White Chocolate Puppy Chow

A few weeks ago Matt and I hosted a Super Bowl party at our house. Everyone brought finger foods and I of course made the desserts. I had been craving Puppy Chow and was going to make it the old-fashioned way with semi-sweet chocolate chips, but I had leftover Vanilla Flavored Almond Bark from making the White Chocolate-Dipped Oreos, so I thought I’d change it up a bit.

I actually made two batches of Puppy Chow: a regular chocolate version and a white chocolate version, and let me tell you…the white chocolate version blew the doors off the regular version!

I can’t believe you don’t see more recipes out there using white chocolate because it makes the Puppy Chow much sweeter and creamier! This will definitely be my go-to recipe in the future.

Combine the melted white chocolate with peanut butter and chex mix cereal. Toss with powdered sugar in a large bowl or plastic bag.

As was mentioned in my post yesterday, Skippy is one good dog! During the “photo shoot”, he sat there patiently awaiting a little bite.

Not only does Puppy Chow have the name “puppy”, it also contains peanut butter – Skippy’s favorite food of all time. 🙂

I ate waaaay too much of this stuff, but it was well worth it. Enjoy!

White Chocolate Puppy chow

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 5 mins

Total time: 10 mins

Serves: 2-3 dozen

Ingredients

9 cups crispy rice cereal squares
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup white chocolate
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

In a saucepan over low heat, melt the chocolate; add peanut butter and mix until smooth.
Remove from heat, add cereal and stir until coated.
Pour powdered sugar into large plastic bag, add coated cereal and shake until well coated. Store in airtight container.

White Chocolate-Dipped Oreos

Talk about a good dog!! I know everyone says they have the best dog in the world, but does your dog have as much patience as Skippy, our 10-year old chihuahua, pictured above?

I mean, talk about self control! Look at Skippy….just eying the cookies. Waiting patiently for the cookie he will never get. They say chocolate can kill dogs, but if it did, Skippy would not be alive to this day!

Four years ago when I was teaching school, my students gave me a few bags of candy for an upcoming holiday (it was either Christmas, Valentine’s Day, or my birthday…unfortunately I can’t remember). In the clear, cellophane-wrapped bags were Hershey’s Kisses, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and M&Ms…. all chocolate!

Well, I put the candy in my school bag, and when I got home, I placed my school bag where I placed it every day – tucked away in the corner near the kitchen table.

It was a Friday night and Matt and I went out to eat as we always do on Friday nights. When we came home, you’d thought someone had broken in with all the mess that was on the floor! There were silver Hershey’s Kisses wrappers and brown Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup wrappers torn up in a thousand little bitty pieces scattered all across the floor.

DSCN2154 - Version 2 — #tbt This picture is from 2008, before Matt and I were married. Look how young we all look!

And then there was Skippy. His face pled guilty all over! While we were out, he had gone through my school bag, opened the cellophane bag containing all the candy and then proceeded to open and eat nearly 3/4ths of my holiday candy!

Not only was I upset that Skippy ate the good stuff…there were no Reese’s left…. I was also upset that he would die from since “chocolate kills dogs”. Fortunately Skippy survived. 🙂 Not only did he NOT get sick, but he didn’t even have an upset stomach!

If you know Skippy, you’ve heard that he LOVES peanut butter…hence the name “Skippy” peanut butter right? lol. (We adopted him and his name was already Skippy). I think he smelled the peanut butter in the Reese’s and just couldn’t resist….plus he was bored, apparently.

While Skippy is extremely obedient in person, (hence not eating the Oreos in the picture above), he is revengeful behind your back. He will act up when you are not around, so watch out!

Anyways, if you’re a white chocolate and Oreo cookie fan, you’ll love these White Chocolate-Dipped Oreo cookies. I know they sell these pre-dipped at the store, but the homemade version is so much better.

white chocolate dipped Oreos — Melt your white chocolate bark (or vanilla almond bark) in a microwave. Dip 3/4 of the Oreo cookie in the white chocolate and place on parchment paper.

Using whatever you have on-hand, you can decorate with any colored sprinkles while the chocolate is setting up.

I made these for the 2014 Super Bowl party that we hosted and they were a hit. Super simple and super popular. Enjoy!

White Chocolate-Dipped Oreos

Serves: 50 cookies

Ingredients

1 (14.3 oz) package Nabisco Oreo sandwich cookies
1 package Vanilla Flavored Almond Bark (I used Kroger’s brand)
Decorative sprinkles of your choice

Instructions

Melt vanilla flavored almond bark according to package directions. I melted the bark via the microwave.
Dip three-fourths of an Oreo cookie into the bark and place on parchment paper to set and cool. Repeat until you use all Oreo cookies.
While the cookies are setting up, decorate using colored sprinkles of your choice. I used black sprinkles.

