Cream Cheese Frosting

1 lb (2 8oz pkgs) cream cheese, softened slightly, cut into small pieces

½ c (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened slightly, cut into small pieces

1 ½ tsp vanilla

5 c sifted confectioners sugar

In a medium size bowl on the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and the butter until smooth, about 3 minutes.  Add the vanilla.  Gradually add the sugar and beat until well incorporated.  This yields frosting for one 2 or 3 layer 9” cake, or a bunch of cupcakes. 

Submitted by Kathryn Myers, from the Magnolia Bakery cookbook

Mint Brownies

1 (20 oz) box of brownie mix

1 cup chopped walnuts - optional

12 oz chocolate frosting

 

Mint Frosting

 

5 T. softened butter

dash of salt

2 1/3 cups powdered sugar

1 T. light corn syrup

1/2 t. mint extract

food coloring

3 T. milk

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, prepare the brownie mix according to package directions. Once mix is combined thoroughly, add the walnuts and then spread batter in 9x13 pan. Bake according to package directions.

 

To make the mint frosting, combine butter, salt, corn syrup and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth and creamy. Add mint extract and food coloring. Mix in and then add the milk gradually until frosting is a little more runny than cake frosting.

 

Spread the mint frosting over cooled brownies and then place in the freezer for a short time to stiffen. Take brownies out of freezer and carefully add a layer of chocolate frosting.

 

Shared by Judy Richins at Terrific Tuesday 2010

Cheesy Chicken Soup

2 cups carrots

2 cusp celery

1 lrg. onion

10 cups water

12 chicken bullion cubes

1 cup margarine

1 cup flour 1 lrg. bottle cheese whiz

2 cups cooked chicken

 

Boil carrots, celery, onion and bullion cubes.  In a separate pan melt margarine and then slowly add flour while stirring.  Take cap off of cheese whiz and heat in the microwave until warm.  Add cheese whiz to flour paste and stir until smooth.  Add chicken to vegetable mix and then add cheese paste a spoonful at a time.  Stir with a wire whisk until flour paste is mixed in well with no clumps.  Cook until it is heated all the way through. (If you are interested, this soup is only 7 WW points per cup!)

Shared by Meagan Smith at Terrific Tuesday 2010

Split Pea Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 (16 oz.) pkg. dried green split peas, rinsed
• 1 meaty hambone, 2 ham hocks, or 2 cups diced ham
• 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 ribs of celery plus leaves, chopped
• 1 or 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped, or 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
• 1 tbsp. seasoned salt (or to taste)
• 1/2 tsp. fresh pepper
• 1 1/2 qts. hot water

Preparation:

Layer ingredients in slow cooker in the order given; pour in water. Do not stir ingredients. Cover and cook on HIGH 4 to 5 hours or on low 8 to 10 hours until peas are very soft and ham falls off bone. Remove bones and bay leaf. Mash peas to thicken more, if desired. Serve garnished with croutons. Freezes well.
Serves 8.

Shared by Michelle Westerlind at Terrific Tuesday 2010

Salsa

3 cans petite diced tomatoes
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 small sweet yellow onion, chopped
1/2 lemon, squeezed
1 bunch cilantro - chopped
lots of garlic salt - to taste


submitted by Jeanette Pixton

Magnolia Bakery's Famous Banana Pudding

• 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups ice cold water
• 1 (3.4-ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix (preferably Jell-O brand)
• 3 cups heavy cream
• 1 (12-ounce) box Nabisco Nilla Wafers (no substitutions!)
• 4 cups sliced ripe bananas

1. In a small bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat together the sweetened condensed milk and water until well combined, about 1 minute. Add the pudding mix and beat well, about 2 minutes more. Cover and refrigerate for 3-4 hours or overnight, before continuing. It is very important to allow the proper amount of time for the pudding mixture to set.
2. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the pudding mixture into the whipped cream until well blended and no streaks of pudding remain.
3. To assemble the dessert, select a large, wide bowl (preferably glass) with a 4-5-quart capacity. Arrange one-third of the wafers to cover the bottom of the bowl, overlapping if necessary, then one-third of the bananas and one-third of the pudding. Repeat the layering twice more, garnishing with additional wafers or wafer crumbs on the top layer of the pudding. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow to chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours - or up to 8 hours, but no longer! - before serving
   

(hints from the girl I got the recipe from:)

I always add more bananas than the recipe calls for.

I have always said the longer the pudding sits the better it is, even when the recipe says not to let is sit longer than 8 hours.

(my twist:)

I turned this into a trifle, adding strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and even blackberries to each layer, and used less bananas.....yummy :)

submitted by Adele Lamb

Best Meatloaf I Ever Made

1 TBSP butter
1/4 c minced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 lbs extra-lean ground beef
3 sliced bread, toasted and crumbled
7 buttery round crackers, crushed
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 1/2 TBSP sour cream
1 1/2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1 15oz can tomato sauce, divided
1/4 c milk (optional)
3 TBSP ketchup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat, and cook the onion and garlic 5 minutes, until onion is tender.  Remove from heat, and season with salt and pepper.

