Oh heavenly day....

These chocolate lava cakes were TO DIE FOR! I can't even tell you how amazingly good these were. I served them to a group of friends at a bunko night and we all sat around and mmm'd and ahhhh'd about them! My little kids liked them equally well. This recipe is definitely a keeper and very impressive! Much easier than you would think too!

6 TBL margarine spread

3 squares bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate

1/2 C. sugar

6 TBL flour

pinch of salt

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

powdered sugar (for dusting)

Grease 4 custard cups and set aside. Microwave margarine and chocolate for 45 seconds or until chocolate is melted: stir until smooth. Beat in granulated sugar, flour and salt until blended. Beat in eggs, yolks and vanilla. Spoon into prepared cups. Refrigerate 1 hour or until ready to bake.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange ramekins on baking sheet. Bake 13 minutes or until edges are firm, but centers are still slightly soft (DO NOT OVERBAKE). Cool 5 minutes. Unmold onto plates and dust with powdered sugar. Serve with ice cream immediately! Get ready to make a second batch.... Mmmmmmm!

*recipe comes from "100 Best Chocolate Recipes"

Chicken Cordon Bleu Recipe

Here is a dinner dish that everyone in my family loves, even the little ones. It's a bit time-consuming, but worth every minute! And it makes a lovely presentation at the table. This recipe can be easily doubled or halved to fit your family's needs.

4 chicken breasts (thawed and pounded to 1/2" thickness)

4 slices of thinly sliced ham (I used a lunch meat ham)

4 slices swiss cheese

2 eggs, whisked together in bowl

1 C. bread crumbs (canned kind is fine- you can add crushed corn flakes or ritz crackers to spruce it up a bit)

*place 1 slice of ham and one slice of swiss cheese on each piece of chicken, and roll chicken up as tightly as you can (the thinner it is, the more easily it will roll.) Secure with a couple toothpicks to maintain the rolled shape.

*Roll each chicken breast in egg, and then in bread mixture. Place seam side down in a greased casserole dish. Cover and bake at 350 for about an hour. Check that chicken is no longer pink. When rolled up like this, chicken can take awhile to cook because of its thickness, so make sure to test it in the middle of a thick roll to make sure its done. Covering the chicken will keep it from drying out.

(while chicken is cooking, prepare the following sauce)

2 TBL. Butter

2 TBL. Flour

2 Cups milk

1 tsp. dry mustard (regular mustard would work too)

a few dashes of salt and pepper to taste

4 slices swiss cheese

*Melt butter in saucepan over stove. When melted, whisk in the flour and add the milk. Cook until milk is frothy and just about boiling (be careful to continue stirring and watch it closely so it doesn't overflow). Turn heat to med/low and add the spices and cheese (break up the cheese into small pieces to ease the melting process). Stir continuously over low heat to prevent burning or sticking! As soon as cheese is melted, pull off heat or keep warm until ready to serve. Spoon sauce over chicken and enjoy!