Chicken Tortilla Soup

I had this soup at a church meeting at the end of September ... and have since made it three times. It is so yummy!

CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP

What you need:

2-3 frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 or 2 cans cream of chicken soup (I've always used two)
1 cup favorite salsa
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1 can black beans (you can rinse, but it's not necessary; I also used two cans)
1 can mild green chiles (once I didn't have this, so I put in an extra 1/2 cup of salsa and the soup was much spicier)
1 can corn
sour cream
tortillas, or tortilla chips

Put everything but sour cream and tortillas/tortilla chips in crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours. Remove chicken from soup after 8 hours and shred. Return shredded chiken to soup and serve with sour cream, tortillas/tortilla chips or fresh salsa. To make a thicker soup add more chicken.

I've always added the sour cream to the whole pot before serving. We also recently had this over baked potatoes and that was equally yummy!

Chicken Wild Rice Soup

Just had to include pictures of my little girl enjoying this soup.

This is a soup that we were introduced to when we moved here five years ago. It is so yummy! We actually were served this at a friend's house, then we were brought two different versions after our first son was born. And, all three recipes were so different. After we tried all of them, we decided on one that would make it onto "the list." If you have no idea was wild rice is, it is the rice that is almost black in color, and slightly longer than white rice. After it is cooked, it almost looks like cooked shrimp ... the shell splits and the soft flesh pokes out of one side of the grain. When I first had wild rice I literally thought it looked like there were bugs in my soup. The texture is a little chewy because the hull is still in tact. And, while it is cooking, there is a definite smell that is not similar to regular white rice. But, it has more nutritional value that white rice because of the hull. (Plus, my little 10mo LOVED this soup. She was literally crying and screaming when I couldn't get it to her fast enough.)

CHICKEN WILD RICE SOUP

What you need:
1 cup wild rice
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup onion, chopped
1 pkg. fresh mushrooms, sliced
chicken, cooked & diced or shredded
(choose how much chicken you want, I use about 4-6 chicken breasts)
1 1/2 cans chicken broth
8 1/2 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups half & half
2 cups whipping cream
1 lb. Velveeta, cubed
1/2 - 1 cup sliced almonds

How you do it:
Cook rice in 1 1/2 cans chicken broth. In a large pot, saute veggies in butter. Add flour and cook for 5 minues, stirring constantly. Add half & half, and whipping cream; stir until slightly thickened. Add 8 1/2 cups chicken broth and Velveeta. When Velveeta is melted add rice, chicken, and almonds. Let simmer (without boiling) for 15 minutes or until warmed through.

Rocky Road Brownies

I remember my mom making these brownies for family functions and church activities. They still go fast wherever I take them also. In fact, I took these to the church for refreshments after a baptism and meant to get a picture of one brownie so you would be able to see the different layers, but by the time I got back to the dish they were gone! One lady said that they were so good she took one bite and decided she had to save the rest until she could have milk with it. (I guess she only eats the "good" desserts with milk.) And, that's something I would highly suggest with these babies ... mmmm, milk.

ROCKY ROAD BROWNIES

What you need for the bar layer:

1/2 cup margarine, or butter
2 squares unsweetened baking chocolate
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup + 2 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup nuts, chopped (optional; I omit)

How you do the bar layer:

Melt margarine and chocolate over low heat. In bowl combine remaining ingredients. Add chocolate mixture and mix well. Spread into a greased 9x13-inch casserole dish. Set aside.

What you need for the filling layer:

1/2 cup sugar
6 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup margaine, or butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbsp. flour
1 egg
1/3 cup chopped nuts (optional; I used almonds)

How you do the filling layer:

Beat cream cheese; add remaning ingredients and beat for 1 minutes. Spread over bar layer. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes; do not under bake. Begin mixing frosting.

What you need for the frosting layer:

2 cups miniature marshmallows
1/4 cup margarine, or butter
1 square unsweetened baking chocolate
1/4 cup milk
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla flavoring
2 oz. cream cheese

How you do the frosting layer:

Take brownies out of oven and psrinkle marshmallows on top. Put back into oven for about 2-5 minutes (or until marshmallows begin to be golden brown; see picture above). Melt margaine, chocolate, cream cheese, and milk over low heat. Removed from heat, add powdered sugar and vanilla. Pour immediately over marshmallows and swirl together (be careful not to get into the filling layer when swirling). Cool completely before cutting. Store in fridge.

Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Soup

As with most of my recipes, I can only alter or combine recipes that I know I already like. Such is the case with this one. I was going to make White Chili, but didn't have the green chilies. So, I altered it and it tasted so much like Chicken Enchiladas, that I decided to keep it and share it.

CHEESY CHICKEN ENCHILADA SOUP

What you need:

4 chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 pkg. chicken taco seasoning
1 onion, chopped
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cans white beans
1 can petite diced tomatoes, drained really well
1 can chicken broth (I used homemade broth that I made using this method. I love that the veggies are in the broth since that's what my children mostly ate. Yum!)
1 lb. Velveeta, cut into cubes
1 to 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese, mexican blend
Tortilla chips

How you do it:

Combine all ingredients. Let simmer until warm. Serve with tortilla chips.

Honey Wheat Bread

It's taken me years to find a wheat bread recipe that I love. I initially found this one on AllRecipes. It was a bread machine recipe, and since I don't have a bread machine I altered the order of the mixing and added rise time to the recipe. I also added some special ingredients to help the dough to produce a fabulous bread texture. This bread is amazing! Especially if you want some wonderful sweet bread as a side to your dinner. (If you don't want it very sweet, just scale down how much honey you add.)

HONEY WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

What you need:

1 1/8 cups water (120-130°)
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup honey
1 Tbsp. dry milk powder
1 1/2 Tbsp. shortening
1 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
4 tsp. wheat gluten (optional, but definitely recommended)
1 tbsp. dough enhancer (optional, but definitely recommended)

How you do it:

(If using a bread machine, add ingredients in order listed [adding wheat gluten and dough enhancer with the flour], turn on wheat cycle and let the machine do its job!)

In a large bowl mix all dry ingredients. In mixer, pour water, add shortening and honey. Turn mixer to speed 1 and mix together. Mix all dry ingredients together, then add to wet ingredients one cup at a time. Knead for 8 minutes (add additional time if mulitiplying recipe to make more than one loaf). Place in greased bowl, turn to coat; cover and let rise until double (about 1 1/2 to 2 hours). Punch down and shape. Place in greased loaf pan; cover, and let rise until double (about 1 1/2 to 2 hours). Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes.

Step-by-Step Hints:

You're probably wondering what these ingredients are. They are gold for wheat bread. The dough enhancer gives your bread/dough a nice smooth texture. The vital wheat gluten adds nutrition and helps the dough to rise. Gluten holds the gas in the dough which makes it rise. Wheat bread does not rise as well as white bread because white bread flour has a higher amount of protein with a strong gluten so it rises to double in about an hour. Since I typically grind my own wheat, I need to add the wheat gluten to help the bread rise a little bit better than without it. And, finally, the dry milk powder aids in making the bread softer.

Here's a little trick I've learned for my wheat bread: grind the wheat right before making the bread. The wheat flour will be warm after having been ground, which helps the yeast. This is the grinder my mom got for me for a birthday once. Love you, Mom!

Here's what my dough looks like after it's risen and it's ready to shape. Be patient! It takes a long time to rise, make sure to give your dough the time it needs.
Here's another tip: don't add too much flour, just enough to make the dough clean off the sides of the bowl. Then, start the kneading. Once you've started kneading, don't add any more flour.

Yummy, yummy bread! This smells fabulous ... and it's always too hard to wait to cut into this stuff! Enjoy!

Creamy Crock-Pot Potatoes

CREAMY CROCK-POT POTATOES

What you need:

2 lbs. red potatoes (I've used 6-7 russets and liked that too)
2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. flour
1 cup milk, or half & half
1 pkg. ranch salad dressing mix

How you do it:

Cut potatoes (quarter red potatoes, cut into bite-size for russets). Place potatoes in crock-pot. Melt butter in small saucepan. Add flour and make into a roux (cook until bubbly, stirring constantly). Pour in milk (or half & half), and whisk together until sauce is thickened. Add cream cheese, and ranch dressing mix. Pour over potatoes and stir together. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until potatoes are soft.

