Pimp My Menu

Root Beer Pulled Pork

2011-05-05T10:48:00.000-07:00

This is the best shredded pork. My husband even loved it enough to take leftovers to work and he doesn't like pork!

2 lbs. boneless pork shoulder roast
1 yellow onion sliced into rings
2 cups root beer
1-2 tbs Tabasco (I used 1 tsp - enough for us)
1 cup chili sauce
1/2 tsp vanilla

Place roast in crock pot, layer with onions and pour remaining ingredients over the top. Cook on low about 8 hours until meat will shred.

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2011/03/slow-cooker-rootbeer-pulled-pork-recipe.html

Peanut Butter bars

2011-03-11T12:59:00.000-08:00

This is a recipe I found in the Davis County School district newsletter when i was in high school. The lunch room used to sell these and I LOVED them.

I always look for this recipe on this blog and forget that I only have it on my family blog. so i'm posting it now.

This recipe is for a large 18X13 inch pan.

Make sure to half the recipe if you are using a 9X13 inch pan!

Cream together:
1 C sugar
1 C brown sugar, packed
1 C butter, softened

Add and combine:
1 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs
1 C peanut butter (I prefer chunky because I like peanuts, but original recipe calls for creamy)

Add and mix with above mixture:
2 C flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Add last:
2 C oats (I prefer whole oats, but the original recipe called for quick oats)

Spread dough on greased cookie sheet cake pan.

Bake 350 degrees for 20-23 minutes until golden brown.

While hot, spread 1 ½ C creamy butter on top. This layer should be thin. It is easier to spread the peanut butter if you microwave the it for about 15 seconds so it is hot and thin.

Cool so that peanut butter is solid again. It helps if you place pan into the refrigerator for 10 minutes after they are completely cooled off so the peanut butter will become very solid.

Spread chocolate frosting on top. This layer should be thicker than peanut butter layer.

Cut into bars.

Hershey’s Cocoa Best Frosting
18X13 pan:not needed to double frosting recipe.

½ C butter
4 TBS Hershey’s Cocoa
1 tsp vanilla well.
4 TBS milk
4 C powdered sugar

1. Melt butter over low heat in medium saucepan.
2. Gradually add all other ingredients and mix well. Make sure you put frosting onto peanut butter bars immediately because this recipe sets rather quickly.

I made one pan, cooked them, and then watched and listened as Ben begged for some! I finally gave in and gave him some and then decided we better just make some for ourselves. Peanut butter is not Tyson's favorite thing. He thinks it's okay for sandwiches, but not for dessert. So I hold back on making peanut butter treats a lot because I know he won't really eat them. At least I know the kids and I will enjoy them! We'll probably take a bunch of these to friends because this a big pan of treats!

Kate's chocolate chip cookies

2011-02-27T10:57:00.000-08:00

this is a great recipe. nice, chewy cookies. they don't taste like coconut, just have an extra little chew to them.

Coconut Oatmeal Crispies

1 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
Cream that all together then add:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Mix, then add:
1 cup oats
1 cup coconut
1 cup chocolate chips

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes

Creamy Chicken and wild rice soup

2011-01-31T14:43:00.000-08:00

I found this recipe on a chat forum and made it with some left over turkey breast. it was SO good. better as a left over too. I'm making it again tonight and wanted a place to find it. I had to search all over for it today.

I wish people would post on this board! i really miss it. I use so many recipes from here.

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Ingredients
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
2 cooked chicken breasts, shredded
1 pkg quick cooking long grain and wild rice w/ seasoning packet
2 stalks celery, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
Fresh garlic, minced (3-4 large cloves)
Olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups heavy cream
Directions:
1. Saute carrots, celery, onion and garlic in olive oil until tender.
2. In a large pot over medium heat, combine broth, water, chicken and vegetables. Bring just to boiling, then stir in rice, reserving seasoning packet. Cover and remove from heat.
3. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and flour. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in contents of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons , to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened, 5 minutes.
4. Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10-15 minutes.

Egg Sausage Casserole

2010-04-14T09:25:00.001-07:00

My sister-in-law made this for us awhile back. It was so delicious. I haven't made it yet, but want to remember where the recipe is.

Egg Sausage Casserole

6-8 slices of white bread (cubed)

1 Cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

1 pound browned sausage

Mix together:

6-8 eggs

2 Cups milk

¾ teaspoon dry mustard

Mix together:

1 can cream of mushroom soup

½ Cup milk

Put bread in 9X13 greased pan. Layer cheese then sausage. Pour egg mixture over all. Cover and refrigerate. Pour mushroom mixture over top just before baking. Bake uncovered at 300 degrees for 1 ½ hours.

Chocolate Revel Bars

2010-02-21T20:46:00.001-08:00

Made these tonight for a family treat. Mmmm.

1 cup butter or margarine
2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
1 14-ounce can (1-1/4 cups) sweetened condensed milk
1 12-ounce package (2 cups) semisweet chocolate pieces
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons vanilla
Directions
1. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the butter or margarine. In a large mixing bowl beat the remaining butter or margarine with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add brown sugar; beat until well mixed. Beat in eggs and 2 teaspoons vanilla. In another large bowl stir together flour and baking soda; stir in oats. Gradually stir dry mixture into beaten mixture. Set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan combine the reserved butter or margarine, the sweetened condensed milk, and chocolate pieces. Cook over low heat until chocolate melts, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in walnuts and the 2 teaspoons vanilla.

3. Press two-thirds (about 3-1/3 cups) of the oat mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 15x10x1-inch baking pan. Spread chocolate mixture over the oat mixture. Using your fingers, dot remaining oat mixture over the chocolate.

4, Bake in a 350 degree F oven about 25 minutes or until top is lightly browned (chocolate mixture will still look moist). Cool on a wire rack. Cut into 2x1-inch bars. Makes about 75 bars.

Crock Pot Tortilla Soup

2010-01-24T19:18:00.001-08:00

I'm always looking for good crock pot recipes to help my stressful evenings and this is a good one.

2 chicken breasts
1 onion finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
3 tomatoes chopped
4 cups chicken broth
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 mild green chile, seeded

Combine everything in crock pot and cook on low 6 hours. Take chicken breasts out and shred, then add back to soup and cook another hour or two.

Serve with fried tortilla strips (we just like corn chips), shredded monterey jack cheese and cilantro.

Creamy Bacon and Herb Noodles

2010-01-24T19:14:00.000-08:00

12 oz cooked bacon cut into small pieces - drain
In same pan cook until tender:
6 green onions sliced & 8 oz. sliced mushrooms
Add:
1 Pkg. 8 oz. cream cheese cubed
1/3 cup Milk
1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp. dried Basil
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
Stir over med. heat until cheese melts and sauce is well blended. Add Bacon and 1 small tomato chopped.
Stir into 8 oz cooked linguini and serve.

Martha Stewart Apple Spice Cake

2010-01-22T10:24:00.001-08:00

My SIL made this cake when we were visiting over the holidays. We were heading home and didn't get to try any. I made it a few days later and it's SOOOOO good, especially with the caramel sauce.

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/apple-spice-cake

Serves 10

1 1/3 cups vegetable oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
3 to 4 Granny Smith apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (3 cups)
1 cup chopped assorted nuts, such as pecans and walnuts (optional)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Caramel Sauce
Nonstick cooking spray with flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray; set aside.
Working over a large sheet of parchment paper, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt; gather sifted ingredients into center of sheet; set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine vegetable oil, sugar, and eggs; mix on high speed until lemon yellow.
Fold reserved parchment in half lengthwise; with mixer on medium speed, gradually shake in dry ingredients until just incorporated.
Add apples and, if desired, nuts, to batter; mix to combine. Add vanilla, mixing until incorporated.
Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 75 to 90 minutes.
Remove from oven, and cool slightly on a wire rack.
Invert cake onto rack; turn cake right-side up to cool completely on rack, and serve drizzled with caramel sauce

From The Martha Stewart Show, May 2006

Makes enough for 1 cake

1 cup light-brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Directions

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until thickened to desired consistency.

Kneaders cranberry white chocolate cookies

2010-01-07T13:26:00.001-08:00

I went to Kneaders while I was in Utah. It's this bakery that makes delicious treats. I got a cranberry white chocolate cookie and it was SO good. I was excited when I found this recipe online.

Here is the link: White chocolate chip and cranberry cookies

Kneaders White Chocolate Chip and Cranberry Cookies
Guest Chef Tami Vincent
www.kneadersbakery.com

# INGREDIENTS 1 cup butter, softened to room temperature
# 1 cup packed brown sugar
# 1 cup white sugar
# 2 egg
# 1 Tablespoon vanilla
# 3 cups all-purpose flour
# 1 teaspoon baking soda
# 1 ½ cup white chocolate chips
# 1 ½ cup dried cranberries
# 1 cup macadamia nuts chopped.

Preparation: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with pan release. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, white sugar until fluffy. Beat in the egg and the vanilla. Combine the flour and baking soda and stir into the sugar mixture. Do not over beat as this will cause the cookies to be tough. Fold in white chocolate chips, cranberries and nuts. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto the cookie sheets. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes until slightly brown on the edges. Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheets before placing them on a cooling rack.

Makes about 36 1.5oz cookies or Kneaders size 18 cookies

Caramel Corn

2009-12-28T14:04:00.000-08:00

Ingredients:
1/2 C. popcorn seeds
1 C. brown sugar
6 Tbs butter
1/4 C. corn syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Directions
Preheat oven to 225 degrees. Prepare popcorn, set aside. On stove, melt butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and salt on medium heat. Mix thoroughly. When it starts to boil, remove from heat and add baking soda (the caramel will bubble up). Mix in the baking soda. Pour caramel over popcorn. Use buttered spatula to mix popcorn in caramel until evenly coated. Spread caramel corm onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake in oven about 45 minutes. Remove from oven; let cool a few minutes. Store in an air-tight container.

Christine's (my SIL) caramels

2009-12-12T13:33:00.000-08:00

2 cups (1 pint) heavy whipping cream
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla

butter 8X8X2 pan.

heat cream to lukewarm in large, heavy suacepan.
Pour out 1 cup cream and set aside.
Add sugar, corn syrup, and salt to remaining cream in pan.
Cook, stirring constantly until mixture boils.

