Carmelitas!!

So this is one of those recipes that everyone asks for and you usually keep it a secret to it is your "special thing", but since I like you all I thought I would share. I originally had these on a trip in Park City. My sister in law Jen brought them and I could not stop eating them. It was very quick after that that I got the recipe from her and have been making them ever since. These are my husbands very favorite cookie ever. They have brown sugar, oats, chocolate and caramel what more could you want!! Give them a try and let me know how it went!!

So here is my dough, it is crumbly and you just press it everywhere till it fills the pan.

Here are your ingredients for your caramel. I used to use the clear wrapped ones, but between how hard they were to unwrap and the flavor I replaced them with Werther's soft caramels. My kids love to help unwrap them and the flavor is rich and amazing.

Here they are after a minute in the microwave, don't freak out they will smooth out really soon.

See! One more minute in the microwave and the caramel is ready to go!

Here they are almost all the way put together. Sooo Good!!

Carmelitas

Just FYI this recipe is for a 9x13 pan. I doubled it and made it in a cookie sheet. I always need more than just a 9x13 pan!!

2 Pkg. Werthers soft caramels

3 Tbs. Evaporated milk

2 Cups Flour

2 Cups Quick Oats

1 1/2 Cups Brown Sugar

1 tsp. Baking Soda

1 1/2 tsp. Salt

1 Cup Melted Butter

1 Pkg. Chocolate Chips

Start by making your caramel. Unwrap all of you caramels and add the evaporated milk. Microwave for a minute, stir and microwave for one more minute. The caramel should be smooth and soft. Set aside. Place all the rest of the dry ingredients but chocolate chip in a large bowl. Pour the melted butter over the top and mix until the butter is combined well and the mixture is crumbly. Spread half of the dough into a 9x13 greased pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with chocolate chips. Next pour your caramel evenly over the top of the chocolate chips. Finish by sprinkling the rest of the dough on top. Press down slightly then return to the oven for another ten minutes. These are great alone, but if you want to be real bad serve them hot with ice cream. They have the caramel and chocolate built in and they are amazing!!

Heart Tarts!

So, the day of Love is approaching. It is also crunch time if you don't have anything for that special someone in you life. Well here is something I came up with that is beyond simple, beautiful and delicious. This is a tart in the shape of a heart and you can make them any flavor you like, but believe me when you give one of these they will definately love you!!

So it all starts with pre-made pie dough. Each package has two 8 or 9 inch rounds so you can make two heart tarts. All I did here was grease a cookie sheet, put down my thawed pie dough round. Next I used a knife to cut the bottom into a point and using the excess dough on the top created a heart shape. Be sure to press the dough together so the it is one solid piece.

Next you need your pie filling. You need one can per tart. I used peach in one and cherry in the other. For the cherry I added about a 1/4 tsp of almond extract. For the peaches I sprinkled the top with cinnamon and sugar. You do not need to spread the filling very much. After that I just pulled up the edges all the way around. You get a beautiful rustic look that is also whimsical for Valentines day. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. It is done when the edges are golden and the filling is bubbly. Enjoy!!