Our newest blogger!!

Awhile ago I talked to you girls about inviting Tia to our blog. It has taken her this long to figure out how to access and post. She is a blogging rookie, so don't judge her too harshly. :) (Plus she moved to Texas and has been settling down there).

You Hjelm girls know Bryan's friend Kramer? Well, Tia married Kramer's brother, Ethan. She is a California girl who converted in college and then married Ethan. They moved to Utah and then out to Texas.

She taught English courses at UVU, is an incredible scrapbooker, and an excellent cook. I know because she cooked once a week when she stayed with us. And it wasn't just a throw together meal--she is a chef! So, give her recipes a try because each one will be worth it!

(And now Carissa doesn't have to be the only one posting recipes anymore!!) :)

Willena’s Blue Cheese Dressing

I don't know how everyone feels about Blue Cheese Dressing, but Ethan's aunt got him addicted to the stuff here in Texas. This recipe has changed my feeling towards Blue Cheese Dressing! I'm a total fan. Normally we cut the cheese to 3/4 cup.

1 Cup Best Foods Mayonaise

4 Oz. Blue Cheese, crumbled (about 1 cup)

¼ Cup Dry White Wine, or White wine Vinegar

1 TBSP Onion, Graded

4-5 Drops Tabasco

Zucchini Cupcakes

Tis the season for zucchini!!! I have my new ward's cookbook and heard some ladies carrying on and on about Stephanie's zucchini cupcakes. Tonight, Brent bbqed so I was off the hook for dinner. So, I made dessert (rarely happens anymore...so sad!). Let me tell you--they are amazing!!! Partly because the cupcake includes almond extract and the yummy autumn spices--cinnamon and cloves. But also because it involves a caramel frosting!!! So, grow those zucchini and make these cupcakes! You won't regret it!

Zucchini Cupcakes
Stephanie Bringhurst

3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tsp almond extract
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cloves
1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini

Beat eggs, sugar, oil, orange juice, and extract together. Combine the dry ingredients separately then add to the egg mixture and mix well. Add zucchini and mix well. Fill 18-24 greased or paper lined muffin cups 2/3 cup full. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Cool before frosting.


Caramel Frosting
1 cup brown sguar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar

Combine brown sugar, butter, and milk in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Cool to lukewarm and gradually beat in the powdered sugar until it reaches a spreading consistency.

Pink Lemonade Bars

A sister in my ward made these for our Enrichment night and they were the biggest hit! I got the recipe and made them as soon as I could because I was craving them like crazy! I couldn't find seed-less jam so I used the regular kind and they were still delicious. I also do not own a food processor so I chopped the almonds by hand and just mixed the crust with a pastry blender. These would be perfect for your next bbq or pot luck!

Pink Lemonade Bars

For crust and crumb:
2	cups + 2 tbsp. all purpose flour
½	cup sugar
½	cup blanched slivered almonds
⅛	teaspoon salt
1	cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
1	tsp. vanilla extract
For Filling:
1-½	cups sugar
¼	cups ap flour
5	large eggs
½	cup seedless raspberry jam (or other favorite jam-I used cherry-berry perserves), stirred to loosen
½	cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
	Grated zest of 1 lemon

1. Heat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a 13 × 9 × 2 inch baking pan, or line w/ nonstick foil.
2. For crust and crumb: Combine 2 cups flour, sugar and almonds in a food porcessor and pulse to finely grind almons and blend the ingredients. As the processor is running slowly add the melted butter and vanilla extract to the flour-almond mixture.
3. Reserve ⅔ cup of crust for crumb topping, then press remaining crust mix into the bottom of the greased baking pan. Bake the crust at 350 F for 25 minutes.
4. Blend remaining 2 tbsp. of flour into the reserved crust mix and set this crumb topping aside.
5. For Filling:In large bowl whisk together sugar and flour, then add the eggs and jam and whisk to combine. Whisk in the lemon juice and zest.

Assembly:
6. Remove the baked crust from the oven and pour the filling oven the crust. Return the pan to the oven and bake for 15 minutes to set the filling.
7. Remove the pan from the oven, sprinkle the crumb topping over the top of the bar, then continue to bake for an additional 15 minutes.
8. Cool pan on rack for at least 30 minutes, then chill before cutting into bar cookies.

Bow Tie Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes and Basil

The title says it all! This is a really light pasta that is perfect for summer time. The tomatoes and olives in it are so good together and I love the flavor of basil! This was the yummiest dinner I have has in a long time! Oh, I got this recipe from the Food Nanny. She's amazing!!

