Chicken Fajita Marinade ~ by Sarah

I got this from allrecipes.com and added chili powder to give it a little kick.  Delicious!

Ingredients:
* 1/4 cup beer
* 1/3 cup fresh lime juice (it took about 5 limes to get this amount)
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 tablespoon brown sugar
* 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
* 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
* salt to taste
* 1/2-1 teaspoon chili powder

Directions:
1. To prepare the marinade, stir together beer, lime juice, olive oil, garlic, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, cilantro, cumin, chili powder, and salt; mix well.
2. To use marinade, pour into a resealable plastic bag, add up to 1 1/2 pounds of chicken breast, and mix until chicken is well coated. Marinate for 1 to 3 hours in the refrigerator.
3. Saute vegetables, remove from pan, cook meat, then add veggies back to meat mixture to blend flavors.  Serve as desired!

Cheers!

Blueberry Muffins...The Best Way ~ by Sarah

I didn't make the title up--I copied it from TastyKitchen.com--but I agree with it!  I find it hard to beat Betty Crocker's blueberry muffin mix, but I had fresh blueberries I wanted to use, so I found this recipe. They are yummy!  Simple, too!

Ingredients:
3 cups flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, melted
3 large eggs
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen

Directions:
Mix flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.  Combine melted butter, eggs, and milk and stir by hand into the dry ingredients until just blended.  Fold berries in lightly and carefully.  Spoon into greased muffin tins.  Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes--until golden brown.  Makes 12 extra large muffins or about 20 regular-sized muffins.

 

Slow Cooker Pork or Beef Roast ~ by Sarah

This recipe is a combination of ideas from Angela and ideas from me.  You can use a pork roast or a beef roast--the cheaper the better!  It is incredibly delicious!  This is one of Wes's favorite meals.

Ingredients:
1 pork or beef pot roast
1 envelope dry onion soup
1 can golden mushroom soup
1 heaping spoonful diced, jarred garlic
seasoning salt, garlic salt, pepper

Directions:
Drizzle olive oil in large skillet.  Heat over medium-high until oil is hot.  Place roast in skillet and brown on all sides.  Season well while browning. 

 Place roast in crock pot.  Pour golden mushroom soup over roast, then sprinkle the envelope of onion soup.  Add a small amount (about 1/2 a cup) of liquid--water, or beef broth if you're using a beef roast. 

Cook on low for about 6 hours.

Depending on how watery the roast is, the gravy in the crock pot may be thick enough to serve as is.  If it's not, add some flour and milk (I use heavy cream if I have it) and cook over medium-high heat until it's at your desired thickness.

You can add potatoes and/or carrots to the roast when a few hours of cooking time is left.  It makes the gravy a lot more watery, so sometimes I cook them separately.

Anderson Shish Kabobs ~ by Sarah

You've tried Hanning Shish Kabobs, now you should try shish kabobs ala Anderson!  Wes is famous for these--they are to die for!

Ingredients:
1 family-sized package petite sirloin steaks
2 zucchini
1 package whole fresh musrooms
1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
1 sweet onion
1 heaping regular-sized spoonful of pre-minced, jarred garlic
2 bottles teriyaki sauce marinade
1 package shish kabob skewers

Directions:
Cut the vegetables into uniform pieces about 1 inch by 1 inch.  Put in a large bowl and  pour one bottle of marinade over them.  Stir well to coat.  Cover and put in refrigerator.

Trim the meat well and cut into 1 inch by 1 inch pieces.  Place in Ziplock bag.  Add garlic.  Pour in the other bottle of marinade.  Seal bag and mix well to cover the meat.  Put in refrigerator.

Allow veggies and meat to marinate in the refrigerator for at least t 6 hours.

When ready to start cooking, soak the wooden shish kabob skewers in water for about 15 minutes.  Add meat and veggies to the skewers in whatever order suits your fancy.  Save the leftover veggie marinade, but discard the meat marinade.

Barbecue over medium-high heat about 10 minutes or until meat is cooked to your desired wellness.  (Medium-rare, baby!)  While cooking, brush leftover marinade from the veggies on the shish kabobs.

Serve with white or brown rice.  I could eat these daily.  And they're great leftover--even cold from the fridge!

Honey Wheat Bread ~ by Sarah

From allrecipes.com!  Yummy!

Ingredients:
2 c. warm water (110 degrees F)
1 T active dry yeast
1/3 c. honey
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 t. salt
1/3 c. vegetable oil
5 c. all-purpose flour

Directions:
Dissolve yeast in warm water.  Add honey and stir well.  Mix in whole wheat flour, salt, and vegetable oil.  Work all-purpose flour in gradually.  Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for at least 10 to 15 minutes.  (I used the dough hook on my Kitchen Aid.)  When dough is smooth and elastic, place it in a well-oiled bowl.  Turn it several times in the bowl to coat the surface of the dough, and cover with a damp cloth.  Let rise in warm place until doubled in bulk--about 45 minutes.  Punch down the dough.  Shape into two loaves and place into two well-greased 9x5 loaf pans.  Allow to rise until dough is 1 to 1 1/2 inches above pans.  Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

(I brushed my loaves with a mixture of 1 beaten egg and 1 tablespoon of water before baking to give it a more shiny, flaky crust.)

