Simple Chicken Salad

*This is my mother in law's recipe with my little twist.

You'll Need:
-2 cans of pre-shredded chicken
-2 or 3 celery stalks
-1 can olives, sliced
-1 cup miracle whip
-1/4 cup dried onions, soaked
-dash seasoning salt
-dash of pepper
-dollop of ranch

DIRECTIONS:
-Put dried onions in measuring cup and fill with a little water, let onions soak water up.
-cut veggies and add to shredded chicken in large bowl.
-add miracle whip and mix thoroughly
-put soaked onions into chicken mixutre and finish with seasoning salt, pepper and ranch (for an extra kick).
-Serve on crackers, rolls, or just regular sandwich bread.
~This store in the fridge well and keeps for about a week.

Mini corndogs (super easy!)

*My friend did this at a girl's night out and it was so great! I loved it!

-You'll Need:
-pkg. little smokies
-3 cans of crescent rolls (pillsbury, greatvalue, etc..)

DIRECTIONS:
-Cut crescent rolls in half.
-Roll little smokies in crescent roll
-Bake at 350 degrees farenheit for about 8-10 min. Crescent rolls will be golden brown.
~Hint: barbeque sauce goes great with these as well as ketchup!

Creamy beef-veggie biscuit casserol (healthy and pretty low fat!)

*I had tons of fresh veggies I needed to use and some ground beef that also needed to be cooked so this is how I used them!

You'll need:
-1/2 lb. lean ground beef
-1/2 red or white onion
-Veggies: squash, zucchini, carrots, celery, broccoli, cauliflower (or whatever you have)
-1 can cream of celery or chicken, or mushroom (whatever you have)
-1 cup low fat sour cream
-9 lowfat refrigerator biscuits (pillsbury, greatvalue, whatever)
-salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS:
-Dice onion and saute while hamburger browns.
-Season hamburger with salt and pepper.
-Cut up all veggies and boil in water for 10 min. or until crisp-tender or desired doneness.
-Drain veggies and toss in a small casserole dish, mix with sour cream and soup. Salt and pepper the soup and veggie mix then top with biscuits and bake at 375 degrees farenheit until bubbly and biscuits are golden brown!
~Hint: Make sure that the casserole dish isn't too full otherwise it will bubble over and make a huge mess in your oven! I learned the hard way!

Easy Chicken Parmesan (Quick weeknight dinner)

*I was again in an experimental mood. Plus I had some spaghetti sauce I had to use up in the fridge before it went bad and some fresh basil I wanted to use! I wasn't in a really big mood to take a long time fixing something but I wanted something that tasted good so this is what we had for dinner tonight. This is a really quick weeknight dinner when you don't want to cook that much but still want something better than soup and sandwiches! I should really start taking pictures of this stuff!

You'll need:
-olive oil
-2 chicken breasts
-Italian seasoning
-Plain bread crumbs (or italian bread crumbs, then scratch the italian seasoning)
-1/2 jar spaghetti sauce
-angel hair spaghetti noodles

DIRECTIONS:
-In a non-stick skillet heat some olive oil.
-Mix italian seasoning with bread crumbs. You can pretty much guess on how much you want. It should be mostly bread crumbs and some green specks every now and then.
-Coat your chicken in the bread crumb mixture.
-Place coated chicken in hot olive oil and let it pan fry for about 10-15 minutes, until juicy and no more pink!
-While chicken is cooking, chop some fresh basil and add it to your spaghetti sauce (you don't have to, regular spaghetti sauce is great. The basil just adds a little pizazz)
-Heat your spaghetti sauce and cook a good amount of angel hair spaghetti noodles. These cook up in like 5 minutes.
~Hint: this is a meal you can cook and have served in less than 30 minutes if you have already defrosted your chicken! It goes great with a fresh green salad. Yummo!

Lemon-Lime Chicken Fajitas

Okay this one has a funny story behind it. Bare with me! So when Cole and I were first married, I had all these new cook books I was flipping through trying out new recipes. Well...I saw this one for lemon chicken tortillas and it looked so easy and fool proof, so I tried it! It specifically said use lots of lemon...so I did. Well...our mouths were making the weirdest noises(squeaking out of the side of your mouth-like when you tell a horse to go). I have never been able to try that recipe for the fear that it would happen again. We were scarred forever. Well one day, I bought 10 limes on sale at the grocery store and didn't know what I was going to do with them....so I decided to be brave and improvise a little using the inspiration of that specific recipe and this is what became of it!! This has such a nice, unique and sweet flavor, my 1 year old daughter even gobbled it up!!

