Laura Bush's Texas Governor's Mansion Cowboy Cookies

As I am beginning to write this post, the last batch of these cookies is finishing off in the oven.  I could not wait to share this amazing cookie recipe with you!  I had found a link on Pinterest a while back for these and repinned it so that I wouldn't forget to try out this yummy-looking cookie recipe for myself! 

I did some searching through different websites that have posted this recipe throughout the years (including The New York Times and Family Circle magazine) and it appears that most of the postings have been pretty much the same in terms of ingredients, quantities and directions.

Hold on a minute ... gotta pull this last batch out to cool!

Okay.  I can tell you that both my hubby and I found these cookies to be some of the best we've ever had!  They are superb!  My mother, Dawn, is (typically) the cookie maker in the family.  I usually don't have the patience for making cookies.  But, I was dying to try these ... especially after reading through so many positive comments and reviews on other sites for this particular recipe!

In 2000, this recipe by Laura Bush beat out Tipper Gore's gingersnap cookie recipe in a magazine contest.  The two potential first wives each submitted a cookie recipe in the months leading up to the election and readers voted for their favorite. 

This recipe certainly has my vote and will (undoubtedly) become a favorite in my household!

Ten Tantalizing and Comforting Soup Recipes

 

Fall is upon us.  Winter will be here before we know it!  In my household, this time of year means SOUP!

Yesterday I made my Cheesy Potato Soup with grilled cheese alongside for dipping! 

It inspired me to round up some yummy soup recipes for the fifth installment of my "Tantalizing Ten" feature. (Click HERE to see the links to my other "Tantalizing Ten" installments.)

Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Mini Pizzas

 

I am a huge fan of the flavors of buffalo chicken.  I love the sauce, the bleu cheese dip, the celery ... all of it!

This mini pizza recipe satisfies my craving for buffalo chicken and pizza all in one!  Could there be anything better?

This seriously has to be one of the best recipes I've made in a while!

(If you are not a fan of buffalo chicken, check out my "note" below for a BBQ-style option.)

The recipe utilizes Rhodes™ frozen bread dough or their frozen dinner rolls.  It will yield 8 mini pizzas.  If you use frozen bread dough, you will cut the bread into 8 equal pieces once thawed.  (I find it easy to use kitchen scissors to do this!)  If you use frozen dinner rolls, you will need 8 rolls (thawed).  I pull my dough out of the freezer the night before, place it in a zip-top gallon bag and allow it to thaw out in the fridge.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Muffins

 

My dear sister is having surgery tomorrow.  I know that she can't eat after midnight this evening.  So, I feel guilty making these to take along for our mother and I to eat during the long (and extremely early) drive to the hospital ... all the while, she can't even have a crumb!  But, I wanted something that would hold my mom and I over until later in the day when we can make it to the hospital cafeteria for lunch.

Also, I had wanted to make something to leave behind for the kids when they come home after school tomorrow while I am with my sister.  I knew these would be perfect.

Ten Tantalizing Mason Jar Recipe Ideas

Mason jars evoke the essence of days gone by.  I bet most of you have them in various sizes and colors stored away in the basement or stashed away in the back of a cupboard.  Mason jars hold a touch of nostalgia for so many of us ... our mothers and grandmothers canned like crazy every fall.  A good deal of us recall pantry shelves lined with canned preserves, pickles, veggies, fruits and meats awaiting use during the upcoming winter months. 

I remember that it was quite often my job while visiting my grandparents to "fetch" from the basement pantry whatever canned goods were needed that day to prepare the evening's meal.  (Never mind that their basement was dark and quite spooky to me as a child, so I'd grab what I had been sent for and run as fast I could back up the stairs to "safety").


I have a mother-in-law who still "cans" ... a true "art" that is rare these days.  I'm lucky that she lives next door and I often reap the benefits of her labors.  Nothing compares to using home-canned tomatoes in my Hayride Chili.  And, my children prefer her canned grape jelly over store-bought any day of the week on their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in their school lunches!   

I know that there are many readers who still can, as well.  Bravo to you!  I am jealous!  Maybe if I weren't so spoiled by having canned goods given to me by my hubby's mom, I would take on the task myself!  (But, I am quite content incorporating her canned goods into my recipes, then sending over a sampling for her in return!)  It's a "win-win" situation!

For my the fourth installment of my "Tantalizing Ten," I have compiled ten jar recipe ideas all in one post.  So, dig out those Mason jars and put them to use!  These are great ideas for putting a bit of a modern spin on something so many of us treasure from our pasts.

Ooey Gooey Cheesy Meatballs

Photo by Damn Delicious

I have been craving meatballs all week ... ever since my dear sister, Rachel, told me that she was making spaghetti and meatballs recently. 

I was searching for a different meatball recipe to try ... I had been thinking maybe Swedish-type meatballs were sounding good.

Then, I came across this recipe for Ooey Gooey Cheesy Meatballs on a blog I recently discovered, Damn Delicious. 

Just look at these beauties!  A super unique thing about these meatballs is that they are topped with mayo, mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese prior to baking!  Yes, please!

Turkey Tenderloins with Apple and Dried Cherry Stuffing

 

I know, I know ... Thanksgiving is just over a month away.  A full Thanksgiving feast will soon be before me in late-November and I'll be able to enjoy all of the tastes of said fabulous holiday soon enough!

If only I had patience.

'Tis not a virtue of mine.

I recently picked up the latest issues of EveryDay with Rachael Ray and Food Network magazines (my monthly indulgences) and I have been swooning over all of the Thanksgiving recipes. 

