Italian Sausage Soup with Tortellini (Kristee Watts)

Ingredients:

1 lb Pound Sweet Italian Sausage, casings removed

1 Cup Chopped Onion

2 Cloves Garlic, minced

5 Cups Beef Broth

1/2 Cup Water

1/2 Cup Red Wine

4 Large Tomatoes (peeled, seeded and chopped)

1 Cup Thinly Sliced Carrots

1/2 Tblsp Packed Fresh Basil Leaves

1/2 Tsp Dried Oregano

1 Can (8 oz) Tomato Sauce

1 1/2 Cups Sliced Zucchini

8 Oz Fresh Tortellini Pasta

3 Tblps Chopped Fresh Parsley

Directions:

In a 5 quart Dutch oven, brown sausage. Remove sausage and drain, reserving 1 tablespoon of the drippings.

Sauté onions and garlic in drippings. Stir in beef broth, water, wine, tomatoes, carrots, basil, oregano, tomato sauce, and sausage. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.

Skim fat from the soup. Stir in zucchini and parsley. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Add tortellini during the last 10 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese on top of each serving.

A few changes I make - I think it’s too greasy when the onions are sautéed in the drippings. I just drain all the grease before adding onions. Instead of red wine I add a little more water or broth and ~ ¼ cup balsamic vinegar. I add up to 19 oz. of tortellini.

It takes me 2 hours from when I start this to have it done (you might chop faster!).

Chicken Tortilla Soup (Emily Heaps)

Ingredients:

4 Chicken Breasts (Cut up and cooked in oil, garlic and lime juice)

½ Onion, Chopped

3 Tblsp Butter

1 Can Chicken Broth

2 Cans Rotel Tomatoes

1 Cup Frozen Corn

1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup

1 Can Black Beans

1 Can Diced Green Chilies

1 Tsp Ground Cumin

½ Tsp Garlic Salt

¼ Tsp Black Pepper

Directions:

Cook chicken and remove from pan. Cook onions in butter and then add flour. Slowly add chicken broth until it thickens and is blended with the flour. Add the rest of the ingredients. And chicken back into the pan and heat until warm.

Serve with tortilla chips, sour cream, cheese, salsa and avocados.

Portuguese Sweet Bread (Marie Sansom)

Bread Machine Recipe

It really helps the bread turn out best if all the ingredients used are room temperature to start.

Ingredients:

1 Cup Milk

2 Eggs

2 Tblsp Butter

1/3 - 1/2 Cup Sugar

3/4 Tsp Salt

3 Cup Bread Flour

2 1/2 Tsp Yeast

Instructions:

Dump ingredients into bread machine in the order in which they are listed above. Remove from bread machine when done cooking and allow pan to cool before releasing bread from pan.

Enjoy!

Pizza Dough (Shaunelle Trenholm)

Ingredients:

1 Cup Warm Water

1 Tblsp. Yeast

1 Tblsp. Sugar

2 Tblsp. Oil

1 Tsp. Salt
2 1/2 Cup Flour (you may need a little bit more)

Instructions:
Sprinkle yeast and sugar in warm water and let it proof (bubble) for about 15 minutes. Then add oil, salt and flour.

Mix until well blended. Turn onto floured surface and knead till smooth. Let rise for 5 minutes more while you preheat the oven. Bake 500 degrees for about 10 minutes. Makes 1 very large or 2 small pizzas, depending on how thick you like the crust.

Peerless Cornbread Muffins (Kristee Watts)

From: The Breakfast Book by Marion Cunningham

Yield (12 muffins)

Ingredients:

1 Egg, Room Temperature

½ Cup (1 Stick) Butter, Melted

¼ cup Vegetable Oil

1 Cup Milk, Warmed

1 Cup Cake Flour (Or Regular Flour)

2/3 Cup Yellow Cornmeal

1 Tblsp. Baking Powder

½ Tsp Salt

1 Tblsp Sugar

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Grease the muffin tins.

Beat or whisk the egg, melted butter, and oil in a mixing bowl until well blended. Stir in the warm milk. Combine the cake flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and sugar in another bowl and stir with a fork until well mixed. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and stir until well blended. This is a light, medium-thick batter.

Spoon the batter into the muffin tins so each cup is three-quarters full. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the edges of the muffins are slightly golden and a straw comes out clean when inserted into the center. Remove form tins and cool a little on racks, or simply service in a basket, hot from the oven.

