Oreo Cheesecake Greek Yogurt Cupcakes

Everyone seems to be talking about Greek yogurt lately. Well, I bought some, tried it, and sorry to say, I thought it was gross. So I decided to try it in something instead. It is supposed to be a healthy substitute, right? So I developed this recipe for Oreo cheesecake. This recipe is SUPER EASY, and SUPER DELICIOUS! It is something anyone can make, and guess what; these babies are only 140 calories each! That's what I call dessert!

Oreo Cheesecake Greek Yogurt Cupcakes

6 Oreo cookies, halved and filling removed
8 oz. 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
2 - 6 oz. containers fat-free vanilla Greek yogurt
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
2 tbsp. flour
6 Oreo cookies, filling removed and crushed in pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place 12 muffin cup liners in cupcake pan. Place one Oreo cookie half in the bottom of each cupcake liner. In mixing bowl, combine softened cream cheese, Greek yogurt, sugar, and vanilla. Mix with electric beater until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time. Stir in flour, then add crushed Oreo cookies. Do not over beat. Pour batter evenly into muffin cups. Place in preheated oven and bake 20 - 25 minutes, until center is set. Chill for 1 hour, then serve.

These cheesecakes turned out great! Here's my journey through the process:
First I filled the muffin tins with the Oreo cookie halves.

Then, I mixed up my ingredients in my handy KitchenAid mixer. (Best gift my husband ever gave me!)

Next, I filled up my muffin tins, and put them in the oven!

After a long 20 minutes (because I wanted to eat them so badly) I was finally able to take them out of the oven! Don't they look delicious?

Make Your Own (Super Healthy) Instant Oatmeal Mix

Oatmeal is such a power food, but buying the packaged instant oatmeal at the store is really not very healthy for you at all and can be quite expensive. So here's a recipe to give you the most nutrition, while still being a tasty, quick, and cheap breakfast!

Instant Oatmeal Mix

1/4 cup quick oats
2 tbsp. powdered oats (run through a blender or food processor)
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. wheat germ
1 tbsp. ground flax seed
1/4 cup powdered milk
2 tbsp. dried fruit of your choice (optional)

Combine all ingredients and store in separate plastic baggies or tupperware containers. When you want to eat some oatmeal, just pour the contents into a bowl and pour 1/2 to 3/4 cup boiling water over the top and stir it up. If you aren't a fan of dried fruit, you can always add fresh fruit on top after you've prepared it. My favorite is sliced bananas. So tasty and so good for you!

Crockpot Creamy Italian Chicken

I love this recipe because it is super easy and delicious! Just throw it in the crockpot in the morning before work or school and it's ready in the evening for dinner. I serve this over rice or pasta, whichever I prefer that day.

Creamy Italian Chicken
2 lbs. chicken breast, cut in pieces
1 can cream of chicken soup or substitute recipe (see below)
1/2 cup italian dressing (I use light because it's a little healthier)
rice or pasta

Combine all ingredients in crockpot and cook on low for 6 - 8 hours. Serve over rice or pasta! It's that easy! Throw some steamed veggies on the side and you've got a well balanced meal.

Here's my substitute cream of chicken soup recipe. I use this a lot because it is so cheap to make, and I usually have all the ingredients on hand all the time. I usually make my own chicken broth using chicken bouillon granules as well, which makes it even cheaper. 

Substitute Cream of Chicken Soup
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
1/4 tsp. garlic
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup flour

Combine broth and seasonings and bring to boil. Meanwhile, stir milk and flour together until smooth. Add milk/flour mixture to the boiling broth and bring back to boil for 1 minute. 

The Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie

I absolutely LOVE chocolate chip cookies. I try not to make them very often because I feel guilty eating all that fat and sugar, but sometimes you just HAVE to have a chocolate chip cookie. Besides, if I don't have cookies I just end up eating other junk anyway, so what's the point in trying to ob-stain? 

I have been searching for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe for years. I love cookies that are soft and gooey. I hate when I get crunchy cookies! And I finally found the perfect recipe that is so perfectly soft, but still has a very very slight crispy outside. I'M IN LOVE!

Big & Buttery Chocolate Chip Cookies
(Taste of Home magazine, June 2012)

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 pkg. semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted (optional)

1. In large bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts. 
2. Shape quarter cupfuls of dough into balls. Place in airtight container, separating layers with waxed or parchment paper; cover and refrigerate 12 hours or overnight.
3. To bake, place dough balls 3 inches apart on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Press a shallow indentation in the center of each with your thumb, reshaping sides to smooth any cracks. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. 
4. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks; cool. 

Now, I am very impatient when it comes to eating delicious cookies, so I will admit that I skipped the whole refrigeration process. And they still turned out amazing! So your choice. I'm sure if you have patience and refrigerate them they will turn out even better! Maybe sometime I'll try my patience and see if I can do it.