Southern Pecan Pie

3 eggs
2/3 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. butter, melted
1 c. corn syrup
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup chopped pecans
pie crust

Blend eggs,sugar,butter,syrup,and salt in the blender until smooth.Spread chopped pecans over bottom of pie crust.Pour blender mixture on top of pecans.Bake at 375* for 45-50 minutes,or until fully bro...wned.It will still jiggle slightly.It's the easiest pie you'll ever make!

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

It's me again, with another soup recipe.

I actually halved this and it worked out great. I think the water is what you'll want to tweak depending on how thick you like your soup.

Ingredients:
2 medium-sized butternut squash (or 1 large and one small), cubed
3 apples
1 yellow onion, sauteed
5 cups water
2 tsp salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cloves
1 teaspoon nutmeg
pepper to taste

Bring to boil. Then simmer for 20 minutes. In batches, blend in blender, food processor or immersion blender.

I would serve with a nice slice of crunchy bread.

Carrot and Red Pepper Soup

A friend of ours made this for us the other night. It was DELICIOUS! My daughter (almost 3) did okay with it, and her son (2) loves it.

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
Deborah Madison

2 T. butter or olive oil
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 cups diced onion
1 lb. carrots, thinly sliced
2 T. white rice
Sea salt and freshly milled pepper
2 T. parsley, chopped
3 T. dill chopped or 1 1/2 T. dried dill
Grated zest and juice of 1 orange
6 cups water or basic vegetable stock

Melt the butter in a soup pot and add the pepper, onion, carrots, rice and 1 teaspoon sea salt. Cook over medium heat, covered until the onion has softened completely, about 10 minutes, stirring several times. Add a grind of pepper, the parsley, dill, orange zest, juice and water. Bring to a boil, then simmer, partially covered, until the rice is cooked, about 25 minutes. Cool briefly, then puree all but a cup or two of the soup and return it to the pot. Taste for salt, season with pepper, garnish and serve. This soup may be served hot as well as chilled.

Restaurant-style Taco Salad

1 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
3 roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 small onion, diced
1 cup corn
1 cup black beans, drained
2 cups shredded cheddar or jack cheese
salsa
ranch dressing
1 pkg taco seasoning
* grilled chicken/taco meat optional

Combine all ingredients in a giant bowl. Serve with tortilla chips. This. Was. Heaven. The key: the taco seasoning. Ranch + salsa makes for a GREAT dressing.

Should serve 4-6 for a meal; 6-8 as a side salad.

Hershey's Fudge

3 cups Hershey's semi-sweet chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup whole roasted almonds

Melt chips and milk over very low heat until smooth. This will be THICK. Stir in almonds -- they won't want to stick, this is normal. Line a 9x9 glass dish with wax paper. Pour into wax paper and smooth out the top with the back of spoon. Refrigerate for 3 hours. Pull entire brick of fudge out, using the edges of the wax paper. Cut into squares on a cutting board. ENJOY!

* Keep refrigerated
* If you can handle ultra sweet milk chocolate, you could use milk chocolate chips instead. :D

Squash Casserole

4-5 yellow squash
1 small onion
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 bag croutons
2 cups grated moterrey jack cheese

Peel the squash, then cut into 1/2 inch rings. Cut onion into 1/2 inch half rings. Stir in soup. Pour into 13x9 glass baking dish. Top with cheese, then croutons. Bake at 350*, covered for 25 minutes. Uncover and bake additional 10 minutes.

* You be the judge on the baking time. Some like their squash soggy ... me, not-so-much.

How to fix runny jam

Since it's the jam making time of year, I though this was appropriate. It's happened to me before.... runny Jam! I found the fix on this blog Chez Beeper Bebe .

Runny Jam Fix
I ngredients:
½ cup sugar
½ cup water
4 Tbsp lemon juice
8 tsp of no-sugar
pectin

Materials:
8 canning jar lids

Instructions:
Empty out your runny jam from the jars into a bowl.
Wash and sterilize your jars and jar rings again, discarding the lid tops.
Sterilize your new jar lid tops. Drain and set aside on clean dish towels.
Fill your canning pot with water and bring to a gentle boil. Keep it at a
gentle boil throughout so it will be ready when needed.
Mix pectin with sugar in a large pot. Add water and lemon juice and mix.
Place over high heat and bring to a boil, while stirring continuously.
Add the jam and bring to a vigorous boil over high heat, continuing to stir
throughout. Boil for 1 minute (and no longer) while keeping that stirring
up.
Remove from heat, stir and ladle hot jam into sterilized jars, securing lids
tightly. Place jam jars in your canning pot with gently boiling water and
boil for 5 minutes (again, keep your time on this—too long may make
your jam runny all over again and how sad would that be?). Remove jam
and allow to cool. Check lid seals once cooled—any tops that pop back
when pressed should be refrigerated.
Fixes 7-8 jars of jam (8 oz or 1 cup each)

Sour Cream Apple Pie

I can not take credit for this recipe, I found it on a blog, and here it is in all it's glory.

