Easy Caramel Apples

I just made these a few days ago, the caramel is soooo good! I didn't do the melted chocolate or cinnamon and sugar but it still looked and tasted pretty fancy...

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 cup butter

2 cups brown sugar

Dash of salt

1 cup corn syrup

Combine all of the above ingredients. Boil for about 8 to 9 minutes. Remove from heat. Add 1 t. vanilla

***This makes a lot of caramel. Boil mixture longer if you would like it thicker or shorter if you would like a runny sauce.

Prepare the apples: rinse, take out the stem, and cut bottoms off so that the apples sit flat.

Put the sticks in (I used wood skewers cut in half).

Dip the apples, you will have to spoon the caramel up and over the top. Let as much caramel drip off as possible before you place on a greased cookie sheet. Put apples in the fridge until caramel is set and cooled. Drizzle melted white chocolate or dip in pot of melted white chocolate. Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar over chocolate while still warm. Put back in fridge until chocolate is set. Easy as pie!

Danielle D.

Buckeye Cookies

3 cups creamy peanut butter

1 c. softened butter or margarine

2 lbs. confectioners sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

16 oz milk chocolate for dipping

2 tsp. crisco

First mix four ingredients until well blended. Form into small balls. Put them into the freezer to firm them up (10-15 minutes) Melt chocolate and crisco in a small bowl in microwave. Using toothpick dip the balls in the chocolate, leaving some some of the peanut butter mixture exposed.

Sausage Casserole

1 pckg. sausage, brown and crumbled

1 pkg. bacon browned and crumbled

1/2 cup onion diced, 1/4-1/2 c. red and green bell pepper

1 cup mushrooms all sauteed in butter and add to meat

1 loaf white bread, crusts removed

Spray 9x13 pan with oil. Put in layer of bread slices. Tope with layer of meat mixture. Repeat.

Liquify in blender and pour over the above layered ingredients.

6 eggs

2 1/2 cup milk

Mix together and spread over casserole:

1 1/2 cups grated cheese

1 can cream of mushroom soup

Refrigerate over night. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes to 1 hour.

Robyn H.

Rolo cookies

2 1/2 c. flour

3/4 c. cocoa

1 tsp. soda

1 c. sugar

1 c brown sugar

1 c margarine

2 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

rolos

Mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl except rolos. Once dough is mixed cool in fridge for 1/2 hr. Take out of fridge and take a rolo, roll some dough around it to make a ball. Roll the ball in sugar. Bake at 350 for 8 minutes.

Beef Stroganoff

1 lb. ground beef
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/8 cup ketchup
3/4 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. onion powder
8 oz. sour cream
2 cups egg noodles

Cook and drain ground beef. Cook noodles, set aside. Mix all other ingredients in mixing bowl. Add noodles ground beef and sauce in sauce pan. Cook and stir until mixed thoroughly and heated through.

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Here is the alternate recipe with the actual mushrooms and onions, it's also doubled:

2 lbs. beef

1/4 butter

1 small can mushrooms

1/4 c. minced onions

1/4 c. ketchup

1 1/2 tsp. garlic salt

2 cans beef broth

1 18 oz container sour cream

Melt butter in large pot and stir in mushrooms to saute. Remove mushrooms set aside. Brown meat in remaining butter. Stir in beef broth, onions, ketchup. Garlic and let simmer. Before serving add mushrooms and thicken sauce. add sour cream stir until melted.

Robyn H.

Baked Barbecue Chicken

I love barbecue chicken and wanted to find an easy way to cook it for my family without having to use the barbecue. When you bake it like this it is so moist and flavorful:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 bottle barbecue sauce, any kind you like
1 1/2 cup water


Defrost chicken in microwave. Pour barbecue sauce and water into a shallow baking dish. The smaller the better so the chicken can be completely covered with sauce. Add chicken. Cover and bake at 425 degrees for 45 minutes or until cooked through.

Serve with scalloped potatoes from the box, follow directions, and green salad.


Melissa S.

