Monster Cookies

12 eggs

1 lb oleo

2 lbs brown sugar

3 lbs peanut butter

3 T vanilla

18 c oatmeal

3 tsp light karo

8 tsp soda

4 c white sugar

1 lb m & m's

1 lb choc. chips

Mix in a large bowl with hands. Make cookies about the size of a hamburger patty. Place only about 3 on a cookie sheet at a time. They don't call them Monster cookies for nothing! Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.

***I only make half of the recipe at a time because it is just too much to deal with otherwise. Half the recipe makes about 2 dozen large cookies. These are hugely popular at bake sales we've had for scouts--probably due to their large size more than anything!!

Jared was also sorely disappointed I hadn't introduced him to these cookies much sooner than 13 years into our marriage!

Cajun Shrimp Alfredo

This Alfredo sauce is a cinch! It's delicious and light too. You could really put anything on top of the pasta...blackened grilled chicken, sauteed onions and tomatoes, serve the pasta as a side dish...etc.

Guiltless Alfredo Sauce and Cajun Shrimp
Slightly adapted from ourbestbites.com

Ingredients:

2 C low-fat milk
1/3 C (3 oz) low fat cream cheese
2 T flour
1 t salt
1 T butter
3 garlic cloves
1 C grated Parmesan cheese
pinch of nutmeg

frozen cooked shrimp
cajun seasoning
1 tbsp. canola oil

For Sauce:

Toss milk, cream cheese, flour, salt, and nutmeg in a blender. Blend until smooth. Warm the butter in the pan over medium high heat. Add the garlic and sautee for about 30 seconds, just until fragrant. Add the milk mixture and stir constantly for about 3-4 minutes until it comes to a simmer. Now stir for a few minutes more. It will thicken as it cooks. Take the sauce off the heat and add the parmesan cheese. The sauce will thicken even more as it sits off the heat. So, don't cook it for too long.

For Shrimp:

Thaw the shrimp under running cold water. Coat in cajun seasoning, and sautee in warm oil. Place on top of the pasta and sprinkle parsley if desired.

Oh yeah, don't forget to make the pasta too :)

Karlie...

Hey I was wondering if you could post that broccoli salad recipe of yours...Mmm. Please?

Strawberry Oatmeal Breakfast Shake

Who knew there could be so many ways to eat oatmeal. I love oatmeal, but it's been hard for me to get it down on these hot muggy mornings. I got this idea (and the pretty picture) from allrecipes and used what I had to make a deliciously cold, smooth, and sweet treat. I promise you're kids will never know that there are oats in there. And there you have it, the perfect breakfast food hidden in a shake in seconds! Try it!

Strawberry Oatmeal Breakfast Shake
Makes about 2 servings

Blend these ingredients in the order listed:

1/2 c plain or vanilla yogurt
2/3 c milk or water
1 banana
1/2 c. + raw oats
10-14 frozen strawberries
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp honey (if desired)

Shepherd's Pie

I had never even heard of Shepherd's Pie before I married into the Dean family. I will be honest, it wasn't something I wanted to make very often. I'm not really a big fan of ground hamburger as the main component of any meal. That's just me. I know lot's of people like it, especially my husband. Since Jacob happens to love Shepherd's pie I attempted to turn an old favorite into a new favorite for the whole family, with a few additions of my own. It was a hit! So, I've been making it this way since that day in 2007. Not that much different...but really, really good.

Shepherd's Pie Re-vamped
Feeds 6

4-5 medium sized potatoes
1 tbsp butter
about 1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt to taste
1lb ground turkey
1 small yellow or white onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp canola oil
1 can stewed tomatoes, cut into smaller pieces
1/4 cup ketchup
2 beef bullion cubes
2 Tbsp flour
1/4 c water
1/4-1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2-1 tsp black pepper
a few shakes of seasoned salt or to taste (we use Johnny's)
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
frozen vegetables of your choice, I prefer green beans, carrots, and sometimes peas
1/2 cup cheese, I use whatever I have

Pressure cook, boil, or bake your potatoes until they are soft enough to mash. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large saucepan. Add onion and cook over medium heat until soft, add garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Add ground turkey and brown. Sprinkle flour over the browned meat. Add bouillon cubes and water, tomatoes, and ketchup, white and black pepper, oregano, seasoned salt, and worcestershire sauce. Bring it all to a simmer. Add more water or spices until desired sauciness and flavor are reached. Mash or whip the potatoes with a mixer (we like them whipped) with the butter, milk, pepper, garlic powder, and salt. Add more milk and butter to taste. Pour turkey mixture into a square or round pan. Spread frozen veggies over turkey. Smooth potatoes over veggies, and sprinkle cheese. Bake in oven at 350 degrees until bubbly and cheese is melted. This will only take about 15-30 minutes if your pie is still warm from the stove. You can also refrigerate the pie unbaked for up to 2 days and then bake with foil on top for about an hour. Take foil off for the last 10 minutes.

Danielle's devilishly good brownies

Enoch as well as the rest of the gang thought these brownies were sooooo good! Maybe they were just excited that they weren't filled with too much salt because of my April Fool's prank!

Deep Dark Chocolate Brownies

These are the best homemade brownies I have yet to make. This could possibly have something to do with my intense craving for, well food, since I've been nursing Elijah.

Luci loves anything with chocolate. She was helping me and I turned away for a minute to look at the recipe, and there she was slathered in chocolate goo.

Deep, Dark Chocolate Brownies

Recipe adapted from melskitchencafe.blogspot.com

2 sticks (8 oz) butter
10 oz good-quality semisweet chocolate
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
5 large eggs
1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips *optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 13×9 inch metal pan with foil and spray foil with cooking spray. Alternatively, you may use parchment. These are pretty sticky at first!

Melt butter and chocolate in a 3-qt heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring, until smooth. Add 1 cup of the sugar to the hot chocolate mixture. Remove from heat and let cool to lukewarm.

Whisk in remaining 1 cup sugar and vanilla. Whisk in eggs 1 at a time until mixture is glossy and smooth. Whisk in salt and cocoa powder, then add flour and stir until it disappears (do not overbeat). Stir in chocoate chips.

Spread in pan and bake until a pick inserted in center comes out with crumbs, 25 to 35 minutes. Cool to room temperature then chill for an hour or more. Lift from pan, place on a cutting board, cut into squares.

Makes 1 13×9 inch pan (yield depends on how big you cut your brownies, but they are rich, so small is fine.