Yummiest chicken noodle soup!

This is my all-time favorite chicken noodle soup recipe. Yummy and simple meal to make for a neighbor dinner as well as for your family.

First things first, buy "Kluski" brand noodles (secret ingredient). Dan's and Fresh Market have it in their pasta aisles. I like stocking up on them when I find them since they are often out.
Next, I love this chicken base @ Costco (but any chicken broth will do)
So here is the recipe:
Boil: 3 qts. of water with 3 T chicken base OR 2 large cans Swanson's chicken broth. Add to boiling water-4 diced carrots & 3 diced celery stalks (boil 5 min.)
Throw in 2 T. dried onion OR 1/2 C. onion
Add 4 diced chicken breasts OR 2 cans chicken (Costco size)
Add Kluski noodles-boil for 16 min.
Salt & Pepper to taste (1-2 t. salt, 1/2 t. pepper)
wa-la
serves 6-8

I like this soup "thick" and sometimes do 1 1/2 bags of Kluski. But you may want to increase your broth too.
This meal tastes great the next day too. Mmmmm!!

Chicken taco filling, microwave caramels, and Christmas meatballs!

 

8-10 frz. chkn. tndrs. or 4-6 breasts
1 jar salsa
2 T taco seasoning
1/4 C water
1 can black beans (rinsed)
1 can corn, drained or 1 C frz. corn

* Place chkn. in crockpot, add salsa, water and taco seas. Cook on high for 3-4 hrs. Shred chkn. w/ fork. Add beans and corn and cook for 30-45 more min. Serve with crisp or soft corn tort. and lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, sr. cream.

this is a nice change from beef taco meat.

 

These are heavenly and pretty easy, and great as neighbor gifts (so you don't eat the whole batch!).

1 C butter
1 C sugar
1 C br. sugar
1 C karo syrup
1 can sweetened cond. milk

* Melt butter in a lg. microwave safe bowl. Add rest of ing. and stir. Microwave on high for 5 min., stir. Another 5 min., stir. 3 min., stir. Test for hard ball stage by dropping a drop of the mixture in to a cup of ice cold water; pick it up and squeeze it between your fingers. If it's still soft and sticky then cook for 1 min. intervals, testing with the ice water between each min. (this may take another 10-15 min.) Once it is firm, when tested in the ice water, like caramels should be, then pour into a greased jelly roll pan or a 9x13 dish. Allow to cool for a couple of hrs. or until firm, then cut and wrap with wax paper. YUM!

 

Super easy and yummie!

You can make your own meatballs and cook them, then place them in a crock pot with the sauce and cook for a couple of hrs. on low or until hot.......OR, this way....

1 pkg. frz. meatballs
1 can whole cranberry sauce
1 12oz. bottle chili sauce
2 T br. sugar
2 T lemon juice

* Combine, pour over frz. meatballs in crockpot and follow pkg. directions. 2 hrs. on high then one hr. on low, I think.

Delicious Powdered Milk!

April and I were discussing ways to use powdered milk a few weeks back. Of course you can use it in most of the recipes you have that call for milk. However, just for drinking, it may not have as much appeal. I remembered some recipes I had come across, and I thought I'd post them.


"Awesome Powdered Milk"
"I went to my friend's house one day" says the author, "and she had me try this milk. She does lunches for a private school and was looking for a way to get the kids to drink milk, inexpensively. She said the kids LOVED this. The idea is to put a little bit of the milk fat back into the skim powdered milk - this makes it taste like the milk we're used to drinking from the store."
In a 2 quart mixing pitcher first put 3 cups hot tap water, then add 1 Tbs. of sugar, 1/8 tsp. vanilla (optional) and 1 1/4 C milk powder (check directions for 2 qts. on your powdered milk and adjust this amount as needed.) Mix this until all is dissolved. Then add 1 C. of whole milk and water to the 2 quart line. Mix, chill well and serve. Canned evaporated milk can be used in place of the whole milk. (One can evaporated milk and 1 can water makes another substitute for store milk.)

