Hassleback Potatoes

Hassleback Potatoes

6 medium sized potatoes
3 garlic cloves very thinly sliced
2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. butter
Sea Salt
Pepper


Preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Wash your potatoes thoroughly and place on cutting board. Start at one end of the potato, slice down stopping right before you cut all the way through. Have the slices be 1/8 inch thick.

Once cut all the way down, place on a baking tray. Put a piece of garlic in between the slices. Rub butter over the potatoes, and then drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle sea salt and pepper over the potatoes.

Bake the potatoes for about 40 minutes or until the potatoes turn crispy and the flesh is soft.

These are so good dipped in chipotle ranch sauce!


Enjoy!

Kerri

Chocolate Cake with Oreo Cream Cheese Frosting and Ganache

I forgot to take a picture of this cake before we started eating. This cake was for my husbands birthday and he loved it.

Chocolate Cake with Oreo Cream Cheese Frosting and Ganache

Cake:
3/4 c. butter at room temperature
3 eggs at room temperature
2 c. flour
3/4 c. cocoa powder
1 t. baking soda
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 c. sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. milk

Frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature

1/2 c. sugar

2 c. thawed whipped topping                        

12 Oreo cookies, finely chopped

 

Ganache:

1/4 c. butter

4 squares (4 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped

 

Directions:

 

Cake: Preheat the oven to 350. Grease the bottoms of two round cake pans. In a large missing bowl cream butter. Gradually add sugar, then add eggs in one at a time. Beat in vanilla. Add dry ingredients and milk, stirring until just combined. Beat for 20 seconds more. Spread into prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool cake layers on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool completely. Once cool, cut each cake into two even layers.

 

Frosting: Beat cream cheese and sugar until completely blended. Fold in Oreo's and whipped topping.

 

Place one layer on a plate, cover with frosting, add the next layer, and continue the process until all layers are on the cake. Melt the chocolate squares and butter in a pan. Once melted, pour ganache over the cake.

 

 

 

Enjoy!

 

Kerri

Jumble Cookies

 

 My mother-in-law has this cookie recipe that my husband loves. He made them once when we were engaged but hadn't made them since, about 6 years later. They are so delicious.

Jumble Cookies

Ingredients

1 1/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. crispy rice cereal
2 c. chocolate chips

Directions:

Cream butter and sugar together, add egg and vanilla. Mix in dry ingredients, and then crispy rice cereal and chocolate chips. Spoon onto lightly greased baking pan (or use a baking stone). Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Kerri

Pasta

I love making pasta! I don't buy pasta anymore, I solely make it at home. At first I started out rolling out the pasta, but I couldn't get them thin enough. Thick pasta is good, but too thick of pasta isn't. My husband got me a pasta press attachment for my KitchenAid. Here is the recipe I use.


Homemade Pasta

3 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
4 eggs
1/4 - 1/2 c. water

Put the flour, salt, and eggs in the mixing bowl. Start the mixer, and slowly add the water. You don't want the dough super wet. With normal bread dough you want it all stuck together. However, with this one you will stop every once in a while and press the dough together. If it sticks, you are done. It will still be flaky, but stick together. You can then roll it out to less than 1/8 of an inch then cut into strips and pieces with a pizza cutter, or put it in your pasta press.

You can let it dry, or throw it straight into boiling water.

Enjoy!

Kerri

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Getting ready to go in the oven

I found this recipe on pinterest and we absolutely love it. Seriously, cinnamon rolls are wonderful and cake, well, that is easy to make. Therefore, you get the taste of cinnamon rolls without the big process of making actual cinnamon rolls. This cake doesn't last long in the house. We eat it for breakfast, as a snack, and for dessert. Well, I guess it is a good thing that I don't make it very often.

Just out of the oven

Cinnamon Roll Cake
from: Chef In Training

Cake:
3 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 cups milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup butter melted

Topping:
1 cup butter softened
1 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. cinnamon

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 glass baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. In an electric or stand mixer add the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, milk, eggs, and vanilla. Once combined well , slowly stir in the melted butter. Pour into the prepared 9×13 baking pan.
3. For topping, In a large bowl mix the 2 sticks of butter, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon together until well combined and creamy. Drop evenly over the batter by the tablespoonfuls and use a knife to marble/swirl through the cake.
4. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or when a toothpick inserted near the center comes out nearly clean.
5. FOR GLAZE: In a medium bowl, mix the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla together with a whisk. Drizzle evenly over the warm cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Ready to eat. Yummy!

