Amy's Sweet Green Chili Rice

One of my favorite classroom parents EVER shared this delish rice recipe with me-- and it changed my life! Haha. But, really...It's so good that I decided to name it after her! Usually I do not really like Mexican-style rice because it tends to be so dry and flavorless. Amy's rice is moist and FULL of flavor. I think I've made it twice a week since she shared the recipe with me! Try it as a side dish, on a taco, in a burrito, etc. You won't be disappointed!

Amy, you are one of the sweetest people I know. I feel blessed to know you and more than that, I feel honored to have had your sweet baby girl in my class! Thank you for this delicious recipe!

Ingredients:
- 2 cups of minute rice
- 2 cups of chicken broth
- 1 garlic pod, minced
- 1/2 small onion, diced
- zest of 1 lime
- juice of 1/2 lime
- 1 chicken bouillon cube
- 1 tablespoon of sugar
- 4 ounces of diced green chilies
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup of frozen mixed veggies, depending on how much you want (I use the carrots, peas, corn, green beans mix)
- dash of olive oil, salt and pepper

Directions:
1) Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is soft.
2) Add remaining ingredients, except rice, and bring to a boil.
3) After it comes to a boil, add rice and stir well. Turn heat off and cover. Leave covered for 10 minutes.
4) Remove lid, stir, serve immediately. Voila!

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Cream Cheese Banana Nut Bread

If there's one thing my sister and I share... It's a love for cooking and trying new things in the kitchen! She lives in Houston so we don't get to share these moments too often, but when we do we have the best time. Just a few weeks ago I went to Houston for a visit and we made a variety of things- one being this cream cheese banana nut bread. This was really easy and so yummy! We saw the original recipe on Pinterest and it made 2 loaves. We cut the recipe in half to just make one loaf. The full recipe is listed below. Try this! It won't let you down!

Love you, Steph! I can't wait for my next visit and I'm looking forward to some more cooking adventures with you! xo

Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup of butter, softened
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 2 cups of sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 3 cups of flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 1/2 cups of mashed bananas (about 4 medium bananas)
- 1 cup of roughly chopped pecans
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:
Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition.
Combine flour and next three ingredients; gradually add to butter mixture, beating at a low speed just until blended. Stir in bananas, pecans, and vanilla. Spoon batter into 2 greased and floured 8x4 inch loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Voila!

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Crock Pot Monday: Chili Colorado Burritos

My poor, neglected blog! School has been keeping me swamped, exhausted, and Strep-ridden this year :( . Boo! But I'm going to try harder to share some of the delicious recipes we have been cooking at the Farque household! This is one of them. Of course I found it on Pinterest and it is super easy. The meat cooks all day in the crock pot so it's really tender. Then you assemble the burritos when you get home, melt the cheese, and voila! Easy Mexican food at your fingertips. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
- 2 pounds of stew meat or other beef cubed
- 20 ounces of red enchilada sauce
- 2 beef bouillon cubes
- 1/2 can of refried beans
- 5-7 burrito size flour tortillas
- 1 cup or so of shredded cheese
- 1/2 of an onion, chopped
- small handful of chopped cilantro

Directions:
1) Season the beef with garlic powder, a little Greek seasoning, and a little Mexican seasoning (or whatever you have). Go easy on the salt since you'll be adding 2 beef bouillon cubes to the mixture.
2) Add the beef, bouillon, enchilada sauce, onions, and cilantro to the crock pot and cook on low for 7 or 8 hours. Mine cooked for about 8 and the meat was perfect.
3) After the meat is cooked, use a slotted spoon to get it all out of the crock pot. Use two forks to shred the meat and then put it back in the juice.
4) Turn your broiler on. Put some beef, refried beans, a little juice from the crock pot, and cheese in the tortilla and roll it up. Cover the top with more juice and cheese. Put under the broiler unil the cheese is melted.
5) Voila!

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Chicken Marinade

I am always looking for new ways to cook chicken. I feel like every week we eat some sort of chicken, beef, pork, and seafood. Every. Single. Week! I love to branch out but sometimes it's just easier to make something that you've already made. Have you ever felt that way? Well I found this simple marinade recipe and decided to try it. I used chicken tenderloins because I love to bring them in my lunch as wraps. The chicken was so good! And this recipe makes a whole jar full of marinade so you can use it more than once. I cut the recipe in half because I was only marinating about 1/2 pound of chicken (the full recipe is listed below). I mixed everything and let it sit over night. The chicken came out moist delicious!

