Pretzel Wreath

These are yummy just as a treat, but they can also be an edible ornament! This idea came from The Pampered Chef. Lydia came over and we made them together. Brynlee was great at dipping the pretzels!

Sweet & Salty

need I say more?

1 bag Mini Pretzels

1 pkg Almond Bark

Colored Sprinkles

Yield 26 wreaths

Break almond bark into chunks and put into a small deep bowl. Melt in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds, until melted completely. Make sure your stirring utensil is completely dry, even one drop of water can ruin the consistency of the chocolate.

Dip the bottom half of each pretzel into the chocolate mixture. Place coated pretzel onto a piece of wax paper. Arrange 5 coated pretzels into a circle, with the chocolate touching each other in the center. Repeat this again for the second layer on top. Sprinkle toppings as desired. Let cool, about 15 minutes.

*Helpful Tips*

-Don't use any other type of chocolate except the almond bark or candy melts (candy that is designed for melting). These have certain fats that have great melting qualities, whereas they are removed for chocolate chips.

-If the almond bark starts getting stiff and cold, melt it again in the microwave.

-Don't have any sprinkles? No problem. Just use one drop of food coloring to 1/2 cup of regular sugar and stir! Get a variety of colored sprinkles for a fraction of the cost of the bottled stuff! Store the remaining sprinkles in an air tight container for future use.

Cinnamon Christmas Ornaments

The recipe that I use is:

1/2 cup ground cinnamon,
1/3 cup applesauce, and
1 Tbs. Tacky glue

Mix in bowl and stir until well blended. Work mixture in hands for three minutes to form a ball. If it is too dry, add applesauce, if too wet, add more cinnamon. Knead ball on cinnamon-sprinkled surface until it holds together well. I roll this out and use cookie cutters for the shapes. I also use a drinking straw to cut a hanging hole. These can be air dried for 24 to 48 hours. Turn several times. They can also be baked in a slow oven.


Learn how to make these delicious cinnamon smelling ornaments here. They cost about $1 to make 25 ornaments. They're great for giving away to friends and are easy for the kids to make!

Plus, they make your house smell wonderful!

The star pictured above is one that I got from my single's ward Relief Society 5 years ago and it still smells wonderful! (Rachel, I think you were Relief Society President at that time)

Tamale Pie

We could have this dish at least once a week,

it's THAT GOOD

recipe from Joan Arrington (from Apache Park Ward)

1 lb. hamburger
1 chopped green bell pepper
1 chopped onion

1 clove garlic, minced
16 oz. can diced tomatoes
6 oz. can tomato paste
12 oz. can corn, drained
1 can sliced olives (optional)
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2-3 tsp. chili powder
Dash of pepper
1 ½ c. sharp American cheese, grated
3 c. cold milk

1 c. yellow corn meal
1 tsp. salt


Brown the first four ingredients together. Drain the fat and add tomatoes, tomato paste, corn, olives, sugar, salt, chili powder, and pepper. Simmer heated through. Add cheese and stir until melted. Pour into 9 x 13 inch baking dish.

Make corn meal topping by heating milk to a boil. Remove from heat. Add salt and quickly stir in corn meal with a whisk (use a silicone coated whisk if you have non-stick pans). Mix completely. Spread over top of meat mixture. Bake at 400* for 30 minutes.

*For Kid Friendly, just use 1 tsp of Chili powder or omit it entirely. We just add Cholula hot sauce to the adults' plates and it's so GOOD!

In the photo, I ran out of green bell pepper so I improvised with zucchini instead. Tasted Great!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are SUPER EASY!

1 box Spice Cake Mix

1 can pumpkin puree (14oz) not pumpkin pie

1 bag milk chocolate chips

* Walnut/Pecans optional, chopped

Empty dry cake mix into a bowl. Add canned pumpkin puree. That's it! Do NOT add the other ingredients on the box to make a cake. Mix well. Add chocolate chips and stir. Drop onto cookie sheet and bake for 18 minutes at 350 F.

YUMMO!

**This is a vegan recipe too Becks, especially if you make it with cinnamon chips that you can special order at Hershey's website (they're not available in stores.) I got this recipe from my friend Charmaine and have made it several times!

Cheesy Stuffed Shells by Kraft

1 container (16 oz.) Low Fat Cottage Cheese
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well drained
1 cup 2% Milk Shredded Reduced Fat Mozzarella Cheese, divided
1/4 cup 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
20 jumbo pasta shells, cooked, drained
1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1 large tomato, chopped

PREHEAT oven to 400°F.

Mix cottage cheese, spinach, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning until well blended. Spoon 1 heaping Tbsp. of the cheese mixture evenly into each pasta shell.

COMBINE spaghetti sauce and tomatoes; spoon half of the sauce mixture into 13x9-inch baking dish. Place shells, filled sides up, in baking dish. Spoon remaining sauce mixture over shells. Cover with foil.

BAKE 25 min. or until heated through. Uncover; top with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Bake, uncovered, an additional 2 min. or until cheese is melted.

