Kneaders Overnight French Toast

 This is my traditional Christmas morning breakfast and I have a fear this recipe will disappear from the internet so I decided I had better get it on our blog.

I only make half of the egg mixture and dip the cut pieces of bread in the mixture and put slices in prepared pan. I will spoon on a little extra egg mixture after its all loaded on the pan if I think some areas need a little extra. Dumping the whole amount listed below on the slices of bread is WAY TOO MUCH in my opinion.

I also need more than one pan. I usually end up using a 9x13 and a square 9x9 for one loaf of bread. 

While baking, with about 15 minutes left,  I flip the pieces over so both sides can get a little browned.

 

Kneaders Overnight French Toast

Ingredients
1 loaf Kneaders Chunky Cinnamon bread, sliced in to eight pieces
8 eggs
3 cups milk
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
¾ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 tablespoons butter

Directions
Step 1 – Generously butter a 9×13-inch glass baking dish. Set butte aside.
Step 2 – Place bread in baking dish.
Step 3 – Combine remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl until completely blended.
Step 4 – Pour egg mixture over bread.
Step 5 – Cut butter into small pieces and sprinkle over bread.
Step 6 – Cover and refrigerate overnight, or for at least 4 hours.
Step 7 – Bake uncovered for 45 to 50 minutes at 350 degrees.
Step 8 – Serves six to eight people.

Caramel Syrup:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 cup corn syrup

Mix ingredients in saucepan on medium heat until sugar is dissolved.  Stirring occasionally. 

Store unused syrup in fridge.

Rice Pudding - Instant Pot

I’ve had my Instant Pot for about 3 weeks now and I’ve made rice pudding about 6 times.  Half because I like it and the other half, it’s one thing I can’t mess up.

I found this recipe online and made lazy adjustments, so it’s my recipe now.

In your pot, add:

• 1 c uncooked rice (I use jasmine)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1.5 tbsp butter
• 2 cups milk 
• Cinnamon- sprinkle as much as you think you want.  

Set high pressure for 14 minutes.  Quick release. 

In a small bowl blend: 

• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup cream, evaporated milk, half and half, or regular milk 
• 1/2 tsp vanilla 

Scoop a couple scoops of rice mixture into the egg mixture to temper the egg.  

Turn on the sauté feature and add egg/rice mix.  Stir until combined and thickened.  Maybe a minute or so.  

You’re done. 

Margaret Makes: Tapioca Pudding

Welcome to our first installment of Margaret Makes --the cooking show where Mom shows us her secret methods of making our childhood favorites. Be sure to submit ideas for future episodes.

Here's the video we shot a couple of weeks ago. (Forgive the unpolished editing; this is more of a family history project anyway.)

Check out this measuring spoon. Pretty sure that's the secret to all of Mom's cooking.


And this is the brand of tapioca she uses.


Minute Tapioca the Way Mom Makes It (She triples these amounts for her large pot)

3 T Minute Tapioca
2 3/4 cups milk, divided
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla

Mix tapioca and 2 cups of milk in large saucepan or pot. Add sugar and let sit for 5 minutes to allow the tapioca to soften a bit. Beat egg in bowl and mix in remaining milk. Add egg/milk mixture to pot. Stir until combined. Bring to a full boil over medium high heat. Boil and stir constantly for 10 minutes until full and foamy. Add vanilla. Pudding will thicken as it cools.

If you remember a time when Mom separated the egg and beating the whites and folding them in later, she did indeed do that. Mom prefers a denser pudding so she doesn't do that anymore.

And I'm pretty sure it's the law that it's eaten out of these fancy dishes.

Big thanks to Mom for being such a good sport. I told her I wanted a picture of her eating the pudding and this is what she did for me. It makes me so happy and her pudding really is this good.

What would you like to see Margaret make next?

S'more Cookie Cups

These are the cookie cups I made for Sarah's birthday. This recipe will make 24 cups.

