Hashbrown Quiche

8 or so frozen hashbrown patties
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup shredded swiss cheese
10 eggs
2 cups cream or milk or a combo of the two
1 cup cubed ham
1/2 lb. bacon, chopped and cooked
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp salt
black pepper
Place hashbrowns in a greased 9x13. Drizzle with melted butter. Bake for 20 mins at 350. Sprinkle with ham, bacon and cheeses. Beat eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Pour over top. Bake another 40-45 minutes. Comfort food all the way!!

Syd's Pancakes

1 1/2 cup flour (awesome with half wheat too)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup oil
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 large apple, peeled and grated
a little cinnamon-optional
Mix all together and cook. Makes 12-16 pancakes. Serve with buttermilk syrup!!

Buttermilk Syrup

This will make you never want maple syrup again!!!! And you will find yourself day-dreaming about it's sweet goodness.
1 cube butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp corn syrup (optional, use it if u have it, if not dont stress)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp vanilla (use pure vanilla bean paste if you can find it!!)
 Melt butter. Add sugar, corn syrup and buttermilk. Bring to boil, cook 3-4 minutes, stirring. Remove from heat and add baking soda and vanilla. Stir well- it will foam up a little. Serve over pancakes, waffles etc! Store in fridge. Great with a pinch of cinnamon too.

Pork Au Jous

Not just any au jous!! I threw this together using pork instead of beef cause thats what I had! We could eat this once a week forever. Makes wonderful left-overs.


3-4 lb. Pork Butt or Shoulder roast
1 pkt Au jous mix (store brand is great)
1 can Beef Consomme soup
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed with side of knife
Throw roast in a crockpot. Sprinkle au jous mix over top. Add can of Beef consomme and toss in garlic cloves. Cook on high 6 hours or so, turning meat over half way through. When done, take roast out and shred or slice (it will fall apart anyway!). Add 3 cups water to juices in crockpot. Serve meat on hoagie buns or rolls. (Harmon's has the most chewy yummy ones ever!). Brandon likes to put a little mayo on his bun first. Dip sandwich in juice. Sooooo dang good. Never would think it was pork instead of beef. Cheaper too! I also like to dip my sandwhich in Sweet Baby Ray's bbq sauce. YOu can also add cheese or lettuce or tomato, or whatever.

Holiday Dill Dip

This one's for you, Kelly!

1 cup sour cream
1 cup mayo
1/2 bunch or so chopped parsley
3-4 green onions, sliced thin
2 T dried dill ( fresh would be awesome too)
1/2 tsp salt
fresh ground black pepper
2 tsp worcestershire sauce
1/2 lemon, squeezed
Mix all together and chill a couple hours before serving with veggies for dipping. This is like ranch- good on anything!! cant have the holidays without dill dip! :)

Split Pea Soup Reincarnated

I love split pea soup, but I rarely have ham on hand. I do ALWAYS have hamburger on hand, though, so I decided to try making up something with what I have on hand.  I am sure you could find something on the internet similar, but this one came straight from my little pointed head!!  My family really liked it.

1- 11/2# hamburger, you could also use sausage or chorizo
1 onion, chopped fine
3 stalks celery, chopped fine
3 carrots, thinly sliced
3 cloves, garlic, pressed
1 # split peas
6-8 cups water (I used 8)
1-15 oz can diced tomatoes
1/3 bunch cilantro, chopped, or to taste
a little more fresh chopped onion to throw in
Some sort of chilies to add heat.  If you make my hot chile sauce from my salsa recipe, this would be perfect.  Add as much as you like.  Or you could use diced toms with green chilies, this is fairly spicy.
3 chicken bouillon cubes
1 tsp coarse black pepper, or to taste
Salt, to taste
1-2 bay leaves, if desired

Cook hamburger and onions.  Add celery, carrots, and garlic, saute a few more minutes.  Add split peas, water and seasonings. Simmer, covered, til peas have disintegrated.  About 1 hour.  Add tomatoes, chile sauce, etc last 10 minutes or so. Serve hot with rolls, biscuits or cornbread.  I actually just threw a bunch of my homemade fresh salsa in it.  I really liked the cilantro and fresh onions with the soup.  So, you could do that, too if you have that!  I have a running bowl of salsa at my house.  There would be a coup if there wasn't!!

Scott's Soccer Practice Bars

Oh my goodness....i thought i had already put this on but i guess not! You are in for a real treat! These are just as addicting as Erika's choc/peanut butter bars! Isaac made these for Scouts and they rocked!

