Homemade Magic Shell

I have had an obsession with Magic Shell for a long, long time.  I just really love it.  I've tried several recipes to recreate it and this is by far the best.  It was so delicious on my ice cream, and the bananas were amazing.  I'll be putting some on strawberries for a snack later today, because, what the heck, I have strawberries and now I have a huge container of homemade magic shell to use up!!!

Homemade Magic Shell
Recipe from Smilemonsters


Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups dark chocolate or semi sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup coconut oil

Directions:

Pop in the microwave for about a minute and stir together well.  

Done!

The chocolate sauce will harden as soon as it hits something cold.

Have fun!!!

Pasta with Alfredo Sauce and Veggies (and BACON)

 

This is versatile and delicious.  If it weren't for that inconvenient problem of my lactose intolerance I would have 6 bowls of this.  Aren't you so glad I shared that information with you?!  Really, though, this comes together so fast and tastes fantastic.


Pasta with Alfredo Sauce and Veggies (and BACON)


Ingredients:

1 lb. pasta (angel hair, fettuccine, penne, whatever you like/have on hand)
Vegetables (This is where you can really customize.  I only happened to have red pepper today so I used that.  You could use zucchini, broccoli, carrots, spinach, whatever you like/have on hand!!)
6 slices bacon, diced
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup heavy cream (I used half cream and the rest half and half)
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. minced garlic
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and boil pasta according to package directions.
While the pasta is boiling, fry the diced bacon until crisp. Add in the veggies and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes or until they are tender-crisp.
Meanwhile, in a small sauce pan, add the butter and cream until heated through and butter is melted. Add in the Parmesan cheese, minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Stir until the cheese is thoroughly melted and sauce is a smooth, creamy consistency.
Drain pasta when done and add to a large serving bowl. Pour in the bacon and broccoli and toss it in with the penne. Pour the Alfredo sauce over top of the penne and stir until well combined.
* I don't actually do this because, surprise, some of my children don't like Alfredo sauce and, don't be shocked, but some also don't like vegetables.  I just leave everything separate and customize everyone's serving.  The children who don't like Alfredo sauce love pasta with just butter and Parmesan cheese on it, so that works easy enough.

Panna Cotta

Last night's dessert was DELICIOUS!  My husband and I had panna cotta for the first time a few months ago and I have been wanting to make it ever since.  The recipe only made 6 ramekins, but I didn't double it because I was almost sure my kids wouldn't even want to try it.  (Was I sure, or was I hoping?)  Three of them decided they wanted to try it so I divided one ramekin into thirds (yes, I am THAT greedy) telling them, "I know you will hate this, I am sick that it is getting wasted."  Well, they inhaled it and pronounced, "This tastes like wiggly vanilla ice cream!!!  More! More! More!"  So, being greedy, I divided another one into thirds!!!  I know!!  But in my defense, I had made a backup pan of brownies that they had all already eaten one of, so really, I was just limiting their sugar intake. (wink).  One of my boys spent about an hour thinking of all the different things we could do to panna cotta ("lemon flavored, chocolate sauce, oh, I know Mom, BUTTERSCOTCH SAUCE!") so I know that they really did love it and weren't just being silly.  This is easy and delicious, it's a perfect summertime dessert.

Panna Cotta
Recipe from Allrecipes

Ingredients:

1/3 cup skim milk (I used 1%)

1 (.25 ounce) envelope unflavored gelatin

2 1/2 cups heavy cream (I used half whipping cream and half half and half, that's what I had)

1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

Pour milk into a small bowl, and stir in the gelatin powder. Set aside.

In a saucepan, stir together the heavy cream and sugar, and set over medium heat. Bring to a full boil, watching carefully, as the cream will quickly rise to the top of the pan. Pour the gelatin and milk into the cream, stirring until completely dissolved. Cook for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla and pour into six individual ramekin dishes.

Cool the ramekins uncovered at room temperature. When cool, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight before serving.

Serve with fresh berries, chocolate sauce, use your imagination!

Overnight Sausage Casserole

Overnight Sausage Casserole
Recipe from Our Best Bites

Ingredients:

6-8 slices white bread
Softened butter for bread
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
12 oz. pork sausage browned
1 (4 oz.) can green chiles
6 eggs
2 cups milk
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. dry mustard

Directions:

Remove crusts from bread and butter on one side.  Place bread, buttered side down, in a 9 X 13 baking dish.  Sprinkle cheese over bread.  Sprinkle sausage over cheese, then top with green chiles.
Whisk the eggs, add milk and seasonings and combine.
Slowly keep stirring while pouring over casserole.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake 50 to 60 minutes.  Let stand 10 minutes, then serve.

Irish Potato Candy and Champ

So one of my kids announced to me one night "Oh yeah, I have a report on Ireland I'm doing tomorrow and I'm supposed to bring food for it."  Really?  Thanks kid.  I scrambled to find Irish recipes I had the ingredients for and settled on Champ (basically mashed potatoes) and Irish Potato Candy.  The candy has no potato in it, it just looks like a potato.  I was pretty proud of the suckers, they looked so authentic!!  They were delicious, I loved them.  It was funny watching the kids in my son's class decide if they were going to be brave enough to try them though.


Irish Potato Candy
Recipe from Allrecipes

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups confectioners' sugar

2 1/2 cups flaked coconut

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

In a medium bowl, beat the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add the vanilla and confectioners' sugar; beat until smooth. Using your hands if necessary, mix in the coconut. Roll into balls or potato shapes, and roll in the cinnamon. Place onto a cookie sheet and chill to set. If desired, roll potatoes in cinnamon again for darker color.

