Bacon, Olive & Cheddar Bread

I saw this recipe on Pinterest and it just looked so amazingly yummy, I had to make it! I changed a couple things here and there and fiddled with some measurements, but, the end result was a hearty, savory bread with so much flavor it could almost stand alone as a meal! The bread "dough" was really more like batter.....it was quite wet and "sticky"....please don't let that scare you! The end result was perfection! Enjoy!

1 tsp butter

5 green onions, finely chopped

2/3 c white wine

1/3 c. olive oil

4 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

2 1/2 c. flour

1 tsp baking powder

4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1 c. ham, diced

2/3 c. sliced olives (black, green or a combo of the two)

2 Tbl fresh parsley OR 1 Tbl dried parsley

1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

 

Preheat oven to 350F

Melt 1 tsp butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in chopped green onions and saute for 3 minutes. Set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together the wine, oil, eggs and salt. In a separate bowl mix the flour and baking powder together. Stir the wine mixture into the flour mixture.

 

Add the sauteed green onions, cooked & crumbled bacon, ham, olives and parsley to the bread mixture. Stir well to combine. Add the cheese. Stir. 

Pour into a greased loaf pan and cook for 60 to 63 minutes.

Oreo Pudding Cookies

Believe it or not, it's not uncommon for my husband and kids to pass on homemade cookies and baked goods that I make. I think I just bake so often, they just don't get excited by much anymore. There have been many a time I tried out a new cookie or bar and everyone says "no thank you" and asks if they can have ice cream instead. SIGH. So, I was ecstatic and surprised to see how all of them ate two, three, four of these Oreo Pudding Cookies each! They were a huge hit! I passed them out to my neighbors, as well, and got rave reviews! But seriously, folks, how could they NOT be fantastic?! Oreo pudding AND Hershey's Cookies & Cream bars in one solitary cookie?! YES PLEASE! Thanks again to the Girl Who Ate Everything blog for this yummy recipe! Enjoy!

1 cup butter, room temperature

3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 (4.2 ounce) package instant Oreo Pudding mix (see Note)
2 1/4 cups flour 
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Hershey's Cookies N Cream Candy Bars cut into small pieces (I used 2.6 ounce King Sized bars)
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl and set aside. Cream together butter and sugars. Beat in pudding mix until blended. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well. Add the flour mixture and mix to combine. Stir in cookies n' cream pieces and chocolate chips. Batter will be thick.

Using a cookie dough scooper, place golf ball sized dough balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 - 9 minutes. You do not want to overbake these! Let cookies cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet before moving to a cooking rack. Store in air-tight container. Makes two dozen.

Baked Portabello with Parmesan

This healthy, meatless recipe was a big hit with my husband. This dinner was very satisfying and tasted delcious - it tasted like pizza! The recipe comes from One Perfect Bite. Serve with a side salad and a good crusty bread. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Italian-style bread crumbs
1 cup (3-oz.) freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided use
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/4 cup fresh minced parsley, divided use (I used fresh basil instead of parsley)
2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided use
3/4 cup egg substitute (I used two eggs)
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 teaspoon marjoram leaves (I used 1/2 tsp dried)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon oregano leaves (I used 1/2 tsp dried)
4 large (5 to 6-inches wide) stemmed portobello mushrooms, brushed clean
1-1/2 cups (6-oz.) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1 cup commercially prepared "light" tomato sauce
Cooking spray

Directions:
1) Position a baking rack in upper third of oven. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a 17-1/2 x 11-3/4 baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place a 16-1/2 x 11-1/2-inch wire cooling rack inside the baking sheet. Mist rack with cooking spray. Set aside.

2) Combine bread crumbs, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, 3 tablespoons parsley, paprika and 1 teaspoon salt in a shallow pan. Mix well. Set aside.

3) In a separate bowl, combine eggs, remaining 1 teaspoon salt. pepper, marjoram, garlic powder and oregano. Mix well.

4) Dip both sides of mushrooms into egg mixture. Dredge in crumb mixture until both sides are completely coated. Transfer, stem side down, to prepared wire rack. Spray tops with cooking spray and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until mushrooms are tender. Remove pan from oven.

5) Reset oven thermostat to 450 degrees F. Meanwhile, carefully turn mushrooms stem side up. Cover each mushroom with 2 tablespoons of remaining Parmesan cheese, 1/4 of mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup tomato sauce. Spray tops lightly. Return to oven and bake until cheese melts and mushrooms are warmed through, about 10 minutes. Use a wide spatula to transfer mushrooms to a serving platter. Sprinkle with reserved 1 tablespoon parsley.

Scarecrow Treats

These yummy treats are the perfect bar cookie for fall! They were fun to make, too! Just remember when working with the corn syrup/peanut butter mixture you have to work quickly!! If you don't, the mixture will harden and will be all but impossible to get out of the saucepan! These treats are an "active" baking project....just be aware of that before you set out to make them. The recipe comes from the Land O' Lakes website. Enjoy!

