Author Spotlight: Ashley

I want to give a huge shout-out to one of our very own blog authors, Ashley.  This woman is truly amazing.  And, that might be selling her very short!  She is a woman, a baker, cooker (I only use "chef" for professionals in the kitchen), wife, step-mom, counselor, and graduate assistant.  She is also in school working toward her doctorate degree.  She finished her Masters in April 2010 and began her doctoral work in August of 2010.  She is truly an inspiration. She pays it forward, thinks of others, and keeps in contact with her friends despite her busy schedule.  The reason for this spotlight is because I'd like to introduce to another side of Ashley.  She is now an entrepreneur.  She has started up her very own holiday bakery, Kris Kringle Christmas Cookies.  Follow her new blog AND on facebook.  Be sure to like her on facebook, as she gives yummy goodness to random fans each week.  And, since the holidays are truly just weeks away, place your orders now!!!

Buffalo Chicken Dip

What you need:
2 (10 ounce) cans chunk chicken, drained

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup Ranch dressing
3/4 cup pepper sauce, such as Franks® Red Hot®
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

What to do:
Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low setting until hot and bubbly. Serve with french bread.

**This is not my fave Buffalo Chicken Dip recipe, but it is one I use all the time.  My fave one is a recipe of a friend of mine and I have honestly never asked for it, and I'm not sure if she would share.  This one is really good though.  Promise.

Pizza Dip

What you need:
1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1 t Italian seasoning
1 C shredded mozzarella cheese
¾ C fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1 can (8 oz) pizza sauce

Additional toppings per personal preference (pepperoni, bell pepper, olives, etc)


What to do:
Preheat oven to 350. Combine cream cheese and seasoning, and spread on bottom of 9” baking dish. Combine mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses; spread ½ of this mixture onto the cream cheese. Top with pizza sauce-and spread evenly. Sprinkle with remaining cheese mixture. Bake 15-20 minutes (until cheese has melted). Top with desired topping. Serve with cut up French bread.

Taco Dip

What you need:
1 can (16 oz) refried beans
1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese (softened)
1 C sour cream
2 T taco seasoning mix
2 garlic cloves, pressed
½ C black olives, chopped
2 T fresh cilantro
¼ C thinly sliced green onion
1 medium tomato, chopped


What to do:
Preheat oven to 350. Spread beans over bottom of 9” baking dish. Combine cream cheese, sour cream, taco seasoning, and pressed garlic. Mix well. Spread over the beans. Top with shredded cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes (until the cheese has melted). Top with tomato, onions, olives, and cilantro. Serve with tortilla chips.

Appetizers!

Get ready for some appetizers!  It is football season, after all, and what goes better with football than some tasty appetizers!?!?!  I'm hoping to post several on here, and maybe some other of our contributors will join me.

Amazing Food Blog

I've never claimed to be a chef, nor have any of the other "authors" on this blog.  However, this blog, How Sweet It Is, puts ours to shame!  The pictures are amazing (something we never incorporate) and the recipes are different and sound amazing.  I cannot wait to try this recipe. Do you have any other food blogs you love?  Please share them with us.  We're always looking for more yummy goodness!  And, if you have any recipes you'd like to share with our (small) reader list and followers, let me know.  I'd love to have new, fresh ideas on here and more authors.  We've been slacking lately, we'll all admit that.  One of our authors is a teacher and is very busy during the school year, and another is in school working on her EdD.  Slackers.

I also need to thank Bottled Beauty for the link to How Sweet It Is!  She also has great recipes, food pictures, and menus on her blog.

Swiss-Bacon BBQ Chicken

It's been a long time since any of us "cooks" have posted, so I thought I'd start us back up with an easy fall crock pot recipe.  We tried this one just a few days ago, and everyone ate it.  You have to like BBQ sauce, however.

Ingredients:
4-6 chicken breasts
1 (28 oz) bottle of your fave BBQ sauce
6 slices of swiss cheese
6 crispy cooked strips of bacon

What to do:
Put chicken in crock pot and cover with BBQ sauce.  Cook on low for 8 hours.  Top each chicken breast with a strip (or two) of bacon.  I broke each piece in half and placed them side-by-side on top.  Then top with a slice of swiss cheese.  Cook on high for 15-30 minutes until cheese is melted.  Serve with a side dish of rice or pasta and enjoy.

Hubby's addition: He would prefer more bacon and swiss.  I would have to agree on the bacon part, but of course, I could eat bacon for every meal...

Spinach and Feta Cheese Pasta Salad

1 box bow tie pasta

2 packages of Good Seasons Italian Dressing

Bag of spinach leaves

1 container of grape/cherry tomatoes- halved

Crumbled Feta cheese

1. Boil noodles

2. While noodles cooking, make dressing (following the package.... I use the less oil way and use white balsamic instead of regular vinegar).