Add remaining cream VERY SLOWLY... almost in drops so that mixture stays boiling. If you cool it down to wear it isn't boiling it won't combine well. Stir the whole time.

Add butter 1/2 tablespoon at a time. keep mixture boiling!

turn heat to low. Boil gently while stirring until temp reaches 248 degrees at sea level....239 degrees in Kaysville, UT.

Remove from heat. Add vanilla. let stand 10 minutes.

Turn out on cutting board. Cut into squares.

cranberry orange bread

2009-12-08T18:00:00.001-08:00

Haven't tried this, but I want to. i love how the last bunch of posts are all cranberry.

I found this recipe here!

Cranberry-Orange Bread

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
3/4 cup orange juice
1 egg
1 cup fresh cranberries, chopped
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom only of loaf pan.
(8 & 1/2" x 4 & 1/2" x 2 & 1/2" or 9" x 5" x 3")

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda; stir in butter until mixture is crumbly. Stir in orange peel, orange juice and egg just until moistened; stir in cranberries and nuts. Spread in pan.

Bake 8" loaf for 1 hour and 15 minutes, 9" loaf for 55 to 65 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan. Loosen sides of bread from pan and remove to a wire rack. Cool completely before slicing.

**I always make a double batch so that I can get two loaves out of it. The way my family eats this up, it's always better to have two! But, at Christmas time, I like to have a second loaf to wrap up and give to the neighbors. So, if you choose to bake two loaves at a time, be sure to decrease your cooking time to 45 minutes.**

Cranberry Bliss Bars

2009-11-19T07:39:00.001-08:00

Cake

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1¼ cups light brown sugar

3 eggs

1½ tsp vanilla

1 tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp salt

1½ cups flour

¾ cup chopped dried cranberries

3 oz/ white chocolate, cut into chunks (check ingredients for cocoa butter, i.e. Baker’s)

¼ cup minced candied ginger

Frosting

4 oz cream cheese, softened

3 cups powdered sugar

4 tsp lemon juice

½ tsp vanilla extract

¼ cup dried cranberries

Drizzled Icing

2 oz white chocolate, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make cake by beating butter and brown sugar together until smooth. Add eggs, vanilla, ground ginger and salt, beat well. Gradually mix in flour until smooth. Add ¾ cup chopped cranberries, white chocolate chunks and candied ginger, mix. Pour batter into a well greased 9x13 straight sided backing pan. Spread evenly. Bake 35-40 minutes or until cake is light brown on the edges. Allow cake to cool.

Combine frosting ingredients and beat til smooth, spread on cooled cake.

Sprinkle on the ¼ cup of dried cranberries.

Melt 2 oz white chocolate and drizzle over the top of frosted cake.

Cranberry-Orange Chutney

2009-11-13T07:55:00.000-08:00

A great side to your Thanksgiving turkey.

1 c. fresh orange sections
1/4 c. orange juice
4 c. cranberries, fresh
2 1/4 c. sugar
1 c. chopped unpeeled apple
1/2 c. raisins
1/4 c. chopped walnuts
1 tbsp. vinegar
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes or until berries begin to pop. Chill until serving time.
This colorful sweet chutney is the perfect accompaniment to meat dishes, especially at holiday time. Keep stored in refrigerator.
Makes approx. 5 1/2 cups

Cranberry fluff 'salad'

2009-11-06T14:08:00.000-08:00

I love fresh cranberries so when my kids came home from their friend's house with a bowl full of this creation I was in heaven. It's sweet and tart and fluffy. yum. I ate way too much of it.

She said her husband's aunt makes it for thanksgiving. She told me how to make it over the phone and I looked up the recipe and found this. She said it's the same. From cooks.com

CRANBERRY DELIGHT

1 bag cranberries, ground
1 c. sugar
1 pt. heavy whipping cream
3/4 lb. miniature marshmallows
1 (8 oz.) can crushed pineapple, drained
1 c. chopped nuts

Grind cranberries, mix with sugar. Let set for 2 hours in refrigerator. Whip cream, mix with marshmallows. Let set for 2 hours in refrigerator. Mix cranberry and cream mixture and the rest of the ingredients. Serve.

Blue Corn Tortilla Soup

2009-11-03T19:47:00.000-08:00

Blue Corn Tortilla Soup

5 lbs chicken—grilled & cubed
1 oz garlic—minced
1 lb Red Onions—diced
1 ½ Yellow Onions—diced
1 lb Bacon—Diced (I cook mine first)
6 Ears corn or 1 10oz bag frozen
2 ½ gallons chicken stock (use paste)
6 jalapenos—seeded & chopped
6 Avocados
7 Tomatoes—chopped (add to soup)
1 Bunch Cilantro—diced (add to soup & some to garnish)
Limes
2 T Cumin
2 T Coriander
Salt & Pepper to taste
Blue Corn Tortilla Chips

The avocados, chips and limes are for after, everything else goes into the soup. The longer it simmers the better it is.

Breadmaker Rosemary Bread

2009-10-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

I love rosemary bread. It tastes so good with soups and stews. However, the artisan breads that the supermarket sells can cost $4.00 for a small loaf.

I don't like using my breadmaker (a wedding gift that's now 8 years old, and up until recently has been used less than 8 times). Whenever I do, the bread comes out heavy and tough (which is probably more due to my lack of skill using a breadmaker than the breadmaker's fault, but it still frustrates me!).

So, when Brian found this incredibly easy breadmaker recipe for rosemary bread, I thought it was too good to be true - until I made it. I have all the ingredients on hand (another annoyance with typical breadmaker recipes that I have looked at in the past, calling for dry milk and other things that I just don't use all the regularly), and it's so simple. The best part, though? The bread comes out light and savory. It's inexpensive and delicious. A perfect combination.

1 C water
3 T olive oil
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 T dried rosemary
2 1/2 C white flour (the recipe originally called for bread flour, but regular white works great!)
1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast

Place ingredients in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select white bread cycle; press Start. I choose medium crust on my bread machine, and it's perfect. You may need to adjust according to what works best with your bread machine.

Easy Mexican Chicken Crockpot Chowder

2009-10-12T15:44:00.001-07:00

courtesy of Theresa

Easy Mexican Chicken Crockpot Chowder

2 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 can whole kernel corn
1 can condensed cream of potato soup
1 can diced green chilis, undrained
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
2 tablespoons snipped fresh cilantro (I never put this in)
3 cups chicken broth
8 ounces sour cream
4 ounces jalapeno pepper cheese spread (I never put this in, either)

In a crockpot, combine chicken, corn, soup, undrained chilis, cilantro, and taco seasoning. Stir in chicken broth.

Cover; cook on low setting for 8 to 10 hours, or on high setting for 4 to 5 hours.

Stir about 1 cup hot soup into sour cream. Stir sour cream mixture and cheese into the mixture in crockpot; cover and let stand for 5 minutes.

Ryan's famous pumpkin chocolate chip waffles

2009-10-08T11:23:00.001-07:00

This recipe is courtesy of my friend Heidi's recipe blog.

Ryan's famous pumpkin chocolate chip waffles

1 1/4 c. flour

2 T. sugar

2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. each cinnamon, ginger, salt

1/8 t. nutmeg dash of cloves

Whisk dry ingredients together and then fold in:

1 egg

6 T. canned pumpkin puree

2 T. melted butter

1 c. milk

1/4 c. mini chocolate chips

Cook in your waffle iron until tasty golden brown and douse with butter and maple syrup. I can't vouch for the nutritional quality of it, but boy they sure taste good. Pumpkin's got a lot of vitamins, right?? Also, these freeze well once fully cooled, and can be reheated in a toaster for a quick breakfast.

Monster Chex mix

2009-10-08T11:19:00.001-07:00

4C chex cereal

4C popped popcorn

1C honey roasted cashews

1C roasted salted pump seeds

place above ingredients in microwave bowl, mix and set aside

1/4C butter

6Tbsp packed brwn sugar

2Tbsp light corn syrup

¼ tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

place ingredients in md microwave bowl and cook uncovered on high about 2minute or until boiling, stirring after one minute; stir in pumplin pie spice. Pour over cereal stirring evenly to coat

1C candy corn

Microwave 5 minutes, stirring and scraping bowl after every minute. Spread to wax paper to cool, stirring occasionally to break up. Stir in candy corn. Store in airtight container

Baked Chicken and Rice

2009-10-07T10:30:00.000-07:00

2 cups plain rice
4 chicken breasts
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 envelopes dry onion soup mix
4 soup cans of water (use the soup can to measure)

In a large greased baking dish, place 2 cups plain rice (uncooked). Layer chicken on top.
Mix remaining ingredients and pour over chicken and rice.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 for 1 hour 20 mins.

Tuxedo Brownies

2009-10-05T15:11:00.001-07:00

how sad that i'm the only cool one left that posts on this blog! Come on guys!

We had these brownies at enrichment a few months ago. They were so good. I emailed for the recipe and need a place to keep it.

Tuxedo Brownies

Brownies
You can make the brownies from a mix, using a mini muffin pan. Just use 3 eggs and using a spoon make an indentation in the center of each warm, cooked brownie. Let completely cool before filling. Make sure to grease the muffin pan between each batch.
OR- THE EASIER ROUTE
buy a tub of browie bites from sams club. cheap, easy and a great time saver

Filling
2 squares of white chocolate (1oz. each) or white chocolate chips
2 Tbsp. milk
Melt together in micromave, uncovered, for 1 min. Stir until smooth. Cool slightly

1 pkg. cream cheese (8oz.)
1/4 c. powdered sugar
Combine in large bowl. Add melted chocolate.

1c. frozen whipped topping or whipped cream. (using real whipped cream tastes best)- fold in

Pipe filling into the center of the brownies. Add orange zest and melted dark chocolate over the top. Freeze 1-3 hours before serving. let thaw about 10min. before serving. Make ahead of time and freeze up to 2 weeks.
Optional topping- strawberries and mint leaves (just don't freeze the strawberries)
Makes about 50

Cheese Bread!

2009-09-10T21:04:00.001-07:00

wahoo!

2 1/2 cups warm water (about as warm as you'd make a bath)
2 1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 cup honey
5 to 6 cups of flour
2 1/2 tsp salt

1. Make a sponge. Combine water, yeast, honey, and 3 cups of flour. Mix in a metal bowl (it will hold it's temperature better). This will be a runny, spongy mess. Let it sit for 1 hour.