S'more Cookie Cups

For the cookie cups:

Ingredients
1 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
2 large egg
2 tsp vanilla 
2 2/3 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt (optional) 
1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (approximately 10 full graham crackers)

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease 24-well muffin tin. In a stand mixer, beat butter and sugars until fluffy. Add baking powder and salt and combine. Add eggs one at a time, combining completely between each addition. Add vanilla and combine. Add flour and graham cracker crumbs and stir until just combined. Scoop 3 tablespoons each into muffin tin. Bake for 13 minutes. Remove from oven and wait about 1 minute then use a jar or container (I used a spice jar) to indent each cup. Cool completely in tin.

For the ganache:

Ingredients
12 oz bag milk chocolate chips
2/3 cup cream

In a liquid 2 cup measuring cup, pour in chocolate chips and cream. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring completely until melted and smooth. Cool the ganache until it's no longer warm (the fridge can help speed this along). Pour a couple of tablespoons of ganache in cooled cups.

After the ganache is poured into the cups and while that cools and sets a little, begin making the marshmallow cream. 

Marshmallow Cream

1/3 cup water

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup corn syrup or honey

3 large egg whites room temperature

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1 tsp vanilla

Place water, sugar, and corn syrup in a medium saucepan. Stir to combine.

1. Insert a candy thermometer into the pot and heat over medium-high. Do not stir from this point on as crystals will form.
2. Ensure mixer bowl and whisk are completely grease free.
3. Place egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer.
4. When the sugar syrup reaches about 225°F, start whipping the egg whites to soft peaks. Approx 3-4mins.
5. When the whites are ready, the sugar syrup should be at 240°F. Remove from the heat, turn mixer to medium and very slowly and carefully pour the sugar syrup into the whites in a thin, steady stream.
6. Once all of the syrup is in, set mixer to medium/high and continue whipping. The whites will deflate at first, but they will thicken and fluff up. Continue to whip for 7-8 minutes, or until the mixture is thick and glossy. Add in vanilla and whip until the fluff has cooled.

Carefully remove each cup onto a cookie sheet. Put the fluff in a large piping bag fitted with a large opening tip. Pipe fluff onto each cup. With a kitchen torch, torch each cup to your liking. I torched from one direction, turned the cookie sheet and torched the other sides then repeated this on a third side. We waited until they were completely cooled to eat but I bet they'd be really good freshly toasted too.

Cookie recipe from The April Gal and ganache and marshmallow cream from Liv for Cake.

Asian Chicken Pasta Salad

Salad:
1 box bow tie pasta
1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 bag fresh spinach
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1 can mandarin oranges, drained
1/2 to 1 cup cashews or sliced almonds
1/2 cup craisins (optional)

Dressing:
1/2 cup oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 rice vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil
3 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1/4 cup sesame seeds

Marinate shredded chicken in dressing at least 2 hours or overnight.
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and cool. Combine with salad ingredients and add chicken and dressing. Mix and enjoy!

Cinnamon Roll Cake

I don't even need to say anything about it, other than.....just make it. I guarantee it'll be gone in an hour, no matter if your home has 1 person or 10.

I stole this from another site, because whatevers on the internet is free game in my world.

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Cake

1 (15.25- ounce) box yellow cake mix

4 eggs

¾ cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup sour cream (not light)

 

Crumb

1 cup light brown sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

 

Icing

2 cups powdered sugar

3 tablespoons milk

 

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Coat a 9x13 pan with nonstick spray and set aside.
2. In the bowl of your stand mixer combine the cake mix, eggs, oil, vanilla and sour cream. Mix on low for 30 seconds and then raise the speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
3. Spread the cake batter into your prepared pan. In a medium bowl whisk together the brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle this evenly on top of your cake.
4. Using a butter knife gently swirl the cinnamon sugar into the cake batter. Don't over-swirl, as you want ribbons of the mixture throughout the cake.
5. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick entered into the center of the cake comes out clean.
6. Cool cake for 15-20 minutes.
7. In a medium bowl whisk together the powdered sugar and milk. Pour this over the slightly warm cake. Allow the icing to set, or eat right away!

