Italian Pasta Salad

Posted by Lori:

I bought some little tiny pepperoni a few weeks ago.  It was cute because it was tiny, and I thought the kids would think it was fun for mini pizzas.  Well, a few days after I got it, I needed to make several salads for a school fundraiser, so ended up using it for a pasta salad.  I like pasta salad....don't know why I don't make it very often!

Italian Pasta Salad

1 - 14.5 ounce box bow tie pasta (I used the multi-grain/Omega 3 kind), cooked per package directions

1 package mini pepperoni

1 1/2 - 2 cups Italian dressing

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved lengthwise

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

1 bunch green onions, chopped (use 1/2 of stems, too)

3/4 cup grated Parmesean cheese

In large bowl, combine all ingredients.  Refrigerate several hours before serving.

Hot Chocolate Mix

Posted by Lori:
This was my Grandma Sibyl's recipe for hot chocolate mix. I came across it the other day as I was looking through past 4-H demonstrations. My son demonstrated how to make this a few years ago for the contest, which is held every February.

After practicing the demonstration several times that year, we had way too much hot chocolate mix for our family to consume, so we gave it away.  We filled disposable decorator bags (cones) with the mix and tied them with raffia. The cones were sent to college students from our church and given to teachers for Valentine's Day.  It makes a great, inexpensive gift!

Hot Chocolate Mix

1 - 8 quart box powdered milk
1 - 12 ounce can dry coffee creamer
1 - 2 pound can chocolate drink mix (such as Nesquik)
4 cups powdered sugar

Mix ingredients together and store in air-tight container.  Use 1/4 cup or 4 tablespoons mix in 1 cup of hot water.  Add marshmallows, if desired.  Enjoy!

Meatball Sub Sandwiches

Posted by Lori:
This is a combination of two recipes we've posted before. I had made Kimberly's "Stick to Your Ribs Meatballs" last week (doubled amount) and froze the leftover meatballs to use some other time. Today, I made the "Semi-Homemade Breadsticks"  and combined the two for these Meatball Sub Sandwiches .

To make the sub sandwich rolls, use the above recipe for "Semi-Homemade Breadsticks, except use more than one roll per sub.  I used three rolls for each. After baking the rolls, cut across each roll lengthwise.  Do not going through to the bottom.  Open the roll up a bit, but be careful not to tear open all of the way.

Place desired number of  hot "Stick to Your Ribs Meatballs" in each roll opening.

Top with hot spaghetti sauce and mozzerella cheese.




I had made meatball subs before, but not with this recipe for meatballs - just with plain hamburger meatballs.  This meal is definitely a family favorite.

Bean Dip Appetizer

Posted by Donna:


This appetizer is good anytime--with Mexican food, sandwiches, or just for a snack.

1 pkg. round doritos
canned bean dip (found in the chips aisle)
shredded cheddar cheese


Spread the bean dip on each round dorito. Top each dorito with cheddar cheese. Place the doritos on a foil lined cookie sheet and bake until the cheese melts.

These don't last very long. They're so good---and super easy---and great for kids to make.

Cinnamon S'Mores

Posted by Lori:
Here is another low fat, Weight Watcher's recipe my friend, Renee' sent me. She got it off of a Weight Watcher's pamphlet. These sound so good and I like the thought of putting a little bit of cinnamon on them.

Cinnamon S'Mores
8 whole low-fat honey graham crackers (4 rectangles per cracker)
3/4 cup marshmallow fluff
4 tablespoons semisweet chocolate chips
1/8 tsp cinnamon
8 (12" x 6") sheets foil

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Spread 4 crackers each with 3 tablespoons of marshmallow fluff. Top each with 1 tablespoon of chocolate chips and sprinkle with cinnamon. Top each with another cracker. Cut each cracker in half, making 8 sandwiches.

Place each sandwich in center of a sheet of foil and wrap, making 8 packages. Set the packages on a baking sheet and bake until hot and melted, about 8 minutes. Open packages carefully and serve at once.

