Bills Family Recipes

Cake Mix Brownies

2011-12-29T09:45:00.001-08:00

These are wonderful and easy to make. Which makes them super wonderful. :) I got the recipe from my neighbor (http://www.babesandkidsreview.com/2011/12/easiest-fudge-brownies/)

Ingredients
1 chocolate cake mix
1 small package instant pudding
2 c. milk
1 (12 ounce) package chocolate chips
1 tub chocolate frosting (optional)

Instructions
Mix cake mix, pudding and milk until blended.
Pour into a greased cookie sheet.
Sprinkle chocolate chips on top.
Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes
Let cool and spread frosting on top

Notes
Depending on your oven, sometimes these will only take 20 minutes. Check the brownies 20 minutes in

Crock Pot Hot Chocolate

2011-10-25T06:25:00.001-07:00

Slow Cooker Hot Chocolate

Recipe Type: Drink

Author: Tiff @ Babes and Kids

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 4 hours

Total time: 4 hours 15 mins

Serves: 8

Creamy hot cocoa for your slow cooker

Ingredients

1/2 cup dry baking cocoa
14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/8 tsp salt
7 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
marshmallows

Instructions

In slow cooker, combine dry cocoa, milk, and salt. Stir until smooth. Add water gradually, stirring until smooth.
Cover and cook on High 2 hours, or on Low 4 hours or until very hot.
Just before serving, stir in vanilla
Top each serving with marshmallows

I found this recipe here - http://www.babesandkidsreview.com/2011/10/slow-cooker-hot-chocolate/. Can't wait to try it!

I found this recipe here:

Cabbage Salsa

2011-05-22T19:35:00.000-07:00

This is a new favorite recipe at our house. It reminds me of something you'd see at Rubio's. It's great with tortilla chips or with taco's too!

1 head cabbage, chopped
1 white onion, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
2-3 tomatoes, chopped
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
1 can chopped jalepenos
1 tbsp. pepper
1 tpsp. salt
1 tbsp. garlic powder
juice one lime and one lemon

Combine all together and let sit.

2011-02-24T19:09:00.001-08:00

Is it just me, or does the tea cup look like it's a cup of pudding? Just sayin'....

2010-10-29T13:19:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
3 1/4 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. brown sugar
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup honey
*2-3 Tbsp. coconut oil, melted (or other oil or butter)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray an 8x8-inch square baking pan or an 8x11-inch bar pan with cooking spray or line with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine oats, spices and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together brown sugar, pumpkin, honey, coconut oil and vanilla until smooth. Pour over oats and stir well, until all of the oats are coated and moist. Stir in chocolate chips.

Evenly press granola into prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool about 10 minutes. Carefully flip pan over onto a cutting board, or lift parchment paper out of the pan. Cut into bars and separate them a little bit so they can cool completely.

You can easily double this recipe, especially since they don't last long! Just bake it in a 9x13 pan.

*The first time I made the granola bars, I didn't use any oil but I thought I would add it the second time to see if it would make the bars a little more moist and plyable. There was not much difference between the two. The second batch was more moist but the oil didn't make them more pliable. Either way they were great

*This is actually from a friend of mine, I haven't tried making them myself but tried them at her house and thought they were fabuloso!. So maybe you might want to try making them. :)

Tortilla Soup

2010-10-09T14:00:00.000-07:00

This is not a picture of my Tortilla Soup, but this is pretty much what it looks like. I rarely cook anything that doesn't have a picture in a cookbook, so here you are a picture...of someone else's Tortilla Soup

TORTILLA SOUP

1 Lg onion, chopped (for those who don't like onion a medium is great)

4-6 garlic cloves, minced

2 Tbsp dried cilantro

3 Tbsp vegetable oil (I think I usually use olive)

2 c. chopped cooked chicken (I have used canned chicken, but of course, cooked chicken is the best)

2 quarts chicken broth

1 (14ounce) can stewed tomatoes, do not drain and chopped

1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles (Rotel Original)

1 Tbsp ground cumin

1 bay leaf

1/2 tsp pepper

Saute first 3 ingredients in the vegetable oil (or olive oil) in a stock pot for 5 minutes. Add chicken and next 6 ingredients. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Discard bay leaf.

TOP WITH:

Tortilla chips: crumble them, buy the strips or bake some using 6 inch corn tortilla for about 5-8 minutes at 400 degrees

Mozzarella cheese.

Avocado

hot sauce

and whatever else you think might be good in tortilla soup. Sour cream, guac, beans. whatever. Enjoy.

Rustic Cabbage Soup

2010-09-13T12:28:00.000-07:00

I got a head of cabbage in my Bountiful Basket the other day and thought I'd try to make some soup. I seem to end up having soup for lunch quite often when the weather turns cooler (wouldn't you know it - it's 85 degrees right now!). Anyway. I came across this recipe and thought I'd share

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
a big pinch of salt
1/2 pound potatoes, skin on, cut 1/4-inch pieces
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
5 cups stock (see head notes)
1 1/2 cups white beans, precooked or canned (drained & rinsed well)
1/2 medium cabbage, cored and sliced into 1/4-inch ribbons

more good-quality extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Warm the olive oil in a large thick-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the salt and potatoes. Cover and cook until they are a bit tender and starting to brown a bit, about 5 minutes - it's o.k. to uncover to stir a couple times. Stir in the garlic and onion and cook for another minute or two. Add the stock and the beans and bring the pot to a simmer. Stir in the cabbage and cook for a couple more minutes, until the cabbage softens up a bit. Now adjust the seasoning - getting the seasoning right is important or your soup will taste flat and uninteresting. Taste and add more salt if needed, the amount of salt you will need to add will depend on how salty your stock is (varying widely between brands, homemade, etc)...

Serve drizzled with a bit of olive oil and a generous dusting of cheese.

WALKIN' TACOS

2010-07-29T08:43:00.000-07:00

1 lb. - ground beef or turkey
1 - 1/4 oz. pkg. taco seasoning mix
4 - 2 1/2 oz pkgs. corn chips or doritos
2 c.- lettuce shredded
1 c.- tomato chopped
1 c.- shredded cheddar cheese
1/3 c.- salsa
1/2 c.- sour cream

Cook ground meat in skillet over medium heat until browned--drain off fat. Add taco seasoning and prepare to package directions. Gently crush chips in the UNOPENED bag. Cut each bag open along one side edge. Spoon equal amount of meat mixture and remaining ingredients into each bag. Serve in the bag with a fork.
Best of all--no dishes to wash!!
FROM: Gooseberry Patch cookbook FB site.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

2010-07-15T19:13:00.000-07:00

2 cubes butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
1pkg. chocolate chips
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups flour
2 1/2 cups baby oatmeal (you know... the kind you feed babies)*

Cream butter and sugar, add other ingredients in order. Combine dry ingredients and add gradually.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. The trick is to take them out of the oven before they look done.
Makes about 4 dozen.

