Ham and Split Pea Soup

I didn't take a picture of this one because I think if I did it would sway you from trying it. It looks gross but tastes so yummy! Promise.

1 lb dried split peas
1 ham hock (I used the ham bone leftover from our spiral ham from Christmas)
1/2 diced medium onion
1/2 C finely chopped carrots
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 bay leaf
2 tsp thyme

After rinsing peas, place them in a large stock pot with the ham hock (or ham bone) and cover with water by at least an inch. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about an hour. Stir every once and a while so the peas don't stick and burn on the bottom of the pan.

Remove ham hock (or bone) and cut off remaining meat. I usually have enough ham on the bone to salvage quite a bit. If you don't have enough meat to save I would suggest adding some cubed ham (or leftover Christmas ham).

Add remaining ham, diced onions, and carrots. Stir for about 2 minutes. Then add salt, pepper, pepper flakes, bay leaf, and thyme. Let simmer and cook until vegetables cooked through. It took mine an additional half hour or so.

Remove bay leaf and serve!

•If soup is too thick or dry feel free to add more water.

Cheesy Potatoes

This is the classic side dish we ALWAYS have with ham or with Christmas dinner. We eat it so fast sometimes I double it. :)

1 bag frozen hashbrowns
2 C shredded cheese
1/3 C diced green onions
3/4 STICK butter
1 can cream of chicken soup
16 oz sour cream
milk
cornflakes

Melt butter in saucepan then add soup, sour cream, and onions. Stir constantly while letting come to slow boil. Remove from heat and add cheese, stir until melted.
Put hash browns in greased casserole dish and pour sauce over top. Stir together until nicely blended.
Top with more cheese and crushed cornflakes.

*If sauce is too thick to properly stir with hash browns add a little milk to thin it out.

Cooking goals this week:

With school being out ALL week next week, I am trying to come up with some good ideas to keep the girls occupied and me sane so here are my goals for the week:
- Sugar Cookie Santa's (complete with coconut beards)
- Play dough cookies (not really Christmas - y, but way cool)
- Gingerbread houses (can't decide if we are going graham cracker or the real deal)
- A new roll recipe

I already did the chocolate crinkles and chocolate-y sweets (see below). What else can I cram in there? Any ideas?

Chocolaty Sweets / Crunchy Kisses

I asked Madison, my 5 year old, what we should name these treats and she came up with Chocolaty Sweets, so if she asks that is the name, but for the record I named them Crunchy Kisses. Ha ha.

Place parchment paper on cookie sheet and arrange pretzels on there. Then put a kiss on top of the pretzels.
Bake at 350 for 3 minutes. Take out of oven and before the kisses harden push a M&M into the chocolate.My kids were all over this one. Between the 3 of them they had a whole assembly line going. It was awesome.

(Recipe courtesy of Christina H.)

* there is also an awesome variation for more of a turtle candy, use rolos, pecans, and M&M's , I got that idea from Tiff H.

Chocolate Crinkles

3/4 C melted butter
1/2 C unsweetened cocoa
1 C sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 C flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C chocolate chips

In mixing bowl, mix melted butter, cocoa, and sugar. Then beat in the eggs and vanilla. In separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Slowly mix dry ingredients with the wet, then stir in choc. chips.
Let dough chill 2 hours or overnight. (or not, I didn't and they were still fine)
Preheat oven to 350. Form dough into 1 inch balls and roll in powdered sugar.
Bake for 12 minutes.

Instead of powdered sugar we crushed up peppermints and dipped the tops in instead. :)

Crock pot Pot Roast

This one is one of those meals that I have no recipe for and I do differently almost all the time. I am sure that it is pretty basic too, but hey - I had to ask how my first time around and here is how I did it this time:

I rubbed the beef roast with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Then I lightly seared the sides of the beef in a pot with olive oil in the bottom. When sides are lightly browned (about 2-3 minutes per side) transfer the roast to the crock pot.

Here is where you can add variety. With the roast I added 3 beef bouillon cubes and filled the crock pot with water halfway up the roast. I also added 1 onion, roughly chopped into 4ths. You could substitute the water with Au Jus also.

