#1119 - Chocolate Coated Rice Krispie Bars

(by Alma Russell - friend)

1 cup white sugar
1 cup Kayro lite corn syrup
1 cup Jif peanut butter
6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
1 cup Nestle's semi-sweet chocolate bits
1 cup Nestle's butterscotch morsels

In a saucepan over medium heat add white sugar and lite corn syrup--stir and cook until boiling. Remove from heat--add peanut butter to corn syrup mixture--stir well. Add the cereal--stir until mixed. Press the mixture into a buttered 9 x 13 cake pan--smooth it out using the back of a greased spoon--set aside. In a microwave safe bowl add the butterscotch and chocolate chips--melt in microwave according to bag directions--stir until smooth. Spread melted butterscotch/chocolate mixture on top of the cereal mixture in the cake pan. Cool on the counter--after they are firm, cut into squares or bars.

#1118 - Sour Cream Chicken

(by Shirley McNevich)

2 TBSP butter
1lb. boneless skinless chicken breast (cut into bite sized pieces)
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 chopped onion
1 - 10.75oz. Campbell's condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup Breakstone's sour cream
4 cups dry egg noodles (cooked according to bag directions--drained but keep WARM)

Heat the water for the noodles. While waiting, in a skillet over medium heat add butter--melt. Add chicken pieces, chopped onion and sliced mushrooms--cook until chicken is brown and tender. Add the soup and sour cream to the chicken mixture--stir and bring to a boil. Cook noodles according to bag directions--drain but do not rinse. Serve the chicken mixture over the hot noodles.

#1117 - Spiced Icebox Cookies

(by Shirley McNevich)

1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup Crisco
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup Domino's dark brown sugar (packed)
1 egg
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

In a mixer add softened butter, Crisco--beat. Add white sugar and brown sugar--beat. Add egg, cinnamon, baking soda, vanilla--beat. Add nutmeg and ground cloves--beat. Slowly add flour--beat--if it gets too stiff for your mixer continue by hand using a wooden spoon or your hands. Add chopped nuts if you wish--stir. Divide the dough into baseball or softball sized balls. Flour your counter and shape each ball into a log. Wrap each log in Saran wrap, place them in a cake pan with a lid and refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove Saran wrap from logs. Cut the dough into 1/4" thick coin shaped pieces. Place cookies on to greased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 degrees for 7-9 minutes or until edges are browned. Cool on the cookie sheets a few minutes before removing them with a spatula.

#1116 - Baked Apples

(by Shirley McNevich)

4 baking apples
2 TBSP Domino's dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/3 cup water

Wash the apples and core them--DO NOT PEEL the apples. Use a sharp knife to cut off the tops of the apples 1/4" to 1/2" so that the top of each apple is flat. Spray a 2 qt. casserole dish with Pam. Place the apples in the greased casserole dish (so they are sitting upright). In a bowl add brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg--stir. Spoon the spice mixture into the center of each apple. Pour the water into the bottom of the casserole dish. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until you can poke the apples and they are tender. Every 15 minutes during baking, it helps if you remove them from the oven and use a spoon to baste the apples using the juice that forms at the bottom of the dish (returning to oven after each basting). Serve them warm. Top with cold milk, ice cream, Cool Whip, etc.

#1115 - Coconut Long Johns

(by Shirley McNevich)

(If you aren't familiar with Long Johns, they are a long donut-like pastry.)

1 envelope Fleischmann's yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup warm milk
1/4 cup softened butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1 beaten egg
@3 cups flour
canola oil
deep fryer
Frosting: 1 1/4 cups + 1 TBSP Domino's powdered sugar; 1 TBSP water; 1 tsp. vanilla; 1/8 tsp. salt; 1 bag Baker's Angelflake coconut

