Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

Quiche Lorraine

This is one of my very favorite things to eat. I LOVE quiche of any kind. I saw this recipe on Pinterest and thought I'd give it a try and it was fantastic! Easy to make and since I was making one I decided to make two. It sure didn't take long for them both to disappear. I love having something that is quick in the morning and you can't get anything easier than popping a slice of this in the microwave in the morning!

 

I actually ate more of this for dinner and lunch than I did

for breakfast! A slice and a salad and I was good to go!

Quiche Lorraine

Ingredients

• 1 9 inch unbaked pie crust
• 1 C shredded Swiss cheese
• 3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1/4 C ham, minced
• 2 green onions, sliced and chopped
• 3 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 C half and half
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp dry mustard

Instructions

• Bake unpricked pastry shell for 5 minutes at 425 degrees
• Remove from oven and place cheese, bacon and ham in bottom of shell
• Add green onion
• In medium bowl mix together eggs, cream, salt and dry mustard
• Pour evenly over cheese mixture
• Bake at 325 for 45 minutes or until set
• If the edges of the crust begin to get to brown cover them with foil
• Remove from oven and let stand for about ten minutes before serving
• Makes 6 servings

Freezer Apple Pie Filling

I went apple picking at my friend Barb's mom's place and I had a TON of apples. I had already made two batches of apple sauce and needed something else to do with all these apples. Well I went searching Pinterest and came across this recipe and it was easy and tasted fantastic so I made two batches of pie filling to put into my freezer.

Here's what it looked like all done and cooling

 This batch made enough for 6 pies! 

I made up two pies and here is filling for 4 more. For a 

regular pie crust you will need 3 cups of filling and if you

are doing a deep dish pie you will need 6 cups of filling. My

bags are filled with 3 cups.

 My baked apple pie with Streusel topping!

Ok here are the recipes for both the pie filling and the Streusel topping with the 

baking instructions too!

Freezer Apple Pie Filling

Ingredients

• 18 cups peeled, thinly sliced apples
• 3 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 2 Tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg (optional – I leave this out, but some people like nutmeg, the crazies :))
• 8-9 cups water

Instructions

1. In large bowl, toss apples with lemon juice and set aside.
2. Pour water into largest pan/Dutch oven you have, and place over medium heat.
3. Combine sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Add to water and whisk well. Bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
4. Add apples and return to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until apples are tender and mixture is thickened, about 6-8 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes before dividing over 5 freezer containers, leaving ½” head space in each container. Leave lids off and cool at room temperature for 1 – 1½ hours, then seal and freeze.
5. This can be frozen for up to a year. 

Streusel Topping

 1 cup flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened 

 

Preheat oven at 375 degrees with a cookie sheet on the center rack.
Pour apple mixture into frozen pie crust.
Make the streusel crumb topping by mixing together with a fork in a medium bowl the flour, cinnamon, and light brown sugar. Then mix in the softened butter with a fork, stirring and blending until the mixture resembles crumbs.
Top the pie with the crumb topping, place on the cookie sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 40 - 45 minutes until the crust is a deep golden brown and the filling bubbles.
Remove from oven, cool 30 minutes and serve warm with ice cream and caramel ice cream topping drizzled over pie, if desired.

Official Summer Pool Drink

Here's another great recipe that I got off of Pinterest! This is so refreshing and can be made either with alcohol or without!

Official Summer Pool Drink

1 46oz can Pineapple Juice
1 c Country Time Lemonade Mix
2 c Water
2 cans Sprite
*Pineapple Coconut Rum

Mix the first four ingredients together well.
Fill your glass with ice, add alcohol and
add mix. Sit back, relax and enjoy!

*I didn't have Pineapple Coconut Rum so
I just used coconut rum and it was awesome.
You can use vodka, Bacardi Limone, Bacardi
O or any other alcohol you like.

Fruit Dip

I was looking for a different fruit dip other than the good old stand by of Marshmellow Creme and Cream Cheese and I came across this recipe and just had to try it. It was AWESOME but be warned, it makes a lot!.

Fruit Dip

1- 3.4oz pkg Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
1 8oz container of Cool Whip
1 8oz pkg Cream Cheese, softened
1 c Powdered Sugar
1 c Whole Milk

Mix all ingredients together until well combined.
Serve Chilled.

Maple Cranberry Spread

I went to another art day with my scrapbooking friends and brought along a new recipe for them to try. I pinned the recipe for Maple Cranberry Spread a while ago on my Pinterest breakfast board from the Inspiration Cafe blog and thought there wasn't a better time to try this since all of my friends are guinnea pigs when it comes to new recipes that I find! Plus I have been looking for a way to save money and this will save me a ton of money by not having to buy already flavored cream cheese!

