Favorite Oatmeal Cookies

From A Flood of Recipes from the 12th Ward, Ann Heron, p. 125
Makes about 2 dozen

1 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 c. flour
3 c. oatmeal

Mix first four ingredients. Add next four. Then add oatmeal last. You may also add 1/4 tsp. cinnamon or raisins or walnuts (I never have). Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Remove while slightly underdone for more chewy cookies.

These are the best oatmeal cookies ever. So chewy and soft. You gotta love them. My hubby's personal favorite.

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Brownie Babies

From Food & Family Spring '09 p. 39
Makes 18-20

1. Prepare a box of brownies or use another brownie recipe and spoon the batter into 20 paper-lined muffin cups. (I did 18)
2. Beat 1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese , 1/3 cup sugar, 1 egg, 1/4 cup peanut butter and 1/2 tsp. vanilla with mixer until blended.
3. Spoon into center of brownie batter cups and pressing lightly into the batter.
4. Bake 30 minutes. Cool. Top with Cool Whip and maraschino cherries.

Um, hello... Peanut Butter, Brownie, Cheesecake...why wouldn't this be good? Well, it turns out, they are pretty good, but not exactly what I expected. It's somewhat of an odd mix. My hubby didn't even finish his, so... there you have it.

Creamy Ranch Mashed Potatoes

From More Make it Fast, Cook it Slow by Stephanie O'Dea p.56
Makes4-6 servings

Place 2 pounds red potatoes cubed into a 4- qt slow cooker. Add 8 oz cream cheese, 1/2 cup milk, and 1 (1-oz) Ranch salad dressing mix packet. Cover and cook on low for about 5 hours, or until the potatoes mash easily. You can whip them in the slow cooker with a hand mixer or mash with a hand masher.

I stirred this as it cooked a few times to mix in the cream cheese and ranch seasoning. I also used the ranch dip mix from the cookbook and it was WAY too peppery. Either she likes pepper a lot or I put in too much, but it was... overbearing. I will definitely have to try them again with less pepper or a store-bought packet. I also only made half the recipe in a 2-qt slow cooker, which served as an excellent amount for two (well, we had too much leftovers because of the pepper anyway).

Husband: what do you think?

Me: I'll let you know when my lips stop burning.

Banana Chip Muffins

From Jessica DuRee
Makes 24 large muffins or 48 small
(or if you're like me, 12 large and 24 small)

1. In a large bowl, beat 1 egg, 1/3 c. vegetable oil and 1/2 c. sugar until smooth.
2. Stir in 3 bananas. (Jessica used frozen ones and pureed them in her blender. Fresh ones seem to do the trick as well --and I blended them for easy mixing).
3. Combine 2 cups flour (I use 1 cup whole wheat, 1 cup AP flour or a combo of the two), 1/2 cup oats, 3/4 teas. baking soda, 1/2 teas. baking powder, and 1/2 teas. salt.
4. Stir into the banana mixture just until moistened.
5. Stir in 1/2 c. chocolate chips. (Totally all for the semi-sweet ones)
6. Fill greased or paper lined muffin cups and bake at 375 degrees for 18-20 minutes.
7. Cool for 5 min. before consuming.

All I can say is DELICIOUS. A pretty good healthy snack that I have made for breakfast or lunch. Plus, the kiddos eat 'em up like nobody's business.

Pot Luck

We started having a pot luck every third Sunday here in Monroe. It's been fun. And it's been cool to see what everyone decides to bring. For tonight, I made brownies. And the hubby will be making his famous popcorn. Come over if you can :)

Jello Poke Cake

From Jello.com or something like that
Makes 1 delicious cake

Cake mix (We like white)
Flavored gelatin (AKA Jello-we like strawberry)
1 cup boiling water
1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed

1. Bake cake according to package directions. Let cool.

2. Using a straw, poke holes all over the top of the cake. (About 1/4" apart?)

3. Stir boiling water into 1 pkg. (4 serving) JELL-O Gelatin in medium bowl at least 2 min. until completely dissolved. Carefully pour gelatin evenly over the cake, trying to get jello into holes. Refrigerate 3 hours.

4. Top cake with Cool Whip. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or until ready to serve. Decorate as desired. Store leftover cake in refrigerator.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Cake

From Amanda Randall

Makes 1 delicious cake

1. Bake a White Cake according to directions on cake mix box. Let cool slightly.

2. Mix 8 oz. cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, and 2 teas. lemon juice together. Fold in Dream Whip (made to package instructions-or use Cool Whip). Spread on cake.

3. Make one package Danish Dessert (this comes in Strawberry or Raspberry)according to pie glaze package instructions. Let cool. Spread on top. Add strawberries or rasberries as desired.

Thin Crust Pizza (Chicken Pesto Pizza)

From http://recipes.robbiehaf.com/T/272.htm
Makes 1 pizza

.25 oz. pkt. active dry yeast
1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
3/4 cup 110 degree water
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt

Top with Pesto, Mozzarella cheese, sliced red pepper, sliced red onion, and cut up grilled chicken. I've also added bacon, which is good.

