Green Chile Enchiladas

These are divine! To me, they are way better than regular enchiladas. Plus it makes a ton so I was able to bake a regular pan and another that I froze for a later date. Such a winner for me. I LOVE LOVE LOVE these and I urge you to love them too.

4 large chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 (4oz) can diced green chilies
2 cups pepper jack cheese, shredded
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup sour cream
1 (4oz) can diced green chilies
1 small can sliced black olives
About 18 tortillas

Mix chicken soup and 1 1/2 cups sour cream and 1 can diced green chilies. Add Pepperjack cheese and chicken. Put into tortillas (not too full) and wrap tightly. Put in prepared 9x13 (and I also used another 8x8 pan that I stuck in the freezer). Make the sauce by whisking sour cream and green chilies. Pour over top of tortillas. Top with cheddar cheese and olives. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes and remove foil and bake another 10 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly. Enjoy!!

Chocolate and Caramel Apple Pie Galette

Found this gem on Picky Palate. I have to admit that I'm definitely not a huge fan of fruit desserts, but sometimes I can squeeze in an apple pie here and there if I'm in the mood and it looks oh so delicious. This was one of those times. The truth? Because this recipe requires Rolos sprinkled on top. I LOVE recipes that are twists on old-time classics! Don't judge, but I HAD to pretty much triple the amount of Rolos because I'm just that kind of gal. If I'm going to do something, I'm goin all the way. The apples: so tender. The flavor: so caramely. The end result: perfection.

3 T butter
2 apples, peeled, cored and diced (I prefer Granny Smith)
3 T brown sugar
1 t cinnamon
1 roll ready made pie crust (I prefer Pillsbury)
15 Rolo caramels, quartered
Caramel sauce
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add diced apples, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cook and stir for 5 minutes until apples are softened.

Roll out pie dough on baking cookie sheet. Pour apples into center of the dough, leaving a 1 1/2 inch border all the way around. Top with quartered Rolos. Take edges and fold over to make a pleated edge.

Bake for 30-35 minutes (I went the full 35, maybe even a few min longer) until edges are golden brown. Remove and cool. Drizzle with caramel sauce and dust with powdered sugar. I like to eat it about 10 minutes after it's been out of the oven when it's still warm, but not scalding hot - of course topped with a scoop of ice cream :)

*From Picky Palate

Restaurant Style Salsa

I got this from The Pioneer Woman. She's amazing and so I trust all she makes. So naturally, I trusted her salsa recipe...also for the simplicity of less chopping. It's made with all canned tomatoes, which I was VERY skeptical of. When it was done, Justin and I tasted it and...it wasn't that good. I was DEVASTATED!! So I sadly wrapped it up and put it in the fridge in hopes that someone somewhere would eat it so it didn't go to waste. About 5 hours later my mom says, "That salsa you made is absolutely delicious!!" I thought she might be mistaken because I definitely didn't like it. The next day I tried it...DELICIOUS!! I guess it gets better as it sits. I'm not kidding - 200 times better than when I first made it! So my suggestion is to make it the night before you want to eat it. That Pioneer Woman...she knows everything. I am DEFINITELY making this again!

1 (28oz) can whole tomatoes with juice
2 (10oz) cans Rotel tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 whole jalapeno diced (I omitted this because I'm super wimpy with spicy food - keep in mind that the Rotel has some heat of it's own)
1/2 t salt
1/4 t garlic salt (my addition)
1/4 t sugar
1/4 t cumin
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 whole lime juice

Dump everything into a food processor. Pulse until desired consistency is reached. Test for seasonings. DONE!! Refrigerate at least several hours.

*From The Pioneer Woman

Layered Enchilada Bake

This is AWESOME! It's such a great twist on an old classic of enchiladas. There is NO enchilada sauce in this recipe. The sauce is created with salsa and taco seasoning. Then you cool it down with some sour cream...so delicious. I'm DEFINITELY making this again...it's a keeper.

