Cake Batter Cookies!

I found these on pinterest and the words cake batter caught my eye (shocker). The original blog with the recipe is linked to the red "pinterest". I must say, these are my new favorite cookie, well, at least until I find a new favorite!

Ingredients:    (makes 30-32 cookies)1 box vanilla cake mix, 18.25 oz
1 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 C vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 C color sprinkles

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix and baking powder. In a small bowl, mix together the eggs, oil and vanilla. Add the egg mixture to the cake mixture and stir to combine. Stir in the sprinkles. Drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet or silpat.

Bake for 10 minutes. (I did 11)

Allow to cool for 5 minutes on cookie sheet

 before transferring to cooling rack.

Enjoy eating them non-stop!

I also made these healthy muffins. Yes, healthy. My poobah (sister) bought me the Jessica Seinfeld (spell check that name) cook book as a bridal shower gift. It's a great book if you are trying to "hide" vegetables in your kids food (or bad vegetable eaters like me). It uses vegetable purees. They take way longer than I'd like them to take to make but I don't keep carrot puree in my freezer. Weird, I know. I will admit that they are delicious and no one has been able to tell that there are carrots hidden in them.

Makes 12 servings

Applesauce Muffins with Butternut Squash or Carrot Puree topped with a crunchy strudle...by Jessica Seinfeld's book: Deceptively Delicious

Recipe Ingredients for Applesauce Muffins with butternut squash or carrot puree

1 1/2	cups all-purpose flour
1	cup oats
1	teaspoon baking powder
1/2	teaspoon baking soda
1/2	teaspoon cinnamon
1	cup applesauce
1/2	cup skim milk
1/2	cup butternut squash or carrot puree
1/2	cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
1/4	cup vegetable or canola oil 1 large egg Recipe Directions for Applesauce Muffins with butternut squash or carrot puree Preheat oven 400F and Coat a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or line with paper baking cups. To make the batter, combine the flower, oats, baking, powder, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl or zipper-lock bag and stir or shake to mix. In a second bowl, mix the applesauce with the milk, vegetable puree, sugar, oil, and egg with a wooden spoon. Add the flour mixture slowly, stirring until just moistened. DO NOT OVER MIX....the batter is suppose to be lumpy. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups and sprinkle with the strudel topping. Bake until the topping is lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean from center of muffin. Bakes 18-20 minutes and then cool on cooling rack or serve warm! Nutrition Facts Serving Size 74.3g Amount Per Serving Calories 167 Calories from Fat 49 % Daily Value* Total Fat 5.5g 8% Saturated Fat 0.5g 3% Trans Fat 0.0g Cholesterol 18mg 6% Sodium 66mg 3% Total Carbohydrates 26.2g 9% Dietary Fiber 1.5g 6% Sugars 8.7g Protein 3.4g Vitamin A 13% • Vitamin C 2% Calcium 5% • Iron 7% * Based on a 2000 calorie diet Nutritional details are an estimate and should only be used as a guide for approximation. Legend Fat Protein Carbs Alcohol Other Calorie Breakdown (?) Daily Values (?) Health Information Nutrition Grade 96% confidence Good points Low in saturated fat Low in sodium Bad points High in sugar Join Calorie Count - it's easy and free! Advertisement Calorie Count Mobile On the go and in the know. Text food muffin to HEALTH (432-584) for full calorie information. FREE! Click here to start   Advertisement Free Coupons $0.75 off any 2 Shout Color Catcher Claim Coupon Sponsored Links Spagetti Squash Recipes Delicious Spaghetti Squash Recipes 1000's of Great Recipes Instantly MomsFreeRecipes.Com Printable Calorie Chart The Ultimate Healthy Living Toolbar Get Daily Fitness Tips & More. Free www.dailyfitnesscenter.com 5) Foods you must not eat Cut down a bit of stomach fat every day by never eating these 5 foods. Beyonddiet.com Read more: http://caloriecount.about.com/applesauce-muffins-butternut-squash-carrot-recipe-r152625#ixzz27jBwjpE3

Baked Meatball Sub

I made this from of course, pinterest, because it looked so good. The pinterest in red is the link to the original so you can see what I mean when I saw it looked good. Mine doesn't look as good as that picture but it tasted as delicious as I thought it would.

1 loaf Italian bread, cut into 1-inch thick slices (I bought a loaf from the store and cut it in half and but it in a 9x13 glass dish)
8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1 t. Italian seasoning
1/4 t. pepper
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1-lb. pkg. frozen meatballs, thawed
28-oz. jar pasta sauce
1 c. water

Above is the mayo mixture. If you know me well, you know I HATE mayo but I couldn't taste it so I was fine.

Arrange bread slices in a single layer in an ungreased 13"x9" baking pan; set aside. In a bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise and seasonings; spread over bread slices. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese; set aside. Gently mix together meatballs, spaghetti sauce and water; spoon over cheese. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serves 4.

 

It was tasty!!! Not to bad for a quick meal during a work week!

Jell-o Cake

 After a crazy week at work it's always nice to come home and make something pinterest. I have lost of plans for this weekend but we'll see if they actually happen. We went to Luke Bryan last night at the out door theater at Red Rock. Awesome concert!

