Apple Dip

I love apple dips. Love them. My issue with them is that they often times call for ingredients I don't usually have around my house. Marshmallow creme? Who keeps that in your pantry? So that is why I love this one. It's easy. It's super tasty. And it's made from stuff you usually have on hand. It's good for quick snack ideas, parties, baby showers, or just to keep in your fridge to snack on.

Apple Dip

1 8oz. pkg of cream cheese - softened
1 cup brown sugar (I use dark because that's the kind I buy, but I would imagine that it would still work with light)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1-2 tbsp. caramel topping - optional

Mix ingredients together and mix well. I find that it works better to use the whisk attachment on your mixer - if you have one. If mixed by hand mix until the sugar is no longer gritty and well blended. The caramel topping is an optional addition, it works without it if you don't have it, but if you do have it, it adds a little hit of caramel to it. Serve with apples! So simple! Keep leftovers in a sealed tupperware in the fridge.

**As I just typed this up, I realized that I'm sure that you could eat this with any fruit, I guess I'm just partial to apples...

Baked Potatoes

At my house we really call these "Hasselhoff Potatoes", long story, but they are baked potatoes none the less. This is also one of those recipes that isn't exact and can be changed to your liking. This is how we like it, but change it how you like.

Baked Potatoes (or Hasselhoff Potatoes)
Enough potatoes to fill you pan (we use a 9x13 pan and use anywhere from 4-8 potatoes - any variety including yams)
Peel & Cut the potatoes in slices about a 1/4 inch thick. The bigger slices from the middle of the potatoes can be cut in half length wise.
Spray your pan with non-stick spray. Then add potatoes. Use some extra olive oil over the potatoes for extra flavor and to help seasoning stick .
Sprinkle with seasoning. *this is where your preference comes in.
I like dehydrated onion, garlic (either fresh or dehydrated) dehydrated chives, pepper, & Mrs. Dash.
Bake at 350 for an hour. I usually stir mine about half way through, just to make sure the potatoes don't stick and get evenly cooked. I'm also a salty person so I add salt to mine the last few minutes of cooking - adding it earlier dries the potatoes out. Enjoy!

**this was just sweet potatoes, but I usually cook both sweet and white potatoes together.(the red stuff you see is a pot holder, not anything in the pan)

Italian Bread Bowls

These were super yummy, especially when paired with this soup.

Italian Bread Bowls

2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast (1 pkg yeast = 2 1/4 tsp. yeast)
2 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons oil (I prefer Olive Oil but vegetable oil works as well)
7 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon cornmeal
1 egg white
1 tablespoon water

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. (You can add a small amount of sugar to the yeast to aid in the activation process without changing the taste of the bread)
2. Add salt, oil and 4 cups flour to the yeast mixture; beat well. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well with an electric mixer at medium speed after each addition.
3. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.
4. Punch dough down, and divide into 8 equal portions. Shape each portion into a 4 inch round loaf. Place loaves on lightly greased baking sheets sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, until doubled in bulk, about 35 minutes. (to remove the cloth if it has dried, spray it lightly with a spray bottle and it will come right off without ruining your bread loaves. You don't want to handle or tug on the loaves or they collapse.)
5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). In a small bowl, beat together egg white and 1 tablespoon water.
6. Bake for 15 minutes. Brush with remaining egg mixture, and bake 10 to 15 more minutes or until golden. Cool on wire racks.
7. To make bowls: Cut a 1/2 inch thick slice from top of each loaf; scoop out centers, leaving 3/4-inch-thick shells. Fill bread bowls with hot soup and serve immediately.

Zucchini Casserole

6 cups zucchini
1/4 cup onion
Boil for 5 minutes, drain. Reserve water to add to soup mixture if too dry. Add to soup mixture.

Combine:
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
1 cup carrots
(I added about ½ cup zucchini water to make it more moist.)

Combine:
1/4-1/2 cup melted butter
8 oz. Pepperidge Farm Stuffing (the bag with blue on it)

Layer ½ the crumbs on bottom of 9x13 pan. Put all of zucchini mixture on top, then other half of crumbs. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Serving Suggestions: Serve as a main dish with a side salad, or as a side dish. Mmm...

Green Salsa

I promised to post this. Here goes. Please note: the proportions are approximate, so give and take to your taste buds liking.

