Basil-Roasted Red Pepper Spread

1/4 cup drained roasted red peppers
5 pitted black olives, chopped
1 12-oz tub cream cheese spread
1/4 cup lightly packed fresh basil
1 clove garlic
2 Tbsp sliced almonds, toasted
Party crackers (Ritz, Wheat Thins, etc)




Cut star shape from one pepper, using star-shaped cookie cutter; set aside. Chop remaining peppers, combine with olives.
Blend cream cheese, basil and garlic in blender until smooth. Clean cream cheese tub; line with plastic wrap.
Spoon 1/2 cup cream cheese mixture into tub, top with olive mixture and remaining cream cheese mixture. Press into tub.
Refrigerate 1 hour. Unmold onto plate and discard plastic wrap. Top with almonds and pepper star, and serve with crackers.

Crawfish-Scallop Cakes

I have not tried this recipe, but I have had it at one of my favorite restaurants. They stopped making this as an appetizer because it was so expensive, so they gave me the recipe!!! I actually prefer this seafood cake to the traditional crabcake!! It is delicious!

Crawfish Cakes
2 lbs scallops
2 lbs crawfish tails, drained and chopped
2 eggs
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1-1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 yellow pepper, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 habenero pepper, diced
8 cooked dinner rolls, or equivalent white bread

In food processor, grate rolls (or bread) and set aside. In food processor, chop all veggies, drain off juices, and set aside. Thaw and drain crawfish tails. Chop coarsely in food processor. Set aside. In processor, place scallops, cream, eggs, and lemon juice. Puree. In separate bowl, mix all ingredients, adding bread crumbs last.
(At this point, the recipe ends - so I assume you either bake the cakes at around 400 for 25-30 minutes (at least until center of each cake reaches a temp of 165), or fry them in vegetable oil until well browned (internal temp of 165)).

Crawfish Sauce (double batch)
1 qt mayonnaise
1 qt sour cream
2 cups ketchup
4 Tbsp raw horseradish
6 Tbsp Tabasco sauce
1/3 cup dry white wine or sherry
1 Tbsp ground white pepper
1 Tbsp cayenne pepper


Mix all ingredients well, and serve with crawfish cakes.


Keep in mind that this recipe comes from a restaurant, so the portions are large. Probably only a quarter recipe of the sauce, and half of the cake recipe would be enough to serve 8 to 10.

Broccoli and Raisin Salad

4 Cups broccoli flowerettes
1 Cup grated cheese
1/2 Cup raisins
1/2 Cup chopped pecans, peanuts or cashews
1/2 Cup chopped red onion
8 Slices crisp fried bacon, crumbled

Dressing
1/4 Cup sugar
1 Cup mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons white vinegar

Combine ingredients in large bowl and gently toss to mix. Combine dressing ingredients in small bowl and stir until sugar dissolves. Pour over broccoli mixture and stir gently. Chill before serving.

(If making the day before serving, do not add nuts and raisins. The nuts get soft and the raisins get too plump.)

Apple/Cranberry Gelatin Salad

1 Large box of red jello (cherry, raspberry, etc.)
1 Large can crushed pineapple (do not drain)
1 Can whole berry cranberry sauce
2 Med. Large red delicious apples

Melt jello in 1 cup boiling water. Add cranberry sauce and stir until melted. Add pineapple with juice. Add diced apples. Stir and chill.

(Joel gave me this recipe and it is delicious. You can use cranberry sauce without whole berries but it is much better with the whole berry sauce. Color is beautiful too!)

Sweet Potatoe Casserole

3 Cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 Cup sugar
1/2 Teaspoon salt
2 Eggs
1/3 Stick melted butter
1/2 Cup sweet milk
1 Teaspoon vanilla

Topping
1 Cup brown sugar
1/3 Cup flour
1 Cup chopped nuts
1/3 Stick melted butter

Beat mashed sweet potatoes, sugar, salt, eggs, butter, milk and vanilla and place in greased casserole dish.

Mix topping ingredients and sprinkle over potato mixture. Bake at 350 F for 35 minutes or till brown and mixture is set (not soupy).

