Friday Favorites

My absolute favorite singer in the entire world is Carrie Underwood.  She is so great!  I could listen to her all day long.  In fact, I listen to her my whole day at work!  And I listen to this song in particular like 14 times in a row.  Enjoy!  

Kind of a weird video...  It's one of those fan made ones but it had the best recording of her singing surprisingly...  

-Alissa

Monster Cookie Dough Dip

Peanut butter and cookie dough are some of my favorite things so I fell in love with this dip!  And it's incredibly easy and fast to make!!  I brought it to a dinner at my Aunt's house for an appetizer and it was a huge hit.  You can eat it with pretzels or crackers.  My grandma dipped veggies in it.  I eat it with a spoon.  It is delicious!  I got it here.

Monster Cookie Dough Dip

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup powdered sugar

3 Tbsp. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup oats (regular or quick)

1 cup miniature plain M&Ms (we just crushed up a bunch of normal sized ones)

1 cup miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate)

Mix cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and peanut butter until smooth.  Stir in brown sugar and powdered sugar, mixing well.  Next, fold in oats, m&ms, and chocolate chips.  

It does make quite a bit...  Plan accordingly!

-Alissa

Heart Wreath

A few weekends ago the sisters and I got together for a craft day.  We each picked a craft that we liked and brought enough for all of us to do the same craft.  Here's the craft that I picked to do.  I ended up cutting more circles than we actually needed but that's ok.  I would rather have too many than not enough. 

The supplies you will need for this is:

A Styrofoam heart
1/2-3/4 yard of felt
3" circle pattern
straight pins

Use the pattern to cut out 3" circles.  I found that if you left the felt folded in half it took less time to cut out the circles. 
Once you have all your circles you will take a circle, fold it in half and then in half again.  Put a straight pin in it and then stick it to the styrofoam.  It really was so easy, a little time consuming, but super easy.

I found this craft here.

-MEGAN

Friday Favorites 4/19/13

One of my favorite things that I discovered this month was the blog and YouTube channel of a girl named Al Fox. She is a convert to the church and speaks to youth groups throughout the year as well as produces videos where she shares her testimony of the gospel. I was very touched by the strength of her testimony as well as her willingness to share it! 

Here is a snippet from her blog:

"Since joining the church there has been a lot of hard times. A lot of changes. Trials. That's life. But because of getting baptized, because of the Gospel, because of Christ, not once- not even for a second, did that happiness go away. Not only that, but it got stronger, and stronger!"

And the link to her blog:
In The Head of Al Fox



And here is a link to one of her videos, you should watch all of them! They are great :) 
STAND; Be Not Moved
Lots of Love,
Karli

Marshmallow Reese's Brownies

Awhile back, I bought a bunch of brownie mixes.  They were on sale for a great deal.  And I knew I would find a recipe or two to use them for.

 

A few weeks ago I found one on Pinterest.  It looked so yummy.  I thought about it all the time.  When the weekend rolled around, all I wanted to do was make that recipe.  I was excited, brownie, peanut butter cups, and a little marshmallow cream it sounded perfect.

 

So, you can imagine my disappointment when I pulled them out and they looked like this...

 Yeah, they are NOT suppose to look like that.  All my marshmallow cream rose to the top during baking.  It wasn't how I had imagined them at all.  I have never used marshmallow cream before, but I didn't realize it was going to be difficult. :)

 

In the picture below you can kind of see the peanut butter cup sticking out just a little.  All of my peanut butter cups stuck to the bottom of the pan!  I sprayed my pan really well.  I don't know if they got overcooked or what?!



Taste wise, they were still pretty good.  But probably not as good as I was hoping for.  I may try making these again, but I don't know.  I just hate spending all that money on peanut butter cups to get stuck to the pan, when we can just eat them. hehe  I guess we will have to see.

 

If you have any luck with this recipe please share!!!

