Corn Salad

5 ears of corn, shucked
1/2 cup small-diced red onion (1 small onion)
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup julienned fresh basil leaves
  

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the corn for 3 minutes until the starchiness is just gone. 

Drain and immerse it in ice water to stop the cooking and to set the color. 

 When the corn is cool, cut the kernels off the cob, cutting close to the cob.

Toss the kernels in a large bowl with the red onions, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

 Just before serving, toss in the fresh basil.

Taste for seasonings and serve cold or at room temperature.

This salad was so incredibly good,

full of flavor and highly addictive! 

I can't wait to make it again. 

 Recipe from Ina Garten...Love her!

 

Bacon Cheeseburger Sliders

However much of each you need to feed your crew...Ground Chuck
Salt and Pepper
Bacon, cooked and cut in 2 inch pieces
Cheddar Cheese, I just shredded some
King Hawaiian Rolls, or any small roll

Make tiny patties from the ground chuck, usually about 1/4 of the size of a regular burger. Season with salt and pepper or your favorite burger seasoning.

Heat a skillet over medium heat until hot, then add the patties.

When burgers are done, top each one with 2 small pieces of bacon and a generous sprinkling of cheddar cheese. Don't feel  beholden to the cheddar, use whatever cheese makes you happy, or whatever cheese is in your fridge!

Split your rolls in half and place a burger patty on bottom half of each one.

Once they are all assembled, pop the whole plate of sliders in the microwave for 15 seconds or so, just to warm the buns.

The possibilities are endless with these little guys. I would love them with caramelized onions, a small slice of tomato, pickles or any other topping that makes a burger.....well a burger!

Banana Pudding

1 box vanilla pudding
milk
vanilla wafers
bananas

Slice bananas and arrange in bottom of dish.

Add a layer of vanilla wafers.

Make pudding according to package directions.

Pour pudding over cookies and bananas.

Place a few vanilla wafers in a zip lock bag and crush them with a meat mallet, or rolling pin.

Sprinkle crushed cookies on top of pudding.

Chill until ready to serve.

Super easy & super tasty!

weekely menu 7

Monday: JV Game

Beef Stew

Hawaiian Rolls

Tuesday:

Chicken and Stuffing

Mashed potatoes

Green Beans w/ bacon and onion

Wednesday:

Sliders (Left over Hawaiian rolls)

Mac and Cheese

Apples 

Thursday: Game day

White Chicken Chili

Cornbread muffins

Friday:

Monterey Chicken

Ramen Noodle Slaw

Twice Baked potatoes

Saturday: Also known as...Caleb's 19th birthday!!

Penne Pasta and Smoked Sausage

Crunchie salad

Oven Roasted Broccoli 

Hot Rolls

Peach Cobbler with Ice Cream

Sunday:

Hamburgers

Ramen Noodle Slaw (leftovers)

Weekly Menu 6

Monday: Game day

Chicken Bacon Ranch Sandwiches

Stir fry cabbage

Cottage Cheese

Tuesday:

Chicken Enchiladas

Green Lettuce Salad

Jello with diced pears

Orange Julius

Wednesday:

Zesty Grilled Pork Chops

Potato Packets

Green Beans w/ bacon and onion

Thursday: The Corn Salad was to die for..

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Corn Salad

Applesauce

Friday: Game day (away)

Grab something on the way out of town.

Saturday:

Parents weekend at...

Benedictine College AND Conception Seminary...

going to see our boys!

Made Stew and froze in advance for Caleb 

along with No Bake Granola Bars 

and Poppy Seed Bread for both boys! 

I love cooking for them!!!

Sunday:

Beef Stew

King Hawaiian Rolls

Frosty Orange Drink

6 oz frozen orange juice
3/4 cup water

3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
12 ice cubes

Combine all ingredients in blender and blend on high until no large chunks of ice remain.

Serve with a straw...it's more fun that way!

Weekly Menu 5

Monday: JV game day...have to travel.

Hot Antipasto Salad

Grapes

Tuesday:

Chicken Fajitas

Corn

Applesauce

Wednesday:

Dinner out

Thursday: Game Day

Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta
Jello bananas

Crunchie Salad

Friday:

Ribs

Baked Beans

Ciabatta Rolls

Saturday: You must try this soup...even teenage boys gobble it up!

