Orpple

O.k, so this isn't a very good example of an orpple. It's supposed to be round. Like it's suppsed to fit all together.

Here is the link that can show you how to make this...although I'm sure you're smart enough to figure it out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGyhcwINE20

My kids thought these were a fun treat to have in their lunches.

Left Over Rolls

Leftover Rolls

Sandwich meat with cheese, mayo & mustard

(or PB & J)

First of all I can't believe we had left over rolls! We devour them!

My kids absolutely LOVED these rolls. They were so excited when I made them these mini sandwiches on rolls in their lunches. Gotta try them.

Chicken And Wild Rice Soup

6 oz. box Uncle Ben's Wild Rice Mixture (original recipe kind), Already cooked

1 Tbls. vegetable oil

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, chopped

8 oz. sliced fresh mushrooms (we didn't use these)

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 (14 oz) cans chicken broth or 3 3/4 cups

1/2 tsp. dried tarragon, crushed

1/4 tsp. dried thyme, crushed

1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

1 can evaporated milk

2 Tbls. cornstarch

Heat oil in pan over med.-high heat. Add chicken, mushrooms, onion and garlic. cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5-8 minutes, until chicken is done. Add cooked wild rice, broth, tarragon, thyme, and pepper; bring to a simmer. Combine small amount of evaporated milk and cornstarch in small bowl; stir until smooth. Add to saucepan with remaining evaporated milk. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 to 5 minutes, or until soup is thickened. Makes 6 servings. Enjoy!

The kids were not big fans, but mike and I enjoyed it. First time we have ever had it, but I thought it was pretty good!

Thelma's Best Pancakes

3 c. flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbls. sugar
3 c. buttermilk, (or regular milk plus 3 Tbls. vinegar)
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3 Tbls. vegetable oil, bacon grease, or butter melted

Mix together quickly just to combine. DON'T OVER MIX. It will make them tough. The amount of milk needed will vary due to humidity, flour dryness, etc. Adjust milk after mixing. Thinner pancakes cook faster and to the center. Thicker pancakes must be cooked slower (on a lower heat) for a longer time. Bake in a lightly greased, thick bottomed, frying pan on MEDIUM temperature until the bubble in the center of the pancake pops. Then turn. DON'T smash with the turner. bake until cooked through. Serve with butter and syrup, any flavor of jam and cream (or evaporated milk) or applesauce with cinnamon or for supper with tuna gravy. Many fresh or frozen fruits such as strawberries, raspberries, or peaches can be mixed with sugar to taste and served over pancakes with whipped cream-like shortcake.
"I started making pancakes for my family on Saturday mornings when I was 5 years old. My mother was worried my father insistent. (My mother had not been taught to cook while she was growing up and he didn't want that for me.) I have cooking ever since."
-Thelma guymon

My mother in law is an amazing cook. Everything in the kitchen she touches turns to gold! I love the creative toppings she uses for pancakes.

We LOVE these pancakes. I could eat pancakes everyday of my life!

Easy Morning Parfait

Vanilla Yogurt


Fresh of frozen blueberries


Frozen sweetened strawberries or fresh strawberries
(or you can use jam and make it a little runny)





Layer yogurt on the bottom. Next add strawberry mixture. Then layer more yogurt. Add blueberries. More yogurt, then last but not least more strawberry mixture. You can top it all off with a little crunchy granola. Enjoy!

We like to eat these for breakfast. The kids really enjoyed these.

You can also use other flavors of yogurt and fruit, try your own concoction!

Angelines Whole Wheat Rolls *Very Good!

"Yummy Wheat Rolls
2 packages active dry yeast
1 3/4 Cup warm water
1/2 Cup Sugar plus 1 Tbls.
1 tsp. Salt
1/4 Cup Butter, melted and cooled
1 Egg, beaten
2 1/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
2 1/2 Cup White Flour
1/4 C. Butter, melted

Dissolve yeast in warm water with the 1 Tbls sugar, about 10 minutes. Mix sugar, salt, 1/4 c. butter, egg and whole wheat flour into the yeast. Stir in White flour 1/2 c. at a time. Turn dough onto well floured surface. Kneed for about 8 minutes**, lightly oil a bowl, place dough in bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth, let rise til doubled 1-2 hours. Punch down, cover let rise again, 1 hour. Grease 2 15*10 pans with margarine. Squeeze dough through thumb and finger into 24 balls, place 12 rolls into each pan. Brush tops with melted butter, let rise 1 hour our until doubled.Preheat Oven to 400*, bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and brush tops with butter. Yummy. **While doing this with a Bosch mixer, I start yeast in bowl, add all ingredients, and let kneed on speed 2-3 for 8 minutes, adding about 1/2 cup more flour. Dough will be somewhat sticky, but they come out light and fluffy." -Taken from Angelines blog

My friend Angeline from Kenai is a wonderful cook. She was always so kind to invite us for a wonderful thanksgiving feast! I am going to miss that! I hope she will post more recipes!