Pumpkin Pie Cake

Crust
1 box yellow cake mix (reserve 1 cup for topping)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 egg, beaten

Filling
1 large can pumpkin (3 cups)
1 1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cloves
1 can evaporated milk

Topping
1 cup yellow cake mix
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, sotftened

Directions
Crust: Mix and spread on the bottom of a 9x13 cake pan
Filling: Blend together and pour over crust mixture
Topping: Work together with hands and sprinkle over filling.

Bake at 350 for 60-70 minutes until knife comes out clean. Serve warm with whipped cream, whipped topping or ice cream

Grandma Syme's Chocolate Cake

Since tomorrow is Memorial Day and not all of us can make it to Moroni, I'm posting this recipe so you can bring a little Moroni, a little family history, to your own home.

I asked Mom if this was indeed a recipe Grandma Bardella made up or just one we associate with her. She didn't know. But Mom did write out the steps better which I hope I captured below.

Grandma Syme's Chocolate Cake

In a large bowl beat together with hand mixer
2 cups sugar
1 cup shortening or butter
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

In a separate bowl whisk together
1 cup flour
2 tsp soda
1 tsp salt
6 T cocoa

Add dry mixture to butter/sugar mixture and blend together.

Then add
1 cup buttermilk

Then add
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup boiling water a little at a time

Beat until smooth. Batter is much runnier than a cake mix batter. Pour into greased 9x13 pan and bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.

Chocolate Caramel Cake

Baking spray that contains flour can be used to grease and flour the pans. Both natural and Dutch-processed cocoa will work in this recipe. When taking the temperature of the caramel in steps 3 and 4, remove the pot from the heat and tilt the pan to one side. Use your thermometer to stir the caramel back and forth to equalize hot and cool spots and make sure you are getting an accurate reading.

Cake

1 1/2 cups (7.5 ounces) flour
3/4 cup (2.25 ounces) cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Caramel Filling

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1 cup heavy cream
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon salt

Frosting
16 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup (1.5 ounces) cocoa powder
Pinch salt
1/2 cup light corn syrup
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. FOR THE CAKE: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper, grease parchment, and flour pans. Sift flour and cocoa into large bowl. Whisk in sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk buttermilk, water, oil, eggs, and vanilla together in second bowl. Whisk buttermilk mixture into flour mixture until smooth batter forms. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans and smooth tops with rubber spatula.

   2. Bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 22 to 28 minutes, switching and rotating pans halfway through baking. Let cakes cool in pans on wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove cakes from pans, discarding parchment, and let cool completely on rack, at least 2 hours.

   3. FOR THE CARAMEL FILLING: Lightly grease 8-inch square baking pan. Combine sugar, corn syrup, and water in medium saucepan. Bring to boil over medium-high heat and cook, without stirring, until mixture is amber colored, 8 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook, swirling saucepan occasionally, until dark amber, 2 to 5 minutes longer. (Caramel will register between 375 and 380 degrees.)

   4. Off heat, carefully stir in cream, butter, vanilla, and salt (mixture will bubble and steam). Return saucepan to medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until smooth and caramel reaches 240 to 245 degrees, 3 to 5 minutes. Carefully transfer caramel to prepared pan and let cool until just warm to touch (100 to 105 degrees), 20 to 30 minutes.

   5. FOR THE FROSTING: Process butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in food processor until smooth, about 30 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add corn syrup and vanilla and process until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl, then add chocolate and pulse until smooth and creamy, 10 to 15 seconds. (Frosting can be made 3 hours in advance. For longer storage, cover and refrigerate frosting. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour before using.)

   6. Using long serrated knife, score 1 horizontal line around sides of each cake layer; then, following scored lines, cut each layer into 2 even layers. 7. Using rubber spatula or large spoon, transfer 1/3 of caramel to center of 1 cake layer and use small offset spatula to spread over surface, leaving 1/2-inch border around edge. Repeat with remaining caramel and 2 of remaining cake layers. (Three of your cake layers should be topped with caramel.)

   8. Line edges of cake platter with 4 strips of parchment to keep platter clean. Place 1 caramel-covered cake layer on platter. Top with second caramel-covered layer. Repeat with third caramel-covered layer and top with final layer. Spread frosting evenly over sides and top of cake. Carefully remove parchment strips. Let cake stand for at least 1 hour. (Cake can be made 2 days in advance and refrigerated. Let stand at room temperature for at least 5 hours before serving.) Sprinkle with coarse sea salt, if using. Cut and serve.

From America's Test Kitchen

Raspberry Yogurt Salad

Or "Salad so easy your kid can make it" No measuring, just dump and stir. This is perfect for a summer barbecue or Sunday dinner.

This is what it looks like freshly made when the berries are still frozen. Once the berries thaw and you stir it up, it gets bright pink. It's delicious to eat both ways.

32 oz vanilla yogurt
1 large box vanilla pudding
8 oz container Cool Whip
1 bag frozen raspberries

In a large mixing bowl, mix the vanilla pudding powder into the yogurt unit there's no powder lumps.
Fold in the Cool Whip and raspberries. It's good right then, even better in a few hours, and sooo good the next day.

(Almost) Swig Sugar Cookie Recipe

 
 
 I will NEVER make these cookies again!!  (Unless it's a giant gathering so I can be sure that all cookies are eaten and will not find a cozy spot in my fridge to taunt me day after day!)

These are so good and pretty much just like the cookies you find at Swig.  I didn't have sour cream so I used vanilla greek yogurt (don't tell Kenny or I will kill you!) in it's place in both the cookies and frosting. Turned out wonderfully! I liked the extra vanilla flavor.  I didn't use almond extract because I don't like almond extract and Swig doesn't use it either. *see tips below.  I cooked, cooled, frosted, then put them in the freezer to harden up the frosting so I could stack them and store them in the fridge, since Swig cookies are cold.

D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S!

I ate them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and made my kids take a bunch to school to get them out of my house! They are evil. You should give them a try! :)  Thanks lady in Bountiful that figured out the recipe!!  Link to original post here.


(Almost) Swig Sugar Cookie Recipe
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

dough:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup solid shortening ( I like Butter Flavor Crisco)
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
4 1/2  cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
sugar for top of cookies

frosting:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
2 tablespoon sour cream
4 cups powdered sugar
1-2 teaspoons vanilla
dash of salt
1 drop red food coloring
1-2 tablespoons milk**

Preheat oven to 325 convection or 350 regular bake.
Take butter out of refrigerator and microwave for about 15 seconds. Place butter, shortening and cold sour cream in a mixing bowl. Mix for about one minute. Add sugar and almond extract, mix until smooth. Add all dry ingredients at once. Mix just until flour disappears and the mixture comes together in a ball of dough, about 1 minute on very low speed.
Spray the cookie scoop with a little cooking spray. Scoop the dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet. I use a 2 inch scoop. A 2 inch scoop will produce a cookie similar in size to the Swig cookie. If you don't have a cookie scoop, use an ice cream scoop or roll the dough into a ball about the size of a golf ball. It is best to use a scoop and overfill it a bit to get the desired jagged edge.
Place about 1/4 cup sugar into a small bowl.
Spray the bottom of a flat glass with cooking spray. Flatten one cookie a bit then dip the glass in sugar Press the bottom of the glass against the cookie. Press the cookies so they are flattened a bit ( until the cookie dough just reaches the outside of the edge of the glass) twisting the glass as you press to produce a jagged edge. I bake 8 cookies per tray. Continue until all cookies are flattened.
Bake in oven for about 10-12 minutes on convection or about 12-15 minutes regular bake or until edges are lightly golden and cookies are slightly firm to the touch.
Remove from oven, let cool.  Loosen the cookies from the cookie sheet after cooled a bit, or they will stick to the pan (even though it has been lightly greased).
Place the cookies in the fridge and chill.

Prepare the frosting:
Beat together the butter, sour cream, powdered sugar, vanilla and salt. When all ingredients are incorporated, add the drop of food coloring and a little milk if the frosting needs to be thinned.
Frost after the cookies are completely chilled.
Makes about 18  large cookies.

Tips and (surprise) a few more comments:
-The recipe looks a little long and maybe even complicated, but it's  not. Once you get the hang of the technique for scooping and pressing, it takes less than a half hour to make and bake the entire batch.
-If you want the cookies to taste more like the  original Swig cookies make this adjustment to the dough:  Omit the almond extract and reduce the sugar to a total of 3/4-1 cup.
I prefer the cookies to be sweeter, so I like 1 1/2 cups of sugar in the dough. 1 1/2 cups of sugar may sound like a lot, but consider traditional chocolate chip cookies have 1 1/2 to 2 cups of sugar to 2 1/4 cups of flour. The ratio here is 1 1/2 cups sugar to 4 1/2 cups flour.
-This cookie measures about 3 3/4 to 4 inches across when finished baking.
-The St. George Swig cookie is frosted with quite a thin layer of frosting. I prefer my frosting to be a bit thicker. If you want to frost the cookie with a thinner frosting, add about 3-4 tablespoons of milk to the frosting. If you  are buying and not baking and like a thicker layer of frosting, visit our friends at the B-town Swig. That cookie is Swig perfection.
-This cookie stays quite well in the fridge for about a week if kept in an air tight container. I frost the cooled cookies, then store them in the fridge. Once the frosting is set on the cookie, you may layer the cookies between sheets of parchment or wax paper. This allows you to stack the cookies without taking up too much space in the refrigerator.
-This cookie freezes well frosted or unfrosted.
-If you are making this for a gathering where there will be other desserts, use a smaller cookie scoop and bake for less time.

Disneyland Loaded Baked Potato Soup

This recipe comes from the Carnation Cafe at Disneyland. It was really good! I almost got the Disney Tingle!

Ingredients:
1 pound bacon, roughly chopped
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
3/4 cup diced celery
4 large Russet potatoes, peeled and diced
4 medium red potatoes, diced
1/4 cup flour
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
Coarse salt, freshly ground pepper, to taste
4 cups heavy whipping cream
Optional garnishes: chopped chives, bacon bits, sour cream, shredded cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese

Instructions:

1. In a 6- to 8-quart stockpot over medium heat, fry bacon until crisp.
2. Remove bacon and drain on paper towels, reserving half for garnish. In bacon fat, cook onions, carrots, and celery until the onions are translucent. Add potatoes and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Whisk in flour and stir constantly over low heat until the flour is cooked and the mixture has thickened slightly, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add chicken stock and half of the bacon. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Over medium-high heat, bring the soup to a simmer and cook for 25 minutes or until the potatoes are soft. Mash some of the potatoes for thicker, creamier texture. Add whipping cream and simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Adjust thickness by adding water or stock. Soup should have a creamy consistency.
6. Season to taste, and garnish with toppings.

Cooks’ notes: Soak diced potatoes in cold water until ready to use to keep them from turning brown. To make bacon easier to chop, lightly freeze

This recipe has been converted from a larger quantity in the restaurant kitchens. The flavor profile may vary from the restaurant’s version.

All recipes are the property of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S., Inc., and may not be reproduced without express permission.

http://blogs.disney.com/insider/recipes/2013/11/27/loaded-baked-potato-soup/

Cheddar Bacon Ranch Dinner Quiche

Quiche. It's not just for breakfast. We have quiche for dinner a couple of times a month because it's easy and super cheap. The recipe below is a combination of a couple of recipes I've found. You could omit the cheddar/bacon/ranch and add whatever else you have on hand. Vegetables, canned beans, and green chilies are good too. The possibilities are endless. We usually complete the brunch for dinner with muffins and fruit.