*You may also blend regular oats in the blender, but it's not as good.

...back by popular demand...

2010-07-08T22:01:00.001-07:00

Oatmeal Cookie Granola

8 cups oats
1/2 cup ground golden flax seed
1 cup sugar (or sucanut if you want it healthier)
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
8 TBS butter (or coconut oil if you want healthier stuff)
2/3 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp butter flavor (if you use coconut oil rather than butter)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine oats, flax, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Melt butter, honey and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat. Mix well once all is melted and pour over the dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly and coat well. Place on two large, greased cookie sheets and bake for 20 min or so, stirring once. When finished, let it cool and then add rasins or other dry fruit if you'd like. Place into an airtight container.

Can be used as cereal, parfaits, trail mix, topping for yogurt or ice cream etc...

Bekah - please post the Chocolate Chip cookie recipe!!
Dad - please post your Diabetic Chocolate Chip cookie recipe!!

EASY Chicken Curry

2010-06-21T14:11:00.000-07:00

1/4 cup butter

1 small onion chopped

2 carrots julienned

1 stalk celery, sliced

sprinkle with 1/3 cup flour

*Mix well saute for 2 more minutes

stir in: 3 cups chicken broth

cook until thicken, stir occasionally

mix in small bowl:

1 tsp curry powder

1/2 cup evaporated milk

2Tbsp mayonnaise

stir contents of bowl into skillet

Add:

3 cups cooked chicken

Heat to serving temperature, stirring occasionally. Serve immediately. Feeds 6

**To be honest I didn't follow this recipe a whole lot. I just did the "sauce part". I threw carrots and celery into a skillet and started to saute them until I knew this is what I wanted to make. Anyway. Just put whatever type of veggies in a pan, saute them, add the sauce and chicken, and eat with rice. WAY EASY, fast and REALLY GOOD! oh, we added cashews and baby corn when we added the chicken that was delicious too. **

Blondies

2010-05-01T16:19:00.000-07:00

1 1/2 sticks butter
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For you Food Network fans, this is supposedly a Bobby Flay recipe. :)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8″ baking dish. (Line with foil, wax or parchment paper if desired. Grease the lining too.)

Melt the butter in a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat; add both sugars and whisk until combined and sugar is melted, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.

Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.

Next, in a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and vanilla extract until combined. Slowly drizzle in the butter and sugar while whisking constantly. Then add the flour and whisk until just incorporated.

*Now, at this point you could fold in your favorite add-ins: chocolate chips, milk chocolate chunks, nuts, etc.

*To make Nutella Swirl Blondies: Pour the batter into the prepared dish, then drop spoonfuls of Nutella over the surface. Swirl the batter in the pan making “S” shapes with a butter knife.

*Other optional add-ins and drop-ins? You could swirl in peanut butter or caramel. Or you could make a batch of cookie dough and press chunks of cookie dough down into the batter. The options are limitless! :)

Bake for 24-27 minutes...

We made the Nutella version. Heaven on earth!!!!

Stuffed Meatloaf

2010-03-22T12:30:00.000-07:00

Katie went to Good Things Utah at the beginning of March. I decided to watch since my kiddos were sick and I was not able to attend with her...sorry again Katie, maybe we can go another time. Anyway, they did a cooking segment on Meatloaf. Here's the recipe and we liked it.

Favorite Meatloaf Recipe
Cream Cheese
Spinach
mushrooms

Make your favorite meatloaf recipe, it can be done with beef, ground turkey or ground chicken

Spread it onto a cookie sheet (LINED WITH TIN FOIL) like you would do a sheet cake or a big batch of brownies. Though for just a little family you may not get it to spread that big. make it about 1/2 inch thick and you should be good.

Spread softened cream cheese directly onto the meatloaf mixture, top with mushrooms and spinach.

Roll, using the tin foil as a guide, in to a spiral or a pinwheel, make sure your tinfoil is not rolled into it and reposition it on top of the loaf making sure the meat is covered. Bake 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Slice into pinwheel and eat.

* you can actually stuff it with whatever you want. On the show they did carmalized onions instead of mushrooms, but I don't eat onions like that so...mushrooms it was. ENJOY!

Creamy Vegetable Soup

2010-03-08T19:04:00.000-08:00

1 large turnip or 2 med turnips - peeled and cubed
3 med. potatoes - peeled and cubed
2 carrots - peeled and cut
2 celery sticks - cut
1 small onion - quartered
1 large can diced tomatoes (do not drain)
5 cups chicken broth

Put all ingredients into a large pot and boil til veggies are soft. DO NOT DRAIN. Blend in blender to desired consistency. Season to taste.

I tried this before with fresh tomatoes - it was ok, but the consistency was similar to mashed potatoes. I found that if I used a can with the juice, it helped thin it out a little.

Eat This, Not That Recipes

2010-03-03T19:21:00.000-08:00

I was watching "Good Morning America" the other morning and caught this segment. It's from the guy who writes the "Eat This, Not That" books. It's supposed to be healthy versions of the foods you would normally eat. I haven't tried these recipes, but I thought I'd copy them and share. Here's the link: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Recipes/video/rocco-dispirito-low-calorie-recipes-9986290

Macaroni & Cheese

Nonstick cooking spray

4 ounces whole-wheat elbow macaroni

½ cup Onion-Garlic Puree

½ teaspoon dry mustard

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1 cup shredded 50% reduced- fat cheddar, such as Cabot

¹/³ cup nonfat Greek yogurt

Salt

¼ cup whole-wheat panko breadcrumbs, such as Ian's All-Natural

¼ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Spray an 8×8- inch baking dish with cooking spray, and set it aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook according to the package directions, 7 to 9 minutes; drain.

While the pasta is cooking, bring the Onion- Garlic Puree, mustard, and cayenne to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often. Whisk in the cheddar until it has melted. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the yogurt.

In a medium bowl, toss the cooked macaroni with the cheese sauce to coat thoroughly. Season with salt to taste. Pour the macaroni into the prepared baking dish, and sprinkle the panko over the top. Top with the Parmigiano- Reggiano.

Bake until the cheese has melted and the macaroni is hot throughout, about 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

NOW YOU CAN EAT THIS!

Before After

Fat 32g 6.5g

Calories 670 227

Protein: 16g | Carbohydrates: 29g | Cholesterol: 20mg

Fiber: 3g| Sodium: 487mg

Low-Cal Brownies

Nonstick cooking spray

1½ cups canned black beans, rinsed and drained

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon espresso powder (is there something else we could use??!??)

¾ cup egg substitute

2 tablespoons low-calorie sugar-free chocolate syrup, such as Walden Farms

2 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream, such as Breakstone's

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

24 packets (84 g) Truvia or 8 tablespoons granulated Splenda

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray an 8×8-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray.

Combine the beans, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and egg substitute in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the mixture is smooth, about 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl halfway through.

