Cookie Dough Brownie

Original recipe from Food Folks and Fun. 

Very easy and very popular brownie/cookie!

The best thing about the cookie dough is that no eggs are used - so no worries.

I made this big batch for our baseball team and I kid you not, the boys devoured these in less than 5 minutes.  There wasn't a crumb to be found.

For Brownie Layer:
1 box of brownie mix (family size).  Bake as directed.

For the Cookie Dough Layer:
3/4 cup salted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 tbls. milk
1 1/2 cup flour
1 cup chocolate chips

Make the brownies according to directions on the box and bake as directed.  Let cool.


To make the cookie dough, cream together the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy.  Beat in milk.  Add in the flour and mix until combined.  Stir in Chocolate chips.

Once brownies have completely cooled spread the cookie dough on top.  Place in freezer for 20-30 minutes or in refrigerator for several hours to set.

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Best Ritz Cracker You Will Ever Eat

I need to think of a better name for these delicious cookies.  They remind you of a butterfinger, or twix bar.  No one will ever know it is a Ritz Cracker in the middle.

1/2 cup marshmallow cream
1/2 cup peanut butter
48 Ritz Crackers
1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips, melted ( I don't like using choc. chips.  I prefer any melting chocolate such as choc bark, or Candy Quick).
1 cup flaked coconut or chopped nuts ( I use both seperately)

Spread about 1 teaspoon peanut butter on 24 of the Ritz crackers.  Spread 1 teaspoon Marshmallow Creme on remaining crackers.

Sandwich crackers together, using one peanut butter and one marshmallow.  Tip: Set in freezer for approximately 10 - 15 minutes.  This helps the marshmallow cream harden before dipping in the chocolate.  Then dip in melted chocolate or white chocolate (almond bark), and roll in coconut or finely chopped nuts to coat.

Set crackers on waxed paper and let stand until chocolate sets.  Store in air-tight container for up to one week.  Makes 24

Rhubarb Bread

I love Rhubarb.  My grandma use to make Mulberry and Rhubarb pie every spring.  It was delicious.  They lived on a farm, and along one of the fences in the fields were Mulberry bushes.  We would pick and eat them all day long.  They were so sweet and juicy.

Grandma would take these berries along with Rhubarb and her perfect pie crusts with Lard, and make delicious pies.  I remember exactly how they tasted.  If you have never tasted Rhubarb, it is very tart, but with the help of sugar it sweetens it just enough, but still keep the tartness.

Rhubarb is seasonal and springtime is when it is ready.  The stores have it, but it is almost $5.00 a pound.  Man, I wish I had a garden about now.  I bought a pound anyway because I wanted to make this bread and am so glad I did.  This is delicious!

1 cup milk
1 tbls. lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 cups chopped rhubarb

Topping
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 tbls. butter, melted
1/2 cup oatmeal

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans.  In a small bowl, stir together milk, lemon juice and vanilla; let stand for 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, oil and egg.  Combine flour, salt and baking soda, stir into sugar mixture alternately with the milk mixture just until combined.  Fold in rhubarb.  Pour batter into prepared loaf pans.

In a small bowl, combine topping ingredients.  Sprinkle over the unbaked loaves.

Bake in a preheated oven for 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.


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Nest Art

My daughter and I were out in the front yard two nights ago and we found this perfect little nest under our palm trees.  It was just sitting on the ground.   (Sorry, nest obsessed).  It is such a masterpiece of art.  I find them fascinating and intricately made.  I took this nest and put it in the garage for a couple days, to make sure there are no critters or bugs in it.  Believe me, there are none.  I sprayed it with regular bug spray and let it sit for a couple days. It looks freshly made on the inside and there was no mess of any kind.

I took a black frame and painted it pink.  Sanded down the edges, added a piece of cream burlap to my frame back and stuck the nest on with a push pin.  I hung it in the downstairs bathroom on an empty wall.  This is the first "pink" anything I have ever had in my house.  I think I've started something new and I like it.  It's hard to tell, but my walls are a blue/gray so the pink looks pretty against it.

Just look at the way this was made.  Awesome!  The eggs are fake.

