Tag Archive | easy

5-Minute Rocky Road Fudge

fudge pieceI’ll be honest, I’m not a huge fan of fudge. I find that it’s often either way too rich or way too sweet. All that changed when a friend introduced me to this amazing fudge a few years ago. She was whipping up several batches to mail off to friends and family at Christmas and I happened to stop by at just the right moment. I lent a hand with the fudge factory and was rewarded with a plate to take home. I remember taking that first tentative, teeniest of bites and then proceeded to shove the whole piece into my gob as fast I could get it in there. This isn’t fudge. It’s crack. Holiday crack. It’s smooth rich chocolate is studded with nuts and marshmallows which go together so well that even the pickiest of fudge-eaters are happily brought over to its dark side. Now I’m the one who includes this delicious fudge in my Christmas cookie tins. Just be sure to always set aside a few squares for yourself or pop in the freezer for a rainy day. Did I mention how easy this fudge recipe is? All done in the microwave and prep time is 5 minutes or less!

This recipe was adapted from a NESTLÉ TOLL HOUSE recipe.

Rocky Road Fudge

Ingredients: 

  • 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3 cups miniature marshmallows
  • 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts or peanuts

Directions: 

1. Line a 9″ square baking pan with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray.

image_2

2. In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk.

Chips and sweetened condensed milk

3. Microwave for 1 minute and stir. Since microwaves vary, it might be necessary to microwave for 10-15 seconds then stir and repeat as necessary until it’s nice and smooth.

Creamy chocolate

4. Stir in vanilla then fold in marshmallows and nuts.

Marshmallows and nuts stirred in

 

5. Spread mixture into greased pan and press flat with spatula.

Smoothed mixture into pan

 

6. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or until the mixture has hardened. QUICK NOTE: If you’re in a hurry you can also pop the pan in the freezer to help speed it up.

Hardened fudge

7. Lift foil from pan and use a pizza cutter to cut into small squares. Enjoy!

squares

 

Dark Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies

If you like chewy oatmeal cookies then you’ll love this recipe which incorporates dark chocolate chips, dried cherries, and walnuts. The flavors work really well together and make for a very tasty cookie!

Plated Cookies

Dark Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies
Makes 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 & 2/3 cups quick-cooking oats
  • 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup dried cherries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325°F.

In a medium bowl, cream together the sugars and butter.

Sugar and butter

Add egg and vanilla and beat. Whisk in flour, baking soda, and salt and beat until well blended.

Blended Dough

Stir in the oats, walnuts, chocolate chips and cherries.

Finished Dough

Using a cookie scoop or a large spoon, scoop spoonfuls of cookie dough onto a greased cookie sheet.

Cookies on cookie sheet

Bake for 13 minutes or until cookies are chewy in the center and crispy on the edges.

Note: With any cookie recipe, I strongly recommend you bake one cookie all by itself to test out the exact baking time for your oven. It’s a lot better to pitch one burnt cookie than an entire pan. I’ve learned this lesson the hard way!

Plated Cookies

Chicken Verde Enchiladas

Chicken Verde Enchiladas are a super easy recipe that is deliciously creamy, satisfying, and kid-friendly. This is my go-to recipe to whip up when a friend has a baby or I’m asked to bring a main dish for a potluck. It transports easily and freezes and reheats so well. It’s also a great recipe for using up any leftover cooked chicken you have.

Plated Enchiladas

 

Chicken Verde Enchiladas
Makes 8 enchiladas

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1 cup mushrooms, diced
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken, shredded
  • 3 cups cheddar cheese, divided
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1 (15.8 ounce) can Great Northern beans
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 (10.7 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
  • 1 cup salsa verde (Find in the salsa aisle or Hispanic foods section of your supermarket)
  • 8 flour tortillas, taco size

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a medium-high heat skillet, sauté onions and mushrooms in olive oil for several minutes, until softened. Add minced garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes and remove from heat. Set aside.

Grilled onions, mushrooms, garlic

In a medium bowl mix together shredded chicken, 1 cup of the cheddar cheese, sour cream, beans, and pepper. Add the grilled onion and mushroom mixture and mix together. Set aside.

Filling

In another bowl, mix together cream of mushroom soup and salsa verde until creamy.

Salsa Verde

Spread a cup of the mixture onto the bottom of a 9×13 casserole dish.

Casserole

Liberally fill each tortilla with the chicken mixture.

Filled tortilla

Roll up and place in the bottom of the casserole dish. Continue with remaining tortillas and filling mixture.

Enchiladas without sauce

Pour remaining mushroom soup/salsa verde mixture all over the filled tortillas.

Enchiladas without cheese

Top with remaining 2 cups of cheddar cheese.

Cheese on enchiladas

Bake for 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and starts to brown.

Finished enchiladas

Let cool for 10 minutes and serve.

Plated Enchiladas

Easy Cheesy Steak Taquitos

My boyfriend, Tom, has an unequaled love for taquitos. If he had to eat one meal for the rest of his life, taquitos would happily be on his menu. Unfortunately, the frozen variety are fried and filled with preservatives and all sorts of junk. While frozen are super quick and easy, homemade are actually almost as quick and easy but so much better for you and even better tasting. This is also a super kid-friendly meal so you can get your little helpers in the kitchen. My favorite thing about this meal is that you can use up leftovers to make them by substituting out the meat and veggies for practically anything you have that you need to use up.

Cover

Makes 12 taquitos

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 small onion
  • 6 ounces steak, chopped into bite-size pieces
    • I used strip but you can use also use  flat iron, top sirloin, London broil, etc,
  • 1/2 cup of corn
  • 1 cup of Mexican blend cheese
  • 1/4 cup chopped green onion
  • 1/2 cup salsa
  • 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
  • 12 (6-inch) flour or corn tortillas
  • 12 toothpicks
  • Sour cream, guacamole, or salsa for dipping, optional

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

In a medium sauté pan, add olive oil and cook onion for 1-2 minutes on medium high heat. Add chopped steak and cook until no longer pink in the center. Remove from heat and allow to cool while you work on the rest of the filling.

Grilled steak and onions

In a small bowl, mix corn, cheese, green onion, salsa, and taco seasoning  until well blended.

Filling mixture, without steak and onions

Mix in the cooled onion and steak mixture.

Filling mixture

To ensure your tortillas are nice and pliable for rolling, wrap the tortillas in a couple damp paper towels and microwave on a plate for 30-45 seconds. This is also a great tip for taco and fajita night!

Working on a cutting board, lay out a tortilla and spread 3 heaping tablespoons of filling all over the tortilla.

Tortilla with filling

Roll up tightly, from bottom to top and fasten the seams with a toothpick. Continue rolling up the rest of the tortillas and then place on the baking sheet, about an inch apart.

Spray the tops of the taquitos with olive oil cooking spray and bake for 15 minutes, or until brown and nice and crispy.

Remove from baking sheet and cool for 5 minutes.

Don’t forget to remove the toothpicks before serving!
Plated Steak Taquitos

I serve with a side of Spanish Rice and little bowls of sour cream, salsa, or guacamole so guests can pick their favorite condiment. This will definitely be a huge hit and is also a great recipe idea for game day nibbles.