Pear and Spinach Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

Salad:

spinach                         candied pecans

feta                               craisins

pears

Dressing:

1 cup oil                        2 Tbls dried basil

1/2 cup white vinegar     2 tsp garlic pepper

½ cup sugar                  pinch of salt

(Ashlee Millar)

Caramel Corn

(This is not a sticky caramel corn. I think it is sooooo good!)

7-8 cups popped corn              3 Tbs corn syrup

¾ cup packed brown sugar      ¼ tsp baking soda

6 Tbs butter                             ¼ tsp vanilla

Remove all unpopped kernals from the popped corn. Put popped corn into a long cookie sheet or roasting pan. In a medium saucepan mix brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup.  Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils.  Continue boiling at a moderate, steady rate, without stirring, for 5 minutes more.  Remove pan from heat.  Stir in baking soda and vanilla.  Pour mixture over popcorn; stir gently to coat.  Bake at 300° for 15 minutes.  Stir mixture; bake 5 minutes more. Spread caramel corn on a large sheet of wax paper to cool. Yummy!

(Joy Willbur)

White Chicken Enchiladas

6 soft taco shells

3 Tbsp butter

2 cups shredded chicken

3 Tbsp flour

2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1 can chicken broth

1 cup sour cream

1 4oz can diced green chiles

Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9x13 pan. Mix chicken and 1 cup cheese. Roll up in tortillas and place in pan. In a sauce pan. Melt butter, stir in flour and cook 1 minute. Add broth and whisk until smooth. Heat over medium heat until thick and bubbly. Stir in sour cream and chiles. Do not bring to a boil. Pour over enchiladas and top with remaining cheese. Bake 22 minutes and then under high broil for 3 minutes to brown the cheese.

WW Spinach, Chicken, and Cheese Lasagna Roll-Ups (adapted)

10 lasagna noodles, cooked

1 cup chopped cooked chicken

1 1/2 cups chopped spinach

1 (10 oz) container fat free Ricotta cheese

1 egg

1 garlic, minced

1/2 tsp Italian seasonings

¼ cup crumbled feta cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese

2 cups Spaghetti Sauce

Mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350°. Make sure you drain the spinach well. Combine spinach, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, feta cheese, egg, garlic, Italian seasonings, chicken, and salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Pour about 1 cup sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Place a piece of wax paper on the counter and lay out lasagna noodles. Make sure noodles are dry by patting them with a paper towel. Take 1/3 cup of ricotta mixture and spread evenly over a noodle. Roll carefully and place seam side down onto the baking dish. Repeat with remaining noodles.

Ladle sauce over the noodles in the baking dish and top each one with 1 Tablespoon of mozzarella cheese. Cover baking dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes, or until cheese melts. Makes 10 rolls.

To serve, ladle a little sauce on the plate and top with lasagna roll.

BBQ Ribs

Here is a video (that's actually pretty funny) about how to make these ribs. http://www.thecookingguy.com/cookbook/recipe.php?id=312

• 1 1/2 cups barbeque sauce, plain

• 1/4 cup pancake syrup

• 1/4 cup brown sugar

• 4 tablespoons white vinegar

Mix sauce, syrup and brown sugar, set aside. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place ribs in their racks (I just mean do not cut them) in a large baking/casserole dish. Pour vinegar into dish with ribs and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake about 75 minutes or until very tender

Remove from oven and carefully lift off tin foil - watch out for steam. The ribs are now fully cooked and just need to be 'sauced' finished' and you have 2 options: Heat BBQ to medium and place ribs meat side down without sauce - but you can baste the back with the sauce. Cook until they start to develop grill marks, and turn over - now baste the top. You could stop here after they grill a bit on this side, or you could baste them a bit more and then give them a couple more minutes meat side down - that's what I do. Heat broiler to high and place ribs on a baking sheet about 4 inches from the heat source. Brush top of the ribs well with the sauce and cook until they start getting a bit brown - then flip to the back, sauce and cook some more

Flip back to the top (sauce again) and cook until they get that beautiful rib look. Then, no matter how you cooked them, give 'em one extra baste them after they've been removed and just before you serve them.

