Gluten Free Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

I have noticed that a lot of the gluten free recipes that I make for my brother in law end up being super crumbly and hard to keep together while you eat. This one didn't seem to be as extreme as the rest of the recipes I have tried. It was super tasty and very rich! I would definitely try this one again, but maybe skip the gluten free cake mix part if I am not making it for my brother in law! :)

Gluten Free Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
(Recipe found at healthpositiveinfo.com via pinterest.com)

1 box Betty Crocker Gluten Free yellow cake mix
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
2 tablespoons whipping cream
2 eggs

Heat oven to 350. In medium bowl, stir together cake mix and pecans. With pastry blender or fork, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Reserve 1 cup mixture for topping. In bottom of ungreased 13×9-inch pan, press remaining mixture. Bake 10 minutes. In large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add remaining ingredients; beat until well blended. Pour over warm crust. Sprinkle with reserved topping. Bake about 35 minutes or until center is set. Cool 30 minutes. Refrigerate about 2 hours or until chilled. For bars, cut into 6 rows by 4 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.

Zucchini Brownies

I had a couple of zucchini sitting on my counter and I needed to use them up. Now, what better way to use up zucchini, but to find a sweet chocolatey brownie recipe! :) These were super tasty. While the frosting didn't hard set the way that the recipe said it would, it was still delicious and I have been eating on this pan for the past week! It pairs very well with ice cream after a night of sweaty volleyball in an non-airconditioned gym!

Zucchini Brownies
(Recipe found at

Brownies:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups shredded zucchini (1 large or 2 small zucchinis)
3-5 tablespoons water

Frosting:
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 9x13" baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Using an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the oil, sugar, and vanilla until well combined. Add the dry ingredients and stir. Fold in the zucchini. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes so the batter can absorb the moisture from the zucchini. Then, if your mixture is still very powdery, add up to 5 tablespoons water (start with 1 tablespoon and work up from there, stirring well after each addition). The batter will be very thick but shouldn't be powdery. (It partially depends on how wet your zucchini is!) The dough is super thick, like cookie dough. Do not add too much water! I actually didn't need to use any extra water when I made these. Spread in prepared pan.
Bake 25-30 minutes until the brownies spring back when gently touched. To make the frosting: Whisk butter, cocoa, salt, and powdered sugar. Whisk in milk and vanilla. Spread over cooled brownies. Cut into squares and chill to semi-set. The frosting hardens slightly on the top but stays wet and gooey underneath. These brownies are best stored in an airtight container and eaten within 2 days. Chill them to make them last an extra day.

Raspberry Chocolate Squares

This recipe had me at raspberry and chocolate! Two of my favorite flavors combined together!! It was super yummy and I loved the chocolate glaze over the top. Make sure you store it in the fridge and you can savor it for a while! Although there are a lot of steps to this recipe, it is pretty simple. Make sure that you leave enough time for all the "cooling" phases that you have to do!

Raspberry Chocolate Squares
(Recipe found at www.justapinch.com)

1 cup flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
3 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoon milk
1 cup white chocolate chips
2 ounces semi-sweet baking chocolate squares
1 tablespoon shortening

Preheat oven to 375. In a bowl combine flour and powdered sugar. Cut in butter; mix well. Press mixture into a 9 inch square baking dish. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until lightly brown. Allow to cool completely. Spread jam evenly over cooled crust. In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese and milk together until smooth; set aside. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the white chocolate chips and add to the cream cheese mixture; beat until smooth. Spread evenly over raspberry mixture. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours Cut chocolate squares into small pieces and melt with shortening in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Spread over white chocolate layer. Cool completely before cutting into small squares. Store in the fridge.

Lazy Cake Cookies

I am the leader for my oldest son's Webelos group and that means that I have 9 hungry boys that want a snack after a long day at school! :) I was looking for something quick and yummy to make for them (it was a day that I completely forgot about making snacks) and I was scrounging through my cupboards to see what I had the ingredients for... This recipe popped into my head and I had everything on hand - yay!! Mix and spread in a pan - you can't beat that! The boys scarfed them down, I think that there was one left for the hubs when he got home from work. Super easy and with all the same great sweet taste as cookies!

