Today, children, we’re going to see how simple and wonderful the number 5 is.  These bars are a “So Easy You Can Let Your 5 Year Old Do It” recipe. And “So Good You’ll Have to Fight Your 5 Year Old and 35 Year Old Husband Back from the Plate” good.  And there’s only 5 ingredients.

Really.  Look how simple.  You’ll need…

See? In the words of the Ina Garten, how simple is that?

In case you didn’t catch that, the whole recipe is here.

Cream Cheese Brunch Bars

2 tubes crescent rolls
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened (lighter Neufchatel works fine)
1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
1 egg, separated
1-2 teaspoons cinnamon

Spread one tube of the crescent rolls in a 9×13″ baking pan, patting edges together to make a solid crust.  Whip the cream cheese, one cup of the sugar and the egg YOLK (save the white for later).  I mean if you really want to go all Martha Stewart up in here, you can add some lemon juice or vanilla or almond extract.  Spread on the crust.  Top with the other tube of rolls.  You can leave these separate if you want or squeeze together to form a solid top.  Glaze with the beaten egg white.  Mix together the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and the cinnamon.  Sprinkle over the egg white and bake at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes.

Don’t forget about our $100 Visa contest! Click here to enter.  And be sure to visit the other blogs who are also giving away this prize.

        

The weather’s getting cooler and gathering indoors with your friends and family sounds pretty good right now. And believe it or not, holiday entertaining is just around the corner. Not that you need a holiday to have friends over. I’m sure you all have wonderful ideas on how to entertain so why not share them and enter a contest to win one of 8 $100 Visa cards? Sounds good, right?

Well, I’ve got the opportunity to share that with you and to tell you about some lovely little crackers that I got to try… Read about them and leave a comment for your chance to win $100 Visa card here.

        

Seriously, homemade warm bread is probably one of the best things in life…it’s even better than chocolate cake. (What?  Oh, you thought I was gonna say that!?   Wait until I tell your mother!)  But to make yummy homemade bread, you needed to plan hours ahead.  Well, never let it be said that Francie never took on a challenge.  You will need a good mixer that can do the kneading for you.  And then this is all you’ll need…

60 Minute Yeast Rolls

• 4-5 cups flour
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 (1/4 ounce) packages yeast (5 teaspoons)
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup butter or margarine

In a warmed cup or bowl, dissolve yeast in the warm water.   Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, stir milk, sugar, salt and butter together. Heat over low heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Cool until lukewarm.

Pour into your mixer bowl and add 4 1/2 cups of flour.  Using your dough hook, mix on low speed for about 1 minute. With the mixer still going, add remaining flour, a little at a time and mix about 2 minutes or until dough starts to clean the sides of the bowl.  Keep mixing (your kneading now) on low speed for about 2 more minutes, or until dough is smooth and elastic – the dough will still be slightly sticky to the touch.

Place dough in a greased bowl, turning it to grease the top. Cover the dough with a clean, dry dish towel, and let it rise in a warm place, free from draft, for about 15 minutes.  (I turn my oven on Warm when I start and turn it off when I start mixing the dough.  This makes a perfect, draft-free, warm spot for my little yeasties to do their magic.)

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, and divide into 24 equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball, and place in a greased muffin pan. If you’d rather,  you can simply shape the dough into 24 balls and set them side by side in a greased 9 by 13 baking dish. Cover the muffin pan with the dish towel, and let the dough rise one last time for about 15 minutes.

Bake at 425ºF for 12 minutes, or until the rolls are golden brown. Remove from pans immediately, and cool on wire racks.  Of course, you’re gonna brush them with butter, right?

        

“You put the lime in the coconut…”  If you’re as old as I am, you’ll now have that song stuck in your head all day.  You’re welcome.  But it’s totally worth it when you taste these tropical, summery cakes of deliciousness.

Not only do they have a fluffy meringue topping, but hiding underneath is a sweet lime goo that takes them over the edge.

