More recipes to try!

As I have been writing this blog throughout the semester, I’m noticing that a lot of my blog posts revolve around baking or cooking.  I always knew I enjoyed this hobby, but I’m starting to think maybe I like it more than I realized!  Generally, I like to try recipes that don’t use too many ingredients, because hey, we’re all in college, and our refrigerators probably aren’t too well stocked.  I have made this recipe a few times and it’s a simple way to add lots of flavor to some chicken. 

What you need:

(I never really measure any of these, just kind of guess based on how much chicken you are making)

Chicken

Butter

Bread crumbs or crushed crackers if that’s all you have

Grated parmesan cheese, the really finely cut pieces that almost look like powder

Paprika

Preheat the oven to 350 and coat the pan with non stick spray or butter.  Combine everything except the chicken and butter in a gallon size ziplock bag and shake to mix well.  (Should be about 2/3 bread crumbs/crushed crackers, 1/3 parmesan cheese, with a small amount of paprika.)  Melt the butter, you don’t need too much, just enough to coat each piece of chicken.  Then, place the chicken in the ziplock bag with other ingredients and shake to cover the chicken in the mixture.  Bake for about 20-25 minutes, then enjoy!  I have found that this goes well with noodles or rice as a side. 

A "Sweet" Recipe

The wonderful time of girl scout cookie season is now upon us. Unfortunately for me, I do not know any girl scouts, so I rarely get to enjoy the cookies, especially my favorite, the Samoas.  I decided to attempt to make some myself, and they taste pretty much the same! You should definitely check out the website with the recipe, I'm pretty sure they also have recipes for other popular girl scout cookies!  For the Samoa cookies, here is the recipe I used:

Cookie Base:
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt

First, make the crust.  Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan, or line with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Working at a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly, like wet sand. The dough does not need to come together. Pour crumbly dough into prepapred pan and press into an even layer.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping.

Topping
3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
12-oz good-quality chewy caramels
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp milk
10 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)

Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula. Put dollops of the topping all over the shortbread base. Using the spatula, spread topping into an even layer. Let topping set until cooled.
When cooled, cut into 30 bars with a large knife or a pizza cutter (it’s easy to get it through the topping).
 

Once bars are cut, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each bar into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment or wax paper. Transfer all remaining chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle bars with chocolate to finish.
Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.

Definitely one of my favorite dessert recipes I have used.  I did have trouble dipping the bars into the bowl of chocolate at the end, and ended up flipping them over and just spreading the chocolate on them with a spoon.  Also, I burned quite a bit of the coconut and had to remake it... Checked it every five minutes, just like the recipe said, and then all of a sudden it went from white to dark brown within no time! Guess it gives me another chance to try making these again :) 

http://bakingbites.com/2009/02/homemade-girl-scout-cookies-samoas-bars/

In the spirit of midterms...

I'm sure basically every college student is insanely busy with lots of tests and projects right now, maybe this is something you'll like.  This is something my Grandpa taught me when I was little, and every time I'm studying for a test it always comes to mind and makes me smile.

The more you study, the more you know.
The more you know, the more you forget.
The more you forget, the less you know. So why study?
The less you study, the less you know.
The less you know, the less you forget.
The less you forget, the more you know. So why study?

Good luck with midterms everyone... (490 especially..)

If you like to bake, check this out!

This is a recipe for brownies which I got from my mom... I'm pretty sure the recipe originally came from the Food Network.  This is definitely the best brownie recipe I have ever had and can't wait to make it again!

All you need to make this recipe is a box of brownie mix (plus the ingredients that you need to make the mix) and 3 symphony candy bars.  Make the brownie mix following the directions on a box.  Line a 9x13 pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.  Then, pour half of the brownie mix in the pan, lay the candy bars on top of the brownie mix, and pour the rest of the brownie mix on top.  Bake as normal, then just pop the foil out of the pan to cut the brownies!

This recipe is really easy to make and is so good!  Anyone who likes to bake, or eat good food, definitely recommend trying this!