White Chocolate Bread Pudding

Here’s an extremely sweet white chocolate bread pudding recipe that you must try if you’re a bread pudding fan! I want to preface, however, with the fact that I did not have my good Canon Rebel camera, so the pictures here are a little dark and blurry. You can blame it on my Blackberry Torch phone camera… by NO means am I an advocate of Blackberries… somehow I’ve been stuck with one for the past five years, which is miserable. I am just dying to get an iPhone!

My husband Matt and I were in Houston a few weeks ago, visiting my cousins and my aunt Jolene. As always, when staying with Jolene, you can expect over-the-top, delicious meals prepared by her and her southern charm. While our taste buds never object to Jolene’s savory and delectable southern comfort food, our waistlines may as it’s hard to stay thin during our visit. 🙂

We ate good over the course of 1 1/2 days! The night we arrived, we devoured pot roast, green beans, mashed potatoes, corn casserole and strawberry pie for dinner. The second day consisted of bacon, sausage & biscuits, and fruit for breakfast; Philly cheesesteak sandwiches from leftover pot roast topped with melted swiss and leftover strawberry pie for lunch; and for dinner – chicken and mushroom spinach crepes with fruit, and white chocolate bread pudding for dessert.

Are you hungry yet?

I hope so, because I wanted to share with you this white chocolate bread pudding recipe we made from the Houston Junior League cookbook, Stop and Smell the Rosemary: Recipe and Traditions to Remember. The recipe was very easy to make, and as I mentioned above, is very sweet!

Enjoy…

Cut bread into thin slices. Bake for 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Heat half-and-half and cream over low heat. Whisk egg mixture into cream. Stir in vanilla. Slowly whisk in melted chocolate.

Line custard cups or baking pan with bread strips.

Pour custard mixture over bread strips. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until inserted comes out clean.

Serve warm with white chocolate sauce or refrigerate and serve later.

Heat cream until frothy, not boiling. Whisk warm cream into melted chocolate until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Serve pudding chilled or warm, with white chocolate sauce.

White Chocolate Bread Pudding

Ingredients

PUDDING:

4 ounces French bread, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch slices

1 1/2 cups half and half

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1 large egg

4 large egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

4 ounces white chocolate, melted

WHITE CHOCOLATE SAUCE:

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

4 ounces white chocolate, melt

– shavings of dark and milk chocolate

Directions

PUDDING:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter six 1/2-cup custard cups (we used a large quart-sized baking pan). Cut bread slices into strips as wide as depth of custard cups. Put bread strips on baking sheet and bake until golden, approximately 10 minutes. Set aside.

2. Heat half-and-half and cream in a medium saucepan over low heat until hot. Do not boil. Beat egg, egg yolks, and sugar in small bowl. Whisk a few tablespoon warm cream into egg mixture. Whisk eggs back into cream. Stir in vanilla. Place melted chocolate into a large bowl and slowly whisk cream mixture into it.

3. Line sides of custard cups with bread strips, breaking strips as necessary to get a neat fit. Strain custard into cups and let bread absorb liquid. Add more custard as needed to fill cups to within 1/2 inch of rim. Place cups in baking pan large enough to hold them with at least 1-inch spacing between each. Fill pan with boiling water to within 1 inch of rims of the custard cups. Bake until set and a tester inserted comes out clean, about 35 to 45 minutes. Check pan after 15 minutes. Add additional boiling water if necessary to maintain water level.

WHITE CHOCOLATE:

1. Heat cream until frothy, but not boiling. Whisk warm cream into melted chocolate until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to use.

2. Pudding may be be served in cups or unmolded. To unmold, cover and chill cups throughly, at least 1 hour. Loosen edges with a knife and invert with White Chocolate Sauce. Garnish with chocolate shavings.

Yield: 6 servings

Recipe from: Stop and Smell the Rosemary: Recipe and Traditions to Remember – A cookbook by the Junior League of Houston, Inc.

Baked Oatmeal with Strawberries, Banana and White Chocolate

I am a huge fan of oatmeal! I eat oats for breakfast every morning, and depending on my mood, I’ll eat it cold or warm. My favorite cold version of oatmeal, perfect for a warm summer morning in Texas, includes swiss oatmeal or overnight chocolatey oats. When I want pipping hot oatmeal, I opt for original baked oatmeal or a sweeter version: baked blueberry oatmeal.