*  I followed the suggestions of some of the reviews and rolled it in a mixture of 1 tbsp. cinnamon and 1 tbsp. cocoa powder.  I only rolled it once, since some of the reviews said it had too strong of a flavor if rolled twice.

Champ

Recipe from Allrecipes

Ingredients:

2 pounds potatoes, peeled and halved

1 cup milk

1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/4 cup butter

1 pinch freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

Place potatoes into large pot, and fill with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, and cook until tender, about 20 minutes.

Drain well. Return to very low heat and allow the potatoes to dry out for a few minutes. (It helps if you place a clean dish towel over the potatoes to absorb any remaining moisture.)

Meanwhile, heat the milk and green onions gently in a saucepan, until warm.

Mash the potatoes, salt and butter together until smooth. Stir in the milk and green onion until evenly mixed. Season with freshly ground black pepper. Serve piping hot in bowls. Set out some extra butter for individuals to add to their servings.

* The only thing I did differently in this one is I used only about 1/4 bunch of green onions.  I was pretty sure the kids would freak out if I used the whole bunch.

Sweet Pork

My kids love it when I make this Sweet Pork.  They know it means they can make whatever they want with it; one had nachos, another a burrito, a couple had stuffed quesadillas and I made myself a big salad with it!  They love having a choice, and frankly, I just love the sweet pork!!  I've tried a lot of recipes for it and this recipe is what I've ended up with after mixing a whole bunch of recipe ideas together.


Sweet Pork

Ingredients:

4 lb. pork roast
2 tbsp. canola oil
32 oz. can Macayo's enchilada sauce
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup Coke

Directions:

Heat the oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Sear the roast on all sides until golden brown.

Combine the enchilada sauce, brown sugar and Coke in a slow cooker.  Add the pork, cover and cook on low for 7 hours (I've done it 4 hours on high too).

Remove the pork and shred.  Put back in the slow cooker and stir to combine with the sauce.

Serve on salads, burritos, nachos, quesadillas, tacos, whatever you can think up!!!

Three Cheese Beef and Ziti

I can't believe I haven't posted this recipe yet, I make it ALL THE TIME.  I found the recipe in a random cookbook my Grandpa gave me right after I got married, so, that was pretty much just a few years ago.  No?  Almost 20 years ago?  What the?  Anyway, I started calling it Fake Lasagna after awhile, because that usually got a more favorable response than the actual recipe name.  Please feel free to call it ANY NAME YOU WANT!!!  I was super nice to my kids with no taste (you know who you are!), and only put ricotta cheese on half of it.  You two are spoiled.

There is a reason why this is on my regular recipe rotation, this is fast and yummy!!


Three Cheese Beef and Ziti
Recipe from some old Reader's Digest Cookbook from five, twenty years ago.

Ingredients:

8 oz. ziti, macaroni, or other small pasta
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 medium yellow onion, chopped (of course I don't add this, are you kidding?)
1 jar spaghetti sauce
10 oz. frozen french style green beans, or whatever kind you like, partially thawed
1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded low fat mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Boil the pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, saute the beef and onion(bleh) in a large skillet over moderate heat, stirring frequently to break up any clumps, until the beef is browned - about 5 minutes.  Drain off the excess fat.  Stir in the tomato sauce and bring to a simmer.  Add the green beans, reduce the heat to low, and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

*** Let me just take a second to confess that I don't ALWAYS add the green beans.  I would love for them to be in it, but I get a lot of complaints when I do, and sometimes, I just don't want to deal with that.

Stir in the cooked ziti, then place large spoonfuls of the ricotta on top but not touching.  Sprinkle the mozzarella in between.  Cover and cook just until the mozzarella melts and the ziti and beans are heated through - about 10 minutes.  Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese.

My youngest son recently had a birthday, and when I asked him what kind of cake he wanted me to make he replied, "a plain, white one".  I was surprised at how hard of a time I had finding a "plain, white cake" that I wanted to make!  I finally saw this recipe and was glad I did, I have wanted to make one of these for years and this was the perfect opportunity.  This makes a very sweet cake, but that is fine for special occasions I think.

White Texas Sheet Cake
Recipe from Allrecipes

Ingredients:

1 cup butter

1 cup water

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup milk

4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup chopped walnuts, if desired

Directions:

In a large saucepan, bring 1 cup butter or margarine and water to a boil. Remove from heat, and stir in flour, sugar, eggs, sour cream, 1 teaspoon almond extract, salt, and baking soda until smooth. Pour batter into a greased 10 x 15 x 1 inch baking pan.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 22 minutes, or until cake is golden brown and tests done. Cool for 20 minutes.

Combine 1/2 cup butter or margarine and milk in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Mix in sugar and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract. Stir in walnuts. Spread frosting over warm cake.

Baked Chicken Empanadas

I was looking on the Rhodes Rolls website because I wanted to use up the rest of the rolls I had left over from making this, when I saw the recipe for these chicken empanadas and was intrigued.  It sounded good, and easy, two priorities for me for a week night meal.  I had all the ingredients already, even, it was like it was meant to be!!!  Well, even my pickiest eaters loved it!  I made some quick Queso Dip to put on top of it, like the recipe suggested, but I wish I would have just left it alone.  That's just me though.