(I always use fresh sweet potatoes. Canned potatoes usually come out way too soupy and the color is never the beautiful orange color as fresh baked sweet potatoes)

Corn Casserole

1 Can cream corn (14 1/2 to 16 oz.)
1 Stick butter
1 Cup grated sharp cheese
1 Cup cooked white rice
1 Tablespoon finely minced onion
1 Tablespoon finely minced green pepper (optional)
3 Eggs

Mix until well blended. Pour into a well greased glass baking dish. Cook at 350 F for 1 hour or until golden brown and not soupy in the middle.

Curried Turkey Salad Wraps with Cranberry Chutney

Thinking ahead to Thanksgiving leftovers.... I got a collection of recipes and suggestions (and coupons!) from Kroger today, and some of them sounded really good!! So far I have not posted any recipe that I haven't tried out, but this one sounds good, and we always get tired of turkey before the leftovers are gone.

Chutney
1/2 jalapeno, seeded and minced
1 Tbsp red onion, minced
1/2 tsp salt, divided
1 tsp fresh lime juice
1/4 cup leftover cranberry sauce

Salad
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 tsp curry powder
1 celery stalk, minced
1/4 cup scallion, minced
1/4 cup cashews, chopped
1-1/2 cups leftover turkey, diced
4 flour tortillas (8- to 10-inch)

Make your cranberry chutney by combining the jalapeno, red onion, 1/4 tsp of the salt, lime juice and cranberry sauce in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.
Make curried turkey salad by combining the remaining salt, mayonnaise, curry powder, celery, scallion, cashews and turkey in a large mixing bowl. Stir until well combined.
To assemble, spread 1/4 of the cranberry chutney over each tortilla, top with 1/4 of the curried turkey salad, and roll into a wrap, making sure to fold the edges up, burrito-style, as you go. Serve with pickles and potato chips. Refrigerate any leftovers.
Serves 4.

Chicken Divan

2 pkgs (10-oz) frozen broccoli
3 chicken breasts, cooked and deboned
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp lemon juice
Dash (or alot!) curry powder
Bread crumbs
1/2 cup sharp shredded cheddar cheese

Cook broccoli, and arrange in greased baking dish. Place chicken on top. Combine soup, mayonnaise, lemon juice and curry powder. Pour over chicken. Top with bread crumbs and shredded cheese. Bake at 325 for 25-30 minutes.

I modified this recipe for picky people who don't like broccoli, and substituted rice (I serve the broccoli on the side). It is well-known among my family simply as chicken and rice. After cooking the chicken, I use the broth to cook rice. I debone and cube the chicken, mix it with the cooked rice, and the mayonnaise/cream of chicken soup mixture (as described above), then top it with bread crumbs and cheese.

!Fiesta Chicken Rolls!

8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 small (3-oz) pkg cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp butter, softened
2 Tbsp grated onion
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1-3/4 cup bite size cheese crackers, crushed
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp red pepper
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup butter, melted

Flatten chicken. Combine cheese and next five ingredients. Stir well. Spoon cheese mixture over each piece of chicken. Roll up and secure with wooden toothpicks.
Combine cracker crumbs and next four ingredients. Dip chicken rolls in melted butter, then in crumb mixture. Bake at 400 for 45 minutes, or until done.

Chicken Packets

2 cups cooked de-boned diced chicken
1 small (3-oz) pkg cream cheese, room temperature
1 Tbsp chopped chives
2 Tbsp milk
salt, to taste
2 pkgs crescent rolls
4 Tbsp melted butter
crushed crouton crumbs

Combine chicken, cream cheese, chives, milk, and salt. Mix well. Unroll both packages of crescent rolls. Press each pair into rectangles. Place 2 Tbsp of the chicken mixture into the center of each rectangle. Fold dough over and seal edge. Roll each dough packet in melted butter, then crouton crumbs. Place on baking sheet and bake at 250 for 20 minutes.

Toffee

Super easy and super good!!

3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 stick butter (NOT margarine)
1 cup pecans (or walnuts), crushed
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Melt butter, add brown sugar and nuts, and cook for seven minutes over medium-low heat, stirring almost constantly. Pour into buttered pan, top with chocolate chips, and smooth chocolate chips as they melt over the toffee. Allow to cool for 30 minutes (or at least long enough so that you don't burn your tongue!).

