No Bake Oatmeal Cookies

My youngest brother-in-law is a freshman at college this year. He just celebrated a birthday and we wanted to send him a care package to show our love. For the record though, this one is not your average Stoltzfoos man. He tends to do things differently. He doesn't like all the desserts that the rest of the family likes. So we decided to send him party mix and puppy chow because we thought he'd at least like those. I also wanted to try out these no bake cookies on him as well. They are good and if it turns out he doesn't like them, well they are incredibly EASY to make. No sweat at all. I would highly recommend bringing these in to the office to share or sending them in a care package of your own. They are really good! They are especially fun to make when your niece helps you make them. :-)



Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups white sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter (or just smooth pb)
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 teaspoon vanilla


Directions:
In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa.
Bring to a boil and cook for 1 1/2 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter, oats, and vanilla.

Drop teaspoonfuls onto wax paper. Let cool until hardened.

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Beef Taco Lasagna

This gem is from Freezer Pleasers! I made it for my mother-in-law and family for her Birthday. (I love any excuse to cook). I love tacos and I love lasagna so you know that taco lasagna is going to be a hit in this household. It turned out great. I would totally make this if I were you. Are you planning on bringing a meal over to a friend or having people over for dinner? This is the perfect dish! You'll love it!


Ingredients:
12 lasagna noodles
1 pound extra lean ground beef
1 envelope of taco seasoning or approximately 3 to 4 tablespoons
2 egg whites
1.5 cups of fat free cottage cheese
1/2 cup of fat free cream cheese (or you can use additional cottage cheese)
1 to 2 cups of reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
24 oz. of canned diced tomatoes or a jar of salsa (or some combination)


Directions:
Cook noodles according to package directions.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat.
Stir in taco seasoning.
In a small bowl, combine egg whites, cottage cheese, and cream cheese. Mix well together.
Drain noodles and separate on a wax paper, if needed.
In a lasagna pan layer 3 noodles.
Then top with 1/3 of the egg/cheese mixture.
Then top with 1/3 of the beef mixture.
Then top with 1/3 of tomatoes/salsa.
Then top with 1/3 of the shredded cheese.
Repeat with lasagna noodles, egg/cheese, beef, tomatoes/salsa, and shredded cheddar cheese. 
Repeat one more time. Top with remaining noodles.
Top with any remaining cheese or tomatoes. 
Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes or until heated through. Let stand for a little bit before cutting.


You can double this recipe to make two lasagna pans. I froze mine. To eat from frozen, thaw in fridge for 8 hours. Remove from fridge 30 minutes before cooking. Then cook as directed. Cook longer if needed.

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This Week's Dinner Menu

Uh-Oh. Looks like I'm running out of meals in my freezer...

All of the recipes above I've made before. If you want to see any of the recipes check the links below.


Veggie Enchiladas

Creamy Chicken & Noodles

Taco Penne Bake

Green Bean Casserole

Tuna Noodle Casserole



What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)

Cake Pops (Spiced w/ Peanut Butter & Chocolate Sprinkles)

On my most recent Snow Day we had another Cake Pop Extravaganza. 3 of my fellow teacher friends came over and we went into a cake pop frenzy. We made a bunch of different kinds. One of the coolest combinations that we came up with (Thanks Nicole!) were...

Spice Cake + Peanut Butter Flavored Chocolate Melts + Chocolate Sprinkles 

Have you ever had Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Spice Cake before? So Good! The spice comes from such things as cinnamon, allspice, coriander, ginger, & nutmeg. Just as good as chocolate cake...give it a try.

There are all different kinds of Candy Melts to try out. Traditional chocolate is always good. There are different types of colors...purple, pink, blue, red, etc. that are vanilla flavored. But my favorite are dark chocolate, dark chocolate mint (!!!!), and peanut butter. 

The peanut butter was hard to work with after a while. It started to dry out and we weren't able to reheat it properly. But it worked out in the beginning. It also tasted really good. 

The chocolate sprinkles were definitely the best, but we had other types of fun sprinkles that we used and other colors/flavors that we tried out. 

If you don't know how to make cake pops yet you can check out my original cake pop post or buy this cake pop book. 

What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)

Meatball Soup

Can you guess where I got this recipe from? Yup, you guessed it. Freezer Pleasers!


Ingredients:
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/2 pound extra lean ground beef
4 cups reduced-fat beef broth
1 can kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 medium carrot, shredded
1 teaspoon italian seasoning
1/4 cup uncooked pasta, any kindDirections:
Combine egg, bread crumbs, parsley, parmesan, garlic salt and pepper.
Mix in crumbled ground beef and mix well.
Shape into 1-inch balls. 
Brown meatballs in large saucepan. They do not have to be entirely cooked through at this point.
Add broth, beans, tomatoes, carrot, and italian seasoning.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat.
Cover & simmer for 10 minutes.
Add pasta. Simmer 10 minutes longer or until meat and pasta are cooked.
Serve or freeze.


To use frozen soup -- thaw in fridge that morning. Place soup in saucepan and heat through.


What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)

Cake Pops (Apples)

I know after the last cake pop post you are wanting more. 

