No-bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

 

No-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies. Sounds unassuming, right? Maybe even sounds a touch healthy. But these little gems just melt in your mouth and taste absolutely amazing. I'm not even sure where I got the recipe. Many moons ago, I got a similar recipe from my high school English teacher who had made something she called boiled cookies. It is a very similar recipe, but just slightly different. Here's the card I filled out at least 30 years ago... and this one has definitely survived the test of time. If you've never tried them, you'll want to hurry to the store for the ingredients, because they are so worth it!

2 cups sugar (400 grams)
1 1/2 Tbsp cocoa
4 ounces evaporated milk (1/2 cup)
4 ounces unsalted butter (1/2 cup or 1 stick)
1 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (180 grams)

3 cups oatmeal

I rarely ever make a single batch of these cookies, so you will see that my measurements look rather large. I made a quadruple batch in these photos.

In a pot large enough for your ingredients, combine the sugar, cocoa, butter, and evaporated milk and turn heat to medium-high. 

While that begins to heat up, measure out the vanilla, peanut butter, and oats to ensure a smooth and swift mixing process. You will also want to lay out parchment paper on several baking sheets or your counter. I normally just use the kitchen counter.

Bring the cocoa mixture to a roiling boil, stirring frequently. Not a light bubbling boil, but you want the mixture twisting and turning and bubbling everywhere. 

Add the vanilla and peanut butter and stir until smooth and creamy and you no longer see ribbons of peanut butter.

Stir in the oats and ensure they are disbursed throughout the mixture evenly.

Use a cookie scoop to make your cookies consistent and evenly sized. The scoop also makes it easier to get through the mixture before it cools and hardens. And you will want to move quickly. Once the mixture cools, you're just going to get crumbs - not cookies.

Let the cookies cool at least 30 minutes before trying to move them. Once you're able to pick them up, store the cookies, minus what you eat while packing them, in a sealed container. These will last for a couple of weeks if stored properly.

Sauteed Spinach

I have tried repeatedly to find a way to sauté fresh spinach in a way that tastes good. It's actually been a little harder than it seems like it should. I used fresh garlic, and that was ok, but it was missing something. So I tried garlic powder. I tried that several times in different ways, but it still wasn't quite what I was looking for. It finally hit me a couple of weeks ago to try garlic salt... and I finally got it right. This was quite tasty. I added just a little butter to it (which most of it rolled off), and it was really good! With the garlic salt, I got the garlic and the salt, so I didn't have to add any extra salt. If you like spinach, then you really should try this recipe!

Bag of spinach
1-2 Tbsps grapeseed oil
1-2 Tbsps butter or margarine
about 1 tsp garlic salt

Heat 1-2 Tbsps of grapeseed oil in a large soup pot.

Add the spinach and sauté until it begins to wilt. Use tongs to move around the spinach. Add a Tbsp or so of butter or margarine and about 1 tsp of garlic salt.

Mix until butter is melted and coats all of the spinach. Let the butter and grapeseed oil drip off before serving.

Rosemary Garlic Butter Steak

While I really love a tender juicy well seasoned steak, it's just not something I eat often. When I saw this recipe on Pinterest for Rosemary Garlic Butter Steak, I knew it was worth a shot. I like rosemary; I like garlic; and I like butter. How can it get any better? And the gamble paid off! This steak is very tasty and most definitely worth a shot!

4 rump steaks (or one or two larger cuts) (1 to 1.5-inches thick), room temperature
2 or 3 garlic cloves
2 Tbsps fresh rosemary leaves
3 Tbsps butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
A splash of white or red wine

Dice the rosemary and garlic and mash together with the salt in a mortar and pestle.

Rub mixture on both sides of the steak. Allow to rest for 15-20 minutes.

Heat a skillet over medium/high heat and melt butter. Add oil to prevent it from burning too much. Add steaks, season them with pepper and cook 1 or 2 minutes on each side.

Turn it over. Cook it 2 or 3 more minutes and add the wine (you can add extra garlic and rosemary now too to the skillet). It will steam furiously. Cook the steak 2 or 3 additional minutes for medium rare, remove steaks and let rest for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the wine until reduced and a kind of sauce is formed. Slice the steaks and pour the sauce over it.

Chicken Piccata

When it comes down to it, I just really like chicken... grilled barbecue chicken, chicken and dumplings, fried chicken, lemon pepper chicken, chicken tenders, chicken parmesan, chicken tamales, and now this new addition to my arsenal... chicken piccata. Oh my goodness, this stuff is so delicious! The lemon juice just adds a freshness to the dish, and the capers add an awesome briny-saltiness to it that you don't get just from salt. The chicken itself is so juicy, and the panko bread crumbs add a wonderful texture to the dish. I found the recipe on Pinterest, Panko Crusted Chicken Piccata, and I've made it several times already. Try this dish and I'm sure it will become one of your go-to meals.