Creamy Chocolate Chip Drops

These will hit the spot when you are craving chocolate chip cookies on a day when you realize you don't have any eggs, and you don't want to go to the store. I like them rolled in powdered sugar, my husband likes them without the powdered sugar. Either way, they are yummy!

CREAMY CHOCOLATE CHIP DROPS

What you need:

1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
1 (3 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups cake flour*
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup finely chopped semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup powdered sugar

*If you don't have cake flour, subsitute all-purpose flour and take out 2 tablespoons of flour from the 2 cups measured.

How you do it:

Preheat oven to 300°. IN a medium bowl, beat butter, cream cheese, and granulated sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light nd fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Add cake flour and salt and beat until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoonsfuls 2-inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets (I use parchment paper). Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until set but not browned. Let cookies cool on sheets 2 minutes. Roll in powdered sugar, transfer to a rack, and let cool completely.

Bubble Up Pizza Casserole

I got this recipe from my sister-in-law, and my children LOVE it! So easy, and so perfect for those pizza-craving-nights.

BUBBLE-UP PIZZA CASSEROLE

What you need:

1 lb. ground beef
2 tsp. onion powder, or
1 onion, chopped
16 oz. tomato sauce, or
8 oz. tomato sauce, 12 oz. tomato paste & 12 oz. water
1/2 tsp. dried basil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
15 oz. biscuits (I use just 10 oz. and cut them into fourths)
1 1/4 cups mozzarella cheese (I use 1 part mozz, and 2 parts cheddar because the majority of my family is lactose intollerant)

How you do it:

Preheat oven to 350° and lightly grease a 9x13-inch casserole dish. Brown ground beef. Add onion powder, garlic, tomato sauce, basil 7 Italian seasoning. Add biscuits; stir gently until giscuits are covered. Pour into prepared casserole dish. Bake for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake an additional 10 minutes or until biscuits are done. Allowt o cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Sugar Doughnut Muffins

I found this recipe here a while ago and just made them. These muffins are YUMMY! Next time I'll try rolling them in cinnamon-sugar or glazing them. They would be great with a little jelly in the middle too. Really, the possibilities are endless! My little boy was the first to try them and they were a winner!

SUGAR DOUGHNUT MUFFINS

What you need:

3/4 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 Tbsp. butter, melted

1/3 cup sugar

How you do it:

Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly grease muffin tin with cooking spray (I used my mini muffin tin). In a large bowl, beat together 3/4 cup sugar and egg until light in color. In a small bowl blend together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. In a measuring cup mix together oil, milk, and vanilla. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture and stir together to combine. Make a well in the mixture and pour in milk/oil mixture. Stir until wet and blended thoroughly (may be a little lumpy). Divide batter evenly into 12 muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. (Again, I used 24 mini muffin cups and loved this size.) Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. While muffins are baking, melt butter. When muffins are finished baking, lightly brush the top of each with some melted butter and remove from pan to roll in 1/3 cup sugar. Cool on a wire rack. (Or eat them right away like we did!)

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Edited to add: I'm posting this one again because I added pictures. Like I said in the original post ... it's not the most aesthetically pleasing casserole when on the plate, but it sure is delicious!

For this one, I took the ingredients from one recipe and combined them with the method for a different recipe. And, it was a huge hit with my family ... seriously, we ate the whole pan even though we probably shouldn't have done so. That's why there aren't any pictures ... um, I didn't know it would be so good, and then it was gone before I thought to get pictures. Plus, it's not the most aesthetically pleasing casserole ... so, just trust me, it's really yummy!

CHICKEN ENCHILADA CASSEROLE

What you need:
2 cups chicken, cooked and diced
1 pkg. chicken taco seasoning
1/2 to 1 cup water
2 1/2 cups shredded cheese, divided
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 (16 oz.) carton sour cream
5-6 flour tortillas, cut into strips or rectangles (also try with corn or wheat, yum!)