Put the crockpot on low and let cook at least 4 hours or until meat has reached internal temperature of 160 degrees.

Then I added potatoes, cut in 4ths, and baby carrots. Then let cook an additional 3 hours on high.

Daddy's Homemade Mac n' Cheese

This dinner is one of the girls favorites and they are always requesting it. One day I made it and spiced it up with Gouda, breadcrumbs, and cayenne pepper and nobody liked it! From that day on it has been known as DADDY's homemade, because Mommy can't seem to get it right. :)

Because I am not the master of this recipe and Bryan doesn't measure I HOPE that I am getting all the amounts right. You might have to play around with it.
2 C elbow macaroni
3/4 stick of butter
1 C flour
milk (no idea how much)
salt, pepper
3 T onion powder
1 1/2 C + shredded cheddar cheese

While your macaroni is boiling, in medium saucepan, melt butter on medium heat. When butter is completely melted, add flour. Stir together until it's nice and creamy, kind of like the consistency of peanut butter. Then very slowly add milk. Just add a little at first, about 1 C until your flour mixture has blended in with your milk. (You are making a white sauce btw)

When the sauce is nice and smooth, add more milk. When Bryan makes it he usually fills the pan about 3/4 full. Then continue stirring. If it isn't thickening up, add more flour. Then add your spices to taste. "Daddy's homemade" has a very onion powdery taste (obviously from the 3 T) but that is what the girls love and what makes his so special.

Then add your cheese, stirring constantly until melted.

Drain noodles and add sauce. Serve with salt and pepper and hot dogs. Enjoy.
Another reason why the girls like this recipe so much is the fact that this is NOT baked. They like it saucy. :)

Panko Crusted Chicken w/Fettuccine

This recipe doesn't have any pictures, FYI. It is also very ghetto, fast, and easy, which I love.

5-6 chicken tenders
2 eggs
1 C panko breadcrumbs, or just regular breadcrumbs
1 box fettuccine
1 jar your favorite Alfredo sauce

Start boiling fettuccine in salted water. Meanwhile whisk eggs together until nicely scrambled. Then dredge chicken in egg and then in breadcrumbs. Put olive oil in fry pan and fry chicken about 4 minutes each side or until chicken is cooked through.

When noodles are done, drain, cover with favorite Alfredo sauce and voila - yummy dinner for family of 5!

You could either leave chicken whole or dice up and put on top of noodles. We left it whole.

Serve with Parmesan cheese.

Roasted Red Pepper Italian Red Potatoes

Say that 3 times fast :)

All I did for these bad boys was quarter red potatoes, toss in olive oil and Kraft Roasted Red Pepper Italian Dressing. I placed them on a foil lined AND greased cookie sheet and finally sprinkled with kosher salt.

I then baked it for about 30 minutes in a 400 degree oven. I am not sure on the time though because I forgot to set a timer. Just poke them and if they are tender and a little toasty they are done.
Soooo yummy and very easy too. I love recipes like this.

Swag Bucks

Some of you might notice the little swag bucks box on the side. Check it out, you can earn swag bucks if you use their search engine and then you can trade in the bucks for gift cards and prizes. No strings attached!!!

Check it out and if you want to do it shoot me an email so I can refer you and earn even more swag bucks. :)

Thanks!

tiffanytidlund@yahoo.com

Pistachio Salad

I know that this looks like a big green blob of goo, but it is really yummy! A great side to any meal. :)

1 can crushed pineapple
2 pistachio instant jello packets
1 small container of cool whip (thawed)

Mix the pineapple and jello together first. Make sure it is mixed well or there will be chunks of dry pudding in your salad. Then mix with cool whip. Refrigerate until served.

Crockpot Chili

2 cans kidney or chili beans
1 lb ground hamburger
2 tsp garlic salt
2 bay leaves
1 minced onion
1/2 C diced green pepper
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 can diced tomatoes (not drained)
3/4 C ketchup
1 packet chili seasoning
2 T worts sauce
1 T brown sugar
1 can of your favorite chili
1 C water +*

Brown hamburger with onions and peppers, then season with salt and pepper. Add hamburger to crockpot. Then add all remaining ingredients. Give it a good stir and cook on low for at least 3 hours.

