Garlic Yogurt Breadsticks

1 Tbls yeast
2 Tbls sugar
1 1/2 cup warm water
1/2 tsp salt
3 1/2-4 cups whole white wheat flour (I used 1/2 cup of oat flour in place of some of the wheat flour)

Topping:
1/4 cup butter or margarine (softened)
1/4 cup yogurt
1/4 tsp garlic salt (or 1-2 cloves minced garlic + 1/4 tsp salt)
Grated Parmesan and dried parsley to sprinkle on top

Dissolve yeast in sugar water for 10 minutes. Add flour until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl, but is still a little sticky. Knead dough for 4 minutes, let rest for 10 minutes. Mix the first three topping ingredients together until smooth. Coat cookie sheet pan with nonstick spray, and spread the dough out to cover the pan, then spread the topping over the dough and sprinkle with parmesan and parsley. Cut dough into strips. Let raise for 30 minutes, and bake 20-25 minutes at 350.

My friend Robyn had us over for lunch and served these yummy breadsticks. I'd been looking for a good recipe for breadsticks for a while and couldn't find one I loved until I had these. Thanks Robyn!

Funeral Potatoes

I got this recipe from a travel magazine that gave special dishes from each state.  This was Utah's special dish. The name comes because a traditional meal that Mormons make for a bereaved family after a funeral is ham, these potatoes, salad, rolls, and cake. These potatoes just seem to go with ham. I've made funeral potatoes for years, but I tried this recipe that is a little different from mine.  It is a looser sauce and the potatoes are diced instead of grated.  My husband prefers the old way, but I think I might like this better.  What do you think?

Funeral Potatoes
6 cups diced potatoes
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup milk
1 cup sour cream
2 cups grated cheese ( you can use cheddar or a mix of cheddar and gruyere)
1/4 cup grated onion
Salt and pepper
3/4 - 1 cup panko crumbs mixed with 2 T. butter for the topping

Scrub 6-8 medium sized potatoes, prick them, and wrap them in foil.  Bake them in a 350 oven until they can easily be pierced, but don't over cook them.  It should be about 45 min. to an hour.  Unwrap the potatoes and let them cool until they are just cool enough to handle.  Peel and dice them.  Put them in a large bowl.

Combine the soup, butter, sour cream, milk, cheese, onion, salt and pepper.  Pour over the potatoes and gently mix.  Spoon into a large casserole dish or a 13 x 9 pan. Put the crumb topping over all.  Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Pressure Cooker Cinnamon Rice Pudding

Rice Pudding

Serves: 4-6

Pressure Cooking Time: 5 min

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup long grain rice (I just used white rice)
• Pinch of salt
• 1 1/2 tablespoon butter
• 3 cups milk
• 1/4 cup + 1 TBSP sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup raisins (amount to your liking)
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon (or to taste, I probably added more than this)

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat milk, stir in the rice, butter, salt and cover.

2. Close and lock. Cook for 5 minutes at high pressure.

3. Release pressure using natural release method. Uncover, stir in the sugar, vanilla and raisins. Add milk to achieve desired consistency. Serve and enjoy!

I got this recipe from fagoramerica.com.

Guacamole

Everyone has their own favorite guacamole recipe and most of them are delicious.  This is a yummy one that I tried by combining two recipes I found online.  I've probably made it ten times since then.  It is delicious.

Guacamole
3 ripe avacados
Juice of 1 fresh lime
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 onion, diced or 3 or 4 green onions, chopped
2 tomatoes, diced or equivalent grape tomatoes, chopped
1/2 jalapeno pepper, chopped or several shakes of Tabasco sauce
1 Tablespoon cilantro, chopped
Garlic salt to taste

Scoop out the avocado into a bowl.  Squeeze the lime juice over it.  Mash together with a potato masher.  Add the onion and tomato and mix well.  Add the cilantro, garlic salt, cayenne and Tabasco and mix well.  Taste and correct seasonings.  Serve with tortilla chips or with your favorite Mexican dish.

Greek Seasoning Blend

For the Greek Salad just posted, you can make your own Greek seasoning mix.  It's also good in sauces, on steaks, pork chops, chicken, or fish.

Greek Seasoning Blend
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon basil
2 teaspoons oregano
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon dill
1 teaspoon marjoram
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1 teaspoon rosemary
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Put all in a blender and blend until it's a fine powder.  Store in airtight container.

Easy Greek Dip

This is very easy, quick and tasty appetizer dip.  The brand on the Greek Seasoning is Cavender's.  It looks like this:

Easy Greek Dip

4 Tablespoons olive oil (more if you like)
2 tomatoes, chopped (or equivalent in chopped grape tomatoes)
3 green onions, chopped (use the whites and the greens)
1/2 cup feta cheese
2 teaspoons All- Purpose Greek seasoning (the original called for 1-2 Tablespoons, but I thought it was too much- so I guess to your taste)
Crusty bread slices, toasted or crackers

Put the olive oil in a shallow dish.  Top with the tomatoes, onion, and cheese.  Mix.  Sprinkle the seasoning over all and mix again.  Serve with the bread or crackers.