The Guymon family is a sucker for breads. We would rather have bread then dessert. These are the best rolls. They stayed soft for quite a while! We will be adding this to our list of favorties!

Moms Chicken Rolls

8 oz. cream cheese

1 bunch green onions

about 4 cups cooked chicken

2 cans (8 oz) crescent rolls

1 stick melted butter

1 box chicken stove top stuffing, grounded fine (in a blender works well)

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 soup can milk

3/4 cup sour cream

Blend cream cheese, cooked chicken, and cream cheese in kitchen aid. Set aside. Roll out crescent dough. On each triangle (picture above) place about 1-1 1/2 heaping Tbls. chicken mixture. Roll in up, making sure everything stays tucked inside. Finish up remaining rolls. Dip each roll in butter, and then roll in finely grounded stuffing mixture. Put chicken rolls on cookie sheet, or jelly roll pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

For the gravy mixture add cream of chicken soup, can of milk, and sour cream in a saucepan. Stir until well heated. Serve over the chicken rolls. (Excess gravy is great on mashed potatoes). Enjoy!

This makes A LOT of chicken rolls. if this is for a small family, cut the recipe in half. These also freeze well if you do make a lot!

This was/is one of my very favorite dishes. When my mom would ask what I wanted for my birthday dinner, it was always chicken rolls. Now days my kids always ask for "those chicken roll thingys".

Poppy Seed Dressing

Stir until smooth:
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tsp. dry mustard
2 tsp. salt


Add to blender:
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
Above dry mixture
3 Tbls. Red Onion
2 cups salad oil (We use canola oil)
3 Tbls. poppy seeds

Mix well to blend. Enjoy!

We LOVE using this dressing on a variety of salads. But I mostly love it on the fruity salads!

*This makes A LOT of dressing. If it is for a small family I would half the recipe.

Strawberry Poppy Seed Salad

1 pkg. bagged spinach (can use fresh)
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 1/2 cups fresh sliced strawberries
1/4 red onion sliced
1/2 cup slivered almonds
3 Tbls. sugar
(mushrooms optional)

Cook almonds in sugar over low heat to caramelize. Mix lettuce, spinach, onion, and cheese together. Spread bacon, strawberries, and almonds on top. Serve with Poppy Seed Dressing. (Look for my poppy seed dressing recipe post)

Quick Blueberry Pancakes

O.K., so I know this cheating because it's using a mix... But we love to eat these!

Blueberry pancake mix (we use krustez mix)

(pre-mixed according to directions)

Sweetened Sliced Strawberries, unthawed (if you have the luxury of getting fresh strawberries..by all means, use them! Sweetened by a little sugar of course!)

Sweetened Whip Cream

Make pancake mix according to directions. Warm up sliced strawberries. Whip the cream (with a little vanilla and sugar to taste). Add them all together and enjoy...we do!

Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 c. butter
3/4 c. powder sugar
2 Tbls. brown sugar
1 Tbls. vanilla
3/4 c. mini chocolate chips
3/4 c. pecans chopped,(optional)
Graham cracker sticks, chocolate graham crackers

Mix butter and cream cheese with a mixer, beat in sugar and vanilla. Add chocolate chips and chill for 2 hours. Roll into a ball and chill again. (If you do want to roll it in the pecans, now's the time!). Serve with graham cracker sticks. Enjoy!

Hunter was in charge of "fun Friday" snack. He did a fantastic job! He read and followed the recipe all by himself, no help. In school they have learned all about fractions, he said it was easy to bake now that he knows his fractions (Hallelujah)! ...He thought it would be fun to make it look like a flower, so he named it "The Flower dessert". Great job Hunt!

Vegetable Pizza

2 (8 0z) pkg. refrigerated crescent rolls

1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese, softened

1/2 c. mayonnaise

1 pkg. dry ranch style dressing mix

1/2 c. shredded cheese

1/2 c. shredded carrots

1/4 c. green onion, chopped

1/2 c. chopped green pepper

1/2 c. tomatoes

1/2 c. fresh broccoli, chopped

1/2 c. fresh cauliflower, chopped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 9 x 13 " pan with pam. Layer one crescent roll dough on the bottom of the pan. Add the other crust on top and pinch the two layers together. Bake the crust for 12 minutes. Once this is finished cooking, remove the crust from the oven and let it cool 15 minutes without removing it from the baking sheet.

In mixer (kitchen aid in my case) add cream cheese, mayonnaise, and dry ranch dressing. Spread the mixture over the cooled crust. Arrange cheese, carrots, green onion, broccoli, cauliflower, green pepper, and tomato over the cream cheese layer. Chill for 1 hour, slice and serve. Enjoy!