After 1 hour it should be nice and bubbly.

If you use a mixer, dump the sponge into the mixer. Add the remaining flour and salt. Add a cup at a time until you get the desired consistency. It should pull away from the sides. It should be soft, but not sticky.

After you get the desired consistency, add the cheese. I just cut up medium cheddar cheese into 1" cubes. I use about 1 pound. You can add anything you want at this point. Raisins, cinnamon, nuts, berries, anything!

Let the dough rise for about 2 hours. I let this one rise, then I added more cheese. Then I let it rise again. So it looks kind of strange because the cheese broke up a lot more. It made for a really soft bread though, so it was great.

Shape the dough into the desired shape. I like rounds. You can make loaves if you want. You can make them bigger or smaller.

Let the oven warm to 330 degrees. Let the loaves proof near the warming oven. They should get a little bigger feeling bigger, but not puffy to the touch.

Bake for about 35 minutes. Don't forget about the bread after the timer goes off, like I did! These are a little over done. At the bakery we would try to take the bread out when it was exactly done or just underdone and let it bake a little longer on the rack. I have a hard time reaching that level at home. There is an internal temperature you can test for, but i can't remember what it is! If you don't like your loaves to run together, don't put them close together. I LOVE the spots where the loaves are running together so that's whey I keep this method.

That's it!

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

2009-09-10T10:51:00.001-07:00

Another recipe I haven't tried yet, but probably will today.

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

1 Cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 cup peanut butter (use natural PB, it works great)
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup oatmeal (I use old-fashioned because I like the texture it adds, but quick-cooking are fine too)
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a large bowl, cream together butter, brown sugar, white sugar, and peanut butter until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time until well blended. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture. Mix in the oats and chocolate chips until just combined. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until just light brown. Don't over-bake. Cool and store in an airtight container.

Baked Oatmeal

2009-09-08T12:42:00.000-07:00

I saw this recipe online and want to try it, but haven't yet. just saving it here!

Fruity Baked Oatmeal (Taste of Home magazine jan/Feb 2007)

3 C quick cooking oats

1 C brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt ( I omitted this)

1/2 tsp cinnamon ( I used more)

2 eggs lightly beaten

1 C milk

1/2 C butter, melted

3/4 C chopped tart apple

1/3 C fresh or frozen peaches

1/3 C fresh or frozen blueberries

In a large bowl, combine oats, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Combine eggs, milk, and butter; add to the dry ingredients. Stir in the fruit. Pour into a 8 inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake uncovered at 350 for 35 - 40 minutes. Serve with milk.

Creamy Mushroom Chicken

2009-09-01T13:17:00.000-07:00

4-6 chicken breasts in large chunks
2 chopped shallots
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 red onion chopped
1 pound mushroom, quartered and soaked in 1 Tb lemon juice
1 Tablespoon flour
3/4 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup half and half or milk
1/2 shredded swiss plus more for top

Saute chicken in 2 Tb butter and 2 Tb olive oil and place in baking dish. Add shallots, onion and garlic and saute until tender. Add soaked mushrooms and flour to onions. Cook 1-2 minutes, then add broth and milk and 1/2 cup cheese. Mix well and pour over chicken

Top with more swiss and bake 375 for 45 minutes

Serve with Angel Hair pasta

Chicken Vessuvio

2009-09-01T13:07:00.000-07:00

I got this recipe from Giada on the Food Network. It works great in the crock pot as well.

Ingredients:
4 chicken thighs (I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 1/2 pounds red potatoes (halved if they're large)
4 cloves minced garlic
2/4 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
8 ounces frozen artichoke hearts
2 Tablespoons butter
Salt and Pepper

Heat oven to 450

Heat the oil in a large pot over high heat. Sprinkle chicken with s & p. Brown chicken on all sides working in batches if needed. Transfer chicken to baking dish.

Add potatoes to same pot and cook until golden brown...about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add chicken broth and scrape bits from bottom of pot. Add oregano and thyme and pour over the chicken. (This is when it could be placed in a crock pot for 3-4 hours on low)

Bake about 20 minutes and then add the artichokes and dot with butter for another 10 minutes of baking, or until chicken is tender.

Chili Coke Roast

2009-08-04T14:49:00.000-07:00

1 Roast
1 Can Coca-Cola
1 Package Onion Soup Mix
1 Bottle Chili Sauce

Place all ingredients in a crock pot and cook for 7-10 hours. The meat will shred easily when meat is done. Serve over mashed potatoes.

Baked Pesto Chicken

2009-08-04T14:45:00.000-07:00

4 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup basil pesto
2 plum tomatoes
shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cover cookie sheet with foil.
Put pesto and chicken in bowl and toss chicken until well coated.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until cooked through.

Place slices of tomato on chicken and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake another 3-5 minutes.

Serve over cooked angel hair pasta.

Orange Fluff

2009-07-19T08:11:00.001-07:00

Orange Jell-O Fruit Salad

Jamie Wayman

1 (4.6 oz) box Vanilla Cook & Serve Pudding

1 (3 oz) box Orange Jell-O

1 can Pineapple Tidbits

1 can Mandarin Oranges

1 (8 oz) Cool Whip (WE use 16oz)

Drain fruit juices into a liquid measuring container. Measure 2 cups of fruit juice; if unable to get 2 cups just add water. Put all fruit into a covered tupperware container in fridge. In sauce pan combine Vanilla Pudding and juice. Stir continuously until mixture comes to a full boil. Remove mixture from heat and put in large bowl. Stir in Jell-O until dissolved. Let mixture sit in fridge overnight or several hours, covered.

In morning beat mixture with blender until fluffy. Add cool whip and beat again. Add fruit just before serving.

Pork Tacos

2009-07-12T18:32:00.000-07:00

Ok, So I have another good Mexican recipe. It is not really a recipe but more of a creation I came up with. Soo yummy. Don't wimp out and not make the dressing, sooo worth it!

1 Pork Roast
Half Bottle Lawry's Baja Chipotle Marinade
Small taco size Flour Tortillas
1 Hidden Valley Ranch dry dressing Mix
1 small can of salsa Verde
Lettuce, cheese, optional.

Put Pork in crock pot on low heat and about 4 hours later put in Lawry's marinade
Cook 2-3 more hours and then shred pork
Make ranch dressing according to directions. And then add about 2-3 spoonfuls of salsa Verde. (gives it a cafe rio flavor) Chill in fridge for 30 minutes.
Heat oil on medium high heat in frying pan and fry tortillas until crispy and light brown. Drain on paper towel.

Fill tortillas with all the fixins' This is seriously a hit every time I make it.

Beef Enchiladas

2009-07-09T15:56:00.000-07:00

This blog is totally dying and it makes me sad!

Natalie Haggen made these for us and they were so good so I asked her for the recipe.

Beef Enchiladas

1 lb ground beef
1 md onion chopped (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar chz (4 oz)
2 TBSP fresh parsley
1/4 tsp pepper
1/3 cup chopped bell pepper
2/3 cup water
1 TBSP chili powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano leaves
1/4 tsp cummin
2 whole chopped green chilies(I use the chopped canned)
1 garlic clove finely chopped
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
8 corn tortillas
extra shredded cheese, sour cream and chopped onion, if desired

Heat oven to 350

Cook beef, then stir in onion, sour cream, 1 cup cheese, the parsley and pepper. cover and remove from heat

heat bell pepper (I leave them out-picky kids) water, chili powder,oregano, cummin,chilies, garlic and tomato sauce to a boil stirring occasionally. reduce heat, simmer uncovered for 5 min. pour into ungreased pie plate.

Dip each tortilla in sauce to coat both sides, spoon 1/4 cup beef mixture on each tortilla, roll it up and place seam side down in ungreased rectangular baking dish. Pour remaining sauce over enchiladas, I always put more cheese on top.

Bake uncovered for 20 min or until bubbly.

Peanut Butter Brownies

2009-06-02T11:30:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my good friend Kelly for this recipe. These are SO good.

2 1/2 c. flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 3/4 c. brown sugar
1 c. peanut butter
1/2 c. margarine or butter
3 eggs
2 t. vanilla
3 1-oz. squares semi sweet chocolate
1 1-oz. square unsweetened chocolate
1 6 oz. package or about 1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, baking powder, salt, set aside. At medium speed, beat brown sugar, butter, peanut butter until smooth 2 minutes. On low beat in eggs and vanilla. Bear in flour mix until combined. Place 1 3/4 c. dough in seperate bowl. Stir in melted chocolate squares into remaining dough until blended. Fold in 3/4 c. semi sweet chips. Pat 1/2 chocolate dough in 13x9 cake pan. Drop peanut butter dough in random pattern for 2nd layer. Pat down. Sprinkle remaning chocolate dough and chocolate chips on top. Bake 25-30 minutes until toothpick inserted in middle is clean.

Fun (non-edible) recipes for the kids

2009-05-13T10:08:00.000-07:00

Slime
2 cups white school glue
1-1/2 cups water
1 teaspoon Borax
1/2 cup water
Food coloring

Combine the glue and 1 ½ cups water. Mix until the stickiness is gone. Dissolve the Borax in the ½ cup water. Add food coloring, if desired. Add this mixture to the glue. Knead the mixture with hands about 10 minutes. Store in an airtight container.

Flubber
Mix thoroughly the following ingredients in a bowl:
1-1/2 cups very warm water
2 cups Elmer's glue
food coloring

In a separate bowl, mix thoroughly:
1-1/3 cups very warm water
2 level teaspoons Borax

Mix the contents of the two bowls together kneading until it is fully combined. Discard any remaining liquid.

Brownie Lady Brownies

2009-04-29T14:07:00.000-07:00

I haven't tried these yet, but want to. I don't want to loose the recipe, so here they are.