Ingredients:

- 1 cup of olive oil

- 3/4 cup of soy sauce

- 1/2 cup of red wine vinegar

- 1/2 cup of Worcestershire sauce

- 1/2 cup of brown sugar

- 1/3 cup of fresh lemon juice

- 2 tablespoons of minced garlic (I used garlic powder)

- 3 teaspoons of salt

- generous dash of pepper

* Mix all of the ingredients together and submerge chicken. The original recipe says to marinate for at least 4 hours. I marinated the tenderloins over night.

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Crock Pot Monday: Hickory Smoked Brisket

School is back in full swing...And so is Crock Pot Monday! I tried this super easy recipe in my slow cooker and it was delish! It's probably my new favorite way to cook a brisket. It was tender and juicy, and it had a slight smokey taste like it was cooked on a grill. Jason loves brisket and he absolutely LOVED this! We will definitely be having this again very soon. You can view the original recipe here, and a short video on how to put the foil in your crock pot.

Ingredients:
3-4 pound brisket, trimmed
1/4 cup of liquid smoke
1/2 teaspoon of celery salt
1/2 teaspoon of garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon of onion powder
a sprinkle of Tony's

Directions:
1) Line the bottom of your crock pot with foil. I used 2 pieces to make sure none of the juice leaked out.
2) Place the brisket in the crock pot. Pour the liquid smoke on top.
3) Sprinkle all seasonings on top.
4) Cook on low for 8-12 hours.
5) Voila! Seriously, it's that easy.

Try this soon!

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Homemade Granola Bars

These are no-bake and really easy! I have been looking for simple and healthy lunch snacks to bring to school. I found this recipe on Pinterest and decided to try it. I added in some ground flax seed to the mixture so these bars are actually pretty healthy. They sort of taste like no bake cookies. I found a few other recipes for granola bars that I'm thinking about trying, too-- one had Nutella in it! Stay tuned!

Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup of natural peanut butter
- 1/3 cup of local honey
- 1/4 cup of unsalted butter
- 1 cup of oats (not quick oats)
- 2 tablespoons of wheat germ
- 2 tablespoons of ground flax seed
- 1/2 cup of mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1) Melt the butter, peanut butter, and honey over low-medium heat. Stir constantly.
2) Turn off the burner when melted. Pour in the oats, wheat germ, and flax seed. Stir til combined.
3) You can wait until the mixture cools to add in the chocolate chips, or if you're like me (impatient) just go ahead and dump it all right in. The result will be a more uniform chocolate taste (shown in the picture).
4) Pour mixture into a foil-lined 8x8 pan and stick in the fridge. Once cooled, take the foil out of the pan and cut to the size you like.
5) Voila!

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Oreo Cookie Bark

Only 2 ingredients and about 20 minutes stands between you and this very simple and yummy dessert! I have to admit that my version was not as pretty as the one in this picture- but it was delicious none the less. Here's the link for the original recipe. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
- 10 ounces of Ghirardelli white chocolate chips
- 15 Oreos, plus a few more for topping

Directions:
1) Line an 8x8 pan with enough parchment paper for 1 inch overhang.
2) Place chocolate in a double boiler over low heat and stir until chocolate is completely melted. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.
3) Crush Oreos and mix into the melted chocolate and use a spatula to spread mixture in the 8x8 pan.
4) Finely chop remaining Oreos and sprinkle on top. Chill pan for about 10 minutes until chocolate becomes solid.
5) Life whole bark out of pan by holding the parchment overhang.  Break bark into pieces.
6) Voila!

