Cooking Cousins

2012-01-31T02:43:00.000-08:00

SOUTHWEST BEAN SALAD

(A vegetarian one just for you Dawn!)

1 can Black Beans
1 can White Beans
1 can Garbanzo Beans (Chick Peas)
1 can Whole Kernel Corn

Dressing:
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 Tbs. taco seasoning
1 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. dried cilantro (or 4 sprigs of fresh cilantro)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder

1. Open up cans and rinse the beans in a colander.

2. Mix dressing in a bowl and add the beans. Mix. It is not spicy, so you can add more taco seasoning or chili powder to give it some kick, but I would wait until after you mix it together. I bet if you added tomatoes or red peppers, it would still be really good, but not keep as well.

3. Viola! You can also add left over taco meat to the mix (as shown in the picture) but I wanted to show you how EASY this is. I made this for playgroup, then Logan and I chowed on this for 3 more days. I probably shouldn't have doubled the recipe, but I LOVE it! This is a great left-over-taco-meat lunch.

I put them in the Tostitos scoops for playgroup, but you can eat it as is or use as a dip for chips. BUT, if you have the ever-so-delicious cafe rio cilantro ranch dressing to put over this, it would be DIVINE!

Chewy Gingerbread Bars

2011-12-23T15:54:00.000-08:00

www.jamiecooksitup.blogspot.com

Time: 15 minutes hands on + 15-20 minutes baking
Yield: One 9x9 pan full, cut as small or as large as you like
Recipe from the lovely and talented Jen Willahan

***Note: If you would like to double this recipe, use a large jelly roll pan (I used a 11 1/2 by 16 inch pan while experimenting) and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Allow the bars to cool, then frost and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before cutting.

Gingerbread Bars:
3/4 C butter, melted
1 C sugar
1/4 C molasses
1 egg
2 C flour
2 t baking soda
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t salt
1/2 t ginger
1/2 t cloves

Cream Cheese Frosting:
4 ounces cream cheese (half a brick), softened
2 T butter, softened
2 C powdered sugar
1 T milk
1/2 t vanilla
dash salt

1. Pour the melted butter, sugar and molasses into your stand mixer, or large mixing bowl. Beat until well combined.
2. Add the egg and beat until smooth.
3. In a separate bowl toss together all of the dry ingredients.
4. Pour the dry ingredients into the mixer and beat, just until combined.
5. Spray a 9x9 pan with cooking spray and press the dough into it.
6. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, do not over bake. Stick a knife into the center of the bars. If it comes out clean...remove the pan from the oven and let it cool completely. The bars will continue to cook a bit as they cool. Once frosted the bars will be put in the fridge for an hour...this will also help the bars to set up and not be too doughy.
7. Mix all frosting ingredients together in your stand mixer. Beat until nice and smooth.
8. Spread the frosting over the top of the cooled bars. Refrigerate for one hour, cut and serve!

Store leftover bars in the fridge, or freezer.

Enjoy!!!

Cornbread (with cakemix)

2011-11-21T13:05:00.000-08:00

1 yellow cake mix
2 C Yellow cornmeal
2 cup flour
6 T sugar
2T Baking powder
2 t salt
2/3 c butter
2 eggs
2 cup milk

Make cake mix as directed. Mix rest of ingredients and add together. Pour into grease and flour pans into 2 9X 13 pans.

Grease and flour pans.Bake at 350 20-25 minutes or until center bounces back

Cheese Fondue

2011-11-18T13:16:00.000-08:00

8 oz. cream cheese
1 c milk
2 c shredded cheese (something melty, like cheddar or a jack blend)
1/2 t garlic salt

Optional***:
Half of a 4-oz. can of green chilies, blended until smooth.
splash or two of green Tabasco
2 T mayo

Blend the cream cheese and milk in a blender until smooth. Add cheese and garlic salt, then microwave or put in a crock pot until hot and creamy. Serve with cubed French bread, cooked chicken and vegetables.

***The optional ingredients give it a little kick (just add them before you heat the fondue), but the original is great too.

Caramel Apple Cider

2011-11-07T08:43:00.000-08:00

3/4 C. brown sugar

3/4 C. heavy cream

Bring those two to a boil, stirring frequently.

Add 9 cups apple juice. Heat until warm.

For topping:

Whip heavy cream and add some powdered sugar and vanilla (to make whipped cream.)

Add toffee bits or crushed up skor bar on top.

Caramel Dip - for apples

2011-10-27T16:11:00.000-07:00

2 sticks butter

dash of salt
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 C brown sugar
1 C light corn syrup

Melt butter and salt. Add sugar. Stir in vanilla. Heat.
Mix in syrup and add milk. Whisk together and cool slightly before serving.

Lemon Drop Cookies

2011-09-17T14:59:00.000-07:00

Serving size 48
2 cups of sugar
1 cup butter-flavored Crisco
½ cup of butter
3 eggs- add one at a time

4 cups of flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 ½ tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt

3 tsp. lemon juice
Zest of one lemon
6 ounces crushed lemon heads- put lemon heads in plastic bag and hit with a hammer

Glaze
1 cup of powdered sugar
Juice of one lemon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cream sugar, shortening, butter, and eggs. Add lemon juice.
Mix dry ingredients lemon zest, and crushed lemon heads.
Fold dry ingredients into creamed mixture.
Roll into balls, and bake on parchment lined cookie sheet for 10-12 minutes. They will collapse after you take them out of the oven. Do not over bake.
Let them sit on pan 10-12 minutes, then brush lightly with glaze and cool completely.
This is a soft cookie, it keeps well.

(Got this recipe from a co-worker...haven't made them myself, but the ones she made were sooo good...if you like lemon, citrisy type desserts.)

CHOCOLATE CHIP ZUCCHINI BREAD

2011-09-17T14:57:00.000-07:00

3 c. flour
1/2 c. white sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
3 eggs
2 c. grated zucchini, unpared
3/4 c. oil
3 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
6 oz. chocolate chips

Mix all dry ingredients together; then mix eggs, oil, vanilla and zucchini in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet mixture and mix well. Add nuts and chocolate chips.

Grease pans. This batter can be poured into 2 loaf pans or 4 to 5 mini loaf pans, or into muffin pans (about 24). Bake at 350 degrees. Large loaves take about 50 to 60 minutes; mini-loaves about 30 minutes; and muffins about 15 to 20 minutes.

(I usually leave out the nuts...great as muffins or bread!)

Teriyaki Marinnade

2011-08-13T14:40:00.000-07:00

Teriyaki Marinnade (allrecipes.com)

1 (6 ounce) can pineapple juice
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Directions

In a medium bowl, mix the pineapple juice, vegetable oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic powder, and pepper. Place chicken in the bowl, and coat with the mixture. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator at least 2 hours.
Preheat the oven broiler.
Place chicken on a baking sheet. Broil 5 minutes on each side in the preheated oven, or until no longer pink and juices run clear. Discard remaining marinade.

Rocky Road Popcorn

2011-06-16T18:38:00.000-07:00

This is a recipe from Better Homes and Gardens: Snack Attack. SO yummy!

12 ounces chocolate flavor candy coating, chopped
2 tablespoons peanut butter
7 cups plain popped popcorn
2 cups peanuts
1 cup rice cereal
1 cup miniature marshmallows

Melt chocolate and peanut butter over low heat. Stir constantly until melted. While this is melting, pop popcorn. Put popcorn, peanuts, cereal and marshmallows in a bowl. Pour chocolate and peanut butter mixture over popcorn and stir until popcorn mixture is coated. Let cool and enjoy!

An easy salsa

2011-05-14T12:33:00.000-07:00

28 ounces canned tomatoes
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp oregano (but I leave this out)
1-2 cloves garlic (or 1/2 tsp garlic salt)
1 can diced green chiles (7 oz)
4 green onions chopped
1 tsp jalapenos (optional)

Mix in a food processor and enjoy!

Grilled Chicken with Lemon Basil Pasta

2011-04-17T12:26:00.000-07:00

Great SPRING dinner! - recipe and photos from thepioneerwoman.com

Ingredients

4 whole Grilled Chicken Breasts, Sliced
1 pound Penne Pasta, Cooked Until Al Dente
½ sticks Butter
3 whole Lemons, Juiced
¾ cups Heavy Cream
¼ cups Half-and-half
1-½ cup Grated Parmesan Cheese (or Romano)
Salt And Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
20 whole Basil Leaves, Chopped

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta, reserving 1 cup of hot pasta water when you drain. Set pasta aside in a colander.
In the same pot, melt butter over medium heat. Squeeze in the juice of 3 to 4 lemons. Whisk together. Pour in cream and half-and-heat. Whisk until hot. Dump in cheese and whisk until melted. Add salt and pepper. Check consistency, adding some of the hot pasta water to loosen the sauce if needed.
Pour pasta and sauce into a large serving bowl. Sprinkle remaining basil all over the top, then add sliced chicken breasts. Serve immediately!

