Category: Family

Family, Food, Kids

Marshmallow Fudge Brownies

thestlouiscooks

 

Fudge Brownies

Today, Jack Sievers, child #2, was the chef in our kitchen.  He decided he wanted to make desert!  That’s no shocker.  We both pondered a few different recipes based on ingredients we had at home.  We decided to go basic, but something with big and rich flavors.

There’s one thing you will always find in my kitchen – a big box of Ghirardelli Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix from Costco.  In my opinion, it’s the best brownie mix out of a box.  They are rich with big chucks of chocolate.  Jack decided he wanted to top them with marshmallows.  I told him that was a good idea and maybe we could add another topping.  So there you have it – Marshmallow Fudge Brownies!  This is an easy recipe to involve the kids in the kitchen and they will love the end result.

Ingredients:

  • 1 Pan (9×13) Brownies, baked and cooled – we use Ghirardelli Triple Chocolate Brownie MixJack putting on marshmallows
  • 3 Tablespoons of Butter
  • 1/4 Cup of Milk
  • 1 Square Ounce unsweetened Chocolate, chopped
  • 1 (3 ounce) Package of Cream Cheese, cut in cubes
  • 3 1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar
  • 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
  • 2 Cups Miniature Marshmallows

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Let brownies cool completely.Jack making frosting
  2. In large sauce pan, combine, butter, milk, unsweetened chocolate, and cream cheese. Cook over low heat, stirring until well blended. Remove from heat, stir in powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.
  3. Sprinkle marshmallows over brownies and bake for 2-5 minutes until puffed. Remove brownies from oven and immediately pour frosting over marshmallows.  Lightly swirl to a marble with a knife.
  4. Refrigerate for one hour or until firm.

Enjoy!

Jack's Brownies

 

Family, Kids, Life in General

Gingerbread Houses

thestlouiscooks

Gingerbread Houses

Making gingerbread houses is one of our favorite activities over the holidays.  In years past, we’ve made them from scratch.  By that I mean, we used graham crackers for the base of our house, purchased our own icing and candy to decorate.  It wasn’t always an easy task. Well this year was different.  I bought the Wilton Gingerbread House Kits with everything included.  Wow!  I don’t think I will ever go back.  The kits are so easy!  I purchased them at Michaels for $8.99 per kit and used a coupon – not a bad deal at all.  I also purchased some additional candy because we like to include Holiday M&M’s on our houses.

Ingredients:

  • Wilton Gingerbread House Kit
  • Additional Candy of choice (optional)

Directions:

  1. Have fun!

I highly recommend this activity with the kids.  Get a little messy, let the creative juices flow, eat some icing, and have some fun!

DSCF5338

Enjoy!

Family, Food

Crock Pot Potato Soup

thestlouiscooks

Crock Pot Potato Soup

Tis the season for making soup.  We love soup at this house. I’m a huge fan.  I could eat it every day.  For the most part, soup is good for you unless of course you are indulging in a thicker cream style soup.  On this particular day, we had that craving for a yummy, good old-fashioned potato soup.  Not necessarily good for you, but better than eating out any day of the week.

My older kids didn’t remember having this soup before so I described it like eating a baked potato.  You can add all the extra fixings like cheese and bacon too.  There you have it…baked potato soup. They loved it and it’s so easy!

Ingredients:

  • 4 Russet Potatoes, peeled and cut into small pieces
  • 2 Onions, chopped
  • 3 Ribs of Celery, chopped
  • 4 Chicken Bouillon Cubes
  • 1 (10 3/4 oz.) can of Cream of Mushroom Soup
  • 1 (10 3/4 oz. ) can of Cream of Celery Soup
  • 1 Tablespoon dried Parsley flakes
  • 4 cups of Water
  • 1 1/2 Teaspoons of Salt
  • 2 Tablespoons of Margarine or Butter
  • 1 12 oz. can of Evaporated Milk
  • Chopped Chives for garnish
  • Shredded Cheese and Bacon Bits for toppings (optional)

Directions:

  1. Place all ingredients except evaporated milk and chives in a slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours or on Potato Souphigh for 5 hours.
  2. Stir in evaporated milk during the last hour, and cook until the vegetables are tender.
  3. Garnish each serving with chives.  Add toppings of cheese and bacon bits if you prefer.