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Easy Chicken Marsala

Jason and I ate dinner at a very dear friend's house this summer. She made chicken cordon bleu with a marsala cream sauce. It was amazing! There's nothing better than great food mixed with great company! Ever since then I've been thinking of recreating her recipe. I came across this recipe on Pinterest and decided to go for it! This was my very first time to make chicken marsala and it turned out great! And surprisingly it was fairly quick and easy. I served it with some bow tie pasta- I will definitely be making this again very soon. I followed the recipe exactly- but my sauce didn't turn out quite like the one in the blogpost. It was a little too runny-- so I added some extra heavy cream, chicken broth, and instant brown gravy mix. That really did the trick! The recipe below is adapted from the original recipe on I found on Pinterest. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
- 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts (The original recipe says to cut the chicken breasts in half and pound them. I skipped that step by buying HEB's chicken breasts that are "young chicken" and "thinly sliced")
- 1/2 cup of flour
- About 1 cup of veg. oil- depending on the size of your pan
- 8 ounces of sliced mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons of butter
- 1/2 cup of sweet Marsala wine (next time I might add a little less)
- 1/4 cup of chicken stock
- 1/4 cup of sherry or dry white wine (next time I might add a little less)
- heavy whipping cream, as needed
- instant brown gravy mix, as needed
- salt, pepper, thyme, basil, garlic powder

Directions:
1) Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Place some flour on a plate and dredge each piece of chicken in it.
2) Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a skillet. Pan fry each piece of chicken for 2-4 minutes on each side until they are golden brown. Remove chicken and place them on a serving platter.
3) In a separate pan, melt butter and add mushrooms. Season lightly with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Saute mushrooms for about 5 minutes, until soft. Add marsala wine, white wine, chicken stock, and a few tablespoons of cream. Bring to a boil and then let simmer, allowing the liquid to reduce. At this point, taste the sauce and see what it needs. This is when I added a little bit of thyme, basil, and instant brown gravy mix (for color and thickness). I also added a little more cream to give the sauce more of a rich taste.
4) Pour mushrooms and sauce over chicken and serve. Voila!

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Toasted Butter Pecan Cake

First... Let me apologize for not being a very consistent blogger. I have so many recipes that I've tried this summer that I need to share with you, but I just can't find the time to upload them! Where has the summer gone? I'm already back in my classroom this week trying to get things ready for my new bunch of babies that will be here in a month! I'm so excited and a little anxious, too. I'm hoping for 20 little angels (and NOT 20 of the opposite haha).

Now... Let's get to the important stuff. This recipe is AWESOME! It made a 13x9 pan and also an 8 inch round pan. Jason and I kept the 8 inch for us and he brought the 13x9 pan to share with his coworkers. Some of his coworkers said it was one of their all time favorite desserts. Wow! It really is delicious. And the frosting is the best part. So yummy!!!! Try it!

Ingredients:
- 1 1/4 cups butter, softened
- 2 cups of chopped pecans
- 2 cups of sugar
- 4 eggs
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
- 3 cups of flour
- 2 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 cup of milk

Frosting:
- 16 ounces of cream cheese, softened
- 2 sticks of butter, softened
- 2 lbs of powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
- 2 to 3 tablespoons of milk, as necessary
- extra pecans for garish, optional

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour three 9" round cake pans (or the pans of your choice).
2. In a medium skillet, melt 1/4 cup of butter over medium heat. Add pecans; cook until toasted and fragrant, about 4 minutes. Spread across sheet of foil to cool.
3. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to combine and set aside.
4. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and beat well. Add vanilla.
5. Add flour mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with the flour. Fold in toasted pecans.
6. Divide between cake pans and back 25-30 minutes, until cooked. Cool Completely.
7. For Frosting: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Beat in enough milk, if necessary, to achieve spreading consistency. Frost cake. Store in refrigerator.
8. Voila!

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Blackened Salmon with Southwestern Cream Sauce

Jason and I were shopping at HEB today and an employee was cooking and giving samples of this recipe. Jason tasted it first and LOVED it so of course I tried it too. It was so good that we decided to buy the ingredients and cook it tonight for dinner. It turned out great! And it was so easy. We will definitely cook this again.

The sauce was the best part! The base is the HEB green sauce shown below. I had never used this until now- it's yummy!

Ingredients:
- 2 salmon filets
- a tablespoon of fresh cilantro, chopped
- 2 tablespoons of sour cream
- 4-5 tablespoons of HEB's "that green sauce"
- lime juice
- a tablespoon each of olive oil and butter
- seasoning: salt, pepper, blackening seasoning, southwest seasoning

Directions:
1) Heat the olive oil and butter in a skillet.
2) Season the meat side of the filets. Cook the filets in the skillet, meat side down for about 5 minutes with the lid on (depending on how thick the filet is).
3) Flip the filets once they start to blacken and cook on the skin side for an additional 5-6 minutes with the lid on, until the salmon is fully cooked.
4) In a small sauce pan, combine the green sauce, sour cream, cilantro, and lime juice on low until warm. Do not turn the burner too high or the sour cream will curdle (yuck). Taste the sauce and see if it needs more heat (add more green sauce) or if it's too hot (add a little more sour cream). I also put a little black pepper and chipotle pepper in the sauce for an extra kick.
5) Remove the filets from the skillet and top with the sauce.
6) Voila!

