Pasta Salad

1 bag rotini pasta

1 bottle Italian salad dressing

3/4 c chopped mozzarella

1 bunch green onions, chopped

1 sm can sliced black olives

1 pkg salami chunks

1 c grape tomatoes or chopped tomatoes

3/4 c zucchini or cucumber, chopped

Cook pasta al dente per package instructions.  Add zucchini and continue cooking until done.  Drain and cool with cold water.   Place in large bowl and add mozzarella, onions, olives, salami and tomatoes.  Toss well and add salad dressing.  Toss again.  Serve cold.

Lemon Chicken and Rice Soup

3 cans chicken broth or equivalent Penzy’s Chicken Stock

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

½ c lemon juice

1 T lemon pepper

3 cups white rice, cooked

Add 3 cans of chicken broth, plus 1-2 cans more of water to a large stock pot.  Add chicken thighs and cook until done, approx 30 minutes.  Remove thighs to a plate and cut in bite-sized pieces.  Return to pot and add lemon juice and lemon pepper.  Cook 5 minutes more and add hot, cooked rice immediately before serving.  The rice will continue to absorb the stock and make a yummy risotto for breakfast or lunch the next day.  

Jeanne’s Chicken Stew

4 cans cream of chicken soup

2 cans chicken broth

3 cans sliced potatoes

2 large carrots, sliced

6-8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and stir fry in olive oil until cooked, about 15-20 minutes.  Add carrots, potatoes, soup and broth and cook together, another 20-25 minutes.

Taco Soup

1 lb ground beef

1 can beef broth

1 can diced tomatoes

1 sm can chopped green peppers

1 can corn

1 can red beans

Taco seasoning

1 onion, chopped

1 c salsa

1 bag grated cheddar cheese

1 container sour cream

1 can sliced olives

1 bag tortilla chips

Brown ground beef in a large stock pot.  Add chopped onion and fry until onion is clear.  Add beef broth, tomatoes, green peppers, corn and red beans.  Add water and taco seasoning to taste.   Cook for 30 minutes on medium.  Stir in salsa and cook five more minutes.  Serve topped with cheddar cheese, sour cream, olives and tortilla chips.

Lion House Corn Bread

1 cup flour

1 cupt cornmeal

1 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder

4 eggs

½ c sour cream

1 can cream-style corn

2 tablespoons salad oil

¾ cup grated cheese

Sift dry ingredients together.  Set aside.  Beat eggs until light.  Add sour cream, corn and salad oil  Stir in dry ingredients and beat well.   Pour into a well-greased 8x4 loaf pan or 8x8 square pan.  Sprinkle with grated cheese.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

Buttermilk Pie

1 ½ cups sugar

1 c buttermilk

½ c Bisquick

1/3 cup margarine or butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 eggs

Grease pie tin.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Pour into pie pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool 5 minutes.  Serve topped with fresh fruit and whipped cream.   Wonderful with strawberries and whipped cream.

Lion House Ginger Cookies

1/2 c granulated sugar

½ c brown sugar

¾ c shortening

¼ cup molasses

1 egg

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 t soda

¼ t salt

1 t cinnamon

1 ½ t ginger

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large mixing bowl, combine sugars and shortening until mixture is light and fluffy.  Add molasses and egg.  Beat well.  Add flour, soda, salt, cinnamon and ginger and beat well.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix again.  Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.  Press down each cookie with the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar.   Bake for 8-10 minutes, being careful not to over bake.  Makes approximately 2 ½ dozen cookies.

Crockpot Cranberry Pork Chops

1 can jellied cranberry sauce
6-8 pork chops
16 oz cranberry juice
Salt and Pepper to taste
Cornstarch to thicken

Place all items in a crockpot and cook on low for 8 hours.  Drain off juice and thicken with cornstarch and return to crockpot to coat pork chops.  The pork will be very tender, which is why this pork chops and gravy are best served over mashed potatoes.

Christine's Frog Eye Salad

1/2 pkg Acini de Pepe

Sauce
1 1/2 c pineapple juice plus 1 cup to dip bananas
1 T lemon juice
1/2 c sugar
1/4 t salt

Next Day Add-Ins

20 oz pineapple chunks
20 oz crushed pineapple
16 oz fruit cocktail
1-2 bananas sliced, dipped in reserved pineapple juice to preserve color

Cook Acini de Pepe according to directions, al dente.  Combine sauce ingredients in a saucepan and cook until thick and smooth.  Combine with the drained pasta and mix well.  Cool overnight.  Next morning, add in fruit and mix.  Refrigerate until serving.

My Thanksgiving Orange Rolls

1 pkg (36 count) Rhodes frozen bread dough, dinner rolls
1 c white sugar
Cinnamon to taste
1 - 2 T fresh, grated orange rind
2 sticks melted butter

Glaze
1 pkg powdered sugar
3 T frozen orange juice concentrate
1/4 c melted butter
Milk to thin glaze

Grease 36 muffin tins.  Place one dinner roll in each, cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise as per package instructions.  Meanwhile, mix cinnamon, sugar and orange rind in a small bowl.  When the bread rolls have risen, poke a hole in the middle to form a bowl in each muffin cup.  Brush with melted butter and add 1-2 t cinnamon/sugar/orange rind mixture.  Gather up the edges, pinch together so they don't leak and turn upside-down.  When all the bread rolls are done, cover with plastic again and let rise another half hour or so.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

While they are baking, prepare the glaze by melting butter and mixing in orange juice concentrate until melted.  Pour powdered sugar into a bowl and add OJ/butter.   Mix well then add milk slowly until it is a glaze consistency, rather than a frosting consistency.  Remove bread rolls from oven and take out of muffin tins as soon as they are cool enough to handle.  Otherwise, any sugar that leaked from the bread rolls will glue them to the tin.  While still warm, frost with glaze.  Best served warm.