Original Source:  HowDoesShe.com

Adobo Tomatillo Salsa

If you like Chipotle peppers in Adobo sauce, then this is the right salsa for you. I love Chicken Tinga Tostadas (from this blog) and it's because of that unique adobo sauce taste. So when I was looking for good salsa recipes, I was excited to find this one.

Ingredients:

2 tomatillos--husked, washed, and thickly sliced

2 cloves garlic--diced or 1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/2 chipotle pepper in Adobo sauce (I bought one jar and used what I needed for the recipe, then put the rest in a freezer bag to keep in the freezer. As I need them I just break off how much I need from the frozen ones and keep the rest in the freezer. You don't need much since they're spicy, but it works great.)

1/8 tsp salt

Directions:

Heat a non-stick pan on medium high heat. Place the tomatillos and garlic (if you're using the cloves) in the  pan and cook on one side until browned. Then flip over the slices to brown the other side or until the tomatillos are soft. Add the garlic powder now if you've chosen that route. Put the tomatillos and garlic in a small food processor or blender with the chipotle pepper (feel free to add more than just a half one if you like it spicy). Blend with 2 TBSP water. Let it cool, then add some salt to taste. I added about 1/4 tsp and it was pretty salty, so I'll definitely use 1/8th of a teaspoon next time. Serve with tortilla chips and enjoy. 

Serves: 2

Crock pot Cream Cheese Chicken

Most people I know have this easy and delicious recipe, but just in case you don't- here it is.  There's actually several versions, but they are all similar.  It goes together quickly, has few ingredients, and is very tasty.  You can serve it over hot rice, mashed potatoes, or even noodles. This is one of my very favorite crock pot recipes.

Crock Pot Cream Cheese Chicken
1/2 cup butter, cut into chunks
1 package Italian dressing mix
2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks or strips
1 8 oz. package cream cheese, leave it out of the fridge while the chicken is cooking.
1 can cream of chicken soup

Turn the crock pot on high and put the butter in to melt.  When melted, pour in the Italian dressing mix and stir well.  Add the raw chicken and stir well.  Put the lid on and cook on high for a couple of hours.  If you need it to be longer, put the crock pot on low.  When the chicken looks cooked, add the cream cheese and the soup.  Stir and mix well until the cream cheese melts.  Cook for awhile longer on high if you're in a hurry, or on low if you're not.  Serve over rice, mashed potatoes or noodles.

Quiche

For the last couple of months, my husband and 9 year old daughter have been making our Sunday dinners. They love it because they get to have a little cooking lesson and I love it because I get to have an evening off of cooking. :) A few weeks ago they made this delicious crustless quiche that Jared grew up with.

1 1/2 cups milk
3 rashes bacon - chopped
1/2 self-rising flour
1 cup grated cheese
3 eggs
1 small onion - chopped
salt and pepper
1 can corn

Combine and pour into a greased dish and bake at 400 for 35 minutes or until set.

My husband made this on what I consider to be our first date. He asked me out and I said I would love to, but was swamped with a big project in college that I needed to finish. So, he spent the whole day on campus with me helping me figure out the technical side of the project that was super intimidating to me. When I had to go to work he went home and made this quiche and then met me with dinner to finish up the project when I was done with work. His kindness and helpfulness really caught my attention...and the rest is history.

Last night they made these beautiful swans and chocolate eclairs for dessert:

Am I spoiled, or what?!?

Caramel Brownies

With the New Year and my goals to lose baby weight, I really should stop indulging in these kinds of recipes, but they are ooooooohhhh SO good.  I'll start those resolutions right after I'm done with one of these chewy, decadent babies.

As you can see, someone-in-our-household-who-will-remained-unnamed could not resist and wait until they were served. :)



• 1 German chocolate cake mix (I used a plain chocolate mix and it worked great too)
• 3/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/3 cup evaporated milk
• 1 12 oz package semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Combine butter, milk, and cake mix (I recommend using an electric mixer; it will be thick and sticky).  Press 2/3 of the batter into greased 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 6 minutes.  Cool. 

• 1 bag caramels
• 1/3 cup evaporated milk

Melt caramels and milk on low heat, stirring continuously.  Drizzle caramel over the bottom layer (be sure to get the edges!).  Sprinkle chocolate chips over caramel.

Roll remaining dough into balls and then smash them flat and place them over the chocolate chips.  (Don't stress about this step  . . . it doesn't have to be perfect!)  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. 

As a possible option, you can mix the chocolate chips in with your cake batter instead of putting them on after the caramel.  That is what is pictured.  They turned out a bit more crumbly, but I liked the texture better with the chocolate chip chunks mixed in, so I think I will do it that way again.

Especially yummy served with a big dollop of vanilla ice cream or a cold glass of milk.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

I love this recipe because it calls only for ingredients that are in my pantry, and it turns out delicious every time.

I doubled this for my family when they came for my baby's blessing and it was a hit.  I got it from my wonderful friend, Emily Hamilton, whom I adore.  I hope that you enjoy it as much as our family has!

