Fumi Salad...

This makes a big bowl of salad and is great for potlucks or picnics.

Mix together:
1 head of cabbage, shredded
1 bunch green onion, chopped

Toast and add to cabbage: I toast mine in a non stick pan until golden.
8 Tbsp. sliced almonds
8 Tbsp. sesame seeds

Blend together and pour over cabbage:
4 Tbsp. sugar
1 C. oil
6 Tbsp. rice vinegar

2 pkgs. of ramen noodles, crushed
Add the noodles right before serving so they will be crisp.

Cherry Jell-O Salad...

1 3 oz. pkg. cherry Jell-O
1 C. boiling water
1 can cherry pie filling

Mix the boiling water with the Jell-O to dissolve and then add the cheery pie filling. Pour into a mold or an 8x11 inch oblong dish. Chill until set.

Mix the following ingredients in another bowl.

1 3 oz. pkg of lemon Jell-O
1 C. boiling water
1 3 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1/3 C. salad dressing or mayonnaise (I use mayonnaise)
1 8 oz. can crushed pineapple, do not drain

Chill until slightly thickened. Pour over the cherry Jell-O and chill until completely set.

White Chip Chocolate Cookies...

These are a soft and chewy cookie when not over baked. They taste somewhat like a brownie with white chocolate pieces. I made these for my husband's bible study the other night and they seemed to be a hit. Enjoy!



1 C. butter, room temperature
2 C. sugar

2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla

2 C. flour
3/4 C. baking cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 2/3 C. or one bag of white chocolate chips

Beat butter and sugar until creamy.
Add eggs and vanilla, beat until light and fluffy.

Stir together dry ingredients.
Gradually add to butter mixture beating until well blended.

Stir in white chips.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake 9-10 minutes.
Do not over bake, cookies will be soft.
They will puff while baking and flatten upon cooling.

Cool slightly and remove to wire rack. Cool completely.

Makes 4 1/2 dozen.

Chocolate Cherry Cake...

Every time that I have made this cake it's been a hit with every one. I prefer Duncan Hines Cake mixes, especially for this cake. Devil's Food was just a little too dark chocolate for me. I really like German Chocolate the best. This picture is made with a German Chocolate cake mix. Enjoy!

1 pkg Chocolate Cake mix, any chocolate cake mix.
1 can Cherry Pie Filling
1 tsp Almond Extract or vanilla I prefer almond
2 eggs, beaten

Mix all together and pour into a greased and floured 9x13 cake pan. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. it works best if you mix it by hand and reserve a third of the can of cherries until the last minute so that you will have some whole cherries in the cake.

Prepare frosting while cake is baking.
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup butter

Boil for 30 seconds and then add;
1 cup mini marshmallows, heaping
1 cup chocolate chips

Mix until everything is melted and pour over the cake as soon as you take it out of the oven.

Cool and serve.

Lemon Thins...

1/2 C. softened Butter
1/2 C. sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
1 C. flour, sifted

2 tsp. lemon extract

preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugar until light andf fluffy. Add eggs and mix well. Beat in flour and extract. drop by spoonfuls onto oiled cookie sheet. Leave about 2 inches between each cookie.
Bake until golden brown around the edges.

Cool slightly on pan. Remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Lemon Quick Bread...

Bread:
1/2 C. butter or margarine
1 C. sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 2/3 C. sifted flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 C. milk
3/4 C. chopped nuts
Grated rind of one large lemon (the larger the better)
3/4 tsp. almond extract

Cream together butter and sugar.
Add eggs.
Sift flour, salt, and baking powder.
Add flour mixture alternately with milk to creamed mixture.
Mix in nuts, rind and extract.
Bake in greased and floured loaf pan at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.This can also be made into muffins.
Pour topping onto bread immediately upon removing bread from oven.

Topping:
1/4 C. sugar mixed with the juice of one lemon. Stir occasionally while bread is baking to dissolve sugar.

Green Chilie Chicken Enchiladas...

5 boneless chicken breasts
1 bunch green onions, chopped, reserving some for garnish
Sliced or chopped black olives, I slice an entire can of black olives
1 dozen corn tortillas
1 large can green enchilada sauce
1 lb. shredded jack cheese

Cook chicken and break apart when cooled. I boil bone in chicken breasts, debone them and break apart. It is much more economical.