Sour Cream Apple Pie

Topping

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/4 c. plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 t. cinnamon
2 tablespoons flour

Filling

1 1/3 c. sour cream
2/3 c. sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 or 5 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced

Pie crust (you can make your own, or use a pre-made one from the refrigerator section of the grocery store — I always do) fitted into a deep-dish 9" or 10" pie plate and chilled

To make the topping, in a bowl blend the butter, sugar, cinnamon, and flour until the mixture is combined well. Cover and chill the topping.

To make the filling, whisk together the sour cream, sugar, salt, vanilla, eggs, and flour until the mixture is smooth. Add the peeled, cored, and thinly sliced apples and stir the filling and apples together.

Spoon the filling into the chilled shell and crumble the topping evenly over it. Bake the pie on a baking sheet in the middle of a pre-heated 350-degree oven, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. (You might need to put a bit of tinfoil on top of the pie during the last 15 minutes to prevent the top from burning.) Transfer it to a rack and let it cool completely.

Delightful Peaches

Lots of peaches
Lots of sugar
Water
Quart mason jars

Before you begin ... make sure that your peaches are almost completely ripe. Not mushy, not crunchy ... it's best if they are almost totally ripened.

Peel all of your peaches and put them into a bowl of salt water to rest, until you've finished peeling all of your peaches. (You can peel them with a potato peeler, or you can blanch them and then pull the peels off -- I tried blanching, it didn't work so well, so I used the potato peeler)

Before you begin slicing up your peaches, pour about 3 inches of water into each quart mason jar and then put 3/4 cup sugar in each jar. (NOTE: 3/4 cup sugar for each QUART jar, not pint) Stir the sugar and water in each jar until it is dissolved.

Once all of your peaches are peeled and your jars have the water/sugar mixture ready to go, slice the peaches into quarters, removing the pits. Fill up each jar, to the curved neck with peaches, then fill the rest of the way with water. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

Process the quarts in a water bath canner, boiling them for 20 minutes. They will stay fresh and delicious on your pantry shelf for up to one year. YUMMY!!

$2 cookies

I'm calling these $2 cookies because that's what you would pay for EACH one of these beauties in a fancy bakery. They are the perfect cookie!!

2 c. All-purpose flour
½ tsp. Baking soda
½ tsp. Salt
¾ c. Butter, MELTED
1 c. Brown sugar
½ c. White sugar
1 Tbsp. Vanilla
1 Egg
1 Egg Yolk
2 c. Semi-sweet chocolate chips
1½ c. Chopped pecans

1. Mix flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
2. Mix melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until blended thoroughly. Add vanilla, egg and egg yolk. Blend until light and creamy.
3. Mix in dry ingredients – a little at a time – until just blended. Stir in chocolate chips and pecans.
4. Chill the dough 30-60 minutes or overnight (or put in freezer to speed up process).
5. Preheat oven to 325º F. Drop cookie dough ¼ cup at a time (or really large spoonfuls) onto greased cookie sheet 2-3 inches apart.
6. Bake 15-20 minutes or until edges are lightly toasted. Do NOT wait until they’re brown all over!
7. Cool on the cookie sheet (or rack for crispier cookies).

Deep Dish Breakfast Pizza

This is a GREAT alternative to the breakfast casserole idea ...

1 can Pillsbury Pizza Dough
1/2 lb bacon, cooked & diced
1 lb breakfast sausage, cooked & drained
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
2 cups cheddar cheese
6 eggs
salt and pepper

Cook bacon, drain, and crumble into pieces. Cook sausage and drain well. Dice peppers.

Preheat oven to 425*. Spread pizza dough out in a casserole dish. Bake pizza dough for 6-7 minutes -- do not let it brown, you just want the cooking process to begin. While the dough is baking, beat 6 eggs with a little bit of salt and pepper.

Remove dough from oven and pour egg mixture onto dough. Then sprinkle with sausage. Then sprinkle with bacon. Then, sprinkle with peppers. Finally, top the dish with the 2 cups of cheese. Place back in the oven to finish baking, for about 15 minutes, or until the eggs are solid and no longer runny. The cheese will be bubbly and browned.

