CLASSIC STUFFED POTATOES

I think almost everyone has their own version of stuffed baked potatoes, but for those who don't, I hope you will try this recipe. It is such a versatile dish that you can add just about any ingredient to this recipe to suite your tastes. My favorite version has crisp bacon, sauteed onions, broccoli, cheese, sour cream and butter. It is an excellent side dish for dinner guests because you can make these early in the day and then just heat them up while you are grilling the main course. Stuffed potatoes and a small salad also make a wonderful meal all by themselves.

3 large baking potatoes (1 pound each)
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1/2 cup of butter (divided)
1/2 cup light cream (or less)
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
3 slices bacon fried crisp and drained
1 cup broccoli chopped small

Wash and dry baking potatoes. Bake them (unwrapped) in a 375 degree oven for about one hour and 20 minutes or until easily pierced with a knife. Let the potatoes cool until you can handle them or use a oven glove to protect your hands. Cut potatoes in half, lengthwise; carefully scoop out pulp and put it into a mixing bowl (try not to tear the potato skins). Saute onions until they are tender and sweet in 1/4 cup butter then add them to the potato pulp. Saute the broccoli until tender and set aside.

Removed a few of the "prettier" broccoli florets to decorate the potato tops and set those aside. Mix the potato pulp, onions, remaining 1/4 cup butter, sour cream, cheese and seasonings until very well mixed. Whip in enough of the light cream to make a consistency like mashed potatoes(you may not need all of the cream). Stir in the crisp bacon and small broccoli pieces with a wooden spoon.
Fill potato skins with this mixture (mounding slightly) and top with a little extra cheddar, decorate with broccoli florets and drizzle with a little butter. Bake at 350 for 20 to 30 minutes or until heated through. Makes six half potatoes.

NOTE: If you make these earlier in the day, cover and refrigerate them. At dinner time, bake them at 350 for about 40 minutes.
NOTE: These potatoes are also excellent topped with beef stroganoff or Swedish meatballs.

APPLE TURNOVERS

These delicious apple turnovers could not be easier, since the crust is ready made phylo dough and the filling goes together in minutes. The turnovers are brushed with an egg wash and sprinkled with sugar, which bakes into a shiny, flaky, lighter-than-air crust. You can have these on the table in less than 30 minutes.

1 sheet thawed phylo dough
2 cups cubed apples
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
Egg wash = 1 egg mixed with 1 tbsp. water

This recipe makes 4 apple turnovers (can be easily doubled). Preheat oven to 400. Spray a large cookie sheet (with edges) with vegetable spray, then use a paper towel to wipe most of the vegetable spray off.

In large frying pan melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium high heat. Add two cups of cubed apples and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon and continue to cook (stirring once in a while) for another 3-4 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of all purpose flour and stir to dissolve. Continue to cook until apples are almost tender and sauce has thickened, remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

On lightly floured surface, roll phylo dough out to a 12" x 12" square. Cut dough into four squares. Put one fourth of the cooked apple mixture into the center of each square. Dip your fingers in the egg wash and moisten the interior edges of each square. Fold dough over apple filling to make a triangle; pinch edges shut. You can bake them just like this (as triangles) but I don't care for the empty crust corners of the triangle so I grasp both (empty) corner points and bring them back to the center (see next photo). Moisten the point ends with egg wash and pinch them together. Cut one or two small vent holes in each turnover.

Brush the turnovers with egg wash and sprinkle with white sugar. Bake 20 minutes in a preheated 400 oven. Cool on baking rack. Best eaten warm or at room temperature.

NOTE: Best way to thaw phylo dough is overnight in the fridge.
NOTE: I snip vent holes in the crust with kitchen scissors.
NOTE: Pre-made phylo dough can be found in the freezer section of any market.

NOTE: I usually make these with a baking apple like granny smith, however I only had red delicious apples today and they worked great too.

NOTE: How long you saute the apples depends on what kind of apples you use and how small you chop them. Keep the times listed as an approximate. Test for doneness with the tip of a knife.

FUDGY BROWNIES FOR TWO

I whipped these up in just a few minutes today and I must tell you they are delicious!! Moist, fudgy and just right for two huge 4" x 4" brownies (or six small ones). I can also see many other possibilities for these beauties. Do you have last minute company coming? Cut these into 6 small brownies and top each one with a scoop of vanilla ice cream & chocolate syrup for a wonderful dessert or cut these brownies into small pieces and layer them with chocolate pudding for a wonderful last minute parfait. Then, of course, there is always the "I need something rich and chocolate-y late night attack" --these would be PERFECT!!

