Peach Crunch Cake

Picture and recipe courtesy of Bakerella!

24.5 oz jar of sliced peaches in light syrup
1 package yellow cake mix
1 stick butter (1/2 cup), cut into 16 pieces
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Dumb sliced peaches (syrup and all) in the bottom of a 13x9 pan. Cut peaches in half to help cover the bottom of the pan completely.

Sprinkle yellow cake mix over the top of the peaches. I kind of helped the cake mix get wet from the peaches juice to ensure that it would cook good.

Cut up the stick of butter and spread across the top of the cake mix.

Sprinkle brown sugar over the top of the butter.

Sprinkle the walnuts over the top of the brown sugar.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for about 40 minutes.

Serve warm or cold… with or without ice cream.

Pretzel Jello Salad

Pretzels
1 cube butter
1 c sugar, plus 4 tsp sugar
12 oz Cool Whip
8 oz cream cheese, softened
6 oz strawberry Jello
16 oz frozen strawberries (sliced)

Crush pretzels into the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Melt butter with 4 tsp sugar and pour over pretzels and bake at 400 for 6 minutes.

Cool in refrigerator or freezer and make sure it is completely cooled.

Beat softened cream cheese, cool whip, and 1 cup sugar on med/low until smooth. Spread over COOLED pretzels. Make sure to seal all the edges, so the jello doesn't get into pretzels. Mix Jello with 2 cups boiling water. Stir until well dissolved. Stir in frozen sliced strawberries. Let Jello partial set (3-5 minutes) then pour over cream cheese mixture.

Put in fridge and let set for 3-4 hours.

Caramel Corn

This is a yummy caramel corn recipe! It stays soft and gooey!

Pop 1 1/2 cups of popcorn and set aside. This is just an estimate. You may want to pop more or less depending on how gooey you want it.

In a saucepan add:
2 c brown sugar
1 c Karo syrup
1 c butter
dash of salt

Cook to softball stage and stir in 1 can of Sweetened Condensed Milk.

Pour over popcorn. Store in an airtight container.

Authentic Flour Tortillas

5 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp salt
3/4 c shortening

Combine dry ingredients and blend well. Add shortening and blend with a pastry blender - like pie crust. Add 1 1/2 cups of warm (not hot) water. Knead it well and divide into 1 1/2 inch balls. Cover for 20 minutes. Roll out flour as round as you can get them. Cook on a dry hot skillet.

Authentic Red Sauce

6 or 7 large tomatoes
6 or 7 dried guajillo peppers (for spicier, use chipotle)
1 clove of garlic
1 onion
1 tbsp chicken bouillon
1 tsp to 1 tbs cumen (to taste)

Boil tomatoes and peppers (remove stems from dried peppers first) for approximately 30 minutes until soft.

Skin the tomatoes and place in a blender (the skins should be split and easy to remove after boiling). Blend (in blender or food processor) tomatoes, peppers, onions, and garlic until smooth. You will need to add about a cup of water to get the right consistency - not too thick, like tomato soup. (For more flavor and spice, use the water from the boiling of the peppers.)

Add chicken broth and and mix well.

Heat a large pan with about 1-2 tablespoons of oil. When it's hot, add the sauce and simmer for about 5 minutes to blend the flavors. You may add salt if needed. Usually the bouillon is sufficient.

Will make enough for sauce for a 9x13 pan of enchiladas.

Authentic Green Sauce

6 or 7 tomatillos, husked and cleaned
Jalapenos (Optional)
1/2 to 1 bunch of cilantro
1 clove of garlic
1 onion
1 tbsp chicken bouillon

Boil tomatillos and peppers (remove stems from dried peppers first) for approximately 30 minutes until soft.

Blend (in blender or food processor) tomatillos, peppers, onions, cilantro and garlic until smooth. You will need to add about a cup of water to get the right consistency - not too thick, like tomato soup. (For more flavor and spice, use the water from the boiling of the peppers.)

Add chicken broth and and mix well.

