Avocado Chicken Salad

Made this. Loved it. Then I made it again because I didn’t feel guilty AT ALL because it’s delicious, easy AND healthy:)

1 cup shredded chicken (I use canned chicken and it’s great)

1 avocado, mashed

1 lime

1-2 T cilantro depending on how much you like it

salt and pepper

Add chicken and avocado to a bowl and mix. Add lime, cilantro, salt and pepper to taste. Eat with crackers, in a sandwich or on my personal favorite, Bagel Thins. Enjoy!

Snickerdoodle Brownies

I love a good Snickerdoodle. These just go beyond anything you’ve ever known about a Snickerdoodle! They ARE a brownie even though they’re not brown:) They are dense and chewy, with a crisp top. Nothing better. They were so easy and different, which I always love. Enjoy!

2 1/3 cup flour
1 1/4 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
3/4 cup butter, room temp
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup + 3T brown sugar, divided
3 eggs
1 t vanilla
1 1/2 t cinnamon

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and grease the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. In a bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking powder. Stir it together and set it aside.

In your mixing bowl, combine the butter, 1 1/4 c sugar, and the brown sugar. Mix together until creamy and smooth. Mix in 3 eggs, one at a time, and finally the vanilla. Whip until smooth and fluffy.

Mix in the flour mixture. It will be thick. Spread the dough into the baking dish.
In a another bowl, stir together the remaining 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and the cinnamon, and sprinkle it all over the top of the dough. Run a knife through the dough zig-zagging one end to the other. Bake for 25-30 minutes, and then cool completely before cutting, if you can stand it!

From * thefoodiearmywife.com

Taco Pie

I knew this would be an instant hit in our family. It’s so easy and a delicious twist on a classic dish. A taco on top of a bed of crescent rolls….mmmmm. And it’s a perfect amount to feed our family. I LOVE not having leftovers!!

1  package refrigerated crescent rolls
1 lb ground beef (or ground turkey)
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 package taco seasoning mix
1/2 cup corn
1/2 cup black beans
1/2 cup sour cream 
1/2 cup pepperjack cheese
1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese
1 small bag corn chips, crushed
Any other taco toppings that your family likes

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lay crescent dough flat on the bottom of a greased pie plate. Place into the oven and bake according to package directions, which is usually about 11 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat about 1t olive oil in a pan. When it’s hot, add the onion and and garlic and saute until onions are soft, about 1 minute. Add the ground beef.  Break up the meat into chunks with a spoon or spatula while cooking. Add the taco seasoning and stir together until well mixed.

When the dough is done, remove from the oven and spoon the taco meat over the crust in an even layer, then a spread on the sour cream, add half of the corn chips, then a layer on the cheese and then top off with the rest of the chips. Return to the oven and bake for about 8 minutes or until the cheese has melted.

Top with your favorite taco toppings such as lettuce, tomato, olives, onions, salsa, or avocado. Enjoy!

*Adapted from Blog Chef

Rainbow Cupcakes

These were really fun and the kids LOVED them! I made them for a dinner with a rainbow theme and it really brought it all together.

They’re not hard at all and actually didn’t take that long either. You just separate out a white cake mix into 6 different bowls and color them with the colors of the rainbow. That’s it! Then I topped them off with my whipped cream cheese frosting and rainbow sprinkles.

1 box white cake mix (and all the ingredients listed on the box)

Make the cake according to box directions. Separate into 6 different bowls and mix in  red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple food coloring gels into the different bowls. Spoon about 1T of each color into each cupcake liner, trying to layer the colors. I ended up using 1/2 the batter in full sized cupcakes and half in mini cupcakes. Mini cupcakes are always so fun, especially for parties! Then top with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows.)  I topped the regular cupcakes with rainbow sprinkles and the mini ones with one Skittle. 

Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting:

16oz (2 blocks) cream cheese, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1 t vanilla

1 cup cold heavy whipping cream

2T powdered sugar

Cream together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla. Whip until very light and fluffy with your whisk attachment. In a separate bowl, whip the whipping cream and 2T powdered sugar  until stiff peaks are formed. Fold into the cream cheese mixture. DO NOT OVERBEAT. When incorporated, pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Enjoy the colors of the rainbow!!

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Oh wow. This cake is delicious. If you’re in the mood for cinnamon rolls, but don’t want to wait for them to rise, make this!! It only takes about 30 minutes and it tastes like a hot, fresh cinnamon roll. I’ve already made this several times and the pan is licked clean almost immediately. YUMMY!