(Sam the Cooking Guy - and Adrianne Campbell)

Homemade Oreos

1 box devil's food cake mix (or any other chocolate cake mix)

3/4 cup shortening

2 eggs

Mix it together (if it's too thick, you can add a touch of water). Then roll into small balls (less than an inch) and place on greased cookie sheet. Cook at 350 for 4 minutes on the bottom rack then 4 minutes on the top rack. They will not look done, but don't cook them any longer. Let them sit on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes before removing them and putting them on a wire cooling rack.

When they are cooled, spread cream cheese frosting in between two cookies.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

4 oz. softened cream cheese

1/2 cup butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 TBSP milk

2-3 (or more) cups powdered sugar

(Amber Dickens)

Texas Roadhouse Rolls

4 tsp. active dry yeast

1/2 c. warm water

2 c. milk, scalded and cooled to lukewarm

3 Tbl. of melted butter, slightly cooled

1/2 c. sugar

2 quarts all purpose flour (7-8 cups)

2 whole eggs

2 tsp. salt

Dissolve yeast in warm water with a teaspoon of sugar. Add yeast, milk, sugar and enough flour to make a medium batter. Beat thoroughly. Let stand until light and foamy. Add melted butter, eggs and salt. Beat well.

Add enough flour to form a soft dough. Sprinkle a small amount of flour onto counter and let dough rest. Meanwhile, grease a large bowl. Knead dough until smooth and satiny and put in greased bowl; turn over to grease top. (I used the dough hook on my Kitchen-Aid to knead this for about 4-5 minutes). Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in bulk. Punch down. Turn out onto a floured board. Divide into portions for shaping; let rest 10 minutes. Shape dough into desired forms. Place on greased baking sheets. Let rise until doubled.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Baste immediately with butter. Yield: 5 to 6 dozen.

*Jenn's Notes: I shaped my rolls by rolling out the dough into a rectangle, about 1/2-inch thick, then I folded the rectangle in half, making it about 1-inch thick. I used my rolling pin and rolled over the dough, ever so gently, just to seal the two halves together. I then used a dough scraper and cut the rolls into squares and placed those on my greased baking sheet. I cut the recipe in half and I got exactly 12 big rolls and baked them for 16-17 minutes. In order to get the 5-6 dozen rolls like the recipe states, you would have to make really small rolls.

(Eatcakefordinner)

Frozen Samoan Pie

Made this for Pie Night with friends. So good!

1 (16.5-oz.) Pillsbury® Create ‘n Bake Refrigerated Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
1 quart French vanilla ice cream (block form preferred)
2 ½ cups coconut, toasted* and divided
10 fudge covered graham crackers, broken and divided
14 hard macaroon cookies, broken and divided
1 cup carmel sundae syrup, divided
½ cup miniature chocolate chips, divided
Smucker’s® Chocolate Fudge Magic Shell® Topping

Heat oven to 350º. Grease bottom of a 10-inch springform pan. Spread the cookie dough evenly across the bottom of the pan and bake at 350º for 18-22 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Spread 1/3 of the coconut, 1/3 of the chocolate chips, and 1/3 of the caramel on top of the cookie layer.

Using a large butcher knife slice the ice cream block into 1-inch sections. Take half of the ice cream sections and spread evenly across the chocolate chip layer. If necessary, break ice cream segments up to make sure all gaps are filled. Layer half of the fudge grahams, half of the broken cookies, 1/3 of the chocolate chips, 1/3 of the coconut (press into the ice cream), and 1/3 of the caramel on top of the ice cream. Take the last half of the ice cream sections and spread evenly. Repeat the broken cookie layer, adding the rest of the coconut. Cover with aluminum foil and place in the freezer for 2-4 hours or until frozen throughout.

Before serving let the pan sit out for 10-20 minutes to soften. Run a knife around the edges of the pan. Release the springform. Store covered leftovers in the freezer.