Turkey Salad Wraps

1 lb cooked, diced {leftover} turkey
1/2 cup mayo
3 TBS turkey broth {from drippings}
2 green onions, finely chopped
1 cucumber, seeded and finely diced
salt & pepper

Combine everything in a bowl ... add more mayo, salt, pepper ... to taste. It's delicious with the broth!!

BBQ Sausage Pizza

In Texas, we BBQ-up everything!!
1 Pillsbury Pizza Dough Crust
1 link all beef sausage (the kind that comes in a u-shaped package) , diced
bottle of Bullseye Original bbq sauce
2 cups Monterrey Jack cheese

Preheat oven to 425*. Brown up the diced sausage in a frying pan. Spread pizza dough out on pizza stone. Spread dough with bbq sauce. Sprinkle with diced beef sausage. Coat the top with cheese. Bake at 425* until the cheese is browned and bubbly. Yum!

Black Bean, Corn and Avocado Salsa

Black Bean, Corn and Avocado Salsa

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 c. corn kernels (fresh or canned shoepeg is great)
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved (I used grape tomatoes)
1 avocado, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced (optional)
1/4 c. fresh lime juice
2 t. grated lime zest
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
1/2 t. salt

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and serve at once with tortilla chips. Also good on top of quesadillas.

Recipe from this blog.

(6 points for 1 1/2 c. of salad)

Chicken Empanadas

Made some yummy empanadas tonight. It was one of my just make it with what you got recipes, and it turned out really good. So this time instead of forgetting what I did and never having that meal again. As Brian would say, "So was this recipe from a cookbook or did you make it up?" Me, "I made it up." Brian, "Oh, so we're never going to have it again..." Not this time!

Chicken Empanadas
1 box of pie crust
1 chicken breast
2 small potatoes
1/2 white onion
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 -1/2 cup salsa
Shredded Cheddar cheese
spices (season all, cumin, chili powder, and cayenne)
salt and pepper

Unroll the two crust and use a small cup (3 inch diameter?) to cut out circles, as many as you can get. Lay out on greased tin foil and cover with a towel.

Boil the chicken breast, when cooked shred it (really small) and season with salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder to taste.

Preheat the oven to 450. Peel and dice potatoes, really small! Finely dice the onion. Put a tablespoon of butter in a nonstick frying pan and cook the onions about 5 mins, then add potatoes. Cook until potatoes begin to soften. Add garlic and spices (chili powder, season all, a dash of cayenne, and cumin). Mix in chicken and salsa. Taste, add more salt if needed.

Stuff the dough circles with meat mixture and some cheese. Fold in half and press with a fork around the edges. Brush with an egg yolk and water mixture (about 2 yolks and some water to thin it).

Cook at 450 for 11-13 minutes (until golden on top)
EAT.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup

2 cans of black beans, rinsed (use plain, not seasoned)
4 cans of chicken broth (or a box and a half)
1 pkg of frozen corn (white corn is good, but you could use sweet)
2 cans of rotel (mild if you've got kids)
1/2 small can of tomato paste (you can use more, but I don't like mine too tomato-y)
Shredded chicken (shred up some from a rotisserie chicken or cook and shred your own)

1 bunch of cilantro chopped, for garnish
shredded cheese, garnish
two avocados chopped into bits, garnish
two limes cut into wedges, for squeezing on top, mmmmmmmm
Tortilla Chips for crunching on top

Put all the ingredients (not garnishes) into a big pot and simmer til hot enough to serve. I added a bit of salt and garlic powder, feel free to add whatever seasonings you'd like. Serve with the toppings. This is so delicious and easy. It makes a ton! Half it if you don't want leftovers.

I got this recipe from a blog, but I changed it up quite a bit after making it. It's really tasty. You could make this in a crock pot as well. Just add the ingredients into your crockpot and a frozen chicken breast or two, and shred the chicken up before eating.

Chinese Noodle Coleslaw

Chicken Noodle Coleslaw

2 packs chicken flavored Ramen noodles (crushed into small pieces)

1 cup slivered almonds

1 Tlbs butter

1 pack shredded coleslaw

1 large red pepper

2 Tlbs sesame seeds

1 cup chopped green onion

2 chicken breasts (you can use 2 cans of canned chicken, drained)

Dressing:

3/4 cup vegetable oil

4 tsp sugar

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

2 seasoning packets from top Ramen

salt and pepper to taste

Toast almonds in butter til browned, set aside. In large bowl combine Ramen boodles, cabbage, red pepper and almonds. Toss in sesame seeds and add chicken. Add dressing to salad and mix well. If you like the noodles soft refrigerate for 4-5 hours or overnight. If you like a little crunch-eat immediately!