Baked Chicken Empanadas
Recipe from Rhodes Rolls

Ingredients:

12 Rhodes™ Dinner Rolls, thawed to room temperature
2 cups cooked diced chicken
1 1/2 cups grated pepper jack cheese
3 ounces cream cheese
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped (I left this out so my children wouldn't have fits)
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Queso Dip:
1 pound Mexican Velveeta
10 ounce can diced tomatoes with green chiles
4 ounce can diced green chiles

Instructions:

Flatten each roll into a 6 to 7-inch circle. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest while making filling. Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Remove plastic wrap from rolls. Place about 1/4 cup filling onto each circle being careful not to let it touch the edges. Wet the edges of each circle with water. Fold dough in half over filling and press the edges together with a fork to seal. Bake at 350°F 15-20 minutes or until nicely browned.

Queso Dip:

Cut cheese into pieces and place in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave one minute at a time until melted. Add tomatoes and green chiles and stir until well combined.

Sour Cream Noodle Bake

I saw this recipe on Pioneer Woman's blog a while back and put it on my 'To Try' list.  I am SO glad I did, I loved this.  I made one little change, because of my issues with cottage cheese, and I've also seen modifications where people have added corn and other things.  This is a keeper.


Sour Cream Noodle Bake
Recipe from The Pioneer Woman Cooks

Ingredients:

1 ¼ pound ground beef
1 can 15 oz. tomato sauce
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
8 oz., weight egg noodles
½ cup sour cream
1 ¼ cup small curd cottage cheese (I used a 15 oz. container of ricotta cheese)
½ cups sliced green onions (less To Taste)(I didn't add these because I forgot to buy them)
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Brown ground beef in a large skillet. Drain fat, then add tomato sauce. 1/2 teaspoon salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Stir, then simmer while you prepare the other ingredients.
Cook egg noodles until al dente. Drain and set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine sour cream and cottage cheese (ricotta cheese for me). Add plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Add to noodles and stir. Add green onions and stir.
To assemble, add half of the noodles to a baking dish. Top with half the meat mixture, then sprinkle on half the grated cheddar. Repeat with noodles, meat, then a final layer of cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, or until all cheese is melted.

Cheeseburger Rolls

I am all about making easy, fast meals - as if you couldn't tell.  If I wasn't in a hurry, there is a really good chance I would have made homemade dough for this recipe (really!), but I was having a busy day, so I left out some Rhodes rolls to thaw and they worked out perfectly.  These were great, I will definitely make them again.

Cheeseburger Rolls
Recipe made up by me after seeing similar things here and there

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef
Salt, pepper, and garlic to taste
2 tsp. Worcester sauce
12 Rhodes rolls, thawed out
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

(I'm sorry about these directions, for some reason I had a hard time putting in writing what I did!!)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Brown ground beef in a pan.  Add salt, pepper and minced garlic to your taste.  Add 2 tsp. Worcester sauce.  Stir everything together and set aside.
Take a roll and press it out.  Put a few tablespoons of the ground beef mixture onto the roll, then put a little bit of cheddar cheese on top.  Close the roll by bringing the sides up and pressing them tightly together.  Repeat with all the rolls.
Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Caramel Cake

I'm kind of on a caramel kick right now so when I saw this recipe I knew I had to make it.  It is really good, but super sweet.  You can't eat a lot of it at a time, which is a good thing I suppose.


Caramel Cake
Recipe from Allrecipes

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups packed brown sugar

1 cup heavy whipping cream

3 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup chopped pecans (I didn't add these, I didn't want my kids heads to explode)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease one 9x13 inch baking pan.

Sift the flour before measuring then resift with the 1 cup of the packed brown sugar.

Add the butter or margarine, eggs, milk, salt, baking powder and 1 teaspoon of the vanilla to the flour mixture and beat on medium high speed of an electric mixer for 2 to 3 minutes. (Use the whisk attachment for best results.) Spread batter into the prepared pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Remove cake from oven and place on a wire rack for 10 minutes then remove pan and place cake on a serving dish. Once cake is cooled completely frost with Caramel Icing.

To Make Caramel Icing: In a saucepan over medium heat stir the 2 remaining cups of brown sugar, and the cream until the sugar is dissolved. Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Uncover and cook without stirring till a candy thermometer reads 238 to 240 degrees. Stir in the remaining butter with a wooden spoon. Remove the icing from the heat and let cool to 110 degrees. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat the icing until it is thick and creamy. If it becomes heavy, thin it out with cream until the right consistency appears. Spread over the top of the cooled cake and top with chopped pecans.

Chocolate Coconut Milk Ice Cream

I got an ice cream maker for Mother's Day, I am so excited about it.  I have already used the basic recipes in the manual that came with it to make several batches of vanilla and mint chocolate chip but I wanted to try something different.  I've been seeing coconut milk ice cream in the store and have been intrigued.  I love coconut and I would love to have the occasional ice cream treat with little or no dairy.  I searched the internet and found several recipes.  I decided I would try the coconut milk in baby steps, so instead of making the ice cream with only the coconut milk, for my first try I would incorporate some dairy.  I am in LOVE with the result!  I had to make this recipe up, because there wasn't anything out there exactly like I wanted and I am SO GLAD that I did.  This is so, so good!