Add the chocolate syrup, sour cream, butter, Truvia, and vanilla. Process until all of the ingredients are combined, about 1 minute.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish, and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake for 28 to 30 minutes, turning the dish halfway through the baking time. A toothpick inserted in the center will come out with soft batter clinging to it.

Let the brownies cool completely in the baking dish on a wire rack. Then cut into 12 squares and serve. Refrigerate any leftovers.

NOW YOU CAN EAT THIS!

Before After

Fat 70g 1.6g

Calories 1500 53

Protein: 4g | Carbohydrates: 8g | Cholesterol: 4mg

Fiber: 3g| Sodium: 94mg

If anyone tries these recipes, make a comment. I am curious about the brownies.

White Chicken Chili

2010-01-13T15:12:00.000-08:00

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
1/2 of a medium onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 15oz. cans Great Northern Beans, drained
1 7 oz. can diced green chilies
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream

In a large pot saute chicken, onion, and garlic powder in vegetable oil. Cook until chicken is no longer pink. Add beans, chilies, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in sour cream and whipping cream. Serve immediately. Top with cheddar cheese, green onion, and sour cream. Also yummy with tortilla chips!

Simple Simon Cheesecake Pie

2010-01-05T09:11:00.000-08:00

1 8oz. pkg. Cream Cheese
1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1/3 cup Lemon Juice
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 Graham Cracker Crust

Cream the Cream Cheese and Milk together, add Lemon Juice and Vanilla. Mix thoroughly. Then pour into crust, refrigerate for 2 hours at least. Serve with favorite topping. :+)

Toppings:
Cherry Pie filling
Apple Pie filling
Fresh Strawberries or Strawberry Ice Cream topping
Drizzle Carmel Ice Cream topping on top.
Any fresh fruit or berries....

Holiday Cheer Potatoes...

2009-12-19T07:48:00.000-08:00

or some of us call it Potato Casserole.....or Funeral Potatoes. Or I should actually tell you that it's the Potato Casserole recipe from the Lion House. Bon Apetite! (as Julia Childs would say).

5 large potatoes
3 Tablespoons butter (melted)
1 can cream of chicken
1 cup sour cream
1 cup milk
3 Tablespoons finely chopped green onion
3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar
3/4 cup corn flakes (crushed)
2 Tablespoons butter (melted)
3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Wash and boil potatoes until tender. Drain and peel; shred coarsely. Place in a 2 or 3 quart casserole dish. Pour melted butter over potatoes. Mix together soup, sour cream, milk, green onions, and cheese. Pour evenly over potatoes. Do not mix. Toss crumbs with melted butter and Parmesan cheese; sprinkle on top of casserole. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Makes 8-10 servings.

I didn't "shred" the potatoes in my last batch, I just crushed them with a fork a bit and they still turned out well. I also peeled them BEFORE cooking them, which made it really easy.

Buttermilk Cornbread

2009-11-07T14:21:00.000-08:00

One more...

Cornbread

1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 375. Grease an 8 in square pan.

2. Melt butter in large skillet. Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Quickly add eggs and beat until well blended. Combine buttermilk with baking soda and stir into mixture in pan. Stir in cornmeal, flour, and salt until well blended and few lumps remain. Pour batter into the prepared pan.

3. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until tootpick comes out clean.

I made chili twice last month and this was the best cornbread recipe I came across. It is really, really good. It just might be the best cornbread ever!

Apple Crisp

2009-11-07T14:15:00.000-08:00

I usually do not care for fruit type desserts, but this one is delicious. And perfect for this time of year.

Apple Crisp

10 cups apples, peeled, cored and sliced (i prefer granny smith)
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 cup water

Topping
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1 cup flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Place the sliced apples in a 9x13" pan. Mix the sugar, 1 Tbsp. flour, and cinnamon together. Sprinkle over the apples. Pour water evenly over all.

3. Combine the topping ingredients together. Crumble evenly over the apple mixture.

4. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes.

This is excellent by itself or with a scoop of vanilla icecream. Yum!

Fish Tacos

2009-11-07T14:05:00.000-08:00

Katie asked for recipes a while back so here you go...

Fish Tacos

White Sauce
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup mayo
1 lime, juiced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dill weed
1/2 tsp. groud cayenne pepper

1/2 medium cabbage, finely shredded
1-2 limes, cut into wedges
1 lb. any white fish or fish sticks
1 pkg. corn tortillas

I have made this with both fish sataued in a frying pan and fish sticks, both taste just fine. It's just whatever you prefer or is on sale at the time.

To make the white sauce, mix toether the yogurt and mayo. Gradually stir in fresh lime juice until consistency is slightly runny. Season with jalapeno, oregano, cumin, dill, and cayenne. (this can get a bit hot, you may want to cut back on the jalapeno and cayenne for kiddos)

I usually heat the tortillas in the microwave or in a skillet on the stove top. Depending on how much time I have.

To serve, place fish in a tortilla, top with shredded cabbage, and white sauce. I like to squeeze a little extra lime juice on top. It is also really good with pico de gallo.

I've made this a couple of times and it's really good. I love fish tacos!

Artichoke & Garlic Pasta

2009-11-07T13:59:00.001-08:00

I recently came across this recipe and it is really easy and tastes great.

4 ounces seashell pasta (use whatever shape you want)
2 Tbs. Olive Oil
2 Tbs. Butter
2 Cloves Garlic
1 sprig fresh basil, chopped (i just used dry)
1 8oz. can artichoke hearts, drained

1. Cook your pasta.
2. Heat the olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, basil, and artichoke hearts and cook for about 5-7 minutes. Make sure its all heated through. It's really good if the artichokes get a little bit browned. Toss with the pasta and serve.

Pot Roast Sandwiches

2009-10-28T15:19:00.001-07:00

I saw this on tv the other day. I haven't tried it, but it's on the menu for next week.

1 4-5 lb beef brisket (or your favorite type of pot roast), all or most fat removed
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup (can be low sodium or lower fat)
1 package dry Onion Soup mix
2 tsp granulate Beef Bouillon or 2 Beef Bouillon cubes
Freshly ground black pepper

-Trim visible fat from pot roast and place in bottom of slow cooker. Season generously with pepper.
-In a small bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients. Heat soup mixture in the microwave for about 30 seconds just until warm and bouillon starts to melt. Whisk again and spoon on top of pot roast.
-Cover and cook on low 7 - 8 hours.
remove pot roast from slow cooker when cooking time is complete and place in a large mixing bowl. Using two forks, shred the roast apart. When completely shredded, add quite a bit of the cooking gravy and mix together. The mixture should be nice and moist.
-Place a nice healthy portion of pot roast on top of good bread or rolls and eat.

Favorite Fall Recipes?

2009-10-07T14:27:00.001-07:00

Does anyone have some favorite fall recipes? Soups? Breads? Pumpkin recipes? PLEASE share them!!

I dare you...