Stuffed Pizza Rolls

2011-04-17T12:22:00.000-07:00

This has become a favorite at our house. Homemade pizza dough really is best but refrigerated dough is so quick! Yum!

Recipe and photos from OurBestBites 1 roll refrigerated pizza dough* (or make your own)
marinara/pizza sauce (click here to make your own)
2T grated Parmesan cheese
1 T olive oil or melted butter
1/2 t garlic powder
1 t dried Italian seasoning
mozzerella cheese, diced or grated
Pizza toppings of your choice: ie, ham and pineapple, pepperoni slices, sausage, etc.

*You can use regular pizza dough, or thin crust.

Preheat oven to heat specified on pizza dough package. Usually it's 400 degrees. If you make your own dough, 400 is usually a good heat as well.

Unroll your pizza dough onto a lightly floured surface. Pat or roll the dough so it's about 12" by 8". You're going to want to cut it into 24 squares, so just eyeball it if you need to. Use a pizza cutter to slice the dough into 24 squares (bet ya didn't see that one comin' did ya?)

Place cheese and desired toppings on each square. (Note that you're not putting the marinara sauce on the dough- it's for dipping after) You guys are smart, right? Just eyeball how much. You just need to be able to enclose the toppings in the dough so keep that in mind.

When all of your dough squares have cheese and toppings on them, carefully lift up each square and wrap the dough around the toppings. Pinch to make sure each ball is sealed shut and then place them seam side down in a lightly sprayed pie pan (or similar sized dish).

Brush the tops of the dough balls with olive oil or melted butter (I've used both and there's not much difference in result) and then sprinkle with the garlic and Italian seasoning and top with Parmesan cheese. (In lieu of the Parmesan, garlic, and Italian seasoning you could substitute this garlic bread seasoning.)

Cook them in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top. Keep an eye on them! Doughs vary, so I'd check them after even 10 minutes.

Serve warm with warmed marinara sauce on the side for dipping.

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

2011-04-17T11:24:00.000-07:00

Recipe and photos from www.ourbestbites.com

My kids gobbled these up! They are really yummy served with homemade cafe rio dressing.

1/3 C (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 C green salsa
1T fresh lime juice
1/2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t granulated garlic, or garlic powder
3 T chopped cilantro
2 T sliced green onions
2 C shredded cooked chicken
1 C grated pepperjack cheese
small corn tortillas (and actually, flour ones are really good as well)
kosher salt
cooking spray

Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.
Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it’s soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and granulated garlic. Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well.
You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.
Work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or are coming unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing.
Place 2-3 T of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges.

Then roll it up as tight as you can.

Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.

Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown.
.Dip ‘em in salsa, sour cream, guacamole or cafe rio type dressing. Make it a meal by serving with black beans, a small salad and lemonade.
Makes 12-16

Dutch Baby

2011-04-03T08:33:00.000-07:00

2 tablespoons oil
1 cup flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoons
3 eggs
1 1/4 cup milk
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon melted butter

Pour oil in an oven safe skillet. Place in 450 degree oven until it's hot. Beat eggs. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Add milk, lemon juice, and melted butter. Pour into heated skillet. Bake 15-20 minutes. Serve with raspberry syrup, butter cream syrup, or any yummy topping. (Like a german pancake)

Grandma's recipe (Country Kitchen Cookbook)

Ooey Gooey Butter Pecan Bars

2011-04-03T08:30:00.001-07:00

1 butter pecan cake mix
3 cups powdered sugar
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese
2 cubes butter
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Heat oven to 350. Lightly grease 9x13 pan. Mix cake mix, 1 cube butter melted, and 1 egg. Press mixture into pan. In bowl, mix cream cheese, sugar, other cube butter (melted) and 2 eggs. Blend and stir in pecans. Pour over top of cake mixture. Bake 45 minutes or until golden brown. If using a dark pan, cook less. Cool completely and enjoy!

Lisa's recipe

Creamy Fudge Frosting

2011-04-03T08:26:00.000-07:00

4 semi-sweet chocolate baking squares
1 2/3 cups confectioners sugar
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 teaspoons vanilla
6 tablespoons butter, softened, cut up (no substitutions)

Heat chocolate, sugar and cream, stirring constantly, in saucepan over medium heat until smooth. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Transfer to mixer bowl, and place in large bowl of ice water. Let stand, stirring occasionally, until cold and thick. Remove from ice bath. Gradually beat in butter at high speed; beat until fluffy and stiff enough to hold its shape.

Grandma's recipe (from some Woman's Magazine)

World's best dough!

2010-12-26T17:17:00.000-08:00

Don't these look good??

OR THESE...

Well, they are! And if I can make them, anyone can! You MUST try them!

World's Best Rolls
(Recipe courtesy of ourbestbites.com)

2 c. whole milk (if you're in a pinch, you can use 2%, but whole is best. Don't use 1% or skim)
½ c. + 1 Tbsp. sugar, divided
1/3 c. (5 1/3 Tbsp.) butter
2 tsp. Kosher salt
2 pkgs. active dry yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp.), preferably bread machine yeast
2/3 c. warm (105-115-degree) water
8-9 c. all-purpose flour ( I used 6-61/2 c)
3 beaten eggs

Bake @ 375 for 12-15

Combine milk, 1/2 c. sugar, butter, and salt in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until butter melts. It's salty. It's sweet. Yum.

Remove from heat. Allow to cool to lukewarm. I usually rub some ice cubes along the sides of the pan or pop the entire pan in a sink full of ice cubes to cool the mixture down because this step can take forever. This step is really important because if the mixture is too hot, it will kill the yeast.

While the milk mixture is cooling, dissolve the yeast and 1 Tbsp. sugar in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes. If the yeast hasn't bubbled, you'll need to repeat this step--moving on with yeast that hasn't been activated properly will only end in heartache for you and hate mail for us.

In a large mixing bowl, combine 3 c. flour and milk mixture. Beat on low for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Add yeast mixture and beat on high for 3 minutes.
Add beaten eggs. Why should you beat your eggs first? Same reason you should combine your dry ingredients before adding them to moist ingredients when making cookies and cakes--it ensures everything is well-mixed and can be evenly-distributed through your dough or batter. If you add the whole eggs, your dough may not be as consistent.

Stir in as much remaining flour as needed to make a soft dough. This dough should be very soft--it will be coming away from the sides of the bowl, but it will still stick to your finger when you touch it. Don't worry, it will firm up during the rising process. Part of what makes these rolls so good is that they're so soft and light; if you add too much flour, they will be heavy and dense. Place the bowl in a warm place and cover with a clean towel; allow to rise 1 hour.

Punch down dough. Lightly flour your work surface and turn dough out onto surface. Divide in half.

Spray 2 9x13 glass pans with cooking spray. Roll first portion of dough into a rectangle and then cut it into 12 equal-sized pieces. I like to use a pizza cutter because it has a blade on each side, so it cuts right through dough without sticking to the blade. This dough should be very easy to work with, almost like playdough. Shape each piece into a ball and place in prepared pan. Repeat with remaining dough in the second pan.

Cover with a clean cloth and allow to rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes. When dough has about 15-20 minutes to go (depending on your oven), preheat oven to 375.

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden-brown.

When done, remove from oven. Rub a stick of cold butter over the tops of the rolls. You must now eat one. Now. While it's hot.

Want cinnamon rolls???

Filling

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, softened

Icing
1 1/2 C powdered sugar
2 T melted butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1-2 Tbs milk

SO YUMMY!!

Cream of Tomato Soup

2010-11-18T20:35:00.000-08:00

Cream of Tomato Soup

2 T. butter
1 chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
2-28 oz. cans of diced tomatoes
9 oz can chicken broth
2 T. sugar
Pinch of baking soda
1 T. Basil
1 T. Italian Seasoning
1 clove garlic
2 cups cream

Saute celery, butter and onions. When finished add all other ingredients EXCEPT CREAM in large pot. Simmer for 1 hour, with lid checking. Puree and then add warmed cream. Do not boil after cream is added.

**I added 1 cup of orzo pasta which is good if you like a lot of texture, but this soup already has texture so you can leave it out.

**Add FETA cheese and it's amazing!

***To freeze--do not freeze with cream. Freeze soup and once thawed, reheat and then add cream.

Basil Cous Cous Salad

2010-11-18T20:33:00.000-08:00

This is SOOOOOO yummy. Everyone must try it!

Basil Cous Cous Salad
3 c. spinach/Euro mix lettuce
1/3 c. dried craisins
1/3 c. grated Asiago cheese
1/3 c. toasted pumpkin seeds or pine nuts
2 c. white corn
1 pkg. couscous, olive oil & garlic flavor (prepared per package instructions)

Dressing:
1 c. fresh basil leaves (roughly chopped)
1 c. mayonnaise
½ shallot, chopped
1 c. buttermilk
2 Tbs. red wine vinegar

Add ingredients in a blender and blend well. Salt & pepper to taste.
Toss with salad just before serving.