Tortellini Soup 

No Knead Beer Bread

Sunday:

Chicken Salad Wraps

Mac and Cheese

Holy Cow Cake

1 German Chocolate cake mix and ingredients to make it

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 jar caramel syrup

1 lg. bowl Cool Whip, I use light

2 Heath candy bars (crushed) or Heath Bits from the baking isle

Prepare cake as directed on package. 

Bake in 13x9 inch pan. 

When cake is done and still hot, poke holes in it. 

Pour condensed milk over cake....

Then pour caramel syrup.....

Refrigerate. 

When chilled, spread Cool Whip over cake. 

Top with the crushed candy bar pieces. 

Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

 The only picture of the finished cake, and it didn't last long...

Drew's 20th Birthday Weekend

It was a fun weekend at our house. 

Can't believe the little baby that made us parents is now 20 years old. 

Notice the love between Jonah and his big brothers...HA!

Caleb looks innocent, but actually wouldn't let him up!

Dinner was a entertaining and we are already looking 

forward to having them home next time.

Happy birthday Andrew!

Love, MOM

Christie's Sweet Chili

2 pounds ground chuck
1 pound chili brick
2-12 ounce cans pork and beans, do not drain
3 cans Del Monte Stewed Tomatoes, break them apart before adding
2 cups brown sugar
1 package Williams Chili Seasoning (for 2 pounds of meat)
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

In a large pan brown ground chuck, drain grease when done.

Add chili brick, pork and beans, stewed tomatoes, brown sugar, chili seasoning, salt, pepper and garlic powder.

Bring to a boil then simmer for 1 hour over low heat, stirring occasionally.

Doug's sister, Christie, is one of the sweetest people I have ever known. She has recently recovered from major surgery and I am so glad she is feeling better. Doug loves her chili and when she makes a big pot she always shares some with us. I never think mine tastes as good as hers.

Weekly Menu 4

 Monday:  JV game night, make in advance

Semi homemade Chicken and Noodles

No Knead Bread

Tuesday: Working concession stand, eating on the run

Wraps

Chips

Grapes

Wednesday:

Mini Meatball Subs

Baby Carrots and Ranch

Corn

Thursday:

Christie's Sweet Chili

Crackers

Friday: Game night AND the big boys came home for the weekend!!!!

Homemade Sub Sandwiches

Baked Lays

No Bake Cookies

Saturday: Celebrated Drew's 20th (oh my goodness!) birthday!

Pioneer Woman's Chicken Parmesan

Green Salad

Homemade bread

Holy Cow Cake...aka...Mad Cow Cake (inside joke!)

Sunday:

Shredded Beef Au Jus

Potato chips

Baked Beans

No Knead Bread

3 Cups Flour
1/4 teaspoon yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 5/8 cups water

Combine all ingredients in large bowl.

Mix well, dough will be very wet.

Cover and let rise over night 12-18 hours.

Mix dough: The night before, combine all ingredients in a big bowl with a wooden spoon until the dough just comes together. It will be a shaggy, doughy mess. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit 12-20 hours on your countertop.

Shape and preheat: The dough will now be wet, sticky and bubbly. With a wet spatula, dump the dough on a floured surface. Fold ends of dough over a few times with the spatula and nudge it into a ball shape. You can use your hands if you like, just keep your hands wet so that the dough does not stick. Generously dust a cotton towel (not terrycloth) with flour. Set dough seam side down on top of towel. Fold towel over the dough. Let it sit for 2 hours. When you've got about a half hour left, put your covered pot into the oven and preheat to 450F.

Bake: Your dough should have doubled in size. Remove the (very hot) pot from oven. Holding towel, turn over and dump wobbly dough into pot, using your hands to get the dough off the towel. Doesn't matter which way it lands. Shake pot to even dough out. Cover. Bake 30 minutes. Uncover, bake another 15-20 minutes or until the crust is beautifully golden and middle of loaf is 210F. Remove and let cool on wired rack. If not eating right away, you can re-crisp crust in 350F oven for 10 minutes.

Slice with a sharp bread knife, butter it up and enjoy.


I first saw this on Kristen's blog and have made it many times and it is always great. It requires a little thought to get it started the day before, but totally worth!

You can also find a great little you tube video by Mark Bittman on Google.