Actually, I have experimented with the cooking time - depends on the texture you want your toffee to be - crunchy and hard, or soft like fudge, or stretchy like taffy.

Strawberry Margarita Pie

1-1/4 cups crushed pretzels
1/4 cup sugar
10 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted
1 can (14-oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 cup strawberries, crushed or pureed
1/2 cup lime juice
1 tub (8-oz) Cool Whip Strawberry Whipped Topping, thawed
(I used regular cool whip and it was just fine).

Mix pretzels, sugar and butter in 9-inch pie plate. Press mixture onto bottom and up side of pie plate. Refrigerate until ready to fill.
Mix condensed milk, strawberries and lime juice in large bowl until well blended. Gently stir in whipped topping. Pour into crust.
Freeze 6 hours or overnight. Let stand at room temperature 15 minutes or until pie can be cut easily. Garnish with additional whipped topping and strawberries.

This pie is DELICIOUS!!! The strawberry with a little lime, the sweet and salty in the crust, is perfect!! Makes a great summer dessert. Pretzels are not so easy to crush as crackers, so my crust was still a little crunchy - which I really liked.

Lemon Meringue Pie

Pie Crust
1 1/2 Cups graham cracker crumbs
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 to 4 Tablespoons sugar
1 Teaspoon vanilla

Mix all ingredients together and press into a 9 inch pie pan. Bake at 350 F for about 10 minutes.


Pie Filling
1 Can condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
1/2 Cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 Egg yolks

Mix with mixer until blended. Pour into cooled pie crust.

Meringue
3 Egg whites
1/3 Cup sugar

Beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar and continue beating until stiff but not dry.
Spread over pie filling. Bake at 350 F until meringue is golden brown.

Peanut Butter Bars

1/2 Cup peanut butter (chunky or smooth)
1/2 Cup butter
1 1/2 Cup sugar
2 eggs
1 Teaspoon vanilla
1 Cup self rising flour

Grease and flour 9"x13"x2" pan.  Melt peanut butter and butter.  Add remaining ingredients.  Stir until blended.  Bake at 350 F for 25 to 30 minutes.  Cool and cut into squares.

Apple Cake

1 Cup chopped nuts (walnuts)
3 Cups cubed raw apples
2 Cups sugar
3 Cups all purpose flour
1 Teaspoon soda
1/2 Teaspoon salt
1 Teaspoon cinnamon
1 Tablespoon vanilla
1 1/2 Cups vegetable oil
3 Eggs

Cream sugar and eggs until light.  Add oil then dry ingredients and mix til well blended.  Stir in apples and nuts.  Bake in greased tube pan for 1 1/2 hours at 325 F.

(Different) Corn Casserole

This recipe, which I got from my nephew Zeke, is very similar to the sweet Mexican cornbread served in some Mexican restaurants. It is perfect with a bowl of chili, or an enchilada casserole!

1 15-oz can corn, drained
1 15-oz can creamed corn
1 pkg Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 8-oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 stick butter, softened

Mix all ingredients, and pour into a greased casserole dish. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes, or until golden-brown.

Chinese Chicken Salad

4 Chicken breast cooked, cooled and chopped
8 Oz. Shell macaroni cooked, drained and cooled
1 Cup sliced celery
1/2 Cup sliced ripe olives
1/2 Cup cashew nuts
2 Small cans of mandarin oranges, drained
1 Cup Marzetti Slaw Dressing
1/2 Cup sour cream

Mix slaw dressing and sour cream.  Pour over chicken, macaroni, celery and olives.  When thoroughly mixed, gently toss in the oranges and nuts.  Refrigerate until chilled.  Serve on lettuce leaves. 
Serves 6 - 8 people

Chess Bars!

Bottom Layer 
box yellow cake mix
1 stick butter, softened
1 egg

Top Layer
8-oz block cream cheese, softened
16-oz box powdered sugar
2 eggs


Mix first three ingredients to form a stiff dough;  press into 9x13 baking dish (ungreased).  Mix last three ingredients and beat for two minutes at medium speed;  pour over bottom layer.  Bake at 325 for one hour.

Posted by Mom