Heat a large pan with about 1-2 tablespoons of oil. When it's hot, add the sauce and simmer for about 5 minutes to blend the flavors. You may add salt if needed. Usually the bouillon is sufficient.

Will make enough for sauce for a 9x13 pan of enchiladas.

Michelle's Nutty Torte

1 c flour
1 stick butter
2 tbs sugar
1/3 c (or more if desired) chopped walnuts
8 oz cream cheese, softened
13 oz Cool Whip
2 boxes any flavor instant pudding (I use 1 small chocolate and 1 large vanilla)
1 1/2 c powdered sugar
2 3/4 c milk

1st layer: Mix and press into a 9x13 pan; 1 c flour, 1 stick butter, 2 tbs sugar and nuts. Bake 8 to 10 minutes at 375. Cool.

2nd layer: Mix and spread over 1st layer; 8 oz cream cheese (softened), 1 1/2 cups powered sugar and 1/2 bowl of Cool Whip.

3rd layer: Mix 2 boxes of instant pudding with 2 3/4 cups of milk. Mix with a whisk (mix only until moistened, don't mix until setup) pour over the 2nd layer.

4th layer: Top with cool whip.

Snicker Salad

1 pkg instant vanilla pudding
1 c milk
1 container cool whip
6 apples (peeled, cored, and chopped)
1/2 c seedless grapes
6 Snickers (or Baby Ruth) candy bars (chopped)

Prepare pudding using 1 cup milk. Blend together with cool whip. Add apples, grapes and candy bars. Mix together and refrigerate until chilled.

Raspberry Salsa

2 tbs chopped green onion
1 tsp honey
1 tsp grated ginger root
1 c fresh raspberries
1 kiwi or carambola quartered and sliced

In a medium bowl stir together onion, honey and ginger root. Gently stir in raspberries and kiwi.

Serve with sliced turkey.

Grandma's Yams

1 c orange juice
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c brown sugar
1 tbs cornstarch
1 tbs melted butter

Layer potatoes in a 9x13 pan. Pour mixture over and bake at 325 for 1 hour.

Spiced Cranberry Dip

8 oz cream cheese
1/2 can whole berry cranberry sauce
1/4 c orange marmalade
1/8 tsp grounded red pepper
slivered almonds

Mix cranberry sauce, orange marmalade and red pepper. Spread on top of softened cream cheese that has been spread on a 9 inch pie plate. Top with sliced almonds and serve with crackers. I prefer Wheat Thins.

Funeral Potatoes

6 c diced potato
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 1/3 stick melted butter
1 c sour cream
2 cups shredded cheese (I like the Colby/Monterrey Jack mix, but most recipes call for Cheddar)
1/2 c grated onion (optional)
Salt
Pepper
3/4 c corn flakes

Bake the potatoes in foil and then peel and dice them. You can also substitute plain frozen diced (not shredded) potatoes. Let the potatoes thaw before using them in the recipe.

Combine soup, 1 cube butter, sour cream, 1 c. cheese, onion, salt and pepper. Mix well. Add the potatoes and stir gently until combined.

Place potato mixture in a 2 to 3 quart casserole dish or 9 x 13-inch baking pan. Top with the remaining 1 c. cheese.

Mix 3 tablespoons butter with 3/4 cup crushed corn flakes and sprinkle over the potato mixture.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Avacado Citrus Salad

Salad:

1 firm ripe avocado, peeled and sliced
2 c torn romaine lettuce
1 large orange, peeled and cut into sections
1/4 small red onion
2 T snipped fresh cilantro

Dressing:

2 limes
2 tbs sugar
dash of salt
2 tbs vegetable oil

For dressing, zest limes to measure 1 tsp zest and juice limes to measure 1/4 c juice. Place zest and juice in a small bowl. Add sugar, salt and oil. Whisk until blended. Refrigerate dressing until ready to serve salad. Pour over salad just prior to serving.

Creamy Chicken Salad

2 c cooked chicken
1 c celery
1 c grapes
1 c slivered almonds
1 tsp minced onion
1 tsp salt
1 c mayo
1/2 c cool whip

Mix may and cool whip and mix over the other ingredients. Serve chilled.