Lazy Cake Cookies
(Recipe found at imalazymom.com via Pinterest)

1 box yellow or white cake mix
2 eggs beaten
5 tablespoons melted butter
2 cups M&M’s or mini chocolate chips

Mix together, put in a greased 9×13 pan and bake at 350 for 20 min.

Twix Bars

Once again I took these to a party and didn't get a picture... But, they were delish and gone before I could bring them home to get a picture at the end of the night!! I didn't even say what they were, we were in a darkened bar area where you couldn't see very well and people were still walking up to me saying "I love your bars... they taste like a twix!" That's just what I like to hear. They didn't have that crispy crunch of a Twix bar, but they still had that same delish caramel, chocolate taste! hmmmm... salivating a bit over here - I might need to make these again soon! :)

Twix Bars
(recipe found on pinterest via mykitchenescapades.com)

Crust:
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar
2 cups flour
Caramel:
2 1/2 cups caramel squares (you will need to buy 2 bags)
3 tablespoons heavy cream
Chocolate:
2 cups milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300 and spray a 9×13 pan lightly with nonstick spray. In a large bowl, beat the butter until soft, then add the salt, vanilla and sugar. Beat until smooth. Add the flour and carefully combine. Press mixture evenly across the bottom of the pan and bake for about 35 minutes until the edges begin to brown. Set aside to cool completely. Melt caramel squares and cream in a medium microwave safe bowl in the microwave. Heat for 3 minutes on high, stopping to stir after each minute. Spread the melted caramel over the cooled crust and place in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes to allow the caramel to cool. In a small microwave safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips for 2 minutes, stopping to stir after the first minute. Spread evenly over the cooled caramel and return the pan to the refrigerator until the chocolate is set.

Pumpkin Brownies

This spring my hubs had a training in Tennessee for work and was gone from Sunday until Saturday. Well, dang it all, I missed him just a little bit! :) So, the day that he was flying home I decided to make up some sweet treats to welcome him through the door. I had just made a bunch of refrigerator oatmeals (recipes coming!) and one included pumpkin so I had a big can of pumpkin sitting in the fridge waiting for me to do something with it. Well, I decided the time was right to try these pumpkin brownies and also this pumpkin coffee cake (recipe will follow soon!). These were super yummy and I was glad that I cut them quite small or I would have been gorging myself! :) The kids each had 2 when they came home from snack and had to be beat off with a stick to keep them from having more!! I think they were a hit... I was extra careful about overbaking them and while my knife came out clean showing they were done, I think that I would have liked them cooked a little bit longer. So, make sure you check them carefully for doneness! Enjoy!!



Pumpkin Brownies
(recipe found on pinterest via mybakingaddiction.com)

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup butter, cut into cubes
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour

Pumpkin Swirl
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Ganache
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350. Line an 8×8 inch baking pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Microwave chocolate and butter in a large microwave-safe bowl at medium (50% power) for 3-4 minutes or until butter is melted. While the chocolate is melting, prepare the pumpkin layer. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, pumpkin puree, sugar, pumpkin pie spice and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer well combined and smooth. Set aside. Once the butter is melted, remove the bowl from the microwave and stir until chocolate is melted. Whisk in sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt. Gradually add in flour; stir until just combined. Spread 3/4 the batter into prepared pan. Spoon pumpkin filling by tablespoonfuls evenly over batter. Spoon remaining brownie batter over filling. Use a knife or wooden skewer to cut through the batter several times in different directions to create a swirled pattern. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove to cooling rack to cool completely. Before serving, prepare the ganache. To make the ganache, pour the chopped chocolate into a medium mixing bowl, set aside. Pour the heavy cream into a microwave safe measuring cup and microwave on high for about 1 minute or until bubbles begin to form on the surface. Take care to not overheat because the cream will boil over. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and allow it to sit for about 3 minutes. Use a small whisk to combine the mixture into a smooth chocolate glaze. Spoon the ganache over the brownies. (I like a thicker ganache, so next time I would try using only 1/4 cup of heavy cream so that it is not quite as runny.)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Fudge

