Snickerdoddle Cupcakes Topped with a Cookie

Here is a recipe re-do. A Snickerdoodle Cupcake topped with a Snickerdoodle Cookie. I have been making these cupcakes for over a year now and everyone loves them. It's the most requested dessert at my parties and this time I saw this great twist on Bakerella with adding a cookie on top and I couldn't resist.

Just in case you missed these recipes previously posted on my blog, here there are again! This is a MUST make cupcake for your next gathering. ENJOY!

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

originally found over at Your HomeBased Mom

3 cups cake flour (we use any flour we have on hand)

1-1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3 sticks butter, softened,

2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1-1/4 c buttermilk

cinnamon sugar: 1 tbsp sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon

Oven preheat to 350 degrees. Sift together dry ingredients (except for cinnamon sugar, set aside). With paddle attachment cream butter and sugar until fluffy, about 2 -3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk beginning and ending with flour. Fill cupcake pans 2/3 full. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake for 20 minutes. Cool in pan for 5 minutes and remove.

Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

adapted from Magnolia Bakery Cookbook in New York City

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

6-1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup milk
2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 tsp cinnamon

Place butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of the powdered sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On medium speed in an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, about 3-5 minutes. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the icing is thick enough. If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly.

Makes approx 32 regular cupcakes.

Snickerdoodle Cookies

from my sister-in-law Michelle

1 cup butter
1-1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2-3/4 cup flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Mix together: 2 tbsp sugar and 2 tsp cinnamon; set aside.

Cream together butter, sugar and eggs in electric mixer. Mix all the dry ingredients together and then add to the wet a little bit at a time and mix well. Chill in refrigerator for 2 or more hours (we usually chill overnight).

Roll into 1" balls then roll into the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Flatten with a fork and Bake at 375 for 12 minutes. DO NOT OVERBAKE.

Stuffed Burgers

Here is a quick and easy dinner. Hamburgers are good anytime of year, especially in California. We don't only grill hamburgers in the summer time, if it's cold outside these can be easily cooked in a skillet too. Although my love of cooking is more recent and my blog is only a year old, I have been cutting and collecting recipes for years and years. I use to cut them and stick them into a pull-and-stick scrapbook (how old is that?).

Check out this add/coupon I cut out with this recipe. Yep, it's dated 1995. The funny thing is that I keep it all these years, from house to house, filing system to filing system, to my now current way of storing recipes in a large filing box it made it's way to there and now has finally be made. Lipton Onion Soup mix still a staple in our house and works in so many different ways.

Stuffed Burgers

Lipton Onion Soup Advertisement, 1995

1 pkg Lipton Onion Soup Mix

1-1/2 lbs ground beef

3 oz Mozzarella Cheese, cubed

Mix Lipton Onion soup mix with ground beef until well combined. Divide the meat into 4 to 6 sections to make patties. Place 1 cheese cube into the center and fold over to form into the shape of a patty around the cheese. Grill or cook in a skillet stove top and serve with your favorite hamburger buns and fixin's.

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS #57 (FRENCH TOAST, PANCAKES & WAFFLES) and Cinnamon French Toast Bake

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS Linky Party

FRENCH TOAST, PANCAKES & WAFFLES

Cinnamon French Toast Bake

It's National French Toast Day, today! Yep, let's all eat a delicious breakfast today smothered in our favorite toppings. Ours is just plain old maple syrup and powdered sugar. I made this French Toast Bake for the first time a few years ago on Christmas morning. It was so easy to put together, no standing over the stove cooking a big breakfast on such a busy day. It baked while we opened gifts and when the timer went off, we all dug in. EASY! This time I made in before school and my kids were so happy to have a special treat instead of just cereal. It's quick and easy to put together and you can be busy doing other things while it's cooking.

Cinnamon French Toast Bake

from Pillsbury

1/4 cup butter, melted
2 cans Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls with Icing
6 eggs
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tsp vanilla
 2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup chopped Pecans
1 cup maple syrup

Icing from Cinnamon Rolls
Powdered Sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup

Heat oven to 375. Pour Melted butter into ungreased 13x9 glass baking dish. Separate both cans of dough; set icing aside. Cut each cinnamon roll into 6 pieces; place pieces into the melted butter dish.

