TINA'S DIP & MOM VEGGIE DIP

TINA'S DIP

This is from Tina Marchant. It is really good. Goes good with chips or veggies.

Mix and refrigerate:

1 packet of dry ranch salad dressing

1 carton of sour cream

1 carton of cottage cheese

(sour cream & cottage cheese should be the same size)

VEGGIE DIP

My mom gave me this recipe.

Mix all the below ingredients together:

2 c sour cream

2 c mayo (Best Foods is the best)

1 bunch green onions

2 c grated cheese

1 packet of Hidden Valley's Ranch Dressing Mix (NOT the dip mix)

PINEAPPLE ORANGE CAKE

PINEAPPLE ORANGE CAKE

We all loved this cake! So easy. A great summer cake!

1 pkg yellow cake mix

1 can (11 oz) mandarin oranges

4 egg whites

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

orange extract - a little bit (1/2 tsp), optional

In a large bowl, beat the cake mix, oranges, egg whites and applesauce on low for 2 minutes. Pour into a greased 9x13. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

TOPPING:

1 can (20 oz) crushed pineapple, undrained

1 pkg. (1 oz) sugar-free instant vanilla or cheesecake pudding mix

1 (8 oz) whipped topping

In a bowl, combine the pineapple and pudding mix. Fold in the whipped topping just until blended. Spread over cake. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

BREADED RANCH CHICKEN

BREADED RANCH CHICKEN

This was so easy and very yummy!

3/4 cup crushed cornflakes

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix

8 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 oz. each)

1/2 cup butter, melted

In a shallow bowl combine the cornflakes, cheese and salad dressing mix. Dip chicken in butter then roll in cornflakes mixture to coat. Place in a greased 9x13. Bake uncovered at 350 for 45 minutes.

TWICE BAKED POTATOES

TWICE BAKED POTATOES

We all really liked these. Worth the extra effort.

6 small baking potatoes

2 T butter, melted

2 tsp grill steak seasoning

3 T grated parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

4 strip bacon, cooked & crumbled

3/4 cup sour cream

2 tsp snipped fresh chives (used dried)

Lightly grease outside of potato, cut small slit in top and bake at 425 for 45 minutes or until soft. Let stand until cool enough to handle (15 min). Cut potato in half lengthwise and scoop out cooked potato, leaving a thin layer of potato interior. Sprinkle steak seasoning and parmesan cheese on the inside. Mix cooked potato with rest of ingredients. Put back in the potato and cook for about 8 minutes. With the tops you can sprinkle the seasoning and cheese and then cook for about 3 minutes.

FUDGE SAUCE

YUMMY SAUCE

This was from Kathleen Van Wagoner (LDS Foundation). We all really liked it. Good with ice cream, crackers and bananas. Easy to make!

30 caramels

1 c. chocolate chips

1/3 c. evaporated milk

Put in a microwavable dish heat for about 1 1/2 minutes then stir very well (the secret to making it good is the stirring). Put back in microwave for another minute and stir. You could also use the stove. Just put in saucepan and warm up. Yum! Yum!

Homemade DULCE DE LECHE is very yummy.  See Best Bites Cookbook pg 135 (autumn)
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 425.  Pour sweetened milk in a pie plate or other shallow dish.  Cover tightly with foil.  Place in a bigger pan (roasting work good).  Fill with hot water until about halfway up the baking dish.  Bake for 60 minutes and then check.  Should be a rich caramel brown.  If not cook 15 more minutes.  Could take up to 90 min.  Cool then whisk until smooth.  Store in refrigerator.

FUDGE SAUCE

McCleve Cookbook 2nd edition pg 19. From Aunt Nancy. We really liked it!

HOT FUDGE SAUCE

Haven't tried, but would like to. McCleve first edition. A. Sherlene pg. 73.

THINGS TO DO WITH KIDS

EARTH

This was pretty cool. I think I will do this again in the summer so the kids can play with it outside. This would also make a great activity for FHE.

