Ice Cream Cake

Oooh, look how beautiful it is!

I won't tell you how many slices of this I've had.

After last years disaster birthday ice cream cake (see below), I wanted to be sure to have a nice one for Bryson's birthday this year.

This year I looked up a recipe on allrecipies.com for an ice cream cake. This one was totally a cheater cake, but it tastes and looks great.

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  1 (16oz) can chocolate syrup

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  3/4 cup peanut butter

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  19 ice cream sandwhiches

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  1 (12 oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

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  Whatever kind of topping you would like: nuts, candy, sprinkles, etc. I used an assortment of reese's pieces, the small reese's and the large reese's.

1. Pour the chocolate syrup into a medium microwave safe bowl and microwave on high for 2 minutes. Do not allow to boil. Stir peanut butter into the chocolate until smooth. Allow to cool to room temperature.
2. Line the bottom of a 9x13 inch dish with a layer of ice cream sandwhiches. Spread half the chocolate mixture over that, then add half the whipped cream, and top with whatever candy/nut you picked. Repeat these layers. Freeze until firm, about 1 hour. Cut into squares and serve.

Happy birthday, big guy! Love you tons.

How to peel a potato

I was sent this link as an email forward a long time ago, and I love it. Peeling potatoes for potato salad is always SUCH A PAIN IN THE you-know-what. This works, and it's so easy. Just thought I'd share.

If for some reason the link stops working, here's the directions:

1. Bring large pot of water to boil. Score the potatoes around the middle and carefully place potatoes in the water and boil until desired doneness is reached (usually about 15 minutes).
2. Meanwhile, in large bowl, place an even amount of water and ice.
3. Remove potatoes and place in ice water. When cooled off (about 1 minute), pull ends of the potatoe to remove the peel.

Old Fashioned Potato Salad

This is an awesome potato salad recipe that I use when we have a BBQ. I never add the eggs because I think they're disgusting in a potato salad, but to each his own. It's a pretty simple recipe, especially if you omit the eggs.

• 5 potatoes


• 3 eggs (if you like them)


• 1 cup chopped celery


• 1/2 cup chopped onion


• 1/2 cup sweet pickle relish


• 1/4 tsp garlic salt


• 1/4 tsp celery salt


• 1 TBS prepared mustard


• ground black pepper to taste


• 1/4 cup mayo

1. Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender, but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain, cool, peel, (or use this method) and chop.


2. Place eggs in a large pot of water and then bring to boil. Boil eggs for 7 minutes. Remove from heat and cover. Leave eggs in water for 7 more minutes. Remove from water, remove shells, and chop.


3. In large bowl, combine all ingredients and refridgerate until chilled (about an hour and a half).

Three Cheese Manicotti

This was very good tonight. Lots of flavor, just perfect if you're craving something italian for dinner. It's more of a company-coming-over type meal because it's so fatty and kind of expensive, but mmm mmm. Next time I'm going to try ground sausage in the cheese mixture. Also, if I'm not having company over, next time I will half the recipe and use an 8x8 inch pan. This was WAY too much for a family our size.

• 1 (8oz) package manicotti shells (in the pasta section)
• 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 2 cups ricotta cheese
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
• 1 TBS minced garlic (I just used garlic powder)
• 2 TBS dried basil
• 2 (26oz) jars pasta sauce

1. Bring large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add manicotti and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until al dente; drain.
2. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. In a bowl, mix 3 cups mozarella cheese, ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, garlic, egg, and basil. Stuff cooked manicotti with the mixture (You can use a zip lock bag with the end cut, or just stuff it in)
4. Spread about 2 cups pasta sauce over the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Arrange stuffed manicottiin the dish, and cover with remaining sauce. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.
5. Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese, and continue baking 10 minutes, until mozzarella is melted and bubbly.

Busy Weeknight Parmesan Chicken

This was an extremely fast, easy meal, and it tasted good too! It also looks real pretty when it's done. Total score for a weeknight meal, and maybe even for company. I used a few more pieces of meat (6 pieces instead of 4), and added a little more of the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese, and also needed a little more butter and oil for the extra pieces of chicken.

• 4 (4 oz) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves


• 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs


• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese


• 1/2 tsp dried basil


• 1 egg


• 1 TBS butter


• 1 TBS vegetable oil

1. Flatten chicken to 1/4 inch thickness.


2. In a shallow bowl, combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and basil. In separate bowl, beat the egg. Dip the chicken in egg, then dredge in bread crumbs.