Grease a bowl--set aside. Grease cookie sheets--set aside. In a large bowl add warm water and yeast--stir lightly. Add milk, softened butter, powdered sugar, salt, beaten egg and flour--stir. You should end up with a soft dough--if too runny add a little more flour. If too stiff add a little more warm water.Place dough into greased bowl and put a tea towel over the top of the bowl--let the dough rise for just over an hour (the dough should be doubled in size). After the dough has doubled, flour your counter, put the dough ball on top of the flour, lightly flour the top of the dough and use a rolling pin to work the dough to about 1/4" thickness. Carefully cut the dough into rectangular pieces (a typical long john is about 5-6" long, and 2-3" wide). Place the rectangular pieces on to the greased cookie sheets. Cover each of the cookie sheets with a tea towel and let the dough raise until all of the long johns have doubled in size (30-45 minutes). While you're waiting for them to rise, put canola oil into your deep fryer and heat oil to 400 degrees. Fry the long johns (only add as many at a time so that they are not touching each other). When the bottoms are browned to your taste, flip each of the long johns and fry the other sides. After frying the first one, cut it open and check to make sure the long john has been fried all the way through--if not, fry subsequent long johns a little longer on each side. Repeat with all long johns. When they are finished, place them on paper towels to cool and drain the grease. While they are cooling, make the frosting (this frosting is more like a glaze--use your own frosting if you wish): in a bowl add water, vanilla, salt and powdered sugar--stir until smooth. If frosting is too runny add a little more powdered sugar. If frosting is too thick, add a little more water. When the long johns are cooled to room temperature, dip the tops of each long john in the frosting and sprinkle generous amount of coconut on top of the frosting. Lightly use your fingers to tap the coconut into the frosting so that it sticks. Serve immediately. Optional: some people are used to eating long johns that have cream filling or pudding filling. You can make your own cream filling/pudding filling and inject the filling into each long john.

#1114 - Vanilla Marshmallow Fudge

(by Shirley McNevich)

1 - 12oz. can Carnation evaporated milk
1 - 7.5oz. jar Fluff marshmallow
4 cups white sugar
2 TBSP butter (NO SUBSTITUTES)
1-2 tsp. vanilla (1 tsp. if pure vanilla, 2 tsp. if imitation vanilla)
candy thermometer
chopped nuts (optional)

Butter an 8" square fudge pan--set aside. In a saucepan over medium heat add evaporated milk, white sugar and butter--cook and stir. Insert candy thermometer and keep cooking/stirring until candy thermometer reaches 234 degrees. When temperature is reached, remove saucepan from heat and let it rest for 1-2 minutes. Add the Fluff and vanilla to the fudge mixture--stir with a spoon vigorously until smooth and creamy. Pour/scrape fudge batter into the prepared pan. Lightly sprinkle chopped nuts on top of the fudge (if you wish). Let the fudge cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until fudge gets hard. Remove fudge from refrigerator and cut into squares.

#1113 - Crock Pot Lasagna

(by Shirley McNevich)

1lb. ground chuck
1 chopped onion
2 minced cloves garlic
1 - 29oz. jar tomato sauce
1 cup water
1 - 6oz. can hunt's tomato paste
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. oregano
1 - 8oz. box Barilla no boil lasagna noodles
16oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 - 12oz. small curd cottage cheese
1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese

In a bowl add cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese, and grated Parmesan cheese--stir until mixed, then set aside. In a skillet over medium heat add ground chuck, chopped onion, salt, pepper and garlic--cook and brown the meat. Once meat is done, drain the meat mixture. Put drained meat back in the skillet but NOT back on the stove--add tomato sauce, water, tomato paste and oregano to the meat mixture--stir until mixed. In a 5 qt. crock pot add 1/4 of the meat sauce. Place 1/3 of the lasagna noodles on top of the sauce. Scoop 1/3 of the cheese mixture on top of the noodles. Keep layering in the same order--you should end up with the last 1/4 of the meat sauce to put on top. Cover the crockpot with the lid--cook on low heat for 4-5 hours or until lasagna noodles are tender.

#1112 - Melted Chocolate Cake

(by Shirley McNevich)

6 squares Baker's semi-sweet chocolate
1 1/2 sticks butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups water

In a microwave safe bowl add chocolate squares and butter--microwave on high for 2 minutes. Remove bowl from microwave and stir--return to microwave if needed until all chocolate has melted--stir. In a mixer add melted chocolate mixture, white sugar--beat. Add eggs--beat. Add vanilla--beat. Add 1/2 cup of the flour--beat. Add baking soda and salt--beat. Add water and 2 more cups flour--beat until smooth. Pour batter into a greased 9 x 13 cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes--test with a toothpick for doneness. Cool and frost as desired.

