M&M Cookies (fluffy and puffy and wonderful)

My baby girl calls these chocolate candies that melt in your mouth - not in your hand - "MM's."

Well, I turned this package of MM's into some totally awesome cookies.

I have Pinterest to thank.  Yet again.

So here's the thing with these cookies: they don't spread too much, they remain soft and light and puffy (not cakey at all), and they were pretty much perfect.

I pick my cookies by what the bottom looks like.  This one's pretty much perfect: lots of M&M's and chocolate chips and perfectly under-baked.

I don't do cakey cookies.  And I don't do cookies that spread out too much and get too thin.

The secret to these cookies is sort of weird, but it totally worked.  Dry instant vanilla pudding powder.

Random, I know.

But pudding mix contains cornstarch, and cornstarch has a wonderful effect on cookies.  A chewy, gooey, puffy, not-thin-at-all effect.

You don't have to chill this dough.  You don't have to do anything except cream the butter and sugar,

add the egg and vanilla,

and then stir in the MM's, chocolate chips, flour, soda & salt until it's all just combined.

Drop them on a sheet tray and bake for 11 minutes.  They will look a bit underdone when you take them out, but they will continue to cook on the hot cookie sheet AND they will set up as they cool.

Perfect.

I used a medium cookie scoop (about 2 tablespoons of dough) and got about 18 cookies out of this recipe.

M&M Cookies (fluffy and puffy)
Adapted from Picky Palate

2 sticks (1 cup) butter (cold or room temp - it doesn't really matter; just don't melt it)
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 T (yes, that's Tablespoon) vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 3/4 cups PLUS 2 T flour
6 T dry instant vanilla pudding mix
12 oz. package mini M&M's (about 1 3/4 cups)
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Cream together the butter and both sugars until completely combined - you will have one homogeneous mixture.  Add the eggs and vanilla and combine.  Add the baking soda, salt, flour and pudding mix.  Pulse your mixer a few times until almost combined (you don't want to over-mix the dough at this point).  Add the M&M's and chocolate chips and stir together by hand.

Drop in mounds on baking sheet covered in parchment paper.  I used a medium cookie scoop, which is about 2 T dough.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 9-11 minutes.  Take them out when they look undercooked - they will continue to cook and set up as they cool.  Cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer the parchment paper to a counter for the cookies to finish cooling.

Chicken, Black Bean, Rice & Veggie Bake

I made this for dinner the other night and LOVED it!

I was not feeling too confident...I have never put these ingredients together.  Zucchini and black beans?  In the same dish?

Don't doubt.  It was delicious.  And healthy!  I think it was, anyway.

You start by cooking the brown rice.  I love brown rice because it's so chewy.  It takes longer to cook than white rice, though, so be advised.

And then you want to saute the zucchini and onion in some butter...

and toss it together with the other ingredients.  Yes, I did use mushrooms...but next time I'll leave them out.  They didn't really go.

This is so easy.  And I used chicken because I served it as the main dish for dinner with some fruit on the side.  But next time I'd be just as happy to leave the chicken out.

My husband would miss the meat, but I wouldn't.

Chicken, Black Bean, Rice and Veggie Bake
Adapted from Six Sisters' Stuff

2/3 cup brown rice
1 1/3 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 T butter
2 small zucchini, quartered then sliced thin across
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 bunch cilantro, minced
15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
4 oz. can chopped green chiles
2 cups chopped cooked chicken
2 cups (about 8 oz.) shredded monterey jack cheese
Salsa and sour cream, for serving

Bring the stock to a boil in a medium pot and add the rice and salt.  Reduce to a simmer over low heat, cover, and cook for about 40 minutes until tender.

When the rice is cooked, stir in the cumin and garlic powder.

In a medium skillet, saute the zucchini and onion in the butter until tender (about 10-15 minutes).

Mix together the rice, cooked zucchini and onions and remaining ingredients - except for 1/2 cup cheese - and pour into a 2 1/2 quart (or a 7x11) baking dish.  Sprinkle with reserved 1/2 cup cheese and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes, until hot through and bubbly on top.

Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Crispy Tex-Mex Wraps

I warned you that I ate Creamy Cilantro Dressing several times last week.

I already showed you the chopped salad...and here are the wraps I whipped up to dunk in this yummy dressing.

I'm now into wraps.  I'm working on a Thai Chicken Wrap that I'll share soon.

So back to this wrap.  I used Tex-Mex ingredients...black beans, chicken, cilantro, lime juice...wrap it up, toast it like a quesadilla.  Melty cheese, yummy flavors, toasted tortilla...

Ugh.  It was so good.  My husband loved it.  My kids loved it.  I loved it really a lot.

Especially dunked in the cilantro dressing.

