Spinach Dip

SPINACH DIP

1 pkg Knorr veg soup mix
1 c mayo
8oz chopped water chestnuts
16oz sour cream
3 chopped green onions
1 box frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained)

Mix all ingredients together.

Serve with cubed French bread, vegetables, or Ritz crackers.

My favorite Oatmeal Cookie Recipe

Cream together:

1/2 c. butter

1 2 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

Add:

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 egg

Mix well.

Then add:

1 1/2 c. flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

Mix.

Then add:

1 cup oatmeal, uncooked

1 cup coconut

You can add chocolate chips or raisins if you'd like too.

Bake for 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees.

Marinated Flank Steak

This is a great Body for Life recipe. Super yummy flavor!

1/3 c. lite soy sauce

1 T. balsamic vinegar

1 T. olive oil

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 1/2 lb. flank steak

In a large ziploc bag, combine all ingredients except steak. Using a fork, pierce flank steak several times on both sides and place in Ziploc bag with marinade. Seal bag and refrigerate for a least an hour. ( I do it overnight.)

Place steak on broiler pan and broil 3 inches from heat source fro about 6 minutes on each side. Slice against grain into 1/8-inch slices.

Banana Muffins w/ a Crumble Topping

The same friend that gave me the recipe for Libby's blessing day casserole brought these to it. It was such a yummy day thanks to Betsy!(who won't post her fantastic recipes so I post them for her and get to claim them as my own:)
I honestly cannot get enough of these.

* 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
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1 tablespoon butter

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease 10 muffin cups, or line with muffin papers.
2. 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.
3. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Cut in 1 tablespoon butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. (I cheat and melt it because I lack patients) Sprinkle topping over muffins.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

Oreos

Does everyone already know this recipe? If not, it is a real crowd pleaser!

1 Package Devils Food Cake Mix
2 Eggs
1/2 C. Oil
1/4 C. Flour
Mix ingredients and roll into balls.
Bake at 350 for 12 minutes.
Let cool and match tops and bottoms.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
1/2 cup of butter (1 stick), room temperature
8 oz of Philly cream cheese (1 package), room temperature
2 - 3 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

My Mom always used to color them for the holidays. I thought it was about the coolest thing in the world. Why is food coloring so amazing to kids? I have no idea but I am one of them.

Sweet & Sour Meatballs

Sauce: Mix together in bowl.

1 cup Brown Sugar

1/2 cup vinegar

2 T. mustard or dash of mustard powder

1/2 c. bbq sauce

2 T. Worshershire sauce

Frozen meatballs- I just buy the Italian ones from Costco.

Put in crock pot for til it's heated through. ( A couple of hours)

Pasta Fagoli Soup

This is very healthy and it makes a lot of soup. I've also added sausage to spice it up a bit. As prepared below, each one cup serving is 290 calories, 4 grams of fat and 9 grams of fiber. Hooray!

8 ounces small pasta
2 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 pound ground turkey breast
1-2 teaspoons dried oregano
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
3 cups fat-free, reduced sodium chicken broth
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 (15 ounce) cans white kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside. Meanwhile, in large stockpot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté 3 minutes or until soft.

Add turkey and cook 5 minutes, until meat is browned, breaking up meat as it cooks. Add oregano and black pepper. Add broth, tomatoes and beans and bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 10 minutes.

Stir in cooked pasta and heat through. Ladle mixture into bowls and top with Parmesan cheese.

Lemon Cake

A contest! Hooray!!!!

If you love lemons, this is for you!

1 lemon cake mix

1 pkg lemon jello

4 eggs

3/4 cup water

3/4 cup vegetable oil

Mix ingredients. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. While baking mix 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar and 1 cup lemon juice together. Let sit. While the cake is still warm, poke holes around the top and pour the glaze over the top. You can top with whipped cream if you like, but it's yummy either way!

Chicken Piccata

This is by-far, me and Jason's favorite thing to eat!

Chicken Piccata

2	whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt, as needed
1/2	cup all purpose flour
1/4	cup grated Parmesan
2	tablespoons olive oil
3	tablespoons butter, divided
1/4	cup dry white wine
1/2	cup rich chicken stock
2	small, thin-skinned lemons, juiced
1/4	chopped parsley
2	tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Lightly salt both sides of chicken cutlets. Dredge cutlets in flour and cheese mixture, patting off excess. Heat a large sauté pan over med-high heat. Add oil and one tablespoon butter. When butter foams, add cutlets, in batches if necessary, to color and cook through both sides -- a couple of minutes. Remove chicken to plate and keep warm.
3. Add wine, broth, and lemon juice, scraping the bottom browned bits into the sauce, reduce to sauce consistency. Remove from heat. Add pinch of salt and parsley. Swirl in the two tablespoons butter and the capers.
4. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve immediately.