I cannot stress enough that I am NOT a food photographer. If people relied on that alone, no one would try this recipe!

My kids LOVED this dish. Mind you, my kids are a little weird and LOVE their vegetables! (Thank goodness)

Also, you can add more/less veges then posted in the recipe, this recipe shows what we used

Midway Zupse (Swiss Bread)

This is the best bread recipe in the world! I have NEVER messed up this recipe! I like that you can skip the dissolving yeast in water step. Mike would rather have this bread then any dessert!

1/2 c. sugar

1 Tbls. salt

6 Tbls. powdered milk

1 1/2 Tbls. instant yeast

3 c. bread flour

2 beaten eggs

3 c. hot tap water

1/2 c. crisco shortening (melted)

4 c. bread flour, approximately

In a large mixing bowl (or kitchen aid) combine sugar, salt, powdered milk, yeast, & 3 cups bread flour. Mix, so dry ingredients are blended. Add wet ingredients (I like to add the eggs first and mix the dry mixture so when I add the hot water, or melted crisco it won't make scramble the eggs then add water, & crisco). Mix until the dough pulls away from the sides of bowl. Add the last flour 1 cup at a time. You may need less or more flour. It should be a soft dough. Let rise 45 minutes. Punch down. Divide into 3 equal loaves. Then divide each loaf into 3 parts. Roll into 3 ropes just longer then your pan. Braid dough. Tuck ends in and place into greased bread pan. Makes 3 loaves. Let rise for 1/2 hour. Brush with beaten egg (we skip this step, but it does make a beautiful shiny bread. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown, 35-40 minutes. Put hot bread on cooling racks. We like to brush on butter over the tops of bread. it seems to soften the crust once it's cooled. Enjoy!

Marshmallow Fondant

This recipe made enough to cover 3 9" round cakes plus extra for molding shapes!

16 oz. mini-marshmallows

2-5 Tbls. water

2 lbs. powdered sugar

1/2-1 cup crisco (shortening)



Pre-bake the cake, let cool to room temp. Frost cake with favorite frosting. Let sit.
Melt marshmallows and 2 Tbls. of water in microwave (or dbl. boiler). Put the bowl in the microwave for 30 seconds, open microwave and stir, back in microwave for 30 seconds more, open microwave and stir again, and continue doing this until melted. It usually takes about
2 1/2 minutes total.
I added the melted marshmallow mixture to my kitchen aid. (if you want to add coloring to this mixture, now is the time).Then add 3/4 powdered sugar mixture, and 1/2 cup crisco. Mix on low. Add the rest of the powdered sugar. I had to keep adding crisco a tsp. at a time and/or water a tsp. at a time until I got the desired consistency. I took the mixture out of the kitchen aid and kneaded by hand until I got the right texture to work with (usually this step takes about 8 min, of kneading by hand...it's a good work out!). I tested it out by adding a glob between wax paper and rolling with a rolling pin. If I liked the texture I didn't add anything. if I didn't like the texture I added either water or crisco. You want the texture to be soft and workable. If it starts to crack or tare it is too dry. Roll out between wax paper, or roll out on counter top with cornstarch (so it doesn't stick). Place on cake. Trip excess fondant. Tuck fondant under cake. Roll fondant into desired shapes.

When I heard homemade fondant I was scared! But actually doing it in my kitchen aid, it was simple. I could even use the word...FUN! My kids had fun rolling the pieces into shapes. Just have fun with it!

If these Instructions aren't good enough, please follow the directions from this website
http://whatscookingamerica.net/PegW/Fondant.htm

*It is best to the it sit dbl. wrapped overnight, but it's fine if you use it right away

*Make sure if the fondant is sitting out, that it is covered with plastic wrap.

*This type of fondant will hold well in the refrigerator for weeks.

Erika's Fruit Smoothie

1 cup. Orange Juice (We like the minute maid pulp brand, and we make it a little on the strong side) (fresh squeezed oranges also taste delicious!)

1/2 cup frozen blueberries

1/2 banana

1 cup orange sherbet

1 ccup frozen strawberries

1/2 cup pineapple chunks

1/4 cup pineapple juice

1 cup ice

Put Ingredients in blender and blend on high! Enjoy!

We LOVE to make these, especially for breakfast. I crave Jamba Juice a lot, so this is how I get my fix!

Dalton's Broccoli Cheese Soup

2 chicken breasts, cooked and cut up
2 cups. broccoli
1/2 cup chopped onion
milk
1 cup whipping cream
salt & pepper
sprinkle of garlic powder
1 cube butter
2/3 cup flour
1/3 cup cheese whiz

Place cooked chicken in pan. Add broccoli and onion. Cover with water. Cook 5-10 minutes until broccoli is tender. Drain water. Cover with milk. Add whipping cream, salt & pepper to taste and garlic.
In separate pan melt butter. Stir in flour. Cook for 1 minute. Slowly add to soup, stirring constantly. Turn down heat and add cheese whiz. (Do not boil after has been added).

