Jun23

Zesty Macaroni Salad

Posted on by
Standard

DSCN0663

Ingredients

  • 3 cups cooked macaroni
  • 2 cups cooked corn
  • 1 can Ro-Tel Original Diced Tomatoes and Green Chiles, undrained
  • 1/2 cup onion, diced
  • 1/4 cup, plus 2 tbsp taco sauce
  • 1/2 cup vinaigrette dressing
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • Old Bay Garlic and Herb Seasoning

Directions

Combine pasta, corn, tomatoes and onion in a medium sauce bowl.  Add taco sauce, dressing, and sugar; mix well. Sprinkle the top with Old Bay Garlic and Herb seasoning. Refrigerate for at least one hour before serving. Add more dressing if necessary.

Modified from: Ro-Tel

Jun22

Lemon Ice

Posted on by
Standard

lemonice

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 cups lemon juice
  • Lemon slices

    • Directions:

    In a large saucepan over low heat, cook and stir sugar and water until sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat; stir in lemon juice. Pour into a freezer container. Freeze for 4 hours, stirring every 30 minutes, or until mixture becomes slushy. Garnish servings with lemon slice.  Yield: 6 servings.

    From: Taste of Home

    Jun20

    Cinnamon Strips

    Posted on by
    Standard

    DSCN0628I love this recipe! It’s so easy and delicious! Frying them took a little practice- the first few were a little too brown.  But once I got it, they were amazing! I could eat something with cinnamon every day.

     Scott and the kids loved these, too. A fast and easy way to make a happy family. 🙂

     

     

     

     

     

    Cinnamon Strips

    Ingredients

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 10 flour tortillas (8 inches)
  • Vegetable oil

    • Directions

    In a large resealable plastic bag, combine sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg; set aside. 
    Cut tortillas into 3-in. x 2-in. strips. Heat 1 in. of oil in a skillet or electric fry pan to 375°; fry 4-5 strips at a time for 30 seconds on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.  While still warm, place strips in bag with sugar mixture; shake gently to coat. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container. 

    Yield: 5 dozen.

    From: Taste of Home

    Jun20

    Pigs in a Blanket

    Posted on by
    Standard

    This recipe barely qualifies as cooking… all you do is wrap hot dogs in pre-made crescent roll dough.  But they were a big hit with the kids (and Scott!) and worth making instead of fixing frozen ones.  On the table in 15 minutes!

    Pigs in a Blanket

    DSCN0804 

    Ingredients

    • 1 can refrigerated crescent rolls
    • 4 hot dogs
    • ketchup
    • mustard

    Directions

    Preheat oven to 375 F. Separate dough into 8 triangles.

    Cut each hot dog in half crosswise. Place each hot-dog half on the wide end of the roll and roll it up. Space the hot-dog rolls evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

    Bake approximately 13-15 minutes until the rolls are brown and flaky. Let cool for a few minutes before serving with ketchup and/or mustard.

    From: Food Network

    Jun20

    Warm Bacon Potato Salad

    Posted on by
    Standard

    NY0410-1_Warm-Bacon-Potato-Salad_s4x3_med

    I decided to make this at the last minute on Easter Sunday after seeing it made on Down Home with the Neelys the day before.  It looked so good and we had all of the ingredients to make it except for the dill and course grained mustard. I was so glad I tried this- it was amazing! I’ve made it a few times since then. I don’t like mayo based potato salad so I am in love with this recipe!

    Ingredients:

    • 1/2 cup white wine vinegar
    • 1 tablespoon coarse-grained mustard
    • 1 tablespoon sugar
    • 2 1/2 pounds red potatoes, diced into 1-inch cubes
    • Salt
    • 6 bacon slices, chopped
    • 1 medium sized red onion, diced
    • Freshly ground black pepper
    • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
    • 1/4 cup freshly chopped dill leaves, plus more for garnish

    Directions:

    For the vinaigrette:

    Mix vinegar, mustard, and sugar together in a small bowl and set aside.

    Add potatoes to pot of salted cold water. Bring to a boil, over high heat, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes until tender. Drain and place in a large bowl. Cover with foil to keep warm, if necessary.

    Add bacon to large saute pan and cook until crisp over medium heat. Remove to a paper towel-lined sheet tray and reserve. Add onion, dash of pepper and garlic to bacon grease (I drained most of the grease and added a little olive oil to the pan) and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Add vinaigrette to vegetables. Let cook until reduced and thickened, about 2 to 3 minutes.