Marshmallow Reese's Brownies

Ingredients:

1 brownie mix (for a 9x13 pan)

1 bag Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs (or cups)

1 cup marshmallow cream

 

Instructions:

1. Spray a 9×13 pan with baking spray and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350* Prepare the brownie mix according to the package directions for 2 eggs. Beat until just combined.
2. Spread half the brownie batter in the bottom of the prepared pan. Lay the peanut butter eggs on top of the batter. Drop spoonfuls of marshmallow cream around each egg. Top with the rest of the brownie batter. Spread the batter completely over all the marshmallow cream swirling slightly. Bake for 25 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into the brownies. Store in a sealed container for up to a week.

Notes:  You can also use a bag of Reese's peanut butter cups if it isn't Easter.

Recipe found here.

-Brooke

Better Than Anything Brownies

I was pretty excited when I saw these.  The name sounded fun and the pictures were enticing!  I knew that I was going to have to try these.

 

And they were pretty darn yummy. 

They are very rich, but I kind of like that. :)

They have toffee bits in them, which I loved.  And they were pretty darn easy to make, particularly for how delicious they were.  If you want something easy AND yummy, these will get the
 job done!

Better Than Anything Brownies Recipe

 

Ingredients:
1 package German chocolate cake mix
1 (5 3/4 ounce) can evaporated milk
1 (14 ounce) bag caramels
3/4 cup melted butter
1 bag milk chocolate chips
1 (8 ounce) bag Heath toffee bits

Directions:
Mix together cake mix, melted butter and 1/3 cup evaporated milk.  Press 1/2 of mix into a 9 x 13-in. greased pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 6 minutes.  Remove brownies from oven and sprinkle on half the bag of Heath toffee bits.  Melt together caramels and rest of the evaporated milk, pour over toffee bits.  Sprinkle on half the bag of chocolate chips.  Spread the remaining batter on top (this is easiest if you take pieces of the batter, flatten each individual piece in your hands and place on top).  Sprinkle remaining toffee bits and chocolate chips on top.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  Refrigerate for 3 hours before serving.

Notes:
-I wish I had spent a little more time with flattening the batter and placing it on top.  I kind of hurried through it.
-Make sure you refrigerate.  You may want to plan on a little more then 3 hours.  Just to be safe.

Recipe found here.

-Brooke

Chicken Enchilada Soup

This is THE BEST thing that I have ever found on pinterest. I love it. A lot. And I just went to try and find the original recipe, and I pinned it so long ago that the link I have on pinterest is bad! Good thing I wrote the recipe down! Inspiration! Well shoot. Sorry about that. I didn't make this recipe up, but I don't know who did! Let it be known that I tried to give credit :)

Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Soup

2 Tsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 cloves minced garlic
3 cups chicken broth
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1-2 tsp chipotle chili in adobo sauce
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 15oz can black beans (rinse and drain)
1 14.5oz can petite diced tomatoes
2 cups frozen corn
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
16 oz raw chicken
cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips for topping

1. Heat the olive oil in a sauce pan, and cook the onion and garlic until the onions are clear.
2. Add the chicken broth, tomato sauce and chipotle chili stuff, and heat to a boil.
3. Add the cilantro and let it go for a bit, then remove from heat.
4. Pour this mixture into a crock pot and dump in everything else! (not your toppings... obviously)
5. Stir it up!
6. Cook until the chicken is cooked through. Probably 4 hours on high and 6 hours on low
7. Pull the chicken out and shred it up, then put it back in the soup
8. Serve! and top with chips, cheese and sour cream.

Soooo yummy 

Cheesy Grilled Pizza Sandwich

This recipe is absolutely the epitome of simple and easy.  And it's a favorite for us!  It's one of those recipes that uses a pinch of this and a dash of that.  We can put it together for a fast dinner and put some carrot sticks on the side.

I got this recipe from here!

Ingredients:

Rustic Style Sandwich Bread

Butter or Olive Oil

Pizza Sauce

Garlic Bread Seasoning (we use just plain garlic salt)

Pepperoni or Turkey Pepperoni

Mozzarella Cheese

Directions:

Lightly butter one side of each slice of bread, or brush lightly with olive oil.  Sprinkle garlic bread seasoning on each slice and gently pat with clean hands.  Turn slices of bread over.  Spread pizza sauce on each slice and sprinkle with cheese.  Place pepperoni slices on one of the sandwich halves and then place the two pieces of bread together.