Sweet & Sour Chicken

3 or 4 chicken breasts
1 Tbls. oil (or pam)
1 green pepper cut into 1/4" strips
1 can tidbit pineapple drained (reserve juice for sauce)
hot cooked rice

Cut up and brown chicken. Add green peppers and heat until green pepper wilts but does not loose it's color. Add pineapple and sauce (below). Serve over hot rice.

Sauce:
2 Tbls. cornstarch
6 Tbls. sugar
3 Tbls. vinegar
2 Tbls. soy sauce
Pineapple juice with wated added to make 1 1/2 cups.

Mix cornstarch with sugar. Add pineapple juice, vinegar, and soy sauce. Boil together until thickened. Pour into meat and vegetables.

Mango Chicken Salad

1 bag spring/spinach salad mix (50% Spring, 50% spinach)

1 lb. pre-cooked grilled chicken breasts (we buy the frozen grilled chicken from sams)

1 Ripe Mango

1 Red pepper

1 Cucumber

Red onion (If desired)

Add salad in serving bowl. Cut and chop Mango (skin and de-core), Red pepper, and cucumber. Add chicken on top.

Dressing

½ can canned coconut milk

2 Tbls. Sugar

Juice of 1 Lime

1 tbls. Mayonnaise

1 tbls. Corn Syrup

Mix together in blender.

Once again, another restaurant in Heber City I enjoyed eating at is a place called Genulies (which is no longer there). I got this refreshing salad. I have been craving it ever since. This is not the exact recipe. I just got it as close as I could. The dressing is my own recipe. At first it tastes a little different…but after a little bit it's pretty good. I just don't know a coconut/lime dressing recipe. So good luck!

Erika’s Eclair Cake AKA BUTT CAKE

Crust:

1 c. Water

1 stick butter

Bring to a slight boil.

Add above mixture to kitchen aid (or can mix by hand)

Add I c. flour

Add 4 eggs (Mix in one egg at a time.)

Spray jelly roll pan with pam, spread crust mixture across pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Add below mixture to a mixer, and mix on high:

8 oz. cool whip

2 small packages vanilla pudding

2 c. milk

2 c. cream

8 oz. softened cream cheese

Add above mixture atop the crust.

Add whip cream or cool whip on top. Refrigerate, the longer the better. Add sliced almonds of desired. Drizzle chocolate syrup over top.

We actually call this butt cake. I'll give you the shortened version. We were going to a fellow troopers house for a BBQ. I had made this dessert to bring. I had set it on hunter's seat in the van until I could get everything situated. I went in the house to grab one more dish. The next thing I know, Hunter comes inside and said " I think I did something bad…I just sat on the cake" How did he not know it was there? I dunno. His bum had made a perect bum shape in the cake. So I tried to smooth it over and thought, "His pants were just cleaned..maybe they won't notice". So we brought the cake to the BBQ. The trooper stated "This is a cool cake. It looks like it has a butt print in it." We all just started busting up. So now we call in "BUTT CAKE". This is one of our favorite desserts! I am known for this one.

I actually had two different "Éclair cake" recipes, and I somewhat combined the both of them and came up with this recipe!

Swiss Cheese Chicken

8 Chicken Breasts (skinned)

8 Slices Swiss or Provolone Cheese

1 can cream of chicken soup

½ c. water

2 c. stove top stuffing (dry)

1/3 c. butter (melted)

Arrange chicken in shallow 9 x 13" baking pan. Place 1 slice of cheese over each breasts. Spoon soup mixed with water over chicken. Sprinkle dry stuffing over top. Drizzle with butter. Bake uncovered 1 hour at 350 degrees. Can be served with rice.

Dad’s Chicken Cordon Bleu

6 chicken breasts (boneless and skinless) (flattened W/ a mallet)

6 thins slices of ham

6 slices of swiss cheese

1-1 ½ pints sour cream

2 cans cream of chicken soup

Corn Flake Crumbs

Flattened chicken is the bottom layer. Next add slice of ham. Next add chunk (cut into rectangular pieces.. like the same size and thickness of a package of 25 cent Juicy fruit..I know bad example, but I don't know how else to explain it!) of cheese onto the ham. Roll the layers jelly roll style. Fasten with toothpicks. Dip each roll into milk, dip into cornflake crumbs and brown in hot oil. Place rolls into shallow baking dish (9 x 13"). Combine sour cream and soup, stir until smooth. Pour over chicken. Bake uncovered 350 degrees for about 1 hour 15 minutes. Serve with rice.

My Dad makes this for my mom every mothers day. This is one of my Absolute favorite meals. My husband has kept this tradition in our family…yeah!

