Cafe Rio Chicken.

OMG!!   Hubbs and I were both in love with this one and it is SO EASY!!

Apparently there is a restaurant in Utah that is the name sake for this dish.  I have never been there but I saw the recipe on Pinterest and it sounded yummy and looked easy so I thought I would try it.

You can use this delicious chicken in many ways which is great if you have picky eaters!

We had it over rice the first night
 Day 2 Hubby had it in a salad
Day 3 i made a quesedilla
Day 4 I was sad because Hubby ate it all and I could not make a burrito.

Yeah.... I think I shall make some next week and have burritos.

What I also LOVE is that you can freeze it after you make it.  There are a lot of us military wives out there that find ourselves having too much food during deployments.
Freeze the extra and take it out when you want a salad or burrito etc.. ;)

** To clarify below I used about 4-5 oz of dressing.
**  I also shredded the chicken and let simmer for about a half an hour more so the flavor could really absorb.

I hope you can forgive my photos I am NOT a professional, but I want to give you an idea.  PLUS this is what a REAL kitchen looks like ;)

Here We Go....

• 2 lbs chicken breasts
• 1/2 a small bottle of zesty Italian dressing
• 1/2 Tbsp. minced garlic
• 1 pkt ranch dressing mix (mixed with 1/2 cup of water)
• 1/2 Tbsp. chili powder
• 1/2 Tbsp. ground cumin

Place all ingredients in a crock pot. Cook on High 5-6 hours OR on Low 8 hours. Shred with fork and serve in salads, burritos, tacos...etc. You can also double or triple this to make extras for freezing. Then simply thaw and reheat for a fast and delicious meal.

**  It did not take that long in my crock pot.  I used only 2 breasts so about 1.5 lbs. 

you know your crock pot and can judge it best

Please fee free to "pin" this and try it and please let me know what you think ;)

Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes / Muffins

OK These were an amazing breakfast treat.
They are moderately labor intensive due to the swirling of the batter and cinnamon in the cups.
I am thinking that next time I will just layer the cinnamon and batter and it will work out just fine.
In the original recipe she tells you to use room temp butter and eggs.
I did not think it would be that big of a deal but it really is.  If the batter had been warmer it would not have been so hard to swirl the mix.   The cold eggs made a difference.  (who knew ;))

I skipped the coffee icing layer and cheated and used canned cream cheese icing.
I make my own cream cheese icing but in the essence of saving time I grabbed the jar of frosting and it was wonderful.  Using these cheats also cut down on dishes ;)

Fresh from the oven before icing.

Here we go....

Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes

Ingredients

FOR THE SWIRL
1/4 cup (1/2 stick or 56.5 grams) unsalted butter (melted)
1/3 cup (85 grams) brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

FOR THE CUPCAKES

1 1/2 cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick or 113 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (113 grams) sour cream
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Coffee Icing
Ingredients

2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup (125 grams) confectioner’s sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 to 2 tablespoons (15 to 30 ml) brewed coffee

Cream Cheese Frosting * use your favorite recipe.

To make the filling:
 In a small bowl, stir all of the ingredients together until combined. Set aside until ready for use.

To make the cupcakes:
 Preheat oven to 350 degrees (180 C).
 Line a muffin pan with cupcake papers; set aside.
In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla and beat until smooth.
 Scrape the bowl, making sure there are no streaks of flour remaining (do not over mix).

Place 1 1/4 tablespoons of batter in each of the paper liners in the prepared muffin pan. Make a small well in the middle of each cup of batter with a toothpick, (i used the back of a fork)

 Stir the filling to make sure the butter is combined, then spoon a scant 1 teaspoon of the filling into each cup. Use a toothpick or fork) to swirl the filling and batter together.

Add another 1 1/4 tablespoons of batter to each cup and repeat the filling/swirling process.

Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before frosting.

To make the icing: (coffee)

 In a medium bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Stir in the vanilla until combined. Add the coffee until desired consistency is reached (I only used 1 tablespoon). For more coffee flavor, add more coffee, but you may need to add additional confectioners’ sugar to keep a good consistency.

Ice the cooled cupcakes with the coffee icing. Allow to sit for 15 to 20 minutes, then top with cream cheese frosting.