Chocolate Coconut Milk Ice Cream
Recipe by Kathee

Ingredients:

14 oz. can of full fat coconut milk (do not use light)
1 cup half and half
14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp. vanilla
Pinch salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
Optional: semisweet chocolate pieces

Pour a small amount of milk into a bowl.  Add the cocoa powder and mix well, removing any lumps.  Gradually add the rest of the coconut milk.  Add the rest of the ingredients.  Make ice cream according to your ice cream maker's instructions.  In the last 5 minutes you can add any additions you would like.  I chopped up a bunch of tiny pieces of some semisweet chocolate to add, so this is absolutely a decadent chocolate treat!!   Serve immediately if you prefer a 'soft serve' type of ice cream, or chill for 1 to 2 hours in freezer if you like your ice cream harder.

Creme Brulee

My very favorite dessert is Creme Brulee and since it was my birthday last week (yay) I made myself a batch.  Well, I should clarify, I THOUGHT I was making myself a batch, since usually no one eats it but me, for which I have always been secretly thrilled.  Really, who wants to share Creme Brulee?!  Sadly, my daughter tried some and realized she has been missing out so I had to share with her.  Good thing I tripled the recipe!  (oh, yes I did!!)


Creme Brulee
Recipe from Allrecipes


Ingredients:

2 cups heavy cream

1/4 cup white sugar

1 pinch salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 egg yolks

4 tablespoons white sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees and line the bottom of a large baking pan with a damp kitchen cloth.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. While water is boiling, combine cream, 1/4 cup sugar and salt in saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally 4 to 5 minutes, until steam rises. In a medium bowl, beat egg yolks and vanilla until smooth. Pour hot cream into yolks, a little at a time, stirring constantly, until all cream is incorporated. Pour mixture into four 6 oz. ramekins.

Place ramekins on towel in baking dish, and place dish on oven rack. Pour boiling water into dish to halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover whole pan loosely with foil.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until custard is just set. Chill ramekins in refrigerator 4 to 6 hours.

Before serving, sprinkle 1 tablespoon sugar over each custard. Use a kitchen torch or oven broiler to brown top, 2 to 3 minutes.

Bolognese Sauce

I know Carrie already has a Bolognese Sauce posted on here, but this is a slightly different take.  I found it on a site where there are a lot of healthy recipes because I'm making those baby steps towards eating better.  This is so good it's hard for me to believe that is good for you, but there you go. 

Mental note:  things that are good for you can also be tasty Kathee!!! 

Good to know!


Bolognese Sauce
Recipe from Skinny Taste


Ingredients:

4 oz pancetta, chopped
1 tbsp butter
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 cup celery, minced
1/2 cup carrots, minced
1 lb 95% lean ground beef
1/4 cup white wine (I didn't add this)
2 - 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes
1 bay leaf
salt and fresh pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup half & half

Directions:

In a deep heavy saute pan, saute pancetta until fat melts.  Add butter, onions, celery and carrots and cook until soft.  Add meat, season with salt and pepper and saute until browned.  Add wine, cook until it reduces down, about 3-4 minutes.  Add tomatoes and bay leaf.  Simmer covered on low, at least 1-1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally.  Add half & half and parsley, cook 2 minutes longer. Makes about 8 cups.

Spaghetti Carbonara and S'Mores Cookie Bars

I decided to try another recipe for Spaghetti Carbonara and I'm glad I did.  I like this one a lot better than the one I previously posted.  I forgot to buy pancetta, but you can substitute bacon and I luckily had some bacon I could use, because you KNOW I didn't want to make a last minute run up to the grocery store. 


Spaghetti Carbonara
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen

Ingredients:

1  16 oz box spaghetti
2 tablespoon olive oil, separated
8 slices bacon or Italian bacon, diced
1/2 small onion, chopped (I omitted this of course)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/8 - 1/4 cup dry white wine (optional)(I didn't use this)
2 eggs, beaten
2 tbsp heavy cream or milk (I used half and half)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 pinch salt and black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Extra grated Parmesan cheese for garnish
Directions:

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook spaghetti pasta until al dente. Drain well and reserve a bit of the pasta water, about 1/2 cup. Toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and set aside. While the pasta cooks start on the bacon. In a large skillet, cook chopped bacon until slightly crisp; remove and drain onto paper towels. Reserve 2 tablespoons of bacon fat; add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, and heat in reused large skillet. Add chopped onion, and cook over medium heat until onion is translucent. Add minced garlic, and cook 1 minute more. Add wine if desired; cook one more minute.

Return cooked bacon to pan; add cooked and drained spaghetti. Toss to coat and heat through, adding more olive oil if it seems dry or is sticking together. To ensure a creamy, silky sauce, mix the cheese, cream and beaten eggs together then stir into the pasta, off of the heat. Tossing constantly with tongs or large fork until eggs are barely set. If the mixture is too thick add a bit of reserved pasta water. Add salt and pepper to taste (remember that bacon and Parmesan are very salty). Serve immediately with chopped parsley sprinkled on top, and extra Parmesan cheese at table.

Umm, I'm pretty sure I don't need to tell you how good these bars were.  Just look at it for crying out loud!!  I've already been asked to make this again, I was told it was the best thing ever created in the existence of Earth, I was offered a bribe to give someone an extra piece, I could go on and on.  This dessert was VERY well received!!!


S'Mores Cookie Bars
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter, room temperature (1/2 cup)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 king-sized Hershey’s milk chocolate bars
1 large egg
1 7 oz jar marshmallow creme/fluff
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
(7 full-sized graham cracker sheets, processed til fine)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan (I line my pan with foil for easy removal and cutting). Use an electric mixer to cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Set aside. Meanwhile,whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Slowly add flour mixture to the creamed butter mixture until combined.