10 firm Tomatillos
2 jalepenos, chopped and seeded (unless you like it hotter)
1 bunch of fresh cilantro, separated using just the leaves
1/4 cup red onion, chopped

Boil Tomatillos until soft (about 8-10 min.). Peel the husk off and pull out the stem. Put in blender with onion, 1-2 TBSP. cilantro, and 1/4 of the chopped jalepeno. Blend until smooth. Taste. If you need a little more heat, add more cilantro and jalepeno. You be the judge. Chill and enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips. The salsa may get hotter as it ages overnight.

Potato Casserole

My good friend Sarah gave me this recipe and it is so yummy! This is what we would call "funeral potatoes". And I can't make anything with out changing it a little, but I'll give the original recipe then add my notes of what I changed.

Yummy Potato Casserole
6 medium potatoes (par boiled)
1/4 cup margarine
1 carton sour cream (16 oz.)
1 can cream of chicken or mushroom soup (10 oz.)
1 teaspoon dry onion or some chopped onion
1 cup shredded sharp cheese
1 cup crushed corn flakes

Cook potatoes, peel and grate. Melt margarine with soup until blended. Add sour cream, onion and cheese and mix well. Pour over grated potatoes. (I mix them together.) Put in 9 x 13 inch dish. Sprinkle the top with corn flakes. Bake at 325 for 1 hour. It will be thick but just mix the best you can and then put it in the pan.

My notes: **So instead of parboiling the potatoes I just microwaved them for about 4-5 minutes until the were easy enough to poke with a fork but not to the baked potato stage yet. I let them cool before shredding, but still used hot pads to shred since they were still hot. Along with what is called for I added milk to mine too, I wanted it a bit more creamy. I think I added a little less than a cup. I also added salt and pepper before baking, since I'm a salty kind of person, but know that the recipe truly doesn't need it. And then instead of corn flakes on top I put bread crumbs, which I didn't end up liking. Bo and I decided it would've been awesome to put French's Onions on top for a good flavor; we're going to try that next time. I even contemplated adding some chopped ham into it, but didn't have any. No matter what, this recipe turns out tasty!

Pasta Chicken Salad

6 cups cooked chicken, cubed
1 pkg. Bow tie pasta-cooked and drained
sliced green onions
16 oz. Kraft coleslaw dressing
2 cups mayonnaise (see note)
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb. grapes halved
1 cup chopped celery
1 20 oz. Can pineapple tidbit, drained
1-2 medium apples, chopped
slivered almonds

Combine chicken, pasta, green onions, coleslaw dressing, mayonnaise, salt and pepper and chill. Just before serving, add the remaining ingredients. Makes about 20 servings

Note: The last I made this, I didn't have any mayo, so I used only the dressing, just enough to make it wet -- I used about 10-12 oz. I think I like it better without the mayo.

Ambrosia

Ambrosia

1 ½ cups drained mandarin orange chunks
2 apples – chopped
2 bananas – sliced
1 tub sour cream
1 pkg. Mini-marshmallows
½ cup coconut
½ cup pecans
1 ½ cups drained pineapple chunks

Mix together all ingredients and refrigerate.

Slow-Cooker Baked Beans

Slow-Cooker Baked Beans

3 cans pinto beans, drained, rinsed (Any beans can be used if wanted)
¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
3 slices of bacon - chopped
1 cup barbecue sauce
1 small onion - chopped

Place all ingredients in slow cooker; mix well. Cover with lid. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or high for 3 hours.

Onion-Roasted Potatoes

These are SO easy and SOOO yummy!

Onion-Roasted Potatoes
Side Dish, Vegetables
Ingredients:
3 medium Yukon potatoes, or 4-5 smallish red potatoes (washed, but not peeled)
3-4 Tbsp olive oil
1 pkg Lipton onion soup mix

Directions:
Dice potatoes into a small dice (about 1/2-3/4"). Place in a large ziploc bag. Add olive oil and soup mix and seal, removing any additional air. Shake and move potatoes around to coat very well with olive oil and soup mix.
Let rest if you need to do other things (about 10 mintutes). If you don't have time, skip the resting. Pour into a single layer in a glass baking pan (11 x 7 or 9 x 13) or a cookie sheet, sprayed with cooking spray. Try to make sure potatoes are in a single layer for best roasting.



Bake at 400-425 for 45-60 minutes, stirring about every 15-20 minutes for even roasting.