In medium bowl, beat eggs. Beat in cream, vanilla and cinnamon until well blended; gently pour over roll pieces. Sprinkle with pecans; drizzle with 1 cup of syrup over the top. Bake 20 to 28 minutes or until golden brown and finished. Cool 15 minutes.

After your dish has cooled, slightly microwave icing for 10 seconds. Drizzle icing over top, sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with additional maple syrup if desired.

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This Week's Cravings Upcoming Linky "THEMES"

Here is a complete list of the past and what's coming up next on THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS!

December 5 - Christmas Baking: Sweets, Treats, Candy & Gift Ideas

December 12 - Macaroni and Cheese

December 19 - Christmas Dinner & Holiday Food Traditions

December 26 - Appetizers & Party Platters

If you are new here browse around some past weeks at THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS and you'll see why we are having so much fun and we invite you to link up too. Your hostess for this party are: Tina from MOMS CRAZY COOKING, Kristen from From My Tiny Kitchen, Angela from Big Bear's Wife, Nicole from The Daily Dish and Kristi from Veggie Converter. We host this theme linky party every Monday (and the party stays open all week long)! We hope to inspire you to make something with our theme or get an old post notice by linking it up to the linky party below.

If you are a regular, link-up we're excited to see what you made this week. Just follow our simple rules, so that everyone can enjoy the linky party! If you forget to follow the theme, your post will be deleted. Please don't feel hurt, just come back and link up a recipe that follows the theme. Thanks a million, we look forward to blogging with you!

The LINKY PARTY is opened ALL Week!

PLEASE do not link more then 3 recipes per week.
This week's theme is: FRENCH TOAST, PANCAKES & WAFFLES
Please only link recipes with our theme!

This week's theme is: FRENCH TOAST, PANCAKES & WAFFLES
Please only link recipes with our theme!

Cranberry-Turkey Quesadillas

Got Left-Overs? I hope so! I have a few recipes to share with you, so let's hope you saved some something from that amazing feast you had yesterday. If not, maybe the grocery store has some "cheap" Turkey's. I know I bought two extra ones and they are just waiting in my freezer and I only paid $10 bucks for! And you can bet I will be making them SOON! Fresh Turkey meat is way better than any lunch meat I have ever bought. I wouldn't be surprised if I add at least one or two more Turkey's in my freezer before this month is over.

This FUN quesadilla has been made everyday last year. After I made the Apple & Butter Turkey (a week early for my blog), I shared this recipe with my daughter and she has had it everyday since then. She LOVES it. I am sure there will be many more this coming week.

Cranberry-Turkey Quesadillas
adapted from Pillsbury Recipe Magazine - December 2005 

(makes one quesadilla)

1 flour tortillas
1/4 cup shredded cheese (use your favorite kind)
1/4 cup shredded Turkey meat (left-over fresh turkey works best)
2 tbsp cranberry sauce (we use our fresh recipe)
1 tbsp butter
2 tsp chopped fresh parsley

Heat a skillet on the stove top with butter. Spread cranberry sauce on entire tortilla. Sprinkle shredded turkey, shredded cheese and parsley on half of the tortilla. Fold over and put into the skillet. Heat on both sides until tortilla becomes crispy and cheese is melted. Cut into wedges and Serve.

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Muffins

I think this is my new favorite muffin, Pumpkin & White Chocolate, YUM! We have been making our Magic Sweet Potato Muffins for over a year now, it's one of the few things that I make over and over again! If you still have some left-over Sweet Potatoes then that recipe is a MUST MAKE!!! But today, I have a NEW favorite muffin (now that I had a ton of Fresh Puree' Pumpkin in my freezer), I am sure there will be plenty of these Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Muffins in my near future.

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Muffins
adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody

1/2 cup of pecans
1-2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup fresh pumpkin puree
4 oz unsalted butter, melted
6 oz white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, spices, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside. In another bowl, mix together the eggs, pumpkin, and unsalted butter. Add in the chocolate chips and nuts. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and mix until the dry ingredients are moistened. Do not over mix.
Pour batter into paper lined muffin cups. Bake for about 20 minutes or until clean toothpick-test.

