Chocolate cookie dough cupcakes with peanut butter frosting

1 Betty Crocker Devils Food cake mix
1 small pkg. instant chocolate pudding
4 eggs
1 cube butter
1 1/4 cup milk

1 pkg. Nestlé MINI chocolate chip cookie dough, frozen (I make my own chocolate chip cookie dough, roll into balls and freeze too)

Freeze cookie dough before starting this!!

Preheat oven to 350. Mix cake mix, pudding, eggs, butter and milk until well blended. Spoon about 1 TBS batter into each cupcake liner. Add frozen cookie dough in center. Cover with additional batter about 1 TBS, making the liner 2/3 full. Place in oven then turn oven down to 325 and bake 20-22 minutes. You know they are done when you press the top and it springs back.

Peanut Butter Frosting
2 cubes butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup peanut butter with 1/2 tsp sea salt

Cream butter and cream cheese together. Add vanilla and mix on high for 2 minutes. Add powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. Then add peanut butter. **I do sometimes need to add more powdered sugar**.

RECIPES

So, I'm hoping that everyone is willing to share some fabulous recipes. I'm always looking for new recipes, but especially while doing the challenge and I can't fall back on some of my go-to recipes (because they aren't necessarily very healthy). So, I posted a couple to get us started. I know there's already a few on here, but PLEASE share some of your favorite healthy recipes....I need dinner ideas :) Thanks!!

Oven Roasted Cauliflower

Recipe from Skinnytaste

Ingredients:

• 6 cups uncooked cauliflower florets (about 1 large) cut small
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• kosher salt and fresh pepper
• juice of 1/4 lemon
• 1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Combine cauliflower, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper well so all the florets are coated and seasoned. Place in a large shallow roasting pan and place in the center of the oven.

Roast for about 25-35 minutes, turning florets occasionally so they are evenly cooked.Remove from oven and top with Parmigiano Reggiano and additional salt and pepper if needed.

*We also like doing this with broccoli or even mixing the two. And our kids all love it!!

Black Bean Chicken

2 cans black beans (I usually just use 1)
16 oz jar salsa
1/2 cup brown rice (uncooked)
1 lb chicken breast

- Place frozen chicken breast in sprayed crock pot. Pour beans, rice and salsa over chicken. Cook low 8-10 hours (my crockpot cooks hotter and faster) and serve.
- If you thaw the chicken just a bit, you can cut the cooking time in half.
-This is a low fat, low carb meal. 

Homemade Soft Pretzels

Recipe by Alton Brown, variations by Our Best Bites

1 1/2 cups warm water (110-115 degrees F)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 package active dry yeast (I used rapid rise yeast)
22 oz all-purpose flour, about 4 1/2 cups
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil for pan
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
optional: additional melted butter and cinnamon-sugar
optional: powdered sugar, milk, melted butter for dipping

Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour (tip: don’t add all the flour at once, just in case you don’t need it all.  Reserve a small amount and add as needed for a soft dough) and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, scrape the bowl clean and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.

Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.

In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.

Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. If you’re making pretzel “bites” put in as many as will fit without crowding.  Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula (a metal spider works great). Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with pretzel salt or kosher salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Cinnamon Sugar Version: Prepare as directed but don’t sprinkle with salt before baking.  Immediately after removing pretzels from oven, brush with melted butter and toss in a bowl of cinnamon-sugar.

Cinnamon Sugar Dippers:  Instead of shaping pretzels into the traditional shape, roll dough into ropes and cut into 1-2 inch pieces.  Continue preparing as recipe instructs, brushing with butter immediately after removing from oven and tossing in cinnamon sugar.  Create a dipping glaze by mixing about a cup of powdered sugar with 2-3 tablespoons melted butter and then add milk as needed, whisking until smooth.  Serve warm.

**If you like the pretzels you get at the mall, then you will love these! I made pretzel bites instead of actual pretzels. They were super easy and my kids helped me. I made mine with kosher salt and then some with garlic and parmesan cheese that we ate with spaghetti. Next time we will definitely be trying the sweet ones! SOOOO good!!