Crock Pot Tortilla Soup

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

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

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

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray; set aside.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. Fold reserved parchment in half lengthwise; with mixer on medium speed, gradually shake in dry ingredients until just incorporated.
5. Add apples and, if desired, nuts, to batter; mix to combine. Add vanilla, mixing until incorporated.
6. Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 75 to 90 minutes.
7. Remove from oven, and cool slightly on a wire rack.
8. 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

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

Kneaders cranberry white chocolate cookies

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

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

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

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.**