This cake is SERIOUSLY so easy, your two year old could make it. The oreo cookies act as the “cake” part and the frosting is the coolwhip. Pretty tasty with some fudge sauce on top. I’d let this cake sit out for a bit since it is kind of hard to cut at first.

The main ingredients. Milk to dunk the oreos in, 2 packages of oreo cookies. Any flavor would work with this. Heck even change up the oreo layers to make it interesting, and some cool whip.

Dunk some oreos in some milk and layer them on the bottom of the pan.

Frost the oreos with some cool whip. I used about half a container.

Repeat the layers until you run out of oreos. I tried doing this with one single package of oreos but I ended up running out towards the end and had to use 2 Golden Birthday cake oreos. So, a little portion of the cake will have regular oreos and birthday cake oreos. I’d suggest using two packages of oreos and two containers of cool whip the next time to get more layers.

Another pinterest recipe.

I used to have a long list of categories on this page that contained the weight watcher points and if it was a weight watcher recipe or not. For some strange reason that disappeared and I apologizefor that. I’m thinking about just having 3 different categories on my page now which would be Bacon, Weight Watchers, and Really Fattening recipes. I’ve been noticing a trend on my blog lately and those are the only three kind of recipes which people seem to like.

One of my favorite things to do on Saturday mornings is watch Food Network. My favorites are the Pioneer Woman, Ina Garten, Trisha Yearwood, and sometimes Giada (only when her boobs aren’t showing). I love to try recipes from either 4 of them and this recipe was on the Pioneer Woman. I recently went to Rib Fest and had these fabulous baked beans and I don’t really have a recipe for beans at all that I like. I saw her make these and decided to give them a try and they turned out really good. Not like the ones I had at Rib Fest, but since they had bacon in them that made them twice as good. I had these with some pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon. I was going to take a picture of the bacon wrapped pork tenderloin for another post, but sadly the bacon fell off the pork tenderloin.

Recipe from the Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

4 cups dry pinto beans
1 pound thick-cut bacon, cut into pieces
2 whole green bell peppers, diced
1 whole onion, diced
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons mustard
1 tablespoon chili powder, optional
2 teaspoons salt, more to taste
2 teaspoons black pepper, more to taste
4 cloves garlic, minced

Directions

Rinse the beans under cold water, sorting out any rocks/particles. Set aside.

In a heavy pot (cast iron), saute the bacon pieces until halfway cooked and the fat is rendered. Add the green peppers and onions to the pot and cook until starting to get brown, about 3 minutes. Add the beans and cover with water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil, and then add the brown sugar, ketchup, mustard, chili powder, salt, pepper and garlic. Reduce the heat to a simmer, place on the lid and cook until the beans are tender and the liquid is thick 3 to 4 hours.

I made homemade bacon for the first time. I’ve had quite a lot of free time to myself recently and will have a lot of it coming up pretty soon. I’m hoping I can find a job really fast or else I’ll be bored out of my mind.

Anyways… The first step to making homemade bacon is to find a good butcher. I went to the butcher where I live in Fargo, ND on University Drive. It’s a little nice meat place called Prime Cut Meats. The guy there was very nice. Ask for a pork belly loin. The total cost for 4 pounds of pork belly was $17.00. I didn’t think that was bad considering the cheapest pound of bacon I’ve seen here runs anywhere from 3.50 to $5.00 a pound.

If you ever watch Alton Brown on Food Network, he had an episode all about making bacon. I used his brine for this and let it soak in it for 3 days. That’s right, 3 days.

After the pork belly has brined in it’s juices for 3 days it’s time to smoke it. I used apple wood chips.

The temperature of the pork has to get to 150 degrees. I’m not sure if our smoker is cooking things properly but I set mine to 200 degrees and let it smoke for 2 hours. That’s how long it took to get done. I’m sure there’s other types of brines out there to try for making homemade bacon, and different wood chips to try. It’s all a matter of time before I try out a different recipe. I’d try making my own again. Too bad my nose is clogged up right now cause I have a cold. I couldn’t really smell the bacon’s wonderful goodness.