Rice Krispie Treats with Homemade Marshmallows

Who doesn't love rice krispy treats? Last time I made them I followed the normal recipe and they went so quickly. We hadn't had rice krispy treats in a long time and it brought us back to childhood. Brandon made a comment that they would probably be better with homemade marshmallows.

That comment got me thinking that it probably wasn't that hard to make them from scratch. The more I thought I more I really wanted to try it. I am a firm believer that anything made from scratch is way better than the store bought version.

I read a bunch of different recipes and they all called for a candy thermometer, which I didn't have. I also noticed that it said to have the marshmallows stand for 4 hours until ready. Well, I was planning on having them melted down again to make the treats. Did I really need to let them stand for 4 hours to harden and then malt them back down, undoing what the 4 hours did? I thought not.

I looked online and found this recipe.

The first time I tried it I forgot to stir the gelatin, I had to toss that and start over. Oh, well! They turned out great, granted mine weren't gluten free but I don't really care about that. You could always use gluten free crispy rice cereal.

 

Homemade Marshmallow Rice Krispie Treats

 

Ingredients

2 packets unflavored powdered gelatin
1 cup cool water
2 cups sugar
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
8 to 9 cups crisp rice cereal

 

 

Directions

Line an 8- or 9-inch square baking dish with heavy-duty aluminum foil, and grease the foil with cooking oil spray. Set the dish aside.

In a small bowl, place the contents of both packets of gelatin, add 1/2 cup water and mix to combine well. Set the bowl aside and allow the gelatin to swell as it stands. Once the gelatin has swelled, transfer it to the bowl of a stand mixer or bowl to use a hand mixer.

In a medium, heavy-bottom saucepan, place the remaining 1/2 cup water, sugar and cream of tartar, and whisk to combine well. Cook the sugar mixture over medium-high heat until it reaches the softball stage, between 238°F and 240°F, on an candy thermometer. Remove the saucepan from the heat immediately, and pour the cooked sugar mixture down the side of the bowl of the stand mixer into the gelatin mixture (don't try and scrape the side of the bowl it ran down, you will have sugar strings everywhere!). Whisk to combine and allow the mixture to cool briefly. It will bubble. Add the vanilla and salt, and beat the mixture on medium-high speed with the whisk attachment until the mixture is white, thick and glossy. It should nearly triple in size. It is ready when the mixture pours off the whisk very slowly when raised.

Add the melted butter to the marshmallows, and beat again on medium speed until combined. The marshmallows will decrease in size a bit. Add 8 cups of the crisp rice cereal. Spray a silicone spatula with cooking oil spray, and use it to stir together gently the marshmallow mixture and the rice cereal. Add up to 1 cup more crisp rice cereal, depending upon how gooey you would like your treats to be.

Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan, and smooth the top with the oiled spatula. Place in the refrigerator until set (about 15 minutes), and slice to serve. Store in an airtight container either in the refrigerator or at room temperature.

Enjoy!

Kerri

My Mom's Cinnamon Rolls

Growing up I loved my mom's Cinnamon Rolls. She didn't make them very often but man when she did they were always so good. They are very similar to Cinnabon's recipe. They are just as big too! Give it a try!

Cinnamon Rolls

Dough:

1 pkg. yeast

1/2 cup lukewarm water

2/3 cup shortening

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp salt

1 cup cooked mashed potatoes

1 cup scalded milk

2 well beaten eggs

6-7 sups flour

Filling:

3/4 cup softened butter

1 1/2 cup brown sugar

3 tbsp cinnamon

3/4 cup raisins (optional)

Frosting:

8 oz pkg. cream cheese

1/2 cup butter

2 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

 

Directions:

Dissolve yeast in water. In a small pan, scald your milk. Once done add shortening, sugar, salt and mashed potatoes to the milk.  When cool add to yeast.  Mix thoroughly and add eggs.  Stir in enough flour to make stiff dough.  Put in fridge, covered, for several hours or overnight.

When ready to make rolls, punch down dough and let sit for 10 minutes.  Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface and roll into 12 x 18 inch rectangle.  Spread 3/4 cup butter onto dough.  Combine cinnamon and brown sugar and sprinkle on buttered dough.  Sprinkle on raisins.  Roll dough up starting at long side.  Pinch seams to seal.  Cut roll in 1 1/2 inch slices and place cut side down in a greased 9x13 pan. Make sure you don't cram then in the pan, 8 is the most I ever put in the pan.

 

Using a fork gently lift center of the rolls to form peaks.  Cover and let rise in warm place about 40 minutes.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until lightly brown.

 

Combine frosting ingredients mixing well.  Spread over warm rolls.

 

 

Enjoy!

 

Kerri