KRAFT KITCHENS TIPS
Make it Easy Spray foil with cooking spray before using. Place, sprayed-side down, on casserole to prevent sticking.

Make Ahead Prepare as directed except for baking; cover. Refrigerate up to 24 hours. When ready to serve, bake, covered, at 400°F for 35 min.

*This one is from Kraft and is super easy and YUMMY! Healthy because it's made with cottage cheese and spinach too! The girls loved this, didn't even mind the green stuff! Very economical too!

You should hop on over to www.kraftfoods.com

They have a recipe search, tons of pics (because I won't make anything unless I've seen a pic of it first) and you can even make grocery lists, menu plans, find nutritional content, etc! Even formulate your own exercise/meal plan with calories or whatever. Really useful site!

Comforting Potato & Ham Soup

This is truely a "warm you up" or "cuddle with someone you love" soup. You can be very approximate with the veggies, adding more or less depending on what you have in stock or love to eat.

Potato & Ham Soup
3 cups diced potatoes (you can peel them if you want, but I leave the peel on for more vitamins)
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup chopped celery
1 onion
1 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 cup Ham, fully cooked, chopped into small bite size pieces
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
2 cups milk
1-2 cups mozarella or cheddar cheese

In a large saucepan, combine first 6 ingredients. Add water into the pan until it just barely becomes level with the veggies. Bring to a boil. Cover with a lid and reduce to simmer, stirring occasionally until tender.

Meanwhile, add butter to a large saucepan and melt over med-high heat. Stir/whisk in flour until smooth. The flour mixture will start to bubble. Slowly add the milk, about 1/4 cup at a time. Whisk each addition of milk into the the flour until smooth and becomes thicker from bubbling. Stir in cheese until melted. Add to the soup and stir until completely incorporated.

*This tastes great with corn bread or with some homemade bread! We usually add pepper to our individual bowls since the girl's don't like things too spicy.

Easy Chicken & Black Bean Enchiladas

We were out of some ingredients for a new recipe that I was trying to make. So I improvised changing the beef to chicken, and adding a few more ingredients to make this completely ORIGINAL wonderful dish! I was quite pleased it turned out so well. The best perk is that this can be cooked in the microwave in 10 minutes!

Easy Chicken & Black Bean Enchiladas
3-4 chicken breasts, cooked
16 corn tortillas
1 can (15oz) black beans
1 can (28oz) diced tomatoes
1 can (10oz) enchilada sauce
1 can (4 oz) diced green chilies
3/4 bunch of fresh cilantro
1 white onion, chopped
2 cups part skim mozarella cheese
2 tsp. cumin
Lettuce
*Cottage Cheese

Chop/shred chicken and put in small bowl. Place tortillas in a stack and cut into 1-2 inch thick strips, set aside. Combine all canned ingredients and cumin into a large bowl. In a 9x13 dish, add 1/3 of the chicken to the bottom of pan. Pour enchilada mixture over bottom of pan until covered completely. Layer tortillas evenly across pan. Sprinkle 1/3 of the cheese and cilantro on top of tortillas. Repeat layers. Finish by covering the top with a layer of tortillas and sprinkle cheese on top. Bake in oven 375F for 30-40minutes. Serve over a bed of lettuce if you wish!

OR

Instead of 9x13 pan, use a VERY deep casserole dish (or Pampered Chef's deep dish baker, which I did). Anything that isn't metal and small enough to fit in your microwave. Cook for 10 minutes and it's DONE! I love that I can use my stoneware in the microwave instead of using the oven during the summer! It tastes GREAT!

*For a kid friendly recipe, add cottage cheese to their individual dish. This helps take away some of the spice!

Oatmeal Cinnamon Pancakes

For delicious, wholesome pancakes...LOOK NO FURTHER! This tastes more like a cinnamon apple muffin than a pancake! But the best part is, this is completely healthy!!! I have a hard time with regular pancakes and syrup because I get migraines from it's high sugar content. Finally, I can have pancakes again! The unsweetened applesauce is the perfect sub for syrup that my whole family enjoys!

Oatmeal Cinnamon Pancakes
Ingredients
4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
4 cups skim milk
8 egg whites
1/8 cup canola oil
1/2 to 3/4 cup dried fruit, such as currants, chopped dates, cranberries, or cherries (optional)
Chopped nuts are also good in these 'cakes (optional)
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup flour
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Topping

Unsweetened applesauce

Mix oats and skim milk in bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate over night.
The next morning, preheat a pancake griddle or skillet. Then mix all ingredients together. Batter will be thick. Drop by large cooking spoonfuls onto griddle until golden brown on both sides. Serve with unsweetened applesauce.
Serves: 8.

*We actually divide this recipe in half, which makes 10 pancakes, just enough for our little family.

**You can also omit the oil and sugar for even healthier pancakes.

Cinnamon Walnut Cupcakes

I just made this recipe tonight for the first time. I found it from Bettycrocker.