"Powdered Milk Evaporated Milk"
1 1/2 C. water
1 1/8 C. instant dry milk powder (must be a real powdered milk, not a milk alternative)
Mix together with a wire whisk and use in any recipe calling for a 12 oz. can of evaporated milk.

"Powdered Milk Sweetened Condensed Milk"
1/2 C. hot water
1 C. sugar
2 C. instant dry milk powder
1 Tbs. butter
Blend in blender very well. Use in any recipe calling for sweetened condensed milk.

"Spiced Hot Chocolate Powdered Milk"
1 C. reconstituted dry milk
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 square Baker's Semi-Sweet Chocolate, finely chopped.
Bring milk and cinnamon just to a boil on medium-high heat. Add chocolate; beat with whisk until chocolate is melted and milk is slightly frothy.
The last 3 recipes are from everydayfoodstorage.net

Peppermint ice cream cake

8 Tbsp butter cut up
6 oz (Hershey's bar) chocolate bar chopped
3 C. Crispy Rice cereal
6 C. softened peppermint ice cream
2 C. sweetened whipped cream or whipped topping
chocolate syrup


Line inside of a 9 in springform pan with non-stick foil or with regular foil and spray generously with cooking spray.
Place butter and chocolate in large microwave safe bowl and melt on high for about 30 sec. Stir and repeat until chocolate is melted. Pour cereal into chocolate and mix so all is covered. Empty cereal mixture into greased pan and press to make crust. Put that in the freezer for 20 min.
Remove from freezer and spread softened ice cream on crust and put back in the freezer for about another hour. Then spread whipped topping on top, cover with plastic wrap and freeze for another 3 hours.
When your ready to dig in, just grasp the foil to lift out of the pan, peel off the foil from the sides, drizzle on the chocolate syrup, and let it sit for about 10-15 min before cutting into it. YUM YUM!!

ksl.com - Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

ksl.com - Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

PEPPER JAM

I tried this recipe today to give as friend gifts, and it turned out really well! At today's prices, it came to about $1.00 per half-pint jar, and it looks so pretty! And a batch only takes about an hour to make.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 Cups finely diced peppers (about 3 lg. red and/or green bell peppers equalling 2 C., and 2 - 3 med. jalapeno peppers equalling 1/2 C.)


• 1 1/2 Cups apple cider vinegar


• 6 1/2 Cups sugar


• 1 - 2 drops red or green liquid food color


• 1/4 tsp. salt (my addition)


• 1 pouch (3 oz.) liquid pectin

Method:

Seed and finely chop peppers (include seeds of jalapeno peppers for flavor and visual interest. WHEN WORKING WITH THE HOT PEPPERS, WEAR PLASTIC GLOVES OR A BAGGIE TO PROTECT HANDS. WASH HANDS WELL AFTER HANDLING PEPPER AND CUTTING BOARD.)

Combine peppers, vinegar, sugar, salt, and food color in large saucepan; over high heat, bring jam mixture to a full rolling hard boil; quickly stir in pectin, and stirring constantly return to a full boil; boil 1 minute. Remove from heat, ladle hot jam into prepared 1/2 pint jars, leaving 1/4" head space; cover jars with lids and screw band on snugly. Place jars in boiling water bath (or steam canner) and process jars for 10 minutes once water comes to a boil. Place jars on a dish towel to cool for 24 hours; label and date. Excellent served with cream cheese and crackers; also goes well with roast pork, chicken and other meats.

Makes approximately seven or eight 8-oz. jars.

Barbara's yummie yams!

Here it is, Hicks fam. You all wanted this recipe. Prepare and bake at least 2 days before serving.

