TWD: Chocolate Sour Cream Cookies

Big, fluffy cake-like chocolate cookies. YUM! These would be good to sandwich with ice cream!

Thanks to Spike of SpikeBakes for hosting this week.

Creamy Pasta with Leeks, Peas, and Parmesan

Delicious and easy! It was great by itself but the next day Nathan mixed in some tuna for his lunch and it was delicious that way, too! Cold, warm, plain, with tuna, lunch, dinner... good any way you shake it! :)

Creamy Pasta with Leeks, Peas, and Parmesan

Recipe from Woman's Day

12 oz pasta

1 (10 oz) package frozen peas

1 lemon, zested

2 TBSP olive oil

4 leeks, sliced into half moons

Salt and Pepper

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/8 tsp grated fresh nutmeg

2 TBSP fresh tarragon, chopped

1/4 cup grated parmesan

Cook pasta according to package directions, adding the peas during the last 2 minutes of cooking. Drain and set aside.

Heat oil in large skillet. Add leeks, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper and cook until tender; 6-8 minutes. Add cream, lemon zest, and nutmeg; simmer until slightly thickened (2-3 minutes).

Add pasta and peas to skillet and toss to combine. Fold in tarragon. Sprinkle with parmesan.

Strawberry Nutella Muffins

These muffins prompted my 3 year old to say, "Mommy, you make the best muffins in the world!" Yes... they are THAT good! YUM!

Strawberry Nutella Muffins

Recipe from Two Peas and Their Pod

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1 large egg
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped fresh strawberries
1/3 cup Nutella

Preheat oven to 350 and grease muffin tins.

Whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar.

Combine canola oil, egg, buttermilk, and vanilla together.

Add wet to dry and stir just until combined. Fold in strawberries.

Fill each muffin cup halfway and add a spoonful of Nutella. Cover Nutella with remaining batter.

Bake for 17-10 minutes.

Banana Sour Cream Muffins

Delicious banana muffins sprinkled with a little cinnamon sugar... YUM!

Banana Sour Cream Muffins
Recipe from Talking Dollars and Cents


2-1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 large ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup butter
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream

Sift together flour through salt; set aside.

Blend bananas, butter, and sugar in blender until smooth. Add eggs and sour cream; blend to mix.

Add blender ingredients to dry ingredients in bowl and mix well.

Fill muffin tins and bake for 20 minutes at 375.

Hunka Chunka Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

We are doing a summer reading challenge at our house. My 6 year old LOVES reading and we decided to do a small reward system to encourage her reading. We have a chart with 75 blocks and she gets a reward every 25 blocks. She finished her first 25 in 2 1/2 days and her reward was picking a dessert for me to make.

She chose one of my cookbooks and flipped through for about 5 minutes before picking these cookies. It was a fanatastic choice. You can't really go wrong with chocolate chip cookies and these were soft, chewy, big, and LOADED with chocolate chips! YUM!

Hunka Chunka Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe from Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey Treats for Kids

1 cup melted butter

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

1 TBSP vanilla

2 eggs

1 egg yolk

3 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

3 cups chocolate chips

In a large bowl mix together butter through yolk. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir in chocolate chips.

Scoop out dough using large cookie scoop or 1/4 cup measuring cup and chill for at least 30 minutes or up to 8 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 and bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown.

TWD: Blueberry-Brown Sugar Plain Cake

I love cakes like this. Cakes that are quick to throw together, taste great, and aren't too fussy. Cakes that can be eaten for breakfast, snack, or dessert. This was so yummy and I'll definitely make it again!

Thanks to Cindy of Everyday Insanity for hosting this week. The recipe can be found at her blog.

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

Go to the store and buy the ingredients for these NOW! They are so good and so addicting. I made them 2 days ago and am highly considering making them for lunch today. SOOOOOOO YUMMY!!!!

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs
Recipe from Cassie Craves


3/4 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon pizza seasoning
3/4 cup whole milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 package mini pepperoni rounds (or 1 cup cubed pepperoni)
1/2 cup store-bought pizza sauce

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and pizza seasoning; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella, parmesan and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.

2. Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through. Serve the puffs with the pizza sauce for dipping.

Pork Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

These were a great alternative to a regular taco and a delicious way to use a pork tenderloin! YUM!!!!!!

Pork Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

Recipe from Family Circle

Dressing:

1/4 cup lime juice

1 tsp sugar

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

3 TBSP olive oil

2 TBSP chopped cilantro

Salsa:

2 cups pineapple chunks

2 plum tomatoes, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 jalepeno, seeded and diced

Pork Tacos:

1 pork tenderloin, sliced 1/2" thick

1/4 tsp salt

Corn tortillas

Heat grill or broiler.

In a small bowl, whick together dressing ingredients.

In a medium bowl, combine pineapple, tomatoes, garlic, and jalepeno. Stir in 2 TBSP of the dressing.

Combine remaining dressing with pork and marinate for 15 minutes. Grill or broil pork until done. Slice into thin strips and sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt.

To serve, fill a tortilla with a few pork strips and some salsa.

Pink Lemonade Bars

Here's a fun twist on the classic lemon bar. PERFECT for a summer treat!

Pink Lemonade Bars
Recipe from Family Circle

Crust:
2 cups plus 2 TBSP flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup flour
5 eggs
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon

Heat oven to 350. Line a 13x9 pan with foil.

Combine 2 cups of flour, the sugar, almonds, and salt in a food processor. Pulse to finely grind almonds and blend ingredients. While processor is running, add butter and vanilla. Reserve 2/3 cup of the mixture and press the rest into the bottom of pan. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, blend remaining 2 TBSP flour into reserved crust mixture.

In a medium bowl, whisk sugar and flour. Whisk in eggs, then raspberry jam. Whisk in lemon juice and zest.

Pour into baked crust. Return to oven and bake 15 minutes. Sprinkle crumbs on top and bake an additional 10 minutes. Cool in pan on rack. Chill before cutting into bars.