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Cake Batter Cookies

For some reason I'm wide awake so I thought I'd share a new recipe with you! These are so good and so easy! It's a great twist to "normal" chocolate chip cookies. The original recipe says that you can use any kind of cake mix. I used yellow cake. I made two batches of these- one batch for some family that spent time with us on the 4th of July and another batch for a dinner party. I used less chocolate chips the second time because I thought there were way too many for the first batch. Both batches were devoured! It was unanimous- the recipe is delish!

Ingredients:
1 box cake mix
1 teaspoon of baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 to 3/4 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips (depending on your taste)

Directions:
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2) Mix everything together. I used my hands to mix it because it's not a smooth dough so the spoon wasn't really working for me.
3) Take a teaspoon of the batter and roll it into a ball. Continue until all dough has been formed into balls. Bake for 10-15 minutes on a cookie sheet.
4) Voila!

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Pork Chops with Pineapple Fried Rice

Not a great picture but a GREAT recipe! This is straight from the Pioneer Woman. My sister tried it first and she gave it raving reviews so I had to try it too. I'm a sucker for fried rice and this has become my favorite fried rice recipe. A few days after I made this, I tried it again but with shrimp. It was delish, too!!

Ingredients:
- 1 can of pineapple rings in 100% juice (the PW used fresh pineapple but I didn't have any on hand)
- 2 cups of rice, cooked
- 6 pork chops (or 1 lb of peeled and deveined shrimp)
- 1 tablespoon of butter
- 1 tablespoon of oil
- 1 onion, sliced
- 6 tablespoons of soy sauce (I added more than this)
- 1 tablespoon of rice wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons of honey
- 1 tablespoon of Sriracha
- 3 cloves of minced garlic
- 2 eggs
- 1 small jar of pimentos
- 1 1/2 cups of frozen mixed veggies
- I also added some shredded cabbage

Directions:
1) Cook rice and set aside.
2) Grill or saute pineapple rings until they have grill marks. Then cut up into bite size pieces and set aside.
3) Heat butter and oil over medium high heat, then add the pork chops in the pan. Saute on both  sides until they have nice color.
4) Throw in the onions and cook them with the pork chops.
5) Add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, honey, and Sriracha. Stir it all around and let it cook and bubble up for a few minutes.
6) Remove pork chops and set aside, while the sauce and onions cook for a little longer. Then pour the sauce and onions over the pork chops and set aside.
7) Add a small amount of oil to the same pan and heat over medium high heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant.
8) Then crack the eggs and immediately stir them to scramble them. Add veggies and a little more soy sauce. Add cooked rice and stir around for a couple of minutes.
9) Pour the pork chops, sauce, and onions back in the pan and serve.
10) Voila!

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Asian Noodle Salad

This recipe is from the Pioneer Woman but I found it on Pinterest, of course! It is really delicious and the perfect summer lunch. It's a cold pasta salad with an Asian flare made with a ton of veggies. You can really use whatever veggies you like. I used most everything she did, but I left out the spinach, cashews, and bean sprouts. Her recipe calls for linguine noodles. I think next time I will use macaroni or shells. I loved this salad but eating linguine noodles cold (and without pasta sauce) felt weird to me. This recipe makes a huge bowl full so you can eat it for many days!