I'm still trying to get caught up on all the new recipes that I was making when my computer was down and out... Finally made it up to the Christmas baking section of my recipes! So, it may be a little after Christmas, but you might want to keep these recipes for next year because they were fabulous! Let's start with some fudge!

I usually try a different fudge recipe every year for Christmas and I have found some good ones and some that are a breeze to throw together... These were super yummy and not too difficult to make. They lasted perfectly in the fridge and were yummy to snack on through the week! :)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Fudge
(recipe found on pinterest via www.bunsinmyoven.com)

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons half and half
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

For the fudge:
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup butter
pinch of salt
1/3 cup half and half
4-5 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Line an 8x8 baking dish with foil, leaving a 1 inch overhang. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. To prepare the cookie dough, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla, salt, and half and half. Stir in the flour until incorporated. Set aside. To make the fudge base, combine the brown sugar, butter, salt, and half and half in a saucepan. Stir over medium low heat until the butter has melted and the brown sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and slowly stir in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until the mixture is smooth and well combined. Stir in the vanilla. Add the cookie dough to the fudge base and stir to combine. Mix in the chocolate chips. Spread the mixture in the prepared baking dish. Chill until set, at least 3 hours. Keep in refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Cookies and Cream Fudge

Since it's Valentine's Day this week, I decided that we needed to make it an ultra sweet week and my posts are going to be a week of delicious desserts and treats! :) We'll start with some of this fabulous fudge that I made a few weeks ago for paraprofessionals week at school. It was so simple to make and it was DELISH... I had to sample a few before I sent them out the door. Definitely a do over! :)

Cookies and Cream Fudge
(recipe found in Family Fun magazine)

30 oreos, crushed
16 ounces white chocolate chips
1 (14 ounces) can sweetened condensed milk

Line 8" square baking pan with parchment paper. Using double boiler method, stir together and melt chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk. Stir until melted and smooth, about 6 minutes. Fold two cups of crushed cookies into the chocolate mixture and then pour it into the pan. Spread evenly with a spatula. Gently press remaining cookies into the fudge. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours. Use parchment to lift the fudge out of the pan and cut into 36 pieces.

Rolo Cheesecake Bars

These are a little piece of heaven in your mouth!! I love the combination of chocolate and caramel and this really hits the sweet spot! :) There were none to bring home from the party that I brought these too...

Rolo Cheesecake Bars
(recipe found on pinterest via hugsandcookiesxoxo.com)

CRUST:
3 cups of graham cracker crumbs
1 cup sugar
2 sticks melted butter

FILLING:
2 (8 ounces) cream cheese
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 package unwrapped rolos

GLAZE:
1 stick butter
6 ounces chocolate chips
4 teaspoons light corn syrup

additional rolos for top, if desired

MELT IN THE MICROWAVE:
1 STICK BUTTER & 6 OUNCES CHOCOLATE CHIPS.
STIR SMOOTH AND ADD 4 TSP. LIGHT CORN SYRUP.
POUR SMOOTHLY ON BARS AND CHILL OVERNIGHT.
CUT WITH A BIG KNIFE! I ADDED A CHOCOLATE DRIZZLE AND A HALF A ROLO ON TOP!

Stir all crust ingredients together and press into a 9x13 pan that is lined with foil. Bake at 350 for 7-10 minutes, cool. Beat cream cheese, eggs, sugar and flour together until smooth. Add rolos and stir. Pour onto the cool crust and bake for 30-35 minutes. Let cool and add glaze. In the microwave, melt butter and chocolate chips. Once they stir smooth, add corn syrup and stir until combined. Pour over top of bars and chill overnight. Cut into bars and add 1/2 rolo to the top of each bar.