Chicken Bowtie Pasta

1 pkg/box bowtie pasta
3 to 4 Chicken Breasts (cubed)
Bunch of grapes
2 chopped apples
1 1/2 c sliced almonds
1 or 2 bunch of green onions

Cook bowtie pasta noodles and chill. Add the remaining ingredients and mix together. Cover with a bottle of coleslaw dressing or make your own. Serve chilled.

Ramen Cabbage Salad

Salad:

Medium head of cabbage
1 bunch of green onions
1/2 c sliced almonds
1 pack Chicken Ramen
3 large chicken breasts cubed
Bunch of Grapes

Chop up head of cabbage and mix in all other ingredients. Set aside the flavor packet from the Ramen.

Dressing:

1/2 c salad oil
3 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp vinegar
Flavor packet from Ramen

Mix all ingredients well. Then mix over salad.

Neiman-Marcus Cookies

2 c butter
24 oz chocolate chips
4 c flour
2 c brown sugar
5 c blended oatmeal
2 tsp baking powered
3 c chopped nuts
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 c sugar
1 - 8 oz Hershey bar (grated)
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla

Measure oatmeal and blend in a blender to a fine powder. Cream the butter and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix together with flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Add chocolate chips, Hershey bar, and nuts. Roll into balls and place 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes at 375.

Makes approx 110 cookies.

German Chocolate Cake Frosting

1 c evaporated milk
1/2 c butter
3 egg yolks (slightly beaten)
1 tsp vanilla
1 c sugar
1 1/3 c coconut
1 c chopped pecans

Combine evaporated milk, butter, egg yolks, vanilla and sugar in a large sauce pan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens (approx 12 min). Remove from heat and add coconut and pecans.

Beat until cool.

Special K Pan Cookies

Base:
1/2 c white karo syrup
1/2 c white sugar
1/2 c crunch peanut butter
3 c Special K cereal

Topping:
6 oz chocolate chips
1 pk butterscotch chips
2 or 3 tbsp milk

Combine karo syrup and sugar and bring to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from stove and quickly add crunchy peanut butter.

Butter a 9x13 pan and spread Special K cereal in the bottom of the pan. Pour syrup over cereal.

Melt all the topping ingredients together and spread over the base.

Let cool before serving.

Cindy's Raspberry Cake

1/2 pkg white cake mix
8 oz cream cheese
2 c powdered sugar
1 pt whipping cream (already whipped)
2 pkg frozen raspberries - thawed
1 pk raspberry danish dessert

Beat cream cheese, add powdered sugar and whipped cream. Cook danish dessert and add raspberries. Spread cream mixture over cake. Top with raspberry mixture.

Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.

Denise's Strawberry Cake

Prepare 1 white cake mix and pour in a Texas Sheet Cake size pan. Bake 15 minutes at 350. Cool.

Frosting:

12 oz cream cheese
1 to 2 cups cool whip

Beat and spread on cooled cake.

Jelly Topping:

2 boxes danish dessert
3 c water

Prepare danish dessert and spread on top of Frosting.

Top with strawberries (preferably fresh) and chill before serving.

Salted Peanute Chews

Base:

1 pkg yellow cake mix
1/3 c butter (softened)
1 egg
3 c mini marshmallows

Mix first three base in ingredients until crumbly. Place in a 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 12-18 minutes. Remove and sprinkle with marshmallows. Bake an additional 2 minutes or until marshmallows puff. Cool while preparing topping.

Topping:

2/3 c corn syrup
1/4 c butter
2 tsp vanilla
1 pkg peanut butter chips
2 c crisp rice cereal
2 c salted peanuts

In a large sauce pan, combine all topping ingredients, except cereal and peanuts. Heat just until chips are melted and mixture is smooth, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat, stir in cereal and peanuts. Immediately spoon warm topping over marshmallows; spread to cover. Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm. Cut into bars. Store in covered containers.

Makes 48 bars.

