Penne Pasta with Sun-dried Tomatoes

2 cups dry penne pasta
8 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
2 cups Italian four-cheese blend
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
5 oz. shredded Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. pepper

Cook pasta according to package directions, adding sun-dried tomatoes during the last 2 minutes of cooking. Meanwhile, combine evaporated milk, cheeses, basil, garlic powder, and pepper in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until cheese is melted. Remove from heat. Combine with pasta and sun-dried tomatoes until pasta is well-coated.

I will be the first to admit that this is not the original recipe. If you take out the mozzarella, sharp cheddar, and shredded Parmesan, then you will have the recipe that I started with. But here's the kicker... I didn't like it. It was ok, but it just wasn't what I was looking for. It needed a little "umph" in my opinion. And "umph" is what I gave it! Once I put my twist on it, we both thought it was absolutely delicious! Feel free to make it however you want (Of course. I won't be standing in your kitchen telling you "no!") and then add to it from there. This got 5 stars on the website that it was posted on, so it may have just been us! But this is the Marshall way of making it, and that's what we are sticking to! I took the leftovers to work today (the ultimate test), and shared it with a co-worker (major props to me, by the way, for sharing food!), and she absolutely loved it. I asked her if she wanted the recipe, and she said only if it included all of the things I added to it. So, I think I did pretty good! You may want to add a few shakes of salt to it as well (again, up to you). But altogether this is now a recipe success!

Vanilla Almond Sugar Cookies

Adapted from: bakeat350.blogspot.com

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup sugar
2 sticks butter, cold and cut into chunks
1 egg
3/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. pure almond extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the flour and baking powder and set aside. Cream the sugar and butter. Add the eggs and extracts and mix. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat just until combined. The dough will be crumbly. Knead together as you scoop it out of the bowl to combine well. Place on floured surface. Roll out to about 1/4 inch thick, then cut into shapes. Place shapes on cookie sheet, and place in freezer for 10 minutes before baking. Bake until just done (for the cookies above, I only had to cook for 6 minutes). Make sure not to over bake.

These are by far the best sugar cookie I have ever tasted. They are easy to work with, and they are so soft and delicious. It is my go-to cookie recipe when I want to be creative and decorate. The royal icing that goes along with this recipe is superb! Bridget does an incredible job decorating cookies, and I encourage everyone to go take a look at her page (www.bakeat350.blogspot.com)! So very talented. I have quickly learned that whenever I make these cookies, I really need to just double the recipe so Vann and I can have a whole batch all to ourselves! The cookies above are ones that I made for our nephew's 1st birthday party. The theme was Sesame Street. I saw these cookies cutters and I knew that I had to make them for his birthday! The set also came with Oscar the Grouch and Ernie, but these 2 cookies alone took 5 different colors, and making the other 2 would have been a bit overwhelming given the time that I had to do them (thanks, work). By the way, the cookie cutters that I used for these are truly incredible. I've done a bit of perusing to see if there are any more like these, and I was tickled pink to find out that there are TONS! Hellllo, Santa! If you get a wild hair and want to try an amazing sugar cookie, give these a try. I promise that you will never look back!