Coconut Lime Meringue Cupcakes

FOR THE CUPCAKES
1 large lime (for 1 teaspoon zest and 2 tablespoons juice)
4 large eggs
1 18 OZ. package yellow cake mix
1 3.5 OZ. package vanilla instant pudding mix
1 1/4 cups water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon coconut flavoring or coconut extract

FOR THE FILLING
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup real key lime juice

FOR THE COCONUT MERINGUE
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
3 large reserved egg whites
1/2 teaspoon coconut flavoring
1/3 cup granulated sugar

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F.  Put your cupcake liners in your pan.

2. Prepare the cupcake batter…With a citrus zester or fine grater, zest the lime and reserve one teaspoon for garnish. Squeeze the lime juice over a strainer into a small bowl; you should have about two tablespoons. Set it aside.

3. Separate three of the eggs, place the whites in a large clean mixing bowl and the yolks in another mixing bowl.  No waste here, chickens!

4. Add the remaining egg, cake mix, pudding mix, water, oil, coconut flavoring and lime zest (except the little bit for garnish) and lime juice to the yolks. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for about 30 seconds.  Scrape the bowl down with a spatula and mix again on medium about 2 minutes more, scraping down the sides again if needed.

5. Spoon or scoop 1/4 cup batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it two thirds of the way full.

6. Bake ‘em until they are lightly golden and spring back when lightly pressed with your finger about 18 minutes.  They can be just slightly underdone cause you’re gonna toast ‘em in a few minutes.  Let them cool while you make the topping.  Increase the oven heat to 450°F.

7. Prepare the lime stuff:  Place the sweetened condensed milk and Key lime juice in a small bowl and stir to combine. It’ll get thicker.  Poke some holes into the tops of your cupcakes and spread the lime stuff over.  Ideally, you would use a pastry tip to inject the cupcakes, but then I’m lazy.

8. Make the meringue… Add the cream of tartar to the reserved egg whites and beat with an electric mixer on high speed until frothy, 45 seconds.

9. Add the coconut flavoring and one tablespoon of the sugar. Continue beating on high, adding one tablespoon sugar at a time, until the whites form stiff peaks (if you pull the beaters from the meringue, the meringue should extend from the beaters in straight stiff peaks).

10.  Spoon two tablespoons meringue onto the top of each cupcake and swirl to spread it just to the edges with a short metal spatula or a spoon or be fancy and pipe on in a circular motion.

11.  Bake until the meringue is light nutty brown in color, five to six minutes.  Sprinkle with the remaining lime zest and coconut if you like.

You’re singing that song again, aren’t you?

        

It’s that time of year again…when children cry and parents cheer. Summer memories of swimming, biking and camping are long gone. But they don’t have to be. You can pack a bit of summer memories in their lunch with these super easy, super chocolatey and super marshmallowey (If that’s not a word, it should be!) S’mores Bars.

And I found this cool new marshmallow creme that tastes like the perfect toasted marshmallow.  You know, the one you set on fire so it gets just a little black but then you eat it and burn your tongue and can’t wait to get another and burn your tongue again?  Well, this stuff tastes like that only without the black burnt pieces. I thought it worked perfectly for these, but regular marshmallow creme is just as delicious.

S’Mores Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 cups flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch salt
5 chocolate bars (I used about 12 mini Hershey bars)
1 cup marshmallow creme

Preheat your oven to 350 F.

Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy with a mixer set on high.  Add the egg and vanilla and beat some more.

In another bowl, mix the flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt then slowly pour this into the butter/sugar mixture.  Take out about 3/4 cup of this stuff and set it aside.

Take the rest and pat it into a greased 8″x8″ square baking pan.   Set your candy bars on top of this base.  Spread the marshmallow creme over the candy bars. Finally, drop spoonfuls of the graham cracker mixture you set aside on top.