I found this baked oatmeal with strawberries, bananas, and chocolate on one of the newest and most addicting websites, Pinterest. The picture of the breakfast casserole was so divine-looking, and I couldn’t wait until the weekend so I could make this recipe for brunch! There are a few changes I made to the recipe as seen below:

I substituted white chocolate chips for semi-sweet because I am not much of a chocolate fan for breakfast, thus I thought white chocolate would be less intense.
Please use ground cinnamon for your spice. I used Chinese five spice, as the original recipe called for, but would recommend you use ground cinnamon instead. The Chinese five-spice blend was a little over-powering and too “spicy” for me.
I substituted chopped pecans for walnuts. Either is fine…use whatever you have in your pantry.

Overall, I thought this baked oatmeal was very good. I recommend sprinkling brown sugar on top, and returning the casserole to the oven to broil it and create that extra crunch! You can also drizzle maple syrup over the top for an added sweetness, but I didn’t feel it was necessary.

My husband also really liked this. It’s always nice when he enjoys new recipes, especially “girly” and fruit-centered recipes that don’t involve red meat! Haha.

Enjoy!

Combine oats, sugar, baking powder, orange zest, cinnamon, half the strawberries, half the nuts, and half the chocolate chips.

Whisk together the milk, egg, butter, and vanilla extract.

Add the oat mixture to the prepared pan.

Top with remaining strawberries, bananas, and nuts.

Pour the milk mixture over fruit and oat mixture.

Bake for 35-40 minutes in a 375 degree oven.

Sprinkle with brown sugar. Return to oven and broil for 20-30 seconds.

Baked Oatmeal with Strawberries, Banana and White Chocolate
Ingredients
2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. grated orange zest
1 tsp. ground cinnamon (I used Chinese five-spice…as the original recipe called for, but I don’t recommend it)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup pecan or walnut pieces, chopped
1 cup sliced strawberries
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
2 cups milk (I used skim)
1 large egg
3 Tbsp. butter, melted
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 ripe banana, peeled, 1/2-inch slices

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and generously spray the inside of a 10-1/2 by 7-inch baking dish with cooking spray and place on a baking sheet.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, baking powder, orange zest, cinnamon, salt, half the strawberries, half the pecans and half the chocolate. (Save the other half of strawberries, walnuts and chocolate for the top of oatmeal).
3. In another large bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, butter and vanilla extract.
4. Add the oat mixture to prepared baking dish. Arrange the remaining strawberries, nuts and chocolate on top. Add the banana slices to the top then pour the milk mixture over everything. Gently shimmy/shake the baking dish to help the milk mixture go throughout the oats.
5. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until top is nicely golden brown and the milk mixture has set. For an extra tasty top, sprinkle a tablespoon or so of extra brown sugar on top then place back in the oven under the broiler and broil for 20-30 seconds. Serve warm with an extra sprinkle of sugar or drizzle in maple syrup.

Yield: 6 servings
Recipe adapted from: Inspired Taste

White Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here is another cookie recipe for you to try. No, there are not one of my famous “Dream” cookies (with pudding mix), but the recipe does come from the same cookbook, “400 Sensational Cookies” by Linda J. Amendt.

My sister has made these White Chocolate Chip Cookies countless times for her boyfriend up at Oklahoma State University as “post-race” dessert (for those of you who don’t know, her boyfriend, Colby runs cross country and track for OSU). The secret which makes these cookies like none other are the toffee bits and touch of almond extract. The unique flavor is a perfect combination in addition to the decadent white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts. The texture yields a chewy, melt-in-your mouth, buttery and irresistible cookie.

What a perfect treat for a Hawaiian Luau. (Macadamia nuts make me think of Hawaii.) If only we lived in Maui instead of Texas! Enjoy 🙂

White Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 cups chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped roasted unsalted macadamia nuts (or walnuts)
1/3 cup toffee bits

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter shortening, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla and almond extract. Scrape down sides of bowl. On low speed or using a wooden spoon, gradually add flour mixture, beating just until blended. By hand, fold in chocolate and macadamia nuts.
4. Using a cookie scoop or spoons, drop tablespoonfuls (15 mL) of dough about 2 inches (5 cm) apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake one at a time in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges start to turn lightly golden.
5. Immediately slide parchment paper onto a wire cooling rack. Cool cookies for 5 minutes, then transfer from parchment paper to cooling rack and cool completely.