Cake Batter Cheesecake Bars

I made these bars for a party that we were headed out to and I was all set to take a picture this time and I just couldn't do it... They turned out this odd shade of purple and they were not the prettiest things that I have ever laid eyes on. I didn't got for the optional food coloring, which I should have and I did stir in the sprinkles, which I think caused the odd purple color. So, when it says to stir, make sure you stir, don't just throw the mixer on low in the lazy fashion that I did! :) But let me tell you - Oh - My - Gosh!! These things were fabulous!! I'm usually a chocolate kind of girl, but these knocked my socks off... Super rich and delicious! Definitely making these again - and STIRRING the next time!!

Cake Batter Cheesecake Bars
(recipe found on pinterest via teenagetaste.com)


1 3/4 cups nilla wafers
6 tablespoons butter, melted
16 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
1/2 cup yellow cake mix
2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sprinkles
5 drops blue food coloring (optional)
3 drops green food coloring (optional)


Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9" square baking pan, then line with parchment paper; set aside. Stir together cookie crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar and melted butter. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake until the crust is just brown around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the remaining sugar and beat for an additional couple of minutes, until smooth. Add the eggs and yolk, milk, vanilla, salt and beat again until completely combined and smooth. Finally, stir in the cake mix and sprinkles until smooth. Pour the filling over the crust. Set the pan in a larger pan (a 9×13-inch works for this), and add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the baking pan. Bake until just set, 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the baking pan from the water bath, and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool for 30 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight. Cut into bars. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Brownie Refrigerator Cake

I was looking for something a little simpler to go with the Lil Cheddar Meat Loaves that we had with supper during the moving party and this was definitely it. I love to try the big desserts, but sometimes you just have to go with a good old chocolate brownie - with a twist! :)

Brownie Refrigerator Cake
(recipe found on pinterest via www.hpj.com)

2 brownie mixes (or you can use my homemade brownie mix - I just tripled it)
1 extra large egg
1 8 ounces package cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
2 8 ounces each containers whipped topping
1 3 ounces package instant chocolate pudding
1 3 ounces package instant vanilla pudding
3 1/2 cups milk
1 Hershey candy bar or chocolate syrup

Mix brownie mixes according to directions. Add egg. Bake in 9x13 inch greased and floured cake pan. Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar and 1 container whipped topping. Put this mix on top of the cooled brownies. Blend puddings and milk together and put on top of the cream cheese mixture. Top with another layer of whipped topping. Put chocolate shavings or chocolate syrup on top. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

No Bake Peanut Butter Bars

As usual, no picture with these treats, since I took them to a night out that we were heading to. Good thing that I brought them out with us though because if they would have been left at my house, I would have eaten everything last one of them... They were so simple to throw together and soooo delicious! But come on, was there any doubt? I mean really, chocolate and peanut butter? No brainer recipe here!

No Bake Peanut Butter Bars
(recipe found on pinterest via www.sixsistersstuff.com)

1 cup butter, melted
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 cups powdered sugar)
1 cup + 4 tablespoons peanut butter
1 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips

Mix together butter, graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar, and 1 cup peanut butter in a large bowl until well blended. Press evenly into the bottom of a 9×13 pan. In the microwave, melt the chocolate chips with the peanut butter, stirring every 30 seconds until melted until smooth. Spread over the peanut butter layer. Refrigerate for at least one hour before cutting into squares. See what I mean? Another super easy, delicious recipe!

Pretzel Crusted Brownies

These brownies were the bomb! I am a big chocolate lover anyhow so brownies are a hit most of the time and then you go and add the salty layer of the pretzels and that just upped them a notch! I didn't go all out with the buttercream frosting, sometimes I feel like that just goes too far and gets to be a little too much, but I did pair it with some ice cream and chocolate syrup... YUMM!!



