Hot Wing Dip AKA Crack

1 Block of Cream Cheese

2 Chicken Breasts, Cooked and Shredded

1/2 Bottle of Frank's Hot Sauce

1/2 Bottle of Bleu Cheese Dressing

12 oz Mozzarella Cheese

Soften the cream cheese. Mix all of the ingredients except the mozzarella cheese together in a bowl until blended. Spread the mixture into a baking dish. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

I like to also blend in bleu cheese crumbles, but I really love bleu cheese.

Spicy Enchiladas

These enchiladas are a little bit of work, but oh so good.  This makes a lot.  You could half it.  Instead I make the full recipe and freeze half in a disposable foil baking dish.  It makes for an easy, yummy, ready made meal in the future.

The recipe comes from food network.  It originally calls for corn tortillas, I prefer flour.

Chicken enchiladas

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breast

Salt and pepper

2 teaspoons cumin powder

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon Mexican Spice Blend

1 red onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup frozen corn, thawed

3-5 canned whole green chilies, seeded and coarsely chopped

2-4canned chipotle chilies, seeded and minced (the more you use the spicier it gets & not cans... canned, so 2 chilies from a can, same with the green chilies)

1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes drained

1/2 teaspoon all-purpose flour

16 flour tortillas

1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce, canned

1 cup shredded Cheddar and Jack cheeses

Garnish: chopped cilantro leaves, chopped scallions, sour cream, chopped tomatoes

Coat large sauté pan with oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Brown chicken over medium heat, allow 7 minutes each side or until no longer pink. Sprinkle chicken with cumin, garlic powder and Mexican spices before turning. Remove chicken to a platter, allow to cool.

Sauté onion and garlic in chicken drippings until tender. Add corn and chilies. Stir well to combine. Add canned tomatoes, sauté 1 minute.

Pull chicken breasts apart by hand into shredded strips. Add shredded chicken to sauté pan, combine with vegetables. Dust the mixture with flour to help set.

Coat the bottom of 2,13 by 9-inch pans (I use one glass and 1 foil pan to freeze) with a ladle of enchilada sauce. Using a large shallow bowl, dip each tortilla in enchilada sauce to lightly coat. Spoon 1/4 cup chicken mixture in each tortilla. Fold over filling, place 8 enchiladas in each pan with seam side down. Top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.

Bake for 15 minutes in a preheated 350 degree F oven until cheese melts. Garnish with cilantro, scallion, sour cream and chopped tomatoes before serving. Serve with Spanish rice and beans.

Black Beans

I no longer can just serve black beans straight from a can. Not when I now know how good they can be.  These can be made as a side.  Or serve them over rice as a meal.  The recipe come from a former co-worker, Amanda. 

Quick and easy black beans

¼-½ cup olive oil

2 clove garlic

Sm. Red onion

1 med. Green bell pepper or ½ green, ½ red

Cook together in saucepan until cooked

Add 3 cans black beans w/ liquid

1 cup water to thin

1 tsp. ground cumin

Few dashes of Tabasco sauce

1 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1 Tbsp sugar

3 bay leaves

3 whole cloves

Cook 1-2 hours or longer beans just get softer. Then serve with rice.

Thin mint ice cream mud pie

Wow...

Girl scout thin mints as a delectable frozen treat. Dreamy.
• 1.5 qt Dreyer's Girl Scout limited edition Thin Mint ice cream softened
• 2 cups Frozen Whipped Topping, thawed (+ extra for serving)
• 2 cups Creme-filled Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, crushed
• 1/3 cup Butter, melted
• 1 container smucker's microwave toppings Hot Fudge (15.5 oz)
• Peppermint Candies or Candy Canes, crushed


Crush oreo's (I use a food processor).  Mix 2 cups of the crushed oreo's with the butter.  Press into the bottom of a 9' springform pan.


Mix ice-cream and 2 cups whipped topping.  Place ice cream mixture on top of oreo crust.  Put in freezer for 3 hours.  