8 servings
3 points per serving

Chicken Enchiladas

Posted by Donna:

This is a recipe I used to fix quite often. I misplaced the recipe, as I do quite often. I had forgotten that I had put it in our Nell Family Cookbook; so, I'm anxious to try it again. It was always one of my favorites.

3-4 chicken breasts, boiled and shredded

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can Carnation evaporated milk

1/2 cup chopped white onion

1 small can green chilies

2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese

corn tortillas

Cook all ingredients until cheese melts. In a casserole dish, layer corn tortillas and chicken mixture, ending with mixture. Top with extra Monterey Jack cheese. Bake at 350 degrees until cheese is bubbly hot.

I have no idea where I got this recipe---some 40 years ago. It has such a good taste.

Turkey (or Chicken) Pot Pie

Posted by Lori:

I hadn't ever made a pot pie before today and IF I have eaten one I don't remember it.  I do remember them being served at school growing up, but the thought of all the mixed veggies and cloudy liquid didn't appeal to me.  However, yesterday on Facebook someone wrote that they had just made homemade pot pie.  I thought that was neat because it's always great to hear families eating anything "homemade" nowadays.  But, today, I was needing to use some leftover turkey and began to search recipes.  I first looked for turkey tetrazzini then saw a pot pie.  The recipes sounded okay, but I didn't like some of the ingredients and didn't want a thick cloudy-type liquid.

I wasn't sure what my kids might think, but they all really liked it.  All four of them!  That's definitely a keeper when they all like it.  My husband liked it, too, but he's lost a lot of weight and pretty much sticks with his whole wheat natural peanut butter sandwiches and fruit.  I really liked it, too...even though I should be going the natural peanut butter route myself!

I did see one recipe that used cream of chicken soup instead of making a thickened sauce.  That sounded pretty good.  Here is what I came up with using a mixture of several recipes:

Pot Pie Filling:

(Note:  This mixture would make 2 regular sized pie pan pot pies, but instead I used mini pie pans and muffin tins.)

4 cups turkey or chicken, chopped

1 cup green beans, chopped (Mine were leftovers, so well seasoned.  Canned would work. I mashed them more than chopped them.)

1 cup carrots, chopped (Could use canned and chop them.  I used fresh and will tell what I did below by cooking them in broth.)

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 teaspoon onion powder

Pepper, a few dashes or to your liking

In medium bowl, mix together turkey (or chicken), green beans, carrots (*see note below), soup, onion powder, and pepper. 

*To cook the carrots, I used the petite ones, chopped them, and cooked them in a can of chicken broth until tender and liquid was reduced to a few tablespoons.  I added the carrots and the 2 tablespoons of juice to the mixture.

Pie Crust: (Mom's recipe she's posted before, except doubled.)

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup shortening

9 or 10 tablespoons water

In large bowl, mix together flour and salt.  Cut in shortening with pastry blender or fork until mixture forms pea sized pieces.  Add 9 tablespoons water and stir with fork until mixture forms a ball.  Add the remaining tablespoon of water if too crumbly.

 

On lightly floured surface, roll out dough to about 1/8" thick.  Since I was making mini pot pies, I turned the pan over and cut around the plate in a circle with a knife - adding 1/4 - 1/2" to make it bigger.  It's so much fun rolling out pie crusts and sugar cookies now because I got a new rolling pin for Christmas. My husband and kids got it for me at Williams Sonoma. I don't know how much it was, but I know it's worth it! It's made rolling out dough a breeze!

Place crusts in pans and press to sides. Trim any excess to the edge of the pan.

 

Put 1/2 cup of turkey/vegetable mixture into each crust (if using two regular pie plates, just put half of mixture in each one.)

Cut other rounds for top crust.  I placed the filled mini pie plate on top of the pie crust dough and cut around it....adding a 1/2" extra to the circle.  Place top crust over filling and seal edges together.  Make a decorative crust edge or use a fork to seal edges.