Scrap Iron Chef’s Homemade Bacon Recipe

Ingredients

1 cup sugar
1 cup salt
8 ounces molasses
1/2 gallon (2 quarts) water
1/2 gallon (2 quarts) apple cider
2 tablespoons course ground black pepper
1 (5 pound) piece raw pork belly from the loin-end

Directions

In a large non-reactive pot, bring half the water, 1 cup of sugar, salt, and 8 ounces molasses to a boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Pour into a large container with the remaining water, and the apple cider. Place in the refrigerator and cool to 40 degrees F.

Press the black pepper into the pork belly. Once the brine has cooled place the peppered pork belly into the mixture until completely submerged. Refrigerate for three days.

After three days have passed, remove the pork from the brine and pat dry with paper towels. Lay on a rack over a sheet pan and place in front of a fan for 1 hour to form a pellicle. Lay the pork in the protein box of a cold smoker and smoke for 4 to 6 hours. Chill the meat in the freezer for 1 hour to stiffen for easy slicing into strips of bacon. Slice what you need and keep the remainder in a freezer safe bag in the refrigerator or freezer.

Place the strips of bacon onto a sheet pan fitted with a rack and place into a cold oven. Turn the oven to 400 degrees F and cook for about 12 to 15 minutes, depending on how crispy you like your bacon. Remove from rack and drain on paper towels. Enjoy.

I am not sure if meatloaf is supposed to be smoked. Alton Brown said this was the best meat dish he had ever made on the show Best Thing I Ever Made. The recipe says to smoke the meatloaf for 40 minutes and then take the foil wrap off and cook it for another hour or so until the meat reaches 140 degrees. I did that and everything but the meat just didn’t have the smoky flavor to it. Can you guess what the secret ingredient in this meatloaf? He even said it on the show that it was the potato chips. I couldn’t really taste them at all in here. Overall the meatloaf did have a good taste to it. If I made this next time I’d cook it in the oven.

The next season of Food Network Star is going and I’m not really even interested in it at all. Food Network hasn’t even played the last guy’s show Justin Warner that won. I’m guessing his ratings didn’t do well? I really liked him, and I hope they have one of his shows on sometime soon. He’s supposed to be the next big Alton Brown.

Smoked Meatloaf Recipe from Alton Brown

Ingredients

2/3 cup ketchup
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 ounces chipotle peppers in adobo, with adobo sauce that clings to them, chopped fine
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
6 ounces ruffled kettle-style barbecue potato chips
3 cloves garlic
1 medium carrot, cut into 6 pieces
1 Fresno chile, seeded
1 medium onion, cut into 8 pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound ground chuck
1 pound ground sirloin
1 pound ground pork
3 large eggs

Directions

Combine the ketchup, tomato paste, chipotle peppers and cocoa powder in a large mixing bowl. Remove 1/3 cup of the mixture and set aside.

Pulse the potato chips in the food processor until they are a coarse breadcrumb consistency, approximately 12 pulses. Transfer the potato chips to the bowl with the ketchup mixture.

Combine the garlic, carrots, chile and onions into the bowl of a food processor and process until finely chopped but not pureed, approximately 10 pulses.

Heat the olive oil in a 10-inch cast-iron pan set over medium heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onion mixture, sage and salt and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables soften and begin to brown slightly, approximately 5 minutes. Add the mixture to the mixing bowl with the potato chip mixture and stir to combine and cool the vegetables slightly. Add the ground chuck, sirloin, pork and eggs and use your hands to thoroughly combine. Shape into a loaf that is approximately 12- by 4- by 2-inch. Make sure to press the meat into a compact, uniform loaf. Wrap the loaf in heavy-duty aluminum foil. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour.

Heat a smoker to 250 degrees F. Place 1 hardwood chunk in the smoker’s wood tray.

Flip over the meatloaf pouch and poke 12 to 15 holes in the aluminum foil package to allow the fat to drain off. Turn the pouch back over. Set the meatloaf in the smoker and place a drip pan on the rack immediately below the meatloaf. Cook for 45 minutes.