Enchilada style burritos

1 lb. ground beef
1 can refried beans
1 can of your favorite enchilada sauce
1/4 cup taco seasoning
1/2 cup picante salsa
olives
cheese
tomato
lettuce
sour cream

Brown ground beef. Drain, add refried beans, salsa, taco seasoning, and salsa. Mix and heat together in pan. Pour enchilada sauce into 9x13 pan, (save a little to put on top of burritos.). Place the mix into flour tortillas. Sprinkle shredded cheese over burritos. Pour a little more enchilada sauce on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Garnish with tomato, lettuce, olives and sour cream.

Liz H.

Sassy Chicken Enchilada Dip

16 oz. light cream cheese; softened
10 oz. diced tomatoes with green chili peppers (like Rotelle) – un-drained
1 lb. cooked chicken; shredded
1 t. garlic clove; minced
1/2 - 1 t. chipotle chili powder (depending on how spicy you want it)
1 t. cumin
1 t. dried oregano
1 t. paprika
1 t. onion powder
2 T. fresh cilantro; chopped
1 c. cheddar cheese; shredded

Mix all of the ingredients until combined. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. Serve hot or cold with tortilla chips. To heat use the microwave, crock pot, or oven (at 350 degrees for 30 minutes).

Biscuits and Gravy

1 can pillsbury biscuits. I like to use homestyle but I'm sure any flavor would work.
6 or 7 links of sausage
1 pkg. country gravy (it's white)


Just cook the biscuits according to directions. Cook the sausage up in a pan on the stove. Make the gravy. Cut the sausage into little pieces and sprinkle over biscuits, then pour gravy on top. I serve with a fruit salad. Oranges, raspberries, apples and powdered sugar.

Liz H.

Balsamic Beans with Beef

1 pound stew beef
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon minced garlic (about 6 small cloves)**
3 cans (15 oz.) canellini beans, rinsed and drained*
1 can (14 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning

1. Heat olive oil over medium high heat and brown meat. Transfer browned meat to the crock pot. 2. Add remaining ingredients and stir (remember to drain and rinse beans, but don’t drain tomatoes!). Cook on high 4 hours or on low 8 hours. Yields 4-6 servings.

Heather C.

Chicken Pot Pie

This recipe is so easy and yummy. Whenever I don't know what to make, I can whip this up and everyone in the family loves it. Especially me!!!!

1 pkg. frozen peas, carrots, and corn
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1 small onion
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper, just eyeball it
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup milk
1 can canned chicken, or 2 cups cooked chicken or turkey
1 pkg. pie crusts. In the refrigerator section, next to the rolls ect.

1. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Cook stirring constantly until mixture is bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in broth and milk. Heat to boiling. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in chicken and veggies.
2. Lay out pie crust in pie pan for the bottom. Sometimes if I only have one dough I just use it for the top and don't put anything on the bottom of the pan.
3. Pour mixture into pie pan. Cover with another crust.
   
4. Bake at 425 for 35 minutes or until golden brown.

Liz

No Bake Cookies

1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla
3 cups quick oats

Melt butter in medium saucepan. Add sugar and cocoa, mix well. Add milk and cook and stir over medium heat until boiling. Add peanut butter and stir until it melts. Remove from heat and add the oats and vanilla. Drop spoonfulls onto wax paper. These are really good warm or cold.


Liz H.

Salsa Chicken

about 4 breasts of chicken

1 cup salsa

1 packet of taco seasoning

put chicken, then taco seasoning, then salsa in crockpot. cook on low for about 6 hours or high for 3. when finished cooking, shred chicken (pull chicken apart) with two forks. when shredded in crockpot, add some grated cheddar cheese and sour cream. stir together, serve on corn tortillas or flour tortillas. suggested side is black beans and avocado, corn.

*for frozen chicken, simply add more time on crockpot. for more or less, add more or less salsa and taco seasoning. great for a sunday dinner. almost ready when you come home.

Staci V.