3. In large skillet, brown the chicken in butter and oil over medium heat for 3-5 minutes on each side, or until juices run clear.

Mexican Casserole II

I have another Mexican Casserole on here, to explain the name Mexican Casserole II

This was good tonight. Cory said it was better than Cheetos and he wanted it for his birthday - a VERY big compliment from him. :)


The beauty of this recipe is that you don't need to be precise about measurements. I added more chicken, and about double the salsa, and a little more cheese. I also added a little bit of Frank's brand hot sauce before putting it in the dish.

• 2 TBS vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 lb cubed skinless, boneless chicken breast meat
• 1/2 (1.25oz) package taco seasoning mix
• 1 (15oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (8.75oz) can sweet corn, drained
• 1/4 cup salsa
• water, as needed
• 1 cup shredded Mexican-style cheese
• 1 1/2 cups crushed plain tortilla chips

1. In a large skillet, heat oil and saute onion and garlic for a couple minutes. Add chicken and cook until no longer pink. Add taco seasoning, beans, corn, salsa, and a little water to prevent from drying out. Cover skillet and simmer over medium low heat for ten minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350
3. Transfer chicken mixture to a 9x13 inch baking dish. Top with 1/2 cup of the cheese and crushed tortilla chips. (I ended up just mixing the cheese and crushed chips in with the casserole and it was really good.)
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup cheese and bake until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Melt-in-your-mouth Snickerdoodles

John has raved about Judy Steventon's snickerdoodles for years, and I finally got the recipe and tried them and boy was he right. These cookies are really yummy, and I'm not even a huge fan of snickerdoodles. 

Cookie:

• 1 C sugar
• 1/2 C butter
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cup flour (1 cup bob's red mill 1:1, 1/2 cup namaste)
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt

Cinnamon Sugar mix:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

Topping:

• 1/2 C butter, softened
• 1 C brown sugar
• 1 TBS cinnamon

Frosting:

• 1/2 C butter, softened
• 3 C powdered sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2-3 TBS whole milk or heavy cream

1. In mixing bowl, cream together sugar and butter until fluffy, about two minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla until well combined, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Add in the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt, scraping the bowl as needed. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours, or until firm.
2. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon.  Divide into seven pieces and roll into small balls.  Place in the freezer for about 15 minutes.  Flatten the balls and place them on top of the cookies.
3. Preheat oven to 350. Shape dough into 3/4" balls. Roll in cinnamon sugar mix to completely coat the ball. Set cookies 1" apart on lightly greased cookie sheet.
4. Bake at 350 for 10-13 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool 3 on pan and remove to cool completely (on wire rack, or newspaper).
5. To prepare frosting, cream butter until fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk/cream and mix until well blended.  
6. Spoon on top of cooled cookies. 

Aussie Chicken

OOOhhhh, I made this tonight and I think I've died and gone to heaven...or maybe I'm just in a fat-induced coma, but either way, I'm liken it here. :)

This one wasn't too kid-friendly, but I enjoyed it. Plus I had a lot of fun making it...kids in the back yard playing (nicely), the first monsoon storm rolling in, baby sound asleep in the next room, it was just nice, so I didn't mind that it took a little longer to prepare.

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, pounded to 1/2 inch thickness
• 2 tsp seasoning salt (I actually used worchestershire sauce)
• 6 slices bacon, cut in half
• 1/2 cup prepared yellow mustard (I used dijon instead, but next time I want to try plain yellow)
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup (I didn't add this)
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 TBS dried onion flakes
• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 2 cups colby-monterey jack cheese (I only used 1 cup)
• 2 TBS chopped fresh parsley (makes it look pretty, but not necessary for the taste)

1. Rub chicken breasts with seasoning salt (I used worchestershire sauce), cover and refridgerate for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350
3. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until crisp, set aside. Saute mushrooms in bacon grease, remove and set aside. Place the chicken in the skillet and saute in bacon grease until browned (about 5 minutes per side). Remove from skillet and place the breasts into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
4. In a medium bowl, combine the mustard, honey, corn syrup, mayo, and dried onion flakes. Remove half of sauce, cover and refridgerate to serve later. Pour other half over chicken in baking dish. Layer with mushrooms and bacon. Sprinkle top with shredded cheese.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted and chicken juices run clear. Garnish with parsley and serve with the reserved mustard sauce.