Pink chocolate chip shortbread cookies

I found a recipe from tablespoon.com for pink chocolate chip shortbread cookies. Even though the picture and video on the website made the cookies look flawless, most people were commenting their cookies were turning out flat. I decided to give the recipe a try and sure enough, that's how mine turned out. However, even though the cookies were flat, they were still really yummy. The part that's screwing everyone up (including myself) is the "softened" butter. If your butter is too soft, your cookies will be flat. In other words, DO NOT MELT YOUR BUTTER!

Ingredients
2 cups powdered sugar
1 bag Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix
1 cup softened butter
2 cups chocolate chips
Red food coloring

Directions
With your mixer, beat the softened butter until stiff and smooth. This is the part that presents problems. If it's not stiff and smooth your cookies will be flat.

Add desired amount of red food coloring. The more you add, the more pink your cookies will be. Be sure not to add too much unless you want red cookies. I used 7 drops.

Add the powdered sugar and cookie mix. Blend.

Add the two cups of chocolate chips. Mix into batter by hand. The dough should be crumbly not smooth. Thus I reiterate, it all comes down to the texture of your butter.

Just for fun, for my last few cookies I added Andes baking mints. If you would rather use Andes instead of chocolate chips, go for it. Mine turned out delicious.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 325 F for 12-14 minutes.

 That's it! If you decide to try this recipe, please let me know how yours turned out and if you did anything differently.

If you would like to view the original tablespoon recipe, visit the link below.

http://quick-dish.tablespoon.com/2011/10/09/pretty-in-pink/

 

Homemade gifts for your loved ones

Here are two easy and thoughtful Christmas gifts you can make for the special people in your life.

1) Homemade cookies! They show you care and are fun to decorate.

2) Homemade creations in jars. You see the cute ones in the stores, but how many people actually take the time to make them? If you take the time to do it yourself it will really make an impression! Plus, they're easy to put together.

 The first jar is sugar free honey mixed with a little nutmeg and cinnamon. The second jar is a hot cocoa mix that has cocoa, marshmallows, candy cane pieces and andes mint pieces. The third is a mix of cranberries, granola, almonds, trail mix and raisins.

Those are just a couple of my homemade ideas, but there are thousands of other things you can make and give as gifts. For example, you could make a lavender body scrub or cherry pie in a jar. Here is a great website for homemade gifts in jars to get some creative ideas started. Good luck!

48 Homemade Gifts In A Jar

Easy as can be pot roast

For all you pot roast newbies, here's a simple recipe that can be made right in your slow cooker.
Ingredients:
2-5 pound rump roast (depends on how many people you're cooking for)
Cauliflower (cut into small chunks)
2 carrots (cut into thin or chunky pieces)
2 potatoes (cut into cubes)
1 McCormick's savory pot roast seasoning packet
32 ounce 99% fat free chicken broth (I used the great value brand)
1/2 cup of water
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. onion powder
Mini corn on the cob
Directions
Place thawed rump roast in the slow cooker. Mix the chicken broth, seasoning, water, garlic powder and onion powder together in a bowl. Pour the mixture on top of the roast.

Spread the corn, potatoes and vegetables around the meat.

Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours. Dinner is completed. Pretty easy huh? Hope you like it! =)

P.S. If you like slow cooker recipes, be sure to check out the crock pot girls. They have lots of amazing slow cooker recipes on their website. Here's the link:

http://crockpotgirls.com/

Tomato Parmesan Inspired Dish

The recipe you are about to read was inspired by this:

Yep, that's right. I was inspired by a box of tomato parmesan pasta salad and the outcome was great!
Ingredients:
A box of Betty Crocker tomato parmesan pasta salad
Mini corn
Tyson chicken breast tenderloins
Basil leaves
Light butter
Olive oil
Directions:
Thaw the desired amount of chicken breast tenderloins in a bowl of cold water.

Once thawed, take two tablespoons of the seasoning from the packet in the pasta salad box and put in a small dish.

Mix the seasoning with a cup of water. Use this mixture to marinate the chicken. Marinate for at least one hour.

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Place the marinated chicken onto a pan that's lightly sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Sprinkle basil leaves on top of the chicken.

