When you are in a hurry for a decadent dessert, who doesn’t like chocolate? Here’s a recipe that is perfect to make and eat with the kids! Warning – this serving was so big, one mug (an oversized mug!) would have been plenty for two people!
Ingredients:
4 Tablespoons flour
4 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 Tablespoons milk
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
3 Tablespoons chocolate chips, optional (really, if you are making cake, GO FOR IT!) 😉
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
Add the dry ingredients to a large, microwave-safe coffee mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly, being sure to scrape the sides and the bottom well to incorporate the mixture. Add the chocolate chips and vanilla and mix.
Place mug in microwave and cook for 3 minutes. The cake will rise and will peek out over the top of the mug, so don’t worry and think that it will explode!
Cake right out of the microwave – looks a little spongy and it is oh, so good!
Allow to cool, add some vanilla ice cream (why not!?!) and enjoy! So good you don’t need frosting!
Thank you so much to my assistants in today’s video, Dylan and Kingston! They were a big help AND they did a great job!
This recipe is fun to make with the kids and is a healthy alternative to fried mozzarella sticks. These little mini-bites of gooey deliciousness are baked, not fried, so you can feel good about enjoying them – and MAYBE even share with the kids! This recipe is a snack size; double or triple the recipe for more than 2 people.
Baked Mozzarella Mini Bites
Ingredients:
3 Mozzarella Cheese Sticks, sliced into thirds (about one inch in length)
1/3 cup panko crumbs
1/3 cup egg substitute
1/2 cup marinara sauce
cooking spray
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Toast the panko crumbs over medium heat in a pan (no oil or grease). Stir continuously until the crumbs are a light golden brown. Place the crumbs on a plate.
Pour the egg substitute into a small bowl.
Dredge the cheese stick pieces in the egg, then in the panko crumbs, and place on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. (Make sure to cover all sides of the cheese with the panko crumbs, or else the cheese will melt and lose shape – as you can see in the video!)
Place in oven and cook until the cheese has started to melt (but not spread all over the place!) — approximately 3 minutes. Remove from oven, place on serving plate and serve immediately with warm marinara sauce.
This recipe couldn’t be easier! I discovered the Walking Taco when I helped at my daughter’s high school sports concession stand. As i was happily pushing my Crockpot Ropa Vieja (find recipe HERE), more and more people were ordering this Walking Taco! It is a favorite at sports concession stands, and kids and adults love them! It is also a great way to serve up tacos for a bunch of kids at a party. I’ve also heard that it is a great way to do tacos while camping!
Walking Tacos (AKA Tacos In A Bag)
Ingredients:
1 pound of your favorite taco meat recipe, cooked
Individual sized bags of your favorite flavored Doritos® or Fritos®
Crush the chips in their bag. Gently open the top of bag, being careful not to rip it from top to bottom.
Add meat and popping of your choice into the bag. Close bag and gently “mush” the ingredients around. Open the bag and walk around, eating the awesome “Walking Tacos”!
Summertime has the kids home, ready to raid the pantry for snacks. You want to give them something that will be good for them, but when they are craving something sweet, what do you do? Try these simple, frozen treats you can feel good about – the kids can even make these treats themselves! Plus, it is a nice snack for those adults who have a sweet tooth – only about 25 calories per bite!
Frozen Chocolate Banana Bites
Ingredients:
Three ripe (but not too ripe!) bananas
12 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips
1.5 Tablespoons vegetable oil
Preparation:
Place a sheet of wax paper on a baking sheet.
Slice the bananas into ½ inch slices.
In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips and oil. Place in microwave and heat on full (HIGH) power for 30 seconds. Stir. Place back in microwave for 10-second increments, stirring in between, until the chocolate is just smooth. (FYI – Don’t over cook, or the chocolate will harden and look grainy.)
Dip the banana slices in the chocolate, making sure to cover entire slice in chocolate.
Place slices on wax paper. Place the baking sheet in the freezer for six hours or overnight until slices are thoroughly frozen.
This super-simple potato casserole will become your go-to favorite. Probably the easiest recipe, besides buying pre-made potatoes! I’m whipping this up for Easter Dinner this year. How will YOU use them? At a party? A family meal?
A big thank you to my sister-in-law, Lisa, who shared this recipe with me!