Carrian's One hour rolls

2010-11-18T20:28:00.000-08:00

This recipe if from A Bountiful Kitchen who actually got it from "sweet basil". Great website with lots of great recipes. The "chef" is one of my sis-in-laws good friends.

I made these today and they were awesome. They are really easy. The only thing that took longer than expected was scalding the milk. It took me about 20 minutes because I did it in a double broiler. Maybe I'm doing it wrong?? If anyone has any tips....

Carrian's One Hour Rolls

Sweet Basil

print recipe

1 tablespoon yeast, rounded
1/2 teaspoon sugar

1 1/4 cup milk, scalded
4 tablespoons butter

2 eggs, beaten
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup warm water
4 cups flour, plus more for kneading and surface

2 tablespoons melted butter, optional

Sprinkle the yeast and sugar over the warm water.
Melt the butter in the scalded milk. Stir to cool.
Mix eggs, 3 remaining tablespoons sugar, salt and dissolved yeast mixture to a bowl.

When milk mixture is cooled a bit (not hot), add to egg mixture.
Mix in flour. Knead dough on a floured surface, or in a mixer, adding flour until rolls are no longer sticky to touch.

This is where usually, rolls are left alone to raise for about an hour. No need with this recipe.
Roll out in desired shapes and place on lightly greased baking pan.
Place rolls in draft free place*, brush lightly with melted butter and let raise while oven is preheating. I left my rolls to raise until the rest of dinner was about 15 minutes away from being done.
Turn oven to 400 degrees and place rack in middle of oven. When oven is preheated, bake rolls for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Tips:

-*Remember, when letting items raise on a kitchen counter, best to look for the warmest spot in the kitchen. Maybe it's the top of your dryer? Granite or stone surface counter tops are not a good choice unless you are trying to quickly cool items. Tke your hand and place it on the granite if you don't believe me. Always place a towel (or two) on a stone surface if leaving dough out to raise.

-**To make knot shapes, roll the dough out, cut into strips about 6 inches long, 1 inch wide and about 1/2 inch thick. Take the strip and tie into a loose knot. How loose? Not so loose that you can see through the knot. Snug, but not so tight the dough breaks. Tuck the ends under, place on baking sheet and brush top lightly with butter. It's not as complicated as it sounds. Just experiment with a few and you'll get the hang of it. You'll also discover how large or small you like the rolls.

-Do not add too much flour when kneading dough. This will produce a tough roll. Also, the roll will be hard to shape.

Breakfast casserole

2010-11-04T12:52:00.000-07:00

1 26 oz frozen hash browns
1/4 cup melted butter
3 cups diced ham 0r 1 1b cooked bacon or sausage
8 oz each cheddar and swish cheese shredded
12 eggs beaten
3/4 cup milk

Spread potatoes in buttered casserole 9x13 pan. Pour butter on top and season with salt and pepper. bake 20-25 min at 425. or until lightly browned. Top with ham and 2/3 of shredded cheese. mix eggs and milk and pour over potatoes and top with remaining cheese and bake 35-45 additional minutes at 350

Waffle brownies

2010-10-24T16:46:00.000-07:00

1/4 c. margarine
3 T + 1 1/2 t. cocoa
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 c sugar
1 c. flour
1/4 t. salt
1/2 t. vanilla

Preheat waffle iron.

Melt butter and add cocoa. Mix in sugar and beaten eggs. Add flour, salt, and vanilla and stir until well blended. Drop by teaspoons onto waffle iron. Put on teaspoon in each section of the waffle iron. Cook for 1 min.

Trey's (not Troy's:) Chicken Marinade

2010-10-18T15:48:00.000-07:00

1/2 C. Italian Dressing (I use the one you mix yourself-good seasons, mixed according to directions)

1/2 C. Mrs. Buttersworth syrup
1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp Worchestershire sauce
1 Tbsp Soy sauce
1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

4-8 chicken breasts

2 peppers (any color)

1 onion

Sliced provolone cheese

Marinade anywhere from 2-24 hours and double the mixture. Set aside 1/2 of it to use on the peppers and onions.

Grill chicken.

Slice peppers and onion lengthwise and saute in a little bit of oil. When they are tender, add in the marinade for just the last few minutes. When the chicken is done, put a spoonful of pepper/onion over top and then a slice of provolone cheese.

Bake in 350 oven till cheese is melted OR warm on grill.

Mississippi Mud Brownies

2010-10-15T12:01:00.000-07:00

Brownies:
2 cubes butter
5 1/2 Tbsp cocoa
1 1/2 c flour
2 c sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Melt butter and add cocoa. Mix flour and sugar in separate bowl and add cocoa mixture. Beat the eggs in 1 at a time. Fold in vanilla. Put in greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

Frosting:
1 cube butter
3 Tbsp cocoa
1/3 c milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 3/4 c powdered sugar

Boil butter, cocoa and milk. Take off heat. Stir in 1 tsp vanilla and 2 3/4 c powdered sugar. Pour over brownies and let gel. Brownies DO NOT have to be cool.

Quick and Easy Salsa

2010-08-14T10:36:00.000-07:00

1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
1/2 bunch cilantro
1-28 oz can chopped tomatoes
1-4 oz can diced green chiles
4-6 green onions, chopped
1/4-1/2 jalepeno, seeds removed & chopped

Put garlic, pepper, salt and cilantro in blender or food processor. Add juice only from tomatoes and process until cilantro is chopped. Add tomtoes and process carefully. Stir in chiles, green onions and jalepeno.

caramel crunch ice cream dessert

2010-07-29T11:56:00.000-07:00

2 Sticks butter
2 cups flour
1 cup quick oats
1/2 brown sugar
1/2 cup nuts (optional)

Preparation
Mix together and spread on a cookie sheet. Bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool and crumble. Put half of crumbs on bottom of 9 x 13 inch pan. Put half jar of chocolate or caramel ice cream topping over crumbs. Top with 1/2 gallon of soft ice cream. Top with crumbs and topping remaining. Freeze. Let sit out for 10 minutes, then serve.

Summer Blackberry Cobbler with Coconut-Pecan Topping

2010-07-29T08:41:00.000-07:00

Toss Together:
8 cups blackberries, fresh or frozen (thawed slightly if frozen)
1 cup sugar
¼ cup instant tapioca
juice of ½ a lime
pinch of salt
Combine; knead in:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
¾ cup sugar
½ cup pecans, coarsely chopped
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon table salt
½ cup cold, unsalted butter, cubed (1 stick)
Blend in:
1 egg
VANILLA-RUM CREME ANGLAISE
Warm:
2 cups half and half
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped; pod chopped into 1" pieces
Whisk together;temper milk into and cook:
5 egg yolks
3 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons light or dark rum
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Blend and strain;add:
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 400°
Toss berries with sugar, tapioca, lime juice, and salt in a bowl. Spoon into a 2 quart baking dish.
Combine flour, coconut, sugar, pecans, baking powder, and salt in a second bowl. Using your fingertips pinch the butter and mix with the dry ingredients. Don’t over blend so the butter turns greasy. Mixture should look like course sand when you’re done.
Mix in the egg with your fingers; topping will be sticky. Arrange topping over the berries in clumps, covering them evenly. Bake the cobbler for 45-50 minutes, or until topping is golden and crisp, and filling is thick and bubbly.
Cool on a rack for at least 1 hour before serving. Juice will thicken as it cools.
Vanilla-Rum Crème Anglaise
Warm half and half, 2 Tablespoons sugar, and vanilla bean seeds and pod in a saucepan over medium heat until steaming, about 5 minutes.
Whisk yolks, 2 Tablespoons sugar, rum, and salt together in a bowl. When milk mixture is steaming, temper it into the eggs, whisking constantly. Pour the custard back into the pan and return to the burner. Cook over medium-low heat. stirring constantly, until custard coats the back of a spoon, 5-8 minutes.
Blend custard and vanilla bean pod in a blender for 1 minutes. Strain into a bowl, add the extract, cover, and chill.
You can serve with ice cream or whipping cream and it's just as good.

Sugar Cookies

2010-07-23T10:34:00.000-07:00

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

4 ½ cups flour

½ tsp salt

1 cup sour cream

2 tsp. vanilla

½ tsp. baking soda

4 tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp nutmeg

Cream sugar and butter; add eggs and beat until fluffy. Mix in everything else except flour and sour cream. Alternate flour then sour cream, flour then sour cream. Refrigerate overnite or put in the freezer for an hour. Roll out on a floured surface…thicker than you usually do (about ¼ to ½ inch) Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 350 for 10-12 minutes (depending on your cookie sheet…dark or shiny) Do not overbake…the edges should not get brown. Cool and Frost with Butter Cream Frosting.