After ice cream has set, pour the fudge on top.  Spread with a spoon or spatula evenly over the top.  Add crushed mint candies (I used starlight mints).  Freeze for 8 hours.


Serve with a dollop of whipped cream.

Oh my!

He gave up on the fork...

He preferred to shovel it in with his hands.

Weight Watchers Spiced Pork Chops with Pineapple Salsa

1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
8 dried apricots, chopped
2 TBS finely chopped red onion
1/2 to one jalapeno pepper ( seeded & finely chopped)
1/4 tsp grated lime rind
2 tbs fresh lime juice
2 TBS chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
4 oz boneless center-cut loin pork chips-trimmed
cooking spray

1. Combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl. Cover and chill for 30 min.
2. While salsa chills, combine salt and the next 3 ingredients. Sprinkle
both sides of pork with salt mixture-let stand 10 minutes.
3. Prepare grill.
4. Place pork on grill rack coated with cooking spray;cover and grill 6 to 7 minutes
on each side or until pork is no longer pink. Serve with Salsa.
4 servings... 6 Weight Watcher Points for one serving.
This is very yummy!

Tomatillo Dressing - Cafe Rio- ish

1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch dry Dressing
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup mayo ( I used low cal may0- and it is still very yummy!)
1-2 chopped tomatillos
1/2 clove garlic minced
1/3 to 1/2 bunch cilantro chopped
1/2 tsp. lime juice
1/2 to one small jalapeno- seeds removed! (or too hot)

I just put it all into my Cuisinart. VERY GOOD!!!

Recipe from Jody

Rice- Cafe Rio-ish

white rice
chicken broth
chopped cilantro
chopped white onion
lime juice

Experiment on the portions. Cook the rice in chicken broth instead of water, along with other ingredients.

Recipe from Mandy

Pulled Pork- Cafe Rio-ish

This is SOOOO yummy!
3-4 lbs pork loin
1 cup brown sugar
1 bottle red taco sauce
1 TBS. Cumin
1 can coke

Cook pork on low in crock pot w water covering half of the pork. Cook for 6 hours or until tender
enough to shred. Empty the water and juices. Pull the pork.. Three hours before serving, ad coke, taco sauce, brown sugar and cumin. Continue to cook for approx. 3 hours.
Use for salads, burritos, quesadillas etc.

I received this recipe from Mandy.

Fish Tacos with Honey-Cumin Cilantro Slaw and Chipotie Mayo

1 lb tilapia fillets, cut into chunks
1/2 cup fresh lime juice

1/3 cup fresh lime juice
2 TBS honey
1 TBS vegetable oil
1 t. ground cumin

1/2 cup mayo
2 Chipotie chilies in adobo sauce ( I go very easy on this...SUPER HOT!)
1 TBS. adobo sauce-from Chipotie chilie peppers ( again- easy does it)
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. cayenne pepper

1/3 cup all purpose flour
2 eggs lightly beaten
2 cups panko crumbs ( yes, you can find this in the grocery store)
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 cup vegetable oil for frying

2 cups 3 color coleslaw blend
1 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
1 ( 7 to 9 inch) tortillas

Directions
1. Place th tilapia chunks in a flat dish and pour 1/2 cup lime juice ove the fish. Cover, and refrigerate at least 4 hours.
2. Meanwhile, make the honey -cumin sauce by whisking together 1/3 cup lime juice, honey, vegetable oil and ground cuminin a small bowl. Set aside until needed.
3. To make the chipotie mayo dressing- place the mayo, chilies, adobo sauce 1/4 teaspoon salt and cayenne pepper together in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Cover, and refrigerate until needed.
4. To bread the fish, place the flour, eggs, and panko crumbs int three separate shallow dishes.
Season the fish, place the flour, eggs and panko crumbs in three separate shallow dishes. Season the fish with the salt and pepper to taste. Dip the fish pieces first in the panko crumbs, patting the pieces to help the breadcrumbs hold. Set the fish aside on a plate.
5. To cook the breaded fish, pour 1 cup vegetable oil into a skillet to 1/4 inch deep. Heat the oil
to 365 degrees F over medium heat. Cook the fish, turning until all sides are golden brown, and flesh is easily flaked with a fork. Drain on paper towels. Brush the fish with the honey-cumin sauce.
6. Mix the coleslaw and ciliantro together in a bowl. Reserve 1/4 cup of the chipote mayo dressing, and pour the remaining dressing over the coleslaw mixture. Toss to coat evenly wiht the dressing.
7. Place the tortillas on a flat surface, and spread each with 1 tablespoon reserved chipotie mayo dressing. Divide fish between tortillas. Top with the cilantro coleslaw.