2009-08-06T15:54:00.000-07:00

...to post something on this blog. Anything. Who's up to the challenge??! :)

Toffee Bars

2009-07-07T11:50:00.000-07:00

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup chocolate chips

Cream together butter, sugar, egg and vanilla. Combine flour and salt and add to butter mixture. Mix together.

Press into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake for 25-30 min at 350.

Sprinkle the top of baked bars with chocolate chips. Wait about 5 minutes then spread over the top.

Turkey Loco Burgers w/ Guacamole

2009-06-28T10:15:00.000-07:00

1 lb ground turkey
1 tsp ground cumin
Chopped fresh oregano - handful of leaves (or a tsp of Italian Seasoning)
1/4 onion, chopped
Juice of 1 lime
A few shakes of hot pepper sauce (Red Hot or Tabasco)
Salt and pepper to taste

Chunky Guacamole
2 avocados, peeled and pitted
1/4 meduim spanish onion, grated
1 jalepeno or serrano pepper, minced
Salt to taste
1 small tomato, diced

Combine turkey with next 6 ingredients. Form into 4 patties and grill over medium-high for 6 minutes on each side.

While the burgers are cooking, mash the avocados with onion, pepper, salt and tomato -- leave it chunky.

Place each burger on a bun and pile it high with guac and a piece of romaine (if you want).

This is a Rachael Ray recipe - I kinda improvised. I just used ground red pepper in place of the Tabasco and jalepeno pepper. And, I didn't have fresh oregano, so I used Italian Seasoning. I also went a little less on the onion. It just seemed like a lot to me.

recipes that are not mine

2009-06-19T11:45:00.000-07:00

I just got onto one of my friends blog and noticed a little widget (who made up that word?) on the sidebar that said picky palate. I added it to my blog because the few recipes I looked at looked delicious. So here I am sharing it with my fam.

The link is http://www.picky-palate.com or like I mentioned I added the widget to my sidebar on my blog as well.

Grilling Recipes?

2009-05-31T18:19:00.000-07:00

Hey, we just got a grill and I need to get some grilling recipes. Marinades, tips, whatever. Please share!!

Decadent Chocolate Dessert Pizza

2009-05-06T20:52:00.001-07:00

The girl that hosted our April book club made this and it was wonderful!!! I had to get the recipe and share it!

18 oz. package refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough
1/3 cup milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
14 strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 large banana, sliced
1/4 cup sliced almonds, chopped

1 - Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Shape cookie dough into a ball and place in center of large cookie sheet. Using a lightly floured roller, roll dough to a 12 inch circle, about 1/4 inch thick. Bake 12-15 min. or until edges are set (cookie will be soft. Do not over bake.) Remove from oven; cool 10 min. Carefully loosen cookie from pan; cool completely on pan.

2 - Place chocolate morsels in microwave bowl, uncovered on high for 30-60 seconds, stirring after each 20 second interval. Add cream cheese; whisk until well blended. Spread chocolate mixture over cookie to within 1/2 inch of edge.

3 - Reserve one strawberry for garnish. Hull remaining strawberries and slice. Slice banana. Arrange strawberries around the edge of pizza; arrange banana slices in center of pizza. Chop almonds and sprinkle over banana slice. Create a strawberry fan with the reserved strawberry. Garnish pizza with the strawberry fan. Cut pizza into wedges using a pizza cutter; serve with a spatula. Yields: 16 servings

Tortilla Pie with Chicken

2009-04-27T08:21:00.000-07:00

Prep: 10 minutes
Total: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

Serves 4

12 corn tortillas (6-inch), toasted
2 cups cooked, shredded dark-meat chicken
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chiles
1 1/2 cups green or red salsa
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (6 ounces)

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In an 8-inch square baking dish, layer 4 tortillas, 1 cup chicken, cup chiles, 1/2 cup salsa, 1/3 cup sour cream, and 1/2 cup cheese; repeat once. Top with remaining tortillas, salsa, sour cream, and cheese. Bake until top is browned and bubbling, 30 to 40 minutes.

modifications and/or additions
I have made this 2 times now and both times it turned out GREAT, if I do say so myself. The chicken I cooked with "mexican food" type spices, oregano, cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper. For the size of pan you use, you really only need 9 tortillas, 3 for each layer (breaking one of them in half). You don't HAVE to have green chiles, I made it last night without it and it was fine. I have used both cheddar and mozzarella cheese and it turned out great either way.
ADDING Guacamole makes it even better, but only on top AFTER it is cooked.

My guac recipe:

2 ripe avocado's
lime juice
lemon juice
salt
pepper
onion powder
garlic power
a dash or two of hot sauce (I like Chalula).

add ingredients a little at a time for you tastbud liking.

wheat muffins

2009-04-04T18:58:00.001-07:00

We grew-up eating these muffins for breakfasts/snacks, etc. It's another way to use that wheat from your food storage. I'm pretty sure that they're not that healthy with the cup of brown sugar and 1/2 cup butter, but hey, not everything in this life can be healthy! They're really yummy right out of the oven, buttered with raspberry jam (homemade freezer jam preferably). But they're also really good cooled, eaten plain. My kids will eat them this way for an after school snack. So give them a try, see what you think.

Wheat Muffins

1/2 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp. soda

1/4 tsp. vanilla
1 cup milk

Cream butter and sugar, add eggs and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients and add alternately with the milk.

Homemade Girl Scout Samoa Bars

2009-04-04T09:21:00.000-07:00

Homemade Girl Scout Cookies: Samoas Bars
In Recipes, Cookies - Bar Cookies and Brownies, Chocolate
I love the look of the original Samoas Girl Scout Cookies, but making them from scratch can be a little bit time consuming. This is largely because the dough must be rolled out, cut out and then each of the cookies has to be handled individually for topping. The results are well worth it, in my opinion, but we don’t always have time to make a labor-intensive recipe - no matter how bad a craving for Girl Scout cookies gets.
Bar cookies are the perfect solution.
This is basically a shortcut recipe that still delivers all the great samoas flavor without some of the more tedious parts of cooking making. These bars have a buttery shortbread base that is topped with the caramel-coconut samoas topping and chocolate. It is made in three stages. First, the shortbread is baked and cooled. Then, the coconut topping is applied. Put the coconut on while it is hot, so it will be fairly easy to push it around. It’s a thick mixture, but a spatula is all you need to press it into an even layer. The bars should be cut after the topping has been applied, and even though the shortbread has a melt-in-your mouth quality to it, the topping holds the bars together well. I recommend using a large knife or a pizza cutter to slice up the bars easily and neatly; small knives don’t work quite as well.
The final step is to dip these in chocolate once the topping has set. Since samoas have chocolate on the bottom and a chocolate drizzle on top, I kept that same look for my bar cookies. If you want something a bit simpler, just dip half that bars in chocolate - or skip the dipping in favor of a drizzle. The important thing is that all the flavors get into the batch. And that you have some friends to share these with, because they can be quite addictive.
Homemade Samoas BarsCookie Base:1/2 cup sugar3/4 cup butter, softened1 large egg1/2 tsp vanilla extract2 cups all purpose flour1/4 tsp salt
First, make the crust.Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan, or line with parchment paper.In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Working at a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly, like wet sand. The dough does not need to come together. Pour crumbly dough into prepapred pan and press into an even layer.Bake for 20-25 minutes, until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping.
Topping3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)12-oz good-quality chewy caramels1/4 tsp salt3 tbsp milk10 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)
Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.
Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.Put dollops of the topping all over the shortbread base. Using the spatula, spread topping into an even layer. Let topping set until cooled.When cooled, cut into 30 bars with a large knife or a pizza cutter (it’s easy to get it through the topping).Once bars are cut, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each bar into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment or wax paper. Transfer all remaining chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle bars with chocolate to finish.Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.
Makes 30 bar cookies.
Note: You can simply drizzle chocolate on top of the bars before slicing them up if you’re looking for yet an easier way to finish these off. You won’t need quite as much chocolate as noted above, and you won’t quite get the Samoas look, but the results will still be tasty.
Article printed from Baking Bites: http://bakingbites.com
URL to article: http://bakingbites.com/2009/02/homemade-girl-scout-cookies-samoas-bars/

