The Cookie Jar's Top 25 Holiday Treats

Of all the treats here, my cookie category is the largest-partly because I am a cookie fanatic, always jumping on every interesting looking recipe I can find to try. For Christmas, all of us have our favorites-and if I could make them all I would, but we'd be inundated with enough food to feed an army!

What's my family's favorite holiday treats? Need ideas for things to give away, or that are easy for the kids to help you make? This list is of my family's favorite recipes throughout the years. Every recipe has been tried, devoured, begged for from friends and family, and while the older posts don't have a photo (a casualty of having an unintended food blog-I'm working on that), believe me, they are all amazing recipes and turn out well.

Ready with the spatulas? Go! Look for the * to indicate recipes that are easy to make with small kids.

Family Favorites:

Black Forest Cherry Cookies - a rich chocolate cookie filled with walnuts and maraschino cherries, topped with chocolate icing and a cherry half. Hubs LOVES these, and they freeze well!




*Ginger Gems - buttery, spicy little bits rolled in sugar, these are a favorite in our house. I love to give them to fellow teachers as a gift. Make sure to use real butter. (* kids can help roll the dough into balls and then into sugar)

Rum Balls - so decadent, and SO delicious! Rich and chocolatey, we love these! They make great gifts.

Orange Chocolate Brownie cookies with M&Ms - definitely MY favorite cookie, these are a hit with kids. You don't have to make them with orange flavoring, just use vanilla extract instead.

Chocolate Brandied Raisin Cookies- dark, full of chocolate, rolled in sugar with a hint of rum, these are cookies the adults will fight over.

Butter Tart Squares - don't have time for tarts? Make squares. They are just as good and easier to store.

Butter Tarts - It's not Christmas without butter tarts. Kevin and I steal them from the freezer because I like them best cold.


Great for Giving away:



*Chocolate Cherry Mice - Fun to make with the kids, these are made of Hershey's Kisses, maraschino cherries, and almond slices

Home made Oreos - Work intensive but these cookies are just amazing!

Chocolate Candy Crinkles - these are fun to roll with the kids, and they are very impressive in a cookie basket. Plus they are super for anyone who loves Hershey's kisses.

*Peanut Butter Cup Cookies - I can't eat peanut butter, but if I could these would be my favorite. Rolled in sugar and topped with a mini peanut butter cup, these are decadent and delicious. Kids can help roll the dough into balls and then into sugar.

*Easy Rolled Sugar Cookies - If you don't like the rolling and cutting part of sugar cookies, these give you all the flavor without the work. I love the sour cream in the dough. Kids can help roll the dough into balls and then into sugar.



*Traditional Sugar Cookies - More old school sugar cookies are great because you can freeze the dough, then pull out and bake /ice when you need them. Kids can help cut them out or ice them.



*Reindeer Poop Cookies - These no bake cookies are perfect to make with kids, and if you want to have some fun include this poem! As a child these were my favorite, and I loved stealing them from the freezer.

Roll and Cut out Cookies:

Gingerbread Houses and Cookies - Or better yet, How to Make a Gingerbread House without Losing your Mind and Flinging it Across Your Kitchen in Frustration. Makes a mini gingerbread house and some cookies. Doubled makes three small houses. Really easy if you follow the tips. If I can make it, anyone can-and I say this because I really DID throw a gingerbread house across my kitchen.

Coconut Mango Butter Cookies - use any jam, or even your favorite curd, as filling with these delicious coconut butter cookies.

*Vanilla Shortbread - A good, basic shortbread. Kevin always loves them with a candied cherry pressed into the middle.

Chocolate Ganache Cookies - work intensive but absolutely worth it, as these are filled with decadent chocolate ganache.

Super Rich and Decadent Bars or Desserts:



Cheesecake Cappuccino Brownies - a cross between a cheesecake and a brownie, these are very rich and delicious.

Chocolate Caramel Brownies -brownie topped with Rolo candies and drizzled with butterscotch ice cream sauce? How could you go wrong with that?

Maple Pecan Sticky bars - like eating a pecan pie from your hand. I can't make these, I'd eat the whole pan.

Pumpkin Squares -a family favorite, and has won accolades from friends. Tastes a bit like carrot cake with cream cheese icing, but is a great cold square.

