Easy Key Lime Pie

Easy Key Lime Pie

from my grandma.

Again - VERY GOOD!

For the key-lime filling, mix

1- 8 oz can of frozen lime juice (thawed)

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

Stir together in a bowl.

Fold in 1- 8 oz carton of whip cream.

Spoon filling into a regular graham cracker crust and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.

Homemade Crescent Rolls

This is the recipe for the rolls that my sister brought. They were REALLY good - AND she said they were really easy to make!

Mix the following ingredients together and warm in the microwave (1-2 mins)

2/3 C Powdered Milk

2 1/2 C Water

1/2 C. Sugar

1/2 C Margarine or Butter

2 tsp. Salt

Add 2 beaten eggs and 2 Tbl. Instant yeast to the warm liquid (whisk yeast in.)

Stir in 7 C flour (NOT bread flour) and beat with a large spoon until smooth.

Cover and let rise until doubles (approx. 30 mins)

Divide into 4 equal parts. Roll one part into a circle and cut into 12 pieces (like a pizza). Repeat with all 4 circles. Roll up each piece and place on greased sheet and let rise again (30 mins).

Bake at 375 degrees for 10 mins or until lightly brown. Remove from oven and brush with butter.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Here's what my sister brought to our Thanksgiving dinner. This recipe would NOT win any low-fat awards, but it was fantastic! :)

Ingredients:
3 cups cooked mashed yams
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 beaten eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup softened butter
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup butter
1 cups brown sugar
1 cups pecans

Directions:
Combine first 5 ingredients. Stir well and pour into baking dish. Combine remaining ingredients and mix until crumbly. Spread evenly over yam mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

FOOD CHALLENGE #2

Here's the second food challenge... post recipes from your Thanksgiving dinner. (Or recipes that you used with your left-overs.) This way, we'll all be able to build our recipe collections for next year's dinner. I've already emailed those from my dinner to get recipes. Can't wait to see what you ate!!!!!!!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

I really liked this soup. I got it off of Cheryl's blog What's Cookin' Tew. And I had leftover chicken that I used so it was completely prepared in 5 minutes. Then I just let it simmer. That's my kind of recipe! ;)

CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP

1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups water (may use chicken broth)

2 Tbs sugar

3 tsp chili powder

3/4 - 1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp oregano

14 oz can or frozen corn (optional)

1 (4 ounce) can diced green chilies

2 cups cooked chicken, cut into bite-size pieces

**I didn't have any chilies soI just sprinkled in some crushed red pepper to give it a little kick. I also had some leftover cooked lentils that I threw in which added nutrition and texture without changing the taste.

Combine in large pot. Bring to boil and then simmer for 3o minutes. (You can also put this in a crock pot and let it simmer all day on low.)

Serve with:Sour Cream, Chopped avocado, Sliced olives, Grated Cheddar Cheese, Tortilla strips (Smith's carries these in their deli section)

Chicken Taco Soup

1 Onion
1 (16 ounce) can chili beans
1 (15 ounce) can black beans
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (8ounce) can tomato sauce
2 cups chicken broth
2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chilies
1 pkg taco seasoning
3 whole skinless, boneless chicken breasts
shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream
cilantro
jalapeno peppers
tortilla chips

Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, chicken broth and diced tomatoes in a crock-pot. Add the taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breats on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Cook on low heat for 5 hours.

Remove chicken breasts from the soup and allow to cool long enough to be handled. Shred. Stir the chicken back into the soup and continue cooking for 2 hours. Add cilantro.

Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream, jalapenos, black olives, cilantro, fresh lime and tortilla chips.

Food Challenge!

I'm going to start something called a "Food Challenge."

All this is, is a "challenge" for you to post recipes in accordance to the "food" category that is chosen. I'll do a new one every week or two to give you time to post.

And keep in mind, you can keep posting WHATEVER else you want during this time. It's just to give you an idea for recipes to post in case you can't think of one. (And I'm TOTALLY open to suggestions for challenges. If you have to make a salad for an upcoming party, let me know and we'll do a salad food challenge to help you out.)

So... since the last post was a soup recipe from Becca - let's start the first challenge off with good soup recipes. This will help us build up a collection in preparation for the winter. (Although Becca - you're not off the hook! You have to put another one too. ha ha)

We look forward to seeing everyone's soup recipes!!!!

Tuscan Bean Soup

This soup is fast, easy, inexpensive & HEALTHY!

1 small onion, thinly diced
2 carrots, sliced
1 TBS olive oil
2 cans reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
1 can great nothern beans, drained & rinsed
2/3 c spiral or bowtie pasta
2-3 c spinach, washed & torn
s&p

In large pot, saute onion and carrot in olive oil until onion is tender. Add broth & water; bring to a boil. Stir in beans & pasta; return to a boil.

Reduce heat; cover, and simmer for 14-15 minutes until pasta & carrots are tender, stirring occasionally. Add spinach, heat through. Season with salt & pepper.

