Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients:

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 can chicken broth

2 cans cream of whatever soups(I usually do one cream of chicken and one cream of mushroom)

1-2 cups chopped vegetables(green beans, corn, peas, celery, onion, etc. Just whatever you have on hand. You can also just use a can of vegetables instead too)

salt and pepper to taste

dash of garlic powder

1/2 tbsp chicken boullion powder

1 can jumbo biscuits

Directions:

Dump everything into the crockpot except for the biscuits and cook on low for 5-6 hours(or high for 3-4). When it's about 2-3 hours until dinnertime, and the chicken is cooked through, cut up the biscuits into quarters and add into the crockpot mix. Make sure to push them down into the liquid so that they are covered every so often. Cook for a few hours on high, until the biscuits are cooked through. The mixture will become thick and less soupy as time goes on. Serve hot.

I'm in love with this recipe. I make it all the time on those days where I have nothing on hand except for staples(and yes, canned soups are a staple at my house). It's really hearty and just warms you up instantly. I try to cut some of the vegetables up really tiny so that my kids don't notice them and they eat it just fine. Oh and I also usually throw a handful of dried spinach in there for good measure. It looks just like parsley and no one knows the difference:)

If you are looking for a healthier version, try this one. I've only heard good things but have yet to try it because it's more complicated than my version:)

No bake Cheesecake

Ingredients:

{Filling}

2 cups heavy whipping cream

6 tbsp sugar, divided

1 tsp vanilla

1 bar cream cheese, softened.

{Crust}

1-2 C crushed graham crackers

2 tbsp butter or margerine, melted

Directions:

For the crust, mix the butter and crumbs and put them into your pie pan. Press the down to make a solid, even crust. Set aside. For the filling, beat the heavy cream, 4 tbsp of sugar, and the vanilla until it thickens and soft peaks form. You want it to be the consistency of cool whip. Once it's whipped, add in the softened cream cheese and beat on high for another minute or two, until it is smooth and fully incorporated. Pour the whipped filling into the pie pan and smooth it out evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, until it sets up. Serve cold with toppings of your choice(cherry pie filling, strawberries, chocolate candy, etc).

To make mini cheesecakes, simply put 1-2 tbsp of the crumb mixture into the bottom of a cup or cupcake wrapper, and then fill to the top with the cream filling. Refrigerate for 3 hours or until set and serve cold.

To simplify, just use a preformed graham cracker crust from the store and an 8 oz container of cool whip in place of the whipped cream.

I love this recipe because it's really fast and easy to throw together. Well that, and it's pretty tasty. It tastes just like cheesecake except that it's light and fluffy. Not nearly as "heavy" as regular cheesecake. I like to serve mini ones for parties and such but a regular pie works great too. And it's fun to get creative with what you serve it in. The ones pictured are served vintage teacups that I found at a thrift store(Don't worry, I washed them, haha!) It's just a nice, sophisticated treat that makes you feel like a lady when you eat it:)

Biscuits and Gravy-sausage gravy recipe

Ingredients:

1/2 lb ground sausage

3 C milk

1/4 C flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:

Brown the sausage in a large saucepan. Once cooked through, add the flour and stir until fully incorporated(Do not drain the grease. You need it...trust me). Add in the remaining ingredients and cook on medium high heat, stirring continuously until it begins to bubble. Turn down heat and stir until the grazy thickens. Serve over warm biscuits.

This is a staple in our house. It's my husband's favorite thing to eat, and quite possibly my favorite thing to cook because it takes 5 seconds and I almost always have the ingredients on hand. The healthiest thing to eat? Eh, maybe not. But it really is delicious and it never fails me. It's one of those perfect recipes for a busy night when you just don't want to cook...and yes I say night because this isn't a breakfast food in our house. It's a dinnertime favorite:)

Basic Egg Noodles

Ingredients:

3 C flour

3 large eggs

water(a few tablespoons)

salt and herbs(basil, oregano, rosemary, etc)-optional

Directions:

Mix the eggs in a small bowl and set aside. Add flour and any seasonings you would like to your mixer and turn on low speed. Slowly add the eggs and then continue to add tablespoons of water as needed, until the dough forms a ball and isn't sticking to the sides. Allow mixer to knead the dough for 2 minutes and then knead by hand a few times. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and allow to rest for at least 15-20 minutes(very important step-don't skip this). Roll dough out on a floured surface to desired thickness and cut into preferred shape. About 1/2 in. wide strips work well for fettucine and 2-3 in strips are perfect for lasagna. Allow noodles to dry and then cook in boiling water for 4-6 minutes, or until tender. OR follow the instructions of pasta cutting machine(Kitchenaid attachment was used for the macaroni noodles pictured.)

