raspberry, or cherry pie filling. Yum!

Wild Rice with Nuts and Veggies

OK, so I get tired of PLAIN old rice on my plate all the time, so when I'm BORED, I stir in some extras! This is another EASY recipe that tastes FANTASTIC!

Wild Rice with Nuts and Veggies
1 cup uncooked wild rice
2 to 2 1/2 cups chicken broth or stock
1 cup julienned spinach (thinly sliced strips)
1/3 to 1/2 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup sliced almonds, coarsely chopped
1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced

Cook the rice in the broth according to package directions. When there's about 5 minutes left on the time, stir in the remaining ingredients. Let time finish and then serve. See what I mean about easy?

TIP: The possibilities of adding extras to the rice are endless! Some other good combinations: diced green olives with pinenuts and sun-dried tomatoes; julienned spinach with garlic and grated fresh Parmesan cheese; caramelized onions with some drained canned tomatoes; bacon with just about anything; etc., etc.!

Easy Grilled Salmon

We LOVE salmon at our house, and this is one of the EASIEST ways to prepare it! I usually serve it with some sort of RICE and a veggie. In fact, my next post will be a YUMMY rice dish. There! Something for you to LOOK forward too!

Easy Grilled Salmon

Fresh salmon

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Remove salmon from fridge and brush all sides with a generous amount of olive oil and then sprinkle with salt and pepper; let come to room temperature. Gently place on a hot bbq or grill pan and let cook on one side until cooked about halfway, and then flip. You'll get a nice crispy crust/edge that is SOOOO good!

TIP: I sometimes sprinkle some blackening spices on instead of the pepper. If anyone wants a recipe for the blackening spice mix, let me know and I'll post it for you!

Sweet and Spicy Meatballs

This is from a BOOK I edited once called 101 Things to do with Meatballs, although I converted it to the CROCKPOT and adjusted it slightly. Super EASY and serves a big crowd!

Sweet and Spicy Meatballs

1 (12-ounce) jar chili sauce

1 can jellied cranberry sauce

1 to 2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice

50 frozen, precooked meatballs

In a bowl, combine all but the meatballs. Put the frozen meatballs in a large crockpot and pour the mixture over top. Cook on low heat for 5 to 6 hours and then serve over rice when done.

TIP: You can also serve this as an appetizer with toothpicks!

Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

These little BUTTERY beauties are so EASY to put together! They taste AMAZING and complete just about any MEAL. I hope your family LIKES them as much as mine does!

Garlic Cheddar Biscuits
2 cups Bisquick
1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese
2/3 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Mix together the Bisquick, cheese, and milk. Mixture will be sticky. Drop by the spoonful onto a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for 9 to 12 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned. Melt the butter and then stir in the garlic powder. Brush over warm biscuits and serve. Makes anywhere from 8 to 15 biscuits—it just depends on how many you want. You may have to adjust the cooking time for larger biscuits.

TIP: I found this recipe right on the back of the Bisquick box several years ago, but I've adjusted it slightly for my own taste (meaning I add WAY more cheese). Feel free to cut back if this amount seems like too much for you!

Pear, Pecan, and Gorgonzola Salad

My husband LOVES this salad and, honestly, I just can't get ENOUGH of it either. It's the BEST when we can use the ripe PEARS from our own tree, but it's too hard to WAIT until September!

Pear, Pecan, and Gorgonzola Salad
Chopped or torn lettuce
2 pears sliced or cubed
1 tub Gorgonzola crumbles
Cooked bacon, crumbled
Craisins
Candied pecans
Red Wine Vinaigrette (check Salad Dressing posts!)

Other options:
Grilled or cooked chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
Sliced or cubed apple
Sliced or quartered strawberries

The prep for this salad is what takes the longest! When you have everything ready, just layer it all on dinner plates and top with the dressing. This salad is soooooo good, you'll want seconds for sure!

TIP: I love trying out different dressings, so don't feel like you have to stick with the Red Wine Vinaigrette. I recently tried a Pear Vinaigrette by Cardini's, and I think a good poppyseed or balsamic vinaigrette would be yummy on this salad as well. Or really, any type of dressing that is sweet and fruity!

Mexican Lasagna

This is a YUMMY dinner that my mom has made for us a few times, and we LOVE it. Obviously not your TRADITIONAL lasagna, but there's still lots of GOOEY layers!

Mexican Lasagna
1 pound ground beef
1 envelope taco seasoning
2 (16-ounce) cans refried beans
6 (10-inch) flour tortillas
1 package queso fresco, sliced
1 (4-ounce) can sliced olives, drained
1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles
1 cup corn
1 large can enchilada sauce
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until browned; drain. Combine with the taco seasoning and beans. Spread half of the mixture in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Top with 3 tortillas and trim to fit. Spread half of the enchilada sauce over the tortillas along, with half of each the olives, green chiles, and corn. Top with all of the queso fresco slices. Repeat layers, ending with the grated cheese. (Or hold off and add it the last 10 minutes or so of cook time.) Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until heated through. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

TIP: If you aren't sure about the queso fresco, just use a cheese you're comfortable with. I'm sure they'd all be good! Also, try garnishing this tasty dish with some chopped tomatoes and sliced green onions. My family loves it with some sour cream and salsa, and sometimes we even throw on some shredded lettuce.

Chicken Caesar Pizza

This is so REFRESHING to eat in the spring, and the perfect COOL dinner for hot summer nights! NOTE: My husband calls this "CHICK FOOD," but totally downs it when I make it!

Chicken Caesar Salad Pizza

1 refrigerator pizza crust

2 to 3 chicken breasts, cooked

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 to 3/4 cup Caesar salad dressing

1 teaspoon lemon pepper

1/2 garlic clove, minced

1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened

4 cups thinly sliced romaine lettuce

1 small can sliced black olives, drained

Fit pizza crust on a baking sheet with sides and bake according to package directions; let cool. Slice or chop the chicken; set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the Parmesan cheese, salad dressing, lemon pepper, and garlic.

In a separate bowl, mix together the cream cheese and half of the dressing mixture. Spread cream cheese mixture over cooled crust. Arrange the chicken pieces over the cream cheese layer. Toss together remaining dressing mixture, lettuce, and olives and then spread over the pizza. Makes 6-8 servings. 

TIP: Since it's just me and my hubby that eat, I just toss together enough lettuce and dressing for the two of us and top each individual serving. That way we can eat more the next day and not have soggy lettuce!