Salted Brown Butter White Chocolate Rice Krispie Treats

Okay, so about a year ago I mentioned that I am addicted to Doritos and OREOS (for my recipe for homemade OREOS click HERE). But since that post I have realized that I made a huge mistake and forgot 1 mayjah food that I am also addicted to... Rice Krispie Treats. We're talking zero control over how much/many I eat. No matter how large the pan of krisipies is, I will finish it all. By myself. Usually by the end of the night... sometimes all in one sitting. I am having to use all of my strength to not buy more marshmallows after I finish this post-- apparently its not healthy to eat 5 tablespoons of butter every day...

When I saw this recipe for salted brown butter rice krispie treats I knew that they would be even more addictive than the plain ol' regular butter and no salt krispies I've always made. These are so easy, but ohhhh myyyy, good lord, heavens to betsy, etc. etc. etc. These are completely insane. And yes, I made them and finished the entire batch within 24 hours... with no help from another eater. And yes, I made them again two days later for a potluck. This recipe is from www.smittenkitchen.com... its basically the same, but I added less rice krispies, because I wanted more buttery-marshmallowy goodness.

INGREDIENTS
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
10.5 ounces mini marshmallows
1/4 (heaping) teaspoon kosher salt
2/3 cup white chocolate chips

5 1/2 cups rice krispies

Melt the butter in a large pot, stirring constantly while it begins to bubble. Continue cooking until it starts to brown, making sure to scrape up the brown specs from the bottom of the pan as it browns. The butter should begin to have a nutty smell and you want to take it off the heat right when this happens, as you do not want to burn the butter. Once of the heat, add the marshmallows, salt, and white chocolate chips and stir until melted and the butter is fully incorporated.  Add the rice krispies and stir together.

Pour into a buttered 8x8 inch pan. Press down with buttered wax paper. Let sit/cool about 1 hour, then cut into squares and serve.

Chocolate Covered OREOS

I made these the other night out of default— I had only 1 tablespoon of butter and no oil and thus was quite limited with what I could make for dessert. I scoured my pantry and remembered a friend making chocolate covered Oreos a few years ago. I gave these a whirl… they were SO easy, SO fast, really tasty and look much more impressive than they should. All-in-all these are winners. 

INGREDIENTS

• 20 Oreos
• 1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• 1 tablespoon butter

Melt the chocolate chips and butter over a double boiler (or in the microwave in 15 second increments). Stir until smooth. Drop an Oreo into the melted chocolate and cover with chocolate. Scoop up the Oreo with a fork and lightly tap the fork against the side of the bowl to let the excess chocolate drip off the cookie. Place on wax paper and let cool/harden. Continue with other cookies. 

Melt the while chocolate in a double boiler (or in the microwave in 15 second increments) and stir until smooth. Transfer into a piping bag or a small ziplock bag and cut a small corner out. Pipe the white chocolate onto the chocolate covered-cookies. Let cool.

These do well if stored in the fridge… Serve and enjoy!

Simple Sesame Noodles

Although I already have a go-to sesame noodle dish, I recently came across this one which is easier, lighter, and faster than the previous post that I shared months ago. I might like these more??? I added a small amount of peanut butter because I wanted it to have a slightly richer taste- you could add it or not. I made these a few nights ago and I will likely make them again later this week. You could add a protein if you wanted or any other veggies that you think would go nicely. They’d also be great for a potluck as they taste equally delicious hot and cold. Adapted from www.thepioneerwoman.com

• 12 ounces thin spaghetti
• 1/4 cup soy sauce 
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 4 tablespoons sesame oil 
• 3/4 teaspoon hot chili oil
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 tablespoons hot water
• 1-2 tablespoons peanut butter
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced

Boil pasta according to directions. 

Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients for the sauce, whisking together until everything is incorporated. 

When pasta has been drained, pour into a large bowl and pour sauce and veggies on top. Toss together with tongs. Serve. Enjoy. Devour. Make again. 

Sea Salted Nutella Fudge

This recipe was recommended to me from my fellow food blogger, friend, and future bakery co-owner, Stephanie (www.whatstephaniemade.wordpress.com). Its a great fudge recipe- incredibly easy and fast. Requires no arm muscles (BONUS). Next time I’ll add more nutella and chop some hazelnuts to sprinkle on top, yum. 

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk (~14 oz)
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 (or 1 1/2) cups nutella
• 8 ounces semi or bittersweet chocolate chips
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt to sprinkle on top (optional)

Butter the bottom of a 8x8 pan. Line the pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overlap on the sides (to help you take the fudge out when cooled). 