Summer Recipes.

I am calling for summer recipes. I am currently 29 weeks pregnant - my baby will be born in July. So when I ask for "summer" I'm looking for quick, easy, won't-heat-up the house recipes. BBQ, Salads, etc. are perfect. There are already a lot on here, but if you have more, I'd love to see them posted. If you'll label it "summer" that would be great. Thanks!

Roasted Chicken

Bone-In, Skin-On Chicken Breasts
Olive oil
Kosher salt
Garlic salt (I like Lawry's)
Cracked black pepper

Preheat oven to 350*. Place chicken breasts on a baking sheet, skin side up. Rub chicken with olive oil. Sprinkle liberally with salt, garlic salt, and pepper. Bake at 350* for 30 minutes, give or take. Allow chicken to cool before digging in, so that all the juices can settle back into the meat. This was simply delicious. Enjoy.

Parmesan Crusted Roasted Potatoes

4-5 large Yukon Gold potatoes (or whatever potato you prefer)
1 TBS kosher salt
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
large Ziploc bag

Preheat oven to 450*. Wash potatoes thoroughly. Cut into large chunks. In Ziploc bag, combine potatoes, oil, salt, and pepper. Shake bag until all potato chunks are well coated. Dump potatoes onto a GREASED baking sheet and bake at 450* for 25 minutes, stirring and turning potatoes every 7 minutes or so. For the last 5 minutes of baking, sprinkle the grated Parmesan all over the potatoes and broil ... but watch it closely so that you don't burn them. ** Add more salt/pepper to taste.

Yummy Fruit

All you do is get some Frozen fruit, whatever kind you like (I used blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries) and drizzle coffee creamer over them. I used french vanilla creamer. Put on a little or a lot, however much you preffer. It looks neat because the creamer hardens on the frozen fruit. It tastes amazing!

CHEWY Peanut Butter Granola Bars

Yo. So ... now that my baby is 4 months old, I'm finally getting back into cooking for my family. I'll start posting again. :D

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup honey
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup roughly chopped pecans
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease an 8 by 8-inch baking dish and set aside.

In a small saucepan melt butter with honey over low heat, stirring continually, until well combined; do not boil.

In a large bowl stir together oats, almonds, pecans, coconut, cinnamon and salt. Pour butter mixture over oat mixture and stir until combined well.

On a large baking sheet, spread the granola evenly in a thin layer. Bake, stirring every 5 minutes to keep from sticking or burning, until golden brown and crisp, about 20 minutes. (Do not overcook; the granola will crisp more when cooled.)

Remove from oven and allow the granola to cool on the baking sheet. When the granola is completely cooled, place in a large bowl.

Combine the brown sugar, corn syrup, and peanut butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir constantly until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is at a boil. Remove from the heat and pour the mixture over the granola, stirring to coat well. Cool slightly and press into the prepared baking dish and let cool completely and harden. Cut the mixture into ten 1 1/4 by 4-inch bars and serve at room temperature.

You can store the bars in an airtight Ziploc at room temperature for a week, or in the fridge for 2 weeks.

Potato Pancakes

This is a nice, easy side dish especially if you have a food processor.

· 1 lb potatoes
· 1/2 C finely chopped onion
· 2 T flour
· 1/2 t salt
· 1/8 t pepper
· 2 eggs, beaten
· Vegetable oil


1. Peel and shred potatoes. Squeeze out most of the moisture.
2. Combine potatoes and onion. Toss with flour.
3. Add salt and pepper; stir in eggs.
4. Lightly oil skillet. Add heaping tablespoons of potato mixture to hot skillet.
5. Cook over medium heat about 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Turn and cook 2-5 minutes or until brown on second side. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Garnish (optional): sour cream and chives.

BBQ Brisket

Photo courtesy of allrecipes.com

This tastes great! We were a little worried about doing it in the crockpot, but it still had a great flavor even though we did not cook it in the oven. The rub gives it a good kick.