In a large bowl mix the onion and garlic, beef, crumbled bread, crushed crackers, egg, sour cream, Worcestershire sauce, and 1/2 can tomato sauce.  Gradually stir in the milk 1 tsp at a time until mixture is moist, but not soggy.  Transfer the mixture to a 5x9 loaf pan.

Bake uncovered in the preheated oven 40 minutes.  Increase oven temperature to 400 degrees and continue baking 15 minutes, to an internal temperature of 160 degrees.

In a small bowl, mix the remaining tomato sauce and ketchup.  Pour over the top of the meatloaf, and continue baking 10 minutes.

submitted by Kathy Bringhurts

Key Lime Cupcakes

Mix your favorite vanilla cupcakes.  Before scooping them into cupcake holders add 1/4 c key lime juice to your cake batter and mix.  Bake cupcakes as usual.

Italian Buttercream with Key Lime Flavoring Frosting

2 c sugar
1/2 c water
8 large egg whites
4 c unsalted butter, cubed, room temperature
key lime juice to taste

1 - Combine 1 1/2 c of the sugar with the water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.  Continue cooking without stirring to the softball stage (240).

2 - Meanwhile, place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the wire whip attachment.

3 - When the sugar syrup has reached approximately 230 degrees, whip the egg whites on medium speed to soft peak consistency.  Gradually add the remaining 1/2 c of sugar and beat until the egg whites hold to medium peaks.

4 - When the sugar syrup reaches 240 degrees, immediately pour it into a heatproof glass measuring cup with a pouring spout.  This will allow better control of the flow of the hot syrup into the egg whites.  You can also stream the hot syrup into the egg whites directly from the pot, if desired.  Pour the sugar syrup into the egg whites with the mixer running on medium speed.  As soon as all of the syrup has been added, increase the speed to high and continue to whip until the meringue has cooled to room temperature.

5 - Add the cubed butter gradually, mixing after each addition until fully incorporated and scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.  Blend in the Key lime juice.  The buttercream is ready for use or may be tightly covered and stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

submitted by Shirley Nault

30-Minute Mozzarella

(Thanks to Ricki Carroll, Home Cheese Making)

Measure out additives before you start, in clean glass or ceramic cups. Use unchlorinated water.

1 gallon pasteurized milk (NOT ultra-pasteurized)
1 1/2 level tsp. citric acid dissolved in ¼ cup cool water

Stir the milk on the stove in a stainless steel kettle, heating very gently. At 55° add the citric acid solution and mix thoroughly. At 88° it should begin to curdle.

¼ tsp. liquid rennet diluted in ¼ cup cool water
Gently stir in diluted rennet with up-and-down motion, and continue heating the milk to just over 100°, then turn off heat. Curds should be pulling away from sides of pot, ready to scoop out. The whey should be clear. (If it’s still milky, wait a few minutes.) Use a slotted spoon to move curds from pot to a 2 quart microwaveable bowl. Press curds gently with hands to remove as much whey as possible. Microwave the curds on high for one minute, then knead the cheese again with hands or a spoon to remove more whey. (Rubber gloves help – this gets hot!) Microwave two more times (about 35 seconds each) kneading between each heating. At this point, salt the cheese to taste, then knead and pull until it’s smooth and elastic. When you can stretch it into ropes like taffy you are done. If the curds break instead, they need to be reheated a bit. Once cheese is smooth and shiny, roll it into small balls to eat warm or store for later in the refrigerator.

Lacking a microwave, you can use the pot of hot whey on the stove for the heating-and-kneading steps. Put the ball of curd back in with a big slotted spoon, and heat it until it’s almost too hot to touch. Good stretching temperature is 175 degrees.

submitted by Gianna Erickson - found on the website of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

Spinach Artichoke Dip

1/2 c spinach, chopped
1 c artichoke hearts
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 c grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 clove garlic, smashed
dash pepper

Cook spinach and artichoke hearts together until soft (or use frozen spinach and canned hearts and just heat up). Soften cream cheese in microwave for about 1 minute. Stir together and serve with tortilla chips or bread.

Serves 4.

submitted by Laurel Herbert

Sticky Chicken Salad (ala Wingers!)

