Crispy Clusters

My friend, Elaine Townsend gave me this recipe some time in the early 1980's, it has been a family favorite ever since.

1 cup small marshmallows
1 cup rice crispies
I cup cheerios
1 cup peanuts
(if you have allergies to peanuts, add 1 more cup of cereal,
maybe a cup of corn checks, Maybe even broken pretzels?)

1 lb Block candy coating
Melt the candy coating and pour over the dry ingredients, stir it all together
Spoon teaspoons size drops onto wax paper and let cool.
Voila! Easy peasy

Ginger Chicken

1 cup Soy Sauce
1 cup Sugar
1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
1 clove garlic
grated ginger to taster or chunks that can easily be picked out
1/2 sliced onion
1 sliced green pepper

Marinade the chicken and
cook in a 9x13 pan for 45 min to 1 hour at 350 degrees. (marinade and all)

Carrot Cake - a family favorite

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 tsp soda
1 tsp b. powder
1 tsp cinnamon

Mix together and add:

1 cup vegetable oil (can cut in half and add 1/2 applesauce)
1 tsp vanilla
4 eggs - one at a time
4 cups grated carrots

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes (I am not sure of that time, so check)

Frosting:
1 cube butter
1 8oz pkg cream cheese
1 lb powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Butter Scotch Sauce

4 TBS Butter
1 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
2/3 cup Karo - white

Boil 4-5 minutes
Add 3/4 cup canned milk

Heat, but don't boil

This is a recipe that we had when I was growing up. My mother, Catherine Jensen, got it from her friend, Beth Thayne. It is yummy, fast and easy. You usually have these ingredients on hand, so it is fun for a Sunday afternoon treat.

Red Potato Bake

3# red potatoes about the size of a golf ball (new ones are awesome)
Cut potatoes in quarters and put in a 9x13 baking dish spayed with Pam. Drizzle with butter, olive oil, fresh chopped parley, and sprinkle with garlic. Bake for 1 hour covered with tinfoil.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

12 chicken breasts
12 strips deli ham
12 slices Swiss cheese
2 eggs
Italian bread crumbs
Parmesan cheese
Sauce:
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 cups sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup evaporated milk

Pound chicken until thin
Put on a slice of ham and a slice of cheese
Roll up and secure with a tooth pick
Put in baking dish and cover with sauce
Cover with tinfoil and bake 1 1/2 hours
Uncover and bake for 1/2 hour
Take the tooth picks out before serving
Garnish with Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley

This recipe can be tripled and quadrupled for a large crowd. It can be carried to an event in a large roaster to be kept warm. Yummm

SCONES

5 cup warm water
3 Tbs. yeast
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil
2 tsp salt
10 cups flour

Mix together, let rise, roll out, cut and fry in hot oil. Makes a lot!

We made these when Seth and Jill were here with the girls. They wanted to share the fun with Erik and Kristi's family so we made them again (they can't be rushed). We thought we would make it a tradition like cinnamon rolls and smores, but we forgot about them when Jeremy and Birgitta were here. So request them when we come, they are so easy and so fun for kids to roll out and cut into shapes. We served them with honey butter. Yummm We made 1/2 the recipe and that was PLENTY!

This recipe is from the Rexburg 4th Ward RS. Entered by Teresa Western

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

1 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup peanut butter chips

1 (6oz) pkg. chocolate covered peanut butter cups, cut into eights (Reese's peanut butter cups cut up chunky)

Preheat over to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, peanut butter, white sugar and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, cocoa and baking soda. Stir into the peanut mixture. Mix in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips and peanut butter cups. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. (Or, you could roll them into balls if you prefer a more uniform look.)

Bake for 13 minutes and then remove from oven and allow cookies to rest on cookie sheet for an additional five minutes before removing them. Enjoy!

***I also didn't put in the Reese's peanut butter cups this time because I was trying to cut back slightly on the intensity of the flavor. They still tasted awesome!

BYU Mint Brownies

photo courtesy of BYU Magazine

These are the best brownies I have ever tasted! They taste exactly like BYU's brownies! So good. The recipe says to bake at 350 for 25 minutes. I had to let them bake for 40 minutes in my oven. So gooey and yummy!

1 cup margarine
1/2 cup cocoa
2 tbsp honey
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup chopped walnuts

1. Melt margarine and mix in cocoa. Allow to cool.
2. Add honey, eggs, sugar, flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Mix well and add nuts.
4. Pour batter into greased 9 x 13 pan.
5. Bake for 25-40 minutes or until knife comes out clean.
6. LET COOL COMPLETELY.

