(Turtle) Fudge Chocolate Cookies

Warning: these are yet another highly addictive delicious cookie!  I've made these many times, with a couple of variations, and they always disappear rapidly.  And they are easy to make, too--no mixer needed, only a few ingredients...can you feel the danger level increasing? ;)

Link to my YouTube video of preparation: https://youtu.be/mGbjZ33Mlf0

The version I'm presenting here has one slight variation only: no pecans used this time.  I like the cookies either way, and was actually going to make them with pecans, but when I went to get them out of my fridge, discovered I had none!  Oops.  These are delicious either way, I assure you.  You can also make them with peanut butter filled Dove chocolates; however, those tend to melt a bit, so the cookies are more on the messy side.

Here is the original recipe: http://www.marthawhite.com/recipes/turtle-fudge-chocolate-chip-cookies-5511

Recipe below contains my modifications.

Ingredients:

5 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate
1/4 c. butter
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
2 (7.4 oz.) packages of Martha White Chocolate Chip Muffin Mix

optional: 2/3 c. chopped pecans
48 Dove Caramel filled chocolates, unwrapped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper (or spray with release spray).

2. Microwave chocolate and butter in microwave-safe bowl for 1 minute.  Remove and stir as much as possible, then microwave for 30 more seconds and stir again until butter and chocolate are completely melted and mixed (if needed, microwave one more time for 15-30 seconds, but be careful to not scorch the chocolate!).

3. Stir in the sweetened condensed milk.

4. Stir in the muffin mixes.

5. Form dough into 1 inch balls and place on prepared baking sheet. (*if using pecans, dip bottom of balls in the chopped pecans before placing on baking sheet)

6. Bake for 7-9 minutes; cookies will look slightly crackled and dry.

7. Immediately press a caramel candy piece into the center of each cookie, then transfer to baking rack to cool completely.

8. Enjoy (with a glass of milk, if you like--soooo good)!

Crispy Orange Beef

Another tasty and quick recipe for dinner; this is on the sweet side, but not overly so.  When I make it again (which I absolutely will!), I plan to try adding just a little bit of red pepper flake to see if I can achieve an even better result (will post results when I do, of course).
Here is the original recipe, which I followed fairly closely:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/crispy-orange-beef/

Ingredients:

1 lb. flank steak, cut in small strips across grain
1/3 c. white sugar
1/3 c. rice vinegar
2 T. frozen orange juice concentrate
1 tsp. salt
1 T. soy sauce
1/4 c. cornstarch
2 tsp. orange zest (this was the zest of 1 orange for me)
2 T. fresh grated ginger
1 1/2 T. bottled minced garlic

2 c. oil for frying (I used canola)

Instructions:


1. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.  Spread meat out on paper towels and dry in fridge for 30 minutes.

2. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, rice vinegar, orange juice concentrate, salt, and soy sauce.

3. Coat dried beef in the cornstarch (I just tossed them together on the paper towel).

4. Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat.  Fry the beef in small batches until crispy and slightly browned and set aside.

5. Drain all the oil out except 1 T.  Add the orange zest, ginger, and garlic; cook briefly until fragrant (around 1 minute).

6. Add the soy sauce mixture and bring to a boil.  Stir and boil for around 4-5 minutes, or until syrupy and thickened.

7. Add beef, stir to coat and heat thoroughly.

8. Enjoy (I paired it with boiled Basmati rice--perfect!)

Brown Sugar Snickerdoodles

Snickerdoodles are such a tasty cookie, and since I already have a recipe for them that works well, I tend to not look at recipes for them much.  However, while cruising through the Crisco website a while back, I came across this recipe and was intrigued:
http://www.crisco.com/recipes/brown-sugar-snickerdoodles-5077
This was my first time to make them; it will not be the last, as these are super good!  The great thing about the brown sugar is that it seems to leave them softer and chewier.  MMM!

I followed the recipe very closely, though not to the letter.  Think this yielded 78 cookies, which is close to the 72 indicated on the original recipe.

Ingredients:

1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c. butter flavored Crisco shortening
1/4 c. sugar
1 1/4 c. golden brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

sugar & cinnamon blend (I never measure for this, so I have no idea on the amounts I used)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F and line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2. Beat butter, shortening, sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla with electric mixer until well blended.

3. Combine flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl.

4. Turn mixer on medium-low speed and add flour mixture gradually as it mixes, until well combined.

5. Form dough into 1-inch balls and roll in sugar-cinnamon blend to coat.

6. Place on baking sheet about 2 inches apart.

7. Bake 6 to 7 minutes; centers will be slightly soft and cookies will be puffy and crackled on top.  After removing from oven, allow to cool on cookie sheet for at least 1 minute before removing to cooling rack.

8. Grab a glass of milk and enjoy!

Parmesan Lemon Zucchini

Not sure why exactly, but I decided I just had to have zucchini as a side dish with my last entry (Panko pork chops).  I haven't made many zucchini dishes, despite enjoying it, thus time to correct this!  Found a very easy side dish here:
http://damndelicious.net/2014/07/04/parmesan-lemon-zucchini/
While it is yummy, I don't think it's quite as rave-worthy as the original post makes it sound (had me expecting something I'd be craving every night or whatnot; this is not the case, though I still will make it again at some point.)
I followed the recipe nearly exactly, except that I did not use fresh garlic, only cut up 3 zucchini instead of 4, and cut in 1/4 inch rounds, not 1/2 inch.

Ingredients:

3 T. unsalted butter
1 tsp. minced bottled garlic
3 zucchini, cut in 1/4 inch rounds
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
zest of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 c. grated Parmesan
freshly squeezed lemon juice, to taste

Instructions:

1. Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat.  Add garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for about 1 minute.

