Chewy Chocolate Cookies - with Peanut Butter!

I am the type of cook/baker who is more than willing to experiment with entrees & appetizers, and even most desserts. But, for some reason, I am always afraid to try a new cookie recipe.
Maybe it's because my mama makes the best cookies in the world.
I am not really sure.... but I am always nervous about it. The gingersnaps I made the other day for Nate turned out OK, but those were gingersnaps. I don't like gingersnaps, so it wouldn't have been the end of the world if they hadn't turned out. These are something that I was hoping I would like, so I was nervous about them NOT turning out.

Chewy Chocolate Cookies - With Peanut Butter!
(No idea where this came from)

1 1/4 Cup butter flavored Crisco
2 Cup sugar
2 eggs
2 Teaspoon Vanilla
2 Cup flour
3/4 Cup cocoa
1 Teaspoon baking soda
1/2 Teaspoon salt
18 Ounce package peanut butter chips

Instructions:
Cream Crisco & sugar in large mixing bowl. Add eggs & vanilla; blend well. Combine flour, cocoa baking soda, & salt; gradually blend into creamed mixture. Stir in peanut butter chips. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 8-9 minutes. Cool on cookie sheet until set, remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Yields: 4 1/2 dozen



I tried these two different ways--placing them into balls, and placing them into balls then kinda flattening the balls. They looked way better when I just did the balls-they look kinda funny, but the inside seemed more moist.

Also-the amount of peanut butter chips is adjusted from the original--both Nate & I agreed that they need more. The first cookies had the perfect amount, but the last pan did not have enough. If you would rather go light on the peanut butter chips, the original just called for 12 ounces.

Opinions: We LOVED these! I am definitely going to be making these more often! Even Nate loved them, and I wasn't sure what he would think. He asked that I make them more, possibly in place of some of the other cookies I make so often.

Baked Ziti with Broccoli and Sausage

Baked Ziti With Broccoli and Sausage
(No idea)

salt & pepper to taste
8 Ounce sausage
2 Tablespoon butter
2 Tablespoon all purpose flour
2 Cup milk
8 Ounce ziti
1 1/2 Pound broccoli, cut into 1" pieces
1/2 Cup grated parmesan

Instructions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Preheat oven to 350 and lightly grease and 11x7 baking dish. In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook sausage, stirring and breaking up meat, until no longer pink, about 3 minutes. Add butter and stir well/. Sprinkle flour on top and stir for 1-2 minutes. Slowly pour in milk and cook, stirring constantly until smooth and thickened, 3-4 minutes. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
Add ziti to boiling water and cook until tender, about 5 minutes, then add broccoli and cook for 3 minutes. Drain ziti and broccoli in a colander and transfer to a baking dish. Stir in sausage mixture.
Sprinkle Parmesan on top and bake until golden brown and mixture is bubbling, about 25 minutes. Serve hot.

Serves: 4
Prep Time: 10 m
Cook Time: 35 m
Total Time: 45 m

Calories: 440
Cholesterol: 129 mg
Fat: 22 g
Saturated Fat: 5 g
Protein: 50 g
Carbohydrates: 10 g
Sodium: 714 mg
Fiber: 3 g

Opinions: Good! Pretty easy to alter a little. Doesn't re-heat well with the broccoli.

Gingersnaps!

I am not a fan of gingersnaps, but Nate has told me multiple times that he loves them. I've bought them a few times, but I've never made them.

I decided to try making them ages ago when I saw this recipe, and finally did a couple weeks ago.

Gingersnaps
(TOH)


1/3 Cup butter-flavored crisco
1/2 Cup sugar
1 egg
2 Tablespoon molasses
1 Cup all purpose flour
1 Teaspoon baking soda
1/2 Teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon cloves
1/2 Teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 Teaspoon salt
additional sugar

Instructions:
In a large mixing bowl, cream the crisco and sugar. Add egg and molasses; mix well. Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
Shape tablespoonfuls of dough into balls. Roll in additional sugar. Place 2" apart on lightly greased baking sheets. Flatten slightly with glass.
Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned and tops are set and starting to crack. Cool for 2 minutes before removing to wire racks.