Butter Cream Frosting

1 cube butter

3 3/4 cups powdered sugar

3-4 TBSP Milk or cream

2 tsp. Vanilla

Beat until fluffy! (Several minutes)

Strawberry and Feta Salad with cinnamon candied almonds

2010-03-31T12:01:00.000-07:00

spinach
sliced strawberries
feta
thinly sliced red onion

Dressing
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup mayo
2 Tbs. rice vinegar
1/4 cup milk
Combined all ingredients and mix well.

Cinnamon roasted almonds
1 egg white
1 tsp cold water
4 cups whole almonds or slivered ( I used slivered as well as just 3 cups of almonds)
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Lightly grease a 10x15 jellyroll pan
2. Lightly beat the egg white: add water, and beat until frothy but not stiff. Add the nuts, and stir until well coated. Mix the sugar, salt and cinnamon and sprinkle over the nuts. Toss to coat and spread evenly on the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 1 hour in the preheated oven, stirring occasionally, until golden. Allow to cool, then store nuts in airtight containers.

4 easy dinners to try!

2010-03-30T13:33:00.000-07:00

Chicken Enchiladas
**not the healthiest dish in the world, but oh-so-delicious!**

2-3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1-2 cans green chiles
green salsa (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
1 onion chopped
1 tbs. butter
1 lb. shredded monterey jack cheese
8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 pint whipping cream
6-8 tortillas

Put chicken breasts with 1 can green chiles and about a cup of green salsa in crock pot on low, cook 5-6 hours. (green salsa is just to flavor it up a little, optional, and you don't have to cook chicken in crock-pot either, i just like it that way!). Shred chicken. In saucepan, saute chopped onion in butter. Add 1 more can green chiles and cream cheese and stir until melted. Add shredded chicken to mixture. Put mixture into tortillas and roll up. Top with shredded monterey jack cheese (it seems like a lot but is soooo good!). And then pour whipping cream on top of that. Bake at 350 until bubbling and cheese is golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Russian Chicken Tenders with Rice - don't have a good name for this one! :)
1 small bottle of wishbone Russian salad dressing
1 jar of pineapple apricot jam (you can find some at walmart)
1 package of dry lipton onion soup
As many chicken tenders as you'd like!

Blend the three ingredients together and then poor over chicken. Bake for 30-40 min (or until its done) and then broil 5 min or until chicken is brown on top. Serve over rice and enjoy!

Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches
1 loaf garlic bread
marinara sauce
frozen breaded chicken tenders
mozzarella cheese

Bake garlic bread and chicken tenders per instructions. Top garlic bread with marinara sauce, then chicken tender. Put some mozzarella on the chicken and put back in oven to melt cheese. And voila!, an open faced (is that the right word?) delicious sandwich!

Sun-dried Tomato and Chicken Ravioli
1 bag costco Ravioli - frozen
3 jars Sun-dried Tomato Alfredo (classico makes one)
16 chicken tenders
Parmesan Cheese (grated)
(This is the party size - only 1 jar and 8 tenders are needed for an 8x8 for 1 family)

Cook tenders in 1 tbs butter, cube when cooked 1/2 way through. Continue cooking until done.

Add jars of Alfredo sauce to chicken. Add about a 1/8 cup water to each jar when empty, put top on, and shake to get extra sauce, add to chicken. This helps thin the sauce as well.

Take large pan and start layering:
Add a small amount of sauce 1st so the ravioli doesn't stick
1. Ravioli - lay pieces side by side filling whole bottom
2. Add chicken sauce to cover ravioli
REPEAT
Sprinkle top with grated parmesan cheese

Place in oven 350 for about an hour, for large pan, - remove when bubbling - let sit for a minute to thicken... enjoy!

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

2010-03-17T11:06:00.000-07:00

1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup lime juice
2 1/2 tsp. chili powder
2 cloves garlic or 1/2 tsp garlic powder

8 Uncooked Tortillas
1 lb. chicken (approx. 2 breasts) cooked and shredded (the chicken tastes the best if you cook them on the grill, but you can boil them or cook them in the crock pot too)
2 or more cups shredded monterey jack cheese

14 oz. can green enchilada sauce
3/4 cup half & half

Mix the first four ingredients and add to the chicken.
Let the chicken soak while you prepare the tortillas.

Cook: (in frying pan) the fresh tortillas

Fill tortillas with some chicken and some cheese and roll up. Place in baking dish.
Mix the enchilada sauce and half & half together (and any remaining honey lime sauce*). Pour over the enchiladas and sprinkle with more cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes, uncovered. Serve with quacamole, spanish rice, refried beans and chips.

*I used 4 chicken breasts and 12 tortillas and the same amount of the honey lime sauce...there was no sauce left over to mix with the half & half/enchilada sauce; so I used 1 1/2 cups half & half...I also used lots of cheese...it was yummy!)

Spanish Rice

In large skillet:
2 TBSP vegetable oil
1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
1 chopped onion
1/2 chopped bell pepper
Saute until rice is brown and onions transparent.

Stir in:
2 cups chicken broth
1 10 oz can rotel tomatoes
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp. salt
Barely simmer on low heat until the liquid is absorbed (about 30 min.)

Mint Brownies

2010-03-14T15:06:00.000-07:00

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
6 TBSP cocoa
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. mint extract

Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time until mixture is fluffy. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend. Bake in a greased and floured 9 X 13 pan at 350 degrees. (16 to 20 minutes or until done...toothpick comes out clean...for best results, don't overcook)

FROSTING
1 cube butter (I have used 1/2 cube butter and it turns out)
3 cups powdered sugar
3 TBSP milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. mint extract
8-10 drops green food coloring
Mix until smooth and fluffy. top with chopped Andes mints (optional:drizzle with melted milk chocolate)

2010-02-23T09:39:00.000-08:00

Lemon-Coconut Chessecake Bars

(2 1/2 cups coconut toasted)

3/4 cup butter softened
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup toasted coconut
Place in food processor and mix well, then press to bottom of 9 X 13 ungreased pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until light brown.

1 8 oz cream cheese
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 TBSP lemon zest
Beat sugar and cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in eggs and lemon juice until mixed. Pour over crust and bake 18-20 minutes

1 1/2 cup sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
Mix well. Pour over above layers. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/1/2 cups toasted coconut. Bake 10 minutes

Cool on wire rack. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before cutting.

( One of the girls at work shared this recipe with us...it's rich and tart at the same time. If you like lemons and coconut you'll love this one!!)

Garlic Chicken Farfalle

2010-01-18T09:45:00.001-08:00

GARLIC CHICKEN FARFALLE

16 oz. Farfalle pasta
1 c. heavy whipping cream
3-4 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)
2 to 3 cloves garlic, crushed OR garlic salt (I do a spoonful of crushed garlic)
1 Tbsp. pepper*
1/2 c. butter

1 lb. bacon, crumpled**
1/2 c. shredded Parmesan cheese
1 (12 oz) Lawry's mesquite marinade with lime juice

*Seems like a lot of pepper, but it has a wonderful flavor when everything mixes together. If you're apprehensive, do less pepper. You can always add more.

**We like to cook our bacon in the oven (400 degrees, convection). Way less messy. And it's crispy every time. Time varies, so you just have to watch it. I think it's usually around 30 minutes.

Crock pot chicken and bottle of marinade on low for 6 hours. Pull marinated chicken out of the juices, allow to cool a little bit, and shred (I pull it apart). Set this aside. About a half-hour before serving, boil the pasta. In a small saucepan, melt butter, add garlic, whipping cream, pepper, parmesan cheese, and crumpled bacon. Whisk together on low heat for 3-4 minutes. In a large bowl, pour over cooked, drained pasta, add chicken and stir through. Sprinkle a little bit more shredded parmesan cheese on top.

Faux Fried Ice-Cream

2010-01-16T16:53:00.000-08:00

This is a favorite that I make but I have never really had a recipe...which made it difficult to tell people how to make it (so washburn right?!) But today I measured everything and came up with this:
NOTE: This is the yummiest when you let it re-freeze overnight

1 and 1/2 tubs of vanilla ice cream (regular size...about 3 quarts)
*Get this out and let it get soft while you are making the rest. A good tip is to se your muscles
(or like me a mixer) to stir the ice cream so that it is soft and smooth which will make it
easier to spread.

In a saucepan over medium high heat:
2 sticks butter (I think real butter is key)
3 cups brown sugar...not packed, just scooped

Allow to melt and stir until mixture comes to a soft boil. Remove from heat and stir in:

5 cups rice cereal
1 cup coconut (optional...if you don't like it just leave it out!)

Stir until completely coated/combined

Scoop 1/2 of cereal mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 and spread out.

Spread vanilla ice cream over top of cereal layer

Spread the rest of ceral mixture on top of ice-cream

Sprinkle 2-3 Tablespoons of cinnamon sugar on top
*sometimes I also sprinkle that much cinnamon sugar on top of the bottom layer of the cereal
mixutre...but I really like cinnamon so that is up to you.