This is really good served with crusty bread or toast for dipping. It's an extremely mild-tasting soup.....great for the kids!!

White Chili

I heard that some of you wanted the White Chili recipe from the Halloween party...Well, here it is! It's one of my favorites. Enjoy!

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken, cubed
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 TB vegetable oil
2 cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 can chicken broth
2 cans chopped green chilies
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 c. whipping cream
1 c. sour cream

In a large saucepan saute chicken, onion, and garlic powder in oil until no longer pink. Add chicken broth, beans, chilies, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cream and sour cream. Serve immediately. Serves seven.

(When I made this the other night, I doubled the recipe and added only half as much garlic as the recipe called for and a little less than half the cayenne pepper. You can do what you like...experiment!)

Pumpkin Scones

Ingredients:

Scones
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 7 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• Squeeze of fresh orange juice, if you have it
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• 6 tablespoons cold butter
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 3 tablespoons half-and-half
• 1 large egg

Powdered Sugar Glazze
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons whole milk

OR

Spiced Glaze
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 pinch ginger
• 1 pinch ground cloves

Directions
TO MAKE THE SCONES:.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or line with parchment paper.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Using a pastry knife, fork, or food processor, cut butter into the dry ingredients until mixture is crumbly and no chunks of butter are obvious. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, half and half, and egg. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Form the dough into a ball.

Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1-inch thick rectangle (about 9 inches long and 3 inches wide). Use a large knife or a pizza cutter to slice the dough twice through the width, making three equal portions. Cut those three slices diagonally so that you have 6 triangular slices of dough. Place on prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 14–16 minutes. Scones should begin to turn light brown. Place on wire rack to cool.

TO MAKE THE PLAIN GLAZE:.
Mix the powdered sugar and 2 tbsp milk together until smooth.
When scones are cool, use a brush to paint plain glaze over the top of each scone.

AS THAT WHITE GLAZE FIRMS UP, MAKE THE SPICED ICING:.
Combine the ingredient for the spiced icing together. Drizzle this thicker icing over each scone and allow the icing to dry before serving (at least 1 hour). A squirt bottle works great for this, or you can drizzle with a whisk.

Dorothy Chicken

We eat this chicken once a week. Seriously, you can ask my family. Cam gobbles it up too, so we just love it!

First you need some chicken. I use frozen chicken tenders, but breasts would work too.
Stick them in a crockpot, no need to thaw first. I use a whole bag of frozen tenders cuz we like the leftovers.
Then you pour Dorothy Lynch dressing over top. I use a generous amount cuz we like the extra sauce.....usually the whole bottle.
Cook on low all day.
Shred chicken about 30 minutes before eating to let flavor in. Serve over white rice.
That's it!
SOOO easy and yummy! You don't need any other seasonings or spices. We add a little s&p at the table and serve it with peas.

This is what the dressing looks like. It's on the dressing aisle with the ranch and such. It comes in regular or fat-free. We have been using the fat-free and think it tastes just as good.

Halloween Pancakes

So I know this post will be outdated now... but we had SO much fun making them, I thought I would post it anyway. Maybe you can keep it on the list for next year.

Ingredients:

Bisquick

Food Coloring

Chocolate Chips

I just made a batch of pancakes from Bisquick (but obviously you can use any recipe you want.) Then I put about 1/2 cup in another bowl. I put orange food coloring in the big bowl and green in the little bowl. (THANK YOU fall food coloring!)

Then I poured the orange batter like normal on the pan and used a spoon to scoop a little green. Some turned out much better than others. Then I made a face out of chocolate chips! SOOO much fun!

Fiesta Chicken Empanada

This was a first time recipe we tried the other day and it turned out pretty yummy so I thought I'd share!














INGREDIENTS:
1 (15 oz) pkg. refrigerated pie crusts, softened
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 (10 oz) can chunk white chicken breast in water, drained OR
1/2 lb-1 lb chicken breasts cut into cubes (depending on how much chicken you want)
4 teaspoons dry fajita seasoning
1/2 cup Cheese 'n Salsa dip
1 egg, beaten

*If using non canned chicken, cook first. I just used a skillet and kinda shredded it as it cooked. Then add it when it calls for it in the directions.

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out 1 crust, place on ungreased 14 inch pizza pan or cookie sheet.
2. Heat oil in large skillet, add onion and bell peppers. Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chicken and fajita seasoning; mix well.
3. Spoon chicken mixture onto crust to within 1 inch of edge. Spread cheese 'n salsa dip over chicken mixture. Brush edge of crust with water. Place remaining crust over filling. Press edges firmly to seal. Brush top with beaten egg.
4. Bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes or until deep golden brown. Cover edge of crust with strips of foil after 10 minutes of baking to prevent excessive browning. Cut into wedges. Garnish with sour cream and extra cheese 'n salsa dip.

Makes 6 servings.