My Deviled Eggs

18 eggs, hard-boiled, peeled
1 c mayonnaise
1 T brown mustard
1 t powdered Ranch dressing mix
1 t grated horseradish (from a jar)
Seasoned Salt

Slice eggs in half and put 24 of the white halves on a deviled egg plate.  Throw the other 12 halves away.  Mash 18 yolks with mayonnaise, mustard, Ranch dressing and horseradish together until smooth.  Add more mayo, if desired.  Scoop into egg whites and sprinkle with Seasoned Salt.

Lora's Beans and Rice

4 cans red beans, 3 cans drained - 1 can undrained
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 pkg Sazon Seasoning
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, finely chopped
2 T olive oil
Cooked rice to serve

Heat olive oil in fry pan and cook garlic and onions through.  Add red beans and Sazon Seasoning and cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes.   Add chopped cilantro and cook 5-10 minutes more.  Serve over rice.

One note:  other than the beans, all amounts can be adjusted to your own personal taste.  I like it sometimes with more garlic and olive oil.

Becky's Burritos

1 pkg flour tortillas
1 lg can refried beans
1 lb grated cheddar cheese (or more, depending on taste)
1 lg can El Pato enchilada sauce
1 sm can sliced black olives, optional

Fill and roll each tortilla with 1/4 c refried beans and a handful of grated cheddar cheese. Place in 9x13 pan.  When the pan is full of rolled torillas, smother with enchilada sauce and grated cheese.  Sprinkle sliced black olives over the top.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Janeth's Funeral Potatoes

1 1/2 packages tater tots (the flat kind work best)
1 large, family-sized cream of mushroom condensed soup
1 lb cooked bacon, crumbled
1 container sour cream
1 small onion, chopped finely
2 c grated cheddar cheese

Place tater tots in a 9x13 pan.   In a bowl, mix mushroom soup, bacon, onion and sour cream thoroughly.  Spread evenly over tater tots and sprinkle with cheddar cheese.  Cover with aluminum foil.  Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees, or until hot in middle.  Take off aluminum foil and bake 10 minutes more to crisp cheese.

This can be made the night before and kept in the refrigerator until ready to bake.

Jeanne's Thanksgiving Sweet Potatoes

3 c cold, mashed sweet potatoes, prepared without milk or butter
1/4 c butter, softened
1 t salt
1 c sugar
1/2 c milk
3 eggs
1 t vanilla

Topping

1/2 c packed brown sugar
1/4 c all purpose flour
1/2 chopped pecan
2 T cold butter

In a mixing bowl, mix sweet potatoes, butter, salt, sugar, milk, eggs and vanilla until smooth.  Transfer to a greased 2 quart baking dish.  In a small bowl, combine sugar, pecans and flour.  Cut in cold butter.  Sprinkle over potato mixture.  Bake, uncovered, at 325 degrees for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown.  Serves 8.

Grandma's Cranberry Sauce

1 qt cranberries
2 c sugar
1 orange, skin and all - seeds removed

Wash and sort cranberries, removing any bruised cranberries and any stems.  Wash and slice oranges, removing seeds and leaving on skin.  Grind cranberries and orange slices together in a meat grinder or food processor.  Stir in sugar.  This should be made 24 hours before serving so that the flavors blend and will keep 3-4 days in the refrigerator.

Christine's Stuffed Mushrooms

20-30 mushrooms
1/2 can diced green chilies
1 8oz package cream cheese, softened
garlic salt
paprika
seasoned salt
butter

Wash and remove stems from mushrooms.  Mix softened cream cheese with green chilies and stuff mushroom tops.  Place in a large baking pan with several tablespoons of butter in the bottom of the pan.  Sprinkle with paprika, seasoned salt and garlic salt.  Bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes.  Serve warm.

Shannan's Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

1 8oz package cream cheese, softened
3/4 c powdered sugar
3/4 c mini chocolate chips
1/2 c butter (no subs), softened
1/4 t vanilla
2 T brown sugar
3/4 c finely chopped pecans
Teddy Grahams or Graham cracker sticks for serving

In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla until fluffy.  Gradually add sugars and beat until just combined.  Stir in chocolate chips and refrigerate 2 hours.  Place cream cheese on a piece of plastic wrap and mold into a ball.  Refrigerate at least one hour.  Just before serving, roll in chopped pecans and serve with Teddy Grahams.  Note:  Teddy Grahams or stick graham crackers are needed because regular graham crackers are too soft.

Mom's Clam Dip

1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened
1 can clams
1/2 t onion powder (or to taste)
1 T Worcestershire sauce

Soften cream cheese.  Drain clams, reserving approx 1-2 tsp of the clam juice.  Combine all ingredients and mix until smooth.  Serve with Wheat Thins or Crudites.