In a double boiler heat the sweetened condensed milk, 3 tablespoons butter, nutella, chocolate chips, and vanilla until everything is melted and smooth. Pour into prepared pan. Sprinkle with sea salt (or chopped hazelnuts) and place in refrigerator for at least 2 hours. 

Cut into squares and serve and enjoy! 

Sundried Tomato Dip

I pretty much love everything Ina Garten. I love the food she cooks, her house in the Hamptons, her cute laugh, and I love that Liz Lemon shares my deep love for Ina. According to Ina, this dip was the most popular dip at her restaurant and after making it I can see why. Its creamy and sweet (from the sundried tomatoes) and wonderful with all kinds of fresh veggies- in particular, bell peppers, carrots, celery, and I bet broccoli. I also served it with pita chips which went nicely. This is so easy and requires only 1 bowl (a food processor). It will literally take you 2 minutes to make, start to finish. Make me. Nowwww!

Its also great the next day— I know this because I am currently eating last night’s leftovers. 

Ingredients

• about 1/3 cup chopped sundried tomatoes (packed in oil, drained)
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup sour cream (or plain yogurt)
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise 
• 10-20 dashes of tabasco (taste as you go)
• about 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced

Combine all the ingredients except the scallions in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add the scallions and pulse just a few times. Pour into bowl and serve with fresh cut vegetables or pita chips/crackers. 

Monkey Bread

I’ve been wanting to make this for such a long time, but never had a good opportunity. Its perfect for a breakfast/brunch party, but, um, I’ve never had one of those……. 

This weekend I went out of town with some friends and made this for part of our Saturday morning brunch. It was really easy and fun to make, and I found myself (along with most of the out of town gang) eating the homemade caramel sauce straight from the pot. De-lish. Adapted from a variety of recipes. 

• 30 ounces of raw buttermilk biscuits (e.g. Pillsbury brand)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 3/4 cup butter
• 3/4 cup brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Grease a bundt or tube pan (make sure it does not have a removable bottom- or else the caramel will ooze out while cooking). Sprinkle the chopped pecans in the bottom of the pan. Set aside.

Mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon in a large ziplock bag. Then cut each biscuit into 3 or 4 pieces and quickly roll into balls. Toss them in the cinnamon-sugar and place them in the pan… try to overlap the seams, so that the bread doesn’t have any particular weak spots. 

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a pan over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and boil until all combined and thick (a few minutes). Pour mixture over the bread. 

Bake for about 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool about 5 minutes. Invert the cake onto a large serving plate and eat warm! YUM. 

Chocolate Icebox Cake

I’ve been wanting to make this cake for a long time, ever since I first saw it. It is a stunningly beautiful cake that requires 2 main ingredients, no baking, and about 10 minutes of assembly. So simple. The only part of this cake that can be a problem is finding the Nabisco Chocolate Wafers- they aren’t always in the cookie aisle of the grocery store, but are sometimes in the ice cream-topping section.

What happens with the cookies is that they soak up some of the moisture from the whipped cream and they soften overnight, resulting in 11 layers of very thin “cake.” Definitely a crowd pleaser. I added a little Bailey’s to the whipped cream, but you could add any other flavoring you’d like… infinitely adaptable. Adapted from Magnolia Bakery.

• 2 packages of Nabisco Chocolate Wafers
• 3 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 1/2-3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• about 2 tablespoons Bailey’s (or Kahlua, Grand Mariner, Bourbon, etc.) 
• Chocolate shavings

With an electric mixer, beat the heavy cream, sugar, vanilla and Bailey’s until thick and whipped-cream consistency. 

On a serving plate, layer 7 cookies in a tight (but not overlapping) circle with one cookie in the center. Layer 1/2 cup of whipped cream on top, spreading near the ends of the cookies. Add another layer of cookies, continuing to layer 1/2 cup of the whipped cream between each layer. Make a total of 11 layers of cookies and whipped cream. Top with chocolate shavings and refrigerate overnight. 

Serve and enjoy!!

Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

So, I don’t tend to like peanut butter and chocolate together. Separately, YES. But I don’t really like Reese’s, etc. But Maryssa gave me this SUPER easy recipe for peanut butter cookies and I thought why not? I added the chocolate chips at the last minute, thinking that I’d regret it if I didn’t… and maybe I could learn to be a lover of peanut butter and chocolate together. Turns out, these were awesome. But most importantly, there are only 5 ingredients in this recipe… FIVE. Total. 

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• chocolate chips (however many you want)

Mix all the ingredients together and roll into balls (about 15-18 cookies). Place on cookie sheet and use the tongs of the fork to press the cookies slightly. 

Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. Do not overcook, but also make sure you get them cooked through— but even if you don’t cook them enough they will taste great! Let sit on cookie sheet for a few minutes then transfer to a cooling rack. Eat and enjoy!