Preheat your oven to 350 and spray an 8" x 4" x 2" loaf pan (recipe will give you a brownie 8" long 4" wide and 1" thick).

1/4 cup butter flavored Crisco
3 tablespoons baking cocoa
1 large egg
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Cream shortening, sugar, cocoa, vanilla and egg together until smooth. Add dry ingredients and beat until well combined. Stir in pecans and chocolate chips. Spread mixture in lightly greased loaf pan and bake 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.
NOTE: To help in removing the baked brownies, I cut a piece of parchment paper (wax paper works too) the same size as the bottom of the loaf pan, except I made it twice as long. After the brownies were baked (and cooled for about 15 minutes) I used the "tails" of the paper to hang on to and lifted the brownies out of the pan.
NOTE: I decorated the top of my brownies with some whole pecans and a couple swirls of a simple chocolate glaze, but it isn't necessary. These brownies are super rich and moist, they really don't need any frosting at all.
NOTE: Recipe calls for a baking time of 15 to 20 minutes. My oven took 20 minutes.

SUPER EASY SUGAR COOKIES

School is in session and everyone is looking for lunch box ideas. This is a great one since it is the easiest sugar cookie I have ever tried. It is quick to put together, using simple ingredients and it has a fantastic, buttery flavor and better yet... you don't have to roll out the dough! Three of our granddaughters visited this weekend and they helped make these cookies for our tea party; we wore (flower adorned) big straw garden hats, fancy formals and tons of necklaces).

1 cup butter

1 and 1/4 cup white sugar

3 egg yolks

2 and 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

extra sugar to roll cookie dough in

Preheat oven to 350 and lightly grease cookie sheet.

Cream butter and sugar, then beat in egg yolks and vanilla. Add flour baking soda and cream of tartar. Beat until well mixed.

Form into walnut size balls and roll in sugar. Place 2" apart on cookie sheet (do not flatten). Bake 10-11 minutes or until tops are cracked and just turning color.

NOTE: I did not grease my cookie sheets and I had no sticking problems.

NOTE: I baked my cookies 13 minutes.

PINEAPPLE WHIPPED CREAM DRESSING --- AND MY REVIEW OF THE NEW NATURE VALLEY GRANOLA CLUSTERS

When I was a kid, my mother, bless her heart, made (what she called) fruit salad on special occasions. Her idea of fruit salad was a can of drained fruit cocktail with a little Dream Whip stirred in; if it was a very special occasion, she added a banana. When I started cooking, a good fruit salad was one of the things I wanted to learn how to make.

The other day, Judy from Mennonite Girls Can Cook posted a simple little recipe for a fruit salad dressing that is exactly what I've been searching for (they have the greatest recipes over there). A cooked pineapple flavored whipped cream dressing that I just had to try.

1/4 cup pineapple juice
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup whipping cream (+1/4 cup sugar - my tweak)

Beat the eggs until smooth, then stir in sugar and juices. Cook over medium heat until thickened (stirring constantly). Chill

Just before serving, whip the whipping cream until stiff peaks form and fold it into the chilled pineapple mixture. Fold the dressing into the salad or serve on the side.

NOTE: The recipe, as written, is ALMOST on the verge of tart (for our tastes), so I added 1/4 cup of sugar to the whipping cream before I whipped it. The additional sugar produces a dressing that is ALMOST verging on sweet (definitely not too sweet). Here is my suggestion: When the cooked part of the dressing has chilled, taste it...if you like it, don't add any extra sugar and just fold it directly into the whipped cream. If you would like the final dressing to be a little sweeter, add the extra sugar to the whipping cream before you whip it, then fold the two together. Does that make sense?

NOTE: This pineapple whipped cream is super light, fluffy and creamy, it would be great on just about anything (I plan on using it on pound cake). I also have plans for substituting orange juice for the pineapple juice and making an orange flavored whipped cream. TONS of possibilities here!

NATURE VALLEY GRANOLA NUT CLUSTERS

The people at MyBlogSpark.com recently sent me some Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters, and asked me to review them on my recipe page. They sent me four varieties: Nut Lovers, Roasted Almond, Roasted Cashew and Honey Roasted Peanut. They were all delicious, but I think I enjoyed the almond variety the most...Hubby liked the cashew.

