Black Bean Brownies

Need a chocolate fix with no sugar and with lots of fibre?  Look no further!!  My sis-in-law Laura makes these all the time.

1 1/2 cup black beans
2 TBSP cacao powder
1/2 cup quick oats
pinch of salt
1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup choc chips

Preheat oven to 350F.  Place all ingredients except choc chips in food processor until well blended.  Stir in the choc chips and pour into greased muffin tins or a greased 8*8 pan.  Cook for 10-15 min.

Best Ever Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
 
These really are the best ever cookie!! SOOOO yummy. My sis-in-law, Louisa gave me this recipe.  Just make sure you don't over bake them! 

1 cup margarine (softened)
1 cup brown sugar
1 ¼ cups white sugar
½ tsp salt
¾ tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1 pkg Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Chipits

Beat margarine
Add brown sugar, white sugar, salt and
baking soda and beat with margarine
Mix in eggs and vanilla
Blend in flour
Stir in Chocolate Chipits
Spoon onto greased cookie sheet
Bake at 350° for 10 minutes

THE BEST and EASIEST chocolate cake/ cupcakes OF ALL TIME!!!!!

ok, super built up title. but  NO lie i have tried many many variations of your basic chocolate cake, and this one trumps them all by FAR!! even better than any ive tried from scratch. I've made it now at least 3 times for Dicks birthday, and gretas and mothers day. LOVE.

1 box devil’s food cake mix
1 small pkg Jello instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups mini chocolate chips (or substitute with chopped up reece peanut butter cups- awesome)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a very large bowl, mix together everything except chocolate chips. Batter will be thick. Stir in the chocolate chips. Pour batter into cake pan of choice (I normally use two 9-inch pie pans). For cooking time, I use the cooking times on the back of the devil’s food cake box as a guide and usually add 10 mins to whatever it says. Then I do the toothpick check, and if it’s not done, I check on it every 5 mins after that. It usually takes around 45 mins for two, 9-inch pie pans.

Cornflake cookies

My sister gave me this recipe for cornflake cookies and at first I was pretty skeptical but I needed a little excitement in my life so I thought I would give it a whirl. Turns out these are so yummy! A nice change from the usual chocolate chip. Beat until light and fluffy: 1 cup shortening (I just used butter) 1 cup packed brown sugar 1 cup granulated sugar 2 eggs 1 tsp vanilla Sift together and stir in by hand: 2 cups flour 1/2 tsp baking powder 1 tsp soda 1/2 tsp salt Then stir in: 1 7 oz package FLAKED coconut 2 cups cornflakes Chocolate chips as desired Bake at 350* for 12-15 minutes until barely done

 Chocolate Oreo Cupcakes

1 pkg    chocolate cake mix

1 pkg    instant chocolate pudding mix (4 serving box)

1 cup    sour cream

1 cup    veg. oil

1 tsp     vanilla

4          eggs

1/2 cup  warm water

2 cups   oreo's finely chopped (about 24 cookies)

Preheat over to 350 and line muffin tins.

In a large bowl mix together cake mix, pudding mix (in powder form), sour cream, oil, vanilla, eggs and water. 

(Do not over mix batter as it will make the batter turn to pudding). 

Gently stir in oreos and divide batter into muffin cups. 

Bake for 20 minutes or till top is springy to touch. Cool completely.

Cookies and Cream Frosting

1 stick   butter (1/2 cup)

8 oz      cream cheese (room temperature)

3 cups   powdered sugar

12         oreos finely chopped

1 tsp     vanilla

pinch     salt

Beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy (2-3 minutes).

Slowly add sugar 1 cup at a time, then add salt and vanilla.

Gently stir in oreos. Do not over stir. 

ENJOY!

I recently had these at a Super Bowl party and they were FANTASTIC! I seriously thought they were better than crazy cake cupcakes, just the perfect cream cheese icing, not too cream cheesy but dreamy and delicious and so moist, i was in heaven and ate too many! I haven't made these myself yet, but got the recipe and will be making soon for Nixon's bday party I hope, :)

Layered Lemon Dessert

Okay, seriously. You'll think you've died and gone to lemony-cheesecake heaven once you've tried this stuff! SO scrumptious.