CRANBERRY CHICKEN

2009-03-31T07:57:00.001-07:00

3-4 chicken breasts
2 T. soy sauce
2 T. butter
2 T. lemon juice
2 tsp. oregano
2 cloves garlic
1 can whole cranberry sauce.

Put all ingredients in crock pot. If chicken is frozen, on high for about an hour then on low until chicken is tender. If thawed, on low til chicken is tender.

Serve over rice.

sorry, no picture, just know that it is easy and good!!!!!

Homemade Tamales?

2009-03-19T21:32:00.001-07:00

Have any of you tried to make homemade tamales? I have this idea that I want to try it, but I've also heard it's a lot of work. I'm not sure how much effort I want to put into it. Any feedback on this?

Bread

2009-02-24T20:23:00.001-08:00

This is the bread recipe I've been using lately. It is pretty good and I haven't had a bad batch yet.

Wheat Bread

1 3/4 cup cold water (some ice)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup oil
1 Tbsp salt
2 1/2 cup wheat flour
1/2 cup gluten flour

Mix these ingredients together. Meanwhile, prepare the yeast mixture and allow it to rise.

1/2 cup warm water (on the hot side)
1 1/2 Tbsp yeast
1/2 tsp. sugar

Add risen yeast. Mix. Then add:

2 - 2 1/2 cup white bread flour

Mix until the dough starts to clean the sides of the bowl. Knead about 10-15 minutes. Let rise until it doubles (about 1 1/2 - 2 hours) and punch down. Put into 2-3 loaf pans and let rise again to the top of the pan. Brush with 1 beaten egg. Bake at 375 uncovered for 5 minutes. Then cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from pan immediately and allow to cool for 4-5 hours.

I usually make 2 loaves with this recipe in my kitchenaid. The girl that I got the recipe from doubles it and makes 5 loaves in her bosch. We don't eat a ton of bread so one batch lasts about 3-4 weeks for us. It freezes really well too.

Doughnuts

2009-02-24T20:13:00.000-08:00

These are super good. Give them a try...

Doughnuts

1 cup water
2 tsp yeast
1/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 tsp salt
pinch of mace (optional - you can't really taste it anyway)
1/4 cup dry milk
1 egg
2-3 cups bread flour (i always end up using 3 cups)

1. Dissolve yeast in water. In mixer add shortening, salt, sugar, mace, dry milk, and egg.
2. Add yeast water and the flour on top of water.
3. Use hook attachment and mix on low for 3 minutes until it is completely combined.
4. On medium speed mix for about 8 minutes or until a window pane is achieved.
5. Place in a greased bowl for about an hour or until double.
6. Roll out to 1 inch thickness and cut with round cookie cutter and cut out hole.
7. Lay cut doughnuts on parchment squares and cover with plastic wrap and let rise until double.
8. In 350 degree oil drop doughnuts in one at a time. Cook about 30 seconds to a minute on each side or until light golden brown.
9. Place on paper towels or drip rack. Roll in cinnamon sugar while still hot or let cool and frost.

These take a bit of time but are well worth it for an occasional treat!

Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls

2009-02-06T20:49:00.001-08:00

1/2 C warm water
2 pkgs. dry yeast
2 T sugar
3 1/2 oz. pkg instant vanilla pudding
1/2 C butter, melted
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
6 C flour
butter, softened (for spreading)
2 C brown sugar
4 tsp. cinnamon

Combine water, yeast, and sugar. Stir until dissolved, set aside. In a large bowl, prepare pudding mix according to the package directions. Add butter, eggs and salt, mix well. Add yeast mixture, blending well. Gradually add flour. Knead until smooth. Place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled. Punch down and let rise again. Roll out on a large floured board to 34 x21" rectangle. Spread surface with soft butter. Mix together the 2 C brown sugar annd 4 tsp cinnamon and spread over buttered dough. Roll up tightly and cut into 2" slices. Place on greased cookie sheet 2" apart. Lightly press each roll down, cover and let rise until doubled. Bake at 350* for 20 minutes or until they start to brown. (DO NOT OVERBAKE)

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1/2 C butter
1 tsp. vanilla
3 C powdered sugar
1 T milk
Preparation: Mix all ingredients until smooth. Frost over warm rolls.

**I haven't made these yet, but I am hoping to this weekend. I read a discrepancy on the flour. This little old lady made these on "Good Things Utah" and said 3 cups of flour, but the recipe they posted said 6 cups of flour. Just so you know...

6 can Chicken Tortilla Soup

2009-01-26T11:42:00.000-08:00

1 can chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained
1 can Rotel tomatoes with cilantro and lime
1 can chicken, drained
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp onion powder

Mix it all together in a large pot until warm. Serve with crushed tortilla chips and cheese.

I made this last night and it was pretty good. The actual recipe calls for 2 cans of chicken broth and no cream of chicken, but from all the reviews on said it was better this way. It does make it a gross gray color, though. The Rotel makes it spicy, so just be aware. I used a rotisserie chicken, but canned chicken probably works too.

Bean Recipes

2009-01-21T14:54:00.000-08:00

Tara has a surplus of beans. We did too at one point, so here are some recipes we used a lot to use them. The chili recipe makes enough for 3 adults. I made that recipe up, so I am the first to admit it sounds odd.

Taco Soup
1 lb ground meat
3 15 oz cans of beans (kidney, black, garbanzo, pinto - you can mix it up)
1 pkg taco seasoning
1/4 chopped onion
1 cup corn
1 lg can tomato juice
1 can stewed tomatoes

In a large pot, brown meat. Drain if needed. Add the remaining ingredients until warm. Serve with cheese and tortilla chips.

