Key Lime Fudge

Sometimes the best things come from procrastination. I may not have finished my essay in a timely manner, but by golly, I have...

Key Lime Fudge 

20 shortbread cookies, crushed (about 1 cup)

5 Tbsp salted butter, melted

1/4 cup granulated sugar

3 cups white chocolate chips

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

3 Tbsp Key lime juice

zest of 4 Key Limes.

green food coloring (optional)

 Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°

Line an 8x8 pan with foil.

In a medium bowl combine crushed cookies, melted butter and granulated sugar.

Press evenly into prepared pan. Bake for 6-7 minutes until edges start to golden.

In a double boiler melt white chocolate chips. When just melted remove from heat and stir in sweetened condensed milk and Key Lime juice.

Stir in zest.

*Optional, reserve 1/4 cup fudge mixture and with a small amount of green food coloring, tint the reserved mixture and set aside.

Spread the un-colored fudge mixture into prepared pan. Then drizzle reserved mixture on top and swirl in with a knife.

Place in refrigerator overnight, or at least for three hours .

Cut into squares.

-Sweet Sarah 

Found at Cookies and Cups

Twinkie Cupcakes

        It's cave day over here at the Madden house. Cave days are days in which we laze around in comfy clothes, shut the shades, turn of the lights, cuddle and hibernate away. They usually fall on Sundays. They also involve lots of doggie cuddles and kisses, and usually good munching food. Today that includes leftover twinkie cupcakes. There are just some things in life that make things better, and watching season two of Sex and The City, cuddling with my body pillow and blanket,  and stuffing my face with these are just some of those things. 

Hey, Wheres the cream filling?!

Twinkie Cupcakes

1 box yellow cake mix, plus ingredients on back of box

1 small box sugar free/fat free instant French vanilla pudding mix

1 jar (7 oz) marshmallow fluff

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp salt

2 teaspoons very hot water

Marshmallow Buttercream (recipe & ingredients follow)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two muffin tins with about 20 paper liners. Set aside.

2. Prepare cake mix according to package directions, stirring the box of pudding mix into the cake batter to blend. Portion batter evenly among muffin cups, about 2/3 full, and bake for approx. 15-18 mins or until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely, the core out the cupcake’s middles with a sharp, small paring knife, careful not to cut through the entire cupcake. Eat or discard centers.

3. First, dissolve the salt into the hot water and allow to cool. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the marshmallow cream, butter, powdered sugar and vanilla extract until fluffy. Beat in the salt water. Mixture should be light but not as stiff as frosting.

4. Scoop filling into a resealable plastic bag, seal tight, and snip off a corner of the bag. Pipe the filling into each cored cupcake, filling just to the top. Refrigerate cupcakes while you prepare the frosting.

Marshmallow Buttercream

1 jar (7 oz) marshmallow fluff

2 sticks butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla extract

About 1 bag (32 oz) powdered sugar

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the fluff, butter and vanilla until combined & creamy, about 2 mins. Gradually begin adding powdered sugar in, about one cup at a time, until frosting is light and fluffy.

2. Pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes, careful to cover the filled center with frosting. Store frosted cupcakes airtight, preferably in the fridge. They’re super good cold! If desired, garnish with thin slices of Twinkies.

-Sweet Sarah

Found at The Domestic Rebel

Cheesy Chicken Pesto Pasta

The great thing about pesto and cheese is that they're pesto and cheese. Don't think things get much better than that. My roomie was feeling very pasta-hungry tonight, so I looked over my 8,000 recipes and saw this one and knew she'd pick it as her choice.

So off I went into the land of cheese and fat. 

And I dont regret a thing. 

Cheesy Chicken Pesto Pasta 

2 chicken breast, cooked and chopped 

various herbs for taste, such as rosemary, basil, Italian seasoning, garlic salt, garlic powder, onion powder

8 oz spaghetti

6 oz pesto

8 oz ricotta cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella or Italian cheese blend

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400. 

Cook chicken by whatever your perferred method is, or use precooked chicken. I seasoned mine with the seasonings mentioned above, and cooked them in a skillet. 

dice cooked chicken and set in large bowl.

Cook spaghetti for 2 minutes less than the package directions specify.  Drain the spaghetti well and transfer it to the  bowl.

  Stir in chicken, ricotta, pesto, 1/2 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese. 

 Toss the mixture well and transfer it to a 9-inch square dish. 

 Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese. 

Bake until the cheese is melted, about 20 minutes.  Turn the oven to broil and broil for 1 minutes or until golden.

If you accidentally dump all the cheese in and then go back and see you were supposed to save some for the top, dont worry one bit. Just make sure that all of the spaghetti noodles are covered because they will dry out while cooking :)

-Sweet Sarah 

slightly altered from Plain Chicken