Cover and refreeze until firm. (I like to leave it overnight..it's easier that way.)

To serve:
Top squares of faux fried ice-cream with carmel or chocolate (or both) ice cream topping and a scoop of whipped cream.

Enjoy!!

Teriyaki Chicken

2009-12-03T08:11:00.000-08:00

Always a big hit at our house, especially for guests

1 c soy sauce
1 1/4 c brown sugar
1 t minced garlic
chicken pieces for 6 - 8 people (tenders would be delicious)
2 - 3 T cornstarch
1 c chicken broth

Combine first four ingredients in large pot and bring to a boil. Partially cook the chicken, turning it so all the pieces get covered with sauce. Remove chicken to a 9x13 baking dish (or smaller if you're cooking for fewer).

Stir cornstarch into chicken broth and pour into sauce. Cook until mixture is thickened slightly. Pour sauce over chicken. Cover dish with foil (or use a casserole dish with a lid) and bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until chicken is done.

We serve this over rice with pineapple and broccoli.

***NOTE: This recipe makes a lot of sauce, so you may want to cut it in half if you're serving fewer than five or six. I'd try it as-is once to see of it's too much sauce for you. Enjoy!

Spinach Artichoke Pasta

2009-10-11T19:53:00.000-07:00

Spinach Artichoke Pasta

(recipe found on Rachael Ray...really called Spinach artichoke Mac n' cheese)

This is AMAZING! Seriously, if you love spinach artichoke dip, you'll love this dish!

Ingredients

Salt
1 pound regular or whole wheat penne
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
3 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup white wine (didn't have white wine so we used chicken broth)
2 cups milk
A few grates fresh nutmeg
1 box frozen chopped spinach (10 ounces), defrosted and wrung dry in a kitchen towel
1 box frozen chopped artichokes (10-ounces), defrosted and wrung dry in a kitchen towel
Ground black pepper
1 1/4 cups shredded Italian Fontina cheese, plus additional for sprinkling on top ( we used half mozzarella and half swiss cheese. another option is fontina provolone)
1 1/4 cups grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, plus additional for sprinkling on top
We added grilled chicken

Preparation

Pre-heat oven to 350ºF.

Place a large pot of water over high heat to cook the pasta. When the water is boiling, salt it well and drop the pasta in. Cook to al dente according to package directions. Drain the pasta and reserve.

While the pasta is cooking, place a medium pot over medium-low heat with 2 turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons, and the butter. Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook the veggies until very soft, about 10 minutes.

Turn the heat up to medium-high and sprinkle the flour into the pan. Cook for about 1 minute then whisk the wine into the pan, cooking for another minute to burn off the alcohol. Whisk the milk into the pan and bring up to a bubble. Add the nutmeg, veggies, some salt and pepper to the sauce, and simmer until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Add the cheeses to the sauce and stir until melted.

Toss the prepared sauce with the cooked pasta and transfer to a casserole dish. Sprinkle some more Fontina and Parmigiano over the top and bake until the cheese has melted and the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Salsa/Guacamole Dip

2009-10-08T16:20:00.000-07:00

This salsa is so tasty, you can eat it with a spoon!

1 can black beans
1 can white shoepeg corn
3 tomatoes, diced
3 avacados, diced
green onions, to taste
1 packet dry Italian dressing mix
4T vinegar
3T water
2T oil

Mix and enjoy!!!

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Brownies

2009-09-16T16:14:00.000-07:00

1 cup flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups oatmeal
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda

Mix together and add:

2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. water
3/4 cup oil

Blend well (Use your hands, it's faster than using a spoon or fork)

Sprinkle 2 cups chocolate chips and 1/2 cup chopped nuts on top.

Bake in a 9X13 baking pan at 325 degrees for 20 minutes

This is Laurie's recipe...I'm just submitting it!

Sweet Corn, Tomato, and Avocado Relish

2009-08-23T18:18:00.000-07:00

2 ears corn, husks and silk removed
2 vine ripened tomatoes, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
2 avocados, pitted and diced
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper

In a large pot of boiling water, cook corn until tender (about 4 minutes). Using a sharp knife, cut the kernels off the cob. In a bowl, add corn, tomatoes, avocados, onion, parsley, 2 tbsp. oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Toss to combine.

We served the relish on tilapia, but the original recipe called for salmon. It is also good with grilled chicken breasts. A great summer dish with fresh vegetables from the garden! :)

German Chocolate Bars

2009-08-01T07:09:00.000-07:00

1 German chocolate cake mix (don't prepare it, just the mix)

2/3 c. butter

1 cup. chocolate chips (I use a whole bag)

1 can coconut-pecan frosting

1/4 cup milk

Cut butter into cake mix. Press half in greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with chocolate chips and drop frosting by spoonfuls over chips. Stir milk into remaining cake mixture, drop by tsp. over top. Bake another 20-25 minutes at 350. Refrigerate 4 hours before cutting. Keep in fridge.

**These bars are SO quick and easy, and they are DE-licious!! I might have eaten the whole pan by myself:)**

Raspberry Cream Cupcakes

2009-06-24T19:11:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:

1 box white cake mix (recommended: Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe)
1 1/3 cups water
3 large eggs whites
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 (6-ounce) containers fresh raspberries, cut in half or 1 (16-ounce) container fresh strawberries, coarsely chopped
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup powdered sugar, plus additional for dusting

Directions:

Line 18 muffin cups with muffin papers. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Using an electric mixer, beat the cake mix, water, egg whites, melted butter, almond extract, and vanilla extract in a large bowl for 2 minutes, or until the batter is well blended. Using about 1/3 cup of batter for each cupcake, spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake the cupcakes until they are very pale golden on top, about 15 minutes. Cool the cupcakes completely on a cooling rack.

Using a fork, coarsely mash 1 1/2 containers of raspberries in a medium bowl. Beat the cream and 1/3 cup of powdered sugar in a large bowl until firm peaks form. Fold the mashed raspberries into the whipped cream.

Remove the muffin papers from the cupcakes and cut the tops off of each cupcake. Spoon the raspberry whipped cream atop the cupcake bottoms. Place the cupcake tops on the cupcakes. Dust with more powdered sugar and serve with the remaining berries.

**Recipe courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis, Food Network

Banana bars

2009-04-27T18:32:00.000-07:00

Banana bars

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
1 (16 ounce) container cream cheese frosting ( or make the one below)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 10x15 inch jellyroll pan.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the sour cream and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; stir into the batter. Finally, mix in the mashed banana. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow bars to cool completely before frosting with the cream cheese frosting.

Frosting
6 oz cream cheese
1/4 c. margarine
4 cups powdered sugar
2 t vanilla
1/3 c-1/2 cup milk

Hungarian 'Fury' Goulyas

2009-03-16T10:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Jon, B's new nickname is Fury. Not to be confused with Fairy. He won't respond. Not that I tried more than once... Anyway, i made this soup that he just died for and ALL of my kids gobbled right up. It is our personal take on the

Hungarian Goulyas

1 Kilo cubed Pork (can use beef)
4 carrots (peeled and cut into medallions)
8 potatoes (peeled and cubed)
4 chicken bouillon cubes
4 beef bouillon cubes
8 cups hot water
1/2 red onion (diced)
1/2 yellow onion (diced)
1/2 red pepper (diced)
3 gloves garlic (pressed)
3 Tbs. butter
4 Tbsp. green onion (chopped)
salt and pepper to taste
1Tbsp. Paprika

Dice the red onion, yellow onion, red pepper (Kalifornia Paprikas in Hungarian), and sautee all the diced veggies with the 3 pressed cloves of garlic and butter in a big stew pot. Let simmer 3 min. or so. Add the cubed Pork with salt and pepper and brown. Then cover and let cook on medium heat for about 5 min. While you are letting those cook together, dissolve the bouillon cubes in the 8 c. hot water. (You can put them in the microwave to expedite this process.) Pour the chicken/beef boullion water over the pork and let it boil. Turn the heat down to low and simmer covered for an hour or two. Add the cubed carrots, potatoes, and green onion and cook until the veggies are soft. This feeds our family of 5 for two dinners. (And B and I have two helpings both nights!)

Serve with

B's Paprikas Garlic Bread:

Fresh Bread (or French Bread) cut in slices. Spread butter on top and sprinkle garlic salt, Italian seasoning, paprika, and parmesan cheese. Broil for a couple minutes. We are fans of the Hungarian Paprikas... we will send our Chicken Paprikas someday...

Peanut Butter Bars

2009-03-10T20:48:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons peanut butter

In a medium bowl, mix together the butter or margarine, graham cracker crumbs, confectioners' sugar, and 1 cup peanut butter until well blended. Press evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 inch pan. In a metal bowl over simmering water, or in the microwave, melt the chocolate chips with the peanut butter, stirring occasionally until smooth. Spread over the prepared crust. Refrigerate for at least one hour before cutting into squares.