Grandma Merle Briggs Fresh Vegetable Dip

2 c. Sour Cream

2 c. mayonnaise

2 Tbls. Grated onion

2 Tbls. Parsley flakes

2 tsp. dill weed

2 tsp. beau monde seasoning (made by spice Island, found in the spice section)

Mix and let stand to blend. Serve with fresh vegetables.

I absolutely LOVE my Grandma's dip! I will eat ANY vegetables as long as I can dip them in Grandma's Dip!

Texas Sheet Cake

1/2 c. margarine
4 Tbls. cocoa
1/2 c. shortening
1 c. water
2 c. flour
2 c. sugar

Melt and bring to boil margarine, cocoa, shortening and water. Sift flour and sugar together. Pour hot mixture over dry mixture. then add:

1/2 c. buttermilk
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

Pour into greased, floured cake sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. 10 minutes before cake is done bring to boil in same pan as before:

1/2 c. butter or margarine
4 Tbls. cocoa
6 Tbls. cream or canned milk

Pour over a box (I think that is about 1 lb.) of powdered sugar and beat. Add 1 cup. chopped nuts (we like to use walnuts) and a pinch of salt. Put the frosting on the cake while it is still hot.

Mom's Carmel Corn

My mom makes the best caramel corn!

2 cubes butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup karo syrup (corn syrup)
Pinch of salt
Pinch of baking soda

Pre-pop the popcorn. (Don't know how much to tell you to make..quite a bit?)
Bring to boil: butter, brown sugar, karo syrup and salt. Boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add a pinch of baking soda, stir well. Pour over popped corn and mix until all corn is covered. Spread on tray or cookie sheet.

We enjoy making moms caramel corn for an afterschool snack, or as an autumn time treat!

Poppy Seed Bread

3 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 Tbls. poppy seeds
2 c. sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups oil

Topping:
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1/4 cup. orange juice

Bake at 350 degrees in two 5 x 8 greased loaf pans, or three greased smaller pans for 40-60 minutes. Remove from oven, put topping on and serve.

Also good as muffins, bake for 15-20 minutes

We love making this for breakfast. It doesn't last long! We also like the bread without the topping.

This recipe can be halfed!

Best Snickerdoodle Recipe EVER!

1 c. butter , (2 sticks) softened
1 c. sugar
2/3 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

Topping
4 Tbls. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon

In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugars on high. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth. In another bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking soda and cream of tartar. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix well. Let the dough rest for 30-60 minutes in the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. In a small bowl combine the sugar with the cinnamon for the topping. Take about 2 1/2 tbls. of the dough and roll it into a ball. Roll this dough in the cinnamon/sugar mixture and press it onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Repeat for the remaining cookies. Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes. Cookies may seem undercooked, but believe me they won't be. It will just be a softer cookie! Let the cookies cool on a cooling rack. Enjoy!

This is our favorite snickerdoodle recipe! Bet you can't just eat one!

Cream Cheese Salsa Dip

1 (8oz) pkg. cream cheese
1 (8 oz) salsa
Mix cream cheese and salsa until well blended. Refrigerate. Serve with crackers (we like wheat thins), chips, vegetables, or bread. Enjoy!

Corn On The Cob

Husk the corn, and remove any "hairs". Place in boiling water. Boil on med. high for 15-20 min.

Butter heavily, and add salt & pepper! Enjoy!

Home Style Ribs

I know this picture looks gross, but it really was good, I promise!

3 lbs. boneless pork spareribs

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 c. ketchup

1/2-3/4 c. water

1/4. c. packed brown sugar

1/4 c. cider vinegar

2 Tbls. worcerstershire sauce

2 tsp. ground mustard

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. paprika

Place half of the ribs in a slow cooker. Top with half of the onion. Repeat leayers. Combine remaining ingredients. Pour over all. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 9 hours or until ribs are

tender.

At first the ribs looked gross because the oil/fat and water were separated and it looked gross. I pulled out some store bought BBQ sauce expecting to need to add to the flavor, but with one bit I decided it didn't need a thing! They really were good!

Zesty Potato Salad

About 8 med. boiled and diced red (or whatever you have) potatoes

1/2 c. Italian Salad Dressing

3 stalks of celery, chopped

1 bunch green onions, chopped

8 baby dill pickles, chopped

3 boiled eggs

1 Tbls. Mustard

1 c. Mayonnaise

1 1/4 tsp. Season salt

1/4 tsp. Pepper

Boil Potatoes until soft (leave skins on). Drain the water. Dice and cube potatoes and put in a large mixing bowl. Add 1/2 cup. Italian dressing, shake to coat potatoes. Leave in the fridge for a few hours. Slice green onions, celery, pickles and eggs (I don't like eggs, so I leave them out) and add to potatoes. Mix mayo, mustard, season salt, and pepper together and add to potatoes stirring well. Best if refrigerated over night!

