Cookin With Brooke

These are so SPRINGY and SO cute! They’ll look great at your Easter buffet! (oh, and the kiddos will LOVE to help make these!)

 

Windowpane Pretzels

White Melting Wafers

Pastel M&Ms

 

On a paper plate arrange 7 or 8 pretzels.

Place a melting wafer in the center of the pretzel.

Microwave and heat them until the wafer just starts to melt. (soft to the touch and melted enough to press a M&M down into it but not running off the pretzel.) About 45 seconds.

Using pastel M&M’s, place an M&M in the center of the melted wafer and surround with 6 M&Ms of a different color with the “M” side down.

Let them harden for a couple hours before storing them in an air-tight container.

Just about everywhere we went in Ireland, Shepherd’s Pie was on the menu. Yum. It’s so good! And PERFECT for St. Patty’s Day!

 

4 servings of mashed potatoes (yes, prepared from a box)

2 TBSP sour cream

1 pound ground beef (or ground lamb)

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 TBSP fresh parsley

1 cup cooked peas

1/2-1 cup shredded cheese

 

 

Brown ground beef (or lamb) with onion and spices

Prepare mashed potatoes and mix in sour cream

Cook peas

Layer beef, peas then potatoes in 8×8 or 9×9 casserole dish.

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Top with cheese. Bake another 15 minutes.

These tasty cookies whip up quickly and work great for your kid’s St. Patty’s day  school party or to be the holiday hero at the office.

 

2 eggs

2 sticks butter

2 3oz pkgs (instant) pistachio nut pudding

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

12oz bag mini morsels chocolate chips

 

Preheat oven to 350. Cream together first 3 ingredients until smooth. Add flour and baking soda. Fold in chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoonfuls (about 1 inch apart) onto un-greased baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes.

 

This recipe comes from long-time friends of ours. We had this at their house and I said I MUST have the recipe. She showed me the box of Rice-A-Roni! I couldn’t believe it came from there. We’re not sure if it is still featured on the box, so here you go! ENJOY! (and it is easy, too!)

 

One  6.9-ounce package RICE-A-RONI® Chicken Flavor

1 teaspoon dried basil

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

2 cups broccoli florets

1 medium tomato, seeded, chopped

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

 

 

1. In large skillet, prepare Rice-A-Roni mix as package directs, adding basil with water.
2. Top with chicken; bring mixture to a boil.
3. Cover; reduce heat. Simmer 15 minutes.
4. Top with broccoli and tomato.
5. Cover; continue cooking 5 minutes or until most of liquid is absorbed.
6. Sprinkle with cheese; let stand covered a few minutes before serving.

 

 

Got this recipe from my FAVORITE cookbook! House Specialties by local author Deanna House! I’ve kind of tweaked it to how my family likes it.

You can cook it in the oven if you don’t have a crock pot.

And…you don’t have to only make it after church. You can make it any day of the week!

 

 

1 and 1/2 pound lean beef cubes (1 and 1/2-inch cubes from chuck or round)

2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon dried basil leaves, crushed

2 stalks celery, cut in diagonal pieces (we skip this)

4 medium carrots, pared and quartered (we use mini carrots or carrot disks)

2 medium onions, cut in 1/4 inch slices (we only use 1/2)

1 (10 and 3/4-ounce) can condensed tomato soup

1/2 soup can water (we use a whole can)

3 medium potatoes (we use cubed frozen hashbrowns)

 

 

1. Place beef (no need to brown it) in 3-quart casserole.
2. Sprinkle beef with salt, pepper and basil leaves.
3. Top meat with celery, carrots and onions.
4. In small bowl, combine soup and water.
5. Pour soup mixture over meat and vegetables, coating all pieces. Cover tightly.
6. Bake in preheated 300 degree oven 3 hours. (or on low in crock-pot 5-6 hours)
7. Add potatoes and bake 45 minutes longer.

For the last few years, I have been ordering Chocolate Covered Strawberries and having them delivered to my Valentine. (it’s a long story…but we have a running joke about chocolate and strawberries!) Anyway, I remembered a recipe I had used about 20 years ago and this year I dug that back up and made my own. Less than a quarter of the price! I put them in a cleaned out clear egg carton and it looked really pretty! Enjoy! (oh…and you don’t have to wait until next Valentine’s Day to make these!)

 

Strawberries

6 ounces Chocolate Chips

4 ounces White Chocolate Chips

Decorating Sugar

 

Wash and DRY (this is important) strawberries. Melt chocolate chips in microwave for 2 minutes and stir. If not melted completely, put back in for 30 seconds at a time. Dip strawberries one by one in the chocolate leaving a small rim around the stem. Sprinkle with decorating sugar while they’re still wet. Drizzle white chocolate or wait 20 minutes and dip the tip in the white chocolate then sprinkle with sugar. It’s up to you! Place in refrigerator 10 minutes.

An appetizer recipe SO EASY…even Tommy did it! HA!

 

One 15oz. can no bean chili

One 8oz. package cream cheese

 

 

Mix together and heat. Scoop up with corn chips.

 

When I saw these on a pin, I just HAD to make them. Especially when everyone else will be shoving fat-full snacks into their mouths during the game this weekend! This is amazingly yummy and only 140 calories! WHAT?! Don’t delay! Make these today!

 

1 2/3 cups cooked shredded chicken

1/2 cup chopped fresh pineapple

4 TBS barbecue sauce

1/2 TBS chives

12 wonton wrappers (found in the produce section)

1/2-3/4 cup reduced fat 2% shredded cheddar cheese

 

 

Mix chicken, pineapple, BBQ sauce, and chives in a medium bowl until well coated.

Lightly spray cups of a muffin tin with cooking spray and press a wonton wrapper into each cup

Spoon about a tablespoon of the chicken mixture evenly into the cups, and sprinkle with cheese

Bake at 375 for 18-20 minutes. Let the cups cool for 5 minutes before popping them out so they keep their shape.

Brooke’s Valentine’s Day Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies pretty much inspired the “Cookin With Brooke” creation. Make sure you get your cake mix early! It tends to run out as we get closer to Vday!

Ingredients:

1 box Cherry Chip Cake Mix
1/3 cup butter (softened)
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
Milk
2 cups chocolate chips
(I add some red food coloring!)

Dark Chocolate Kisses (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Mix half the dry cake mix with butter, vanilla, eggs, and enough milk so that they’re not dry. Stir in remaining cake mix and chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 9-11 minutes or until firm on the edges and soft in the middle. Cool 2 minutes before removing from sheet.

While still warm, place a dark chocolate kiss in the center and press down. Kiss will melt a little, then re-harden after awhile.

HURRY! Supplies are already running out!