3. Rinse noodles in cold water. Add all ingredients except for cheese and toss. Refrigerate overnight (or at least a few hours to wilt the spinach).

4. Add feta cheese when ready to serve.

Boc Choy Salad

Large bunch of Boc Choy

1 bunch of green onions

4 packs of Ramen Noodles (any flavor)

1/2 cup Almonds ( I use shaved)

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1 cup salad oil

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup vinegar

2 Tbs soy sauce

1/2 cup butter

Need 3 Bowls or (Ziplock to mix)

Bowl 1: Rinse, core, and chop Boc Choy. Break apart and add diced onions.

Bowl 2: Crush noodles while in package. Melt butter in frying pan, add noodles (throw away seasoning packets). When noodles are brown, add almonds and then sunflower seeds. (DO NOT REFRIGERATE)

Bowl 3: Whisk salad oil, vinegar, sugar and soy sauce. Put in Refrigerator. Will need to rewhisk dressing before adding to salad (it will separate).

Mix together when ready to serve.

Hashbrown Casserole

This recipe I got from one of Hubby's grandmas. It's oh so good!  Whenever I make it when family is in town, it's gone quickly.   It takes a while to bake, so if you're wanting it to go with breakfast, wake up, put it in the oven, then go back to bed! :)

What you need:
30 oz shredded hashbrowns
1/2 cup butter, melted
16 oz sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 cups shredded cheese
2 T dried minced onion

Mix first two ingredients together in large bowl.  Mix last four ingredients in smaller mixing bowl.  Combine both.  Spread evenly in a 9x13 pan and bake at 350 for 90 minutes.

Flank Steak Sammies

Oh so easy, Oh so good!

Take one flank steak and marinate it in teriyaki for 2-8 hours.  Grill (or broil) about 5 min on each side.  Remove from grill and let set while you take hot dog buns, butter them and season with garlic powder and grill until toasted.  Cut steak THIN against the grain and serve on bun as sammie.  No need for anything else on the sandwich, I swear...plenty of flavor and juices!  YUM. I tend to serve this with hashbrown casserole. 

*Makes great leftovers too!

banna bread muffins

1/2 c butter
1 1/4 c sugar
2 eggs
4tbsp sour cream
1 tsp baking soda
3 mashed bannanas
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 c flour

375...15 min for mini cupcakes, 20 for regular

broccoli casserole

1/2c chopped onion
1/2c chopped celery
1/4 stick butter
2 packages of frozen broccoli
2 c cooked rice
jar cheese whiz
1 can cream of mushroom soup

saute onion and celery with butter
mix with broccoli, cheese, and rice. pour soup over

bake at 350- 30 min....i usually cook this for holidays and cook it in the crock pot BUT it takes a while to get warm so do it early

swedish pancakes

1c flour
2c milk
1tsp sugar
2 beaten eggs
1tsp salt
1/2c melted butter
1 tsp vanilla

mix together. let stand for an hour...mixture will be very runny (makes a very thin pancake)

cook like regular pancakes...makes 4 servings

texas potatos

2-12oz frozen hash browns (shredded)
2c sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 tbsp mleted butter
1tsp salt
pepper
1 tbsp onion
2 c cheddar cheese shredded
2c crushed cornflakes mixed with 1/4c water

mix everything but cornflakes together, spread into 9x13 pan. spread cornflake mixture on top.

bake at 350- 1 hour

grape salad

4lbs red seedless grapes- washed and dried

mix 8oz of cream cheese and 8oz of sour cream. Add 1tsp vanilla and 1/2c sugar.
Fold in grapes.

You can add chopped walnuts if you like.
Best if made the night before

snickers salad

1 package of vanilla pudding
8oz cool whip
4-5 snickers cut up (or a bag of minis cut up)
1 c milk
2 apples cut up into small pieces

mix pudding, and milk, fold in cool whip. Refridgerate 4 hours. Add apple and snickers prior to serving.