1 cup flour
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves,
Salt, pepper, and garlic powder
½ cup olive oil
6 Tbsps butter

1 Tbsp capers
2 Tbsps lemon juice + A few slices of lemon
1 Tbsp chopped parsley

If the chicken breasts are too thick butterfly them so each piece is half as thick as it was to begin with. Fold a piece of plastic over the top and bottom of each piece of chicken, then use a meat mallet (preferably flat and not pointed) or rolling pin to pound it to a ¼ inch thickness. Season both sides with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

Place the flour, eggs, and panko in three separate shallow bowls.

Heat half of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Dredge the chicken breasts in flour, shake off the excess and then dip in the eggs.

Then coat both sides with breadcrumbs.

Add half the dredged chicken breasts to the skillet and fry for 3-5 minutes or a side or until golden brown and cooked through. Remove to a plate. Add the other half of the oil to the skillet and repeat with remaining chicken breast.

When the chicken has been removed, add the butter to the skillet and use a spatula to scrape up any brown bits. Let the butter cook until sizzling and just starting to brown. Stir in the capers, lemon juice, and lemon slices (if using).

To serve, plate the chicken then spoon the lemon butter sauce over top. Top with lemon slices and fresh parsley.

German Fried Potatoes

I don't think there's a way that I don't like potatoes... mashed, baked, fried, sliced, diced, or smashed, potatoes are just amazing. This little gem of a recipe is not one I make very often because it's really not for the faint of heart or for anyone watching calories. I really only make this about once a year, but no more than twice. Butter, potatoes, bacon.. yeah, it's not a low-calorie dish. But, as a rare treat, it is sooooo very worth the calories! You can use whatever type of potato you prefer and it should work out well for you.

Potatoes (I used about 5 medium sized red potatoes)

Pack of bacon, partially thawed

Medium onion (I prefer yellow)

Butter/margarine (I used 3-6 Tbsp Country Crock)

Salt and peppercorn

Dice the onion and slice the bacon in narrow strips, about 1/2 inch. I actually take the slightly frozen whole stack of bacon and slice through it together. Put the butter, onion and bacon in the electric skillet. Turn the skillet on to 350 degrees, and begin cooking the onion and bacon.

While that is cooking, begin dicing the potatoes in similar sized cubes.

When the bacon is just beginning to brown and darken, add the potatoes, and then sprinkle with salt and fresh ground peppercorn to taste. 

Stir, and then check and stir periodically until bacon is cooked and potatoes have a nice brown crispy edge.

Grilled Peanut Butter

The tried and true stand-by 10-minute dinner in my house has always been grilled peanut butter. I know, I know! Huh? Yeah, I get lots of "you're fixing what???" every time I make this and post something about it, so I figured, why not share? This is something I grew up with my daddy making for me, and I've made it for my daughter nearly all her life. She's even introduced it to a few of her friends. Apparently, grilled peanut butter and banana was one of Elvis Presley's favorite dishes, but since I don't like the texture of bananas, I'll just stick with my favorite!

Bread

Crunchy peanut butter

Butter

I'll go ahead and warn you, if you've ever made a grilled cheese, then this will be a easy-peasy for you. Put about 1-1.5 Tbsp of butter in your skillet, and turn the heat on med-high. Then simply spread a healthy dose of crunchy peanut butter (yes, I have tried it with creamy, and while it works in a pinch, it will run out of the sandwich a whole lot more) on one piece of bread. Then butter one side of the other slice of bread.

Once the butter in the skillet is hot, place the sandwich, butter side up into the skillet. Be sure not to let it sit too still. I like to shake the skillet back and forth slightly to move the sandwich around. Cook for a couple minutes until the bottom is brown, then flip the butter side down and cook for a few minutes more.

Sometimes we serve it with fries; sometimes we serve it with chips. Add some grapefruit or cantaloupe, and you've got a tasty and very quick meal.

Yeast Rolls

If you're new to baking from scratch, let me assure you - this is the easiest bread you will ever make. Easy. Easy peasy. Did I mention, easy? Ok, enough of that. I made this during the holidays for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and they were a big hit! I found the recipe on Pinterest, but it didn't link to a recipe. The image was the recipe. It was titled "One Hour Yeast Rolls." You don't have to knead them. All you need is a bowl and a spoon!

1 cup warm water

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup oil

2 Tbsp yeast

1 tsp salt

1 egg, beaten

3 1/3 cup s flour

In a large bowl, mix together warm water, sugar, oil and yeast. Let stand for 15 minutes until yeast mixture is bubbly.

Stir in salt and beaten egg to yeast mixture. Gradually add flour until dough is manageable (although it will still be slightly sticky).

Cover with a towel, and let dough rest in the bowl for 10 minutes. 

Spray hands with non-stick cooking spray and form dough into balls. Place balls so they don't touch on cookie sheet. Cover and let rise for 20 minutes.

Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Melt 2-3 Tbsps of butter and brush the tops of the hot rolls.