 Last Sunday I decided to make a cake that my mom usually makes around the holidays with green and red jell-o. Of course we had Cherry since that is the preferred flavor at the Lombardo house. With only three ingredients, plus hot & cold water....it was delicious!

1st- Bake the cake as directed. Let it cool for 15 minutes.

2nd- Poke holes with a large fork all throughout the cake. I'm OCD and wanted it to be perfect, but it doesn't matter.

3rd- Empty a 3oz jell-o (any flavor) into a mixing bowl. Add 1 c. hot water and dissolve completely. Add 1 c. cold water and mix. 

4th- Pour jello over cake and refrigerate for 3 hours. Yes, all of it!

5th- Smear a tub of cool whip on top as frosting. Lick spoon and put cake in fridge for another hour.

6th-Enjoy!

I had some for breakfast the next day....please don't judge me.  

German Chocolate Cake

 I'm blogging backwards about the week.

 Sorry for all the confusion.

 Saturday we celebrated Mike Sr.'s birthday.

 Kris made, from scratch, the best cake ever

 (besides wedding cake, red velvet, cheesecake,

 lemon meringue pie) to eat!

Before the party started (Before I drank a LARGE Long Island Ice tea)

After my ice tea was gone. Jay is always up for taking pictures with me.

He loves me

The cake is freaking amazing!

The Vegas Flood

There was  a lot that happened this week! As I went up to the office Wednesday afternoon around 1:20 it started to thunder and a lightening show began. After being in the office for 5 minutes the phones, school walkie-talkies started going off. Needless to say, my meeting was cut short. As I walked back to my classroom this is what I had to cross!

I wore my new flats....the water was ankle deep in the hallway! There was no other way around since this is an outdoor school. I'm not going to lie, I was just as excited as the kids, until I got in my car to drive home. What usually takes me 45 minutes took an hour and a half!

With only one car crossing at a time on Valleyview. Not my best choice of roads but it was a mess everywhere. I came home to find our garbage can at the end of the street and the backyard starting to flood too. By the time Michael got home it had cleared up and looked as though nothing had happened. He always misses the rain.

Taco Bowls

I really wanted to buy those taco bowls for ONLY $9.95 to make my own. Luckily, someone on pinterest posted how to make them yourself. So I sucked it up and made them using my cupcake tin. I flipped it over, got my small flour tortillas wet (the larger ones didn't work at all) and sprinkled some salt on them and shoved them in between the bumps.

I baked them at 375 degrees for 12 minutes and.....   ta-daaaa!

I made taco bowls! Mike and I each at three because they were so small but still so good. It was a nice change from eating soft flour tortillas.

Not off to a good start, again!

The first Cleveland Brown's football game happened last Sunday. It wasn't pretty; but we should be used to it by now. Mike will be pissed about this blog but I'm not going to talk about how bad the quarter back is or how there is not a single reciever on that team. Thank goodness for the kicker! (He's my favorite player) If I were to ever spend money on that team it would be for Phil Dawson jersey. He's the only one that I wouldn't have to worry about leaving the team! I LOVE fall. Not as much as winter, but I do love the pumpkin spice candles. It is still to freaking hot to wear anything other than shorts and t-shirts but I did put out the flag and bake.

The Marano's came over to watch the game since they are Eagles fans. The boys had a great time yelling at their teams. It was fun to watch them more than the game!

Many "funny people" have asked if we are changing our cat's name. That would be a no. I liked the name Colt before Colt McCoy and it will stay Colt. At least this year he won't think he is the one being yelled at.

As the football season continues I plan to bake/cook some recipes from pinterest. I made the pizza rolls and they were amazing!

Just in case I forget the recipe:

3 cans Pillsbury Buttermilk Biscuits (10/can)

56 peperoni slices

Block of Cheese (Colby & Monetary Jack) *I used Mozzarella

1 beaten egg

Parmesan cheese (grated)

Italian seasoning

1 jar pizza sauce

Cut the block of cheese into at least 28 squares

Flatten a biscuit out and stack pepperoni and cheese on top (Like a sandwich)

Gather up the edges of the biscuit

Line the rolls up in a greased 9x13 pan. Brush with beaten egg. Sprinkled with Parmesan, Italian seasoning and garlic powder. Bake at 425 degrees for 18-20 minutes

I bought the BIG biscuits and had to bake them an additional 10 minutes. They were still delicious. I don't think they would reheat well the next day.

I'm a Lombardo

I can't believe that it has almost been two years!! Michael and I met during our Biology class at UNLV. After thoroughly embarrassing myself and mispronouncing Louisville...we went on our first date one November 31, 2007. July 2009 we got engaged as Mike proposed on Huntington Beach. Finally, Saturday, October 23, 2010 we got married. We had an AMAZING day with family and friends. It is still one of my favorite days.

Starting the Blog

I thought I was more "techy" than I am proving to be. I did a blog for a class a long time ago but my long term memory is unable to help. I was motivated to start a blog after reading a blog by a new mom and her AMAZING home projects. I started using pinterest after my teacher friend Angie showed me on the last day of school. I truly believe pinterst is an addiction. I am on it constantly. However, the best dinners snacks have been enjoyed by family and friends thanks to those who "pin". I thought I could start my blog and post delicious foods/desserts as I work through the ones I find on pinterest.