Ingredients:
1 T dried thyme leaves
1 T paprika
2 t black pepper
2 t salt
1 t onion powder
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t ground cumin
3 lbs beef brisket, trimmed of fat
1/2 t liquid smoke flavoring
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 C barbeque sauce


Instructions:
1. Combine thyme, paprika, pepper, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, and cumin in a small bowl; set aside.
2. Rub brisket with liquid smoke, then rub with spice mixture.
3. Pour Worcestershire and barbeque sauce into a slow cooker; place beef on top. Cover, and cook on low for 8-10 hours, until fork tender.

TDF Chocolate Chip Cookies

TDF = To Die For - and seriously they are!!!

1 c shortening
3/4 c. white sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 T water
1 tsp vanilla

Beat until fluffy.

2 c. flour
1 tsp soda
1 tsp salt
1 c. oatmeal
2 c. chocolate chips

Gently add dry ingredients to egg and shortening mixture. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes.

Warm Pasta Salad

I know...I never have pictures. But, I've made this pasta salad twice this week and just can't get enough of it...so yummy and so easy to put together- ready to eat in about 20 minutes. On top of that, its pretty healthy and vegetarian!

12 oz. pasta (I always use Barilla Plus- yum)
1/4 red onion, finely diced
2 tsp. saute spice (equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder)
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
2/3 c. Creamy Caesar dressing
4 Tbs. Basil Pesto (I use Classico brand)
Veggies of your choosing (I used one squash, one zucchini, and lots of broccoli)

Cook pasta and cut up onions and veggies. Drain pasta and slightly cook veggies til desired tenderness. Mix all ingredients together- add veggies last and mix. Enjoy!

The Most Dangerous Chocolate Cake

My friend told me about this cake she makes in the microwave and so I looked it up online. It's called the most dangerous cake in the world because it only takes 5 minutes to make. Here it is.

MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE
4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
Small splash of vanilla
Add dry ingredients to mug and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla, and mix again. Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don’t be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired. EAT! (this can serve 2 if you want to share!)

I didn't add chocolate chips to mine, but I did make a caramel sauce with a little bit of butter, brown sugar and a tiny bit of milk in the microwave and poured it over the cake. It tastes amazing like that. I let it cool in the fridge for a little bit before I ate it.

Another note, I used pamela's baking mix instead of flour and it turned out great (for all those who can't eat wheat).

Pulled Pork, Crash Hot Potatoes and Coleslaw

Make this dinner! That's an order. It is so good. M'kay!

Pulled Pork
INGREDIENTS
* 1 tablespoon butter
* 2 pounds boneless pork roast (I used pork shoulder, and only half of it, it was too big for my crockpot)
* 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
* 1 medium onion, chopped (I used a yellow onion, very roughly chopped)
* 4 cloves garlic, crushed (I used the minced stuff in the jar)
* 4 cups water (or watery chicken broth, since I used less meat I only used about 3 1/2 cups)
* 1 tablespoon liquid smoke flavoring
DIRECTIONS
1. Cut the pork roast into large chunks. Season generously with the Cajun seasoning. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork, and brown on all sides. Remove from the skillet, and transfer to a slow cooker.
2. Add the onion and garlic to the skillet, and cook for a few minutes until tender. Stir in the water scraping the bottom to include all of the browned pork bits from the bottom of the pan, then pour the whole mixture into the slow cooker with the pork. Stir in liquid smoke flavoring.
3. Cover, and cook on High for 6 hours, or until meat is falling apart.

Crash Hot Potatoes
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/06/crash-hot-potatoes/

Coleslaw
INGREDIENTS
* 1 bag of shredded carrots and cabbage (by the salads in the grocery store)
* 1 cup mayonnaise
* 1/3 cup sugar
* 1/4 cup cider vinegar
DIRECTIONS
1. In a large bowl, combine cabbage and carrots. In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sugar and vinegar. Pour over cabbage mixture and toss to coat. Serve with a slotted spoon.


This was seriously one of the best dinners ever!!!
Oh and serve it with a really good piece of White Bread (the kind from the store that seems like it's homemade, but it's just the regular stuff in the bag, uh does that make any sense?!)
I like to spread the coleslaw on a piece of bread, top it with pulled pork, spread some BBQ sauce on top and then eat it like a taco. Perfection!


(Sorry you can only get this BBQ sauce at Wallaby's smokehouse in Lindon Utah)

Vanilla Pudding

1/3 cup sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/8 tsp salt
2 cups milk
2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
1 Tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla

In a medium saucepan combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Gradually stir in milk. Cook over medium heat until the mixture thickens and boils. Stir constantly. Boil for 1 minute.

In a small bowl stir 1/3 of the hot mixture into the egg yolks. then add the yolk mixture back into the hot mixture; blend well. Cook until it bubbles, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in the butter and vanilla.