Divide dough in half and press half of dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan. Place chocolate bars over dough. 2 king-sized Hershey’s bars should fit perfectly side by side.  Spread chocolate with marshmallow creme or fluff. Place blobs of it on the chocolate and then spread it around.

Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff (I rolled the dough out between two pieces of waxed paper and use a spatula to place pieces of it on the top and pressed the pieces together). Bake for 30 to 35 minutes (I did mine a little longer to get that nice brown color), until lightly browned. Be sure to cool completely before cutting into bars. Makes 16 squares.

Baked Chicken Parmesan

My husband and I are TRYING to eat healthier, but, sigh....... sometimes that's not so much fun.  Last week we had salads for dinner for four nights.  That got old pretty quick.  I was excited to find this recipe because I really love chicken parmesan.  It was SO good.  I was sad that there wasn't any left overs.


Baked Chicken Parmesan
Recipe from SkinnyTaste

Ingredients:

4 (8 oz) chicken breast halves, sliced in half
3/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp butter, melted
3/4 cup reduced fat mozzarella cheese
1 cup marinara
cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°.  Spray a large baking sheet lightly with spray.

Combine breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese in a bowl.  Melt the butter in another bowl. Lightly brush the butter onto the chicken, then dip into breadcrumb mixture.  Place on baking sheet and repeat with the remaining chicken.

Lightly spray a little more cooking oil on top and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.  Turn chicken over, bake another 5 minutes.  Remove from oven, spoon sauce over chicken and top with shredded cheese.  Bake 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted.

Steak Kabobs, Tucano's Grilled Pineapple and Boston Cream Pie

Since the weather has been nice I decided it would be fun to grill for our Easter dinner.  Of course the boys were thrilled, because steak is their favorite.  Even my daughter ate it, and she doesn't really care for meat.  The pineapple was DELICIOUS!!  Next time, I'm doubling the pineapple and eating that first so I'm not full of other stuff!!!  The cake was delicious too, and so easy!!  You've got to love a meal that tastes fantastic but still allows you to have a 2 hour nap, even though we didn't get home from church until 3!!!


Beef Marinade for Kabobs

½ cup apple juice
¾ cup sugar
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp. ginger
½ onion, chopped

Marinate meat as long as desired (but at least an hour). While these are marinating, soak skewers in water for at least a half an hour. Cut steak in strips and put on a skewer with veggies, then grill on the BBQ.


Tucano's Grilled Pineapple
Recipe from Kiera's Recipes

Ingredients:

One half pineapple, cut into long spears
(I just used the pre cut pineapple and put it on a skewer)
1 tbsp. butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon, in all
lemon juice

Fire up the grill to medium heat. Before putting the pinapple down, sprinkle the spears with half of the cinnamon and a little bit of brown sugar. This will facilitate a sweetness and instant carmelization when they hit the grill.

In a small saucepan, heat the butter, brown sugar and the rest of the cinnamon. Heat until bubbly and the sugar is properly melted.

Grill the pineapple spears over direct heat about 2-3 minutes per side, turning occaisionally. Each time it turns, baste with a brush of glaze. When finished, plate up and drizzle a final amount of glaze on top.

Easy Boston Cream Pie

1 yellow cake mix
1 small pkg. vanilla pudding
1 carton of Cool Whip
1 can of chocolate frosting


Make cake mix according to diretions in two round cake pans.   Let cool completely.   Make pudding mix according to directions but with only 1 cup of milk.  Let set.  Once set, add half of the carton of Cool Whip and mix together thoroughly.  Put one of the cake rounds on a plate.  Top with the pudding mixture.  Put the other cake round on top of the pudding mixture.  Frost with chocolate frosting as desired.  Keep refrigerated.

Overnight French Toast Casserole

I have tried making these 'overnight' type of things quite a few times, and have never really liked them.  They are usually too mushy for my taste.  This one turned out perfect and I'm wondering if it's because it's using the thick texas toast?  Anyhoo, it's easy and delicious!!!  It worked out perfectly to put it in the oven first thing in the morning and let it bake while the kids were hunting Easter eggs!



Overnight French Toast Casserole
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, melted (1 stick)
12 slices Texas toast or any leftover bread
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
5 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk

Directions:

Melt butter and pour in a 9x 13 pan. Mix together brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and nuts if you are using them. Whisk eggs, milk & vanilla together. Layer bottom of pan with half the bread pieces Sprinkle half the brown sugar mix over the bread. Layer the second half of bread. Pour egg mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly. Sprinkle remaining brown sugar on top. Cover and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, remove from the refrigerator and cover with a new piece of foil. Preheat oven to 350 and bake the casserole for 30 minutes. Then uncover and bake for 20 more minutes. French toast should be browned and set. You can also remove it from the oven and pour some maple syrup on top and place back in the oven to caramelize for about 5-7 minutes.

Machaca Burritos

We have yet to find a great Mexican food restaurant near where we live.  It's been nearly two years, and to say we are in withdrawl is no exaggeration.  Luckily, I have some recipes that help us hold out until the next Arizona trip and was able to pull some fantastic tortillas out of the freezer from my last Arizona trip in January!!


