Getting in the Valentine Spirit with our Favorite Cookies

We've started getting into the Valentine spirit already - if you've been clipping coupons from the Sunday paper you've seen a lot of M&M coupons. We love M&Ms, and they were just begging to be eaten.

I used my favorite basic cookie recipe and just added M&Ms.... I love this recipe because it uses Crisco shortening instead of butter. The cookies are just more crispy - and we prefer them that way!

We made the basic dough (full recipe below) and used our cookie scoop to put the cookies on our baking sheets. It was a great day to bake, because my youngest is being introduced to units of measurement in his math book.

My daughter put extra candy pieces on top of the cookies (and I think she ate a few in the process!)

In the end we wound up with 2 pans of a dozen cookies each, and another pan of 9 cookies... a grand total of 33 cookies.

Our guests loved them, and the looked so festive on our dining room table. I love Valentine's Day!

Here's the recipe - it's a keeper in our house - great with chocolate chips, too.

Ingredients

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 cup shortening
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups candy-coated milk chocolate pieces

Directions

1. In a large bowl, mix sugar, eggs, shortening, and vanilla thoroughly. Add flour, salt, and baking soda to creamed mixture. Blend well. Add 3/4 cup of M&M candies.
2. Drop dough by teaspoonful onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Slightly push a few candies on top of each dough ball with remaining candies. Make sure to eat some candies while you're at it.
   
3. Bake at 350 degrees F for 9 to 11 minutes, to your liking.

*If you'd like more Valentine ideas, head over to Mom's Mustard Seeds today - she has a Valentine linky for everyone to share their ideas. Thank you, Rebecca!

What's for Dinner - Green Chile Chicken Casserole

Each Wednesday I like to share a recipe for you and your busy family. Hopefully it is something that is easy, healthy, and yummy. I'm thinking about turning this into a linky each Wednesday where others can share posts about what they have been cooking in their homes each week. If you would care to participate, leave me a comment - maybe I'll try it out in the next few weeks.

Today's recipe comes from one of my favorite sources, Cooking Light. I recently found that Cooking Light and Southern Living have a recipe site called MyRecipes.com. Here is the link to Green Chile Chicken Casserole - you will LOVE it. It's a little bit of work, but you could get your children helping you (it's all about patterns and layers) and it would go faster.

I made this on Saturday evening and we still have leftovers - it is great for your husband to take to work for lunch, or great for a cold, rainy day lunch at home, too. I hope you enjoy the recipe!

Wednesday - What's for Dinner? Slow Cooker Spinach Chicken Alfredo

I'm trying a new recipe here at home tonight, but for the post today I wanted to share a recipe I made over the weekend. It was very EASY and delicious! We ate three meals from this (it makes a great lunch reheated), too. I'll preface things by saying my kids are not big spinach fans. Sometimes I can sneak it in, but it's pretty visible in this dish. Since it contains noodles, I simply saved some plain noodles out for my children - buttered them and put parmesan cheese on top. They were happy with this, and I didn't have to go out of my way to fix something "extra".

Hope you like this recipe - it is a "keeper" in our house!

Spinach Chicken Alfredo

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken strips, cut into strips
8 oz. frozen chopped spinach
1 4 oz. can mushrooms, drained
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon lemon pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
2 cups chicken broth
2 T corn starch
1 8 oz. brick low-fat cream cheese
12 oz. whole wheat pasta, cooked according to package directions.

1. Place chicken, mushrooms, and spinach in a greased slow cooker.
2. Mix chicken broth, parmesan cheese, and spices. Pour over chicken mixture.
3. Cook on high for 3 hours or on low for 6 hours.
4. Stir in cream cheese, until smooth.
5. Add pasta, and cook for 10 minutes or until heated through.

What's for dinner at YOUR house tonight? Do you have any favorite "go-to" places for recipes? I'd love to know!