Christmas Casserole

• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 2 cans refrigerated cinnamon rolls with icing
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 1 cup chopped pecans, optional

1. Preheat oven to 375-degrees
2. Pour melted butter into glass 9x13 baking dish
3. Cut each roll into 9 pieces, spread into baking dish (set icing aside)
4. In a medium bowl, beat eggs
5. Add in cream, cinnamon and vanilla until well blended
6. Pour over roll pieces, sprinkle with pecans and drizzle syrup on top
7. Bake ~ 25 minutes, cool 15 minutes
8. While cooling, remove metal lids of icing containers and microwave 20 seconds then drizzle on top of casserole
9. Sprinkle with powdered sugar
10. Serve with maple syrup

This recipe will be a new tradition at our house…it’s so unhealthy it’s something we can only dare to eat once a year and Christmas seems like the perfect celebration for it!  We didn’t do it with pecans but they’d be delicious and a nice crunch to this recipe.  Just a warning – this is RICH and filling!  Enjoy!

Cheesebecki Soup

• 1lb ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 4 stalks celery, chopped
• 4 carrots, peeled & chopped
• 8 cups water
• 4 chicken bouillon cubes
• 1 pkg cubed hashbrowns
• 12oz velveeta (more or less to taste)
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 1 pkg cream cheese, softened
• garlic salt, salt, pepper

1. brown the ground beef
2. add in onion, celery and carrot
3. once beef is browned, add water and bouillon
4. bring to a boil and add in cream cheese, stirring frequently
5. once cream cheese has melted, add potatoes
6. once potatoes are cooked, add evap milk and velveeta
7. season to taste
8. thicken with corn starch and water as needed

Catalina Cranberry Chicken

• 4lbs chicken breast (or whatever type of chicken you have)
• 8 oz Catalina dressing (Kraft)
• 1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
• 1 packet of french onion soup mix

1. preheat oven to 350-degrees
2. place chicken in 9x13 baking dish
3. mix all other ingredients together to make sauce
4. top chicken with sauce
5. bake 50 mins or to 165-degrees

This was amazing!  I was pretty nervous because it’s such a strange combination but it’s so incredibly easy and packs a TON of flavor!  Mike is still raving about this dish hours later!  By far one of the best new recipes we’ve tried in quite some time!  And Bryker enjoyed it, too – so it’s a big hit for us!

French Onion Stuffed Mushrooms

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 large onions, halved and sliced thinly
• 1 can beef broth
• 7 dashes Worcestershire
• splace of dry white wine (i.e. chardonnay)
• 1/2 cups grated guyere (I used mozzarella)
• salt
• 24 whole white mushrooms, washed and stems removed
• minced parsley

1. saute onions with 1 Tbsp butter for 15-20 minutes
2. add wine, brother and worcestershire
3. cook until liquid has reduced down, set aside
4. melt 1 Tbsp butter in another skillet
5. place mushrooms in, cook 2 mins, turn over and repeat
6. place mushrooms in baking dish
7. fill with onion mixture, top with cheese
8. bake 10-15 minutes @ 325 degrees
9. sprinkle parsley on top
10. serve…delicious warm or cold

Applesauce

• 8 apples, peeled and cored
• 1-1/2 cups water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon

1. Throw it all in a sauce pan and cover.  Cook on medium heat for 15-20 mins.
2. Puree or mash with a potato masher.

I had no idea applesauce was THIS easy to make.  And the aroma in the house – yum!  Not to mention how delicious the final product was!  We gobbled our first batch up quickly!!!  Bryker even turned to me during our taste test of it and said, “Mommy, Bryker really likes this.”  Yup – I’d call it a hit!

 

Corn Chowder

yield: 8-10 servings

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1/2 cup celery, minced
• 1 Tbsp flour
• 2-1/4 cups skim milk
• 2 bags of frozen corn
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/8 tsp thyme
• paprika to taste

1. Melt butter and add onion and celery.  Saute until tender.
2. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly to avoid burning.
3. Slowly add milk, stir until mixture is thick and bubbly.
4. Add corn, salt, pepper and thyme and simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Puree half of the mixture in the blender and return to pot.

I would suggest you taste this and play around with the spices.  I ended up adding more pepper and some garlic salt.  I’ve made a couple versions of corn chowder and this one is by far our favorite.  It shocked us how much flavor we got from such an easy recipe.  And Bryker loved it, too!  He insisted I take a picture of him with his soup…

Delicious Enchiladas

• half an onion, diced
• 1lb of chicken, cooked & cubed
• 1 cup cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup picante sauce
• 3 oz of 1/3 fat cream cheese
• 1 tomato, diced
• fresh cilantro, chopped
• tortillas

1. Mix everything except the tortillas together.
2. Stuff into shells.
3. Bake for 15 mins at 350 degrees.

You could do SO many variations of this.  I’d love to add corn and black beans next time.  I don’t recall the exact nutritional facts but this came from a healthy website and all I changed from that was to add the tomato and cilantro.  YUM!  We really enjoyed this one!  I was a little nervous about the cream cheese (I hate cream cheese) but I didn’t notice it at all in the dish – yum, yum, yum!