Turtle Bars - nuts, caramel, and chocolate make these bars decadent. Hubs took them to work and they were devoured in minutes!

Candy Cane Brownies - brownies topped with chocolate chips and bits of crushed candy cane. YUM.

Cheesecake -the only cheesecake recipe that I use, because it's simply the best.

What are YOUR favorites? Feel free to leave links in the comments!

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Cornbread

Years ago, we visited Mesa Verde National Park in Southern Colorado, and ordered chili and cornbread. Never having been to the Southwest before, we weren't sure what to expect. Large bowls of steaming chili were placed in front of us and we dove in; only to quickly discover that chili in the Southwest USA is FAR hotter than chili in Canada. Our poor virgin Canadian tastebuds were about fried to oblivion, and just to get through it we dunked huge, buttery pieces of cornbread into the fiery sauce and nibbled.

Back home I found this recipe, which is obviously not authentic Southern cornbread (if any of my readers have a recipe for authentic, please share!) but it's still easy and really delicious dunked in a chili.

Adapted from Food To Grow On
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tbsp melted butter

Pre-heat your oven to 375 F and butter a 9x9 inch square baking pan.

In a bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg and milk together. Pour into the cornmeal mixture and mix until it's well blended. Then pour in the melted butter, and mix some more.

Pour into your prepared pan, and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden and when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool on a baking rack. I love to slice it up while the cornbread is still warm, and serve with chili or stew.

Makes a 9x9 inch pan, about 6 servings.

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Lemon Herb Chicken with Mash

Adapted from Jamie's Recipes, via the new iPod app

14 oz baby white potatoes (I used larger potatoes, just cut them into quarters)
2 tomatoes, seeded and coarsely chopped
2 green onions, sliced
small bunch of fresh basil
1/2 fresh red chile, seeded and minced (I was out of chile-I sprinkled in some hot pepper flakes)
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (use 3 chicken breast halves, which was more than enough)
lemon
2 sprigs fresh thyme
4 oz frozen corn
pat of butter

Cut your potatoes in half, or quarters if they are larger, and put them in a pot of boiling, salted water. Cook for about 15 minutes or until they are tender.

Meanwhile, mix together the tomato, chopped green onion, basil, and chile. Stir together. Pour in a bit of olive oil, then the red wine vinegar, and stir. Season with a bit of salt and pepper, stir, and taste. Set aside.

Next, score the chicken breasts lightly on one side in a criss cross pattern. Then lay them out on your cutting board and cover them with cling film. Why? Well you're going to pound those babies until they are nice and thin-ish. (about 1/2 inch).

Season the breasts with salt and pepper, then zest your lemon right over top, sprinkling the lemony bits down onto the breasts. Pick off the thyme leaves and sprinkle them on top too. Drizzle with some olive oil.

Check your potatoes. They should be almost tender by now. In the last few minutes of cooking, add the corn and continue to cook until both are tender. Drain, and let the veggies steam dry a bit before dumping them back into the hot pot. Mash them up with a bit of butter, but be gentle. Then stick a lid on those babies to keep them warm.

Heat up your fry pan over medium heat with a little olive oil in it. Fry up the chicken breasts, about 3 minutes per side, until they are cooked through.

Serve the corn and potato mash with the chicken breasts, and spoon the tomato mixture over top.

Serves 2-3.

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Guinness Brownies

With three cans of Guinness sitting in the cupboard, I knew I had to do something with them, but I wasn't sure what. Awhile ago I had found this recipe over on Nosh With Me and intrigued, I went back and read the recipe.

It sounded good, but beer and chocolate? I was skeptical.

On the other hand, my teenager reasoned, Nigella makes a Guinness cake, so perhaps she's onto something so maybe we should try them? Finally my curiosity got the better of me and I found myself at the store picking up a slab of bittersweet chocolate.

This afternoon as I followed the recipe's directions, I became increasingly worried; this isn't how I've made brownies before. Would they turn out? Would they be weird? It didn't help that Kevin noticed I had Guinness Draught instead of Guinness Extra, and what would that do? I had to keep shooing the teenager away as he would come and investigate the batter, the head on the beer, sniff the beer, ask if he could taste the beer, the latter of which garnered a resounding, "NO!"