Brownie Lady Brownies

2/3 C Cocoa
2/3 C Shortening, Melted (NOT NOT NOT butter flavored)
4 Eggs
2 C Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 1/2 C flour
1 teaspoon baking POWDER
1 teaspoon Salt
1 to 1 1/2 C minature marshmallows
1 C Chopped nuts (optional)

Mix Cocoa and melted shortening in bowl. In seperate bowl beat eggs, sugar and vanilla. Add to cocoa mix. Add dry ingredients EXCLUDING marshmallows to cocoa mixture. Mix well. Stir in marshmallows. Pour into 9x13 pan and bake @ 350 for 25-35 minutes. Your fork or toothpick won't come out super clean because of the marshmallows.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

2009-04-16T13:21:00.000-07:00

1/2 head romaine
1 small sliced red onion
1 pkg slivered almonds
1/2 bag of fresh spinach
1 pint sliced strawberries
2 Tbs sugar

Place almonds in frying pan with sugar and toast until slightly brown

Dressing: 3/4 cup sugar
1 cup oil 1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 cup vinegar 1 T Poppy Seeds
1 tsp dry mustard

Put ingredients in container with lid. Shake until well mixed. Chill Pour over salad and toss just before serving.

Chicken Parmesan

2009-04-14T09:43:00.001-07:00

Sorry it's taken me so long to post this, Paige.

4 chicken breasts (or how ever many you want)
bread crumbs - I buy the Italian seasoned ones by Progresso
parmesan cheese
2 beaten egg
spaghetti sauce - I like Prego mushroom. It is a little sweet.

Put the chicken breast in a ziploc bag and pound it until it's a thickness you like, I like it kind of thin.
mix bread crumbs with some parm cheese. Beat eggs with a fork in a bowl. Dip chicken in egg and then in bread crumb mixture. Cover on both sides and brown in a frying pan with some olive oil. Brown on both sides and put in a 9X13 pan. Do this with each chicken breast. Then cover with sauce. Cover and cook at 350 for about 45 minutes to hour. Uncover for the last 10 minutes and put some mozzarella cheese on top.

I'm sure you can find other recipes for this, but this is the way I do it.

Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

2009-04-14T09:42:00.001-07:00

I love this stuff. We have a lot of left over ham from Easter so I'm sure I'll be making this.

link is here: Split Pea Soup

Cook Time: 8 hours
Ingredients:

* 1 (16 oz.) pkg. dried green split peas, rinsed
* 1 meaty hambone, 2 ham hocks, or 2 cups diced ham
* 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
* 1/2 cup chopped onion
* 2 ribs of celery plus leaves, chopped
* 1 or 2 cloves of garlic, minced
* 1 bay leaf
* 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped, or 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
* 1 tbsp. seasoned salt (or to taste)
* 1/2 tsp. fresh pepper
* 1 1/2 qts. hot water

Preparation:
Layer ingredients in slow cooker in the order given; pour in water. Do not stir ingredients. Cover and cook on HIGH 4 to 5 hours or on low 8 to 10 hours until peas are very soft and ham falls off bone. Remove bones and bay leaf. Mash peas to thicken more, if desired. Serve garnished with croutons. Freezes well.
Serves 8.

Chocolate Chip Banana muffins

2009-04-14T09:35:00.001-07:00

I had these delicious muffins at my brother and SIL's house a few weeks ago. The recipe is from All Recipes, but I wanted a place to keep it. He told me he used sour cream instead of the yogurt.

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

INGREDIENTS

* 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 3/4 cup sugar
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 egg
* 1/2 cup vegetable oil
* 1/2 cup plain yogurt
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1 cup mashed ripe bananas
* 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, combine the egg, oil, yogurt and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in bananas and chocolate chips. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 degrees F for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Salad with Lemon-Parmesean Dressing

2009-03-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel

4 cups (packed) baby arugula
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes

Blend first 4 ingredients in processor. Season dressing with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl. Cover; chill up to 3 days.
Combine arugula and tomatoes in large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat

Banana Crumb Muffins

2009-03-25T13:54:00.000-07:00

These muffins are a yummy change from the standard banana bread recipe. They are so moist, and the crumb topping is oh, so sweet!

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease 10 muffin cups, or line with muffin papers.

In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.

In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Cut in 1 tablespoon butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.
Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

The best playdough

2009-02-17T12:40:00.000-08:00

Combine in saucepan:
3 cups flour
3/4 cup salt
3 tsps cream of tartar

Add and whisk until smooth:
3 cups water
3 T. oil food color (or if I don't have oil food color I just add oil and add food color at the end)

Cook over medium heat until nearly set.

Add 3 T. imitation vanilla extract

Store in a ziploc bag. this will last a long time.

Cheesey Chicken Cordon Bleu Rice Casserole

2009-02-17T12:36:00.000-08:00

YUM! this is good and not too hard to make.

2 T. oil olive
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 clove fresh garlic, minced
1/2 lb. diced ham
2 cups cooked shredded chicken breast
4 T. butter
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
14 oz chicken broth
3 cups cooked rice of choice
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella or swiss cheese

preheat oven to 350

heat oil in large 5 quart rimmed skilled over medium heat. Saute onion and bell pepper until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic (i just used powder), ham, and chicken (i boiled my chicken to cook it). Cook for additional 5 minutes. Melt butter, stir in flour, add salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Slowly stir in chicken broth until well combined. Stir in cooked rice. Transfer to a 9X13 baking pan. Top with cheddar and mozarella (I used swiss) cheese. I also mixed the cheese into the dish.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

This was so tasty and my kids loved it.

Cinnamon Knots

2009-02-14T11:34:00.000-08:00

**I just made these...delicious!! The kids devoured them!

8 balls of Frozen yeast roll dough (such as Rhode’s)

1 cup sugar

2 T cinnamon

1 stick margarine, melted

Place dough balls on plate sprayed lightly with baking spray to prevent them from sticking. Allow to thaw but not rise.

Once thawed, melt margarine in microwave. Stir cinnamon and sugar together in separate bowl. Roll out dough into tube about six inches long. Tie into knots. OR...you can dip in butter and cinnamon and then tie in knots.

Dip into margarine and then roll into cinnamon sugar mixture. Place on greased pan and cover with greased plastic wrap. Leave in warm place and allow to rise until double in size (about one and a half to two hours).

Bake at 350 for fifteen to twenty minutes, or until brown. For an added treat, prepare the following cream cheese icing to be served with rolls.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing

4 ounces cream cheese

1/2 stick margarine or butter

1 1/2 to 2 cups confectioner’s sugar

1 tsp butter flavoring (can substitute Vanilla)

1 T cinnamon

Soften cream cheese and margarine by leaving out on counter until it reaches room temperature. Combine the two in a mixing bowl and mix until well blended. Add sugar. Mix until smooth. Add flavoring and cinnamon, mixing until well incorporated and icing is creamy.

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

2009-02-03T19:39:00.000-08:00

This blog must be resurrected! I have gotten so many great recipes from here and I'm in need of more quick dinner recipes. I wish I had a great one to share, but today I only have a treat.

These are SO good! Of course they would be, they are from Paula Dean!

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

Ingredients

* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
* 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
* 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
* 1/2 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons, divided
* 2 large eggs
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* Streusel topping, recipe follows
* 1/2 cup caramel topping

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, combine flour and brown sugar. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Press evenly into a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking pan lined with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with 1/2 cup sugar in an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Then add eggs, 1 at a time, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Pour over warm crust.

In a small bowl, stir together chopped apples, remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Spoon evenly over cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle evenly with Streusel topping. Bake 30 minutes, or until filling is set. Drizzle with caramel topping.
Streusel Topping:

* 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup quick cooking oats
* 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients.

Yield: approximately 3 cups

Easy Chicken Skewers with Peanut Sauce

2009-01-06T14:38:00.000-08:00

¼ cup catalina dressing 3 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp soy sauce 2 tbsp peanuts, chopped
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into lengthwise slices

Mix dressing, peanut butter and soy sauce in large bowl until well blended. Add chicken; toss to coat. Cover; refrigerate 10 min to marinate. Preheat broiler. Remove chicken from marinade; discard marinade. Thread chicken evenly onto 8 soaked wooden skewers. Place on rack in broiler pan. Broil, 4-6 inches from heat, 4 min on each side or until cooked through. Serve sprinkled with peanuts. Serve with cooked rice or ramen noodles.

three-herb steak

2008-12-30T12:40:00.000-08:00

Bethany invited me to contribute to this blog a few weeks ago, and now that life is settling back down after the holidays, I'm finally making my first post. I have loved following this blog from when it first started. You all have such wonderful recipes!

This recipe that I'm posting here is actually more of a summer recipe since it's really a grilling recipe (it's from the June 2007 issue of BH&G). Brian and I don't have a grill yet, so we adapted it to the oven and it was delicious. We are having company from out of town on New Year's Day and this is what we are serving. It's quick, simple, and yummy. I am not a big meat eater - this is the first steak I have ever cooked in the seven years of married life - and I love it.

Ingredients:
1/2 C snipped fresh parsley
1/4 C olive oil
1/4 C snipped fresh basil (the best part! I love fresh basil)
1 Tb snipped fresh oregano (we use 1 tsp of dry and it works fine)
1 to 2 tsp cracked black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2 beef top loin steaks, cut 1 1/2 in thick
2 med red or yellow bell peppers (I use one of each color), cut in 1/2 inch rings, seeds removed
1 Tb olive oil
salt and pepper

Preparation:
1. In a bowl combine parsley, the 1/4 C olive oil, basil, oregano, black pepper, and 1/2 tsp salt. Trim fat from meat. Pat about two-thirds of herb mixture on both sides of steaks. Cover; refrigerate 1 hour. Meanwhile, brush pepper rings with the 1 Tb olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
2. For charcoal grill, grill steaks on rack of uncovered grill to desired doneness, turning once. Grill pepper rings next to steaks the last 8 to 10 minutes of grilling or until peppers are tender, turning once. Remove steaks from grill and sprinkle with herb mixture. Cover; let stand 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Oven adaption: Broil steaks directly under broiler to desired doneness, turning once. (We don't have a broiler pan, so we rigged up some foil ridges to set the steaks on.) Remove steaks from oven and sprinkle with herb mixture. Cover; let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, broil pepper rings until peppers are tender, turning once.
4. Slice steaks across grain of meat. Serve with sweet pepper rings.

Makes 6 servings.

Using Food Storage

2008-12-11T21:24:00.001-08:00

I don't know about you, but now that I've built up my food supply, I'm looking for good recipes that incorporate these ingredients so I can rotate what I've stored.

Here are some sites that I've come to frequent often:

Safely Gathered In

You Can Can

Peanut Butter Chocolate Pie

2008-11-25T08:51:00.000-08:00

this pie is so, so good. One of my most favorites.

