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A Super Cool Cousin And Her Friend's Awesome Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookie Bars

2/18/2013

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
Cookie Bars

Oh these are yummy.

I mean YUM-EEEEEEEE!

This recipe is from the cool food blog DinnersDishesandDesserts.com.
I found Erin's blog through my super amazing,
cousin-by-marriage J.

J is a cross between Superwoman and a Rock Star.
She inspires me every.single.day with her amazing strength
and wit and grace.
And she has turned me on to several food blogs of which I would not have known about including DinnersDishesandDesserts.

Okay,
so here's the fixins for these Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookie
Bars.

And since my baking skills and patience are pretty lacking and because my head almost pops off my shoulders whenever I have to bake (don't believe me?
see here....and here)

....I decided to set out all the baking stuff I needed ahead of time.
See,
pretty good eh??!!

Did you notice my cute Christmas spatula thing?

HoHoHo to you!

I have a feeling I've bragged about this Christmas spatula before, like within the last two weeks.
Hmmm. I either must stop bragging or quit getting excited over and over about dumb things.

So let's start by making the cookie layer.
I think Erin says in her blog this is a very standard cookie dough mixture.

So we start with the cream cheese, butter and sugar.

See, that's the thing...baking ingredients takes such boring pictures.

I should have stuck a cat up on the counter or something.

It gets a little more exciting though when you add the brown brown sugar and the brown vanilla and the yellow and clear eggs in.

Now add the flour, salt and baking soda in.

You know, I will say I started getting excited about right here cuz I knew what was coming...

Chocolate chips
!!!!!!!!!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can you tell I rarely eat anything with chocolate chips in it?

Okay,

moving on, we now have the chocolate chip cookie dough.

Now we start with the cream cheese filling.

Cream the cream cheese with the egg, vanilla and sugar.

Easy enough and Good Golly Miss Molly,
DO NOT start eating this. You may not be able to stop.

Is what I heard.

Now we get to the good part!!!!
Spread half that evil dough into the bottom of the
baking dish.

Do you have any of that creamy cream cheese and sugar mixture left from slurping it down straight outta that bowl? If you do, then pour it onto the cookie dough!

Dollop the other half of the cookie dough onto the top of the mixture.
Don't dilly dally...

dollop!!

Bake for 35-45 minutes,
remove from oven and allow to cool.

Hint: Don't wait for the kids to come home....

Plate one up already!

Or five!
I only plated one up cuz I had eaten so much of the cream cheese mixture. I mean I had filled up with raw veggies at lunch.

See that cream cheese peeking out there?

It says, "Hello."

And those gooey

ooey

chocolate morsels?

They say, "Hey Good Lookin'."

And the
cookie-wookie yummy-tummy topping?

It says,
"Be my Valentine."

This recipe is a fun combination of cookie and cheesecake all within a bar.
These are delish!
It'd be awesome if someone else tries these and let me know what you think.
Here's the recipe, printable is on the right hand side.

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookie Bars
From dinnersdishesanddesserts.com
Courtesy www.turnkeyqualitycars.com

Cookie Layer:
½ cup butter
½ cup shortening
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
2 ¼ cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 bag chocolate chips

Cheesecake Layer:
1 (8oz) package cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla

Cream together the butter, shortening and sugar. Add in eggs, and vanilla. Mix in flour, salt, and baking soda. Stir in chocolate chips. Transfer this to another bowl.

In mixer beat cream cheese until smooth - about 2-3 minutes on medium speed. Add sugar, egg and vanilla. Mix until just combined.

Using a 13x9 pan, spread ½ the cookie dough over the bottom of the pan. Pour the cream cheese mixture over the dough. With the remaining dough, drop chunks of it over the cream cheese.

Bake for 35-45 minutes. The top will be lightly browned, and if you insert a toothpick it will come out clean.

Allow to cool before slicing. Store in the fridge.