Snow fell lightly outside, chickadees hopped about on the porch, and the smell of chocolate filled the house as the brownies baked. When I pulled them from the oven, the smooth chocolate top looked perfect, but it wasn't until I cut them into neat slices and finally took a bite that I was completely SOLD. Kevin found me standing in the kitchen, eyes closed, nibbling on a piece of brownie as if it was ambrosia of the Gods and we needed to build a shrine, immediately.

These are quite possibly the best brownies ever. i know I say that about every brownie recipe I try, but with this one, I really mean it. Rich, dark, fudgey, not tooth achingly sweet, these are over the top delicious. I'd try serving them with a scoop of Bailey's Irish Cream Ice Cream and chocolate shavings for a special occasion. They are SO good that even I, a completely non beer drinking gal, will buy beer just so I can make them.

1 cup flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
8 ounces dark bittersweet chocolate
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups Guinness Extra Stout beer, room temperature, no foam (I accidentally used Guinness Draught, which was fine)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Line a 9x13 inch cake pan with parchment paper, or just grease the pan with butter. Pre-heat your oven to 375 F.

Melt the white chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, and the butter together over low heat, stirring, until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool.

Beat the eggs and sugar together for about three minutes until light and fluffy. Take a spoonful of it and stir into the cooled chocolate, just to make sure it's cooled enough before you add it to the egg mixture. Pouring in hot melted chocolate will cook your eggs, otherwise.

Pour in the rest of the chocolate and mix well. In a separate bowl, stir the flour, cocoa, and salt together. Add to the egg/chocolate mixture and stir until just combined. Now this is the tricky part; add the beer, and carefully whisk. I tried to whisk in the stuff and slopped it all over myself, so be careful. Gently work in the beer until the batter resembles cake batter, and then fold in the chocolate chips.

Pour into the prepared pan, smooth the top, and pop it into the oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. You don't want to over bake these, so start checking them to see if they are finished at around 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let them cool before you cut into slices.

Makes a 9x13 inch pan of gloriously chocolatey brownies.

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Bacon Broccoli Crustless Quiches

Twitter has a strange love for bacon. Mention bacon, and you will likely have a zillion people shout back about how they love the stuff. Some will say they would love to roll it it, make sweet love to it, and have salty little bacon babies. Some will talk about it dipped in chocolate. Still others will reminisce about the literal mounds of it at Blissdom Canada, and some will say they would eat it three times a day if they could.

Kevin says it's "Man food." Me, I just like to eat it.

This recipe for crustless quiche actually didn't originally contain bacon. It was just sharp cheddar and boring broccoli, which didn't sound that amazing to me, so I added bacon. Of course, EVERYTHING is better with bacon.

Adapted from Martha Stewart

1 ten ounce package of frozen broccoli
6 large eggs
5 pieces of bacon
1/2 cup of half and half
ground pepper
1/8 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
butter

Pre-heat oven to 350 F.

This recipe is versatile. If you are into doing little single serving dishes of crustless quiche, butter four 8 oz ramekins. If you'd rather skip the cutesy little individual portion thing, butter a 9 inch pie plate. Set aside.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, and dump in the broccoli for about a minute. Drain and rinse until cool water, then blot with paper towel to dry. Chop coarsely.

Meanwhile, fry up your bacon and drain on paper towels. Chop.

In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, half and half, nutmeg, pepper, and cheese. Stir in your bacon and broccoli. Divide the mixture between your teeny ramekins, or just dump the whole lot into the greased pie plate.

Place the ramekins on a rimmed baking sheet so they don't slide around, or off and onto the bottom of your oven, and bake them (or the pie plate of quiche) for about 35-40 minutes until cooked through and golden.

Serve with crusty bread and a tossed salad.

Makes four servings.

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Cheese Straws

Awhile ago I stepped into the Cooking Class at school, only to be greeted with the deliciously cheesy smell of these straws baking away in the ovens. You see, I love cheese. It's my favorite snack. Cheddar, havarti, blue, brie, Parmesan, you name it, I love it-which is why these babies are a perfect appetizer. Served along side veggies, with some hummus or a great dip, they are a great finger food to nibble on. They are also so incredibly easy, you'll have a batch or two babies baked up in no time.

