J.'s Carmelitas

from Jill

There are several recipes of this floating out there. But I think mine is the best! I kind of combined all the recipes I've found and made it.

Hope you enjoy. They're great because you usually have almost all of these ingredients on hand.
Crust and Topping
1 1/2 cups quick oats
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
3/4 tsp soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp vanilla
1 cup butter, softened but not melted

Filling:
1/2 to 1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (depending on if you want it more caramel-ish or more half caramel/half chocolate)--I like them more caramel-ish :)
1 (14oz) bag of Kraft Caramels (about 40 caramels), unwrapped
1 small (5 oz) can of evaporated milk

In very large bowl, mix quick oats, flour, brown sugar, soda, and salt. Add butter and vanilla. Mix with hands until butter is mixed into the flour/oat mixture.
Press just a tiny bit over half of the mixture into a 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium-large bowl, melt all caramels and evaporated milk at 1 minute increments in the microwave, stirring after each until caramels are smooth.

Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the crust immediately after it comes out of the oven. Spread caramel over the chocolate chips. Keeping the topping in chunks, place the remaining topping over the caramel. Bake for an additional 20-30 minutes. Careful not to overcook. You want the tops of the chunks to be just slightly golden brown. Remove and let cool completely.

This is delicious with a scoop of ice cream on top.

Note: If desired you could put your choice of chopped nuts in the layers as well. I kind of like it without even though I LOVE nuts. It's plenty rich without anything extra.

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Veggie Pizza

from Rachel B.
Inspired by Papa Murphy’s Gourmet vegetarian pizza.

Ingredients:
Pizza Dough – I usually make pizza the day I make bread. I only have four loaf pans so I just put the remaining dough in a ziplock and let it rise in the fridge until dinnertime.

Alfredo Sauce
Minced Garlic to taste
Cheese
Spinach Chopped
Zucchini Sliced
¼ Red Onion Chopped
Green Onions Chopped
Tomatoes diced
Artichoke hearts – chopped
Any other veggies your family likes
More Cheese on top

Directions:
Roll out pizza dough. Mix minced garlic into Alfredo sauce. Spread on dough. Sprinkle Cheese and chopped veggies in the order listed above. Bake @ 425* for 16-18 min. Enjoy!

Number of Servings: 3-4
Preparation Time: 10 minutes to assemble if dough is premade

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Whole Wheat Bread

from Rachel B.

Description: I love this recipe because it’s delicious and it uses basic ingredients that I always have on hand. Also – the consistency is fabulous and not your regular whole wheat crumble. I use a Bosch mixer to make my bread, but it can be done by hand as well, just make sure you knead it enough. Also – not all wheat is created equal, if you find your bread is still crumbly after kneading it properly, try using a dough enhancer or 2 cups of white flour to each batch, and then upgrade your wheat purchase. I use Hard White Wheat from the Blue Chip Group and my bread turns out beautiful.

Ingredients:
6 C warm water
2 Tbs Yeast
½ c sugar (or 2/3 c honey)
4-5 C flour
2 Tbs salt
2/3 C oil
More flour

Directions:
Combine first 3 ingredients and let sit for 5 min while yeast becomes active.
Add the next 3 ingredients and mix for 5 min. Set your timer. (This is the part where the gluten is formed. It is a critical step and must not be skipped. The dough should be a silky consistency.)

After 5 min. is up. Add just enough flour to clean the sides of the bowl. Then mix for 8 minutes.

Let rise until double. (About an hour) Form loaves.

Let rise 25-30 min. Bake @ 350 for 25 min.

Number Of Servings: 5 delicious loaves

Preparation Time: About 20 minutes to mix

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Artichoke Pasta

from Rachel B.
I got this one from my sister. It’s one of our favorites!

Description:Low fat, great flavor.

Ingredients:
2 jars (6oz each) Marinated Artichoke Hearts
2 C chopped onions
2 T minced garlic
1/2 tsp dried oregano- or 1/2 T fresh
1/2 tsp dried basil - or 1/2 T fresh
2 cans (14 oz) diced tomatoes
1/4 C chopped fresh parsley
1/4 C parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:
Drain artichoke marinade and save. Combine marinade with onions, garlic, oregano, basil. Saute over med/low heat until onions are garlic are soft and translucent. Add tomatoes and simmer 30 min. Add artichoke heart (I chop mine small so that kids don't question), parmesan and parsley. Stir 5 and simmer 5 min.Toss with one pound of cooked pasta (fettuccine, angel hair, cheese tortellini.)

Serve with steamed veggies and a tossed salad.

Number Of Servings:6-8
Preparation Time:40 min

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Burrito-ized Mexi Rolls

From Heidi's Brain! :)
This was inspired by J.'s creation... the Mexi-Rolls.1 lb hamburger, cooked and drained
Taco Seasoning to taste
1 pkg Spanish Rice cooked (I use the Lipton/Knorr packets -they're around $1 or less), works best cold
1/2 can of refried beans (regular or black) -use as much or little as you like
grated cheese
Tortillas (I used Burrito Style)
green enchilada sauce (or whichever sauce you prefer)

Directions:
Mix the hamburger and the beans together. Make sure your tortillas are warm enough to fold easily without tearing. Put a medium portion (depending on how full you like your burrito) of meat mixture then some grated cheese and about 3 tablespoons of the rice. Fold in 2 of the "sides" of the tortilla and fold in the other sides and fold it like a burrito.

Place crease down in 9x13 pan and cook in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes depending on how crunchy you like your burrito. Be sure to flip them over half way through so they get cooked evenly on both sides.

**If you like the enchilada sauce then pour it over just before the end so that it is warm then dish it up and serve it with some sour cream and your remaining rice.
**I filled my tortillas kind of generously so I ended up with 6 burritos and also had half of the rice left over as a side to the dish.
**Another option is to roll the tortillas like enchiladas and pour the sauce over it and cook it that way.
Lo-Fat/Lo-Cal Tip:
Replace the hamburger with ground turkey and exchange the beans for fat free refried beans. Or use whole wheat tortillas instead.

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