Cheesiest Potato Soup

2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup diced onion
2 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
1 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 tsp dried dill weed
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup diced ham
1/2 cup frozen corn

Over medium heat melt butter. Cook onion in butter until soft. Stir in potatoes and broth bring to a boil then cover and reduce heat and simmer 15 to 20 min until tender. Stir in cream, cheese, dill, pepper, salt & cayenne. bring to a low boil and cook stirring until thickened (abobut 5 min) Add ham and corn and cook until heated through,

Easy "Lowfat" Stuffed Shells

1 jar spaghetti sauce
12 to 18 lrg pasta shells cooked and rinsed
1 cup lowfat cottage cheese
1 1/2 to 2 cups shredded mozzerella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. parsley
1/4 ts salt & pepper

In a bowl combine all cheeses, parsley, and salt and pepper. Stuff shells with cheese mixture. Then in a 9x13 pan spread 1/2 the spaghetti sauce in the bottom. Place shells in pan and cover with the rest of the sauce. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 min.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Beat 2 eggs. Stir in 2/3 cup milk, 1/2 cup oil and 2/3 cup canned pumpkin. Add 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Mix together in a separate bowl 2 cups flour, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 1/2 t. baking poweder, 1/2 t soda, 1 t salt and 2 t pumpkin pie spice.

Stir dry ingredients into egg mixture all at once and mix until flour is moistened (batter may be a bit lumpy) Fill muffins and bake at 375 for about 15 min or until golden brown.

Taco Soup #2

All of these posts are from the recipe exchange we had with my girlfriends at Christmas. Everything was delicious and I am really just doing this to keep them recorded for myself but figured why not share a good thing1

1lb cooked ground beef
2 cans dark red kidney beans
2 cans of corn (undrained)
3 cans of stewed tomatoes (Blend 2 cans in a blender and pour 1 can into soup whole)
1 packet taco seasoning

Add all ingredients in a pot including corn and bean juice and simmer for at least 15 min.
Serve with a dollop of sour cream, cheese & chips

Picante Chicken

I'm making this tonight. I will add a picture later if I remember to take one.

Picante Chicken

4-6 frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 c salsa (if you use THIS salsa, you don't need to add the extra lime juice or cilantro)
2 T lime or lemon juice
1/4 c dijon mustard
sour cream to top
cilantro for garnish

Mix salsa, dijon mustard, and lime juice. Place frozen chicken breasts in baking dish. Top with salsa mixture. Cover with foil. Bake at 375 for 35-45 minutes or until chicken is done. Top with sour cream. Top with fresh cilantro and more lime juice if desired.

*This is one of our favorite easy meals. The chicken is always SO moist and juicy. It is so much better if you use the fresh salsa. (Costco's bottled organic salsa is a close second if you add the lime juice and cilantro)


*DISCLAIMER: the original recipe was on the back of the Costco frozen chicken bag. This one may be slightly different since I don't have the bag right now and I have just done my own thing with it for a couple years now.

Restaurant Style Salsa

(I'm sorry my posts always begin with a pointless story. Actually, I must not be sorry because I keep doing it...)

I got this recipe from The Pioneer Woman, it's pretty much exactly the salsa I have been making for years, but I have never written it down and with my "just wing it" style, it always ends up just a little bit different. So I followed the recipe this time and it was excellent. I think I will use a recipe from now on.

I never use jalepenos, it is plenty spicy for me with the green chiles. I'm wussy. I know. And I only use one can of regular stewed tomatoes and one can with the green chiles.

If you like it chunkier, sometimes I chop a couple fresh tomatoes and dump them in.
*Please see my next post for Picante Chicken if you want to use this salsa in another excellent recipe.

Restaurant Style Salsa

Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Cook Time:

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 12

Ingredients

• 1 can (28 Ounce) Whole Tomatoes With Juice
• 2 cans (10 Ounce) Rotel (diced Tomatoes And Green Chilies)
• ¼ cups Chopped Onion
• 1 clove Garlic, Minced
• 1 whole Jalapeno, Quartered And Sliced Thin
• ¼ teaspoons Sugar
• ¼ teaspoons Salt
• ¼ teaspoons Ground Cumin
• ½ cups Cilantro (more To Taste!)
• ½ whole Lime Juice

Preparation Instructions

Combine whole tomatoes, Rotel, onion, jalapeno, garlic, sugar, salt, cumin, lime juice, and cilantro in a blender or food processor. Pulse until you get the salsa to the consistency you’d like—I do about 10 to 15 pulses. Test seasonings with a tortilla chip and adjust as needed.