Adapted from Caren McSherry's More Than Salt and Pepper
1 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 cup flour
1 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp melted butter
1/3 cup milk
sea salt
pepper

Pre-heat your oven to 450 F.

In a bowl, mix together the cheese, flour, mustard, paprika, melted butter, and milk to form a soft dough. My dough was a little dry so I added a little extra milk. Form the dough into a flat disk, wrap in cling film, and put in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

Roll out the dough on a floured board to about 1/4 inch thick, in a rectangle about 20 cm long. Using a pizza cutter, slice the dough into strips 1 cm thick and 20 cm long. Sprinkle with sea salt and pepper.

Transfer the strips to a parchment paper lined baking sheet and twist them gently. Bake for about 5 minutes, watching carefully-they bake quickly! Remove from the oven. Allow to cool completely on the baking sheet before transferring to a baking rack.

Makes about 20 cheese straws

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Chocolate Chunk Pecan Shortbread

When I was a kid, my mom made shortbread every Christmas. Cut into trees and fluted edged circles with a red or green candied cherry in the middle, the holidays just weren't the same without shortbread. I'm sorry to say that as an adult, my son holds the same love for shortbread as I did, although I don't love making it.

So I rarely do.

Recently I thought I should be a good mother and provide this boy with his beloved shortbread because he's bordering on the edge of manhood, and perhaps I should grasp at the last bits of childhood that I can. Christmas is only a little over a month away (gasp! How did THAT happen?) and since I really only bake shortbread at Christmas, maybe starting now is a good thing.

I browsed the internets, looking for something new and exciting, of which I had all the ingredients in the cupboard, until low and behold I found this recipe for Tolberone Shortbread. I love Tolberone. Only, I didn't have Tolberone in my cupboard. I DID, however, have a big slab of Rogers Baking Milk Chocolate-a gift from my friend Anne, who had brought it back from Victoria some months ago. I had stashed it away, waiting for a perfect occasion to crack that baby open and use it.

This was the perfect occasion. Buttery shortbread, pecans, and good milk chocolate seem like just the perfect combination for a cookie and indeed, we weren't disappointed. The only things that I might change, is I'd love to try using some 70% dark green and blacks, and drizzling caramel over top. I would have drizzled the caramel over top of these, but I discovered that Kevin had eaten all the caramels in my baking cupboard. Another idea is to bake them with chocolate chips and skor toffee bits. The possibilities really are endless if you think about it.

Anyway.

Adapted From Kraft

2 cups of butter (I'm guessing salted, because it doesn't say-and there's no salt in the recipe)
1 cup superfine sugar (berry sugar)
3 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
200 g of chocolate (I used a 200 g ish bar of Rogers Milk Baking Chocolate)
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Pre-heat oven to 35o F.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour and cornstarch. Add to the creamed butter and mix together on low until it comes together.

Stir in the chocolate chunks and pecans.

Line your cookie sheets with parchment. Scoop out the dough, a tablespoon at a time, and gently squish it in your hands to form a ball. It will seem a bit crumbly but it will come together. Place the balls on the cookie sheet and squish slightly to flatten them.

Bake for about 15-17 minutes until lightly browned and set. Remove to a wire rack for cooling.

Makes about 4 dozen small cookies

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Veggie Enchiladas

These babies are absolutely delicious. Stuffed with black beans, pepper jack cheese, spinach, and corn, then topped with a cheesy tomato sauce, they are little bites of heaven. Being Canadian, I accept that I know nothing about a good enchilada. But Sydney, having lived in Arizona, knows. According to her they are some of the best enchiladas she's ever had. The original recipe is from Martha Stewart.

As for me? These are going to be a regular dish in our house for sure. And let me tell you that they make really GREAT lunches. Plus they are super easy to make. The only issue that I had was finding good corn tortillas. Where I am, corn tortillas are rubbery and awful, so I had to use flour. You use whatever works for you. I also might add fresh cilantro, just because I really love it.



