Category Archives: Recipes &Cooking

Campbell’s Country Turkey Casserole – Great for Leftover Turkey

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This is a great way to put leftover turkey to great use!

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 can Campbell’s Cream of Celery Soup (I use 98% Fat Free)
  • 1 can Campbell’s Cream of Potato Soup
  • 1 cup milk (I use 1 %)
  • 1/4 teaspoon thyme, crushed
  • 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
  • 4 cups cooked vegetables (I would use carrots, peas or green beans, etc.)
  • 2 cups turkey (or chicken if you don’t have turkey)
  • 4 cups prepared seasoned stuffing

Mix soups, milk, thyme, pepper, vegetables and turkey in 3-quart casserole dish.  Top with stuffing.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes or until hot.

Shortcut: Marshmallow Cupcake Frosting

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Easy Marshmallow Frosting!  Sometimes things get so crazy and hectic that we need something quick and easy in the kitchen that won’t take much time.  Especially with the holidays coming up, many will be on a time crunch.  Here’s an idea for frosting cupcakes that takes only a minute:

  • A minute before taking cupcakes out of the oven, put a large marshmallow on top of each cupcake.
  • Leave in oven one minute.  Marshmallows will melt into delicious frosting!

“How to Feed Your Family for Less”

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Pat, my friend over at Garden of Praise, has some great ideas on How to Feed Your Family for Less.  She has ideas on how to save money as well as recipes.  With the high cost of gasoline the past few months eating away at savings and now Christmas just around the corner, a lot of people are on a tight budget.  Every little bit we can save helps!

Four Foods On Friday 54

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Val from Fun, Crafts and Recipes hosts Four Foods on Friday.  Since election day was this week, Val went with a red, white and blue theme.   She said that the choice of what we share a recipe for represents a vote.  I’m curious to see how that works!

#1. Name a food you like that uses a red sauce or anything red in it.

Enchiladas, Lasagna, Spaghetti, Pizza
#2. Name a food you like with whipped cream in it or on it.

Strawberry Short Cake, pie, banana split, hot chocolate (lol-I just realized the question said “food”)

#3. Name a food you like with blueberry in it.

Cereal with a handful of blueberries on top, blueberry muffins, blueberry yogurt with added blueberries
#4. Share a recipe for pasta or dessert or a beverage.

Here’s an easy recipe for “Cake Mix Cookies“

Cake Mix Cookies

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“Homemade” cookies on the run! If you need cookies in a hurry and you have a cake mix (any flavor), eggs, oil, and vanilla on hand then you can make a batch of cookies in less than 30 minutes if you use the same cookie sheet twice. If you use two cookie sheets then you can make a batch in less than 20 minutes.
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Mix the following ingredients:
  • 1 box of dry cake mix – any flavor *
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-11 minutes.  Now how easy is that!
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* My favorite is chocolate fudge with added dark chocolate chips which remind me of the cookies in the mall.  Also, butter pecan is really good with added pecans.  Cherry is good, too.  In fact, I haven’t tasted a flavor I didn’t like.  🙂

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Now, if you have some extra time and would like to make homemade Hershey’s Cocoa Fudge Frosting to frost the chocolate cookies, then I highly recommend it. Reminds me of what my mother used to make when I was growing up. So good!

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Hershey’s Cocoa Fudge Frosting:

* 1/4 cup butter
* 1/4 cup Hershey’s Cocoa
* 1  3/4 cup confectioner’s ….sugar (or 1 cup sugar *)
* 1/4 cup milk
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Melt butter over low heat.  Add cocoa and salt ( * if you use regular sugar then add that now).  Heat, stirring constantly until mixture begins to boil.  Let the mixture boil gently for one minute.  Remove from heat.  Add confectioner’s sugar alternately with milk and blend in vanilla.  Let cool a little bit and then frost cookies while frosting is warm.

Four Foods On Friday 53

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Here are this week’s four questions from Fun, Crafts and Recipes.

#1. What kind of pretzels are your favorite?

Hmmm…probably honey mustard.
#2. What’s your favorite way to eat pancakes?

With butter and maple syrup!  We rarely have pancakes anymore, so it’s a treat when we do have them.
#3. Do you make garlic bread from scratch or buy frozen?

I do both.
#4. Share a recipe that calls for mozzarella cheese.

Meatless 4-Cheese Lasagna

Four Foods On Friday 52

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Here are this week’s four questions from Fun, Crafts, and Recipes:

#1. Name something you use cream cheese in/on.

I rarely use cream cheese anymore, but this is my favorite recipe that contains cream cheese:

Sopapilla Cheesecake
#2. Do you use yogurt in any recipes?

If a recipe calls for sour cream and I have plain yogurt on hand, then I will definitely use yogurt.
#3. Macaroni salad. What do you like/put in yours?

