Easy Chocolate Lover's Cheese Pie

3 packages (8oz) cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups (12 oz) mini chocolate chips, divided
1 extra serving size graham cracker crust
2 Tbsp, whipping cream

1. Heat oven to 450
2. Beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl with mixer until well blended. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Stir in about 1 2/3 cups chocolate chips, pour into crust.
3. Bake 10 minutes. Without opening oven door, reduce temperature to 250; continue baking 30 minutes or just until set. Remove from wire rack. Cool completely. Cover; refrigerate until thorougly chilled
4. Ganache. Place remaining 1/3 chocolate chips and whipping cream in small microwave safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH 20 to 30 seconds or just until the chocolate chips are melted and mixture is smooth when stirred. Cool slightly; spread over top of cheese pie. refrigerate 15 minutes or until topping is set. 

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup shredded zucchini
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetend cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cups semi sweet chocolate chips

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place rack in center of the oven. Grease, or spray with nonstick vegetable spray a 9x5x3 loaf pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.

Combine sugar, eggs, oil and vanilla in a mixer. Fold in grated zucchini.

Add the flour mixture, mixing till just combined. Fold in chocolate chips

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan (greased, floured, wax paper)  and bake until the bread has risen and a toothpick in the center comes out clean. 55-65 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove bread from pan and cool completely. 

Chocolate Sheet Cake

Ingredients

For the Cake
Part 1

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Part 2

4 heaping tablespoons cocoa
2 sticks butter
1 cup boiling water

Part 3

1/2 cup buttermilk
2 whole, beaten eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla

For Frosting

1 3/4 stick butter
4 heaping Tablespoons cocoa
6 Tabelspoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 lb minus 1/2 cup Powdered sugar
1/2 cup finely chopped Pecans (optional)

Instructions

Part 1
 In a mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, and salt
Part 2
 In a sauce pan, melt butter, Add cocoa. Stir together
Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool
Part 3
In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda and vanilla. stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350 for 20 minutes
Frosting
Melt butter in a sauce pan. Add cocoa, stir to combine then turn off heat. ad milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Add pecans. Stir together and pour over warm cake

Classic Brownines

Paraphrased from Smitten Kitchen


1 cup  chopped, toasted nuts (optional)
1 1/4 cup flour (cake flour works well)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
6 ounces baking chocolate, finely chopped
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut in pieces
2 1/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

1. Pre-heat oven to 325. Line a 9x13 pan with foil
2. Toast nuts 5-8 minutes or until fragrant
3. Whisk dry ingredients together
4. Melt butter and baking chocolate in microwave or in a bowl set over a saucepan of boiling water; stir often to prevent burning. When mixture is smooth gradually whisk in sugar. Add eggs one at a time, whisking, add vanilla whisk until smooth and homogeneous. 
5. Transfer batter to prepared pan, spread in to the corners and smooth with a spatula. Bake until a tooth pick comes out with a few moist crumbs. 30-35 minutes (it always takes 40 minutes for me) Cool on wire rack or in freezer (2 hours) 

Dreamy Cream Scones

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen


2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1/4 c sugar
1/4 t salt
5 T chilled butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped
1 c heavy cream

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position, pre-heat to 425.
2. Place flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a  large bowl, whisk together or pulse in a food processor. 
3. If making by hand use two knives, a pastry blender, or your fingertips to quickly cut in butter until mixture resembles a coarse meal with a few large butter lumps. Stir in cranberries. In a food processor, 12, one second pulses. Transfer dough to large bowl
4. Stir in heavy cream with a rubber spatula or fork until dough just comes together.
5. Transfer dough (and dry floury bits) to counter top and knead dough by hand just until it comes together in a rough sticky ball. Cut dough into 8 wedges with a knife or a bench scraper. 
6. Place scones on ungreased baking sheet and bake until tops are light brown. 12-15 minutes. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Serve with hot chocolate. 

*Variations; lemon icing, orange, cinnamon, whole wheat flour, chocolate chips. 