It is amazing! Especially for whenever you craving something sweet. I wanted to make something for a friend that was going through a hard time, as a little "pick-me-up". Hence, the cute ribbons added. Honestly, I didn't put anymore frosting on the rest of the cupcakes that we ate at home because it didn't change the taste at all, and it is just more calories that we could do without. It does make the cupcake look beautiful, however, if you give some away!

Enjoy!

1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® yellow cake mix
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
8 egg whites

1 container (8 oz) sour cream (1 cup)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Frosting (optional)

1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla


1. Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Grease cupcake pan or use cupcake wrappers.

2. In large bowl, beat dry cake mix, applesauce, egg whites and sour cream with electric mixer. Spread half of the batter in pan. Stir together brown sugar, walnuts and cinnamon; sprinkle over batter in pan. Carefully spread remaining batter evenly over walnut mixture.
3. Bake 17-25 minutes or until done (inserted toothpick comes out dry). Stir powdered sugar, milk and vanilla until thin enough to spread. Spread powdered sugar mixture over cupcakes. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Store covered.

Yield: 24/30 cupcakes

Raman Chicken Salad

This is a perfect summer salad that can be made year-round! We LOVE this and often eat it for dinner alone.

Raman Chicken Salad

4 tsp. toasted sesame seeds
1 cup toasted slivered almonds
4 cooked chicken breasts (about 2 cups shredded)
1 16oz. bag coleslaw mix
4-6 stalks celery sliced
2 pkgs. chicken flavored top raman noodles (uncooked and crumbled)

Dressing:
4 tblsp. white vinegar
½ cup olive oil
4 tsp. sugar
1 ½ tsp. salt
2 chicken flavored top raman seasoning packets

Toast almonds in medium sized sauté pan over medium heat, stirring often. After the almonds start to look a little more golden, add the sesame seeds. Continue stirring until golden brown (careful not to burn it). Quickly remove from heat and empty into a bowl, set aside. Then combine first six ingredients into large bowl. In a small bowl, combine ingredients for dressing and beat or whip for 1 minute. Pour dressing over coleslaw mixture and mix well. Ready to eat or refrigerate for a cool salad. Pepper to taste if desired.

*One of our family favorites, especially for big get-togethers!*

Egg Rolls with Sweet & Sour Sauce

Quite honestly, you will NEVER find a better egg roll and sauce. We can no longer order them in restaurants because they just can't COMPARE to these wonderfully wrapped up rolls! (Not the healthiest since they are fried in oil though.)

Egg Rolls

4 Chicken Breasts, cooked and shredded
1 16oz. Bag raw coleslaw vegetables
3-4 celery stalks, sliced
5 green onion chives
1 pkg (20count) Wonton wrappers
1 egg
Ginger
Garlic

Sweet & Sour Sauce
1 cup brown sugar
2 Tbs. Corn starch
1/3 cup white vinegar
2 Tbs. Soy sauce
1 cup pineapple juice
2/3 cup Heinz ketchup
½ tsp. Ginger, freshly grated

Put shredded chicken in big bowl with enough soy sauce, ginger and garlic to marinate chicken. In a large stir fry pan, cook coleslaw mix, celery and green onions until just tender with 1 tbs. oil. Add veggies to chicken bowl, along with 2 tsp. Salt, ½ tsp. Pepper, 3 tbs. Sugar, and mix with spoon.
In a small bowl, whisk one egg with 1 part water. To fill the wonton wrappers, place a heaping spoonful of meat mixture into the center of one wonton. Dip your fingers into egg and smear along the edges of wonton (this helps the egg roll stick together when rolled.) Then take one set of opposite corners and bring to the middle, or close to it. Take one of the remaining corners to the middle and roll toward the flat side. Try to seal up the wrap, allowing no stuffing to poke through, using more egg mixture on fingers to help it stick together. Fill all wrappers, then start the deep frying process. In a wok, fill enough oil to deep fry egg roll. Wait until oil is hot enough before putting egg roll inside. (Test by sprinkling a few drop of water, if it POPS, then ready.) You’ll have to monitor the speed of frying so that you don’t burn your egg rolls, and turn down heat as necessary…and watch out not to burn yourself with oil splatter! Fry until golden brown and serve immediately.
For the sauce, combine all ingredients in a pot. Stirring frequently with a whisk, bring to a boil. Cook until it thickens and it’s ready!!

This recipe comes from my mother-in-law, Karen Whiting, and is the best! Unless the girls are sleeping, I always need a second person around to help make this dish.

Mango Salsa

What is summer without salsa? This fruity salsa is amazing and you just can't have summer without it. You can spice it up as HOT or mild as you like. Really, it is my favorite salsa now. I always think of you Charmaine, when I eat it! Thanks for the recipe!

Mango Salsa

3 ripe mangos, peeled
2 kiwi, peeled
1 red bell pepper
1 large white onion
1-2 garlic cloves, pressed
3 jalepenos minimum (we use 4-5) finely diced
cilantro (about 1/2 bunch)
Sea Salt to taste
Lime juice, either 1 tblsp or one lime squeezed

Mix all together, diced up to your desired chunkiness!

*This salsa is great with chips, or over jerk pork tenderloin with baby spinach! YUM!