Semi Homemade Chicken and Noodles

Usually I make my own noodles for Chicken and Noodles, but on busy days it doesn't hurt to use the convenient pre-made noodles from the store. You can use the frozen Reams brand, but I find them a little too thick for my taste. I use the No-Yokes dry egg noodles, they're very good.

The best time to make chicken and noodles is when you have a partially de-boned chicken, like a roast chicken or a rotisserie chicken from the store, maybe you used the rest of the meat for another meal. Anyway, take the entire chicken, bones and all, and cover with water in a large stock pot. Add about 10 baby carrots, sliced, half and onion, diced, and teaspoon of garlic, minced, one bay leaf,  one stalk of celery, chopped, and one teaspoon of chicken bullion granules.  Bring pot to a boil and then turn down to low and simmer for a couple hours.

Much of the chicken will simply fall off the bones when cooking, but if not, use a fork to help it along. Strain your broth to remove chicken bones and skin. Reserve vegetables and chicken pieces to add to soup later. Let broth cool and place in fridge, when cooled skim off any unwanted fat.   Fat = yuck! If I am not making chicken and noodles at this time, I simply return chicken and veggies to broth and freeze everything at this point.

When ready to make your soup, return broth to a large stock pot along with veggies, chicken pieces and one can of cream of chicken soup (reduced fat and sodium). When broth is good and hot and begins to boil, add your dry egg noodles. Turn heat down to medium and cook  until noodles are done. Salt and pepper to your taste.

Serve soup with hot rolls, cornbread, no knead bread or if time is short some saltine crackers.

Weekly Menu 3

Monday:

Teriyaki Chicken Skewers

Rice

Crunchie Salad

Tuesday:

BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

Twice baked potatoes

Watermelon

Wednesday:

Pasta Amatriciana

Baby Carrots

Apples and Bananas

Biscuits

Thursday:

Grilled Italian Sausage w/ onions and peppers

Christie's Baked Beans

Grilled Yellow Squash

Applesauce Jello

Friday:

Game Day...out to the Mall Deli...yum

Saturday:

Family Reunion, made a couple salads and desserts in advance, no more cooking for me!

Baking for my Boys!

Drew and Caleb have been off to college for several weeks and I thought it was time for a care package. I baked on Labor Day (poppyseed bread and chololate chip cookies) and sent it off to them Tuesday. Fortunately, they are only 1 mail day away so the boxes arrived yesterday and they got to enjoy their goodies. They both text me when they arrived and were happy to enjoy some home baked goodness. I miss them, and I miss cooking for them, but am so excited for them to be on this great adventure of college life.

BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

Here's what ya need to make a quick and easy dinner on a busy weeknight!

Flour tortillas
Shredded chicken, I usually use leftovers
Shredded cheese, shred your own, it melts so much better!
Onion, sliced thin, you can leave it out for the kiddos...
BBQ sauce, as little or as much as you like.

On one side of a flour tortilla, spread desired amount of bbq sauce.

Top with desired amount of onion, cheese and chicken.

Place in a skillet heated over medium heat.

Cover with second tortilla and cook till bottom is golden and cheese begins to melt inside.

Carefully, so you don't loose the filling, flip the whole thing over and brown on the other side.

Once both sides are golden brown and the filling is heated through, remove from skillet and cut into wedges. Pizza cutter works great for cutting.

Serve as is or with extra bbq and a dollop of sour cream.

Quick, easy and yummy!
Change it up to suit your tastes, or what you have in the fridge.
The possibilities are endless...the results are delicious.

Menu Week 2

Monday:
Creamy Taquitos
Crunchie Salad
Watermelon
Apple Salad
Do you ever spend $4-$5 and get a bad watermelon? It's happened to me several times this summer...

Tuesday:
Grilled BBQ Chicken Tenders
Twice Baked Potatoes
Broccoli Salad
Jonah has a pasta feed after football practice, but will probably eat again later in the evening. This meal will reheat easily...plus the fact that he might leave home if we had twice baked potatoes and he didn't get one!

Wednesday:
Hotdog Casserole
Layered Salad
Fresh Fruit

Thursday: (Game night-will make earlier in the day and heat up)
Sour Cream Noodle Bake
Hawaiian Rolls
Green Beans

Friday:

Jonah out to eat with the guys
Doug and I enjoy a Chicken Bacon Artichoke Pizza from Papa Murphy's

Saturday:
Dinner out!