2. Add zucchini, thyme, and lemon zest.  Cook until zucchini is softened and slightly golden.

3. Remove from heat, season with Kosher salt, pepper, and lemon juice to taste.  Enjoy!

Panko Pork Chops

I don't make pork very often--it's the other white meat...that I forget about lol.  I wanted something that I could make fairly quickly without much fuss; this fit the bill exactly.  I served it with Parmesan Lemon Zucchini and some Kraft mac n cheese (yeah, I do cook from boxes sometimes, too :))--made for a great meal!

Here is a link for the original recipe:
http://www.thekitchn.com/dinner-recipe-for-two-crispy-panko-pork-chops-recipes-from-the-kitchn-149465
And here is my slightly altered version, which made enough to coat 4 thinner chops:

Ingredients

Canola oil
4 thin cut bone-in pork chops
1/2 c. panko
2 T. grated Parmesan cheese
approx. 1 1/2 tsp. herbes de Provence (I didn't measure)
1/4 c. flour
2 eggs, beaten
Kosher salt
black pepper

Instructions
**I had more pictures for this, but they are missing!  Will add more next time I make.**

1. Season pork chops with Kosher salt and pepper, set aside.

2. On a plate or shallow dish, mix the panko, Parmesan cheese, and herbes de Provence.

3. Put the flour on another plate/shallow dish.

4. In a shallow bowl, beat the eggs.

5. In a heavy skillet or frying pan, heat 3 T. of oil over medium-high heat.

6. Dredge pork chops first in flour, next in the egg, and then in the panko mixture.  Add to skillet and cook, turning every two minutes or so, until chops are crispy and golden brown.  (Depending on your pan and size of chops, you may need to add more oil--I did.)

7. Serve with your choice of side and enjoy!

Chocolate Fondue

Ever since I first had fondues at The Melting Pot (a few years back, at least), I wanted to figure out how to make them for myself.  The cheese fondue was fairly easy; the chocolate proved more challenging.  I've tried a few different recipes and never gotten the desired result...until now!
I consulted a couple of recipes, with my main inspiration coming from this one:
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/chocolate-fondue.html

I also found out how to make the awesome coated marshmallows (thanks, Google!)  It's amazing simple--just use hot tap water in a bowl, roll the marshmallow in it, then roll it in crushed Oreos or graham crackers and let dry.  Easy!

Ingredients:

4.4 oz (big bar) Hershey's milk chocolate
3.5 oz bar Lindt 70% dark chocolate
1/2 c. plus around 1 1/2 T. heavy cream
splash vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Heat the chocolates together over low heat in a saucepan.  Stir until melted completely.

2. Stir in the heavy cream, pouring in slowly as you stir.

3. Add splash of vanilla, stir in, then remove from heat.

4. Transfer to a fondue pot and set on lowest setting to keep warmed (mine has a setting that just says "WARM").

5. Enjoy with the dippers you prefer!  In this case, I had strawberries, graham cracker coated marshmallows, and Oreo coated marshmallows :)

Paella

Funny enough, I have only ever had paella while traveling in France (I've never been to Spain).  There are many different variations to this dish; I chose this recipe because it sounded like it would come out closest to what I had had--and I was right!  Thing is, it's not a cheap dish to make, as it requires saffron threads, which, in case you have not heard, are one of the most expensive spices out there.  On the plus side, you get your money's worth--this recipe makes a massive amount of servings!  I had to freeze most of my leftovers.

Here is a link for the original recipe:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/traditional-spanish-paella-0
I made only minor substitutions, as I had never made such a thing before and didn't want to deviate too far from what was indicated.

Ingredients:

--herb blend--
1 c. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 c. fresh lemon juice (it took 2 lemons for me to get this much)
1 T. olive oil
1 tsp. minced bottled garlic

--paella--
1 c. water
1 tsp. saffron threads
3 cans (14.5 oz) chicken broth
1/2 lb. shrimp (I used the prepared/cooked/frozen medium sized ones)
1 T. olive oil
4 skin on, bone-in chicken thighs, cut in pieces
6.5 to 8 oz. chorizo (Spanish sausage), casing removed, cut in 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices (I used 7.8 oz)
1/4 lb. prosciutto, cut in small chunks
2 medium sized yellow onions, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 can (14.5 oz) petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1 tsp. sweet Spanish paprika
1 1/2 tsp. minced bottled garlic
3 c. Arborio rice (I used 2 c. Arborio and 1 c. long grain white rice because I didn't have enough Arborio)
8 frozen mussels
2 T. fresh lemon juice

Instructions:

1. Combine the ingredients of the herb blend in a small bowl and set aside.

2. In a large saucepan, combine water, saffron, and chicken broth.  Bring to a simmer (do not boil), then turn heat down to low to keep warm until needed.

3. Heat 1 T. olive oil in a large, deep skillet or paella pan over medium-high heat.  Add chicken and sauté for 4 minutes, then remove from pan and set aside.

4. Add chorizo and prosciutto, sauté for 2 minutes, then remove from pan and set aside.

5. Add shrimp, sauté for 1 to 2 minutes, then remove from pan and set aside.

6. Reduce heat to medium-low.  Add onion and red bell pepper; cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

7. Add tomatoes, paprika, and garlic.  Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

8. Add rice.  Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

9. Stir in herb blend, broth mixture, chicken, and chorizo.  Bring to low boil; cook 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

10. Add mussels to pan, nestling them into rice mixture.  Cook 5 minutes or until shells open; discard any unopened shells.

11. Add shrimp.  Stir in and cook 2 minutes.

12. Remove from heat.  Drizzle lemon juice over top, then cover with a kitchen towel and let stand for 10 minutes.  Enjoy!