Buttermilk Pie

 From NPR

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 T flour, plus a little for dinner
1 cup buttermilk
1 t vanilla extract
1 unbaked 9 inch pie shell

Preheat oven to 325
Beat eggs slightly and add sugar and flour. Then add melted butter and mix well. Add buttermilk and vanilla and mix.
Dust the unbaked pie shell with a little bit of flour. Pour batter into shell, and then sprinkle a litttle more flour on top.
Bake at 325 degrees until the custard is set, approximately 1 hour.

Homemade chicken strips

The Pioneer Woman


1 lb chicken breasts cut into strips
buttermilk
1-1/2 cup flour
2-3 teaspoons Lawry's Seasoning salt or your own variations of seasonings
Vegetable oil.

Start by rinsing and drying chicken strips. Submerge them in butter milk for at least 20 minutes. 

Combine about 1 1/2 cups flour and seasonings. Mix this together well. next, add about 1/4 to 1/2 of  the buttermilk into the flour and stir with a fork as you pour. 

Heat about 1 inch of vegetable oil in a larger skillet over medium-low to medium heat. Coat the buttermilk soaked strips in the flour mixture. Set aside on a plate until they are all ready to fry.

When the oil is heated begin cooking a few strips at a time. Cook about a minute and a half on each side till they're golden and crispy. Dry on paper towels and check the thickest part with a thermometer. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce. 

Basic Muffins with Variations

Ingredients

2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 whole egg
3/4 cup milk (or as needed)
1/3 cup Oil  (1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons)
1 cup mix-ins

Stir together dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and any optional ingredients and stir just until moistened (do not develop gluten!) Adjust amount of milk depending on how moist add-ins are. Scoop into greased or lined muffin tins. Sprinkle the tops with sugar if desired. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes

You can mix up a large batch of the dry mix and store in a sealed container. To have fresh muffins measure out 3 cups for 1 dozen muffins, add wet ingredients and mix-ins.

Variations

• Banana Nut- 1 c mashed bananas, 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• Blueberry- 1 c fresh or frozen
• Pina Colada- 8 oz can drained pineapples, 1/2 c coconut. 
• Apple spice- 1 peeled, chopped apple, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, dash of nutmeg
• Pumpkin Spice- 1 c canned pumpkin, 1/2 t pumpkin pie spice, 1/2 c nuts (or chocolate chips)
• Mincemeat- 1 c mincemeat, 1/2 c nuts
• Date nut- 1 c dates 1/2 c nuts
• Cranberry- 1 c chopped fresh cranberries, 1 t orange rind
• Chocolate chip- 1 c chocolate chips, 1/2 t vanilla

Source: 

https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/bread/muffins/basic-muffins-with-variations.html

Lemon Icebox Cookies

2 c all purpose flour
1 c confectioners sugar
1 tsp salt
1 Tbs + 1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 c unsalted butter cut in to pieces
2 large egg yokes
1/4 cup granulated sugar, for rolling

1. In a food processor, pulse flour, confectioners sugar, salt and lemon zest until combined. Add butter and process until sandy. Add egg yolks and lemon juice and pulse until dough comes together. Divide dough in half and form into a 1 1/2 inch-wide log. Wrap in plastic and freeze until firm. About 2 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 350 with racks in upper and lower thirds. Spread granulated sugar on a piece of parchment, roll logs over sugar to coat. Slice logs in to 1/4 inch thick slices and arrange, 1 inch apart on  parchment lined baking sheet. Bake until cookies are golden brown around edges, about 15 minutes. Cool on wire rack. 

Lemon Crinkles

Ingredients:

1/2 cup softened butter
1 cup Granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 egg
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking Powder
1/8 teaspoon baking Soda
1-1/2 cups All Purpose Flower
1/2 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease light colored baking sheets with non stick cooking spray and set aside. 

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest and juice. Scrape sides and mix again. Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly. Pour powdered sugar onto a large plate. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll into powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough. 