Salad Ingredients:
- 1/2 a package of pasta noodles cooked, rinsed and cooled (whichever kind you prefer)
- purple cabbage (I used the kind already washed and cut in the bag)
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 orange bell pepper
- 1 bunch of cilantro
- 1 bunch of green onions
- 1 cucumber
- I also some broccoli slaw (found by the shredded cabbage and coleslaw mix in the grocery store)

Dressing Ingredients:
- 1 whole lime, juiced
- 8 tablespoons of olive oil
- 8 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 2 or 3 tablespoons of sesame oil (found on the Asian isle in the store)
- 1/3 cup of brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons of fresh ginger, chopped ( I just used a grater and minced it instead of chopping it)
- 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 1 whole jalapeno pepper, chopped
- cilantro

Directions:
1) The first thing you need to do (after boiling, rinsing, and cooling noodles) is get all the veggies chopped up. This is what takes the longest.
2) Once everything is chopped up, mix the salad ingredients together.
3) In a separate bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. I think I used less olive oil and more soy sauce and sesame oil. I like a lot of dressing on my salad, so I added a little more of everything.
4) Mix the salad and dressing together with tongs or hands and serve.
5) Voila!

*Note: I made this during the school year and brought it for lunch for a whole week! This recipe really makes alot. And it keeps really well in the fridge. Enjoy!

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Homemade Crepes

YUMMMM! That's pretty much all I have to say about this.

Every time I eat crepes I think about this clip in the movie Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. How funny are Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly in that movie?!



I came across this recipe while looking at this breakfast blog post. I love dessert crepes so much! I did not realize how easy they are to make. Virtually everything you need is stuff you probably keep on hand. You can put whatever you'd like in the inside and on the outside. I've been stuck on Nutella lately, so inside of these crepes I put: Nutella, French vanilla cool whip, and strawberries.

By the way, if you haven't tried Kraft's French vanilla cool whip, you are missing out! That stuff is so good. I haven't tried the cinnamon kind yet.

Ingredients: (yields a large bowl full of batter mix)

- 2 cups of flour
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup of milk
- 1/4 cup of vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1 tablespoon of sugar
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- a dash of vanilla extract
- about 2 cups of hot water

Directions:
1) Combine all ingredients except water and whisk together in a bowl. Set aside.
2) Boil about 2 cups of water. When the water starts to boil, remove the pot from the burner and set aside for a few minutes.
3) Preheat pan or skillet that you want to cook the crepes in on a little higher than medium heat.
4) Start adding 1/4 cup of the hot water at a time to the crepe mixture, whisking constantly, until the batter reaches the consistency on melted ice cream. You will need to add about 1 and 1/2 cups of water total.
5) If you are using a nonstick pan, you might not need to grease your pan. But if you are using any other kind, be sure to spray the pan with PAM before you make each crepe. Pour less than half a ladle (depending on the size and thickness that you'd like) in the preheated pan and swirl slowly. Cook on each side for about 20-25 seconds. The crepes bubble up, similar to pancakes, so you'll know when it's time to flip them.
6) Remove from the pan and fill with all of your favorite toppings.
7) Voila!

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Nutella Fudgesicles

These are so yummy and so easy! I found the original recipe on Pinterest but I changed it up a little. These turned out so good that it has me thinking...What else can I make popsicles out of? Stay tuned for more creations : -).

Ingredients: (Yields 6 small fudgesicles with a little left over)
- 1 cup of milk
- 1 good squeeze of chocolate syrup
- 1/3 cup of Nutella

Directions:
Mix ingredients together and freeze for at least 2 hours. To remove the popsicle easily from the frozen container, run it under hot water for about 5 seconds.  Voila!

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The Best Cornbread Ever

This recipe is literally the easiest and most delicious cornbread I've ever tasted! It's supposedly a mock recipe of Boston Market's cornbread. If you've ever eaten at Z'Tejas, it tastes very similar to their skillet cornbread. Melt in your mouth! It's the perfect combination of sweetness and corn.

Ingredients for an 8 in round pan:
- 1 box of Jiffy cornbread mix
- 1 box of Jiffy yellow cake mix

Ingredients for 9x13 pan:
- 2 boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix
- 1 regular yellow cake mix (the normal Betty Crocker size, not Jiffy)

Directions:
Simply mix both boxes according to the directions and combine the batter. You can use a large mixing bowl and combine both boxes of mix and all other ingredients at once. Bake at 350 degrees until done, about 30 minutes. Yum!

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Maple Glazed Chicken with Jalapeno Salsa

    

This is a recipe from the Pioneer Woman, and like all of her recipes it's delish! This recipe reminded me of  the very first recipe I blogged: Grilled Chicken with Pineapple Salsa. It has all of the elements- sweet, spicy, smokey, salty, and fresh. A culinary delight!