Serve with cheese, sour cream, and green onions.

*you can add more or less water depending on your desired consistancy

I know!!!!

I suck!!!!

We have been out of town for Thanksgiving . . . hence the lack of posts. :) Sorry. Will start posting once we are back in town.

Pumpkin Roll

So for about a month, I had heard my brother talk about his wife's "AMAZING" pumpkin rolls. They made like 5 of these things in the last month and it was all I heard about. So I called her up and got the infamous recipe. Enjoy.
3 eggs
1 C sugar
2/3 C canned pumpkin
1 tsp lemon juice
3/4 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt

Combine eggs and sugar, beat well. Add rest of ingredients until well mixed.
Get greased cookie sheet and put a piece of greased wax paper ( I used parchment paper) on cookie sheet. (We don't want this baby to stick) Pour mix on paper and spread evenly.

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

While that is baking, make the filling/frosting.

Filling:
8 oz softened cream cheese
4 T butter
1 C powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix cheese and butter well then add sugar and vanilla. Then set aside.
-----------------------------------
This is the fun part and it may sound kind of crazy but it works - get ready.

Get an old dish towel. Lay it on the counter and sprinkle LIBERAL amounts of powdered sugar over the entire towel. I mean LIBERAL, you don't want this baby to stick.

When pumpkin roll is done baking, immediately pick up dough by the parchment paper and flip upside down on dish towel, that is LIBERALLY sprinkled with powdered sugar. Then roll up the dough, in the dish towel and let cool for about 5 minutes.

Once roll is almost cooled, unroll dough and evenly spread the filling. You are now going to roll it up again, but this time without the dish towel. Try to roll as tight as you can, but it will be tough because you are working with cooked dough.

Once it is all rolled then use floss to cut your rolls into individual servings and enjoy!!!

*This frosting/filling was super yummy, but WAY to rich for my taste. I think next time I will use a milder frosting.

(This recipe is courtesy of my wonderful sister in law, Rachel - fill free to add anything Rach!! Thank you!)

Apple Crisp

Disclaimer: This recipe wasn't as good as it could be. If anyone has any suggestions - please, PLEASE let me know.OK - so I just realized my recipe got wet somehow and I can't read any of it!!!! PLEASE comment with your recipes and suggestions.

This is what I could remember - good luck.

1 C sugar
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp cinnamon + 1/2 tsp (later)
3-4 peeled and sliced large apples
1/2 C flour
1/2 C oatmeal
1/4 tsp salt
6 T butter

Combine about 1/2 C sugar, lemon juice, water and cinnamon in bottom of small baking pan. Slice in apples. Blend with remaining sugar, flour, oatmeal, cinnamon, salt, and butter until crumbly. Spread over apples and give a gentle stir. I like to incorporate all the ingredients because it makes for a moister crisp.

Bake at 375 for 40-50 minutes, until apples are tender and crust browned. Serve with ice cream!!

Chicken Pillows

4 oz cream cheese, softened
4 tsp butter
1 can of chicken
1 C dry instant stuffing
2 cans crescent rolls
salt and pepper
1 C + bread crumbs
1/2 additional butter

In large bowl cream butter, cream cheese, and salt and pepper to taste. Add chicken and stuffing - mix well. Fill 1 crescent foll with heaping spoonful of chicken mixture and roll into ball, making sure all the edges are sealed. Make sure all seams are tight.

Melt additional butter and roll pillows in butter and then roll them in breadcrumbs. Place on greased cookie sheet to bake.

Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Make sure they are golden brown and cooked on the bottom.
Serve with chicken gravy.
Yummy!!

I am sooooo behind . . . updates coming soon.

Cheesy Potato Soup

We had this yummy soup on Halloween. I was so busy putting makeup on all the girls that I didn't have time to make dinner, so my husband Bryan, graciously stepped in. He did not disappoint. He rocks this soup. So yummy.

