Marlboro Man's Second Favorite Sandwich

We had this for supper. Yum! Credits go to The Pioneer Woman so if you want pictures of everystep, check out her blog. (I should have taken a photo, bummer.)

Chicken, Bacon, & Cheese Sandwich

Chicken breast
Pepper bacon (Walmart brand is actually very good.)
Lemon pepper
Sliced cheese (whatever kind you want: American, Swiss, Provelone)
Bun or roll

Fry bacon in skillet over medium heat until almost crunchy (or however you like it.) Drain on paper towel. Pour out almost all grease; leave about one Tablespoon. Pound chicken to even thickness (so that it cooks evenly.) Sprinkle lemon-pepper on both sides of chicken. Cook chicken in hot skillet for about 4 minutes or until the edges go opaque. Flip. Arrange bacon on cooked side of chichen. Lay cheese on top of bacon. Cover and cook for a few more minutes, until the cheese is very melty. Serve on bun or roll. Condiment suggestions: honey mustard, mayo, or bbq sauce.

Tonight's Dinner

I am not sure if you like fish (I don't, but I like this), but this type of fish always goes on sale at Meijer (frozen) and this recipe was very good, and it is healthy (if you use a good butter substitute)!!


Baked Tilapia

4 tilapia fillets
3 T. Butter, melted
3 T. lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 -1/2 cup of chopped cucumber
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp paprika


Place tilapia in an ungreased 9x13 pan. Combine butter, lemon juice, garlic powder, salt; pour over the fillets. Sprinkle with the cucumbers, oregano, and paprika.
Bake at 425 for 15-20 mins or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Can you tell it is FALL??

This is something I make up if I am cold on a rainy fall night. So good to curl up on the couch with a good book. Oh, how I love FALL!!

CARAMEL Apple Cider

1 mug of Apple Cider
1 Tbsp of brown Sugar
a big squirt of caramel topping (about 2 Tbsp)

Microwave Apple Cider until hot (make sure it is really hot b/c you are going to be adding Caramel that was in your fridge.) Add brown sugar and caramel topping and stir. This is so good!! I just love it! Enjoy!!

Just a little something!

So this is what I brought this past Sunday for lunch. I just dump, so have fun guessing how much you are supposed to put in.

Italian Pasta!!! (mmm... delizioso)


1 lb of Tri-colored spiral Pasta
1 Cup of Italian Dressing (I usually add a bit more before I serve it b/c it always dries up a tad)
Cucumber, cut & skinned
Pepperonis, quartered
Celery Salt (about a tsp)
Parsley (about a Tbsp)
Garlic Powder (about a tsp)
Onion Salt (about 1/2 tsp)
Ground Mustard (about 1/8 tsp)
Parmesan Cheese

Cook Pasta. In large bowl combine all spices. Add dressing, stir. Add cooled off Pasta, stir. Add Pepperonis and Cucumbers, stir. Top with some Parmesan Cheese. Chill. Enjoy!!

Just that easy!!

best EVER french toast

This recipe came from Leah Cleveland. The 1st time she gave it to me I thought "nasty"! I thought it sounded so gross I didn't even keep it. The reason I found it so unappetizing was because when I read "texas toast" all I could think of was the texas toast garlic bread. Well ladies, don't be deceived as I was...texas toast is just thicker cut bread! Mom, how come you never taught me that? :) Anyway, this is what Leah brought to our girlfriend brunch, and yeah, it was AMAZING!
Also, as Leah pointed out, this is a huge time saver because you don't need to fry them 2 or 3 at a time but you can do the whole loaf and the whole family can eat at the same time.

TEXAS TOAST

1 loaf texas toast (thick slices)
1 c milk
3 eggs beaten
1/2 c butter
2/3 c brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

***NOTE***if you can fit 12 slices of bread on your cookie sheet you will run a little short on egg mixture. Add 1 more egg and 1/3 more cup of milk.

Melt butter & pour over a 10x15x1" pan.
Combine brown sugar & cinnamon & sprinkle over pan.
Combine milk & eggs.
Soak bread in egg mixture & lay on top of sugar/butter mix in pan.
Cover entire pan with soaked bread.

Bake @ 350 for 25 min.
(May cover w/ foil, store in fridge & bake in the morning.)

If you have left-overs, they are good in your lunch the next day. Just warm up in the microwave, pour a little maple syrup on them and enjoy!

