Double Chocolate Swirl Bread

This is a Pampered Chef recipe that I've never made but have always wanted to. It looks SO good, and I would love to make it around Christmastime. If anyone makes it, please post a comment about how it tastes.

½ cup sliced almonds, chopped
1 cup white chocolate chips, chopped
2 packages (11 ounces each) refrigerated French bread dough
1 egg white
1 TBS. water
¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, grated, divided

Preheat oven to 375°. Lightly spray mini loaf pan (this recipe makes 4 mini loaves). Unroll one package of dough on lightly floured surface. Lightly beat egg white and water in small bowl and brush dough with mixture. Grate half of the semi-sweet chocolate chips over dough. Sprinkle with half of the almonds and white chocolate chips.

Unroll remaining package of dough directly over first dough layer, matching edges and pressing lightly to seal. Brush dough lightly with egg white mixture. Grate remaining semi-sweet chocolate chips over dough. Sprinkle with remaining white chocolate chips and almonds; press lightly.

Starting at narrow edge, roll dough up tightly; pinch edge to seal. Slice roll into four equal portions; place seam side down in pan. Make deep cut down the length of each loaf without cutting through ends. Brush loaves with remaining egg white mixture. Bake 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove from oven; cool 5 minutes. Remove loaves from pan; cool completely. For chocolate drizzle, place ½ cup chocolate chips and 1 tsp. vegetable oil in microwave-safe bowl and microwave uncovered for 30-40 seconds or until chocolate is melted and smooth. Drizzle over loaves and sprinkle with additional almonds or chocolate chips if desired.

Buttermilk Syrup

I got this recipe from a friend named Lana. It would go great with Swedish Pancakes.

1/2 cup butter
1 cup buttermilk
1 TBS. corn syrup
2 cups sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking soda

Add first four ingredients to large saucepan. Bring to a boil; stir for 2 minutes, boiling. Take off heat. Add vanilla and baking soda. Stir down (it will foam up). Let set for a few minutes before serving. Will keep in airtight container in refrigerator up to 2 weeks.

Holiday Jam

This is a simple jam to make to give away with homemade bread--a good holiday gift idea!

1 cup fresh cranberries
10-ounce package frozen strawberries, thawed
2 cups sugar

Put cranberries in blender; cover and chop by turning on and off, on and off, etc. Empty into saucepan; add strawberries and bring to a boil. Add sugar and boil until thickened. (It doesn’t thicken a lot.) Pour into jelly glasses. Jam may be stored in refrigerator for 2 to 4 weeks.

Friendship Cocoa

This is a great gift to make for Christmas. You can find cute containers at the dollar store to put this cocoa mix in. Dip a couple of plastic spoons in chocolate and then sprinkles and attach to the container for a cute gift. This is also a great way to use the powdered milk in your food storage.

1 32-ounce box instant hot chocolate
1 8-quart box instant powdered milk, dry (makes 8 quarts)
1 pound box powdered sugar
6 TBS. cocoa
1 small jar non-dairy creamer
1 small jar specialty creamer

Mix well in large container. Mix ¼ cup mix with 8 ounces hot water.

Swedish Pancakes

I was also introduced to this recipe at the Christmas in July last year at church. It needs to be served with something, like maple syrup. Click here for a great homemade syrup.

2 cups milk
2 TBS. sugar
4 eggs
1 1/3 cup flour
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt butter in 9X13 pan. Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, combine rest of ingredients until well blended. Batter will remain lumpy. Pout into pan (on top of butter) and bake for 35 minutes.

Ham and Broccoli Quiche

I was introduced to quiche at last year's Christmas in July at church. This is my favorite quiche recipe so far.

1 frozen pie crust, thawed
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 TBS. flour
4 oz. cream cheese, cubed
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup coarsely chopped ham
1/4 cup coarsely chopped broccoli
3/4 cup milk
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prick bottom of crust and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and reduce oven to 350 degrees.

Meanwhile, in medium bowl, toss ham, 1/2 cup cheese, and broccoli with flour; spread over bottom of crust.

Place milk and cream cheese in a small, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 1 1/2 minutes, whisking after each 30-second interval until smooth. Add whisked eggs and salt to cheese mixture and whisk until blended. Pour egg mixture evenly over ham mixture in crust.

Bake for 25 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Let stand 5 minutes and serve.

Makes 8 servings.

Easy Bacon

I buy the precooked bacon and microwave it for 45-60 seconds so it will be crisp. I will never fry bacon again--it is way too messy!

Bacon-and-Spinach Quiche

Our family is on a "quiche kick" right now; we eat it about once a week. The first time I made this, my husband ate 5 pieces, so I knew it was a keeper. The vegetable mixture (spinach, onion, and garlic) is actually enough for two quiches (it will overflow if you use all of it), so I actually make what the recipe calls for and freeze half of the vegetable mixture for next time. I also bake the quiche on a cookie sheet in case the egg mixture overflows--it is very full!

1 frozen pie crust, thawed
4 strips bacon, crumbled (I use precooked bacon and microwave for 1 minute so it will be crisp)
1 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 box frozen, chopped spinach (thawed)
3 large eggs
1 cup half-and-half or whole milk (I use skim milk, and it still tastes good)
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
2 cups grated cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prick bottom of crust and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and reduce oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle a handful of cheese on bottom of pie crust so it will melt over holes in crust.

Saute onion over medium heat for about 8 minutes or until clear. Stir in garlic and spinach and cook for 3-5 minutes. Spread cooked vegetables evenly in pie shell and sprinkle half of cheese and all of bacon on top.

Whisk eggs, milk, mustard, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Pour egg mixture over filling and sprinkle on remaining cheese. Bake 30-35 minutes until slightly puffy and golden brown.

Makes 8 servings.

Blueberry Oatmeal Pancakes

This was a delicious Saturday morning treat. The syrup is so easy. This is one of those "power" foods (super healthy) because it has oatmeal and blueberries in it. One pancake with 1 TBS. syrup is 3 Weight Watchers points. This recipe comes from the January/February 2007 simple&delicious magazine, page 43.

2 cups flour
2 packets (1.51 oz. each) instant maple and brown sugar oatmeal mix
2 TBS. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
2 egg whites
1 egg
1 1/2 cups fat-free milk
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Blueberry Syrup:

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup sugar

In large bowl, combine first five ingredients. In another bowl, whisk the egg whites, egg, milk, and sour cream. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in blueberries.

Spoon batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto a hot griddle coated with nonstick cooking spray. Turn when bubbles form on top of pancake; cook until the second side is golden brown.

In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the syrup ingredients. Microwave, uncovered, for 1 minute; stir. Microwave 1-2 minutes more or until hot and bubbly. Serve warm with pancakes. Makes 14 pancakes and 1 1/4 cups syrup.

Cinnamon Chips

I made these chips for a Bunko game. I served them with fruit salsa, but I think these chips are good enough to eat by themselves. They're best right after they've cooled from being in the oven. If you want to crisp them up the next day, just put them in the oven for a couple more minutes. This recipe comes from simple&delicious, page 11.

10 8-inch flour tortillas

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Brush tortillas with butter; cut each into eight wedges (I used a pizza cutter). Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over tortillas. Place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 5-10 minutes or just until crisp. Makes 80 chips.