Cookies and Cream Chex Mix

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Don't worry people, yes Cookies and Cream Chex Mix was a limited edition (Dear General Mills, why would you make the best Chex Mix you've ever created a limited edition?) but the good news, I've figured out how to make them at home! And it's so easy and think they are even better (everything fresh home-made is better isn't it?). Also, I never thought I'd say it but these are even better than muddy buddies! I could eat the whole batch on my own. It takes 4 ingredients and they can honestly be made in under 5 minutes! I made these twice in the last two days (yeah they are that good), the second time around I did an equal ratio powdered sugar to Oreo and it was perfect. I ate these while eating cookies and cream ice cream and I think I may just like these more, that is SERIOUSLY saying something! How could one of my easiest recipes be one of my favorite =)? Sometimes the simplest things are the best. Warning: the following recipe is highly addictive, prepare at your own risk.
Cookies and Cream Chex Mix


Ingredients:6 cups Corn Chex Cereal1/2 cup very finely crushed Oreos (8 original Oreos)*1/2 cup powdered sugar1 (12 oz) bag Vanilla Candy Melts, such as Wilton
Directions:Measure 6 cups Corn Chex Cereal into a large mixing bowl, set aside. Pour crushed Oreos and powdered sugar into a large ziploc bag, seal bag and shake to combine mixture, set aside. In a microwave safe bowl, melt Vanilla candy melts in 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval until melted and smooth. Pour melted candy melts over Corn Chex and toss mixture with a rubber spatula until evenly coated (scrapping down the sides of the bowl as stirring, don't waste any of that melted candy). Pour or scoop coated Corn Chex into ziploc bag containing crushed Oreo mixture. Seal bag and shake until the cereal is evenly coated. Store in an airtight container up to one week (but don't kid yourself they won't be around for a week =).
*when I say very finely crushed I mean very finely crushed, as in nearly powder. It's the larger clumps that will tend not to stick the the coated cereal.
Recipe Source: Cooking Classy

The Best Chocolate Cake You Ever Ate

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Ahh chocolate cake, doesn't it just make life good? And what makes life really good? A moist, lightly fudgy, perfectly chocolaty, slightly dense, kissed with cinnamon piece of the perfect chocolate cake frosted in a rich, fudge-like frosting. Haha I'm kidding, kind of. I know if someone were to hand me a piece of this cake on "one of those days" it would rapidly change from being "one of those days" into being a fabulous day =).I got this recipe from my sister, whom got it from allrecipes. I'm quite certain it's a recipe for chocolate cake that cannot be topped. There's not outdoing this one. It is simply as it's named "The Best Chocolate Cake You Ever Ate." I may call it The Best Chocolate Cake You Will Ever Eat, because it's likely to be a lifelong favorite. Everything about this cake is divine. I made several of my own adjustments to the recipe, just follow the allrecipes link above to view the original recipe. I almost forgot to mention the best part of this recipe (after it's incredible taste of course), you frost it right out of the oven while it's hot. No waiting an hour for the cake to cool to frost it! Amazing no? Just one more reason this is truly the perfect chocolate cake.



The Best Chocolate Cake You Ever Ate
Yields about 16 servings


Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup applesauce 
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 cup water
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 Recipe Chocolate Fudge Frosting, recipe follows


Directions:
Preheat oven to 375. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon, set aside. Melt butter in a saucepan then stir in applesauce, cocoa powder and water and bring mixture just to a boil, whisking constantly. Pour hot butter mixture into flour mixture and stir. Add in buttermilk, eggs and vanilla and whisk mixture until well combine. Pour mixture into a buttered 13x9 baking dish and bake 22-27 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, prepare frosting during the last 5 minutes of cake baking. Immediately after removing cake from oven, pour (or dollop frosting by the spoonfuls) over hot cake and gently spread over entire cake.


Chocolate Fudge Frosting


Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup milk
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract


Directions:
In a medium saucepan, combine butter and cocoa powder and bring mixture just to a boil, stirring constantly to break up cocoa powder. Remove from heat and stir in milk, powdered sugar and vanilla and mix until well combine. If mixture is too thick to stir by hand beat it with an electric hand mixer on low speed until well blended.  Immediately spread over hot cake before frosting begins to set. (Also, note if you are adding sprinkles the frosting does begin to set quickly so you will want to garnish with sprinkles immediately or they don't stick well).


Recipe Source: adapted slightly from allrecipes

Crusty Rustic Bread (it's no knead!)