Oreo Cookies

Cookie:

1 Devils food cake mix
3/4 c shortening
2 eggs

Mix together the above ingredients. It will be very thick. I find it easiest to just use your hands.

Filling:

4 oz softened cream cheese
1/2 lb powdered sugar (or 1 cup)

Mix together the above ingredients in a separate bowl. I like A LOT of filling, so I usually double the recipe.)

Cook dough balls at 375 for 7 minutes. Cool and add filling. Top with another cookie.

White Chocolate Popcorn

Ingredients:

3 packages of kettle corn, popped and kernals removed
1 package of white candy melts
salt
variously colored candy melts

Directions:

Pop the popcorn and remove the unpopped kernels. Melt the white candy melts in microwave and stir over the popcorn. Spread on waxed paper and sprinkle with salt. Melt colored candy if desired and drizzle over cooling popcorn for decor!

Honey Butter

1 cube butter
1/2 c creamed honey
1 tsp vanilla paste (equal to liquid)

Beat with hand beater until mixed together well.

Marinade for Kabobs

3 tbsp sesame seeds
3 tbsp salad oil
1/4 c soy sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
1/2 c finely sliced green onions
1 clove crushed garlic
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground giner

Marinade any type of meat or veggie! Super yummy!

Pumpkin Seeds

1 1/2 c of seeds
1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp butter

Melt butter and add to Worcestershire sauce and salt. Mix sauce over seeds. Spread seeds over a sheet pan. Cook at 250 for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Crepes

1 1/2 c flour
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 c milk
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 tbs butter

For each crepe: Butter 8 in skillet until it bubbles. Pour 1/4 c of batter. Rotate skillet until batter covers bottom. Cook until light brown. Turn and repeat.

Spread with fruit, jam, Nutella, powdered sugar for breakfast and or dessert crepes. You can also make yummy sandwiches out of them. Turkey, Avacado, Pesto is my favorite with Mozzarella cheese!

Pumpkin Nut Bread

4 c white sugar
2 cubes butter
6 eggs
1 large can pumpkin filling
1 c water
1 1/2 c nuts (your choice, I like walnuts. I also add a bit more then this.)
5 c flour
3/4 t baking powder
3 t baking soda
2 1/4 t salt
1 1/2 t cinnamon
3/4 t cloves
1 1/2 c chocolate chips

Cream sugar and butter. Add beaten eggs. Sift dry ingredients. Add alternating with pumpkin and water to the sugar and butter mixture. Add nuts and chocolate chips.

Bake at 350 for approx 45 minutes. Makes 6 small loaves.

Zucchini Bread

Combine and mix:

2 eggs
1 c oil
3 t vanilla
2 c sugar
2 c grated zucchini w/ skin

Then add:

3 c flour
1 t salt
2 t cinnamon
1 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder

Bake at 325 for approx 1 hour. Makes 2 loafs.

Taco Soup

1 1/2 lb hamburger
1 onion
1 can kidney beans
1 can garbanzo beans
1 can corn
1 quart tomato juice
1 pkg taco seasoning

Brown the hamburger meat with the onion in a frying pan. Set aside.

In a sauce pan combine the beans, corn, tomato juice, and taco seasoning and bring to a boil and let simmer for 5 minutes. Add the hamburger mixture and let simmer for an additional 5 minutes or until everything is heated.

Top soup with corn chips, grated cheese, and sour cream.

Puffy Oven Pancakes

These were known as Puffy Oven Pancakes in my house growing up, but you may know them as German Pancakes or many many other names! Enjoy!

Melt 4T of butter in the bottom of a glass 9x13 pan.

Beat together well:
6 eggs
1 cup flour
1 cup milk
dash of salt
optional: vanilla and sugar

Pour in pan and bake at 400 for approx 16-20 minutes. Serve while puffy with butter, syrup and/or powdered sugar!

Cinnamon Rolls

These are so easy! I use my easy bread dough recipe for the dough and then use the following recipes for the filling and frosting. This recipe comes from my friend, Lisa! Thanks Lisa!

