Blueberry Croissant Bake

Recipe & Image taken from www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.vom

3 large croissants, cut up (about 5 to 5 1/2 cups)

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

2/3 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place croissant pieces in a 9 inch square pan. Sprinkle with blueberries.

Beat cream cheese, sugar, eggs and vanilla in medium bowl with electric mixer until well blended. Gradually add milk, beating well after each addition. Pour evenly over croissant pieces. Let stand 20 minutes.

Bake at 350°F for 35 to 40 minutes or until set in center and golden brown. You may want to cover it with foil for the last 10 minutes if the tops are getting too browned.

Serve warm sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Variation: Instead of baking in a square pan bake individually. Place croissant pieces evenly in 10 (1/2-cup) ramekins; sprinkle with blueberries and pour cream cheese mixture evenly over croissant pieces. Let stand 20 minutes. Bake at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes or until set in center and golden brown.

Giant Cookie Cake

Recipe & Image taken from www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup sugar

1 large egg, at room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 and 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 9" square pan (or your preferred pan) with parchment paper.

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugars together on medium speed until fluffy and light in color. Mix in egg and vanilla until combined.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. On low speed, slowly mix into the wet ingredients. Dough will be thick and look like it's not coming together but it will. Stir in chocolate chips.

Press dough into prepared pan and bake for 16-20 minutes or until the edges just start to turn brown. Let cookie cool completely in pan.

Frost with buttercream if desired.

Chocolate Souffle

Recipe & Image taken from www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com

4 squares of parchment paper (3x3 inches)

4 strips of parchment paper (2x12 inches)

4 metal soufflé ring molds (3 inches in diameter x 2 inches tall) or parchment lined ramekins

Soufflé Batter:

8 oz. good quality semi-sweet dark chocolate (i.e. Guittard, Vahlrona, Callebeaut - I used a Ghirardelli

baking bar)

12 Tablespoons butter

1 cup granulated sugar

3 Tablespoons cornstarch

4 whole eggs plus 4 egg yolks

To make the soufflé batter, combine sugar and cornstarch in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs and yolks. Bring butter to a simmer in a saucepan. Add chocolate and mix until smooth. Continue to mix until chocolate begins to simmer along the edges. Transfer the chocolate mixture to the dry ingredients. Mix until combined. Add eggs and mix at low speed until mixture is smooth and sugar dissolved. Pour into a bowl and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 400°. Line each soufflé ring with a strip of parchment paper and spray with pan release such as Pam. Place parchment paper squares on a baking sheet and set molds on top.

Fill each ring mold or ramekin with soufflé batter ¾ of the way full. Bake on top oven rack for 26-28 minutes. My ramekins were a little smaller so I baked them for 21-23 minutes. You just want to make sure the tops are set but the middle is still gooey. Remove baking sheet from oven. Slide a metal spatula under each mold, and carefully transfer to individual serving plates using a pair of tongs. Gently lift off the mold and remove the parchment paper. If using ramekins, use a knife to and run it around the edge then carefully invert and place on a serving dish. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired. Serve immediately. Left over batter can be refrigerated for up to 10 days.

Brown Buttercrunch Cookies

Recipe & Image taken from www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com

For the cookie:

1/2 cup salted butter, softened

1/2 cup light corn syrup

2/3 cup brown sugar, packed

1 cup old fashioned oats (not quick oats)

3/4 cup All Purpose Flour

1 teaspoon pure vanilla

For the chocolate glaze:

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 teaspoons light corn syrup

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium saucepan, melt butter, corn syrup and brown sugar over moderate heat, stirring constantly until sugar dissolves.

Increase heat to high.

When mixture boils remove from heat and stir in oats, flour and vanilla.

Drop half teaspoonfuls, three inches apart on parchment lined cookie sheets.

They will spread a lot so do not place them too close.

Bake for 6-8 minutes or until mixture spreads, bubbles and turns golden brown.

Let cookies cool completely.

To make the chocolate glaze, heat cream in a small saucepan until scalded. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips and corn syrup. Cover and let stand about 15 minutes until the chocolate has melted. Using a wire whisk or a wooden spoon, gently mix glaze until smooth, being careful not to create bubbles.

When cookies are cool, drizzle glaze over the cookies or use a spatula to cover the end in chocolate.

Allow to set for 10-15 minutes.

Thai Chicken Skewers with Peanut Sauce

Recipe & IMage taken from http://www.emilybites.com

Chicken & Marinade Ingredients:

3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon sesame oil (found by the Asian sauces)

Juice from one lime

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon Sriracha (Asian chili sauce found with the other Asian ingredients)

1/8 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 ½ pounds (24 oz) raw boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized chunks

* You’ll also need 9” skewers – if using wooden skewers you should soak them in water for about 30 minutes before use

Peanut Sauce Ingredients:

2 tablespoons PB2 powdered peanut butter 

1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon water

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon black pepper

1/8 teaspoon Sriracha

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1/8 teaspoon sesame oil

Directions:

To create the marinade, combine the soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, lime juice, garlic, sriracha, red pepper flakes and cilantro from the first set of ingredients and mix thoroughly. Pour marinade into a gallon Ziploc bag and add chicken. Seal bag and shake to coat chicken in the marinade. Place the bag in the refrigerator so that the chicken is covered in the marinade and refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours (but can marinate longer – i.e. all day, overnight, etc).

Pre-heat the grill until hot. Divide the chicken evenly onto the four skewers. Place the skewers on the grill over low heat. Depending on your grill, cooking times may vary. On our 4-burner grill the chicken skewers cooked in about 10 minutes, so I suggest cooking yours for about 5-6 minutes and then flipping them and continuing to cook until chicken is cooked through.

To make the sauce, place all sauce ingredients in a bowl and whisk together until combined. Serve each chicken skewer with about a tablespoon of peanut sauce for dipping.

Maple Dijon Chicken

Recipe & Image taken from http://www.wittyinthecity.com

Chicken thighs- 1 package

Dijon mustard- 1/2 cup

Maple syrup- 1/4 cup

Rice/rice wine vinegar- 1 tablespoon

Fresh rosemary

Salt and pepper

Preheat your oven to 450ºF.

Mix together, dijon mustard, maple syrup, and  rice/rice wine vinegar. 

Put a 1.5 pound package of chicken thighs into a foil-lined, oven-proof baking dish. I used boneless chicken 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. 

Basil Lime Chicken

Recipe & Image taken from http://goodenessgracious.com

3 Limes (juice and zest) Divided

3 T Olive Oil

1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

3 T Dijon Mustard

3 T Worcestershire Sauce

3 T Soy Sauce

6 Green Onions Chopped Divided

4 Cloves Garlic Minced Divided

2 T Chopped Basil

Salt and Pepper to taste

3 lbs Chicken Breasts

Combine the zest and juice of 2 limes, Olive Oil, Mustard, Worcestershire, Soy, 3 onions, 2 garlic cloves salt and pepper and mix well.

Cut chicken into even cutlets and place in a gallon sized baggie.

Pour marinade over the chicken and marinate for 1 hour.

Preheat grill.

Place chicken on grill and grill for 7 minutes.

Then flip and cook until internal temp reaches 170.

Remove from grill and let meat rest.

Meanwhile combine juice and zest of one lime with extra virgin olive oil, 3 chopped onions, 2 minced garlic cloves, basil.

Slice chicken into bite-sized pieces and pour sauce over top.