Chicken Parmesan

3 Boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
seasoned bread crumbs
4 slices mozzerella cheese
1 jar spaghetti sauce
parmesan cheese

Whisk together egg and milk in bowl. Pour italian seasoned bread crumbs onto wax paper in a mound. Dip the chicken into egg mixture. Dip the egg dipped chicken into the crumbs. Coat evenly on both sides. Put a small amnt of olive oil into a pan, turn heat on med. Place chicken in pan and cook both sides until coating is golden. Spread half a jar of spaghetti sauce onto bottom of 9 by 13 pan. After chicken is cooked in olive oil place in pan. Pour rest of spaghetti sauce over chicken. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Put the slices of mozzerella on and cook another 10 minutes or until chicken juices run clear. Serve with noodles. You can use the sauce from inside the pan for the noodles.

Liz

Cowboy Delight

½ lb browned hamburger w/ your favorite seasonings and onion

¼ bag of corn or 1 can of corn

½-3/4 jar of your favorite spaghetti tomato sauce (I like the one with added veggies)

¼ bag elbow macaroni

Grated cheese

While browning the hamburger; cook macaroni according to directions on package. Drain macaroni and add cooked hamburger, corn and spaghetti sauce. Add sauce to your desired thickness. Let simmer for a couple minutes until everything is warmed through. Sprinkle grated cheese on top of individual helpings. Enjoy!

Katie W.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

1 (8 ounce) package elbow macaroni
1 (8 ounce) package shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 (12 ounce) container small curd cottage cheese
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs ( I like to use the italian seasoned kind)
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil, add pasta, and cook until done; drain.
2. In 9x13 inch baking dish, stir together macaroni, shredded Cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, milk, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. In a small bowl, mix together bread crumbs and melted butter. Sprinkle topping over macaroni mixture.
3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until top is golden.

Liz

Chicken tortilla soup

In crock pot:

Shredded, cooked chicken

2 cans chicken broth

1 c salsa

1 T cumin

1/2 bunch cilantro

1 or 2 cans stewed tomatoes

Cook low 8 hours. Serve with tortilla chips, cheese, tomatoes, sour cream, and avacados.

Jenny H.

Mexican Treat

1 lb ground beef

1 onion

1/2 picante sauce

1 container sour cream

1 1/2 c grated cheese

1 box jiffy corn muffin mix

1 can ranch style beans

Bottom layer: brown the beef and onions, mix with beans and picante sauce

Middle layer: sour cream, cheese

Top layer: cornbread mixed according to box

Bake 350-375 until top is done - approx 30 minutes

Jenny H.

Special Sesame Chicken Salad

1 pkg. (16 oz.) bow tie pasta
1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 c. white wine vinegar
2/3 c. teriyaki sauce
1/3 c. sugar
1/2 t. pepper
3 cans mandarin oranges
2 cups cooked, cubed chicken
1 1/3 cup honey roasted peanuts
1 package (9oz.) fresh spinach, torn
1 package dried cranberries
6 green onions, chopped
opt. parsley, sesame seeds

Cook pasta according to directions. Drain and place in large bowl. In a small bowl combine oil, vinegar, teriyaki sauce, sugar, and pepper. Pour over pasta and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Just before serving, and remaining ingredients. 22 1-cup servings

Jenny H.

Chicken Pillows

2 cans Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

4 oz. diced mushrooms

1 Tbsp. dried chives (I used fresh green onions)

2 cups cooked chicken, cubed

Salt and pepper to taste

¼ cup butter, melted

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 cup of seasoned bread crumbs

½ cup sour cream

Mix cream cheese, chives, salt and pepper and mushrooms with a blender or mixer. (I just mixed them by hand) Add chicken, 1 can of cream of chicken soup and melted butter. Mix thoroughly. Place a Tbsp. of mixture into each roll and roll up. Sprinkle seasoned bread crumbs on top of the rolls. Place on a greased cookie sheet and let the rolls rise for 30 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees until brown or approximately 20 minutes. Mix the other can of cream of chicken soup with ½ cup sour cream and warm on stove. Pour gravy over rolls when they are done.

Jenny H.

Spinach Stuffed Manicotti

8 ounces manicotti

1 pound mozz cheese

1 pkg frozen chopped spinach, drained and squeezed dry

1 16 oz ricotta cheese

1 egg

1 t minced garlic

1 jar tomato based pasta sauce

Cook manicotti in boiling water. Prepare filling: mix half mozz. cheese, all the spinach, ricotta, egg, and garlic. Stuff mixture into cooked manicotti.

