Apple Dumplings

These are delicious and so easy to make! I got the recipe from Pioneer Woman and its too good to not share!

Ingredients

2 whole Granny Smith Apples

2 cans (8 Oz. Cans) Crescent Rolls

2 sticks Butter

1-½ cup Sugar

1 teaspoon Vanilla

Cinnamon, To Taste

1 can (12 Oz.) Mountain Dew Soda

Preparation Instructions

Peel and core apples. Cut each apple into 8 slices each. Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Place in a 9 x 13 buttered pan.

Melt butter, then add sugar and barely stir. Add vanilla, stir, and pour entire mixture over apples. Pour Mountain Dew around the edges of the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Serve with ice cream, and spoon some of the sweet sauces from the pan over the top.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

1 bag spinach leaves
1 pint strawberries
1 avocado, peeled and diced
1 pkg slivered almonds
4 tablespoons sugar

DRESSING:
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup sweet rice wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon Worchestershire sauce

Arrange spinach leaves, strawberries and avocado in a bowl. In skillet, caramelize almonds by cooking with 4 tablespoons sugar. stir while cooling. Sprinkle over salad. Combine all dressing ingredients in a separate bowl and add just before serving.

Fiesta Pasta Salad

Dressing:

1 pkg. Hidden Valley FIESTA Ranch salad dressing mix
2 C. buttermilk
2 C. mayonnaise

Salad:

16-oz. pkg. spiral pasta, cooked and rinsed with cold water to cool. drain well.
1/2 small red onion, diced
16-oz. can kidney beans, drained
1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 can artichoke hearts, cut-up
1 red pepper, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 can sliced olives
cooked chicken, cut-up (opt)
grated cheese
tortilla chips, crunched-up

Combine dressing ingredients. Set aside. Combine salad ingredients in large bowl. Stir dressing into salad. Right before serving, add grated cheese and tortilla chips. Put extra in bowls to serve with salad. Serves 20-25. Can be made the night before.

No Knead Bread

No Knead Bread with 3 ingredients


2 2/3 cups self-rising flour
1/4 cup sugar
12-oz bottle of beer (any flavor to your liking)

Stir all ingredients together in a bowl until blended and pour the batter into a lightly greased loaf pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 50-55 minutes.

For a crunchy crust, serve right away. For a softer crust (better for sandwiches), place in a plastic bag overnight, then serve.
If you dont wan to use beer you can substitute sprite. But the beer bread tastes waaay better!

If you’d like a sweeter bread (more suitable to breakfast or a snack), you can increase the sugar up to 1/2 cup.

I found this recipe on a site and it was the easiest bread to make. I dont have a bread machine have always wanted to get one but now I think I will just buy more loaf pans :D

Maple-Braised Pork Chops by Willam Sonoma

This is one of my husbands favorites! NOTE: This recipe offers a couple different methods to cook the chops, we have found that the slow cooker on low for 8 hours makes the most tender and best flavor.

3 T all-purpose flour
Salt and freshly ground pepper
4 bone-in pork loin chops, each about 12 oz and 1 1/2 inch thick
3 T canola oil
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 t chile powder
3/4 c chicken broth
3/4 c maple syrup (use the pure stuff!)
3 T apple cider vinegar
2 T Worcestershire sauce
2 T finely chopped fresh chives

On a plate, stir together the flour, 3/4 t salt, and 1/2 t pepper. Turn the pork chops in the seasoned flour, shaking off any excess. In a large frying pan over medium-heat, warm the canola oil. Working in batches if necessary, cook the pork chops until golden brown, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Pour off all but a thin coating of fat in the pan and return it to medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, and chile powder and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Pour in the broth and deglaze the pan, stirring and scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Stir in the maple syrup, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a boil.

STOVE TOP: Transfer the pork chops to a large Dutch oven. Pour the maple syrup mixture over the chops to cover them. Partially cover and cook over very low heat until the pork chops are very tender and the sauce is thick, about 2 hours.

SLOW COOKER: Transfer the pork chops to a slow cooker. Pour the maple syrup mixture over the chops to cover them. Cover and cook until the chops are very tender and the sauce is thick, about 4-hours on high setting or 8-hours on low setting.

