Peanut butter and chocolate cookie bars

Hannah had to make cookies for her Achievement Days activity and we made these bars... they were so yummy. I happened to have a peanut butter cookie pouch on hand so I used that to make my peanut butter cookie dough. The recipe is on the back of the pouch (Betty Crocker).

~Peanut butter cookie dough

~Press into a sprayed 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 to 18 minutes (until edges are golden brown). Cool about 10 minutes.

~2 cups chocolate chips.

~Microwave the chocolate chips until melted and smooth. Spread evenly over cookie pan.

~Refrigerate about 30 minutes until chocolate is firm and set. (I actually had to refrigerate mine longer, about an hour to get it to set all the way).

~Cut into bars.

Rice Krispie Wreaths

Of course you have to make a few of these quick and easy treats sometime during the holidays! We made them for Family Home Evening a week ago. You can always make them with corn flakes instead of Rice Krispies for more of a "leafy" look. Enjoy!

Rice Krispie Wreaths

3 tablespoons margarine or butter
1 (10 ounce) package regular marshmallows
1 teaspoon green food coloring
6 cups Rice Krispies Cereal
Red cinnamon candies
Prepared frosting

In large saucepan, melt margarine over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat. Stir in food coloring. Add Rice Krispies cereal. Sir until well coated.
Using 1/4 cup dry measure coated with cooking spray, evenly portion warm cereal mixture. Using buttered fingers, quickly shape into individual wreaths. (I found it was easier to wet my hands, form a ball with the Rice Krispies mixture, and then poke a finger through the middle to spread out the center. Didn't stick at all.) Dot with cinnamon candies. Use prepared frosting to hold candies in place.

Snow Balls

Snow Balls

1/2 Cup (1 stick) butter

2 TBS white sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/4 Cup sifted flour

1 Cup walnuts or pecans (optional)

Cream butter and sugar. Blend in vanilla, flour and nuts. Chill dough. Shape into small balls and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. While still hot, roll in powdered sugar. Coat and then roll again in powdered sugar. Makes about 10-12 balls.

Chicken Posole

Chicken Posole

Ok, I had to steal the picture from Family Circle because I never think to get pictures until the recipe is proven and GONE! This one was a HUGE hit! I made a big crockpot full and fed it to my visiting family and then our friends for our Family Home Evening dinner group and everyone asked for seconds and the recipe! I got the initial idea from Family Circle, but tweaked it quite a bit because I either didn't have the ingredient it called for or it just didn't sound good to me so here goes! Enjoy!

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped (or 1 TBS garlic salt)

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cooked and cubed

3 cups barley (I washed and soaked mine over night to make sure my soup was ready after church the next day because we have 8:30a church and everyone would be starved by noon so I started it before we left)

1 TBS onion salt or 1/2 pkg onion soup mix

1 tsp dried oregano

2 chicken bouillon cubes

4-5 cups water (depends on how thick you want your soup or how far you need it to go!)

1 can Ro-Tel with jalapenos

1 large can petite cut tomatoes

1-2 TBS lime juice

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Put all ingredients on a large slow cooker/crockpot and cover. Cook on HIGH for 3 hours or LOW for 5 hours. If you soak your barley and cook your chicken before hand it may only be 2 hours or until the flavors are blended, the barley soft and the soup warm.

Bean and Barley Soup

We have 25 pounds of barley in our food storage that we try to rotate into our meals. We like to grind it up and use it as flour in some of our baking but I also wanted to find a really good soup to make with it. I combined a few recipes I found while searching around online and came up with this soup. It is so good! The boys had seconds and Coen had thirds and was licking his bowl clean...literally! It has a secret ingredient...curry! Just enough to add a yummy flavor without it actually tasting like a curry dish. The only difference I would make would be one less beef bouillon cube. It seemed just a little too salty to me. But I'll put the recipe down as I made it and you can see what you think. Of course you could easily make this vegetarian by using vegetable broth instead of the beef. I give this recipe two thumbs up!


Bean and Barley Soup

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 carrots, sliced very thin
1 celery stalk, chopped
4 oz. (half of an 8 oz. container) mushrooms, chopped-I used baby bella mushrooms
8 cups water
4 beef bouillon cubes
2/3 cup uncooked pearled barley
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 tsp. curry powder
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 cup (about 3 big leaves) kale, chopped very fine--could use chopped cabbage or spinach if you don't have kale but kale is so good and so good for you!

In a large soup pot, saute onion, garlic, carrots, mushrooms, and celery in olive oil. Add all other ingredients except for kale. Mix and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 min. or until barley is soft. Stir occasionally. Add kale during the last 15 minutes of cooking time. If too thick, add more water. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Austin's Peppermint Crisp

This afternoon while the rest of the family was "busy" taking Sunday afternoon naps, Austin (my almost 7 year old) was busy in the kitchen. Without any help he whipped up this recipe all by himself. He was going for a cheesecake and this was going to be the crust. But since we didn't have any ingredients for the "cheesecake" part, he decided to roll it out and bake it like we sometimes do with regular pie crust leftovers. The only part he had help with was putting it in the oven! I was quite impressed! Did I mention that the only other things he makes are oatmeal, toast, and sandwiches? This was his first baking experiment. It was kind of like a cookie/shortbread mix. And the little sprinkle of peppermint chips he threw in were really good! He calls it...Peppermint Crisp. He wanted to make sure I put it on my recipe blog in case he wanted to make it again. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to remember how to make it. So here is the recipe according to Austin. Like I said, I was not in the kitchen so these measurements are his own. Give it a try! It's actually really good! Good job Austin!

Peppermint Crisp

1 stick of butter, melted
1 cup filled to the top and then another one filled up half way of sugar (1 1/2 cups)
2 cups filled to the top of flour
4 big spoons of water (4 Tbsp)
Andes peppermint baking chips (about 1/2 cup)

Mix together and roll out on a floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick. Bake at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes.