Peanut Butter Eclair Cake

Don't you just want to stick your finger in this and lick it?!?  Nothing goes better with peanut butter than chocolate. (sorry jelly)  This super duper easy dessert is so rich that you might have to eat it in 2 sittings.  I kept getting request for this recipe so I thought I would share it with you. I hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients:

1 bx	chocolate graham crackers
2 bx	(3 1/4 oz boxes) vanilla instant pudding
1 c	peanut butter
3 1/2 c	milk
1	(8-ounce) container cool whip, thawed
1 can(s)	of your favorite chocolate frosting
*TIP: IF YOU CAN NOT FIND THE CHOCOLATE GRAHAM CRACKERS THEN YOU CAN USE CHOCOLATE TEDDY GRAHAMS.
*TIP: IF YOU LIKE A CREAMIER TEXTURE YOU CAN MAKE YOUR OWN WHIPPED CREAM AND MIX IT WITH THE PEANUTBUTTER MIXTURE INSTEAD OF USING THE COOL WHIP. Directions:

1) Spray the bottom of a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom of the pan with whole graham crackers.


2) In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to mix pudding with milk and peanut butter; beat at medium speed for two minutes.


3) Fold in whipped topping


4) Pour half the pudding mixture over the graham crackers. Place another layer of whole graham crackers on top of pudding layer. Pour over remaining half of pudding mixture and cover with another layer of graham crackers.


5) Heat the container of prepared frosting, uncovered in the microwave for about 1 minute. Pour over the top of the cake. Refrigerate and let it set up for at least 12 hours before serving.

Granny's Fried Okra

I LOVE fried okra! My husband's Granny makes the BEST! A couple of years ago I had her show me how she makes it.
Now old school cooks don't measure anything. They just throw it in there or tell you to throw 2 "big" spoons of oil in or use butter the size of an egg ( that is what my granny would tell my mom) anyway it's really hard sometimes to get recipes from some of these cooks who have been cooking for so long that they have it all in their head and never write anything down. So I sat down with granny and watched. This is what I came up with.


Ingredients:


a bunch of okra
2 parts self rising corn meal (not the yellow stuff)
1 part all purpose flour
a pinch of cayenne
salt and pepper to taste
Oil for frying


NOTE: I usually start off using 1 cup of cornmeal and 1/2 flour. Adjust this amount depending on how much okra you are frying.


Directions:

1) Rinse the okra off in a strainer.

2) Chop up okra into bite size pieces removing the head and the tip of the tail. Just throw those 2 pieces away.

3)  If you like a thicker breading like in the picture then place the okra in a bowl with water in it. This helps to bring out the slime and the breading sticks to it better. (yes I said slime, you will see what I'm talking about in a minute) After you soak the okra for about 2 

minutes or so, drain them and set aside.

 4) Dredge the okra in the flour mixture and throw those bad boys in the fryer.

 5) *If you don't like your breading too thick then do not put your okra back into the water after it is cut. Just dredge into the flour mixture and throw them into the fryer without crowding too much.

6)  Fry the okra in oil at 375 degrees for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown. If you don't have a fryer then place then in oil in a deep frying pan and cook over med- medium high heat till golden brown, turning when necessary.

7)  Drain on a paper towel and sprinkle with salt.

 *TIP: you don't want your whole okras much more than 2 1/2 inches long. The bigger okras tend to be too hard and do not fry up very well. You can also squeeze them and see how hard they are.

Koolaid Rice Krispy Treats

Sorry I haven't posted in a while, to say I've been busy lately is an understatement. Jada started kindergarten and I started a part time job in the evenings and my life has been a whirlwind ever since. Well I came across these yummy little treats recently and have made them them in several flavors. The picture above is watermelon cherry flavored.  It's a nice twist on your standard rice krispy treats. They are sweet and tart and full of flavor!

