Menu Plan for 7/31 - 8/6

Here's our menu for this coming week:

Sunday - spaghetti

Monday - Mexican stuffed pepper casserole w/ cornbread

Tuesday - pizza buns w/ salad

Wednesday - grilled ham & turkey sandwiches w/ basil rice pilaf

Thursday - Greek roasted chicken w/ potatoes & carrots

Friday - margarita pork chops w/ fried noodles

Saturday - fish sandwiches


With school right around the corner, now's the time to start thinking about lunch box fillers.

Here's a few ideas that work well:

pizza roll-ups
trail mix brownies
fruit, meat & cheese kabobs
chili cheese dog tortilla sticks


Linking up with:

Menu Plan Monday

Honey Bun Cake

I love recipes that can pull double duty as a sweet treat for breakfast or as a simple dessert. This recipe for honey bun cake does just that. It's a simple recipe that kids can help prepare. I found it posted at FamilyCorner.com by dyllpickle00. (Her username makes me smile!).

Huney Bun Cake
posted at FamilyCorner.com by dyllpickle00

For cake:

1 box yellow cake mix
3/4 c. oil
1 c. sour cream

In a lg. bowl, stir together dry cake mix, oil and sour cream. Batter will be thick.

Spread the batter into the bottom of a 9 x 13 cake pan.

Prepare brown sugar topping recipe (below) and swirl over cake batter.

Bake @ 350* for 40 minutes or until a toothpick stuck in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Prepare glaze recipe (below) and pour on top of cake while hot.

Serve warm.

For brown sugar topping:

1/2 c. brown sugar
4 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
4 1/2 tsp. evaporated milk

Stir together and swirl over cake.

For glaze:

Stir together 1 c. powdered sugar,  4 tbsp. evaporated milk and 1 tsp. vanilla.

Optional: melt 1/2 -1 cup chocolate chips and swirl over the top of the cake while it is still hot.

Linking up to:


Goose Berry Patch Cookout Favorites

The Ultimate Fudge Brownie Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookie Bars

Is that title a mouthful or what?

This cookie certainly stands up to all of the hype that it's receiving all over the Internet. I first saw pictures of this decadent dessert at Betcha Can't Eat Just One. Katie was able to kick it up another notch by adding dulce de leche to her bars. The original recipe comes from Amanda@ Kevin and Amanda. I bow to their creativity. :)

At first I couldn't imagine even biting into something like this but then, I couldn't stop thinking about it. That's me, when something makes you say "Why would you do that?!?" to food, I just have to try it. It's a lot like the time I just had to try a Krispy Kreme hamburger when we took our kids to a baseball game here in town. haha!

This was a family-involved dessert. I mixed up the cookie batter, my son made the brownies and my daughter lined up the Oreos. We had a lot of fun assembling this dessert but even more fun eating it. :) I added the hot fudge into the brownie mix (from Amanda's recipe) plus the caramel (from Katie's recipe). The results were terrific. Even my husband liked this one.

I'm planning on freezing the leftovers to use in a trifle for another time.

The Ultimate Fudge Brownie Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookie Bars
adapted from Betch Can't Eat Just One & Kevin & Amanda

1 c. butter, softened
1 c. sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 lg. eggs
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
2 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 c. semi sweet chocolate chips
1 pkg. Oreos - I used store brand
1/2 c. caramel sauce - I used ice cream topping
1 lg. pkg. brownie mix + ingredients on the box
1/4 c. hot fudge

Preheat oven to 350*.

Line a 9 x 13 dish with waxed paper. Spray with non-stick cooking spray and then set aside.

In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugars until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well. Mix in vanilla.

In another bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Mix into the wet mixture until just combined.

Spread the cookie dough into the bottom of the 9 x 13 dish that you've lined with waxed paper.

Layer Oreos over the cookie dough.

Pour the caramel sauce over the Oreos.

Mix together brownies according to the directions on the box. Stir in 1/4 c. hot fudge and mix well.

Pour the brownie mixture over the Oreos. Bake for 45 - 55 minutes.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove the cookie bars to a cooling rack and remove the waxed paper from around the edges of the bars.

Allow to finish cooling for at least another 15 minutes. Cut into small pieces for serving.

Store leftovers in a container with a tight-fitting lid. These bars can also be frozen. Thaw on counter.

Menu Plan for 7/24 - 7/30

I have a busy week ahead of me so our menu isn't that complicated. I'm trying some new recipes so keep an eye out for a thumbs up or down for them.

Sunday - grilled chicken legs, baked potatoes, and spinach/carrots

Monday - roasted chicken with wild rice soup (using leftover grilled chicken)

Tuesday - crockpot goulash (didn't make it last week)

Wednesday - blt pasta

Thursday - Mediterranean chicken salad with Asiago pepper bread (bread machine recipe)

Friday - rigatoni with new red sauce recipe and roasted pepper salad

Saturday - sloppy joes

Some delicious side dishes and desserts ideas:

bow tie pasta salad
four cheese and bacon mac n cheese
broiled tomato and goat cheese salad
lemon choc. chip cake mix cookie bites
toffee choc. chip pie

Have a great week, everyone!

Linking up with: 

Menu Plan Monday

Chocolate Malted Brownies

These chocolate malted brownies are an old timey recipe that will take some back to their younger days. One of the main ingredients is chocolate malt powder, aka Ovaltine. In some ways I feel like I missed out on something since we never drank Ovaltine as kids. We were strictly a Nesquik family. lol!

The recipe is from the cutest little cookbook called "Mary Engelbreit's Cookie Cookbook". I picked it up at our local thrift store a couple of weeks ago. In true Mary Engelbreit style, the cookbook is decorated with lots of colorful, playful pictures, along with real pictures of the recipes. To me, it was a nice find for 99 cents.

There's a nice, light, chocolately malt flavor throughout the brownies but it's the "icing" that really makes the brownies good. It's more of a thin sauce than an icing and it flows down into the nooks and crannies of the brownie almost turning it into a molten lava cake. The sprinkles are my daughter's touch. Everything just tastes better to her when there are sprinkles on it. :)

Chocolate Malted Brownies
from Mary Engelbreit's Cookies Cookbook

Brownies

1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 c. milk
1/4 c. malt powder, such as Ovaltine
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. unsalted butter, at room temp.
1 c. sugar
2 lg. eggs
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled

Glaze

4 oz. milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4 c. heavy cream
2 tbsp. malt powder
1 1/2 tsp. light corn syrup

Preheat oven to 350*

Line a 9 inch square pan with foil and grease the foil.

For Brownies:

In a med. bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.

In a small bowl, stir together milk, malt powder and vanilla. Set aside

In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Beat in eggs.

Slowly add in flour, alternating with the melted chocolate and milk mixture. Beat until well blended.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Bake for 20 - 25 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

For glaze:

In a small saucepan, mix together chocolate, cream, malt powder and corn syrup. Stir over low heat until smooth. Remove from heat and cool until thickened but still pourable. I did this step in the microwave.

Place a cutting board on top of the brownie pan, invert, remove the pan and carefully pull away the foil. Turn the brownies right side up. I skipped this step. Pour the glaze over and spread it evenly to cover the top of the brownies. Sprinkle with candy sprinkles, if desired. Let stand until set.