    Add potatoes, dill and bacon to the pan and toss to coat with dressing. Allow to cook for 3 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Transfer potato salad to a serving platter and sprinkle with chopped fresh dill.

    Recipe and photo from:  Food Network

    Jun19

    Garlic Tomato Bruschetta

    Posted on by
    Standard

    I was craving bruschetta and was tempted to go out and buy some from a restaurant.  But it’s so easy to make at home (not to mention cheaper) so I went ahead and made some myself.  I haven’t made it in a couple of years. I don’t know why! So good.

    Garlic Tomato Bruschetta

    DSCN0591

    Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil ( or 3 teaspoons dried basil)
  • 3 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 4 medium tomatoes, diced
  • 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese (omitted)
  • 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar (addition) 
  • 1 loaf French bread

    • Directions

    In a bowl, combine oil, basil, garlic, salt, pepper and vinegar. Add tomatoes and toss gently. Sprinkle with cheese. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.  Bring to room temperature before serving. Cut bread into 24 slices; toast under broiler until lightly browned. Top with tomato mixture. Serve immediately. 

    Yield: 12 servings.

    From: Taste of Home

    Jun17

    Platinum Blondies

    Posted on by
    Standard

    platinumblondies

    Ingredients:

     3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
    1 large egg
    2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
    1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
    1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    1/8 teaspoon salt
    1 cup chopped pecans, toasted     (omitted)
    4 ounces white chocolate, chopped, or 3/4 cup white chocolate chips

    Directions: 

    Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly butter an 8-inch square baking pan with sides at least 1 1/2 inches high. (I used a round baking pan.)Using an electric mixer or mixing by hand, beat together the sugar and egg until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and butter and beat to mix well. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt and add to the butter mixture, beating until just incorporated. Do not overmix. Using a spoon, stir in the pecans and white chocolate. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and use a flat metal spatula or a butter knife to smooth the top. Bake the blondies for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top is dry and golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached (not wet, but not perfectly dry). Remove the pan from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Cut the blondies into 2-inch squares. The blondies can be stored, well wrapped, at room temperature for up to 3 days (these seem to get better as they sit) or frozen for up to 2 months (thaw before serving).

     From: Taste of Home

    Jun16

    Slow Cooker Sausage and Rice

    Posted on by
    Standard

    DSCN0576

    This is a very easy and affordable meal.  Scott and Austin loved it!

    Slow Cooker  Sausage and Rice

    Ingredients

    • 8 ounces Kielbasa sausage, cut in quarter-inch slices (I used 14 ounces)
    • 1 (14 1/2 oz.) can diced tomatoes, undrained
    • 1 medium onion, diced
    • 1 medium green pepper, diced
    • 2 celery stalks, thinly sliced (omitted)
    • 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon granules
    • 1 tablespoon steak sauce (I used two)
    • 3 bay leaves
    • 1 teaspoon sugar (I used two)
    • 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
    • 1 cup uncooked instant rice
    • 1/2 cup chopped parsley

    Directions

    1. Combine sausage, tomatoes, onion, green pepper, celery, bouillon, steak sauce, bay leaves, sugar and hot pepper sauce in crockpot.

    2. Cover and cook on low for about 6 hours, stirring occasionally.

    3. Remove bay leaves; stir in rice and 1/2 cup of water. Cook an additional 25 minutes. ( I just served sausage mixture over rice)

    4. Stir in parsley.

    From: allcrockpotrecipes.com

    Jun16

    Slow Cooker Garlic Chicken Wings

    Posted on by
    Standard

    DSCN0567

    This recipe was inspired by 40 Clove Garlic Chicken, a recipe I’ve seen for a while now and recently saw made in the crockpot on Beantown Baker.  It’s very much like the original recipe- I just used minced garlic instead of whole cloves and not 40 cloves worth because I was afraid Scott wouldn’t even come in the house if I used that much!

    Slow Cooker Garlic Chicken Wings

    Ingredients

    3 pounds chicken wings
    1 large onion, sliced
    1 tablespoon olive oil
    2 teaspoons kosher salt
    1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
    1 teaspoon pepper
    15 tsp minced garlic

    dried rosemary, dried thyme

    Directions

    Place onion slices on the bottom of the stoneware insert. In a large mixing bowl, toss chicken parts with olive oil, salt, paprika, pepper, and all of the garlic cloves. Pour into crockpot, on top of the onion.

    Do not add water.

    Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-6.

    I sprinkled a little dried rosemary and thyme on the top during cooking.

    From: Beantown Baker- Adventures in a Boston Kitchen