Arrange the chops on a warmed plates. Top with the sauce, garnish with the chives and serve at once.

Bon Bon's

This is a great and easy recipe

1 bag of original oreos
1 8 oz fat free cream cheese
1 bag of chocolate chips

*put oreos in zip lock bag and smash until fine

*Combine oreo's and softened cream cheese, roll into small balls.

*Freeze to make hard

*Melt chocolate & dip small balls into chocolate. Refrigerate to harden chocolate and serve. If you want to get fancy melt white chocolate and drizzle over.

Chicken Salad

THIS MAKES A LOT. Fed us for a week of lunches.

2 pkgs chicken ramen noodles
1 bunch green onions
4 T sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil
6 oz slivered almonds (optional)
2 cups shredded chicken
4 T vinegar
20 oz bag cole slaw mix
2 T sesame seeds

*Bake sesame sees and almonds @ 350 for 10 - 12 minutes

*Mix oil, sugar, vinegar, ramen noodles, seasoning and refrigerate

*Mix slaw, chicken, chopped onions, crushed noodles, and baked nuts

*After sauce is cold add to the slaw miz and chill before serving for several hours.

*Serve as a salad.

Turkey Burgers "Ciao Down Burgers"

1 Egg
1 1lb ground turkey breast
2 crushed cloves garlic
1/3 cup drained diced & green chili tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon salt & pepper to taste
*Optional 1/2 cup parmesan cheese (tends to hold the burgers together better)

*In large bowl whisk egg and add everything else, mixing with hands until well blended. Form into 8 patties. Or 4 very thick patties

*Place patties on a grill pan or nonstick skillet that's heated over medium - high

Serve as a hamburger.

Lemon Cream Chicken

A good majority of my recipe's that I try from a cookbook or random blogs don't turn out very well, if at all. This was one of the few exceptions. I found it through a friend of a friend of a friends blog, i think. You all know how it is when you get clicking on blog after blog. After blog. Anyway, here's the link to this particular blog.

Lemon Cream Chicken

1/2 cup plus 1 T. flour divided

1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 c. butter
1 c. chicken broth
1 cup whipping cream, divided
3 T. lemon juice
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced*

In a large resealable plastic bag, combine 1/2 c. flour, salt and pepper. Add chicken an shake to coat. In a large skillet, cook chicken in butter for 8-9 minutes on each side or until juices run clear. Remove chicken and keep warm.

Add broth to the drippings. Bring to a boil over medium heat; stir to loosen browned bits from the pan. Simmer, uncovered for 10 minutes or until broth is reduced approximately 1/3 cup. Sir in 3/4 c. cream, lemon juice and mushrooms. Cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes.

Combine remaining flour and cream until smooth; stir into skillet. Bring to a boil; cook and sir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Return chicken to skillet and heat through. Yield = 6 servings.

*I opted to leave out the mushrooms, not a huge fan, but maybe I'll try it next time. The original author said she doesn't like breading it, and it's just as good if you skip that step. I served it with Rice Pilaf (gotta love the San Francisco treat) and some green beans that I added a little twist on.

Green Beans in Butter Sauce
from The Essential Food Storage Cookbook

1 lb. frozen green beans
2 T. butter
1 tsp. vinegar (or lemon juice)
1 tsp. Worchestershire sauce

Cook beans according to directions on the bag. Drain. Return to saucepan; add remaining ingredients. Stir until butter melts and sauce coats beans. Serves 4.

Moms homemade Lasagna, Meal #1

Hi, I am Christy Gilvear. In attempts to be a better wife and mother (and to get my kids to eat better) I have set out to cook regular family meals over the next 2 weeks. I cook regularly for my family, maybe 2 or 3 times a week. I am trying to cook more often though and more healthy. My goal is to see a change in my children's tastes and appetites. So cookbook in hand I sat down to make my grocery list. I will be cooking 7 meals over the next two weeks (some nights we will have left overs or breakfast for dinner). I went to the grocery store and only spent $130 on my food! So here is meal number one for tonight:

My mom's homemade Lasagna is the best I have ever had. People always ask her for the recipe when they have it. And here it is for you!