Prepare Mint Icing:

5 tbsp room temp margarine
dash of salt
1 tbsp light corn syrup
2 1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp mint extract
2-3 drops green food coloring
3 tbsp milk

Mix margarine, salt, corn syrup and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Add mint extract and food coloring and mix. Add milk gradually until the consistency is a little thinner than cake frosting.

Prepare Chocolate Frosting:

1/2 cup margarine
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup milk
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted

Spread mint icing over the brownies. Place brownies in the freezer for a short time to stiffen the icing. Remove from the freezer and carefully add a layer of chocolate frosting (I used store frosting).

Smothered Chicken

Smothered Chicken

4 boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts
4 Bacon strips, cooked crisp and chopped (use turkey bacon to keep this meal light)
1 cup BBQ sauce
2 Roma Tomato's diced
2 Green Onions, diced
1/3 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded
SaltPepper

Salt and pepper the chicken breasts and then bake in the oven for about 20 minute at 350 degrees OR grill the chicken breasts... I like to use my Foreman Grill in the winter. Smother the chicken breasts with BBQ Sauce on both sides and return to oven for about 3-5 minutes, until breasts are cooked through. Evenly top each chicken breast with the crisp bacon and cheese, broil for 30-60 seconds under the broiler to melt the cheese. Top the chicken breasts with the chopped tomato and green onions. You can even cook and dice the chicken, then serve in a salad. Enjoy!

Cream Cheese "Chicken" Soup

Adapted from Melanie's

*Warning*

This recipe will make you weep. Seriously.

I am not sure what it is about this recipe that makes is soooo yummy. Maybe it's the comfort food aspect of it. I don't know. But this is one of the best tasting soups I have ever encountered. We eat this at least 3 times a week. Yup. Seriously.

This recipe calls for chicken, yet I don't add it any more. After my dad had major surgery, his diet was temporarily limited to softer foods, which included chicken. I search one of my favorite recipe blogs, at My Kitchen Cafe, for all things chicken and found this gem. I quadrupled the cooking time on the veggies to make them softer for my dad. In doing this, I inadvertently made the potato the star of the show. The potatoes started to fall apart, making this taste like a yummy comfort food potato soup from childhood's past. Yum. So, just remember that this recipe does call for chicken. You can invite it...or not.

We are having this again tonight. I will take a picture and pass it along!

4 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
chicken broth, from a can, or from the cooking chicken (I have used a combo of both)
1 medium onion
1 TBSP butter
large handful baby carrots, sliced small
4-5 potatoes, diced
4 TBSP flour
1 cup milk
1 8 0z pkg cream cheese, softened to room temperature
salt and pepper

In your soup pot, saute the onion in the butter, until the onions become translucent (about 5 minutes). Put diced veggies in pot and just cover with chicken broth. Let this simmer. Melanie has them simmer for 10 minutes, until soft. I let them simmer for about 40 minutes, until mushy. However, with the longer simmer time, I do have to add a little more broth along the way, due to evaporation.

When veggies are cooked to desired softness, mix the flour and the milk in a separate bowl, then add to the soup, for thickening. At this point, you add the chicken, and the cream cheese, broken into small bits. Let melt and heat through. Add salt and pepper to taste, and VIOLA! Easy, fast, and sooooooo delicious! Happy Eating! Thanks, Melanie!

Seven Layer Dip

• 1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
• 1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened (neufchatel- 1/3 of the fat)
• 8 ounces sour cream (light)
• 1 (16 ounce) jar salsa
• 1 large tomato, chopped
• 1 avacado, chopped
• 1 small head iceberg lettuce, shredded
• 1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives, drained
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (I used colby jack)

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, blend the taco seasoning mix and refried beans. Spread the mixture onto a large serving platter.
2. Mix the sour cream and cream cheese in a medium bowl. Spread over the refried beans.
3. Top the layers with salsa. Place a layer of tomato, avacado and lettuce over the salsa, and top with Cheddar cheese. Garnish with black olives.

Perfect Pancake Batter

Shall we change up the recipe?

Here is the most perfect batter for pancakes! I never really liked pancakes because we always used waffle batter to make them. Since we have discovered this recipe, we are addicted to pancakes! I literally crave them now!

2 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups milk
2 eggs
8 tbsp melted butter or margarine

1. Mix dry ingredients in deep bowl.
2. Mix wet ingredients and add to dry ingredients, stirring only enough to mix.
3. Allow batter to rest for 20-30 minutes. This is key!
4. Spray griddle with non stick spray and cook on medium heat. Makes 12-16 pancakes. This recipe can easily be cut in half for smaller families.

Batter is somewhat thick - that's what makes these so good when you cook them. You can add a small amount of milk if needed.