Swedish Cinnamon Twists (Emily Heaps)

Ingredients:

1 Pkg. Dry Yeast

1 Tbsp. Sugar

1/4 c. Warm Water

1 c. Buttermilk

1/4 Tsp. Baking Soda

1/2 c. Butter, Melted

2 Eggs, Beaten

4 to 5 Cups Hot Roll Mix

Cinnamon Filling:

1/2 c. Brown Sugar

1/2 Tsp. Cinnamon

1/2 c. Chopped Nuts

Powdered Sugar Glaze:

1/2 c. Powdered Sugar

1/2 Tbsp. Butter

1 Tsp. Hot Water

Preparation:

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Set aside. bring buttermilk to a boil in a small saucepan; buttermilk should curdle. In a large bowl, combine buttermilk, baking soda, and 1/2 cup melted butter. Add eggs. When mixture is lukewarm, add dissolved yeast mixture. Gradually stir in 4 cups Hot Roll Mix until a soft dough forms a ball.

On a lightly floured surface, knead dough about 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Add additional mix if need to make a soft, but not too sticky dough. Lightly butter bowl. Put dough in bowl and turn to butter top. Cover dough with a damp towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. Generously grease 2 baking sheets. Punch down dough and roll out to a 12x20 inch rectangle. Brush dough with 3 tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkle cinnamon filling lengthwise over half of dough to within 1/2 in of long edge.

Fold rectangle in half lengthwise to cover filling. Seal dough edges with the edge of a plate. With a pizza cutter, cut dough into 24 strips, about 3/4 inch wide. Twist each strip twice and place strips 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk, about 30-40 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 deg. Bake 10-12 minutes, until golden brown.

Brush on Powdered Sugar Glaze while rolls are still warm. Makes about 24 twists.

Garden Vegetable Bites (Shaunelle Trenholm)

Ingredients:
2 pkg. Refrigerated Crescent Rolls

1 pkg. Cream Cheese, Softened

1/2 Packet Ranch Dressing Mix

Vegetables: Carrots, Broccoli, Bell Peppers, Mushrooms, Finely Chopped

Directions:
Roll out crescent rolls in a sheet and bake 375 for about 11-13 minutes. Let cool completely. Meanwhile, mix ranch dressing mix with cream cheese. When crust is cool, spread with cream cheese mixture, then top with chopped veggies. Cut into bite-size pieces. Chill in fridge for 1 hour before serving. Note: Do not let sit longer than about an hour, or the crust will become soggy.

Gorilla Bread (Shaunelle Trenholm)

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar

3 Tsp. Cinnamon

1 Cup Packed Brown Sugar

1 (8-oz.) Package Cream Cheese

2 (12-oz.) Cans Refrigerated Biscuits (10 Count)

1 1/2 Cups Coarsely Chopped Walnut

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. Mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon. In a saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar over low heat, stirring well; set aside. Cut the cream cheese into 20 equal cubes. Press the biscuits out with your fingers and sprinkle each with 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon sugar. Place a cube of cream cheese in the center of each biscuit, wrapping and sealing the dough around the cream cheese. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the nuts into the bottom of the bundt pan. Place half of the prepared biscuits in the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, pour half of the melted butter mixture over the biscuits, and sprinkle on 1/2 cup of nuts. Layer the remaining biscuits on top, sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon sugar, pour the remaining butter mixture over the biscuits, and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of nuts.

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Place a plate on top and invert.

Sopapilla Cheesecake (Shaunelle Trenholm)

Ingredients:

2 Cans of Crescent Rolls

2- 8 oz. Cream Cheese (room temperature)

1 1/2 Cups Sugar

1 tsp. Vanilla

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1 Stick of Butter

Instructions:

Spray 13x9 pan with cooking spray. Unroll and press one can of crescent rolls into bottom of dish pressing seams together. In separate bowl blend cream cheese,1 cup of sugar and 1 tsp. vanilla. Spread across dough in pan. Unroll second can of dough and place on top of cream cheese mixture pressing seams together. Melt butter and pour on top of dough in pan. Mix remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and 1 tsp. of cinnamon and top dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly and bottom crust is slightly browned.

Cream Cheese Sandwiches (Julie Boyd)

Can also be a yummy dip!)

Ingredients:

Cream Cheese 10 oz

Worcheshire Sauce - 1 Tblsp

Garlic Powder(or Garlic Salt) - 1/2- 3/4 Tsp

Chives - 1 - 1 1/2 Tsp

Tabasco Sauce - 8-10 drops (or more if you like it HOT!)

Deli Meat, Chopped - (As much as you like - I used 1/2 cup)

Instructions:

Either let the cream cheese sit out to thaw or stick in microwave for 30 seconds. Mix everything together (Adjusting portions to suit your taste buds!) and spread on a slice of bread. Top with another slice of bread and VIOLA! A delicious cream cheese sandwich!