Cajun Chicken Alfredo

• 1lb chicken breast, thawed and trimmed
• 1 Tbsp cajun seasoning
• 1 pkg creamy garlic alfredo sauce (the powder mix)
• 3 pieces laughing cow cheese
• 1 cup milk
• 4 cups pasta
• parmesan cheese

1. season chicken with cajun seasoning
2. fry or grill chicken
3. prepare pasta as directed on pkg
4. combine alfredo mix, laughing cow cheese and milk in a small sauce pan
5. stir sauce mix constantly until it boils, then boil for one minute and remove from heat
6. when chicken is cooked, dice (or leave it, it’s up to you)
7. toss pasta with parmesan and then combine pasta, chicken and alfredo sauce
8. YUM…this is from a selection of low-fat recipes and trust me – there is nothing about this that tastes low-fat

Monte Cristo Turnovers

• 1 sheet frozen pastry puff, thawed
• 4 tsp honey mustard (we didn’t do this)
• 4 1oz slices of smoked turkey
• 4 1oz slices of smoked ham
• 4 slices of swiss (we used provolone)
• 1 egg
• 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
• raspberry preserves

1. preheat oven to 400-degrees
2. line baking sheet with parchment paper
3. unfold pastry puff onto floured surface, roll into 12-inch square and cut into four squares
4. spread mustard on each square and top with turkey, cheese and ham
5. whisk egg with 1 Tbsp of water and brush onto edges of all four squares
6. fold squares to form triangles, use a fork to seal edges
7. place on baking sheet and brush with remaining egg mixture
8. bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown
9. serve with raspberry preserves

This was delicious and just as good as the deep fried version.  I’d recommend doubling the recipe and if you warm up leftovers in the oven – they’re just as delicious the second time!

Maple Baked Apple Chicken

• 4 small chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup onion, sliced
• 2 cooking applies, skinned and sliced
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1/3 cup italian dressing

1. preheat over to 350-degrees
2. add ingredients into baking dish
3. bake 20-25 minutes until chicken is 165-degrees

I made these as foil packs for the grill.  Delicious!  Bryker loved it, too!  How can you not!?  Maple syrup and chicken – it’s fantastic!

Corn Chowder

yield: 12 bowls

• 6 slices of bacon, cut into small pieces
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
• 3 medium red potatoes, diced
• 1 bag of frozen corn
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• salt and pepper
• 1/3 cup flour
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup half-and-half

1. in a large pot, fry bacon
2. once cooked, add veggies and seasonings
3. cook until veggies are tender
4. sprinkle flour over veggies and stir
5. pour in broth and add bay leaf
6. bring to boil
7. then reduce heat and simmer 30 mins (or more)
8. about 10 mins before serving, remove the bay leaf and add in the half-and-half
9. serve

This one was a HUGE hit for us and it went great with BLTs!  Bryker really enjoyed it and I think he loved it even moreso as a leftover!  Yum!

 

Buster Bar

Anyone who’s ever tasted the deliciousness of my mom’s buster bar is beyond excited to see this recipe posted…so in advance…you’re welcome and enjoy!

yield: I’d say 1 large serving but more modest people would say 12

• 1 pkg oreos, crushed (reduced fat works fine)
• 2 sticks of butter
• 1 cup milk choc chips
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 can evap milk (fat-free works fine)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 qt vanilla ice cream
• 1 cup salted peanuts (don’t use honey roasted, oops)

1. melt one stick of butter and mix with crushed oreos
2. press oreo mixture in as crust (you can use a cake pan or a spring form pan depending on how fancy you want to be)
3. put a 1-2” thick layer of ice cream on top of the crust
4. freeze overnight
5. combine the other stick of butter, choc chips, powdered sugar and evap milk in a saucepan
6. bring to boil, once at a rolling boil time 8-10 minutes for fudge sauce to thicken
7. stir often
8. remove from heat and add vanilla
9. let sauce cool COMPLETELY (I’d recommend making this the night before you plan to serve your buster bar because if it’s not completely cooled it’ll melt your ice cream and you’ll have a funky looking – still great tasting – dessert.)
10. the next day, top ice cream cake with peanuts and then pour on the hot fudge sauce…and as I said earlier – ENJOY!

Usually it’s done in a cake pan for our family events but yesterday I was feeling a bit fancy…so I broke out the spring form pans we got over 4 years ago for our wedding and finally used one!