Maple Cranberry Spread

1 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1/2 c dried cranberries
1/3 c maple syrup
1/4 c toasted pecans, chopped

Mix all together using an electric mixer. Cover
and refridgerate for several hours.

Makes 1 1/2 cups

I found this recipe on Pinterest and thought that it looked really good so I just had to try it! I am sure glad that I did it was fantastic!

Classic Baked Ziti

Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 cup onion , chopped
• pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon of onion powder
• 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon of pepper
• 2 garlic cloves , minced
• 1 (32 ounce) jar meatless sauce
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1 (16 ounce) package Ziti pasta , cooked and drained
• 2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat oven at 350
2. In a large skillet – heat oil and cook onions for 8 minutes than add garlic and cook for one minute. Add beef and cook till no longer pink ( drain excess fat).
3. Stir in sauce, chicken broth, pepper, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and oregano. Heat through.
4. Stir 1 cup of sauce into the “cooked” ziti pasta.
5. Place ½ of the ziti into a 13×9 baking dish.
6. Place 1½ cup of mozzarella cheese and ½ cup of Parmesan cheese
7. Top with rest of sauce.
8. Top with rest of pasta.
9. Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
10. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese.
11. Cook till cheese is golden brown

5 Soup Hotdish aka Mock Chow Mien

Many years ago a girl that I worked with gave me this recipe and it is just too good to be true! It is very easy, fast and delishious.

5 Soup Hotdish aka Mock Chow Mien

1-2 lbs Hamburger, cooked and drained
1 large onion, diced
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can vegetable beef soup
1 can chicken with rice soup

Cook hamburger and onion until done, drain.
Add all the rest of the soup to the hamburger mixture
and heat until hot. You can put this into a crock pot on
low. Serve this over chow mien noodles and rice.

Dill Dip

My friend Barb at work let me borrow her most favorite cookbook and I found this recipe and had all the ingredients on hand to make it so I thought I'd give it a try. I took it to work and got a thumbs up from everyone who tried it so I will definitely be making this again and again!

Dill Dip

2/3 c Mayonaise
2/3 c Sour Cream
1 tsp Beau Monde Seasoning
1 tsp Dill Weed
1 tsp Parsley Flakes
1 tsp Onion Flakes

Mix all together and let sit 1-2 hours. 
Serve with crackers, pretzils or fresh
vegetables.
 

Crisp Cucumber Salsa

This recipe was found on Pinterest by my friend Shannon who made it and raved about it so of course I had to try it and it is FANTASTIC!! I did not have reduced fat sour cream so I used full fat and it was really good! 

Crisp Cucumber Salsa
Yield 2-1/2 cups

2 cups finely chopped seeded peeled cucumber
1/2 cup finely chopped seeded tomato
1/4 cup chopped red onion
2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
4-1/2 tsp minced fresh cilantro
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
1/4 c reduced-fat sour cream
1-1/2 tsp lemon juice
1-1/2 tsp lime juice
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp seasoned salt
Tortilla chips

In a small bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. In another bowl, combine the sour cream, lemon juice, lime juice, cumin and seasoned salt. Pour over cucumber mixture and toss gently to coat. Serve immediately with chips.

Veggie Pizza

I got this recipe from my friend Barb and it's the best Veggie Pizza that I have tasted so far!

Veggie Pizza

2 pkg crescent rolls

Press into a jelly roll pan and bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 mins.
Cool completely

2 8oz cream cheese
3/4 c Hellman's Mayo
1/4 c milk
1 tsp garlic salt
2 tsp dill weed

Mix together and spread onto cooled crescent rolls.
Top with:

Grated carrots
Brocolli
Cauliflower
Black Olives
Celery
Green/yellow/red/orange Peppers
Raddishes

What ever else you like for veggies. Cut into squares and serve!

Oriental Coleslaw

This recipe was served at a bridal shower for my friend Brittany and it is the best Ramen Noodle salad that I have tried yet.

