Oreo Truffles Gone Bad

I LOVE cooking shows - the Food Network is one of my favorite channels (much to some of my family members' frustration). ;-) I enjoy watching Rachael Ray and, while browsing her website one day, I came across what looked like a delicious dessert - Oreo truffles! Does that sound incredible or what?! So tonight was the night I was going to make this lovely dessert.

It started out fine, until I came to.....the chocolate. Now I haven't really made much with chocolate when it involves melting it first. I'm notorious for messing things up in the kitchen, but I wanted to prove that I could make something and not goof up....so I was trying to avoid asking Mom for too much help - I mean, how hard can it be to melt chocolate in the microwave? Apparently much harder than I thought!

After leaving it in there for about 4 1/2 minutes, Mom suddenly said, "Something smells like it's burning!" I ran over to the microwave - yep, it was the chocolate! =) There was a bit of smoke, a horrible smell, and some very burnt chocolate. Needless to say, I did not finish the truffles.

But, rest assured, they will be finished tonight, as Dad and I ran to Fareway to get more chocolate - and I will not burn it this time!! =)

Anyone else have any funny (and possibly embarrassing) cooking stories to share?? Come on now - I told my story! ;-)

By the way, I found out later (AFTER this whole incident) that they have these handy little things on the back of the chocolate bag called DIRECTIONS for melting the chocolate! Who would've thought?? ;-)

Holiday Baking

Last week, we ventured out and made frosted cut-out sugar cookies! They are delicious, but a lot of work! We had so much fun though!

Nikki was acting a little strange - she kept trying to hit me on the head with her spatula =)

We are getting very excited about Christmas! But, right now Nikki is SICK! Not fun! So your prayers would be appreciated for her! And we are in for another blizzard this week! Sooo, that could mess up some plans! REALLY hoping it either holds off or isn't too bad!

garage sales and snickerdoodles

We've been busy this last week getting for a garage sale - then we had it Friday and Saturday. It turned out pretty good - except Saturday it rained, so there weren't many customers. But we had fun!

Nikki had a little "Snack Bar"

I also thought I'd post the recipe for the snickerdoodle cookies that Nikki made for the sale! These are super good!!

• 1 C. soft shortening
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 C. sugar
• 2 3/4 C. flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 T. sugar
• 2 T. cinnamon

Mix together shortening, sugar, and eggs. Sift flour and measure; add cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; sift again. Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture and mix well. Form into balls about the size of a walnut. Place about 2" apart on ungreased cookie sheet after they have been rolled in cinnamon and sugar mixture. Bake 10 minutes in 350 degrees oven.

Enjoy!

Oh, and I wanted to let you know that I added some new songs to my playlist on the bottom of my sidebar. There are some great songs on there - so turn up the volume!

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Mom's Lasagne

I think that I can truly say that my mom makes the best lasagne I have ever tasted....and I have tasted some pretty good lasagne! This is a delicious, quick, and easy recipe that I think you will enjoy! Mom claims she's famous for it and it is a secret recipe. :-) But she didn't mind if I shared it with all of you!

1. Cook lasagne noodles


2. Brown 1 pound of hamburger - drain excess grease - add 1 jar of spaghetti sauce and 1/2 carton of cottage cheese.


3. Grease 9x13 pan


4. Make 3 layers - begin with noodles, sauce, and mozzerella cheese, repeat to make 3 layers, ending with mozzerella cheese on top.


5. Cover with foil


6. Cook at 350 degrees for an hour - uncover pan 15 minutes before finished baking. Let set for 5 minutes before serving.

Bon appetite!

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Law and Disorder Chocolate Chip Cookies

Time for a new recipe! This week's is for chocolate chip cookies that are a favorite around here! They're easy to make and SO delicious! The recipe is taken from the "Alice's Brady Bunch Cookbook".

Law and Disorder Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Ingredients:

1 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

In a large bowl cream together the butter, sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla. In a separate bowl mix the flour, baking soda, and salt. Blend the dry ingredients into the butter mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips. Drop by tablespoon onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 9 to 10 minutes, until lightly golden brown.

Variation: For those special holiday occasions and a little color substitute M&M's for chocolate chips.

Yield: Makes 5 dozen cookies.

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies

These are absolutely DELICIOUS cookies! It is a favorite among us - Deanna made them once for a Bible Study we had at our house, and it was a hit! We know you will enjoy these wonderfully yummy cookies! :-)

(Note: Picture taken from The Taste of Home Cookbook)

Cookie ingredients:

1 cup butter-flavored shortening (not necessary - we used regular shortening and it tasted fine)

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling Ingredients:

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

3 cups confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

5 to 6 tablespoons milk

Directions:

1.) In a large mixing bowl, cream the shortening, peanut butter and sugars. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well.

2.) Shape into 1-in. balls and place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Flatten to 3/8-in. thickness with fork. Bake at 375 degrees for 7-8 minutes or until golden. Remove to wire racks to cool.

