Creamy Caramel Dip

If you like apples you need this dip in your life.  It is creamy and dreamy and the perfect snack any time of the year.  It couldn't be simpler to make either.  My 3-year-old loves to make this.  He dips his apples in it, but ends up eating it with a spoon most of the time.  It takes only 4 ingredients and you probably already have them on hand.  

I made this last year and we used it to sample lots of different varieties of apples.  Turns out that Honeycrisp apples are our favorites with Gala and Pink Lady tying for second.  I also like a good Granny Smith apple--especially when it's paired with a sweet caramel dip.  I'm not sure why Red Delicious apples even exist--not to mention the fact that they are so widely available. I've never had a delicious one and the texture is weird to me.  Maybe I'm just weird.  What is your favorite variety of apple to munch on? 

 - Leesh

Creamy Caramel Dip

Printable Version

Ingredients:

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8 ounces cream cheese, softened (low-fat works really well here)

½ - ⅔ cup brown sugar--depending on how sweet you like it

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 teaspoons lemon juice

Directions:

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Stir ingredients together until well combined.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  Serve with sliced apples or any other fruit.  

Notes:

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I like to make sure the cream cheese is really soft so you don’t get lumps in the dip.  I do this by placing it on a plate and microwaving it at 20% power for 30 second intervals until it’s super melty.  

Recipe Source:

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A to Z cookbook for Kids, by Jacque Wick

Cajun Chicken Pasta

I'm always looking for fast, easy, cheap, and yummy dinners.  I think this may be a new go-to for us.  My mother-in-law made it for us last time we were in Utah for a visit, only she used shrimp instead of chicken.  It was delicious and came together so quickly!  I thought I'd share it here just in time for Mardi Gras (which is February 12th this year).  Jeff spent a few years of his childhood in Lousiana, so at our house we use that as an excuse to celebrate Mardi Gras and eat yummy Cajun food.  So, if you need an excuse to make this, use Mardi Gras and you can thank me later.  

Cajun Chicken Pasta

Printable Version

Ingredients:

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For the blackened chicken:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon onion powder

For the sauce:
1- 14.5 ounce can crushed tomatoes
2-3 teaspoons cajun/creole seasoning (some brands are spicier than others, so season gradually and taste as you go)
1- 15 ounce jar alfredo sauce (or make your own. This is my favorite--just use half of a batch.)
salt and pepper to taste

1/2 pound linguini, or other pasta, cooked and drained

Directions:

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Preheat oven to 350. Heat a cast iron skillet or grill pan over high heat for 5 minutes until it is smoking hot.
Mix together the paprika, salt, cayenne, cumin, thyme, white pepper, and onion powder. Oil the chicken breasts with cooking spray on both sides, then coat the chicken breasts evenly with the spice mixture.

Place the chicken in the hot pan, and cook for 1 minute. Turn, and cook 1 minute on other side.  Transfer skillet to oven and bake in the preheated oven until no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 5-10 minutes depending on the thickness.  When the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165, remove chicken breasts from skillet and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.  While chicken is resting, cook your pasta and prepare sauce.  

In a medium saucepan, combine crushed tomatoes, alfredo sauce, and cajun/creole seasoning. Heat over med-low, until hot and bubbly.  Slice chicken and serve with sauce over hot pasta.  .  

Notes:

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The chicken is a bit spicy, if you want to reduce the spiciness, cut back on the cayenne pepper.
This is also really yummy using shrimp instead of chicken.  
If you have leftover chicken and sauce--use them on a pizza! :)

Recipe Source: My mother-in-law Karen, and allrecipes

Sugar Cookies

• I have never really been a sugar cookie lover, but they are so pretty and fun to decorate, so I usually only make them a few times a year. Every time I make them I swear I won't do it again because they take a lot of time and I usually end up in a disastrous mess where every bowl and measuring cup in my kitchen end up dirty. Now that we have a dishwasher (we didn't for the first 2.5 years of marriage), I feel like I can make sugar cookies without ruining my marriage by arguing whose dish day it is...
  
  
  Although I'm not a sugar cookie lover, I do like these ones and they got great reviews when I made them for a little Halloween get-together. Lu posted a Sugar Cookie recipe that she likes to use, but this one is a little bit different, so I wanted to share. This one is bakes for less time at a higher temp and makes a bit more than her recipe. I like 'em soft and chewy, so I roll them thick, but if you like them crispy, you can roll them thinner or just leave them in a few minutes longer.  Happy Halloween!
  
  
  
  
  
  (For these cookies, I used the glacé icing recipe that Linds posted on here a while back from the girls over at Our Best Bites, where I got the spiderweb idea. That recipe is definitely a keeper. I think with the glacé icing, the cookies taste better the next day. These are also great smeared thick with some classic cream cheese frosting.)
  Rolled Sugar Cookies
  Printable Version
  
  1 1/2 cups butter
  2 cups white sugar
  4 eggs
  1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  5 cups all-purpose flour
  2 teaspoons baking powder
  1 teaspoon salt
  
  In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
  
  Preheat oven to 400. Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on silicone or parchment-lined cookie sheets.
  Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Be careful not to over bake--cookies will not be browned even though they are fully cooked.  Allow to cool completely before frosting.
  
  
  Recipe Source: allrecipes.com

Tootsie Pop Ghosts {in an Egg Carton Graveyard}

I have been thinking about and dreaming about our upcoming Halloween party this weekend. We are having several of my nieces and nephews over and my in-laws. I have never really got into Halloween much, but when there are fun things to make and a party to make them for I just can't seem to help myself. It's lots of fun! In my preparation for this party I remembered back to when I was a kid and my mom would make tootsie pops into cute ghosts. So I thought I'd better do that as a fun little party favor for everyone to take.

(see more pictures below for a simple tutorial)

This project is really simple, and if you save your egg carton then you'll probably have everything on hand except the tootsie pops (or you could use blow pops, I think dum-dums are a little small for this, but you could and they'd just be baby ghosts).

All you need is:

• Egg carton (12 or 18 count egg carton, depending on how many you want to make)

• Tootsie pops (blow pops, dum dums (for baby ghosts) or any other round-shaped sucker)

• Kleenex

• String, ribbon, colored pipe cleaner wire, fabric, etc for tying

• Black Permanent Marker

• Green paint or paper (optional)

Okay, let's get started:

First pain the sides of the egg carton lid green, or cover them with green paper for grass in the graveyard. Then with a permanent marker after the paint has dried write "R.I.P." On each egg holder/tombstone.
Next, place a Kleenex over each tootsie pop and tie a piece or fabric (that's what I used), or any of the following: string, ribbon, colored pipe cleaner wire, yarn, etc. around the bottom of the sucker. And draw to black eyes on. It'd also be cute do buy those googly eyes and glue them on (just make sure it doesn't glue through onto the sucker.
Once the paint is dry on the egg carton, fill it with newspaper. This will help hold the ghost pops up when you put them in....otherwise they will not stand up very well.
Next you'll turn the egg carton so it's upside down (tomb-side up) take a sharp knife and just twist it until you get a small hole in each egg compartment. This way the little ghosties will fit in nice!
Now start putting the ghost in each hole you poked and then soon you'll have a full grave yard of haunting ghosts! :)
Aren't they cute?