Makes 12-14 muffins.

Turkey, Cranberry & Brie Pizza

I have been waiting almost a year to make this pizza. I found it over at Delightful Country Cookin' in January of this year. I knew this would be the perfect after Thanksgiving Left-Over meal. She found this pizza over in New Zealand. Kristin says "This is a pizza unlike any you'll have ever tasted before (unless, of course, you live in New Zealand)." This is so true, and a pizza I know I will probably make ever year with my Thanksgiving left-overs.

I changed it up a bit and wanted to use left-over turkey instead of chicken (like she did). I am sure either way it is delicious. I only think of cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving time, I guess that's why I waited until now to make this pizza and with the scrumptious homemade cranberry sauce I made last week and with the left-over Turkey (that I am sure that all of you still have hanging around) you only need to add a little brie and mozzarella and wham, insist Turkey, Cranberry & Brie Pizza. I knew this would be a delicious, and it was. I am so glad I saved this recipe all year.

Turkey, Cranberry & Brie Pizza

adapted from original recipe found at Delightful Country Cookin'

Favorite Pizza Crust (store bought or homemade)

1/2 cup of Cranberry Sauce (we used homemade)

1 to 2 cups of Turkey, shredded

2 to 4 oz of Brie Cheese, diced

1 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

1 tbsp Rosemary

First prepare your pizza crust according to directions. Spread cranberry sauce all over the crust. Shred your left-over turkey and sprinkle on top of the cranberry sauce. Take the diced up the brie and spread evenly and then top that with some mozzarella cheese. Lightly sprinkle  rosemary over the top of the cheese and bake according to your pizza crust's instructions. Simple & Delicious!

Pumpkin Bars: Thanksgiving Feast 2011

It's time for dessert! I hope you have enjoyed the last 7 days of our Thanksgiving Feast. This Thanksgiving Feast was quick an easy, one new recipe for each food group to help give you some new ideas to add to your own Thanksgiving meal. I know most people aren't brave enough to create all new recipes for one meal, but trying one or two new recipes this year would be a great change and maybe you'll find a new favorite. This cake is another one of my husband's family favorites.

Thanksgiving Feast

Turkey with Apples & Butter

Olive Garden Bread Sticks; Copycat Recipe

Pepper Jack Macaroni & Cheese

Crash Hot Potatoes from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Baked Corn Casserole

Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing

Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Pumpkin Bars

Pumpkin Bars

from Grandma Hudgens

2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups of pumpkin (we used our fresh puree' pumpkin)
1 cup vegetable oil

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl (except the sugar). Cream the eggs and sugar together, then add the pumpkin and oil, continue mixing until well combined. Mix the wet and the dry together and then pour into a greased jelly roll. (You must use a jelly roll. This is a deep cookie sheet very large and very thin. approx size 15-1/2 x 10-1/2. The first time I made these I used a 9x13 pan and they did NOT come out right)

Bake at 350 for 25 minutes, use tooth pick to test.

Pumpkin Bar Icing

from Grandma Hudgens

3 oz cream cheese

3/4 stick of butter

1 tsp milk

1 tsp vanilla

1-3/4 cups of powered sugar

Beat all ingredients together and spread on cooled pumpkin bars.

This was another recipe during my one-year of cooking everyday where I tried several other pumpkin bar recipes and this one proved to still be the number one choice for everyone.

Pioneer Woman's Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce: Thanksgiving Feast 2011

Simple and Super Delicious Cranberry Sauce, this is almost as easy as opening a can of that round-looking cranberry thing, that I never even tasted as a kid because it looked too funny. This dish though, I love. The first time I had fresh cranberry sauce, I was like WOW! And this is a perfect side dish to serve with your Turkey dinner this year, use with Turkey left-overs, but can be used so many other times during the year. I will be sharing two left-over recipes in the days after Thanksgiving using this delicious cranberry sauce like a Turkey & Cheese Quesadilla and a Turkey, Brie and Cranberry Pizza.

