Indoor S'mores

This post is sponsored by Nestlé® Toll House® Morsels, the perfect special ingredient for all of your family’s favorite treats!

 



Indoor S'mores are a no-bake, graham, chocolate, and marshmallow combination that is super easy to make.  These classic flavors never get old and it is always fun to find new ways to enjoy the taste of s'more.  These bars are similar to a rice krispie treat, only using graham squares cereal , and chocolate is melted with the marshmallow mixture.  They take about 10 minutes to melt and mix together and then about an hour in the refrigerator to set the chocolate.  

I found the recipe years ago on the back of a Nestlé® Toll House®Morsels bag, but had not had an opportunity to make them. Fortunately, as part of the DailyBuzz Food Tastemaker program with Nestlé® Toll House®Morsels, I received a baking kit and coupon for free Nestlé® Toll House®Morsels and was invited to spend the afternoon baking with my favorite little man. It just so happens that Adam is very interested in all that goes on in the kitchen these days. He was more than excited to help!

This was the perfect recipe to get Adam involved in the kitchen. He served as chief ingredient pour-er and chief mixer (before melting, of course), and may have done some on-the-job sampling. He took his jobs very seriously and took great pride in his work. It was fun to have a little baking buddy, and fun to have an excuse to make these Indoor S'mores! 

Fontina and Mascarpone Baked Pasta

Every time I make Baked Tortellini with Spinach, I am left with 6 ounces of fontina cheese.  While I would happily make it 3 more times, I have also had this Fontina and Mascarpone Baked Pasta dish on my list of things to make for some time now.   The first time I made this dish without mushrooms, and it was good, but I felt it needed something more.  It needed mushrooms.  Mushrooms are not typically my go-to for anything, but it really cried out for something earthy and meaty.  Sauteed in a little garlic, the mushrooms were the perfect addition to this dish.  I used some Parmesan cheese for some of the fontina in the original recipe to give the recipe a little more bite.  Topped with buttery, garlic breadcrumbs, Fontina and Mascarpone Baked Pasta is a delicious and sophisticated twist on macaroni and cheese ~ perfect for company or Sunday dinner comfort food. 

Looking to use up the leftover mascarpone cheese?  Try Porcini Mushroom and Spinach Risotto with Mascarpone

Pumpkin Banana Muffins

Pumpkin Banana Muffins put a Fall twist on banana bread with the perfect balance of pumpkin and banana.  They are made partly with whole wheat flour, bumping the nutrition value.  The pumpkin and banana make for a moist muffin, so not a lot of oil is needed.  I typically make these as a combination of mini muffins (24) and standard muffins (3) and freeze half of the mini muffins.

So last week was Adam's first day of preschool. I decided to make Pumpkin Banana Muffins as a special surprise after school. Pumpkin Banana Muffins are his favorite muffin of all time, so I knew they would be a hit.  He loved school and was welcomed home with his favorite treat.  It is safe to say, he had the best day!

ETA 10/19/12:  I have made these several times since posting and have experiemented with different flours, since white whole wheat flour isn't an ingredient I always have on hand.  All whole wheat pastry flour works really well, and the recipe has been updated below accordingly.

Easy Meatless Manicotti

I don't know about you, but I am very excited for Fall.  It is my favorite time of year for cooking and baking, plus I love the cooler temperatures.  Even though the season has not technically changed, Labor Day is kind of an unofficial kick off to the Fall season.  At least that's what I'm telling myself.  I have already made a pumpkin pie, pumpkin pancakes, chili and cornbread, beef stew, and a few other Fall-inspired goodies to be posted soon.  (Ok, confession...I may have done some of this before Labor Day). 

In any case, this Easy Meatless Manicotti is one of my favorite dishes and is a perfect comfort food for the cooler temperatures.  There are a couple time-saving steps in this recipe to help make it "easy."   First, no boiling of the noodles is required.  Not having to boil the nooldes is not only a time-saver, but filling firm shells is a whole lot easier than flimsy cooked shells.  This recipe also uses a jarred pasta sauce, though if you want to make your own, go for it!  The filling is very flexible - I've used cottage cheese or ricotta, and either works fine.  I have used frozen broccoli in place of the spinach; I have added onions, shredded zucchini, whatever extra vegetables that needs to be used up.  Leftovers heat up beautifully, which make for great lunches or quick dinners.  Easy Meatless Manicotti is healthy and delicious and a regular in our dinner rotation.