Pretzel Crusted Brownies
(recipe found on pinterest via www.alliescleanplateclub.com)

Crust:
4 cups pretzels
1 1/2 cups butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar

Brownie:
use your favorite brownie recipe or box mix (I used this new homemade brownie mix recipe that I love!!)

Buttercream Layer:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon milk

Preheat oven to 400. Line 9x13 pan with foil, allowing some to overhang the edges for easier removal. Spray with cooking spray. Process pretzels in a food processor (or use a ziplock with a rolling pin to crush) until pretzels are small pieces but not a fine powder. Mix pretzels with butter and sugar until combined. Press into baking pan and bake for 10 minutes or until crust is set. Allow to cool. Set oven temperature to 350. Mix up your brownie mix and pour over the top of the cooled pretzel crust, spread evenly over top. Bake for 35-40 minutes, checking for doneness as you go. Allow to cool once again while making up the buttercream frosting layer. Beat butter with mixer until fluffy. Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until combined. Mix in vanilla and milk, adding more milk if needed to form the right consistency. Frost cooled brownies and serve!

Homemade Brownies

I am a big brownie fan, um... to be honest, anything chocolatey I'm a fan of! I don't always have boxed brownies on hand though, so when I saw a pin on pinterest about homemade mixes that you could keep on your shelf I was intrigued. I had to give it a whirl! Seriously - one of the easiest and quickest brownie mixes to throw together... Almost as easy as the box mix and better tasting! :) I haven't made up multiple batches to store in my cupboard, but this recipe has simple enough ingredients that I usually have laying around my house! I love to throw some chocolate chips in the mix, just to up the chocolate factor. You could also go with some nuts, whatever shakes your tail feathers! Maybe, just maybe you can throw some chocolate frosting on top and go all decadent! :) How about brownies with a pretzel crust? Come back Monday for that recipe! :)

Homemade Brownies
(recipe found on pinterest via fakeitfrugal.blogspot.it)

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
chocolate chips, if desired

Whisk together first dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and stir until incorporated. Bake in square pan for 20-25 minutes at 350.

No Bake Granola Bars

I try to buy healthier snacks for my kids to eat around the house - and usually ones that can be kind of portable since we are one the go a lot. This usually translates into some kind of granola bar being thrown into the shopping cart, along with plenty of other things. They are pretty healthy, but also pretty spendy for a small box. When I found this recipe floating around pinterest, I thought that I would give it a try. I have a few more pinned that I want to try and also compare, but this one was pretty good! I made half the way that the recipe called for it and the other half I made with chocolate chips to give it a little variety. The serving size seemed a bit small to me, but I also think that I didn't press them down into the pan as far as I should have! :) At any rate, the kids like them and that is one of the important criteria!



No Bake Granola Bars
(recipe found on pinterest via penniesandpancakes.blogspot.com)

1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter
1/4 cup unsalted butter
4 cups quick cooking oatmeal
2 cups crispy rice cereal
3 teaspoons vanilla

In a large bowl, stir together crispy rice and oatmeal. In a saucepan, melt together honey, butter, peanut butter and brown sugar. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and stir until sugar dissolves completely. Remove from heat, add vanilla and stir to combine. Pour over dry ingredients and stir togehter until mixture is completely combined. Spoon into parchment lined jelly roll pan and press down to a 1/2" - 3/4" depth, keeping the granola bars as close to one side of the pan as you can. I doubled my recipe and it took up the entire pan. Let cool to room temperature and cut into bars. If you are adding chocolate chips, press them into the top of the pan once it is packed down so that they don't melt all over the place.

Slutty Brownies

These are a little something that caught my eye on pinterest... The name was a little crazy and the recipe - even wilder! :) Pile all that goodness into a treat on a plate? That was definitely right up my alley! Took these to a party that I went to (I couldn't trust myself with them at home) and they went super fast. Definitely one that everyone enjoyed!

