Broccoli Salad

This is one of my all time favorites. As you can probably tell by now I am a picky eater...this is supposed to have other ingredients that I opted to leave out. I think it is prefect with just broccoli, bacon, cheese and dressing. Everyone else seems to like it as well, but they don't know what is supposed to be in there...ha ha!

Adapted from Allrecipes

INGREDIENTS

8 slices bacon, cooked and chopped
1 large head fresh broccoli, cut into bite size pieces
1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 cup mayonnaise

DIRECTIONS

Combine bacon, broccoli and cheese in one bowl.

In another bowl whisk together mayonnaise, vinegar and sugar. Pour dressing over broccoli mixture and mix until well coated.

Taco Pasta Salad

This pasta was such nice change from the usual Italian dressing or mayo based ones. Everyone who tried it loved it. The original recipe calls for cilantro and avocado, but I opted not to add them in because the people I was serving it to were not fans of either.

Adapted from Cara's Cravings

INGREDIENTS

1 lb tri-color spiral pasta
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 10oz package frozen corn
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican-blend cheese
1 1/2 cups salsa
1/2 cup olive oil
4 tablespoons lime juice
3/4 tablespoon cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt & pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

DIRECTIONS

Cook the pasta al dente according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water.

In a large bowl, combine the black beans, corn, tomatoes, salsa, and cheese. Add the cooled pasta and mix well.

In another bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, garlic, cumin and chili powder. Pour over the pasta salad, add the cilantro, and mix well. Season to taste with salt & pepper.

Pizza Dip

Another ugly (hence the small photo), yet tasty dish. This dip was pretty much gone before it was time to eat the main food. I've also submitted this to the What's Cooking Ingredient Challenge.

Adapted from Kraft Foods

INGREDIENTS

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella Cheese

3/4 cup pizza sauce
1/2 cup chopped pepperoni

Frito Scoops

DIRECTIONS

In a 8X8 dish smoothly layer cream cheese with a spatula. Layer on pizza sauce, then chopped pepperoni and top with shredded cheese.

Microwave until hot and bubbly...about 4 minutes.

Serve with Frito Scoops.

Pizza Pasta

This is a dish I like to throw together using what I have on hand. You could certainly add other pizza like toppings such as onions, peppers and mushrooms...but I don't like all that stuff. I also made this recipe for the What's Cooking Ingredient Challenge.

INGREDIENTS

1 16 ounce box of pasta, cooked and drained

2 jars spaghetti sauce (or make your own)
1.25 pounds of ground turkey
2 cups chopped pepperoni

2 cups Italian mix shredded cheese, divided
1 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded

salt

pepper

garlic powder

Italian seasoning

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350.

Cook ground turkey with salt, pepper, garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Drain fat if necessary. Add in spaghetti sauce and pepperoni. Simmer if you have the time.

Add sauce and meat mixture to cooked pasta and mix well.

In a 9x13 baking dish layer half of you pasta mixture. Layer 1 1/4 cup Italian mix shredded cheese. Layer the rest of your pasta mixture and top with 3/4 cup Italian mix shredded cheese and 1 cup of Parmesan cheese.

Bake for about 15-20 minutes until cheese is nice and melted.

Kalamata Olive and Feta Cheese Spread

First of all this is great because it is purple! And secondly it involves two of my favorite things...cheese and olives. My mom actually came up with this years ago. I will warn you that it is salty so you have to get just the right balance of spread and bread. But I love salt, so I do tend to use quite a bit.

INGREDIENTS

1 9.5 ounce jar pitted kalamata olives, drained
2 cups feta cheese, crumbles
1 loaf french bread, sliced

DIRECTIONS

Combine olives and cheese in a food processor and mix until well incorporated and it becomes a lighter shade of purple.

Serve with sliced french bread.

