Peanut Butter Glaze

(As I write this, I have a smile plastered across my face!)

So, tonight I made a strawberry apple cinnamon roll cake based on this recipe. It originally calls for a 15 oz. can of pumpkin but I didn't have one. (Thought I did, but didn't.) Instead, I used 8 oz. of homemade strawberry jam and 7 oz. of applesauce to make 15 oz. of deliciousness.

I was worried that it may not turn out since I had to substitute an ingredient with two, but I was totally wrong. It is the bomb dot com. (If I do say so myself. lol)

Well, the recipe also called for a regular glaze of powdered sugar and heavy cream. I made it, but as I sat there waiting for the cake to be finished baking, I kept thinking I wanted something more than a regular glaze.

And then I had a light bulb moment. What if I add peanut butter? That'd be like it was a pb & j sammie, but all ooey and gooey like a cinnamon roll. I was worried that it would be disgusting, but again I was wrong. (See, I can admit when I'm wrong. lol)

Here is what you need:

• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 - 3/4 cups heavy cream or half & half
• 1 cup peanut butter

Here is what you do:

• Mix powdered sugar and cream until well blended
• Add in half of the peanut butter at a time and whisk until smooth
• If the mixture is difficult to whisk, that means it is too thick. Just add a TINY bit more cream, like 1 tsp at a time, until it is like a thick drizzle (think good quality honey consistency)
• Spread over the warm cake

This peanut butter glaze will change your life!

Cake Bites...

...are not as easy as they seem, but they are lots of fun to make! Your kids will love it, too!

Last weekend I took a stab at making a batch of these little bites, and it took much longer than I thought it would, but it WAS a lot of fun making them and decorating them!

Here is what you need:

• 1 box cake mix
• 1 can frosting
• Toothpicks or popsicle sticks
• Patience
• Lots of time
• Chocolate bark
• Decorations like sprinkles, crushed cookies, coconut, chopped pecans, etc

Here is what you do...in a pictorial:

Make your cake like it says to on the box. Cool completely.

Crumble cake in a large bowl then mix with half the can of frosting. You want your cake and frosting to be similar colors. I used yellow cake mix and cream cheese frosting. This picture shows the end of the batch. (I forgot to take a pic at the beginning of the process.) (This is the part your kids will love to help with...just make sure they wash their hands REALLY REALLY REALLY well before they dive in. lol)

The cake mix should be a mold-able consistency. Roll small amounts of the mix into small little balls, about the size of a nickel in diameter. Any larger and its just too much to handle in one bite. Plus, they are way too rich.

Place one toothpick or popsicle stick in each cake ball and place them in the freezer (covered) overnight. This is crucial! (Thanks for the tip, C!) I only let them set in the fridge for an hour and 15 minutes and it wasn't enough time. I struggled when it came time to cover them in chocolate and decorations.

The next day when you're ready to finish the process, get all of your decorations in one place and prepare your chocolate for melting. (The toothpicks are in this pic because I put them in the cake balls when I took them out of the fridge. But, you'll want to do this step the night before when you put them in the freezer.)

Cover each cake ball in chocolate and then put them back in the fridge for a few minutes to allow the chocolate to set a little bit...but not too much! You want it to be just long enough that you can handle them without the chocolate falling off the cake part but you want them still soft enough that your decorations will stay in place. (And, a good thing about adding decorations: if your chocolate isn't "pretty" then the decorations will cover any imperfections!)

**The chocolate didn't work out for me...couldn't get it smooth enough. So, instead, I used the other half of the can of frosting mixed with a little milk (about 1/3 cup) and powdered sugar (about 1 cup) to make a glaze. I had to put them in the fridge for a long time so it would set up.**

When you're finished decorating them, put them back in the fridge until you're ready to serve them.

Breakfast Moon Pie

I LOVE moon pies. Love them. (only the chocolate kind, though) So when I had this idea for a breakfast moon pie, I thought to myself, "Self, how have you not thought of this before?" Honestly.

Anyway, here ya go! The idea came to me one morning and I didn't have much time to take a better pic, but here is the one I got so you can picture what I'm talking about.

Here is what you need:

• 3 small pancakes
• 2 tbs nutella
• 2 tbs raspberry jam

Here is what you do:

• Layer each item: pancake, jam, pancake, nutella, pancake
• Don't spread the entire 2 tbs of jam and nutella on the pancakes because it will ooze out when you bite into it
• Instead, save some for reserve and dip the sandwich in it when it starts to get dry

So easy! You could even dress it up a bit by melting the nutella and drizzling it over the top and then sprinkling fresh raspberries over it with a little powdered sugar. (I didn't have time for fancy.)