This is one dish I have never been able to get "perfect". I don't know why, but potato salad doesn't like me! This is the first time it has come out pretty good. If you have any questions about how to make a good potato salad...DON'T ASK ME! Good luck!

Sprinkle Cake Idea

I was making my daughters birthday cake when I realized she had asked for a "Party" cake (which means white cake with sprinkles) and I didn't have time to go to the store. So I just added "Sprinkle" topping in the cake mix. It saved me a trip to the store!

I'm sure you've all thought of this neat little trick, but for those of you who haven't...here ya go!

Cookie Idea

My husband bought me a food saver (the BIG one). I must say..it was a great investment! I use it all the time! Since we have 2 freezers, we freeze a lot of extra food so on the days I don't feel like cooking, all it takes to prepare a meal is a microwave.
Since I've had the food saver I like to double the cookie recipes so when I need a last minute dessert, I have it on hand. It makes preparation and clean up simple! Just roll the cookie dough in a log, and vacuum seal! That's it! ( I sound like an infomercial)

It's fun seeing the freezer full of so many varieties of cookies!

The Best Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!

1 cup white sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup rolled oats
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Directions:
Cream together the sugars, butter and peanut butter. Mix in eggs and vanilla. Combine the remaining ingredients (except choc. chips) and stir in. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by tablespoons onto lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.

I got this recipe from my couin Jadi..(She's got some yummy recipes)Check out her site HERE. I must agree with her, these are the best peanut butter chocolate chip cookies!

*We like to use our 2 Tbls. cookie scoop from pampered chef! It works wonders. My cookies look professional with this handy dandy tool!

Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins

2 c. cake flour (we didn't have this on hand so we used reg. flour...cake flour will give you a softer moist muffin)
3/4 c. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 pinch of salt
4 oz. cream cheese
2 tsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. vanilla
2 whole eggs
4 Tbls. hot melted butter
1/2 c. milk
1 c. blueberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line the muffin tin with paper cupcake liners. (This recipe says it makes 12, but for us it made about 19). Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl. Stir well; set aside. In kitchen aid, or food processor combine cream cheese, lemon juice, and vanilla, mix until smooth. Add eggs and continue mixing. Scrape down side of bowl or processor with a spatula. Pour in hot butter and continue mixing. Next, add milk. Add dry ingredients and mix until well blended. Mix in blueberries by hand. Pour equal amount of batter into each muffin cup, filling about 3/4 c. full. Bake for 30 minutes. Cool on rack. Enjoy!

We love muffins, especially blueberry muffins! We also love to drink cold orange juice with warm muffins..yum!

The Ultimate Salad Bar

Lettuce (we used a vegetable medley mix, and a spring mix)

Cucumber

Carrots

Celery

Green Onion

Shredded Cheese

Croutons

sunflower Seeds

Radishes

Frozen Peas

Boiled Eggs

Tomatoes

Homemade Ranch Dressing

Bacon Bits

Grilled Chicken

Cut up vegetables and put in bowls. Let each person assemble the salad toppings to their salad as desired. Add favorite dressing (we like homemade ranch). Enjoy!

My family is a sucker for salads. We LOVE them! They enjoyed being able to choose what they wanted on their own salad.

Erika's Lemon Ice Cookies

1 box lemon cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 c. oil
Powdered sugar
milk

Mix cake mix, eggs, and oil together. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Mix powdered sugar and milk together to make a glaze. (I like to make the glaze a little thick.) Pour the glaze over the top of the cookies (let them cool a little before adding glaze).

I love to make these cookies. They are very simple and very refreshing. This are great served at wedding or baby showers.

Easy Choc-Oat Chip Cookies

1 box german chocolate cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 c. oil
1/2 c. Rolled Oats
1 c. chocolate chips

Mix all together. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Carmel Apple French Toast

1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter
2 Tbls. corn syrup
2 large tart apples (peeled and sliced 1/2" thick)
4 eggs
1 1/3 c. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
9-10 slices day old french bread

In a small saucepan combine brown sugar, butter and corn syrup. cook until thick, about 3-5 minutes. Pour into an ungreased 9 x 13" pan. Arrange apples on top. In a separate bowl mix eggs, milk and vanilla. Dip french bread slices into egg mixture and arrange on top of apples. Pour any remaining egg mixture on top of bread. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

This is a great recipe if you have any leftover french bread!

Garlic Bread Spread

1 loaf French bread (sliced in half length wise)
4 oz. cream cheese
1 cube butter
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. garlic salt

Mix cream cheese, butter, cheese and garlic together. (We mix this in our kitchen aid). Spread on 2 open halves of bread. Broil till soft brown.

We like to mix it up a little when we eat our garlic bread, it's a nice alternative once in a while

Sweet Chex Mix

3 cups pretzels
3 cups wheat chex
3/4 cup cashews
3 cups rice chex
3/4 cup almonds
1 cup white corn syrup
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cubes butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine pretzels, chex and nuts in a large bowl. Stir together corn syrup, sugar, butter and vanilla. Bring just to a boil. Pour syrup over chex mixture and stir to coat. Spread out on wax paper to cool.