Sunday:
For Jonah and his friends: 
Burgers on the Grill
Mac and Cheese
Brownies w/ powdered sugar for dessert

For Doug and I:
Taco Soup and all the fixins


Notice we had several salads this week. I am making a real effort to up our veggie intake and salads are a great way for me to do that, plus it's fun trying new ones! The Crunchy Salad  was a big hit!

Apple Salad

2 apples, peeled (if desired) and cubes
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup mini marshmallows
2 tablespoons sunflower seeds

Add all ingredients to bowl.

1/2 cup mayonnaise, or miracle whip (I use light)
1 Tablespoon milk

Whisk mayo and milk together to make dressing.

Pour dressing over salad and gently stir to coat.

Chill till ready to serve.

This is a great little salad with lots of meals. I first had it when my sweet mother-in-law made dinner for Doug and I when we were dating. We had roast and potatoes and this was a great accompaniment. She is such a wonderful hostess and I have learned many things from her.

Crunchie Salad

1 head iceberg lettuce ,chopped
1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
7 green onions, chopped
7 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
1 cup chow mein noodles
1 cup almonds, slivered

Dressing:
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3/4 cup light salad oil

Toast chow mein noodles and alomnds on a cookie sheet in oven at 350* for 5 minutes. Cool and set aside.

Toss together all salad ingredients.

Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar and shake well to combine.

Just before serving, pour dressing over salad and toss.

This makes a large salad, I made half a recipe and had leftovers with 3 of us. Also, the dressing makes a lot. I used half of what it called for.

This salad was a big hit, very flavorful and full of CRUNCH!

BBQ Grilled Chicken Tenders

Chicken tenders
Grill seasoning
Honey bbq sauce

Sprinkle grill seasoning on chicken tenders, use your favorite.

Place tenders on hot grill for 4 to 5 minutes.

Remove from grill and place cooked side down on a plate covered in bbq sauce. Wiggle it around to cover the cooked side with the sauce.

Place chicken back on grill with the uncooked/un-sauced side down toward the heat.

After three or four minutes, remove again and dredge tenders through some fresh bbq sauce, being sure to cover all sides.

Place back on the grill for a couple minutes to caramelize the sauce a little.

Serve with extra sauce.

Broccoli Salad

1/4 cup red onion, diced small
3 cups fresh broccoli, chopped in small pieces
1/2 cup bacon bits
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup mayo or miracle whip (light)
1 tablespoon sugar

Make a dressing with the miracle whip, and sugar, stir well to combine.

Pour dressing over salad ingredients, stir gently to combine well.

Let sit in refrigerator for several hours to let the flavors develop.

I only made 1/2 the recipe for the 3 of us and that was just about perfect.  Doug is not a fan of broccoli, or anything green, but throw in some bacon bits and cheddar and he's okay with it.

Creamy Taquitos

Don't be intimidated by the length of the ingredient list, these are really easy to put together, and oh so worth it! I found this recipe on the Pennies on a Platter blog.

3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup salsa
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice (juice from half a lime)
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp sliced green onions
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 cup shredded Mexican flavored cheese
small flour tortillas
kosher salt
cooking spray


Preheat your oven to 425˚F.

In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, ground cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic, cilantro and green onions.

Add the chicken and cheese; mix thoroughly.

Working with a few tortillas at a time, heat them in the microwave between two paper towels until they are soft enough to roll (about 20 – 30 seconds).

Spoon 2-3 Tablespoons of the chicken mixture onto the middle of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla up tightly.

Place the rolled tortilla seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas until the mixture is gone.

Make sure the taquitos are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt.

Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until crisp and golden.

Serve with salsa or sour cream.

I haven't frozen these, but have included the directions just in case someone else wants to.

**To freeze:  Before baking, chill the taquitos on the baking sheet in the fridge.  Once completely cooled, wrap each taquito individually with plastic wrap.  Place in a labeled freezer bag and freeze.  To bake a frozen taquito (no need to thaw first): Preheat oven to 425˚F and bake for 20 minutes.

Source : Pennies on a Platter

Zippy Garlic Bites

Here's what you"ll need for some super-easy, super-flavorful little bites of bread that are a snap to put together and easy to adjust the seasonings for your family.