Okay so my above mentioned cousin J...she posts the best, most inspirational quotes and musings ever.
She inspires me and her words constantly inspire me.
J posted this poem and I thought I would share it.

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate;
I am the captain of my soul.

- "Invictus" by William Ernest Henley

Okay guys, that's all I got!

Have a great night!!!
Stay warm
and
we'll talk at ya soon!

Get Yo' Man Chicken...Kitty Wells Had Her Man For 70 Years

2/16/2013

Kitty Wells,
Queen of Country Music.
The first female to record a full length LP in country music,
the first female to top the country charts,
the first female country star.

Hi Kitty!
Doesn't she just look like someone you would want to know?

Kitty was born Ellen Muriel Deason in Nashville in 1919.

Makin' Believe was one of her biggest songs, covered by many.

gactv.com

She was married to country singer
Johnnie Wright for almost 74 years until his death in 2011 at the age of 97! 97!

Now how cute are they????!!!

Kitty was an excellent cook too,
she learned from her mother.

lib.unc.edu

I want to find this 1964 cookbook sometime!!

I want it
I want it
I want it
whaaaaaaaaa!

Kitty paved the way for other female country superstars like Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton.

Here's Loretta and Kitty singing the old gospel In The Sweet By And By...

So I made this Get Yo' Man Chicken and Buttered Rice on Valentine's Day.
It's Neely's recipe. I love them.
Neelys, hey, CALL ME! 1-800-chickcantcook.

Arggghh! I could not get a good picture of this tangy finger lickin' chicken.

Here's a close-up of the chicken...can you smell that tangy tomato and onions and lemon-pepper and rosemary?

And really,

not a ton of ingredients here.

Very little chopping for the chicken...

just these onions.

So let's start by seasoning these skinless chicken thighs...

Now brown both sides of the chicken thighs...be sure to get a good scowl on them!

Set them aside for a bit.

See that good yummy stuff in the pan down below on the left?
Well, throw those onions in and saute!!

Now add the wine and the chicken broth....

Add the crushed tomatoes and
lemon-pepper and rosemary...

Okay,
here's this yummy tangy sauce just waiting for some juicy meat to jump in it.

BINGO!!!!

Now let these simmer, covered, for
a while....

I looked down from the stove and this is what I see,
no kidding.

QUIT TAKING PICTURES OF US!! GIVE US TREATS!!! WE SAID NOW!!!!

Apparently, my Valentine's entourage was
"helping" me out in the kitchen.

Seriously,
I can not get any peace around here.

Okay,

now these are the fixins for the buttered rice.
Pretty simple, eh?

Not much on the prepping end either...scallions, thyme, a little parsley and chunky garlic.

Begin sauteing the scallions in the butter.

Okay,

now pour in the rice...

And stir until glossy...

not like you hear that every day huh.
Say what?

Now pour in that chicken stock and throw in that smashed garlic and thyme.

Let simmer for 10-15 minutes, covered of course.

Throw in the chopped parsley...

...and your buttered rice is ready to go!

So the chicken is ready in the skillet...

Now plate up this finger lickin',
tangy chicken and rice.

Now this doesn't pack the kind of flavor where you're like
WOW!!!
wow!!!!
Holy moly, wow!!!!!

It's more like...
why do I keep eating this? It's good but not a huge flavor punch yet I keep eating and eating and eating.

And it's even better the next day for leftovers!

So I will definitely make this again...
healthy, tasty, and sits well with Tim's acid reflux.

Hey, aren't these Valentine's towels saaa-weet?

How cute are these screen printed towels from etsy.com/shop/tinypeepers? Love her stuff!

They're from a website called tinypeepers.com...I love her vintagey looking screenprinting.

Oh my goodness,
here's the recipes!
WHY do I always forget the recipes???

Dear Brain,

Do better.

Love,
Angie

P.S. I'm serious.

