Recipes

Trish’s Crunch Bars

2 sticks butter
1 c light brown sugar
2 c semi sweet chocolate morsels
Saltine crackers

Preheat oven to 400. Layer saltines on a 15x12 pan.
Melt sugar and butter in a saucepan , bring to a boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
Pour mixture over saltines and put into the oven. Bake @400 for about 7 minutes.
Watch carefully as they burn quickly.  Remove from oven and sprinkle the chips on top.
When melted spread evenly over crackers. It just takes a couple of minutes.
Place pan into freezer for about an hour, Break into pieces, and enjoy.
Can be stored and eaten directly from the freezer.

Jayne’s Cream of Potato Soup

 3 Cups diced potatoes (Jayne says to hurry things along, you can use cubed frozen hash browns)
2 stalks diced celery
1 small onion diced
¼ cup water
½ tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 tsp or to taste Ann’s chicken base (can be found in the freezer section of the grocery store)
2 cups milk
4 Tbs flour
3 Tbs margarine

Combine potatoes, celery, onions, water, seasonings and chicken base in 2 qt. casserole dish 
and microwave 7-10 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Stir about half way through.  

Mix flour with ¼ cup milk until smooth. Add flour mixture, rest of the milk and the margarine 
to the potatoes and microwave on high until soup has thickened.

Makes 1 quart



Emeril’s taco casserole (as interpreted by Janet)

(serves 4--depends how hungry you are)

8-10 flour fajita wrappers
1 lb. hamburger
1 jar salsa (anything thick and chunky works well
          amount of heat is up to you)
salt, pepper, garlic to taste
1 package of shredded Mexican cheese
1 package of shredded sharp cheddar
1 bag Tostitos chips- any kind will do
 
Brown hamburger, drain fat, add salt, pepper, garlic and salsa.
Spray casserole with non-stick stuff
                    (large square Corning (12x12x2)
1 layer fajita wrappers torn to fit casserole
layer of meat mix
layer of cheese, a mix of both kinds
layer of chips
repeat layers ending with cheese
Bake 350 for 30 minutes or until bubbly.
 
 
 
Sharron’s pecan thingies (aka Pecan Kisses)

2 cups pecan halves
2 egg whites
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups brown sugar

Oven 250, preheated. Beat egg whites and vanilla until egg whites are stiff.  Mix in brown sugar and beat until sugar dissolves, then beat a while longer for good measure.Mixture will be gooey.   Stir in pecans and mix until well coated.  Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets (will take 2).  Bake for one hour.Turn off heat, but do not remove from oven for at least another hour. Enjoy.

Delicious Cocoa Brownie
Courtesy of Alton Brown ---(my favorite chef)  host of Good Eats on the food network
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Yield: 16 brownies

Soft butter, for greasing the pan
Flour, for dusting the buttered pan
4 large eggs
1 cup sugar, sifted
1 cup brown sugar, sifted
8 ounces melted butter
11/4 cups cocoa, sifted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Butter and flour an 8-inch square pan.
In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the eggs at medium speed until fluffy and light yellow. Add both sugars. Add remaining ingredients, and mix to combine.
Pour the batter into a greased and floured 8-inch square pan and bake for 45 minutes. Check for doneness with the tried-and-true toothpick method: a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan should come out clean. When it's done, remove to a rack to cool. Resist the temptation to cut into it until it's mostly cool.

Chicken with rice casserole
Recipe adapted from the USA Rice Council in Houston Texas

1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 cup chopped fresh mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 pound boneless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (10-3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup pasteurized process cheese spread
3 cups cooked rice (1 cup uncooked)
1 (10-ounce) box frozen broccoli cuts, thawed, drained
1 (8-ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Vegetable cooking spray
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup breadcrumbs or crushed croutons

Melt butter in a Dutch oven with oil over high heat; swirl pan to blend. Add chopped mushrooms. Cook and stir over high heat about 2 minutes. Add onion and chicken-breast pieces. Reduce heat to medium-high and cook until chicken is just cooked through, stirring in garlic the last minute or so.
Add undiluted mushroom soup and the cheese spread (or if using Velveeta, dice it). Stir until cheese is melted. Remove pan from heat. Stir in the cooked rice, thawed broccoli, water chestnuts, sour cream and pepper. Spoon mixture into a 2-quart baking dish sprayed with a nonstick product.
Bake at 400 degrees, uncovered, for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Top with Cheddar cheese and breadcrumbs (a bit of grated Parmesan mixed in with the crumbs is optional). Return to oven until cheese melts.

½ cup (1 stick) margarine or butter
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk (NOT evaporated milk)
1 ½ cups (6 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 &1/3 cups flaked coconut
1 ½ cups nuts

Preheat oven to 350⁰. In 13 x 9 inch baking pan. In the baking pan I mound up the graham cracker crumbs and melt the margarine in the microwave.
Sprinkle margarine over crumbs and mix well. Press firmly into bottom of pan.
(I use the bottom of the measuring cup).
Top with remaining ingredients and press down firmly
Bake 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
I usually bake for 25 minutes and then add the coconut and bake for an additional
10 minutes (so the coconut doesn’t get too brown).
You can easily double this recipe, and the serving amount just depends on how big you cut the bars.

Courtesy of the folks at Eagle Brand. Although this recipe has been around for years, they were kind enough to put it on the back of the can.

1 package (3 ounces) chicken ramen noodles
1 package broccoli slaw mix, I used just regular slaw mix as the broccoli slaw mix wasn’t available
1 cup sliced green onions. I used a little less.
2 cups broccoli florets
1 can (6 ounces) ripe olives, drained and halved
2 cups sunflower kernels
1 cup toasted slivered almonds
½ cup sugar
½ cup cider vinegar
½ cup olive or vegetable oil
1/3 cup Teriyaki sauce

Set aside the noodle seasoning packet. Crush the noodles and place in a large bowl. Add the slaw mix, onions, broccoli, olives, sunflower kernels, and almonds. In a jar with a tight fitting lid, combine the sugar, vinegar, oil Teriyaki sauce and contents of the seasoning packet. Shake well. Drizzle over salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately. I found that it was very good the next day also.

Janet Ferrell--- by way of the magazine Quick Cooking plus my additions

Turkey Recipe

 When I found this recipe I thought it was perfect for people, like me, who just are not sure how to tell when poultry is cooked thoroughly
 but not dried out.

    GIVE IT A TRY

     10-12 lb. Turkey

    1 cup melted butter

    3 cups stuffing

    2 cups uncooked popcorn salt/pepper to taste 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush Turkey well with melted butter, salt and pepper. Fill cavity with stuffing and popcorn.

   Place in baking pan with the neck end toward the back of oven.

    Listen for popping sounds.

    When the Turkey's rear end blows the oven door open and the Turkey flies across the room, it's done.

    And you thought I couldn't cook.