Thursday, December 27, 2018

Chex Candied Party Mix


INGREDIENTS
2 cubes butter, (1 c.)
1 1/3 c. white sugar
1/2 c. light Karo Syrup
8 c. Chex cereal

DIRECTIONS
Line a baking sheet with wax paper and set aside.

Melt butter on low in a saucepan. Add syrup and sugar. Bring to a soft ball stage and then remove from heat. Pour sauce over Chex cereal and stir until completely mixed. Spread mixture onto baking sheet. Cool completely.

Olive Dip


INGREDIENTS
2 small cans diced green chilis
2 small cans chopped olives
1 tomato, diced
1 bunch scallions, chopped (about 6 stalks)
2 tsp. garlic salt
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/4 c. red wine vinegar

DIRECTIONS
Add above ingredients into a food processor and mix until combined; still chunky. Serve over toasted baguettes.

Peach Dipping Sauce


INGREDIENTS
1 c. peach preserves
3 T. rice wine vinegar
2 T. Dijon mustard
1 T. grated fresh ginger
1 tsp. red pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS
Combine all ingredients and refrigerate for several hours to allow flavors to blend.

*I have also used apricot preserves. And, if you cannot find rice wine vinegar; use 1 1/2 T. rice vinegar and 1 1/2 T. wine vinegar. Add more red pepper flakes if you like a little more kick.

Monday, November 12, 2018

Mango Salsa


INGREDIENTS
2 large ripe mangoes, diced
1 small cucumber, diced
2/3 c. red onion, chopped
1/2 c. cilantro, chopped
1 large jalapeño, seed and diced
2 limes, juiced
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
tortilla chips

DIRECTIONS
Combine above ingredients into a bowl. Best if you cover and let sit in the refrigerator for a couple hours but sometimes we can't wait that long! Serve with tortilla chips.

Cream Cheese Rangoon


INGREDIENTS
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 T. scallions, minced
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
24 wonton wrappers
oil

DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl mix cream cheese, scallions and garlic powder together. Preheat a couple inches of oil in a deep pot to 350 degrees. Put 1 T. of cream cheese mixture into the middle of a wonton wrapper. Add water to the edges of the wrapper and then push the 4 centers of each side into the middle and press them firmly together. Once the middle is connected from all 4 sides, connect the wings coming out from the middle. Let wontons sit until all have been made and then fry the driest wontons first. Cook until golden brown.







Low Carb Cheesy Spaghetti Squash


INGREDIENTS
1 medium spaghetti squash 
2.5 T. minced garlic
1 tsp. olive oil
5 oz. fresh spinach, chopped
1/2 c. heavy cream
1 T. cream cheese
1/2 c. freshly grated parmesan cheese plus extra for topping
salt and pepper to taste
grated or sliced mozzarella for topping to taste

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Rub olive oil onto the inside of the squash and place cut side down onto a baking dish. Cook approximately 40 minutes or until tender and easily pierced with a fork. While the squash is roasting, prepare sauce. In a medium pot bring a drizzle of olive oil to medium-high heat and sauté garlic until fragrant. Add spinach to the garlic and stir until wilted. Add cream, cream cheese and parmesan cheese. Stir until melted. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat. Once squash is done roasting, allow to cool until you can handle it enough to fork and separate the strands of the spaghetti squash. Pour sauce over each squash boat, stir to mix and then top with mozzarella cheese and additional parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes or until hot and bubbly. The last couple of minutes, flip on the broiler in the oven and cook the top of the dish until lightly browned. 


Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas


INGREDIENTS
2 cans cream of chicken soup diluted with 1/4 c. milk
1- 3 oz. can diced green chilis
1 pint sour cream
1 onion finely chopped
1 lb. grated cheese (5 cups)
2 c. chopped cooked chicken
1 pkg. 8 inch flour tortillas

DIRECTIONS
Mix soup, chilies and sour cream together for sauce. Sauté onion until translucent and add to chicken. Spoon chicken mixture into the middle of tortillas. Add one spoonful of sauce and sprinkle with grated cheese. Roll up and put in greased 9x13 baking dish. Repeat. Top rolled tortillas with remaining sauce and sprinkle with 1 c. grated cheese. Cover dish with tinfoil and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.




Saturday, July 28, 2018

Chocolate Zucchini Banana Muffins


INGREDIENTS
1/2 c. butter, melted
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. sugar
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 medium banana, mashed (about 1/2 cup)
1 1/2 c. grated zucchini
1/2 c. chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

Melt butter in a microwave safe mixing bowl. Add both sugars, egg, vanilla and stir to combine.

Measure flour into bowl and sprinkle baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg over the flour. Using a whisk, lightly stir dry ingredients together until flour mixture is incorporated into the batter. Add mashed banana and zucchini and stir until combined. Fold chocolate chips into the batter.

Divide batter evenly into muffin cups, filling about 3/4 full. Bake approx. 15-20 minutes.

Friday, July 27, 2018

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins


INGREDIENTS
3 (1 oz) squares unsweetened chocolate
3 large eggs
2 c. white sugar
1 c. vegetable oil
2 c. grated zucchini
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners. In microwave-safe bowl, microwave unsweetened chocolate until melted. Stir occasionally until chocolate is smooth.

In mixer, combine eggs, sugar, oil, grated zucchini, vanilla and melted chocolate. Beat well. Stir in the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Fill each muffin cup 2/3 full with batter. Bake for 18 minutes.