* I iced when they were still slightly warm so the frosting got all melty.
They do not look as pretty as the originals but hey I'm human ;)
Happy Baking. <3

thanks to http://bakingdom.com  for the recipe.

Cookie Dough Brownies.

Can I just say AMAZING! 

I will say You're Welcome now as these are that amazing that you will love me forever!

I know my photos are not perfect but hey I am just a girl with a baking problem ;)

I discovered these while browsing around on my new obsession Pinterest.
Thank you!!   http://www.recipegirl.com

Here we go

It took me more like an hour to make them.
I also had some help from my amazing cooking friend I.

make sure you have the butter at room temp.  It is important to make sure it blends correctly and if you melt it it may not.

I made the dough while the brownies were baking.
It is really amazing how good it is with no eggs!!

It was good that the cookie dough was a bit warm, it made it easier to shape onto the Brownies when it came time.

I did not have shortening to make the drizzle.  I used a bit of butter.  While it "worked"  it was not a smooth drizzle and i gave up and drew a chocolate smiley face. 
*note to self buy shortening*

I did not add the extra chocolate chips to the top after.   Honestly we forgot but it is delicious either way.

These are a delicious treat and one serving is just perfect.  
I would cut them individually if taking them somewhere.
Plus with the no eggs they can be left out at a pot luck no problem.

Enjoy, Happy Baking!!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownies

 32 brownies

Prep Time: 30 min + cooling time

Cook Time: 25 min

These brownies are a major treat for cookie dough lovers...

Ingredients:

BROWNIE:
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup butter, at room temperature
2 cups light brown sugar, packed
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
COOKIE DOUGH (EGG FREE!):
3/4 cup butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
3 Tablespoons milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup semisweet chips + 1 teaspoon shortening for drizzle, optional

Directions:

1. Prepare the brownies: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 9x13-inch pan with nonstick spray. In a medium glass bowl, melt chocolate in the microwave in short bursts of 30 seconds; stir after each burst and remove from microwave when melted and smooth. Set aside to cool slightly. In a large mixing bowl, mix butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer. Beat in eggs and vanilla extract. Mix in melted chocolate. Blend in flour and mix just until combined (don't over-mix). Spread batter into prepared pan. Bake 25 to 35 minutes. Watch closely and remove from oven when toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely.

2. Prepare the cookie dough: In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to combine butter, brown sugar and white sugar. Mix in milk and vanilla. Mix in flour just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
3. Spread cookie dough over the cooled brownies. Refrigerate until the dough is quite firm. It's okay to speed up the process and place it in the freezer too. The firmer the dough, the easier it will be to cut into neat squares. Use a sharp knife to cut the brownies. You may need to wipe the knife off with a paper towel in between cuts since the fudgy brownies and cookie dough will tend to stick to the knife a bit. These brownies are best to serve placed inside cupcake papers and served with a fork.
4. If you'd like to add chocolate drizzle on top, melt 1/2 cup chocolate chips with 1 teaspoon of shortening in the microwave; stir until smooth. Scoop the melted chocolate into a zip baggie and snip off the corner. Squeeze the bag to drizzle the chocolate on top of each brownie. Sprinkle additional chocolate chips on top, if desired.

Source: RecipeGirl.com

Chalkboard Paint

If you know me you know I LOVE Chalkboards.
I have 3 in my house.
My dream is to own a home one day and paint my ENTIRE kitchen wall with chalkboard paint and use it for notes, menus and lists.

I also love the planet and what better way to not waste paper.

I came across this recipe for chalkboard paint today on Pinterest.
Thank You Salt Tree for posting!
This could save you some $ and you could make mini boards for the car or gifts!!

**********
1 Cup of latex house paint or acrylic craft paint
1 TBSP of non-sanded tile grout

Mix together until there are no lumps.

Paint your surface with the mixture.  Use a small roller for a smoother finish. A brush will give you some textured ridges when it dries (I used a brush).

Let it dry completely.

If you find the chalkboard surface is too rough once dried, sand the surface lightly with a fine grit sand paper, then, using the side of a piece of chalk, rub it across the entire surface of the board. Wipe off the chalk afterwards. This can help give you a smoother surface.

Clean with a damp cloth.

FUN!!
Let me know how it goes!!