1 lb. ground beef
2 T. parsley flakes
1 pkg. Spaghetti sauce mix
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup sour cream
1 can tomatoes
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
2 (6-oz.) cans tomato paste
2 c. cottage cheese
2 eggs, well beaten
1 (16-oz.) mozzarella cheese
1 tsp. salt
Lasagna noodles

Brown meat. Drain. Add sauce mix, salt tomatoes, and tomato paste. Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. Cook noodles, drain. Combine eggs, salt, parsley, pepper, sour cream, Parmesan cheese, and cottage cheese. Set aside. Layer as follows: 1/2 noodles, 1/2 cottage cheese, 1/2 mozzarella cheese, 1/2 meat. Repeat. Bake 375 degrees for 30 minutes.



Homemade Bread sticks from Rhodes dough

1 pkg. Rhodes Frozen bread dough (I just used white)
Butter
Parmesan Cheese
Garlic Bread Seasoning

Let bread set out until soft enough to cut. Slice in pieces about 1 inch thick. Roll between hands until shape of a bread stick. Melt butter. Dip bread sticks in butter then in a mixture of Parmesan cheese and Garlic Bread Seasoning. Spray Pam on your pan. Place bread sticks on pans and let raise until double or triple in size. Bake in 425 degree oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.


Note: serve with corn and red cabbage salad.

Unfortunately making it does not guarantee they will eat it.
Day one down.


~Christy

Rainbow cupcakes!

I have started recording studio 5 and just fast forwarding to the things that I find interesting or want to try. Here is a fun cupcake recipe I want to try for my kids. The colors are so fun and so intense! I can't wait to make them!!!


Ingredients:

* 8 ounces cream cheese (about 1 cup), softened
* 2 egg whites
* 1/4 cup vegetable oil
* 1 box white cake mix
* 1 cup water
* 1 t. vanilla

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12 count muffin tin with paper liners.

2. In a large bowl combine the cream cheese, egg whites and vegetable oil. Using a hand mixer, beat the ingredients until combined and creamy.

3. Add the cake mix, water and vanilla and mix until smooth, about 3 minutes.

4. Separate the mix and dye fun colors. She put them in plastic bags and cut a hole in the bottom and just squirted a little into each cup.

5. Fill the muffin cups to just below the rim and bake until puffed and golden, about 18 to 20 minutes.

6. Remove from the oven, let cool slightly in the tin then transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack.

Here are some other ideas that she had:

FROSTING: For those who had questions about the frosting, click HERE and scroll down to the bottom of the post for the Vanilla Butter Cream frosting recipe she uses. Also you can click HERE, scroll to the bottom and find a recipe for Cream Cheese frosting that would be another great option.

SPRINKLES: The sprinkles she used are "Rainbow Dots", they can be found hit and miss at most grocery stores in the baking isle. But here's a secret; go to the Macy's Bakery department (or the grocery store of your choosing) and ask to purchase them by the pound. Bakeries buy them in bulk and will usually sell them to you at a much better rate. On the shelf they run about $3.99 for 2-3 oz. The bakery department sells them for $1.99/lb; a much better deal.

CAKE: If you missed the link or recipe for the cake batter click HERE.

The last thing I wanted to mention is the versatility of this technique. She demo'ed the rainbow version, but you can take this same technique and do all kinds of colors and theme's. Here are a few idea's:

Holiday - reds and pinks for Valentines, red & green for Christmas, shades of Green and white for St. Patrick's Day, red-white-blue for the 4th of July, pastel colors for Easter etc....

Sport's parties - Color the cupcakes with your favorite team colors.

Weddings - Serve at a reception using the wedding colors.

Bridal or Baby Showers - Use the brides colors for a bridal shower, or the babies chosen bedroom colors for a baby shower.

You probably get the point. You can go crazy and do all kinds of fun multi-colored cupcakes for any and all occasions.