1 tube of refrigerated bisuits
3 tablespoons of butter, melted
Grated Parmesan Cheese
onion powder
garlic powder
parsley flakes

In the bowl you melted your butter, add the other ingredients, except the biscuits. Amounts depend on your families preferences. I don't even measure,  I give one shake of onion powder, 2 or 3 shakes of garlic powder, a good pinch of parsley flakes and a couple generous shakes from the Parmesan cheese. Change it up to meet your needs.

Stir it all together...

On a cutting board, cut your biscuits into quarters...

Drop the biscuits in the bowl and roll them around to coat them thoroughly.

 Then place them on a lightly sprayed baking sheet or break the rules and use a cast iron skillet.

Bake at 350* for 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

Serve them up with your favorite Italian dish....and watch 'em disappear.

I found this recipe years ago in a Quick Cooking or Taste of Home magazine. It has evolved over the years and I'm not even sure how close it is to the original recipe!

Homemade Chicken Strips

 

If you know me at all you know that I don't fry very much of our food at home. I have no problem letting the boys order fried food when we eat out, but at home, I just can't do it. However, I do believe if you are going to have something fried it would be better for you cooked at home. So I have added a few (really, very few) fried items to our menus. I got this recipe from The Pioneer Woman, and she just might be an expert on frying! But her family is WAY more active than mine and they probably work it all off before dawn!

Here's what you need to make them at home:

6 to 8 chicken tenders cut into strips, I just cut mine down the middle
Buttermilk
1 1/2 cups flour
2-3 teaspoons seasoned salt
Vegetable Oil, I only had Canola so that's what I used

Place chicken strips in a bowl and cover with buttermilk, let sit for at least 20 minutes.

Next, mix together flour and season salt.

Drizzle about 1/4 cup buttermilk into flour mixture. Stir with a fork while you pour, this will create little clumps of the flour mixture that will stick to the chicken and create yummy little "crunchies" on your chicken strips.

Heat about an inch of oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

Remove a few of the buttermilk-soaked strips and place them in the flour mixture, turning them over to coat them thoroughly. Place them on a plate. Continue coating chicken strips until they are all ready to cook.
 
When the oil is heated, begin cooking the strips a few at a time. Cook them for about a minute and a half or so on each side. When golden and crispy, remove them to a paper towel-lined plate.

I kept mine warm in a 200* oven while I cooked the rest.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

Don't have buttermilk on hand? Try this trick from The Pioneer Woman:
pour just under 1/2 cup regular milk into the measuring cup, then add enough regular vinegar to the milk to bring the quantity up to 1/2 cup. Within seconds, it turns into buttermilk and works perfectly. Try it sometime!

These are really tasty, and all the boys like them (even the big boy!). 

They are forever trying to get me to fry more meals! 

Maybe someday they will thank me!

Menu

New feature today on my little ole' blog....weekly menus. I have wanted to do this for a very long time, but didn't have the discipline to sit down and "just do it". So I came up the the idea to post after the week is done rather than before. Kinda lame I know, but at least I will have some weekly menu plans to go back to in the future.

One thing I really struggle with is side dishes, so I am including those as well. 

Here's what we had this week:

Monday:
Monterey Chicken
Hash Brown Casserole
Green Salad

Tuesday:
Homemade Chicken Strips
Pasta Salad
Jello Bananas

Wednesday:
Meatballs (part turkey & beef)
Mashed Potatoes
7 Up Biscuits
Grapes

Thursday: (Game day-can be made in advance and everyone eats when they have time)
Chicken Bacon Ranch Sandwiches
Ramen Noodle Slaw
Fresh Corn on the Cob

Friday:
Steak on the grill
Leftover Slaw
Watermelon  Had Doug's mom's potato salad instead...she was kind enough to share with us!
(Need to start No Knead Bread for tomorrow)

Saturday:
Lasange (Made with Turkey Sausage)
Green Salad
No Knead Bread
Fresh Fruit Bowl

Sunday:
Tomato Soup
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Ramen Noodle Slaw

 

This is a super easy salad most people enjoy. It's always popular at pot-luck dinners or the Dellasega's house!

This is enough ingredients to make half a recipe. 

I'm cooking for just 3 now...how weird is that?

Crush the ramen noodles and place in the bottom of your bowl.

  Top with cabbage, green onions and slivered almonds.

Pour on the dressing...

try to find room in your refrigerator for it!