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes & Poppers

Tonight I wanted to make something from my cupboards that also screams autumn, so I pulled out an old fall faithful: pumpkin!!! I love it! It is one of the key ingredients for fall, in my opinion. And, it made this recipe ultra moist. YUM!

Aren't they cute!?

Here is what you need for the batter:

• 1 box spice cake mix
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup water

Here is what you need for the icing drizzle:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 tbs milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Here is what you do for the batter:

• First of all, don't use the mixing instructions or ingredients needed listed on the box. Use the list above instead.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Combine box mix, pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, and water.
• Fill each cupcake tin half way with batter. If you want to, use a cupcake liner.
• For the regular cupcakes, bake them for 17 minutes, if you're at a high altitude over 4,000 feet.
• For the little poppers, bake them for 7 minutes.
• Cool completely.
• Drizzle icing over cupcakes.
• Share and enjoy!

Here is what you do for the icing drizzle:

• Sift powdered sugar.
• Combine all three ingredients.
• It hardens after a while, so be sure to drizzle as soon as you make the icing.

You'll love how easy they are to make, how yummy they taste, and your kids will love drizzling the icing! And, the cakes not only work as a dessert, they work great as a surprise breakfast choice. I saved some without icing so that I could eat them in the morning. Hooray!

Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Quesadillas

Tonight I didn't feel like cooking so I wanted something quick and easy...and with bacon! So, I grabbed some eggs, bacon, cheese, and tortillas to see what they tasted like as a quesadilla. It was so delicious!

Here is what you need, for one adult serving or two kids servings:

• 2 wheat tortillas
• 3 medium eggs
• 2 slices bacon
• 1/2 cup grated cheese
• pinch of onion powder
• pinch of garlic salt
• pinch of pepper

Here is what you do:

• Cook bacon and set aside to cool a tad; break into small pieces
• Whisk onion powder, garlic salt, and pepper into eggs
• Scramble eggs in bacon drippings; add bacon pieces when eggs are almost done
• Transfer scrambled eggs to a small dish
• Place one tortilla in same pan and sprinkle half of cheese on top
• Layer scrambled eggs and top with rest of cheese and second tortilla
• Cover pan and let cook on medium-low heat until cheese on bottom is melted
• Flip and cover again, cooking until cheese is melted
• Serve with ketchup, if desired

It was YUM-O, and I bet your kiddos will love it! 

Sloppy Joes with Hidden Zucchini

Here's an easy recipe for ya that will use up your zucchini and get your kids eating their veggies, and they won't even know it!

Here is what you need:

• 1 medium zucchini
• sloppy joe mix, or made-from-scratch
• 1 lb. ground beef
• grated cheese, to taste
• 8 slices of bread
• mustard, to taste

Here is what you do:

• Brown the ground beef.
• While beef is cooking, grate the zucchini.
• Add sloppy joe mix to cooked beef.
• Reduce heat to low simmer and add grated zucchini. Simmer for 3 or 4 more minutes.
• Toast the bread.
• Top toast with cheese, sloppy joe mix, and mustard.

Toasting the bread helps it stand up to the sauce a bit more. And, if you put the cheese on the hot toast and then cover it with the hot sloppy joe sauce, it will melt the cheese perfectly!

I'm not sure where the cheese and mustard thing came from, but I love it! If you don't, then feel free to leave it off.

This also holds up well in the freezer if you want to make it ahead and save it for later.

Broccoli Bites

Knock, Knock. You still out there? Sorry I haven't posted in AGES; I've been busy packing and moving to a new city. But, I'm close to getting settled and will start cooking and sharing my recipes again...I promise!

For now, take a look at this recipe for delicious-looking broccoli bites. Even the non-veggie lover will love these! Add a bit of bacon and they'll be even better!

Creamy Chicken, Broccoli, and Bacon Bowls

Remember the Pillsbury contest I am going to enter? Well, I played around with the presentation again and came up with little bowls. And, I'm about to hit the SUBMIT button on the entry form! YAY!!!

I'm baking the biscuits on the BOTTOM of the muffin tin. Cool!
(Thanks for the idea, Paula Dean.)

Baking the bowls that way makes the little bowls. So cute!
You can see the leftover biscuits flattened out together to make a 6" pizza with the rest of the chicken mixture.

Fill 'em up with the good stuff! 

Ready to eat. Delicious!

I'll let ya know when I hear back about the contest. Wish me luck!