Chili
1/2 lb ground meat
1/2 pkg taco seasoning
1 tsp minced garlic
1 can tomato soup
1 can water
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp lime juice
2 cans beans (I like kidney and black, but whatever suites your fancy)
salt and pepper to taste

Brown meat - add taco seasoning while browning meat. Drain if needed. Stir in tomato soup and can of water. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer on low for 20-30 min.

Meatball Subs

2008-12-31T11:07:00.001-08:00

Robert used to think I was really wierd for getting a meatball sub when we'd go to Subway. Then he tried one and now he understands they are really quite good! We have them every now and then at home.

1 lb ground turkey (or beef)
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
dash of salt
1 egg
1/4 cup shredded cheese

1 can spaghetti sauce

Mix in a bowl until blended. Shape into medium sized meatballs and cook in a greased 9 x 13 dish. Cover with spaghetti sauce (use as much or as little as you like). Bake at 400 degrees for 45 min.

Serve on hoagie rolls (I usually get mine off the day old rack - they are much cheaper that way!). The meatballs are usually too big, so we cut them in half - 2 meatballs are enough for a sub.

The kids prefer theirs just plain - not on a hoagie.

Mom's Creamy Fudge ( 5 STARS)

2008-12-09T09:19:00.000-08:00

Heat over medium heat:
4 1/2 c. sugar
1 can evaporated milk
2 cubes butter
Bring to a boil, cook for 10 minutes. Stirring occasionally. Meanwhile in a Large bowl empty:
18 ozs. semi-sweet chocolate chips ( I use one pkg. semi-sweet and 1/2 pkg. milk chocolate) and one 13 oz. jar marshmellow creme.
Pour the milk mixture over the chocolate chips and marshmellow creme, add 2 teaspoons Vanilla. Mix by hand until well blended. Add 1/2 cup chopped nuts if desired. Pour into a 9X13 pan and let cool. Then enjoy !!! (I pour out 1/2 without nuts and then add the nuts and pour it out in the other half of the pan.)

Hot Fudge Sauce (5 STARS)

2008-12-09T09:05:00.000-08:00

1 6 oz. pkg. milk chocolate chips
1 stick (1/2) margarine or butter
1 1/3 cups evaporated milk
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Melt chocolate chips and butter over low heat in a medium sauce pan. Add milk and sugar; bring to a boil. Cook about eight minutes, stirring constantly. Add vanilla, stir and serve warm. Keeps well in the fridge. Just reheat in microwave, but watch so it doesn't burn.
I got this from Annalee Church. She doubles the recipe and uses one pkg. milk chocolate chips and one pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Chicken (Turkey) Soup

2008-12-01T13:18:00.001-08:00

A friend of ours passed this recipe along. We made it last night with our left-over turkey and it was really good. Hope you like it.

Chicken Soup

1 Tbs Olive Oil
2 Tbs Butter
4-5 Red Potatoes, cubed with skin on
1 Onion, diced
2 Ribs of Celery, finely chopped
2 Carrots, cut into small pieces (I just used half a bag of baby carrots cut in half)
2 Bay Leaves
1 tsp Chicken Bouillon (I only had chicken base, it worked fine)
1 Tbs Flour
1 49.5 oz can Chicken Broth (Swanson is best)
4 Chicken Breasts, shredded (Cook chicken in half of the chicken broth and save for your soup)
1 5 oz can Evaporated Milk

1. Heat Large Soup pot over medium heat. Add Olive Oil and Butter. Let the butter melt into oil.

2. Add onions, potatoes, celery, and carrots as you chop them up.

3. Add Bay Leaves and chicken bouillon and cook for about 5 minutes until veggies are softened up.

4. Add flour and cook for another minute.

5. Add chicken broth, including broth used to cook chicken. Put lid on pot and raise heat to bring to a boil.

6. Add chicken and let cook for 15-20 minutes.

7. Once the veggies are soft enough add evaporated milk. Let simmer for 3-5 minutes.

2008-11-25T10:27:00.000-08:00

I am actually posting something. As you all know Clark and I LOVE Martha Stewart recipes (not that she comes up with them or anything). We have a subscription to Everyday Foods and we own one of her cookbooks and we really enjoy the outcome of most of those recipes. Anyway, this is one that we have made a tradition, it's rich and delicious, one slice goes a VERY long way. AND it's pretty darn easy.

Prep: 30 minutes
Total: 2 hours 30 minutes, plus chilling
Ingredients

* 1 package (9 ounces) chocolate wafer cookies
* 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
* 4 bars (8 ounces each) cream cheese, room temperature
* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 4 large eggs
* 1 cup sour cream
* 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted
* Chocolate Ganache, for topping

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Assemble a 9-inch springform pan with the raised side of the bottom facing down.

2. In a food processor, pulse cookies until finely ground. Add butter, and pulse to moisten. Transfer to prepared pan, and press crumbs firmly and evenly into the bottom. Place pan on a rimmed baking sheet; bake 10 minutes, and set aside.

3. Wipe out bowl and blade of food processor. Add cream cheese, sugar, and salt; blend until smooth. With motor running, add eggs, then sour cream, and finally chocolate; blend filling until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

4. Pour filling onto crust, and bake just until set, 1 hour. Turn oven off, and let cheesecake sit 1 hour in oven, without opening (this helps prevent cracking).

5. Run a thin knife around the edge of the pan (this helps prevent cracking, too); leave in pan, and cool completely on wire rack. Cover loosely and refrigerate, at least 6 hours or up to overnight.

6. Prepare Chocolate Ganache. Unmold cheesecake. Spread ganache in center of cheesecake; let set before serving.

This is another we really like. It's more for the springtime though.

Ingredients

Serves 6

Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 pound asparagus, ends trimmed and cut into 2-inch lengths
1 pound sugar snap peas, strings removed
1 pound bow-tie pasta (farfalle)
4 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 ripe avocado, halved, pitted, peeled, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint, parsley, or basil
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan or pecorino cheese, plus more for serving, if desired

Directions

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook asparagus until bright green, about 2 minutes. Add snap peas; cook 30 seconds. With a slotted spoon or a small sieve, scoop out vegetables; transfer to a bowl.
Return water to a boil; add pasta and cook until al dente, according to package instructions. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta water; set pasta aside in colander.
In pasta pot, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add asparagus, snap peas, and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing, until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter, cooked pasta, avocado, herbs, cheese, and reserved pasta water. Toss to combine; season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with additional cheese, if desired.

Chicken Stroganoff

2008-11-24T16:48:00.000-08:00

This is really yummy! I guess if you're not a mushroom fan you could just leave those out, but it won't be as good!

4 bacon strips

1 lb. chicken, cut up

1 med. onion

2 cloves garlic

1 pkg fresh mushrooms (the original recipe calls for 2 cans of mushrooms drained, but I detest canned mushrooms.)