Fall Festivities

This is what I made for Sunday dinner this week...glad you all liked it! :)

Double Layer Pumpkin Pie

4 oz cream cheese 1 Tbsp milk
1 Tbsp sugar 1 (8oz) whipped topping
1 graham cracker crust 1 c milk
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin 2 (4 serv ea) pkg instant vanilla pudding
1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves

Mix cream cheese, 1 Tbsp milk & sugar in large bowl with whisk until well blended.
Gently stir in 1/2 whipped topping. Spread into crust. Pour 1 c milk into large bowl. Add pumpkin, dry pudding mixes and spices. Beat with wire whisk until well blended. Mixture will be thick. Spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate 4 hours or until set. Top with reserved whipped topping.

Brunch

I made this recipe this weekend for my girlfriends and it was so yummy!

Sausage & Peppers Brunch Bake

2 pkg (7 oz ea) frozen toaster hash brown patties, thawed (8 patties)
***I couldn't find toaster hash browns anywhere...just reg Meijer patties worked great!
1 jar (12 oz) sweet roasted red peppers, drained & patted dry, then diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 lb hot Italian turkey sausage, casing removed (or 16 oz b-fast sausage)
6 oz cream cheese, softened
¾ cup milk
12 eggs
1 T fresh parsley
¼ t ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 350*. Spray 9x13 pan. Arrange hash brown patties in a single layer on bottom.
Chop onion and cook with sausage.
Break sausage into crumbles; drain.
Whisk cream cheese and milk until completely smooth. Add eggs, parsley & black pepper; whisk until smooth.
Spoon sausage mixture over hash browns; sprinkle with red pepper. Pour egg mixture over peppers
Bake 45-50 minutes or until center of egg mixture is set. Remove from oven; let stand 10 minutes.

*This recipe can be prepared up to 1 day ahead. Prepare recipe as directed. Refrigerate, covered, overnight. When ready to serve, preheat oven to 325* and bake 55 minutes to 1 hour or until egg mixture is set.

These are SO good!

I haven't made these but I have had them a few times. This is Michelle Dykstra's recipe.

Western Potato Rounds

2 large unpeeled baking potatoes
1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Co-Jack cheese
6 bacon slices, crisply cooked, drained and crumbled
1/4 cup barbecue sauce

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut potatoes into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Brush both sides of slices with oil and place on a stone. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned; remove from oven.
Generously brush potato slices with barbecue sauce. Spread crumbled bacon on slices and follow that with cheese.
Return potato slices to the oven and bake for another 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

More soup!

This is a Becky Higgins recipe, with a few changes.

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

2 chicken bouillon cubes
2 cans chicken broth (29 oz)
1 c. chopped carrots
2 c. chopped celery
1/4 c. chopped onion
1/2 can cream of chicken soup
1/4 c. milk
1/2 cube (4 Tbsp.) butter
1/4 c. flour
2 c. chopped cooked chicken (2 pieces)
4-6 oz. egg noodles (4 cups)

Boil chicken until fully cooked. Cook egg noodles. Dissolve 2 bouillon cubes in 4 cup boiling water. Add chicken broth and vegetables to the liquid. Boil until tender. In separate bowl, whisk a half a can of cream of chicken soup and milk until smooth. Whisk soup and milk mixture into broth and vegetables. Melt butter then stir into flour. Add to soup mixture. Add chicken and noodles. Optional: Season to taste with salt & pepper or Schillings garlic & herb seasoning.

PIZZA! PIZZA!

This is a yummy pizza sauce that is supposed to taste like Pizza Hut:

Pizza Sauce

1 15oz. can tomato sauce
1/4 t. dried oregano
1/4 t. dried basil leaves
1/4 t. dried thyme
1/4 t. garlic powder
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
1/2 t. lemon juice
dash of onion powder
1/2 T. sugar

Combine all ingredients in saucepan. Heat suace until it starts to bubble. Decrease heat and simmer, covered for 1 hour to thicken.

this one is from MOM

After much stress and aggravation Mom was finally able to reset her password and get on this blog! BUT since just resetting the password took a phone call to her daughter and brought on many sighs and moans and groans, we thought it best for her to have 'live' training on how to add posts. I am adding a recipe that I have that she lost and wants back. But be sure to know...this one originated with mom...it is her recipe! :) that good enough mom?
Here it is...mom's 1st addition to this blog!

SPICED APPLE CIDER
1 gal apple cider
1 qt cranberry juice
1 t cinnamon
2 cinnamon sticks
1 t whole clove
½ cup brown sugar

Pour cider and juice into percolator.
Put rest of ingredients in top.
Percolate about 1 hour

This is SO Fun!

I have been looking through my recipes and most of them look boring or not at all original. This one is from Taste of Home light but I changed it a bunch. The kids like it and it doesn't have ground beef in it so it gets a yeah from me.