First peel and dice:
4-6 diced potatoes
1/2 onion

Set aside. Then melt 3/4 stick of butter in large stockpot. Add 1 C flour and stir together. Then add 2 C milk. Stir constantly on med-low heat until thickened. (Congrats! You just made a white sauce!)
Add up to 2 quarts water until you reach your desired consistency/quantity. (Sometimes less water is better, but you might need more. Remember you have to cook your taters in it.) Now add 5 chicken bouillon cubes, diced potatoes, and onions. Let come to a boil and once boiling, you can also add any other vegi's you might want like carrots or broccoli, celery or ham. We didn't this batch.
Reduce heat a little and stir constantly until the vegi's are cooked through. Once they are tender, add about 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with yummy bread. Sorry no picture, didn't even think to take one on Halloween, and I didn't cook, so there ya go.

PS. I typed up the recipe a little different this time. Do you like having all the ingredients at the top or integrated in the recipe? I need your input. :)

Sugar Cookies

1/2 C butter, softened
1 C sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp almond extract
2 1/2 C flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder

Mix sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Mix dry ingredients in separate bowl and slowly blend with sugar mixture. Let dough chill in fridge for at least 1 hour.

After dough is chilled, roll out dough on a floured surface. Roll dough to 1/4 inch thick. (The thicker the better in my opinion) Use favorite cookie cutter of your choice and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Let cool on rack and right after they are cooled, cover them!

I don't like to cook mine until they are browned because the softer the better. Play around with baking time until you find your desired texture.

Hawaiin Haystacks

4-6 chicken tenders
1 -2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 tsp onion powder
salt pepper
1 small green pepper
3 green onions
shredded cheddar cheese
1 can crushed pineapple
chow mien noodles
Soy sauce

Drizzle pan with oil and put in diced chicken. Let cook. Then add soup, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Depending on the size of your family, you might want both can's of soup. That is your call. Let simmer for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, dice pepper and onions. Get other ingredients ready to serve. Enjoy!

Serve chicken and all other toppings over white rice.

Pumpkin Crunch Cake

1 small can pumpkin (15 oz)
1 can evaporated milk
1 1/2 C sugar
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
1 yellow cake mix
1 C chopped pecans
1 stick butter, thinly sliced

Mix pumpkin, milk, sugar, spice, salt and eggs. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan.
Sprinkle (in order) on top of pumpkin mixture: cake mix, pecans, thin slices of butter.
Bake at 350 for 50 minutes. Serve warm or cool with whip cream.

(Recipe courtesy of Tiffany Hopkinson -thanks!)

Banana Bread

3 overripe bananas
1 1/2 C flour
1 C sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 egg
3/4 stick butter
dash of salt
chocolate chips/m&ms

Mash bananas in bowl. Add flour, sugar, soda, salt, and egg. Melt butter in microwave, add it to bowl, and stir until just blended. Pour into greased loaf pan. Sprinkle choc chips/m&m's on top.

Bake at 325 for 60-70 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Won Tons w/Sweet and Sour Sauce

This goes awesome with Thai Omelets!! My entire family loves these. All the kids too!! Too bad they don't know its really hamburger! This recipe is my in-famous won -ton recipe, which everyone loves and requests. :)

Sweet and Sour Sauce:
1 C sugar
1/4 C vinegar
1 tsp salt
1/2 C water
1 T ketchup
2 T cornstarch, mixed with a little water

In small pot add water, sugar, salt, and vinegar. On medium heat, slowly bring to boil. Once boiling, add ketchup and stir. Add cornstarch mixture gradually, stirring constantly until it thickens.
Remove from heat and let cool. Best served cold.

1 lb ground beef
1 tsp salt
2 T minced onion
1 tsp fish sauce
1 egg
3 T+ coriander (I like it so I usually use almost 4 T)
dash of pepper
1 package won ton skins

Mix all ingredients with the raw hamburger. Place 1 tsp and ONLY 1 tsp of meat mixture on the center of won ton skin. Dip your finger in warm water and rub on two of the outside edges of the won ton. Like this:
Then fold the won ton in half diagonally. The water will be like glue and hold the two sides together. Gently make sure all air bubbles are gone inside.
(Sorry these two pics are blurry - my hands were messy and I didn't take as much time with it) Then grab both lower ends of triangle and crunch up like this:Deep fry in oil for about 3-5 minutes or until golden brown. It's always a good idea to cut one in half and make sure the hamburger is cooked through. ENJOY!!!! So yummy!!