Brush crusts with egg wash made by whisking together 1 egg and 1 tablespoon water.  Make little cuts/slits in the top of the crust to release steam while cooking.  I made little cuts in a heart shape using a small knife.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 40 minutes. Regular sized pies may take longer.  I baked the little pie plates on this cookie sheet since they were little.

Here are pictures of the muffin tin pot pies.  I'll spare the step by step since this is so long.  You can tell what I did by the pictures, but feel free to ask questions or make suggestions!!

Chocolate Valentine Cookies

Posted by Lori:
Yesterday, since my children were out of school, we planned a bigger-than-usual lunch. My son, Zachary, decided he wanted to make a dessert so I suggested these cookies. I had used the actual cookie part of the recipe before, but never with the icing listed. Instead, I used a buttercream icing and colored it pink, making heart sandwiches. I wasn't sure I would like this cherry mixture, but it's really mild and it actually tastes great!

Chocolate Valentine Cookies
1 cup sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
2 3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

In large bowl, beat sugar and 1 cup butter until light and fluffy. Add milk, vanilla, and egg; blend well. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. Stir in flour, cocoa, baking powder and soda. Chill dough 1 hour for easier handling.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. On floured surface, roll out dough, 1/3 at a time, to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut with floured 2 1/2 inch heart-shaped cookie cutter. Place half of the cut out hearts 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Cut a 1-inch heart shape from the center of remaining hearts. Place cut out hearts on cookie sheets.

Chill excess dough and re-roll. Bake at 350 degrees for 9 to 11 minutes or until set. Immediately remove from the cookie sheets; cool.

FROSTING:
2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2-3 tablespoons maraschino cherry juice
Red food coloring
In small bowl, beat frosting ingredients, adding 1 tablespoon cherry juice at a time for desired spreading consistency. Tint with red food color. Frost bottom side of whole cookie. Top with cut out cookie. 4 dozen sandwich cookies.

I laughed because Zachary couldn't figure out why he didn't end up with many cookies. (There were more than shown here, though.) I told him it might be because of that one ginormous (Yes, it's a word. It became a word in 2007) cookie that would be equal to 5 or 6! Also, even the smaller heart cookie cutter was pretty big, so he didn't make sandwich cookies, just iced the tops. Great job, Zachary!

Shepherd's Pie

Posted by Lori:
Even though I have done Weight Watchers in the past, I haven't done it faithfully in several years. I asked my friend, Renee' (who is a great cook, by the way!) to send me some of her recent Weight Watcher's or low-fat recipes. I know many of you will enjoy them and this one sounds good enough those who aren't trying to eat low fat, too. This recipe came from a Weight Watcher's book, but Renee' changed it just a little bit.

Shepherd's Pie - serves 4
4 teaspoon canola oil
12 ounces (which equals 3/4 pound) 93% lean ground beef (I used 97% fat free ground turkey)
1 cup onions (If your husband eats onions! Mine doesn't.)
4 cups frozen mixed veggies (I only used 3 cups)
2 cups Italian-style tomatoes (I used 2 whole cans)
4 potatoes
3/4 cup skim milk
1 cup fat free cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 400. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add oil. Brown meat, breaking up into small chunks. Add onion, veggies and tomatoes. Cook 5 minutes or a little longer. Turn mixture into a 9 x 13 pan. Cook potatoes in microwave (they are bigger and fluffier if you do this) then peel them and smash with milk. Cover meat mixture with mashed potatoes; sprinkle with cheese. Bake 10-15 minutes until cheese is browned and bubbling. 12oz serving = 7 Weight Watcher points

Renee' mentioned that her husband doesn't like onions. I cook with them some, but more often I use onion powder - especially when browning hamburger meat. My kids and I really like the smell of the onion/beef mixture as it cooks together. So, that's a thought!

Thanks, Renee'!

Cole Slaw

Posted by Donna:

This is the Cole Slaw recipe I served with the 7-step Brisket.