SO FUN!!! ENJOY!~~
-Christy

Yogurt Parmesan Baked Chicken

Combine and set aside:
2 cups Ritz crackers
3 Tablespoons parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons garlic salt
1 teaspoons seasoned salt

4 chicken breasts
Plain Yogurt
1/4 cup melted butter

Cut chicken in half, lengthwise. Cover each piece with yogurt and coat in crumb mixture. Arrange in greased 9x13-inch dish. Drizzle with the melted butter. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

Coconut Shrimp & Pina Colada Dipping Sauce

24 medium shrimp (peeled & deveined)

2 large eggs - beaten

1 cup flour

1/2 cup shredded coconut

Pour shrimp into large bowl, beaten eggs in small bowl, flour into small bowl and coconut into small bowl. Take shrimp and dip into flour, egg, flour and then coconut. (I skipped dipping it into the flour the second time because the coconut didn't stick that well. But when I put them on the pan I sprinkled coconut all over them again.) Place shrimp on a nonstick pan.

Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden.

Pina Colada Dipping Sauce

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup pina colada nonalcoholic drink mix

1/4 cup crushed pineapple (canned)

2 Tablespoons granulated sugar

Mix all of the ingredients together and enjoy with the shrimp!

Meatloaf

So I'm not gonna take credit for this recipe but it is really good.  So here is the link to get it. Quaker Oats Original Meatloaf.

Spaghetti Factory's Mizithra Cheese Pasta

Ok here is a GREAT one I think it is even better when you make it fresh than when you get it at Spaghetti Factory.

Ingredients:

• Butter
• Mizithra Cheese  (I have been able to find this at Dick's in the specialty cheese bin by the deli)
• Spaghetti Noodles
• Meat Sauce (optional)

Directions:

1. Boil 1-2 sticks of butter depending on how many people you are feeding on medium heat.
2. Watch the butter very carefully it burns very easily.  Once it boils stir constantly. The butter will start to rise and foam takes about 5 minutes. 
3. Butter will turn amber color and will get a very sweet smell.  Remove from heat and let sit for a few minutes so that the dark stuff settles to the bottom of the pan.
4. Then put the butter through a strainer to remove most of the dark residue that is at the bottom of the pan. 
5. Pour butter on noodles and shred fresh mizithra on top.  Voila you have yummy restaurant quality pasta.

Optional:
I like to do half of the pasta mizithra cheese and half meat sauce.

Mock Lasagna and Peasant Bread

Oh boy, this is such a yummy combination. It's also taken first place in the "Jake's favorite food" category. It takes a little more prep time, but is SO worth it. It's sure to please if you are having guests over. Be warned, your family will want seconds, and maybe even thirds.

MOCK LASAGNA

1 (8 oz.) package of cream cheese
1/4 cup sour cream
1 cup cottage cheese
1-1 1/2 lb. ground beef, browned with chopped onion
1/2 lb. lasagna noodles
1 Jar of Prego/Ragu spaghetti sauce
(add another 8 oz. can of tomato sauce if you like your lasagna with more sauce to dip bread in)
Mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese

Combine cream cheese, sour cream, and cottage cheese in mixing bowl. Boil lasagna noodles according to directions on package. Mix ground beef with tomato sauce. Layer half of noodles in a 9X13 inch baking pan. Top with all of cheese mixture. Top the cheese layer with the remaining half of the noodles. Top with meat/sauce mixture. Refrigerate for at least an hour, then bake at 375 for 45 minutes. Top with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese during the last 5 minutes of bake time.
Serving suggestion:
May add parsley or spinach to cheese mixture

PEASANT BREAD

1 pkg. dry yeast
2 C. warm water
1 T. sugar
2 tsp. salt
4 C. flour
Oil (1-2 T.)
Corn meal
Melted butter

Place yeast, water, sugar and salt in bowl and stir until dissolved. Add flour and stir until blended. Do not knead. Cover and let rise one hour or until doubled in size. Flour hands, remove dough from bowl and place in 2 rounds on an oiled cookie sheet sprinkled with corn meal. Let rise an additional hour. Brush the top with melted butter and bake at 425 for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 and bake an additional 15 minutes. Remove from oven and brush again with butter. Serve warm!


*If you are making these together and have only one oven like I do, bake the lasagna first (without adding the cheese topping). Let it sit in your microwave to keep it warm while you bake the bread. Then put the lasagna back in (with the mozzarella and parmesan cheese topping) on the top rack of the oven for the last 5 minutes of the bread baking time.