Thanksgiving Feast

Turkey with Apples & Butter

Olive Garden Bread Sticks; Copycat Recipe

Pepper Jack Macaroni & Cheese

Crash Hot Potatoes from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Baked Corn Casserole

Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing

Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Pumpkin Bars

Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce
from The Pioneer Woman Cooks Web Site

1 bag (12 oz) fresh cranberries
16 oz, Pomegranate Juice
3/4 cups sugar

Combine all ingredients in a medium sauce pan and cook on low heat for 20 minutes, stirring ocationally. Mixture will thicken as it cooks, and will thicken more as it cools. Cool in the refrigerator, before serving.

Oreo Turkey Suckers

Today, I made these CUTE Turkey Suckers with my niece Cheyenne in Klamath Falls, Oregon. I don't get to see her very often so this was a very special treat for her (and for me)!! She had never made anything like this before and she absolutely loved it.

I first saw this recipe on Pinterest, but there wasn't any instructions and no real recipe. I used my imagination and came up with a few of my own creative ideas.

We searched the grocery store for some creative cookies. The original face was suppose to be a mini nutter-butter (but one of my great-nephews is allergic to peanuts, we looked for an alternative and found mini-vanilla wafers) - PERFECT!!! I can't for all the kids to eat these on Thanksgiving.

Oreo Turkey Suckers

originally found on Pinterest, adapted by me

25 Vanilla Oreo Cookies

1/2 to 1 cup white chocolate melts

1 bag Candy Corn (use the brown or the original)

25 mini Vanilla Wafers

Pre-Made Eyes (from a candy store) or White & Dark Chocolate (to make your own)

Red Chocolate, cut or some kind of red candy for part of the beak

25 sucker sticks

Separate all of the Oreo cookies, you can do this carefully by pulling and twisting at the same time. Melt a little bit of the white chocolate at a time, it will continue to harden and you can just re-melt as needed.

Step One: Dip the tip of each Candy Corn and set along the top of the Oreo Cookie. Dip the stick into the chocolate and set on the bottom of the cookie. Then rub a thin layer of chocolate on the dry side of the Oreo and sandwich the cookie back together.

Step Two: Spread a thin layer of white chocolate on the back of the mini vanilla wafers and place on top of the Oreo Cookies.

Step Three: Buy pre-made eyes from a candy store; place a dap of white chocolate on the back and place on top of the vanilla wafer. If you want to make your own eyes use white chocolate and dark chocolate with a tooth pick (make sure to wait until the white chocolate is dry before you add the dark chocolate on top). For the beak use the tip of a candy corn and something red. We used red chocolate and cut it into pieces. Use the white chocolate for both of these to adhere them to the vanilla wafer.

I know Thanksgiving is in 2 days, but if you are up for a fun activity with the kids then GO FOR IT!!! There is still time to make these, or better yet. Buy all the stuff and have the kids make these themselves on Thanksgiving Day. Most of you bakers may even have most of this stuff on hand. I know I do. :-) My niece Cheyenne was so happy helping me make these, she is 12 years old and did so well. I actually had to help make dinner tonight and left her all alone to finish them up and they look beautiful.

We made 30 Oreo Turkey Suckers for our Thanksgiving Feast. There will be 25 people here in Oregon to celebrate Thanksgiving Day and they will all get to enjoy one of this delicious treats.

My mother-in-law had this beautiful dish, that was perfect for our Turkey Suckers! This would work as a beautiful centerpiece for a Thanksgiving table too. ENJOY-ENJOY-ENJOY! I hope you and your family have a beautiful and lovely Thanksgiving Dinner.

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS #56 (THANKSGIVING) and Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing: Thanksgiving Feast 2011

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS Linky Party

THANKSGIVING DINNERS & DESSERTS

Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing

Today is THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS Linky Party and also I am sharing another recipe for my Thanksgiving Feast 2011. I have to say this is the BEST stuffing recipe I have ever eaten. Once in a while I come across those recipes where, THIS IS IT! This is thee recipe. thee one and only recipe I will ever need. I have had a few of those in my life so far and I can honestly say that I don't even try another recipe for that particular item. I like it, my family likes it and my daughter keeps telling me "if it's not broken, don't fix it". They don't understand why I always have to re-make something, make it in a different way, change it up, etc etc. They are always saying what happened to the way you made it last time. So, anyhow, there are some recipes (very few) that I just like the way I like and I don't bother changing them and this my friends, this stuffing recipe, is that recipe.