#1111 - Cinnamon Jumble Cookies

(by Shirley McNevich)

3 cups sifted flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 TBSP cinnamon
1 cup butter (softened)
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
extra white sugar for dipping

In a mixer add butter, 1 cup white sugar--beat. Add eggs--beat. Add vanilla--beat until creamy. Add salt and cinnamon--beat. Add flour slowly--beat. Remove bowl from mixer and place it in the refrigerator for 1 hour. After 1 hour, remove mixer bowl from refrigerator. Use your hands and roll dough into walnut sized balls. Place some extra white sugar in a bowl--roll dough balls one at a time in the sugar, then place sugar coated dough balls on greased cookie sheets. Use the bottom of a drinking glass to press down each cookie so that they are about 1/4" high after flattening (if the glass is sticking to the cookies you can spray it with Pam). Repeat with all cookies. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

#1110 - Whipped Cranberry Dessert

(by Shirley McNevich)

4 cups fresh or frozen cranberries (thawed and mashed with a potato masher or processed with a food processor)
1 - 16oz. bag mini marshmallows (if you can find the multi-colored ones, they make it look nicer)
1 to 1 1/2 cups white sugar (less if you like it tart; more if you want it sweeter)
2 cups baking apples (washed, peeled, cored, and cut into bite sized pieces)
1/2 to 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
2 cups Cool Whip (thawed and refrigerated)

In a large bowl mash cranberries with a potato masher (or you can use a food processor)--pick out any large pieces of cranberry peels and discard. Add 1 cup white sugar and marshmallows to the mashed cranberries--stir. Taste--if too tart, add more white sugar and re-stir. Cover the bowl with foil and refrigerate overnight. The next day, chop the apples and the walnuts--add to the cranberry mixture and stir. Add refrigerated Cool Whip to the cranberry mixture--fold in using a large spoon. Keep refrigerated.

#1109 - Crushed Frosted Flakes Cookies

(by Shirley McNevich)

1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup butter (no substitutes)
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3 cups Frosted Flakes cereal
1 - 6oz. bag Nestle's semi-sweet chocolate morsels (melted according to bag directions)

Place Frosted Flakes into a Ziploc bag--close the bag and crush them coarsely using a rolling pin--set aside. In a mixer add butter and white sugar--beat. Add eggs and vanilla--beat. Add baking soda, salt and flour--beat. Remove bowl from mixer and add crushed Frosted Flakes--stir with a wooden spoon until mixed. Melt chocolate according to bag directions--drizzle the melted chocolate on the top of the cookie batter--use a table knife to swirl the chocolate through the cookie batter. Drop by tablespoonsful of batter on to greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Use a spatula to take the cookies off of the cookie sheets after a minute or two--cool on paper towels.

#1108 - Thanksgiving Turkey

(by Shirley McNevich)

Filling:

2 bags filling bread (14-16 oz.)
3/4 to 1 cup chopped celery (use leaves and everything from heart, and some of the stalk)
1 large onion (chopped)
3/4 cup fresh parsley or dried parsley flakes
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
6 eggs (beaten)
3/4 to 1 cup milk
2 TBSP Parkay margarine

Make this the day before Thanksgiving. In a frying pan, add Parkay, onion, celery, and parsley. Heat on medium heat with lid on for 10 minutes, stirring after first 5 minutes. Put filling bread in a large bowl and add the onion/celery/parsley mixture--mix with your hands. Add the beaten eggs, salt, pepper and milk and continue mixing with your hands--leave it in the bowl, cover with Saran wrap and refrigerate until the next day.

1 - 18 to 20lb. turkey (if frozen--thawed completely in cold water the day before)
1 large onion (cut in half)
4 ribs of celery (cut each rib into 3 pieces)
6 tsp. salt put into an empty salt shaker
1 Reynold's Wrap turkey bag
cord string
2 sets poultry pins (usually in grocery store in same section as cooking bags--it's a seasonal item)
1 TBSP flour
1 large roasting pan
1 quart water

