Thanksgiving Dressing

Don't you love those people who make great food, but when you ask for the recipe, they can only tell you they threw in this and that with no measurements? That is the case here. I love the dressing my in-laws make, and after quizzing one of my sisters-in-law and looking at a couple sites online, I came up with this recipe. I tried it out, and will say it's easy and bursting with great flavor. I recommend adding the browned sausage - Yum! I used Jimmy Dean's sage sausage. This dish will be quick to do a disappearing act on Thanksgiving Day, so be sure to have plenty on hand to serve to the guests!
Ingredients:
2 loaves French bread, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 Tbsp. butter to grease pans
1-2 onion, chopped
5-8 stalks celery, sliced in 1/4-inch pieces
2 Tbsp. butter, to saute veggies
2 tsp. celery salt
1 Tbsp. poultry seasoning
1 tsp. dried sage
2 eggs, beaten
2 C. chicken broth (can use 2 bouillon cubes boiled with 2 C. water)
1/4 C. butter, melted
1 lb. ground sausage, browned (optional)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two cookie sheets and set aside. Cut bread into small pieces, and place in a single layer on the baking sheets. Stir occasionally as it bakes until dried out – about 30 minutes. Allow the bread crumbs to cool and add to an extra-large bowl.
Preheat over to 350 degrees.
While the bread is in the oven, melt 1/4 C. butter in a skillet and saute onions and celery. Stir often, about 10 minutes. If you’d like to add it, brown the sausage at this point.
Add all ingredients to the bowl and stir until all ingredients are combined.
Grease a 9x13 pan with cooking spray and pour the mixture in, covering tightly with tin foil.
Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes and serve immediately. Makes 15+ servings.
Angel's Tip: Add onion and celery according to taste - I like to add more.

Mini Mac-n-Cheese Cups

These Mini Mac-n-Cheese Cups are a fun presentation of a popular comfort food – one of my family’s favorites.
All of my boys enjoyed these, and they disappeared before I could blink – I'll consider a double batch next time! A new twist in this recipe, besides making them in a muffin tin, is adding chives and onion cream cheese. (My pickier eater didn’t mind the hint of onion flavoring at all.) I imagine these would also be fun to serve at a picnic or party as well.


Ingredients:
1 1/2 C. Ritz crackers, crushed
2 C. cheddar cheese, grated and divided
4 Tbsp. butter, melted
4 1/2 C. cooked elbow macaroni – still hot! (about 8 oz. uncooked)
1/2 C. chives and onion cream cheese
2 Tbsp. butter, cold
2 large eggs
1/2 C. milk
1/4 C. sour cream
1/4 tsp. salt
Pinch red pepper flakes, optional

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Generously spray muffin tin with cooking spray.
While macaroni noodles boil, cooked according to package directions, combine the crushed crackers in a large bowl, 1 C. shredded cheese and the melted butter, mixing well until the crumbs hold together.
Divide the cracker crumb mixture among the muffin cups and firmly press the into the bottoms and up the sides of each muffin cup to make the crust. In another large bowl, combine the cooked macaroni – make sure it’s still hot – and 1/2 C. of the shredded cheddar, the cream cheese and the butter, mixing well.
In a small bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, sour cream, salt and red pepper flakes.
Add the egg/milk mixture to the cooked macaroni, and gently mix until all the ingredients are melted and smooth.
Place about 2-3 Tbsp. of the macaroni mixture into each muffin cup. Evenly top with cheese.
Any leftovers can be cooked in a separate dish alongside the muffin tin.
Bake the mac and cheese cups until lightly golden on top, about 20-25 minutes.
Let cool slightly before removing from the muffin pan. Serve immediately. Makes 12 mac-n-cheese cups.

Angel’s Tip: In the future, I may try this recipe baked in a 9x13 casserole dish with plain crushed crackers sprinkled on top in the last 10 minutes of baking.

Inspired by: The Curvy Carrot

Focaccia Bread

This is a mouth-watering bread recipe that I made for my husband for Father's Day. I love the focaccia bread sandwiches at a local restaurant, and a couple years ago a friend of mine brought some of the bread, homemade, to a potluck lunch. I hadn't thought of making it myself. My friend said she found the recipe online. Here's one I found online which I altered to make my own. It makes a soft bread that is perfect for sandwiches - it's baked like pizza, somewhat flat then cut into squares and each square is sliced in half, horizontally (think hamburger bun). Adding toppings to the bread really makes it special – the focaccia bread I made, which is pictured here, had no toppings. Since it is a bit of work – a labor of love, really – I suggest doubling or tripling the batch. The triple batch I made was gone in no time.
Ingredients:
2 tsp. yeast
1 C. warm water
2 Tbsp. sugar
3 1/2-4 C. flour
1 Tbsp. coarse or regular salt
1/4 olive oil, or vegetable oil
Toppings:
2 Tbsp. olive oil, or vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
10 olives, sliced thinly
1/4 C. Parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp. coarse salt or regular
ground pepper
2 Tbsp. fresh rosemary
(all optional)
Directions:
In a bowl proof yeast, combining with the warm water and sugar. Stir gently to dissolve. Let stand a couple minutes until foamy. Use mixer on low or stir by hand with wooden spoon, slowly adding the flour. Dissolve salt in 2 Tbsp warm water and add. Also add 1/4 C. oil. Continue mixing. If hand stirring, place dough on a lightly floured surface with extra flour on hand. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic, adding flour as needed.
Form dough into a ball. Set it in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap in a warm place until doubled in size – about 30 minutes or more. (I like to turn on the oven to lowest setting for one minute, shut off, and place dough in the oven – make sure the oven is turned off!)
Add a light coat of oil to a cookie sheet and spread around (you can sprinkle with cornmeal if desired).
Once dough is ready, turn it out on counter and roll and stretch the dough into an rectangular shape about 1/2-inch thick. Lay the dough in the pan covered with plastic wrap, and let rest 15 minutes.
Meanwhile preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Saute onion in the oil on low heat for 10-15 minutes until caramelized.
Uncover dough and make dimples (about an inch apart) with fingertip. Brush dough with oil and add onions, garlic, olives, cheese, salt, pepper and rosemary. Bake on the bottom rack for 15-20 minutes. Makes one loaf for about 6-8 servings, depending on sandwich sizes.
The bread is great with any type of sandwich. I last used it with shredded chicken. It's also great with soup – just about anything!
Enjoy!
Angel's Tip: Using olive oil and coarse sea salt makes everything just a bit nicer, but if you don't have these on hand go with what you have in your cupboards, it will still turn out great!

Barbecue Chicken Ranch Salad

Ready for something new, healthy, yet filling? I think this salad fits the bill. This is my own version of similar recipes I’ve seen and tried. Of course you can add your favorite ingredients; one restaurant where I tried this salad topped the dish with onion ring bits. It was delicious, but not so healthy!


Ingredients:
One head of lettuce, cleaned and chopped
(or two bags of salad mix)
1 C. frozen corn, prepared
1 tomato, chopped
1 can black beans, drained
juice of one lime
1 1/2-2 C. cheddar cheese, shredded
4 chicken breasts, thawed
salt and pepper
1/2 C. barbecue sauce
Ranch dressing
Optional ingredients: chopped mushrooms, cilantro, green onion, cucumber, red bell pepper, croutons or tortilla strips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place chicken in a greased casserole dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with the barbecue sauce. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until done. Shred the chicken.
Evenly distribute the ingredients on four dishes. Plate up the lettuce and layer with chicken, beans, corn and tomatoes. Add croutons or tortilla strips and top with cheese. Squeeze lime juice on top and add ranch dressing to your taste.

Angel's Tip: This can also be made in a big bowl if you prefer - I like stacking the ingredients.

Wingin' It Soup

This soup could easily be called Hamburger Veggie Soup, but what fun would that be? This is a throw-what-you-got-in-the-pot meal – and it’s easy on the budget too – so have fun with it. If you want to go meatless make it without the hamburger. I enjoyed this soup for lunch at a friend’s home a few years ago. I was surprised that something so simple tasted so good! For this recipe, I just threw in what I had on hand and for a kick, I added 1/2 tsp. red curry paste to my bowl of soup – yum!

Ingredients:
9 C. water
6 beef bouillon cubes
2-3 medium-sized potatoes, diced
2 carrots, sliced
1/4 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 tsp. dehydrated onions
3-4 green onions, sliced
3/4 C. frozen corn
1/2-1 C. hamburger, cooked with salt and pepper
Thai red curry paste, optional (about 1/2 tsp. per serving)

Directions:
Bring water and bouillon cubes to a boil and add the diced potato. Return to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Slice and dice the other ingredients and add them and the cooked, drained hamburger to the pot. Return to a boil, giving an occasional stir, and simmer for another 15 minutes or until potatoes and carrots are tender. Serve with rolls, toast or crackers. Serves 5-6.

Angel’s Tips: I added dehydrated onions instead of extra salt to keep the sodium lower. You could also add peas, green beans, a can of diced tomatoes and/or a cup of your favorite pasta (such as rotini or macaroni salad pasta) to the mix – add pasta at the right time (according to package directions).

Game On! Super Bowl Snacks

Here is a delicious collection of appetizers to add to your Super Bowl table of goodies. Many thanks go out to friends and family who shared recipes!

Bacon Cheese Potato Skins
This is a recipe I had wanted to try out for quite some time – they were even better than I imagined! Definitely worth a try!

Ingredients:
5 medium russet potatoes
1/2 C. sour cream
3-5 green onions, sliced, reserve a tablespoon to top dish of sour cream
1/4 C. butter (1/2 stick) or 1/4 C. olive oil
1 1/2 C. shredded Cheddar cheese
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash, then bake potatoes for 1 hour and allow to cool.
While potatoes bake, cook bacon and drain.
When potatoes are cool to the touch, cut them in half lengthwise, then scoop most of the potato out of each one and leave about 1/4 inch of potato on each skin. You can reserve the potato flesh to make mashed potatoes.
Rub each potato with cube of butter inside and out, or brush with olive oil.
Place potato skins, like little boats, on a baking sheet and broil 6 minutes or until edges turn brown.
Remove baking sheet from oven and divide cheese, bacon and sliced green onions evenly between each potato and return to oven for 2 more minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with sour cream and additional sliced green onions.
Serves 5.
Angel’s Tip: These would be great with a variety of toppings – finely chopped broccoli with cheese; shredded chicken with barbecue sauce and cheese; cooked hamburger with diced green chilies and cheese – whatever you enjoy on a baked potato!
Angel’s Tip: To opt for a healthier version, just use light sour cream, olive oil (to brush potatoes), less cheese and small amount of turkey bacon or use cubed ham.

Hot-Wing Dip
This fabulous recipe comes from a high school friend, Julie VanAuker of Georgia. I whipped this up and - YUM! - this one is a keeper! Thanks Julie!

Ingredients:
2 C. chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
3/4 C. (or to taste) buffalo wing sauce (see tips below)
1 pkg. 1/3-fat cream cheese, room temperature
1 C. sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
optional, top with French-fried onions
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Add cooked, shredded chicken to a 9x13-inch casserole dish, spread cream cheese on top. Place in oven for 2 minutes to further soften cream cheese then spread across. Top with freshly shredded cheese. Heat through for 15 minutes or until cheese is thoroughly melted. Serve with tortilla chips or crackers such Wheat Thins or Triscuits.
Angel’s Tip: I used what I had on hand – Taco Bell brand hot sauce and Colby-Jack cheese.

Fruit Dip
I remember making this tasty and easy fruit dip years ago, and I found the recipe again. Serve up with your favorite fruit such as apple slices, strawberries, pineapples and bananas.

Ingredients:
1 pkg. 1/3-fat cream cheese, softened
1 7-oz. container marshmallow creme
2 tbsp. orange juice concentrate
Directions:
Place marshmallow creme in a bowl and microwave for 20-30 seconds. Mix together with other ingredients until smooth. Chill then serve with your favorite fruit.

Zucchini Pizza
From the kitchen of Chantel Jensen of Utah, this would make a delicious, healthy option for game day. Thanks Chantel!

Ingredients:
zucchini
olive oil
pepperoni
garlic cheese
Parmesan cheese, optional
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Slice the zucchini in half. Brush with olive oil. Lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with pepperoni and cheese. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until soft.
Angel's Tip: If you don't have garlic cheese available, sprinkle zucchinis with garlic powder before adding toppings and use Mozzarella cheese.

Grape Jelly Meatballs
From the kitchen of Cammie Haney of John Day, this is "easy-peasy" with only three ingredients! Thanks Cammie!

Ingredients:
2 lbs. fully-cooked frozen meatballs
1 12-oz. jar grape jelly
1 12-oz. jar chili sauce, such as Heinz
Directions:
In a large pot, stir jelly and chili sauce to combine, add meatballs and stir to coat. Simmer 25-30 minutes, until meatballs are warmed through. These can be made in a crockpot – cook on low for 1-2 hours.

Cheesy Dip
This cheesy, meaty dip is a favorite for Hailey Delaney of Canyon City and her family. Thank you Hailey!

Ingredients:
1 lb. sausage
1 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 jar salsa con queso (cheesy salsa dip)
1 jar regular salsa
Directions:
Brown the sausage and drain. In a crockpot, add all ingredients. Cook on low for an hour or two until mixed and warmed through. Serve with tortilla chips or Doritos-style chips.
Angel’s Tip: If you don’t have a crockpot, use a skillet to warm the ingredients through on low, stirring occasionally (after the sausage is browned and drained).

Pizza Bites
From the kitchen of my sister-in-law Christy Carpenter of Utah, these pizza bites are easy and awesome! Thanks a bunch Christy!

Ingredients:
crescent roll dough, such as Pillsbury
cheese sticks
pepperoni
marinara sauce
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Place 3-4 pieces of pepperoni on each triangle of dough, top with a 1/3 of cheese stick, roll up as you would a crescent roll. Bake for 10-14 minutes or until golden brown on ungreased baking sheet. Serve with warm marinara sauce. Can be made 2 hours ahead - cover and refrigerate.