Refrigerate salsa for at least an hour. Serve with tortilla chips or cheese nachos.

Pastel de Papas

Forever ago Keaton had some Chileans over who cooked us dinner. They made us Paste de Papas. It is pretty much like a shepherd pie recipe. But yummier. I have been wanting to make this for a long time now and finally found me the true recipe. I know that most of you may not LOVE something like this, and the fact that there are raisins in it is weird, but it good, trust me! Kylee, you could impress Russ and make it for him sometime. I bet he would love you :)

8 servings 1¼ hours 20 min prep

Filling

1 lb ground beef
1 1/4 onions, chopped
2 eggs, hard boiled and sliced
1 cup black olives, whole
1/4 cup raisins, soaked in warm water
salt and pepper
cumin
oregano
Mashed Potagoes 6 large potatoes
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter salt

Cook potatoes and mash with milk, butter and salt. Set aside. Brown the ground beef and chopped onions with cumin, oregano and salt and pepper to taste. Some like more cumin than others. Drain raisins. Drain the ground beef mixture and place in baking pan that has been coated with cooking spray. Layer the sliced hard boiled eggs, olives and raisins over the meat mixture. Spread the mashed potatoes over the beef mixture. Sprinkle top of mashed potatoes with sugar (yes sugar, it makes it all caramelized on top). Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

Big, Fat, Chewy White Chocolate Craisin Cookies

I am not a baker. Every "tried and true" cookie recipe I have ever gotten from anybody I manage to screw up. This is the first cookie I have ever made in my entire life that I actually get compliments on. They are as good as bakery cookies and are SO YUMMY! It's the only cookie I have been proud to take to a party in my entire life. The recipe came from this recipe, but I "made it my own" by adding white chocolate and Craisins. Even if you love chocolate, trust me on this one. Trev loves chocolate chip cookies, but even he likes the white chocolate Craisin version better. Please try it. And then please make sure to compliment me on how fabulous they turn out.

Big, Fat, Chewy White Chocolate Craisin Cookies

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 cups white chocolate chips
• 2/3 cups Craisins
  

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips and Craisins by hand using a wooden spoon. Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.
4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

P.S. From Amy (tips learned the hard way)

1. Don't overmix when you add dry ingredients, mix only until JUST BLENDED.
   
2. Grease your pan as it says.
3. I have not made them as big as the recipe says though I'm sure they are fabulous. I use a heaping 1/8 cup (2Tbsp) and they are perfect. I tried to make them smaller once and they were not nearly as good. Don't be afraid to make them BIG.
   
4. I bake mine for 13 minutes. Don't overcook or they will be crispy, not fat and chewy. (This is probably common knowledge, but I learn the hard way. Over and over.) Do leave them on the pan for a minute or two before cooling. This prevents them from oozing through the wires of your cooling rack. (Again, probably common baking knowledge)
   

Carmel Toffee Fruit Dip

Here is the recipe for the fruit dip that I made on New Years Eve. I got it from Our Best Bites:

1 8oz package cream cheese

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 Tbsp vanilla (you can add more to taste I only used 1/2Tbsp)

1 bag toffee chips

Let the cream cheese reach room temperature. Mix it with the brown sugar and vanilla. Refrigerate. Just before serving add half a bag of toffee chips and mix well. The chocolate covered toffee chips would be super yummy. I couldn't find any of those, the regular ones were yummy too.

Christmas Crunch

If you need a yummy treat for a party(or just yourself) this is it. It is so good, and it is super easy to make.



CHRISTMAS CRUNCH

1 pkg. of Almond Bark
1 can (12.5 oz.) of COOKED Spanish peanuts
2 cups of Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch cereal
2 cups of Rice Crispies Cereal

Melt the almond bark and then add remaining ingredients. Spread out onto a piece of aluminum foil and allow to dry. Once it is dry, break into pieces. ENJOY!

I am told that the Walmart Almond bark has the best flavor...