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp paprika

pepper to taste

1 cup sour cream (don't worry Darwin, you can't even tell it's in there - it just gives it a little zing)

2 T flour

In a skillet cook bacon until crisp. Remove to paper towels and drain some of the drippings, reserving 2 T, set bacon aside. When cool enough to touch, break up into small pieces. Cook the chicken, onion, garlic, and mushrooms until chicken is no longer pink. Add the broth, salt paprika, pepper and bacon back in. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Combine flour and sour cream until smooth; add to the skillet. Bring to boil, cook and stir for 1 minute or until thickened. Serve over egg noodles or rice, whichever is your family's preference.

2008-11-19T09:04:00.001-08:00

Does anyone have a recipe for Pumpkin Bread???

My Sun-dried Tomato Chicken

2008-11-19T08:39:00.000-08:00

2-3 Chicken breasts cooked and cut into small cubes
1 Can petite diced tomatoes or fresh tomatoes
1/3 Cup julienne carrots
2 to 3 Tbs. Sun-Dried tomato pesto
1/2 package Penni pasta cooked. (Or enough for your family)

Boil pasta, drain and set aside. (I keep mine in warm water) Cook the chicken in large frying pan, when cooked transfer to plate to cool then cut up. Empty can of tomatoes into pan, add pesto and mix. You can add more pesto to your taste. Add carrots and cook til carrots are tender. Add cut up chicken and mix in. Serve over the penni noodles and top with grated parmesan cheese.

I made this up one night, I didn't have Italian tomatoes. I did have the herbs but I had bought this pesto stuff and decided to give it a try. Darwin loved it so it's a keeper.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

2008-11-18T08:27:00.000-08:00

How do you feel about Sweet and Sour Chicken? This is a good recipe, and really pretty easy... you just have to plan enough time to let it cook for an hour before you want to eat.

SAUCE:
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup red wine vinegar (or regular vinegar)
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 Tbls. ketchup
1 tsp salt
1 tsp accent (I leave this out if I don't have it)

Stir ingredients together and set aside.

CHICKEN:
3 chicken breasts
1 cup cornstarch or flour
1 tsp. garlic salt
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir sauce ingredients together and set aside. Combine cornstarch or flour and garlic salt. Dip chicken into cornstarch mixture then into egg, and back into cornstarch. Brown in hot frying pan, in a small amount of oil.

Place chicken in a dish, pour the sauce over it, and cover and bake for 1 hour. Serve with rice and veggies.

The Best Sweet Potatoes Ever

2008-11-16T14:53:00.001-08:00

Here you go Mom...

Sweet Potato Casserole

3 cups cooked sweet potatoes
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Topping
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup melted butter

Mash the sweet potatoes. Add sugar, eggs, butter, salt, milk, and vanilla. Mix and spoon into a shallow 1 1/2 quart casserole dish. Prepare topping and sprinkle over the potatoes. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. (a little longer if there is a turkey in the oven)

I usually make this and put it in a 9x13 dish. If you choose to go this route you may want to double your topping just to make sure it all gets covered.

Chicken Taco Salad

2008-10-31T12:10:00.000-07:00

This one is A LOT easier and probably much more healthy...

2-4 chicken breasts
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 cup water or chicken broth
Toss all in a crockpot for 3-4 hours. Shred chicken with a fork. We like to put this on tortilla chips with cheese, lettuce, tomato, sour cream, olives...(whatever mexi-type stuff you like).

You could also use this for chicken enchiladas, which are super good, but a bit more work...

Chicken Chardon

2008-10-31T12:04:00.000-07:00

I don't know how healthy or easy this is but I really like it!

2-4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1 egg
salt and pepper to taste
2 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
1 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound sliced fresh mushrooms
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (i use the green bottle of lemon juice)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley (i've used dried and it's fine)

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
In a shallow bowl, beat the egg with salt, pepper and 1 teaspoon garlic powder. In a separate dish, mix bread crumbs with 1 teaspoon of garlic powder and Parmesan cheese. Set aside.
Mix together the melted butter and lemon juice. Pour about 2/3 of the butter mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Tilt pan to coat the bottom. Spread mushrooms in an even layer in the bottom of the dish. Dip each chicken breast into the egg mixture, then into the bread crumb mixture. Place on top of the mushrooms. Drizzle remaining butter over the chicken, and sprinkle with parsley.
Bake uncovered for 45 minutes in the preheated oven, until chicken is golden brown and juices run clear.

Request

2008-10-26T17:38:00.001-07:00

Hey, does anyone have some good EASY and relatively healthy chicken recipes? If so, please share!!!

Lion House Pumpkin Bread

2008-10-10T18:12:00.000-07:00

I am on a quest to find the perfect pumpkin bread recipe. I liked the one I posted a week or so ago, but then I found this one. I'm not sure which one I like better.

1 1/3 cups vegetable oil or applesauce
5 eggs
1 16-oz can pumpkin
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
2 3 oz. pkg vanilla pudding
1 cup chopped nuts
1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 2 large 8x4 in loaf pans. Set aside. Mix oil, eggs and pumpkin in a mixing bowl and beat well. In another bowl, sift together flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda. Add in to pumpkin mixture and blend well. Add in pudding and nuts and chocolate chips. Bake for 1 hour. Makes 2 loaves.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

2008-09-28T14:27:00.000-07:00

3 cups white sugar
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
1 cup vegetable oil (or applesauce for less fat)
2/3 cup water
4 eggs
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour three 1 pound size coffee cans, or three 9x5 inch loaf pans.

-In a large bowl, combine sugar, pumpkin, oil, water, and eggs. Beat until smooth. Blend in flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Fold in chocolate chips and nuts. Fill cans 1/2 to 3/4 full.

-Bake for 1 hour, or until an inserted knife comes out clean. Cool on wire racks before removing from cans or pans.

I'm not really sure what this would be like to bake in coffee cans. I wonder if you can use food storage cans? :) I read that you can also substitute a grated zucchini for one of the eggs. Who would have thought!

This is not a recipe...do not try to eat...

2008-09-20T10:21:00.001-07:00

Hey family... I thought I'd show you what I've been up to this month. I didn't want to put it on my blog though since they will be gifts for women in our ward who read our blog sometimes... Our Relief Society Presidency is making Bitty Booties for all the ladies having babies. Here are the two pair that I made:

These were kind of fun to make. They're made out of felt. If you want to give them a try you can find the pattern here, http://www.heatherbaileydesign.com/Booties.html.

...And since there are all these ladies having babies there has been an abundance of baby showers. So I decided to try to make some flannel blankets. I think they turned out ok. I am sewingly challenge so this was a big feat for me. Is that how you spell feat? or is it fete? no, I'm pretty sure it's feat. I think fete is a party and feet are things you walk on. Anyway, they were all fun to make even though it took me a while. i just got some more ribbon from Laura today so back to making bows!

We Love Tamale Pie!

