Stuffed French Bread

Ingredients
    1 loaf french bread
    1 Tablespoon olive oil
    1 Lb. lean ground beef
    1 small onion -chopped
    1 teaspoon minced garlic
    ½ cup chopped leek (you can use other chopped vegetables: carrots, celery, green bell pepper…)
    1 can cream of mushroom soup (or cream of celery or chicken soup)
    1 Tablespoons milk ( or more if needed )
    1 Tablespoon mustard
    salt and pepper, to taste
    1 ½-2 cups shredded cheese
    chopped parsley (optional)
Instructions
    Preheat the oven to 350 F.
    Slice French bread in half (lengthwise), scoop the center of each half and crumble it in a large bowl.
    Place the halves of bread onto a baking sheet and set aside.
    In a large skillet place 1 Tablespoon of olive oil and ground beef and cook over medium-high heat until the beef is browned, stirring occasionally. Add chopped onion, chopped leek (or other vegetables) and minced garlic and cook a few minutes until the vegetable is tender.
    Add soup, mustard, salt and pepper to taste and cook for at least 5 minutes.
    If the mixture is too thick add a little milk.
    Add cooked beef mixture to the bread and stir to combine.
    Spread the mixture in the center of one half of the french bread.
    Spread shredded cheese in the center of other half of the french bread. and place the bread carefuly back on top of first half.
    Bake 10-15 minutes (until the cheese is melted). If you don’t want to brown the bread too much or to become too crispy, cover with aluminium foil.
    Let it cool 5-10 minutes before slicing. Garnish with chopped parsley if you like.

One-Skillet Mac and Cheese with Sausage and Bell Peppers

Ingredients
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    1 lb pork sausage
    1 bell red pepper, diced
    1 green bell pepper, diced
    2 cups dried elbow macaroni (half a package, 8 oz)
    18 oz marinara sauce
    18 oz water
    1/3 cup half and half
    1/3 cup mozzarella cheese (or increase to 1/2 cup)
Instructions
    In a large skillet cook sausage on medium heat, until meat is brown. Drain off fat.
    Add diced bell peppers, dried elbow macaroni, marinara sauce, and water. Bring to boil; reduce heat to simmer. Simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes until macaroni is tender, occasionally stirring.
    Add half and half, sprinkle with cheese, and mix everything well. Remove from heat, cover and let it sit for about 2 minutes or until cheese melts.

Donkey Balls

    Ingredients 
    2 packages crescent rolls pref buttery flavored
    1 16 oz cream cheese, don't use fat free... they r horrible
    1 packages jimmy dean sausage (standard size)
    1/4 tsp garlic powder
    1 small fresh onion... minced
    Instructions
cook sausage, garlic powder and onion until brown and lightly crispy.
drain sausage. does not hafta be rinsed
take room temp cream cheese and sausage mixture. I do not add salt and pepper because of butter flavoring in rolls.
unroll crescent rolls and cut crescent in half to make a triangle.
take a teaspoon of the mixture and spoon into each crescent roll. then wrap mixture up into little ball making sure the mixture is sealed inside.
place balls on the cookie sheets and bake for 8 minutes. DON'T BURN BOTTOMS.
cool for 3 minutes should make about 40-48 balls.
a reviewer suggested that she had to cook them longer (14 minutes) ... so it may take longer depending on size..
I didn't come up with the name!!! LOL

Potato Bites

Ingredients
2 lb. baking potatoes (about 6), peeled, cut into chunks
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1 egg, beaten
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 lb. (4 oz.) VELVEETA, cut into 24 cubes
1 pkt. SHAKE 'N BAKE Extra Crispy Seasoned Coating Mix
1-1/2 cups TACO BELL® Thick & Chunky Salsa
Instructions
Cook potatoes in boiling water in large saucepan 15 to 20 min. or until tender; drain. Cool 10 min. Mash potatoes until smooth. Add onions, egg and pepper; mix just until blended.
Heat oven to 400ºF. Empty coating mix into pie plate. Roll potato mixture into 24 balls, using about 2 Tbsp. for each. Insert 1 VELVEETA cube into center of each ball, completely enclosing VELVEETA. Add, 1 at a time, to coating mix; turn to evenly coat. Place on rimmed baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
Bake 14 to 16 min. or until heated through. Serve with salsa.