The next day (Thanksgiving Day), spray the inside of the turkey cooking bag with Pam--put the 1 TBSP flour inside of the bag. Close the end of the bag and shake it to distribute the flour--set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Make sure the turkey is thawed--remove turkey from its wrapper--open up the neck/rear of the turkey and remove the giblets and neck. Wash giblets and neck in water, then place them in a saucepan if you want to use them. Wash the turkey (both inside and out) with cold water--check for any remaining feathers and remove them (use tweezers). Pat the outside of the turkey dry with paper towels. Using the salt shaker with the 6 tsp. salt, shake about 2 tsp. of the salt all over the inside of the turkey. Using your hands, stuff the filling that you made yesterday into the rear of the turkey. Shake about 1/2 tsp. salt into the neck. When you can't get any more filling in the rear end, stuff remaining filling into the neck. Use the poultry nails--pull the skin on either side of the two turkey openings (neck and rear) and insert poultry pins so they will hold your filling in the turkey. Take the cord string, wrap it around the top poultry pin, then start connecting the poultry pins (like lacing a shoe), pulling tight as you put the string on each pin. When you get to the bottom tie the string into a knot and cut off excess string. Use a separate piece of string to tie the wings together. Put the prepared turkey bag into the roasting pan. Open up the end, put the turkey inside of the bag. Pour 1 quart of water into the bag with the turkey. Shake any salt left in your salt shaker all over the top and sides of the turkey--it's ok if some of the salt goes into the water. Put one half of the onion in the water by the neck end, and the other half onion in the water by the rear end of the turkey. Arrange celery evenly in the water around the turkey. Use the special tie that comes in the box with the cooking bag--tie the bag shut according to the instructions on the cooking bag box. Take a sharp knife and POKE 5 or 6 HOLES IN THE TOP OF THE BAG. If you skip poking the holes, the bag will explode. Put the roaster in the preheated oven and bake 3 1/2 to 4 hours--test with a fork for doneness. If making a smaller turkey, the cooking times are listed on the cooking bag box.

#1107 - Homemade Turkey Broth

(by Shirley McNevich)

1 turkey carcass (left over from your Thanksgiving turkey--all of the bones)
1 onion (cut it in half)
4 ribs of celery (cut each rib into 3 pieces)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Remove any meat from the carcass--save the meat for turkey soup. In a large pot (4-6 quarts) add the carcass and bones. Add enough water to cover the carcass and the bones. Add the onion, celery and parsley--turn heat to medium and bring water to a boil. Once boiling, turn heat back to low. Put a lid on the pot and let it cook on low heat for 1 hour. Turn heat off, and wait until broth is at about room temperature. Remove carcass and bones--discard them. Pour the remaining broth mixture through a sieve--throw away everything that gets caught in the sieve. Scoop broth into glass jars and refrigerate the broth. The next day, skim off the fat that has risen to the top. Use the broth for turkey soup, etc.

#1106 - Chicken & Broccoli Bowties

(by Shirley McNevich)

3 cups raw bowtie pasta noodles (cooked according to package directions)
4 cups chopped broccoli (fresh or frozen)
3 large boneless/skinless chicken breasts
1 bottle Italian salad dressing
1 or 2 minced garlic cloves
2 cups of your favorite pasta sauce
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. pepper
4oz. Philadelphia cream cheese (room temperature and cubed)
1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese

Poke chicken breasts all over on both sides using a fork. Place chicken breasts in a large Ziploc bag--pour the Italian dressing into the bag, then seal and work it around with your hands to coat all chicken. Open the bag a little bit, squeeze out the air, and reseal. Place in refrigerator for a few hours to marinate. When ready to cook, cook pasta according to box directions. Cook pasta until almost done, then add broccoli to the pasta water--continue cooking and stirring until pasta is done. Drain pasta and broccoli, then return it to your saucepan. Remove chicken from refrigerator--cut chicken into bite sized pieces (DO NOT discard Italian dressing). Place chicken pieces, minced garlic, and pepper in a skillet with some of the leftover Italian dressing--cook and stir until chicken is cooked through and browned. Add the cream cheese and pasta sauce to the chicken--cook and stir until cream cheese is melted. Remove from heat and pour pasta mixture into the saucepan with the bowtie pasta/broccoli mixture. Return to heat--add Parmesan cheese to the mixture--cook and stir until all ingredients are hot.

#1105 - Ham & Broccoli Stovetop Noodles

(by Shirley McNevich)

1 - 12oz. bag egg noodles
1 - 16oz. bag frozen broccoli pieces
3 cups cooked ham (cut into bite sized pieces)
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (fresh, not canned)
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tsp. garlic powder

In a saucepan cook noodles according to package directions EXCEPT only cook the noodles for 5 minutes. Once cooked, add broccoli and ham pieces to the noodles/boiling water--cook and stir for 5 minutes, then drain the whole mixture. Once drained, return the mixture to the saucepan. Add milk, butter, garlic powder, mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese--turn heat to low, stir and cook until hot enough to serve.

#1104 - Chocolate Pudding Pound Cake

(by Shirley McNevich)

1 box chocolate cake mix (NO PUDDING in mix)
1 - 3.75oz. box Jell-O INSTANT chocolate pudding mix
4 eggs
1 cup water
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup chopped pecans (coarse)
Glaze: 2 TBSP Hershey's cocoa; 1 TBSP canola oil; 5 tsp. water; 1 TBSP Kayro clear corn syrup; 1 cup Domino's powdered sugar

In a mixer add eggs and canola oil--beat. Add chocolate cake mix--beat. Add water--beat. Add pudding mix--beat until mixed, then beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Remove bowl from mixer--add pecans and stir with a spoon. Pour batter into a greased and floured 10" tube cake pan/bundt cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes--test with a toothpick for doneness. Wait about 30 minutes after cooling cake, then loosen edges of cake with a knife and invert it on to a cake plate--set aside until it cools completely. In a saucepan over low heat add cocoa, 1 tsp. canola oil, 5 tsp. water, corn syrup--cook and stir until smooth. Remove from heat--add powdered sugar and stir with a spoon until smooth. Let glaze cool to room temperature--stir. Drizzle glaze on cooled cake.

#1103 - Cream Cheese Sundae Squares

(by Shirley McNevich)

2 cups graham cracker crumbs (you can make your own if you wish)
1/3 cup butter (melted)
1 cup white sugar
3 - 8oz. Philadelphia cream cheese (softened)
2 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs
1/2 cup mashed overripe bananas
1 cup fresh strawberries (sliced)
1 banana (cut into coin shaped pieces)
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 - 8oz. can Dole crushed pineapple (drained)

In a bowl add graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and 1/4 cup white sugar--stir and press mixture on to bottom of a greased 9 x 13 baking pan. In a mixer add cream cheese--beat. Add 3/4 cup white sugar--beat. Add vanilla and eggs--beat until smooth. Remove bowl from mixer--add mashed bananas to cream cheese mixture--stir. Scoop batter on to the graham cracker crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until center is just about set. Cool completely, then refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove cake from refrigerator. Slice banana into coin shaped pieces--in a bowl add banana pieces and lemon juice--toss to coat. Slice strawberries into bite sized pieces. Make sure pineapple is drained well. Just before serving add sliced bananas, strawberry pieces and crushed pineapple evenly on top. Cut into squares for serving.

#1102 - Beginner's Fudge

(Shirley McNevich)

3 cups Nestle's semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 - 14oz. can Eagle brand condensed milk (NOT evaporated)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

In a saucepan over low heat add chocolate chips, Eagle brand milk and salt--cook and stir until chocolate is melted. Remove saucepan from heat--add vanilla and nuts--stir. Pour mixture into a buttered 8" or 9" square pan. Let fudge cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until cold. Cut into squares.

#1101 - Sour Cream Salsa Dip

(by Shirley McNevich)

1 cup Hellmann's lite mayo
1 cup Breakstone's sour cream
1 - 1.4oz. envelope Knorr veggie soup mix
1 - 12oz. jar Picante chunky salsa (your choice of mild, medium or hot)
tortilla chips

In a bowl add mayo and sour cream--stir. Add soup mix--stir. Add salsa--stir until mixed. Cover the bowl and refrigerate until cold. Serve with tortilla chips.

#1100 - Shrimp Salad

(by Shirley McNevich)

1lb. cooked shrimp (washed, peeled, and cut into bite sized pieces)
1/2 cup Hellmann's mayo
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
2 hard boiled eggs (chopped)

In a bowl add mayo, chopped celery, chopped eggs and Old Bay--stir. Add shrimp pieces--stir until mixed. If too dry add a little more mayo and stir again. Refrigerate until cold. Serve on sandwiches or salads. Does not last very long in refrigerator so don't store it too long.