3.) For filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the peanut butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla and enough milk to achieve spreading consistency. Spread on half of the cookies and top each with another cookie.

Yield: 2 dozen sandwich cookies

Enjoy!

Dreaming of eggs!

This week, one thing that has kept us busy is preparing Easter eggs for the Easter egg hunt our church is putting on next Saturday. We don't have to fill them with candy, but we have to put the eggs together and tape them shut. Now, I must confess, this is not a job I have enjoyed, but it has helped to make it more fun by plugging in a movie of some sort. The last few days, we have watched different episodes of Christy, and today we watched Saving Sarah Cain, so that has helped to pass the time! I'm not sure how many eggs there are, but there are a lot! To give you an idea of just how many we're talking, take a look at the pics below:

::Deanna and I - all the eggs in front of us have to be put together::

::That entire laundry basket is filled and the garbage bag is almost full!::


::Nikki was sick today, but she felt well enough to come down and help a little::

::Today was a nice, snowy day - a perfect day for making chocolate chip cookies!::

::Thought I'd post this as well - it was taken last Friday night at the hockey game - Nikki and her friend, Nikole, decided to sit in the front row after it had been deserted for most of the game. They were so excited! They had a bird's-eye view of the whole ice!::

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Portia's Cherry Delight

This is an absolutely delicious dessert - a favorite among our family! A dear lady we know made it one time, and we just had to get the recipe! She said she didn't have a name for it, so we called it "Portia's Cherry Delight", after her. :) Sorry I don't have a picture for it this time. Also, don't let the name scare you if you don't like cherries - I don't either, but I love the cherry sauce - I just pick out the cherries!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (1 bundle crushed)

1 stick of melted butter

One 8 ounce package of cream cheese, softened

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 can cherry pie filling

One 12 ounce cool whip

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix graham cracker crumbs and butter together; press into 8x11" dish. Mix cream cheese, eggs, and sugar until smooth and pour over crumb layer. Bake around 20 minutes. Cool. Spread cherry pie filling over cream cheese layer. Top with whipped cream. Serves 6-8.

It is so easy to make....have fun! :)

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Tortilla Beef Bake

This is something that we've had many times (including tonight!) - it's easy and delicious!





Ingredients:
1-1/2 pounds ground beef

1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted

2-1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips, divided

1 jar (16 ounces) salsa

1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

In a skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in soup. Sprinkle 1-1/2 cups of the tortilla chips in a greased shallow 2-1/2-qt. baking dish. Top with beef mixture, salsa and cheese.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle with the remaining chips. Bake 3 minutes longer or until chips are lightly toasted.

See how easy that is? :-)

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Cinnamon Rolls

After my last post about baking, I thought it would be fun to let you in on some of the recipes our family enjoys using. So, I am introducing something new: I came up with the name Tori's Tasty Tuesdays (clever, right?) and will be posting a new recipe every Tuesday.

The recipes will range from main courses to side dishes to desserts - if you enjoy cooking, this is something you will not want to miss! Due to schedule conflicts, though, I may not be able to get a new one posted every Tuesday. :) Now, to be perfectly honest, I have to confess that I am not the cook in the family - Deanna is. She loves to cook, so most of these recipes come from her recipe box and she's the one who usually makes them! :)

This week's dish are delicious cinnamon rolls that Deanna made last week:

Ingredients:

1 package of yeast

1 cup warm water

1 tbsp. sugar

1/2 c. melted shortening

3/4 tsp. salt

3 eggs

1/2 c. sugar

4 cups flour

melted butter

cinnamon/sugar

Directions:

1 pkg yeast dissolved in 1 cup warm water. Add 1 tablespoon of sugar and let stand 10 minutes. Add: 1/2 c. melted shortening and 3/4 tsp. salt. Beat 3 eggs lightly and add 1/2 c. sugar and beat again. Add to above mixture. Beat in 4 cups flour. Let stand until doubled.

Brush with melted butter, cinnamon and sugar.

Roll dough up and cut in 1 inch pieces. Let rise until light. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

Spread powder sugar glaze when warm (powder sugar and milk)

The finished product!

Holiday baking...

I hope your Valentine's Day was as enjoyable as mine! :) We had a lovely day doing school, baking cookies, and watching a movie. We got MORE snow - ugh! I'm getting a little tired of that.....but anyways, here are some pictures of the official cookie makers! :D

::Dad and Mom were so sweet and got each of us girls a little bear and chocolate for Valentine's Day! How sweet!::

::Mom and Nikki with the finished product!::

::The three hardworking chefs::

::I was trying to get creative here....::

::I was the official picture taker/assistant froster...I realized after I downloaded all the pictures that I wasn't in any! So Mom graciously asked if I would like her to take a picture of me with the cookies! [smile]::

Happy Valentine's Day!