Tuesday, April 17, 2018

Tayler’s Solid Chocolate Cake



Tayler REALLY wanted a solid chocolate cake for her birthday this year. We melted chocolate bars and filled 2 lined cake pans with melted chocolate. After the chocolate was re-set we removed them from the pans and set one on top of the other.

 Tayler thought it would be fun to use Kit Kat bars to line the outside of the cake so we used melted chocolate to "glue" the Kit Kat bars to the cake.



The cake needed color so we thought it would be fun to added red sprinkles, Hersey's hugs and chocolate covered strawberries.  She LOVED her cake and we had fun making it together.

Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings



INGREDIENTS
Frozen Chicken Wings
Canola or Vegetable oil
Salt
Pepper

Franks Hot Sauce
Ranch or Bleu Cheese dressing



DIRECTIONS 
Turn oven on to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Dump chicken wings into a separate bowl and pour 2-4 T. oil over chicken wings (depending on how many you plan to cook). Season chicken with salt and pepper and toss until chicken is evenly coated. Take chicken pieces out of the bowl and line them onto cookie sheet. Place in oven and cook for approximately 1 1/2 hrs. We like our chicken wings crispy on the outside and well done. If using thawed chicken wings, reduce cook time to approx. 40 minutes. Drizzle Franks sauce over chicken pieces and eat with preferred salad dressing.



Garlic Bubble Bread


INGREDIENTS
2 lbs. frozen Rhodes rolls, thawed
1/3 c. butter, melted
1/4 tsp. dried basil, crushed
2 T. fresh parsley, chopped
2 T. green onions, chopped
2 tsp. garlic, minced
1 T. parmesan cheese, freshly grated

DIRECTIONS
Grease bundt pan and arrange thawed rolls into the pan. In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, basil, parsley, green onions and garlic. Pour over the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and a towel and let rise until doubled in size.



Sprinkle cheese over bread. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool in pan for 10 minutes. Turn out onto a serving plate. Pull apart to serve.

Frito Corn Salad


 INGREDIENTS
2 cans corn (drained)
1 c. mayonnaise
1/4 c. chopped red onion
1/2 c. chopped red and green bell pepper
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1-2 T. finely chopped jalapeƱo (optional if you want to add some heat)

1 bag Chili Fritos

DIRECTIONS
Combine everything into a bowl except the Fritos. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Add Fritos at the last minute to avoid becoming soggy or serve Fritos on the side and add to individual plates as desired.






King Crab Legs


INGREDIENTS
thawed king crab legs
1 c. whole peppercorns
1 c. soy sauce

1/2 c. butter
2 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice

DIRECTIONS

We like to use a giant pot outside to cook crab legs. If allows you a lot of space to work with and doesn't smell the kitchen up with a fishy smell. Fill a large pot a little less than 3/4 full with water. Add peppercorns and soy sauce and bring to a boil. Add crab legs and cook for 5 minutes. Use large tongs to remove the crab legs and let rest in a colander for several minutes until you are able to hold them in your hands to crack the shell and pull out the meat. We like to use heavy duty kitchen shears to cut the shell and my husband does all the work so yay for the rest of us!!


Heat butter in a smaller bowl until melted and add lemon juice. Use this as a dipping sauce for your crab meat.

Arugula Salad


My current favorite salad is anything with Arugula. I love this recipe because it is healthy and light and I always find myself going back for another serving. 

INGREDIENTS
1 container Arugula
1 c. Fresh shaved or shredded Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 c. Strawberries, sliced
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Lemon

DIRECTIONS
For the dressing: Combine 1/3 c. EVOO, 1/3 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice, and freshly ground salt and pepper (to taste).

Add arugula, parmesan cheese and sliced strawberries to a bowl. Add desired amount of dressing to the salad or to individual servings on plates.