Crust:

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 (18.25-ounce) package pudding in the mix yellow cake mix

1 egg

3 cups miniature marshmallows

 

Topping:

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups crisp rice cereal

2 cups salted peanuts

1 cup candy corn

 

Preheat oven to 350F 

Combine butter and cake mix in a large bowl. Beat on low speed until well mixed. Add egg; continue beating until well mixed. (You really must use a hand mixer for this step)

Press onto bottom of a greased 15x10x1-inch jelly-roll pan. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until set and edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven.

Immediately sprinkle marshmallows over hot, partially baked crust. Return to oven; continue baking for 1 to 2 minutes or until marshmallows puff.

Meanwhile, combine corn syrup, sugar and brown sugar in LARGE saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring until mixture comes to a boil (2 to 4 minutes). Remove from heat; stir in peanut butter and vanilla until smooth. Stir in cereal, peanuts and candy corn. Immediately spoon over marshmallows; spread to cover (I used a piece of parchment paper to spread mixture evenly over the marshmallows- this is a great trick when making any type of Rice Krispie treat- the hot mixture will not stick to the parchment paper and you can smooth it out perfectly). Cool completely. Cut into bars. 

 

Cheesey Mushroom Pull Apart Bread

Oh boy was this good! And it looked beautiful, too! It has several of my favorite foods combined- bread, cheese, butter, mushrooms, I mean, seriously, how could this ever go wrong!!!? The following recipe is verbatim from the Beantown Baker blog. I suggest you make this for your next get together, bring it to a holiday party, serve it on Superbowl Sunday.....or do what I did, just serve it for dinner one night. I'm not kidding, my husband and I sat in front of the tv and picked this thing apart on a Monday evening...it was delicious! Enjoy!

Mushrooms:
12 oz sliced mushrooms (buttons or baby bellas)
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme

Bread:
1 unsliced loaf sourdough bread (please get good sourdough from the bakery)
12 ounces Provolone cheese, thinly sliced
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup finely diced green onion
2 teaspoons poppy seeds

Preheat the oven to 350F
Heat a medium skillet on medium. Add the butter. Once the butter is melted, add the mushrooms. Cook 4-5 minutes until they start to sweat. Add the thyme and continue to cook another 2-3 minutes. Set mushrooms aside and allow to cool.

Cut the bread lengthwise and widthwise without cutting through the bottom crust. This can be a little tricky going the second way but the bread is very forgiving.

Place loaf on a foil-lined baking sheet.

Insert cheese slices between cuts. Pour the mushrooms between the cuts. Use your fingers to push the mushrooms down into the loaf.

Combine butter, onion, and poppy seeds. Drizzle over bread. 

Wrap in foil; place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Unwrap the bread and bake 10 more minutes, or until cheese is melted. Yum!

Halloween Rice Krispie Treat Cake

This fun little cake was a snap to make and looked adorable! The kids loved it (and so did I)! Perfect treat to make for Halloween! And please don't worry if your measurements aren't exact, Rice Krispie treats aren't rocket science......they always taste good no matter what! Enjoy!

1/4 c. butter
1 1/2 bags of mini marshmallows
9 c. Rice Krispies
1 c. candy corn
1 c. Reece's Pieces

Melt butter in a large soup pot. Once butter has melted add mini marshmallows to the pot. Stand over that pot like a mama bird guarding her nest and stir, stir, stir....don't let those marshmallows burn! Once the marshmallows have melted completely, remove the pot from heat and add 1/2 the Rice Krispies. Stir to incorporate. Add the rest of the Rice Krispies, as well as the candy corn and Reece's Pieces. Stir till everything is covered with the melted marshmallows.

Scoop mixture into a well greased bundt pan (don't have a bundt pan? You really should, but, that's besides the point. You can use a 9X13" glass dish, although it won't look as pretty). Use a piece of wax or parchment paper to evenly push the Rice Krispie treats down so they are level. Let the "cake" cool for awhile then invert onto a cake stand. Voila!

Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread

As you probably know if you follow my blog, I am a sucker for quick breads, especially ones that are sweet! So when I saw this recipe on Lovin' From the Oven (which btw, is a great blog- especially for baking fanatics like myself) I knew I had to make it! Yummy!!!! Blog worthy indeed! And just the type of comfort food needed at this time of year when the temperatures are dropping! Please give it a try!

3 over-ripe bananas, mashed
1/3 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
dash of salt
1 1/2 cups flour

For the swirl:
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbl cinnamon


Preheat oven to 350F

Butter and flour a loaf pan.

Mix bananas, melted butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla together. Sprinkle baking soda and salt around on top of the banana mixture. Then gently stir in flour. Be careful not to over-mix!

In a small bowl, mix together 1/3 cup sugar and 1 Tbl cinnamon.

Add 1/2 of the batter to the prepared loaf pan and then sprinkle 3 to 4 Tbl of the cinnamon-sugar mixture all over the batter in the pan. Add the rest of the batter, and then sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon-sugar on top. You can use the tip of a knife to gently swirl the cinnamon sugar mixture into the batter a bit.

Bake for 50-55 minutes. Let cool completely before removing from pan. Enjoy!