1 pkg. cabbage (Sometimes I shred my own; but, this is so easy---plus it has purple cabbage and carrots already in it.) I used the 16 oz. pkg.

1 green pepper, chopped

4 or 5 green onions, chopped


Cole Slaw Dressing:

3/4 cup mayonnaise

3 T. apple cider vinegar

2 or 3 T. sugar

3 T. milk

Mix and pour over the slaw. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Make sure the dressing has fully coated the slaw before serving.

Marshmallow Cheese Crackers

Posted by Lori:
This may be one of the strangest snacks you've ever heard of, but I think you'll be surprised at how tasty this snack really is! In junior high and high school there was always one mom who would always say yes when her girls asked if we could have a slumber party. We would have spur-of-the-moment parties which consisted of a bunch of teen girls - hungry girls! These ingredients were always something she had on hand. These snacks and peanut butter milkshakes were slumber party staples at those parties.

Marshmallow Cheese Crackers
Saltine crackers
Marshmallows
Shredded or sliced cheddar cheese

Layer desired amount of saltine crackers on plate (microwave) or cookie sheet (oven). Sprinkle cheese on tops of crackers, followed by a marshmallow. Cook until marshmallow is melted either in microwave or under broil in your oven. Or, if broiling, you may want your marshmallow more browned.

I know what you're thinking: "That is one strange recipe!" But, just try it! You might like it.

Baked Onion Rings

Posted by Donna:

I love onion rings; but, because they're fried, I don't get to eat them very often. Last week, I turned my television on and Rachael Ray's show was just ending. She and her guest were eating these that he had just prepared on her show. I didn't know what they were--they never said during the few minutes I saw the show; but, she said the recipe was posted on her website. I decided to check it out, and this recipe is what I found. Her guest's name did not ring a bell with me; but, I'll definitely remember him now as being the originator of this recipe.

We all know that anything fried is so good; but, I'm so glad to get to eat onion rings that are healthy. I'll take them anyway I can get them.

4 vidalia onions, cut into thick slices
2 cups skim milk
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups panko breadcrumbs (The recipe calls for wheat panko; but, I only had the regular on hand.)
4 large egg whites
Salt and pepper
Nonstick cooking spray

Separate the onions into individual rings. The recipe says to use only the larger rings; but, I used both the large and small. You'll have about 15 - 20 rings total. Lay the rings in a single layer in a large baking dish. Pour the milk over the rings and let them soak for about 20 minutes, turning them once.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Place a wire baking rack on top of a foil lined baking sheet and set them aside.

Put the flour in a shallow dish and put the panko crumbs in a small dish. In a large bowl, whip the egg whites until they are extremely foamy but not quite holding peaks. Working in batches, remove the onion rings from the milk, roll them in the flour, shaking off the excess. Add the rings to the egg whites and coat them completely. Add the rings, a few pieces at a time, to the panko crumbs and coat completely.

Spread the onion rings out on the wire rack. Season the rings with salt and pepper, and spray them lightly with cooking spray. Bake until the panko crumbs are golden brown and crispy. I baked mine 20 minutes as the recipe suggested.


Along with this recipe was a dipping sauce that was really, really good. It's because of this sauce that Larry liked the onion rings. He kept commenting on how much he liked the sauce. While the onion rings are baking, you can mix this sauce up and have it ready as soon as the rings come out of the oven.

3/4 cup mayonnaise (I used Hellmann's.)
1 T. liquid smoke
a sprinkle or two of Tabasco Sauce---or to your liking

Whisk these three ingredients together.

I went ahead and dipped my rings in ketchup, but Larry preferred this mayo recipe for his.

Some of you may have seen the same show as I did and already have this recipe. I don't usually turn my television on during the day; but, for some reason I decided to this particular day. I'm so glad I did.

Basketball Cake

Posted by Lori:
This is more of an idea than a recipe, but I thought since it's basketball season, some might be interested in this decorated cake. The recipe for the icing is listed below.  I've made this cake four times so far, but this was the first time I made the basketball pink! This cake was used for a fundraiser during the final afternoon and night of a basketball tournament.  It was given away at the end of a silent auction.