This recipe has a lot of steps...but well worth it if you have the time. This is a big hit with our family. Found this recipe on line. allrecipes.com Polly

Marinated Mushroom Salad

1 head of lettuce (red, green and or romaine)
1 small bag spinach
1 pint cottage cheese
1 cup mozzarella cheese ( I added more cheese)
1/2 red onion sliced
1/2 cup crumbled bacon ( I fried about a pound of bacon... making it much more fattening!)

Dressing:
1 cup oil
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
1/2 Tbsp. minced onions
1 tsp salt
2 cups sliced mushrooms

Mix dressing together and add mushrooms to marinate in fridge for at least 2 hours.
Layer the salad just before serving in the order shown above, adding marinated mushrooms and dressing last.
Recipe from : Cami Bingham

Sauerkraut Soup

This is a variation of Rachael Ray's Sweet 'n Saur Cabbage Soup. I make it whenever Marc is craving Dave's sauerkraut soup. I'm not usually a fan of sauerkraut unless it is served with some good wurst and mustard but this really doesn't have a strong kraut flavor.

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 polska kielbasa sausage, casing removed and chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 savoy or regular green cabbage, cored, quartered and sliced
1/4 onion, grated (peel, halve and freeze before shredding to avoid tears)
1 cup shredded carrots
2 cups frozen shredded hashbrowns
Salt and Pepper
1 bay leaf
2 cups apple cider or juice (the murky kind, not the clear kind)
1/4 cup honey
One 14 oz. can white beans, drained (optional)
1 pound sauerkraut, rinsed and drained
1 quart chicken stock
1/2 tbsp dried dill
Sour cream for serving

In a soup pot over medium high heat, brown the meat in the oil, add the vegetables, saute for a few minutes and season with salt and pepper. Add the rest of the ingredients, cover and bring to a boil. Cook until everything is tender. Serve with sour cream on top.

Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread

Recipe from Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network

3 cups flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups milk
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter, melted, plus extra to grease pan
8 ounces extra-sharp cheddar, grated, save some to garnish
1/3 cup chopped scallions, plus extra to garnish
3 tablespoons seeded and minced fresh jalapeño pepper

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. In separate bowl, combine milk, eggs, and butter. Using a wooden spoon stir the wet ingredients into the dry until most of the lumps are dissolved. Don't overmix! Mix in most of the grated cheddar, most of the scallions, and all of the jalapeños, and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 and grease 9x13 pan.

Pour batter into pan, smooth the top, and sprinkle with the remaining cheddar and scallions. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Aunt Arta's Mint Brownies

This recipe is from my great great aunt Arta Hale. We McIntosh folk make it a lot.

BROWNIES
3 squares unsweetened baking chocolate
1 cup butter or margarine
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup nuts (optional)

FROSTING
4 tablespoons butter, softened
2 tablespoons canned (evaporated) milk
2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1-3 drops green food coloring

GLAZE
1 1/2 squares unsweetened baking chocolate
1 1/2 tablespoons butter

Melt chocolate and butter together and allow mixture to cool. Add eggs, sugar, extract, flour, and salt. Mix until combined. Add nuts and fold in. Pour into a greased and floured 9x13 pan (if using larger sheet pan you may need to increase the frosting recipe). Bake at 350 for 25 to 35 minutes. Cool before frosting.