Peanut Butter Banana Bread

yield: 1 loaf (9x5 pan)

• 3-4 ripe bananas
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup peanut butter

1. preheat over to 350-degrees
2. mash bananas
3. add sugar, eggs and oil
4. mix well
5. stir in flour, soda and salt
6. add peanut butter, mix well
7. pour into grease loaf pan
8. bake 50-60 mins

Next time I’m going to do 4 bananas (I only did three this time), a bit more peanut butter and I’m going to add chocolate chips!  YUM!

Sarah’s Tuna Casserole

yield: 6 servings

• 2 cans of tuna
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1/2 bag of egg noodles
• 1 can of peas
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• shiracha (hot sauce), you can leave this out if you choose
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup crushed potato chips
• 4 oz of velveeta, cubed
• salt and pepper to taste

1. preheat oven to 375-degrees
2. cook noodles as directed on package
3. in a bowl combine tuna, cream of mushroom, peas, celery, shiracha, paprika, velveeta, salt and pepper
4. add noodles to mixture
5. pour into 9x9 baking dish
6. top with parmesan and chips
7. bake 30 mins

We tried doing the velveeta on top of the chips at the end by decided to “amend” our version of Sarah’s recipe by adding the cubes into the mixture next time.  And Sarah also recommended using bread crumbs to top the casserole instead of chips…but we had leftover chips so we chose to use those instead.  Either would be delicious!  Also, we did it with about 1/2 tsp of the hot sauce and while it had a very faint hint of it, it wasn’t spicy at all.  Bryker gobbled this recipe up in a hurry – we all did!

French Onion Pork Chop Skillet

yield: 6 servings

• 6 boneless pork chops
• 2 onions, thinly sliced
• 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 pkg (6 oz) stuffing mix for chicken
• 1-1/2 cups hot water
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella

1. heat large nonstick skillet with cooking spray on medium heat
2. add onions and chops
3. cook until chops are done (160-degrees)
4. remove chops from skillet
5. cook and stir onions 5 more minutes
6. stir in Worcestershire sauce
7. return chops to skillet, top with onion mixture
8. mix stuffing and water, spoon around edge of skillet
9. top with cheese
10. cook another 5 minutes until cheese is melted
11. SERVE

Full-Fudge Bars

yield: 9 bars (or 16 smaller bars)

• 1 pkg yellow cake mix
• 1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 pkg milk choc chips
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk

1. preheat over to 350-degrees
2. grease 9x9 baking dish
3. mix cake, 1/2 cup butter and egg
4. reserve 1/3 of mixture and pat remaining into baking dish
5. melt chips, milk and 1 Tbsp butter
6. pour chocolate mixture over cake mixture in baking dish
7. top with remaining crumb mixture
8. bake for 25 mins

Garlic Bread

I like to think I’ve come up with a tasty garlic bread recipe…and Mike tends to agree so I thought I’d blog it.

• french loaf from bakery
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp parsley flakes
• 1/4 cup parmesan
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt

1. preheat oven to 400-degrees
2. slice bread however you like to eat/serve it
3. mix all ingredients other than bread
4. spread on bread generously
5. bake 10-20 mins (keep an eye on it)
6. eat it – yum!

Pretend Chicken Lasagna

yield: 6 servings

• 1 lb ground chk
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1 jar spaghetti sauce
• 1 pkg no-boil lasagna noodles
• shredded cheese (whatever kind you have)
• grated parmesan cheese

1. preheat oven to 350-degrees
2. cook chicken in pan with onion
3. once cooked through, stir in sauce
4. layer in 9x9 baking dish: sauce mix on bottom, pasta, sauce mix, shredded cheese, parmesan
5. repeat 1-2 times until sauce is used up, finish with parmesan on top
6. bake 25 mins

Make sure the pasta is all covered with sauce (otherwise you get crunchy noodles).  This was a made up recipe and it was a HUGE success!  Bryker asked for seconds which is rare nowadays.  And Mike is still raving about it a week later!

Samwhiches

yield: 6 samwhiches

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• ketchup
• salt
• pepper

1. brown beef with onion
2. once cooked through, stir in soup
3. add in a healthy dose of ketchup, maybe 1/4 cup or so
4. salt and pepper to taste
5. serve on buns

I wasn’t sure about this concoction but it really works.  We enjoyed it and most of all – it was simple!

 

No Name Soup

yield: 8 servings (give or take)

• 1 lb ground beef
• half an onion, chopped
• 2 cans stewed tomatoes
• 1 can mixed veggies
• 2 cans beef broth
• 1 can rotel tomatoes
• 1 cup egg noodles

1. Brown hamburger with onion
2. Combine everything except pasta in large pot
3. Bring to boil, add pasta
4. Boil 15 minutes
5. ENJOY!

This recipe is from a good friend and really – it’s quite tasty!  For Bryker and me, the can of rotel tomatoes made it extra spicy so next time I’ll cut it down to half a can or none.  Also, just because my mister isn’t a huge tomato fan, we’ll switch from stewed tomatoes to diced next time…but there will definitely be a next time - YUM!