Machaca Burro
I have no idea where I got this recipe, I've had it about 15 years


Ingredients:

3 lb. chuck roast
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup bacon drippings or vegetable oil
1 cup beef stock
1 medium onion, chopped (Obviously, I only used about 1/16 onion, finely minced into practically a paste)
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 small tomatoes, chopped (I only used 1 tomato so my kids wouldn't freak out)
1/2 cup chopped green chiles
1 tbsp. lime juice


Directions:

Rub the roast with salt and pepper.  Warm 2 tbsp. oil, brown meat on all sides.  Reduce heat to low.  Pour stock over the meat and add half the onion and garlic to the pan.  Cover and simmer until tender, about 1 1/2 hours.  Remove the meat, reserving liquid.  Shred the meat.
Warm remaining oil and saute remaining onion and garlic until soft.  Add the meat, stirring for about 10 minutes.  Stir in the reserved liquid, tomatoes, green chiles and lime juice.  Cook over low heat for 25 minutes.
I made some black beans and added them to my burrito, along with cheese and fresh salsa.

Chicken, Bacon and Veggie Pizza

I thought for sure my children would hate this pizza, so I made one for my husband and I, and one regular cheese pizza for the kids.  Well, they loved it!  Next time I will make two of them!  The no fail pizza crust recipe is a keeper, very easy.  It makes a thick dough if that is the kind you like, if not, then use your favorite pizza dough recipe.  Oh, and see that red pepper on the bottom of the picture, on the edge of the crust?  That would be my dividing line - on the right of that is the onion free zone, on the left is Onion City.  I was VERY careful when putting the onions on, I didn't get them even CLOSE to the dividing line!!  This pizza was delicious!!!  When I grilled the chicken, I also put barbecue sauce on it.  Yum.



Chicken, Bacon and Veggie Pizza
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen

Ingredients:

1 recipe no fail pizza crust or use your own favorite pizza dough recipe
3 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 1/2 cups cheddar or Colby jack cheese, shredded
1/2 red pepper, cored, seeded & cut into strips
1/2 medium red onion, sliced vertically
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, grilled & diced
6 slices bacon, cooked & crumbled
Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare the pizza crust and roll out to fit into one 14 inch pizza pan or stone. Drizzle two tablespoon olive oil and the garlic onto the pizza crust, followed by half of each of the cheeses. Scatter half of the bell pepper, sliced onion, chicken, and bacon.

Add the remaining chicken, bacon, veggies and the rest of the cheeses. Finish it off by drizzling the last tablespoon of olive oil all over the top. Bake the pizza at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until the crust is lightly browned. Remove from the oven, let cool and slice.


No Fail Pizza Crust
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 cup warm water
1 tbsp. baking powder
4 tbsp. butter, softened
1 - 1/4 oz packet yeast (I used rapid rise)

Dissolve the yeast in warm water and set aside. Mix the flour, salt and baking powder together. Add the softened butter and cut into the flour mixture using a pastry blender or fork. Add the yeast mixture and stir together to combine. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until well blended. Place the pizza dough into a oiled bowl and turn the dough to coat. Let rest for about 20 minutes. Cover the bowl with dish towel or plastic wrap while the dough rests. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Spray your pizza pan with non stick baking spray or brush with olive oil. You can also use a pizza stone. Press the pizza dough into the pan. Pre bake the pizza crust for about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and spread with pizza sauce and add all your favorite toppings. Place the pizza in the oven and bake until the crust is golden browned and the cheese is melted about 10-15 minutes.

Nacho Pie and Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

I should have made two of these because it was inhaled in 2 point 3 seconds.  It has already been requested as a birthday dinner, high praise in our home!!


Nacho Pie
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef, browned
1/2 cup chopped onion (of course I skipped this!)
1  8 oz. can tomato cauce
¾ cup water
1  packet taco seasoning mix
1  tube crescent roll dough
1 1/2 cup crushed tortillas chips
1/2 cup sour cream (I didn't add this)
1  cup cheddar jack or plain cheddar cheese
additional sour cream for garnish, diced tomatoes and sliced black olives.
Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.  In large skillet brown beef and onion over medium heat until done. Drain off any grease. Stir in tomato sauce, water and taco seasoning. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 - 10 minutes. Separate crescent rolls into 8 triangles. Place in greased 9 inch pie plate points facing towards the middle. You might have to maneuver the triangles a bit at the end and turn some of them side ways, that's OK as long as the pie plate is covered completely. Press onto bottom and up sides of plate to form crust. Seal perforations. Sprinkle 1 cup crushed chips over crust. Top with meat mixture. Using a spatula spread sour cream over meat. (I skipped this step because I don't like sour cream).   Sprinkle the cheese and then remaining 1/2 cup crushed chips. Bake 30 - 40 minutes or until cheese melts, pie is bubbly and crust is golden brown. Cool 10 minutes before cutting. Add a dollop of sour cream, diced tomatoes and black olives for garnish. If the crust starts to brown to quickly cover the pie plate with foil from the bottom and up around the sides to cover crust.

Serve with a salad and your meal is complete.




 Our dessert for FHE was super easy.  We got a bunch of these for Christmas as neighbor gifts:

When I found this recipe I realized it was the perfect way to use up these cookie pouches!

Please forgive my horrible picture, just trust me when I tell you, if you like cheesecake you will LOVE these bars!!!


Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen

Ingredients:

1 (30 oz.) pkg. of chocolate chip cookie dough (I used two cookie pouches)
1 (8 oz.) packages of regular cream cheese, room temperature
1 egg
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut chocolate chip cookie dough in half. (Or in my case, prepare cookie dough as directed).   Cover the bottom of an ungreased 13x9 inch baking pan or casserole dish with half of the dough, forming a crust. Use your hands for this as if you were filling a pie plate with a homemade pie crust. Bake for 10 minutes.