How you do it:
Cook together chicken, taco seasoning and water in pan on medium heat to cook off liquid. When liquid is almost gone, pour chicken into bowl and mix together with 1/2 cup cheese, cream of chicken soup and sour cream. Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish. Layer 1/2 of tortillas, 1 cup cheese, and 1/2 of chicken mixture. Repeat layers. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes, or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

How you freeze it:
Before casserole is combined, line pan with lightly sprayed foil. Be sure to extend foil over the handles or short ends of the pan to help with easy removal. Assemble casserole. Place in freezer until frozen. Remove from pan, cover top with lightly sprayed foil, place in 2 gallon freezer bag. When ready to cook, place casserole in pan and let thaw in refrigerator overnight. Place directly in oven, then turn on oven to 350° and bake for 45 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Marinated Grilled Steak

This picture really doesn't do this any good ... but, trust me this was fantastic!

MARINATED GRILLED STEAK

What you need:

Steak (I used around 5.5 lbs. top sirloin)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pkg. fajita seasoning
1 pkg. McCormick Grill Mates Montreal Steak seasoning
1 pkg. Italian dressing mix
1 can Sprite
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

How you do it:

Trim steak of any fat you don't want. Slice steak into strips about 1/2-inch thick. Be sure to cut cross-grain ... this tenderizes the meat so your teeth don't have to. In a gallon-size Ziploc bag, mix together garlic, and seasoning packets. Pour in Sprite and Worcestershire sauce. Shake to blend together. Add steak strips. Seal bag removing air as best as you can. Massage the steak for about 30 seconds. Place in fridge for at least six hours. Remove bag and massage steak every hour if possible. Heat grill and place steak on grill at low heat. Grill for about 3-5 minutes each side.

Chicken Casserole

This is one of my all-time favs, even though it may not look so good. I remember grabbing some of this before heading to a football game in high school, and it hit the spot on a frosty fall night. Trust me, although the ingredients seem a little strange to put together, it is so yummy.

CHICKEN CASSEROLE

What you need:

2 cups chicken, cooked and diced

1 to 1 1/2 cups rice, cooked

4-6 hard boiled eggs, diced

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 cup Miracle Whip (DO NOT use mayonnaise, there is a HUGE difference)

1 cup sliced almonds

How you do it:

Mix together all ingredients except almonds. Use more Miracle Whip if it seems a little dry. Use more rice to extend the casserole for more servings. Pour mixture into a 9x13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with almonds. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes, or until bubble and almonds are slightly browned. Serve.

How you freeze it:

Omit eggs. Mix together and place in freezer-safe ziploc bag. When ready to bake, let thaw completely. Make hard boiled eggs and fold into thawed casserole. Pour into 9x13-inch baking dish and sprinkle with almonds. Bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes.

Holiday #2: Happy Green!

I don't usually do much for St. Patrick's Day other than wear green. But, this year I decided to do something fun. So, everything we ate was green! Afterward, I totally thought, "Oh, we could have had green beans, peas, kiwi, green grapes ..." Well, there's always next year.

This year I made green pancakes for breakfast. The trick to getting them a consistent color is to add the food coloring to the water/milk before adding it to the dry ingredients.

For lunch, I made green mac & cheese. Again, I added the food coloring to the water the macaroni cooked it in. My children don't like my homemade mac & cheese even though I think it's much better than Kraft. But, since it was a day for them, that's what I made. So, when it came time to mix it up the macaroni had been colored green from the water, but I needed to tint the cheese green too. So, I whisked together the milk and the cheese sauce mix with food coloring before adding it to the macaroni.

My two daughters who are in school all day wanted something green in their lunches too. Usually, I'll make green bread for their sandwiches, but I wasn't thinking far enough ahead this year. So, I cut their sandwiches into a clover puzzle, and added green food coloring to their ranch dip for their carrots. They thought that was great!

For an after-school snack I gave the children cereal with green milk. And, finally for dinner we had green eggs and ham. It was fun to think of ways to use green in our menu. What have you done?

Texas Cereal Cookies

The picture I took of this didn't turn out very well. So, maybe next time I make these I'll update this with a picture. At any rate, these are really yummy ... but seriously full of sugar. The recipe makes several dozen (depending on size), so I would suggest only making these when you will be able to get rid or give away most of them so you don't end up eating them all!