Thanksgiving Feast

Turkey with Apples & Butter

Olive Garden Bread Sticks; Copycat Recipe

Pepper Jack Macaroni & Cheese

Crash Hot Potatoes from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Baked Corn Casserole

Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing

Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Pumpkin Bars

Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing
from Food Network Magazine (a long time ago)

1 lb sausage roll (we like Jimmy Dean)
1/2 cup butter
6 celery stalks, finely diced
1 medium onions, finely diced
1 (12 oz) package stuffing (Stove Top with Cranberries)
1 cup additional dried cranberries
1 tsp salt
1 to 1-1/2 cans chicken broth (original recipe calls for 2 cans, but I think it's too wet)

Preheat oven to 325. In a large skillet,, crumble and cook sausage until browned. Remove from pan, and in the same skillet melt butter. Saute' celery and onions until softened, about 5 minutes. In large bowl, combine celery, onions, sausage, stuffing, cranberries and salt. Add the broth and stir until well combined. Place into a casserole dish and cover. Bake at 325 for about 1 hour.

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This Week's Cravings Upcoming Linky "THEMES"

Here is a complete list of the past and what's coming up next on THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS!

November 28 - French Toast, Pancakes, Waffles & More

December 5 - Christmas Baking: Sweets, Treats, Candy & Gift Ideas

December 12 - Macaroni and Cheese

December 19 - Christmas Dinner & Holiday Food Traditions

If you are new here browse around some past weeks at THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS and you'll see why we are having so much fun and we invite you to link up too. Your hostess for this party are: Tina from MOMS CRAZY COOKING, Kristen from From My Tiny Kitchen, Angela from Big Bear's Wife, Nicole from The Daily Dish and Kristi from Veggie Converter. We host this theme linky party every Monday (and the party stays open all week long)! We hope to inspire you to make something with our theme or get an old post notice by linking it up to the linky party below.

If you are a regular, link-up we're excited to see what you made this week. Just follow our simple rules, so that everyone can enjoy the linky party! If you forget to follow the theme, your post will be deleted. Please don't feel hurt, just come back and link up a recipe that follows the theme. Thanks a million, we look forward to blogging with you!

The LINKY PARTY is opened ALL Week!

PLEASE do not link more then 3 recipes per week.
This week's theme is: THANKSGIVING DINNER & DESSERT
Please only link recipes with our theme!

This week's theme is: THANKSGIVING
Please only link recipes with our theme!

Baked Corn Casserole: Thanksgiving Feast 2011

This is a family-favorite recipe from my husband's side of the family and everyone loves it. We try when we can to go to Oregon for Thanksgiving, I am so thankful for those memories. My adult nieces are going to be there with their families, my brother-in-law from Washington with my niece and nephew (who I haven't seen in forever). I am a little sad that my husband and girls are not going to be able to make it this year and although I am bummed, I am happy that I am able to take my little guy Justin up there (we haven't been in a few years). It will be a really cool mother-son trip and we are taking the train (Justin is praying for snow). Living in Southern California there is NO snow. About 12 years ago my husband took my step-son on the train and they still talk about it today. I hope my son has those same great memories. I know for sure that this corn casserole will be on the menu for Thanksgiving dinner.

Thanksgiving Feast

Turkey with Apples & Butter

Olive Garden Bread Sticks; Copycat Recipe

Pepper Jack Macaroni & Cheese

Crash Hot Potatoes from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Baked Corn Casserole

Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing

Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Pumpkin Bars

Baked Corn Casserole
from my mother-in-law Charlotte

1 heaping spoon of flour (about 2 tbsp)
3 eggs
1 tbsp sugar
salt & pepper
1 can Cream of Corn
2 cans regular Corn, drained
1 tbsp of butter, melted

Whisk together flour, eggs, sugar, salt and pepper then set aside. Mix together all three cans of corn and butter. Add the egg mixture to the corn mixture and place into an 8x8 baking dish. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes and/or until it starts to bubble in the middle. Serve Hot!