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Everyone reading this, please, you need to make this bread! I'm telling you, this is the best loaf of yeasted bread I have ever made! I've baked many o' things, but funny thing until today I've never made my own loaf of no knead rustic bread. Seriously, why I have not tried it until now I can never tell you! I had no idea that such an incredibly quick and easy recipe could yield such amazing results. It is the perfect loaf of rustic bread, wonderfully crisp and chewy on the outside, while tender and even slightly moist on the inside. I can now officially say I've made a loaf of bread as good as a professional artisan bread baker thanks to the wonderful post over at Simply So Good. I'm so happy I found this recipe (from my countless hours of Pinterest gawking. Seriously I could spend my whole day on there, it's dangerous). Never again will I pay $5 to buy a loaf of rustic bread at the store or bakery. Astoundingly I liked this even better and it had to cost less than .50 cents to make. 
I also can't wait to try many different variations on this simple recipe. Thank you thank you to Simply So Good for posting such an amazing recipe. Head over there for step by step photos, mix in ideas and to browse through the over 1,000 comments posted (when I saw there were over 1,000 comments I knew this recipe had to be good). I hope this recipe becomes a staple in your home too!




Crusty Rustic Bread
Yields 1 loaf
Ingredients:3 cups all-purpose flour1 3/4 tsp salt1/2 tsp active dry yeast1 1/2 cups warm water (about 110 degrees)
Directions:In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast. Pour in warm water and stir mixture with a wooden spoon until a shaggy ball forms. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 12 - 18 hours (on the counter at room temperature).Heat oven to 450 degrees. Once oven has reached 450 degrees, place a cast iron pot covered with lid into preheated oven, heat pot for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, turn dough out onto a heavily floured surface then shape dough into a ball. Cover dough with plastic wrap and allow to rest while pot is heating. Remove pot from oven and with floured hands, carefully drop dough into hot pot (you DON'T need to grease the pot) cover with lid, then immediately return pot to oven and bake 30 minutes (at 450 degrees). After 30 minutes, remove lid from pot and bake uncovered for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow bread to cool on a cooling rack. Once completely cooled, bread stores well in an open paper bag (it helps the bread maintain it's crisp crust. I wouldn't recommend storing it in an airtight container or ziploc bag).
Recipe Source: adapted from Simply So Good, thank you for such an incredible post!

Banana Berry Frozen Yogurt

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Ice Cream so healthy it can be called a nutritious (and so delicious) breakfast! Yes indeed. Officially this is Frozen Yogurt but I'd say it's good enough to be called and compared to Ice Cream. I was amazed with how well this turned out considering I didn't add any cane sugar (other than that of the sugars in the Greek yogurt) and also considering how incredibly simple it was to make. I've mentioned before I like to have dessert every day, so I've decided maybe I should start making some of them a bit healthier (just once in a while =) and more figure friendly. In my opinion this does make an amazing breakfast, I honestly felt great about serving it to my kids for breakfast. After one bite my three year old said "Mom, I need two Ice Creams." One just wasn't going to cut it. This is definitely kid approved. I wish I always had these ingredients on hand so I could have this for breakfast or dessert everyday. Enjoy!



 I made the swirls using a chop stick (in case you were wondering), I wanted it to be like the soft serve frozen yogurt you get at the ice cream shop but I don't have the soft serve machine to do the swirling so I had to improvise.
Banana Berry Frozen Yogurt
Yields about 4 servings


Ingredients:
3 (5.3 oz) containers Strawberry Greek Yogurt
3 large overripe bananas, chilled
1 cup fresh blueberries, chilled 
1/4 cup honey
1/2 tsp lemon juice
2-3 drops red food coloring, if desired


Directions:
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend mixture until smooth, about 1 - 2 minutes. Pour mixture into an ice cream maker and process according to manufactures directions about 25 - 30 minutes. Serve immediately for soft serve frozen yogurt or freeze for about 3 hours for firm frozen yogurt (also, if you like it soft but don't want to eat it immediately you can freeze it until ready to use, then thaw for about 10 - 20 minutes on the counter top and stir).


Recipe Source: Cooking Classy

Watermelon Krispie Treats

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Eating outdoors, enjoying picnics and BBQ’s with family and friends is always one of the highlights of my summer.  When planning food (or dessert) for a picnic or BBQ, I need treats that travel well, can handle being left out in the heat, and are easy to eat.  Rice Krispies Treats are an ever popular option for casual summer events.  I love “fancy” rice krispies treats and am always on the lookout for creative and delicious variations.  Last summer, I bookmarked these adorable Watermelon Rice Krispies Treats by Dine and Dish and I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to give them a try.  This past weekend, we headed out of town for a family reunion and these cute rice krispies treats were the perfect dessert to bring along.  I placed them on the dessert table and all the kids made a bee-line right for them!  These are quite easy to make, and will draw lots of oohs and ahhs!