Peasant Bread (Julie Boyd)

Ingredients:

1 1/8 C Water

2 Tblsp Olive Oil

3 1/4 C Bread Flour

2 Tsp Gluten (Optional - makes it a bit lighter)

2 Tsp Sugar (Or you can use honey)

1 1/2 Tsp Salt

2 Tsp SAF Yeast

Instructions:

Place all ingredients in the pan in the above order. Set crust on medium, Program for French Bread cycle, Prest Start! :) Immediately remove bread from the pan when cycle is complete. Let cool to room temperature (We never can wait!) before slicing.

Yummy and easy! :)

Halloween Night Cookie Puzzle (Julie Boyd)

This is a fun recipe to do with the kiddos! It is easy to make and decorate and it's yummy!

Ingredients:

1 tube (18 oz) Refrigerated sugar cookie dough (Or homemade, if you prefer)

1/2 C Flour (I use bread flour since that's what I have on hand - but any flour should work)

Unblanced Almonds (for the handle - I use walnuts because I like those better)

3 C Confectioners' sugar

1/3 C Light Corn Syrup

2-4 Tblsp Water

Assorted food coloring, decorating gels, sprinkles and candies

1: In a large bowl, combine cookie dough and flour. (I found that the 1/2 C of flour was about 1-2 tblsps too much when doing this step.)

On a parchment paper-lined surface, roll dough into a 14-in X 11-in rectangle With Halloween cookie cutters, cut out puzzle shapes but do not remove them. Slide a baking sheet under the parchment paper and dough. Chill for 5-10 minutes.

2: Remove shapes; place on an ungreased baking sheet. For handles, press the side of an almond into the center of each puzzle shape. Bake shapes at 350 for 7-9 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. While still warm, recut shapes with the same cookie cutters to form neat edges. (If cookies cool too quickly, return to oven until softened.) Remove to wire racks; cool.

**I just cooked the cookies on the wax paper for easier mobility to the baking sheet and then to the wire rack. I moved the entire wax paper to the wire rack until cool to avoid the cookie breaking while soft. I carefully removed from was when cooled.)

3: Bake large rectangular puzzle on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet for 12-13 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Immediately recut the shapes inside the puzzle to form neat edges. Cool completely on a wire rack.

4: In a small bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, corn syrup and water until smooth. Tint frosting with food coloring as desired. Frost puzzle and shapes; decorate with decorating gel, sprinkiles and candies as desired. Place puzzle shapes inside puzzle.

Yield: 1 Cookie Puzzle

My family loves this!

Rudy's Creamed Corn (Marie Sansom)

Ingredients:

1 lb frozen corn
1 8oz pkg cream cheese, cut in cubes
1/2 c milk or heavy cream
1/4 c butter, melted
3 teaspoon sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper


Directions:

Dump corn into the bottom of 3 1/2-4 quart slow cooker. Add cream cheese cubes. Pour in remaining ingredients over the corn and cream cheese.

Cover and cook on high heat setting for 2-3 hours until creamy. Stir well before serving.


Note: My cream cheese cubes don't always dissolve during cooking, which can make you think it is not done cooking. AS long as you have cooked it about 2 hrs it should be fine. Just give it a really good stir and everything will blend in together. And don't lift the lid any sooner than 2 hours. It will let out the heat and make it take longer to cook.

Julie's Fancy Canned Corn (Julie Boyd)

Ingredients:

1 29oz Can of Corn
1/2 stick (or more) butter
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp celary salt
1 tsp Basil

Directons:

Mix ingrdients together in pan. Heat through and serve.

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos- Wendy Parker

Ingredients:

1/3 C. (3oz) cream cheese

1/4 C. green salsa

1T. fresh lime juice

1/2 t. cumin

1 t. chili powder

1/2 t. onion powder

1/4 t. granulated garlic or garlic powder

3 T. chopped cilantro

2 T. sliced green onions

2 C. shredded cooked chicken

1 C. shredded pepperjack cheese

small corn tortillas (flour ones work as well)

kosher salt

cooking spray

Directions:

Heat oven to 425. Line baking sheet wih foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, and garlic. Stir to combine and the add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well.

You can prepare this step ahead of time. Just keep mixture in the refridgerator.

Work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them beween damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 sec will do. Place 2-3 T. of the chicken mixture on the lower third of the tortilla, then roll it up as tight as you can. Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle some kosher salt on top. Place pan in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or unil crisp.