Opinions:
I definitely need to make them smaller!! TINY balls. Not tablespoonfuls--more like teaspoonfuls. Other than that, Nate LOVED them. (Well, actually, Nate didn't care about the size. He liked that they were the size of small plates.) I didn't like them, but I'm not a fan of gingersnaps.

I will definitely make these again!!

Glazed Peanut Butter Bars

Since I've said it many times before, I won't get into how amazing my mother is.
However, these glazed peanut butter bars are SPECTACULAR. I substitute peanut butter chips for the butterscotch, but Mama always uses the butterscotch. Either way, these things are amazing.

Glazed Peanut Butter Bars
(Mama)

3/4 Cup butter-flavored crisco
3/4 Cup peanut butter
3/4 Cup sugar
3/4 Cup packed brown sugar
2 Teaspoon water
2 eggs
1 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla
1 1/2 Cup flour
1 1/2 Cup oatmeal
3/4 Teaspoon baking soda
1/2 Teaspoon salt
Glaze
1 1/4 Cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 Cup butterscotch chips
1/2 Cup peanut butter

Instructions:
In a large mixing bowl, cream the crisco, peanut butter, sugars, & water. Beat in eggs & vanilla. Combine the flour, oatmeal, soda, & salt. Gradually add to the creamed mixture. Spread into a greased 15x10 pan. Bake at 325 for 18-22 minutes or until lightly browned.
For glaze, melt chips & peanut butter. Pour over warm bars and spread evenly. Cool completely on a wire rack before cutting.

Approx 4 dozen.


These are a hit, every time. All the time. The only thing negative about this is the amount it makes--not good for two people. :)

My Mama's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Mama's Chocolate Chip Cookies
(Mama. Possibly from Nestle, but Mama has had the recipe for so long I don't know.)

2 1/4 Cup all purpose flour
1 Teaspoon baking soda
1 Teaspoon salt
1 Cup butter flavored Crisco
3/4 Cup sugar
3/4 Cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
2 eggs
12 Ounce chocolate chips

Instructions:
In a small bowl, combine flour, soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine Crisco, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Beat until creamy. Beat in eggs. Gradually add flour mixture. Mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded teaspoonful onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

*You can choose semisweet or milk chocolate. Fun to use a combination of them both, although Mama always used only semi-sweet.

Opinions: I don't think there's anything to say about this, other than the fact that these are the chocolate chips that my Mama has made for as long as I can remember. Really, before I can remember. I absolutely love these. I love my Mama; she basically rocks.


As always, comments are love.

Onion Cheese Soup

This was one of these "well we can try it once" recipes. It was surprisingly pleasant.... I kept going back and forth on if I thought it would be good or not, but in the end we decided to do it.

Onion Cheese Soup
(TOH)

1 Large onion, chopped
3 Tablespoon butter
3 Tablespoon all purpose flour
1/2 Teaspoon salt
Dash pepper
4 Cup milk
8 Ounce shredded colby-jack cheese
seasoned salad croutons
grated parmesan cheese, optional

Instructions:
In a large saucepan, saute the onion in butter. Stir in the flour, salt, and pepper until blended. Gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in cheese until melted. Serve with croutons and Parmesan cheese if desired.

Serving Size: 6


Opinions: We both liked it! It wasn't very onion-y, which was a bit of a surprise. I definitely liked adding the croutons and the parmesan. This is something I would like to make again. Not often, but I would make it again.

As always--comments are love!

Tator Taco Casserole

I love tacos. Quite a lot, actually. And we had some extra tator tots from some recipe or another, so I thought this was worth a shot.

Tator Taco Casserole
(TOH)

2 Pound ground beef
1/4 Cup chopped onion
1 envelope taco seasoning
2/3 Cup water
11 Ounce whole kernel corn
11 Ounce condensed fiesta nacho cheese soup, undiluted
32 Ounce frozen tator tots

Instructions:
In a skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in taco seasoning and water. Simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Stir in corn and soup. Transfer to a greased 3x9 baking dish. Arrange tator tots in a single layer over the top. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until potatoes are crispy and golden brown.

Serves: 8

Opinions: We both liked it! Nate was moderately surprised that he liked it. It even reheated well! I would definitely make it again.