Bake for about 25-30 minutes.  Cool and cut into squares.  Campfire taste without Smoky the Bear showing up.

        

I love making Dan Dan Noodles just so I can say the name.  It sounds like the name of the lost Walton.  “Goodnight, John Boy.  Goodnight, Jim Bob.  Goodnight, Dan Dan.”  Of course, if you’re a stickler for accuracy, Wikipedia says the word dan dan refers to the carrying pole that noodle vendors used so it’s really “Peddler’s Noodles.” Just a little obscure tidbit to drop at your next social gathering.  You’re welcome.

Like many American versions of classic ethnic dishes, it bears little resemblance to the original.   But that doesn’t mean those versions aren’t good, chickens.   Bonus points for being a cheap dish that can be made in minutes and served up different ways to please every picky palate at the table.

Here’s my version.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Top them with anything else you like.  I’m a sprouts/peanut gal myself.

Hubby likes red bell pepper, chili flakes and more chili paste (he’s a manly man, you know).

Daughter eldest likes to eat it plain.  Daughter youngest likes to stir in a little peanut butter.

Happy family achieved.  Good night, Dan Dan.

DAN DAN NOODLES

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast fillets, cut into 1/2″ cubes
2 tablespoons canola or peanut oil
2 tablespoons sesame oil
16-ounce package chow mein noodles, egg noodles or spaghetti
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1/2 c. soy sauce
1 c. chicken broth
1/3 cup light or dark brown sugar
1-4 tablespoons of chile-garlic sauce
6 teaspoons cornstarch, divided
½ cup water
½ cup bean sprouts
1 cup peanuts

Start your water boiling for your noodles.

Heat the sesame oil and canola or peanut oil in pan until it’s good and hot.  Toss the chicken with 2 tablespoons of the cornstarch and season with salt and pepper.  Cook the chicken pieces in hot oil until golden.  Remove from skillet.

Toss in your noodles because you’re almost ready for them.

Mince garlic and ginger and saute in same pan.  Add soy sauce, chicken broth, brown sugar and chile-garlic sauce.  If you have a manly man, you’ll probably want 4-5 tablespoons of chili sauce.

Combine 4 tablespoons of cornstarch with ½ cup water and stir it to make a slurry.  Pour it into the saucepan and simmer for about 2 minutes or until it thickens.

Add the chicken and peanuts and warm through.

Drain pasta.  Place cooked noodles onto a serving plate. Spoon chicken and sauce over the top of the noodles, then garnish with chopped peanuts.

        

You know, being a food blogger can be stressful, chickens.  I have to cook up incredible recipes, write something instructional and funny about it and do it by deadline.   A good glass of wine (or six) helps but sometimes, the chocolate siren whispers in your ear and nothing else will do.  And while I’m not advocating stress eating, because that’s something you all know I would NEVER do,  just one of these sends me into a chocolate coma away from the stresses of the day.

INCREDIBLE DEEP CHOCOLATE COOKIES
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans

Melt the butter in a saucepan.  Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate chips.  Let ‘em rest for a minute to melt and then stir again.  If they’re stubborn and not quite melted, you can put them on the burner again for just a minute on low.  (You can do this in the microwave if you want…just be careful not to burn your precious chocolate!) Let them cool off to the side. (Quit licking that spoon!)

In a bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, salt and vanilla together for about 3 minutes.  It’ll turn a lovely creamy yellow.   Add in the melted chocolate mixture and mix til combined.

Sift together the flour and baking powder and then add that in too.  Make sure to scrape the bowl so you get all that goodness combined.  Add in your nuts and stir.  Now resist all temptation to eat the entire bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for about 1/2 hour to set that chocolate back up.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a greased cooking sheet and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes.   Cool them as long as humanly possible before eating (about 4.28 minutes).   Bite.  Sigh.  Enjoy chocolate coma.