Pour 1/2 c of sauce into 9x13 pan. Place stuffed manicotti on sauce. Cover with remaining sauce and remaining half of cheese. You can cover and freeze. If you do, uncover and bake frozen at 350 for 30-35 minutes. If baking right away cook for about 25-30 minutes.

Jenny H.

Tacos

tacos

1 lb ground turkey or ground beef

cook, add one packet of taco seasoning

chop tomatoes, lettuce

shred cheese

sour cream

hard taco shells or soft tortillas

put it all together

2nd version

combine white rice and brown rice in pressure cooker (1/2 and 1/2)

when finished put in pan, mix with one can kidney beans, one can red beans (or whatever kind of beans you like)

add a little water and about 1 1/2 packets taco seasoning

chop tomatoes, lettuce

shred cheese

sour cream

hard taco shells or soft tortillas

can also add salsa

Staci

Chicken Enchiladas

10 corn tortillas
Olive Oil
1 container, canned chicken
2 cups cheese
1 can Las Palmas green enchilada sauce
cumin or fajita seasoning
1/3 cup salsa

Place chicken, seasoning, and salsa in pan, add a little water,just to moisten and season, simmer on med-low while you cook tortillas. Put a little olive oil in pan. Cook tortillas in oil, both sides. Pour enchilada sauce in pan. When tortillas are cooked fill with chicken mixture. Place in sauced pan. Sprinkle cheese over tortillas. Cook at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

Liz

Beef Stew

1 1/2 lb. stewing meat
1 pkg. frozen veggies (carrots, peas, corn)
4 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 can tomato sauce
1 can beef broth
2 tbsp worchester sauce
salt and pepper

Put meat on bottom of slow cooker. Layer potatoes on top. Pour sauces in. Add frozen veggies on top. Cover, cook on high 4 to 5 hours.


Liz

One Dish Chicken and Rice

1 can cream of mushroom soup
a couple sprinkles Liptons dry onion soup
1 1/2 cup water
3/4 cup uncooked rice
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

In 2 qt. shallow baking dish mix soup, water, onion mix, rice. Defrost chicken and place on top of mixture in pan. Cover, bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until done.


Liz

Easy Lasagna

2 Jars Spaghetti Sauce
1 container ricotta cheese
1 lb. ground beef
8 uncooked lasagna noodles
italian seasoning (1 tbs. oregano, 3 tbsp parsley)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 cups mozzerella cheese

Cook beef, drain. Add spaghetti sauce to meat. Cook noodles according to directions. Mix ricotta with 1/4 parmesan cheese, oregano, and parsley. Drain noodles. Spread 1/2 of meat mixture in ungreased 9x13 pan. Top with 4 noodles. Spread 1/2 cheese mixture over noodles. Repeat layers. Cover and bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Then 15 minutes uncovered.

Liz

Easy Taco Soup

In fry pan brown:
1/2 - 1 lb. ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
(optional: green or red pepper)
Once cooked, add to soup pot.

In large soup pot:
1 large or 2 small cans diced tomatoes
1 can corn
1 can black, kidney or chili beans (rinsed & drained)
1 small can green chiles
1/2 to 1 packet taco seasoning (season to taste)

Let simmer for 20 minutes.
Serve hot and garnish with:
Sliced olives
Sour cream
Tortilla chips
Grated cheese


Rachel

Mom's Fudge Brownies

Preheat oven to 350.
In a sauce pan melt over medium-low heat:
1 cube + 3 TBSP Butter
1 c. white sugar
6 Tbsp. cocoa powder
Heat and stir till all ingredients are combined and smooth but do not boil.
Let cool for a few minutes.
Add:
2 eggs - add one at a time stirring well after each addition.
3/4 c. flour
1 tsp. vanilla
Pour batter into greased 8x8 pan.
Bake approximately 15 minutes - till they are just set and done.
Frost with your favorite chocolate frosting.
(We prefer a sour cream chocolate frosting.)


Rachel