Ingredients
6 eggs
1/4 c flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 c. butter, melted (sometimes I just use the bacon grease)
1 cup cottage cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup ranch dressing
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

Beat eggs lightly in large bowl. Stir in flour and baking powder. Stir in melted butter (or bacon fat) and cottage cheese. Add shredded cheese, ranch dressing and bacon. Combine just until blended. Pour mixture in greased 9x9 baking dish or pie plate and bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and continue baking about 30 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve hot. Makes 6 servings.

Swiss Chicken

This is yummy!  My friend suggested it one day when I was complaining about not knowing what to cook for dinner.  I have made it a few times since. It's very quick and easy to throw together and I usually have everything on hand, so it's a no-brainer.  I have made it with provolone cheese and it was just as yummy.

I don't cut up my chicken into smaller pieces. I just put in one breast for each person I am serving and put a piece of cheese on top of it. I guess if your chicken breasts are HUGE, you may want to cut them up.

Tyler loves it because he is a sucker for Thanksgiving dinner and it makes him feel all "Thanksgiving-ish" anytime of the year. 

Original post can be found here.



SWISS CHICKEN

3 chicken breasts, cut into smaller pieces

3-4 slices Swiss cheese (or pepper-jack cheese)
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup milk
1 box Stove Top Stuffing, chicken flavored (shake to redistribute seasonings)
1/4 cup melted butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a casserole dish, close to 9x13. 

2. Place chicken breasts in a greased casserole dish.

3. Top chicken with slices of Swiss cheese. 

4. In a small bowl, mix soup and milk until blended.

5. Pour soup mixture over chicken and cheese.

6. Top chicken with dry stuffing mix.

7.  Drizzle stuffing mix with melted butter.

8. Baked covered with foil at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  Remove foil and bake 5-10 minutes longer. Serves 6.

*note~ I have accidentally left off the foil cover and the breading will over-brown and get too crunchy.  Don't forget to cover it:)

Slow Cooker Hawaiian Chicken

Delicious and easy!

My crockpot broke, so I didn't make this in a slow cooker. I just cooked up the chicken first then added everything else and let it simmer for an hour or so.  Don't be in too much of a hurry. Let it simmer. I tasted it as it was getting warm and thought it was going to be terrible, too sweet!  After it simmered, it really did taste so much better.

I highly suggest adding red onion (I love red onions) and the extra pineapple slice when you are serving.  I don't like cilantro so I didn't buy any, but Kenny said he would have liked that as well.

My family ate it on buns last night. I just made it into a salad for lunch today and it was delicious.

The original post is here.

• 1 pound boneless chicken breasts
• 1 (20-ounce) can crushed pineapple in juice
• juice of one lime
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 3 or 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (adjust to your heat preference)
• 8 whole wheat buns
• for serving, optional: pineapple rings, diced red onion, chopped cilantro

Place chicken into crock pot. Cover chicken with remaining ingredients, through the red pepper. Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. Shred chicken and serve on buns; top with additional pineapple, red onion and/or cilantro.

Moroni Funeral Brownies

That's not what these are called but that's the kind of brownie recipe I was looking for and these fit the bill.  Remember the last funeral in Sanpete County you went to? A large spread of desserts lovingly donated by the Moroni Relief Society? Somewhere among that table is a cookie sheet full of frosted brownies. These are those brownies.  They're originally Lunch Lady Brownies but that moniker conjures no fond memories as I never had brownies like this at school, only funerals. 

Anyway, enough about Moroni (oh the marinated turkey!)  It is an entirely different brownie experience eating these warm and gooey out of the oven than the next day completely set. Eat them both ways but set is the Moroni Brownie. Here's the recipe.

