Snickerdoodle Muffins

Credit: fortheloveofcooking.blogspot.com

3/4 cup of sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 cup of flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 cup of vegetable oil
3/4 cup of milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, beat together the sugar and egg until creamy. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Pour dry mixture into the egg mixture and stir to combine. Add vegetable oil, milk, and vanilla, stirring until just combined.

Fill muffin tin (I got 11 muffins).  Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes clean, about 15-18 minutes. Let cool for 3-5 minutes, then remove muffins from tin. In a small bowl, combine 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 3 tablespoons of sugar. While the muffins are still warm, roll each one in the mixture, coating all sides with the cinnamon sugar.


***
Yum!  These are called Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins, but I think we will re-name these "Snickerdoodle Muffins"!!  They were quick and easy to make, and I know we will be eating a lot of these from now on!  (And my oven didn't ruin them, shocking!!)

Vegetable White Bean Orzo Soup

Vegetable, White Bean, and Orzo Soup:


Recipe from For the Love of Cooking.net

1-2 tsp of olive oil
1/2 sweet yellow onion, diced
3 carrots, diced
3 stalks of celery, diced
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves of garlic, minced
6 cups of chicken broth
1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained
1 15 oz can of cannellini beans, drained
Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
1 cup orzo pasta
1 cup of zucchini, diced
1 cup of yellow squash, diced
2 cups of baby spinach

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, dried basil, and oregano. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5-6 minutes; add the minced garlic and cook for one more minute, stirring constantly. Add the broth, tomatoes, beans, and sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste then cover with a lid and cook for 30-40 minutes, or until the veggies are tender. Add orzo and cook for 8 minutes then add the zucchini, yellow squash, and spinach. Taste and re-season if needed. Cook for 2 minutes then ladle into bowls.
 
***
Yum!  This was excellent!!  Loaded with healthy veggies and beans.  The orzo made it nice and hearty too.  We ate it with flaky buttermilk biscuits for a great Sunday evening meal.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Soup:

8 cups chicken broth
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 onion diced
1-2 cloves of garlic diced finely
1 1/2 cups of carrots diced
3 stalks of celery diced
2 tsp good chicken bouillon
1 bay leaf
Sea Salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp dried thyme or basil
1 1/2 cup cooked chicken diced

Sauté onions in olive oil until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add garlic & cook for 30 seconds. Add broth & the remainder of ingredients. Cook over medium low heat for 1-2 hours.

Noodles:
2 cups of flour
3/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/4 to 1/3 cup of milk

In mixing bowl combine flour, salt, egg and milk. Mix until you produce a slightly sticky ball of dough. Flour the counter and roll out dough to 1/8 inch thickness. You want them very thin because they thicken when cooked. Cut noodles (I use a pizza cutter) to desired size and place on wax paper. Let the noodles dry out on the counter for at least 1 hour before adding them to the soup.

About 30 minutes before serving soup, drop noodles in and cook. Enjoy.


Recipe from: fortheloveofcooking.blogspot.com

***
WOW, this soup was sooo good!  I was nervous about making my own noodles, but they were SO easy.  Next time I will add even more veggies. 

Ramen Chicken Cabbage Salad

Dressing:
2 TB sugar
3 TB white wine vinegar
1/2 cup oil
s&p
Seasoning packet from chicken top ramen

Combine dressing and set aside.

1 bag cole slaw mix
1 cup diced, cooked chicken
1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds
Ramen noodle packet, noodles smashed
Green onions

Combine all ingredients, cover with dressing.  YUM!  I make this weekly and just snack on it.  It goes fast around here!

Sloppy Joes

1 lb hamburger
1 small onion, minced
1/2 green pepper, minced
2-3 tsp garlic, minced

Saute together until hamburger is browned.  Add seasoned salt to taste.

Pour into a small crockpot and add:
3/4 c ketchup
1 tsp mustard
3 TB brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp red wine vinegar
3/4 tsp worchestershire sauce
3 TB tomato paste
1/2 cup water, more or less to desired consistency
Black pepper to taste

Combine well and cook on low for 3-4 hours.  Serve on whole wheat buns with cheddar.

You can also make this on the stove, just simmer for about 30 minutes.
(Recipe from ourbestbites.com)

***
Wow, I'm never making sloppy joes from a packet again!  This was SO easy, and I thought it tasted much better!

Alfredo Sauce

2 C low-fat milk
1/3 C (3 oz) low fat cream cheese
2 T flour
1 t salt
1 T butter
3 garlic cloves
1 C grated Parmesan cheese

Combine the milk, cream cheese, flour and salt in a blender and process until smooth and set aside.