        

When I was growing up, my Appalachian dad called this thing a muskmelon. So when I grew up and someone asked me if I liked cantaloupe, I said, “Never had it.” Of course, when I saw it, I thought, “Oh, we hillbillies just call it muskmelon.” Well, guess what? We hillbillies were right. But honestly, as strange a name as cantaloupe is (they’re a rare type of leaping animal, right?), muskmelon doesn’t sound much better. The only time I want to hear musk anywhere near my food is when it’s my waiter’s cologne.

Cucumber Cantaloupe Salad

1 cantaloupe
1 regular or English cucumber
1 lime
1 tablespoon sugar or sugar substitute
1 handful of fresh cilantro

Pretty easy measurements, no?  Anyway, peel, seed and chop the cantaloupe.  Do the same with the cucumber.  If you bought an English cucumber (the kind that comes wrapped in plastic), you don’t need to seed it.

Squeeze the lime juice over the salad.  Sprinkle the sugar over.  Toss.  If you like cilantro (which I do!), add in a handful of fresh, chopped cilantro.

        

I’m a salsa girl.  I love salsa on everything.  But I’m pretty particular about my salsas and usually whip up my own.  But there is one salsa that I’ve fallen in love with…Pace.    I mean, when Cook’s Illustrated, who I consider to be a real authority on food, even tells you that Pace Salsa is tops, you better listen.    So I use this stuff all the time including in this recipe where I tried using the salsa instead of tomatoes and YEEHAW!  These beans are good!

And just because I’m that kind of gal, the nice folks at Pace have agreed to let me giveaway a batch of this stuff for ya to use in this recipe.  Just post a link to your recipe  that will use Pace Salsa and we’ll have a drawing for a winner to get 2 jars of salsa and a cookbook. Winner will be drawn randomly on July 4.

California Beans

1 pound red kidney beans
6-8 slices bacon
1/2 pound finely chopped cooked ham
1 Onion minced
4 cloves Garlic minced
6 cups Water
1 jar Pace Pico de Gallo salsa
1/2 cup Pace Picante sauce
6 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon Dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup fresh cilantro chopped
1 tablespoon cider vinegar

Soak your beans overnight.  (If you forget, you can cover them with water, bring them to a boil in a large pot, turn off the heat, cover them with a lid and wait 1 hour. )  Drain and move along, li’l doggy!  (Um, sorry.)

Cook bacon and ham over medium heat in large Dutch oven until bacon is crispy.   Add the chopped onion and cook about 5 mins.   Add your garlic and cook about 30 seconds.   Now add the drained beans, 6 cups of water (beef stock is even better)  and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to med-low and cook about an hour.

Now stir in your Pace Salsa, Pace Picante sauce, sugar, mustard and salt. Continue to simmer, uncovered, until beans are completely tender and sauce is thickened, about 1 hour. Stir in cilantro and vinegar and season with salt to taste.  Turn on your fan and serve with something grilled.

        

What age do you have to be before birthdays aren’t a big deal? Sure, you don’t have the year long countdown you had when you were 7, but everyone hopes for a little pampering or kind well wishes. The part I think we struggle with is getting a year older. I am now 46, which is one year more than 45 which is now closer to 50 than 40. But a wise friend of mine said that every year older sure beats the alternative. So I’m celebrating 46 years of surviving all the stupid stunts of my youth and all the moments I said, “These kids are going to be the death of me!”

I usually bake myself my favorite German Chocolate Cake but this year, I’m being lazy and baking these very easy gooey Birthday Blondies.

Birthday Blondies

2 cups  flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 sticks of  butter, melted and slightly cooled
2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 -1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup toffee bits (I like Heath Toffee bits or you could use crumbled candy)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom and sides of an 9×13-inch pan or Pyrex dish.  In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt, and set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together, then beat in the eggs and vanilla and blend well. With mixer running at low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients. Stir in the chocolate chips and pecans.

Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan or baking dish, and bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Cool completely before cutting if you can.