This recipe gets a huge work-out in our family. I’ve been making these cookies for years, and they disappear almost as quickly as they bake. Chewy in the middle, crunchy on the outside and just the right blend of vanilla and chocolate. And so, so yummy while they’re still warm!

What you need:

1 cup of softened butter (use the real stuff, not margarine)

1 cup white sugar

¾ cup brown sugar, tightly packed

2 teaspoons of vanilla essence

1 teaspoon of salt

2 eggs

3 cups of plain flour

1 ½ teaspoons of baking soda

250 grams of milk or dark chocolate chips

How it’s done:

Preheat oven to about 140 degrees C.

In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugars and vanilla essence until it lightens in colour and gets a kind of creamy texture. An electric mixer makes this bit easy. Add eggs, one at a time and continue mixing.

In another bowl, mix together the flour and baking soda. Gradually add this to your butter and sugar mixture. Be careful at this point, especially if using a stand mixer – if you’re not careful, flour goes everywhere! (I do it every single time…)

Keep mixing until well combined, then add the chocolate chips. Mix until they’re evenly spread through the mixture.

On a baking tray lined with baking paper (hey, we all hate cleaning up, right?) spoon balls around 1 tablespoon of mixture. Don’t place them too close together, because these suckers spread. I usually put seven to a large tray. Now comes the tricky bit – you need to cook them for LESS time than you’ll think. It only takes about 10 minutes for the cookies to change colour to a light golden brown, which is your signal to pull them out. They’ll still be super-soft, so let them cool for a minute or two, then use a spatula to transfer them carefully to a cooling tray.

This recipe makes about 45 to 50 cookies – I dare you to eat just one!

My family loved this dip! It’s the perfect finger food, and really quick and easy to make!

Ingredients:

8 oz of cream cheese

½ teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

2 ½ cups mozzarella shredded cheese

2 ½ cups of cheddar shredded cheese

1 cup of pizza sauce

Any pizza toppings you love! I chose pepperoni, black olives, bacon, and jalapenos.

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and butter a square brownie pan.
2. In a mixing bowl, add the cream cheese, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning. Whisk together until combined. This step is easier if the cream cheese is at room temperature or softened.
3. Spread this mixture at the bottom of the pan.
4. Take half of each type of cheese and sprinkle that on top of the cream cheese mixture. Next spread the pizza sauce (I used the jar kind) and then top with the rest of the cheese.
5. Spread the toppings of your choice evenly over the entire pan and bake for about 20-25 minutes. You can serve this dip with crackers of slices of bread.

I took these to my boyfriend’s mom’s birthday and she completely loved them! I even decided to make them again two days later for my dad’s birthday! Super easy and delicious!

Ingredients:

1 lb of fresh strawberries

8 oz semi-sweet baking chocolate

4 oz of white baking chocolate

8 oz of chopped walnuts (you might not need this much, depends)

Method:

First be sure to wash and dry each strawberry well. If the strawberry isn’t completely dry, the chocolate won’t hold properly and drip off.

Take a mug and fill it with the semi-sweet chocolate, microwave it for about 15-20 seconds. Mix the chocolate, and put it back into the microwave for another 15-20 seconds. Repeat this step until the chocolate is completely melted.

Take half of the strawberries and dip them into the chocolate. Not too far, you still want to see a little bit of the red. Set them on a plate covered with wax paper, and place them in the fridge to cool.

Take the chopped walnuts and place them into a bowl. Continue dipping the other half of strawberries, but after each dipping, roll the strawberry in the nuts, until completely covered. Once finished, also place these into the fridge.

Repeat the same process of melting the chocolate, but this time do it with the white. Grab the plain chocolate strawberries from the fridge, and drizzle the white chocolate over them with either a spoon or fork. Put them back in the fridge to continue cooling.

Enjoy!

Lisa Smith says:  This recipe is SUPER easy, and takes no more than five minutes to prepare; overall about twenty minutes, with the baking time. My friends and family all love Nutella recipes, and this was one that I’ll have to make again REALLY soon!

Ingredients:

1 Cup of Nutella spread

2 Eggs

10 Tablespoons of all purpose flour

Method:

1. Whisk together the two eggs in a small bowl.
2. Add the Nutella spread and the flour and completely combine.
3. The dough should be a little bit textured. It shouldn’t be too smooth!
4. Take a small spoonful and fill all your mini cupcake liners.
5. Bake for about 14 minutes (depending on your oven) at 350 degree Fahrenheit!
6. Once the tops of the mini brownies look dry, they are ready to come out. Let cool for about five to ten minutes before popping these sweet snacks in your mouth!

Snacks with Lisa Smith

Another quick an easy recipe, good for a fast lunch!

Ingredients:

 2 slices of bread

5 oz can of Albacore Solid White Tuna

1/4 cup mayo

shredded cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Optional:

red onions, lettuce, tomatoes

jalapenos

Directions:

Turn your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit; with your oven already on and getting warm, your sandwich will be done in no time!

On a medium size baking sheet, place down your two slices of toast. I usually prefer white bread, but you can use wheat bread if you like.

Open the can of tuna, making extra sure that all the liquid is drained. And in a small bowl mix your tuna, and mayo together. The amount of mayo you use may vary depending upon how you like your tuna sandwiches, or if your tuna is dry. Make sure to completely mix the tuna and mayo. 

To add a little bit more flavor, salt and pepper to taste!

Once you like what you created, spread as much tuna as you like on your sandwich (I like A LOT). And just before tossing it into the oven, make sure to sprinkle as much shredded cheese on top as you like.

If you preheated your oven, your sandwich should be done between 5 and 10 minutes, but make sure to keep a close eye on it anyways! While I like my tuna sandwiches a bit more plain, you can also add some lettuce, tomatoes, red onions or jalapenos before slapping on the other piece of your toast!

I hope you give this one a try, and if you do comment down below with your thoughts, or even a picture of your sandwich!