What you need:

2 cups light corn syrup
2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 jar marshmallow creme
2 cups peanut butter
1 (12 oz.) bag chocolate chips
1 large box cereal (Cheerios, Special K, Kix [my fav], Rice Krispies, etc.)

How to do it:

Bring sugar, syrup and salt to a rolling boil. Stir for one minutes and remove from heat. Add marshmallow creme, peanut butter, and chocolate chips. Stir until smooth. Add cereal and carefully mix. Shape into cookies or bars.


Tip: Be sure to mix it really well and pour it on the cereal while it is still somewhat warm. (I let it cool a little bit and the handle on my wooden spoon broke completely off while I was mixing it together.)

Alfredo Chicken

I got this recipe in the mail. My husband raved and raved about the chicken. I just thought, "Thanks, but it was so easy and I didn't do anything special to it at all." It really was better than I anticipated.


CHICKEN ALFREDO

What you need:

1/4 cup flour
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. olive oil, divided
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. onion, minced
1 1/2 cups whipping cream
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper
1 Tbsp. coarsely chopped fresh parsley

How to do it:


Preheat oven to 375°. Place flour in a shallow dish or pie plate. Sprinkle chicken with salt and coat with flour. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add chicken; cook, turning once, until golden, 2-4 minutes per side. Remove chicken from skillet; place in a 9x13 baking dish. Heat remaining oil (1 tsp) in same skillet over medium heat until hot. Add garlic and onion; cook until garlic is fragrant and onion is tender, 1-2 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high; add whipping cream, Parmesan and pepper. Cook until sauce is bubbly and slightly thickened, 2-3 minutes. Spoon sauce over chicken in dish. Bake chicken until an instant-read thermometer inserted in center of chicken registers 180°, 8-12 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley.

Step by Step:

After coating the chicken in flour, and heating the oil, add the chicken to the skillet. Make sure the oil is good and hot; when the oil is hot enough the flour won't absorb the oil.

Now add the chicken to the dish. No need to spray the dish before adding the chicken.

Make the sauce in the same skillet in which you cooked the chicken. I doubled the sauce because we decided to serve our chicken with pasta. It's super good without the pasta.

Bake the chicken for 8-12 minutes (total time including prep is about 30-40 minutes), then serve. I omitted the parsley because we didn't have any, and I added some extra Alfredo sauce atop the chicken. Oh, and it is so good that my husband and I had to split the leftover chicken breast so we could each have some for lunch this week. (Okay, okay, we fought over it and ended up in a compromise.)

Pot Roast Test

Recently, I saw a recipe for cooking a pot roast and thought I'd try it, comparing it to my favorite recipe. A few years ago I used to make pot roast very similar to this new recipe. I'd put my roast in the crock-pot, then toss some cut-up potatoes, carrots, and onions atop the roast. Let it cook, and voila! dinner in a pot. However, my roast was usually dry, and flavorless. And, forget about making a gravy ... everytime I did it was really gross!


My favorite recipe I found a while ago and I've been using it for some time now. But, like with any favorite recipe, it can get old, so I thought I'd try the recipe included with the box of slow cooker liners. Here are the differences between the two recipes and which way I liked best:


Recipe #1-Slow Cooker Liner Recipe

Okay, this recipe says to put 1/4 cup water into the crock-pot, then add the cut-up veggies. I added some green pepper and garlic to my crock-pot. Then it says to sprinkle on the dry onion soup mix.


Recipe #2-My Favorite Recipe

In my favorite recipe, I only put onions in the pot. Sometimes I'll put some celery in the pot first so the roast can rest on it. Then, I'll put in the roast and place the onions around and atop the roast. I'll slice up my garlic and place all of it atop the roast. (I prepare the roast differently too, and I'll get to that.)



Recipe #1

In the new recipe, it said to sprinkle salt, pepper, and thyme on the roast and rub it in. Which I did, then I deviated from the recipe and browned my roast on all sides to seal in the moisture. Then, place the roast atop the veggies and let it cook for 5-6 hours on high.


