{english toffee}

I really wanted to make English Toffee this past week, but I was in search of an easy, but good, recipe. I found this one at allrecipes.com, and it was successful by both standards. Very few ingredients, easy to make, but totally delicious!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Best-Toffee-Ever---Super-Easy/Detail.aspx?prop31=1

Enjoy!

{caramel popcorn}

I could eat gallons of this. Really, it's that good! Caramel popcorn is one of my favorite things ever, and I belong to the "chewy" group. It seems like people fall into one of two categories when it comes to caramel popcorn--crunchy and chewy. We have all kinds in our family, but this is an easy recipe to manipulate to your liking. I also like to add a handful of nuts--pecans and cashews are my favorites--to the popcorn right before I pour on the caramel, then I toss it all together. Yummy!

CARAMEL POPCORN

1 stick butter
1/2 c. Karo
1 c. brown sugar
salt
vanilla

Melt butter in a saucepan, then add Karo and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, and while stirring constantly, continue boiling until it reaches the soft-ball stage. Take off the heat and stir in vanilla and salt. Pour over popcorn and stir well. If you like it crunchy, continue boiling until the hard-ball stage.

{chocolate chip toffee bars}

This recipe is hands down my favorite bar recipe. They are rich and delicious, plus easy to make!

CHOCOLATE CHIP TOFFEE BARS

2 1/3 c. flour
2/3 c. brown sugar
2 c. chocolate chips
1-14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 c. butter
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 c. coarsely chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts)
1 3/4 c. toffee bits (10 oz.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl mix the flour and sugar together. Cut in butter until the mixture is coarse crumbs, Add beaten egg and mix well. Stir in 1 1/2 c. chocolate chips and nuts. Reserve 1 1/2 c. of that mixture. Press the rest into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Pour the sweetened condensed milk over the top in an even layer. Top with 1 1/2 c. toffee bits. Sprinkle reserved crumb mixture on top, followed by the remaining chocolate chips. Bake 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle remaining toffee bits on top, the cool completely before cutting into bars.

p.s. I'm hoping to make these in the next day or two, so I should be able to update with pictures!

{no-bake cookies}

This is hands-down the best no-bake cookie recipe I have ever tried. A friend gave this to me several years ago when we were at the University of Utah, and I haven't found a better one yet! It's the perfect mix of chocolate and peanut butter, and just plain delicious. They don't sit around too long at our house!!

NO-BAKE COOKIES

2 c. sugar
2 T. butter
2 T. cocoa
1/2 c. milk
3/4 c. peanut butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
*3 1/2 c. oats

Bring the first four ingredients to a rolling boil, then remove from heat. Add peanut butter and mix well, then add the salt and vanilla. Add oats last. *I actually don't measure the oats. I like my cookies to be a certain consistency--not too dense, and not too runny. I add them a little at a time, until it's to the point I like them to be. Drop spoonfuls onto wax paper that has been sprayed with cooking spray, then let them cool to room temperature. Enjoy!

{mint brownies}

Last night I had a little get-together at my house, and I really wanted to make mint brownies. I have a recipe that I have used before, but the brownie part isn't my favorite, and the chocolate on top was hard to spread. So, I decided to create my own, using a combination of recipes. They turned out SO good! I will definitely be making them like this from now on.

MINT BROWNIES

Brownies:

3/4 tsp. salt
1 c. + 2 T. flour
1/3 c. cocoa
2/3 c. brown sugar
2/3 c. white sugar
1/2 c. chocolate chips
handful mini marshmallows
3 eggs
2/3 c. butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine sugars and butter. Add eggs and vanilla, then cocoa. Mix in flour and salt. Stir in chocolate chips and marshmallows. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-32 minutes, or until well done. Do not overbake. Let cool to room temperature.
*Usually I make these and frost with a chocolate buttercream frosting. They are really versatile, and very delicious! You can also add white chocolate chips, which give it a different, yummy taste.

Mint Frosting:

1 recipe Traditional Buttercream Frosting
2-3 drops green food coloring
1 tsp. peppermint flavoring

Make frosting as directed, then add food coloring and flavoring. Add more flavoring to taste. Beat well, until light and fluffy. Once brownies are completely cool, spread generously over the top.

Chocolate Ganache:

2 c. chocolate chips, or finely chopped chocolate squares (I prefer milk chocolate, but semi-sweet is generally used.)
8-10 T. whipping cream

Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted. Add 8 T. of the cream, then a little more if necessary, stirring until glossy. Spread over mint layer carefully. Let the brownies sit for a few minutes before cutting.
*This is based on a basic recipe I found on Picky Palate, but you can use any recipe for chocolate ganache that you like.

{the BEST peanut butter cookies}

Rick was in the mood for peanut butter cookies, and last night I decided to try a new recipe from a friend, since I didn't love any of the ones I had. I made a few changes to it, and it is our new favorite! If you like soft and chewy cookies, peanut butter and chocolate, this is the cookie for you. Enjoy!

PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES



1 c. sugar
1 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. peanut butter
1 c. butter, softened
2 eggs
*2 c. flour, sifted
1 tsp. baking soda
2 c. chocolate chips (I use the large Ghirardelli milk chocolate chips)

Preheat the oven to 325. Cream together the butter, peanut butter, and both sugars; beat in eggs. Stir together *flour (I didn't sift mine, just used a spoon to place it in the measuring cup. I ended up adding another 1/2 c. after it was all mixed, because it was still too "wet") and baking soda; add to creamed mixture. Beat just until well mixed. Stir in chocolate chips. Roll into balls, then roll them in granulated sugar. Place on cookie sheet about 1 inch apart. Use 2 fingers to press them down slightly. Bake 12-15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool slightly before removing from pan to cooking rack.