2008-08-10T17:04:00.000-07:00

Lincoln gave this an "A". So, I thought I'd share. You have to sing the title to the tune of "I love rock and roll". It makes it more fun that way.

Tamale Pie - Crock Pot

1 lb. ground beef
2 cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (28 oz.) can enchilada sauce
1(6.5 oz.) pouch of golden corn muffin and bread mix
1/3 c. milk
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1 egg
1/2 c. grated cheddar cheese
sour cream (optional)

-In a large skillet, brown the ground beef, season with salt and pepper. Put the browned, ground beef in a crock pot along with the kidney beans and enchilada sauce, stir together.
-In a small bowl combine the muffin mix, milk, butter, egg & cheese. Stir until moistened. Spoon over the beef mixture in the crock pot.
-Cover and cook on low setting for 5 to 6 hours or until toothpick inserted in center of corn bread comes out clean. Top individual serving with sour cream.

Oatmeal Cookie Granola

2008-07-10T16:14:00.000-07:00

I recently got this recipe and I really like it. I thought I'd share:

Oatmeal Cookie Granola

8 cups oats
1/2 cup ground golden flax seed
1 cup sugar (or sucanut if you want it really healthy)
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
8 TBS butter (or coconut oil if you want healthier stuff)
2/3 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp butter flavor (if you use coconut oil rather than butter)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine oats, flax, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Melt butter, honey and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat. Mix well once all is melted and pour over the dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly and coat well. Place on two large, greased cookie sheets and bake for 20 min or so, stirring once. When finished, let it cool and then add rasins or other dry fruit if you'd like. Place into an airtight container.

Can be used as cereal, trail mix, topping for yogurt or ice cream etc...

Banana Nut Bread

2008-05-30T17:03:00.000-07:00

I made this one when Tori and Katie were out here in May. Katie wanted the recipe...so here it is...

1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 medium bananas, sliced or mashed (your preference)

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
In a large bowl, stir together the melted butter and sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla, mix well. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt, stir into the butter mixture until smooth. Finally, fold in the sour cream, walnuts and bananas. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool loaf in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

butterscotch cream cheese brownies

2008-05-30T06:38:00.000-07:00

We just tried these and they're yummy. The only thing I would change is to put them in a 9x13" pan instead of the cookie sheet - they turn out pretty flat, but either way they're good.

**from The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook

Cream Cheese Filling:

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup sugar

1 large egg, at room temperature

2 Tbls flour

In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add egg and beat well. Add flour and combine. Set aside.

Bars:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

2 cups butterscotch chips (1 pkg)

2 cups packed brown sugar

4 large eggs, at room temp.

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 12"x18" jelly roll pan.

In a medium saucepan, melt butterscotch chips and butter over low heat, stirring occasionally until smooth. Remove from heat and beat in brown sugar. Allow to cool for 5 minutes.

Add eggs, one at a time, to butterscotch/butter mixture. Add vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat until well combined. Stir in walnuts. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Drop the cream cheese filling by teaspoonfuls over the batter. With a small knife, swirl into the batter. Bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out with moist crumbs attached. Cool to room temp. before cutting into bars.

Makes 24 3-inch bars.

Cheesecake Supreme

2008-05-20T08:20:00.001-07:00

Cheescake Supreme (this is Bekah's)

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (I just did one pkg.)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
5 pkg (8 oz each) cream cheese
1 3/4 cups sugar
3 Tbls. flour
grated rind of 1 lemon
3 tsp vanilla extract
5 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup heavy cream

Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter. Butter a 10-inch spring form pan 2 1/4 inches deep and press crumb mixture onto bottom and sides of pan. Beat cheese until fluffy. Mix sugar and flour; gradually blend into cheese. Add grated rind and vanilla. Add eggs and egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each. Stir in cream. Turn into crust. Bake at 500 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 300 degrees and bake 1 hour longer (bake until the center is just about set). Remove from oven and place away from drafts until cooled. Refrigerate until cold, then remove sides of pan and put cake on serving plate. Makes 12 servings.

Salsa

2008-05-20T08:20:00.000-07:00

Salsa
1 gallon tomatoes (about 10 lbs) - Roma's work best
3 jalapeno peppers 7 peppers (we use red, yellow, and green)
3 cups chopped onion (white, red or yellow - take your pick)
3 TBSP salt
1 1/3 TBSP garlic salt
1 TBSP sugar
1 cup white vinegar

Boil tomatoes until skins crack. Put into a sink full of cold water. Peel skins off. Chop all ingredients (you can use a food processor to chop or do it by hand). Put in a big stock pot and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer for 3-5 hours until salsa is at desired consistency (the more time it simmers, the more liquid-y it will be). That's all there is to it. Good stuff! This will make about 12 pint-size jars.

Bottling: During the last hour your salsa simmers, run your jars, lids and rings for lids through the dishwasher with the heat-dry cycle on. The cycle should end just as the salsa is ready to be bottled. Fill the bottles almost full (leave about 2 in. from top), then immediately put on the lid and ring. Screw the ring/cap as tight as possible. Let it sit for a few hours and it should seal.

Bills Family Recipes

Cake Mix Brownies

Crock Pot Hot Chocolate

Cabbage Salsa

Tortilla Soup

Rustic Cabbage Soup

WALKIN' TACOS

Chocolate Chip Cookies

...back by popular demand...

EASY Chicken Curry

Blondies

Stuffed Meatloaf

Creamy Vegetable Soup

Eat This, Not That Recipes

White Chicken Chili

~~Simple Simon Cheesecake Pie~~

Holiday Cheer Potatoes...

Buttermilk Cornbread

Apple Crisp

Fish Tacos

Artichoke & Garlic Pasta

Pot Roast Sandwiches

Favorite Fall Recipes?

I dare you...

Toffee Bars

Turkey Loco Burgers w/ Guacamole

recipes that are not mine

Grilling Recipes?

Decadent Chocolate Dessert Pizza

Tortilla Pie with Chicken

wheat muffins

~~Homemade Girl Scout Samoa Bars~~

CRANBERRY CHICKEN

Homemade Tamales?

Bread

Doughnuts

Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls

6 can Chicken Tortilla Soup

Bean Recipes

Meatball Subs

Mom's Creamy Fudge ( 5 STARS)

Hot Fudge Sauce (5 STARS)

Chicken (Turkey) Soup

Ingredients

Directions

Chicken Stroganoff

My Sun-dried Tomato Chicken

Sweet and Sour Chicken

The Best Sweet Potatoes Ever

Chicken Taco Salad

Chicken Chardon

Request

Lion House Pumpkin Bread

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

This is not a recipe...do not try to eat...

We Love Tamale Pie!

Oatmeal Cookie Granola

Banana Nut Bread

butterscotch cream cheese brownies

Cheesecake Supreme

Salsa

Simple Simon Cheesecake Pie

Homemade Girl Scout Samoa Bars