Each bite size "cluster" is 100% natural and lightly sweetened with honey. It would be a PERFECT lunch box snack for office or school, and, in MY case, perfect at my computer desk. They are not messy at all (no crumbs) so they would make an excellent emergency breakfast (in the car) on those days when you are in a rush. They are very satisfying and not full of empty calories like most snacks. They get FIVE stars from me.

PIZZA CHICKEN

I came up with the idea for pizza chicken one day when afternoon thunder showers cancelled my grilling plans. There I was, faced with (yet another) potentially boring package of boneless, skinless chicken staring at me. The food fairies must have been at my house that day, because the recipe idea just popped into my head and it has been a huge hit ever since. The first time I served this, Hubby, who is extremely finicky about trying new recipes, gave me that, all to familiar, sidewards glance as if to say...you expect me to try this? But, to his credit, he took a bite and his eyes opened wide as he said "this is REALLY good!!" I almost fell off of my chair. The recipe immediately became one of our favorite quick fix dinners.

I took boneless, skinless chicken breasts and sliced them horizontally (to make two or three THIN chicken cutlets which I breaded and browned. I placed them on a baking sheet and topped them with pizza sauce (recipe follows) and a generous handful of mozzarella cheese and heated them through...thats it!!

PIZZA CHICKEN

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 eggs
all purpose flour for breading
dry bread crumbs for breading

1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
1 clove garlic minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
(1) 6 ounce can of tomato paste
(1) 6 ounce can of water
1 teaspoon dry sweet basil
1 teaspoon dry oregano
1 teaspoon fennel seeds (do not leave out)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon dry crushed red pepper flakes

Depending on how thick the chicken pieces are, slice them horizontally into two or three thin layers. Coat each layer with all purpose flour, then dunk them into
beaten eggs, then coat them with a generous layer of fine dry bread crumbs. Brown these cutlets in a little canola oil and set them on paper towels to drain. Because they are thin, they will cook quite quickly.

Next make the pizza sauce: Saute the onion, celery and garlic in the olive oil until they are tender. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil on medium-high heat. The sauce will thicken up very quickly after it comes to a boil which is what you want (thick). Remove from heat and set aside.

Top the browned chicken with the pizza sauce (dividing equally between the cutlets) and top with a generous handful of mozzarella cheese.


Bake at 350 until the chicken and sauce are nice and hot and the cheese is melted (about 15 minutes).
NOTE: Add any veggies you like on pizza (before you put it in the oven).
NOTE: If you have any leftovers, pizza chicken makes a delicious sandwich!!
NOTE: If you decide to use a commercial pizza sauce, just make sure it is a very thick one (but I hope you will use the above recipe instead).

CRUSTLESS QUICHE

The beauty of this recipe is that you can add or subtract your favorite veggies or meat...don't like mushrooms? Don't add them. Really like broccoli? Double the amount used. It all works and comes out great. The hashbrown crust is a nice easy (and tasty) change from the traditional quiche crust.

3 cups shredded hashbrown potatoes
1/3 cup melted butter (I use a little less)
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup diced ham or bacon (I use thin Black Forest deli ham)
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions (optional)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (pepper jack is good too)
4 eggs
½ cup milk
1 cup broccoli pieces
½ cup diced red bell pepper
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Mix the melted butter with the shredded hashbrowns and press into a 9" pie plate (I use an 8"x8" pan) sprinkle with salt and pepper. I like to use Simply Shred potatoes that you find next to the eggs in the market (not frozen). If you use frozen hashbrowns, thaw completely and dry them between paper towels before using. Bake in a pre-heated 425F oven for 20 minutes or until the potatoes start to brown. Remove from oven.
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Top with the ham and veggies. I use thin cut Black Forest ham cut into strips and I lightly saute the veggies just a little before putting on top of the hashbrown crust; top with shredded cheese. Any cheese will work.
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Whisk the eggs, milk and ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper; pour over everything.
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Reduce heat to 350 and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden on top.

HEARTY BREAKFAST SANDWICH

What is that old saying..."necessity is the mother of invention"? Well, necessity was the origin of this simple breakfast sandwich over the weekend. Hubby and I had a leisurely late morning breakfast planned when he received an unexpected phone call and had to meet a client right away. As luck would have it, I already had some potatoes and bacon fried up, so I mixed them into a couple of scrambled eggs, along with some cheese and morphed it all into a grilled sandwich that he could take with him.

