Malted Milk Ball Cupcakes

24 cupcake liners
1 package (18.25 oz) plain yellow cake mix
1 box (3.8 oz) instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup milk chocolate chips
Malted Milk Buttercream (see recipe below)
40 malted milk balls, coarsely crushed, for garnish

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350. Line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners. Set the pans aside.

Place cake mix, pudding mix, sour cream, oil, water, sugar, eggs and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Blend with mixer on low speed for 30 seconds until the ingredients are well blended, then stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes more, scraping down the sides again if needed. The batter should look smooth and thickened. Fold in the chocolate chips, making sure they are well distributed throughout the batter. Spoon or scoop 1/3 cup batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it three quarters of the way full. (You will get between 22-24 cupcakes; remove the empty liners, if any.) Place the pans in the oven.

Bake the cupcakes until they spring back when lightly pressed with your finger, 18-20 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edges of the cupcake liners. Lift the cupcakes from the bottoms of the cups using the end of a knife, and pick them out of the cups carefully with your fingertips. Place them on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes before frosting.

Meanwhile, prepare the Malted Milk Buttercream. Place a heaping tablespoon of frosting on each cupcake and swirl to spread it out with a short metal spatula or a spoon, taking care to cover the tops completely. Garnish with crushed malted milk balls.

Malted Milk Buttercream

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
3-1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
5 tablespoons malted milk powder (the author of Sweetnicks used chocolate syrup instead)
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed until fluffy, 30 seconds. Stop the machine and add the confectioner’s sugar, malted milk powder, milk and vanilla. Blend with the mixer on low speed until the sugar is incorporated, 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, 1 minute more.

Perfect Lemon Cupcakes

Cake:
1 package lemon cake mix
1 cup sour cream
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup oil
4 eggs
1 small package lemon instant pudding

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients. Mix with electric mixer on medium speed for about two minutes. For cupcakes, bake them at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes (I was able to get 24 very full cupcakes from the recipe).

Lemon Buttercream Frosting:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, very soft
6 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of sugar, then the juice and the zest. Beat until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, until icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency. Use and store at room temperature. (Don’t refrigerate and it will last in a covered container for about three days.)

Rice a Roni Chicken Salad

2 boxes of Rice a Roni fried rice, cooked according to package and cooled
1-2 Tbsp. butter
1 pound mushrooms, sliced
4 chicken breast, cooked and diced
1 cup celery, diced
1 cup green onion, diced
1 cup mayonnaise
While you are coking the Rice a Roni, saute mushroom slice in butter until tender. Allow to cool along with the Rice a Roni.
In a large bowl, combine Rice a Roni, sauteed mushrooms, and remaining ingredients. Stir until well combined. (I like to put mine in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before serving but isn’t necessary.) Makes 6-8 servings.

Oyster Crackers

* 1/2 cup vegetable oil
* 1 (1 ounce) package dry Ranch-style dressing mix
* 1 teaspoon dried dill weed
* 1 (12 ounce) package oyster crackers



Pour crackers into a bowl (preferably one that has a lid) Dump the packet of Ranch, dill and oil on top of crackers. Put lid on bowl and shake well until everything is mixed well, Let sit for at least 2 hours. Enjoy!

Ginger Ale Meatballs

40 frozen, fully cooked meatballs (I used turkey ones)
2 cups ginger ale
2 cups ketchup
1 teaspoon minced garlic

Place frozen meatballs in a 3- to 4-quart slow cooker prepared with nonstick cooking spray. In a bowl, combine ginger ale, ketchup, and garlic. Pour mixture over meatballs. Cover and cook on low heat for 6-8 hours or on high heat for 3 hours. Serve with toothpicks as an appetizer, on hoagie buns, or over hot cooked noodles.

Perfect, Simple Chili

Adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks by Ree Drummond.

Ingredients

2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon ground oregano
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 pounds ground beef (i used turkey, as usual)
One 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup masa (corn flour, found in the Mexican section of many supermarkets)

Optional Ingredients

1 can pinto beans, drained
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 jalapeño, seeded and finely diced
1 can diced tomatoes and chilis
(i didn't use any of these)

For Serving

Shredded cheddar cheese
Chopped green onion
Fritos


* Place the ground beef (or turkey) in a large pot and throw in the garlic.

* Cook the until brown.

* Unless you want to tick off your cardiologist, drain off the excess fat.

* Pour in the tomato sauce, followed by the spices and the salt.

* Stir together well, cover, and reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. If the mixture becomes overly dry, add in 1/2 cup water at a time as needed.

* After an hour, place the masa in a small bowl. Add 1 cup of water and stir together with a fork.

* Dump the masa mixture into the chili and stir together well. Taste, adjust the seasonings, and add more masa paste and/or water to get the chili to your preferred consistency, or add more corn flavor. Add the beans, jalapeño, and tomatoes if desired. Simmer for 10 minutes.

* Serve with shredded cheddar, chopped green onions, sour cream, and Fritos.

Ramen Noodle Salad

Dressing Ingredients:
* 2/3 cups oil
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1/4 cup vinegar
* seasoning packets from ramen noodles

Salad Ingredients:
* 1 pkg. cole slaw mix
* 1 bunches of green onions (chopped)
* 1 cup sunflower seeds
* 2 pkg. chicken ramen noodles (broken up)

Mix dressing ingredients. I mix them in the blender, makes it much easier. Mix salad ingredients. Add dressing and toss. Let stand for a few hours to overnight in the refrigerator.