Thai Omlets

My dad made this for us all the time growing up. It was ALWAYS the meal I requested on my birthday and special occasions. Whenever I smell it I get all homesick - no joke!

1 lb ground beef
1/3 C diced green onion
1/2 minced onion
1-2 T garlic
1/3 C fish sauce*
1/3 C sugar*
1 diced tomato

In skillet, brown hamburger with onion. When browned add garlic and EQUAL amounts of fish sauce and sugar. I always start off with the 1/3 C and then go from there. You want to taste it. If you like it more sweet add more sugar, more salty add more fish sauce. It's a trial and error process as it always is with fish sauce. Add green onion and tomato and let simmer for about 5-8 minutes. Do not drain any juice that may accumulate - it's tasty!

While simmering make the omelets. 2 eggs for every omelet. The trick is to make the egg as thin as possible. When ready to flip and fold the omelet, add about a scoop of meat mixture and fold over. Repeat until meat is gone.

Serve over white rice and with won tons (see recipe above).
*don't be nervous about experimenting with the fish sauce and sugar. That is the only way you will find out how you like it.
*Dad, I know this is blasphemy, but if you aren't up to omelet making, just make a batch of scrambled eggs (big enough for your family). This is what I usually do and it tastes just the same to me. :)
*If you need you can add crushed red pepper flakes like my husband OR use this (which is what I use) :

Monkey Bread

12 frozen Rhoades rolls
1/3 C syrup
1/3 C chopped pecans
1 stick butter (melted)
½ C sugar
½ C cinnamon

Spray Bundt or tube pan with cooking spray and sprinkle pecans in bottom of pan. Mix syrup and 2 T of melted butter together and pour over pecans in pan, set aside.

Thaw out dough in microwave by flipping and rotating dough after 1 min. Cut dough in 4ths with kitchen shears.

Combine cinnamon and sugar in separate bowl. Liberally roll dough in melted butter and then liberally roll in sugar mixture. Evenly space and layer in pan.Bake at 400 for 23 – 30 minutes or until golden brown. I am usually on the 23 minute side of it. Flip dough upside down on plate, let cool, and serve! Yummy!

Quesadillas w/fresh cilantro

Today at lunch, I added fresh cilantro to my cheese quesadilla. It was soooo yummy!! I LOVE cilantro though.
2 uncooked tortillas
2 T fresh cilantro
shredded cheese

Cook tortillas according to package directions. Once cooked add cheese and cilantro. These you don't have to flip since the tortilla's are already warm and cooked.

I served it with homemade salsa, courtesy of my wonderful mother-in-law.

You could also add leftover rotisserie chicken or shredded pork. Yum.

Cinnamon Ripple Muffins

Cinnamon Ripple:
1/2 C packed brown sugar
1/4 C flour
4 T butter cut in small pieces
2 tsp cinnamon

Combine ingredients in bowl and mix well. Butter will still be lumpy but that is perfect anyways. Set aside and heat oven to 400.

Muffin Batter:
2 C flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C softened butter
1/2 C sugar
2 eggs
1/2 buttermilk*
1 tsp vanilla

In medium bowl whisk flour, powder, soda, and salt. In larger bowl beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Then beat in eggs, milk, and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients until just blended then gently FOLD in the ripple.
Divide in greased muffin tray and bake at 400 for 12-13 minutes.

We had ours this morning with hot apple cider. Yum.

*buttermilk substitute: 1 T of lemon juice for every 1 C of milk (so you would need a 1/2 T of lemon juice to add to your milk for this)

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Is it just me, or do these cookies NEVER go on sale?? That's why it's good to have a very simple recipe. :) I have no clue who came up with this recipe, but I know I learned it from somebody in Flagstaff.
1 box spice cake
1 can pumpkin
1 bag chocolate chips

Combine cake mix and canned pumpkin and mixed well until all the cake is wet. Then add desired amount of chocolate chips.

Place a heafty spoonful on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 8-12 minutes depending on size of cookie.It's that easy! Yum.

ps. don't be tempted to add liquid because you don't need it!!!!

