Dangerous Chocolate Cake

My mom e-emailed this to me today. Apparently it's been hanging around her inbox for a while and she finally decided to share the wealth. I really didn't think it was going to work, but it turned out so yummy! I added my favorite chocolate chip mint ice cream and I couldn't think of a better way to end the day!

Here we see what it looks like right out of the microwave.

And here it is all yummied up with my ice cream!

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

4 tablespoons flour

4 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons cocoa

1 egg

3 tablespoons milk

3 tablespoons oil

3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)

A small splash of vanilla extract

1 large coffee mug (MicroSafe)

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well.

Add the egg and mix thoroughly..

Pour in the milk and oil and mix well..

Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again..

Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. (I just put mine on highest power)

The cake may rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed!

Hot Hoagies

This is another from My Kitchen Cafe. I love that she has a balance of in depth and super simple recipes. This one was a last minute thing. When ever I don't know what to make I always head to her blog and look around for a minute. Inevitably I always find something that I can throw together. This one is so yummy and I may use this as a relief society dinner, you know the ones you take to people who are sick or just had a baby. Throw it together and all they have to do is pop it in the oven for a few minutes!

  Hot Hoagies

from my kitchen cafe

1 loaf french bread, cut lengthwise (I get the $1 loaves at Wal-Mart) 

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken* (in a pinch, you can use two large cans chicken breast) 

1/2 cup light mayo (I used miracle whip, it tasted ok, but it was kinda sweet. Next time I'll use the mayo) 1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream 

2 green onions, thinly sliced (white and green parts) 

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt 

1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped (or 2 tablespoons dried) 

2 cups shredded cheese (I used a combo of Monterrey jack and sharp cheddar cheese) 

Olives, chopped (I didn't put these on simply because I hate olives) 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place french bread on large baking sheet. Mix all topping ingredients together in a bowl. Spread topping evenly on top of both lengths of french bread. Bake for 15-20 minutes until bubbly and edges are lightly browned. Slice into pieces and serve immediately. 

*When I stock up on my chicken, I always boil 3 or 4 breasts, shred it and freeze it in Ziploc bags. Then I have it ready for a meal like this one.

Macaroni that big people can love!

This came in my latest Kraft Food & Family magazine and I loved that it combined Melody's
favorite food with some 'big people' taste. Be forewarned that this recipe makes a TON! Jared usually has two servings, the girls and I will each have one and there is still enough for everyone to have lunch the next day. Good Saturday night meal so that lunch is ready when you get home from church (or before you go ;p) I also like this one because Melody is able to help make it. She adds the noodles, the pizza sauce and the extra cheese (I have to do the cheese sauce, she gets a little crazy!)

Pasta Pronto Italiano

1 pkg. (7-1/4 oz.) KRAFT Macaroni Cheese Dinner
1 lb. lean ground beef 1 jar (15 oz.) pizza sauce
1/2 cup KRAFT Pizzeria Shredded Four Cheese

PREPARE Dinner as on directed on package. Meanwhile, brown meat in large skillet; drain, if necessary.

ADD Dinner and pizza sauce; mix lightly. Sprinkle with shredded cheese; cover. Reduce heat to low; cook 2 min. or until shredded cheese begins to melt.

See? Easy peasy!

P.S. here's a simple, and so so yummy pizza sauce recipe I got over at the my kitchen cafe blog. In case you hadn't noticed I heart her blog!

Homemade Pizza Sauce

1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 small can tomato paste
1 tablespoon sugar
Oregano
Garlic powder
Italian seasoning
Crushed red pepper (optional)

Combine all ingredients in food processor or blender and blend until desired consistency. I leave mine slightly chunky. On the seasonings, I just sprinkle them in to taste. If I use crushed red pepper, I only use a few flakes because my kids don't like spicy things, but it definitely adds a nice kick to the sauce to use it. I also substitute for whatever I don't have: basil leaves for oregano, garlic salt for garlic powder, etc. This recipe is open to interpretation. Use what you like and it will be delicious.

Slow cooker pork tenderloin

I stumbled across this recipe and didn't even save the link so I can't give credit where it is due. I love this one because it's really easy to throw together, but it turns out so tender and moist, I just love it! I usually can find pork tenderloins for a deal, I just watch for them to be near their sale by date and ask for a discount. I got a $12 roast for just under $5 dollars last week!

• 2 pork tenderloins, about 
• 1 pound each salt and pepper 
• 1 small clove garlic, minced ( I usaully ue 2 and press them instead of mincing them) 
• 4 Tbs grainy Dijon mustard 
• 2 Tbs honey 
• 2 Tbs brown sugar 
• 1 Tbs cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar 
• 1/2 tsp dried leaf thyme 
• 1 Tbs cornstarch 
• 1 Tbs cold water

Wash and trim the pork, pat dry; sprinkle with salt and pepper, place pork in slow cooker. Combine garlic, mustard, honey, brown sugar, vinegar, and thym; pour over the pork. Turn pork to coat throughly.Cover and cook on low 7 to 9 hours, or high 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours. Remove pork to a plate, cover with foil to keep warm.

Pour the sauces into a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer for 8 to 1 minutes, or until reduced by about 1/3. Combine the cornstarch and cold water; whisk into the reduced sauce and cook for 1 minute longer. Serve pork sliced with thickened juices.

Skillet Tamale Pie

I made this tonight and it was so quick and super yummy! Melody wouldn't eat it, but Katie gobbled it up, and really Melody doesn't eat anything so I guess her opinion shouldn't really count! :) I forgot to drain the tomatoes and it made it way to runny so make sure you drain your beans and tomatoes really well. happy cooking!