After 45 minutes, open the foil pack and fold down the sides of the foil to create a shallow “pan” around the meatloaf. Brush with the reserved glaze. Insert a probe thermometer into the meatloaf and cook until the internal temperature reaches 140 degrees F, approximately 40 minutes. Remove the meatloaf from the smoker and rest for 30 minutes before slicing and serving.

I am so excited about having a smoker. So far we’ve tried salmon, pulled pork (which was the best pulled pork I’ve ever had) and a whole chicken. Seriously, you have not had good pulled pork until you’ve tried it smoked. Pulled pork made in the crock pot just doesn’t do any justice. It was over cooked a tad, but man was it really good. I used the left over smoked salmon to put on bagels with sour cream and chive cream cheese. Having a smoker is well worth it. You can smoke so many different kinds of food like cheese, cookies, macaroni and cheese, you name it. It was a good investment and I can’t wait to try making my own bacon soon.

Tonight we made beer can chicken. It was pretty easy too. The hardest part is probably trying to get the chicken attached to the beer can without it sliding all over your fingers. Then we just seasoned the chicken with some Lawry’s seasoning salt and it was the juiciest chicken I’ve ever had. I dipped my chicken in some barbeque sauce. If you don’t have a smoker to make beer can chicken, you can cook the chicken in the oven. Just make sure there’s some kind of pan underneath it so the beer doesn’t splatter all over the oven.

Ingredients

1 whole chicken 3 – 4 pounds
Lawry’s Seasoning Salt
1 can of beer (I used Bud Light)

Directions:

Remove any giblets from inside the bird. Pat the bird dry and season with Lawry’s Seasoning salt. Open up a can of beer and poke a few extra holes in it. Set the bottom of the bird where the opening is on top of the can so that it sits on the beer can. Make sure the chicken is secure on the can of beer and place it on a smoker on top of a sheet pan. Smoke for 2 – 3 hours.

Recently, I competed in Cup Cake Wars where I work at. Whoever competed, had to bring in 6 cupcakes. There were 5 judges and the extra cupcakes was for the person who won the lottery and got to keep all the cupcakes. I didn’t win however, because my cupcake ended up being so dry. I made peanut butter cupcakes with chocolate frosting. I tried them the night before and they tasted really good, but the next morning they were so dry.

I think the key to a really good cake is how moist it is and this key lime cake is super moist. The other key is using oil. That makes a really super moist cake in my opinion. Although, I wonder if I over cooked the cupcakes and that is why they turned out so dry? I should have submitted this recipe instead and turned them into cupcakes.  I love key lime pie and this tasted exactly like it. A little tart, and a little sweet. This would also be fun to make for Saint Patrick’s Day!

Trisha Yearwood’s Key Lime Cake

Print recipe

Ingredients

• 1 3oz package lime flavored gelatin
• 1 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 5 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
• 3/4 cups orange juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup key lime juice
• 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar

Directions

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour three 9-inch-round cake pans.

Step 2

In a large mixing bowl, mix the gelatin, sugar, flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Stir to mix well. Add the eggs, oil, orange juice, lemon juice, and vanilla. Divide the batter evenly among the 3 pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Test for doneness by lightly touching the tops of the layers or inserting a toothpick. Cool the layers in the pans for 5 minutes, then turn them out onto racks.

Step 3

While the layers are still hot, mix the lime juice and confectioners’ sugar and pour it over the layers on the racks. You can pierce the layers with a fork to allow the glaze to soak in better. Allow the layers to cool completely as you prepare the icing.

Step 4

CREAM CHEESE ICING ■½ cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature ■1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, room temperature ■1 (1-lb) box confectioners’ sugar

Step 5

Cream the butter and cream cheese. Beat in the confectioners’ sugar until the mixture is smooth and easy to spread. Spread the icing between the layers and on the top and sides of the cake.

Whenever I stop at Trader Joe’s in Minneapolis, I have to pick up at least 3 bags of their Mandarin Orange Chicken. I haven’t been able to get there for awhile, and I was craving it, so I decided to try making my own. This recipe is just as good as the Mandarin Chicken at Trader Joe’s. What I like most about the Mandarin chicken at Trader Joe’s is, how simple it is to make. You just cook the chicken in the oven, heat the sauce up in the microwave, and they even have those rice packets you can heat up in the microwave. Sometimes, it’s just easier to have everything pre cooked and that is another reason why I like Trader Joe’s. Oh how I wish Fargo would get one of those stores these days. That would be totally awesome.