Tomato Pie

I made this as part of the What's Cooking Ingredient Challenge. I had my eye on this recipe for a while, and once again because of this challenge I was give the push to make it. It was incredible. I was unable to get my hands on homegrown tomatoes. But at $5 a pound I used heirloom tomatoes. I wanted to make sure I had a good quality tomato for this. My only problem was my bottom crust didn't cook all the way. Next time I will bake the bottom crust for a little while before piling in everything.

Adapted from Bakin' and Eggs, who adapted if from Christ Church Cooks

INGREDIENTS

1 double 9-inch pie crust (homemade or Pillsbury)
4-5 tomatoes, sliced
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1-2 large garlic cloves, minced
salt and pepper, to taste

crumbled bacon

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix together cheeses, mayonnaise, garlic and salt and pepper in a bowl. Set aside.

Line a 9-inch pie pan with one pie crust, trimming sides if necessary. Layer half of the sliced tomatoes in the bottom of the crust. Sprinkle with fresh basil. Spread (or dollop) half of the cheese mixture over tomatoes and basil.

Repeat another layer of tomato, basil and cheese. Place second crust over the top of the pie and prick with a fork.

Bake for about 40-50 minutes, or until crust is golden brown. Check on crust after 20-30 minutes and cover edges of crust with foil if they are getting too brown.

Cool, slice and serve with crumbled bacon on top.

Yield: 6-8 servings

Tater Tot Casserole

This was inspired from the Duggar Family. It was actually pretty good! Its simple, quick and comforting on a busy night.

INGREDIENTS

half a bag of frozen tater tots

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 pound ground turkey

2 cups cheddar cheese

salt

pepper

garlic powder

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven according to tater tot directions (mine was 400 degrees).

Cook ground turkey, season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Drain if necessary. Add in cream of chicken soup and cheese. Mix well.

Transfer turkey mixture into an 8x8 baking dish. Neatly top mixture with tater tots.

Bake for approximately 25 minutes until tater tots are crispy to your preference.

Ranch Oven Roasted Potatoes

You can make oven roasted potatoes with so many different flavors. I keep a bulk size container of dry Ranch mix on hand so I decided to use them on some potatoes. Simple and good!

INGREDIENTS

cut up potatoes (peel them if you want)

dry Ranch mix

kosher salt

pepper

extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400. Line baking sheet with foil.

In a bowl lightly coat your potatoes with olive oil. Stir in your desired about of dry Ranch mix, salt and pepper. Coat potatoes well.

Spread potatoes on a lined baking sheet and give them an extra sprinkle of kosher salt. Bake to 30-40 minutes, until done to your preference. *Flip them half way through baking to help prevent them from sticking.

Blueberry Crumb Cake

I have wanted to make this recipe for a loooong time. And finally thanks to blueberries being on sale, and blueberries being chosen for the ingredient for our WC Ingredient Challenge I no longer had an excuse not to make it. I wish I had made it sooner. It was fabulous. The only change I made was I cooked mine an 8X8 dish for 55 minutes and I didn't not use all my crumb topping.

From Ina Garten/Barefoot Contessa

INGREDIENTS

For the streusel:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

For the cake:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (3/4 stick)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2/3 cup sour cream
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup fresh blueberries
Confectioners' sugar for sprinkling

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9-inch round baking pan.

For the streusel:
Combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and then the flour. Mix well and set aside.

For the cake:
Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, until light. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla, lemon zest, and sour cream. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the batter until just combined. Fold in the blueberries and stir with a spatula to be sure the batter is completely mixed.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread it out with a knife. With your fingers, crumble the topping evenly over the batter. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool completely and serve sprinkled with confectioners' sugar.

Cream Cheese Pie

This is a recipe my mom has been making since I can remember. I am not sure of the original source though. It is very simple and very good.

INGREDIENTS

1 – 8 ounce block cream cheese, softened
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup lemon juice (I used bottled)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 – 9” pre-made graham cracker pie crust
1 can pie filling (I used cherry)

DIRECTIONS

Combine the first 4 ingredients and beat with a hand mixer until smooth. Pour mixture in pie crust and chill for at least 4 hours. After chilled, top with pie filling and serve.