6-8 Yams (not totally sure how many)
2 cups dark brown sugar (about that much)
1 stick of butter
pkg. of mini marshmallows
orange

* Boil yams until a little soft, cool and peel. Slice in to 1/4 - 1/2 inch slices and arrange in a 9x13 dish overlapping each other in rows. Put about 1 1/2 cups of the brown sugar on the top. Cut up the butter and place on top. Cut open an orange and squeeze some of it on top of the yams. Bake @ 350 for 45min.-1 hour. If there is a lot of liquid in the bottom of the dish after baking you can pour some off before you bake it the second time. Cool then refrigerate until ready for final bake before serving. Final bake: 350 deg. for 45 min. (you can add some more butter and brown sugar if you want to before baking) Add the pkg. of marshmallows the last 5-10 min. Take out when marsh. are browned. Let stand for 20 or so min. before serving so they can soak up some more of those delicious flavors!

Carrot bisque

 

Ok, I know this sounds weird but it is so good that my kids wanted to have it for breakfast the next morning!

I'm told this recipe freezes well so you could easily double or triple or even quadruple this recipe and freeze it for later.

3 c chicken broth
1 c chopped onion
2 c chopped carrots
1 t crushed basil
2 T parsley (use less if using dried parsley)
4 T butter
4 T flour
1 t salt
dash of pepper
2 c milk

Bring broth, veggies, and herbs to a boil in large pot, then simmer for 15-20 min. Cool slightly and blend in a blender or with a hand blender until mostly smooth (slightly textured).

In the same pot (now empty), melt butter. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Stir for about a min. Add milk all at once. Whisk until thickened. Add blended carrot mixture and simmer for a few min. before serving. Great for a light supper with a crusty loaf of bread.

Salmon Croquettes

 

Sounds fancy but these are very easy and my kids loved them so much that even my picky Lauren wanted one for breakfast the next day!

abt. 30 oz. of boneless skinless canned salmon, drained & flaked
4 T mayo (you can use low-fat)
1/2 c dry breadcrumbs
1/2 c gr onions, chopped
2 egg whites
2 T lemon juice

* Heat oven to 425, mix all ing. together, well. Shape in to eight 1/2 inch patties. Place on a WELL oiled baking sheet and bake for 16 min., turning the patties half-way through. Serve with lemon wedges. It would also be fine with tartar sauce, or a little sour cream with capers on top. YUMMY! (I say WELL oiled sheet because mine stuck to the sheet when I went to turn them.)

makes 8 patties

Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup

Two thumbs up on this baby! Easy crockpot recipe

Sweet Potato French Fries

This is a favorite side dish of ours, mainly because its easy, but also because its a vegetable and a carb all at the same time! It is also the only way the husband really enjoys sweet potatoes. I first saw this on Oprah a few years ago, then added the dipping sauce from a restaurant that served sweet potato french fries.

Ingredients:

2- 3 Sweet potatoes

1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

2 tsp Veg oil

(You can alter portions to your taste)

Slice up sweet potatoes into strips. Mix all ingredients together in bowl, then spread out on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 20 - 25 min, stirring occasionally.

(I put a little too much oil in this time, so ignore the shininess)

BBQ Dipping sauce:

Mayonnaise

Ketchup

BBQ sauce

(I'm not going to give you portions, because everyone likes fry sauce different, some with more or less ketchup or mayo)

In this sauce I use more BBQ sauce, and the ketchup is added just to tame it down a bit.

Enjoy!

Mac n' cheese (from scratch!)

Ok, this is the bomb! This is nothing like the "blue box". Comfort food at it's best!

2 c macaroni noodles, cooked and drained
Make a roux (white sauce):
1/2 stick of butter
1/4 c flour
2 c cold milk
salt and pepper to taste
When smooth and thickened add:
2 c grated cheddar cheese
dash tobasco

* Mix with noodles and serve or for a more gourmet effect place in 9x13 casserole dish and top with 1/2-1 c bread crumbs mixed with a few Tbs. melted butter and bake for 20-30 min. @ 350. Sometimes I turn on the broiler for a few min. to brown the crumbs more.

Sorry there is no picture. I forgot to get one and we inhaled the whole thing so I couldn't get one. It was good!