You'll need:
-2 limes, juiced (or 1/2 cup of lime juice)
-1/2 cup lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
-2 boneless skinless chicken breasts,sliced into strips
-1/2 red onion, diced
-1 tbs. olive oil
-sprinkle of cheese (monterey jack works nicely, but whatever you have)
-tortillas, warmed
-sour cream
-salt and pepper, just a dash
-whatever things you want to top it with (lettuce, tomatoes....etc)

DIRECTIONS:
*First heat olive oil in non-stick skillet.
*Saute onion in olive oil, let it sweat out while you're slicing your chicken into strips.
*Sprinkle strips of chicken with salt and pepper to taste, throw it in with onions and let it get golden brown.
*Once chicken is golden brown, add lemon and lime juice. (Hint: if you are using fresh lemons and limes-squeeze them with the open side facing your palm to prevent seeds getting into your chicken)
*Once chicken is nice and tender, serve on tortillas. Top with cheese, sour cream and whatever else you would like in the tortilla.

Sweet-n-Spicy Beef Stir Fry

Okay, so I made steak on Sunday and had defrosted too many steaks!! So I was really looking for something to do with my extra two steaks before they went bad. So this is what became of the two leftover steaks!! Hope you like it! Let me know what you think. Even if you don't like spicy food, I think you'll still like this, it's got just a little kick to it! The ingredients I used, made tons, so you can cut in half if you aren't a big family.

You'll need:
-2 top sirloin steaks (defrosted)
-2 Summer Squash
-2 Zucchini
-2 full size carrots
-3 stalks of celery
-2 cloves garlic, grated
-1/2 onion, diced (red or white-red will make it sweeter)
-1/2 cup orange juice, melted
-1 cup soy sauce (or more if it starts to dry out-use it liberally)
-3 tbs. olive oil
-dash of seasoning (I used): salt, pepper, curry powder, paprika, cumin, parsley, oregano, onion powder and garlic powder. (a dash of each mind you!)
-2 cups of noodles (I used what I had, angel hair spaghetti and it cooked fast and tasted great!)

DIRECTIONS:
*First you want to put your defrosted steaks into the freezer for just about 5-10 minutes. This makes it easier for you to thinly slice it.
*Heat non-stick skillet to medium heat. Saute diced onion in olive oil. Let sweat out for a few minutes while meat is freezing.
*Pull meat out of freezer and very thinly slice it.
*Sprinkle meat with salt and pepper to taste and put it in with the onions to cook. When it is mostly cooked, you can throw in your thinly sliced veggies! All of them.
*You will need to put in about half of your soy sauce by now to coat the veggies and let them soak up the flavor.
*Use a dash of each seasoning listed above, to season all your veggies. If you're out of one, don't use it. Or substitute it, be brave!
*Let veggies sweat out a little until crisp-tender or desired doneness.
*Cook pasta, in a seperate pan (I used angel hair, it's done in about 5 min. so by the time the veggies were done, my pasta was. If you're using something else, begin cooking it when you throw your meat in the freezer because of longer cooking time).
*Put orange juice in stir-fry.
*Add the rest of soy sauce.
*Add pasta and coat it with sauces. Then serve!
~Hint: Don't let pasta set too long in stir-fry it will get a funny texture. Hence putting it in very last. I hope you like it!

Ham and Cheese Souffle

You'll need:
-6 slices of bread with crusts removed,cubed
-6 slices of ham, cut into cubes or small squares
-2 cups cheddar cheese (or mozzerella)
-1 dozen eggs
-2 cups milk
-2 tsp. dry mustard
-2 tsp. parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:
* Layer in the bottom of a pan:
-cubes of bread, ham, and cheese
*Mix together:
-eggs, milk, and dry mustard.
*Pour egg mixture over bread, ham and cheese.
*Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
*Bake at 350 degrees Farenheit for about 45-60 minutes.

Key Lime Pie

You'll need:
-1-8oz. cool whip
-1 can sweetened condensed milk
-1/3 cup lime juice
-2 tsp. lime zest

DIRECTIONS:
*Beat all ingredients together and put in graham cracker crust.
*Double recipe for a large pan.
*Save a little bit of graham crackers and lime zest to sprinkle of top for decoration.
*You can also put a slice of lime for decoration (slice part of it and twist it)

Pizza Dough/Bread stick dough

You'll need:
-1/2 cup warm water
-1 tbs. yeast
-1 tbs. oil
-1/2 tsp. salt or to taste
-1 1/2 cups flour
~hint: for variation add italian seasoning (adds great flavor)

DIRECTIONS:
*Let yeast dissolve in warm water for about 10 minutes. Mix all ingredients together, then let rise in a warm spot for about 10 minutes.
~Hint: this is a small batch, I usually double for thick crust on a round pizza pan or a 9x13 square pan.
~When you cook this dough it doesn't brown very much so make sure to check it to be done after about 10 minutes in the oven . If you want it to brown more, put egg wash on it before cooking it.