I was trying to figure out a way to make this lighter but I find it kind of difficult to get chicken crispy when you just bake it in the oven. You could probably not even fry the chicken and just cut the chicken up into cubes and bake them in the oven that way. It would have twice as less calories. OR, I want to try this recipe in the crock pot. Combine all the ingredients for the sauce and poor it over the chicken, then let it cook in the crock pot and you can shred it up when it’s done.  I’d make this again whenever I’m out of Mandarin Orange Chicken Trader Joe’s.

Now I think it’s time to turn on some Scentsy in order to get this awful deep fry fryer smell out of my house.

Orange Chicken recipe from Key Ingredients

Orange Chicken

Print recipe

Ingredients

• 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 2 1/2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic crushed
• 2 tablespoons green onion
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons water

Directions

Step 1

Combine flour, salt, and pepper in a large zip-lock bag. Dip chicken in beaten egg and shake in flour mixture to coat.

Step 2

Heat oil in a large skillet and fry chicken in batches until completely cooked (about 2-3 minutes per side).

Step 3

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan combine 1 1/4 cups water, lemon juice, orange juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce. Blend well over medium heat for 2 minutes. Stir in brown sugar, orange zest, ginger garlic, and onion. Bring to a boil.

Step 4

Combine 3 tablespoons of cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water and mix thoroughly. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into sauce until it thickens. Pour sauce over breaded chicken and garnish with green onions.

After a long hiatus I am finally back. Sorry about all that folks. What a mess that was.

I am in the process of transferring over my site to a new server. My site has been loading kind of slow loading lately so sorry, if any of you are experiencing that. Will let you know when it’s done.

I recently bought a box of puff pastry at the grocery store. Puff pastry is really expensive and I think I paid 4.99 for the entire box, but the price is well worth it in my opinion. Puff pastry is … Continue reading →

This is just an update. About 5 weeks ago, I joined Weight Watchers online. In that 5 weeks, I’ve managed to almost lose 5 pounds. Yay! I’m actually down to 4.2 pounds lost total. My husband, has lost about 35 pounds. This is living proof, that you can make some evil desserts like this  on my blog, and still manage to lose weight. The key part is to track everything. I even manage to make un-lightened up desserts like this one below. I logged it in the nutrition info, and it wasn’t very pretty folks.

Icebox cakes are probably in my opinion, one of the best Summer desserts to make. Why? Because these cakes don’t require heating up any oven. Just like homemade ice pops. I just recently discovered these types of cakes and wonder why I’ve never made them before? It’s basically a frozen cheesecake but you can flavor it up with any kind of toppings you like. I decided to use butterscotch with my mine. Ice cream cakes are another good dessert to make during the Summer as well.

This icebox cake recipe has cool whip, cream cheese, sugar, and a flavor topping added like butterscotch. This recipe is easy and versatile to work with. Try changing up the ingredients a bit to make it your own.

calories: 302 kcal | fat: 8.43g | carbs: 54.00g | prot: 3.59g

The nutrition info above, was figured out using fat free cool whip, and fat free cream cheese.

Servings: 8

Butterscotch Icebox Cake

Print recipe

Ingredients

• 1 jar butterscotch topping
• 1oz cream cheese ((1/3 fat))
• 1 carton cool whip (light)
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 bag chocolate graham cracker wafers
• 3 tablespoons butter (melted)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

Step 1

In a bowl, combine cream cheese, cool whip, confectioner's sugar, vanilla, and butterscotch topping.

Step 2

In a bag crush the graham crackers until the crumbs are small. Add the melted butter sugar. You can also do this step in a food processor. I usually use a rolling pin the mash the graham crackers together in a bag.

Step 3

Dump the crust mixture into a pie pan and then the middle mixture with the cream cheese and cool whip.

Step 4

Freeze in the ice box until the center has set. Mine took about 8 hours until it got thick.