Friday, April 15, 2011

What is wrong with my spacing?


So, two posts ago, there are spaces I didn't want and in the last post, there aren't spaces I did want. Grr.


Peanut Butter Brownie Cookies

1 (19.5) oz box brownie mix

1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

4 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 egg

1 cup powdered sugar

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 can chocolate frosting


Preheat oven to 350F. In a medium bowl, beat brownie mix, melted butter, cream cheese, and egg until well blended. The dough will be thick and sticky.


In a small bowl, mix powdered sugar and peanut butter until well mixed.


Drop 1 tablespoon balls of dough 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. (The recipe says it should make 24 cookies, but I usually get more than that.) Press 1 teaspoon of the peanut butter mixture into the center of the chocolate dough.


Bake at 350F for 10 - 14 minutes or until edges are set. Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheet. Cool at least 30 minutes on cooling rack.


Spread a thin layer of frosting over peanut butter portion of each cooled cookie.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Alert the Media... I cooked TWO NIGHTS IN A ROW!

A never ending, let's call it a challenge, in my marriage is scheduling. Neither Brad nor I work what anyone would consider a "9-5" job. Mine is closer than his though. I am required to be at school from 7:00 - 2:30, so I can run errands or make appointments in the afternoon, but in reality, I work, conservatively, about 80 hours per week when school is in session. Brad doesn't have to bring any work home, but he works from 3 am - 1 pm, Saturday - Tuesday, and frankly, that's not normal. Now, I'm hungry all of the time, but I like to eat dinner around 5:30. Unfortunately, though, I don't usually get home from work until roughly 5. And then, I have been going to water aerobics at 5, so I don't get home and changed until nearly 6:30. (If any students are reading this, I began the last sentence with "and" for rhetorical effect.) Brad goes to bed at 7, and rightfully so, does not want to eat dinner after he goes to bed, because that would be strange, and under the previously mentioned schedule, dinner won't be ready until 7:30 or 8. As a result, we eat a lot of grilled cheese. And frozen pizza. I try really hard to cook on nights that Brad doesn't have to go to bed before sunset, and yesterday and today, I actually succeeded in that effort. Yesterday for supper, we had pasta with an asiago cream sauce, salad, and bread sticks from Aldi (which are actually pretty good). Here is a photo of the salad, which contained romaine lettuce, cucumbers, provel cheese, (a local mixture of American, Swiss and Provolone cheeses... not really sure who thought that was a good idea. Brad hates it, but that's because he's from out of town) and homemade croutons. We are out of my favorite store bought dressing, Zia's, so I had Ranch, and Brad had Raspberry Vinaigrette. I know you are interested in our salad dressing choices, and that is why I share this information with you. Here is a picture of the Asiago Pasta and the Aldi breadsticks. They have the same consistency and basic flavor of crescent rolls in a tube, but overall, I would say worth the $1.84 investment.
Here is a photo of the ingredients that comprise tonight's fajitas.

... and here is a photo of the beef... right out of the skillet... see the steam!


And the final product - a tortilla sprinkled (loaded) with colby jack cheese, beef, sauteed onions, and a dollop (or two) of sour cream.


Beef Fajita Marinade

1 pound beef, thinly sliced 1/4 cup lime juice 1/3 cup water 2 tablespoons olive oil 4 cloves garlic, crushed 2 teaspoons soy sauce 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper In a large resealable plastic bag, or sealable container, mix together the lime juice, water, olive oil, garlic, soy sauce, salt, and liquid smoke flavoring. Stir in cayenne and black pepper. Place meat in the marinade, and refrigerate at least 2 hours, or overnight.



I use cheap flat beef. I am not sure what the cut is, but it is at Costco between the brisket and the chunks of eye of round. It looks like a giant lean steak. After marinating it overnight, I saute it in a very hot skillet with a little olive oil until it is cooked throughout. I also saute some onions and green peppers (separately, because I'm allergic to green peppers, but you could do them together). Then, I wrap them up and eat them. You can add whatever other fajita like ingredients you so desire, but really, if I have melted cheese and sour cream, I am a happy girl.


Saturday, April 2, 2011

We Found the Cord! (Actually, I bought a new one...)

Sopapilla Pie

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 (8 ounce) cans refrigerated crescent rolls

3/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1/4 cup honey

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Beat the cream cheese with 1 cup of sugar and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth.

Unroll the cans of crescent roll dough, and use a rolling pin to shape each piece into 9x13 inch rectangles. (I have found that it works better to just flatten two triangles together in my hands, and then piece the four smaller rectangles together in the pan/ on top of the cream cheese.)


Press one piece into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture into the baking dish, then cover with the remaining piece of crescent dough. Stir together 3/4 cup of sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Dot the mixture over the top of the cheesecake.

Bake in the preheated oven until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown and the center doesn't jiggle when you shake the pan a bit, between 30 and 40 minutes, depending on your oven.


Remove from the oven and drizzle with honey. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into 12 squares.



There is absolutely NOTHING HEALTHY about this. It is sugar on top of fat on top of fat on top of sugar on top of fat on top of sugar. For this reason, I wouldn't recommend it every week, but it is SOOOO good. Take it to a church pot luck. Nobody cares about calories on a buffet.