Oriental Coleslaw

1/2 c butter
2 pkgs Oriental Flavored Ramen Noodles
1 c slivered almonds
1 pkg coleslaw mix
5 green onions, chopped

Dressing

2 seasoning packets from the noodles
1 c sugar
1/2 c vegetable oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 c water
1/2 c vinegar

Line a baking sheet with foil. Place butter on pan and melt under the broiler. Break up noodles, save the seasoning packets, and almonds. Add to melted butter and mix well. Put pan under broiler and broil until brown, stirring occasionally, cool. Place coleslaw mix and onions into a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate. In a saucepan mix together all of the dressing ingredients and cook over med heat, stirring often. Bring to a boil and boil for 1 min., Let cool. Just before serving mix together and top with toasted almond mixture.

Cheese Tortellini Salad

This is another fast and easy salad to whip up in a hurry, you can also make this ahead of time and have it ready to serve for guests.

Cheese Tortellini Salad

Cheese Tortellini
Bacon
Parmesan Cheese
Red Onion
Cole Slaw Mix
Spinach
Bottled Ranch Dressing

Cook the tortellini according to the package directions and chill.
Mix the Tortellini, bacon, cheese, onion, cole slaw mix and ranch dressing
together. Right before serving mix in the spinach and serve. This makes a
lot of salad and keeps well but only add the spinach before serving because
it wilts and doesn't look very good. You can also use romaine lettuce in place
of the spinach either works great!

Neiman Marcus Dip

I know this isn't the best photo but this dip is AWESOME!! It is very easy and you probably already have all the ingredients in your fridge already. This can be whipped up fast and it is great when guests drop in and you need something quickly! I didn't have a jar of bacon bits but I did have regular bacon so I cooked up that really crisp and used that instead.

Neiman Marcus Dip

5 - 6 green onions

 8 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded

1 1/2 cups mayonnaise

1 jar Hormel Real Bacon Bits

1 pkg. slivered almonds

Chop the green onions.

Shred the cheddar cheese.

Mix the onions, cheese, mayo, bacon bits,

 and slivered almonds together.

Chill for a couple hours.

Serve with Ritz crackers or corn chips.

Crock Pot Chicken

Here's a great recipe when you are in a hurry and want something really good for dinner. This is the easiest, juiciest and best tasting chicken I have ever had.

Crock Pot Chicken

4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons paprika
*1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 large roasting chicken (mine was about 5.5 lbs)
1 cup sliced onion

Slice an onion thinly and place in bottom of the crock pot. Rinse and pat dry your chicken, Mix together all spices and rub over the entire bird, both sides. Place bird in crock pot on top of the sliced onions, set your crock pot and do not open until 5 hours are done, check with a thermometer and when done serve! I had a 5.5 lb bird and it took an hour longer to get to temperature so it is important that you check it before serving.

*Next time I would only add 1/2 the amount or maybe even none of the cayenne pepper, I thought it was just a little too spicy but then again I don't like much spice in my food.

White Castle Sliders

I had some leftover Hawaiin rolls from my Pot Roast Sliders and needed something to do with them. Dave thought we should have cheeseburgers for dinner so we decided to try our hands at making some sliders. I did a search on line for sliders and found this recipe at Mommy's Kitchen and they are the best tasting sliders that I have ever tasted, plus they couldn't have been easier! We only made a half of a recipe and we used a 8x8 pan and it worked out great!

White Castle Sliders

Ingredients:

1/2 cup dried onion flakes

2 pounds ground chuck- 80/20 ground beef

1/2 t. seasoned salt

6 slices cheddar cheese or American cheese slices

12- small party rolls we used Kings Hawaiian Rolls

dill pickle slices

Directions:

Evenly spread the onions on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Gently press the ground beef on top of the onion flakes. Press evenly making one giant patty. 

Sprinkle with seasoned salt. At this point you can use a drinking straw and poke holes throughout the meat. That is what they do with the original white castle sliders. 

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. Using a paper towel, pat the excess grease from the top of the patty. 

Top with cheddar cheese, return to oven for 2 more minutes.  Remove from oven, let set 5 minutes then cut into patties. 

Slice open and separate each party roll. Place bottom of rolls on a large platter. Using a spatula lift patties with onion layer onto each bun bottom.

 Top each slider with a pickle slice then the bun lid. Serve immediately. Makes 12- 15 sliders depending on how big you cut them.

Three Packet Pot Roast Sliders

Last weekend I went to an art day with my Wisconsin friends and we always bring and try new recipes. I brought and made the beer bread, from the previous post, and I brought everything to make these sliders. The sliders were FANTASTIC and very easy to make! I will definitely be making these again! I got this recipe off of a blog called Sis Sister's Stuff they have some really good recipes and ideas!