Easy Potluck Pasta Salad

I made this pasta salad for a cookout with friends this weekend. Its so easy to make and infinitely adaptable based on whatever you have in your fridge, or what looks good at the grocery store— I usually try to get ingredients that vary in color to make this dish look prettier. You can make your own salad dressing, or use bottled (I used bottled this time, oops). Occasionally I make this same dish but with a greek flare (using pasta, marinated artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, red onion, feta, and greek dressing). By no means is this gourmet or even impressive, but its cold and fresh and it tastes pretty darn good when accompanied by a burger and a cold beer. 

• 1 pound (16 oz.) rotini (spiral) pasta
• 2 bell peppers (I usually use 1 orange & 1 yellow)
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 red onion
• Broccoli florets
• feta cheese 
• ~ 1 1/2 cups italian-like dressing

Boil the pasta according to the directions on the box. Drain and rinse with cold water until cool to the touch. Pour into a large bowl and add the above ingredients (chopping the onion, peppers, and tomatoes however you like). Pour the dressing over the pasta and add the feta cheese and mix well. 

Three Ingredient Tomato Sauce

I have friends that are Italian and I generally like to leave the Italian cooking to them. Especially when it comes to “making sauce.” The idea of “making sauce” the Italian ways scares the pants off me, because… you… don’t… use… a… recipe? ((Shudder)) 

I always use recipes. I might completely change a recipe, or I might decide to add more or less of something or add something completely new on the spot, but I rarely cook without something in front of me. A safety net, I guess? Because of this, I’d never made a good pasta sauce because all my favorite ones were “made up on the spot” by my friends. 

I stumbled upon this recipe that had 3… yes THREE ingredients and I knew I had to try it. Its so easy and it has SO much flavor. It is different than a traditional pasta sauce with a richer, heartier flavor, but this one is wonderful, especially for this time of year when I can justttt begin to feel summer coming. 

• 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes (high quality brand)
• 1 onion, cut in half (peeled)
• 5 tablespoons butter
• (literally, that is all)

Pour the tomatoes and butter into a saucepan and place the onion halves on top. Cook at a simmer for 45 minutes. At this point, the onion will be (more) tender and your sauce won’t be watery anymore. Remove the onion and discard. Taste for salt and pepper.

…… Serve over pasta. Hah! Its so easy. 

If you want to add more flavor, I have been known to add a dash of red pepper flakes, some basil (fresh or dried), and pancetta (that I cooked in a pan before). 

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Everyone loves chocolate covered strawberries. I need not offer some cute story or reason behind why I made these… I just did. Partially from Bon Appetit, April 2010.

• 16 ripe, unblemished strawberries
• 6 ounces good white chocolate
• 6 ounces good dark chocolate (I used 72%)
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoons grated lemon or orange rind (I used a mixture of both)

Wash and dry the strawberries. 

Mix the sugar with the citrus rind until sugar becomes moist and everything is incorporated.

Meanwhile, melt the white chocolate and dark chocolate in separate bowls (either in a double boiler or in the microwave, stirring every 20 seconds or so). 

Dip the strawberries in the chocolate however you’d like… and sprinkle some/all/none with the citrus sugar. Once dipped, place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Allow to cool and harden completely. Remove and serve or store in an airtight container. 

*** In order to make the swirled strawberries, I dolloped a bit of each chocolate into a bowl and slightly swirled it with a knife and then dipped the strawberries into the swirled mixture. 

Beer Can Chicken

My friend Jenn has been telling me about her Beer Can Chicken for a long time now and I’ve been interested ever since she first mentioned it (I love beer and I love chicken, so clearly this intrigued me). She has invited me multiple times to have it at her house and I have foolishly declined due to too much work, etc. But, I had some time on my hands today and thought, hey, why not try it out myself…. SO, I got to googling and I found this recipe and thought the spice rub sounded pretty great. It is intended to be cooked on a grill, but I cooked mine in the oven and it worked out pretty darn well… The beer makes the chicken stay really moist, which is part of why it’s so yummy…. and its SO easy. (Adapted from George Duran’s recipe)

P.S. This recipe will make your house smell AMAZING.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1 chicken (3 1/2 to 4-pound)
• 1 can of beer

Mix the ingredients for the Spice Rub until they are well blended. Rub it all over the chicken, inside and out.

Open the beer and take a big swig (or just pour out a couple of ounces). Sit the chicken on the beer can so the legs are at the bottom and the wings are at the top. Stand the beer can and the chicken on a shallow pan and place in oven.

Cook for 1-1 ½ hours at 375 degrees.