HippieDog

the weekend.....

Hooray!

The weekend is finally here......we are ready :)

Have a Beautiful Safe Holiday Weekend :)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars

Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 cup peanut butter, creamy
2 cups oatmeal
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups additional creamy peanut butter for filling

Combine softened butter, sugars and peanut butter until smooth. Add slightly beaten eggs one by one.

In separate bowl combine salt, soda and flour. Sift and gradually add to sugar mixture. Add vanilla and oats.

Pour in greased jelly roll pan.

Bake 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown, do not over bake. Pour peanut butter filling over crust and spread. Cool completely. Frost with chocolate frosting and cut in bars.

Peanut Butter Filling

1 1/2 cups peanut butter, microwave for 30 seconds until warm and creamy

Chocolate Frosting

1 stick butter, softened
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1/3 cup milk
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Combine softened butter and cocoa. Mix until smooth. Gradually add milk, vanilla and powdered sugar, alternating these ingredients until you get a nice consistency of dreamy frosting. Frost peanut butter bars.

 

a bike ride......

It doesn't happen very often but I talked Dan into taking a few hours off work Tuesday for a much needed bike ride.

We have a bike trail that's just a few minutes from our house and goes at least 80 miles south---they keep adding to it. We biked for an hour or so and then headed back home in time to get Jake from school.

Jake spotted my photos on my phone and wasn't too happy we snuck away without him.

Speaking of phones......all of these photos were taken with my new phone. A very nice Samsung Droid Charge camera phone.....and it was FREE. I'm loving that. We chose this phone not only because it was free, with great reviews but it has a really nice 8.0 MP camera.....and I'm all about that. I'm not too much of a phone or texting gal. It will be nice not having to drag my clunky camera on all of our adventures.

That evening we headed to the baseball field for Jake's practice. Of course I wanted him to be a Yankee...but the Indians will do just fine. Dan grabbed #2 for his jersey---Jeter you know.

See you soon.......

Chicken Pecan Salad Pita

I'm a fool for pitas, especially in the summertime......

Chicken Salad Pecan Pitas

1 cup chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 TB mustard
1/4 tsp. worcestershire sauce
2 TB green onions, chopped
4 TB celery, chopped
2 dill pickle spears, chopped
1/2 cup Colby/Jack cheese, shredded
1/4 cup pecans, pieces
whole wheat pitas, cut in half
salt and pepper to taste

In salad bowl combine, chicken, mayonnaise and worcestershire. Gently stir in onions, celery, pickles, cheese and pecans.

Season with salt and pepper. Cut pitas in half and stuff with chicken salad mixture.

Tip: You can also replace the mayo with cottage cheese for a healthier version. Also, slivered almonds are great too in place of the pecans :)

Caribbean Jerk Sliders

The weather was absolutely beautiful this weekend. I did get my thunder storm on Friday....so it was all good.

We put the umbrellas out on the deck and had ourselves a little BBQ.

These turkey burger sliders with Caribbean Jerk Marinade are absolutely dreamy. We love using the Sweet Hawaiian Rolls and now they even make hamburger and hot dog buns.

On the menu:

Caribbean turkey burgers with Jerk bacon, red onions, grilled pineapple and teriyaki sauce for dipping
potato salad
pickles
chips
Italian cream soda

Caribbean Jerk Turkey Burger Bacon Sliders

1 1/2 pounds turkey burger
1 package Lipton onion soup mix
1/2 cup water
Caribbean Jerk Marinade
1 package bacon
1 red onion
1 can pineapple rings
season salt
pepper
sweet Hawaiian rolls or buns
Teriyaki sauce for dipping

The night before you grill or early that morning, marinade your bacon in the Caribbean Jerk Marinade. Place bacon and marinade in a large zip lock bag. Use enough to coat bacon really well. Refrigerate overnight or for at least 6 hours.

Combine turkey burger, soup mix and water. Mix until well combined. Make small or large patties depending on the buns you choose. For this recipe we used rolls because we are making sliders.

I use wax paper to press my patties and stack them on a plate with wax paper in between, adding season salt and pepper. Just pop them in the fridge until ready to use. My dad taught me this :)

Place foil on one side of your grill to start the bacon. Cook bacon for approximately 20-25 minutes. Turkey burgers should cook around 6-7 minutes on each side or until no longer pink.

Grill pineapple rings right before serving.

Top sweet hawaiian rolls with grilled burger, pineapple, red onion and bacon. Use teriyaki sauce for dipping or your favorite topping :)