Smokey Bacon Wraps

1 lb. sliced bacon
1 pkg. (16 oz) mini. smoked sausage links
1 c. packed brown sugar

Cut each bacon strip in half width wise. Wrap one piece of bacon around each sausage. Place in a foil-lined jelly roll pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees. for 30-40 min. or until bacon is crisp and sausage is heated through. Makes 3 1/2 dozen.

Hot Turnovers

Quartered Pie Crust
Apple Pie Filling
Ready To Bake!


2 Refrigerated/Frozen pie crust (the kind that is rolled up).
1 can. Pie Filling (Apple, Cherry, Blueberry, etc)
Milk
Powdered sugar

Repeat this step twice in order to use both pie crust (which will make 8 turnovers). Make sure the dough is thawed to room temperature. Unroll the pie crust on a lightly dusted with flour surface. With a pizza cutter, quarter the pie dough (a total of 4 wedges). Add about 1-2 Tbls. of favorite pie filling to the middle of each quarter of pie dough. Make sure you don't fill it too full, or the filling will seep out. Wet your finger and trace around the outside of each quarter. Fold over each quarter, so it's a triangular shape. Crimp the edges with fork, or my favorite handy dandy tool, the crinkle cutter from pampered chef (it crinkle cuts vege's). Make sure the edges are tightly sealed. Wipe any excess filling off the turnover. Prick an x on the top of the turnover with a fork. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. Add the glaze mixture (add desired amount of powdered sugar and milk together, I like it a little thick)over the top of hot turnover.

Enjoy!




Although this is more of a dessert, we like to eat these for breakfast!

Crockpot Gourmet Stew

Finished Product

Raw Vegetables in the tin foil pack

Although the word gourmet may scare you like it scares me, this really is a simple dish!

2 lbs. Stew Meat

2 med. onions, chopped

6 oz. can tomato paste

2 cans beef broth

3 Tbls. soy sauce

1 lb. carrots (we used baby carrots)

1 lb. red potatoes

2 c. chopped celery

1 lb. parsnips (we didn't add this in ours)

6 pearl onions (optional) (a pearl onion is a small, sweet onion)

2 cups frozen peas

Salt & Pepper to taste

1 1/2 tsp. Thyme

2 Bay Leaves

vegetable oil

2-3 Tbls. tapioca (found in the baking isle, it is used to thicken pies, It is in a red box labeled minute tapioca)

Brown stew meat in 1-2 Tbls. vegetable oil. Put the meat in the bottom os a crockpot. Chop onions until fine. Saute onions until golden brown (I just sauted them in the leftover oil). Add tomato paste to the onions. Next, add the 2 cans beef broth and soy sauce to the onion and tomato mixture. Simmer for about 2 minutes. Add mixture over the stew meat. Then add the tapioca (the tapioca will thicken the liquid). Add 2 bay leaves to the top.

Cut up vegetables. Put the vegetables (except frozen peas), salt and pepper, and thyme in tinfoil, double layered, and folded closed. (Like you make hobo dinners). Put the tinfoil over the beef (yes, the tinfoil will get a little dirty).

Turn the crockpot on low for about 10 hours, or on high for about 6 hours. Take out the bayleaves, and add the frozen peas and vegetables from the tinfoil mixture about 15 minutes before serving.

ENJOY!

My sister Lisa (an AMAZING cook) gave me this recipe, and we altered it to fit our taste!

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

My mom and dad make the creamiest ( & most fattening) mash potatoes. This is a spin off of their classic mash potatoes.

8 (give or take) Russet Potatoes

4 cloves of Garlic (peeled)

1/4 tsp. Paprika

1/2 - 3/4 c. Heavy Cream

1/4. c. Softened Butter

Salt & Pepper to taste

In a large pot, cover potatoes with water. Add 4 cloves of peeled garlic, and paprika to the water. Boil potatoes until tender. Drain the water (keep the garlic in). Add Heavy cream, butter, and desired amount of salt and pepper. Mix on high until well blended.

I think the secret of making light and fluffy potatoes is how you mix/whip them. We add them to our kitchen aid and whip them on the highest speed with the wire whip attahment.

Guymon's Famous Breadsticks

This is my claim to fame. I am most famous for making these soft, moist, delicious breadsticks then any other food. These are to die for!

Because of the quick first raise, they are quicker to make then normal breadsticks!