Classic Cream Puffs

Ingredients
For the Shells
    1 cup water (8 fl oz, 240 ml)
    1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces (1/2 cup, 4 oz, 113 grams)
    large pinch kosher salt
    2 TBSP granulated sugar (0.8 oz, 24 grams)
    1 cup all-purpose flour (4.5 oz, 127 grams)
    4 large eggs
For the Cream Chantilly
    1½ cups heavy cream, cold
    3 TBSP powdered sugar
    1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
For the Shells
    Place water, butter, sugar, and salt in a sauce pot over medium high heat. Stir until butter is melted and everything comes to a boil.
    Reduce heat to medium. Add flour into the mixture all at once while stirring quickly. Continue to stir and cook off the moisture in the dough until it pulls away from the sides and starts to form into a ball. This should take about a minute.
    Place dough into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a large bowl if using a hand mixer. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes.
    With the mixer on medium-low speed, add eggs in one at a time. Do not add another egg until the one before has been completely absorbed into the batter. The batter will look smooth and glossy when ready. (Alternatively, you can mix in the eggs by hand. This just takes a bit longer. Mix each egg until completely absorbed before adding the next).
    Place batter in a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip or a zip top bag with the tip cut off.
    Preheat oven to 425F. Line baking sheets with parchment or silpat.
    Hold the pastry bag over the baking sheet and squeeze over one area until you have about a 2 inch round. Release the pressure from the bag and pull up to release the dough mound. You will have a little peak on the each that can be smoothed out with a wet fingertip. Keep the mounds about 2 inches apart. (about 9 per baking sheet)
    Place the baking sheet in the oven and turn to heat up to 450F. Bake for 10 minutes (without opening the oven) then drop the heat down to 350F and bake for 13-15 more minutes until the shells are crispy on the outside and set.
    Fill cooled pastries with creme chantilly (recipe follows) and dust with powdered sugar.
For the Creme Chantilly
    Whip cream by hand, in stand mixer with whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer until just starting to thicken.
    Add sugar and vanilla and continue whipping until soft to medium peaks form.
    Fill a pastry bag with the cream, and pipe into the bottom of the puffs until filled.

Mini Corn Dog Muffins

Ingredients:
1/2 cup melted butter (or 1/4 cup butter + 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce)
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
8-10 all-beef hot dogs, cut into 1″ bites (Pictured are Open Nature brand nitrate free all beef hot dogs)
Instructions
Wisk together butter and sugar.  Add eggs and stir well. Add buttermilk and continue to wisk together. In a separate bowl, combine baking soda, cornmeal, flour, and salt, and stir to combine. Whisk into wet ingredients in two batches.
Spray a mini muffin tin with non-stick spray, and spoon 1 Tablespoon of batter into each mini muffin cup. Place one hot dog bite into the middle of each muffin cup.
Bake for 8-12 minutes at 375 degrees or until cornbread is golden brown. Cool in mini muffin tin for 5 minutes before serving. Makes around 36 mini muffins

Toffee Pecan Bundt Cake with Caramel Drizzle

Ingredients

For the Cake

    Non-stick cooking spray with flour

    3 cups all-purpose flour

    1 teaspoon baking powder

    ½ teaspoon salt

    1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened

    2 cups light brown sugar, packed

    1 cup granulated sugar

    5 large eggs

    1 cup whole milk

    1 bag (8-ounces) toffee pieces

    1 cup pecans, chopped

For the Caramel Drizzle

    14 ounces (1 can) sweetened condensed milk

    1 cup light brown sugar, packed

    2 tablespoons unsalted butter

    ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

    Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray a 12-cup bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray with flour and set aside.

    In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

    In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter until light and creamy. Add both sugars and beat again until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing until blended. Alternate adding in flour mixture and milk, mixing until just combined, being careful not to over mix.