Sweet Maple Bars

Ingredients:
{Crust}
1 cake mix-yellow or white, divided
1/3 C butter, melted
1 egg

{Topping}
1 1/3 C maple syrup
3 eggs
1/3 C packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 C chopped walnuts and/or white chocolate chips(optiona)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 pan.
For the crust, reserve 2/3 C of the cake mix and set aside. Combine remaining cake mix, egg and butter in a large bowl and stir until thoroughly blended(Mixture will be crumbly). Press into your greased pan and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until light golden brown.
For the topping, combine the extra cake mix, eggs, syrup and vanilla. Beat at low speed for three minutes. Pour over hot crust, and sprinkle with walnuts if desired. Bake again at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until filling is set. Sprinkle with white chocolate chips if desired right after it comes out of the oven, so that they will melt. Allow bars to cool completely and then cut and serve. Makes 24 bars.

I love this recipe because it is really easy and calls for basic ingredients that I always have on hand. They kind of remind me of a cross between a maple donut and blondie brownies...heavenly, right?!? These always get scarfed up in about 3 seconds and I think my neighbors became extra friendly after receiving a plate of these from us. Winner dish, that's for sure!

Bread Bowls

Ingredients:

4 tsp. active dry yeast

1 C warm water(hot but not scalding)

1 C warm milk

1/2 C shortening

1/2 C sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp salt

5-6 C flour

Directions:

In a mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water with the sugar(I always add the water first, then the yeast, and then the sugar. That way the yeast is pushed to the bottom and grows faster and evenly). Wait about 5 minutes, until the yeast has "grown" and then add the rest of the ingredients, adding the flour last one cup at a time until you have a soft dough that doesn't stick to the sides of the bowl. If you are using a stand mixer, let it knead for 3-4 minutes, or if by hand, turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead 6-8 minutes. Once smooth and elastic, place the dough in a greased bowl and let rise for about an hour, or until doubled in size.

Once the dough has doubled, punch down and turn on to a floured surface. Divide into 8 pieces(or 6 if you want really big bowls) and shape each into a ball. Place balls on greased baking sheet a few inches apart and allow to rise again until double in size(about 30 min). I cut(very lightly) an X into the top of each one, but that is not necessary. Just for looks. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool before using.

To make the bread bowls, simply cut a circle in the top of the bread bowl and then hollow out the bread from the inside. Then just fill with soup and serve.

I found this recipe on allrecipes.com, one of my favorite sites and thought it would be perfect for tonight's dinner-potato cheese soup. It's been raining for two days and that NEVER happens here, so I figured we could celebrate by eating some delicious soup and bread. This bread is a little sweet but delicious and pairs well with soups, chili, chowders, etc. And so easy! I'm telling you, If I can do it, anyone can. I'm definitely going to make it again. I bet it would make really good rolls too. Mmm.

Grandma Katherine's German Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

{Cake}

1/2 C shortening

1 1/2 C sugar

3 eggs, separated(you'll need both parts)

1 C. sour milk or buttermilk

1/3 C cocoa

1/2 C water

2 C flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

{Frosting}

1 C evaporated milk

1 C sugar

3 egg yolks(saved from earlier)

1/2 C butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 C shredded coconut

1 C. chopped pecans

Directions:

For the cake: Separate the eggs. Beat the whites until stiff peaks form and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the cake ingredients except for the egg whites. Once mixed, gently add in the egg whites. Pour into a 9 x 13 greased pan and bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.

For the frosting: Mix all of the ingredients together except for the coconut and pecans in a microwave safe bowl. Once combined, microwave for 3 minutes, stir, then microwave for another 2 minutes. Add in the coconut and microwave for another 2 minutes. Then add in the pecans and again, microwave for 2 minutes. By this point the frosting should have thickened. Allow it to cool and then spread on the cake and serve.

I'll be honest, I am not a lover of german chocolate cake. Or making cakes from scratch. When I offered to make a german chocolate cake for my dad's birthday I was thinking somewhere along the lines of a box cake and a can of frosting. Apparently that is not the same thing. My mom handed over a copy of this recipe that she got from my grandma, and I guess it's legendary. Or it's at least my dad's favorite. Oh my, I had no idea that cakes from scratch were so involved! I think this one is a little more in depth than most but seriously, look at all of those ingredients! Anyway, I wanted to post this one because it's been in the family for a looooong time and my dad doesn't have a very long list of "favorite recipes" so I think it's a keeper. Everyone seems to love it too, so you can't really lose there.