1/2 c. Warm water

1 1/2 Tbls. Yeast

1 Tbls. Sugar

3/4 c. Milk (scalded and cooled)

1 1/2 Tbls. Sugar

1 1/2 tsp. Salt

1 Egg (beaten)

2 1/2 c. Flour

Mix water, yeast and 1 Tbls. sugar together and let yeast dissolve and rise. Mix milk, sugar, salt, egg and flour with the yeast mixture. Mix well and let stand for 15 minutes. Roll on floured board in a rectangular shape. Cut into 1" strips (short end of rectangle) fold in half and twist. Place in greased 9 x 13" pan. Brush with 1/2 of the following mixture and let raise.

1 cube melted butter

1 tsp. dill weed

1/4 tsp. garlic salt

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Brush on remaining butter mixture and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

Hot Meatball Subs

My husband LOVES the hot meatball sub from subway. I thought we could figure out how to make them at home, so we don't have EXACT measurements. It's one of those "a dash of this, a bit of that" recipes.

Shredded Lettuce

Provolone Cheese Slices

Sliced Olives

Tomatoes

Parmesan Cheese

Pre-Cooked Hot Meatballs

French Rolls

Mayonnaise

Spaghetti Sauce

Oil & Vinegar

Salt & Pepper

We like to buy the big bag of meatballs from Sams Club. There are lots of quick recipes that you can whip up with them. Or, if you are handy dandy and have homemade meatballs, that's fine too ( I prefer them homemade).

1-First decide if you like your buns toasted. If so, put them in the broiler for a few minutes..watch them close so they don't burn! If not, skip that step.

2-Microwave the meatballs in spaghetti sauce until warm.

3-Spread Mayo. on bottom of bun.

4-Next, add meatballs, with desired amount of sauce.

5- Then add provolone cheese on top of warm meatballs ( if the meatballs are hot, it will melt the cheese...yummy) ( In this picture we had to use shredded mozzarella cheese because we were out of provolone)

6-Add shredded lettuce

7-Add tomatoes and sliced olives

8-Sprinkle on Parmesan cheese

9-Sprinkle salt & pepper, and oil & vinegar

Enjoy! This really is a quick and easy meal!

Rocky Road Brownies

1 box chocolate cake mix
1/2 c. butter or marg. melted
1/3 c. water
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 c. chopped nuts
3 c. mini marshmallows
1/3 c. choco. syrup

1-Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13 x 9' pan

2- In a large bowl, stir together half of the dry cake mix, butter, water, brown sugar and eggs mix until smooth. Stir in remaining dry cake mix and nuts. Spread in pan. Bake fo 20 minutes (25 min. for dark or non-stick pan) Sprinkle with mini marshmallows.

3-Bake 10-15 minutes longer or until marshmallows are puffed and golden. Drizzle chocolate syrup over bars. Cool completly, about 1 hour. Cut 6 rows x 4 rows. Makes 24 bars.

Enjoy!

I, the dessert queen must say got a little sick these. Don't get me wrong, they were great, but I felt like we were eating rocky road brownies for months. They just seemed to be never ending. This is one that you should share left overs with neighbors!

Fluffy French Toast

2 Egg Whites

1 Tbls Sugar

2 Egg yolks

1 c. Flour

2/3 c. Milk

1 tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 tsp. Salt

Make sure you save the yolks of the eggs. Beat egg whites with sugar until stiff. Set aside. Beat egg yolks with remaining ingredients. Stir egg whites into mixture. Cut bread into triangles. Dip the bread triangles inot batter; fry in about 3/4" of hot oil until they are golden brown. Sprinkle with sifted powdered sugar, or serve with syrup or jam.

Heavenly Honey Butter

2 sticks of softened butter

1/2 jar marshmallow creme

1 c. honey

Mix ingredients together, then refrigerate (it will harden a little and not be so runny).

We like to use the scone recipe found in the "Bread" section of this blog to go along with the honey butter.

I have always looked for a good honey butter recipe and my friend is famous for this. We LOVE it.

*I also like to experiment with the amounts of marshmallow creme that I use, because sometimes I like a thicker consistency.

Navajo Tacos

Dough

6 1/3 c. cake flour

1 1/2 Tbls. baking powder

1 Tbls. Salt

6 Tbls. Powdered Milk

5 Tbls. Shortening

2 c. water

Vegetable Oil for frying

In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients together. Add the shortening little by little until small balls form. Add 1 cup of water and mix it well with your hands; then add the rest of the water and knead the dough well. Cover the dough and let rest for 30 minutes. Divide & Roll dough into 6 pieces. Fry until golden brown. Serves 6

1 lb. Taco meat

Lettuce

Shredded Cheese

Chopped Tomatoes

Ranch Dressing

Sour Cream

Salsa

After frying the dough, add desired toppings. I add the cheese, then meat, then lettuce, then tomatoes , then Ranch, then sour cream, then salsa. These are filling!

You can also use the scone dough recipe I have posted in the "bread"section.

*I know people also make Navajo Tacos with chili, cheese, sour cream, lettuce, and tomatoes instead of the taco meat. However you eat them will be fantastic!