Prepare dough according the recipe. Spray counter top with Pam Cooking spray and roll out dough out. Mix filling and spread over the top evenly. Roll up tight and cut into 2-inch intervals. Place on greased cookie sheet or in a pan and let rise again until doubled (or put in refrigerator and let sit overnight). Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes or golden brown. Frost after baked.

Filling:
1 c butter
2 c brown sugar
4 tsp cinnamon

Frosting:
8 oz cream cheese
½ c butter
1 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 c powdered sugar

Easiest Bread Ever (from Lisa)!

My friend, Lisa, got this from her friend. Lisa has been making it for a few months now and I absolutely love it! I have also (with the help of Lisa) made homemade Cinnamon Rolls out of this recipe! This is so easy! I'm going to try to start making a couple loafs a week! Thanks Lisa!

Words from Lisa on the bread: You can make it in 1 hour from start to finish. I use it for everything now. Cinnamon rolls, rolls, scones, pizza...everything! The yeast and soy lecithin might be something you can only get in Utah at stores but it can be ordered off the Internet. Best part is it costs .25 cents a loaf to make this. We only eat homemade bread in our house now! I make a half recipe on Sunday and we eat a warm loaf of bread with dinner and use the other loaf for sandwiches and toast during the week. When we do Movie night on Friday I make a second half batch and use half for pizza dough and make another loaf of bread. Pantry Secrets has classes on how to make this bread and perfect it.

• 10 ½ cups White unbleached bread flour (NOT all purpose- they do not have enough gluten)

• ½ Cup Sugar (white or brown or you can use 1/3 honey or molasses but it will not freeze well)
  

• 3 rounded/heaping tablespoons Saf-instant yeast (Macey’s sells it, keep in freezer and add to the recipe directly from the freezer, it does not have to warm up)

• 3 tablespoons liquid Lecithin* (use instead of oil, it’s made of soy, it cleans arteries has a 4 year shelf life and you can buy it at Kitchen Kneads, Bosch or any health food store and buy the liquid in squeeze bottles not the granules)

• 4 cups hot tap water (you can use powdered milk and for Wheat flour you add 1 cup applesauce in place of hot tap water) mix for 10 minutes.

Mix dry ingredients. Add lecithin and water. To add the lecithin, squeeze or pour approximately 3 tablespoons of lecithin directly into the bowl. Do not measure, it’s too sticky. (An amount about the size of a quarter equals 1 Tablespoon)

Mix for 1 minute and check consistency. If dough is too dry, add more water a little at a time but only 2-4 Tbsp. If dough is too moist, add more flour (You want nice soft dough). It’s better to be on the sticky side than to be too dry and hard. The stickier dough will stretch out better when you roll it. Mix for 5 minutes in mixer or knead by hand for 10 minutes. Do not add water or flour to the dough after it has finished mixing or it will be unstable.

Spray counter and pans with Pam (do not put flour on counter; it will dry out your bread, the gluten doesn’t develop in the extra flour and the dough won’t stretch as well and the breads will crack. Get a little Pam on your hands. Cut; don’t pull the dough into four pieces, shape loves and cover with a dish towel to keep the dough moist. Let raise 25 minutes.

Bake at 350º for 25 minutes on the middle rack in the oven. This recipe makes four loaves of bread. You can half the recipe for 2 loaves of bread.

For a year’s worth of bread (4 loaves a week)
6-25 bags of flour
6 pkgs of Saf-instant yeast
4-6 bottles of lecithin

You can keep a loaf of dough overnight in the fridge. Spray the inside of a bread sack with Pam. Put dough in and tie loosely. Put in Fridge. You might have to punch down the dough before you work with it. Great for pizza, scones, braids, etc. Might not form a pretty loaf of bread though.

Mint Brownies

This recipe came from my MIL and is a fun change every once in a while!

Base:
1 cup flour
1/2 cup butter or margarine softened
1/2 tsp salt
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 can (16 ounces) chocolate-flavored syrup
1 cup sugar

Mix together by beating at medium speed for approx 3 minutes. Pour batter into a greased 13 in. by 9 in. pan and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Filling:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine softened
1 tbs water
1/2 tsp mint or a couple drops peppermint essential oil
3 drops green food coloring

Combine filling in bowl and beat until creamy. Spread over cooled brownies. Refrigerate until set.

