Butterfinger Cake

Butterfinger Cake aka Better Than Sex Cake (HA!)

MOIST, melts in your mouth, DELICIOUS, easy, crowd pleaser...I could go on and on.

Anytime I bring this to a potluck or get together, it disappears immediately.

Ingredients:

German Chocolate Cake Mix (I've used other chocolate varieties and they taste just as good)

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 jar of caramel topping

1 tub of cool whip

4 butterfinger candy bars (crushed)

Directions:

Bake cake as directed. I usually bake it in a rectangle glass baking dish then transfer it to a larger container *while still warm.*

Poke holes in cake with fork or skewer. Pour sweetened condensed milk and caramel topping all over.

This is what makes the cake super moist. Let it soak into the cake--it will absorb it like a sponge.

Then spread Cool Whip topping all over the cake.

Crush butterfinger candy bars and sprinkle all over the cake. I put the candy bars in a baggie and use a hammer to crush them.
*Tip: I have also used Heath Bar chips (found them next to the chocolate chips in the baking aisle) and it was super yummy!

Source: family cookbook

Link up: Designs by Gollum

Oreo Cupcakes

I decided to make my adorable son oreo cupcakes for his birthday. Take a look at this:

Easy peasy!

Ingredients:

White Cake Mix

Cream Cheese Frosting (big can or two small)

1 package of oreos

Directions:

Twist apart the oreos and put them in the bottom of the cupcake liner. Put the tops to them in a separate container.

Mix the cake mix together. Then stir in the oreo tops. *Note: don't crush them. Bigger chunks work best.
Bake as instructed on cake mix box.

Put the cream cheese frosting in a ziploc bag and mix together the rest of the oreos. This is when you want to use the crushed oreos. Cut out a small corner of the bag and squeeze onto your cupcakes.
Yum! Then garnish with 1/2 of an oreo on top to complete the look.
Next time I'll probably try a French Vanilla cake mix. Still very good! Kid approved!

Linking up!

Chicken Lime Avocado Tortilla Soup

Oh my heavens!

This is absolutely DELICIOUS!!!

Ingredients:
8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced (I used minced garlic)
4 fresh jalapeno peppers, sliced (or diced green chiles to cut the spice down)
8 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into thin strips (rotisserie chicken works, too)
1 quart chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 tomato, seeded and diced
salt and pepper to taste
1 avocado - peeled, pitted and diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro


Directions:
1.In a large saucepan over medium heat, put all ingredients together and simmer for 20 minutes until hot.

2.Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle with tortilla strips to serve.

My notes: I bought the lime tortilla chips to go with this and it's awesome. The 1st time I made this, I made the mistake of not using fresh lime juice and I couldn't really taste the lime. Very disappointing! I highly recommend squeezing fresh limes in it and also on top before you serve it. :) It makes all the difference in the world. I also sprinkle cilantro on top, too. I love love LOVE all things avocado so I used TWO last time and it was amazing! I also snuck in some carrots just because I could. :) Could be served with or without long grain rice.

This recipe is adapted from HERE! I just simplified it to our tastes.

Linking up: 33 shades of green, Blessed with Grace, Dr. Laura , Real Sustenance, Designs by Gollum

Easy Pumpkin Muffins

or maybe I should re-name this recipe "3 ingredient pumpkin muffins"...it really can't get easier than this!

Ingredients:
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

*note: I also added a small box of raisins and sub'd all those spices for pumpkin spice*

Directions:
1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin pan or line with paper liners.
2.In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves until smooth. Spoon equal amounts of batter into the prepared muffin cups.
3.Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean.

No eggs and no oil--no, that's not a typo either! Trust me, they come out perfect! They are dense and pretty much just melt in your mouth.

Next time, I will try a spice cake mix and I'll use golden raisins. We all really loved the raisins in them so I'm glad I threw them in!

Original recipe is found HERE!

Cherry Limeade

Cherry Limeade Recipe

1 can frozen limeade concentrate

1 bottle Sprite

1 jar of maraschino cherries

1 lime

Put in the limeade and then add the sprite. Pour in the juice from the cherries. Then add the cherries and sliced up lime for looks and taste.

My notes: I doubled this recipe for my daughter's birthday tea party. Some even said it was better than Sonic's!

I found the recipe HERE

Photo credit: Nick Bumgardner

Linking up: A Southern Fairytale & Mom's Crazy Cooking, Designs by Gollum

Crock pot Chicken & Dumplings

Crock pot Chicken & Dumplings --very easy!!!

Doesn't this look delicious? This lovely Fall-like weather has inspired me to post one of my family's FAVORITE dishes.

Ingredients:

2 or 3 boneless chicken breasts or 6 boneless chicken tenderloins, frozen OR thawed (it doesn't matter)
1 chopped onion
can of cream of chicken
can of cream of celery
a few shakes of poultry seasoning
a few shakes of thyme
a can of refrigerated biscuits

(fill soup cans with water or add a can of chicken broth)

Add everything to crock pot except for biscuits. Cook on high for 5-6 hours. When you have an hour left, tear up the biscuits and push them down into the mixture. They'll cook but still be a little gooey like dumplings.
My notes: The original recipe called for 2 cans of biscuits but I just use one and cut them up into tiny pieces. This way I feel like I'm getting more dumplings without the extra calories. :)

I use fat-free soups, so besides the biscuits, it's really not that bad for you. Also, I sometimes only let the biscuits cook for 20-30 min --b/c we are in such a hurry to eat. I know it says to cook for 5-6 hours on high but obviously that doesn't work for me (full-time working momma)! So, I cook it on low all day long then crank it up to high when I put the biscuits in. I usually forgo the seasoning and just do a few shakes of Italian seasoning and add a little chicken broth. You really can't screw it up. No matter how I make it, it always taste the same lol.

The kids gobble this one up and they frequently request this one, too! Speaking of the kids, this is one of those recipes I can sneak vegetables in without hearing any complaining. I typically add carrots and mushrooms. YUM!

I would give credit to where I found this awesome recipe but, honestly, I've been making this for so many years that I have no idea where the recipe came from. I've also tweaked it so many times to our liking, I'm not sure how similar it is to the original anyways. :)

Linking up to Tasty Tuesdays and Dr. Laura's Tasty Tuesdays. Blessed with Grace, Balancing Beauty & Bedlam and A Stroll Thru Life, Fudge Ripple, These Creative Juices, All the Small Stuff

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

I recently made this for a friend and she requested the recipe. I figured that I might as well post it here! I'm kicking myself for not taking a picture of the finished cake because it's so pretty. :)

Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

Ingredients:
1 pkg dark chocolate cake mix
1 pkg instant chocolate pudding mix
1 16 oz sour cream
3 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preaheat oven to 350. Grease a bundt pan. Mix together ingredients and pour in pan. Bake for one hour and then cool. Top with powdered sugar!

Gotta give credit where it's due: I found the recipe HERE.