Get Yo’ Man Chicken
www.foodnetwork.com Down Home With The Neelys...check their show out, excellent recipes!
Courtesy www.turnkeyqualitycars.com
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 chicken thighs, skinless
1 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoons pepper
1 medium onion, sliced
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup white wine
1 (14.5-ounce) can crushed tomatoes in thick puree
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon lemon-pepper

Hot buttered rice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

Directions
Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat.

Pat chicken dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper. Brown the chicken, meat-side down first, and turning once, about 4 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate to reserve.

Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of oil from the pan.

Add onion to the pan and saute until tender, roughly 3 minutes. Add the stock and wine and stir, scrapping any brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Turn heat to high and reduce by half, about 3 minutes. Pour in the crushed tomatoes and add the dried herbs and lemon pepper. Add the chicken thighs back into the pan.Cover and cook on medium-low heat for 40 minutes.

Remove chicken from liquid and serve on hot buttered rice. Ladle the sauce on top and garnish with fresh chopped parsley.

Perfect Rice
Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
1 shallot, chopped
1 1/2 cups long-grain rice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 1/2 cups chicken broth or water, warmed
1 clove garlic, smashed
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley leaves, for garnish

Directions
Melt butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add shallot and saute until tender. Add the rice and stir until the rice is glossy and coated with the butter. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and add the warmed stock. Add the smashed garlic and sprigs of thyme. Cover with a tight fitting lid. Cook for 15 to 17 minutes.

Remove the thyme and garlic. Fluff with a fork and add fresh chopped parsley.

Okay guys, that's all I have for today....gettin' a little late.
Hope everybody has a good rest of the weekend
and we'll
talk at ya soon!!!

I Made And Ate My Super Bowl Food Early - Aaron McCargo's Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos - Not For The Faint Of Heart

2/3/2013

This is Aaron McCargo from the Food Network show Big Daddy's House.

Foodnetwork.com

His show is awesome, his food is down home DEEELICIOUS and packed with flavor!
He has a cookbook out that I need to remember to get.

Aaronmccargo.com

And the guy is funny!
Now this video doesn't showcase his humor so much
but c'mon,
FUNKY FRIED CHICKEN!!

Okay, the recipe I made of his is
LOADED SWEET POTATO NACHOS.

Tim's mom called the other day and told me Rachael Ray was making
sweet potato nachos.
Well I googled them and they looked yummy.
But Aaron's looked even more deeelicious!

So I made them and ate them!
Loaded
Sweet Potato Nachos!

These are packed full of flavor!!!
Keep that in mind.
You will need to adjust a few of the ingredients for the kiddos in your house.

Okay,
so here's the fixins for these fine Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos.

Important Angie Cheat Alert:

I cheated and used bags of organic sweet potato chips instead of slicing and frying sweet potatoes by hand.

I was planning on making the homemade chips,
I really was!
But

like my childhood dreams of being crowned Miss America.....

yeah,

it.
just.
didn't.
happen.

So using good sweet potato tortilla chips is FINE!

Not being Miss America is FINE!

I would have looked AWESOME in that crown!

tlcdiscovery.com

boston.com

Oh shut up.
You knew you were gonna win.

Anyway,

so many recipes call for chipotle peppers.

Here's the brand I buy.

And quite frankly,
I've never used Gouda before for cooking.

The recipe calls for smoked Gouda but I picked up the plain by accident. Worked fine since there was already smoky flavor from the chipotles.

Also I used homemade barbeque sauce.
I always use The Neely's recipe here.

So easy to make and totally rocks the house!

Okay guys, I took a couple pictures of the prepping of the chipotles and the jalapenos.
I don't know which picture is scarier and also why I thought
it was even okay to take these pictures!!!!!

Exhibit #A:

I was trying to show that you only need to use three peppers but to save and freeze the rest.

Could there BE a MORE unappetizing picture?

Exhibit #B

I was TRYING to show that I use these disposable gloves when I slice jalapenos.

What in the heck was I thinking???
Could there BE a more scarier picture??
Geez.

The bigger question is...