I don’t make macaroni salad.  However, one time I was asked to make and bring some somewhere, so I bought a boxed mixed and made it.  Turned out good!
#4. Share a recipe that you use sour cream in.

I don’t use sour cream much.  Here is a recipe I make that has optional sour cream:

Green Chili Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Four Foods On Friday 51

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FIRST, I WANT TO SHARE SOME EXCITING NEWS WITH Y’ALL.   OUR DAUGHTER IS EXPECTING ANOTHER BABY IN APRIL.    🙂  BABY J IS GOING TO BE A BIG BROTHER.    HE WILL BE 20 MONTHS OLD WHEN THE BABY IS BORN, AND THAT WILL MAKE TWO GRANDBABIES FOR US!

#1. Share a cupcake, muffin or cookie recipe.

I don’t bake much anymore.  I’m collecting healthy muffin recipes, but I haven’t tried them yet so I’ll wait to post any of those.   One of my friend’s favorite cookie recipes came to mind, so here it is: Company’s Coming Cookies
#2. Cupcakes, muffins and cookies require something to drink. What do you drink with them?

When I was young, I used to drink milk with them.  When I started drinking coffee, then it was either milk or coffee.  Now I don’t drink either, so I really don’t drink anything with them.  I might have tea later.
#3. Which do you prefer, mini muffins and cupcakes or full sized ones?

It’s the taste that counts.  I like both.
#4. What type of muffin or cupcake pan do you use?  Silicone, disposable, etc.

I use a regular muffin pan.  Sometimes I will use paper liners, but I prefer not using the liners because I like the crust on the muffins or cupcakes.

Company’s Coming Cookies

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These are the favorite cookies of a friend of mine:

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 cup butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 3 cups oats
  • 1 cup pecans

Blend together the sugar, brown sugar, and butter.  Add the eggs and vanilla.  Stir in the flour, soda, cream of tartar, oats, and pecans.  Bake at 375 degrees on grased cookie sheets for 10 minutes.

Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Casserole

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INGREDIENTS:

  • 10-12 corn tortillas – cut into fourths
  • 8 ounce package shredded sharp cheddar cheese
  • 10 ounce can green chili sauce (Hatch Medium is the best)
  • 10 ounce can cream of chicken soup (I use 98% fat free)
  • 4 ounce can diced green chiles
  • Cooked or canned chicken (If you’re using canned, use 1 large can chicken breast)
  • 1 cup chopped onion, sauteed for 5 minutes in olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic (or garlic powder)
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Mix the green chili sauce, soup, diced green chiles, chicken, onions, garlic, salt & pepper together.

Layer the following:

  1. Corn tortillas
  2. Chicken & soup mixture
  3. Shredded cheese – half of it

Add another layer of the above three.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

(You can put this together the day before you need it and then bake right before eating.   This recipe can be doubled if you need an extra-large casserole.)

Four Foods On Friday 50

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I WANT TO SAY “THANK YOU” TO VAL FROM FUN, CRAFTS AND RECIPES FOR HOSTING FOUR FOODS ON FRIDAYS FOR THE PAST 50 WEEKS!!  IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO JOIN THE FUN, JUST GO TO HER SITE.

#1. Pasta. How do you tell when it’s done? Do you cook on medium or high?

I time the pasta and usually cook it on medium high.  If I’m cooking Barilla Plus Pasta, I cook it a few minutes longer so it will be softer.
#2. Deep frying. What kind of oil do you use?

I don’t deep fry.  For cooking, I use extra virgin olive oil.
#3. Grilling. Do you grill on foil or directly on the grill?

We haven’t grilled in ages, but we used to grill directly on the grill.
#4. Share a recipe that involves cooking something two different ways.Example, for lasagna you might fry the meat and bake the whole dish.

Sometimes when I make Green Chili Chicken Enchilada Casserole (the regular version), I cook the chicken on the stove and then put together the casserole and bake it in the oven.  I’m out of time so I’ll have to post the recipe later.  🙂

Leftover Fajita Soup – Make Soup With Leftover Fajitas

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Sometimes I will make soup from leftover chicken fajitas.  I cook the chicken on the stove in olive oil and use beef  fajita seasoning (I like it better than the chicken fajita seasoning). I also cook onion, red bell pepper and yellow squash strips in olive oil with fajita seasoning.  We make fajitas with all the extras and  have pinto beans or black beans on the side.  After we’ve had a meal of chicken fajitas, the leftovers make a great soup the next day:

  • Leftover fajita chicken & veggies (cut into bite size pieces)
  • Leftover pinto beans or black beans
  • Cup of frozen corn
  • Can of chicken broth
  • Salsa for spice