White chili

 

4 15oz. cans white beans(Navy or great white beans)
1 lg. onion, chopped
1 lb. cooked, diced chicken (I used three lg. chkn. breasts)
1 7oz. can diced green chile's
1 t gr. cumin
3 t dried oregano
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2-2 c sr. cream
1 c grated mont. jack cheese
1 T chopped cilantro
1 chopped tomato (garnish)

*Sautee onions in a little oil, add chicken, stir. After 5 or so min. add garlic, gr. chile's, cumin, oregano, and chicken and onions to the beans in a pot. Simmer for 15 min. If it's too thick for you at this point you can add up to a cup of water. Once simmered for 15 min. take off heat and add cheese, sour cream, and cilantro. Stir until melted. Garnish with tomatoes. This is a yummy, creamy alternative to regular chili. By the way, for those of you worried, you can find those white beans by the other beans in the canned bean section. They're not hard to find.

2 things I tried in muffin tins this week

I randomly came across these ideas from 2 completely different sources this week, but I thought they both looked fun. At the end of both, I can say that I needed to use muffin liners, because my pan is now all scratched up. They were, however, very yummy and cool because they come in the cute little muffin shape


Pizza Muffin Rollups
Start with your favorite pizza dough recipe, here's mine:

Easy Pizza Dough
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 tbls yeast
1 tbls sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic salt (optional)
**Add this dough enhancer, it really makes your bread so much better. They don't have it in Cali, so I stock up when I'm at the Walmart in Utah!


Pour water into bowl, sprinkle yeast on top. Let yeast dissolve. Add remaining ingredients. Mix with beaters for 2 minutes. Knead a few times, using extra flour if necessary. Let rise in bowl for at least 30 minutes.
Roll out dough. Cover cooking sheet with a layer of Olive Oil, place dough on top, add toppings. Cook in preheated 400 oven for 15- 20 minutes
Now here is my muffin variation:

(just pretend you're making cinnamon rolls, except with pizza toppings)

1.

2.

3. (pour a drop or 2 of olive oil at the bottom of each one)

4. The finished product

Bacon & Egg Muffin

There is not much explanation, I think the pictures do enough. You can use ham instead of bacon.

Mold a piece of bread into a very buttered muffin tin, if you use a muffin liner, put butter in there too. Then sprinkle with bacon, then break an egg over the top. I might sprinkle some cheese on top next time. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes, or until the egg is cooked to your taste.

Parmesan-Dijon chicken

 

I know I just posted something. I'm a little behind, sorry. My kids LOVED this.

6 boneless, skinless chkn breasts
1/2 stick of butter, melted
3/4 C dry bread crumbs
1/4 C grated parm. cheese
2 T Dijon mustard
My additions are as follows (use them if you want):
a dash of salt
a dash of garlic powder
a handful of crushed cornflakes (for more texture)

* Heat oven to 375. Mix bread crumbs, parm. cheese, salt, garlic powder, and cornflakes in a plastic bag. Stir Dijon into melted butter and mix well. Dip chkn, one piece at a time, into the Dijon mixture coating all sides, then place into the bag with the crumb mixture. Shake well to coat the whole piece of chkn. with the crumbs. Place on an un-greased dish or jelly-roll pan and bake, uncovered, for 20-30 min, turning once half way through. Check to make sure it's not pink and you're good to go.

Crock pot mexican lasagna

 

I know that some of you have seen this before and may have the recipe so I'll tell you this, the only difference is that I added a can of rinsed black beans to the mix. Otherwise here is the recipe:

4 C shredded chicken
1/2 C red enchilada sauce (you pick the spiciness)
1 C sour cream
1 can cr. mushroom soup
12-14 soft corn tort. cut or torn into pieces
1 t salt
1/8 t pepper
1 can gr. chiles
1 can rinsed black beans
1 - 1 1/2 C grated cheddar cheese

* Mix ench. sauce with chkn. Mix in everything else except cheese and tort. Spray crock pot with Pam and start layering with tortillas then mixture, etc., ending with the mixture on top. Cook on low for 4-5 hrs. Top with cheese and cook for 15 more min. then serve and enjoy.