Ingredients:
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup of maple syrup
- 1/4 cup of soy sauce
- 1/4 cup of pineapple juice
- a few pineapple rings (I used the kind in the can)
- 1 whole jalapeno, diced finely
- a large handful of cilantro, chopped
- 1/2 small red onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon of rice wine vinegar (or white vinegar)
- 1 tablespoon of sugar
- salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1) Combine the syrup, soy sauce, and pineapple juice in a small pan. Bring it all to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium and let it bubble up and reduce. Set aside to cool.
2) In a small bowl, combine the chopped pineapple, jalapeno, cilantro, onion, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper and set aside. Optional: You can grill the veggies before chopping them to give the salsa some extra flavor. This is the way I did it- so yummy!
3) Lightly season chicken breasts and grill until they're done.  Baste them with the maple concoction towards the end of the grilling time.
4) Top the chicken with the salsa and dig in!

 Get Cookin'!

Biscuit Beignets with Praline Sauce

Has it really been almost TWO months since my last post?! I'm the worst blogger ever! The last months of school have come and gone and it is officially summer. Hallelujah! I'm so ready to relax. It has been a great school year, probably my best year so far!

But now that I'm back from my blogging hiatus, I thought I'd share a DELISH dessert recipe. These biscuit beignets are to die for. Literally! So, so good. And so easy! You must try this soon!

Ingredients:
- 1 can of Grands Golden Layers biscuits, honey butter flavor
- 1 stick of butter
- 1 cup of dark brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons of milk
- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (or less)
- canola oil (for frying)

Directions:
1) Melt butter in a pan over medium heat. Add in sugar and whisk together until it starts to boil.
2) Stir in the milk, vanilla, and pecans or walnuts until smooth. Set aside.
3) Separate biscuits and cut each into fourths. In a skillet, heat the oil over medium heat.
4) Fry biscuit quarters in batches until golden on each side. Biscuits will cook very quickly. Use a metal spatula and keep the biscuits moving.
5) Remove from oil and dust generously with powdered sugar and serve immediately with praline sauce.
6) Voila!

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Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes

Not the best picture but oooooohhhh sooooooo delish! Try these! The recipe is simple but somewhat tedious to make. But so worth it! At this point I'm not sure how many Jason has eaten and he's no where near ready to stop. Haha! I found the original recipe here. Next time I think I will skip the "ganache" icing and just use classic, milk chocolate store bought icing.

Ingredients:
- 24 yellow cupcakes, cooled and upwrapped
- 1 (3.4 oz) box French Vanilla instant pudding
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1/2 cup milk

Ganache:
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips


Directions:
1) Mix together pudding, whipping cream, powdered sugar, milk, and sour cream.
2) Beat on medium speed until it thickens.
3) Cup each cupcake in half and add a dollop of filling.
4) Put top back on cupcake and frost with ganache.
5) Make ganache by heating whipping cream in a sauce pan until it boils. Remove from heat, pour over chocolate chips and stir to mix. Let cool slightly. Voila!
 
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Simple Stuffed Poblano Peppers

I have been so busy lately that I just cannot find the time to blog about all the new recipes we are trying! We are in the "home stretch" when it comes to school-- only 7 more Mondays! I'm really looking forward to taking it easy this summer and cooking! Who wants to come for dinner? 

I found this recipe and I adapted it a little. I didn't add the rice but next time I think I will. Oh, and more cheese!! This was really simple and yummy. We eat lots and lots of Mexican food- LOTS! Chile Rellenos (stuffed poblanos) are one of my favorite things to order! 

Ingredients:
- 4 poblano peppers
- 1 can of black beans
- 1 cup of frozen corn
- 1 cup of salsa
- 1 pound of ground beef
- 1 packet of taco seasoning
- shredded cheese (we actually used queso)
- chopped cilantro

Directions:
1) Prepare the peppers. Slice them in half and remove the seeds and ribs.
2) Place the peppers in a baking dish, skin side up. Broil about 7 minutes, then flip the peppers and broil about 7 more minutes. After about 14 minutes, check the peppers and continue cooking until desired softness. Peppers should be slightly tender but still a little crunchy.
3) While the peppers are broiling, brown the meat and then add then taco seasoning, black beans, corn, and salsa.
4) Mix in some cilantro to the meat mixture and then spoon some on top of the peppers. Top with cheese. Voila!

  Get Cookin'!