CRUST

2 cups All-purpose flour                   

1 cup Butter (or hard margarine)       

1 cup Finely chopped pecans

SECOND LAYER

1 cup Whipping cream

2 Blocks of cream cheese, softened

1 cup Icing (confectioner’s) sugar

THIRD LAYER

2 Envelopes of lemon pie filling (not instant) enough for 2 pies  

2 Large eggs (see Note 1)

TOPPING

2 cups Whipping cream
2 tbsp. Granulated sugar

1 tsp. Vanilla extract

Chopped pecans, for garnish

Crust: Measure flour into medium bowl. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add pecans. Stir. Press firmly in ungreased 9 x 13 inch (22 x 33 cm) pan. Bake in 350°F (175°C) oven for about 15 minutes until golden. Cool.

Second Layer: Beat whipping cream in medium bowl until soft peaks form. Using same beaters, beat cream cheese and icing sugar in large bowl until smooth. Fold in whipped cream. Spread evenly over crust.

Third Layer: Prepare pie filling according to package directions, using 2 eggs. Cool, stirring often. Spread evenly over Second Layer.

Topping: Beat all 3 ingredients in medium bowl until soft peaks form. Spread evenly over Third Layer.

Garnish with pecans. Cuts into 24 pieces.

Note 1: Use 2 whole eggs instead of the 4 yolks the package instructions call for.

Peppermint Bark Rice Krispie Treats

These are awesome, easy and tasty! I made these for our Family Christmas Party and they were gone in a flash. From, of course, Our Best Bites.

Peppermint Bark Rice Krispie Treats
Recipe by Our Best Bites

Ingredients
1 10.5 ounce bag peppermint mini marshmallows*
4 tablespoons real butter, plus extra to butter pan
5-6 cups rice krispie style cereal (I like mine a little more marshmallowy)
3 tablespoons semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
3 tablespoons white chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil, divided
a few drops (about 1/8 teaspoon) peppermint extract
2-3 medium sized candycanes, crushed

*In place of the peppermint marshmallows, use regular marshmallows and add about 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract to melted marshmallow mixture. Or more to taste, I’m guessing on the amount.

Instructions:
Line a 9×13 pan with foil and lightly butter bottom and about 1 inch up sides.

Melt butter in a very large bowl in the microwave. Add marshmallows and stir to coat. Heat in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until melted and smooth. (You can do that whole process on the stovetop as well.) Add rice krispie cereal and stir to evenly combine. With buttered hands, press mixture into prepared pan.

Place white chocolate chips and 1/4 teaspoon oil in a small bowl. Heat in microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until melted and smooth. Repeat same process with semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips and add a few drops of peppermint extract. Drizzle both chocolates on top of rice krispie treats and sprinkle candy canes on top. Let sit until chocolate is set, place pan in fridge to speed process along. Cut into squares and eat up.

Candy Cane Kiss Cookies

I don't even want to post these because they are so good. Because I want to keep this secret to myself. But this secret isn't really mine, it is on our best bites blog, AND Krystyn brought these over last Christmas. But honestly, seriously I believe these are the best cookies I have tasted. Because I LOVE chocolate/mint combo. Believe me, these won't last long.

P.S. I found the Candy Cane Kisses at Shoppers and at Safeway.

Candy Cane Kiss Cookies
Recipe by Our Best Bites

1/2 c. butter-flavored shortening (I just used regular shortening and I couldn't even taste the difference)
1/2 c. real butter
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
optional: 1 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. flour, lightly spooned into measuring cups and leveled with a knife
1/4 c. + 2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 c. dark chocolate chips
48 Hershey’s Candy Cane Kisses, unwrapped

Preheat oven to 350.

