Archive for the ‘Recipes’ Category

I’ve mentioned recently that I’ve been making watermelon martini’s so I thought I should post the recipe….not that there’s much to it but I’m still going to share it anyway   It’s a great summer drink on a hot day!

1 Seedless watermelon

1 bottle of any melon vodka (I use watermelon)

Cut watermelon into chunks and place into blender.  Puree.  Strain pulp so all that’s left is juice.

In a shaker, add ice, watermelon juice and vodka.  Shake   I save a few pieces of watermelon to garnish the glass with and you can use salt, sugar or a mixture of both on the rim.  Pour into your martini glass and enjoy!

I’m glad the weather is cooling down a little bit.  Almost 90 degree weather in May just seemed crazy!  Last night, we walked over to the ball fields and watched my nephew play.  It was perfect weather for a little walk.  I’m hoping to go on a long one tonight!  I think I’m doing pretty well with starting to lose weight.  I haven’t been on a scale yet because I find that can be discouraging but I’m feeling a little better   When I was reading about different vitamins the other day, I read about phentermine and what it can do.  That is not something I’m at all interested in but from what I read it really helps others.  As I’ve mentioned before, I want to do this as naturally and in the most healthy way that I can.  Staying positive is a good start

I tried this recipe that was in my latest Kraft Food & Family magazine. You can find their link on my sidebar. Lloyd and I thought it was amazing! I thought it would be a perfect dessert on a hot summer day but Lloyd disagreed…he thought it would be perfect any of the year

4 c. fresh strawberries, divided

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1/4 c. lemon juice

1 (8oz.) tub of Cool Whip, thawed, divided

8 Oreo cookies, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. butter, melted

Line a 9×5 inch loaf pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides.  Mash 2 cups berries in a large bowl.  Add milk, juice and 2 cups of cool whip;  mix well.  Pour into prepared pan.

Mix chopped cookies and butter.  Spoon over cool whip mixture.  Cover with ends of foil; gently press cookie mixture into cool whip mixture.  Freeze 6 hours or until firm.

Invert dessert onto plate when ready to serve; remove pan and foil.  Frost dessert with remaining cool whip.  Slice remaining strawberries; use to garnish dessert.  Freeze leftovers.

I made this last Friday and everyone thought it was really good.  My brother said it tasted like the outside of a twinkie   I forgot to take a picture of it before it was demolished though.

2 (15 oz.) cans of pears in syrup

1 pkg. white cake mix

2 egg whites

1 egg

Brown sugar

Coat bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray and flour.  Drain one can and chop pears.  Spread evenly on bottom of bundt pan and sprinkle with brown sugar.

Drain the other can of pears but reserve syrup in mixing bowl.  Chop pears and add to bowl.  Add dry cake mix, egg whites and egg.  Beat on low speed for 30 seconds then on high for 4 minutes.  Add batter to pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes  before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

This is a similar recipe to one I saw on the Create channel about a year ago.  I can’t remember what the host had put in hers but as I was watching it, I thought it would be really good to stuff with pizza toppings.  You could stuff with just about anything really and I think it would be really good.  For me, this is a whole lot easier than making my own dough for pizza but it’s just as good.  Again, this is another one of those things that will make you forget all about the eliptical machine and dip station.  It’s worth it though

You start with frozen bread dough and thaw it according to the directions.

Once thawed, roll it out on a lightly floured surface.  I try to keep it in a big rectangle so if will fit nicely on my largest baking sheet.

Sprinkle your baking sheet with cornmeal if you have it, it helps keep the dough from sticking to the pan.  Transfer the dough to your pan before adding the toppings – it’s easier than trying to transfer it once it’s all put together.

Top with your favorite sauce, pizza toppings and cheese.  I used my pizza sauce (which you can find under the recipes category), ham, pepperoni and mozzarella.

After you have your toppings on, cut small strips down the sides and criss-cross them so it looks braided.

Brush the top with melted butter, olive oil or spray with cooking spray.  Sprinkle with parmesan and garlic salt.

Bake approximately 15-17 minutes at 425 degrees or until crust is golden.

Enjoy

This is from the Fix-It and Forget-It Recipes for Entertaining cookbook that I got.  It was really good but a tad to salty for my taste.  My mom and Lloyd thought it was great but I’ll probably make it without the salt next time or cut back on the beef bouillon since that’s salty too.  I’m just not a big fan of the stuff!  Anyway, here’s the recipe:

1 onion, chopped

1 TB butter

3-4 lbs beef roast, cubed

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

2 c. water

3 beef bouillon cubes

1/2 c flour

*Saute onion in skillet in butter until brown.  Place onion in slow cooker, but reserve drippings.