WILL ANGIE EVER GET THIS STUPID POST FINISHED????

Anyhoo,

chop up all the vegetables and shred up that Gouda.

OH! Next time, I may use provolone, that would be good too.

Next,

start browning the beef....

Now throw the onions and garlic in and begin sauteing...

Now throw the chipotle peppers and tomato paste in.

Add that yummy, spicy barbeque sauce!

The hard work is done...

let this simmer now for a bit.

Okay, let's start putting these
Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos
together...

Throw your chips on an oven proof tray. I used this dish cause I don't have an ovenproof tray that is something other than a disgusting looking baking sheet.

Now layer the beef on top.

Layer on some cheese.

And
some hot jalapenos that were sliced with a scary looking black gloved hand.

And now do it all over again until you get to the cheese....

Throw the dish in the oven for a few minutes to let the cheese melt...and then whip on those jalapenos...

Now drizzle the remaining spicy barbeque sauce on.

Sprinkle the chopped scallions all over...

Looky Gooood!!

Mmmmm. See that spicy sweet barbeque sauce

drizzled over the gooey cheese

and the spicy smoky meat under that?

All on tasty salty sweet potato chips!

Well, don't be shy....plate some up!

Be sure
to have a fork handy,

you is-a-gonna need it!

Okay kids, that's all I have for today.
I better go find something to make for the Super Bowl since I made and ate these nachos up a day early.

Also

I gotta find a way to kick these rugrats off my couch in time for kickoff.

Cause Ima need plenty of room for my
all time favorite meal....

I think it's interesting how I always insist on the "lite" french onion dip. As if that's gonna matter pairing it with those two other nutritional food groups. What-ev-er.

Have a good rest of the weekend!
Talk at ya soon!

CRAP! I forgot!!
Here's the recipe!!!

Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos
Recipe is from Aaron McCargo of Big Daddy’s House on the Food Network
www.foodnetwork.com – Check his show out sometime-Fantastic recipes
Courtesy www.turnkeyqualitycars.com

Ingredients
Angie’s Note: I cheated and used organic sweet potato chips instead of making them by hand.
    Canola oil, for frying
    2 large sweet potatoes, thinly sliced on a mandoline
    Salt and freshly ground black pepper
    2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
    1 1/2 pounds ground beef
    1 onion, diced
    1 tablespoon minced garlic
    1 tablespoon tomato paste
    3 chipotles, minced
    1 1/2 cups, favorite BBQ sauce, plus some for drizzling
    2 cups grated smoked Gouda
    3 red jalapenos, sliced
    1 bunch scallions, sliced

Directions
Preheat the oven to broil. Preheat a deep-fryer or heavy-bottomed pot, with enough canola oil to come halfway up the sides of the pot, to 325 degrees F.

Working in batches, deep-fry the sweet potatoes until crisp, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from fryer to a paper towel lined platter and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside.

Add the grapeseed oil to a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add meat and brown it until almost cooked through, about for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook until softened, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste, chipotles, and salt and pepper, to taste. Stir several times to incorporate. Add the BBQ sauce, bring to a simmer and cook for an additional 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from the heat.

To assemble nachos:
Using 2 oven-proof platters, lay some sweet potato chips on each platter. Top the potatoes with some meat, cheese, and jalapenos. Repeat the layers with the remaining ingredients, except for a handful of jalapenos. Broil until the cheese melts, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the platters from the broiler and top them with the remaining jalapenos, a drizzle of BBQ sauce and the scallions. Serve.

Parmesan-Roasted Cauliflower

2/2/2013

Cauliflower.

Osborneseed.com

Orange, white, purple and green cauliflower.

Parmesan-Roasted Cauliflower

It's like candy.
Only way more healthier.

Okay, this is the normal spot I usually reserve for some weird fact or story about the dish I cooked.
Or ridiculous pet picture.

But you know,

there's absolutely nothing interesting about cauliflower.