Balloon

Rock Salt

Magnifying Glass

Food Coloring

Small cups/bowls

Eye Dropper

Freeze a balloon full of water. I put mine in a bowl so it stayed round.

Peel the balloon off once it is frozen. Put rock salt on "earth" to melt tunnels in it. Next time I would have this sit out for a while so it would melt faster. Scott ended up drilling holes in it. Have them using a eye dropper drop the colored water in the tunnels. Then they can look with their magnifying glass at all the colors. It will also help it melt faster if you use hot water to make different colors.

OOEY-GOOEY GOOP

This stuff felt so cool and was fun to play with. I didn't try it, but I bet it would sit overnight and then you could add more water and play with it again. I didn't like all the little white spots I found on my carpet, but once it dried they vacuumed up easily. Would work well outside.

1 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup water

Mix together. Add more water - 1 T at a time if you want it more drippier.

MINI VOLCANOES

The kids really liked doing this.

Set a small bowl (smaller the better) on a tray. Place a tablespoon of baking soda into the bowl, add a tablespoon of white vinegar (instead of measuring I just had the kids pour it). Sit back watch it bubble and fizz. You can also add food coloring to add a special effect.

SALADS

CONFETTI CORN SALAD

Scott was looking at this salad very suspiciously, but he was surprisingly liked it. I really liked it. I liked it more than I like Cowboy Corn Salad. I doubled the recipe just because of the can sizes.

1 can (7 oz) whole kernel corn, drained

1 can (2 1/4 oz) slice ripe olives (can add whole olives too)

1/2 cup chopped green pepper

1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper

2 radishes, sliced

1/4 cup prepared Italian salad dressing*

*I made my own: 1/4 c. basalmic vinegar, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 tsp honey, 2 garlic cloves (or 1 big one) smashed. Add all together and shake.

Add all the ingredients and toss to coat.

GREEN TREASURE SALAD

This tasted really good and it was fun to have the kids help make.

1 cup green apple

1 cup green grapes

1/2 cup marshmallows

1/2 cup lemon yogurt

2 T slivered almonds

Mix everything together.

for more 5 a day recipes go to: www.5aday.gov

COOKIE SALAD

This recipe comes from Melody. It is very yummy! The kids loved helping me make it. A definite crowd pleaser. It is also good without the cookies.

1 pint strawberries
2 cups seedless grapes
1 small can pineapple tidbits, drained
2 bananas, sliced
1 12 oz carton Cool Whip
1 3 oz package instant vanilla or cheesecake pudding (sugar free works too)
1 cup buttermilk
1 pkg fudge striped cookies, broken

Combine fruit. Mix Cool Whip, buttermilk, & dry pudding mix in a separate bowl. Fold into fruit. Just before serving, fold in broken cookies. Serves 20. (I doubled it for the blessing.)

You can vary the fruit. If you want it just like I made it, use 2 lbs. strawberries, 5 bananas, 1 can pineapple chunks (drained), and 1 can mandarin oranges (drained). (That's just for the single recipe, not doubled.) Oh, and I found that I much prefer the store brand fudge-striped cookies (I used Kroger brand) to the Keebler variety. Cheaper and not as waxy.

ASIAN SALAD

Scott didn't like this salad, but I did. It reminded me of the one from Costco that I really like.

2 1/2 cups cooked chicken, cut into bite size pieces

1 (10 oz) bag shredded cabbage with carrots (if it doesn't have shred 2 carrots)

1 cup sliced mushrooms

2 T chopped cilantro (I didn't add)

1 cucumber, thinly sliced

1/2 cup non-fat Asian or Oriental salad dressing (next time I would use an expensive good kind instead of Kraft)

black pepper

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1 tangerine (I used canned mandarian oranges)

3 green onions, thinly sliced

Mix everything together except green onions and tangerines. Put them on the top at the end.