Watermelon Krispie Treats

These cute treats are perfect for summer get togethers

Yield: 16-18 slices

Ingredients:

For the green (rind) outer ring-
4 cups Rice Krispies cereal
4 cups mini mashmallows
3 Tablespoons butter
green food coloring

For the red (watermelon) center-
5 cups Rice Krispies cereal
5 cups mini marshmallows
3 Tablespoons butter
red food coloring

Chocolate covered sunflower seeds, or mini chocolate chips

Directions:

Prepare 2- 8" cake pans by greasing with butter or non-stick spray.

Make the green (rind)-
Add 4 cups rice krispies to a large bowl, set aside.
Melt 4 cups marshmallows and 3 tablespoons butter in a large bowl in the microwave about 2 minutes, or until very puffy.
Carefully remove from microwave, stir, and add in green coloring.
Pour green marshmallow mixture over the bowl of rice krispies. Stir mixture together, quickly, using a buttered spatula.
Working quickly, divide the mixture between the two prepared cake pans, and press along the sides of the pans, creating a ring about 1.5 inches tall and 1-1.5 inches wide/thick. Rub a bit of butter on your hands as necessary, to prevent the mixture from sticking to your hands.

Make the red (watermelon) center-
Repeat as above, using the ingredients listed (left).
Press red mixture into the center of the two cake pans, press down and smoothign the top surface with a buttered spatula.

Add "seeds"
I added chocolate covered sunflower seeds, using a tiny bit of melted chocolate to keep each seed in place.

Recipe Source- Adapted from Kellogs Rice Krispies
Idea Source- Dine and Dish

(shared with permission)

Notes- I used the microwave to melt the marshmallows, but of course feel free to melt the butter and marshmallows on the stove top if you wish.
For the coloring- I used 1 drop of Americolor gel in Mint Green for the "rind", and 2 drops of Americolor gel in Super Red for the "watermelon"

Assembly- Press the green “rind” around outside edge of a prepared cake pan, then make up the red “watermelon” mixture and press it into the center of the pans.

The original idea source, Dine and Dish, used flavored drink mix in the mixture to add watermelon flavor, to match the watermelon look.  I didn’t try that this time, but I think it’s a fun idea!

I added some “watermelon slices” onto pretty paper straws (first creating a hole using a wooden skewer).  I loved the look of them on the straws and think these would made adorable favors or take-home treats, wrapped in cellophane bags, and tied at the base of the watermelon.

Happy Summer!

Taste the Rainbow birthday party

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Taste the Rainbow in cupcakes! We know there are a lot of Rainbow birthday parties out there so we wanted to do something a little different for our Rainbow birthday party collection. We created a taste the rainbow birthday with a different cupcake for each color in the rainbow.

We wanted the background to be simple so the cupcakes, desserts and printables would be the main focal point with fun bright colors. Each cupcake flavor was displayed on a coordinating color platter. We had them at varying heights and sizes to add some interest. For the garlands we punched out a colorful circle garland {in no particular order} and clouds with a mini taste the rainbow banner.  

Blue: Cotton candy toppers! Get a bucket of cotton candy and twirl it on a sucker stick.... that's all!

Purple: Grape dum dum suckers

 
Pink: Strawberry cupcakes


Red: Cherry cupcakes


Orange: orange flavored frosting with a orange gumball on top


Yellow: Lemon cupcakes. Add lemon zest and lemon drop for a little decoration

Green: Key Lime Cupcakes


Other desserts we had at our Rainbow themed party was rainbow white chocolate popcorn. Toss air popcorn in melted white chocolate, then drizzle red, orange, yellow, pink, blue and green chocolate over the top. This was a huge success and very tasty!



You can't have a Taste the Rainbow collection without skittles! We divided all the layers and place it in an apothecary jar for guest to dig in throughout the night.


We also had mini cupcakes with rainbow slices in them.


Mini rainbow hershey bar wrappers



We also had small bags of jelly belly jelly beans for the goes to take. My family plays a game that we pick up a color and guess what flavor it is by the color and see if we are right! Try it at you next rainbow party!


Our collection has rectangle and circle toppers


Drink the rainbow wrappers for the water bottles. You could also gather different drinks in all the shades of the rainbow for a fun drink bar to pair with the Taste the Rainbow cupcakes you have.
 

For the favors we had a clear box filled with laughy taffy. They were displayed on a platter with jelly bellys