Grill on a panini press or hot skillet, or place under a broiler in the oven, flipping once, until both sides of bread are toasted and golden brown and the cheese is melted.  Cool 3-5 minutes before slicing in half and serving.  (We don't slice them...  Or wait to eat them.  We get hungry!)

-Alissa

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins

This recipe was slightly disappointing to me.  I love peanut butter and I love chocolate so when I discovered this recipe on Pinterest I was super excited to try it.  My muffins didn't look nearly as pretty as hers did and I wonder if part of that is because I didn't let my butter cool all the way it was still slightly warm. I wish that they had more of a peanut butter taste to them too and I felt like some of my chocolate chips got over cooked and had that yucky burnt chocolate flavor.   I may try these again and add more peanut butter and let my butter cool all the way to see if it makes a difference.

I found the recipe here.

Ingredients:

2 1/4 Cups All-Purpose Flour

2 Teaspoons Baking Powder

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

2/3 Cup Brown Sugar

6 Tablespoons Butter, melted and cooled

1/2 Cup Chunky Peanut Butter (you can use smooth, that's fine)

2 Eggs

1 Cup Milk

3/4 Cup Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

 

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and brown sugar. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the butter, peanut butter, eggs, and milk until smooth. (if the peanut butter is in clumps within the liquid that is fine, it will all work out in the end) Pour liquid mixture into flour mixture and mix until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips. In a paper lined muffin tin, scoop 3 tablespoon size scoops into each muffin cup (I used my cookie scoop). Bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

 

-MEGAN

Friday Favorite

 

This weekend, us 4 sisters will gather with our cute families and watch General Conference. 

 

We will hear from our beloved Prophet, Thomas S. Monson.  We will also hear from apostles and many other wonderful people.

 

I am very excited.

 

If you would like to find out more about what we will be doing this weekend you can go here,

http://www.lds.org.  You can also go to http://mormon.org/.

-Brooke

a picture of, President Thomas S. Monson

Parmesan Roasted Potatoes

 These potatoes were so-so.  They were good, but nothing I have been craving to make again.

 

To be honest, mine don't even look like the picture.  I followed the recipe, but mine still didn't look as picture perfect as they did when I pinned them on Pinterest.

 

My advice, if you want to try something new, for a potato side, give these a try.  You may like them more then we did.  Yours may even be more picture perfect. :)  Let me know.

 

Parmesan Roasted Potatoes

Ingredients:
4 medium red potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Cut the potatoes in wedges.

In a small bowl, combine the Parmesan, garlic, and paprika and set aside. Next, toss the potatoes and oil together in a mixing bowl then add the bowl of cheese and seasonings and stir to coat.

Arrange them on a cookie sheet in a single layer.

Bake for about 30-35 minutes then remove from oven and turn over all the potatoes. Bake for another few minutes until crispy and golden.

Found here.

-Brooke

Low Country Smothered Pork Chops

*Pictures to come soon :)

This recipe was really good! I liked the flavor alot, but didn't do the prep exactly right, so it turned out a bit soggy for us :( However, I'll definitely be trying it again!

I found the recipe here.

Ingredients

4 center-cut pork chops, 1-inch thick 

Salt and freshly ground black pepper  Ground cayenne pepper  2 tablespoons butter  1/4 cup all-purpose flour, spread on a plate  2 medium green bell peppers, stemmed, cored, and membranes removed, cut into strips  2 yellow onions, trimmed, cut lengthwise  3 cloves garlic, minced  2 cups chicken broth  2 to 3 dashes Worcestershire sauc

Directions 

Trim the excess fat from the chops and season well with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Lightly roll the chops in flour, shake off the excess, and slip them into the pan. Brown well, about 3 minutes per side, and remove them to a plate.

Add the bell peppers and onions, to the skillet, and saute until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about half a minute longer. Push the vegetables to the side of the skillet. Add chops to pan and place vegetables on top of pork chops. Pour in the broth and sprinkle with Worcestershire sauce. Cover pan with foil and allow to simmer for 45 minutes or until chops are tender

Lots of Love,

Karli