Cream together softened butter, shortening, brown sugar, and white sugar for 1-2 minutes on medium-high speed or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla. Meanwhile, combine the baking powder, baking soda, salt, flour, and cocoa powder. Add to the butter/sugar mixture and mix until combined. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the centers are set but still soft. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes. Top each cookie with an unwrapped Candy Cane Kiss. Allow to cool completely, long enough for the Kiss to harden. If necessary, after the cookies have cooled, they can be placed in the refrigerator or freezer to re-solidify the Kiss.

Pumpkin Pie Milkshake

I've been super obsessed with everything PUMPKIN lately. I even stocked up on pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie filling. Mmmm! Anyway. Found this recipe on OurBestBites.com and honestly couldn't stop myself from making it. Although... I tried to keep it a little less fattening, so I just used milk and ice cubes instead of icecream. STILL good, but it probably would have been even tastier with the icecream. Try it!

Pumpkin Pie Milkshake
Recipe by Our Best Bites

1/3 C pumpkin, canned or homemade
1/4 – 1/2 C milk
1/4 t vanilla
1/2 t cinnamon
1/16 t cloves (just use a 1/8 t measure and fill it half way, or do a pinch)
1/16 t nutmeg
2 T brown sugar
2 C vanilla ice cream
1-2 graham crackers

Pop everything but graham crackers in a blender. Start with 1/4 C milk and then slowly add more if needed to make the blender process it all. I used somewhere between 1/4-1/2 C.  Sprinkle with crushed graham cracker crumbs before serving.

A note about blenders: Here’s the problem with making thick, diner style milkshakes at home: A lot of times you have to add so much milk to the thing to get the blender to process that it turns into a milk-slushie instead. Or you have to blend and plunge, blend and plunge, etc. You know the drill, right? So if you have any trouble with your blender, I would recommend blending everything but the ice cream first and then mashing it into the ice cream by hand (well, with a hand. Holding a fork or spoon :) If your scooped ice cream sits out at room temp while you measure the other things and get them all ready, then by the time you mash it all together it should be a good consistency.

Homemade Oreo Cookies

Okay, maybe I do make other desserts. And this is one of them. This recipe is awesome. The cookies are chewy and delicious. And the icing divine.

Cookies:
1 Devil Food Cake Mix
3/4 cup shortening
2 eggs

Icing:
1/2 package cream cheese softened
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup of icing sugar

Mix together until ingredients are combined. Roll into small balls. Bake at 350 for 8 minutes. Slam cookie sheet down on the counter when they come out to make the cookies flat. Let cool. Then put the icing in between the cookies. Keep cookies in fridge until ready to serve. Enjoy!

Mom's Brownies

I don't make many desserts. Cheesecakes, some cookies and these brownies. I usually make these on Sunday maybe once a month or every 2nd month. Or when the missionaries come over and I didn't plan a dessert. But I make these when I feel like a warm, chewy brownie with ice cream. I also make these when I feel like chocolate but I don't have any chocolate but I always have these ingredients. In fact I they are in the oven as we speak for that reason alone. My Mom used to make these when I was a kid.

1 cup of butter
3/4 cup of cocoa
2 cups of sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour

Melt butter & cocoa on stove. Add sugar and mix with a fork or spatula (if you only have a hand mixer I do all the mixing in same pot as I melt the butter). If you have a bosch or whatever else, remove from heat and scoop that butter, cocoa and sugar into a your bosch bowl(or kitchen aide). Beat one egg at a time (this is when the bosch comes in handy because you really want to mix those eggs one at a time, mix each egg for about a minute or as long as you can handle, the more mixing the chewier they are but a minute is about good for each egg). Beat in vanilla. Beat in flour.

Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes. Now you have to check these at 20 minutes because you do not want to overbake. I had a really hot oven in one of the apartments we lived in and I had to bake them at 325 for 23 minutes. But 350 at about 25 minutes should be about average. But check and once the toothpick comes out clean take them out! I always sprinkle icing sugar on the top and serve warm with ice cream! Enjoy.