(To read more about the PINK ribbon awareness event click here.)

The bottom of the cake is 2 layers of a 12 x 12 x 2 inch Wilton pan.  Each layer was baked using 7 1/2 cups of white cake batter.  The ball is the Wilton Sports Ball pan.  Each half holds 2 and 1/4 cups of batter - so a total of 4 and 1/2 cups.  I used three white cake mixes - the whole egg recipe - and I prefer using Pillsbury brand.  I had about 1/2 cup of batter left over (and no, I didn't eat it!).

Every Easter I look for a basketball net looking basket to use for this cake to replace the one that was given away the year before.  This basket came from Target and it's been the cutest basket so far!  I found it after Easter on sale, but unfortunately, there was only one of them left.

Buttercream icing is a great decorator icing, and even though butter gives a slightly off-white appearance, it's hardly noticable.  In my opinion, the taste is worth the small amount of tint it gives....SO, I almost always use half butter and half shortening in my decorator icing.  I use a lot of vanilla, too!  You may prefer less.  I do use the clear if I need white icing, but otherwise the regular kind.

Buttercream Icing:

2 cups butter, softened

2 cups shortening

4 pounds powdered sugar

1/2 cup milk

2 tablespoons vanilla, clear or regular

Icing colors, if desired (I use Wilton gel colors)

In large bowl, mix butter and shortening together until well blended.   Add powdered sugar a few cups at a time, mixing well in between additions.  Add milk and vanilla and mix well.  If other colors are needed, divide into seperate bowls and add desired colors.  I had about a cup of icing left over after making the cake.

This is a very heavy cake.  It is setting on a 14 x 14 inch square, 3/4 inch thick board which was covered with parchment paper.  The basketball is on a small Corelle plate (which I gave away, too!).  Four dowel sticks were cut and placed into the bottom layers.  The basket rested on top of the dowel sticks.

Fancy Piped Potatoes

Posted by Lori:

I mentioned in yesterday's post (here) about these "fancy" potatoes.  They're really not fancy at all.  They just look fancier because they're piped from a pastry bag.  However, my kids thought they were awesome and that I had done something really special, so I thought I would share this idea with you.

Use your favorite mashed potato recipe or the following recipe:

Mashed Potatoes

6 large potatoes, peeled and cubed

1/2 cup milk

1 stick butter

1 teaspoon salt

Sour Cream (optional)

 In a large pot of water, boil potatoes over high heat until tender.  Using electric mixer, beat potatoes until all big chunks are gone.  Add milk and butter, plus salt.  You want the mixture fairly stiff - not too thin - so you may want to add the milk and butter a little at a time.  I also like to add sour cream to my mashed potatoes, but didn't have any on hand this day.  Slightly allow mixture to cool before piping.

Using a pastry bag (this one happens to be disposable) with a large decorator tip (this one is a 4B tip), fill bag full of mashed potatoes.  An easy way to fill pastry bags is to place the bag in a tall, narrow glass.  Fold the top edge of the bag over the edge of the cup, leaving the middle of the bag open.

Pipe potato mixture onto buttered baking sheet. To make the swirled designs, begin piping in a circular motion and swirl around in circles, getting smaller and smaller. End by making a small peak at the top. I also made some large regular star tip shapes. The possibilities are endless!

I refrigerated the piped potatoes and then baked them before dinner at 400 degrees for 15 minutes (or bake until lightly browned), but you could bake them immediately, if desired.

Meatloaf Muffins

Posted by Lori:

I've never been much of a fan of meatloaf, but since my family likes it, I make it from time to time.  I think part of the reason I didn't like it was always the texture of it.  Making meatloaf in muffin tins seems to take away some of that texture problem for me and it's almost more of a meatball type dish.  This recipe is for our family of six for one night and to have some for leftovers a few days later.  (Note:  In the picture you'll see little fancy looking potatoes.  I'll tell about them tomorrow.)

