Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

These were really delicious and a good crockpot meal.   We love buffalo wings, so I saw this recipe and I was drooling.  I liked the kick, but they could easily be toned down with sour cream or ranch dressing. 

From Marin's Creations

Ingredients:
2-3 chicken breasts
1 bottle of Frank's Red Hot BUFFALO Wing Sauce
1-2 Tbsp. dry Hidden Valley Ranch mix
2 Tbsp. butter
6 hoagie rolls

Directions:
Place chicken breasts in slow cooker, and pour 3/4 of the wing sauce and the ranch dressing mix over top. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
Once the chicken has cooked, add the butter, then shred the meat with two forks. Pile the meat onto the hoagie rolls and add a splash of remaining sauce if desired.  We added lettuce, tomato, avocado,and ranch dressing.

Double Chocolate Caramel Turtle Treats

These were a definite hit!  We love rice krispie treats at our house.  You could say they are our kryptonite when it comes to dieting for us.  These ones are just a little amped up!   I took these to a barbecue and 90 percent of them didn't make it to the table! 

Adapted from Kitchen Cafe

3 tablespoons butter
1 (10-ounce) bag marshmallows
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 cups Rice Krispies cereal
1 cup chopped toasted pecans
15 caramels, quartered
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted

Prepare pan by lining an 9 X 13-inch baking dish with foil, allowing excess foil to hang over pan edges. Grease the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

Melt butter in a large pot over low heat. Add marshmallows, 1/2 cup of chocolate chips, and salt and cook, stirring constantly, until melted and smooth, about 8 minutes. Stir in vanilla.
Off heat, stir in rice krispies, pecans, and caramels until incorporated. Scrape mixture into prepared pan and press into bottom and corners with a greased spatula (I just used my fingers since the marshmallows weren’t overly hot at this point). Let cool completely, about 1 hour.

Melt semisweet chocolate chips in the microwave on low at 30 second intervals until smooth. Pour melted chocolate into a ziploc baggie, pressing chocolate into one corner of the bag. Using scissors, clip a tiny piece off the corner and drizzle chocolate over cooled treats. Allow chocolate to cool, about 45 minutes. Using foil overhang, lift treats from pan. Cut into squares. Serve.

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake Bars

I made these for a BBQ this weekend.  They were so easy and so delicious.  They really didn't last long at all once they made it to the table.

From Picky Palate
1 Devils food cake mix
1 egg
1 stick softened butter

8 oz softened cream cheese
1 egg
1/3 Cup sugar
10 regular size Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, cut into little pieces

1 Cup semi sweet chocolate chips
4 Tablespoons heavy cream

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9×13 inch baking dish with tin foil. Spray with non stick cooking spray. Mix cake mix, egg and butter together then press into baking dish.

2. Mix cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Stir in egg until well combined then stir in peanut butter cups. Pour over cake layer and bake for 30-40 minutes or until cheesecake is cooked through (it only took 30 minutes in my oven). Remove and let cool completely.

3. Carefully lift bars out of dish using ends of foil. Melt chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second intervals until melted through. Stir in heavy cream and stir until glossy smooth. Spread chocolate over cheesecake layer, cut into squares and serve.

Pretzel Jell-O Salad

I just took this to a neighborhood firework party. It was a good consensus that this wasn't a salad, but a yummy dessert. I guess we call it a salad because it makes us feel better when we eat half the pan. I love the sweet and salty mix. Definitely a good go to dessert/salad!

2 C. crushed pretzels
3/4 C. butter, melted
3 T. Sugar

Mix and press into 9X13 pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 7 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool

1 pkg. cream cheese
1 8 oz. container of cool-whip
1 C. sugar

Combine these and spread onto cooled pretzels layer. Make sure to cover all the pretzels and seal the sides with the cream cheese mixture.

1 lg. pkg or 2 small pkgs raspberry Jell-O
2 C. boiling water
1 12 oz. pkg. of frozen raspberries

Add water to Jell-O and dissolve. Add berries to Jell-O and place in fridge until slightly set, about 10 minutes. Pour Jell-O mixture onto cream cheese mixture and smooth out. Place in fridge until completely set. When ready to serve top Jell-O mixture with Cool-whip.

Sweet Italian Chicken

This was probably the easiest recipe I have made in a long time. You can't lose with only using 3 ingredients! We ate this chicken with buttered noodles, but it would be great with mashed potatoes or other sides. I shredded the chicken, but it could be left whole or cut into strips for a salad. If you need something quick and easy this is the recipe for you and I have been telling everyone about it (probably because I can remember the ingredients)!

Adapted from My Big Red Kitchen

1 T. Italian Dressing Mix or 1 pkt. Good Season's Italian Dressing Mix

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

8 boneless skinless chicken breasts, left whole or sliced (I shredded mine after it was cooked)

In a bowl mix all of the ingredients until chicken is coated evenly. Place in a single layer in a baking dish and bake in 375 degree oven for 40 minutes. Serves 4-5.

Zesty Garlic Chicken Wraps

These not only tasted great, but they also were great to prepare. It seems like when it is dinner time, the baby is fussy, toddler is crying, boys are fighting, and mom is about to scream. It goes without saying sometimes I need to have dinner well on its way to being done before all the chaos happens. These are great because I can prepare about 95 percent of these in the morning and then all I have to do is throw them in the oven in the evening. I loved the flavor of these. I was worried they would be too garlicky, but I was pleasantly surprised. This was another good one for summer!
From The Crepes of Wrath

For the marinade:

2 chicken breasts, sliced into thin 2-inch long strips
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon fresh or 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
juice of 1 lemon
4 cloves garlic, minced

For the sauce:
4 cloves garlic, whole and peeled
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 cup low-fat sour cream
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 teaspoons milk
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

For the wraps:
4-5 large whole wheat tortillas
1 tomato, diced
1-2 handfuls of lettuce or spinach
1/2 cup pepper jack cheese, grated (or cheese of your choice – optional)

1. Slice the chicken and place the pieces in a large sealable bag or an airtight container. In a small bowl, whisk together the marinade ingredients, then pour it over the chicken. Do the best you can to submerge the chicken completely in the marinade and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or as long as overnight.
2. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Line and/or grease a baking sheet, then brush your whole, peeled garlic cloves with the olive oil. Bake for 15 minutes or so, until golden. Set aside to cool. When cool enough to touch, mince well and with the side of your knife, grind the garlic into a bit of a paste as you mince it by pressing your knife down and dragging it along on the garlic (see photo above).
3. Place the garlic paste into a bowl and add in the rest of the sauce ingredients. Whisk together, cover, and place in the fridge until you’re ready to serve. You can also place these ingredients in an airtight container and allow to sit overnight with the chicken, if you like.
4. When you’re ready to eat, grease and/or line a baking sheet and preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Place the chicken on the baking sheet and discard the remaining marinade. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until cooked through.
5. Spread the sauce on a warmed tortilla and add cheese, lettuce, and tomato. Top with the hot (or cooled) chicken and roll up into a wrap. Makes 4 to 5 wraps.