*Tip: To toast coconut, spread on cookie sheet; bake at 350º F. for 7 to 8 minutes or until light golden brown, stirring occasionally.

(Mycreativestirrings)

Ham and Cheese Sliders

24 good white dinner rolls

24 pieces good honey ham
24 small slices Swiss cheese
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup miracle whip

Poppy seed sauce (you probably could half this...I had plenty extra)
1 T poppyseeds
1 1/2 T yellow mustard
1 stick butter, melted
1 T minced onion
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise and miracle whip. Spread onto both sides of the center of each roll. Place a slice of ham and a slice of Swiss inside of each roll. Close rolls and place them into a large baking dish or heavy cookie sheet. Place very close together.

In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the poppy seed sauce ingredients. Pour evenly over all of the sandwiches. Let sit 10 minutes or until butter sets slightly. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Uncover and cook for 2 additional minutes. Serve warm.

** sandwiches can be assembled a day ahead and kept in the fridge ready to bake.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

4 tsp. cajun seasoning {I used Tony Chachere's}

4 tbsp. butter

3 cups heavy whipping cream

1/2 tsp. lemon pepper seasoning

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. black pepper

1/4 tsp. garlic powder {garlic salt would be good here, too!}

1 pkg. penne pasta

Roma tomatoes, chopped

Shredded parmesan cheese

Green onions {optional}

Cook pasta according to package directions. Slightly moisten chicken with water and sprinkle Cajun seasoning on the top of both breasts. In a large skillet, sauté chicken in 2 tablespoons of butter, turning when necessary (10-15 min). While chicken is cooking, grab another pot and combine cream with 2 tablespoons of butter and remaining seasonings {salt, pepper, garlic powder, lemon pepper}. When the cream mixture starts to bubble, turn off heat and pour over cooked pasta. Toss to coat evenly. When the chicken is all cooked, remove from heat and transfer to cutting board. Slice chicken into strips. Spoon pasta onto plate & top with several strips of chicken. Top with tomatoes, green onions, and sprinkle with parmesan.

(pearls-handcuffs-happyhour.blogspot.com)

Korean BBQ Beef

Bul-Ko-Kee

(Korean Barbecued Beef)

1 lb. Beef Boneless top loin or sirloin steak, or round steak (I buy the most thin slices of beef that the store has)

1/4 c. soy sauce

3 T. sugar

2. T vegetable oil

1/4 tsp pepper

3 green onions (I use dry onion flakes)

2 cloves garlic, chopped (I use garlic powder

Trim fat from beef, cut diagonally across grain into 1/8-inch slices. Mix remaining ingredients, stir in beef until well coated. Cover and refrigerate 30 min. Stir-fry in 10-in skillet or wok over medium heat until light brown. (2-3 min) serve with rice.

(Cami Hales)

Butterfinger Blondies

1 cup butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp coarse sea salt
2 cups coarsely chopped Butterfinger Bars (approx 16 “Fun Size” bars)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°
Cream butter and sugars in mixing bowl.
Add the vanilla and eggs and mix until incorporated.
On low add your dry ingredients (flour, salt and baking soda) until just combined.
Stir in your chopped Butterfinger.
Spread in a 9×13 baking dish and bake for 30 minutes until center is JUST set.
Remove from oven and cool completely.

BUTTERFINGER BUTTERCREAM:

1/2 cup room temp butter (1 stick)
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2 1/2 – 3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup chopped Butterfinger Bars (approx 4 “Fun Size” bars)

Instructions

Cream the butter and shortening together until smooth.
Add in you powdered sugar on low speed. Turn speed up to medium and mix until smooth
Stir your chopped Butterfinger on top.
Spread on your cooled blondies

(sixsistersstuff)

BBQ Pulled Pork

3 lb. boneless pork shoulder

Garlic powder

Onion powder

Kosher salt

Black pepper

Smoked paprika or liquid smoke

About 12 oz. of your favorite BBQ sauce

About 12 high-quality rolls

Rinse pork roast well in cold water and trim of excess fat. This is important because sometimes, boneless pork shoulder (and bone-in pork shoulder, for that matter) can take on kind of an icky fishy odor and a lot of that smell is in the juices and the fat. Pat dry. Sprinkle roast with liquid smoke and seasonings and place in your slow cooker. Add about 1/2 inch of water and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

When the roast has cooked, drain liquid and then return to the slow cooker and shred. Pour enough sauce over the meat so it’s well-incorporated but not soupy. Return the lid to the crockpot and heat through.