If making for a party...double

double baked potatoes

cook whole, un peeled/cut potatoe for an hour at 400.
cut in half and scoop out potatoe ( i use a melon baller)
with a hand Mixer- mix potatoe, sour cream and onion dip, 1/2 stick of butter, shredded cheddar cheese until smooth.
place back into potatoe shells. sprinkle with cheddar cheese
bake at 350 for 25 min

the amounts will vary depending on how many potatoes you use.

old glory cookie

1 tube of sugar cookie dough (18oz)
11oz cream cheese
3/4 c powdered sugar
4 1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2c blueberries
2 c quartered strawberries

press dough into greased jelly roll pan. bake at 350 for 10-12 min.
beat cream cheese, sugar, and lemon juice until smooth. Frost cookie. Place blueberries and strawberries so they look like a flag (you can use any fruit you like if you dont want to make a flag)

apple slices

Crust:
2 1/2c sifted flour
1 tsp salt
cut in 1c shortening
1 egg yolk plus enough milk to = 2/3 c
mix into ball, cut in half

apple:
12c sliced apples, no skin
1/2c flour
1 1/2 c sugar
2 tsp cinnamon

roll out half of dough into jelly roll pan, cover with apples, place the remaining dough rolled out ontop. seal edges and slit top

bake 350 for 1 hour. drizzle with powder sugar icing.

Canadian Bacon Breakfast Quiche

I absolutely love this dish.  I make it for dinner, and then proceed to eat the leftovers for breakfat and/or lunch the next day.  Mmm, mmm, good!  It's simple to make, but really only satisfies about 4 people, maybe even less, if you have a big eater.

So...What you need:
frozen pie crust (usually comes in a two-pack)
4 slices of swiss cheese
4 eggs
3/4 cup milk
6 slices of canadian bacon, diced
1/4 cup green onion, diced
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tomato, sliced thin

What to do:
Place swiss cheese, overlapping, in bottom of pie crust.

Mix together remaining ingredients, minus the tomato slices.  Pour into pie crust, top with tomatoes.  Bake at 400 for 20 min, then reduce heat to 350 and bake additional 20 min.  Let it sit for 10 minutes before serving.

ENJOY!

(**This recipe is from kraftfoods.com**)

Mandy's Creamy Chicken Tacos/Mexican Chicken Chili

I figured since this meal could be eaten as tacos with tortillas or in a bowl as chili, I'd name it both.  I got this recipe from my friend Mandy Boker (yes, I know she's married now, but all my sorority sisters will forever go by their maiden names in my head).  Anyway, she gave me this UBER easy and tres tasty crockpot meal and it was good!  Hubby loved it.  Beware--it makes a lot.

What you need:
4 chicken breasts
1 full can of salsa (I used almost 2)
1 can  corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 brick cream cheese

What you do:
Dump everything into the crockpot EXCEPT the cream cheese.  Cook on low for 8 hours, shredded chicken after about 6 or 7 hours.  After 8 hours, stir in cream cheese until melted.

Put desired amount into corn or flour tortillas, or place in a bowl and happily eat with a spoon.  Top with cilantro, tomato, and sour cream (or other desired toppings) and enjoy. 

crockpot chicken

4 cans of creamy soup such as cream of broc, celary, chicken, onion, ect
dash of salt, pepper, dyhydrated onion, or any other "season" you would like
chicken breast
refridgerated biscuits (large and flaky)

Mix soup and season together, place in crockpot. lay chicken on top. cook 6-8 hours on low. With 45 min remaining place uncooked biscuit on top.

Great for breakfast...and simple too!

Depending on your family size you can adjust the amount.

Need:
1/2 stick of melted butter
1/2 c. sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon
I package refrigerated biscuits
4-8oz cream cheese


I use walmart brand biscuits (10), and make 5 muffins or if you used a larger biscuit you could make up to 10.

cut up cream cheese to the number of muffins you are making. Roll in melted butter, then roll in cinnamon/sugar mixture. If you are using large biscuits, sound the cream cheese with one. If you are using smaller ones, use two to surround cream cheese. Place in greased muffin pan. pour left over butter on top, sprinkle left over sugar on top. Bake at 350 for 15 min

Menu, Menu...What's on YOUR Menu!?

To make things easier, I used to make a "meal plan", or menu, if  you will.  It cuts down on the "what do you want for dinner?" "I don't know.  What do you want for dinner?"  "Hm, what can we make?" ordeal that occurs at 6pm at night.  It also allows me to be creative, inspires me to look through cookbooks and recipes online, and helps with grocery lists--makes them specific and eliminates many side trips to the store.  I did this regularly after Kate was born and before Rowe.  Since then, it had gone to the wayside.  Well, in January I started that again, and it's been SO helpful.  I plan our meals better, and do all the other pros above--am more budget friendly when going to the store, creative, inspired, and actually COOK!  I also plan for leftovers as well to help cut down on the fridge becoming a tupperware and gladware convention and then just tossing out tons of food on Wednesday mornings for garbage day.  It also keeps me from getting in that rut of cooking the same few things over and over again.  Hubby and I tend to get into a chicken rut...Chicken This, Chicken That, which is fine if I can get more creative vs. just serving marinated chicken with pasta or rice.  So, to give you an idea, here is our menu for February and March...

