Oatmeal Cookies, Twix Popcorn, Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

I made three new recipes this weekend and both were good. The first is twix caramel popcorn.
This was super easy and tasted great. I added some peanuts in with it.

http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/twix-caramel-popcorn/

5 quarts plain air popped popcorn
1 cup butter
2 cups light brown sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
20 "fun size" Twix candy bars, chopped
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted-to drizzle over popcorn
Directions:


1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Place popcorn in a large bowl and set aside.2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil without stirring for 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda and vanilla extract. Pour caramel in a thin stream over popcorn, stirring to coat. Gently stir until all of the popcorn is covered.3. Place popcorn on two large shallow baking sheets and bake in preheated oven, stirring every 15 minutes, for about an hour. Remove popcorn from oven and let cool completely.4. Break popcorn into pieces and mix in chopped Twix candy bars. Drizzle popcorn with melted chocolate. Let the popcorn sit until chocolate hardens, about 30 minutes. Store at room temperature in an airtight container.   The second was chicago deep dish pizza. I wasn't sure about this after I made it. I did the first step on the dough setting of my bread machine. I put it in a bowl and instead of putting it in the refrigerator I put it in the freezer by accident. But it was really good. I didn't make the sauce just used some jarred spaghetti sauce. I also added sausage under the cheese and put pepperoni on top. I definetely will make this again. http://www.annies-eats.com/2010/01/21/chicago-style-deep-dish-pizza/   The third recipe I tried was the oatmeal cookies from the back in the day cookbook. It was very similar to the recipe that I usually use but instead of using mostly brown sugar it uses mostly white. We think that we prefer our other recipe better, but these were still good.   Oatmeal Golden Raisin & Coconut Cookies Makes 24 cookies The Back in the Day Bakery CookbookThe Back In the Day Bakery Cookbook Ingredients 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp fine sea salt 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1/4 tsp ground allspice (I didn't add) 1/4 tsp ground cloves (I didn't add) 2 sticks of butter, at room temperature (I used 1/2 crisco) 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 2 eggs, at room temperature 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 1/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (I used quick) 1/2 cup shredded coconut (I didn't add)

Directions 1. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat it to 350F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. 2. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves in a bowl and set aside. 3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a wooden spoon, a bowl, and some elbow grease; or in a large mixing bowl, using a handheld mixer), cream together the butter, and both sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy. This takes about 3 to 5 minutes with a stand mixer. Stop the mixer every now and then to scrape down the sides. 4. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until light and fluffy (it will kind of look like a thick cake batter), about 1 to 2 minutes. Stop the mixer every now and then again to scrape down the sides. 5. Turn the speed down to low and add the dry ingredients in thirds, beating until just combined, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stop the mixer every now and then to scrape down the sides. 6. Mix in the oats until just combined, then add the flour mixture in thirds until just combined (no more than 2 minutes). Sprinkle in the raisins and coconut and mix until just combined. Take out bowl from the stand mixer and mix it by hand a couple of times to ensure all of the ingredients have been mixed together. 7. At this point you can chill the dough for 30 minutes, or using a cookie scoop or a 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop out dough and place on the parchment lined baking sheets leaving 1-inch between the cookies to allow for spreading. Lightly tap each cookie with the palm of your hand to flatten a bit. You could also sprinkle on some cane sugar on the tops at this point. 8. Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, for 10-12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time to ensure that they bake evenly. The finished cookie should be golden brown most of the way through. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completelyThe cookies can be stored in a airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature. You can also freeze some of the dough in portioned out balls and bake them at another time .

Cheddar Garlic Biscuits

I made these biscuits last night to go with chicken noodle soup.  They were very good.  They are supposed to be a healthier version of the Red Lobster biscuits. 

Makeover Cheddar Biscuits - from Healthy Cooking Magazine

Ingredients


•1 cup all-purpose flour

•1 cup cake flour

•1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

•3/4 teaspoon salt

•1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, divided

•1/4 teaspoon baking soda

•4 tablespoons cold butter, divided

•1/3 cup finely shredded cheddar cheese

•1 cup buttermilk

•1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

Directions

•In a large bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, salt, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder and baking soda. Cut in 3 tablespoons butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; add cheese. Stir in buttermilk just until moistened.

•Drop by two tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 425 for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Melt remaining butter; stir in parsley and remaining garlic powder. Brush over biscuits. Serve warm. Yield: 15 biscuits.

Apple Pie Oatmeal

I had a breakfast birthday party for my mom.  I make a ton of sweet stuff and thought it was best if I had something healthy, so I tried this recipe.  It was great.  I doubled the recipe and it was done after 2 hours.
I served with pecans and brown sugar on the side.

Apple Oatmeal
1 cup steel cut oats
1 cup apple juice
3 apples diced
3 cups water
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Combine in slow cooker and cook on high for 2 - 4 hours.