Mix frosting ingredients together. Tint green. Spread over brownies. When frosting is set, melt chocolate and butter together, allow to cool slightly. Pour glaze over top of green frosting.

Warm Italiano Spread

Prep time 5 minutes. Total 15 minutes.
12 servings

what you need:
1 pkg. ( 80z.) Neufchatel Cream Cheese
1/4 cup pesto ( I used the homemade recipe)
1 plum tomato, chopped
1/4 finely shredded five cheese blend
Triscut crackers or whatever chips you like.

Heat grill to medium heat. Place unwrapped Neufchatel Cream Cheese
on 8 inch square sheet of heavy- duty foil; top with pesto, tomatoes and shredded
cheese.
Place foil on grill; cover with lid. Grill 8 to 10 min. or until shredded cheese is melted and cream
cheese is softened, but still holding it's shape.
Transfer foil to platter. Serve with crackers or chips. Sooo delish!
You can prepare this in the oven @ 375 for 12 to 14 min.

Recipe found in Food and Family Magazine.

Homemade Pesto

This is easy to make, freezes well and adds a kick to almost any savory dish.

2 cups basil leaves

2 cloves garlic

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/3 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

salt and pepper needed

Using a food processor, finely chop the basil and garlic. Add the parmesan and pine

nuts and pulse into a coarse paste. With the machine on, slowly add the olive oil until

incorporated. Season with salt and pepper.

( Can be refigerated in an airtight container for up to one week.)

So stinkin' YUMMY!!!!

Recipe from Rachel Ray

I Scream! You Scream! We all Scream for Pudding?

On Saturday I went to Ruth's Diner with some friends and sampled their absolutely fabulous chocolate pudding.  As a direct result of this I have pretty much been craving chocolate pudding since.  I used this recipe from the lovely Barefoot Contessa off of the food network and loved it.  It's not quite as good as Ruth's because I have to make it myself, but it will do.  

Ingredients

• 6 extra-large egg yolks
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons very good cocoa powder
• Pinch salt
• 2 cups milk
• 1-ounce very good semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions

Beat the egg yolks and sugar until light yellow and thick in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on medium-high speed. On low speed, add the cornstarch, cocoa powder, and salt. Bring the milk to a boil in a medium saucepan and, with the mixer on low, slowly pour the hot milk into the chocolate mixture. Combine well, then pour the mixture back into the pan.

Cook the mixture over low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon, until thickened. If the mixture begins to curdle, remove it from the heat and beat it vigorously with a wire whisk. Remove the pan from the heat, add the chocolate, butter, vanilla, and heavy cream, and mix until the chocolate and butter are melted.

Pour into serving bowls. Place plastic wrap directly on the top of the pudding, and chill thoroughly.

Zesty Chicken Enchiladas

This is a great recipe ... already got an A+ from Dallin, Dave, Grace and Garrett.

hands on time: 35 min.
total time: 55 min.
serves 4

If you can't find Tamatillos ( Walmart lady told me they have them in other Walmart areas..but not Herriman yet.) But you can use a 16-0z bottle of green chili salsa with one cup of cream.

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 pound tomatillos ( papery skins removed), chopped
1 poblano pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
salt and pepper
1 cup heavy cream
1 Two to 2 and one half pound rotisserie chicken, meat shredded
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/4 cup grated Monterey Jack Cheese ( I add a bit more)
8-6 inch corn tortillas
Pico de Gallo sauce, or salsa of your choice

* Heat oven to 400 F. Heat the oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add the tomatillos, onion, poplano, garlic, cumin and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 10-12 minutes. Transfer to a food processor, add the cream and puree.\

* In a large bowl, combine the chicken, tomatoes, 1 cup of the cheese, 1/2 cup to the tomatillo sauce and 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper.