1/2 cup chocolate chips
3 T. whipping cream
3/4 cup brown sugar
6 T. butter
1/3 cup milk
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 container (regular size) cool whip

Melt chocolate chips and whipping cream in microwave. do this slowly so it doesn't burn.

Pour mixture in the bottom of a baked pie shell.

Add brown sugar and butter (cut into chunks) to a bowl. Heat in the microwave slowly. Try every 30 seconds. mix it up between times. The brown sugar needs to completely dissolve. Let cool slightly

Add milk and peanut butter to sugar/butter mixture. Bet with a mixer until well blended. Stir in cool whip. Blend together completely.

Poor PB mixture into pie shell.

Chill at least 2 hours.

Random Pies

2008-11-25T08:48:00.001-08:00

I told a friend I would post a bunch of pie recipes on here. My family loves to make pies for Thanksgiving.

Here are a few that I can link to online sources:

This is the best lemon meringue pie...EVER!
Lemon Meringue Pie

Cranberry Orange Cheesecake

Mark's Pumpkin Bundt Cake

2008-11-25T08:45:00.000-08:00

3 1/2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3 large eggs
29 oz can pumpkin
1 cup milk or 1/2 and 1/2
1 cup butter
1 small pack of instant vanilla pudding.

Mix everything together and pour into a bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 65 minutes or until done.

Pecan Pie

2008-11-25T08:44:00.000-08:00

3 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 c. dark corn syrup
1/3 cup melted butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup pecan halves

1. Mix eggs, sugar, corn syrup, butter, and salt. Stir in pecans. Pour mixture into unbaked pie shell.

2. Bake on bottom rack at 375 degrees until center jiggles only slightly when pan is shaken. This will be about 40 to 50 minutes.

4 Berry Pie

2008-11-25T08:41:00.000-08:00

1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 T. butter, melted and cooled
5 cups berries (I used triple berry blend from Sam's club)

1. mix sugar, cornstarch, and butter. Gently stir in berries.
2. Put mixture into unbaked pie crust. Cover with top crust. Line 12" pizza pan with foil to catch drippings.
3. Bake on bottom rack at 375 degres for 45 to 55 minutes.

This will drip over a lot. It takes a little while to set up too. If it's not cooled it will be runny, but delicious with ice cream!

Strawberry Upside down pie

2008-11-25T08:32:00.000-08:00

3 egg whites
1/2 tsp vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups strawberries
1/3 cup. sugar
2 T. cornstarch
1/2 c. water

Beat egg whites with vinegar and salt to soft peaks. Gradually add the 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla, beating to still peaks. Spread on sides and bottom of baked pie shell. Bake at 325 degrees for 12 minutes. Cool.

Mash 2 cups of berries. In a saucepan combine 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch, and mashed berries. cook and stir until mixture thickens and boils. Cook 2 minutes. then cool slightly.

pour strawberries into shell with meringue. allow to cool.

top with whipping cream (NOT cool whip)... unsweetened.

YUM! this is one of my very favorite pies.

Turkey with Herbes de Provence and Citrus

2008-10-26T20:49:00.000-07:00

I've used this turkey recipe (thanks Food Network) for the last few Thanksgiving dinners that I've cooked for, and it always turns out moist. It looks daunting becuase of the number of ingredients, but it is so easy to do.

1 (14 to 15-pound) turkey, neck and giblets reserved
1 orange, cut into wedges
1 lemon, cut into wedges
1 onion, cut into wedges
6 fresh rosemary sprigs
6 fresh sage sprigs
6 fresh oregano sprigs
7 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons herbes de Provence
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
6 cups canned low-salt chicken broth (approximate amount)
1/3 cup all-purpose flour

To make the turkey: Position the rack in the lowest third of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.

Rinse the turkey and pat it dry with paper towels. Place the turkey on a rack set inside a large roasting pan. Place the orange and lemon wedges, onion, and 2 sprigs of each fresh herb in the main turkey cavity. Tie the legs together to hold the shape of the turkey. Stir 2 tablespoons of butter, the herbes de Provence, oil, and 1 1/2 teaspoons of each the salt and pepper in a small saucepan over medium heat just until the butter melts. Rub the butter mixture all over the turkey and between the turkey breast meat and skin. Place the turkey neck and giblets in roasting pan. (Recipe can be prepared up to this point 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before roasting.)

Cover the turkey breast with foil. Roast for 20 minutes. Pour 3 cups of broth into the pan and stir to scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Add the remaining sprigs of fresh herbs to the pan. Roast the turkey for 40 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Remove the foil from the turkey; pour 1 more cup of broth into the pan. Continue roasting the turkey until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees F to 175 degrees F or until the juices run clear when the thickest part of the thigh is pierced with a skewer, basting occasionally with pan juices, about 1 hour and 30 minutes longer. Transfer the turkey to a platter and tent with foil. Let stand 30 minutes while preparing the gravy.

To make the gravy: Strain the turkey pan juices from the roasting pan through a sieve and into a 4-cup glass measuring cup; discard the solids. Spoon off the fat from atop the pan juices. Add enough chicken broth, about 1 to 2 cups, to the pan juices to measure 4 cups total. Melt the remaining butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the broth. Simmer until the gravy thickens slightly, whisking often, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve the turkey with the gravy.

Tuscan Meatballs

2008-10-23T10:01:00.000-07:00

1 pkg Frozen chopped spinach (i use half)
1 pound ground turkey (beef works too)
1 egg
1 cup Seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 handfuls shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tsp garlic salt
1 to 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
12 ounces Spaghetti
1 packet dry pesto mix

Heat Oven to 350 degrees. Squeeze water out of Spinach. Mix spinach, turkey, egg. bread crumbs, Parmesan, mozzarella, garlic salt in a bowl. Shape mixture into meatballs.
Heat oil in large frying pan over med-high heat. Brown meatballs, about 2-3 min each side. Once browned transfer to cookie sheet and put in oven for about 20 minutes.
Once meatballs are baking cook spaghetti and prepare pesto sauce.
Add cooked spaghetti back to pan that meatballs were cooked in. Add pesto sauce to pasta.

Seriously, I think about these meatballs for days after. They are so good.

2008-10-10T08:50:00.000-07:00

These fun recipe and food links come from my chef aunt. Thanks, Linda!

www.cuisinerecipes.com
www.eatingwell.com
www.myrecipes.com
www.kraftkitchens.com
www.epicurean.com
www.foodandwine.com
www.diabeticgourmet.com
www.allrecipes.com
www.cookinglight.com
www.bettycrocker.com
www.pillsbury.com
www.mayoclinic.com/health/healthy-recipes/RE99999
www.chefscatalog.com/recipe/recipe-main.aspx
www.thedish.com
www.finecooking.com
www.gourmetsleuth.com
www.napastyle.com/recipes
www.low-fat-recipes.com
www.therecipeworks.com

White Chicken Lasagna

2008-09-29T13:23:00.001-07:00

I made this last night. I found the recipe on allrecipes. It was delicious and a great spin on the traditional lasagna. Here's the link too in case you want to read the reviews or anything.

White Cheese Chicken Lasagna

* 9 lasagna noodles
* 1/2 cup butter
* 1 onion, chopped
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 cups chicken broth
* 1 1/2 cups milk
* 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
* 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
* 1 teaspoon dried basil
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 2 cups ricotta cheese
* 2 cups cubed, cooked chicken meat
* 2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
* 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
* 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese for topping

* add to recipe box Add to Recipe Box
My folders:
* add to shopping list Add to Shopping List
* add a personal note Add a Personal Note

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and rinse with cold water.
2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic in the butter until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the flour and salt, and simmer until bubbly. Mix in the broth and milk, and boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Stir in 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Season with the basil, oregano, and ground black pepper. Remove from heat, and set aside.
3. Spread 1/3 of the sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer with 1/3 of the noodles, the ricotta, and the chicken. Arrange 1/3 of the noodles over the chicken, and layer with 1/3 of the sauce mixture, spinach, and the remaining 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Arrange remaining noodles over cheese, and spread remaining sauce evenly over noodles. Sprinkle with parsley and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.
4. Bake 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven.

Food Fit

2008-09-18T18:45:00.001-07:00

What a fun site!
Food Fit
http://www.foodfit.com/

Healthy recipes, how to store fruits and veggies, fitness tips and more!

Lemony Chicken Salad

2008-09-18T18:45:00.000-07:00

This chicken salad recipe is much healthier than those loaded with regular mayo, and I love the hint of citrus.

4 cups diced cooked chicken
2 cups red seedless grapes
1 cup pea pods, cut once across
1 cup diced red onion
1 cup lite salad dressing
2 tbsp lemon juice
3 tsp fresh grated lemon peel
2 tsp dried basil leaves

Directions:
Toss chicken, grapes, pea pods and onion together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together salad dressing, lemon juice, lemon peel and basil leaves. Gently fold dressing mixture into chicken mixture. Chill until ready to serve. Transfer salad to serving bowl or plate separately on leaf lettuce.

Pumpkin Pancakes

2008-09-18T15:03:00.000-07:00

These are so yummy.

2 c. flour (half whole wheat if desired)

2 TBSP packed brown sugar

1 TBSP baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ginger

1  3/4 cup milk (maybe a little more or less)

1/2 c pumpkin

1 egg

2 TBSP. vegetable oil

Mix and drop into frying pan. (Not all at once, of course.)

Sweetie Swirl Cheesecake bars

2008-09-12T07:36:00.000-07:00

i haven't made these, but I want to. I don't want to loose the recipe, so I'm posting it here. You can find it HERE

INGREDIENTS

o Crust
o 11⁄2 sticks (¾ cup) butter, softened
o 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
o ½ tsp salt
o 1½ cups all-purpose flour
o Filling
o 4 oz white baking chocolate
o 1 cup frozen unsweetened raspberries, thawed
o 2 bricks (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
o ½ cup granulated sugar
o 2 large eggs
o ½ cup sour cream
o 1 tsp vanilla extract
o 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
o ¼ tsp liquid red food color
o ¼ tsp raspberry extract

PREPARATION

1. Heat oven to 325°F. You’ll need a 13 x 9-in. baking pan lined with foil (let foil extend about 2 in. above pan at both ends).

2. Crust: Beat butter in a medium bowl with mixer on medium-high speed until creamy. Add confectioners’ sugar and salt; beat 1 minute until light and fluffy. On low speed, gradually beat in flour just until blended. With fingers, press evenly over bottom of pan.