It's a cruciferous whoop de whoo whoo bloop whatever I want cheesecake I got bored reading about it.

This Parmesan-Roasted Cauliflower
is so tasty though...onions, garlic, cauliflower, FRESH thyme, olive oil and yummy fresh PARMESAN!

This recipe came to me via the Facebook page of the facility I work out at: Performance for Health.

Facebook page Performance For Health, Coralville, Cedar Rapids, and Kalona

Uh Okay, it's the place I, uh, possibly need to haul my behind to a lot more than I do possibly.

Is being lazy so bad, in the whole scheme of things,
really?

Performance is an awesome workout facility though...professional athletes even use the facility in the off season.

I know that to be the case cuz I was working out next to a professional football player a couple times last year. Uh huh.
I KNOW this NFL football player was impressed with my awesome weight lifting lifting of the weight thing and bar thing, but was just too embarrassed probably to ask for guidance from a girl, but whatever. His loss.

WHAT???!!!
You don't know. You weren't there.

Anyhoo, let's get back to this Roasted Cauliflower dish.

Not many ingredients for this super tasty side dish.

So cut up the cauliflower, onions,
and smash that garlic in the skin.
OH! I halved the recipe by the way,
since there was only two of us,
and only one of us eats cauliflower.

I figured something out,

if you use the knife to cut the cauliflower,

you get clean cuts and the vegetable will lay flat on the pan.
And look prettier too.

So take the
cut cauliflower
and onions
and smashed garlic

and spread them out on a cooking tray.

Drizzle with olive oil.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper and throw the sprigs of thyme on there.

Now throw the tray in the oven for 35 or so minutes, tossing occasionally.

You're not done yet...
don't get too antsy,

after taking out the pan....

...SPRINKLE THAT YUMMY PARMESAN CHEESE ON TOP!

Roast for 10 more minutes...

And remove from oven.

By the way,
the smell of the roasting cauliflower and onions and garlic is amaaaazing!

The roasted cauliflower and the melting Parm with the caramelized onions...
you want to start eating it right off the tray.
No kidding!

But don't be a heathen.

Plate some up for real.

I'm not exaggerating when I say this was like candy.

Okay. I am definitely making this again and again...
so easy
and so flavorful
and especially so healthy.

Here's the recipe...printable is on the right hand side.

Parmesan-Roasted Cauliflower
From www.bonappetit.com
Courtesy www.turnkeyqualitycars.com

Ingredients
    1 head cauliflower
    1 sliced medium onion
    4 thyme sprigs
    4 unpeeled garlic cloves
    3 tablespoons olive oil
    Kosher salt
    Freshly ground black pepper
    1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Preparation
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Cut 1 head cauliflower into florets.

Toss on a large rimmed baking sheet with 1 sliced medium onion, 4 thyme sprigs, 4 unpeeled garlic cloves, and 3 tablespoons olive oil.

Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Roast, tossing occasionally, until almost tender, 35-40 minutes.

Sprinkle with ½ cup grated Parmesan, toss to combine.

Roast until cauliflower is tender, 10-12 minutes longer.

Okay guys, that's all I have for today!

Giblet Pearl has a few words she would like to
share though...

Dear Humans,

So what.
I like to hang out inside my Dad's shirts and my Mom's zippered hoodies.

Is that so wrong?

Love,
Gibby

P.S. Mom asks that you disregard any pet hair you ever see on her clothes, it is a losing battle she says.

Have a good weekend guys, I may be posting an earthy quinoa and mushroom casserole recipe later today.

Doesn't a quinoa mushroom casserole sound super exciting??
*yawn*

It was oddly satisfying though.

Okay, we'll talk at ya soon!!!!

A Super Cool Cousin And Her Friend's Awesome Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookie Bars

Get Yo' Man Chicken...Kitty Wells Had Her Man For 70 Years

I Made And Ate My Super Bowl Food Early - Aaron McCargo's Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos - Not For The Faint Of Heart

Parmesan-Roasted Cauliflower

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