Waffle Cookies

My mutual leader used to make these for us when I was in Young Women's. It was our favorite! These are way easy!!

You'll need:
-1/2 cup melted butter
-3/4 cup sugar
-1 cup flour
-2 eggs
-4-6 tbs. cocoa (depending on how chocolatey you want them)
-1 tsp. vanilla

DIRECTIONS:
*Mix all ingredients together (it will be thick).
*Spoon small amounts onto a greased waffle iron.
*Cook about 1 minute and take off.
*Ice cookies with chocolate icing and enjoy!!
~Makes tons!!

ICING:
-1/2 bag of powdered sugar
-dash of salt
-1/2 stick of softened butter
-1/4 cup milk
-dash of vanilla
-a little cocoa (up to your disgretion)
~Hint: this makes A LOT of icing, but icing stays good for months! Just keep it in your fridge and use it the next time you make these cookies or use it for something else.

Caramels

I LOVE these!! SOOOO EASY!!

You'll need:
-1/2 lb. butter
-1/2 tsp. salt
-2 cups sugar
-1 1/2 cups light corn syrup
-1-14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

DIRECTIONS:
*Boil all ingredients until it reaches 230 degrees Farenheit. Stirring constantly!
*Pour in a greased (you can use pam spray) pan. Put in the fridge until it sets up.
*Wrap in wax paper or Saran wrap.
~Hint: Boil on med. high heat.

Rita's Brownies

These are my one of my favorite recipes of brownies!

You'll need:
-1/3 cup shortening (or margarine)
-3 tbs. cocoa
-1 cup sugar
-1 tsp. vanilla
-2 eggs
-2/3 cup flour
-1/2 tsp. baking powder
-1/4 tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS:
*Mix first 5 ingredients then add the rest.
*Bake at 350 degrees Farenheit for about 35-45 min. or until desired doneness.
~Hint: double this to make a 9x13 size pan full.

Strawberry Stuffed French Toast

I made this on up one morning when I wanted something "different." Let me know what you think!

You'll need:
-2 cups strawberries, sliced
-cream cheese
-bread
-2 eggs
-1/2 cup milk
-1 tsp. vanilla
-1 tsp. cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:
*Whip eggs, milk, vanilla and cinnamon in a bowl.
*Spread 1 tbs. cream cheese on one slice of bread. Then put sliced strawberries on it until it covers the whole piece of bread. Then cover with other slice of bread.
*Dip bread in egg mixture.
*Fry french toast on griddle until golden brown.
*Top french toast with powdered sugar or syrup.

Chicken Cresent Rolls

You'll need:
-4 cans Pillsbury big and flaky cresent rolls
-1 can of shredded chicken
-1-8oz. pkg. cream cheese
-1 small container of sour cream
- 3 scallions, sliced
-1 can cream of chicken soup
-1 can olives,sliced
-1 small can mushroom pieces and stems
-1 cup milk
-8 saltine crackers, crushed
-3 tbs. melted butter


DIRECTIONS:
*Melt cream cheese in sauce pan. Stir in sour cream.
*Add sliced olives, mushroom pieces, scallions, and chicken.
*Take cresent rolls out of package and stretch just a little. Be careful not to tear them!
*Fill cresent rolls with a spoonful of cream cheese mixture, roll up so no filling falls out.
*Place rolls on a cookie sheet.
*Baste with melted butter and top with crushed saltine crackers.
*Bake at 350 degrees Farenheit for about 10 minutes or until golden brown.

SAUCE:
*While rolls are baking, in a small sauce pan combine 1 can of cream of chicken soup and 1 cup of milk and heat to desired hotness. Pour over cresent rolls.

~This makes TONS!!

Wedding Chicken

You'll need:
-1 cup corn oil
-1 cup. soy sauce
-1 can of 7up/Mt. dew/or sprite (whatever you have in pop)
-1/4 tsp. horseradish
-1/2 tsp. garlic powder
*Mix this all in a plastic baggie and let chicken marinate in it for 24 hours!

DIRECTIONS:
*Preheat grill to medium
*grill chicken until done!!
*enjoy!

EASY Italian-crusted chicken cordon bleu

You'll Need:
-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
-1/4 cup flour
-Olive oil
-Cheese (provolone or swiss)
-Ham slices
-italian seasoning
-1 red onion
-1 can pineapple chunks
-3 tbs. brown sugar
-3 tbs. vinegar
-little soy sauce
-1 c. tomato sauce

DIRECTIONS:
*Preheat oven to 400 degrees Farenheit.
*Defrost chicken. Butterfly it (cut it in half -like a Subway sandwich) then place saran wrap or wax paper over it. Pound it out till it's about 1/4 inch thick.
*Sprinkle italian seasoning on chicken.
*Place 1 slice of ham and 1 slice of cheese on chicken.
*Place a little olive oil in non stick skillet (one that can go into an oven) and heat it.
*Roll chicken into a bundle, then roll it in flour to coat it.
*Brown chicken in olive oil just until it's a little seared.
*Put chicken in oven and cook for about 10-15 minutes or until done.