And, frankly, I didn't want to wait another month to have turkey and stuffing.  So, I went out and bought what I needed to throw together a quick(er) version of what will be on my Thanksgiving table next month!  And, we enjoyed it tonight ... here in October.  It was just what I was craving.  And, it reminded me that there need be no rules to cooking.  Why do we often think we have to wait until Thanksgiving to prepare turkey?  Who made that rule?  Well, rules are often made to be broken.  What a culinary rebel I am!  Ha!

And, just a little side note ... I'm thinking this would be perfect for someone only cooking for a few people at Thanksgiving, too.  Maybe a husband and wife.  All of the expected (and cherished) tastes and flavor components of Thanksgiving dinner without the hassle of a big bird!  Also, the turkey here is super inexpensive ... around four or five dollars for a three-pack of tenderloins.  This fed my family of five with enough leftover for two people the next day.

Sausage Gravy Stuffed Breakfast Biscuits

 

White sausage gravy is something I grew up eating over homemade buttermilk biscuits.  I have a grandmother (my "Granny") from Kentucky and she made some mean biscuits!  And, she is the one from whom I learned to make sausage gravy.

I recently posted a recipe for Stuffed Breakfast Rolls, which got me thinking about a biscuit filled with sausage gravy that my mother-in-law used to order from a food delivery company (Schwan's) years ago.  I loved them!  Unfortunately, the company stopped making and selling them.  I have thought of them often over the years and decided to see how hard it would be to replicate that same idea.

The main key here is to make your gravy just a bit thicker than you would for regular sausage gravy over biscuits.  Then, you will be chilling the gravy in a gallon-size plastic bag in the freezer before filling the biscuits.

I must admit that although I have attempted to duplicate my grandmother's buttermilk biscuits over the years, they have never quite been a success for me.  (Remember ... I am baking-challenged to some degree!)  Therefore, I used Grand's canned buttermilk biscuits for this recipe.  This recipe will yield 12 stuffed biscuits, but uses 24 biscuits to make.

We had some of these leftover, so I wrapped them individually in foil and parked them in the fridge.  Just reheat them in the foil in a 350 degree oven for about 10 - 12 minutes.

Crusty Bread - No Need to Knead!

 

I constantly encourage my children to venture out and try new things that they might be fearful of failing at.  I have been pushing myself to do the same when it comes to baking.  I decided to do a little research into bread recipes and when I came across this one from Simply So Good, it inspired me to dive in and try it!

First of all, something I truly adore about this particular bread recipe is that it only has four ingredients (and one of them is water)!  Secondly, there is no kneading.  I repeat, NO KNEADING!  (No dough hooks, paddle attachments or mixers either!)  Additionally, I love that the recipe for this bread on Simply So Good's blog offers several options for add-in ingredients to make different flavor combinations of this bread recipe.  Think Orange, Cranberry and Nut Bread ... or, Lemon, Rosemary and Gruyere Bread.  Or, you can just add in different types of shredded cheeses to make Cheese Bread. 

Sun-dried Tomato Chicken Over Pasta

 

It was Sunday.

It was cold and rainy.

I was thinking soup for dinner.

Then, I came across this recipe on Little B Cooks' blog.  What a fun blog to browse!  Her recipe for Sun-dried Tomato Chicken was my inspiration for dinner. 

I made a few changes to the original recipe.  And, I served my chicken and sauce over pasta.

As a person who blogs about food and recipes, there are times when I try something new and then, later wish I had done the recipe a different way.  This dish was one of those instances.  Both my hubby and I agreed that using this exact sauce recipe with homemade meatballs would be killer!  The chicken was good, but this sauce is somewhat similar to say, a Swedish meatball sauce ... just infused a bit with the flavor of the sun-dried tomatoes.  So, I plan to try it with meatballs soon!

And, by the way ... if you think you don't or won't like sun-dried tomatoes, I urge you to try it in this recipe.  The flavor combinations are lovely and I know I will be making this sauce again many times in the future!

Our Annual Hayride and Bonfire Party

 

Every year we host a big fall party on a late-evening Saturday in October that includes a hayride, a bonfire, some friendly games of volleyball under the stars and my Hayride Chili.  We usually have about forty - fifty guests of all ages ... family, friends, co-workers and lots of our children's friends from school.  It is always tons of fun.

We all have those special traditions that we remember from our own childhoods.  Our yearly fall party is one of those traditions that I know our children will treasure for years to come!

Roasted Ranch Potatoes with Bacon and Cheese

 

Okay.  I realize that several of my recent posts have included bacon in some form or another.  On one hand, I think it is partly due to the fact that a couple of weeks ago my grocery store had a killer deal (half off!) on thick, center cut bacon.  Of course, I stocked up. 

On the other hand, I'm wondering if all the recent talk in the news about a pending bacon shortage has me scrambling to enjoy this salty, porky food as much as possible.

Honestly, however, let's just admit that bacon is just so darn tasty!  There need be no excuse reason to eat it.  My hubby admits he could eat it everyday.  My kiddos love it.  And, I do, too! 

Last year we traveled from Michigan to Arizona for our son's college graduation.  We took a couple of days to travel into California to go to Legoland and due to our adoration of bacon, we made specific plans to go to Slater's 50/50 (a bacon-lover's paradise of a restaurant that we had seen featured months prior to our trip on a bacon-themed food show).  They grind bacon into their burger meat, offer a maple-bacon milkshake and serve bacon brownies!  It was heaven!

So, when I came across this recipe on food.com's website, it appealed to me in every way!

And, by the way ... it is wonderfully simple!