Slutty Brownies
(recipe found on pinterest via whatsgabycooking.com)

Brownie Layer:
10 tablespoons butter
1 1/4 cups white sugar
3/4 up cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 large eggs
1/2 cup flour

Oreo Layer:
1 package oreos

Cookie Dough Layer
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup chocolate chips

In brownie layer begin with a medium sauce pan, melting butter over medium high heat. Add sugar and cocoa powder once butter is melted. Whisk to combine and remove from heat. Add salt, vanilla and eggs and whisk continuously until the eggs are combined. Add flour and continue to mix until combined. Set batter aside.

In cookie dough layer cream together butter and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla, scraping bowl often. Add flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder and mix on low until everything is combined. Fold in chocolate chips and set dough aside.

Preheat oven to 350 and line bottom of a 9x9 pan with tin foil and spray tin foil with baking spray. Begin with cookie dough. Press into bottom of prepared pan. Layer oreos on top of cookie dough in a single layer, pressing into cookie dough as you go. Pour brownie mix over top of oreo layer and spread to evenly top. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Test for doneness with a knife in center of brownies. When knife comes out clean let brownies rest before serving.

Best Ever Brownies and the SRC

Yay! It's Secret Recipe Club time again!! I got assigned the blog teaandscones.wordpress.com and Margaret's blog was very interesting to page through... So many options, with so much variety! Definitely a little something for everyone! :) She is involved in quite a few cooking clubs, which keeps the ideas flowing and makes for something new around every corner...

Once again, as is normal when I get an SRC blog to look through, I found several recipes that I wanted to try... From a couple different types of chicken fingers (my kids would love!) to a fun drink and the brownies that I picked for my post today there were a lot of fun recipes. I'm also going back really soon to try the chocolate blueberry ice cream that she talks about... Um, yum! :)

These brownies were ooey, gooey and delicious... They tasted wonderful paired up with some ice cream! We had them as an afternoon treat this weekend with the kids and they devoured their pieces as well... These are a bit more time consuming then my normal brownie mix, but definitely worth the time! :) Thanks for the fabulous recipe Margaret!

Best Ever Brownies
(recipe found at teaandscones.wordpress.com)

1 1/4 cups sifted flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate squares, coarsely chopped
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate squares, coarsely chopped (I ended up using semisweet)
2 cups sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350. Sift flour and salt together and set aside. In a saucepan melt together butter and chocolates. Add 1 cup sugar to melted mixture and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and add vanilla. At this point she said to pour it into a large bowl. I just left it in the saucepan, off of the heat, and mixed it all up in there... Seemed to work for me and less pans! :) Pour remaining 1 cup sugar into bowl of a mixer and add eggs. Hand whisk just until combined. Pour half of sugar mixture into chocolate mixture, slowly and stirring constantly to avoid eggs setting from the heat. Using mixer with whisk attachment, whisk eggs until doubled in size and pale, about 3 minutes. Slowly stir into chocolate mixer. When eggs are just about incorporated, add flour mixture and fold in until all ingredients are combined. Pour mixture into 9" square baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the top is dark and cracked and the inside is barely set and gooey. Cool on rack.

Tyroleon Hard Cake

This was one of my favorite Christmas treats as I was growing up... Not sure what struck me about it, I mean, I am kind of a chocolate girl but I remember loving every time that my mom made it! I knew that I had made it before and could not find the recipe anywhere... Since my mom was at work I racked my brain to try and remember where I might have the recipe... Found it in a cookbook that my class made when I was in 2nd grade! So, that's how long I have LOVED this recipe! :)

Tyroleon Hard Cake
(recipe found from my mom!)

2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350. In large bowl combine flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir well. Add remaining ingredients, stir until well mixed. Grease 9 or 10" round cake pan. Roll dough into 1" balls. Arrange in circular patter to fill pan. Sprinkle 2 tablespoon sugar on top. Bake 50 minutes or until lightly browned on top.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Blondies

I whipped these up for the boy scout Halloween party that we had at our house and seriously? They were gone before I finished getting the rest of the stuff out! The boys and their families chowed them down in 2.2 seconds! They were soft and delicious and perfect for our fall gathering...