In a nonstick sauce pan, melt butter and add garlic. Saute the garlic for about 30 seconds. Add the milk mixture to the pan. Stir constantly for about 3-4 minutes or until it just comes to a simmer. Keep stirring and let it cook for a few minutes more. It should be much thicker now.

When it's nice and thickened, remove the pan from the heat. Add the cheese, stir it up and cover immediately. Let stand for atleast 10 minutes before using. Sauce will continue to thicken upon standing.

If you have leftovers in the fridge, the sauce will thicken almost into a solid. Just re-heat and add a little milk and it will be back to normal again.

***

Yum. That's about all I can say. This was simple, delicious and my older children devoured it. You could use this as a pasta sauce, pizza sauce, dipping sauce, or mixed with pesto or marinara sauce for a creamy sauce. Enjoy! (credit ourbestbites.com)

Asian Noodle Salad

Recipe from HERE.

Dressing:

1/2 cup of seasoned rice vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sesame oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp sugar

Combine all ingredients thoroughly. Let sit for at least 1 hour to let the flavors combine.

Salad:

1 handful of cilantro leaves, chopped
1 handful of basil leaves, chopped
2 green onions, diced finely
1/2 red bell pepper, julienned
1/2 yellow bell pepper, julienned
1 cup of shredded carrots
1/2 cup of toasted peanuts
1/2 lb spaghetti noodles, cooked per instructions

Prepare all the vegetables, set aside. Once the spaghetti has cooked per instructions, rinse with cold water and drain. Once the noodles are cool, add the vegetables and peanuts. Mix the dressing again thoroughly then add to the noodles and vegetables. Stir until well combined and serve. Enjoy.


***
Wow, this salad is so good!  I made a big batch and will be snacking on it nonstop!  Next time I will double the veggies and try whole wheat pasta.  Might try cucumber and broccoli florets in there as well.  I omit the cilantro, personal preference.  Be sure to check out the link I posted at the top, the recipe author posts amazing photographs!  Her blog is my new favorite, so be sure to go take a look!  I'll definitely be trying a lot more of her recipes and adding them on here.

Crockpot Italian Chicken

1 stick butter (I usually use a tad less)
1 pkg Good Seasons Italian seasoning (find in the salad dressing aisle)
4-5 chicken breasts
8 oz cream cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup

Melt butter in a crockpot, mix in Italian seasoning and chicken.  Cook on low 4-6 hours.  Shred or cube chicken and return to crockpot.  Melt in the cream cheese and soup until smooth.  Serve over rice or egg noodles.

***
This is one of those tasty dinners that I make sure I serve with several sides of vegetables to make up for how heavy/fattening it is!  It is SO good though!  I usually serve it with egg noodles since we eat a lot of rice already. 

Last Minute Lasagna

1 16-oz bag frozen large cheese ravioli
1/2 of a 24-oz jar pasta sauce
1/2 10-oz box frozen spinach, thawed & squeezed
1/2 8-oz bag shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Heat oven to 350.  Spoon 1/3 of the pasta sauce into a 9x9 dish.  Place half of the ravioli on top in a single layer.  Sprinkle with spinach and half of the mozzarella.  Layer on remaining ravioli and top with remaining sauce and both cheeses.  Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes.  Uncover and bake until bubbling.  Serves 4.

***
We had a parent meeting today at Cameron's school, and one of the mom's brought this recipe to share, along with the actual dish she made as an "after-meeting snack".  It was SO good, and Allie liked it so much that I only got a few bites!!  It only serves 4, so you could also double it and use a 9x13 pan.  The mom said you can throw beef or sausage into it too, but I thought it tasted excellent just like this.  Yum!!

Enchiladas

2 T oil
2 T flour
1 tsp red chili powder
dash oregano
dash garlic powder

Blend above ingredients well, stir in 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce and 2 cans of water. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened.

Brown 1 lb ground beef with an onion. Add 1 can refried beans and salsa (about 1/2 cup, enough to make it saucy!).

Soften corn tortillas with damp paper towels in microwave. Can put Crisco in between.

Put meat/bean sauce in tortilla, top with shredded cheese, roll it up and put it in a 9x13 pan.

Pour enchilada sauce on top and top with cheese.

Cover with tin foil and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  If desired, uncover for last 5-minutes for a crispy top. 

Can make ahead of time and put in fridge, and bake for 45 minutes.
***

This is the enchilada recipe our mom made for us when we were growing up. The amounts were never an exact science--this is how she passed it on to me. Enjoy!!