D ~ Week 20 ~ Mom's Fudgy Peanut Butter Muffins

Ingredients
1/2 c applesauce
1/2 c quick oats
1/2 c creamy peanut butter
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c white sugar
1/2 t vanilla
1 egg
3/4 c flour
1/4 c cocoa
1/2 t baking soda

Mix together applesauce & oats then set aside. This softens the oatmeal.










Beat together until well blended the peanut butter, brown sugar, white sugar, vanilla and egg.





































Add applesauce & oat mix. 




Stir together flour, cocoa and baking soda.


























Add flour mixture to wet ingredients and blend well. Dough will be thick. I added a splash of milk because the dough was too dry.


























Fill muffin cups 3/4 full and bake at 350 for 20+ minutes, until wooden toothpick comes out clean. Serve warm.

D ~ Week 19 ~ Twix Brownies

Twix Brownies
*Recipe by Jasey's Crazy Daisy @ http://www.jaseyscrazydaisy.com/2012/03/twix-brownies-whod-have-thought-twix.html


Crust Layer

1 (12.8 oz.) package of Simply Sandies Shortbread Cookies

6 Tablespoons butter

Brownie Layer
1 box of brownie mix
Ingredients called for in directions on back of box
1/4 cup hot fudge ice cream topping

Caramel Layer
1 (14 oz.) bag of caramels
2 Tablespoons heavy cream

Chocolate Topping

1 (11.5 oz.) bag milk chocolate chips

2 Tablespoons butter

1/4 cup heavy cream

*Note - If you don't have any cream on hand, and don't want to purchase for such a small amount, just use milk. Things will still turn out deliciously. I bet no one even notices, unless you tell them.

Grease bottom of 9x13-inch baking pan. For easier cutting, line the pan with foil first. Using a food processor, pulse cookies until they resemble sand. In a medium bowl, melt 6 Tablespoons butter. Add cookie crumbs, stirring until all crumbs are moist. Press into bottom of prepared pan.

Prepare brownie batter as directed on the back of the box, mixing 1/4 cup hot fudge ice cream topping into brownie batter (straight from the jar, unheated). Pour batter on top of cookie crust and bake as directed. If baking at a high altitude, don't forget to follow special instructions. Cool.

Place caramels and cream in a saucepan and cook over medium-low heat until caramels are melted smooth and creamy, stirring constantly. Pour over cooled brownies. Try to spread the caramel evenly across the brownie surface while pouring to make spreading easier. Let cool until set. You can quicken this by sticking the brownies in the freezer for about 15 minutes.

Melt chocolate, butter, and cream together in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until melted and creamy. Pour over cooled caramel layer. Again, cover as much of the brownies as possible while pouring to make spreading easier. Cool. If you are in a hurry pop them in the fridge for a bit. Cut and enjoy.

Decision Time: So yummy! Love it! Only downfall... it takes a while to make. :( But the payout is amazing! :)

D ~ Week 18 ~ Baked Chicken Fajitas

Baked Chicken Fajitas Recipe   
(Recipe from Eatin' on the Cheap)

(Serves 4-6)
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (4 oz) can diced green chilies
1 medium onion, sliced
1 large bell pepper, seeded and sliced
2 T vegetable oil

2 t. chili powder
2 t. cumin
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. dried oregano
1/4 t. salt
12 flour tortillas, warmed to serve

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 13×9 baking dish. Mix together chicken, tomatoes, chilies, peppers, and onions in the dish.

In a small bowl combine the oil and spices. Drizzle the spice mixture over the chicken and toss to coat.Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are tender.
Serve with warmed tortillas and enjoy!

Not bad. Next time I'll definitely add a red pepper, it needs more color! I'll probably use a fajita seasoning packet next time too! But it was tasty.

D ~ Week 17 ~ Bacon Wrapped Chicken

Bacon Wrapped Chicken @ http://www.artsyfartsymama.com/2011/10/bacon-wrapped-chicken.html

So, I opened up the freezer to see what I wanted to make for dinner and an idea literally jumped

 out at me. A package of bacon shot right out of the freezer and almost landed on my foot. 

Apparently it was done living in the freezer... So what do you do with some chicken breasts 

you're not sure what to do with, and some suicidal bacon? Mix them together, of course!

So here is my "recipe" for some bacon wrapped chicken that I've made up.

There's still room for improvement, but it turned out surprisingly tasty!

Not to mention it's pretty simple... Gotta love that!

 Start out with your chicken breast on top of a layer of plastic wrap, then another piece of
 plastic wrap on top.

 Then take out your anger and hit the chicken with your husband's hammer or a meat tenderizer.
Be careful not to get holes in your chicken.

 Next, lay out some bacon on a plate. 3-4 pieces vertically, and 2 pieces horizontally.

 Lay your chicken in the center of the bacon. I also sprinkled a little bit of seasoning salt on the 
chicken.

Mix together some cream cheese and garlic salt. Spread a layer of the mixture on the chicken, 
then add a little bit of shredded cheddar cheese.

 Roll the chicken up a little and fold up the horizontal pieces of bacon, making sure the sides are 
covered. then fold up the vertical pieces and secure with a toothpick if they won't stay.

 Lay the chicken seam side down on a greased pan.

I just put mine onto some tinfoil on top of the pan and it worked great.

Bake at 400° for about 45 minutes, turning it over about halfway through.

Then turn the oven up to 500° or broil (watch closely!!) to brown the bacon and make it crispy. 
You can turn the chicken over again to make sure all the bacon is cooked.

*If you cut open the chicken after all of this & the bacon still isn't cooked all the way through, 
you can put it back in the oven for another 15 minutes or so and it will be perfect!

Serve with some yummy garlic mashed potatoes or rice, and enjoy!

This is also great without the bacon. Just cook for the 45 minutes and it's all done.

I've also considered cooking the bacon first, crunching it up and mixing the bacon bits in the 
filling...

I'll let you know how that turns out!

We tried this... it sounds good in theory, but it tasted like greasy chicken. Not so hot for sure.