The sprinkle ones are awesome, taste really good, look really cute, and are probably the easiest type of cake pop to make. But if you are up for the challenge there are some really adorable ideas out there.


My sister-in-law made Bob (from Veggie Tales) for my niece's 2nd Birthday Party. They were  a big hit! Bob is a tomato, but you can do strawberries or apples too. I attempted the apples with some friends on the night of a big snow storm. They were a lot of work. But looked ADORABLE. Also, i was able to bring them to work later on in the week. You know us teachers...we just love our apples!

Some advice about the apples, and cake pops in general. The edible-ink pens are awesome...but only when you get them to work. And they don't work all the time. They usually run out of steam. They are the perfect way to put on small details like eyelashes or a smile. The setback is they are pretty expensive. Keep them upside down and in the fridge between uses. You might want to have a back-up plan too. They probably won't work for all 48 cake pop faces. 

These awesome apples were designed by my friends Kristen & Jessie who braved the snow storm to help. Aren't they talented???

What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)

Puppy Chow

Puppy Chow is nothing new. It's a favorite snack among many. But I've never made it before. So I was excited to try to make it for the first time with my sister-in-laws this past weekend. Please check out the recipe we used below and let me know if I should make any adjustments or improvements. I would love to know how to make puppy chow better. I think we should of used more chocolate and peanut butter, but this is all we had and it still turned out well. 


Ingredients:
9 cups of corn chex (I just used the whole box)
1 cup of chocolate chips (or half a package)
1/2 cup of chunky peanut butter (or creamy)
1/4 cup of butter
1 tsp vanilla
1.5 cups of confectioners sugar (or more if needed)

Directions:
Melt butter & chocolate chips in a small sauce pan. Stirring occasionally. 
Pour in peanut butter and vanilla. Stir well.
Pour over large bowl of chex. 
I suggest using a bowl with a lid to help make mixing easier.
Mix well with a spoon making sure most of the chex are covered in chocolate.
Top with sugar and shake about to cover most of it evenly. 

What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)

Cake Pops (Sprinkles!!!)

 So if you've talked to me at all in the past month you've learned of my newest delight...CAKE POPS!!!




They are a great "rainy day" activity or if you are a teacher like me...a SNOW DAY activity. We've had a handful of snow days this winter so I've stayed inside and made cake pops. If you've never heard of cake pops, just google them and you'll see all sorts of cool stuff. I had heard about them through Bakerella whose blog I occasionally read. Now, there are some websites and other resources out there about what cake pops are or how to make them, but Bakerella has some REALLY cute stuff. She recently released a book on cake pops and that's where I learned how to make them. I actually checked out the book from the library to save some money. You might want to scope out the book to learn the techniques and get some creative ideas. They have cake pops for EVERY occassion. I've made some cute ones, but they can be A LOT of work. Like 4 or 5 hours worth of work. So don't try these unless you can dedicate an entire afternoon or have a lot of help.


These are going to be EVERYWHERE in the next year or so. I know you are going to see them a lot at weddings, showers, parties, birthdays, etc. So keep your eyes out -- you heard it here first! The best part about cake pops is yes, they are so stinkin' cute but they taste REALLY REALLY good. They usually last for several days. So make them a few days in advance if you are trying to save time. 

If it's your first attempt at cake pops I would suggest keeping it simple and just trying for basic cake pops, cake balls, or basic cake pops with sprinkles. They are super delicious and as the leading expert on sprinkle useage I can honestly say that sprinkles are an awesome, colorful touch. Go for it!


You should read up more on cake pops before trying to make them, but I can give you a basic idea on how to make them below...

Bake a cake according to box directions. You could bake it from scratch of course, but this is already a process, so just keep it simple. Pillsbury, Duncan Hines, etc. will do the trick. I've used regular chocolate cake, funfetti, spice cake, and vanilla (buttercream recipe) they are all equally awesome. It's fun to experiment with different kind and flavors, but for now just stick with something you love. So I would recommend trying out chocolate cake first. 


After baking the cake, let it cool, then break the cake up and crumble it into a medium size bowl. Mix in a half can of chocolate icing (or other kind) with a spoon so that the whole batch is moist. Using your hands roll the cake into 1 inch sized balls. Place on cookie sheet or pastry board and place in the freezer for about 15 minutes so they harden. One cake makes about 48 cake balls. 


Once the balls have cooled, dip a lollipop stick into melted chocolate (use those wafers from AC MOORE/Michael's) then insert halfway into the cake ball and let it dry. Then dunk the cake pop completely into the chocolate. The trick is to use a narrow deep glass/bowl/dish. Small glass measuring cups are really useful. You are going to dip the stick with the cake ball straight into the chocolate and completely submerge it. Don't twirl or move around that will cause the cake to come off. It may take a couple tries. 


You will have to tap off some of the extra chocolate. Do this careful and wait a little, especially if the chocolate is really really hot. But before the chocolate dries cover in sprinkles or spoon sprinkles over top. Place in a styrofoam stand to dry.


It's a pretty complex process, especially if you do any of the cute ones, so I highly suggest reading up on it. But they are totally worth it and always a hit. ENJOY!