Meat!

My favorite meat preparations: Salmon and Tri-tip:

For our family, these are always easy, reliable and really good!

Dill Salmon



Ingredients:
Any size Salmon
Lemon
Mayonaisse
Dill
Salt & Pepper

All these amounts are measured by your own taste.

Sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper, then squeeze on lemon, spread on mayonnaise, then sprinkle dill over the whole thing (my picture shows only half covered).

Bake 350 for 20 - 25 minutes. Or broil for 8 minutes on each side.

Tri-Tip Marinade
(Or whatever steak you have)

1 cup soy sauce
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 beef bouillon cube (I used chicken in a pinch)
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp ginger

Heat all ingredients in saucepan until dissolved. Let cool, before marinating. For best results, marinate overnight.

Enjoy your meat!

Homemade granola

This recipe is almost as easy as making cookies. And way delish-

In a pot, boil until sugar is smooth:

1 ½ C oil

1 C honey

½ C brown sugar

½ t vanilla

dash of salt

(you can double this recipe-but unless you have a gigantic bowl, you’ll want to do 2 separate pans and then have 2 separate mixing bowls too).

Add this to:

15 C regular oats (1 canister oats)

½ C millet

½ C pumpkin seeds

½ C flaxseed or wheat germ

(You can get these ingredients in dry bins at Smith's)

Mix dry mixture in a large mixing bowl. Coat oat mixture thoroughly and then spread onto cookie sheets. Bake each at 375 for 15-20 min or until golden brown. After it is baked, add dried fruit like craisins, raisins, coconut and toasted nuts (almonds). If you have dried strawberries-those are yummy too. Let it cool completely before storing. We love to eat this granola as cereal or with vanilla yogurt. Your husband will love you even more for making this. Great way using up some food storage. Mmmmmm….

All things PUMPKIN this month, right?

Pumpkin {White Chocolate Chip} Muffins

** Wish I had a picture here**

Ingredients:

1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 cube butter, really softened
2/3 cup white sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups + 1 tbls of all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cloves

Half a bag of white chocolate chips (you can use the whole bag if you want)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Place muffin liners in tin. Or grease your muffin tin.

2. In large bowl, mix together the pumpkin, butter, sugars, and eggs. In medium bowl, combine flour, bk powder, bk soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Stir dry mix into pumpkin mix until well blended. Add white choc. chips. Divide evenly into muffin tin.

3. Bake 45 minutes, or until muffins spring back when lightly pressed

Makes 12 muffins. Ours were gone the next morning.

Creamy Italian Chicken

 

Crock pot meal, gotta love it.

6-8 ch breasts
2 can cr. chkn. soup
1 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 envelope dry Italian dressing mix
1/2 to 1 chopped onion
1 can mushrooms, drained, or fresh if you want

*Grease crock pot, place chicken in, put everything on top (cube the cream cheese). Cook on high for 4 hrs. or on low for 6-8 hrs. depending on the intensity of the heat of your crock pot (mine cooks on the hot side so I did mine on low for 6 hrs.) You may want to stir occasionally to combine everything well. I served mine with brown rice, but you could also do egg noodles or even mashed potatoes. It was yummy!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hey - this blog has been fun.  I am trying to be "better" in my eating lately and I absolutely LOVE pumpkin CC cookies this time of year.  Here is a low fat / low calorie recipe that is awesome - without the guilt!  From Weight Watchers.

Ingredients

1 box Spice Cake Mix
1 15 oz can unsweetened pumpkin
1 C. Mini Semisweet Chocolate Chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Spray cookie sheet with Pam. In a large bowl, stir cake mix and pumpkin together until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Use a cookie scoop or spoon to drop tablespoons of dough on cookie sheet. Bake for 12 -14 minutes. Remove to cooling rack after 1 min on sheet.