2009-03-05T11:21:00.000-08:00

Stephanie's Banana Bread

Cream together:
3/4 cup Butter
1 1/2 cup sugar

Add:
3 eggs
1 1/2 cup mashed bananas (2 1/2 to 3 bananas)
1 tsp. vanilla

Fold in:
3/4 cup sour cream
3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp B.P.
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Topping:
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup chopped nuts (pecans are the best)

Grease and flour 2 bread pans. Fill pans 1/3 full with banana mixture, sprinkle with topping. Fill another 1/3 full with batter, sprinkle with topping. Pour the last of the batter on top. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes. Test with toothpick in the middle...if it comes out clean the bread is done. Loosen sides immediately and cool on racks. (Lining the pan with wax paper makes for easier removal! :)

Soft Chewy Pretzels

2009-02-15T13:19:00.000-08:00

Soft Chewy Pretzels

Ingredients:
3 tsp active dry yeast
3 pinches of sugar (mine were a little big)

1 cup warm water
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
6 Tbsp. white sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt (you can do less if you are sharing with Grandpa :)
3 Tbsp oil
9 Tbsp baking soda
3 cup hot water (as hot as your tap can get)
Sea salt

Directions:
Dissolve yeast into water with the pinches of sugar and let stand 10 min.

Mix the yeast mixture with flour, sugar, salt, and oil, and knead until combined (a few minutes, not even 5)

Let the dough rise in a greased bowl until doubled in size (about 1 hour)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. When the dough has risen, pinch off a handful and roll it out into a long strand. (I just squished it in my hand into snakes.) Set aside on wax paper. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Once all the strands are rolled out, pick up the first one and stretch it out again (the gluten will have relaxed and it should stretch further now).

Twist them into any shape that you want. (We did hearts for Valentine's Day and circles one time bc the girls couldn't get the pretzel shape, but you can do whatever.) Place on greased baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the strands.

Dissolve baking soda into the hot water and stir until mostly dissolved. Quickly dip each rolled pretzel into the mixture and place it back on the baking sheet. Sprinkle all pretzels with salt if wanted, (but we thought this was too much salt).

Bake for about 8-10 min, until pretzels have browned. Makes 16-18 medium sized pretzels.

***I have been seriously trying to find this recipe all my life. Okay, all my married life, but I finally found it! These are wonderful and I have made them 3 times so far (since Oct) and they always turn out fantastic! (I usually omit the sea salt bc they are salty enough already.)

Hot Artichoke Dip

2009-01-30T15:42:00.000-08:00

1 lb. cream cheese
10 oz. grated Parmesean cheese
8 oz. sour cream
8 oz. Mayonaisse
1 1/3 oz. chopped jalapeno peppers ( you can turn down the heat by using less peppers)
1T. garlic powder or 3 cloves fresh garlic, pressed
1 lb. water packed artichoke hearts, drained and coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 350. Cream together cream cheese, Parmesean cheese, sour cream, mayo, peppers and garlic powder. Fold in artichoke hearts. Spread into 10 inch baking dish. Bake 30-35 minutes or until lightly browned on top. Serve hot with tortilla chips, baguette slices, or sourdough bread.

I have to give credit to Brooke Kane for this recipe and it came from her R.S. cookbook when they lived in Chicago. It's lots of calories and kinda' pricey, but great for special occasions.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

2009-01-24T11:55:00.000-08:00

Cupcakes:

1 1/2 C. white sugar
2 1/2 C. cake flour*(I used whole wheat flour)
2 Tbs. cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 C. canola oil
1 C. buttermilk
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. vinegar

*homemade cake flour: 2 Tbs. cornstarch 1/2 tsp. baking powder fill the rest of 1 cup up with flour and sift

Cream Cheese Frosting:

8 oz. red. fat cream cheese
1 C. butter, room temp.
2 C. confectioner's sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with wrappers. Mix dry ingredients together. Mix wet ingredients together. Pour wet mixture into dry and mix until combined. Fill tins 2/3 full with batter. Bake about 20 minutes. Cool completely. For frosting, mix butter and cream cheese until smooth. Slowly mix in confectioner's sugar. Add vanilla. Frost cupcakes using a piping bag fitted with a star-shaped tip. Or frost with a small spatula. Makes 24.

I like these just because of the frosting. It's fantastic!

This is Bryanna posting.

Lemon Bars

2009-01-22T14:54:00.001-08:00

LEMON BARS

Ingredients:

* 2 sticks (1 cup) butter -softened

* 2 cups flour (for crust)

* 1/2 cup powdered sugar

* 4 beaten eggs

* 2 cups sugar

* 4 tablespoons flour (for topping)

* 1/4 cup lemon juice (juice from about 3 lemons)

* 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon peel (from 3 lemons)

* sifted powdered sugar

Preparation:

Heat oven to 325°. Blend butter, 2 cups flour and 1/2 cup powdered sugar. Pat into ungreased 13x9-inch pan. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes. For filling, blend together eggs, sugar, 4 tablespoons flour, lemon juice, and lemon peel. Pour over first layer. Return to oven and bake at 325° for 20 minutes. Loosen around edges, cut into bars and sift confectioners' sugar over.

I made this tonight and I thought it was a little tart, but B was in Lemon Bar heaven. The ladies I shared it with liked it as well, so it can't be THAT bad. This recipe won a ton of awards on some site, so I gave it a shot. It was yum-deliciouso, but I puckered a few times. *** This is coming from a person who puts extra sugar in her Hot chocolate, apple cider, Kool-aid, veggies (I know. sad.) , cereal, and candy bars. Just kidding about the last one, but still! So just take B's word for it. It was so easy to make too!

psst... I put a LOT of extra powdered sugar on my 2nd piece and it helped, just don't suck in or laugh when taking a bite with a lot of Powdered sugar bc you might get powdered sugar at the back of your throat and up your nose and that's not much fun. :)

2009-01-19T09:49:00.000-08:00

Chocolate Rollo Cookies

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup butter or margarine
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cups cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder

Cream sugars, butter. Add eggs and vanilla. Add flour, baking pwder, cocoa. This will make a slightly sticky dough. You can chill it a bit, or lightly dust your fingers with flour to work with it. Take a small amount of dough and wrap it around a rolo candy. Roll the ball in granulated sugar. Bake at 350 for about 8 minutes. Don't over bake!!

Dawn thinks the peanut butter version is better, but I like these! Maybe it's the chocoholic in me.

Whole wheat waffles

2009-01-17T08:31:00.000-08:00

—I made a mistake and there is now the right amount of salt. My apologies if anyone made them with too much salt before I fixed it.—
I played around with waffle recipes until I got them to be about like Grandma Washburn's. Bryanna likes to use whole wheat, so that's what this calls for, but I assume it would work fine with white, too.

Whole wheat waffles

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder

2 T butter
2 T oil

2 eggs
1 cup milk

Mix dry ingredients. Cut in butter and oil with a fork until it's well mixed with the flour (it will have small lumps). In a separate bowl, beat eggs well. Add them to the dry ingredients along with the milk and mix for about 1 minute. The batter will be lumpy and runny. Cook on your favorite waffle maker.

Reindeer Poop

2008-12-23T06:09:00.000-08:00

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER NO BAKE COOKIES

Ingredients:

* 2 cups sugar

* 1/2 cup milk

* 1/2 cup cocoa

* pinch salt

* 1/2 cup butter

* 1 cup peanut butter

* 3 cups quick-cooking oatmeal

Preparation:

In large saucepan, combine sugar, milk, cocoa, salt, and butter and mix well. Bring to a boil and cover saucepan for 30 seconds to allow steam to wash sugar crystals down sides of pan. Stir mixture and bring it to a boil that can't be stirred down for 1 minute. Then remove from heat and stir in peanut butter until smooth. Add oatmeal and mix well. Do not use regular or instant oatmeal; quick-cooking oatmeal is essential to the success of this recipe.

Let the mixture stand for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to let the oatmeal absorb some of the liquid.

Drop mixture by spoonfuls onto waxed paper or parchment lined baking sheets or Silpat sheets. Let cool until you can touch the mixture; then reshape the cookies to make them more a ball shape. Let cool completely; store at room temperature. You can also pour this mixture into a 9" square pan that has been greased with unsalted butter, let cool, then cut into squares.

