Jolene's Recipe Journal

This one was the hardest list to put together, because I made so many outstanding desserts this year! Chocolate Glazed Brownies If you're looking for a rich, decadent chocolatey dessert, this is the recipe for you! Lemon Totos A bit of a twist on a classic Italian recipe Mini Chocolate Eclairs with Vanilla Bean Pastry Cream If you ask me what my favorite dessert is, it's a tie between Boston Cream Pie and Eclairs.  I'm a sucker for pastry cream! Peeps Shortbread Checkerboard There are so many kind of peeps now you can make this checkerboard for almost any occasion! Sugar Cone Chocolate Chip Cookies These are fantastic on their own, but making absolutely amazing ice cream sandwiches! Affogato What happens when you take coffee and pour it over ice cream? Something delicious! Oatmeal Caramel Apple Thumbprints I took my prize winning cookie recipe and took it up a notch! Lemon Coconut Squares Anything lemon

My guys tend to like the same things for dinner over and over, but I managed to try some great new main dish recipes this year.     Balsamic Chicken Fettucine Filling but not heavy, and packed with so many great flavors and textures! Spicy Touchdown Chili Hands down the best chili I've ever made (or eaten)!  Honey Citrus Chicken Sandwiches When the snow is too high to get to the grill, I made these inside on the panini press. Arribbiata with Zucchini Noodles Finally dug out my spiralizing attachment and put it to good use!   Asparagus, Bacon, and Herbed Cheese Pizza I love pizza in all it's forms, and I'm always excited when I find asparagus at the market because I know I can make this version.  Cajun Chicken Pasta The mixture is great inside a lettuce wrap too! Parmesan Chicken and Lemon Rice I've eaten tons of rice and quinoa this year, and have found some great ways to change it up.   Italian Sausage Marinara with Penne

The saying goes that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but I'll eat breakfast food any time of day!  Today I'm sharing with you the top 10 breakfast recipes from 2019.  Copycat Dunkin Donuts Power Breakfast Sandwich When Dunkin Donuts came out with their new Power Breakfast Sandwich I immediately thought, "I can make that at home," so I did!   PB&J Overnight Oats My obsession with overnight oats continued into 2019.  So easy to just grab one out of the fridge!   Honey Vanilla Pancakes Pancakes are another great make ahead breakfast.  Make a double batch and freeze them, and just pop them into the toaster as needed.  Cheesy Scrambled Egg Stuffed Popovers Take scrambled eggs to the next level by serving them inside delicious popovers!     Streusel Coffee Cake I found this treasure in my Gram's recipe box and put a little spin on it.   Old Fashioned Doughnuts I don't fry often, but these were so worth it!

Each year I make a Christmas baking plan that's pretty ambitious.  This year, I'd got in my head that I was going to make some brownies and decorate them like trees, but then I wound up doing some tree shaped shortbread instead.  Since I already had the brownie mix, I went searching for ideas of how to use it and my friend Sue suggested these Brownie Crackles from Taste of Home.  I had all the ingredients on hand except the semi sweet chips, so I used dark chocolate chips instead. I think I like these even better than the traditional chocolate crinkles, the flavor and the texture are amazing.  They were a big hit at our gathering on Christmas Eve, so they'll definitely be on the master list for next year!  Thank you to Ellen G. for sharing her recipe, and to Sue for putting it on my radar! Print With Image Without Image Brownie Crackles ingredients: 1 package fudge brownie mix (13x9-inch pan size) 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 large egg 1/2

Christmas morning is hectic for me with the prep for the main meal, so I like to have a breakfast done up ahead that's all ready to go.  Sometimes it's muffins, sometimes it's a baked french toast.  This year I went with Gingerbread Buttermilk Waffles from Taste of Home. I made them exactly as the recipe stated.  Take the time to grate the spices fresh, it really makes such a difference.  I got 7 waffles in my iron.  However, I didn't mark them as off limits, and my son snagged a couple.  He gave them two thumbs up, so I went ahead and made a second batch. I froze them solid on cookie sheets, and then moved them to a ziptop bag.  They can be reheated in the microwave or in the toaster.  They'll be served with NH maple syrup, along with some nice crispy bacon.  Print With Image Without Image Gingerbread Buttermilk Belgian Waffles ingredients: 1 cup all-purpose flour 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon ground ginger 3/4 teaspoon

Earlier this month I made Snowy Mountain Cookies and they were such a huge hit I decided to make a variation of them for Christmas.  I left out the walnuts due to allergies, and this time around I cut the shortbread out with a tree shaped cutter. I made a quick powdered sugar glaze and tinted it green. You could also flavor it with vanilla or peppermint if you liked, I just left mine plain.  I piped it on the trees and then added an M&M before the glaze set. Let the cookies sit on a rack or parchment until the glaze is completely set.  I like to leave mine overnight, then I move them to an airtight container. I love how they turned out!  It also would be fun to do reindeer or ornament shapes, just change out the icing colors accordingly. Christmas Tree Shortbread Print With Image Without Image Author: Jolene's Recipe Journal Ingredients 1 1/4 cups butter, softened 1 cup sugar 2 large eggs 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 4 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 2 cup

I was a bonafide veggie hater growing up, but over the last 10 years or so I've really tried to expand the variety of produce that I eat. It's helped that I live in an area that's loaded with farms and orchards.  One of my recent discoveries is delicata squash.  I used it for these Quinoa Stuffed Squash Boats last year, and was so happy to find it again on my last visit. While scrolling through Instagram I saw a friend had posted a recipe from Taste of Home called Crunchy Honey Glazed Butternut Squash.  I just happened to have 2 nice sized delicata on hand. Depending on the type of squash you use, you may have to microwave it as the recipe states to get it soft enough to slice.  I was able to slice mine without doing that, and I did not peel it. I opened the cabinet I discovered that my son had used all the honey but a tablespoon or so.  It's the law that if you live in New England you have to have real maple syrup on hand at all times, so I used that