Skillet Tamale Pie servings: 4-5----time: 25-30 min

Ingredients: 2 Tbs vegetable oil 1 med onion 2 Tbs Chili powder 1 tsp salt 2 cloves garlic 1 lb ground beef 1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes, drained 1 pkg corn bread mix 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese 2 Tbs cilantro minced Preparation: 1. Heat oil in 12” oven proof skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion, chili powder and tsp salt and cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. 2. Stir in ground beef, beans and tomatoes, and bring to a simmer, breaking up meat with spoon, about 5 minutes. 3. Meanwhile, mix corn-bread batter according to package instructions. 4. Stir cheese and cilantro into filling and season with salt and pepper to taste. Dollop corn bread batter evenly over filling and spread into even layer. 5. Place skillet in oven and bake at 450 until corn bread is cooked through in center, 10-15 minutes. *If you don't have an oven proof skillet, prepare filling and transfer to a 9x9 or 9x13 baking pan. If you use a 9x13 prepare 2 corn bread mixes.

Home Made Hot Pockets

This recipe came from http://everydayfoodstorage.net/. She's all about building and using your food storage on a daily basis so it's being rotated properly and nothing is being wasted. She has some pretty good ideas so if you have some time to kill you should head over and browse her site for a while. This recipe is pretty easy and very versatile. You can make it a family affair and let everyone fill their own, or just try different fillings each time you make them. I had hamburger thawed so I decided to get creative and make cheese burger hot pockets. They turned out really yummy, even Melody ate some!

Hot Pockets

1 C. Luke Warm Water2 T. Olive Oil or Canola Oil 1 t. Sugar 1/2 t. Salt 3 C. Flour (I usually do Half all-purpose and half whole wheat or all whole wheat flour) 1 1/2 t. Yeast

Dough by Hand: Dissolve Yeast in warm water. Add Oil, Sugar, and salt. Slowly mix in flour and knead. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes.

Dough in Bread Machine: (I imagine this would be a ton easier in a bread machine, but for those of us without one it's still a pretty quick and simple recipe)Add ingredients in order your bread machine specifies You don’t want your dough to raise for more than one hour. Most bread machine dough cycles will “beat” down the dough and you’ll want to take the dough out before it does that. Consult your users manual for timing and instructions on how to put the ingredients in.

1. Pre-heat oven to 375

2. When dough is ready, separate it in to 6 portions. 3. Using a rolling pin, roll out dough to 1/8" inch thick circles.

4. Let dough rest for 5 minutes.

5. Put 1/4-1/2 cup worth of filling. If you’re making all the same kind of hot pockets mix all your filling items together and use a scoop to fill the pockets.

6. Fold dough in half over the filling and clamp edges with fork or you can roll the edges over (this is what I usually do)

7. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 375 on a greased baking sheet.

Cheese Burger Filling

1 lb hamburger

1 bell pepper diced

1 onion diced

1 can diced tomatoes drained ( I drained it because I didn't want it to get too saucy, but you don't have to)

1 can tomato sauce

mushrooms

cheese

Brown hamburger for about 5 minutes with onions, peppers, and mushrooms (use as many or as few mushrooms as you like. I really like them s I added lots). Add diced tomatoes and sauce, allow to simmer until burger is cooked through. Turn off heat and add shredded cheese to taste. You can use any kind of cheese, I used mozzarella, and make sure you start with a small amount because a little goes a long way and you can always add more, but it's tough to take it back out! I let this cool for a few minutes before putting it in the pockets so it would be easier to work with.

She also says that these freeze well so I think I may make a batch just for snacks or quick lunches for Jared. We'll see how well that works out!

EDIT: I made a double batch of these and when they were cool I wrapped them in saran wrap and then again in foil. When I needed to cook them. I took off the foil and zapped it for 1 min. The saran wrap keeps it from getting dry so they turn out moist and yummy! I also made smaller ones for my girls so they wouldn't waste any. It worked out great!

lion house dinner rolls

These are not an easy one to make if you don't have a stand mixer, which I don't! I used my hand mixer until the last two cups of flower and then the dough was too sticky and I had to knead in the last of the flower. It's not easy, but it's possible and so worth it!

Lion House Dinner Rolls

2 tablespoons active-dry yeast

2 cups warm water

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup butter or shortening

1 egg

2 1/2 teaspoons salt

2/3 cup nonfat dry milk

5-6 cups flour

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, combine yeast and water. Let stand 5 minutes. Add sugar, shortening (or butter), salt, dry milk, 2 cups flour and egg. Beat together until very smooth. Add remaining flour gradually (about 1/2 cup at a time) until a soft but not sticky dough is formed. Turn dough onto a lightly floured board and knead until it is smooth and satiny (Be prepared, if you don't have a mixer to knead for you this will be a workout!). Return dough to an oiled bowl and cover to let rise until doubled. (I think I let mine rise 3-4 hours)

Separate dough into seven or eight pieces. Roll out each portion into a circle (I tried to get mine about 1/8" thick) and cut into 8 pie-shaped pieces. (I used a pizza cutter) Roll up crescent-style and place on baking sheet. Cover with saran wrap that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees for 12 minutes - until nicely browned. Makes about 5 dozen rolls.

If you go to the link it'll take you to the my kitchen cafe blog and she has lots of good tips in her comments. People will leave questions in the comments and she always answers them. Usually the questions other people ask are the same ones I have so it works out well for me!