(Our Best Bites)

Croc Pot Bacon Ranch Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 Tbs real bacon bits

1 tsp minced garlic

1 pkg ranch dressing mix

1 can cream of chicken

1 cup sour cream

Noodles

Combine bacon, garlic, ranch dressing mix, cream of chicken, and sour cream. Mix well. Pour over chicken and cook on high 3-4 hours. Shred chicken and put back in croc pot. Pour over cooked noodles.

Hawaiian Hay Stacks (Chicken Sundae)

Sauce:

1 can chicken broth

2 cans cream of chicken

1 cup shredded chicken

Heat broth and cream of chicken together until cream of chicken dissolves. Add shredded chicken and keep warm until ready to eat.

Toppings:

Pineapple

Chopped green onions

Chopped celery

Diced tomatoes

Sliced water chestnuts

Cheese

Chow mein noodles

Coconut

Cashews

Put rice on your plate and pour chicken sauce over the top. Sprinkle above toppings over rice.

Cream Cheese Chip Dip

1 package of cream cheese

1 regular jar of salsa

Let cream cheese soften and then with a mixer beat it until it's smooth. Add jar of salsa and mix until combined. Delish!

(Pam Bylund)

Navajo Tacos

Use this scone recipe for the "taco."

Top with:

Browned meat

Tomatoes

Shredded lettuce

Cheese

Chip Dip

Ranch dressing

Save some scones for dessert and top them with butter and honey.

S'more Cups

7	whole graham crackers (1 cup/250 mL finely crushed)
1/4	cup (50 mL) powdered sugar
6	tbsp (90 mL) butter, melted
4	bars (1.55 oz or 43 g each) milk chocolate candy, divided
12	large marshmallows Preheat oven to 350°. Place graham crackers into a large resealable plastic bag. Finely crush into crumbs. Combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and butter. Using a small scoop, place scant scoop of crumb mixture in each cup of a mini muffin tin. Press crumbs to form shallow cups with a mini tart shaper. Bake 4-5 minutes or until edges are bubbling. Meanwhile, break two of the candy bars into rectangles. Remove pan from oven; place one rectangle into each cup. Cut marshmallows in half crosswise using scissors dipped in cold water. Place one marshmallow half, cut-side down, into each cup. Return to oven 1-2 minutes or until marshmallows are just slightly softened. Remove from oven to a cooling rack; cool 15 minutes. Carefully remove cups from pan. Cool completely. Break remaining candy bars and place in microwave safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH 1 minute-1 1/2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring every 20 seconds. Dip the top of each marshmallow in melted chocolate. Turn top-side up and let stand 40 minutes-1 hour or until set. Yields 24 mini cups (Pampered Chef)

Gooey Caramel Rolls

1 1/2 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup whipping cream

1 cup chopped pecans

2 loaves frozen bread dough

Whisk together brown sugar and whipping cream. Pour into a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Set aside. Pull golf ball size pieces off the bread dough and roll into balls. Place in pan leaving space between rolls so they can rise. Cover dough and let rise until doubled in size. Uncover and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes. Invert onto a sewing platter and spoon and caramel left in pan over the rolls.

(Laurel Kramer)

Snickerdoodles

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup shortening

2 large eggs

2 3/4 cup flour

2 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp ground cinnamon

Heat oven to 400

Beat 1 1/2 cups sugar, butter, shortening and eggs in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Mix until combined.

Shape dough in balls. Mix 1/4 cup sugar and the cinnamon. Roll balls in cinnamon sugar mixture and place on an ungreased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Depending on the size of the cookie, gently flatten the balls with the bottom of a glass.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until set.