Garlic Cheese Flatbread

Ingredients:

1 (2.5 tsp) envelope active dry yeast

1 C hot water

2 1/2 C flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons white sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened

2 tablespoons garlic powder

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/3 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, combine the hot water, yeast and sugar. Let sit for 5 minutes to allow the yeast to grow. Once it is foaming, add in the flour, salt, half of the garlic powder and oil. Use a spoon or mixer and stir until dough is stiff enough to pull away from the sides of the bowl. This is a "wet" dough and will be sticky. Cover, and set aside until doubled in size, about 35 minutes.               

Remove the dough from the bowl and knead briefly on a floured surface. Roll the dough out to 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness or to the size of your baking sheet. Place on a greased baking sheet and spread butter over the top. Poke several holes in the dough using a fork and then sprinkle with garlic powder, Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese. Let rest while you preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown and cheese is bubbly. Serve warm.

I have been looking for a good flatbread recipe for a really long time. We make pizza a lot at our house and my dough always ends up being a disappointing mess. I have to be honest, I didn't find this recipe for the purpose of making pizza, I just wanted some good bread for an appetizer and this one was delicious. It didn't rise too much, was light, and the crispy cheese on top was divine. Everyone liked it(although it's hummus counterpart was not so successful, bleck! That didn't work out like I had hoped!)I think it would make a perfect pizza crust and can't wait to make it again. Original recipe courtesy of allrecipes.com       

  

Caramel

Ingredients:

1 C. butter

2 C brown sugar

1 C condensed milk

1 C light corn syrup
2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

Melt butter in a medium saucepan and add in the remaining ingredients. Cook on medium heat until the caramel mixture reaches the soft ball stage(you can test this by dropping a bit of the caramel into cold water and if it forms into a ball, not a liquidy syrup then it's ready)....about 20-25 minutes. Remove from heat and pour into a glass pan to cool. Once cool, you can cut the caramels into squares and wrap in wax paper to store.

For Caramel apples, cook the caramel a bit longer(maybe 30-40 minutes) and then remove from heat. Dip your apples(green are best but you can use any kind) into the hot caramel and once completely coated, remove from caramel and swirl the apple in the air to allow the caramel to stay coated evenly while it cools and hardens. After about a minute or two, it should be set and ready to eat!

For whatever reason, I always remember this as my sister's recipe. She is the caramel master of the family-way better than me at least-and I love this stuff. My mom always made it growing up and would put it on popcorn, oh, it's so good that way too. Forget wrapping them up individually, I could just eat this by the spoonful right out of the pan. It's important to not cook the caramel too long, otherwise when it cools it becomes rock hard, and that's no good(well, relatively speaking. I'm pretty sure I've still eaten it that way!) If your pan does manage to last longer than a few seconds and you can get them wrapped up, these make great little holdiay treats to give out or whatever.

Photo credit here.

Mini Lasagna Cups

Ingredients:
1/2 lb lean ground beef
1/2 lb sausage
1/2 onion, diced
1 tbsp minced garlic
2 C spaghetti sauce
1 container(small) part skim ricotta cheese
1 container(small) cottage cheese
1/2  C parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt(or more)
1 tbsp basil
1 tbsp oregano
1/2 teaspoon pepper(or more)
2-3 C. shredded mozzerella cheese
1 pkg egg roll wrappers, cut in 4ths(squares)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brown the onion, garlic, sausage and hamburger in a large skillet over medium high heat and drain.  Add spaghetti sauce to remaining meat mixture and stir to combine.

In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients, except for the wrappers and mozzerella cheese and stir to combine.

Coat 3- 12 cup muffin tins with cooking spray, and arrange a wonton wrapper in each cup. Then put a small dollap of the ricotta mixture in each one. Top with a spoonful of the meat sauce, and begin again. Wrapper, cheese mixture, sauce. After you've finished the second layer, cover with another spoonful of sauce, and then sprinkle with mozzerella cheese. 

Bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and the wonton wrappers are golden. Cool in the muffin tin for 5-10 minutes before serving.

I saw this recipe on Kevin & Amanda's blog a few months ago(I love her site) and have been meaning to try them. The egg roll wrappers have been sitting in the fridge for a looooong time and I finally decided that I'd better get to it before they went bad(do those go bad? who knows.) Anyway, I was making them for a bigger crowd so I made some adjustments to the recipe to accomodate; feel free to scale down the recipe to suit your needs but I'm pretty sure you'll eat more of these than you anticipate. They turned out so well! The kids loved them just as much as me so I know we have a winner here. These are definitely on the dinner rotation now, though I think they'd make a great little appetizer too. Yum!