Here's the whole recipe:

2 (3 oz) packages of ramen noodles, chicken flavor

2 ( 8.5 oz) packages of cabbage

1 cup slivered almonds

2 tablespoons green onions, chopped

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup olive oil

1/3 cup white vinegar

Crush noodles and place in bottom of large bowl. 

Top with shredded cabbage.

Sprinkle with almonds and green onions.

Whisk together the flavor packet form the ramen noodles, sugar, oil and vinegar. Pour over cabbage. 

Cover and refrigerate overnight, stirring occasionally.

Toss well before serving. 

COMING SOON!!!

WEEKLY MENUS! 

Rotel Chicken Spaghetti

 I found this recipe on Plain Chicken and thought it would be a hit with the guys. Doug and Caleb really liked it...it was a little spicy for Jonah (he really doesn't like anything spicy) and Drew is not a really big fan of pasta, but he ate it. I liked it the first night, but not so much for leftovers, I thought it was too dry, maybe because I used the lower fat ingredients???  You can find her recipe HERE. Give it a try at least once, your family may love it!



3-4 large boneless chicken breasts (or rotisserie chicken) I used chicken breasts

1 can (10 3/4 ounce) Cream of Chicken Soup I used low fat/reduced sodium

1 can (10 ounce) Rotel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies I used the mild and it was spicy enough for us

1 clove garlic, minced

 1/2 tsp. onion powder

1 tablespoon butter I used olive oil

1 – 8 ounce Velveeta cheese, cubed I used the 2% variety

8 ounces spaghetti, cooked and drained

Cut up chicken into bite size pieces.In a large skillet melt butter.

Add cubed chicken, garlic & onion.

Cook over medium-high heat until chicken is no longer pink.

Stir in soup, cheese and Rotel Tomatoes.

Reduce heat to low, and cook until the cheese melts, stirring constantly.

Stir in spaghetti and pour into a lightly greased 2 quart casserole dish.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until heated through.

Strawberry Shortcake Cake

First of all let me apologize for posting this dessert... it's SINFUL!

I first saw it on Pioneer Woman's site. Oh man it looked so good, just like everything she does...anyhoo, I made some changes to make it easier and less fat. I used a cake mix instead of making a homemade cake and don't tell anyone, but I only used 1 stick of butter in the frosting instead of 2. Here is what I did to make this awesome desert:

1 white cake mix, mixed according to package

While cake is baking prepare strawberries and frosting:

1 quart of fresh strawberries, cleaned, hulled and smashed

3/4 cup sugar, sprinkle in the strawberries and stir to combine

Frosting:

8 oz. Cream Cheese, Room Temperature

1 stick  Butter

1-1/2 pound Powdered Sugar

1 teaspoon Vanilla

Pour about 3/4 of the batter into an 8 inch baking pan, making sure it is deep enough to handle the cake as it rises in the oven. Use remaining batter to make cupcakes.

Bake cake in 350* oven until done, 30 minutes, give or take a few.

Let cake completely cool.

When cake is cool, using a long serrated knife, cut cake in half across the middle so you have two rounds.

Place half of cake on cake plate cut side up.

Pour half of strawberries over cake, making sure to spread them out evenly and also get plenty of syrupy juice over all.

Frost the top of the 1st layer, being careful to leave strawberries evenly distributed.

Top this layer with other half of cake and repeat with the rest of the strawberries.

Once the strawberries are covering the top, frost the entire cake. It's kinda hard to cover all the strawberries, so just don't worry about it. It looks yummy with the berries peeking through.

Refrigerate the cake till ready to serve.

Breakfast Bowls

Not the best photo, but if you click on it you can get a better idea what it's like.

This summer has been largely spent in the kitchen for me. The boys, and Doug, have had different work schedules and keeping them fed has been quite a job! Caleb leaves before 7 am and needs a hearty breakfast since he is doing physical work outside all day. This is something I came up with after seeing something similar in the pre-made section at the store. I make a couple at a time and pop them in the refrigerator and all he has to do is warm them up and he has a homemade breakfast that is going to stick with him longer than sugary cereal...not that I haven't had cereal around, cause sometimes this cook is sick of cooking!

Here's what I do to make these little puppies...

1 envelope of gravy mix, made to package direcitons,
you could totally make your own, but for me this is fool proof

4 sausage links, cooked (you could use any breakfast meat)

1 1/2 cups of frozen hash brown potatoes, cooked

3 large eggs, scrambled and seasoned to your liking

Once everything is cooked, I assemble them in a small tupperware type container, potatoes, eggs, sausage and then top it all with about 3/4 cup of gravy.