Bow-tie Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes & Fresh Basil

1 lb. uncooked bow-tie pasta

1 lb. cherry tomatoes

1/3 c. fresh basil, or 1 Tbls. dried

1/3 c. Olive oil

1 large garlic clove, minced

15 large pitted olives, sliced

1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese

crushed red pepper

salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook the pasta according to directions

2. Meanwhile, slice the tomatoes in half and place them in a large skillet. Add the basil, oil, garlic, and olives.

3. Drain the pasta. Place the tomatoes over medium-high heat and cook until heated through. Stir in the pasta. Sprinkle on the parmesan cheese. Add a few shakes of crushed red pepper and season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately with garlic bread!! Heaven!

Oatmeal Coconut Chewies

Props to The Sisters Cafe for this awesome recipe. I whipped these together the other night after seeing these gals post the recipe on facebook. They got this recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe and her site has amazing recipes too!

You can't go wrong with coconut in my house. Olivia even asks for coconut ice cream with coconut flakes in it when we go to Cold Stone! And Adam and I drank wayyyy too many virgin Pina Coladas on our cruise a while back. Anyhow, I had all the ingredients on hand and these were super easy to make. Everyone absolutely loved them. They aren't too coconutty, just enough to make the cookies sweet. And they kind of make you think of somewhere tropical, like Hawaii! And who can't use a little more oatmeal in their diet, even if you have to get it by eating cookies :)

These are my new fave cookie, by the way!

Photo courtesy thesisterscafe.com

Oatmeal Coconut Chewies
courtesy thesisterscafe.com

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened to cool room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups flour (you can add an extra 1/2 cup flour for higher altitudes, like Utah)
1 cup shredded, sweetened coconut
1 cup quick oats

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl cream together the sugar, eggs, butter and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto a greased or lined (silpat or parchment) baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes, until the cookies are set but not overly browned. Don't overcook these or they will be crisp, unless that is what you are going for!

Black Bean Pizza

I've been trying to make quick, easy & portable meals to take to the soccer games. I made this last night and really liked it. The only difference I would do is to add a little bit of flare--either sour cream & taco seasoning mixed or salsa over the top. I'm guessing this recipe will be right up Denise's alley. :)

Ingredients

1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed (I used pinto beans and it was yummy!)
1 cup thawed frozen corn kernels
4 plum tomatoes, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
1/2 cup chopped scallions
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 avocado, diced into 1/4-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
16 ounces pizza dough, regular or whole-wheat
1 cup finely shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. and place an empty baking sheet on the middle rack.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the blackbeans, corn, tomatoes, scallions, cumin, chili powder, avocado, salt and black pepper; set aside.

3. Working on a lightly floured surface, roll the pizza dough into a 13-inch circle. Transfer to warmed baking sheet and crimp the edges slightly to form a lip at the edge of the crust. Top with black bean mixture, sprinkle with the cheese and bake 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Cut into 8 slices and serve

Chicken Club Pizza

I got my new Kraft magazine in the mail the other day. I love this little magazine. I loved it better when it was free and now they charge for it. So I was flipping through it and folding down corners on pages, marking the recipes I definitely wanted to try soon. One of them that I came across was for Chicken Club Pizza. It looked soooo good. Bacon? check. Chicken? check. Ranch dressing? check. Mmm... So I decided to make it for dinner last night because I had most of the ingredients on hand anyway. My kids really liked this pizza, and Adam literally ate half of it. The leftovers are good too, and you can preheat it like suggested a few posts below, in a dry pan on the stove so it stays crisp and not soggy like the microwave.


Photo courtesy Kraftrecipes.com

Chicken Club Pizza

1 can (13.8 oz.) refrigerated pizza crust (you can make your own, but I bought the can since I wasn't sure how big to really make the crust. If you make your own, make it to be the size of a jelly roll pan)

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup KRAFT Ranch Dressing, divided

1-1/2 cups KRAFT cheddar cheese

1-1/2 cups finely chopped cooked chicken (I cooked mine with salt, pepper, and garlic powder)

8 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, cooked, crumbled

1-1/2 cups finely shredded lettuce

1 tomato, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Unroll pizza dough on baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray; press into 15x10-inch rectangle. Bake 10 min.

Mix mayo and 1/3 cup dressing; spread onto crust. Top with half the cheese, chicken, remaining cheese and bacon.

Bake 5 min. or until crust is deep golden brown and cheese is melted. Top with lettuce and tomatoes; drizzle with remaining dressing.