Meatloaf Muffins

4 pounds ground beef

4 eggs

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons Worchestershire Sauce

Mix ingredients together in large bowl.  If using extra lean ground beef, spray muffin tins before filling with meat mixture.  Using 1/4 cup measuring cup, fill muffin tins.  Bake 30 - 45 minutes at 350 degrees. (If not using a lean ground beef, be sure to put foil or another pan under the muffin tins to catch any spills of juice/grease.) Remove meatloaf muffins from tins and place into casserole dish.  Top with sauce recipe below.

Sauce:

4 - 8 ounce cans tomato sauce (or 2 larger ones would be close to equivalent)

2 1/2 teaspoons onion powder

3/4 cup brown sugar

Mix ingredients together in bowl.  Pour sauce over meatloaf muffins and bake 15 minutes - or can be broiled for shorter amount of time...just be careful not to burn.

The first time I ever made meatloaf in muffin tins were when I was playing an April Fool's Day joke on my kids.  Family Fun magazine showed putting a cooked meatloaf muffin into a cupcake liner, then coloring mashed potatoes (blue or other color) to ice the top.  It looked like a real cupcake!  It was fun doing a crazy, mixed up meal for them for lunch.  April Fool's Day fun meals or funny snacks is tradition we've carried on with them since they were little.  They always look forward to their surprise for that day!

Quick Buttermilk Biscuits

Posted by Donna:

I was reminded recently of this recipe I used to make. It's amazing how many recipes I've forgotten about---those that I used to make when the girls were still home. I revived it last week, and it's still a keeper. They (the biscuits) passed the "husband test" with flying colors---with and without the gravy on them. I know I posted another biscuit recipe early on in our blog; but, this is another option. My student teacher gave me this recipe while I was teaching at Eldorado. That's been many moons ago!!!!

4 cups flour

2 tsp. salt

6 tsp. baking powder

2 cups buttermilk

2 T. oil

Mix all the ingredients together. Roll out and bake at 475 degrees.

To think that I could have been making these for all these years!!!!!! I just hope other people have the same disease I do---the memory disease.

Fabulous Brownies

Posted by Lori:
My family's usual brownie recipe has been posted before (click here for recipe). It's a super uniced brownie that we've had in the family forever(well, maybe not forever, but a long time). But a few years ago a friend from church brought these iced brownies for VBS. They were great so I asked for the recipe. It makes a lot of brownies and they're very rich (which is why I really like them!) and, as their name implies they are FABULOUS!

FABULOUS BROWNIES
1 pound (4 sticks) butter (not margarine)
3/4 cup cocoa powder
4 cups sugar
6 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups flour
5 cups pecans (optional)

DO NOT USE ELECTRIC MIXER, but mix by hand in order given above. Place in greased and floured (or sugared *** see note below) pan. The recipe says to use a jelly roll pan (10 x 15 x 1) or 2 cake pans (9 x 13). I use the same large Doughmakers pan I've mentioned several times that's 13 x 18.5 and it works fine, too. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes. Do not overbake!! Cool and ice with icing below.

Icing:
1 stick margarine (not lowfat)
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pound (4 cups) powdered sugar

In a medium sized saucepan, bring margarine, cocoa and milk to a boil over medium heat. Remove from stove and add vanilla. Beat in powdered sugar.

***Sugared pan: My husband likes a brownie from a bakery in Lawton, OK. Their brownies have a sugared bottom. I'm not exactly sure this is how they do it, but it works for me! Grease the bottom of the pan (I use shortening because Doughmakers pans can't be sprayed). Sprinkle sugar in the bottom of the pan and swirl around until sugar is covered on the bottom...just like you would do with the flour. It makes a crustier and sweeter bottom.