Spoon into serving dishes and eat it!!! Wait for it to cool enough that it doesn't burn your mouth, but I love it best warm. You can store it in the refrigerator, but make sure you put seran wrap directly against the top of the pudding or it forms a "skin" on top. I love it most with fresh peaches (YUM). Total comfort food.

Ravioli Lasagna.

So yummy and so easy!

1 package frozen cheese ravioli (I used the Costco brand - about 36 ravioli)
1 (26 1/2 ounce) bottle spaghetti sauce (I used my husband's marinara recipe)
2 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded

Cook ravioli according to directions. In 9x13-inch dish spread a little bit of sauce at bottom (to prevent sticking). Put on ravioli, as many as will fit without being"tight". Put on more sauce and then cheese. Repeat until all ravioli is gone. I did three layers with 12 ravioli each. Bake at 375 for 20-30 minutes.

{My little two year old ate a ton of this. So good and other than baking time took me less than 25 minutes.}

pepperoni bread

So easy. Fun to dip. Kids love it.



Pepperoni Bread

1 loaf bread dough, thawed if frozen (I buy a package of frozen dough from Kroger. It has 5 loaves for a couple bucks. And it tastes yummy.)

After dough is thawed, spread on cookie sheet into a rectangle.

Combine:
1 egg
1 tsp parsley
1 tsp basil
1 tsp garlic salt
little bit of water

Brush half of egg mixture onto dough. Put sliced pepperoni down center of dough. Sprinkle with cheese (about 1 cup). Fold dough in thirds, turn over and brush with remaining egg mixture.

Bake at 375 for 25 minutes. Slice and serve with marina sauce as a dip.

cabbage soup

Yeah. I know. It doesn't sound that good. But trust me. It is delicious. So much so that my 8 year old daughter wants to take it to school for lunch. It's that good.

Cabbage Soup

1-2 lbs. ground beef (I use one)

1 onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

2 Tbsp. sugar

2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. paprika

1 Tbsp. chili powder

2 c. raw potatoes, chopped

3-4 beef bouillon cubes

1-2 cans diced tomatoes (I use 2)

1 c. raw carrots, chopped

1 small head of cabbage, chopped

Brown ground beef (drain grease, if any). Add everything EXCEPT CABBAGE. Add 1 quart of water. Once soup comes to a boil, simmer over low heat for one hour. Pour in another quart of water and return to a slow boil. Add cabbage and simmer for one hour until cabbage is tender.

Tomato and Beef Soup

Another yummy soup. Even my baby loved this one!

Ingredients:
 3 C beef broth
 2 celery ribs, chopped
 2 carrots, sliced
 1 medium onion, chopped
 2 garlic cloves, minced
 46 oz bottle V-8 juice
 14.5 oz can Italian diced tomatoes, undrained
 6 oz can Italian tomato paste
 2 T sugar
 1 T dried oregano
 1 beef bouillon cube
 1 t pepper
 1/2 t dried basil
 1/4 t garlic powder
 2 C cubed cooked beef
 2 C small pasta shells


Instructions:
1. In large pot, combine the broth, celery, carrots, onion, and garlic; bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 5-7 minutes or until the vegetables are crisp-tender.
3. Stir in the V-8 Juice, tomatoes, tomato paste, seasonings, and beef; bring to a boil.
4. Add pasta and cook for time indicated on package (10-12 minutes).

Ham and Potato Soup

This is an excellent recipe for finishing off lefover ham.

Ingredients:
3 1/2 C potatoes, peeled and diced
1/3 C celery, diced
1/3 C onion, chopped
1 1/2 C ham, chopped
2 C water
2 T chicken bouillon granules
1/2 t salt
1 t pepper
5 T butter
5 T flour
2 C milk


Instructions:
1. Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, ham, and water in a stockpot. Bring to a boil.
2. Cook over medium heat until potatoes are ten-der (about 10-15 minutes).
3. Add chicken bouillon, salt, and pepper.
4. In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat.
5. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute.
6. Slowly stir in milk; heat over medium-low heat until thick, 4-5 minutes.
7. Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through.

Bacon and Cheese Dip

8 oz cream cheese

1 and ½ cups Swiss cheese, grated

3 scallions, diced

½ cup mayo

1 tablespoon djon mustard

5 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled

Mix ingredients together, sprinkle with more swiss cheese on top, if desired. Bake at 400 degrees until bubbly (about 15 minutes). Serve hot with chips or French bread.