WHITE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

8 corn tortillas
4 oz. cream cheese
1 T. +1 c. milk
1 t. ground cumin
3 cups cubed cooked chicken breast
½ cup chopped green onions
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 c. sour cream
¼ t. cayenne pepper
½ c. shredded cheddar cheese

Wrap tortillas in foil and bake at 350* for 3-5 minutes. In large bowl, combine cream cheese, 1 T. milk and cumin until smooth. Stir in chicken. In skillet coated with cooking spray, sauté onions until softened. Stir into chicken mixture. In another bowl, combine soup, sour cream, cayenne and 1 c. milk. Stir 2 T. soup mixture into chicken mixture. Place 1/3 c. chicken mixture in each tortilla and roll. Place in greased 9x13 pan. Top with remaining soup mixture. Cover and bake at 350* for 30 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 5 more minutes.

This recipe also came from Taste of Home, Ultimate Cookie Collection

Raspberry Swirls

1 c. butter, softened
2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1/2 t. lemon extract
3&3/4 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
12 oz. seedless raspberry jam
1 c. coconut
1/2 c. chopped pecans

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and extracts, mix well. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

Divide dough in half. Lightly flour the counter top, and roll each half into 9x12 rectangle. Combine jam, coconut, and pecans; spread over rectangles. Carefully rol up rectangle jelly-roll style, starting with the long side; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate over night or freeze for 2-3 hours. (Freeze them up to 6 months for cookies later in the year, without the preparation.)

Unwrap and cut into 1/4 inch sliced; place 1&1/2 inches apart on parchement paper lined baking sheets. Bake 375 for 10-12 minutes. Cool on wire racks. (A hint for cutting: after you cut a slice rotate roll a quarter turn to keep the roll round.)

Awesome Summer Cookie

i got this recipe from the Taste of Home Ultimate Cookie Collection book. i absolutly love these.

Soft Lemonade Cookies

1 c. butter, softened
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
3 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
6 oz. frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed, divided
additional sugar

Cream butter and sugar, add eggs. Combine flour and baking soda, add to creamed mixture alternately with 1/3 c. of lemonade concentrate. Mix well.

Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake 400 for 8 minutes. Remove to wire racks. Brush with ramaining lemonade concentrate, sprinkle with sugar. Cool.

FYI:

I already LOVE this blog!

Holiday Treats...what?...EVERYDAY treats!

Although this really is Kara's recipe, I thought I would share it, simply because I am pretty sure that she is still to bitter to even think about these tasty treats! :)

Whenever I get recipes by way of email, I always keep the little side notes that they put in. Sometimes it makes it hard to fit on the recipe card but I don't care, because it always brings on a smile the next time you make them...got to hold on to those good memories!

Kara - are we going to make these this year?


Chocolate Covered Cherries

60 Maraschino cherries with stems
2 cups powdered sugar
3 T butter, softened
3 T light corn syrup
¼ t salt
2 cup (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
2 T shortening

Pat cherries dry with paper towels, set aside. In a small mixing bowl, combine the sugar, butter, corn syrup and salt; mix well. Knead until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Roll into ½ in balls; flatten each into a 2 in circle. Wrap each circle around a cherry and lightly roll in hands. Place cherries with stems up on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Cover loosely and refrigerate for 1 hour.Melt chocolate chips and shortening; stir until smooth. Dip cherries into chocolate; set on waxed paper. Refrigerate until hardened. Store in covered container. Refrigerate for 1-2 weeks before serving. Keep out of reach of 2 hungry dogs. :)

Calling all Sangria LOVERS

Red Sangria

· 1 Bottle of red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Rioja, Zinfandel, Shiraz)
· 1 Lemon cut into wedges
· 1 Orange cut into wedges
· 1 Lime cut into wedges
· 2 Tbsp sugar
· Splash of orange juice
· 2 Shots of gin or triple sec
· 1 Cup of sliced strawberries or raspberries (may use thawed or frozen)
· 1 Small can of diced pineapples (with juice)
· 4 Cups ginger ale

***Suggested addition: Brandy

No New Recipes?!?!?

I have so many other AMAZING recipes...but...they all say "from the kitchen of: Kara or Laura or Betsy"! Good thing my bestest sisters are all adding recipes to this blog; now I can collect even more fabulous food ideas. Someday I will start to cook and use them all! :)

Feel free to make requests on here...I look through my recipes and they all look old and drab.

mmmmm...cold weather remedy

Cold weather is here...this is a yummy warm-you-upper!

White Hot Chocolate
1 qt (4 cups) Milk
3 oz White Chocolate Chips
2 T Sugar
2 t Vanilla
1/4 t Almond Flavoring

Heat all ingredients together is in sauce pan until chocolate melts.
*note ~ not to quickly, you don't want to scald your milk!
Makes 4 cups

We are all going to be FAT! (who am I kidding, why did I put that in the past tense?)