7 Step Brisket

Posted by Donna:

I had this recipe for 3 or 4 years---then misplaced it----and my very, very sweet cousin gave it to me again a few months ago. I promised her I would take better care of it this time. Her husband said she made the best brisket he had ever eaten. She had four sons; so, I'm sure the five men in her household all approved of it since she continues to use this recipe. The only problem is that when she acquired the recipe there were no exact measurements; so you have to make it once, judging if the ingredients are just like you want them, or if you need to increase or decrease them. I've always liked to follow a recipe exactly as written the first time, then I can make my adjustments. I made the brisket today, and the one ingredient I know I need to increase is the liquid smoke---at my husband's request. I'm not a big beef eater---we don't get along very well. I try to season "beef" to Larry's liking since he loves it and would eat it every meal. It does have such a good flavor, and it's very, very tender. It basically falls apart when you try to carve it.

I used a 4 lb. brisket.

Liquid smoke
Kitchen Bouquet
Seasoned salt
Seasoned pepper
Accent
Adolph's meat tenderizer
Garlic powder

Rub the Liquid Smoke and Kitchen Bouquet on both sides of the brisket. Sprinkle both sides with the five remaining ingredients. Wrap the brisket completely in foil. Put in the refrigerator to marinate overnight. The next morning, take the brisket out of the foil and place in a 9 x 13 pan. Cover the pan with foil. Bake at 225 degrees for 8 to 10 hours. I put mine on at 8:00 this morning and took it out at 5:30. This is a very simple recipe and well worth the time to make.

Chocolate Chip Pie

Posted by Kimberly:

Several years ago, my husband and I were eating at Orlando's, which is an Italian restaurant here in Lubbock. We decided to order dessert and chose Kentucky pie. Neither one of us had ever heard of it before but its description sounded really good. Well, let me just say, that it didn't disappoint! It was like eating warm chocolate chip cookie dough in a pie crust.

A couple of years ago, I was excited to find that a restaurant chain that opened here called McAlister's Deli offered it as a dessert, too. Unfortunately, they have since taken it off their menu. I searched off and on trying to find a recipe for it, so I could enjoy it at home and make it for my family. Most "Kentucky Pie" recipes that I found were not like what I had eaten. In fact, my sister had tried one and, while it was good, the filling was chocolate instead of being like cookie dough.

Finally, about a year and a half ago I came across a recipe in a Paula Deen cookbook for "Chocolate Chip Pie". I gave it a try, and sure enough, I had found my Kentucky pie!

Chocolate Chip Pie

2 eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 stick butter, melted

one 6-ounce pkg. semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (I don't add a full cup.)

one 9-inch UNBAKED pie shell

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In large bowl, beat eggs until foamy. Add flour and brown sugar. Beat until well blended. Blend in granulated sugar and butter. Stir in chocolate chops and nuts. Pour into pie shell. Bake for 1 hour. Cover with whipped topping, if desired.

My husband and I think that we can taste a small amount of coconut in the pie that we have eaten at Orlando's. I have never added any to this recipe, mainly because I never think of it until after I've made it. He also requests that I double the filling, so I have to bake it in a deep pie dish. I did this for Christmas and had to bake it at least 1 1/2 hours, if not 2. I also had to turn the oven down to 300 degrees and loosely cover the top with foil so it wouldn't burn. Really, a recipe and a half would be plenty for the filling if you choose to make it thicker.

Chunky Chicken Chili

Posted by Lori:
A few days ago I cooked a big pot of pinto beans.  I was going to serve them again tonight, but thought it would be fun to try a new recipe using pinto beans.  I searched for "recipes using pinto beans" and came up with several different things, but the one thing I kept noticing was recipes for chicken chili.  That was kind of interesting because the other day my sister-in-law mentioned making a chicken chili last week. Her whole family liked it.  So, I began looking at all kinds of recipes and put this one together using bits and pieces from several different ones.

The chili turned out great!  It will be a new standard recipe for us.  My husband said he would call it a stew or soup, but I'm keeping it a chili because it just sounds neater with the triple "C" name up there in the title!