Heat tortillas in microwave so they handle easier
Place about 1 cup of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of 13x9 inch baking dish.
Put some chicken. onions, cheese and olives in each tortilla. Laying out all 12 tortillas and distributing equally on each one helps.

Roll up and place seam side down in baking dish. Pour the remainder of the sauce on top and sprinkle with cheese, green onions and olives for garnish.

Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees or until sauce is bubbly and cheese is melted. Uncover and bake 10 minutes more.

Layerd Enchilada Pie...

This is an old recipe from a friend's Mom from High school. it is so easy to make and it's been a hit every time I've made it. The tortillas are placed in the casserole dish whole, not torn in pieces. I have also added canned pinto beans, drained and rinsed layered between the meat and cheese. I think I like it that way best.

1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced

1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. chili powder or taco seasoning
1 small can sliced black olives
1 8 oz. cans tomato sauce

6 corn tortillas
2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
2/3 C. water

Saut'e ground beef, onion and garlic
Stir in seasonings, olives, and tomato sauce

In round 2 quart casserole dish, spayed with Pam, alternate layers of tortillas, .eat and cheese. Ending with last layer of cheese. pour water at the edge of casserole dish and bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes. Cut in quarters a, makes four generous servings.

Beefy Vegetable Soup...

1 1/2-2 lbs. of beef stew meat
1 medium onion, chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped or sliced
3-4 carrots, diced or sliced
3 potatoes, peeled and diced
1 or two cans of petite diced tomatoes
1/2 C. chopped parsley
1/2 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp. thyme leaves
salt and pepper to taste

1/2 -1 C. frozen corn
1/2 -1 C. frozen peas


In a soup pot brown beef with a Tbsp. of oil. Add 10-12 cups of water. This is an estimate. I fill my pot to within 3 inches from the top of the pan.

Add all the ingredients except the frozen vegetables.

Cover and simmer 2 hours or until beef is tender.

Stir in frozen vegetables and 1 tsp. salt

Continue cooking until vegetables and beef are fork tender.

You can do whatever you prefer with this recipe. Add other vegetables..omit the potatoes.

The house smells so good with this simmering all day!

Golden Toffee Blondies...

Oh my goodness...these were great!

ENJOY!

1 C. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus extra for pan
1 3/4 C. light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 C. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 12 ounce pkg. semi sweet chocolate chips
1 C. toffee bits


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line a 13x9 pan with foil, pressing in corners to fit snugly. Lightly butter the foil.

In a large measuring cup microwave the butter until melted. In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat the butter with the sugar about one minute.

Add eggs and vanilla until combined and light in color.

Add flour and alt and beat until just combined. fold in chocolate chips and toffee bits.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 25 minutes. Blondies will be golden brown on the edges and yet still soft in the middle. Do not over bake. Cool on a wire wrack. When completely cool use foil edges to lift blondies out of the pan and cut into squares.

Great Cookbook...

I 've read Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove series, so out of curiosity I checked out her cookbook from the library. It's a keeper! No, I won't keep the library's book, but I will check out Costco and see if they have it at a reasonable price. The pictures are great.. the food looks delicious. It isn't full of a bunch of weird recipes. Some I would never make, but most of them look really good. I tried a Blondie brownie recipe and I will post that later today..if I am not in a sugar stupor after I had one for breakfast!

Something New..

This is my new Le Creuset Casserole Dish. I love it!

Orange Bread...

1 C. sugar
1/2 C. butter

2 eggs
1 C. sour cream
Rind of one orange, grated

2 C. flour
1 tsp. baking soda

Glaze:
1/2 C. sugar
Juice of 1 orange



Cream together sugar and butter.

Add eggs, sour cream and rind of orange.

Sift together flour and baking soda.

Mix into creamed ingredients.

Spoon into 2 greased medium loaf pans.

Bake 350 degrees for 50 minutes.

Mix together 1/2 C. sugar and orange juice and pour over bread while still hot.
Cool 10 minutes and invert.

Broccoli Cauliflower Salad...

This makes a large amount of salad and works very well for BBQ's and Potlucks. It HAS to be Miracle Whip and not mayonaise. You know how some recipe's just have to have Miracle Whip? This is one of them.

