chocolate easter nests

i love holidays!! for me they are a time filled with tradition, family, friends, and food...what could be better! in celebration of Easter i made chocolate easter nests. if you like muddy buddies, puppy chow, trash, or whatever you grew up calling it, then you will love these. when i saw this recipe on the blog, The Curvy Carrot, i just couldn't resist.


try this recipe in replacement of, OR in addition to, decorating eggs. they are REALLY easy and require no baking or cooking skills whatsoever. plus they are super cute and festive!!

Ingredients (Makes 12 Nests):
3/4 large bag of chow mein noodles
2 C. of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 C. peanut butter
1 bag of cadbury eggs (36 eggs total)
Cooking spray or butter to grease the muffin tin


Directions:
Grease muffin tin to prevent nests from sticking when you remove them.
Put chocolate chips and peanut butter into a microwave safe bowl. 

Microwave for approximately a minute and a half. Stir the mixture until smooth. 

Add the chow mein noodles to the chocolate mixture.

Gently fold the chow mein noodles into the chocolate mixture until the noodles are completely coated. 
With a spoon, mold the mixture into the greased muffin tin. Use the back of the spoon to create the walls of the nest. 

Chill in the freezer for approximately 1 hour or until set. 

Remove from freezer and wait 5 minutes before attempting to remove the nests from the tin. I used a knife to loosen the sides and pop them out.

Place 3 eggs on top of each nest. 

My little sister Molly (L) and her friend Rachel (R) helped make the nests

HAPPY EASTER!!

Warning: the chocolate melts in your hand as you eat it so have a napkin handy. 

chocolate cake with peanut butter icing

my roommate amanda celebrated her 22nd birthday this week. so in celebration i decided to bring out a family recipe.i made my grandfather's famous chocolate cake with peanut butter icing. this cake lasts no more than a day or two in my house. the cake is moist and the icing is creamy. it works great as both a sheet cake and as cupcakes. enjoy our family favorite! 

Cake Ingredients:
3/4 C. cocoa
2 C. sugar
2 C. flour
1 1/2 t. baking soda
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
2 eggs
1 C. milk
1/2 C. oil
2 t. vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix all ingredients together and beat for 2 minutes on medium. Stir in 1 cup of boiling water. 
Pour into a greased and floured 9X13 pan.
Bake for 35-40 minutes or 18-20 minutes for cupcakes.

Icing Ingredients:
16 oz. confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
1 T. crisco
1/2 C. milk
1 T. butter
1/2 cup peanut butter


Directions:
mix until creamy- enjoy!

happy valentine's day!!

a couple days ago i saw a recipe for Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies on Becky Bakes!! chocolate cookies are a classic, so with that comes the risk of ruining an already perfected desert. but transforming them into a "stuffed" desert is a pretty safe way to go. i mean who doesn't love something that is exploding with different texture and flavor? so...in celebration of valentine's day i decided to give them a try. 

i made a couple dozen and put them in festive (heart) paper bags to give to my friends. i used classic Oreos, but while I was at the store it crossed my mind to purchase the peanut butter stuffed Oreos...maybe next time. anyways. enjoy this rich, chewy, chocolatey treat and have fun creating different variations. 

Ingredients:

2 sticks (1 C.) softened butter
3/4 C. packed light brown sugar
1 C. granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 T. pure vanilla
3 C. flour
1 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
10 oz bag chocolate chips
1 pkg. Oreo cookies

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugars together until well mixed. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

In a separate bowl combine the flour, salt, and baking soda. Then slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix in the chocolate chips until they are evenly distributed in the batter. 

Once the dough is mixed, make several 1 inch balls. Place 1 on either side of the Oreo (as seen below) and gently press down until the edges seal together. 

Bake for 9-13 minutes, or until golden brown.

Let cool before serving or packaging for your valentine. 

Don't forget your glass of milk! 

pear crisp

Last week my roommate maggie and myself volunteered at a seminar that our college was putting on.  After the seminar was over there was a ton of sack lunches that the participants didn’t eat.  being cheap college students; we scavenged through the lunch sacks and took all of the pears. There were so many pears that we didn’t know what to do with them.  our solution to the pear problem was a pear crisp.  who doesn’t love a good crisp?  the combination of butter, oats and sugar makes this effortless dessert an all time favorite!

Ingredients:

For the filling:

5 or 6 large pears

2/3 C. sugar

¼ t. salt

For the topping:

1 ½ C. all-purpose flour

1/3 C. sugar

1.3 C. firmly packed brown sugar

½ t. cinnamon

1 C. oats

1 stick butter (melted)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  peel and slice pears and mix in a bowl with the sugar and salt. Set aside.

In another bowl combine flour, sugars, cinnamon, oats and melted butter.  Stir the mixture with a fork until nice and crumbly.

Place the pears into a square baking dish and top with the crumble mixture.  Bake for 40 minutes until the top is nice and golden brown.

Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

note: If you don't like pears or don't have any on hand, you could also use apples, berries, peaches or nectarines.