Dog Treats ~ by D'Lynn

MacDuff's Peanut Butter Holiday Puppy Treat Shortbread

1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1 cup peanut butter

3/4 cup milk

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour and baking soda.

2. In a small bowel, whisk peanut butter and milk until smooth. (Using creamy peanut butter works much better than chunky.)

3. Make a well in the flour mixture and gradually stir in peanut butter mixture until well blended.

4. Use hands to work dough into 2 pliable balls. The warmth from your hands will help make the dough more workable.

5. Knead each dough ball on a floured surface for 2 minutes.

6. Using a rolling pin, roll dough between 1/4" to 1/2" thickness.

7. Cut cookies and place on a baking sheet, lined with foil.

8. Bake 15 minutes at 400 degrees.

9. Cool on a rack and store in a sealed plastic bag in the refrigerator.

Spot's Golden Cheese Dreams

3 cups whole wheat flour

2 tbsp of garlic powder

1/2 cup of vegetable oil

1 cup of shredded cheese

1 egg, beaten

1 cup milk

1. In a large bowl, combine flour and garlic powder.

2. Make a well in the flour mixture and gradually stir in vegetable oil, cheese, beaten egg, and milk until well blended.

3. Knead dough on a floured surface, 3-4 minutes.

4. With a rolling pin, roll dough to 1/2" thickness.

5. Cut the cookies and place on a lightly greased baking sheet.

6. Bake at 25 minutes at 400 degrees.

7. Cool on a rack and store, at room temperature, in a container with a loose-fitting lid.

Cornbread ~ by Kelsey

This is another recipe from allrecipes.com.  I usually just use the Jiffy cornbread, but decided to make it on my own this time.  This is really spongy and moist, it seems more like cake than what you get from the Jiffy box.  My kids love it!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup cornmeal
2 1/2 cup milk
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Combine cornmeal and milk, let it sit for 5 minutes.  Grease a 9 X 13 inch pan.  Whisk flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.  Mix in the cornmeal, eggs, and oil until smooth.  Pour into the pan and cook for 30-35 minutes.

Strawberry Muffins ~ by Kelsey

I got this recipe from allrecipes.com when I was looking for something to do with some strawberries that needed used up.  They are really good!  This recipe made 12 muffins.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
1 cup chopped strawberries

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Spray muffin pan or use liners.  Mix the oil, milk and egg together.  Beat.  Mix the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar together in a separate bowl.  Toss the strawberries in the flour mixture until coated.  Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and stir until moist.  Spoon into the muffin pan and cook for about 25 minutes.

Chicken Pot Pie ~ by Sarah

This is a Pioneer Woman recipe and you must make this.  If you like pie you must make this.  If you like chicken you must make this.  If you like pot...oh, wait.  But still, you must make this!

Molly and Kelsey, you don't know what you're missing!

Ingredients:
3 celery stalks
3 medium carrots, peeled
1 large onion
4 T. (1/2 stick) butter
1/2 c. frozen peas
2 c. cooked chicken
1 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. chicken broth
1 chicken bouillon cube
1/4 c. white wine (optional)
1 c. heavy cream
1 t. thyme
1 t. kosher salt, or more to taste
black pepper to taste
pie crust (This link goes to a recipe for Mom's pie crust.  I used Pioneer Woman's pie crust recipe, but they are very similar...)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Begin by finely dicing the vegetables.

Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add the onion, carrots, celery, and peas.  Saute until the vegetables start to turn translucent, a couple of minutes.  Add the chicken and stir to combine.  Here's how I did the chicken: I boiled a young whole chicken, cooled it, removed the skin, and then picked off the meat until I had two cups.

Sprinkle the flour evenly over the vegetables and chicken and stir to combine.  Cook for a couple of minutes, stirring gently.  Pour in the chicken broth, stirring constantly.  Stir in the bouillon cube and wine, if using.  Pour in the cream and stir.  Allow the mixture to cook over low heat, thickening gradually, about 4 minutes.  Season with thyme, salt, and pepper.  Remove from heat.  Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed. 

Pour the chicken into a deep pie pan or small casserole dish.  (This made enough for me to fill two pie plates, so I made two and then covered one and froze it for later.) 

Roll out the crust so that it's 1 inch larger than the pan.  Place the crust on top of the chicken mixture and cut small slits in the top.  Press the crust gently into the sides of the dish to seal.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly.  Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

You can't believe how delicious this is!  The filling is so creamy and savory.  I loved it!