1 cube butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup flour
1 cup oats
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
Icing:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 T peanut butter
2 T milk
Cream butter and sugars together. Add egg and peanut butter. Stir in baking soda, salt, flour and oats. Press into 9x13. Sprinkle chocolate chips over top. Bake 20-25 mins till golden. Remove from oven and drizzle with icing. Cool completely then cut into squares.

Savory Chicken Tacos

This recipe rocked the house!!!! makes a lot and can be adapted to your taste! From Smith's.
1 Rotisserie Chicken (savory flavor) meat taken off the bone and shredded
12oz pkg steamable brown rice ( I used 1 pkg brown, and heated leftover white rice that was cooked in beef consomme- yummo)
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup mexican style shredded cheese blend
1 can Kroger diced Salsa Style Fire Roasted Tomatoes( if u dont have Kroger, use something similar)
1 can green enchilada sauce (mild)
corn tortillas, shredded lettuce, more cheese, and sour cream
Mix all except tortillas and toppings. you can bake this in a 9x13 @450 for 20 mins or just heat in big skillet on the stove for 15 mins or so over med-high heat. Stir often. Add cheese towards end. You could add black beans or whatever you like to this and it would be great! Heat corn tortillas in pan with a little oil to soften. Fill shells and top with what ever you love- lettuce, sour cream, salsa etc. You could also put this over tortilla chips and make ultimate nachos!!

Stuffed Shells

From Chef Donatella from Food Network, good comfort dish on a winter night!
12oz dried jumbo pasta shells
olive oil
1.5 lbs lean ground beef (or ground turkey would be fab)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 (28oz) cans stewed or diced tomatoes ( i did 1 of each) dont drain!
15oz carton whole milk ricotta
1 1/3 cups grated parmesan
Heat oven to 350. Grease a large baking dish (3-4qt). Add 1 T salt to a large pot of boiling water and cook shells about 5-6 minutes till slightly tender. Drain shells and lay them out on a greased sheet of foil to prevent sticking together, and so they can cool to touch. In a large skillet cook beef in 1 T olive oil. Add 1 garlic clove. season with salt and pepper. When pink is gone, transfer to a bowl. In empty skillet, add 1 T oil and fry remaining garlic clove 20 seconds. Add undrained tomatoes, and season with salt and pepper. Simmer 20 minutes till reduced  and slightly thickened, breaking up any big pieces of tomato with back of spoon. Stir 1.5 cups tomatoes into beef, add ricotta and 2/3 cup parmesan. Mix and stuff shells with heaping Tablespoon in each shell. Spoon 1.5 cups tomatoes into bottom of baking dish. Layer stuffed shells over. Fill dish, then top with any remaining filling or tomatoes. Sprinkle remaining cheese over top. Bake 30 mins.

Homemade Chicken Nuggets

This recipe is from Dick's. Long live Richards!!
2 lbs chicken tenders, cut into nugget size (I used breasts)
2 cups seasoned bread crumbs ( I did 1 cup plain and 1 cup seasoned)
1 T seasoned salt
1 tsp garlic powder
2-3 eggs, beaten
oil
In a bowl mix bread crumbs and seasonings. In another, beat eggs. Heat oil in large skillet. Dredge chicken in egg, then crumbs, coating generously with crumbs. Fry in hot oil till golden brown, drain on paper towels. These were crispy and wonderful. Dip in ranch or ketchup/fry sauce.

Catalina Chicken

EASY PEESY, you dont even have to handle raw meat if you dont want!
4 lbs bone-in chicken pieces
16oz can whole berry cranberry sauce
8oz bottle kraft catalina dressing
1 envelope onion soup mix
Heat oven to 350. Throw chicken in a 9x13 dish. Season with salt and pepper or whatever you like. Mix other ingredients, and pour over chicken. Bake 50 minutes or so. Thats it!!  Serve over rice. This could easily be done in a crock pot too.

Mini Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Moist and delicious little things! Cute too. Recipe from allrecipes.

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• Cookies:
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
• 1 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
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• Cream Cheese Filling:
• 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 6 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar (I added more)

Directions

1. For cookies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease or line four baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt in medium bowl. Beat butter and sugar in large mixer bowl on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add pumpkin and vanilla extract; beat until smooth. Stir in flour mixture until combined. Drop by heaping measuring teaspoons onto prepared baking sheets. (A total of 72 cookies are needed for the recipe.)
3. Bake for 10 to 13 minutes or until springy to the touch. Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.
4. For cream cheese filling: Beat cream cheese, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl on medium speed until fluffy. Gradually beat in powdered sugar until light and fluffy.
5. Spread a heaping teaspoon of filling onto flat side of one cookie; top with flat side of second cookie to make a sandwich. Repeat with remaining cookies and filling. Store in covered container in refrigerator.