I will go and make changes in need be, and save the menu over and over, but for the most part, we stick to the menu.  Another friend gave me this tool, which I found useful in order to keep track of your fave recipes according to main ingredients:

Hope this is helpful!

Labels

I have gone through all of the posts on here and added labels for an easier find to recipes with specific ingredients.  You can see the labels on the side bar to the left and simply click on an item or category to get you to recipes with ingredients you want.  Hope this is helpful!

Peachy Pork Chops

6 boneless pork chops, browned

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 can (8oz) tomato sauce

1/4 cup syrup from drained peaches

1/4 cup vinegar

1 can (29 oz) peaches

Combine brown sugar, cinnamon, tomato sauce, peach syrup and vinegar. Salt and pepper pork chops to taste.

Brown pork chops on each side before adding to crock pot.

Place peaches on top of pork chops, then pour mixture over. Cover, cook on low 4-6 hours.

***I used lite canned peaches***

recipe from cdkitchen website

Taco Soup

1 lb extra-lean ground beef ( I used ground turkey)

1 onion, chopped

3 cans (15.5 oz each) mild chili beans, undrained

1 can (14.5 oz) whole tomatoes undrained

1 can (14.25 oz ) corn, undrained

1 can (8oz) tomato sauce

1 pkg Taco Seasoning

1 1/2 cups water

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Brown meat and drain. Add onions and salt and pepper to taste and heat for a few minutes. Add all remaining ingredients except cheese; stir, breaking up tomatoes with spoon. Bring to boil; simmer on medium low heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Top with cheese, sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips.

A few modifications: I used ground turkey instead of beef. For the corn I used mexicorn and the beans I used some cans hot and some mild. What really made this yummy....I used mexican four cheese with a touch of philadelphia.

Kraft foods recipe

Garlic and Chicken

What you need:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 garlic bulb; cloves separated and peeled
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup caesar dressing
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

What to do:
Heat a large non-stick skillet on medium-high heat.  Make sure skillet is hot before adding the chicken and garlic.  Cook for 2 minutes and flip chicken, cook an additional 2 minutes.  Stir in broth and dressing.  Cover and cook for 8 more minutes, flipping chicken half way through.  Turn off heat and top with cheese.  Let stand for a minute or two before serving.

While the garlic might seem like it would be overwhelming due to how much you use, believe me...it's subtle and tasty.  I served this with onion roasted potatoes and ranch-slaw.  Pretty good (will upload a pic of our meal tomorrow).

French Onion Pork Skillet

We had this meal on Friday and thought it was pretty good, however, both Hubby and I agreed that the stuffing over-powered the pork and onion.  Not sure how to fix that, so if you have any suggestions, we'll take 'em!  And, it didn't really taste "French Onion"-like to me, but I may be wrong...

Food you need:
6 boneless pork chops
2 onions, thinly sliced

3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 pkg.  (6 oz. ) Stuffing Mix for Chicken

1-1/2 cups hot water

1 cup  Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

What to do:

Heat large nonstick skillet sprayed with cooking spray on medium-high heat. Add chops and onions; cook 10 min. or until chops are done, turning chops and stirring onions after 5 min. Remove chops from skillet. Cook and stir onions 5 min. or until golden brown. Stir in Worcestershire sauce. Return chops to skillet; top with onion mixture. Mix stuffing mix and water; spoon around edge of skillet. Top with cheese; cover. Cook 5 min. or until cheese is melted.

**This is a recipe from Kraft Foods, with slight alterations**

Artichoke Chicken

1 10-13 oz can of artichokes

1 C Parm Cheese

3/4 C Mayo (not Miracle Whip)

Garlic Chopped (to taste)

Skinless, boneless chicken breasts

bread crumbs

Drain and chop the artichokes. Combine with cheese, mayo, and garlic. Spread on top of chicken breasts. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Cook in 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes (I used large chicken breasts so it took longer....I tested with a thermometer and it took about 40-45 minutes). The last few minutes you can put in broiler to crisp bread crumbs.

I served with a vegetable and rice pilaf. Enjoy!

Crockpot Sauerkraut Pork

This is a recipe I got over 6 years ago from a good friend who is a great cook.  I FINALLY tried it last week.  I didn't attempt to have the girls eat it, and was pretty unsure of it myself, but Hubby and I loved it!!!

Take a pork roast, season it with salt and pepper and sear it on all four sides.  Place a bag/jar of sauerkraut (do not drain) in a crockpot and place pork in, covering it with most of the 'kraut.  Cook on low for 7 hours.  Add canned whole potatoes (drained) and cook for 1 more hour.  Serve.  Simple. Cheap. Good.