1 small potato chopped fairly small (skins on)
3 slices of bacon diced
2 eggs
salt and pepper
2 slices of favorite cheese
2 slices of bread

Fry the bacon first, until it is crispy & drain it on paper towels. Pour the bacon fat out of the pan, but leave just a very thin skim of fat in the pan to fry the potatoes in. Fry the potatoes (make sure they are chopped very small) and drain on paper towels. Wipe the pan out & return the potatoes, crumbled bacon and two large eggs to the pan. Stir everything together, add salt and pepper & cook until soft set (leave the egg-bacon-potato mixture as flat and thin as possible).

Put the egg mixture and cheese slices in between two slices of bread. Butter the outside of the bead and grill like you would any other grilled sandwich.

To make the story short...breakfast interruption was avoided and Hubby was able to take his breakfast with him. He said it tasted great and stayed hot for a long time.
NOTE: Makes two hearty sandwiches.

GLAZED SPUDNUT (style) DONUTS

For those people who are old enough to know what a Spudnut is...this recipe will be a treat. For those of you too young to remember Spudnuts...let's just say that they were the best donut in the universe. I heard that there are still a few Spudnut shops around, but it appears that they are few and far between.

This recipe (from the Idaho Potato Commission) makes a LOT of Spudnut-style donuts (about 4 dozen) so you might want to half the recipe if you decide to make them. If you are not experienced with yeast doughs, I don't recommend trying this recipe, however, if you have had even moderate success with yeast doughs, I hope you give the recipe a try (it is not a hard recipe at all).

The donuts are very moist, sweet and have just a HINT of lemon. My hubby is a donut (and Spudnut) connoisseur from way back, and he gave these donuts two thumbs up!!

CLICK ON THIS PHOTO

2 pkgs. dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup shortening (do not use butter)
1 & 1/2 cups cold instant mashed potatoes
3 eggs well beaten
2 cups scalded milk (cooled to luke warm)
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon extract
6 to 8 cups all purpose flour

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water and set aside. Cream the sugar and shortening and beat in the cold potatoes, eggs, cooled milk, yeast water, salt and lemon extract. Gradually add the flour to make a soft dough, knead well. The dough will be quite sticky, but holds together well. It should be a softer dough than bread dough and should look like this:


Cover dough with plastic and let it raise in a warm place until doubled in size (this takes a huge bowl and about an hour). After an hour, pull dough out of bowl and onto the counter. Sprinkle with flour and knead it a little to get most of the air out of it. If dough seems really sticky, just flour your board. Roll the dough out to a half inch thickness. Cut with well-floured cutter:



Spray a piece of parchment paper (or waxed paper) with a little vegetable spray and then wipe it down with a paper towel. Cut the paper into squares and put a cut out donut on each square. This will help you when it is time to transfer the raised donuts from the counter to the hot oil (see notes).

Let the doughnuts raise until they get nice and puffy, then

deep fry the donuts in 375 degree vegetable oil until they are deep golden (mine took about 2 minutes a side). Only fry two or three donuts at a time.
Drain on paper towels. Glaze while still warm

CLICK ON THIS PHOTO FOR BREAKFAST

GLAZE

1 pound of sifted powdered sugar

1 tablespoon of vanilla extract

Whisk in enough boiling water to make a thin glaze, drizzle over donuts.

And don't forget the donut holes!!!

NOTE: Recipe calls for shortening, I used butter flavored Crisco.

NOTE: Recipe calls for prepared instant potatoes. I prepared my potatoes per the box instructions including water, milk, butter and salt.

NOTE: Recipe calls for a tablespoon of lemon extract. That sounds like a lot, but it leaves just a tiny HINT of lemon flavor in the final product.

NOTE: Recipe calls for 6-8 cups of flour. I used all 8 cups and it was no where near as "solid" as bread dough, so expect a sticky dough.

NOTE: I let my donuts raise on squares of sprayed parchment paper. If you do that, then you can pick up the donut without deforming or deflating it and gently turn it over in your hand and gently peel off the paper before you ease the donut into the hot oil.

NOTE: I have a 2" donut cutter, but it just seemed to make a very tiny donut, so I cut the bottom and top out of a pineapple can and used that as my cutter. I cut out the center of the donut with a tiny cookie cutter.
NOTE: I used my smallest electric frying pan with 3" of vegetable oil to fry these donuts. The electric fry pan allows you to easily adjust the oil to 375 degrees and since you should only fry two or three donuts at a time, the smaller electric fry pan makes sense.

BASIC HONEY-WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

I know a lot of you are still in the throes of summer heat, however, here in Alaska, mid-August is the beginning of our fall, with night time temperatures in the 40's and day time temperatures between 55 and 65 (we will probably have night time frost in a couple of weeks). Therefore, my thoughts are turning to heartier recipes. If YOUR part of the world is still too hot for baking, I hope that you will bookmark this recipe for YOUR fall season.

I searched long and hard for this whole wheat bread recipe. It makes great dinner rolls, hamburger buns and (best of all) excellent sandwich bread. It is just a basic whole wheat recipe, nothing fancy, but the bread is moist, flavorful and remains fresh longer than most homemade breads. I hope you will try it.

3 CUPS WARM WATER
2 ENVELOPES OF YEAST (or 2 tablespoons)
2/3 CUP HONEY
5 CUPS BREAD FLOUR
3 TABLESPOONS CANOLA OIL
1 TABLESPOON SALT (do not leave out)
3 & 1 /2 CUPS WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR

In your stand mixer bowl, mix the warm water, honey, oil, salt, yeast and 5 cups of bread flour. Mix well and let this stand for 30 minutes (it will get full of air bubbles).

After 30 minutes, mix in 2 cups of whole wheat flour (you'll need your dough hook for this). Work in an additional 1 & 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour (1/2 cup at a time) until your dough comes cleanly away from the inside walls of your bowl. This last measurement of flour is flexible. You may only need one more cup or you may need 2 cups, it depends on the humidity in your house (and the moisture level in your flour).

You will know your dough is ready when the inside walls of your mixing bowl are free of anything sticky. When it gets to that stage, let the machine knead the dough for about five more minutes.

After it has kneaded for five minutes, remove the dough from the bowl and spray just a little vegetable spray inside the bowl and put the dough back in. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for about an hour or until the dough has doubled.

After it has doubled, push your fist into the dough and deflate it. Turn it out onto the counter and knead it about half a dozen times to get the air out. If you are making sandwich bread, divide the dough into three sections (recipe makes three loaves).

Roll each section out into a rectangle then roll each rectangle up into a log, pinching the seams and ends shut. Place each "log" into a greased 9"x5" loaf pan. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let the dough raise for an hour or until doubled.

Bake loaves in preheated 400 degree oven for 25 minutes. Immediately remove from pan and cool on bakers rack. Brush loaf tops with butter. Don't cut the loaves until they are cooled completely.

If you want to make hamburger buns, pinch off a ball of dough about the size of a lime (maybe just a little bigger). Round it into a ball and then put it on your counter and flatten it to a 5" circle with your hand. Place on greased cooking sheet and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let it raise for about 30 minutes or until doubled. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes or till golden.

If you are making bread rolls, pinch off a piece of dough about the size of a golf ball. Round it and place it in a greased baking dish about 2" apart. The dough will expand and touch each other as they raise. Cover with plastic and let raise for an hour or until doubled. Bake at 400 for about 18 minutes or till golden.

NOTE: Just before you cover your dough (at any stage) with plastic wrap, use a minimal amount of cooking spray on the surface of your dough. This will keep the plastic from sticking (and deforming) your dough when you try to remove it.
NOTE: As soon as the bread comes out of the oven, make sure you brush the tops with a little melted butter. This will keep the crust soft.
NOTE: Make hamburger buns a lot thinner than you think they need to be. Don't forget, they will raise even more in the oven and you don't want a bun that looks like a football.
NOTE: Let bread loafs cool completely before you slice them. If you try to slice hot bread, it often misshapes the slices.

NO BAKE LEMON CHEESECAKE WITH BLUEBERRY SAUCE

A light and sweet ending to a summer barbecue. This no bake "cheese cake" recipe can be whipped up in a hurry. You can double the recipe and put it into a large sheet pan (for a big crowd). My husband likes to eat this frozen.


CRUST
1/2 cup melted butter
1/4 cup white sugar
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
Mix crust ingredients and press onto the bottom of a 9x13 baking pan. Bake at 325 for about 8 minutes. Cool before filling.

FILLING
Large size Cool Whip
1 small box of lemon jello
1 cup of boiling water
1 cup white sugar
8 ounce cream cheese (room temperature)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 teaspoon lemon extract

Dissolve the lemon jello in the boiling water and let it cool to room temperature (don't let it set up).

Beat the cream cheese, white sugar and both extracts together until creamy and smooth. Beat the cooled jello and the cream cheese mixture into the Cool Whip until it is very well mixed. Pour onto the cooled crust and chill at least 2 hours.

BLUEBERRY SAUCE
2 cups fresh blueberries
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix the sugar and cornstarch in a medium size sauce pan and gradually add the water (whisking to mix). Stir in blueberries and bring to a simmer. Simmer until it thickens then simmer one minute longer. Stir in the vanilla. Serve warm or cold.

HOME MADE TATER TOTS

This recipe is one the kids will get a kick out of...home made tater tots!! Super quick & simple to make, they are a mixture of chopped potatoes, shredded cheddar, egg, flour, seasonings and fried crisp in a little oil. They are excellent dipped in your favorite barbecue or ranch dressing...inexpensive too!!


2 medium Russet potatoes (see note)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (don't pack)
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 beaten egg

Peel and cube potatoes into your food processor bowl. Pulse them a few times but don't chop them so fine that they become mush. (First picture is the cube size, second picture is the desired chopped size)

In a bowl, mix the chopped potatoes & 1 cup of loosely packed shredded cheddar cheese. Thoroughly mix in the flour (make sure everything is coated). Then add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Let this mixture sit for about 5 minutes before you fry them. Heat 1/2" vegetable oil to 375.

Scoop spoonfuls of the potato mixture and compress it a little with your fingers while it is on the spoon. Push the "tater tot" off of the spoon (gently) into the shallow (hot) vegetable oil. Fry until golden brown (about 2 minutes per side). Season with salt while still hot.

NOTE: For those of you who live in Alaska, I don't think our Alaska potatoes would work very well in this recipe (the hold too much water and won't crisp up). Recipe calls for Russet (or baking potatoes).

NOTE: For a variation, I am going to try pepper Jack cheese in this recipe instead of the cheddar. I'll let you know how it goes.

THE ULTIMATE (FILLED) PEANUT BUTTER COOKIE

These (crispy on the outside - creamy on the inside) cookies are a hit every time I make them. They are quick to make and delicious to eat, with a sweet peanut butter cookie exterior and a Reese's cup interior...need I say more? These cookies are also a great bake sale item.



1 BAG OF MINIATURE REESE CUPS FROZEN

1 & 1/4 CUPS ALL PURPOSE FLOUR
3/4 TEASPOON BAKING SODA
1/4 TEASPOON SALT
1/2 CUP BUTTER FLAVORED CRISCO (don't substitute)
1/2 CUP PEANUT BUTTER
1/2 CUP WHITE SUGAR
1/2 CUP BROWN SUGAR
1 EGG
1 TEASPOON VANILLA EXTRACT

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the Crisco, peanut butter, sugars, egg and vanilla until it is smooth and creamy. Next add the dry ingredients and beat until smooth. Roll this dough into 1" balls and place them in an UNgreased mini-muffin pan:

Bake them at 375 for 10 minutes and they will look like this:

Immediately press a FROZEN miniature Reese's cups into the center of each cookie (pressing down until the top of the candy is at the same level as the top of the cookie).

Let these cool IN THE PAN for about 2 minutes before you try to remove them. To remove the cookies, insert just the tip of a thin knife between the cookie and the pan (the knife will help you lift the cookie out). The chocolate will melt from the heat of the cookie, so it will be messy until the chocolate re-sets. You can speed set them in the fridge.

BE CAREFUL, THEY ARE ADDICTING!!

SPEEDY WEEK NIGHT CHICKEN DINNER

This quick fix chicken dinner is one of my "go to" week night recipes. I always keep boneless, skinless chicken in the freezer, so I can whip this up in a hurry. It is one of those easy recipes that you can cook with your eyes closed and yet its sweet and (mildly) spicy flavor will please just about everyone. We don't care for super-spicy food, so the ingredients below were designed for us. If you like more spice, just increase the amount of crushed red pepper flakes. Leftovers reheat very well in the microwave and make a great hot sandwich the next day.