Chunky Chicken Chili

6 cups cooked pinto beans (mine were pre-seasoned with pork, onion powder, pinto bean seasoning, and a little bit of Splenda)
1 can chicken broth
2 - 3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 cup salsa
1 can corn (undrained)
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin

Place all ingredients in large stock pot or crock pot.  Heat thoroughly. If desired, serve topped with a dollop of sour cream and shredded cheddar cheese.

This morning after I cooked the chicken, I began to shred it using two forks.  The following thought came to mind:  Why when you use two forks and do this to chicken it's called "shredded chicken", but when you use two forks like this with pork it's called "pulled pork"?  I think it's just because it sounds better....just like the "triple C" name. What do you think????

Corn Chip Salad

Posted by Kimberly:

I just made this for a side dish to serve with Mexican food at our New Year's Eve gathering that we had at our house last week. It is quick and easy to make and was a hit with our guests.

Corn Chip Salad:

1 small purple onion, chopped

1 small green pepper, chopped

1 cup real mayo

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

2 cups cheddar cheese

1 bag chili cheese Fritos

Mix first five ingredients together in a bowl. Place in refrigerator until ready to serve. I really think mixing this up a few hours ahead of time makes a difference in the flavor. It really allows the ingredients to come together. Just before serving, add mixture to Fritos and mix well.

I recommend only mixing half of the Fritos with half of the mayo mixture at a time unless you know for certain that it all will be eaten. You can refrigerate any leftovers but the Fritos get soft and it isn't near as good as when they are crunchy.

Fresh Peach Pie

Posted by Donna:

This is another recipe I inherited from my mother.

6-8 fresh peaches (frozen peaches can also be used)

2 cups sugar

6 T. flour

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/8 tsp. cloves

doubled pie crust recipe

Slice the fresh peaches--enough to fill an unbaked crust.

Mix the sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Pour this mixture over the peaches. Dot with butter. Cover with the top unbaked crust. I always do a latticed top. Sprinkle the top crust with sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes.

Hopefully, when preparing this pie, there's vanilla ice cream on hand to top it off!

Snickers Salad

I'm calling this a salad, but I'm not sure it should be classified as one.  It should probably be a dessert - or at least that's what my family thinks!  I'm filing it under both categories.

Snickers Salad
1 -  3 ounce package vanilla pudding mix
1 cup milk
1 - 8 ounce carton Cool Whip
2 tablespoons caramel ice cream topping (more as a garnish on top, if desired)
3 regular sized Snickers candy bars, chopped
2 apples, chopped (any variety - I use Fuji)

In medium bowl, combine pudding mix and milk.  Add Cool Whip and caramel.  Stir in Snickers and apples.  Garnish with more caramel topping, if desired.  Refrigerate until ready to serve. 

You can easily make this lower fat and lower sugar by using the low fat or sugar free varieties of the Cool Whip and pudding.  However, I've never seen a Snickers bar that would fit in either of those categories :).

RECIPE FOR A HAPPY NEW YEAR

Take twelve whole months.

Clean them thoroughly of all bitterness,

hate, and jealousy.

Make them just as fresh and clean as possible.

Now cut each month into twenty-eight, thirty, or thirty-one different parts,

but don't make up the whole batch at once.

Prepare it one day at a time out of these ingredients.

Mix well into each day one part of faith,

one part of patience, one part of courage,

and one part of work.

Add to each day one part of hope,

faithfulness, generosity, and kindness.

Blend with one part prayer, one part meditation,

and one good deed.

Season the whole with a dash of good spirits,

a sprinkle of fun, a pinch of play,

and a cupfull of good humor.

Pour all of this into a vessel of love.

Cook thouroughly over radiant joy,

garnish with a smile,

and serve with quietness, unselfishness,

and cheerfulness.

You're bound to have a happy new year.

-- Author Unknown

Happy New Year!

Apple Dip

Posted by Donna:

This is my favorite dip to serve with apples.

8 oz. cream cheese
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Mix ingredients until creamy.