While baking, beat the cream cheese, egg (or egg substitute), sugar (or no calorie sugar sweetener), and vanilla in a bowl until well blended. Take the crust out and spread the cream cheese mixture on the top being sure to cover the entire top. It will be ooey and gooey and may blend with the crust and this is OK.
Take the other half of the cookie dough and crumble it on top of the cream cheese coating, being sure to cover it all.Bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool in the refrigerator for a few hours before serving. Store in the fridge, due to the cream cheese

Note: You can also use other cookie dough flavors instead of chocolate chip. Peanut butter, M & M, etc...

No Peek Beef Tips

This was a super easy dinner that the kids all loved.  I served it with mashed potatoes although I was told that next time they would like it with noodles.  I loved sticking it in the oven after church, taking my required Sunday Afternoon Nap and waking up to delicious smells and our meal finished.


No Peek Beef Tips
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen


Ingredients:

2 lb. - Beef tenderloin tips, Stew Meat, Chuck Roast or Chuck Eye (Cubed)
1 - 10.5 oz can cream of mushroom soup
1 – packet brown gravy mix
1 - packet lipton dry onion soup mix
1 – small can mushrooms
1 - cup water or ginger ale

Directions:

Add cubed meat to a 9 x 13 inch pan. In a big bowl mix the remaining ingredients together and pour over the meat add mushrooms and stir to coat. Cover with foil and bake at 300 degrees for 3 Hours do not remove foil until done. Serve over rice, mashed potatoes or noodles.

Carrie's March Menu

Hi there. Long time, no see. March was quite the month--a month I would like to forget. Lots of sickness, crying and no sleep. I will try to be better in April, but I'm not making any promises. I thought I would post my menu for March before I forget.

Week 1:
Stir Fried Chicken with Green Beans in a Spicy Orange Sauce
Pasta E Fagiola
BBQ Pork in the Slow Cooker
Pasta Alla Amatriciana
Tomato Soup with grilled cheese

Week 2:
Philly Cheesesteaks Cafe Rio Salads
Chicken Enchiladas
Tater Tot Casserole
Creamy Farfelle
Tomato, Cheddar and Beef Macaroni

Week 3:
Pot Roast Baked Potatoes and Salad
Cafe Rio Salads
homemade pizza
Chicken Pot Pie
Corned Beef with Fried Cabbage and Champ

Week 4:
Marlboro Man Sandwiches
Pasta with Creamy Chicken Sauce
Vegetable Soup
Rigatoni
Crispy Orange Beef
Bisquits and Gravy

Blogger is not letting me link anything at the moment and it's irritating me, so it's time to get off the computer. I'll post my other recipes later.

Homemade White Castle Sliders

After biting into one of these babies my oldest son leaned over to me and whispered "There's O's in these, isn't there?"  Yes, I did it.  I put O's in something for once in my life.  O's would be onions, which I hate.  Detest.  Loathe.  Curse.  Despise.  Shun.   Usually......  But I knew in my heart of hearts that I couldn't honestly make a fake White Castle wannabe without onions.  And shock of shocks, I ate TWO of these guys, I loved it, and I didn't mind the O words at all.  Now husband, don't get all jazzed thinking we're going to have onions in our meals now, because that is just crazy talk.  While we were eating dinner, one of the kids said out loud, "Are there onions on these burgers??!"  and another one answered immediately, "Onions!  No way!  Mom made these!" 

See?  I have a reputation to uphold!

I served these with Sweet Potato Fries, I already posted that recipe here.


Homemade White Castle Sliders
Recipe from Big Red Kitchen

Ingredients:

1/2 cup dried onion flakes (of course, you know I only used about 1 tsp.  Baby steps!  Baby steps!)
2 pounds ground chuck- 80/20 ground beef
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
6 slices cheddar cheese
24 small party rolls (potato if possible)
24 dill pickle slices

Directions:

Evenly spread the onions on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Gently press the ground beef on top of the onion flakes. Press evenly making one giant pattie. Sprinkle with seasoned salt. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. Using a paper towel, pat the excess grease from the top of the pattie. Top with cheddar cheese, return to oven for 2 more minutes. Remove from oven, let set 5 minutes then cut into 24 patties. Slice open and separate each party roll. Place bottom of rolls on a large platter. Using a spatula lift pattie with onion layer onto each bun bottom. Top each slider with a pickle slice then the bun lid. Serve immediately. Makes 24 Sliders.

Nicea's Favorite Fried Rice

Since I am a known Rice Addict, I knew I had to make this as soon as I saw it.  I loved it.  There were a couple of family member's who freaked out about the peas (ok, fine, I was one of them) but they come out easily.  This makes a lot!!!


Nicea's Favorite Fried Rice
Recipe from Good Things Utah

Ingredients:

1-2 chicken breasts or 10 chicken tenders
3 scrambled eggs
2 carrots (finely grated)
½ white onion (finely chopped)
¾ cup frozen peas
½ cup butter
1-2 garlic cloves (crushed) or 1 tsp. garlic powder
2 cups white rice (not instant)

Directions:

Marinate chicken in soy sauce, if you do not have much time, mix it with chicken before cooking
In a large frying pan Cook chicken in small amount of olive oil, add carrots and onions and sauté until clear.  Add frozen peas and cook until soft.
In a separate pan cook rice then add to the mixture .
In another pan, scramble three eggs, chop finely and add to mixture
Melt 1/2 cup butter, add crushed garlic cloves to butter, stir and add to mixture.
Mix all together well, add soy sauce to taste.