Adapted from Crepes of Wrath and Martha Stewart

2 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp cumin
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 (14 oz) can sodium reduced vegetable broth
3 cups grated pepper jack cheese
1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
10 oz chopped spinach; thawed and squeezed dry
1 box (10 oz) frozen corn kernels, thawed
6 green onions, sliced (white and green parts separated)
about 16 six inch flour tortillas

Pre-heat oven to 400 F

In a saucepan, heat your oil, 1 tsp of the cumin, flour, and tomato paste. Whisk together to form a paste. Cook for about a minute, whisking so it doesn't burn.

Slowly add the veggie broth and 3/4 cup water, whisking as you go to keep from getting lumps. Bring to a boil, still stirring, and then reduce the heat and simmer while it thickens up, about 5-8 minutes. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper.

Lightly grease a 9X13 inch baking dish with oil. (I forgot to do this and mine stuck.)

In a medium sized bowl, stir together the corn, remaining 1 tsp of cumin, 2 cups of the cheese, the beans, white parts of the green onion, and the spinach. Lay the tortillas out flat and using a heaping 1/3 cup, fill each tortilla. Fold in the sides and roll them up tightly, laying the seam side down in the dish.

When you are finished, sprinkle with the remaining cup of cheese and then pour over the enchilada sauce. Bake, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes while they bubble and meld into deliciousness. Having never made REAL enchiladas before, I was concerned about the amount of sauce in the dish, but it's okay. Trust me. You need the sauce. Sauce is good.

Enjoy. These are amazing. YUM!

Serves 8

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Chicken Stew with Balsamic Roasted Veggies

The weather was cold, windy, and rainy this week and what better way to warm yourself up than with a stew? This one was different than most-roast the veggies in the oven and then add them to the broth. How weird, I thought-but the end product was pretty yummy. Plus I still had the bottle of Generation Seven white wine that I had schlepped all the way home from Blissdom in Toronto, and needed to use. I couldn't let it go to waste, could I?

There are only slight changes I would make; the veggies, which the original recipe left whole or otherwise chunky, are a little large and would be easier to eat if they are smaller. Wrangling whole baby carrots on a spoon can be a challenge. I was thinking that they were more like toddler carrots, they were so big.

Also, there isn't a lot of "juice" to this stew, so if you like a lot of broth, you may want to up the amounts of chicken broth and wine, like I did. Keep in mind that upping the broth might mean you will want to up the amount of thyme and rosemary that is added to the stew later on.

Adapted from Crazy Plates

4 cups unpeeled, cubed red potatoes (I used Yukon Gold)
2 cups whole baby carrots (I think it's better to chop them a bit-even into thirds)
1 cup chopped red onions
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced (I used 3-always love lots of garlic!)
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp dried rosemary (I used fresh from my plant)
1 tsp dried tarragon
1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
1 cup sliced green beans
1/2 cup dry white wine
6 boneless, skinless, chicken breast halves, cut into 1 inch cubes (I used 4. They were big)
3 cups low sodium, low fat chicken broth
3 tbsp flour

Pre-heat your oven to 425 F.

In a small bowl, stir together the oil, vinegar, 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp rosemary, tarragon, salt, and pepper. Pour over the potatoes, carrots, garlic and onions in a large bowl and toss all together until well coated.

Roast in a large roasting pan, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes. Add the green beans, stir, and keep roasting for another 10 minutes.

While your veggies are roasting, pout the wine into a large pot. I did find that this recipe had very little "juice" so I added a splash more wine. Bring the wine to a boil, adding the remaining 1/2 tsp thyme and rosemary. Add your cubed chicken and then turn down the heat and let it simmer, uncovered for about 12 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Add the roasted veggies to the cooked chicken and wine, and then pour in about 2 1/2 cups of chicken broth. I added more-in fact, I just eyeballed it and dumped a bunch in until I thought it was saucy enough.

To thicken your stew, you have two options; the original recipe says to mix 1/2 cup broth with 3 tbsp of flour until no lumps can be seen and stir it into the stew before you bring the newly added broth to a simmer. I tried this and it still seemed pretty thin, so in the end I took 1 1/2 tbsp of cornstarch, mixed it with a bit of cold water, and stirred it in.

I don't like my stews super thick, but this seemed to do the trick. Taste it and adjust for seasonings. With extra broth, you'll likely need extra herbs as well. Bring your stew up to a simmer and let it get nice and thick, then serve!

