Chocolate Pumpkin Crap Cookies

Sorry for the hiatus! Moving in with my parents, being away from the Hubby, and then moving up to our new place has kept me mighty busy. I hope this recipe makes up for it! I got the original from a close friend and I upped the ante a little by adding some chocolate to it, because chocolate makes everything better, right? These cookies are everything I want in a cookie. They are soft, moist, and they have pumpkin in them so you can pretend they're healthy!

As with most cookies, start by softening a stick of butter in a mixer or bowl. While waiting for the butter to soften, preheat the oven to 375. Add 1 cup of sugar to the butter and mix until they are well combined.

Add the egg, can of pumpkin, and vanilla and mix until well combined

Next come the dry ingredients, minus the chips

Mix that up and then add the chips

Stir gently, I used a rubber spatula, to incorporate the chips

Use two tablespoons to dollop  the dough onto either a greased cookie sheet or one covered with parchment paper and bake for 12-14 minutes

Look at these beauties. I want to eat all of them right now!

Chocolate Pumpkin Crap Cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 can pumpkin
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 egg
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 bag butterscotch chips

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Soften butter in a bowl or stand mixer
3. Add sugar and mix until well combined
4. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla and mix again
5. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined (over mixing will make them gummy)
6. Add the butterscotch chips and mix with a spoon or rubber spatula
7. Use two spoons to dollop the dough onto greased or parchment papered cookie sheet
8. Bake for 12-14 minutes

Roasted Cabbage

Before I dive in and tell you about this recipe, I have to celebrate a little. I RAN A 5K YESTERDAY!!! My time was 36:20, which is by far my fastest for a three-ish miler. For a long time I didn't think I could run because of some lung issues from pneumonia when I was a kid, but now I can run for three full miles! Ok, now to get back to the real purpose of this blog, delicious food.

I don't think I can ever stop saying how much I love roasted veggies. It is my favorite way to eat just about any of them. Yesterday with our salmon we had roasted cabbage. It gets sweet and a little nutty when you roast it. Cabbage is not a huge hit in our house, but I love that it is cheap and filling. The Hubby eats it because it is in front of him, but the kids are not interested. More for me!

Start with about half a head of green cabbage. Red or savoy would work as well, green is what I had on hand. Slice it and remove the core. My slices were about half an inch thick.

Drizzle with olive oil and add salt, pepper, and whatever seasonings you enjoy. I used garlic powder and smoked paprika.

Roast it is a 425 degree oven for 20-30 minutes or until cooked through and a little browned.

Plate it up and enjoy the cabbagy goodness!

Easy Roasted Cabbage

Serves 4 as a side

Ingredients

• 1/2 head green cabbage
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Other seasonings you enjoy to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. Slice the cabbage into 1/2 inch slices and remove the core.
3. Place on a lightly oiled baking sheet.
4. Drizzle with olive oil and add seasonings
5. Roast for 20-30 minutes or until cooked and lightly browned

Seafood Saturday: Caramelized Salmon

Salmon is, hands down, my favorite fish. I LOVE salmon. I'm pretty sure I could eat it every day and never be sick of it. Meaty and fishy and wonderful, it is everything I want in a fish. I decided to try something new today and do caramelized salmon. The recipe I used was really, really salty. I checked to see if I misread or mismeasured. Nope... lesson learned and next time I will cut the salt by a lot. So this is the recipe with the salt already reduced for your convenience because I am just that nice of a person.

Start with about a pound of salmon for 4 people or 2 people if they are both really hungry. Cut it in 4 even portions and let it rest a few minutes. seriously though, look at that gorgeous fish!

Next up, make the rub. Brown sugar, salt, and black pepper. You could add pretty much any other herbs and spices and have it be delicious.

Heat a couple tablespoons of oil in a broiler safe pan over medium heat. Put the rub all over the salmon and then put it in the pan skin side down.

Let it cook without moving it for about 4 minutes.

Flip it carefully. and add a little more of the rub to the skin side. Let it cook for 2-3 minutes.

Flip it back to skin side down, put a little more of the rub on the top and put it under the broiler for 1-2 minutes. Watch it VERY carefully. Sugar burns amazingly fast if you aren't watching it.
Let it cool for a minute or two before serving because the sugar will still be quite hot.

Serve with roasted veggies and a side of potatoes for a filling and delicious meal.

Caramelized Salmon

Serves 2-4

Ingredients

• 1 lb salmon
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• cracked black pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Portion the salmon into 4 equal pieces.
2. Mix the rub ingredients together in a small bowl.
3. Heat the oil over medium heat in a broiler safe pan.
4. Coat the salmon well in the rub and place, skin side down, in the hot pan.
5. Allow to cook for 4-5 minutes and then carefully turn.
6. Allow to cook for another 2-3 minutes, add a little more rub, and carefully flip again.
7. Add another little bit of the rub and place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes or until the sugar is melted and very lightly browned. Make sure to watch it carefully.
8. Allow to cool for 1-2 minutes before serving as the sugar will be very hot.
   
   
   
   

Slow Cooker Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls

Cabbage rolls have kind of a rough reputation. I think they are delicious. Little packets of meat and cabbage. YUM! Not only that, they are even easier if you are lazy like I was this time and don't actually make rolls. Hence the "unstuffed" part. Also, slow cooking is the best. Throw a bunch of stuff in, turn it on, and boom! Dinner!

The most labor intensive part of this is mixing up the meat. I use quinoa as a binder because my whole family loves it.

Once the meat is mixed up, form it into small loaves or meat balls and put them on the bottom of the slow cooker.

Cut up the cabbage.

And put it on top of the meat.

Then comes the sauce. Tomato sauce, worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, and honey. 

Cook it on low for 8 hours and then enjoy the homey goodness.

Slow Cooker Unstuffed Cabbage

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef

1/2 cup quinoa or rice

1/2 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 15 ounce can tomato sauce

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce

1/2 head of green cabbage

1. Combine the beef, quinoa, and seasonings. Form into balls and put on the bottom of the slow cooker.
2. Cut the cabbage into bite size pieces and layer on top of the meat.
3. Combine the sauce, honey, lemon juice, and worcestershire sauce and pour over the cabbage and meat.
4. Cook on low for 8 hours and serve.

Egg-Free Pancakes

There are a few things I can count on everyone in the family eating, breakfast for dinner is one of them. After modifying a bunch of other recipes, I finally found this one  and after a couple modifications, they are delicious!

Combine dry and wet ingredients and whisk.

Make sure you don't whisk too much. Lumps are just fine.

Scoop out about 1/3 cup for each pancake.

Let them get a little bubbly on the top and then flip. My pan is pretty warped. I should probably get a new one.

Let them cook on the other side for a bit and then plate them up! Look at those golden brown beauties!

Ingredients

2 1⁄2 cups

 all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons

 baking powder

3 tablespoons

 sugar

1⁄2 teaspoon

 salt

2 cups and 2 tablespoons

 milk

4 tablespoons

 vegetable oil

Directions

1. Mix together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in medium bowl.
2. Combine milk and oil. Add to dry ingredients.
3. Stir just until moistened.
4. Bake on a hot, lightly greased griddle.
5. Pancakes are ready to turn when tops are bubbly all over, a few bubbles have burst, and the edges begin to appear dry. Use a quick flip with a broad spatula to turn pancakes. Turn only once.
6. Continue to bake until bottoms are brown and dry.
7. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.