1 lb. Lean ground beef

1 large Onion, chopped

2 cups favorite Salsa

1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed

1/4 cup Zesty Italian Dressing

2 T Taco Seasoning Mix

6 Flour tortillas (8 inch)

1 cup sour cream

2 cups shredded cheese - Mexican blend or cheddar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Brown meat with onions in a large skillet on medium-high heat; drain off fat. Stir in salsa, taco seasoning, black beans and Italian dressing.

Arrange 3 tortillas in a single layer on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Cover layers with half of the meat mixture, then 1/2 cup sour cream, then 1 cup cheese. Repeat layers and then cover.

Bake for 30 minutes, covered, and then 10 minutes uncovered. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

*From Kraft Recipes

Cheesecake-Filled Chocolate Chip Cookies

I saw these on Sadies Kitchen and knew I wanted to make them. I love cheesecake and chocolate chips. The were HUGE, but didn't disappoint! Just know you're going to share one with like 4 other people! Delicious!

Cookies:
2 1/4 cups flour

3/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 t salt

1 cup butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 large egg

2 T milk

1 t vanilla

2 cups chocolate chips

Cream Cheese Filling

8-oz cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup white chocolate chips or 2-oz white chocolate, melted and cooled

3 T powdered sugar

1 T granulated sugar

1 t vanilla

First, make the cookie dough. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.

In a large bowl, cream together butter, sugar and brown sugar until light. Beat in egg, milk and vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed or by hand, blend in the flour mixture, stirring only until no streaks of flour remain. Stir in chocolate chips.

Make the cream cheese filling. Combine all filling ingredients in a medium bowl and mix at medium-high speed until smooth. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (I didn't do this...I actually forgot...but they were fine and came off the pan perfectly.)

Divide dough into two equal parts. Place each on a sheet of wax or parchment paper and shape into a log. Wrap in paper and chill logs for 1-2 hours, until firm. (I just stuck the whole bowl of dough in the fridge without making the logs and just removed globs that I shaped into balls and then flattened and it was fine.)

Remove dough logs from the fridge. Using a sharp knife, divide each log into eight even slices (total of 16 big slices of cookie dough).

Working with one piece of cookie dough at a time, flatten the dough into a 3-4-inch wide dish between your palms. Place about 1 tbsp cream cheese filling in the center of the dough, then pinch the sides of the dough together to seal. Work carefully so all the filling is sealed inside. Place on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 15-18 minutes, until cookies are golden brown around the edges. Cool on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

*From Sadies Kitchen, originally from Baking Bites

Oreo Cupcakes

These are super good! They are also fun for the kiddos. It's a mix of cupcake, marshmallow and cookies that does NOT disappoint! Next time I think I would add a little more marshmallow cream because when it bubbles up and gets a little toasted and a little chewy and is oh so delicious. The basic cupcake mix is simply AMAZING! If you want you could just bake the cupcakes without putting a whole Oreo in the center - that would be delicious also. They are the perfect cupcake for a party and you bet I'll be serving these at my next one!

1 French Vanilla cake mix
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup oil
4 eggs
1 small box instant vanilla pudding mix
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
5 Oreo cookies, crushed plus 24 whole Oreos for inside cupcakes
1/2 cup marshmallow cream, plus 1/2 cup to layer inside

Cream Cheese Frosting recipe, found here

6 Oreos, crushed for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using your stand mixer, beat the cake mix, water, oil, eggs, pudding mix, cream cheese, 5 crushed oreos and 1/2 Cup Marshmallow cream until well combined, about 1 minute.

Line muffin tin with paper liners and place 1 tablespoon of batter into the bottom of each cup. Layer with an Oreo (pressing down into the batter) then a dollop of marshmallow cream, then 1 more tablespoons of batter. Should be about 3/4 full. Don’t fill more than that or you’ll have a mess in your oven.

3. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until just golden brown and cooked through. Let cool completely. Frost and sprinkle with crushed Oreos.

Makes 24 normal size cupcakes

*Adapted from Picky Palate