Fresh Fried Tillapia

Mom, correct me if I am wrong, but I don't ever remember eating fish of any kind when I lived at home. I don't remember eating fresh caught fish until I married Bryan and had dinner at his parent's home. His Mom taught me how to fry it and it's the only way I have every tried. Fish is also the only dinner that all 5 people in our family eat! (I think I say that a lot) :)

This is best with FRESHLY CAUGHT fish, but the store bought tillapia, trout, or whatever you catch that day at the lake :) 6-7 tillapia fillet's
1 C flour
1/4 C lemon pepper
1 T salt
olive oil

Rinse fish and set aside. Combing flour and seasonings together and mix well. Lightly dredge fish in flour mixture and fry in olive oil on skillet. Cook on each side about 5 minutes or so, I can never tell with fish, but it doesn't take as long as you think.

Serve with fresh lemon juice and red potatoes :) Yum.

PS. I just realized this looks a lot like Parmesan Chicken, but it isn't . . .

Mashed Potatoes

Ok, I know that this may seem like a no-brainer recipe to some of you, BUT believe it or not, there was a time in my young, newly-married life that I had no clue how to make mashed potatoes. I called my Mom, in a hurry, before my cute hubby came home from work. Sooo . . . just in case nobody knows . . . here ya go.

The best thing about mashed potatoes is that you really can't mess it up. :)
6-9 potatoes of your choice (I used red this time)
1 stick butter
1/4 C + milk
salt, pepper, garlic powder, etc (optional)

Boil potatoes until tender when stabbed, yes I said stabbed, with a fork. Drain.
Put taters in mixing bowl. I do it in my Kitchen Aid. Mix potatoes with 1/2 of butter on low speed until potatoes are semi-mush :)
I then put on my whisk attatchement and whisk on med-high speed until all smooth. Slowly add seasonings and milk until creamy.
Top with rest of butter.

You can add lots of things to this such as: cheese, onions, green onions/chives, sour cream. It depends on your personal style. Happy mashing.

Fried Green Tomatoes

I am still not home, but I couldn't resist posting this. I am at my in-laws house visiting and today we spent all morning out in the garden picking the rest of their tomatoes. My little 2 year old is a master tomato picker, let me tell ya. She was picking them off faster than we could put them in the bag! Almost all of the tomatoes were green, so I decided to try it out. After a little research online, I made up my own version of these tasty fried green toe-maters. We fried the red ones too, which were tasty, but not quite as much.
4-5 green tomatoes
salt and pepper
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 C flour
1-2 C bread crumbs or corn meal
vegetable oil or bacon grease

Wash and slice your tomatoes to about 1/4 in. thick. (We cut these way to thick and I think they would have turned out even better if they were thinner.) Sprinkle tomatoes with salt and pepper and lightly dust with flour on BOTH sides. Dip the toe-mater in egg and then in the bread crumbs/corn meal.
Fry tomatoes in heated grease for about 3 minutes on both sides, or until nice and brown. Serve while hot!

*Lots of the recipes I looked at said to use either corn meal or bread crumbs. I used bread crumbs because I am a huge fan of bread crumbs. It also said to fry it bacon grease, which I will have to do next time. I bet that would be even tastier!

See you in about 7 . . .

So my family and I will be out of town for the next 7 days. That means no cooking or washing dishes for 7 days unless i want to! Woot. Woot.

See you soon . . .

Parmesean Chicken

7-8 chicken tenders (less or more depending on family size)
1 C Parmesan cheese
1/2 bread crumbs
1 C mayo or 1 stick melted butter

This recipe originally called for butter, but I switched it out for mayo. I think it is yummier with mayo, but you use what you like.

Combine bread crumbs and cheese in medium bowl or ziplock and mix well. Dip chicken in butter or mayo (be generous if it's mayo). Dredge chicken in bread crumb mixture (be VERY generous). Place on cookie sheet to bake. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

I like to use tenders because it cooks faster and more even, but you can use breasts too. It seems like I can never make enough of this dish. There are never leftovers no matter how much I make. It is definitely a family favorite.

(Courtesy of my sister, Taralyn)

Andes Creme de Menthe Cookies

We have decided that these are our new family favorites. Soooo yummy.

