Black and White Cookies

A chocolate lover's dream....

preheat oven to 325 degrees

2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup dark brown sugar(I used light brown because I didn't have any dark brown)
1 cup butter
3 eggs 2 tsp. vanilla
6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
6 oz. white chocolate chips
3/4 cups granulated sugar(I accidentally skipped adding this white sugar and they tasted fine!)

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a separate mixing bowl, cream together sugars and butter. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth. Add flour mixture and chocolates, and blend until just combined. Drop by the tablespoonful onto an ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake 12 minutes. Makes 4 dozen.

Hidden Valley Broiled Fish

Well, I am very picky about how my fish is cooked. This is seriously my favorite marinade for white fish. I usually just use cod fillets, but any kind of white fish would work great. This meal made for some very happy kids, but Brad and I loved it too. It's one of our faves so enjoy!

I served it with cornbread stuffing, cooked carrots and mandarin oranges. Super easy meal!

1 packet/1 oz. Hidden Valley Original Ranch Dressing & Seasoning Mix
1/3 cup lemon juice
3 Tblsp. olive oil
3 Tblsp. Dry white wine
1 1/2 to 2 pounds mild white fish fillets, such as red snapper, sole or cod

Combine seasoning & salad dressing mix with lemon juice, olive oil and wine in a shallow dish. Mix well. Add fish and coat all sides with mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 15 to 30 minutes. Remove fish from maridnade and place on broiler pan or cookie sheet covered with tin foil. Pour remaining marinade over fish. Broil 9 to 12 minutes or until fish begins to flake.

Raspberry filled crepes

Ingredients
Crepes:
4 eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 cubes
1 cup raspberry jam
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Whipped cream:
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 teaspoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Fresh raspberries and vanilla sugar, recipe follows

For the crepes: Preheat the oven to 150 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a blender, add the eggs, milk, flour, sugar, and salt. Blend until the mixture forms a smooth batter. Preheat a 10-inch nonstick crepe pan or skillet over medium-low heat. Add 1 cube of butter to the pan. When the butter has melted, add 1/4 cup of batter and quickly tilt the pan to form an even coating of batter on the bottom of the pan. Cook for 1 minute until set and slightly browned. Using a heat-resistant spatula, carefully loosen the sides and gently flip the crepe over. Cook for 1 minute. Repeat with the remaining butter and batter. In a small bowl, mix together the jam and vanilla extract. Using a 1-teaspoon measuring spoon, spoon 2 teaspoons of the jam mixture into the center of each crepe. Using the back of the spoon, spread the jam evenly over the crepes leaving a 1/2-inch border. Starting at the nearest edge, roll the crepes into tube shapes. Arrange the crepes on the prepared baking sheet and place in a warm oven, for up to 20 minutes, until ready to serve.

For the whipped cream: In a large mixing bowl, beat the heavy cream until it forms soft peaks. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Continue to beat until the cream holds stiff peaks.

Transfer the crepes to a serving platter and sprinkle with vanilla sugar. Serve with whipped cream and fresh raspberries.

Vanilla Sugar:


2 cups sugar
1 vanilla bean
Add the sugar to the bowl of a food processor. Using a paring knife, slice the vanilla bean in half, lengthwise, and scrape out the seeds. Add the vanilla seeds to the sugar. Pulse 10 to 15 times until the vanilla and sugar are combined. Cut the empty vanilla pod into 1-inch pieces and add to a glass mason jar. Add the vanilla sugar to the jar and seal. Shake the jar before using.

Yield: 2 cups

Cafe Rio's Chicken

5 lbs chicken breast - boneless skinless
1 T. chili powder
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small bottle Zesty Italian Dressing
1/2-1 T. cumin

Mix all ingredients together in a large crock pot for 5-7 hrs on high. Remove Chicken and shred with fork. Reserve a small amount of juice and pour over shredded chicken to keep moist. Keep warm.

~Michelle

Manicotti

This manicotti is amazing, it tasted just like I went to a resturant:) It's from grandmas kitchens treasured family recipes
Ingredients
12 large manicotti
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
2 cups ricotta cheese
6 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or 2 tablespoons dried basil
1 (26 ounce) jar prepared spaghetti sauce, divided (
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese or romano cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions(be sure to not over cook, they need to be a little chewey for easier stuffing). Carefully remove each shell and rinse with cool water. Let pasta dry on paper towels.

Preheat oven to 350°F Spray 13x9-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
For the filling, in a large ziplock bag, (put in 3 cups mozzarella with the ricotta and fresh basil. Seal the bag tightly. Smush the bag around with your hands until the ingredients are thoroughly mixed .
Snip off the bottom corner of the ziplock bag (the point is to have the hole a tad smaller than the manicotti opening, where you can just barely slip it into the shell). Use this method to squeeze the cheese mixture into each manicotti.

Spoon 2 cups spaghetti sauce into prepared baking dish. Arrange stuffed pasta over sauce. Pour remaining spaghetti sauce over top of pasta. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella.

Bake manicotti for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with the Parmesan; bake for 10 minutes longer. Serve immediately

Pumpkin Choc. Chip Cookies

If you like pumpkin and chocolate, you'll love these cookies!

I wanted to make these for everyone over Thanksgiving but never got around to it.

1 1/2 c. pumpkin

1/2 c butter

1 c sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 egg

2 c flour

1 tsp soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

Mix first 6 then add flour 12-14 mins @ 375

Frosting

1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1/3 c butter

1 tsp vanilla

2 c powdered sugar

Creamy Fruit Salad

2 apples

2 bananas

2 cups grapes

5-10 strawberries

1 cup heavy whipping cream

3 Tbls. sugar

Cinnamon(optional)

Cut up fruit and place in bowl. Whip the cream and sugar together until stiff peaks form. Add the cream to the fruit. Sprinkle with a little cinnamon if desired. Mix well. You can also use mandarin oranges, kiwi or any kind of berries.

10-12 servings