40 Recipes | Overnight French Toast

Recipe Source: Pinterest
Made : December 29, 2013

Ingredients:
¼ cup butter, melted
¾ cup packed brown sugar
1 loaf of French bread, sliced into 1 ½ inches thick
8 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup milk
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
½ cup pecans, measured then chopped
1/8 teaspoon salt
Maple syrup and powdered sugar to top (optional)

Directions:
1. In a small bowl combine brown sugar and melted butter and pour on the bottomw of a 9x13 baking dish.
2. Arrange slices of bread in the baking dish overlapping if necessary.
3. Combine milk, eggs, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, and ginger in a bowl and pour evenly over bread slices.
4. Sprinkle chopped pecans over bread slices.
5. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 4-12 hours.
6. in the morning, take the casserole out of the fridge for at least 10 minutes while you are preheating the oven to 350 degrees.
7. Bake casserole for 30-35 minutes.  If top starts browning too quickly place a foil loosely over the top of the casserole for the last 10 minutes or so.
8. Remove casserole from over and let it cool slightly before serving.  Serve with a dusting of powered sugar and a drizzle of maple syrup.

Thoughts:  I wanted more of a traditional French toast.  This was too eggy.  I really liked the idea of it though.  Still looking for something that is easy to make and doesn’t take too long in the mornings to prepare.

Verdict:  Make again?  Probably not.

40 Recipes | # Salted Caramel Chocolate Shortbread Bars

Recipe Source: Pinterest
Made : November 30, 2013

Ingredients:
For the shortbread layer:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup sugar

For the caramel layer:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup sugar
4 tbsp. light corn syrup
2 (14 oz.) cans sweetened condensed milk

For the chocolate layer:
8 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 tsp. light corn syrup
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Fleur de sel or sea salt, for sprinkling

Directions:
To make the shortbread layer, preheat the oven to 325° F.  Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with parchment paper.  In a small bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir with a fork to blend, and set aside.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until well blended, about 1-2 minutes.  With the mixer on low speed blend in the dry ingredients just until incorporated.  Transfer the dough to the prepared baking pan and press in an even layer over the bottom of the pan.  Bake 15-18 minutes or until golden.  (If the crust puffs up a bit while baking, just gently press it down while it is cooling.)  Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool completely.

To make the caramel layer, combine the butter, sugar, corn syrup and condensed milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Heat, stirring occasionally, until the butter is melted.  Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, stirring constantly.  Continue simmering and stirring until the mixture turns an amber color and thickens slightly.  Pour the mixture over the shortbread layer, smooth the top, and allow to cool completely and set.  (I chilled at this stage to ensure that the caramel layer would not melt when the warm chocolate was added.)

To make the chocolate glaze, combine the chocolate, corn syrup, and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water.  Heat, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth.  Pour evenly over the caramel layer and use an offset spatula to smooth the top.  Allow to cool for a minute or two and then sprinkle with fleur de sel.  Chill, covered, until ready to slice and serve.
Thoughts:  These were very time consuming to make.  There was a lot of down time between each layer.  They were also very rich tasting.  And the caramel layer was 5 times thicker than the other layers.  I'm wondering if I didn't make the caramel correctly.

Verdict:  Make again?  No.  Not a fan.  And these were a bit of a let down.

40 Recipes | # Homemade Thin Mints

Recipe Source:  Pinterest 
Made : November 30, 2013

Ingredients:
Ritz Crackers
1 bag of Andes Mint Baking Chips

Directions:
1.  Melt 1/4 of the Andes Mint at a time.
2.  Dip the crackers and let dry.

Thoughts:  I melted the baking chips on the stove over low heat.  I placed the chocolate covered crackers on waxed paper on a baking sheet.  Then I placed the baking sheet in the freezer to harden the chocolate.  I think next time I would use the reduced fat crackers.  Some of the cookies had a buttery taste.

Verdict:  Make again?  Yes.  Thin Mint cookies are still better, but these are are great when you need a quick fix.  And they are super easy to make.

Go to a Concert

It was the first night of ‘winter weather’ this year.  It was cold and rainy (which turned a little icy) and we had an hour and a half drive ahead of us to go to a concert.  D was supposed to go with me but couldn’t so mom took his place.   She was not happy about driving in the bad weather, so my dad decided he would drive us and hang out in Lawrence while we went to the concert.

When we got ready to leave the house, our car had a nice layer of ice covering it.  Mom and I decided the trip wasn’t worth it, but dad was adamant in going.  So we all hoped into the car and prayed we wouldn’t hit any ice as we drove to Kansas.  But that is the kind of dad I have.  The one that will drive an hour and a half just to wander around a little town and sit at a diner for 3 hours while mom and I go to a concert.  And then drive us back home.  (Mom went to college there and she began dating my dad while she was there so it was fun for them to see how much the town has changed.  And it made the 3 hour wait for my dad a little more bearable.  But still….)

The concert was for Matt Nathanson, one of my favorite singers.  I had seen him in concert 4 times prior to this concert.  When I bought the tickets back in June I had no idea that another one of my favorite singers, Joshua Radin, would be opening.  Double plus!

So, we get to the concert and the opening act, Joshua Radin, was already singing.  He was incredible!  And after he performed he told the audience to come see him at the back table, right where mom and I were standing.  So we hop in line and get a photo with him.  IT.WAS.AWESOME!

A few minutes later, Matt got up on stage and rocked.  Out of all 5 times I’ve seen him perform, this was definitely my favorite.  He sang all my favorite songs and you could tell he was having a lot of fun with our audience.  It was an awesome night!

Go to a Football Game

I know my list said a high school game, but I went to a college football game instead.  It was a big rival game between the college Dakota graduated from and the town we live in.  Dakota’s school won, beating the other school by 30 points!  It was a great game and we had a lot of fun!

40 Recipes | #17 Chicken Pot Pie Cupcakes

Recipe Source: Pinterest : Tastebook.com
Made : November 5, 2013

Ingredients:
1 chicken breast, poached and diced
1 (14.5oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 cup frozen mixed veggies
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 Tbs Herbs De Provence
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic salt
2 (10oz) cans Pillsbury biscuits

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2.  In a large bowl, combine the cooked chicken, cream of chicken soup, frozen veggies, cheese, herbs and spices.
3.  Lightly grease a 12 cup muffin tin and place the Pillbury biscuits into each cup, pressing into the bottom and up the sides.
4.  Evenly spoon the pot pie mixture into each biscuit cup.  Slide into the oven and bake for about 15 minutes.  Check at the 12 minute mark.
5.  Let rest for about 3 minutes and dig in!

Thoughts:  I am my mother’s daughter.  I get a recipe and I alter it with what I have in the kitchen.  I used one large can of cooked chicken.  I only had a 10 oz can of cream of chicken soup.  I didn’t have an Herbs De Provence so I added about ½ tsp of Thyme leaves.

I thought this was good and I really liked the idea of having a chicken pot pie with a little less work.  To me, it was a little cheesy.  Next time I think I’ll cut back on some of the cheese and add more veggies and maybe more chicken.

Verdict:  Make again?  Overall, it was a success and we will be keeping this recipe (with a few modifications!)

Paint the Front Porch

Well, I don’t have photos from this event because I really didn’t participate in it.  One day while mom and I were at work, dad scraped off the old paint.  And one day during a weekend last month, dad and mom  put a new layer of paint on the porch.  When I went to get a photo of them they were done.

Pretty easy  :)

#45 of 101
Completed : October 19, 2013