Loaded Pretzel Cookies

Branching out from my usual Allrecipes, this fantastic find was in one of this past year's Taste of Home! Super yummy, and while it has coconut, you can't really taste it...I had a coconut-hater eat them today and LOVED them. :D Win! I recommend not measuring the chocolate chips...you can't have too many.

Loaded Pretzel Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 packed cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups mini pretzels, crushed
1 1/2 cup coconut
1 1/2 cup M&M's

        Directions

1) Preheat oven to 350. Cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

2) In a separate bowl, sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together. Then slowly beat in to the wet mixture until mixed.

3) Add rest of ingredients and stir until mixed. Using about 1/4 cup per cookie, roll into a ball and put on an un-greased cookie sheet, about 3 inches apart. Bake for 12-14 minutes.

As typical with baking, the only thing I changed was to add more M&M's...minus the ones that I had previously eaten out of the bag, I think it only added another 1/8th cup. ;) I used a cookie scooper, which I think made it a little less than 1/4 cup per cookie, and I got 36 cookies out of the dough, as opposed to the 24 that they told me I would get. These seemed to be a big hit with kids and adults - the salty/sweet mixture was a nice change from regular chocolate cookies without getting TOO far away from tradition. You really can't taste the coconut much - you could probably leave it out, but I think it adds a bit of moistness, and also some bulk. All in all, a keeper for this household!

Eggs Benedict Casserole

I love breakfast food. Breakfast for dinner is even better, as I actually get the time to enjoy it! This is a fun overnight casserole, though I think next time I might skip the overnight part in hopes that the bread will be less soggy. I like the option of having Eggs Benedict (which I love) for a larger group without the hassle of making individual eggs. :D

Eggs Benedict Casserole

Ingredients

cooking spray
 8 large eggs
 2 cups milk
 3 green onions, chopped
 1 teaspoon onion powder
 1 teaspoon salt
 3/4 pound Canadian bacon, cut into 1/2-inch dice
 6 English muffins, cut into 1/2-inch dice
 1/2 teaspoon paprika
 1 (.9 ounce) package hollandaise sauce mix
 1 cup milk
 1/4 cup margarine

Directions

Spray 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
Whisk eggs, 2 cups milk, green onions, onion powder, and salt together in a large bowl until well mixed.
Layer half the Canadian bacon in the prepared baking dish. Spread English muffins over meat and top with remaining Canadian bacon. Pour egg mixture over casserole. Cover baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Sprinkle casserole with paprika; cover with aluminum foil.
Bake in preheated oven until eggs are nearly set, about 30 minutes; remove foil. Continue baking until eggs are completely set, about 15 more minutes.
Whisk hollandaise sauce mix with 1 cup milk in a saucepan. Add margarine and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low, simmer, and stir until thickened, about 1 minute. Drizzle sauce over casserole to serve.

Other than substituting regular ham for the Canadian Bacon, and not putting in green onions (which despite the fact that I keep leaving them out in recipes, I actually DO like!), follow as directed. I did use Bearnaise sauce instead of Hollandaise...personally, I like Bearnaise better. And I used TWO packages instead of one. I tend to like things saucy, so it was perfect for me, but for most people, one package would probably be fine. The English muffins got a little soggy, so next time I think I would mix everything together and bake it immediately in hopes that the bread would keep it's texture. It wasn't even as bad as leftovers the next couple days!