Topping:
1 package (10 ounce) chocolate chips (Semi Sweet or Milk Chocolate - your choice)
6 tbs butter or margarine

Melt in saucepan over low heat or microwave until melted. Spread over filling and chill. Serve!

Meatballs with Cream Sauce

MEATBALLS:

1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk
2 T. ketchup
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup quick oats
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
3 T. flour

CREAM SAUCE:

2 T. butter
3 1/2 T. flour
1/4 t. dried thyme
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
14 oz. can chicken broth (If you want your sauce thicker, cut down the chicken broth to 1 cup)
2/3 cup milk
2 T. minced fresh parsley

In a bowl, combine all of the meatball ingredients EXCEPT the beef and flour. Add beef and mix well. Shape into balls. Roll in flour, shaking off excess. Place 1 inch apart on cookie sheet and bake, uncovered, at 400 for 10 minutes. Turn meatballs, bake 8-10 minutes longer or until no longer pink.

Meanwhile, for the sauce, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in flour, thyme, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually add broth and milk; bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes, until slightly thickened. If using the full can of chicken broth, the sauce doesn't thicken overly much, but it is delicious that way. If you want it slightly thicker, cut down the chicken broth to 1 cup. Drain meatballs on paper towels; transfer to a serving dish.

Top with sauce and parsley. Serve over rice or egg noodles. I prefer egg noodles.

Pineapple Meatballs

Meatballs-
2 lbs ground beef (lean)
2 large eggs
½ cup dry breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
¼ teaspoon garlic powder

Sauce-
1 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 ¾ cups pineapple juice (reserved from pineapple tidbits)
¼ cup white vinegar
1 ½ tablespoon soy sauce
1 ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 (14 oz) can pineapple tidbits

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Make the meatballs by combining all meatball ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well and shape into about 1” meatballs.

Step 2: Brown Meatballs in a non-stick frying pan and drain on paper towels (or if you want to save time brown in the oven on a cookie sheet while you’re making the sauce).

Step 3: Make the sauce by combining cornstarch and brown sugar in a sauce pan. Then add 1 ¾ cup pineapple juice and blend until the mixture is smooth. Add vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and stir. Simmer uncovered on medium low until thickened (about 8 minutes - mine only took about 4 minutes to thicken).

Step 4: In a casserole dish pour sauce over meatballs and add pineapple tidbits. Lightly mix meatballs until they are coated with the sauce. Bake in the oven at 375 for 30-40 minutes or until fully cooked.

Teryaki Meatballs

I got this from My Kitchen Cafe!

Meatballs:
2 pounds ground beef (at least 90% lean)
2 eggs
2/3 cup bread crumbs
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
3 tablespoons milk

Sauce:
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 3/4 cups water
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water

For the sauce, in a medium bowl mix the soy sauce, 1 3/4 cups water, ginger, garlic powder, brown sugar, honey and cornstarch together. In a separate small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch into the 1/2 cup cold water. Set both bowls aside.

For the meatballs, in a large bowl, combine all the meatball ingredients except for the ground beef and mix well. Add the ground beef and mix until combined. Form ground beef mixture into 1 to 1 1/2-inch meatballs. In a 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat two tablespoons oil over medium heat until the oil is rippling and hot. Add the meatballs to the hot skillet and brown on all sides, turning with a pair of tongs. The meatballs don't need to be completely cooked through, just equally browned on all sides.

When the meatballs have browned, pour the sauce ingredients over the meatballs and gently turn the meatballs to coat them in the sauce. Heat the sauce until just simmering and add the cornstarch/water mixture, carefully mixing so as not to break apart the meatballs as you combine the cornstarch mixture with the teriyaki sauce. Simmer the meatballs and sauce over medium heat, maintaining a constant simmer but not cooking at too high of a boil, until the meatballs are cooked through and the sauce is thick and smooth (if the sauce becomes overly thick, add a tablespoon of water at a time to thin), about 10-15 minutes, turning the meatballs every two or three minutes to ensure even cooking. Serve over rice or couscous.

*Makes about 16 meatballs

Nun's Puffs

I got this recipe from my sister, Cortney. They are like a type of roll, but really more like a dessert. They are so yummy! I have even eaten them with syrup for breakfast! Enjoy!

1/2 c. butter
1 c. milk
3/4 c. flour
4 eggs
1 tbs sugar
honey

Melt butter and add milk. Bring to a boil. Add flour all at once and stir vigorously. Cook and stir until mix forms balls. Remove from heat and cool for 5 minutes.

Add eggs one at a time. Beat 1 minute with a wooden spoon after each egg. Fill each spot in a muffin pan 2/3 of the way full.

Bake for 30 minutes at 375. Makes 12.

Honey Glazed Walnut Rolls

Roll

• ⅔ c. notfat dry milk
• 2 c. warm water
• ⅓ c. sugar
• ⅓ c. butter
• 2 pkg. dry yeast (2 tbsp.)
• 5-6 c. flour
• 1 egg
• 2½ tsp. salt

In a bowl using an electric mixer, combine yeast and water. Let stand 5 minutes. Add sugar, butter, salt, dry milk, 2 c. flour and egg. Beat together until smooth. Add 3½ c. of flour, one cup at a time and beat until smooth.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth. Brush dough with butter and return to bowl. Let rise in a warm place until it triples in size. Dust surface with flour for rolling and shaping dough. Cut or mold into desired shapes.

Place on greased baking sheets. Brush surface of rolls with melted butter. Let rise in warm place for 1½ hours.

Preheat oven to 400°. Bake rolls for 10 minutes, remove from oven, cover with Honey Walnut Glaze. Return rolls to oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Honey Walnut Glaze

• ½ c. liquid honey
• ⅓ c. granulated sugar
• ¼ c. finely chopped walnuts
• 3 tbsp. creamy butter
• ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon

Mix ingredients together and heat. Do not boil. Remove from heat and slightly cool. Bake rolls for 10 minutes. Take out of oven and spoon on Honey Walnut Glaze. Return to oven and bake rolls for an additional 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Raspberry Jello Salad

I got this from The Gathering of Friends blog and it was fabulous! I love raspberry anything and pecans, so this seemed like the perfect jello salad! Enjoy!

Holiday Pecans (middle layer)

½ c. sugar
3 tbsp. water
½ tsp. Karo syrup
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ginger
¼ tsp. cloves
½ tsp. vanilla
1 c. chopped pecans

Combine sugar, water, syrup, salt and spices. Bring to a boil until syrup spins a short thread. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and nuts. Turn onto a flat surface and separate the nuts. Let cool. Chop into smaller pieces if desired.

Cranberry Jello

3 oz. Vanilla Pudding (cook and serve)
3 oz. Lemon Jello
1 ¾ c. water
1 tbsp. lemon juice
6 oz. Raspberry Jello
3 ¼ c. water
1 c. canned cranberry sauce
¾ tsp. nutmeg

Whipped Cream

1 ½ pints whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla
¾ c. sugar
Whip cream until stiff, fold in sugar and vanilla. Set aside 1/3 of the whipped cream for topping.

Instructions:

Combine dry pudding mix, lemon jello mix and 1 ¾ c. water in a pot and bring to a boil. Add lemon juice and set aside to cool, do not refrigerate yet. In a separate pot bring raspberry Jello and 3 ¼ c. water to a boil. Fold in cranberry sauce and blend well until cranberry sauce melts. Pour into an 8X11 glass dish and refrigerate Raspberry Jello layer. After Jello has set, sprinkle with layer of chopped spiced nuts. Set aside 3 tbsp. to sprinkle on top when serving. Combine whipped cream, vanilla pudding/lemon Jello mixture and nutmeg. Spread whipped cream mixture over the layer of nuts. To serve top with whipped cream and sprinkle with nuts.