Party Potatoes
Ingredients:
1 30 oz. Bag Frozen Shredded Potatoes (I used Oreida Frozen Hash Brown Potatoes)
1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 Pint Sour Cream (NOTE: I used 1 cup of sour cream by accident in the video, and they still tasted good! )
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/4-1/2 chopped, sauteed onions (optional)
Directions:
Using cooking spray, grease the bottom of a 13×9 inch pan. Line the bottom of the pan with the frozen, shredded potatoes.
In a large bowl, mix together the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and shredded cheese (add the onions, too, if using them!)
Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 45 minutes – 1 hr. It will bubble all along the sides!
It is always important to know the steps to stop a small kitchen fire before it gets out of control! These tips are for informational purposes only, and are not to replace calling 911 in an emergency situation. Do not hesitate to call 911 when a fire is out of control!
Sending the kids off to school with a healthy snack like apples is such a great idea, but the kids won’t eat them if they are brown! Here’s a nifty little trick to slice them AND prevent them from browning!
These will be a big hit at your big game day party! You can assemble this ahead of time, then pop in the oven just before guests arrive! So no missing a big play because you were in the kitchen!
Simple Roast Beef and Swiss Sliders
Makes 24 individual sliders!
Ingredients:
24 slices of roast beef
24 Hawaiian Rolls
24 slices of swiss cheese
4 Tablespoons of butter, melted
4 teaspoons of dijon mustard (I used Grey Poupon Country Dijon – love the grains of mustard!)
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon of onion powder
4 generous splashes of Worcestershire Sauce
Thinly sliced, sautéed onions (optional)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Cut the Hawaiian rolls in half, and place bottom half of rolls into a baking dish. Place a folded slice of roast beef on the bottom half of roll. Place a slice of swiss cheese on top of that (if using the sautéed onions-add them here), then finish with the top half of roll. Repeat with the remaining rolls, roast beef and swiss.
Combine the melted butter and remaining ingredients, and brush the tops of the rolls with the mixture. Cover with tin foil. If assembling ahead of time, you can place sandwiches in fridge until ready to heat.
To Heat: Place in 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, removing the tin foil at about 8 minutes along. Keep in oven until the cheese has melted.
You can sit back and enjoy the game with this great recipe! Assemble several of them ahead of time, keep them in the fridge, and bake them when your guests arrive!
Easy Stromboli
Makes one Stromboli that feeds 4 people.
Ingredients:
1 10 oz. can of refrigerated pizza dough (or you can use dough pre-made from your grocery store).
2/3 cup shredded mozzarella
2-3 slices of provolone cheese
6 oz. of your favorite italian meat – you can use pepperoni, sausage, prosciutto, salami, or a combination of both! I used pre-sliced italian selection of meats available at Publix.**
2 Roasted red peppers, cut into long strips. I used jarred roasted red peppers.
Marinara Sauce for dipping
** Note:You can easily make this without meat by substituting your favorite veggies, chopped small. Use broccoli, basil, olives, banana peppers, onions, green peppers, mushrooms, and so much more! (My favorite combo-Basil, Mozzarella, Provolone, Red Peppers) Anything you’d want on a pizza can be thrown into a stromboli! If you are adding other meats, like chicken, just make sure they are fully cooked before using them in this recipe.
The Veggie & Cheese Stromboli with 2 types of cheese, roasted red peppers and fresh basil.
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place pizza stone in oven to preheat. (or use a baking pan, sprayed with cooking spray)
On a lightly floured work surface, press out pizza dough into a rectangle (approximately 9″x12″).
Layer the provolone and mozzarella cheeses on the dough, leaving a clean border of 1/2″ to 1″ all around. Top with the meats and red pepper.
Roll the dough (lengthwise) like a jelly roll, and seal the edges of it all around.*** Place on the pizza stone (or pan), seam-side down.
Bake at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes until golden brown.
Slice and serve with warm marinara sauce on the side for dipping.
*** To seal the ends of the stromboli, moisten with water, fold over, and press (on my second attempt, I used a fork to put a crimp like a pie crust and it stayed sealed!). If you don’t seal it well, you could have a blowout! See photo below. Another great way to prevent blow outs is to add a few vent holes/slits on top of the stromboli to allow the steam to vent!
This is an example of a blowout – when you don’t seal the stromboli well!