Makes 6 servings.

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Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have never really loved baking with pumpkin. The end product always seems to turn out heavy and wet, so most of the time I shy away from pumpkin recipes, unless it's something like pumpkin pie. However at work a few weeks ago, a group of kids made these cookies and they were so delicious I just had to share them with you. Soft and cakey, these oatmeal cookies are full of flavor, but the pumpkin is very subtle. I love them with chocolate chips but you can, if you must, substitute dried cranberries. I'd also throw in some chopped pecans for a little texture.

Adapted From Best Recipes: Halloween Fun, Food and Crafts October 2010

1 cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup solid pack pumpkin
2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup dark chocolate chips or dried cranberries

Pre-heat your oven to 350 F.

With an electric mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar together until they make a grainy paste. Add the egg and vanilla, continuing to beat well. Stir in the pumpkin until well blended.

In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, baking soda, and oats. Add to the pumpkin mixture and beat in on low until just combined.

Fold in the chocolate chips.

Drop by tablespoons onto parchment paper lined cookie sheets, leaving about 1 1/2 inch space between the cookies so they can spread. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 12-15 minutes, until they are just set on the top and golden brown. Cool on the pan for about a minute before transferring cookies to a rack.

Makes about 2 dozen.

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Loaded Party Nachos

One thing I'll never understand is how anyone eats nachos with that nasty fake cheese sauce. I mean, seriously? How on Earth can anyone stomach that stuff? For Halloween, I created these deliciously cheesy dinner nachos as a treat for Jake and I to nibble on. Paired up with Spanish Rice and Andrea's guacamole, they were little bits of crunchy, salty, spicy heaven. Loads of veggies, spicy meat and cheese make them go from junk food to almost healthy!

1 large bag of nacho chips
1 onion, chopped
1 lb lean ground beef
1 (19 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 large sweet red pepper, chopped
1 large tomato, seeded and chopped
about 2-3 cups of aged cheddar cheese (more or less, if you need)
chopped fresh cilantro

Pre-heat oven to 350 F.

Spread the tortilla chips out on a rimmed cookie sheet, sprinkle with cheese, and set aside.

In a fry pan, saute the ground beef with onion until cooked through and no longer pink. Add the chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper, stirring and tasting to correct for seasonings. Stir in the drained black beans and set aside to cool.

Set the cookie sheet with the tortilla chips in the oven for a few minutes, watching carefully, until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Remove from the oven. Sprinkle with the cooled beef/bean mixture, diced tomato, diced peppers, and cilantro. You may not need all the beef/bean mixture, so you can put it in the freezer for another day. Or, just load it all up-whatever works for you!

Serve with fresh guacamole, salsa, and Greek yogurt or sour cream to greedily dip into, licking the salty goodness off your fingers.

Serves 4-5.

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Ditch the Processed Packet: Spanish Rice

For the longest time, I used to make flavored rice mixes from a packet. Full of things like chicken fat, maltodextrin, potassium choloride, and disodium inosinate, they really aren't the best things for you and have a lot of preservatives and salt. Why not make your own? Does it really make a difference?

Oh, baby, you bet it does. Full of spicy goodness, this version of Spanish/Mexican rice will have you saying "ole!" before you scarf it all down greedily. The heat of your salsa will determine the heat of the finished product, so if you would prefer something a little milder, make sure to use a milder salsa.

Adapted from Looneyspoons by Janet and Greta Podleski

1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup diced red pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
2 1/3 cups low sodium chicken broth (I used Kitchen Basics Vegetable Broth)
1 cup long grain white rice
1 cup salsa (I used Newman's own Black Bean and Corn)
1/2 tsp each chili powder and ground cumin
1/4 tsp salt and black pepper
chopped fresh cilantro

In a large saucepan, drizzle some oil on the bottom and set over medium heat to warm up. When the oil is hot, toss in your onion, sweet red pepper, and garlic. Stir around and let it cook until the onions are clear and soft, about 5 minutes or so. Stir in the rice, chicken broth, salsa, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper (optional). Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium low and partially cover. Cook another 25-30 minutes until tender and all the liquid is absorbed. Remove from the heat, fluff with a fork, and serve!

Serves six.

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