INGREDIENTS

1 Stick of butter

1 Package of mini marshmallows

8 cups of rice krispies

1 package of any flavored koolaid  (you can use 2 packs if you like more flavor)

cooking spray

DIRECTIONS

1) Prepare your baking pan, spray bottom and side with spray.... set aside.

2) In large non stick pot melt butter at med- low heat. Add marshmallows and kool-aid stirring constantly until melted and mixed well, be careful not to scorch. Remove from heat.

3) Pour rice krispies over marshmallow and kool aid mixture. Mix thoroughly...spoon into baking pan and press down with wax paper till firm....let cool then cut into squares and serve.....

Creamy Zydeco Chicken Pasta

eeeeeeew weeeee dis be some good pasta! I made this the other night listening to Zydeco music, hence the name. It has a nice little kick from the creole seasoning that makes you want to get up and shake your tail feather. I hope you enjoy this as much as my family and I did. This is what I used my homemade pasta with. It was divine!

* Feel free to mix in other veggies too, like mushrooms, broccoli, etc! Or you can even throw in some shrimp instead of using the chicken!

Ingedients:

4	chicken breast, cut into thin strips
8 oz	linguine pasta, cooked al dente
4 tsp	creole seasoning ( i prefer tony chachere's creole seasoning)
3 Tbsp	butter
2	green onions, thinly sliced
2 c	whippping cream
1/4 c	chopped sundried tomatoes
1 Tbsp	cornstarch
1/2 tsp	dried basil
1/4 tsp	ground black pepper
1/4 tsp	garlic powder
1/2 c	parmesan cheese, grated
*I MADE THIS WITH MY SIMPLE HOMEMADE PASTA DOUGH RECIPE! IT WAS DELISH!*

Directions:

1) Place chicken and Creole seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat.

2) In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter until chicken is tender, about 5 to 7 minutes.  

3) Add green onions, heavy cream, tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, black pepper mix well. Turn heat up till it boils let it boil for about 1 minute and then reduce the heat. Whisk in the cornstarch. Cook until sauce thicken a little.           

4)   Pour over hot linguine and toss with Parmesan cheese.      

 NOTE: The sauce may look a little thin. It will thicken up as it mixes and absorbs in the pasta.           

Simple Homemade Pasta Dough!

Just call me Mama Mia! I think I might have some Italian heritage in me some where. Can't you tell with my red hair? But seriously Italian food is one of my favorite to eat and prepare. I have always wanted to make my own pasta but I was always scared to do it, even though there are only 4 ingredients. You don't have to have a pasta machine to make it either but I knew it would be easier if I did. When I won the shopping spree back in June, one of the first things I got was a shiny red pasta maker. I finally busted out that bad boy last night and made some fettuccine noodles. Let me tell ya it was actually really easy, not to mention the best pasta I have ever eaten. I was literally patting myself on the back after accomplishing this feat. I made a yummy creamy creole chicken pasta with the noodles that was DELISH! I will share that recipe with you next time. But today enjoy learning how to make easy peasy pasta!

Ingredients

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp salt

2 cups all purpose flour

1-2 Tbsp water

In a medium sized bowl, combine flour and salt.

Make a well in the flour

 

 

 

 

Add the slightly beaten egg and mix.

 Mixture should form a stiff dough. If needed, stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons water. (the dough should NOT be sticky!)

On a lightly floured surface, knead dough for about 3 to 4 minutes.

Place dough in the pasta machine and roll it through. Or roll flat on your counter top. Fold over in threes and add it to the machine a couple of times on the first level to incorporate the dough better.

With a pasta machine or by hand roll dough out to desired thinness.( I like it to be thin enough to just being able to see my hand through it.) On my machine it is level 6.

Use your machine or pizza cutter, cut into strips of desired width.
Cook for about 7 minutes in boiling water.

Note: It may seem like the pasta isn't smooth enough after you knead it but once you put it through your machine a couple of times and fold it over it will start to smooth out. That is the same for if you don't own a machine and you roll it and fold it on the counter top too.