Chocolate Mousse Squares

These are divine. Truly. They need to have a warning on them: GIVE THESE AWAY. YOU WILL EAT EVERY ONE OF THEM IF YOU DON'T. :)

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE SQUARES
12 Oreo cookies, crushed
1/4 c. (1/2 stick) butter, melted
2-8 oz. packages cream cheese
1 can sweetened condensed milk
4 squares Baker's Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, melted
1 c. thawed Cool Whip

MIX crushed cookies and the butter in a foil-lined 9-inch square pan. Press firmly onto the bottom of pan to form crust.

BEAT cream cheese in large bowl with electric mixer on lowspeed until creamy. Gradually add condensed milk, mixing well after each addition. Blend in chocolate. Gently stir in Cool Whip. Spoon mixture over crust; cover.

FREEZE at least 6 hours or overnight. Remove from freezer 15 minutes before serving to soften slightly. Cut into 16 squares and serve. Store leftover dessert in freezer.

Apple Dumplings

I can't even remember where I came across this recipe, but it one of my husband's favorites. In fact, I have to double the recipe if anyone else is going to eat any! They are delicious alone, or served with vanilla ice cream.

APPLE DUMPLINGS

8 oz. package crescent rolls
1 apple, peeled, cored, and cut into 8 pieces
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. orange juice (already prepared)
3/4 stick butter
Cinnamon

Lay apple slices at the wide end of the crescent roll triangle, and roll over once. Pinch edges to seal, then roll up the rest of the way. Place in an 8x8 baking dish. In a saucepan, mix sugar, juice, and butter. Bring to a boil and pour over dumplings. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

Wow, this recipe brings back a lot of memories. My mom made us ice cream quite a bit when we were young, and it was a family tradition to make it on the 4th of July and eat it while we were watching fireworks. I was so excited when I bought our ice cream maker, and we use it frequently. We pulled it out for the first time since the late fall/early winter yesterday, and it was delicious! I really can't wait for spring and summer, when we can make this all the time and enjoy it outside! This is one of the best I've found, and I love that it doesn't have eggs in it. I'm just not a fan of using eggs, and prefer the taste without them.

VANILLA ICE CREAM

2 1/2 c. whole milk
2 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. half and half
1 1/2 T. vanilla
5 c. whipping cream

Scald milk until bubbles form around edge of pan. Remove from heat. Add sugar and salt, stir until dissolved. Stir in half and half, vanilla, and whipping cream. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes. Freeze as directed.

*I usually switch the amounts of whipping cream and half and half, just to make it lower in fat. :)

Traditional Buttercream Frosting

I LOVE homemade frosting. My mom taught me the basic recipe when I was young, and I never even knew there was such thing as canned frosting! I have now tweaked it, and made it enough times to come up with this recipe. I think there's a myth that making frosting takes a long time, but it only takes minutes, and WELL worth the effort. It completely changes the taste of your dessert, and once you switch over you can't go back!! It's wonderful on cakes, cinnamon rolls, sugar cookies, and I even use it for gingerbread houses!

TRADITIONAL BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

4ish cups powdered sugar
1 stick butter, at room temperature
whole milk
vanilla
dash salt

Place the powdered sugar and butter in large mixing bowl, and begin beating with a handmixer on medium speed. Slowly add milk, until you receive desired consistency. If you realize it's not enough frosting, add more powdered sugar and then milk until it's as much you need. It should be on the thicker side, but not too thick. Add salt and vanilla to taste, and mix well. Once completely mixed, turn the speed up and beat the frosting for another 30 seconds or so. This makes it creamy, and easier to spread.

*I also like using other extracts, depending on what I'm making. Some of my favorites are lemon, mint, and almond.
**To make chocolate frosting, whisk together cocoa with the powdered sugar before adding butter and milk. You can keep on adding cocoa until it's the desired chocolatey-ness.

Dashboard Cake

I've used this recipe forever, but this name was created just last Sunday! We were invited to another family's home for dinner, and I made this cake to bring for dessert. We were almost there, when the cake started sliding, and I made the move to try and get it to a safe place. The car jerked a little, and the cake ran right into the dashboard, taking a big chunk out of the side. When I explained what happened to the other families, it was immediately christened "Dashboard Cake". I think the name is here to stay!
This cake is incredibly moist, with kind of a crunchy crust. It's also extremely versatile, and you can change the flavor of the cake to meet your needs (or mood :)) very easily.

DASHBOARD CAKE

1 Dark Fudge cake mix (I prefer Duncan Hines, but you can use any brand)
1 package chocolate instant pudding (regular-sized box)
4 eggs
1/2 c. flour
1/3 c. oil
1 1/2 c. water
chocolate chips (I like to use the large Ghirardelli chips)

Mix all ingredients except chocolate chips on low speed for about 30 seconds, then beat on a higher speed for 2 minutes. Fold in chocolate chips. Spray a bundt pan with cookin spray, then coat with granulated sugar. Pour cake batter into pan and place in a 375 degree preheated oven. Bake until toothpick comes out clean (check the toothpick closely--you may stick it into a melted chocolate chip, and think it's not done yet). Let it sit for at least 15 minutes before flipping onto your cake plate. Make a traditional chocolate buttercream frosting, then melt it in the microwave for a few seconds until you cam drizzle it over the cake. YUM!

*I also love using a lemon cake mix and lemon pudding, then serving with a lemon buttercream frosting. Place raspberries in the center of the cake and top with fresh mint.