Recipes: Ooey Gooey S'mores Bars

I won't lie to you, I've never been crazy about baking. I like my desserts cold and fresh (see: ice cream with berries) for the most part... but sometimes... sometimes you just need something a little bit comfier. Now, when I think comfort food I think chocolate, and one of my all time favorite chocolate desserts is a s'more. Unfortunately, it's summer right now in Florida, so we can't build too many bonfires with all the rain, so I had to improvise. I wondered if there was some kind of baked s'more I could make, and after finding several recipes on the internet, concocted my own here for you today!

Now if for some reason you don't know what a s'more is, it means Some More and is most often a sandwich made of graham crackers, chocolate, and roasted marshmallows. The recipe below is for a baked version of this dish that is sure to keep everyone happy!

Here's what you'll need:

• 1/2 cup butter at room temperature.
• 1/4 cup brown sugar.
• 1/2 cup sugar.
• 1 large egg.
• 1 tsp vanilla extract.
• 1 1/3 cups all purpose flour.
• 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs.
• 1 tsp baking powder.
• 1/4 tsp salt.
• 2 king-sized milk chocolate bars. I say go big or go home: Buy the Godiva!
• 1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff.

Here's what you do:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Use an 8" baking pan. Grease the pan. 
2. In a large bowl, whip together the room temp. butter and the sugar until it's a smooth mixture. Next, beat in the egg and vanilla. In a small separate bowl, whisk together the flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Once it's all mixed, add it to the butter/sugar mixture and mix at a low speed until even.
3. Now, divide the dough in half and press one half of the dough into an even layer on the bottom of the greased pan. Next, layer the chocolate bars over the dough. 2 king-sized bars should fit perfectly side by side, but you can always break the chocolate up if you need to. Once the chocolate layer is done, spread the marshmallow fluff over it, so that it's even from side to side. With that done, go back to the other half of the dough. The best way to go about this is to flatten it out, and then use a pizza cutter to cut it in to squares or slivers you can layer over the top of the marshmallow fluff.
4. Place the pan in your preheated oven, and bake for 30-35 minutes or until your crust is golden brown. Set the pan on a cooling rack and let it cool for about 20-30 minutes before cutting it. Serve warm with ice cream or cool as a snack bar. Don't eat the whole thing in one sitting though... you'll get a belly ache!!

Recipes: Oven Baked Pork Chops... with a twist.

If you're like me, you've found that Pork, of all the meats, can be the trickiest to cook. Furthermore, when cooking Pork in it's Chop form, it can be especially difficult to achieve the dish's maximum potential. Pork Chops tend to cook quickly and if you're not careful, it doesn't take much to overcook them, leaving them tough and dry.

Hopefully this quick recipe will do for you what it's done for me, and that's save Pork Chop night!

Here's what you'll need:

1. 1/2 cup ketchup
2. 1 tbsp soy sauce
3. 1 tsp chili powder
4. 1/4 tsp pepper
5. 2 tbsp brown sugar
6. 2 tsp canola oil
7. 1/4 tsp allspice
8. 2 large potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
9. 2 celery stalks, diced small
10. 2 large onions, diced small
11. 2 large carrots, diced small
12. 1/2 Lime squeezed for juice.
13. 4 boneless center-cut loin pork chops

Here's what you do: 

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, mix ketchup, brown sugar, soy sauce, oil, chili powder, allspice and pepper. Make sure to take your time mixing these ingredients so that everything is perfectly blended.
3. Dip the pork chops into the sauce, coating both sides. Then set to the side on a plate. The best thing to do if you're making these ahead of time would be to cover the plate with saran wrap and return to the fridge. Once the chops are to the side, add the prepped veggies to the mix and make sure they're equally coated. It's important to make sure your veggies are chopped the same size so they will cook evenly.
4. Next, break out your tin foil. What we're going to do here is tear off 4 sheets about 8" by 8". Place the Pork Chop in the center of the sheet and then scoop about 1/4 of the veggies on top of it. Fold your foil square up to create a tightly sealed pocket for the Chop. Repeat this process for your other three Chops. Place all 4 individually wrapped chops on a baking sheet.
5. Bake in the oven for approximately 35 minutes, using a meat thermometer to check your temperatures. 
6. Serve Chops with their cooking juices and the veggies, side with rice, fresh veggies, bread, or whatever you might like. 

I hope you enjoy!