Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread

There are some really good recipes at Confections of a Foodie Bride, and this Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread Recipe is one of my favorites! I don't have a large bundt pan because I would rarely use it, but I have individual bundt pans that I use often. I thought I would try this recipe to make individual Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Breads. Guess what??? They turned out adorable and delicious. Bill and I plan on bringing the leftovers to work and school tomorrow.

Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks (just like in restaurants)

These Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks really do taste like the ones you buy at a restaurant! Thanks to Lauren from Lauren's Latest Recipe Website.This was my first attempt to make them, and I think I will revise the recipe next time. This will be my plan...

Ingredients:

1 lb. store bought pizza dough, thawed
3 tablespoons softened salted butter
2-3 tsp. minced garlic
1/4-1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (in the bag, not the can)
1/4-1/2 pound grated mozzarella cheese
salt & pepper, if desired

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees with pizza stone inside.
2. Mix butter and garlic in a small bowl and set aside.
3. Spread pizza dough out into a 12-16 inch circle on parchment paper.
4. Spread the butter and garlic mixture over dough and top with parmesan and mozzarella cheeses.
5. Top with a light sprinkling of salt and pepper, if desired.
6. Lift parchment paper, with dough & toppings on it, and place it on the hot stone.
7. Bake 9-10 minutes.

Harvest Pumpkin Bars

The sisters at sisterstuff.blogspot.com sure have some good looking recipes. I tried their Harvest Pumpkin Bars today, and they are sooooo good...very moist too! Papa Dukes and I liked them so much that we plan on bringing them to a Halloween party next weekend. Did I mention they are REALLY EASY to make too?

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
2 cups pumpkin (16 oz)
3/4 cup oil
4 eggs

Mix dry ingredients together; add pumpkin, oil and eggs. Mix until smooth. Pour into greased 15x10x1 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Frosting:
6 oz cream cheese
12 Tbsp. butter (melted)
2 tsp. vanilla
4 cups pd. sugar

Spread frosting on cool bars.
Optional-top with walnuts.

Roasted Potatoes, Chicken, Sausage & Peppers

Roasted Potatoes, Chicken, Sausage and Peppers from skinnytaste.com was a nice change for dinner this evening...AND...a healthy dinner to boot. Hmmm....we topped off dinner with a delcious autumn dessert that wasn't healthy, but it was quite tasty!

Southern Beans 'n Greens Dinner

I was a bit homesick for my mom, mother-in-law and Kentucky, in general, today. I decided to make a real Southern meal like my mom and Bill's mom used to make. I made Great Northern Beans, collard greens, fried potatoes, and Southern cornbread. Now that's all we needed, but some people like to add a hamsteak to the meal. Yummy, yummy, yummy! I think our moms would be proud!

German Chocolate Cake Cookies

I enjoy browsing All Recipes. This is where I found these simple and delicious German Chocolate Cake Cookies. I am getting all kinds of ideas for new cookies using this concept. I'm thinking it will be fun to try different cake mixes and different fillings! What a variety of cookie ideas!

I am learning to post the actual recipe of findings at other websites because I clicked on a link from my website tonight and discovered the website was not available. So...here't the actual recipe for Allrecipes German Chocolate Cake Cookies:

Ingredients:
• 1 (18.25 ounce) package German chocolate cake mix
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2/3 cup shortening
• 1 (16 ounce) container prepared coconut pecan frosting

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the cake mix, eggs and shortening until well blended. Roll the dough into walnut sized balls. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto the cookie sheet.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Match up evenly sized cookies and sandwich them with the coconut pecan frosting.