Sausage and Peppers

2 Pkgs of Turkey Kielbasa
1 Red Pepper
1 Yellow Pepper
1 Green Pepper
1/4 - 1/2 Onion
Olive Oil
1 pkg of bow tie noodles
Parmesan cheese

Cut up turkey in 1/2 inch thick pieces. Combine sausage and olive oil (I don't know measurements on olive oil I just guess) and saute till brown.

Slice up peppers and onions. Add peppers, onions and a bit more olive oil. Put lid on pan, and cook till veggies are steamed and caramelized.

Serve over bowtie noodles and top with parmesan cheese.

This is something that makes great left overs!!! Sorry don't really know measurements. Just wing it like I do...works every time!

Crock Pot Italian Chicken

Ingredients:

• chicken
• bottle of italian salad dressing
• dash of red pepper
• dash of crushed garlic

Directions:
Combine all the ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low for 4-5 hours.  Shred and serve.

I usually make burritos with the chicken but you could serve over rice or even make a chicken salad!

Panko Chicken

This recipe isn't the fastest but whenever I have a little bit more time this one is really good!
Ingredients:

Chicken
skinless chicken
panko breadcrumbs
2-3 eggs
Flour
Oil

Sweet & Sour Sauce
Pineapple Apricot preserves
Ketchup
Soy Sauce
Worchester Sauce

Directions:
Heat Oil on Med/Low in skillet on stove
Take the chicken and cut into strips. Pound chicken to be thin and even in thickness.
Coat chicken in flour. Then dip into eggs. Then dip into panko breading.
Fry chicken in oil

To make the dipping sauce:
(As with most of my recipes I have no idea what the measurements are I guess and do a lot of taste tests. Sorry but you will have to make sauce with no measurements.)

 Mix pineapple apricot preserves, soy sauce (just a little), Worchester sauce (just a little) and ketchup together until desired flavor.

I serve the chicken and dipping sauce with rice and broccoli.

Shredded Turkey Croissants

1 fully cooked Kettle fried Turkey (You can find this at costco)
1 to 2 cans chicken broth
salt and pepper

Place all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for 5 hours. Shred with fork and serve on croissants. So easy and so yummy! It makes alot so I usually make this when I am serving alot of people. Enjoy!!

Taco Soup

1 lb. hamburger
1 chopped onion (brown with hamburger)
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can beef broth
2 cans cream of potato soup
2 cans kidney or chili beans, drained
1 large or 2 small cans tomato sauce
1 pkg. taco seasoning mix
1 1/2 cup chopped celery
1 1/2 cup chopped carrots

Cook all day on low in a crock pot or until vegetables are tender. Serve with grated cheese, tortilla chips, and sour cream.
Makes a lot. Really good the next couple of days as left overs, too.

Creamy Chicken - Crock Pot style

1 pkg dry Italian Salad Dressing mix
1/4 cup of water
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 8oz pkg soften cream cheese
1 can of Cream of Chicken soup
1 can of sliced mushrooms

Combine chicken breasts, water, and Italian salad dressing mix in the crock pot. Set at low temp and cook for 4 hours.

On the 5th hour add cream cheese, soup, and mushrooms. Mix well. (sometimes I melt the soup and cream cheese in small sauce pan till creamy, than add to crock pot). Cook for an hour on high.

Serve over rice or bowtie noodles.

Russian Chicken

Ingredients:

• 1 package lipton onion soup mix
• 1 bottle Russian salad dressing
• 1 jar pineapple apricot preserves
• Boneless/Skinless Chicken

Directions:

1. Mix salad dressing, preserves, and soup mix together
2. Pour over chicken
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes

* I serve over rice

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons hot water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1 cup white chocolate chips (instead of milk chocolate chips)
• 1 cup macademia nuts (instead of milk chocolate chips)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth.  Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla.  Dissolve baking soda in hot water.  Add to batter along with salt.  Stir in flour, and chocolate chips.  Drop by large spoonfuls onto ungreased pan.
3. Bake for 8-10 minutes in the oven. 

* Sometimes I use white chocolate chips and macademia nuts instead of chocolate chips.