Caramel Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookies

These may just be my new favorite cookies. They are a combination of sweet, salty, caramel goodness. Yum, yum, yum!

Caramel Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookies
Source: Dessert Now, Dinner Later

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup stick pretzels, broken into thirds
1/2 cup caramel bits
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a stand mixer, cream butter with sugars.  Add vanilla & egg.  Incorporate & scrape bowl. Combine salt, baking soda, & flour.  Gradually add to wet mixture. Mix until combined. Fold in broken pretzels, caramel bits, & chocolate chips with a spatula. Spoon onto a baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake at 350*F for 11-12 minutes

M & M Cookie Bars

This recipe is a great and easy use for those leftover M & M's. (If you ever have any) I made these for the branding crew, and they went fast!

M & M Cookie Bars
Source: Fantastic Family Favorites

2 1/8 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 c. butter (1 1/2 sticks), melted and cooled slightly
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 tsps vanilla extract
1 12oz bag M&M's, divided

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Adjust the oven rack to lower-middle position. Line a 9X13-inch baking pan with foil, letting the excess hang over the edges of the pan by about 1 inch so you can grab those edges and pull the bars from the pan after they have baked. Spray the foil-lined pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Mix the flour, salt, and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside. Whisk the melted butter and sugars in a large bowl until combined. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture until just combined; do not overmix. Fold in 1 cup of M&M's and turn the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with the spatula. Sprinkle remaining M&M's on top and press in slightly.
Bake until the top of the bars is light golden brown, slightly firm to the touch, and edges start pulling away from sides of pan, 24-28 minutes. Cool on a wire rack to room temperature. Remove the bars from the pan by lifting the foil overhang and transfer them to a cutting board. Cut into squares and serve.

Creamy Cheesy Potatoes

This is a terrible picture and I am really sorry for that. It definitely does not do them justice.I was not totally sure about these potatoes when I saw them on pinterest, but I had the stuff to make them and I have tons of potatoes that need used up so I decided to give them a try. They were actually really good. I ended up using half-n-half instead of cream and I thought they were delicious. You definitely don't need to use full cream, but it would be interesting to see the difference, so maybe one of these days I will try it.

Creamy Cheesy Potatoes
Source: Get Off Your Butt and Bake

About 5 – large potatoes (enough to fill a 9×13 glass baking dish)

2 Cups Whipping Cream (I used half n half)

Salt and Pepper

2 tsp. Parsley flakes

2 cups grated cheddar cheese

Directions:

Cut your potatoes into thin french fry strips, and lay the fries, in a 9×13″ GLASS pan.

Pour all of the cream over the top of the fries. Salt and pepper them generously. Sprinkle at least 2 cups grated Cheddar Cheese over the top. Sprinkle Parsley flakes on top of the cheese.  Cover with foil, and poke a fork through the top of the foil, 2 or 3 times to allow a little steam to escape. This way, your cream doesn’t boil over into your oven!

Cook at 400 degrees for about 1 hour, 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Place your oven rack in the middle of the oven. During the last 15 or 20 minutes of baking lower your rack one more step. This makes the bottom of your potatoes, brown and crispy.

Melt in Your Mouth Chicken (SKinny Version)

Wow! I have really been a on a roll lately with some good food. For a while there, I would make something and it would be okay, but not worthy of adding to my favorites, but this week I have made some really good things, starting with this chicken. This recipe is floating around on the internet a lot lately but it normally calls for mayo. I found this recipe that has Greek yogurt in it so it is a lot better for you. Now, I have never had the regular version, but let me just say that the healthy version is so good. Seriously while I was eating this, I kept saying over and over, "This is really good." The next day I thought maybe I had overreacted a little bit, so I decided to have it for leftovers, and it was just as good the next day. This is a seriously good and healthy recipe!!! And easy!!

Melt in Your Mouth Chicken (Skinny Version)
Source: Life Of Meg

4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts
1 cup plain greek yogurt
1/2 cup parmesan cheese - grated
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine greek yogurt, parmesan cheese, garlic powder, seasoned salt, and pepper in a bowl. Line baking sheet with foil and spray lightly with cooking spray. Coat each chicken breast in greek yogurt mixture and place on foiled baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes.

Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Source: Sally's Baking Addiction

 

1 and 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 and 1/4 cup yellow or white boxed cake mix
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 egg, at room temperature
1.5 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup sprinkles
In a large bowl, sift together flour, cake mix, and baking soda.  Set aside.  In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugars on medium speed.  Mix in the egg and vanilla until creamy.
Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.  Do not OVERMIX the dough. Fold in the chocolate chips and sprinkles.
Cover and refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour, or up to 4 days.  This step is mandatory. The dough is fairly sticky, so chilling the dough is required in order to avoid the cookie from spreading too much.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Scoop rounded tablespoons of the cold dough onto an ungreased baking sheet.  Shape your cookie dough balls to be “taller” than they are wide.  Make sure to keep dough chilled when working in batches. Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges are slightly browned. The centers will still appear very soft, but the cookies will set as they cool.
 

Man Pleasing Chicken

I found this recipe on Pinterest and I was impressed with how easy and good it was.

Man Pleasing Chicken
Source: Witty In The City

Preheat your oven to 450ºF.
Mix together
1/2 cup of dijon mustard
1/4 cup of maple syrup
1 tablespoon of rice/rice wine vinegar.

Put a 1.5 pound package of chicken thighs into a foil-lined, oven-proof baking dish. I used boneless, skinless thighs.  Then, salt and pepper the thighs. Pour your maple mustard mixture over them, turning the thighs in the mixture so they are fully coated.
Put the chicken thighs into the oven, and let them bake for 40 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165ºF. Baste the tops of the chicken with more sauce half way through.

 Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving. Plate the chicken, making sure to spoon some extra sauce over the top. Sprinkle over some fresh rosemary.