1/2 C softened butter (1 stick)
3/4 C brown sugar
1/2 C sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 package Andes Creme de Menthe Baking Chips*
2 2/3 C flour

Blend butter, sugar, soda, power, vanilla, and eggs until creamy. Stir in chips and then flour. Roll into small balls and bake on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 fo 8-10 minutes. Leave on pan for 2 minutes before moving to cooling rack.

*I only used 1/2 the bag and I thought it was plenty. Plus, that way you can make 2 batches.
*The first time I made these, both Bryan and I thought something was missing. So this time around I added 1/2 tsp salt and it made a HUGE difference. They were perfect with the salt. Let me know what you do.

(Courtesy of Barb Bakes)

Beef Stroganoff

1 package egg noodles
1 lb ground beef
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 carton sour cream
1 T onion powder
salt and pepper

Cook noodles, drain, and set aside. Meanwhile brown hamburger and season with salt and pepper and onion powder. Add soup and sour cream and simmer until simmering and heated through.
Serve over noodles or rice.

(The stroganoff I had growing up as a kid was not like this at all. I remember it being more orange. I also remember that I didn't like it very much. Care to enlighten me Momma? :)

Lime Cilantro Rice

I saw a recipe online somewhere for this and searched and searched for it. I couldn't find it. So I just kind of made it up.

Rice (how ever much your family eats)
water (according to rice package)
2 T butter
juice from 1 lime
1 tsp lime zezt
2 T fresh cilantro

I have a rice cooker, so I couldn't tell you to cook rice w/o it. In the rice cooker I put, the washed and drained rice, water, butter, lime juice, and zest. I gave it a good stir and pushed "cook" on the rice cooker. I sprinkled it with fresh cilantro and a lime wedge.

It was pretty tasty, but it still felt like it was missing something. I think next time I will add the cilantro in the rice cooker as well as 1 more lime.
Any ideas?

Bryan's Dutch Oven Chicken and Potatoes

Bryan, my husband, gets all credit for this recipe! This is a Tidlund family favorite. We ALWAYS have this when we are camping, but now we are starting to have it more often since we have a place to cook in the backyard :) We all love it. My 2 year old had 3 drumsticks!!!!

I did all the prep work on this and Bryan cooked it all because he is THE MAN. I don't have a written recipe to go off of, so I am doing it from memory, I hope your results are as awesome as ours.

Dutch Oven Potatoes:
1 package bacon
1 onion, diced
6-8 potatoes, diced
1 cube of butter (in needed)

Start by heating up the dutch oven. Meanwhile, cut bacon into 1"x 1" squares. It doesn't have to be perfect, just as long as they are small pieces. Put into dutch oven and cook.
Cut potatoes and onion into small-ish pieces or cubes.
When bacon is cooked to your liking, DO NOT DRAIN GREASE, and add potatoes and onions. Cook until potatoes and onions are cooked through, while stirring frequently. You don't want burned taters.

If things need a little lubing up, use the butter. You probably won't need it with all the bacon grease, but just in case. We usually save these leftovers (if there are any) for breakfast the next day.
Dutch Oven Chicken: (Adapt this to feed your family - the choice of chicken is up to you)
Chicken breasts, thighs, and drumsticks w/skin on and bone in
2 C flour
season salt and pepper
red cayanne pepper
1 can shortening

In big ziplock add flour and seasonings. I never measure so just eyeball it. Make sure the seasonings are mixed throughout flour.
Drain chicken and coat in flour mixture. Just shake in ziplock bag. Put all of shortening into dutch oven and heat through until melted. When oil is at right temperature, which I am not sure of because I have never cooked these, (I am sure you will know) carefully place chicken in the grease.
Rotate and flip chicken when sides begin to brown. Make sure your dutch oven has a lid or you will get hot, flaming grease everywhere. Safety comes first :) Put goggles on if you don't trust your self - hee hee. Once chicken reaches internal temperature of 180 degrees it is done! Let drain over paper towels and serve!