*Brown roast in skillet in drippings.  Add meat to slow cooker, again reserve drippings.

*Combine salt, pepper, water, bouillon and flour.  Add to meat drippings.  Cook until thickened.  Pour over meat.

*Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours.

*Serve over noodles.

I made my very first homemade apple pie this past Sunday. It turned out so great! Many thank you’s to my friend Kristin for sharing the recipe with me

Here’s the recipe:

Crust:

2 1/2 c. flour

1 c. unsalted butter (2 sticks) very cold and cubed

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

4-8 TB ice water

Pie Filling:

1/2 c. sugar

1/4 c. flour

3/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

dash of salt

6 c. thinly sliced apples

2 TB butter

*In a medium bowl, mix flour, salt and sugar.  Cut in butter, using two knives or a pastry blender, until butter/flour particles are pea sized.  *Sprinkle with water 1 TB at a time until all flour is moist and pastry almost cleans the side of the bowl – add more if needed. *Gather into a ball, divide in half.  Shape and flatten into round on floured surface; you should be able to see bits of butter.  Wrap and refrigerate 1 hour or until pastry is pliable. *On a lightly floured surface, with a floured rolling pin, roll one half  into 2″ larger than  pie plate.  Transfer to plate.

*In a large bowl, mix sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  Stir in apples.  Spoon into crust and add 2 TB butter on top.

*Trim pastry 1/2″ from plate.

Roll out other pastry.  Place on top, trim edge, seal/fold and flute edge.  Brush with water and sprinkle with sugar.  Cover edge with foil.  Bake 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees.  Remove foil for the last 15 minutes.  Pie is done when crust is golden and juices are bubbling.

*Note*  I totally forgot about putting foil around the edge until the pie was almost done and it still turned out great

One of the things my mom got me for Christmas this year is the “Fix-It and Forget-It Recipes for Entertaining” crock pot recipe book. She knows how much I love to use my crock pot and this book is just perfect for me Last night, I made a breakfast dish that cooked overnight and was ready this morning when we got up. It’s the Western Omelet Casserole. It’s so simple and was pretty tasty! Here’s the recipe:

32 oz. bag frozen hash brown potatoes
1 lb. cooked ham, cubed
1 med. onion, diced
1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
12 eggs
1 c. milk
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper

Layer one-third of frozen potatoes, ham, onions and cheese in the bottom of the crock pot. Repeat two times.

Beat together eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Pour over mixture in the slow cooker.

Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours.

*Note* This makes a ton! I didn’t reduce the recipe because I wasn’t sure if it would change the time or not. Plenty of leftovers!!!

A few years ago, one of Lloyd’s co-workers sent him home with some seasoned pretzel sticks and they were super yummy!  I finally made some this year and they are just as good as I remembered.  Here’s the recipe:

40 oz. Small Pretzel Sticks

1 Bottle of Orville Redenbacher popcorn oil

1 tsp. Garlic Powder

2 TB dill weed

1 pkg. Dry Hidden Valley Ranch Dip

Mix garlic powder, dill weed & ranch dip.  Set aside.

You will need two large bowls.  Put 1/2 of the pretzels in one bowl, 1/2 in the other.  Split the popcorn oil between the bowls and split the dry mixture between them.  Stir well, coating the pretzels.  For 1 hour, stir every 15, stir every 15 min.  For the next 2 hours, stir every 30 min.

The pretzels start out really oily but at the end of 3 hours, they will be dry and coated.  You never put these in the oven.

*When I made these, it took closer to 4 1/2 hours for them to be dry.

I made this for dinner tonight and it turned out really good!

1/2 c.  Parmesan cheese

1/2 c. seasoned bread crumbs (I used garlic/cheese croutons crushed up)

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. paprika

3-4 Tbsp. melted butter

3 lg. chicken breasts cut into strips

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Mix parmesan, bread crumbs, & seasonings in a shallow dish.  Dip chicken in butter then coat with bread crumb mixture.  Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 35 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

I made this for the first time on Saturday and it is SO good!  I took the pic a little more than half way through cooking time.  If you like cinnamon-y applesauce, definitely give this recipe a try   It’s so easy!   (p.s. I doubled the recipe)

10 large apples, peeled, cored and chopped

1/2 c. water

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 c. sugar

Put all ingredients into the crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours.