Ingredients:
6 c. zucchini, cut into large chunks6 c. yellow squash, cut into large chunks
2 Tblsp. olive oil
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. lemon pepper
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Preheat oven to 450. Grease roasting pan with a bit of olive oil. Chop zucchini and squash and put into large bowl. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil over squash and mix until well coated. Sprinkle with garlic salt, lemon pepper and pepper. Mix with spoon until evenly coated. Pour squash into roasting pan and spread out evenly. Bake 20 minutes, stir, and bake an additional 15 minutes.
This is a recipe that I found online and tweaked the spices and cooking times - and it came out fantastic. I don't know how the recipe comes out the way I found it, I never made it that way. The recipe above is my own version and I wanted to remember how I made it so I can recreate it.
Usually when I cook squash and zucchini, I grill it or cook it in the skillet and it turns mushy and loses the flavor. I had some zucchini still left from my garden this year and we bought some yellow squash at the farmer's market to go with the zucchini. Cooking it according to the recipe above, the consistency and color were fresh and delicious, so flavorful. I cooked it in my stoneware 9x13, so I didn't need to grease the pan with olive oil. The skins of the squash and zucchini were really thick and I was worried it would be tough but they cooked perfectly. I won't bother grilling or pan frying it ever again.
Ingredients:
16 oz. rigatoni
3-4 cucumbers, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 Tblsp. vegetable oil
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 c. water
3/4 c. white vinegar
1 Tblsp. mustard
1 Tblsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
Cook pasta according to package directions, drain and rinse in cold water. In large bowl, combine oil, cucumbers and onion. Combine all remaining ingredients. Pour over salad and toss. Cover and chill 3-4 hours, stirring occasionally. Serve with slotted spoon.
I don't know where I found this recipe, but I'm glad I did. It's always a hit at potlucks and cookouts. I peel the cucumbers before slicing, but you can leave the peel on for an extra crunch and a bit of green in the salad. When I know I'm making this salad, I try to make it the night before so the cucumbers and rigatoni have time to soak up all the great taste. It's one of those that's possibly better the next day as leftovers. I've caught my husband sneaking into the fridge with a fork just to have a bite or two at night.
Ingredients:
1 head fresh cauliflower
1 bunch fresh broccoli
12-16 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 can pitted olives (medium), sliced
1 packet Italian dressing mix
1 16oz. bottle Italian dressing
Use a large bowl with a water-tight lid. Cut/break apart cauliflower and broccoli into bite-size pieces and put into the bowl. Slice mushrooms and olives and add them to the cauliflower and broccoli. Put lid on on the bowl and shake to combine well. Sprinkle the dry packet of Italian dressing mix over the vegetables. Shake up the bottle of dressing and pour over the salad. Put the lid on tightly and shake again to make sure the entire salad is covered in the dressing. Allow to sit overnight to marinate the vegetables.
My husband collected this recipe from a co-worker. I think she came up with this recipe herself and didn't have a name for it so she called it "No Particular Name Salad." This is a great dish when entertaining - it makes quite a bit and you make it up the night before so your time prior to your dinner party can be spent doing other things. It is a great summer salad for cookouts or potlucks - there's no mayo to worry about spoiling in the heat, it is refreshing, crunchy, and tasty!
Ingredients:
2 c. sugar
3 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
6 Tblsp. unsweetened cocoa
2 c. water
2 Tblsp. white vinegar12 Tblsp. margarine
Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine sugar, flour, salt, cocoa and baking soda. Add water and vinegar. Place margarine in 9"x13" pan and put in warming oven to allow it to melt. Once margarine is melted, pour batter into pan and mix margarine into the cake right in the pan. Bake for 35 minutes. When cool, frost if desired or sprinkle with powdered sugar.
My sister Shari made this for us once and my husband, who typically doesn't like desserts, really liked it. She started making it for his birthday each year. One year it was even decorated with a Batman logo. It is a delicious, moist chocolate cake.A big piece with a glass of cold milk - yum!
Ingredients:
4-6 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless halves
8 oz. cream cheese, cut into 1/2" slices
8 oz. cheddar cheese, cut into 1/2" slices
1 c. milk
1 1/2 c. Italian seasoned breadcrumbs1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1 Tblsp. minced garlic
3/4 c. margarine, melted
2 Tblsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp paprika (optional)
Preheat oven to 350. Lig
htly coat a large shallow baking dish with oil or cooking spray. Butterfly each breast by slicing in half horizontally through the center cutting almost but not completely through. Place one slice of each of cheddar and cream cheese in the center of each breast. Close again as if placing between the pages of a book and set aside. Pour milk into a shallow bowl. In a separate bowl, combine breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese. Carefully dip each prepared breast first in milk, then in breadcrumb mixture, patting lightly to firmly coat. Place breasts side by side in a single layer in the baking dish, tucking edges under to seal. Microwave margarine in microwave safe dish to melt. Stir in lemon juice and garlic, then drizzle evenly over the chicken. Season breasts with garlic salt and paprika. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until no longer pink in center and juices run clear.
I found this online and tweaked it slightly to my own liking. We tried it and liked it - it's another keeper! It takes some time to prepare but it is really delicious when you have the time. The different cheeses melt together and the combination with the garlic and lemon is unexpectedly good.
Ingredients:
4 cups seasoned stuffing mix
3 Tblsp. margarine, melted
4-6 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless halves
paprika
1 can cream of mushroom soup1/3 c. milk
1 Tblsp. parsley
1 1/4 c. water, boiling
Preheat oven to 400. Mix stuffing, boiling water and margarine. Spoon stuffing across center of 9" x 13" baking dish. Place chicken on each side of stuffing. Sprinkle paprika over chicken. Mix soup, milk and parsley. Pour over chicken. Cover and bake for 40-45 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.
This was a recipe I collected so long ago I don't remember where I got it! This was the first time I made it and we all really liked it. It was so quick and easy, yet has that great homemade taste.
Ingredients:
1 sourdough bread loaf, unsliced
8 oz monterey jack cheese, sliced
1/2 c. margarine, melted
1/2 c. green onion, chopped
2-3 tsp. poppy seeds
Preheat oven to 350. Cut the bread lengthwise and crosswise without cutting through the bottom crust. Insert cheese slices between cuts. Combine margarine, green onion and poppy seeds; drizzle over the bread. Wrap loaf in foil, place on cookie sheet. Bake 15 minutes, then uncover and bake an additional 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
This is always a hit at get-togethers. It can be made up ahead of time and kept in the fridge until you're ready to bake it and serve it. The bread you start with is already baked and you're adding some fabulous ingredients and it looks like you went to a lot of trouble. To make preparing it easier, I use an electric knife to make the cross-cuts in the bread. Once it is baked and the cheese is all melted and gooey with the green onions and poppy seeds, you just pull a piece out and eat it. You can put a fork or a knife out with it to help people pull portions off the loaf easier. So yummy!
Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 lb. spaghetti
1 28oz. jar spaghetti sauce
3 eggs
2 Tblsp. margarine1/4 c. parmesan cheese
1/2 Tblsp. parsley
1 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
Preheat oven to 3
50. Boil spaghetti according to package directions. Brown meat with chopped onion, drain. Add jar of spaghetti sauce to the meat. Put sauce in bottom of 2qt casserole dish and set aside. In a large bowl, beat the eggs and add margarine, parsley, parmesan and mozzarella, stir to mix. Add cooked, drained pasta to the egg and cheese mixture, stirring to coat. Carefully put pasta into casserole on top of the sauce. Cover and bake for 20-30 minutes.
We love this recipe - my sister Shari shared it with me years ago. Her version doesn't include onion. Also, instead of a casserole dish she cooks her spaghetti pie in a large skillet and inverts it onto a serving plate and serves it in pie slices. Either way you prepare it, it is delicious. You can use your favorite spaghetti sauce, whatever brand or flavor you prefer. Personally I like a sauce with mushrooms or a chunky garden sauce. I've made the pie up the night before and stuck it in the fridge so it would be ready to bake for dinner the next day so it's another great meal for busy evenings.
Ingredients:
1 bag extra-wide egg noodles
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can tuna
potato chips
Prepare noodles according to package directions, drain. In casserole dish combine tuna and cream of mushroom soup. Add noodles. Crush potato chips and sprinkle on top, at least enough to cover the noodles. Bake at 350 for 1/2 hour or microwave on high for 12 minutes.
Such a simple dish, but everyone has their own twist - I've even heard of someone adding peas which I think sounds terrible and I totally love peas. I really don't like any other version. This has become a total comfort food for me. My mom used to make it for lunch for my sisters and me whenever school was out for the summer. Now I make it for my daughters and I think about Mom every time I make it. My girls call it "Chip Noodles" and they love it. Mom died 30 years ago and yesterday was her birthday and she would have been 70. I fixed Chip Noodles for dinner and the girls and I ate the whole thing. It makes me happy to think that K and D will someday use this same recipe to share with their kids and they'll think of me.
Ingredients:
1 c. sugar1/2 c. light corn syrup
1 c. unsalted peanuts
1/8 tsp. salt
1 Tblsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking soda
Grease a cookie sheet and set it aside. Combine sugar, corn syrup, peanuts and salt in microwave-safe mixing bowl. Microwave on high for 4 minutes, stir, microwave on high an additional 3-3 1/2 minutes. Add butter. Microwave on high another 1 minute. Brittle should not get too brown. Stir in vanilla and soda until light and foamy. Spread on the buttered baking sheet as thinly as possible. Cool. Break into pieces.
Sometime in the past couple of years I discovered that my husband really likes peanut brittle. I wanted to try making it for him but I didn't want anything too complicated. I searched and found directions for a microwave version online. I tested and tweaked it. I even threw out a couple batches because the cook time was too long and the brittle turned dark and tasted burnt. I learned not to use a rubber spatula for the stirring - it will melt (duh), and don't put wax paper on the cookie sheet to try to make it easier to get the brittle up after it cools - the wax melts (duh again)! Finally success. This is the recipe I used this year and my husband said it was better than any other brittle he had this holiday season. Also, when I made it and broke it apart I saved all the little scraps and sprinkled them on top of ice cream!