***We attached the saying: "You've been bad, so here's the scoop. All you get this year is Reindeer poop!" :)

Reindeer Poop 2

2008-12-23T05:58:00.000-08:00

CHOCOLATE WHITE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

INGREDIENTS

* 1 cup butter, softened

* 2 cups white sugar

* 2 eggs

* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

* 2 cups all-purpose flour

* 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

* 1 teaspoon baking soda

* 1/2 teaspoon salt

* 1 2/3 cups white chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

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

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; stir into the creamed mixture. Fold in the white chocolate chips. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until cookies are set. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cool Corn and Spicy Pepper Soup

2008-12-19T18:30:00.000-08:00

Cool Corn and Spicy Pepper Soup

1 cube butter

2 onion (finely chopped)

8 garlic cloves (finely chopped)

2 16 ounce package frozen corn, thawed

2 jar roasted red peppers, drained

1 cup salad croutons

2 tsp. cumin

4 cans chicken broth

1 cup sour cream

salt and pepper

Hot sauce

1. In each of 2 pans, heat 4 tablespoons butter over medium-low heat. Add half of the onion and garlic to each pan and cook, stirring frequently, until softened (about 7 minutes). Add the corn to one pan, and add the roasted red peppers along with the croutons and cumin to the other pan. Add 2 cans chicken broth to each pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the head and simmer both soups, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. Stir the sour cream into the corn soup.

2. Using a hand blender, puree each soup in its pan; season to taste with

salt and pepper. Season the pepper soup with the hot sauce to taste.

To serve, using two measuring cups, pour the soups simultaneously

into opposite sides of each bowl; top with croutons.

This is a fun, fancy soup as one side of the bowl is red, the other yellow. We served it at Relief Society.

Oven Carmel Corn (Aileen's Recipe)

2008-12-19T18:28:00.000-08:00

OVEN CARMEL CORN (Aileen’s)

2 cups brown sugar

2 sticks butter

½ cup Karo syrup

1 tsp. Salt

1 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. butter flavoring

6 Quarts popped corn (air popped: 2 “servings”)

nuts (optional)

Combine sugar, butter, karo syrup, and salt in sauce pan. Bring to a rolling boil; boil 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add baking soda and butter flavoring. Stir over popped corn. Spread on two sheets. Bake @ 200 degrees for I hour…stirring every 15 minutes. Cool and store in air tight containers.

Steph's Yam Casserole

2008-12-19T18:27:00.000-08:00

Stephanie’s Yam Casserole

3 cups Mashed Yams 1/3 cup melted butter

¾ cup sugar 1/3 cup milk

½ tsp salt 2 eggs (beaten)

1 tsp. vanilla 2 tsp. flour

Mix together and place in 9 X 13 pan.

Top with:

1 cup pecans (chopped) 1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup butter 1 cup brown sugar

Cut butter into mixture of nuts, flour, and sugar. Sprinkle over yam mixture.

Bake @ 350 degrees for 35 min.

Lettuce Wrap

2008-12-19T18:24:00.000-08:00

LETTUCE WRAPS (from Jill)

Meat Mixture:

1 lb. ground Turkey (can use beef or chicken)

1 tsp. garlic

1 tsp. sesame oil

½ cup hoisin sauce

¼ cup oyster sauce

black pepper

soy sauce (for flavor)

1 Tbsp. of sugar

Brown the meat and season with the other ingredients.

Vegetable Mixture:

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

grated onion (green, but you can use yellow or red)

½ head cabbage, small or medium (grated)

1 cup carrots (grated)

water chestnuts, chopped (optional)

Put two or three tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large skillet, turn up the heat and flavor the oil with a little grated onion, Before it browns the onion, add the cabbage, carrots and water chestnuts and stir, stir, stir: When the veggies are tender, put the meat and vegetable mixtures together in a large skillet. Mix well and then taste the stuff; if you need more sauce, add hoisin, a little sugar or even some vinegar and sugar.
Put the combined mixtures in leaves of chilled lettuce, enjoy!.

Chocolate Chex Mix

2008-12-18T14:44:00.000-08:00

Chocolate Chex Caramel Crunch

(A preschool mom made some of this for me and I loved it!! So then I got the recipe from her...but it turns out it is available online but I thought I would share it here so you don't have to search it out!)

8 Cups Chocolate Chex Cereal (this is really a mix of chocolate chex and other chex cereals)
3/4 cup packed Brown Sugar
6 Tbsp. Butter
3 Tbsp. Light Karo
1/4 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 C. White Chocolate Chips

Measure 8 cups of cereal into a large Microwavable bowl ( it will have to go in the microwave later.) Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper and set aside.

In another microwavable bowl add brown sugar, butter, and Karo. Microwave uncovered on high for 2 minutes, stirring after 1 minute, until it is all melted and smooth. Stir in the baking soda to this mixture until it is all dissolved.

Pour this mixture over the cereal and stir to coat. Microwave the cereal (with sugar mixture on it) for 3 minutes, stirring every minute. Spread the coated cereal onto lined cookie sheet.

The next part of the recipe is to drizzle the cereal mixture with melted white chocolate chips....I will say that I don't think this step is really necessary, it didn't really make a difference to me. Tera, however did like the white chocolate addition. Also, the picture online had the cereal mixture drizzled with white and milk chocolate. So I guess it depends on how much time and/or effort you want to put into it! (If I was giving it away I would drizzle it with both chocolates because it looks prettier....but if I am just making it to eat it I wouldn't bother!)

Then refrigerate (I did for about 30 minutes)

The final result....yummy!!!

Baked potato soup

2008-12-08T19:58:00.000-08:00

12 slices bacon
2/3 cup margarine
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
7 cups milk
4 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 green onions, chopped
1 1/4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium heat until browned. Drain, crumble, and set aside.
In a stock pot or Dutch oven, melt the margarine over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes and onions. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Mix in bacon, cheese, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until cheese is melted. Yield: 6-8

(from allrecipes.com)

SUPER EASY AND MUMMY SWEET ROLLD

2008-11-24T10:50:00.000-08:00

1 pkg of Rode's slow rise cinnamon rolls (12 in a bag...be careful NOT to get the quick rise...the bag you want will have red on it)
1 C brown sugar
1 C cream

Heat the cream and brown sugar on med heat in a small saucepan until the sugar dissolves (about 5 min.)
Grease a cake sheet (not a cookie sheet) if you use all 12, for 6 rolls I use a 9 x 13 pan. Pour the mixture into the cake pan and set the frozen rolls on top. Let rise (you can let them get as big as you like) and cook according to the directions on the bag.
After they are finished baking quickly turn the pan upside down onto a cookie sheet. The goo runs over the rolls, yummy! We love these on Sunday morning.
Note: I will put the rolls out at about 8:30 in the evening and then put them in the frig before I go to bed around 10:30. In the morning I take them out and let them sit for 30 min and then I bake them.

Creamy White Chili

2008-11-06T17:28:00.000-08:00

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 cans (15.5 ozs each) great northern beans, drained
1 can (14.5 oz.) chicken broth
2 cans (4 ozs each) chopped green chilies
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream

In a large saucepan, saute chicken, onion and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add beans, broth, chilies and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream and cream. Serve immediately. Serves 7.

Easy Oreo Truffles

2008-11-05T13:50:00.001-08:00

These are an easy, tasty, and pretty treat to take to holiday festivities. Or just to consume by the handful at home by yourself. [from Kraft Food & Family, FALL 2006]

Ingredients:

1 pkg. (1 lb., 2 oz.) Oreo Cookies, divided

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

2 pkg. (8 oz. each) Baker’s Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, melted

CRUSH 9 of the cookies to fine crumbs in food processor; reserve for later use. (Cookies can also be finely crushed in a resealable plastic bag using a rolling pin.) Crush remaining 36 cookies to fine crumbs; place in medium bowl. Add cream cheese; mix until well blended. Roll cookie mixture into 42 balls, about 1 inch in diameter.

DIP balls in chocolate; place on wax paper-covered baking sheet. (Any leftover chocolate can be stored at room temperature for another use.) Sprinkle with reserved cookie crumbs.

REFRIGERATE until firm, about 1 hour. Store leftover truffles, covered, in refrigerator.

Makes 3 ½ doz.

HOW-TO: For easy dipping, place truffle ball in melted chocolate to coat; roll if necessary. Lift truffle from chocolate using 2 forks (this will allow excess chocolate to run off) before placing on wax paper.

Cream Potatoes

2008-10-18T19:25:00.000-07:00

8-10 medium potatoes peeled and sliced
1 medium onion diced
1 1/2 cups diced carrots
1 pint heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp. butter
Salt and Pepper

In a skillet add butter, onions and carrots. Cook over medium-high heat until onions are soft and translucent.

Fill a 9 x 13 inch pan with peeled and sliced potatoes. I like to add some salt and pepper to the potatoes at this point. Then dump the onion and carrot mixture over the potatoes and give it a stir to mix it up. Pour the pint of whipping cream over top of everything.

Place in oven uncovered and bake at 375 degrees for 45-60 minutes. Potatoes are done when they are soft (test with fork) and look like this:

These are a great side dish with fish or Parmesan chicken. They are also really yummy the next day. I could eat these everyday.

All Purpose Cream Sauce

2008-10-08T20:57:00.000-07:00

2 cups instant nonfat dry milk

3/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup chicken flavored instant bouillon

4 tsp instant minced onion or 4 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp pepper

To make a great cheese sauce:

In a sauce pan combine 3/4 cup water and 3 tablespoons sauce mix. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese.