SAUCE:
*While chicken rolls are cooking......
*in olive oil saute: sliced red onions, for about 5 minutes, then add pineapple chunks and let them sweat out until onions are tender.
*Then add, 3 tbs. of brown sugar and 3 tbs. of vinegar.
*Add a little soy sauce, depends on your tasting I usually just guess, probably about 1-2 tbs.
*Add 1 cup of tomato sauce and a few shakes of salt and pepper to taste.
*Stir all together and let it simmer until chicken is done.

~Hint: Chicken and sauce is really good served on top of rice with scallions.

Grilled Summer Squash and Zucchini

You'll need:
-Zucchini and Summer Squash
-Olive oil
-Garlic Salt

DIRECTIONS:
*Cut zucchini and squash length wise into long strips.
*Pour a little olive oil down on them and spread to coat entire strip(both sides)
*Sprinkle with garlic salt
*Preheat grill to medium heat
*Grill for about 10 minutes until crisp-tender or desired doneness; turning occasionally.
*Enjoy!!

Zesty Grilled Veggies

You'll Need:
-an assortment of veggies like:
-Zucchini
-Summer Squash
-Red, Green and Yellow Peppers
-Pineapple goes good too
-Mushrooms

-1/4 cup of kraft zesty italian dressing
-1/4 cup parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:
*Marinate veggies in plastic baggie with the zesty italian dressing for around 10-15 minutes.
*Preheat grill to medium heat.
*Put veggies on skewers or in grill basket.
*Grill veggies for about 10 minutes until crisp-tender or desired doneness. Occasionally turning.
*Place veggies in large bowl or platter
*Pour the remaining zesty italian dressing (from the plastic baggie) to coat veggies.
*Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese.

~Hint: if you don't have skewers or a grill basket, just put heavy-duty aluminum foil down on grill grate and spread the veggies out on that, they'll cook just great! Make sure to keep it away from any raw meats while cooking.

Cowboy Burgers

You'll need:
-2 tbs. olive oil
-3 onions, thinly sliced, separated into rings
-8 hamburger patties or 2 lbs of beef if making your own
-3 tbs. A.1. Original Steak sauce
-2 tomatoes, each cut into 4 slices
-8 hamburger buns, split
-8 slices of cheese (swiss or monterey jack goes great with this)

DIRECTIONS:
*Preheat grill to medium heat. Meanwhile, heat oil in large non-stick skillet. Add onions; cook 5 min. Stir frequently.
*Cover onions with lid. Simmer for 20 min or until onions look golden brown, stir frequently.
*Meanwhile, grill patties about 6-7 min. on each side (or until desired doneness) -(if you are making your own, add 2 tbs. of A.1. to the meat before making the patties, it adds great flavor)
*Stir steak sauce into onions.
*Build your hamburgers, with tomato on bottom, then burger, then cheese, then onions.
*The heat from the burgers and onions will melt the cheese.
~Hint: These go great with the Zesty Grilled Veggies!!

Frozen Strawberry Delight

*Let me know how much you enjoy this one. I couldn't get enough of it!!

You'll need:
-4 cups strawberries
-1 can sweetened condensed milk
-1/4 cup lemon juice
-1 tub (8 oz.) Cool Whip
-8-10 Oreo cookies
-1 tbs. melted butter
-8x4-inch loaf pan
-aluminum foil

*Shape foil onto outside of 8x4-inch loaf pan. Then line the inside of the pan with that foil, with the ends extending over the sides of the pan (long ways)
*Mash 2 cups of strawberries in a large bowl. Stir in condensed milk and lemon juice.
*Stir 2 cups of Cool Whip into strawberry mixutre. Pour into the prepared loaf pan.
*Finely chop Oreo cookies. Combine cookies and melted butter. Spoon over the mixture in the loaf pan.
*Cover the dessert with the ends of the foil and gently press the cookies into the strawberry mixture. Freeze 6 hours or until firm. (I think I froze mine 4 hours-and that was good enough)
*Invert dessert onto a serving plate when ready to serve; remove pan and foil. Spread the remaining Cool Whip onto the top and sides of the dessert.
*Slice the remaining 2 cups of strawberries and decorate your dessert!
*If you can't finish this whole thing in one sitting (which I highly doubt) if freezes again nicely and you can enjoy it more than once!!