*Warm the tortillas. Spread one cup of the tomatillo sauce in a 9x13 inch baking dish. I cover the tortilla on both sides with the sauce, add the chicken mixture, roll the tortilla and place in pan seam side down.

* Top the remaining sauce and add cheese. Bake until beginning to brown, 10 to 15 minutes.
We served this with limes, guacamole, sour cream and Pico de Gallo.

Mild but YUMMY... I found this in Real Simple Magazine.

Dry Rub

I am so excited for spring!!!! This weather makes me all sorts of happy! We dusted off the grill and fired it up yesterday. Heaven. Here is a simple dry rub recipe. I've used it multiple times, on several types of meat (I even sprinkled them on sliced potatoes before tossing them on the grill...so good), and in a host of different ways. The nice thing is that I always have all of these spices handy, so it doesn't require a trip to the store. It's a tad on the spicy side. A dollop of sour cream on top or the side cools it down. I don't know where I got the original recipe. Sorry, I can't pass on the credit.

Dry rub
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground thyme
1/8 teaspoon finely ground black pepper

Raspberry Coffee Cake

Sooo... to add to Grace's last entry I thought I'd add our Christmas morning breakfast tradition. Love Love Love this recipe! I'm thinking I should make it this week. Yum. Sorry I don't have a pic. I'll try to remember to snap pictures next time I make something worth posting. FYI I frequently double the raspberry filling. It's nice to add a little extra on top. And the leftovers spread great onto warm rolls or biscuits.


Raspberry Coffee Cake

Raspberry Filling
3 ½ Cups unsweetened raspberries
1 Cup water
2T lemon juice
1 ¼ Cups sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch

Batter
3 Cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup cold butter
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup- (8 oz) sour cream
1 tsp vanilla

Topping
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
¼ cup butter, softened
½ cup nuts, pecans or walnuts

Glaze
½ cup powdered sugar
2 T milk
½ tsp vanilla

Make raspberry filling: In a large sauce pan cook raspberries and water over med heat for 5 minutes. Add lemon juice, combine sugar and cornstarch stir this into fruit mixture, bring to a boil, cook and stir for 2 min, or until thickened. Cool.

In large bowl combine the flour sugar, baking powder and baking soda. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, stir in eggs, sour cream and vanilla (batter will be stiff) Spread half into a 9 x 13 baking dish. (drop by spoonfuls and spread the best you can, try to cover the bottom of the pan… the batter will expand in oven). Spread raspberry filling over batter, spoon remaining batter over filling. Combine topping ingredients sprinkle over top. Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes. Drizzle glaze over warm cake.
Enjoy!

Doughnuts

My family did not have a lot of traditions growing up, but the one we did have was to make homemade doughnuts every Christmas morning.  Since this directly conflicts with Garrett's favorite family tradition we don't do it, but I still nurse a soft spot for these tasty treats.  Thank you businessweek.com for the picture!

Doughnuts

1 cup water
2 tsp yeast
1/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 tsp salt
pinch of mace (optional - you can't really taste it anyway)
1/4 cup dry milk
1 egg
2-3 cups bread flour (i always end up using 3 cups)

1. Dissolve yeast in water. In mixer add shortening, salt, sugar, mace, dry milk, and egg. 
2. Add yeast water and the flour on top of water.
3. Use hook attachment and mix on low for 3 minutes until it is completely combined.
4. On medium speed mix for about 8 minutes or until a window pane is achieved.
5. Place in a greased bowl for about an hour or until double.
6. Roll out to 1 inch thickness and cut with round cookie cutter and cut out hole.
7. Lay cut doughnuts on parchment squares and cover with plastic wrap and let rise until double.
8. In 350 degree oil drop doughnuts in one at a time. Cook about 30 seconds to a minute on each side or until light golden brown.
9. Place on paper towels or drip rack. Roll in cinnamon sugar while still hot or let cool and frost. 

These take a bit of time but are well worth it for an occasional treat!