Frosted Sugar Cookies

I can't even tell you how many times I am asked for this recipe. We can't even buy them from the bakery anymore because these are so good. Enjoy!

SUGAR COOKIES:

1 c. butter creamed

2 c. sugar

Cream together.

3 eggs

Add and beat well.

1 c. sour cream

2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. lemon extract or Mexican vanilla

Then add and scrap sides of bowl occasionally.

5 1/2 - 6 cups flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

3 tsp. baking powder

Sift together and add to the mixture.

Chill in fridge for 60 min. or freezer for 30 min.

Then it's ready to roll out and cut. I like them very thick.

Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. I do closer to 8.

Easy Buttercream Frosting

1 cup (2 sticks) butter (room temperature)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1b. 10X powdered sugar
1-3 teaspoons milk, half and half or cream

• Using a mixer, cream softened butter and vanilla until smooth.
• Add sugar gradually, allowing butter and sugar to cream together before adding more.
• If you want your frosting a little creamier, add a teaspoon of milk at a time and beat on high until you get the right texture.
• 
  

Artichoke Heart Quiche

This is pretty much amazing. You won't be disappointed.

I'm adding it to our Christmas Morning breakfast.

It worked well with my French baby shower theme last summer too.

Cream Cheese Crust:

3 oz. cream cheese, chilled

1/2 c. butter, chilled
1 c. flour

Filling:

1/2 c. green onions and tops, chopped

2 TBS butter

1/2 c. diced ham

1 14-oz can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered

3 eggs

1 1/4 c. heavy cream

pinch nutmeg

1/8 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp salt

pinch cayenne pepper

1/2 c. grated Swiss or Cheddar cheese. (I put it in the mix not on the top)

(I also add some chopped up spinach)

Method:

Oven - 375 degrees.

Cut cream cheese and butter together with fork or pastry cutter, or processor.

Add flour, cut together and form a ball.

Roll out dough and fit into a 10-inch pie plate; flute edges.

In a medium-size skillet saute onions and ham in butter, then remove from skillet; set aside.

Beat eggs, cream and seasonings in a bowl. Stir in onions, ham, and artichokes and cheese.

Pour into the pie shell and sprinkle with cheese. (I put it on the last 15 min. of baking)

Bake for 35-40 minutes, until firm.

Essential Buttermilk Syrup

Incase you need the most delicious syrup to cover your pancakes, here it is. You could really eat a rubber tire with this stuff it's so good

1/2 c butter

1 c sugar

1/2 c buttermilk (1/2 c milk + 1 t vinegar)

1 T Karo syrup

1 t baking soda

1 t vanilla

In a LARGE pot, combine butter, sugar, buttermilk, and karo syrup and brink to a boil for 2-3 mins. Add baking soda and vanilla. Mixture will fizz to TWICE the size or more, so use a good sized pot! Set it aside to thicken while stirring occasionally. POUR over waffles, pancakes and French Toast to make them oh. so. much. better.

Truckstop Buttermilk Pancakes

Brandon grew up on Bisquick. I never had the stuff until we got married. Yuck! Over the course of our marriage I have tried MANY pancake recipes trying to ween Brandon off the yellow box.

This pancake recipe did the trick

2 c flour

1/4 c sugar

2 t baking pwd

1 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

2 c buttermilk (or 2 cups milk + 2 t vinegar)

4 T butter

2 whole eggs

1 t vanilla

1/4 c milk

Combine dry ingredients in large bowl.

Melt butter and seperate eggs. In a med bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Then mix in the butter, yolks, and vanilla with the whisk. Then stir in the buttermilk.

Stir the wet ingredients in the dry ingredients until just combined. Add milk as needed until batter reaches desired consistency.

Pour batter onto hot griddle. Flip when bubbles form on top.

Serves 6

Garlic Cheddar Chicken

Garlic Cheddar Chicken:
1/2 cup softened butter
2-3 Tbsp minced Garlic
2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
3/4 Cup Dry Breadcrumbs
1/2 Cup grated Cheddar Cheese
1/4 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
1/2 tsp Black Pepper
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I used the boneless skinless tenderloins)
1/2-2/3 Cup Cheddar Cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Use about 2 tbsp butter to spread all over the inside of a shallow baking dish. In a bowl, melt butter, then add minced garlic, garlic powder and seasoned salt then mix to combine. In a separate bowl, combine bread crumbs, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese and black pepper. Dip chicken in butter mixture then dredge in bread crumb mixture, repeat with each piece of chicken. Place chicken in a single layer in the bottom of the baking dish. Bake for 25 to 50 minutes (depending on the size of your chicken pieces). Sprinkle remaining cheddar cheese on top and cook for an additional 10 minutes.