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Bird Nest Update

Well, we couldn't resist not peeking into our little nests, so when the bird flew away for a minute, my husband got on top of the patio cover and took a couple pictures.  We have two nests.  One above each outdoor fan.  Here is a picture of our little stay at home mom and her little nest.  She sits on it all day and all night.  Look at these beautiful little eggs.

Now the second nest (if you can call it that), looks complete from below, but when my husband looked into that one......here is what we found. 



Want my explanation?  I think it got confused which nest the other eggs were in, and she needed to lay that egg fast and just plopped it out right on the wood beam.  We laughed our heads off.  The sad thing is, she has abandoned this egg all together.  She never sits on that side so I'm afraid that egg won't ever hatch.  It still makes me laugh to look at that nest though.

Happy Spring and have a great Mother's Day everyone!

Chalk Paint

A GIVE AWAY AT debbiedoos

Debbie over at debbiedoos is having a "give away" that ends on May 10th for this awesome paint.  Go to her site and read all about it.  I did some research and the most exciting thing about this for me, is that if you have a piece of furniture that has a thousand coats of varnish, sealant, etc.  you can paint right over it with this paint.  Debbie has been raving about this paint and swears by it.  I really want to try it.  I'm in love with the creamy yellow color she painted a dresser and the duck egg blue is beautiful.

My kitchen table is screaming at me every day to be painted and I think this paint would be perfect.  I'm entering in the give away and urge you to go to her site and enter.  You only have to be a follower and she is full of ideas and link parties and a beautiful home.  Plus, she's famous and has been issued in a magazine.  I visit her site almost every day.  Very inspiring.

 

Tortillini Spinach in Creamy Lemon Sauce

Another great recipe from Our Best Bites! 

 Tortellini Spinach in Creamy Lemon Sauce!

The touch of lemon is delicious

Key Lime Pie

I love limes, lemon, grapefruit, oranges, tangerines basically any type of citrus.  One of my very favorites is key lime.  This recipe came out of our church cook book and one of our really cute teenage girls Claire loves this pie.  This is her recipe and her favorite dessert.

I think it is delicious and refreshing also.

Crust:
1/3 of a 1 pound box graham crackers crushed
5 tbls. melted butter
1/3 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Crush graham crackers and add the melted butter and sugar and stir until combined.  Press the mixture into the bottom and side of a pie pan, forming a neat border around the edge.  Bake the crust until set and golden, 8 minutes.  Set aside on a wire rack; leave the oven on.

Filling:
3 egg yolks
2 teaspoons lime zest
1 (14 oz. can) sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

Using an electric mixer with the wire whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks and lime zest at high speed until very fluffy, about 5 minutes.  Gradually add the condensed milk and continue to beat until thick, 3 or 4 minutes longer.  Lower the mixer speed and slowly add the lime juice, mixing just until combined, no longer.  Pour the mixture into the crust.  Bake for 10 minutes, or until the filling has just set.  Cool on a wire rack, then refrigerate.  Freeze for 15 to 20 minutes before serving. 

Topping:
1 cup heavy cream
2 tbls. powder sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Whip the cream, vanilla and the powder sugar until nearly stiff.  Top each slice of pie with whip cream.

Clever Brooch Holder

You have got to go to this blog and see how Jane - made this clever holder for her brooches.

mamiejanes

I love this idea, but I love all those brooches more.

Graham Delights

My friend Jill made these cookies years ago at a Christmas cookie exchange.  I have the recipe on a little card with green holly on the corners.  These remind me of the Magic Layer cookies, but these take about 5 minutes to prepare.  I used mini chocolate chips in mine and they turned out perfect.

Rich, easy, fast and delicious!

1 - 14 oz. can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup flaked coconut
1 - 6oz. package chocolate chips
1 cup broken nut meats
2 cups graham cracker crumbs

Add ingredients in mixing bowl in the order as listed above.  This will be a very stiff dough and is difficult to make a double batch.  Drop from a teaspoon on a well greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.  REMOVE FROM COOKIE SHEET IMMEDIATELY.  THEY WILL STICK. 

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