    Stir in toffee chips and pecans by hand, blending well. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.

    Bake for 75-80 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

    Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Once the cake is cool, prepare the Caramel Drizzle as follows:

    Combine the sweetened condensed milk and brown sugar in a medium, heavy–bottomed saucepan. Over medium heat, bring to a boil, whisking very frequently.

    Reduce the heat under the pan and simmer gently for about 8 minutes, whisking constantly.

    Remove the pan from the heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Allow the mixture to sit in the pan for about 5 minutes – then drizzle over the cake. (You will want the drizzle to still be fairly hot when you drizzle it over the cake – it does harden a little after it cools.)

Cheesy Party Burgers (AKA Diamond Burgers)

Ingredients

    1 pound lean ground beef

    1 teaspoon salt

    1 teaspoon pepper

    1 teaspoon cumin

    1 teaspoon mustard powder

    ½ teaspoon smoked paprika

    2 cups diced onion (about 1 whole onion)

    3-4 cloves garlic, minced

    1 (10-oz) can Ro-Tel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chiles, drained

    12 slices cheddar cheese

    12 dinner rolls

Glaze

    ½ cup (8 tablespoons) butter

    2 tablespoons Brown Sugar

    1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

    1 tablespoon mustard

    1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Instructions

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

    Place a large skillet on the stovetop over high heat. When the pan is very hot, add the beef and season with salt, pepper, cumin, mustard powder, and paprika. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until beef is browned and onions are golden. Stir in drained tomatoes until well combined.

    Place bottom half of buns in prepared pan. Top with beef & sliced cheese. Finish off with the top half of the bun.

    Mix all the ingredients for the glaze in a sauce pan over medium heat until melted, smooth and combined. Pour over the buns.

    Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes.

White Chocolate & Almond Amaretto Cheesecake

Ingredients
    For The Crust:
    2 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (roughly 2 bags from a box)
    1/4 cup plain almonds, chopped very fine in food processor
    1/4 cup sugar
    1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
    1 Tbsp. Amaretto
    For The Filling:
    2 (8 oz.) packages Cream cheese, softened
    2 (8 oz.) packages Neufchâtel cheese, softened
    1 1/2 cups sugar
    4 eggs
    3 Tbsp. Amaretto
    1 tsp. almond extract
    3/4 tsp. vanilla extract
    pinch of salt
    1/4 cup almonds, chopped very fine in food processor
    2 oz. Baker's Premium White Chocolate, finely chopped
    For Topping:
    1 (16 oz.) container sour cream
    1/4 cup sugar
    1 tsp. almond extract
    1/2 cup sliced almonds for garnish
Instructions
    Grease a 9 inch Springform Pan and set aside.
    Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
    Combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, almonds, sugar and Amaretto for the crust.
    Spread the crust into your pan evenly and half way up the sides, while pressing down firmly.
    Set aside.
    In your Kitchen Aid Mixer, cream the cheeses with the sugar.
    Add the eggs, one at at time, beating until just combined after each addition.
    Add the almonds, the Amaretto, almond extract, vanilla extract, pinch of salt and combine.
    Stir in the white chocolate.
    Pour the filling into the crust.
    Place your Springform pan on top of a baking sheet and bake for 55-65 minutes, or until the cheesecake is almost set.
    Meanwhile, mix together the topping in a small bowl.
    When the cheesecake is almost set, remove it from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes.
    Spread the sour cream topping evenly over the cheesecake and bake another 5 minutes.
    Remove from the oven and let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
    Carefully, take a knife and go around the edges of the pan to loosen, and leaving the cheesecake still in the Spring form pan, move to a cooling rack.
    Sprinkle with sliced almonds.
    After about an hour of cooling, place the cheesecake on a plate, still in the Spring form pan and place in the refrigerator to chill overnight.
    The next day,remove the sides of the pan and slice.
    You can use a long knife dipped in very hot water to slice the cheesecake.
    You can serve the next day, or freeze individual slices, separated with small pieces of parchment paper in a freezer friendly container for your convenience.
    Makes (1) 9 inch cheesecake, about 12 servings.