*I served mine with polenta and asparagus but it would go well with rice or mashed potatoes.

zucchini casserole

This is soo good!  Everytime I make it people ask for the recipe.

6 C. Sliced Zucchini
1 Can crm chicken soup
1 1/2 C. Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/2 C. butter
1 C. Sour Cream
8 oz. Stove Top
1 C. Carrots, grated
1 Medium Onion
1 C. Mushrooms (optional)

Saute Onions, but don't brown.  Mix onions, sour cream, carrots, soup, and cheese.  Melt butter and mix with stove top. 

Layer Pan: Stuffing, mixture, zuke's, stuffing.  Bake @350 for 45-60 min.

Easy BBQ Beans

2 Large Cans Bush's Baked Beans
10 Strips precooked and cut up
2/3 Bottle BBQ Sauce (Hickory or brown sugar are best)
1C. Brown Sugar

Drain liquid from beans and remove bacon chunks.  Combine ingredients in crockpot. Cook on low at least 3 hours...the longer the better!

Cranberry Chicken

Easy and YUMMY!

1 16oz. can cranberry sauce
1 8oz. Bottle French Dresssing
1 Packet Lipton Onion Soup mix
6 Chicken breasts

Mix sauce, dressing, soup, pour over chicken.  Cook in crockpot on low 4-6 hours.  Serve with rice.

Parmesan Chicken

1/2C. Crushed Ritz Crackers
1/3 C. Shredded parm. Cheese
1 Tbls. Parsley Flakes
1/4 tsp. Garlic Salt
1/8 tsp. Pepper
4-6 Chicken Breasts

  Combine all ingredients but chicken. Melt 1/2-1 cube butter in cake pan. Roll chicken in butter then in crumbs. Put back in cake pan and bake @350 for 1 hour.

CoNtEsT

I am going to do a little contest to increase activity in our blog. It will run like a raffle.

1 recipe=1 raffle ticket

It will run all through the month of March. The more times you post, the more chances you have of winning this cute bag full of fun stuff. :the fun stuff is not yet decided, but I promise it won't disappoint:

If you live out of state, I will be happy to mail it to you if you are the winner. If you are not yet invited to be an author, let me know in the comments and I will get you invited before March 1st.

New Background

For those of you viewing from a reader, come on over and check out our new background. I am so in love with it, I wish it existed in a shirt.

Breakfast Cassorole

We served these after Libbys blessing. They were a big hit. I had to make 7 of them. They were easy to throw together the night before and very affordable for such a large group. These would work great for Christmas morning.

1lb. Cooked Breakfast Meat-I am usually a ham fan but I liked sausage best in this case
1 Package of Stuffing
6 Eggs
1 Cup Milk
1 Cup Cheese
:extra options:
onion
green onion
bell pepper
green chili
olives
tomatoes
salsa
In a large bowl beat the eggs, then mix in the remaining ingredients.
Spray a 9X13 pan with pam
Pour casserole mixture into the pan
Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until the eggs are set up.

Caramel Brownies

Easy Caramel Brownies

1 (18.25 ounce) package German chocolate cake mix with pudding
3/4 cup melted butter
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1 cup chopped pecans
13 ounces individually wrapped caramels, unwrapped
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degreees. Spray one 9x13 inch pan with non-stick coating .
2. Combine the cake mix (just the powder), butter and 1/3 cup evaporated milk. Mix well and pour 2/3 of the batter into pan.
3. Press pecans into batter and bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
4. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the caramel and 1/3 cup evaporated milk. Stir until melted and smooth; pour over cooled cake mix.
5. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top of caramel and top with spoonfuls of remaining cake mix. Bake for additional l5 to l8 minutes; cool and cut.

*I omitted the pecans and it still turned out great! I also found these bags of caramels at Walmart and they melted really quickly.

Pureed Pears

Has anyone ever made pureed pears? My kids eat that stuff like applesauce and I swear I'm keeping the gerber co. in business!

Better than sex cake

I hope the title of this cake is not too inappropriate, but it sure does taste great!

-1 (18.25 ounce) package devil's food cake mix
-1/2 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
-6 ounces caramel ice cream topping
-3 (1.4 ounce) bars chocolate covered toffee, chopped
-1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

Directions:

1. Bake cake according to package directions for a 9x13 inch pan; cool on wire rack for 5 minutes. Make slits across the top of the cake, making sure not to go through to the bottom.
2. In a saucepan over low heat, combine sweetened condensed milk and caramel topping, stirring until smooth and blended. Slowly pour the warm topping mixture over the top of the warm cake, letting it sink into the slits; then sprinkle the crushed chocolate toffee bars liberally across the entire cake while still warm. (Hint: I crush my candy bars into small chunks as opposed to crumbs - I like to have pieces I can chew on!)
3. Let cake cool completely, then top with whipped topping. Decorate the top of the cake with some more chocolate toffee bar chunks and swirls of caramel topping. Refrigerate and serve right from the pan!