Homemade Reeses Peanut Butter Truffles

Pinterest is the best website for finding all kinds of ideas. This is exactly where I first found this Homemade Reeses Peanut Butter Truffles Recipe. From Pinterest I found the Six Sisters Stuff Blog! They have some wonderful sounding recipes, and I can't wait to try more. This recipe was a big hit with Papa Dukes tonight! I just made a few revisions because I'm too lazy to do things the hard way. So...here's my version:

Ingredients:

2 sticks butter softened
3 3/4 cups powdered sugar (1 lb.)
1 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cups graham crackers (Here's where I was lazy, but you could crush a sleeve of graham crackers instead.)
1 pkg. chocolate Almond Bark (found at Walmart)

Directions:

1. Mix butter, powdered sugar, peanut butter & graham cracker crumbs until well blended.
2. Roll into 1-inch balls and put on wax paper lined cookie sheets.
3. Put cookie sheets in freezer for 20 minutes.
4. After 20 minutes melt chocolate per package directions. (I melt half at a time.)
5. Dip balls in melted chocolate and return to wax paper lined cookie sheets.
6. Once chocolate is firm, store truffles in refrigerator.
Makes 6 dozen.

Easy Fruit Salad

This recipe is SO EASY and SO GOOD! I like to serve it during the winter...especially at Christmas time.

Ingredients:

30 oz. can fruit cocktail, drained
11 oz. can mandarin oranges, drained
20 oz. can pineapple chunks, NOT DRAINED
2 firm bananas
1 cup red seedless grapes
1 cup pecan halves
1 box instant vanilla pudding

Directions:

1. Put drained fruit cocktail and mandarin oranges in large bowl.
2. Add pineapple chunks (NOT DRAINED)
3. Rinse and add grapes.
4. Add pecan halves
5. Stir fruits together.
6. Slowly sprinkle and mix vanilla pudding with fruits.
7. When pudding is blended well with fruits, cut bananas into 1/2"-1" pieces and slowly stir with fruit mix.
8. Refrigerate until ready to serve. The longer it refrigerates, the thicker the sauce becomes.

Mama Sherri's Mac 'n Cheese

I don't claim to be good at making mac 'n cheese, but I blended some recipes I already had and made this recipe. I hope you like it as much as Papa Dukes and I like it! ☺

Ingredients:

16 oz. (4 cups) uncooked elbow macaroni
3/4 stick butter (or margarine) + 2 Tbsp.
6 Tbsp. flour
2 cups milk
salt to taste
white pepper to taste
2 cups shredded cheddar (I like to mix mild and sharp.)
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

1. Cook macaroni per box instructions.
2. While macaroni is cooking, melt 3/4 stick butter (or margarine) in sauce pan.
3. Mix flour with melted butter. Let it begin to brown.
4. Slowly add milk, salt & white pepper. This will thicken to make a roux.
5. Slowly add shredded cheddar and stir until it is completely blended.
6. Stir cheesy roux and cooked/drained macaroni.
7. Pour mac 'n cheese mixture into dish sprayed with Pam.
8. Melt 2 Tbsp. butter (or margarine) in microwave.
9. Stir seasoned bread crumbs with melted butter, and then sprinkle on top of mac 'n cheese.
10. Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Molten Lava Cake

Have you ever enjoy a molten lava cake at a restaurant? I just love the chocolate that oozes out of the cake when I cut into the cake with my fork (or spoon). I came home one evening after eating one of these delicious desserts at a local restaurant and decided I would try to make my own. It was much easier than I anticipated...and yummy!

Ingredients:
dark chocolate cake mix
eggs (however many cake mix box requires~usually 3)
vegetable oil (however much cake mix box requires)
hot fudge (I use Hershey's.)
vanilla icecream
chocolate Magic Shell

Directions:

1. Mix cake mix according to box instructions, and bake in mini bundt pans or large muffin tins on temperature box suggests...for as long as box suggests.
2. Cool mini cakes a few minutes in pans. Then remove mini cakes from pans and finish cooling on wire rack.
3. Make a well in the middle of each mini cake with a serrated knife. (I use a steak knife.)
4. Spoon out well.
5. Warm hot fudge in microwave just long enough so it will pour.
6. Spoon hot fudge into well.
7. Put mini cakes filled with hot fudge in freezer for 2 hours+. (If I am not going to serve them that day, I wrap the mini cakes individually with plastic wrap. These are nice to have for last minute guests.)

When ready to serve:
1. Microwave mini cake on high for 45 seconds.
2. Put one scoop of icecream on top of well.
3. Drizzle Magic Shell chocolate on top.