This is a recipe I found got from... drum roll please... Taste of Home Quick Cooking... you might see that a lot in my posts!! We got a quarter of a cow from Uncle J this year, and since you get all sorts of different meats, that means I need to find NEW recipes! This one struck my fancy, and I JUST love it. It is a PERFECT fall dinner.

APPLE CIDER BEEF STEW

4 cups frozen Vegetables for Stew (about 24 oz)
1 can (8 oz) sliced water chestnuts, drained (I didn't put these in b/c I don't care for them.
1 can (4 1/2 oz) sliced mushrooms, drained
1 T dried minced onion
2 envelopes of brown gravy mix
2 T dry onion soup mix
2 T Steak Seasoning (we have McCormick's Montreal Steak Seasoning in our house so that is what I used)
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
2 lbs beef stew meat (or cut any roast in 1 inch chunks)
1 can (14 1/2 oz) beef broth
1 1/4 cups apple cider
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1 bay leaf
3 T cornstarch
1/3 cup cold water

Place vegetables, water chestnuts, mushrooms and onion in a crock pot. In large resealable plastic bag, combine the gravy mix, soup mix, steak seasoning and cinnamon; add beef, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat. Add to crock pot.
Pour broth, cider and tomato sauce over beef in crock pot. Add bay leaf. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until meat is tender.
Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; stir into stew. Cover and cook on high for 15 mins or until thickened. Discard bay leaf.

PEACHES make a great PIZZA

(I know I sent this in e-mail form, but I thought I would add it to our blog. This recipe is from Taste of Home Quick Cooking)

Peaches & Cream Pizza

1 tube (8oz) refrigerated crescent roll dough (or package of refrigerated sugar cookie dough)
1 pkg (8oz) cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 can (21oz) peach pie filling
(or this is the recipe I used to make my own)
- 3 peaches
- 3 T cornstarch
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- Mix all of the ingredients together. Cook until mixture is thickened.
1/2 cup Flour
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
3 T Cold Butter
Unroll dough and press into greased 12 in pizza pan (I used a jelly roll pan, and didn't fill the whole thing) Bake at 375 for 8-10 mins or until edges are golden. Cool slightly.
Beat cream cheese, sugar and extract until smooth. Spread over crust. Top with pie filling. Combine flour, brown sugar; cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over peaches. Bake for 25 mins or until golden brown. Serve hot or cold.

Chili Soup

Chili Soup

2 lbs. ground beef
1 sm. onion
1 15 oz. can chili beans
2 cans tomato soup
1 cup salsa (I used fresh)
2 t. chili powder (could use more but the kids don't like spicy)
8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 soup can water

Brown ground beef and onion in Lg. saucepan. Drain. Add the rest of the ingredients. Simmer 1 hr.

Mexican Chicken and Tortilla Soup

Everybody liked this one, and it's super easy.

MEXICAN CHICKEN AND TORTILLA SOUP

1 ½ lb cubed chicken breast (browned)
2 cans condensed Fiesta nacho cheese soup
2 cans condensed Cream of Chicken soup
1 can condensed Cheddar cheese soup
2 ½ soup cans of milk
1 lg.can enchilada sauce (mild)
Crushed tortilla chips
Shredded cheddar cheese

Brown chicken breast and set aside. Combine all other ingredients except the tortilla chips and cheddar cheese. Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring at all times. Garnish servings with shredded cheddar cheese and crushed tortilla chips.

What's Cooking for Dinner?

I got this from Mom.

TACO SOUP

1/2 c. water
1 package taco seasoning
4 c. vegtable juice
1 c. chunky salsa
1 lb. ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped

Brown meat with onion. Combine everythink in the crock-pot.

Cook low for 6-8 hours.

Serve with lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, green onions, chives, sour cream, and corn chips.

Start with Dessert

For the first post, I think I'll start with dessest. (This recipe is from Kraftfoods.)

Molten Chocolate Cakes

1 cup chocolate chips
1 1/2 sticks of butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 eggs (I used 4 because they were small.)
3 egg yolks (4 again)
1/2 cup +1 Tablespoon flour

Preheat oven to 425. Grease 15 muffin cups.

Microwave chocolate and butter in large bowl on HIGH for 1 minute or until butter is melted. Stir with wire whisk until chocolate is completely melted. Stir in sugar until well blended. Blend in eggs and egg yolks with wire whisk. Stir in flour. Pour into muffin tins.

Bake 10+ minutes until sides are firm but centers are soft. Let stand 1 minute. Carefully run small knife around cakes to loosen. Invert cakes onto dessert dishes. Serve immediately, topped with ice cream (and caramel)

*If you make ahead, let stand at room temperature 1 hour before baking to prevent burning.