I highly recommend doubling this recipe if you enjoy left overs.

Enjoy!

Family, Food

Simple Salmon

thestlouiscooks

Simple Salmon

We eat salmon a lot at this house.  Everyone loves it, however we always stick with the same recipe – teriyaki salmon on the grill.  It’s great, but I really wanted to change it up. This time I wanted to bake it.  I wanted some strong flavors to come through so I decided to include some Dijon mustard, a little honey, and some breadcrumbs.  How can you go wrong with that?

The end result was pretty amazing and the family agreed.  This will be another “go to” recipe for salmon at this household.  Plus, it is super simple to prepare.

Simple Salmon

  • Servings: 4-5
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients:

  • 4-5 (4 oz.) Salmon Fillets (we buy Costco salmon, fresh and frozen)
  • 1/4 Cup of Butter, melted (optional)
  • 3 Tablespoons of Dijon Mustard
  • 1 1/2 Cup of Honey
  • 4 Teaspoons of Fresh Parsley, chopped
  • 1/4 Cup of regular bread crumbs and/or Panko bread crumbs
  • 1/2 Cup of homemade bread crumbs using crushed Multi-grain Crackers or any kind of Crackers

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a shallow baking pan with foil.
  2. In a small bowl, stir together the melted butter, Dijon mustard, and honey.  In another bowl, stir together the breadcrumbs and parsley.  For the breadcrumbs, get creative and use what you have a home.  That’s what I did when I put this together.  The homemade crushed breadcrumbs really add a lot of extra flavor and texture.
  3. Brush each salmon fillet with the Dijon mixture.  Then place on the foil lined pan. Sprinkle each fillet with the breadcrumbs.
  4. Bake the salmon for 12-16 minutes in preheated oven. Season with salt and pepper. You can garnish with a lemon wedge if you prefer.

Enjoy!

Family, Food

Pumpkin Spice Cake

thestlouiscooks

Pumpkin Spice Cake

Wow!  The trees are amazing colors of red, yellow, and orange.  It’s sweater and boot weather.  We had another red October and its football season. Yes, that’s right its Fall here in St. Louis and it’s beautiful.  One of the best things about living in the Midwest is the change of seasons.

Nothing goes better with the Fall season than pumpkin although I’m not a fan of pumpkin…at all! However, I must tell you that this was delicious.  It doesn’t taste anything like pumpkin pie. The pumpkin in this cake makes it very moist. It’s a must try during the fall season or better yet, a great desert for Thanksgiving. Pumpkin lover or not, this one is a keeper.

Pumpkin Spice Cake

  • Servings: 10-12
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Print

Ingredients:

  • 3 Cups of Flour
  • 1 Tablespoons of Ground Cinnamon
  • 2 Teaspoons of Pumpkin Pie Spice
  • 2 Teaspoons of Baking Powder
  • 1 Teaspoon of Baking Soda
  • 1 Teaspoon of Salt
  • 1 Cup of Butter, softened
  • 1 Cup of Sugar
  • 3/4 Cup of Brown Sugar, firmly packed
  • 5 Large Eggs
  • 1 Can (15 oz.) Pure Pumpkin
  • 1 1/2 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
  • 3/4 Cup Whipping Cream

Icing

  • 5 Tablespoons of Butter
  • 1/4 Cup of Pure Maple Syrup
  • 1/4 Cup of Whipping Cream
  • 2 Cups of Powdered Sugar

**Optional – Candied Pecans to Top

Directions:

For the Cake –

  1. In a large bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; Set Pumpkin before icingaside.
  2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugars at medium speed, scraping the bowl often.
  4. Add eggs one at a time beating well in between.
  5. Beat in flour mixture alternating with cream, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
  6. Pour batter into a 12 cup bundt pan that has been lightly coated with Pam.  Bake in the oven for approximately 50 minutes or until a wooden tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  7. Cool in pan for 10-15 minutes.  Invert cake onto a wire rack to fully cool.

For the Icing –

  1. In a small saucepan, combine butter, maple syrup, and cream over medium-high heat; bring to a boil.
  2. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat.
  3. Slowly whisk in powdered sugar until smooth. Let cool until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.
  4. Drizzle over cooled cake. Optional – Sprinkle with candied pecans.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Spice Cake 5