Recipe #2

What I do differently in my favorite recipe is brown the roast on all sides, then I sprinkle the salt and pepper, and rosemary and thyme on the roast after I've placed it in the pot atop the celery. After I put the onions and garlic in the pot, I pour in 1-2 cans of beef broth, or about 2-3 cups water and a few cubes of beef bouillon. And, I pour it down the side of the pot so as not to wash the seasonings off the meat.



The verdict:


Recipe #1

I love having the entire dinner in one pot and not having to do any extra work after cutting everything up. The veggies had a lot of flavor, although the potatoes had a bitter aftertaste that I wasn't a fan of. The children really liked the potatoes though, so that was a bonus. I thought the roast would have a lot of flavor, but I was disappointed. It was dry and had a little bit of flavor, but not as much as I thought it would


Recipe #2

By far, it is still my favorite. True, I end up making mashed potatoes and candied carrots when I make my roast this way, but it tastes much better. There is so much more flavor in my roast, and the gravy is always yummy. Plus, the meat is moist and not dry at all.


So, the next time I make a roast with veggies in the pot, I'll place the roast on the bottom of the pot with the veggies atop it. Then, I'll add some beef broth to the pot. I think my roast was so dry because my veggies soaked up all the liquid.

Anyone have another favorite way to make pot-roast?

Eclair Cake

I love this stuff so much, I've made it three times in the last month! It is that yummy! My husband took some to work and came home requesting I make more for him to take again. So, out of the goodness of my heart (and the prospect of goodness in my mouth) I complied.

ECLAIR CAKE

What you need:

1 cup water

1/2 cup butter

1 cup flour

4 eggs

1 large pkg. vanilla pudding, instant or cook-n-serve

1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 tub whipped topping

chocolate syrup

How you do it:

Bring water and butter to a rolling boil; whisk in flour until it forms a ball. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Beat in eggs one at a time. Press into a lightly greased 9x13 baking dish. Bake at 400° for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Meanwhile prepare pudding as directed on the package. Add cream cheese to pudding and mix well. Pour pudding into cake crust. When pudding is set, top with whipped topping. Drizzle with chocolate syrup before serving. Keep refrigerated.

Step-by-Step:

Okay, so before you get to this point you've brought the water and butter to a boil, whisked in the flour, and then beat in the eggs until it's smooth. Now you can just press the "dough" into the lightly greased dish.

(If you want to see what the batter looks like before you put it in the pan, check out my post on Eclairs.)

Make the pudding while the cake shell bakes. I prefer to use cook-n-serve pudding because I think it tastes better and the texture is by far superb to the instant stuff (it's also easier to add the cream cheese because I just put it in the microwave until it's soft and the heat of pudding helps to blend it all together really well). But, use what you like!

When it's time, take out the cake shell. If you've used instant pudding, you'll need to let the shell cool a bit before added the pudding. If you used cook-n-serve pudding, just pour it right into the shell.

Now, that you've filled the cake shell, let it cool completely before adding the whipped topping.

I like to drizzle the chocolate syrup atop individual slices, but again do what you like best!

Chocolate Butter Balls

This year I made one of my family's traditional holiday treats: Chocolate Butter Balls. I don't have a clue where my mom got the recipe, but as a child (and still today) I loved these things. In fact, my brother liked the dough so much that he would put it in a bowl in the fridge and eat out of it with a spoon. Who doesn't do that with cookie dough, though? (I don't have a picture because they are all gone. Sorry about that. Maybe I'll edit to add a picture later.)

I was telling my friend about them today, explaining that they are the perfect treat for a family night because there are enough ingredients for everyone to do something, and even the youngest child can help with these because you mix it together and roll it (there's no baking or cooking involved).

CHOCOLATE BUTTER BALLS

What you need:

2/3 cup butter, softened
3 Tbsp. cocoa
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. water
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups quick oats
powdered sugar

How you do it:

Mix all ingredients except powdered sugar; chill for at least one hour. (Or, if you live in Minne-so-cold, like we do, you can flatten the dough out and wrap in plastic wrap, then place it out on your deck or porch for 10-15 minutes [just enough to make the dough workable]. That'll do the trick.) Roll into balls, then roll balls in powdered sugar. Keep leftovers in refrigerator.