Skillet Lasagna, Breadsticks and Cinnamon Bread

Perhaps you thought that my addiction to tormenting my children had subsided, but don't fear, it is alive and well!  I'm not quite sure why every time I am drawn to a meatless meal it contains ricotta, but I AM sure that I have two children who are extremely irritated with me because of it.  This meal was so fast and easy, yay!  I love fast and easy meals.  I saw a recipe for Skillet Lasagna here, and I decided that I would make it a little bit easier by just using jarred spagetti sauce, and a little bit more palatable for ME by using ricotta instead of cottage cheese.  I feel about cottage cheese the way two of my kids feel about ricotta.  I get shivers even THINKING about it.  Yuck.  This breadstick recipe is another fast one, and it is delicious.  The cinnamon bread, well, what can I say?  It's bread with cinnamon, of course I loved it.  It was gone the next morning so I'm pretty sure some other people in my home loved it too (unless I Sleep Ate it, which is a possibility.  There's got to be a reason why I keep gaining weight, and blaming it on me eating food while I'm sleeping is just honestly the most logical thing for me to believe right now.)


Skillet Lasagna
Recipe modified from Remodelaholic


Ingredients:

24 oz. jar of spagetti sauce

15 oz. ricotta cheese

2/3 cup Parmesan

3 tbsp. dried parsley

2 beaten eggs

3/4 cup Mozzarella

salt and pepper
1 box (or less) No cook Lasagna Noodles

Directions:

Put 1/3 of the jar of spagetti sauce in an oven proof skillet.  Break up a couple of the lasagna noodles and layer it over the spagetti sauce.  In a bowl, combine the ricotta, parsley, eggs, 1/4 cup of Mozarella and salt and pepper to taste.  Spread half of the ricotta mixture over the noodles.  Repeat this with the sauce, noodles and ricotta.  Top with one cup Mozzarella.

Then place back on the burner, medium high heat for five minutes covered.  Remove the lid and place the whole skillet into preheated 400 degree oven (make sure your skillet is oven safe!) and bake for 20 more minutes.

Let stand a few minutes before serving.

Breadsticks
Recipe from Siggy Spice


Ingredients:
1-½ cups warm water
1  tbsp. instant (rapid rise) yeast from a jar.  Sorry, the packets don't hold a full TBSP
2 tbsp. sugar
3-½ cups all purpose flour
½ tsp salt
2-4 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tbsp. garlic salt
1-2 tsp herbs/seasoning of your choice.  I am using an herb blend that is for mixing with olive oil and dipping bread, but any herb or combo of herbs that you like would work well.
4 tbsp. melted butter
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
 
Mix together water, yeast, sugar, flour, and salt in a large bowl or electric mixer and knead for three minutes. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Spread 1-2 tbsp. olive oil (just enough to coat) onto the bottom of a 16"x14" cookie sheet.  Roll out the breadstick dough about 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick and large enough to fit onto baking sheet.  Place whole sheet of dough on baking sheet, then brush 1-2 tbsp. olive oil over top of dough making sure it is all lightly covered.  Sprinkle garlic salt and herbs of choice over top of olive oil.  Using a pizza cutter, cut breadsticks into desired length and width.   Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes.
Remove plastic wrap and place in preheated oven and allow to bake for 15-17 minutes until golden brown.  Remove from oven and brush melted butter all over top and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Cinnamon Bread
Recipe from Tasty Kitchen


Ingredients:

2 cups All-purpose Flour
1 cup White Sugar
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
½ teaspoons Baking Soda
½ teaspoons Salt
2 teaspoons Cinnamon
2 whole Eggs
1 cup Buttermilk
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
¼ cups Oil
2 Tablespoons Sugar
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 Tablespoon Butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, eggs, buttermilk, extract and oil. Beat/whisk together for about 2 minutes.  Pour batter into a prepared pan (large size) and smooth top.  In a small bowl combine sugar and cinnamon and cut in the butter using a knife and fork until mixture is crumbly.  Sprinkle cinnamon mixture on top of batter. Use a knife and cut in a swirling motion, giving it a marble effect.
Place in oven and bake for 50 minutes. Test with toothpick. Allow to cool for a few minutes before removing loaf from pan.

Healthy Pancakes with Cinnamon Syrup

I saw the recipe for this syrup and knew I just had to make it.  Unfortunately, I've been trying to eat healthier (I know, UNFORTUNATELY!) so I figured if I was going to go all sugar crazy with the syrup I should at least TRY to make the pancakes a little healthier.  (waaahhhhh) 

This syrup is fantastic!  I'm thinking how great it would be to drizzle the left overs onto some vanilla ice cream........................... uh, oh, I'm sorry.  I was off in a food fantasy.  These things happen when you're trying to eat healthier.  UNFORTUNATELY.



Healthy Pancakes
Recipe from Allrecipes


Ingredients:


1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup wheat germ

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon canola oil

3 egg yolks

5 egg whites

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup milk, or as needed

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

Directions:

In a large bowl, stir together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, wheat germ, and baking powder. Make a well in the center, and stir in the egg yolks, applesauce and milk until fairly smooth. If the batter seems too thick, stir in more milk. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites with an electric mixer to soft peaks. Fold egg whites into the batter, just until blended.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Scoop large spoonfuls of batter onto the hot pan, and fry until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip and cook until browned on the other side. Continue with remaining batter.

Cinnamon Syrup

Recipe from Allrecipes

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1/4 cup water

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk

Directions:

In a saucepan, combine the first four ingredients. Bring to a boil over medium heat; boil and stir for 2 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes. Stir in milk.