(Adrianne Campbell)

Olive Garden breadsticks

You will need:

1 1/2 cups warm water

2 1/4 teaspoon yeast

1 Tablespoon margarine, melted

2 Tablespoon sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

4 1/2 cups flour

2 Tablespoons margarine, melted

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1. In the bowl of your stand mixer, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let it sit at least 5 minutes, until yeast bubbles.

2. Add melted margarine, sugar, and salt to the yeast mixture.

3. Mix in the flour using your dough hook. Knead for 2-3 minutes.

4. Cover the dough and let it rest for 45 minutes.

5. Shape into 8-10 breadsticks and place on greased cookie tray.

6. Bake at 400 for 7 minutes.

7. Meanwhile, mix together melted margarine, salt, and garlic powder.

8. Remove breadsticks from oven (after 7 minutes) and brush with melted margarine. Return to oven for 8 more minutes, until lightly browned.

9. Brush warm breadsticks with remaining margarine.

Joy in My Kitchen

Tortellini Spinach Bake in Creamy Lemon Sauce

Finally got around to trying this out. My family LOVED this. I can't believe they didn't even notice it had spinach in it!

12 oz bag Barilla Cheese & Spinach Tortelini (find them in the dry pasta aisle)
4 oz bacon or pancetta, (about 4 strips bacon)*
3 cloves garlic, pressed in garlic press or finely minced
2 Tbs flour
2 C milk
¾ tsp kosher salt
⅛ tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp dry basil
¼ tsp red pepper flakes (1/2 tsp or more if you like spicy)
1 medium lemon
2 C loosely packed fresh spinach, roughly chopped
¾ C grated mozzarella cheese, divided
¾ C grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Fill a large stock pot with water and bring to a boil. Add tortellini and cook according to package instructions.

Place bacon in a medium sized skillet on the stove-top at medium-high heat. Cook until crisp. Remove bacon from pan with slotted spoon and set on paper towels to drain. Reserve two tablespoons bacon drippings in pan and discard the rest. Add garlic to pan and cook until fragrant and tender, about 1 minute. Add flour to pan and stir with a whisk for about 1 minute. Slowly add milk and continue to stir with whisk until smooth. Add salt, pepper, basil, and red pepper flakes and bring sauce to a simmer.

While sauce is heating, use a microplane grater or a fine-holed cheese grater to zest lemon. Then cut lemon in half and remove juice. Add 2 teaspoons zest and 1 tablespoon lemon juice to sauce. Continue to stir until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Drain tortellini and place back in stock pot. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the cooked bacon and add the rest to the pasta mixture. Add spinach, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Add sauce and gently stir to combine. Place pasta mixture in an 8×8 or 9×9 baking dish and top with remaining 1/4 cup mozarella and 1/4 cup parmesan and also crumbled bacon.

Cover pan with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, until cheese on top is melted and pasta is bubbly throughout. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes before serving.

* I think next time I will add some chicken and omit the bacon. I couldn't really taste it in the recipe so why not make it a little healthier?

Recipe by Our Best Bites

Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken

Ingredients:

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 package Good Seasons Italian Dressing mix
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Mix cheese, dressing mix and garlic powder.

3. Moisten chicken breasts with water; coat with cheese mixture. Place in shallow baking dish.

4. Bake 20 to 25 min. or until chicken is no longer pink in the center.

YUMMY!

Peanut Butter Squares (cookie-bar like)

½ cup butter

½ cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 egg

½ tsp baking soda

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

½ tsp salt

½ tsp vanilla

1 cup flour

1 cup oats

Cream butter and sugars. Add egg and other ingredients. Pat mixture into 13 x 9 pan and bake at 350° 15-20 minutes. Sprinkle with chocolate chips, cover with a dishcloth and let melt. Spread. Let harden and the frost with icing.

Icing:

2 cups powdered sugar, ½ cup creamy peanut butter, and enough milk to make mixture smooth.

(Kristi Phillips)