Texas Sheet Cake

I love this cake. It is so bad for you but so good. My brother in law Eric really enjoyed this and that is saying a lot b/c i have never seen him get that excited for desserts.

Ingredients

For the cake:
* 2 cups Flour
* 2 cups Sugar
* ¼ teaspoons Salt
* 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
* 2 sticks Butter
* 1 cup Boiling Water
* ½ cups Buttermilk
* 2 whole Beaten Eggs
* 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
* 1 teaspoon Vanilla

For the Frosting:
* 1-¾ stick Butter
* 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
* 6 Tablespoons Milk
* 1 teaspoon Vanilla
* 3 1/4 cup powdered sugar

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.

In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.
Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.

In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.

While cake is baking, make the icing. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Pour over warm cake.

Recipe

Crockpot Chicken Tacos

I love using my crockpot. Sometimes with work, soccer, and Hayden, it is just so nice to not have to "cook".

This recipe is the easiest recipe ever and very yummy. It was a hit on our family beach vacation. And Hayden devoured it last week. (He didn't like in a tortilla though, just plain)

Recipe:
For every 1 lb of chicken breast
use 1 cup of chicken broth
3 tbsp taco seasoning

Cook low in crockpot 6-8 hours.

The chicken will shred if you just touch it with a fork. It is so tender and juicy.
Use it to fill tacos with your favorite fixings, make nachos, use for enchiladas, or taco salad.

P.S. I didn't find a picture of this recipe on line. I don't really plan on taking my own pictures of meals. Hayden barely lets me cook let alone take pictures of a meal. He is too busy climbing up on the kitchen table, trying to get into the fridge, or open the oven.

Cheeseburger Pie

Cheeseburger Pie... an oldie but goodie.
Mom got this recipe from a bisquick book many years ago. It was an instant hit. We now all have this cookbook (bought by her). The recipes are pretty good and they are easy to make.

We had this a few nights ago. Hayden also enjoyed it. (If I let him eat it with a grown up fork, no kid fork for him.

The only change I make is that I don't mix in the cheddar cheese. I save it and put it on top and melt it towards the end of the baking time.

Recipe:
1 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef
1 large onion, chopped (1 cup)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (4 oz)
1/2 cup Original Bisquick® mix
1 cup milk
2 eggs

1.Heat oven to 400°F. Spray 9-inch glass pie plate with cooking spray.
2.In 10-inch skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until beef is brown; drain. Stir in salt. Spread in pie plate. Sprinkle with cheese.
3.In small bowl, stir remaining ingredients with fork or wire whisk until blended. Pour into pie plate.
4.Bake about 25 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Click here for link to recipe

Welcome...Balsalmic Brown Butter Raviolis

Welcome to my recipe blog. I enjoy cooking and love when people give me new recipes so I thought that I would start posting some of the recipes that I try/enjoy. Hopefully someone will make some of these! And if you are really lucky maybe some of my mom's recipes might pop on here.

So my 1st recipe is very simple. I saw it on the food network. Mike likes watching Everyday Italian with Giada De Laurentiis. I know it is mainly b/c she has major cleavage, but her recipes are pretty good actually. We have made this a few times. Hayden enjoys them as much as we do.

Note: I don't use the walnuts that the recipe calls for. I don't like nuts too much. (and I just use regular salted butter too)



Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

* 18 to 20 ounces store-bought ravioli (cheese, mushroom, or squash)
* 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1/3 cup toasted, chopped walnuts
* 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the ravioli and cook 4 to 5 minutes, until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally. Drain ravioli onto a large serving platter.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan cook the butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the foam subsides, and the butter begins to turn a golden brown, about 3 minutes, turn off the heat. Let cool for about 1 minute. Stir in the balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper.

Transfer the ravioli to the pan saucepan with the balsamic brown butter. Sprinkle walnuts and Parmesan over the top. Serve immediately.

Here is the link to the actual recipe site: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/ravioli-with-balsamic-brown-butter-recipe/index.html