Moroni Funeral Brownies
Ingredients:
1 cup salted butter, melted
1/2 cup cocoa

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
4 eggs

4 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Using a mixer, blend melted butter and cocoa until smooth. Add flour and sugar; beat together. Mix in eggs and vanilla (and nuts if you are using them) and mix until combined (be sure not to over mix).
Pour batter into a greased 9x13" baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean
Let the brownies cool for about 10-20 minutes and then frost while still warm.

Frosting:
1/4 cup salted butter, softened
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
dash of salt

Mix all ingredients together and frost as desired. 

Korean Beef

This is becoming one of our family favorites.  It's really quick and simple.  The hardest part is mincing the garlic cloves. 

I found the recipe on Pinterest. The original post is here.



1 pound lean ground beef
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 - 1/2 cup brown sugar (I like it sweet so I usually do closer to 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup soy sauce (I use low-sodium)
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced (see note)
1/2 - 1 teaspoon crushed red peppers (to desired spiciness)
salt and pepper
1 bunch green onions, diced (don't skip this!)

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and brown hamburger with garlic in the sesame oil. Drain most of the fat and add brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger, salt and pepper and red peppers. Simmer for a few minutes to blend the flavors. Serve over steamed rice and top with green onions.

French Onion Pasta

So Rachel and Lisa were discussing pasta recipes that weren't made with tomato-based sauce. This is one of my go-to recipes since Sarah doesn't like "red sauce" either and it is really easy. But if you don't like onions, this isn't for you.

I made the sauce in an oven-safe pan to cut down on dishes to wash later.

Adapted from Stephanie Cooks.

2 cups of uncooked penne pasta
1 to 1.5 cup of chicken broth
1 packet of Lipton's Onion Soup mix
1 shallot, finely diced
2 cloves of garlic, smashed
4 tablespoons of cream
1 tablespoon of flour
1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tablespoon of EVOO

Directions-
1- Boil water for your pasta. While the noodles cook, prepare the rest of ingredients.
2- In a saucepan, heat the EVOO. Add the scallions and garlic, stir continually until soft and fragrant.
3- Add the chicken broth, scraping the bottom of the pan to remove any stuck on pieces of onion.
4- Add the soup mix packet, allow to cook on low for about 20 minutes.
5- Stir in flour, whisking continually until well incorporated and thickened.
6- Add the cream, mix well.
7- Add the pasta to the sauce, stir well.
8- Pour into an oven safe dish. Top with the mozzarella cheese.
9- Set it under the broiler until the cheese gets a little crispy.

Meredith's Chicken Enchiladas

3-4 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed or shredded
1 (10.5 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 (10 oz) can green chili enchilada sauce
1 cup sour cream
1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles
1/4 tsp. cumin
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed well (or whatever kind of beans you like. White beans                    hide better if you have picky kids, like me)
1 1/2 cups grated cheese (I usually use a taco blend, but pepper jack would be good too.)
Flour tortillas (soft taco size)

In a small bowl, combine cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and 1/2 the can of enchilada sauce. Add half of this mixture to the cooked chicken. Set the rest aside for the topping. To the chicken, add the remainder of the enchilada sauce, green chiles, cumin, and beans. Mix and heat through. Soften tortillas by heating them individually on a frying pan. Spoon chicken mixture onto each tortilla and roll to close. Place rolled tortillas fold-side down into lightly greased 9 x13 baking dish (you will need two baking dishes). Top with remaining sour cream mixture, covering the enchiladas completely so the don't dry out and harden, and then the grated cheese. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and heated through. Garnish with olives, tomatoes, green onions, salsa, avocado, or whatever. Serve with rice or salad.

Makes 10-12 enchiladas

Pumpkin (or Applesauce) Cookies

2 cups sugar
1 cup shortening
2 eggs
15 oz can pumpkin (or 2 cups applesauce)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cloves
2 tsp baking soda
4 cups flour
chocolate chips

Mix the standard cookie method. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes or until the edges of cookies look golden brown.