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Blondies
(recipe found at authenticsimplicity.net)

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup pumpkin
3/4 cup flour
1/3 cup chocolate chips

Beat together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, salt, egg and pumpkin and mix until well combined. Stir in flour just until combined. Add chocolate chips and mix in. Pour into greased 8x8 pan and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until edges are golden and middle is set.

Two for One and the SRC

In case you are not familiar with the Secret Recipe Club, here's the low down... Each month we are assigned a new blog, usually one that I have not had the opportunity to discover yet, and we choose one recipe from their blog to create and blog about. That's the quick version! :) It is an exciting thing for me... I love to peruse through new blogs and see what kind of stuff other people are cooking up and if it fits with the kinds of stuff that I like to cook up. Some months are more challenging then others, but it is always fun to try a new recipe and meet a new blogger!

This month was one of those months where I felt like I couldn't go wrong... I usually try out a few different recipes, pick one and continue on my way. Not with this blog!! It was recipe after recipe of "oooh, I want to try this one and oh my gosh, that one sounds good. I felt a great kinship with Tessa, who lives in Arizona as I did for about 7 years and also likes to cook straight from a recipe, even though we both spend a lot of time in the kitchen... Her excuse is her pharmacist background, my excuse? Probably the control freak in my that needs to have everything neat and tidy in a recipe and hopefully not screw it up! :) Doesn't work all the time, but I will keep trying...

So, in my quest for finding a recipe to blog about, I made quite a few goodies that I will be blogging about in the future - pumpkin granola? already made 2 batches! Crockpot Cheddar Beer Chicken Tacos? Delicious... For supper tonight? Chicken Avocado Pizza with Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars coming up soon! There were so many yummy recipes to choose from that I just had to add her blog to my favorites list and go back there time and time again!

For today's post I decided on Root Beer Pulled Pork, but that seemed a little too easy, so I whipped up a batch of her White Chocolate Oatmeal Crunch Brownies too!

Let's start with the Root Beer Pulled Pork! So simple that there is no way to screw this one up! I didn't even have root beer in the house, so I busted out a bottle of Pepsi and went with it. Super delicious! My husband was super happy with the results and the kids ate it up too... Win, win!

Root Beer Pulled Pork
(recipe found at http://cookinchemist.blogspot.com)

1 pound pork loin
1 liter root beer
barbecue sauce

Trim meat of visible fat and place in crock pot. Add root beer. Cook on low 8 hours. Shred pork and place back in crock pot for 5-10 minutes. Place meat on bun and cover with barbecue sauce.

For dessert that night (my kids were ecstatic - we don't do dessert too much around here) we had the White Chocolate Oatmeal Crunch Brownies. Mine fell a bit in the middle when I took them out, but that didn't stop us from chowing down on the majority of the pan! In fact, I had to get them out of the house and brought a few to my mom and her friends where they also received rave reviews! :) They were super quick to throw together and definitely tasty...

White Chocolate Oatmeal Crunch Brownies
(recipe found at http://cookinchemist.blogspot.com)

crust:
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup oatmeal
1/3 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1/3 cup butter, melted and cooled

brownies:
1 1/2 ounces white chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
2/3 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons skim milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Spray an 8x8 pan with cooking spray or line with aluminum foil or parchment paper for easy removal after baking. For the crust, mix all dry ingredients in the first list together. Pour in melted butter and mix to combine. Press into pan and bake for 12 minutes. Meanwhile, for the brownies, melt the butter and white chocolate together and allow to cool slightly. In a separate bowl, whisk the sugar and egg together until light in color. Stir the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture until combine. Add dry ingredients, milk and vanilla. Stir just until no streaks remain. When the crust finishes baking, add dough to top of crust and carefully spread to cover. Bake an additional 30 minutes. Cool completely.