Season with more salt and pepper to taste.

To heat, remove lid and microwave 1 minute. Check to see if heated through, if not, put it back in for 30 more seconds and check again. Repeat if necessary.

These amounts make 2 bowls.

Wraps

Pre-made breaded chicken tenders, I get mine at Aldi's
Lettuce, shredded
Tomatoes, diced
Cheddar cheese, shredded
Dressing of your choice
Flour tortillas

Bake chicken tenders according to package directions.

Cut tenders lengthwise into long strips.

Lay out one flour tortilla and top with lettuce, tomato, chicken, cheddar, and your choice of dressing.

Wrap it burrito style and eat it up!

Chicken Tetrazinni

2 whole chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
1 can cream of chicken soup, I always use low fat/low sodium
1 pint sour cream, again I use the light variety
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
dash of pepper
1/2 stick butter
small package of angel hair pasta, or your favorite type of pasta

Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the angel hair pasta.

Combine soup, sour cream, Parmesan, pepper and butter in a saucepan.

Add pasta to large pot of water and cook according to package directions.

Bring soup mixture to a boil, stirring constantly.

Add chicken to soup mixture; stir to combine.

Drain pasta and place in 9 X 13 inch casserole dish.

Pour soup mixture over hot pasta and wiggle the pasta around a little to incorporate the sauce in to the pasta. Don't stir it, just slightly combine the two.

Bake uncovered at 350* for 45 minutes.

7 Up Biscuits

4 simple ingredients is all it takes to make scrumptious biscuits.

2 cups baking mix

1/2 cup sour cream, as usual I use "light"

1/2 cup 7 Up, yeah I know it's Sprite...same difference at my house

1/4 cup butter

Place butter in 9 X 9 inch baking pan and melt in oven while it preheats at 450*. Remove when melted.

Meanwhile cut sour cream into biscuit mix, then add 7 UP and combine well.

Dough will be very soft.

Sprinkle a little baking mix on pastry sheet, or the counter top.

Pat dough to about 1 inch thickness and cut with biscuit cutter or a small drinking glass turned upside down.

Place biscuits on top of melted butter in baking pan, return to oven and bake until golden brown. About 10-12 minutes.

I found this recipe on the Plain Chicken blog...I really like her blog and am looking forward to trying more of her recipes.

I don't use a lot of baking mix, so I was excited when I found this 
Heart Smart Bisquick mix at the store. 
And it's really good! 

SNICKERDOODLES!

so, I'm trying to learn how to use picasa...wish me luck!

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup shortening

1 1/2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

Mix together in small bowl:
2 tablespoons white sugar & 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Cream together shortening, butter, eggs and vanilla.

Blend in flour, soda, cream of tatar,  and salt.

Shape dough into 1 inch balls and roll in cinnamon & sugar mixture.

Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350* for 10 minutes.

This might be Caleb's favorite cookie....the rest of us like 'em too!

Chicken and Stuffing

4 or 5 pieces of chicken, cooked and de-boned, white/dark or a combo of both

1 box chicken flavored stuffing mix (plus butter and water to prepare it)

1 can cream of chicken, reduced fat and sodium

Chop chicken into bite size pieces and place in bottom of a casserole dish.

Cook stuffing according to package direction, then pour on top of the chicken pieces.

Dilute the cream of chicken soup with water or chicken broth from the cooked chicken, about 3/4 of the can full.
You don't want it to be runny, more like gravy.

Pour over the top of the stuffing and chicken.

Place lid on top and bake for 30 minutes in a 350* oven.

Serve it up!

Chicken Salad

2 or 3 chicken breast, boneless/skinless

mayonaise or miracle whip, I always use a light variety

pickle relish

Boil chicken breasts until done, 20 minutes or so.

When cool enough to handle, break chicken into a few large pieces and place in a food processor or blender with a grinding blade. Grind the chicken.

In a meduim size bowl,  place ground chicken, enough mayo to bind it together and relish to taste. Stir to combine all ingredients.

Serve as a sandwich or alone with crackers on the side.

Caleb and Jonah really like this. They actually enjoy it as a sandwich between meals, 

or to take in a sack lunch to school. 

Boys...they can eat all the time!