Chicken or Turkey Noodle Soup w/Homemade Noodles

Nothing beats homemade Chicken Noodle Soup - nothing! Doesn't that look sooo yummy?? Well, it is :)
Chicken Noodle Soup w/Homemade Noodles*

Noodles: (double if serving more than 4)
1 beaten egg
2 T milk
1/2 tsp salt
1 C flour (approx)

Combine egg, milk, and salt. Add enough flour to make a stiff dough. Roll out on floured surface to about 1/4 in. thick. With pizza cutter, cut noodles to desired size. My family likes them on the smaller size. I actually ended up cutting the noodles in half again. So it is entirely up to you. Transfer noodles on cooling rack and let dry about 1-2 hours.

Soup:
4 C chicken broth
3/4 C chopped carrot
3/4 C chopped celery
1 1/2 C diced chicken breast
1/4 C minced onion
2 chicken bouillon cubes (optional)
salt and pepper

Dice chicken and boil until cooked through. Drain water, but keep about 2 C of it. Add broth and veggies to remaining water and chicken. Let come to a boil. Let cook until veggies cooked through. Add noodles and let simmer about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

**Addition*** I forgot to mention that if you prefer a thicker soup, mix 3 T of softened butter to about 2 T of flour. Stir in soup until thickens.

*If you are not up to making noodles, just use a package of egg noodles.
*If you don't feel like dicing chicken, use 1 large can of chicken instead!
* You can do this with a leftover rotisserie chicken or leftover turkey too. Just use that broth instead of canned broth. :) We had Turkey Noodle soup after Thanksgiving last year and it was sooo yummy.
*I didn't realize this until my wonderful hubby said so, but use low-sodium chicken broth then you have more control over the amount of salt in the soup.

Lion House Rolls

These are the yummiest homemade rolls I have ever had, except maybe Grandma Boyer's, but I don't have her recipe - so sad. Anyways, they very easy and always turn out!Lionhouse Rolls*
2 C warm water
1 egg
1/4 C sugar
1/3 C butter, melted and cooled
2 T yeast
2 tsp salt
2/3 C powdered milk
5 - 6 C flour

Dissolve dry milk in warm water completely. Add yeast, sugar, butter, egg and 2 C of flour. Mix briefly then add salt and remaining flour. Dough will be very sticky, but don't add more flour than you need, just until the dough sticks to hook and not sides of bowl.
Leave in bowl and allow to rise until doubled - up to 2 hours!

Roll dough on floured surface into large rectangle until 1/2 in. thick. With a pizza cutter, cut 2"x4" rectangles. Roll up rectangles, pinch sides, and tuck slightly under. Arrange rolls on half baking sheet in 5x7 array.

Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes.
Brush with butter when they come out of oven and cool on cooling rack to avoid soggy bottoms. (Nobody wants a soggy bottom) Hee Hee
Shape rolls and allow to rise until doubled or another 1 hour!

*I NEVER have powdered milk on hand so I usually end up using 1 C warm water and 1 C warm milk - it has always worked for me. Maybe that means I need to be better with my food storage.
*I put my rolls in baking dishes this time. This way they are more like pull apart rolls.

(Courtesy of Jessica A's Kitchen)

Many updates coming your way in the next 3-5 days :) Look forward to that.

Chocolate Chocolatey Frosting

Chocolate Frosting
1 softened stick of butter
4 T cocoa
5 T milk
3 C powdered sugar

Mix well. If too runny, add more powdered sugar. If to thick add a little milk.

Super Chocolate Cake

This is my Grandma Boyer's recipe and it is, hands down, the best chocolate cake I have every had in my life! I promise you that my Grandma's cake will not disappoint.

This is what you need:

1 MOIST yellow cake mix (yes yellow)
1 large instant chocolate pudding
2 C milk
2 eggs

Don't follow the recipe on the back of the box. Follow these instructions. Mindlessly obey and you will be happy :)

Mix yellow cake mix and pudding together. Mix really well or you will have lumpy cake. Next, beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add into the milk. Pour milk mixture into dry ingredients. Beat well for 2 minutes -ish.

Pour into your favorite greased cake pan, mine is the bunt pan.
Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, unless you have bunt pan, then it's like 40. Look at the back of box for size of cake pan and cooking time.
Works great as cupcakes too.Frost with chocolate frosting. Check labels for frosting recipe. Enjoy!