Taco Bake

2008-09-27T15:02:00.000-07:00

Pretty huh?

Look. Layers.

Before being baked

After being baked. Kinda crispy on top. mmmm!

I changed the recipe from this website up a bit because it needed more flavor, but it was stellar.

2 lbs hamburger
1 onion (or 3 Tbsp. dried onions)
1 can diced green chiles
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 package taco seasoning
1 cup sour cream
1/2 c. water
1 pkg. of 10 corn tortillas
1/2 cup crushed tortilla chips
8 oz. mild cheddar cheese (or Mexican blend) any mild mix really

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. ( I waited until after #3 because it took that long to simmer and put together.)
Brown hamburger with chopped finely onion. (I only like the taste of onion. Not the texture. Onions are meant to be tasted, not seen) Drain and put back in pan.
Add green chiles, stewed tomatoes, water, taco seasoning, and sour cream to hamburger. (I used my hand blender to blend the chiles and tomatoes. Again. The tomatoes and chiles are meant to be tasted, not seen. Also I thought the kids wouldn't like to see green things in their food.) Simmer on medium heat 5-10 minutes.
Layer corn tortillas, meat mixture, and cheese in that order three times in a 9 1/2 x 11 caserole dish. On the top layer, after the meat mixture, sprinkle the crushed tortilla chips all over then put the cheese on top.
Bake for 20-25 minutes. We like the cheese to be a little brown, so we kept it in there a few more minutes. Enjoy!

Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

2008-09-25T10:36:00.000-07:00

1/2 c. margarine
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 c. pumpkin
2 c. flour
4 t. baking powder
1 t salt
2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ginger
1/2 t. cloves
1/2 t. allspice
2 c chocolate chips

Cream margarine, sugar, eggs and pumpkin. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Bake @ 375 for 13 min.

Hale's Chocolate Cake

2008-09-25T10:32:00.000-07:00

1 box chocolate cake mix
1 small box instant chocolate pudding
4 eggs
1/2 c oil (i use olive)
1/2 c hot water
1/2 c sour cream
1 package chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients together for 5 min then add chocolate chips. Grease bunt pan REALLY well and flour. Bake @ 350 for 1 hour.

This is SOOOO yummy and super moist. Can also make in crockpot on low for 6-8 hours.

Hawaiian Ham and Cheese Sandwiches

2008-08-28T20:11:00.001-07:00

2 dozen Kings Hawaiian Sweet dinner rolls
1 lb shaved black forest ham
1/2 lb sliced swiss cheese
2 cubes melted butter
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 Tablespoon poppy seeds

Slice rolls (cut one whole dozen at one time, leave sides stuck together to save time.) Place bottom half of rolls in a glass baking dish, (9 x 13 will hold 1 doz) and top with ham and cheese. Place top half of rolls over the ham and cheese. Mix worcestershire sauce, garlic salt and poppy seeds into the melted butter. Pour the mixture over the top of the rolls. Cover well and refrigerate overnight. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

These are some tasty little sandwiches! The recipe makes a ton though, so you could half it and still have plenty. I had these at enrichment, they are great for parties or when you have a large crowd to feed.

Fiesta Corn Salad

2008-08-18T14:04:00.000-07:00

5-6 cans white *shoepeg corn (rinse well, strain water)
2 bunches green onion chopped
3-4 tomatoes - diced
1/2 bunch snipped cilantro
garlic powder to taste
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 - 3/4 C. mayonnaise
1 bag Fritos corn chips

In mixing bowl, add rinsed corn, onions, cilantro, salt, pepper and garlic, mix well. Add mayonnaise, stirring well. Add tomatoes and refrigerate for 3-5 hours. Just before serving, add crunched up frito corn chips on top.

*Shoepeg corn is hard to find. I have only found it in the 'Green Giant' brand. It is a sweeter, smaller, and crunchier corn that just regular canned corn. I have also used a mixture of the 3 cans shoepeg corn and 3 cans fiesta corn blend (it has red and green peppers) which just added a little more color!* This is a fun summer salad.

Chicken & Black Bean Burritos

2008-08-18T13:58:00.000-07:00

3 chicken breasts
1 can black beans (drained)
1 pkg. taco seasoning mix
1 C. Pace Picante sauce
3/4 C. sour cream
1 pkg. tortillas
Cheddar cheese

Place chicken breasts & black beans in crock pot. Add taco seasoning mix and picante sauce. Cook on low for 5-6 hours or high for 3 hours. About 20 min. before you are ready to eat, shred chicken and stir in sour cream. Fill tortillas with mixture and top with cheese before folding tortillas. Serves 6.

(I find that the mixture gets a little too juicy, so I will cook just the chicken with taco seasoning for an hour or two, then drain some of the liquid and then add the salsa and beans for the remaining time.) So easy and so yummy!

Buttercream Syrup

2008-08-18T08:28:00.000-07:00

Buttercream Syrup Recipe

½ cup buttermilk

1 cube butter

1 cup sugar

1 TBSP Karo (corn) syrup

1 TBSP Vanilla

Bring to boil (in a two quart sauce pan…will "foam up"). Boil 1 minute. Add ½ tsp Baking Soda, take off heat & stir. Refrigerate unused syrup. Good on pancakes, waffles, german pancakes, or crepes.

Most of you probably already have this recipe...Mom got it from one of you. I just thought I'd post it so that I don't lose it!

Spinach and Chicken Manicotti

2008-08-05T12:48:00.000-07:00

1 8oz. pkg manicotti
2 chicken breasts cooked and finely shredded
2 cups whole milk ricotta cheese (1 container)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup frozen spinach, thawed and chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 32oz jar spaghetti sauce

Cook pasta. Drain and cool on waxed paper to prevent noodles from sticking together. In bowl, combine cheeses, spinach, chicken, salt and pepper. Fill manicotti with cheese mixture. (An easy method is to put mixture in a ziplock bag, cut corner, then pipe the filling into each noodle.) In a 9x13 pan, spread a thin layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom, then arrange manicotti in a single layer. Cover the manicotti with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle on more cheese, if desired. Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 15 minutes longer.

This feeds our family for 2 meals. All our kids will actually eat this!

Yummy Crock-Pot Chicken

2008-08-04T11:14:00.000-07:00

Terisha's Chicken

4 to 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 C. soy sauce (use 1/2 water & 1/2 soy sauce if not less-sodium)
1 C. sugar
1 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 C. chopped onion (can use minced or onion powder)

Place chicken in crock-pot. In a saucepan, combine soy sauce, sugar, garlic salt, and onion. Bring to a boil then pour sauce over chicken in crock-pot. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours or on high 3-4 hours. Makes 4-6 servings.

I'm all about crock-pot recipes and I love this one! I probably make it once a week! ... it is so easy and very tasty. It is especially yummy served over mashed potatoes! (We like mashed red potatoes with the peels left on.)

Peach dessert

2008-08-03T20:07:00.000-07:00

Peach Dessert

6 peaches sliced
4 oz cream cheese
1 c. powdered sugar
8 oz cool whip
1/8 t. almond extract
3 T. butter
1 1/2 c. pecan sandie cookies (about 1/2 package) crushed

To make the crust, generously butter a 9-inch glass pie plate. In a large bowl, stir together the cookie crumbs and the melted butter. Using your fingertips, firmly and evenly press the mixture into the bottom and sides of the pie plate.

Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, cool whip, almond extract in large bowl. Pour into crust.

Add peaches on top (better if mixed with a glaze you can either buy or make by heating 1 smashed peach, 1 t cornstarch, 1 T water, 1/2 c. sugar))

This is sooooooooo so yummy. I'm actually not a huge fruit pie person but this is absolutely DIVINE!!

Refreshing lemon water

2008-08-02T09:16:00.000-07:00

Refreshing lemon water
5 quarts water
2 cup sugar
1 t. lemon extract
1 t citric acid

Add all ingredients and mix well.

This is a really great drink that we had at my friends shower as well. Citric acid was hard to find, but if you ask your pharmacist, they usually have it behind the counter!

Wild rice & chicken salad

2008-08-01T20:11:00.000-07:00

Wild rice & chicken salad
2 (small) boxes of uncle Ben's wild rice (cook according to box directions)
4 green onions chopped
1 bell pepper (red & yellow add great color!)
6 oz snap peas
2 avocados
3-4 chicken breast or rotisserie chicken
1 cup pecans
juice of 1 lemon

Add all ingredients except for avocados & pecans (add those right before serving).

Dressing:
4 cloves garlic or 2-3 tsp of minced garlic
2 T dijon mustard
1 t. salt
1 t. pepper
1 T sugar (can do less)
2/3 c. riced vinegar
1/2 c olive oil

Pour on salad one hour before serving. Add pecans and avocados. Can serve on romaine lettuce of butter lettuce.

I made this salad for a friends baby shower and it was absolutely delicious! It's a must try!


recipe from: