Moon Cake

This recipe comes from my wonderful friend Ashley Crapo. This recipe does NOT have a heavy sweet taste which I love SO MUCH! It is a lot like an eclair or cream puff taste. Yesterday, my brother had 3 pieces, my husband had 4, and my father had 2. The actual CAKE part is very finicky and make SURE you follow the directions, but once you get past that part it is not hard at all! I couldn't find a good picture for this recipe because Chinese moon cake is ENTIRELY different. This should look like a bubbly yellow cake on the bottom, layer of vanilla colored cream in the middle, and a layer at the top that is a SLIGHT brown. (VERY Light)

ASHLEY CRAPO’S MOON CAKE

1 ¼ c. cold water
½ c. + 2 Tbsp. Margarine
1 ¼ c. of flour
5 eggs
2 - 8 oz. Cartons of cool whip
3 - 4 Tbsp. of Fudge

Cream Cheese Layer (*ASHLEY usually doubles this part, I leave it as is*)
1 - 8 oz. Package cream cheese, softened
3 ½ c. milk
2 - 3 oz. Pkgs. Vanilla instant pudding

Mix cold water and margarine in sauce pan. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Add flour all at once and let sit for 5 min. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat after each one. Spread on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes. DON’T OPEN OVEN WHILE BAKING AND DON’T POP THE BUBBLES THAT FORM. Let cool.

Blend cream cheese and then slowly add milk. Add vanilla pudding. Beat until thick and spread on cool cake.

Fold in fudge to cool whip. (OR just use 2 pkgs. of chocolate cool whip if you can find it). Frost the top of the cake with mixture. Allow to chill for several hours.

*I ignored the "ungreased cookie sheet" part last time... big mistake. The batter slipped and slid all around the sheet until I was just ready to scream! Next time I will definitely leave the cookie sheet ungreased.

The BEST EVER Homemade Pizza

I love this recipe. LOVE LOVE LOVE! The crust is wonderful and the sauce is divine! I always get RAVE reviews when I use this recipe and it really isn't that hard. I hate to mix and knead dough... I wish I had a mixer... but oh well. Maybe someday!

HOMEMADE PIZZA

CRUST
1 pkg. Dry yeast (2 tsp. = 1 pkg.)
2 Tbsp. Lukewarm water
Dissolve yeast in warm water.
1 egg
1 tsp. Salt
½ tsp. Sugar
1 Tbsp. Shortening or oil
1 cup boiling water
3 cups flour

Beat egg, add shortening, salt, sugar. Slowly stir in boiling water. Cool to lukewarm and add yeast mixture. Add ½ flour; stir (or beat with electric mixer) until smooth. Add remaining flour. Knead to soft dough. Roll to fit pan. Spread light coating of oil over dough on pan. Let rise 15 minutes. (You can spread on sauce and toppings while waiting for dough to rise.)

SAUCE
2 cans tomato sauce
2 cans tomato paste
½ tsp. Ground sweet basil
½ tsp. Oregano
3 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese
1 tsp. Sugar
¾ tsp. Garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together and spread on top of dough. Top with cheese, olives, peppers, ham, pepperoni, mushrooms, as desired, or topping of your choice. Bake pizza at 425 for 15-20 minutes.

*Note: A good cheese mixture is ½ Mozzarella and ½ American, medium sharp. I doubled the crust recipe and left the sauce recipe as is and we made 4 LARGE personal pizzas with lots of leftover sauce.

Spaghetti

This is one of those classic dishes that have a million different versions! This is my version and we like it quite a bit! It's so easy, it's almost like cheating when making dinner!

SPAGHETTI

16 oz. spaghetti noodles
1 jar Prego spaghetti sauce
1 packet spaghetti seasoning
¼ cup parmesan cheese
1 lb. Ground beef
Onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, as preferable.

Prepare spaghetti noodles according to package directions. Brown ground beef and drain if desired. Add Prego sauce, packet of spaghetti seasoning, parmesan cheese, and any other desired seasonings. Serve over spaghetti noodles or mix noodles and sauce together before serving for more even portions.

*FANTASTIC ALTERNATIVE: Use 1 package Hillshire Farm sausage (instead of ground beef) and 1 can of olives (in addition to other ingredients). Slice sausage into rounds and fry in skillet. Add spaghetti sauce with seasonings and sliced olives. Mix in a large bowl with cooked spaghetti noodles and top with cheddar cheese.

Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff

I got this recipe here. This dish turned out SOO tasty - just like the reviews on the website said! My husband and I loved it and it was just about the easiest preparation I have ever found in a slow cooker recipe. The recipe listed below is my modified recipe. If you want the original recipe please see the link above. This is a GREAT one!!!

SLOW COOKER CHICKEN STROGANOFF

3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
1/8 cup margarine
1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix

1/4 cup green onions
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese (I used fat free)
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup

16 oz. wide egg noodles

Put chicken in a large Ziploc bag with the dressing mix. Leave in refrigerator overnight. The next day, put chicken and dressing mix, margarine, and green onions in slow cooker; mix together and cook on high for 2 1/2 - 3 hours. Add cream cheese and soup, mix together and cook on high for another 1/2 hour or until heated through and warm. Serve over noodles.

One Egg Pancake

I got this recipe here. This was a very simple, very few ingredient, tasty breakfast that reminded me a lot of crepes. The pancake was thin and cooked VERY quickly! I served this with a little bit of Smucker's syrup and whipped topping with scrambled green onion and cheese eggs on the side. My husband loved it and so did I!

ONE EGG PANCAKE
from http://bloggingitswhatsfordinner.blogspot.com/

1 egg, beaten

3 Tbs. flour

4 Tbs. milk

1 tsp. sugar

1/4 tsp. baking powder

dash salt

Cinnamon (optional, but it is soooo good)

Mix all ingredients together and pour in buttered/sprayed saucepan. Wait till the edges look done, and then flip and cook on other side. This makes a really BIG pancake.

*This recipe is enough for 1 serving. I used wheat flour and the resulting pancake was a lot like a crepe, but sufficiently filling that I only needed to make one pancake per person. I didn’t just double the batter but actually made them completely separate so that the proportions would be identical.

Chunky Potato and Ham Soup

I have made this soup twice now - once with my mother and once by myself. I have potato trauma whenever I put them on the stove to boil, so it was pretty frustrating for me when I did it... but I think it is a pretty simple recipe in general. And in the end, it tastes great! I served it at a party we hosted at my house and it was gone in about 5 minutes flat!

CHUNKY POTATO AND HAM SOUP

3 medium red potatoes
2 cups water
Onion Powder
Salt
Crushed Red Pepper
Black Pepper
3 Tbsp. Flour
3 Tbsp. Butter
3 cups milk
1 1/2 cups cheese
1/2 tsp. sugar
Crushed red pepper flakes

Cut potatoes into cubes and add to water. Cook until tender. Drain, reserving liquid. Set aside potatoes. Measure 1 cup cooking liquid; set aside. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add flour to saucepan; season with onion powder, pepper flakes, pepper, and salt. Cook 3 to 4 minutes.

Gradually add potatoes, reserved 1 cup of cooking liquid, milk and sugar to mixture; stir well. Add cheese and ham. Simmer over low heat 20 - 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

*I added some extra cheese and just turned the heat up until the cheese was all melted before serving.

Apple Jello-O Salad

This is super easy and really tasty! My family has had this for family gatherings for YEARS! Hope you enjoy it too! *NOTE: Picture is raspberry jello salad, not apple.

I served this at a party we hosted at my house and between six people this HUGE bowl of jello was almost completely devoured. People had 2 - 3 helpings each!

APPLE JELL-O SALAD

3 LARGE packages Apple Jello
1 – 12 oz. container cool whip
3 – 4 apples

Make up jello using 9 cups water instead of 12 (3 hot, 6 cold). Let set for 4 - 5 hours. Once set, use electric mixer to blend in cool whip. Mix in apples.

*You can use this same technique with various different combinations of Jell-o flavors and fruit!

Lindi Anderson's Wheat Bread Recipe

This is a CLASSIC STAPLE in my family. My mom makes 3 loaves every three days because my siblings will not eat any other kind of bread. You start to crave the wheat bread and will be so surprised how quickly a whole loaf goes! My mom has perfected the recipe and it is so wonderful!

LINDI’S WHEAT BREAD RECIPE

1 ¼ c. warm water
1 ¼ tsp. Yeast
2 heaping Tbsp. Honey
2 Tbsp. Butter
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Dough enhancer
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. Gluten
3 cups wheat flour

Put all wet ingredients in the bottom of the mixer. Place all dry ingredients on top except for yeast. Make a little well in the dry ingredients to put the yeast in. Mix together thoroughly. (I just use a bread maker.)

*I like to use 3 Tbsp. Butter instead of just two.

If you don’t have a bread maker: Mix the dough really well and knead it for about 8 minutes and then roll it out to make sure to get all the bubbles out of it. Fold over the long sides so they meet in the middle and then roll it up and put it in a bread pan. Cook at 350 for 30 minutes but check it between 25 and 27 minutes.

Paprika Chicken with Sour Cream Gravy

YUMMMMM!!!! I just absolutely love this recipe. It is one of my very favorite dishes! It isn't too difficult to make although the process of making the dish seems a bit "impractical." Just a few notes: Chicken chunks or strips are a million times better for this dish; yes, you only need ONE can of cream of chicken soup and yes, it will seem like it isn't enough; I don't think the picture (obtained from http://www.campbellskitchen.com) is a very accurate representation of this meal; this is a spicy dish so if you are sensitive to heat reduce the amount of black and red pepper; and I like it much better served over noodles. I got this recipe here.

PAPRIKA CHICKEN WITH SOUR CREAM GRAVY

From: Campbell's Kitchen
Prep/Cook: 20 minutes
Serves: 4

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. ground black pepper

1 tsp. ground red pepper

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (I only use 3 and I cut it into chunks)

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup

1/4 cup sliced green onion

1 container (8 oz.) sour cream

Mix flour, paprika, garlic powder, black pepper and red pepper on plate. Coat chicken.
Heat butter in skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken 10 min. or until browned. Set chicken aside. Add soup and green onions. Heat to a boil. Return chicken to pan. Cover and cook over low heat 10 min. or until chicken is done. Stir in sour cream.

BBQ Meatcups

I got this recipe here. It was super easy to make and very flavorful! The buttery taste of the biscuits was a PERFECT compliment to the tangy meat mixture. I had to cook it a little bit longer than it said (about 3 minutes extra) and I PACKED each biscuit with the meat filling and still had some left over. But these were a HUGE HIT with my husband! He ate SIX of the EIGHT that I made and only stopped because he was too full to pack anymore in! I'll DEFINITELY be making them again!

BBQ MEATCUPS

1 lb ground beef (browned and drained)

1 tube Pilsbury Grands Biscuits

½ cup catsup

½ cup BBQ sauce

¼ cup brown sugar

3 TBS dried onion

1 tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

2 TBS relish (optional)

cheese for topping

Preheat oven to 375°. Grease muffin pan and flatten dough from biscuits into the pan. Put hamburger in bowl, mix in remaining ingredients except cheese. Fill dough with meat mixture. Bake 8 minutes. Top with cheese and bake another 5 min.

*NOTE: I was worried that cooking the meat mixture in the biscuits would make them gross and soggy but I was SO wrong! The biscuits turned out perfectly well and not the least bit soggy. If you are not a big onion fan I would recommend using onion powder instead of the dried onion. That way you still get the taste of the onion, minus the texture!

Hot Dog Casserole

So simple, so quick and easy, so AMERICAN!

HOT DOG CASSEROLE

1 package hot dogs (eight)
3-4 medium sized potatoes OR 6-8 small potatoes
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 c grated cheese

Slice potatoes thinly, cut up hot dogs, and grate cheese. Mix hot dogs, cheese and soup together to make sauce. Layer in crock pot: first potatoes, then sauce. Continue until sauce is gone (usually two layers of each). Cook in crock pot on low for about 6 hours.