Peanut Butter Heaven

Again, made this for my mom for Mother's Day. She LOVES peanut butter... and lemme tell you, I wish I could have recorded her reaction to this pie.

I think the key is the pie crust. It's not your typical graham cracker pie crust.



Also, this requires an overnight chill.



And by the way, she's already requested this for her birthday dessert..... her birthday isn't until October.





Crust:

1 1/2 C vanilla wafer cookie crumbs
1 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp peanut butter
2 Tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 350. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the butter and peanut butter. Add in the cookie crumbs and sugar, and form into the pie pan like a crust. If you can, chill before baking. Bake for about 10 minutes.


Filling:

8 oz package whipped cream cheese
1 C creamy peanut butter
3/4 C powdered sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
12 oz THAWED cool whip (whipped topping)

Blend cream cheese, peanut butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Add in cool whip and mix more, until light and fluffy looking. (If the cool whip is not fully thawed, the peanut butter mixture will do a weird clumping together thing... just let it sit.)

Pour into crust.... and enjoy it the next day!

Shrimp Enchiladas w/ Jalapeno Cream Sauce

I made this amazingly delicious recipe for my lovely mother for Mother's Day... I doubled the recipe that I will put here, and there was enough for 6 people, and a bunch of leftovers! It's a little involved, so prep to help yourself out!  

And also, I apologize for no pictures... I originally was not going to blog this one... but was convinced to put it up ;)

Here's what you'll need:

1 lb shrimp, peel and deveined

olive oil

salt and pepper

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp flour

1 1/2 C chicken broth

3/4 cup sour cream

2 jalapenos, minced

1/2 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper

1/4 C cilantro

2 gloves garlic

1 small onion, chopped

2 cups shredded green cabbage

2 carrots, peeled and grated

2-3 cups baby spinach

1/4 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

12 small corn tortillas

2 cups monterey jack cheese

Ok, first get the shrimp ready. Peel and devein, and toss in olive oil and salt & pepper. I cook mine in the cast iron skillet, but you can cook them however. Roasting in the oven is probably easy (400 degrees for about 7-8 minutes.) 

After they're cooked, and ready to handle, chop them into thirds (bite-size pieces.)

For the sauce (which is key to this recipe!) Melt butter in a large saucepan. Whisk in the flour until lightly browned. Gradually whisk in the chicken stock, and cook until incorporated (a few minutes.) Stir in the sour cream. Add Jalapenos and garlic powder, and simmer for a few minutes. Add salt and pepper and remove from heat. Then add the cilantro in.

Now, for the filling. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large saucepan. Add the minced garlic and onion, and cook for a few minutes. Add cabbage, carrot, spinach, oregano, and cayenne. Cook until the spinach is not completely wilted. Remove from heat and add shrimp, stir. 

Now you're ready to assemble these little masterpieces! Pout a tiny bit of sauce to coat the bottom of a 13x9 pan. Roll tortillas with shrimp filling and cheese, and place seam side down. Repeat, repeat, repeat! Pour sauce over the enchiladas (saving some extra for after their baked!) and top with more cheese if you still have some. 

Bake at 375 for about 15-20 minutes... you're welcome ;)

Baked Chicken Tenders

Dredge chicken in a ranch/hot sauce mix, then dip in bread crumbs. 

Place on a cooking rack which is placed over a lined cookie sheet. I topped these with with salt, pepper, and rosemary. 

Bake at 350-375 for 20-30 minutes! :)

Beef Tips

Caution: These are not advisable for those hot summer days... These takes a while in the oven, so while it's incredibly easy to throw together and get in the oven... it has a tendency to heat the place up! 


...Now that I've got you excited about heating up your house... here's what ya need! ;)

2 lbs beef tenderloin tips/stew meat
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 Lipton Onion Soup Mix
1 packet brown gravy mix
1 cup water

Mix everything together and coat meat. Pour in a pan, cover with foil, and bake. 300 degrees for about 3 hours. This helps ensure the perfect tenderness! 

Lemon Crisp Cookies

This light and fluffy cookie recipe credit goes to my little sister, Tara! She so kindly included this with my recipe collection I received at my bridal shower!

It is probably one of THE EASIEST cookie recipes to make... and I have made A LOT of cookies in my lifetime ;)

All you need is 5 ingredients!

1 package lemon cake mix

1 cup rice krispies cereal

1/2 cup melted butter

1 beaten egg

1 tsp grated lemon peel

Mix cake mix, butter, egg, and lemon peel, and stir in the rice krispies.

Drop rounded spoonfuls on lined cookie sheet, and bake for 9-10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Fish Tacos w/an Avocado Cream Sauce

My husband gets tired of endless chicken dinners... so I try'n switch it up (even tho I am not a huge fan of fish!) These are made with tilapia, but could also be made with red snapper. 

They are really easy to make! While the fish is in the oven, you can prep the avocado sauce, & lime slaw. 

Here is all of what you will need:

(yields about 6 tacos)

roughly 1 lb fish

1 avocado

2 Tbsp greek yogurt (or sour cream)

1 small jalapeno, diced thinly

1 Tbsp finely chopped red onion

1 Tbsp chopped cilantro

3 limes

1 small napa cabbage

1 Tbsp vegetable oil

tomatoes (optional)
Tortillas

1) Line a baking dish or cookie sheet with foil, and lay fish across. Season with salt and pepper, and bake. (Again, I used tilapia, and cooked them for 25 minutes at 375.)

Ok, now time to make the "guacamole!"

Mash together the avocado, greek yogurt, onions, cilantro, jalapeno, and juice of 1 lime. 

Slaw time!

I LOVE napa cabbage... it's SO EASY to chop!

Add vegetable oil and juice of 1 lime to chopped cabbage. (I might add a teaspoon or so of sugar to cut the citrus flavor next time.)

By this time the fish should be almost ready! Another easy thing here is that fish flakes apart PERFECTLY! 

My husband preferred to eat them as tostadas... but however you eat them, they're deliciously refreshing! 

Easy Yogurt Pie

This is your perfect "go-to dessert" for Spring/Summer! The one made for this post was key lime, but can be made with ANY yogurt of your choice!

All you need is:

a pie crust

8 oz cool whip

3 yogurts

Now... I am a sucker for a great graham cracker crust... and so if you don't  want to buy a store-bought one, here's an easy homemade one:

1/3 cup melted unsalted butter

1 1/2 cup crushed graham cracker

1/4 cup sugar

1) combine all ingredients, and press into a pie pan

2) chill for roughly an hour

3) bake at 375 for 8 minutes

Ok, so for the filling, all you do is mix the cool whip and yogurt, and pour into crust!

This was made for St. Patrick's Day, so I finished it off with green sprinkles.

Again, make this with ANY yogurt you'd like!