1 medium red onion, sliced thin
broccoli florets
cauliflower florets
1 can of water chestnuts, sliced and quartered
1/2 C. raisins, more if you prefer
8 slices of bacon, crumbled

Dressing:
1 C. Miracle Whip
1/3-1/2 C. sugar
2 Tbsp. vinegar

Aunt Louise's Apple Crisp...

3-4 medium apples
3/4 C. quick cooking oatmeal
3 /4 C. brown sugar
1/2 C. flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 C. butter

Pare and slice apples thin.
Arrange slices in greased 8 inch round pan.

Combine oatmeal, sugar, flour and spices.
Cut in butter.
Sprinkle this over apples.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes.
Serve warm with cheese wedge, whipped cream or ice cream.

Fruit Juice Tapioca

Mix:
1/4 C. tapioca
3 C. apple juice
Dash of salt
1/3 C. sugar

Let stand for 5 minutes. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often.Cool 20 minutes. Stir well. Serve warm or cold. Makes 6 servings.

If using apple cider, add 1/8-1/4 tsp. nutmeg.

Pistachio Salad...or Watergate Salad

2 C. Cool Whip
1-3oz. pkg. pistachio pudding
1 C. crushed pineapple, drained
1 C. small marshmallows
1 C. chopped pecans

Fold together and chill.

Anyone remember Watergate Salad?

Fruit Salad...

1 small box vanilla instant pudding
3/4 C. pineapple juice
4 Tbs. orange juice or Tang
1 large can pineapple
2 apples, diced
2 bananas, sliced
1/2 C. grapes
2 peaches, sliced

Mix pudding, pineapple juice, orange juice and lemon juice together.
Pour over fruit and chill before serving.

Carrot Sunflower Cookies...

Mix together and set aside:
3/4 C. whole wheat flour
3/4 C. oatmeal
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. baking soda

Cream together until fluffy:
1/3 C. margarine
1/3 C. brown sugar

Beat in:
1 egg1 tsp. vanilla
Stir in until blend:
3/4 C. finely shredded carrots
1/2 C. sunflower seeds

On a greased cookies sheet, drop by spoonfuls 2 inches apart.
Flatten to 1/4 inch thick.

Bake 375 degrees for 10 minutes.
Makes 2 1/2 dozen small cookies.

Blonde Brownies...

This is an old recipe of my Mom's. I don't think I have made it for years, so I made a double batch of these this week and I was reminded how good they are! I didn't have anything except mini chocolate chips, so I used them. I think it worked out well. I only used a half of a package.

I may have over baked these by 5 minutes, I got distracted when the timer went off. I doubled the recipe and used a 12x9 cake pan. There is a lot of brown sugar in this recipe...but they are oh, so good!

1 C. sifted flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/8 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 C. nuts, chopped

1/3 C. butter or shortening

1 C. brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg. slightly beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 package semi-sweet chocolate chips

To sifted flour add baking powder, soda and salt. Sift again. Add nuts.

Melt shortening in saucepan, remove from heat. Mix in sugar. (Add 1 tsp. hot water if vegetable shortening is used.)

Cool. Stir in egg and vanilla. Add flour mixture gradually, mixing well. Spread in greased 9x9x2 inch pan.

Sprinkle chips over top.
Bake 350 degrees 20-25 minutes.

Grandma's Date Pinwheel Cookies...

This was my Grandma's recipe. She made these the size of cinnamon rolls. They were her trademark specialty cookie. This was my Mom's favorite cookies during the holidays and each year I made her a huge tin full. I like to make them any time of year, it just so happens I wanted to use up some dates that I had and these were what came to mind this week.

I cook my dates before making the dough. This gives them a chance to cool down before I start my dough. if my dough sits while the dates are cooking and cooling, it tends to dry out and crumble when you roll into the pinwheel log.

Dough:
1 C. brown sugar
1 C. white sugar
1 C. shortening
3 eggs, beaten
4 C. flour
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt


Date Filling:
1 pound of dates, chopped
1 C. sugar
1/2 C. water

Mix dough and on a lightly floured surface roll to 1/4 inch thickness.
You can divide the dough into 2 equal parts for smaller cookies.

In the top of a double boiler, bring date mixture to a boil.
Let cool.