• 3 lbs chicken breasts (boneless), cut into serving size pieces. I cut each breast into fourths.
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Sprinkle garlic salt and pepper on the chicken and let soak for one hour.  (When I'm in a hurry, which is often, I soak it for 10 minutes and it turns out fine.) :)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 

Dip each chicken piece in egg and then cover with flour.  Fry lightly and briefly (about 30 seconds) in grease. Set aside.

Sauce:

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup vinegar
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 3 1/2 Tablespoons ketchup
• 1 Tablespoon soy sauce

Mix ingredients and heat in a pot, stirring occasionally. Pour over chicken in casserole dish.  Cook at 325 degrees for one hour.  (I usually only have to cook it for 30 minutes . . . it all depends on the oven). 

I like to serve it over rice, but I imagine it would be delicious served over a baked potatoes as well.

Easy & Delicious Whole Wheat Bread

I have had friends who make all their own bread. That has always seemed over-ambitious for me. Every time I have made bread, I have ended up with a very messy kitchen, a neglected to-do list and only "so-so" bread. It just didn't make sense to do that to myself on a regular basis...Until I tried this recipe. It is super easy and, with a stand mixer, only requires 10-15 minutes hands-on time. The bread is in the oven baking in less than an hour AND it tastes delicious, slices easily and thin enough to be used for sandwiches etc. I have officially made all of our bread for 4 or 5 weeks. For me that is saying a lot. :)

**Just a note on the gluten found in this recipe. It is a natural protein derived from wheat and provides elasticity, strength and added texture to the bread. It also helps retain moisture, prevent crumbling and extends the shelf life of the bread. If you do not want to use gluten flour, you may substitute whole wheat flour in its place.

4 (8x4 inch) loaves
7 c. whole wheat flour
2/3 c. gluten flour
2 1/2 T. instant yeast
5 c. steaming hot tap water (120-130 F)
2 T. salt
2/3 c. oil
2.3 c. honey or 1 c. sugar (I use honey because the reason I started making bread was to avoid having so much sugar in our bread.)
2 1/2 T. bottled lemon juice
5 c. whole wheat flour

Mix together first three ingredients with a dough hook. Add water all at once and mix for 1 minute; cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Add salt, oil, honey or sugar, and lemon juice and beat for 1 minute. Add last flour 1 cup at a time, beating between each cup. Beat for about 6-10 minutes until dough pulls away from sides of the bowl. This makes a very soft dough.

Pre-heat oven for 1 minute to lukewarm and turn off (I find my gas oven needs 2 minutes preheating to get warm enough). Turn dough onto oiled counter top; divide, shape into loaves, place in oiled bread pans. Let rise in warm oven for 10-15 minutes until dough reaches top of pan. Do not remove bread from oven; turn oven to 350 F and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from pans and cool on racks.

If you do not have a mixer with a dough hook and are kneading this by hand, gradually add last cup of flour to keep dough from sticking to counter. You will add more flour when kneading by hand than when using a mixer simply to be able to handle this moist dough. With wheat bread, always add the least amount of flour possible to keep bread moist. Knead 10 minutes before shaping dough into loaves.

My Kitchen Aid can only handle half this recipe at a time so that is how I do it.

I got this recipe from my father-in-law and it looks like the original source was Leslie Probert and the BYU Women's Conference 2003.

What's For Dinner? -January

Happy New Year!  Here's some ideas for dinners in the month of January:
Abelskivers (traditional New Year's breakfast)

Chicken Mozzarella Pasta

Meatloaf

Pork Choppese

Enchilada Casserole

Completos
Crockpot Greek Chicken

Salmon with Creamy Dill Sauce

Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Brown Sugar and Garlic Chicken

Bacon and Blue Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Whole Wheat Pancakes/ Brown Sugar broiled bacon

Pork Roast with Apple Almond Butter

Ono Burgers/ Sweet Potato Fries

New Recipes to Try:
Cream Cheese Chicken
Creamy Sunday Chicken (105)
Roast Chicken with Potatoes, Onions, and Garlic (Garlic and Sapphires)
Pantry Pick of the Month: Rotel Diced Tomatoes with Lime Juice and Cilantro/Fish Tacos

Desserts:
Homemade Oreo Cookies

Homemade Chili Sauce & Party Salsa

Ingredients:

1 8 oz can tomato sauce

2 TBSP brown sugar

2 TBSP vinegar

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp dry mustard

3 dashes Worcestershire Sauce

Directions:

Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl until well combined.

I have a hard time finding this chili sauce in stores, so I found a couple of recipes on pinterest and combined the parts that I liked to make this one. It was perfect! I use it to make Party Salsa, a sweet salsa my mom made when we were growing up.

Party Salsa

1 recipe chili sauce

1 1/2 cups of your favorite chunky salsa (I like Medium because the chili sauce is sweet.2)

half a bunch of chopped cilantro

4-5 chopped green onions

1 cup grated medium cheddar cheese

Mix all ingredients except the cheese. I don't like how the cheese gets mushy, so I just sprinkle in a little cheese in the bowl of salsa I will eat for that snack or meal right then.

This is a salsa I love to make with our New Year's Eve dinner. Love how fresh tasting and sweet it is.