Radishes



INGREDIENTS
radishes
olive oil
lemon juice
sea salt

DIRECTIONS
Slice radishes and drizzle with a little olive oil, fresh lemon juice and sea salt.

Nana's Baked Beans


INGREDIENTS
1 c. onion, chopped
5 (15 oz) cans pork and beans
1 (15 oz) can chili
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 T. molasses
1/2 c. ketchup
1 lb. bacon, fried and crumbled

DIRECTIONS
Sauté onion in 2 T. oil. Combine pork and beans, chili, brown sugar, molasses, ketchup, sautéed onion and bacon in a large bowl. Pour into a large casserole dish and bake at 325 degrees for 2 hours. (can also be cooked in a crockpot)

Riley's Alfredo Recipe


INGREDIENTS
1/2 c. butter (1 stick)
2 T. white base soup mix or substitute with cream cheese
1 pint heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste (around 1/4 tsp. or less of each)
2/3 c. dry grated parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS
In medium sized pan, melt butter and then add minced garlic.  Stir, and then add the white base soup mix or cream cheese. Stir in heavy whipping cream, garlic powder, grated parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Simmer for 15-20 minutes on low heat, stirring consistently. Do not let temperature rise more than 165 degrees or soup will break. If sauce is too thin, you can add more parmesan cheese or slowly dissolve a simple rue. Let stand for 3-5 minutes before serving to let sauce thicken up.

Simple rue (only if needed): Mix 3 T. room temperature softened butter and 3 T. all-purpose flour. Whisk and dissolve into hot sauce to help thicken.

Tuesday, April 17, 2018

Tayler’s Solid Chocolate Cake



Tayler REALLY wanted a solid chocolate cake for her birthday this year. We melted chocolate bars and filled 2 lined cake pans with melted chocolate. After the chocolate was re-set we removed them from the pans and set one on top of the other.

 Tayler thought it would be fun to use Kit Kat bars to line the outside of the cake so we used melted chocolate to "glue" the Kit Kat bars to the cake.



The cake needed color so we thought it would be fun to added red sprinkles, Hersey's hugs and chocolate covered strawberries.  She LOVED her cake and we had fun making it together.

Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings



INGREDIENTS
Frozen Chicken Wings
Canola or Vegetable oil
Salt
Pepper

Franks Hot Sauce
Ranch or Bleu Cheese dressing



DIRECTIONS 
Turn oven on to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Dump chicken wings into a separate bowl and pour 2-4 T. oil over chicken wings (depending on how many you plan to cook). Season chicken with salt and pepper and toss until chicken is evenly coated. Take chicken pieces out of the bowl and line them onto cookie sheet. Place in oven and cook for approximately 1 1/2 hrs. We like our chicken wings crispy on the outside and well done. If using thawed chicken wings, reduce cook time to approx. 40 minutes. Drizzle Franks sauce over chicken pieces and eat with preferred salad dressing.



Garlic Bubble Bread


INGREDIENTS
2 lbs. frozen Rhodes rolls, thawed
1/3 c. butter, melted
1/4 tsp. dried basil, crushed
2 T. fresh parsley, chopped
2 T. green onions, chopped
2 tsp. garlic, minced
1 T. parmesan cheese, freshly grated

DIRECTIONS
Grease bundt pan and arrange thawed rolls into the pan. In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, basil, parsley, green onions and garlic. Pour over the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and a towel and let rise until doubled in size.



Sprinkle cheese over bread. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool in pan for 10 minutes. Turn out onto a serving plate. Pull apart to serve.

Frito Corn Salad


 INGREDIENTS
2 cans corn (drained)
1 c. mayonnaise
1/4 c. chopped red onion
1/2 c. chopped red and green bell pepper
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1-2 T. finely chopped jalapeño (optional if you want to add some heat)

1 bag Chili Fritos

DIRECTIONS
Combine everything into a bowl except the Fritos. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Add Fritos at the last minute to avoid becoming soggy or serve Fritos on the side and add to individual plates as desired.






King Crab Legs


INGREDIENTS
thawed king crab legs
1 c. whole peppercorns
1 c. soy sauce

1/2 c. butter
2 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice

DIRECTIONS

We like to use a giant pot outside to cook crab legs. If allows you a lot of space to work with and doesn't smell the kitchen up with a fishy smell. Fill a large pot a little less than 3/4 full with water. Add peppercorns and soy sauce and bring to a boil. Add crab legs and cook for 5 minutes. Use large tongs to remove the crab legs and let rest in a colander for several minutes until you are able to hold them in your hands to crack the shell and pull out the meat. We like to use heavy duty kitchen shears to cut the shell and my husband does all the work so yay for the rest of us!!


Heat butter in a smaller bowl until melted and add lemon juice. Use this as a dipping sauce for your crab meat.

Arugula Salad


My current favorite salad is anything with Arugula. I love this recipe because it is healthy and light and I always find myself going back for another serving. 

INGREDIENTS
1 container Arugula
1 c. Fresh shaved or shredded Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 c. Strawberries, sliced
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Lemon

DIRECTIONS
For the dressing: Combine 1/3 c. EVOO, 1/3 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice, and freshly ground salt and pepper (to taste).

Add arugula, parmesan cheese and sliced strawberries to a bowl. Add desired amount of dressing to the salad or to individual servings on plates.