Pioneer Woman's Crash Hot Potatoes: Thanksgiving Feast 2011

Looks like this Thanksgiving Feast is filled with Pioneer Woman recipes. It wasn't planned that way, but it happened and each and every recipe came out perfect. I have been on a quest to cook my way through Pioneer Woman's first cookbook, click here to see what we've made so far.

I wanted to make a different kind of potato and this recipe came up on my Pinterest over and over again. I already found my DREAM potato; White Chocolate Mashed Potatoes which will be my go to mashed potato from here on out. But for this Thanksgiving Feast I choose Crash Hot Potatoes, and this recipe was delicious.

Thanksgiving Feast

Turkey with Apples & Butter

Olive Garden Bread Sticks; Copycat Recipe

Pepper Jack Macaroni & Cheese

Crash Hot Potatoes from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Baked Corn Casserole

Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing

Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Pumpkin Bars

Crash Hot Potatoes
adapted by me, but found on Pioneer Woman's Blog, all the way from Australia

12 whole New Potatoes (or other Small Round Potatoes, we used Red Potatoes)
3 tbsp Olive Oil (I like to use butter and/or both oil & butter)
Kosher Salt To Taste
Black Pepper To Taste
Rosemary (or Other Herbs Of Choice) to taste

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add in as many potatoes as you wish to make and cook them until they are fork-tender.

On a sheet pan, generously drizzle olive oil. Place tender potatoes on the cookie sheet leaving plenty of room between each potato.

With a potato masher, gently press down each potato until it slightly mashes. Brush the tops of each crushed potato generously with more olive oil (or use melted butter for this step). Sprinkle potatoes with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and fresh chopped rosemary (or chives or thyme or whatever herb you have available.)

Bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown

Pepper Jack Macaroni and Cheese: Thanksgiving Feast 2011

I found this recipe way before my blogging days, I was doing a facebook page called "Cooking Everyday for a Year and Sharing My Recipes". That one year adventure lead me to so many new recipes, it was so much fun and it's what ultimately lead me to start this blog. During that time we were on a quest to find a perfect Macaroni & Cheese recipe that my family loved, this however is NOT that recipe (I still have to share our FAVORITE-FAVORITE Macaroni & Cheese recipe made from scratch) This recipe came as just an added bonus  that we found along the way. It's so different and it has an awesome KICK, so make sure you like spicy. If you love Pepper Jack Cheese then this is for you (just FYI the kids usually don't like it much). This can be the adult macaroni & cheese and you may need to make a separate dish for the kiddo's (try this Easy Macaroni & Cheese we served last year for Thanksgiving). And can you believe this cute little "Turkey" pasta I found. We have a World Market that always has unique pasta, but you can sometimes find it in grocery stores and other specialty stores. It's so fun to use!

Thanksgiving Feast

Turkey with Apples & Butter

Olive Garden Bread Sticks; Copycat Recipe

Pepper Jack Macaroni & Cheese

Crash Hot Potatoes from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Baked Corn Casserole

Cranberry & Sausage Stuffing

Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce from Pioneer Woman

Grandma's Pumpkin Bars

Pepper Jack Macaroni & Cheese

recipe source unknown

2 cups elbow macaroni

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

2 cups Pepper Jack Cheese, divided

1 can (12 oz) Evaporated Milk

1/3 tsp black pepper

1/2 cups broken tortilla chips

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a casserole dish. Cook macaroni in a large sauce pan according to package directions; drain. Return pasta to saucepan. Add cheddar cheese, 1-1/2 cups pepper jack cheese, evaporated milk and black pepper. Stir until melted and combined. Pour into baking dish. Combine remaining 1/2 cup pepper jack cheese, tortilla chips and red pepper flakes in a small bowl and sprinkle over top. Cover tightly with foil.

Bake for 20 minutes covered, uncover and bake for additional 10 minutes until lightly browned.