Cut 2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs into nugget size pieces. Roll them in flour, then in beaten eggs, then back in flour. Sprinkle them with black pepper and brown them in about 1/4 cup of canola oil.

When they are nice and brown, remove them from the pan and drain on paper towels. Wipe the grease out of the pan and add the following:

1 cup of favorite barbecue sauce

1/4 cup of water

1 tablespoon honey

scant 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Return to heat and mix sauce thoroughly. When it is bubbly, put the chicken in the sauce and stir to coat all of the pieces (I use a wide flat spatula to turn the pieces in the sauce).

Lower the heat and let the sauce sink into the chicken and caramelize a little in the pan. The chicken will be ready to serve when the sauce darkens (about five minutes).

NOTE: I have used chicken breast in this recipe, but it is not as moist and tasty as chicken thighs.

NOTE: Once you have put the sauce on the chicken, keep the heat down and watch it because it can scorch easily.

NOTE: I don't add salt to the sauce because there is plenty of salt in the barbecue sauce.

BEANS & BACON

Last week, I received an e-mail from April Gates at crockpot-recipes.com saying they wanted to feature my crockpot baked beans recipe on thier web site. I had never been to their web site before and I don't have a clue how they found me, so it was a big surprise and I was flattered!!

The day I originally posted this recipe, I also posted a photo of my grilled chicken using a marinade I found on Life & Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch, so thank you Shelby.

CROCKPOT BAKED BEANS

CLICK HERE TO SEE MY FEATURED RECIPE ON THEIR PAGE

I have been a fan of the crockpot for years. A lot of people associate it with heavy winter food, however, I use it a lot in the summer too (so I don't have to heat up my oven). They come in handy for hot side dishes if your grilling outdoors too.
Katy, from Food For A Hungry Soul says that it needs molasses to be a real baked bean recipe lol. Maybe I should re-name these Alaska Baked Beans.
Thank you for all of your well wishes, I'm feeling better and back in the kitchen.

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP (CROCKPOT)

I spent the weekend battling a cough and sore throat, so Saturday morning, I filled my largest crockpot with all my favorite chicken soup ingredients and snuggled under a blanket with hubby (he's sick too!!). This elixir (soup) tasted so warm and comforting. Whenever the level of the crockpot started to go down, I just added more chicken broth...it is so easy and heavenly good!!

5 BONELESS SKINLESS CHICKEN THIGHS
1 CUP CHOPPED ONION
1 CUP CHOPPED CELERY
1 CUP CHOPPED CARROT
32 OUNCES GOOD CHICKEN STOCK
1 TABLESPOON CHICKEN BULLION GRANULES
1/2 TEASPOON BLACK PEPPER
1 TEASPOON SALT
2 CUPS FAVORITE VEGGIES
SPAGHETTI OR FETTUCCINE NOODLES

Cube and brown the chicken thighs in a tablespoon of oil until you get brown crusty spots on the chicken. Remove from pan and put it into the crockpot. In the same pan, saute the onion, celery and carrot until they get a little soft. Use a spatula and use the moisture in the veggies to de-glaze any crusty bits left in the bottom of the pan. Add this mixture into the crockpot.

Add the broth, 2 cups favorite veggies, bullion granules and salt and pepper. Stir and cook on high for about 6 hours, stirring once in a while. Half an hour before you serve this soup, break the noodles into 4" pieces and put into hot broth and stir. The noodles should be ready to eat in about 30 minutes.

NOTE: I have tried many different kinds of noodles in this soup. Spaghetti seems to hold up the best without turning to mush if you are cooking the soup for a long time. I also use rice instead of noodles, however, do NOT put the rice into the soup (after a while, it will deteriorate and make your soup a mushy mass). Instead, make the rice separately and put a big spoon of it in your soup bowl and ladle the soup over the rice.
NOTE: Any cut of chicken will work in the soup, however, the dark meat gives the most flavor and after 6 hours, it will still be very moist and "fall apart" tender.
NOTE: Any kind of veggies can be used for the "favorite veggies" part. Just make sure you use veggies that will stand up to long cooking. I usually use a frozen veggie mixture that has peas, corn, green beans and carrots, but anything will work (just don't used canned veggies).

NOTE: Homemade chicken broth is best, but I never seem to have any when I make this soup, so I use a good quality BOXED chicken broth (just don't use bullion & water to make broth).