Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Skillet (“Pizookie”)

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Every Friday night my husband and I do an “at home” date night after the kids go to bed. A couple of weeks ago I decided to do a dessert night. I found a recipe for a chocolate chip cookie made in a skillet….it was DELICIOUS! I followed the exact recipe I found, so instead of me just copying it here I will just give you a link to the original website! Enjoy!

Click here for the recipe!

Oven Roasted Chicken

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This is a simple way to cook an entire chicken in under an hour!  It turns out super moist and delicious, so give it a try!

  • Preheat your oven to 450 and throw your empty cast iron skillet in while preheating so it can get hot too. Use a roasting pan if you don’t have a cast iron!
  • Place your whole chicken (inside junk removed) onto a plate.
  • Melt four tablespoons of butter and pour on top.
  • Season entire chicken with a teaspoon of kosher salt and two tablespoons of Montreal steak seasoning.
  • Once oven is hot carefully place your chicken into the skillet.
  • Bake 45 mns or until temp reaches 165!
  • The skin will brown nicely and the inside will be moist. One thing to note is letting it rest before cutting locks in those juices. Let it rest for 15 mns or so!
  • Another tip from a dear friend is to loosen the skin a bit and rub butter under it directly on the breast!

 

Homemade Pop Tarts

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It’s easier than you might think to make your own pop tarts! We had so much fun making pop tarts today!  So let’s go make some….

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Directions:

  1. You will need a disk of pie crust. You can buy the premade store bought kind or make your own. Today I cheated and used one I bought…typically I prefer to make my own pie crusts.  I will share that recipe later!
  2. Lay the pie crust out flat on a sheet of parchment paper. Then fold it in half. Cut it into three or four pieces.  Since you folded it in half, you will have twice as many pieces and they match! You should have three or four pop tarts with a top and a bottom. Make sense? You just need a matching top and bottom piece for each one.
  3. Now use desired filling on the bottom piece of pie crust. Be sure to leave a border so that the filling stays in when you pinch the seams together! You can fill with anything…jelly, jam, apple butter, chocolate, marshmallow creme, chocolate chips, peanut butter, etc! Endless possibilities really!
  4. Lay the top piece onto the bottom piece and pinch the seams together all the way around. Use a fork to give the decorative edge and make sure the seams are sealed.
  5. Use one egg yolk and a tablespoon of water to make an egg wash and lightly baste the pop tarts before baking.
  6. Bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes.
  7. Once the pop tarts are cooled you can make a nice glaze if you would like.
  8. Use the egg white from the egg you used for the egg wash. Put it in your mixer with the whisk attachment and beat on high until it is frothy.
  9. Mix in a cup to a cup and a half of powdered sugar.  More sugar=thicker consistency
  10. Mix in a teaspoon or two of vanilla…I like more vanilla here;)
  11. Put icing into a ziploc bag and squeeze onto pop tarts.
  12. You can add chocolate chips, sprinkles, or anything else to top it off!

* My kids loved making these today. They loved choosing their own filling and decorating the outsides too! Have fun!

 

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IMG_2897[1]This one has peanut butter filling and is topped with icing and chocolate chips…talk about a treat!

Homemade Hamburger Buns

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Photo: I think I have these figured out and the recipe tweaked to my liking!

I have tried a few recipes for hamburger buns with each one being a little different. I finally found one recipe I like and have tweeked it to make it perfect to me!  So if you are looking to make your own buns, give this one a try. It’s a light and fluffy bun…one you are sure to love!

Ingredients
  • 1 c. warm water
  • 3 tablespoons warm milk
  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 1½ tablespoons sugar
  • 1 large eggs
  • 3 cups bread flour (I use Gold Medal)
  • ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2½ tablespoons salted butter, softened.
  • sesame seeds (optional)
Instructions
  1. In a glass measuring cup, combine 1 cup warm water, 3 tbsp. milk, yeast and sugar. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, beat 1 egg in a bowl.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the flours, salt and butter. Using the paddle attachment, mix the ingredients until the butter is the size of crumbs.
  3. Stir in yeast mixture and beaten egg. Run the mixer on medium-low (I used #2 on my Kitchen Aid) until a dough forms, about 8-10 minutes.
  4. Shape the dough into a ball and return it to the bowl. Cover bowl with a clean, damp kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm place until it has doubled is size, around an hour depending on the air temperature.
  5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a dough scraper, divide the dough into 8 equal parts.
  6. To shape the dough into balls, gently flatten each piece like a pancake. Pull up each side pinching it together in the center. Repeat until the ball is sealed. Flip the ball over (seam side down) and move to an un-floured part of your board (it’s easier to roll this way). Place your palm over the top and gently roll into a smooth ball. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet, placing them 2 to 3 inches apart. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let buns rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours, or until puffy and slightly risen.
  7. Preheat your oven to 400 F. and place a shallow bowl (oven safe) of water on the bottom rack. Before the dough goes in, add about 1 cup of water to the bowl (to create steam). This will help keep the bread nice and moist. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

*The credit for this recipe goes to: The Clever Carrot. I only changed a couple of little things like the amount of sugar and salt…decreased them both! I also skip the egg wash step! She has an amazing step by step tutorial for this recipe if you are new to bread making!