German Chocolate-Chip Oreos

These are a twist on the ever-popular homemade oreo.

1 package German Chocolate cake mix
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 cup chocolate chips
1 container vanilla frosting (or you can make homemade frosting)

Mix cake mix, butter and eggs together. Stir in chocolate chips. Shape into quarter-size balls. Bake 8-10 minutes at 350 (they will be soft). Let the cookies cool. Frost a cookie with vanilla frosting and stick another cookie on top to form an "oreo". Repeat the frosting step until all cookies are used.

Ricky's Cheesecake

Ricky is a great cook. We had some friends over last Sunday and look what he whipped up. It was delicious!

Crust:
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted

Filling:
2 packages (8-oz) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2 Giant Hershey bars with Butterfinger bits chopped into chunks

Topping:
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 Tablespoons milk

1. Heat oven to 300. Mix crust ingredients. In ungreased 9-inch springform pan, press crust mixture in bottom and 1 1/2 inches up the side.

2. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating until smooth each time. Gently stir in candy chunks. Pour into crust.

3. Bake 50-60 minutes or until set. Turn oven off, leave door open 4 inches. Cool cake in oven for 30 minutes.

4. Put cake on cooling rack. Run spatula along inside of pan to loosen cake. Cool 30 minutes. Run spatula along inside again. Refrigerate at least 3 hours.

5. Microwave chocolate chips and milk on high 20-30 seconds or until chips can be stirred smooth. Cool 5 minutes. Spread evenly over top of cheesecake. Sprinkle top with powdered sugar if desired. Refrigerate 15 minutes.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bread

If you love peanut butter and chocolate, you'll love this bread. Ricky, the boys, and I snacked on it all weekend. I've taken it to white elephant gift exchanges before where it was a highly sought after item. I usually double the recipe and make two loaves.

2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (I usually use low-fat PB)
1 beaten egg
1 cup milk
1 cup chocolate chips or chunks

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
3. Cut in peanut butter with a fork.
4. Add egg and milk, stir just enough to moisten dry ingredients.
5. Pour into greased 9x3x5-inch loaf pan.
6. Bake for about an hour or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Invert and remove loaf to cooling rack.

Cinnamon Raisin French Toast

We have breakfast for dinner once a week (because Emerson and Finlay love it so much and its easy to make). Here's what we had this week. It's so easy! You just make this yummy bread in the bread machine. The machine does almost everything for you. Then you let the bread cool, whip up your favorite recipe for making french toast using this bread instead of your normal bread and, ta-da, yummy food.

Bread:
1 cup water
3 cups flour
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
3 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/2 teaspoons yeast
3/4 cup raisins

1. Pour water in bread pan.
2. Sprinkle flour over the water.
3. Put the butter in one corner of the pan, sugar in another corner, salt in one corner, and cinnamon in the fourth corner.
4. Make a little well in the flour and put the yeast in it.
5. Select the white bread cycle, medium crust and let the machine do its magic.
6. Add the raisins 5 to minutes before the kneading cycle ends.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

We made his last weekend and ate it while watching March Madness. It was so RICH and yummy.

Crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon shortening
3 Tablespoons cold water

Filling:
2 large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup chocolate chips (add an extra 1/4 cup if you want it really chocolaty)
1 cup chopped pecans

1. Make the crust: Mix the flour and salt in a medium bowl. Cut in shortening, until pieces are the size of peas. Sprinkle with cold water until all flour is moistened (you can add extra water if you need). Toss with a fork. Gather pastry in a ball. Shape into flattened round on lightly floured surface. Wrap pastry in plastic wrap and refrigerate 45 minutes.
2. Put crust in pie pan: Roll pastry, using floured rolling pin, into a circle 2-inches larger than an upside-down pie pan. Fold pastry into fourths; place in pie pan and unfold. Trim overhanging edge of crust.
3. Preheat oven to 325.
4. Beat eggs in large mixer bowl on high speed until foamy. Beat in flour and sugars. Beat in butter. Stir in chocolate and nuts. Spoon into pie pan.
5. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until knife inserted halfway between outside edge and center comes out clean. Serve warm with ice-cream.