Cheesy Chicken Pot Pie

Yield: 6 servings

• 3 cups cooked chicken, chopped
• 1 pkg (16 oz) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed & drained
• 8 oz velveeta, cubed
• 1 can cream of chk soup
• 1 can crescent rolls

1. preheat oven to 375-degrees
2. combine first four ingredients into 9x13 baking dish
3. unroll crescent rolls and place over chicken mixture
4. make 20-25 mins, until crust is golden brown

This was adult AND kid friendly!  Yum, yum!

Orange Chicken with Broccoli

Yield: 4 servings (4 ww pts each)

• 4 tsp vegetable oil (we used ginger oil)
• 1 Tbsp minced peeled fresh ginger (we used a dash of ground ginger)
• 1 lb chk, thawed and cut into strips
• 2 cups broccoli florets (I just used a bag of frozen)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp cornstarch, dissolved in 1 Tbsp water
• 1 orange, peeled and sectioned (we used a couple clementines)

1. In a large skillet, fry the chicken in oil.  If you do fresh ginger you want to do that first and then set it aside.
2. Sprinkle chicken with ginger.  Once cooked through, set aside.
3. In the same skillet, combine broccoli and water.  Cook 5-6 minutes (longer if frozen) and then add chicken back to skillet.
4. Stir in broth, orange juice and soy sauce.
5. Add corn starch mixture, bring to boil.
6. Once it thickens a little, add the orange and heat through.
7. Serve and enjoy!

We had ours with some brown rice, though it didn’t need it.  This is a hearty meal and REALLY quite tasty.  It isn’t as easy as my normal meals (i.e. throw it in a pan and bake) but really it isn’t too hard and the flavors are worth the little bit extra!

 

Foil-Pack Taco Chicken

Yield: 4 packs (6 ww pts each)

• 4 small chk breasts, thawed (4 oz each)
• 1 pkg taco seasoning
• 2 medium sized potatoes, thinly sliced
• 3/4 cup shredded cheese
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 1/4 cup sour cream

1. preheat oven to 400-degrees
2. lay out 4 foil pieces and spray with cooking spray
3. top with potatoes slices and chicken
4. sprinkle taco seasoning on chicken
5. top with salsa
6. bake 30 mins, until chicken is 165-degrees
7. remove from foil, top with sour cream and ENJOY!

The potatoes were something different for us on this.  We’ve done this with rice but I thought the potatoes added a different “vibe” – quite tasty!  We had some homemade salsa so our packets included black beans and corn that were in that.  We didn’t have sour cream so we missed out on that excitement.  Overall, this is something we’ll do again.  It was SUPER easy and fast to put together.  I might change up my seasoning a bit and not rely on the taco seasoning for all my flavoring and do some of my own...other than that – YUM!

Monterey Jack Turkey Burgers

Yield: 4 servings (6 ww pts each)

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 2 shallots finely chopped (we used diced onion in the fridge)
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp ketchup
• 1 tsp minced fresh garlic
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 4 strips turkey bacon (we didn’t use bacon)
• 4 hamburger buns, toasted

1. In a large bowl, combine the turkey, onion, soy, ketchup, garlic, pepper and cheese.
2. Form into four patties.
3. Cook on foreman or outside on the grill until they reach 165-degrees.
4. Enjoy!

This mix with the soy, ketchup and garlic really gives the turkey burgers a lot of flavor.  Very delicious!

BBQ Cheeseburger & Rice Skillet

Yield: 6 servings (9 ww pts each)

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 1-3/4 cup water
• 1 cup bbq sauce
• 2 cups instant rice (we used brown)
• 1 cup shredded cheese
• 1 can corn

1. Brown meat with onion in a large skillet.
2. Add water, bbq sauce and corn.  Mix well and bring to boil.
3. Stir in rice, cover.  Reduce heat to low and cook 10-12 minutes.
4. Stir, sprinkle with cheese and enjoy!

This on really warms up well for leftovers the next day.  The corn kind of give it a little something else but I think a green pepper would be tasty in this, too! 

Beef Stew

yield: 6-8 servings

• small beef roast (whatever cut you prefer), thawed
• 2 cups V8 juice
• 2 cups water
• 1 pkg onion soup mix
• cracked black pepper
• garlic salt
• 4 medium potatoes, diced
• 1 bag of baby carrots
• 1 onion, diced
• corn starch

1. Put roast, V8, water, soup mix, pepper and garlic salt in slow cooker on low for 4-6 hours.
2. At the 4-6 hour mark, add vegetables and cook an additional 4 hours or until the veggies are tender.
3. Prior to serving, change slow cooker to high and thicken with a corn starch mixture (per the corn starch packaging).