Slow Cooker Three Envelope Pot Roast Sliders

Roast:

1 3-4 lb beef roast
1 cup water
1 cup salsa

1 envelope onion soup mix
1 envelope Italian dressing mix
1 envelope Au Jus mix

Whisk together water, salsa and seasoning packets. Place roast in slow cooker. Pour seasoning mixture over roast. Cook on low for 8-10 hours, or high for 4-5 hours.

If you want to make sliders:

Three Envelope Pot Roast recipe (above), shredded

1 pkg. King's Hawaiian Rolls

Sliced Swiss cheese (1 slice per slider)

Cut each roll in half and place on a baking sheet. Place a slice of Swiss cheese on the bottom half of each roll. Place baking sheet in oven with broiler on low. Broil for 1-2 minutes or until edges of the rolls are golden and cheese has melted (be sure to watch them closely so they don't burn!). Remove baking sheet from oven. I didn't do this part we just ate it directly from the crock pot to the bun and then topped it with cheese. I meat was warm enough to just melt the cheese with out having to broil them.

We didn't broil these we just made sandwiches right from the crock pot and the meat was hot enough to melt the cheese without broiling them!

Homemade Beer Bread

Here's a GREAT way to have Beer Bread without spending a TON of money buying those pre-made mixes from Tastefully Simple. I think that this tastes even better than the mix and just as easy!!

Beer Bread

Yield = 1 standard loaf pan or 3 mini pans

butter for greasing the pan
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
1½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 beer, I like Magic Hat #9 or any amber ale or Bass or whatever
4 tablespoons butter

1. Preheat the oven to 425ºF.

2. Grease a 9X5X3-inch loaf pan (a standard loaf pan) with softened butter.

3. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar. Add beer, stir until combined and place in prepared pan.

4. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 375ºF and bake for 30 minutes longer (or less) or until golden brown on top. Remove from oven and place pan on a cooling rack. Let bread sit in pan.

5. Meanwhile, melt butter. Pour the butter over bread. Let sit for five minutes then turn bread out onto a cutting board and serve immediately with more softened butter.

I made two of these loaves, one was made with a Summer Shandy beer and the other one we used Coors Light and we liked them both but the one with the regular Coors Light was the best so use whatever beer you like to drink!

Cranberry Feta Pinwheels

My niece, Gina, made these pinwheels for Christmas and they were very good and she said they were very easy to make as well. She used green spinach tortilla to make them look even more festive.

Cranberry Feta Pinwheels  

Ingredients

• 1 carton (8 ounces) whipped cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup (8 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions
• 1 package (5 ounces) dried cranberries
• 4 flour tortillas (10 inches)

Directions

• In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese, feta cheese and onions. Stir in cranberries. Spread about 1/2 cup mixture over each tortilla and roll up tightly. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Cut each roll-up into 10 slices. Yield: 40 appetizers.

Sopapilla Cheesecake

I pinned this recipe quite a while ago from Pinterest and since I had all the ingredients on hand I thought that I'd make this and take in a treat to work. Everyone loved this and said it was a real winner! I will definately be making this again since it was so very easy. 

I read the comments on the recipe and many people said that this is awesome when you add fruit to it espically pineapple. I will try it that way next time plus this would be fantastic as a brunch item instead of a dessert.

Sopapilla Cheesecake

Ingredients:
-2 cans Pillsbury butter crescent rolls (buy the seamless version if you can find them!)
-2 (8oz) packages cream cheese (softened)
-1 cup sugar
-1 teaspoon vanilla
-1/4 cup butter (melted)
-Cinnamon and sugar (I used about 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tbs cinnamon)

Instructions:
Unroll and spread 1 can crescent rolls on bottom of un-greased 9x13 inch pan. If you aren't using the seamless crescents, be sure to smooth out the seams before adding the filling. Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Spread mixture over crescent rolls. Unroll and spread remaining crescent rolls over mixture. Spread melted butter over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

Holiday Sangria

I made this sangria for Christmas and it was fantastic plus the star fruit made this so very festive. 

Holiday Sangria

Ingredients

2 bottles Merlot
1 bottle ginger ale
1 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground clove
4 to 6 oranges or tangelos
6 to 10 cinnamon sticks
1/2 bag of cranberries

Directions

In a medium pot, combine Merlot, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Let simmer for ten minutes, stirring occasionally until sugar is dissolved.
Pour immediately into a sealed pitcher or other container. Chop apples and add them along with the cinnamon sticks to the mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.  Add ice and ginger ale to serve.

Happy New Year!

Wishing you and yours peace, love, happiness, wealth and health in this new year!!!