Spread dates over the top of dough and spread evenly. I roll these out on wax paper, then I just roll the dough by pulling them over into a log by pulling the wax paper away... it's much easier this way. Roll like tightly like a jelly roll.

Wrap the rolls in wax paper and chill over night.
Cut into slices and bake at 375 degrees until light golden. Don't over bake, a nice light golden brown will produce a chewy cookie.

Soda Pop Cake...

It always seems I make this cake in the summer. Maybe it's because ever since my son was 5 he always wanted this cake for his birthday, which is in June. It's a family favorite, as well as anyone I have made it for. Enjoy!

Bake a Duncan Hines Butter Yellow Cake Mix according to directions. Let Cool. This has to be the Butter cake not a plain yellow cake. The results would be very soggy.

Punch holes with a fork all over the top.

Mix together and pour over cake:
1 Large pkg. strawberry Jell-O
1 1/2 C. boiling water
3/4- 1 can strawberry soda pop

Let cake cool about an hour.

Blend together and frost with:
1 large box of vanilla instant pudding, prepared according to directions. Letting it set for the required amount of time.
1 small tub of Cool Whip

Refrigerate.

Tamale Lentil Casserole...

I had this dish awhile back at my friend Mendy's. It was delicious! I am always looking for a meatless meal to make and this one is a keeper. In case you don't have an corn bread mixes in the house and have corn meal, there is an alternative recipe for the cornbread topping.


For lentil mixture:

1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 cups water
1 ¼ cups dried lentils (10 oz.), sorted and rinsed
1 can (14 oz.) tomato sauce
1 package (1.25 oz.) taco seasoning mix
Cooking spray

For cornbread topping mixture:

1 pkg. (8 ½ oz.) cornbread muffin mix
1 can (8 ½ oz.) cream-style corn
½ cup shredded Cheddar cheese (about 2 oz.)
¼ cup milk
1 large egg

Alternate cornbread recipe from scratch. (Cornbread Topping )
1/2 C. cornmeal
1/2 C. wonder flour
1-1/2 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt1 8.5-oz. can cream-style corn
1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 C. milk
1 large egg
Mix all ingredients just until moistened.

Heat oil in 3-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook onion, bell pepper and garlic in oil, stirring frequently, until vegetables are tender.

Stir in water, lentils, tomato sauce and seasoning mix; reduce heat to low. Partially cover and simmer 35 to 40 minutes, or until lentils are tender.

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 2-quart casserole with cooking spray.

Prepare cornbread topping by mixing all topping ingredients together in a bowl until moistened.
Spoon lentil mixture into casserole. Spread topping evenly over lentil mixture.
Bake uncovered 15-20 minutes until topping is golden brown.

Makes 6 servings, about 1 ¼ cups each. Per serving: 295 calories, 8 gm fat, 3 gm saturated fat, 45 mg cholesterol, 48 gm carbohydrates, 2 gm fiber, 10 gm protein, 1,000 mg sodium.

Overnight Layered Salad...

Shred 1 head of lettuce in a wide shallow bowl.
Top with 1 1/2 C. sliced thin green onions.

Layer in this order:
1 C. thin sliced celery
1 can sliced water chestnuts
1 pkg. frozen peas, thawed

Spread 2 C. mayonnaise evenly over the top
Sprinkle with 2 tsp. sugar

1/2 C. parmesan cheese
1 tsp. seasoned salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Cover and chill as long as 24 hours.

Just before serving, spread 3 chopped hard boiled eggs
1/2 lb. crumbled bacon
Cut 2 medium tomatoes into wedges and arrange on top.

Every time I take this salad to a potluck it seems to be a crowd pleaser. Most of the time I leave the eggs out of this recipe. It's good either way.

Mom’s Egg and Lettuce Salad...

1/2 head of iceberg lettuce, torn in pieces
2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
1 green onion, chopped
parsley flakes
salt and pepper

Mix all the above ingredients in a salad bowl and toss lightly with mayonnaise. If too much mayonnaise is used the salad will be soggy.So it is best to use a little and add more if needed. Also make sure the lettuce is dry.

My Mom made this quick and easy salad all the time for us as children and when we came to visit with out families. There was just something about the way she made it that it was always just right and not soggy. Using a little mayo at a time is the key.