3. Bake 18 minutes or until golden. Place pan on a wire rack; let cool.

4. Filling: Melt chocolate in a small bowl in microwave as package directs. Cool to room temperature.

5. Meanwhile, with a rubber spatula, press raspberries through a fine strainer set over a medium bowl (you should have 1⁄4 cup purée); discard seeds.

6. Beat cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl with mixer on medium-high speed 2 minutes or until creamy. On low speed, beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until combined. Beat in sour cream and vanilla extract, then flour just until blended.

7. Stir 1 cup batter, the food color and raspberry extract into raspberry purée; remove and reserve 1⁄2 cup. Stir melted white chocolate into remaining batter. Pour 11⁄2 cups white batter over crust; top with spoonfuls of remaining raspberry mixture, then remaining white batter to cover. Top with small dollops reserved raspberry mixture. Drag a toothpick through dollops and white batter to marbleize.

8. Bake 32 to 35 minutes until slightly puffed and set. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack, then refrigerate at least 1 hour until firm.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

2008-09-09T15:14:00.000-07:00

crust:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
5 T. melted butter
1 T. sugar

mix together and press into 8" spring form pan.
Bake for 5 minutes at 350 degrees

filling:
3 - 8oz cream cheese softened
1 c. sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 c. pumpkin
3 eggs
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. allspice

Combine cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Mix until smooth. Add pumpkin, eggs, and spices. Beat until smooth and creamy. Pour into crust. Bake 60 to 70 minutes until set.

Cook in a water bath.

Classic Cheesecake

2008-09-09T15:07:00.000-07:00

crust:
1 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/3 c. melted butter
1/2 c. sugar

350 degree oven
mix together and press into 8 or 9" spring form pan.

cook for 8 minutes

filling:
3- 8oz packs of cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
2 tsps vanilla
3 eggs
1 c. sour cream

Beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time. Mix until blended. Add sour cream, mix.

Bake 1 hour or until just set. Turn oven off and leave the door to the oven open for 1 hour.

remove, cool completely.

The real trick to having a perfect cheesecake is to cook it in a water bath.
there are some picture here.

This is the best cheesecake recipe ever and very easy to make.

Texas Caviar

2008-09-05T16:27:00.001-07:00

This recipe is from my friend Amy. This stuff is so good. Eat as a dip with corn chips.

Texas Caviar

1 can corn
1 can black eyed peas
1/2 red onion - didn't use this much
1/2 red pepper
1/2 green pepper - didn't put this in this time
1/2 cup italian dressing
2T balsamic vinegar

cilantro to taste
salt/pepper/sugar to taste

Makes about 5-6 cups of dip.

This blog needs to be resurrected! I have gotten lots of good recipes from here in the past!

Alice Springs Chicken (from Outback Steakhouse)

2008-08-21T10:24:00.000-07:00

This is so yummy. It is a favorite of mine.

4 Chicken Breast (boneless, skinless)
Honey Mustard (recipe below)
6 pieces bacon, fried and sliced in 1/2
1/2 tsp McCormick Season All (I use more than this)
1 C. Sliced Mushrooms, if from can or jar make sure they are drained
3 C. Shredded Colby / Monterey Jack Cheese
Parsley for Garnish (yeah, right)

Prep:
Rub raw chicken breast with Season All and set aside to marinate for about 1 hour. While the chicken is marinating, fry bacon until crisp and drain. Shred cheese and set aside. **This is as long as I have ever let the chicken marinate. I have never had the patience to wait the whole hour.

Saute chicken on medium heat in pan with just enough oil to prevent sticking. Cook on both sides until a slight golden color and cooked in the middle but not dry. Remove from pan and place in baking dish or on cookie sheet.

Spread chicken breast with honey mustard, cover with a layer of mushrooms, three slices of bacon and then sprinkle with shredded cheese. Bake in oven heated to 350. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with extra honey mustard, if desired.

Honey Mustard:
1/2 C. Prepared Salad Mustard
1/4 C. Honey
1/4 C. Light Corn Syrup
1/4 C. Mayonnaise

Blend all together until completely smooth and free from lumps. The corn syrup may be adjusted depending on how sharp the mustard is to your taste. **I ususally half this recipe and have plenty of honey mustard to coat my chicken.

Hot Corn Dip

2008-08-12T14:15:00.000-07:00

I had this at our neighborhood cookie exchange party last year. Delicious!

Hot Corn Dip

Oven 350

2 T butter

3 ½ c fresh corn kernels (about 4-5 ears)

½ t salt

¼ t salt

¼ t pepper

1 c finely chopped yellow onions

½ c finely chopped red bell pepper

1/4 c chopped green onions (white and green parts)

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

2 t minced garlic

1 c mayonnaise

8 oz Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

¼ t cayenne pepper

chips

Preheat oven to 350

Melt 1 T of butter in a large, heavy skillet over med-high heat. Add corn, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the kernels turn deep golden brown, about 5 minutes. Pour the corn into a mixing bowl.

Melt the remaining butter in the skillet and add the onions and bell peppers and cook stirring often until the onions are wilted, about 2 minutes. Add the green onions, jalapeno, and garlic. Cook stirring 2 minutes or until veggies are softened. Pour the mixture into a bowl with the corn and let cool.

Add the mayo, 1 cup of grated cheese and the cayenne to the corn mixture and mix well. Pour into an 8” square baking dish and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Bake until bubbly and golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.

Serve hot with chips.

Mexican Chicken Crockpot Chowder

2008-08-04T15:52:00.000-07:00

2 1/2 c. chopped, cooked chicken
1 can whole kernel corn
1 can condensed cream of potato soup
1 can diced green chile's, undrained
2 Tbsp snipped fresh cilantro
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
3 cups chicken broth
8 oz sour cream
4 oz jalapeño pepper cheese spread

In a crockpot, combine chicken, corn, soup, chile's cilantro, and taco seasoning. Stir in chicken broth.

Cover; cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours, or on HIGH for 4 to 5 hours.

Before serving, stir about 1 cup of hot soup into sour cream. Stir sour cream mixture and cheese into crockpot; cover and let stand 5 minutes.

Note: I never include the cilantro (not my favorite flavor) or the jalapeño pepper cheese spread(can't find it at the store).

Enjoy!

Pizza Crust

2008-07-30T13:33:00.000-07:00

This is the easiest, most reliable pizza crust recipe. I LOVE it.

1 Tbsp. Yeast
1 1/2 C warm water
1 tsp. Sugar
4 C Flour
1 tsp. Salt
2 Tbsp. Oil

In a large mixing bowl, combine yeast, warm water and sugar. Let stand 5 min. or until bubbly. Add 2 cups flour, salt and oil. Stir until well blended. Add remaining flour and knead until smooth and elastic. Let dough rise until double (30 - 60 minutes). Roll out dough and top with your favorite toppings. Bake at 500 for 10 - 15 minutes.

I like to coat the bottom of the dough with cornmeal before baking it.

Spinach Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

2008-07-22T16:17:00.000-07:00

Salad:
1 pkg spinach leaves
1 cup cottage cheese
1 cup shredded swiss or mozzarella cheese
5 strips cooked bacon crumbled
Grapes, cut in half

Dressing ingredients:
1 1/2 tsp. poppy seeds
3/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. grated red onion
1 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. dry mustard

Blend together dressing ingredients. Refrigerate 1/2 hour. Mix salad ingredients together. Add dressing to salad just before serving.

Rocket Pops

2008-07-07T10:26:00.000-07:00

Courtesy of Kraft Foods

1 pkg. (4-serving size) JELL-O Brand Cherry Flavor Gelatin

1 cup sugar, divided

2 cups boiling water, divided

ice cubes

2 cups cold water, divided

1 pkg. (4-serving size) JELL-O Brand Berry Blue Flavor Gelatin

1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed

COMBINE dry cherry gelatin mix and 1/2 cup of the sugar in medium bowl. Add 1 cup of the boiling water; stir at least 2 min. until gelatin is completely dissolved. Add enough ice cubes to 1 cup of the cold water to measure 2 cups. Add to gelatin; stir until ice is completely melted. Pour evenly into 16 (5-oz.) paper or plastic cups, adding about 1/4 cup of the gelatin to each cup. Freeze 1 hour.

MEANWHILE, combine dry blue gelatin mix and remaining 1/2 cup sugar in medium bowl. Add remaining 1 cup boiling water; stir at least 2 min. until gelatin is completely dissolved. Add enough ice cubes to remaining 1 cup cold water to measure 2 cups. Add to gelatin; stir until ice is completely melted. Refrigerate 1 hour.

SPOON about 3 Tbsp. of the whipped topping over red gelatin in each cup; top evenly with blue gelatin, adding about 1/4 cup of the gelatin to each cup. Freeze 1 hour or until almost firm. Insert wooden pop stick or plastic spoon into center of each cup for handle. Freeze an additional 4 hours or overnight. To remove pops from cups, place bottoms of cups under warm running water for 15 sec. Press firmly on bottoms of cups to release pops. (Do not twist or pull pop sticks.) Store leftover pops in freezer.

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Carmel

2008-07-05T11:21:00.000-07:00

These are da' bomb!

1/4 c unsalted butter
1/8 c Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder
3 T water
1/2 c granulated sugar
2 T well beaten egg
1/8 c plain yogurt
1/2 T vanilla
1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/4 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
pinch of salt
1/4 c caramel sauce

Preheat oven to 350 F.
Prepare muffin tins.
Melt butter in a large heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, then whisk in cocoa. Add water and whisk until smooth. Remove from heat. Whisk in separately sugar, egg, yogurt, and vanilla. Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the cocoa mixture and whisk until just combined (it will be a little bit lumpy).Fill muffin tins to about 2/3 full for rounded cupcakes or 1/2 full for flat cupcakes. Bake for 18 - 20 minutes until a skewer or toothpick comes out clean. It's a moist cake, so don't worry if a few crumbs stick to your tester.Allow cupcakes to cool.

Makes 4 - 6 cupcakes.Let the cupcakes cool completely.

Fill a pastry bag with the caramel sauce & fit it with a star tip. Stick the tip into the top of a cupcake, pushing it about 3/4 inch deep (I found the perfect depth was the length of the tip). Gently squeeze the pastry bag to fill the cupcake, withdrawing it slowly as you squeeze. Scrape any excess caramel from the top of the cupcake.