Dressing:

1/3 c Franks hot sauce
3 TBSP corn syrup
1/2 c apple cider vinegar
2 1/2 c brown sugar

Combine in a sauce pan. Stirring constantly on medium high heat, boil for one to one and a half minutes. If you cook longer than that, the sauce will turn to candy - that would be bad :)

Salad:

2 chicken breasts, breaded & baked (or fried), then sliced/diced into bite-size pieces
2 tomatoes, diced
croutons
1/2 c cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 red onion, sliced thinly
craisins
Ranch salad dressing

Serve the salad with the listed ingredients, then drizzle with ranch AND Stick dressing.

submitted by Melody Rasmussen

Spinach Salad w/Strawberries

Salad:

1 c sliced strawberries
1 c sugared cashew pieces
1/3 c bacon pieces
1 purple onion
1 head red leaf lettuce
1 package fresh spinach

Dressing:

2 TBSP red wine vinegar
3 TBSP white sugar
1/2 c oil
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c strawberry jam

Combine all salad ingredients and toss together. Combine dressing ingredients and beat together. Drizzle dressing over salad. Serve & Enjoy!

submitted by Meagan Smith

Pasta Salad

1 bag pasta
2 to 4 tomatoes
6 green onions
1 to 2 cucumbers
1 green pepper
pepperoni (optional)
1/2 bottle salad supreme
16 oz bottle Zesty Italian Dressing

Combine vegetables (except cucumbers) and marinate in dressing and salad supreme overnight. Cook pasta according to package directions. Add pasta and remaining ingredients and stir. Refrigerate before serving.

submitted by Diana Putnum

Gooey Layer Bars

1 box yellow cake mix
1 cube (1/2 c) butter

Melt butter & mix with cake mix. Press into jelly roll pan. Top with:

1 bag milk chocolate chips
1 bag coconut
1 small bag mini marshmallows

Pour on top of all:
1 can Eagle brand sweetened condensed milk

Bake at 350 for 20 min.

submitted by Marsha Neeley

Fried Zucchini

Slice zucchini
dip in egg w/milk
coat in flour
fry in butter

Yummy!

submitted by Julie Stephenson

Easy Granola Bars

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup all-purpose flour ( whole wheat flour works well)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup butter, softened — you can substituted this with Applesauce
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease one 9×13 inch pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl combine the oats, flour, baking soda, vanilla, butter or margarine, honey and brown sugar. Stir in the 2 cups assorted chocolate chips, raisins, nuts etc.
3. Lightly press mixture into the prepared pan. Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for 18 to 22 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes then cut into bars. Let bars cool completely in pan before removing or serving.

(Submitted by Judy Richins)

Crockpot Nachos

4-5 frozen chicken breasts
1 can drained black beans
1 can drained whole kernel corn
1 (15oz) jar of salsa
1 (8oz) package of cream cheese

Take the frozen, yes, frozen, boneless chicken breasts and put into crockpot. Add drained corn, black beans, and a jar of salsa. Dump it right on top of chicken. Cover and cook in crockpot on high for 4 hours or until chicken forks apart. Add 1 package of cream cheese (just throw it on top) and let sit for about 1/2 hour. Stir together.

(I think it's easier to remove the chicken from the crockpot and shred it, then return to the crockpot and add the cream cheese. Stir til mixed well.)

Serve over tortillas or chips and add some of your favorite toppings. Sour cream, guacamole, olives, tomatoes, onions, cheese. Or you could serve it over sticky rice.

submitted by Jeri Heaps

Provencal Leg of Lamb

2 tsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano
1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 (2lb) piece boneless leg of lamb, butterflied
2 tbsp horseradish mustard
1/2 c reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 bay leaf

Combine 1 tsp oil, the garlic, rosemary, oregano, thyme, salt and pepper in a small bowl until mixed well. brush both sides of the lamb with the mustard, then press the herb mixture evenly over the lamb.

Heat the remaining 1 tsp of oil in a large nonstick skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the lamb and cook until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. transfer the lamb to a 5-6 quart slow cooker.

Add the broth and bay leaf to the skillet, bring to a boil, stirring constantly to scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Pour over the lamb. Cook covered, until the lamb is fork-tender, 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low. Transfer the lamb to a cutting board and cut into 16 slices. Remove the bay leaf before serving.

(Note: When a piece of meat is butterflied, it is split open horizontally almost all the way through, then opened up like a book. If you don't see butterflied leg of lamb in the meat case, ask the butcher to prepare one for you.)

submitted by Claire Ashby

Spinach & Leek White Bean Soup

2 tsp olive oil
4 leeks, bulb only, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 (16oz) cans chicken broth
2 (16oz) cans cannelloni beans, drained & rinsed
2 bay leaves
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 c whole wheat couscous (or quinoa)
2 c packed fresh spinach
salt & pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in large saucepan or soup pot over medium heat. Add leeks & garlic, saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to slow cooker. Add chicken broth, beans, bay leaves and cumin. Stir in couscous or quinoa. Cover and cook on low 3 hours. Remove lid and add spinach. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

submitted by Marsha Neeley

Lazy Day Chicken & Rice Casserole

1 c long grain rice (I use multi-grain), uncooked
3 c water
2 tsp chicken bouillon granules (I use paste)
10 3/4oz cream of chicken soup
16oz bag frozen broccoli (can use fresh)
2 c chopped cooked chicken (I did not pre-cook)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion salt
1 c grated cheddar cheese

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Cook on high 3-4 hours. If casserole is too runny, remove lid for 15 minutes and continue to cook on high.

submitted by Marsha Neeley