My husband ate it with sour cream and salsa, and he loved it that way.

So yeah.  You should make these wraps soon.  You can even mix up the filling, stick it in the fridge, and make the wraps as you need them.  The filling kept for several days and I made the wraps for dinner one night and then the next two days for lunch.

These are not heavy and require very little actual cooking...a perfect summer dinner.

Crispy Tex-Mex Wraps
Adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

1 cup cooked rice (I used brown rice but white would work too)
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp cumin
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
Juice of 2 limes
15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
8 oz. can corn, drained
1 cup finely chopped cooked chicken
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 bunch (about 6-8 onions) green onions, sliced thin
3 cups shredded monterey jack cheese, divided
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
8 large flour tortillas (burrito size)

Serve with salsa, sour cream, guacamole and/or creamy cilantro dressing

Combine all ingredients except for 1 cup of cheese and the tortillas.  Sprinkle remaining cup of cheese evenly over the tortillas, leaving about a 1" border around the edge of the tortilla.  Place about a heaping half cup filling in the middle of the tortilla (you want enough filling to make a generous wrap but not so much that you can't close the tortilla) and tuck the sides in first then roll the top and bottom in to make a roll.  Flatten it a little bit then place the wrap seam side down in a dry nonstick skillet.  Place a smaller skillet on top of the wrap to weight it while it cooks and toast for about 5 minutes on each side over medium heat.

Southwest Chopped Salad

I showed you my new favorite dressing.

And now I'll show you the salad I ate it with.

I already confessed that I wanted to eat this entire bowl.

And now you'll know why.  Who wouldn't want to eat something this colorful.  Especially when it's served in a monogrammed bowl.

It was so fresh and flavorful.  And yes, we monogram everything in the South.  Even salad bowls.

It's almost summer, people!  I can't even wait.  Baby Bear has the cutest bathing suit.  I can't even stand it.  And I can't wait to take him and his sisters to the pool.

I hope you love this wonderful salad as much as I did.  And if you don't, have a cookie or five.  It'll make you feel better.

Tex-Mex Chopped Salad
Adapted from The Garden Grazer

15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
15 oz. can corn, drained
1 pint grape tomatoes, sliced in thirds lengthwise
1 orange or red bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch green onions (about 6-8 onions), chopped
1 small romaine heart, chopped finely
1 avocado, chopped
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
Creamy Cilantro Dressing

Toss together the ingredients and combine with the dressing right before serving.

Creamy Cilantro Dressing

THIS DRESSING IS SO GOOD!!!

I had to scream it.  It just is so good.

If you really are what you eat, I would be cilantro.

I could eat the stuff raw.  Whole.  Right off the stems.  Whatever.

There are people that say cilantro tastes like soap.  I don't eat a lot of soap, but there's nothing even remotely soapy about cilantro.  It's fresh and bright and clean and tastes like summer.

And this dressing is healthy!  It has Greek yogurt instead of mayo.  I know, you're impressed with my healthy choices these days.  Me too.

Apparently this dressing is similar to the bottled stuff from Trader Joe's.  I've never had TJ's dressing, and while I'm sure it's good, nothing beats fresh, homemade dressing.

I couldn't stop eating this stuff.  I ate it with a chopped salad (I'll show you that recipe soon because you need to make it).  I nearly ate the entire bowl by myself.  So delicious.

And I made some yummy wraps and dipped them in this dressing.  It was a really good decision.  I'll show you those wraps soon, too, because they were so good that I ate them at least three times last week.

Creamy Cilantro Dressing
Adapted from The Garden Grazer

1 bunch cilantro leaves (tear the stems off)
2 green onions, chopped in thirds
Juice of 2 limes
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 garlic cloves, smashed
1 tsp white wine vinegar
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (I used nonfat)
2 T honey

Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until combined and it is the consistency of salad dressing.  Store in the fridge.

Enchilada Stack

Hi!  I am happy to show you this meal.  I've made it twice, two weeks in a row.  And that is saying something, because I don't repeat meals very often.  And when I do repeat it's definitely not that close together.

So this is basically enchiladas, but instead of rolled, they're stacked.  And instead of red sauce we'll use green salsa.

Now, you can go the store-bought route and get tomatillo salsa (this is what I did).

But if you're really feeling it, you can make your own tomatillo salsa.  This is my recipe and it's really great.  I think it makes about 2 cups (which is what you'll need for this recipe) but I haven't actually tried it so I'm not positive.  (So what I'm saying is that if you do try it and it doesn't make quite enough, don't yell at me.)

I also like this recipe because it only makes an 8x8 dish.  This is a good amount because it feeds 4-6 people (6 if two of the people are preschoolers).  So many times I make enchiladas and it makes a gigantic pan.  And then we're eating enchiladas for several days and I get impatient because I have like 60 million recipes I want to try.