Put the cupcakes in the fridge while making the frosting to let the caramel set.

Dark Chocolate Frosting
1/4 c unsalted butter
1/3 c Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder
1 1/2 c powdered sugar
3 T milk
1/2 t vanilla extract

Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla.About 1 cups frosting.

Frost the cupcakes while the frosting is still slightly warm. Allow the frosting to cool completely in the fridge before adding the caramel swirl to the top. Sprinkle with fleur de sel right before serving if desired. These cupcakes should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

No-Bake Chocolate Cookies

2008-06-20T17:53:00.001-07:00

*For Bethany...no-bake's without the peanut butter.

½ cup milk
1 cup coconut (I leave this out most of the time)
½ cup margarine
7 heaping tsp cocoa
2 cups sugar
few grains salt
3 cups rolled oats (quick)

Melt margarine with milk and sugar in saucepan; add other ingredients. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil 2 minutes. Drop by teaspoons on lightly greased cookie sheet or wax paper. Refrigerate until cool.

Grilled Chicken Tostadas

2008-06-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

Prep Time: 15 min Total time: 30 min

4 Boneless Skinless Chk Breasts

1/4 c freshly squeezed lime juice

1/4 c EVOO

1 tsp salt and pepper

8 corn tortillas

2 red onions, sliced into 1/2 in thick rounds

Chopped lettuce, sliced tomatoes and avocados, fresh cilantro, and Sour cream, for serving

1. Preheat oven 375, with rack in center. Between two sheets of waxed paper, pound chicken until about 1/4 in thick. Transfer chicken to a ziploc bag. Add lime juice, evoo, and s&p. Refrigerate.

2. Place tortillas on a baking sheet. Brush tops with oil, and season with s&p. Bake until crisp and golden, 10 -12 min. Remove from oven and set aside.

3. Heat gill over medium high heat. Grill chicken until browned. and cooked through; cut into strips.

4. Brush onions with oil; grill until browned about 3 min per side. Serve tortillas topped with lettuce, tomatoes or salsa, avocados, chicken, onions, cilantro, and sour cream.

Serve with Rice and Beans.

Call for veggie/fruit recipes

2008-06-05T17:09:00.000-07:00

So, I am trying to be better at feeding my family more fruits and veggies, but am lacking healthy recipes that don't contain a lot of butter or cream.

If you have some good recipes that have lots of fruits or veggies, will you please post them here?

Thanks :)

High Fiber Pancake Mix

2008-05-15T13:08:00.000-07:00

This mix makes a great pancake or waffle, and it's a nice way to rotate the wheat in your food storage.

2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. yellow cornmeal
1 c. whole wheat flour
3 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
4 T flaxseed (optional)

To make the mix, sift all of the ingredients except the flaxseed. our the mix into a large canister and stir in the flaxseed. Store on the kitchen counter, unrefrigerated.When you're ready to make the pancakes, heat the griddle while you mix the batter. For 12 pancakes, combine 1 cup mix with 1 cup buttermilk, milk, yogurt, sour cream, or a combination and 2 beaten eggs.

At this point you can add 2 T. wheat germ and 1 T. molasses. Spray your pan with Pam and start pancaking!

When bubbles appear and the surface and the batter begins to look dry, flip the pancakes and cook about 1 minute more. Serve with maples syrup, honey, jam, or ricotta cheese.

7 layer bars

2008-05-06T21:35:00.000-07:00

Has anybody noticed how all of my recipes are full of fat? Me and my butt have.

1 stick of butter
1 c. graham cracker crumbs
1 c. semi sweet chocolate chips
1 c. butterscotch chips
1 c. coconut
1 c. chopped pecans
1 can sweetened condensed milk

in a 9X13 in pan cut up the butter and spread around the bottom of pan. microwave for 30 seconds or until melted. sprinkle crumbs evenly around the pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and coconut evenly around the pan. Pour SC milk over the top and top with chopped nuts.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until bubbly.

This is the easiest dessert ever to make and so fast. They are super, super sweet so you can't eat too many.

Enjoy.

Tortilla Soup

2008-05-06T09:13:00.000-07:00

2-3 cooked Chicken Breasts chopped
1 green bell pepper chopped finely
1 onion chopped finely
2 cloves garlic chopped finely
1 T oil
Saute last 4 in Large pot
When tender add:
6 C Chicken Broth
1 can corn
1 can Mexican tomatoes
1 can chopped green chilies
1 can tomato soup
chopped chicken
1 T Cumin
1 T Chili powder
S & P

Simmer for 3 hours

Overnight Apple French Toast

2008-04-28T16:43:00.000-07:00

I found this online at some bed and breakfast site awhile ago. It's so good.

1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter
2 T. corn syrup
2 apples - cut, peeled, and sliced into thin slices
3 eggs
1 c. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
9 slices french bread

sauce:
1 c. applesauce
1- 10 oz. jar apple jelly
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. cloves

In saucepan cook brown sugar, butter, and syrup until thick, about 5 to 7 minutes. Pour into ungreased 9X13 pan. It will cover the bottom of the pan. Arrange apple slices on top of the caramel mix.

Mix eggs, milk, and vanilla. Dip bread into egg mix for around 1 minute and place on top of the apples. Refrigerate overnight.

Remove from fridge 30 minutes before baking. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 35 to 40 minutes.

For syrup: combine ingredients and cook until hot. Serve over french toast.

I have never made the syrup for this before. The caramel sauce on the bottom of the french toast is plenty enough for us and Tyson likes maple syrup on top too.

This is so good. Try it, you'll see!

Lemon Bars

2008-04-27T19:16:00.000-07:00

We love lemon bars. I looked for a recipe that uses a lot of lemon juice and I finally found one that I really like. Most recipes only call for 2 T. or 1/3 of a cup, this one calls for 3/4 of a cup! I sometimes put 1 full cup in even. Also, fresh squeezed lemon juice is the best!

Lemon Bars

1 1/2 sticks butter
2 c. flour
1/2 c. brown sugar

I use a food processor and mix all this together. It makes the best mixture. You can also mix the flour and sugar and then cut in the butter pieces with a pastry blender. Mix until find crumbs. Press into the bottom of a 9X13 pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until golden.

4 eggs
1 1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. lemon juice
1/3 c. flour
3 T. powdered sugar

Whisk together eggs and sugar. Stir in juice and flour. Pour the mixture over the hot crust. Return to the oven at 300 degrees for about 30 minutes or until set.

When bars have cooled sprinkle with powdered sugar. I never do this. It always makes people cough to eat the powdered sugar!

YUM!

Chicken Curry

2008-04-27T19:06:00.000-07:00

My mom made this meal for me while she was visiting after I had Samuel. She can never try odd dinners with her family at home because they are not adventurous eaters. Tyson LOVED this and I have been making it ever since. It sounds really strange, but it it so delicious and creamy and very easy to make. However, I don't think it's very healthy, sorry!

4 cups chicken breast
1- 14 oz. can artichoke hearts
1- 8 oz. can mushrooms
1- 8 oz. can water chestnuts
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 c. sour cream
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1 tsp. curry powder (I put more like 2 Tablespoons)
1/4 cup. chopped pecans (I put more like 3/4 cups)

Cut up chicken breasts into bit sized pieces and cook on the stove top until just done.

In a 9X13 pan mix all the rest of the ingredients. I cup up the artichokes and mushrooms into smaller pieces. Add the chicken to the mixture in the 9X13 pan. top with the chopped pecans. Cook at 400 until bubbly all over, about 20 minutes.

I usually make rice and peas to go along with this meal.

It just so happens that I made this for dinner tonight, so I will include a picture. It may look horrible, but I swear it tastes good!

Chinese Chicken Salad

2008-04-22T20:22:00.000-07:00

This one is for you Bethany!

1 Head iceberg lettuce
3 stalks green onions
sliced almonds
cilantro (to taste)
2 chicken breasts
Chow Mein noodles
Kraft Toasted Sesame Dressing

Cook chicken in teriyaki sauce: when cooled shred with fingers
slice lettuce in very thin strips if too long cut in half
slice green onions at a di-angle
chop cilantro
toast almonds
mix all of the above
pour dressing over salad (about 1/4 of bottle)
Put chow mein noodles in last so they dont get soggy or add directly to each individual bowl so you can have leftovers

A Great Recipe Finder Website

2008-04-18T12:47:00.000-07:00

I heard about this great new website called SuperCook.

Supercook is a new recipe search engine that finds recipes you can make with the ingredients you have at home. To begin, simply start adding ingredients you have. The more ingredients you add, the better the results will be.

Great for those of us who love to make meals with the ingredients we have on hand in the fridge, freezer or pantry.

Penne Pasta Bake

2008-04-15T14:59:00.000-07:00

12 oz. penne pasta
1 lb ground beef
1 c chopped onion
1 can Italian style tomato sauce
1 can ready diced tomatoes with italian herbs
1 can ( 6 oz) italian paste with roasted garlic
4 cups shredded moz. cheese

Cook pasta. Cook meat, onion and drain. Stir in tomato sauce, undrained tomatoes, tomato paste and 1/2 cup water. Cook for 10 min stirring occasionally. Layer pasta, sauce and cheese in 13 x 9 pan. Repeat. Cover and bake at 350 for 20 min.

Roasted Garlic Hummus

2008-04-09T12:06:00.000-07:00

Healthy and Easy.
We like the following as "dippers" (as Emma calls them):
Vegetables
Tortilla Chips
Pita Chips

1 can chickpeas/garbanzo beans (15 oz.)
2 tablespoons roasted garlic
1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon oregano
PREPARATION:
In a food processor, process beans, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and oregano until desired consistency. If hummus is too thick, simply add olive oil in small increments(i/2 teaspoon) until desired consistency.

Baked Potato Soup

2008-04-02T14:09:00.000-07:00

12 slices bacon
2/3 cup butter
2/3 cup flour
7 cups milk
4 large potatoes; baked, peeled and cubed
1 1/4 cup shredded cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Cook bacon over medium heat until browned. Drain, crumble, and set aside.

In a stock pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.

Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Mix in the bacon, cheese, sour cream, salt and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until cheese is melted.