What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)

Mediterranean Tuna Casserole

This is a Martha Stewart freezer recipe. It makes more than one casserole dish. I was actually able to make 3 square casserole dishes to freeze. So if you only want one then cut the recipe in half or a third. 


Ingredients:
2 tsp of olive oil
salt & pepper
16 oz of pasta, such as penne or egg noodles
2 red bell peppers, diced
1/2 cup all purpose flour
4 cups of skim milk
2 cans of tuna in water, drained
6 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup parmesan cheese


Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Grease 2 8x8 inch square casseroles.
Cook pasta according to box directions until 2 minutes short of al dente.
Drain pasta and return to pot.
Meanwhile, heat oil over medium heat.
Add peppers, season with salt & pepper. 
Cook for about 5 minutes.
Add flour and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
Gradually add milk, stirring until smooth.
Cook some more, stirring occasionally, until mixture begins to simmer.
Remove from heat. Add to pot with noodles.
Add the tuna and green onions.
Season with more salt & pepper.
Mix well together.
Separate into baking dishes.
Top with parmesan cheese.
Freeze or bake for about 20 minutes. 


What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)

Eggplant & Zucchini Lasagna

I've been on a big lasagna kick lately. But it's hard to cut out the fat & calories. So instead of using any meat I've been trying different vegetables out and was excited when I realized I could give eggplant a try. I had two eggplants and three zucchinis. You don't need that many, but I put aside some of the leftover vegetables to eat as a snack. You might want to use less vegetables. Also, I keep the skins on the vegetables to save time, but you can feel free to peel the eggplant & zucchini and cut into smaller pieces.



To make this recipe healthier I use Light Ragu instead of another type of pasta/tomato sauce. I also use fat free cottage cheese instead of ricotta. I know my true Italian friends are gasping everywhere, but sometimes these sacrifices need to be made. This was a big dish and I was able to make 3 lasagna layers because I had so many veggies! I think this recipe could use some improvement so I'm open to any suggestions. It's easy to make it taste better by adding more cheese, but I'm trying to avoid that. For starters, I only used 1 jar of Light Ragu. I would recommend using maybe two. I also like making lasagna with diced tomatoes. You can use fresh tomatoes or diced tomatoes from a can. I would recommend doing that for this recipe even though I didn't. Also try using Parmesan cheese on the top layer.


When I had dinner with my in-laws this weekend I needed to have enough food to feed the 7 of us. I didn't think one lasagna was enough. So I brought this along with the taco lasagna. 

Ingredients:
12 whole wheat lasagna noodles
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium eggplant, chopped
2 medium zucchinis, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cups spaghetti sauce (I used light ragu)
1/3 cup chopped parsley
1/3 cup water
2 cups fat free cottage cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup parmesan cheese


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook pasta according to box directions.Chop eggplant, onions, & zucchini.
Heat oil in large saucepan and add vegetables. 
Saute until tender.
Stir in pasta sauce, water, and parsley.
Simmer for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, drain noodles, separate and place on parchment paper to avoid sticking together. 
Arrange 3 pasta pieces on bottom of greased 13x9x2 inch baking dish.
Spread 1/2 cottage cheese over noodles. 
Spread 1/3 sauce mixture over cheese.

Top with 3 more noodles.
Repeat.
Top with final 3 noodles. 
Spread mozzarella cheese & parmesan cheese on the top.
Bake for 40-45 minutes until hot and bubbly. 
Let cool for 10 minutes and serve.
 
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This Week's Dinner Menu

What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)

Chocolate Berry Baked Oatmeal

I was sick last week and thought I know I should have nursed myself back to health with some chicken soup I wanted some baked oatmeal instead. I was craving sometime of comfort food and I'm guessing the simplicity of baked oatmeal just brought me a lot of comfort. Not sure why. I know there are also healthier ways to make baked oatmeal, but that was not where my mind was at. It was mid-afternoon when I made it and hadn't eaten all day so I wanted more of a sweet snack then a breakfast treat. I wound up making more of a dessert and less of a traditional baked oatmeal. But it was perfect because I could still eat it for breakfast the next day. Obviously, the sprinkles are an optional touch, but you'll see they are totally worth it if you are anything like me. :-)


Ingredients:
2 cups of mixed berries (frozen)
3 cups of old-fashioned oats
2 eggs
1/2 cup of heavy cream
1/4 cup of brown sugar
4 tsp oil
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp cocoa powder (secret ingredient!)
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp salt
approximately 20 walnuts, halved
half a bag of chocolate chips (or as much as you want)
sprinkles!



Directions:
In a bowl combine eggs and oil.
Mix in oats, baking powder, sugar, salt, spice, cocoa powder, and cinnamon.
Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.
Add frozen fruit.
Transfer to a sprayed 9 in. circular pie dish.
Pour heavy cream over top.
Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven and top with sprinkles. 

Mmmmmmmm....Comfort :-)

What do you think? Comments? Suggestions? I would love to know that you visited my blog. Please leave me a message letting me know you were here! Did you try out a recipe? Let me know! I would love to hear from you :-)