Number of Servings: 48 (small cookies)

Easy Apricot Chicken (a.k.a. Sweet n' sour chkn.)

 

Super easy and yummy.

6-8 breasts or thighs
1 18oz. jar apricot or apricot/pineapple jam
1 packet onion soup mix
8 oz. Russian dressing

*Mix and pour over chicken in a casserole dish. Bake @ 350 deg. for 1 hr. or 1 hr. 20 min. (diff. size pieces cook diff.). Serve with white or brown rice and veggies. Pour sauce from dish over rice! Yum!

Creamy Corn Chowder

I love this time of year primarily because its COMFORT FOOD season!  Yummy.  Here is a warm, creamy and healthy soup to warm you on those cold days!  -Stef

Creamy Corn Chowder
Recipe by Our Best Bites

2 Tbsp. butter
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. water
2 1/2 c. milk (skim or 1% work just fine and lighten it up considerably)
2 regular-sized chicken bouillon cubes, 1 Knorr chicken bouillon cube, or 2 tsp. chicken base
1/2 lb. bacon (optional)
1 small onion, minced
2 red potatoes, diced into small cubes
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can corn, drained or about 1 1/2 C frozen fresh corn
Salt and pepper to taste
A few dashes of hot sauce (like Tabasco or Cholula)


Fry bacon until crisp. In the meantime, melt butter over low heat in a soup pot. When melted, add flour to make a roux and whisk until it comes together in a little ball. Add water and whisk until completely combined and there are no lumps. Add milk and chicken base or bouillon and bring to a simmer. Add potatoes, onions, and garlic, and simmer (but don't boil!), stirring very frequently, for about 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Add crumbled bacon and corn and heat through. Add a few drops of hot sauce and then salt to taste. The reason why I don't have an exact measurement is that while the soup REALLY needs salt, bacon also really differs in its saltiness, so it can be super easy to make this soup waaaaay too salty. Start with about 1/4 tsp., give it a few minutes, and then add more if you need it.

Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with extra bacon and/or cheese if you want. Because, you know, if there's anything a perfectly healthy bowl of soup (it's only 3 Weight Watchers points!) needs, it's some extra bacon and cheese!


Serves 6-8.

Caramel Popcorn pumpkins

So, I got this idea from my friends craft blog, click here to see it. We did this for FHE tonight. Its not so much a recipe, as an idea.

Simply make your favorite caramel popcorn recipe, roll into balls.

Then use cut up tootsie rolls for the stem and green laffy taffy or lime tootsie rolls for the leaf, (I warmed mine up for 10 seconds, so it was a little more workable)

We made alot, and delivered them to some friends!

Mummy pizza

This goes with the picture below.
I made this last year for Halloween. It was super easy and fun.

6 plain bagels
pizza sauce
mozz. cheese
olive slices

*Open up bagels, spread pizza sauce, sprinkle mozz. cheese, place two olive slices for the mummy eyes. Bake 350 deg. for 10-15 min or until cheese is bubbly. You could even try broiling it.
-April

Alien brain dip

 

 

Fun and spooky way to get kids to eat veggies

Any 2-3 colors bell peppers
green olives (eyes)
pepper tops to make tongue's
asparagus spears or green onions for antenna

*Cut off tops of peppers, clean out. Fill with veggie dip. Use broken tooth picks to attach eyes and alien tongue to outside of pepper. To make the tongue's, just cut piece of pepper top into a tongue shape. Stick asp. spears or gr. onions inside dip for antenna. Serve with fav. veggies.

Let's get started

Ok ladies! Let's start putting recipes in. My hope is that we can all share recipes that we've tried and enjoyed and kids have enjoyed! I want us all to be able to cook for our families food that is fresh, and made with love. I'm so excited! You can put any recipe's in here; breakfast, lunch, dinner, easy meals, gourmet meals, snacks, desserts, anything. If you liked it, post it. Try to include a picture of it, if you can, so we can all know what it should look like. If you can't, just try to describe it in luscious detail. Woo hoo!