Cook the chicken for 15-25 minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 170 F. While the chicken is in the oven, cook the corn in a boiling pot of water for about 8 minutes.

Remove the corn and set aside. Take another tablespoon of the seasoning from the packet and put in a small dish. Mix the seasoning with a spoonful of butter and 1/4 a cup of olive oil. Spread the mixture to the bottom of a large frying pan. Once the pan is heated on the stovetop, place the mini corn in the pan. Cook on medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes.

While the corn is absorbing the tomato parmesan flavor, follow the instructions on the box to make the pasta salad. Don't worry that you already used some of the seasoning. The pasta will still have a good amount of flavor.

That's pretty much it. Here is the finished product:

I hope you like my recipe. This dish is perfect for when you need a hearty meal to fill you up. Enjoy!

Easy Apple Cinnamon BBQ Tilapia

Last night I made apple cinnamon bbq tilapia and it turned out awesome. For the sides I just cooked mashed potatoes and brocolli with carrots. It's extremely simple.

Ingredients:
Tilapia filet(s)
Apple cinnamon bbq sauce
Brocolli
Carrots
Mashed potatoes of your choice (I used the boxed kind)

Instructions:
Thaw the tilapia by placing in cold water. Once thawed, put in plastic bag and marinate with the apple cinnamon bbq sauce.

I recommend marinating for at least an hour. The longer you marinate, the more flavor it will have.

After it's done marinating, heat the oven to 400 F. Spray a pan with non-stick cooking spray and place tilapia in pan. Cook for 12-15 minutes or until the fish has an internal temperature of 145 F. Make the sides while the fish is cooking. For the mashed potatoes just follow the instructions on the box. Here's what I used:

Cook the vegetables on the stove and season to taste.

After the tilapia is done cooking, drizzle a teaspoon of the apple cinnamon bbq sauce on top and give it a pinch of salt for a little extra flavor. Now you're done! Here is the finished product:

This is a healthy low calorie meal with lots of flavor. I woud say this meal is under 450 calories. I hope you like it. If you don't... well, you're weird :)

Banana Almond Bread

Who doesn't love banana bread? It's the perfect dessert to share with family and friends on the holidays. Here is a recipe I have been perfecting for a while:


Ingredients:
1/2 cup melted light butter
1 1/2 cups sugar                                 
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tbsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 cups flour
3 egg whites
3-4 sliced banana's
1 cup sliced baking almonds

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray pan with cooking oil. With blender, mix all ingredients for 1 minute except for the almonds. Add the almonds, stirring them evenly into the mixture. Spread mixture into pan. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. The bread should be moist, but not so much that it's gooey. Cool for 20 minutes. Slice to serve. Add sliced bananas to the top of each piece for extra flavor. Enjoy!

Homemade Vegetable Turkey Soup & Garlic Bread

The other night I surprised myself by making a really great soup. I wanted to make something good for dinner and found myself going through the cabinets, pulling random things out. The final product was delicious and since I took pictures of the process I'm making this recipe my first blog.

Ingredients for the soup:
1 pound extra lean ground turkey
1 can organic corn
2 cups chopped carrots
1 cup chopped cauliflower
3 tbsp. basil leaves
2 tbsp. onion powder
3 cans beef broth
A couple pinches of sea salt
Ingredients for the garlic bread:
Sliced bread of your choice
Butter
Garlic Powder
Instructions:
Heat oven to 350 F. Lightly spray a baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Spread butter onto pieces of bread. My favorite butter to use is Land O Lakes light butter with canola oil.

Sprinkle garlic powder on top. Set aside. It should look like this:

Dump the corn into a medium mixing bowl. Slice the carrots and cauliflower and add them to the corn. Brown the ground turkey on the stove. Once cooked, add the turkey to the bowl. It should look similar to this:

Put bowl to the side. Bring beef broth to a boil in a pot.
Stir in basil, onion powder and salt.

Once boiling, reduce to medium heat and add turkey mixture to the pot. Let it cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently. While the soup is cooking, put bread in oven for 7 minutes or until slightly brown on the top. Here is the finished product:

I hope you like my recipe. Enjoy! More blogs to come soon.

P.S. The portions of this recipe is assuming you want to freeze leftovers. If making for one or two people just use one can of broth, less turkey and less veggies :)