Cake:
3 cups flour
1/2 t salt
1 cup sugar
4 t baking powder
1 1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
2 t vanilla
1/2 cup butter, melted

Mix everything together except for the butter. Slowly stir in the melted butter and pour into a greased 9x13 pan., Mix all the ingredients together until well combined. Drop evenly over the batter and swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes.

Topping:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
2 T flour
1 T cinnamon

Mix all the ingredients together until well combined. Drop evenly over the batter and swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes.

Glaze:
1 (8oz) package cream cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk

Cream together until smooth and a little runny. If it’s too runny, add more powdered sugar. If it’s too thick (like a frosting) add more milk. Pour over hot cake. Serve warm. YUM!

* Adapted from cookinupnorth.blogspot.com

Layered Jello

Lately my kids have been OBSESSED with Jello. They are all about it. So I thought it would be fun to make a pretty, layered Jello for them for Easter. I’m not going to lie, this takes some time people. But look how cute it is!! And it tastes amazing. Now my kids call it sandwich Jello because you can pick it up and eat it like a sandwich, which happens to be the perfect thing for kids!

And just imagine the possibilities! 4th of July, birthdays, parties. Oh, and it’s sure to impress. Our guests loved it and we all sat and enjoyed  eating all the different layers one at a time. So if you feel the urge to make a beautiful Jello, and you have 2 hours of your life to spare (ha) make this awesome Jello!!

4 3-ounce packages of Jell-O
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
4 packets unflavored gelatin
Water as directed

Spray a 9×13 pan with non-stick cooking spray and wipe out the excess with a paper towel. Set the pan aside.

Mix 1 package of Jell-O with 1 1/4 teaspoons (1/2 packet) of unflavored gelatin. Add 1 cup boiling water and stir to combine completely. Pour the first layer into the prepared pan and refrigerate in a completely level shelf of the fridge for 20 minutes.

While the first layer is setting, mix 1 cup boiling water with the can of sweetened condensed milk in a smallish-medium mixing bowl. Set aside.

In a small bowl, sprinkle 2 packets of gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water. Allow it to stand for 2-3 minutes or until the gelatin has absorbed the water and it becomes grainy. When it is ready, add 1/2 cup boiling water and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Add the dissolved gelatin mixture to the sweetened condensed milk mixture and stir completely. Allow to come to room temperature.
When the first layer of Jell-O has set, carefully pour 1 cup of the sweetened condensed milk mixture over the Jell-O layer and return the pan to the refrigerator. Chill for 15 minutes or until set.

After you return the pan to the refrigerator, repeat the Jell-O step (1 package Jell-O + 1 1/4 teaspoons unflavored gelatin + 1 cup boiling water). If you do it immediately after you put the pan back in the fridge, it should be room temperature by the time the sweetened condensed milk layer has set up. Pour it over the milk layer, chill, repeat with milk, then Jell-O, then milk, then Jell-O. You should begin and end with Jell-O layers and have 4 layers of Jell-O with 3 layers of milk in between. As you go, if the milk begins to set up, place the bowl in a larger bowl or a shallow pan and add some hot water to the larger pan/bowl to keep the milk mixture from setting up.

When the last layer has set up, carefully cut into cubes or use a cookie cutter to cut into shapes. If you run the cookie cutter or knife under hot water for a few seconds and then dry it, it will help make pretty final cuts/shapes.

*From Our Best Bites

Birthday Pancakes

I was going with a sprinkles theme with Camryn’s birthday, so I thought Funfetti pancakes would be a great way to start the birthday celebration! I’m convinced that it’s a new tradition for our family. The kids ate them up and kept asking for more. Probably because it’s basically cake in pancake form:)And what kid doesn’t love sprinkles?! You’re kids will surely feel special if you present a tall stack of these pancakes to them on their big day.

1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup yellow cake mix

1 T sugar

1t baking powder

1/2t baking soda

1/4t salt

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups buttermilk (regular milk can be substituted)

1/2 cup milk

2T butter, melted

1t vanilla

1/3 cup (or 1.75oz bottle) sprinkles

Heat a griddle or nonstick skillet over medium heat. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the flour, cake mix, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt; set aside.

In a separate medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a whisk. Add the milks, butter and vanilla and whisk to combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir until fully mixed. Fold in the sprinkles.

Scoop portions of a scant 1/3 cup batter onto the griddle, leaving room for the batter to spread into larger rounds. When the pancakes begin to bubble, flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes. We like to eat ours with whipped cream. They’re basically little cakes, so syrup seemed a little much for me. The kids LOVE whipped cream, so I thought it was quite fitting.

*From Seeded at the Table