Brisket

2008-04-02T14:00:00.000-07:00

Cut of brisket (about 7lbs.)
1C Soy Sauce
1 Can Beef Broth
1/3 C Lemon Juice
4-5 Garlic Cloves

Slice the meat and place some of the pieces of garlic inside. Mix all ingredients in roasting pan and let marinate overnight. Bake @ 300 degrees for 2-3 hours (start with the fat side down) then reduce heat to 275 degrees for 3-4 more hours. It helps to flip the meat once or twice during baking.

Brisket is done when the meat will pull apart easily. The "juice" will be nearly absorbed. When I am tearing the meat apart, I drag it through the leftover juice in the pan before placing it on a serving platter.

ENJOY!!!

Peanut Butter Balls

2008-03-29T12:45:00.000-07:00

Peanut Butter and Chocolate-need I say more?
Bethany, this one's for you!

Ingredients:
2 c. crushed graham crackers
2 c. powdered sugar
2 c. peanut butter (creamy or chunky, your choice)
1/4 c. butter (barely melted in the microwave)
Dipping chocolate

Mix together the first 4 ingredients as you would a pie crust. Chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Melt the dipping chocolate. Roll peanut butter mixture into small balls, and dip into the chocolate. Allow to set on wax paper. Chill until served.

Aussie Chicken

2008-03-24T13:32:00.000-07:00

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
2 tsp. seasoning salt
½ c. prepared mustard
½ c. honey
¼ c. corn syrup
¼ c. mayo
6 slices bacon cooked/chopped (I used real bacon bits)
2 c. Colby jack shredded cheese
1 T. Dried onion flake

Preheat oven to 350. Salt Chicken with season salt. Bake 30 minutes.

Mix mustard, honey, corn syrup, mayo and dried onion flakes to create sauce.

Place cooked chicken in baking dish. Cover with sauce mixture. Crumble bacon over chicken pieces. Top with cheese. Bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until cheese is melted. Serve with rice or potatoes.

Quick and easy bread

2008-03-18T19:08:00.000-07:00

I love this recipe. You can have a nice loaf of bread in about 45 minutes, start to finish. My good friend Holly gave me this recipe. I will say that to me, it's not the best bread I've ever had, but I make it at least once a week just because it is so fast. Plus it's great for french toast. I'll usually use it for dinner one night and use the second loaf for french toast a few nights later.

2 cups warm water
2 Tablespoons yeast (yes, TABLESPOONS!)
2 T. sugar (I put 4T though)
1 T. salt
5 to 6 cups flour

pour warm water in a metal bowl (metal is best for bread since it retains heat). Dissolve yeast in the water. In another bowl (I just add this directly to the water) mix flour (I add 1/2 and then slowly add the rest small increments at a time), sugar, and salt.

I mix all of this using a wooden spoon. After almost all the flour is added I just put it on the counter and knead in the rest of the flour until the dough is a good consistency. You could easily make this in a Bosch though, or some other mixer.

Let dough sit for 15 minutes. It should raise pretty well. This is part of the reason I add more sugar. Sugar (or any sucrose) is what reacts with yeast to make it rise.

Form into whatever kind of bread you want. I make 2 french bread style loaves. You could make bread sticks or bread bowls too.

Bake at 425 for 10 to 15 minutes. I turn the oven to 400. I find that my bread bakes better at a lower temp here at 7000 ft.

so, there it is! I hope you guys like it.

Lemonade Ice Cream Pie

2008-03-10T12:16:00.000-07:00

Quick and Delicious!
Great summer treat with only a few ingredients required.

1 graham cracker piecrust
1-1.5 quarts vanilla bean ice cream
6 oz. frozen pink lemonade-concentrate
Pink food coloring

Mix ice cream and lemonade concentrate in mixer or food processor. Add pink food coloring until desired color. Pour mixture into graham cracker piecrust. Place in freezer for two hours to set. Thaw before serving.

Creamy Lemon Chicken

2008-03-03T14:15:00.000-08:00

I saw this while blog hopping recently and we tried it out yesterday...delicious! And way easy!

1 package chicken tenders (I used 4 large chicken breasts)
butter
2 Tbls lemon juice
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsp grated lemon peel
2 Tbsp white grape juice concentrate
6 thin pats butter
Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
Cooked Rice (2 cups for 4 people)
Cook chicken in buttered saucepan until cooked. Place in a casserole dish and set aside. In the same saucepan, add the lemon juice, lemon peel, and white grape juice concentrate. Keep heat on low and add heavy cream. Add salt and pepper to taste. When heated through, pour sauce over chicken. Put pats of butter on top of chicken, and generously shake Parmesan cheese over it. (Really, be generous!!! I usually use about 2 cups!)
Place under the broiler for 5-7 minutes, until top is a light golden brown. Serve over rice.
Enjoy!

Chicken Chalupas

2008-02-25T07:23:00.000-08:00

1 dozen corn tortillas
2 cans cream of chicken soup
¼ cup jack cheese
1 small can sliced olives
½ lb grated cheddar cheese
4 chicken breasts, cooked & chopped
1 pint sour cream
3-4 green onions, chopped
1 small can diced green chilis

Combine all ingredients but cheddar cheese, chicken & tortillas. Slightly cover bottom of 9x13 dish with mix. Add chicken and cheese to the remaining mixture. Spoon mix into warm tortillas. Roll and place in casserole dish right next to each other. Spoon reserved mix over top of rolled tortillas. Cover with cheddar cheese. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes-1 hour or cover with saran wrap then tin foil and freeze for up to 3 months - then defrost and bake.

Moist Meatloaf

2008-02-22T11:35:00.000-08:00

This meatloaf is a favorite at our house. It is tender, and moist, and the tomato topping makes it full of flavor.

Tomato Topping:
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
1/4 cup sugar or sugar substitute
2 teaspoons white vinegar or water

Meatloaf:
2 pounds ground beef
2 eggs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup red onion, diced small
1/4 cup roasted or fresh red bell peppers, diced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 pound prosciutto, or any type of ham, thinly sliced
1/4 pound provolone cheese, sliced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a small bowl, mix together the tomato topping ingredients. Set aside. Add a few drops of water to thin to a ketchup consistency.

In a large bowl, mix together the beef, eggs, Parmesan, vegetables, herbs, and seasonings.
Working on a waxed paper lined sheet pan or counter, form meatloaf mix into a 10 by 8-inch flat rectangle on the waxed paper. Place a layer of prosciutto slices on top, followed by a layer of provolone slices. Roll up the stuffed meatloaf mix like a burrito and seal the edges all around by pinching the meat.

Place the roll, seam side down, into a 5 by 9-inch loaf pan. Spread a heavy coat of the tomato topping to completely cover the top of the meatloaf. Place in oven and bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the temperature on a meat thermometer registers 165 degrees F. Drain fat and let rest at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Serves 8

Mint Brownies

2008-02-17T16:14:00.000-08:00

*This is a yummy Sunday afternoon treat. Enjoy!!

Bottom Section:
1 box of 9x13 brownie mix

Follow directions on the box and let them cool.

Middle Section:
2 C powdered sugar
5 tsp peppermint extract
1/2 cup butter
2 T milk
couple drops of green food coloring

Mix all ingredients and frost cooled brownies. Chill 30 minutes.

Chocolate Top:
1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 T crisco
2 T butter
1 tsp peppermint extract

Melt the first 3 ingredients in microwave for 1-2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Quickly stir in peppermint at the end and frost third layer. Cool again 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Yogurt Parmesan Chicken

2008-02-11T21:09:00.001-08:00

2 c. crushed Ritz Crackers
2 T. Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. seasoned salt
8 boneless chicken breasts (I use 4 and slice them in half by width, since they are so big)
8 oz. (1 c.) plain yogurt
1/4 c. melted butter

Combine Ritz crackers, parmesan, garlic salt and seasoned salt. Set aside. Dip each chicken breast in yogurt, then coat with crumb mixture. Arrange pieces in a buttered 9x13 baking dish. Drizzle with 1/4 c. melted butter and bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes. Serves 8.

Almond Rocha Cookies

2008-02-10T14:20:00.000-08:00

These cookies are a big hit wherever I take them.
Thanks to Emeril at the Food Network for such a great cookie recipe.

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup butter, room temperature
2 eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 package toffee bits
1 cup coarsely ground almonds
4 ounces milk chocolate (I use chocolate chips)
1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, blend sugars together on medium speed. Add butter and mix to form a grainy paste. Add eggs and vanilla and mix at medium speed until light and fluffy. At low speed, slowly add the flour mixture and then the toffee bits. Mix until just blended; do not over-mix.
Place ground nuts in a small bowl. Using hands, roll balls of dough into 1 to 1 1/2-inch balls, then roll in the ground nuts. Place on cookie sheets several inches apart. Bake approximately 18-20 minutes and then transfer cookies to a cooling rack.

Melt the chocolate with the vegetable oil in a double boiler or in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Drizzle melted chocolate over cooled cookies. Place cookies on a cookie sheet and place in freezer or refrigerator until chocolate is firmly set.

Snickerdoodles

2008-02-07T14:39:00.000-08:00

1 C. Soft Butter
2 Eggs
2 tsp. Cream of Tartar
1/4 tsp. Salt
1 1/2 C. Sugar
2 3/4 C. Sifted Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda

2T. Sugar
1 tsp. Cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400. Mix butter, sugar, & eggs thoroughly. Sift remaining ingredients together & stir into butter mixture. Roll into balls the size of large walnuts. Roll cookie into cinnamon / sugar mixture. Place on ungreased cookie sheet 2" apart. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly brown but still soft. Remove from cookie sheet and place on cooling rack. Makes about 3 dozen.

Creamy Chicken Spaghetti

2008-02-06T20:32:00.000-08:00

½ lb spaghetti, uncooked
¼ cup Zesty Italian Dressing
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 zucchini, cut in half lengthwise, then sliced crosswise
2 cups spaghetti sauce
4 oz cream cheese, cubed
2 tbsp parm cheese

Cook spaghetti as directed. Meanwhile, heat dressing in skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook and stir 2 minutes. Add zucchini; cook an additional 2 min., stirring frequently. Stir in spaghetti sauce. Bring just to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 5 min or until chicken is cooked through. Add cream cheese; cook 1 min or until cheese is melted and mixture is well blended, stirring occasionally. Drain spaghetti; place on serving plate. Top with the chicken mixture; sprinkle with parm cheese.