Welcome to my world.  Where the problems are big and the solution is food.

I wish I had taken more pictures of the finished product.  So good.  Cheesy, tangy (the salsa is awesome), so very delicious.  Very easy, too, because it doesn't matter too much how you layer this together - as long as everything gets in there, you're good.

Please make these soon.

Enchilada Stack
Adapted from Pearls & Handcuffs

6 flour tortillas (I used the small ones - soft taco size, I think)
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
8 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
8 oz. Monterey jack cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
16 oz. salsa verde (about 2 cups) (this is also called tomatillo salsa)
1 bunch green onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
Sour cream and pico de gallo (or red salsa), for serving.

Spray an 8x8 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.  Sprinkle in about 1/3 of the chicken, 1/3 of the chopped green onions and 1/3 of the garlic.  Sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese and 1/2 cup salsa on top.  Layer 2 tortillas on top.  Repeat layers.  Sprinkle remaining salsa and cheese on top.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes, until hot and bubbly and beginning to brown on top.  Let it cool for about 5-10 minutes before slicing.  Serve with sour cream and pico de gallo.

Cranberry, Cilantro, Coconut & Curry Couscous

I'm sort of obsessed with couscous.  I love the traditional kind (the really itty bitty kind) and Israeli couscous (about the size of BB pellets).  I don't discriminate.

And if you don't know what BBs are, I don't know how to help you.  All I can say is that you either were deprived as a child or you didn't have a brother.

I needed a quick side dish for dinner the other night, and I whipped this together.  Because I am also obsessed with curry.

I love it.  And did you know that curry is a mixture of spices - a blend, if you will.  It is not one particular spice.  It's typically made up of turmeric (gives it that great gold color), cumin and a bunch of other spices.

My parents went to Israel this spring and brought me this container of curry.  It's quite special and is only used for special dishes.

I deemed this dish special enough to use my Israeli curry.

And!  Don't you like my use of alliteration?  Everything in this title starts with the letter "c."  Cool.  Pun intended.

Can you tell that I have a preschooler who is obsessed with letters.  We discuss - at great length - what letter begins each word.

It's the life, I tell you.

But seriously, I loved this salad.  I may have to go make some more right now so I can shove my face in it.  It's spicy (but not too spicy - my kids ate it), a little sweet, crunchy, creamy.  Ugh.  So good.  I ate most of it while I cooked the rest of dinner.  And then I served the pitiful remaining amount to my unsuspecting family for dinner.

I love being the mom.

Cranberry, Cilantro, Coconut & Curry Couscous

1 1/2 cups stock (veggie or chicken stock)
3/4 cup whole-wheat Israeli couscous (regular or tri-color will work too)
1/2 tsp salt
1 small onion, minced fine (or 1 bunch green onions, chopped)
1 T curry powder
1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1/4 toasted slivered almonds
1/2 cup dried cranberries (Craisins)
1/2 cup minced cilantro
2 T nonfat Greek yogurt

Bring the stock to a boil in a pot.  Add the couscous and salt and cook for 8-10 minutes over medium heat until the stock is absorbed and the couscous is tender.  Pour into a colander and rinse well.

Add the couscous and the rest of the ingredients to a bowl and toss together.  Allow the flavors to blend for at least an hour before serving.  Serve cold or at room temperature.

Crescent Roll Chicken

Where did last week go???  I had planned to blog several recipes...didn't happen.

I have made this twice and we love it!  Even Baby Bear loves it.  He's 8 months old.  He's not into pureed baby food.  Give that boy some real food!

He eats as much as our 3-year-old.

Is this normal?  Is this because he's a boy?  Or is it because he has some rolls (and I don't mean crescent rolls) to maintain?

This chicken is super quick and easy to throw together.

Just mix up the filling, roll it up in crescent rolls, pour some sauce on top and bake.

It's very good!  Serve with something green so you don't feel quite as guilty about eating crescents, cheese and sauce.

Crescent Roll Chicken
Adapted from Food.com

8 oz. can crescent rolls
10 oz. can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 T butter
1 onion, diced
4 oz. cream cheese
1 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp seasoning salt

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, for topping

Melt the butter in a skillet and saute onion over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until soft.  Add the cream cheese, garlic powder, black pepper and seasoning salt.  Stir until combined.  Stir in the chicken.  Divide the mixture into 8 equal portions and roll equally in the 8 crescent rolls.

Place crescent rolls in a greased 7x11 baking dish.  In a bowl, mix together the cream of chicken soup, sour cream and 1/2 cup cheddar cheese.  Spread on top of the chicken rolls.  Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup cheddar on top.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30-35 minutes until cooked through.