Yield: 3 1/2 dozen
400 Sensational Cookies by Linda J. Amendt

CocoMac Dreams

As you all know, my favorite cookies are Dream cookies. Dream cookies are different than your normal cookie because of the instant pudding mix added, or what I like to call, “the secret ingredient.” I discovered Dream cookies in Linda J. Amendt’s 400 Sensational Cookies cookbook. I’ve tried her Oatmeal Dreams, Chocolate Chip Dreams, Doodle Dreams, Toffee Pecan Dreams, White Chocolate Cranberry Dreams, and Double Chocolate Dreams. Keep reading my blog, and you’re bound to see about 20 more variations of Dream cookies I plan on trying!

The Dreams I made today are called CocoMacs! The coconut, macadamia nuts (I used pecans), and white chocolate make a rich and crunchy combination in these tender cookies. They are the perfect cookie to make in the summertime. All three ingredients make me think of Hawaii! I made these cookies for tonight’s small groups at my church… lucky people, right? Haha! I wonder if I will have any leftovers???

Enjoy!

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, pudding mix, baking soda, powder, and salt. Stir in coconut.

Beat sugars with butter and shortening. Add eggs, then vanilla and almond extracts. On low speed, add flour mixture, beating until just blended. By hand fold in white chocolate chips and nuts.

Drop tablespoonfuls of dough onto prepared cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes.

Slide parchment paper onto wire rack. Cool for 5 minutes then transfer cookies to cooling rack.

Let cool completely.

CocoMac Dreams
Ingredients
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 package (3.4 oz or 102 g) instant vanilla pudding mix
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 1/2 cups chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped roasted unsalted macadamia nuts (I substituted pecans)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, whisk together flour, pudding mix, baking powder, baking soda and salt until well combined. Stir in coconut. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter, shortening, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla and almond extract. Scrape down sides of bowl. On low speed or using a wooden spoon, gradually add flour mixture, beating just until blended. By hand, fold in white chocolate and macadamia nuts.
4. Using a cookie scoop or spoons, drop tablespoonfuls (15 mL) of dough about 2 inches (5 cm) apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake one sheet at a time in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges start to turn lightly golden.
5. Immediately slide parchment paper onto a wire cooling rack. Cool cookies for 5 minutes, then transfer from parchment paper to cooling rack and cool completely.

Yield: 3 1/2 dozen cookies
400 Sensational Cookies by Linda J. Amendt

White Chocolate Cranberry Dreams

Two days in a row of dream cookies! These White Chocolate Cranberry Dreams get their sweetness from the Jell-O French Vanilla instant pudding mix, Godiva white chocolate vanilla bean bar, and sweetened dried cranberries. These are one of my most favorite cookies, and they are perfect for this Christmas season. I made these White Chocolate Cranberry Dreams by altering the Double White Chocolate Dreams recipe in Linda J. Amendt’s “400 Sensational Cookies” cookbook by substituting French Vanilla instant pudding mix for the White Chocolate pudding mix, and using dried cranberries instead of macadamia nuts.

Stay tuned…more dream cookies to come! Enjoy!

Cream butter, shortening, and sugars until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, vanilla, and dry ingredients to batter.

*Godiva white chocolate vanilla bean bar given to me by one of my wonderful students.
Chop white chocolate or prepare 1 1/2 cups of white chocolate chips.

Stir white chocolate and dried cranberries into dough with a wooden spoon.

Drop tablespoonfuls of dough onto parchment-lined cookie sheets.

Bake for 8-10 minutes in a preheated 375 degree F oven, or until edges are lightly golden. Cool cookies for 5 minutes on a wire cooling rack.

Slide cookies off parchment paper and cool completely on wire rack.

Enjoy! Look at that melted Godiva white chocolate!

White Chocolate Cranberry Dreams
(Recipe adapted from the Double White Chocolate Dreams from Linda J. Amendt’s “400 Sensational Cookies” cookbook)

Ingredients
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 package (3.4 oz) instant French Vanilla pudding mix (you can substitute white chocolate or vanilla pudding mix)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chips (I combined both because I did not have enough of the Godiva white chocolate vanilla bean bar).
1 cup dried cranberries

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, whisk together flour, pudding mix, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter, shortening, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Scrape down sides of bowl. On low speed or using a wooden spoon, gradually add flour mixture, beating until just blended. By hand, fold in white chocolate and dried cranberries.
4. Using a cookie scoop or spoons, drop tablespoonfuls (15 mL) of dough about 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets. Bake one sheet at a time in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges start to turn lightly golden.
5. Immediately slide parchment paper onto a wire cooling rack. Cool cookies for 5 minutes, then transfer from parchment paper to cooling rack and cool completely.

Yield: about 3 dozen cookies
Adapted from “400 Sensational Cookies” by Linda J. Amendt