Sour Cream Apple Pie

I have always been a classic apple pie person, until Scott had me try this recipe. Oh my, to die for. This is a birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any day I want it recipe in our house. Enjoy!

Filling:

2 c. grated apple ( granny smith)

1 c. sour cream

¾ white sugar

1 egg

2 T. flour

½ t.vanilla

Topping:

1 cube butter

1 cup flour

½ cup brown sugar

Beat together all filling ingredients except apples.

Stir in apples and pour into an unbaked pie crust.

Blend the topping ingredients: makes a crumbly mixture.

Sprinkle on top and bake for 15 minutes more at 400 degrees.

Then bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees.

Honey Lime Enchiladas

I have tried about 1000 different ways to make sweet pork recipes (coke, brown sugar, etc) and this is BY FAR my favorite and BY FAR the healthiest!

1 ½ lbs chicken or pork, cooked and shredded (I've tried both and prefer the pork)
1/3 c honey juice of 2 limes (or ¼ c)
1 Tbsp chili powder ½ tsp garlic powder
4oz can green chiles 20 oz green enchilada sauce
Equal parts mozzarella & cheddar cheeses
8-10 flour tortillas

Combined cooked and shredded meat with chiles, honey, lime juice, chili and garlic powder. Let marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Grease 9x13 pan and pour a little enchilada sauce to coat bottom of pan. Fill tortillas with meat and a little cheese. Roll up and place in pan. Pour remaining sauce over top and sprinkle with more cheese. Bake uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes.

*note: You could totally use the same sweet pork in salads, burritos, etc.

Taste of Christmas

When I think of Christmas, certain foods come to mind. My Moms candy has to be my favorite. Below is her fudge recipe that I look forward to eating myself sick with every year.

What does Christmas taste like to you??

Fudge

4 Cups Sugar
1 Can Evaporated Milk
3 Large, 7 oz.Hershey Bars
2 Cubes Butter
Nuts-optional

~Butter a 9X13 pan.
~Break up chocolate bars in a large bowl. Add butter and set aside.
~In a sauce pan, add Sugar and milk. Bring to a rolling boil.
~Turn to med-high and stir constantly for exactly 10 minutes.
~Add to the bowl of chocolate and butter. Mix with an electirc mixer of some sort until all are smooth and melted.
~Add nuts at this point if you wish.
~Pour into a buttered 9X13 pan.
~Let set up in the fridge.

Wassail

1 Gallon Apple Juice
1 Can of Frozen Orange Juice concentrate
4 Cups of Water
2/3 Cup Sugar
2 Cinnamon Sticks
12 Whole Cloves
10 Whole AllSpice
Put in a crock pot or on stove top and heat, stirring occasionally. I put a 1/4 of the recipe in a hot cocoa maker. That works good if you have one of those.

If you buy the spices at a regular store you will pay WAY too much. I found them in bulk for a great price at Winco. For example at the grocery store I found the a bottle of 10 cinnamon sticks for for $3.89. At Winco I got them for about $2.50lb. Worth the drive, I would say.

Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin Pie

2 pie crusts
3 Cups pumpkin puree
6 large eggs
1 1/2 Cups + 2 Tbsp. packed light brown sugar
2 Tbsp. Corn Starch
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
3 Cups evaporated milk
whipped cream for serving

-In a large bowl add pumpkin puree, brown sugar, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, ginger, vanilla, nutmeg, eggs, and evaporated milk; whisk until combined.
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees and add the pumpkin mix to the 2 pie shells. Bake on rimmed baking sheets for 35-40 minutes. Bake until all but centers are set.
-Let cool completely on a wire rack and serve with whipped cream.

* Makes 2 pies. Recipe from Martha Stewart

Whipped Cream

There's nothing better than homemade whipped cream!

Whipped Cream

1 Cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 Cup granulated sugar
1/2 Tbsp. Vanilla

-Beat on high in your mixer for about 10-15 minutes. Refrigerate the extra and serve in hot chocolate or with pie or just eat it as is!
*Be sure your bowl and whisk is very clean and preferably cold for best results.

Chicken Cacciatore

This is a recipe I found from Pioneer Woman. It looked so yummy I had to try it and...it is yummy!Chicken Cacciatore

salt
pepper
1 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
flour for coating chicken
4 cuts of chicken skin-on
1 onion
1 bell pepper
3 cloves garlic
mushrooms
1 can tomatoes
3/4 C. cooking wine
1/4 tsp. ground thyme
1/4 tsp. turmeric
parmesan cheese
parsley

She gives you a step-by-step tutorial here. Enjoy!