-Dissolve yeast and sugar in water; allow to rest for 8 minutes.-In a separate bowl, combine flour and salt.-Pour yeast mixture over flour mixture and mix well with a heavy spoon.-Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for 2 minutes.-Working from the edges to the center, press dough into a 12" circle. We've also found that holding the dough up, off the counter and stretching it works well, too (keep rotating the dough circle as you stretch to keep an even circle forming).-Place dough on a lightly greased pizza pan and stretch dough to edges.-Spread sauce over crust and top with cheese and desired toppings.-Bake in a 500 degree oven for 8-12 minutes, or until edges are golden.

We love this pizza, even Ella eats it! And it is my new dinner to make for friends.

Funeral Potatoes

From The Essential Mormon Cookbook Julie Badger Jensen p. 72
Makes 1 9"x13" pan (12 servings)

12 large potatoes or 1 (32-ounce) bag frozen shredded hash browns
2 (10 3/4-ounce) cans cream of chicken soup
2 cups sour cream
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 cups crushed corn flakes
2 TBSP butter, melted

Peel potatoes and boil for 30 minutes, until just tender. Cool and grate unto a greased 9x13-inch baking dish (or put hash browns into the baking dish). Combine soup concentrate, sour cream, cheese, the 1/2 cup melted butter, and onions. Gently blend into potatoes. Combine crushed cornflakes and the 2 tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

*I use frozen hash browns because it is so much easier. These are tasty, and they are the first potatoes I ever liked. Can you believe I never used to eat potatoes???

Velveeta Salsa Dip

From Mexican Fiesta p. 30
Makes 3 cups

1 pound (16 ounces) Velveeta Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut up
1 cup Salsa

Microwave Velveeta and salsa in 1 1/2-quart microwaveable bowl on HIGH 5 minutes or until Velveeta is melted, stirring after 3 minutes. Serve hot with tortilla chips or cut up vegetables.

Layered Mexican Dip

From Mexican Fiesta p. 16
Fills a 8x8 square pan

1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 TBS plus 1 teas. taco seasoning mix
1 cup black beans or refried (whichever you like)
1 cup salsa
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 TBS sliced pitted ripe olives
Tortilla chips

1. Combine cream cheese and taco seasoning; spread on bottom of a 8x8" square dish or a 9" pie plate.
2. Layer remaining ingredients over cream cheese mixture. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve with tortilla chips.

*I put olives only on half (one half for me, one for the hubby). This is also great for parties.

Strawberry Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

From Lori Colledge
Serves.... a lot or a little (I halved or quartered the dressing recipe)

Salad
Romaine Lettuce
Sliced Strawberries
Walnuts (candied preferred)
Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Poppyseed Dressing
1/2 cup red onion
1 cup white sugar
1 teas. dijon mustard
1 teas. salt
2/3 cup vinegar

blend in blender or small food processor, then add

2 cup vegetable oil
3 TBSP poppy seeds

Mix together. Stir before serving, as oil separates.

I made this for lunch today, but I didn't do the strawberries and stuff; just the dressing and lettuce--yummy.

Red Velvet Cake Mix Cookies

From A Flood of Recipes From the 12th Ward p. 123 (Ashley Mecham) & my special touch
Makes a lot

1 pkg. cake mix (Red Velvet is the BEST)
2 cups flour
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teas. vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup water

Mix together (Kitchen Aid) and drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.

Pound Cake Muffins

From ________ (an email from my sister)
Makes..... I don't remember

2 cups flour
3 teas. poppyseeds
1/2 teas. salt
1/4 teas. baking soda
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup yogurt (plain unless you want a little flavor)
1 teas. vanilla or almond flavoring

1. Stir first four ingredients together.
2. Cream the sugar and butter together.
3. Add eggs, yogurt, and vanilla or almond flavoring to creamed mixture.
4. Add the flour mixture to the rest.

Pour into muffin pan. Bake at 400 degrees from 15-20 minutes.

Shirley's Hot Rolls

From Grandma Beverly
Makes 24 rolls

1 cup hot water
1/2 cup shortening or lard
1/2 cup sugar
1 TBS yeast
2 eggs
1 cup cold water
6 cups flour
1 teas. salt

Mix first 3 ingredients. Add yeast when water is lukewarm. Add the rest and mix. (Love my Kitchen Aid mixer!)
Cover and let raise (Or set your oven to proofing).
Make into rolls (I put them into three square pans).
Cover and let raise again (or use that lovely proofing).

Bake at 375 degrees for approx. 20 minutes.

*For half the recipe, I fill two pans (the rolls aren't as big, but just as tasty!) These are my signature rolls now. We love them! Also, they are really good right after you make them, but they are even BETTER the next day for some reason.