My Tuna/Edamame Casserole

I know, I know, tuna casserole, yuck! Well, not this one. My kids have been bugging me to make it again, it is that good. I love that I usually have these ingredients on hand, and making this helps me utilize my food storage. It really is quite good, and the edamame adds a little something extra. Make sure you add enough milk to make it moist enough. No one likes a dry tuna casserole!


16 oz. elbow macaroni
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 soup cans of milk
1 c sour cream (or more)
1 1/2 c frozen edamame, defrosted in microwave
2 cans tuna, drained
1/2 red or yellow onion, diced
black pepper (no salt needed)
juice of half a lemon
2 c cheddar cheese, grated, divided
1/2 pkg. club or ritz crackers, crushed

-Cook macaroni as usual. Drain. Add next 8 ingredients and mix well in a bowl. Then mix in 1 c of cheese. Pour in 9 x 13 sprayed with cooking spray.
-Sprinkle remaining cup of cheese over top, then sprinkle with cracker crumbs.
-Bake at 425 for 20 minutes or until bubbly and maybe even a little golden.

Beefy Mushroom Barley Soup

I found this recipe at Winco next to the vat of bulk barley!  It is really yummy.  Kids and hubby liked it.  Instead of stew meat, I used leftover roast from my "spicy crockpot beef" recipe and used the juice I froze from previous roasts.  So I didn't use bouillon. It was heavenly with it.  And I didn't have to take time to brown stew meat!

1 # cubed beef stew meat
1 T vegetable oil
2 cups water
2 T butter
2 large carrots, diced (I used more, it seemed sparse)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 # fresh mushrooms, sliced (I diced fine for the whiners in my fam)
6 cups water
3 cubes beef bouillon cubes
1/4 cup pearl barley (I used 1/2 cup and thought it was perfect)
1/4 cup sour cream (I used slightly more)

Brown small cubes of stew meat in veg oil over medium heat until juices become a rich brown color.  Add 2 cups water, and simmer meat while preparing the vegetables.  In a large soup pot, melt butter over medium heat.  Saute carrots, onion, garlic, celery, and mushrooms.  Add meat, 6 cups water bouillon and barley to veg mixture.  Cook until barley is soft.  (this was quite a while give yourself an hour simmering time just in case you need it) Adjust liquid and seasoning as desired.  Remove from heat, and stir in sour cream.  Serve immediately. We had this 2 nights and lunch for me one day, too.

Spicy Shredded Crockpot Beef

I made this at Lava for the family.  We put it in tacos.  It is our very favorite and last night I used it as French Dip!  YUM!! is all I can say. Often I use 2 roasts and we eat it for a couple days or I freeze extra.

4# roast (I use chuck or arm or a nicer one, too.  It is a good way to use up roast!)
2 T Tone's Roasted Garlic Seasoning  (I got this at Costco. Just add fresh or powdered garlic if you don't want to get it.  But, it is worth getting!)
1 t red pepper flakes (this makes it moderately spicy, so add more or less depending on what you like.)
1 T salt

Put meat in crockpot.  Add seasoning and a little water.  Crockpot all day. (6-8 hrs) It will shred easily when it's done.  I have been freezing the juice to use this winter in soup or gravy.  It is so yummy.  I could drink it!  :) 

For tacos:  Small round corn tortillas.  You can either put Pam on them or not.  Microwave them in a stack in paper towel 40 seconds for 10. Put meat in, then cilantro and white onion and salsa of your choice.

For French Dip:  I decreased the red pepper flakes by about half.  I had a packet of au jus (mine is just western family and I like it) I added maybe a teaspoon to the roast to make it a little more "beefy".  It was really good.  The broth gets very concentrated from sitting all day, so I add water til it's right for dipping sauce.  Get some hoagie rolls or mini french bread.  Put it under the broiler til brown, add mozzarella/parmesan or swiss cheese to bread and stick under the broiler til melted.  Put meat on, and get dipping!  Kids loved them and so did we!  4# roast feeds my family of 6 one dinner and lunch for me and little ones next day.

Someone told me if something is too salty, throw an onion in it and it will take some of the salt out of your dish.  I have heard the same thing about potatoes.  Just FYI if you get yours too salty!