Bake for 9-11 minutes or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies look matte (not melty or shiny) Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack. 

*If using a non stick, darker baking tray, reduce baking time by about 2 minutes. 

Found on Lauren's Latest

Chicken and Vegetable Lasagna

12 whole lasagna noodles
6 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup flour
1/4 dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil, divided
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, divided
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 piece boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cubed
2 Tablespoons butter
1 whole, medium onion, chopped
2 cloves minced garlic
2 cups shredded carrots
2 whole medium tomatoes, chopped
2 cups chopped frozen spinach
3 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese
1/2 grated Parmesan cheese
2 dashes salt
2 dashes pepper

Preparation

Vegetables and chicken broth can be prepared ahead of time.
  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place lasagna noodles in a 9x13 pan, fill with hot water and a drizzle of olive  oil and let noodles soak.
In a large sauce pan, whisk together chicken broth, flour, thyme and 1/4 teaspoon each of basil and oregano. bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and allow sauce to simmer and thicken while preparing chicken and vegetables.
heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add cubed chicken, remaining spices and salt and pepper to taste. Saute until cooked through, 5 minutes. Set aside
In the same skillet, melt the butter then add chopped, onion, garlic, and carrots. Cook and stir until vegetables are tender. . Add the chopped tomatoes and defrosted spinach and cook until heated through. Return chicken to skillet.
Coat the bottom of a greased 9x13 pan with a scant cup of thickened broth. Top with a layer of noodles. Spread 1/3 of chicken and vegetable mix over the noodles. top with 1/3 of the thickened broth (2 cups) followed by 1/3 of the mozzarella. Repeat ending with a layer of mozzarella  Top with 1/2 cup Parmesan. Bake uncovered for about 45 minutes until lasagna is bubbly and cheese is golden brown. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Alfredo Sauce

From the Betty Crocker Cookbook

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
dash of white pepper

Heat butter and cream in a sauce pan over medium heat stirring frequently until butter is melted and mixture starts to bubble. Reduce heat to low, simmer 6 minutes, stirring frequently until slightly thickened. Remover from heat; stir in cheese, salt and pepper. 

Italian Soup

25 minutes

Ingredients

Mom's Adaptation

Up to 1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion-minced
1-2 cloves garlic-grated
2 cans petite diced tomatoes
3 cans water
1 1/2 T "Better Than Bouillon" or 5 bouillon cubes
1-2 T dried Italian Seasoning - to taste
1 1/2 C pasta

Add vegetables as desired.  Sugggestions: 1-2 carrots diced (before adding tomatoes), 1/2 c frozen corn (at the end) shredded kale (cook 10 minutes)

As written by the Foods Teacher:

1 lb ground beef or sausage
1/4 t garlic powder
2 cans Italian tomatoes (14.5 oz)
3 cans water
1 T + 2 t Beef bouillon
1 t onion powder
1/4 t Italian seasoning
1 1/2 cups pasta
1/4 C Grated Parmesan cheese

1. Brown meat with garlic in large pan. Pour off excess fat
2. Add tomatoes, water, bouillon, onion powder and Italian seasoning
3. Boil
4. Stir in pasta, cook until pasta is done.
5. Top with Parmesan

Excellent for adding vegetables.

Hootenanny Pancakes

6 eggs
1 c flour
1 c milk
salt
1 cube butter

Melt butter in 9x13 pan. Blend remaining ingredients and pour over melted butter. Bake 20 min at 375

Fluffy Waffles

1 1/2 c flour
2 t BP
1/2 t soda
1/4 t salt
1 T sugar
3 eggs, separated
3/4 c sour cream or yogurt
3.4 c milk
1/3 c oil
1/3 c melted butter

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Beat together egg yolks, sour cream, milk. Add to dry ingredients alternately with shortenings (oil and butter). stir till smooth. Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites. Bake.
Good with creamed eggs: 1 1/2 c milk, 2 T margarine, 3 T flour, 3 hard boiled eggs, ham.