Archive for March, 2010
Fudgy Truffle Eggs
I think I am going to spend the day in the kitchen making some of these yummy treats, along with others for Easter.
1 bag (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips (2 cups)
1 container (16 oz) Betty Crocker Rich & Creamy chocolate frosting
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter or marshmallow creme
1 package (24 oz) vanilla-flavored (almond bark) or chocolate-flavored candy coating
Directions:
1. In large microwaveable bowl, microwave chocolate chips uncovered on High 1 minute, stir until melted. If necessary, microwave 10 to 20 seconds longer or until chocolate can be stirred smooth.
2. Microwave frosting uncovered on High 20 seconds; stir into melted chocolate chips. Stir in vanilla. Cover; refrigerate 30 minutes or just until thick enough to hold a shape.
3. Drop chocolate mixture by level tablespoonfuls onto waxed paper lined cookie sheets. Flatten each tablespoon of chocolate mixture. Spoon about 1/4 teaspoon marshmallow or creamy peanut butter in center. Fold chocolate mixture over filling; shape into egg shapes. (If mixture is too sticky, refrigerate until firm enough to shape.) Freeze 30 minutes.
4. In large bowl, microwave candy coating uncovered on High 1 minute to 1 minute 30 seconds, stirring until smooth. Dip eggs, one at a time, in candy coating using fork to hold them. Return to cookie sheets. Refrigerate eggs about 10 minutes or until coating is set. Decorate as desired.
No more time for crafts?
It seems every where you go these days all the talk you hear is there really any affordable health insurance? I say no! Unless you are my son, he has some darn good insurance! It almost makes me want to go out and get a job at a well know retail store (that is known across the country!) But that would mean I would have less time do any of my crafts.
I have been trying to knit, even if its a row here and a row there. The other day I knit about 5 rows at one sitting and could really feel it later that day/night. I need to get this arm fixed before COBRA runs out and we are left with no insurance…. I don’t want the government insurance!
Pasta salad
This looks yummy!
Ingredients:
3 cups farfalle (bow-tie pasta), uncooked
1 cup baby carrots, diagonally sliced
1 cup frozen peas
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
1 onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup KRAFT Tuscan House Italian Dressing and Marinade
1 can (14 oz.) fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup KRAFT Finely Shredded Italian Five Cheese Blend
Directions:
Cook pasta in large saucepan as directed on package, adding carrots and peas to boiling water the last 3 min.
In the mean time, cook and stir chicken in large nonstick skillet 3 to 4 min. or until no longer pink. Remove from skillet; cover to keep warm. Add onions and dressing to skillet; cook 5 min. or until onions are crisp-tender, stirring frequently. Return chicken to skillet. Stir in broth. Bring to boil; simmer on medium-low heat 3 min. or until chicken is done, stirring occasionally.
Drain pasta mixture. Add to skillet with basil; stir. Serve topped with cheese.
Perfect for summer!!
He wants to do what?
I sometimes have to wonder what goes through my hubby’s head! He is wanting to do some sort of project and wants to try to make some wood blinds. Really? What’s wrong with the blinds we have now I ask? If he really wants to work on a project… we have the kitchen ceiling to finish, then the bathroom. Not to mention the two guitars he has been working on for the last two years!
We have so many other things that need to be completed if we really want to put the house on the market, so I think this “idea” he has of making blinds, needs to just go bye-bye.
Cute cupcakes
How cute are these?
With all of these yummy recipes I have been finding, I am going to have to find some female fat burners, along with some for the men in my life. We are going to gain a bunch of pounds if I keep this up!
The following recipe and directions for these cupcakes don’t look to hard to make, I may have my sister in law help me make them for Easter.
Little Lamb Cupcakes
Ingredients
* 1 vanilla cupcake, taken out of the paper, recipe follows
* About 1 cup White Fluff Frosting, recipe follows
* 1 large marshmallow
* 2 white candy eyes
* 1 purple jujube candy
* 1 short 1/4 inch and 1 long piece 2 inch black string licorice
* 35 mini-marshmallows
* 4 purple and 2 pink jelly beans
Directions
Frost cupcake. Place the large marshmallow in the center. Lightly frost candy eyes and press onto the marshmallow. Frost the back of the jujube candy and put below eyes to for a nose. Frost the short piece of licorice lightly and press underneath the nose to make the mouth. Press mini-marshmallows all around the cupcakes and the face to make the lambs coat. Frost the tips of the pink jelly beans to make ears. Stick the purple jelly beans in the front and back of the cupcake for feet. Curl the long piece of licorice and press into frosting to make the lamb’s tail.
Vanilla Cupcake:
* 2 2/3 cups sugar
* 1 cup (2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 2 large eggs
* 2 large egg yolks
* 2/3 cup milk
* 2/3 cup water
* 2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/3 cups cake flour
* 4 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two 12-cup cupcake tins with paper liners. (To avoid cupcakes sticking if they overflow slightly, lightly spray the tops of the pans.) Put tins on a baking sheet. Set aside.
Process sugar and butter in a food processor until very creamy, scraping sides as needed, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the eggs and yolks, one at a time, pulsing after each addition. Add the milk, water, and vanilla and process to blend.
Whisk both flours, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Add the dry ingredients, in 3 batches to the wet, pulsing, and then scraping batter off the sides of the processor as needed after each addition. Process until the batter is very smooth and pourable like pancake batter, about 2 minutes.
Evenly pour the batter into the prepared cups, filling them 3/4 of the way full. Bake until the cakes are just firm and spring back when gently pressed, and the tops are golden, 18 to 25 minutes. Cool slightly in tin, and turn out of tin when cool enough to handle. Cool cupcakes completely on a rack before frosting.
Yield: 24 cupcakes
Fluff Frosting:
* 1/4 cup whole milk
* 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
* 5 cups confectioners’ sugar
* 1/2 cup marshmallow fluff
* Pinch fine salt
Whisk the milk and vanilla extract together in a small bowl.
Slowly beat the butter and sugar, in another medium bowl, with an electric mixer until incorporated. Raise the speed to high and mix until light and fluffy, about 5 to 7 minutes. (Occasionally turn the mixer off, and scrape the sides of the bowl down with a rubber spatula.) Add the fluff and salt and reduce the speed to low. Add the milk and vanilla mixture, scrape the bowl down, and mix until fully incorporated. Raise the mixer to high and beat briefly until fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes. Use immediately.
Yield: 3 3/4 cups
