Apricot Chicken

6 Chicken Breasts
1 8 oz. Bottle Russian Dressing
1 Package Dry Onion Soup Mix
1 cup Apricot Jam

Place chicken in a greased 9x13 pan. Mix remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Enjoy:)

Cheesy Mexican Chicken

6 Boneless skinless chicken breast halves (I used tenders, 'cus they cooked faster)
1 can Cream of chicken soup
2 cups Cheddar Cheese
½ cup Milk
1 package Taco seasoning mix
3 cups Corn Chips

Place chicken in 13 X 9" baking dish. Mix soup, 1 cup cheese, milk and seasoning mix. Spoon over chicken. Top with chips; cover. Bake at 375°F for 30 minutes. Remove cover; top with remaining 1 cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Serve over rice.

(I know this calls for corn chips, but I've just used tortilla chips...which is really good too)

Spinach Lasagna Rolls

Ingredients
1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, cooked and well drained
2 cups low-fat cottage cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 beaten egg
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
8 dried lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
Nonstick cooking spray
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium green sweet pepper, chopped
2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 14-1/2-ounce can tomatoes, cut up
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
2 teaspoons snipped fresh basil or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Directions
1. Coat a 2-quart rectangular baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.

2. For filling, in medium bowl stir together the spinach, cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese, egg, and nutmeg. Spread about 1/3 cup of the filling on each noodle. Roll up, jelly-roll style, beginning at a short end. Place rolls, seam sides down, in prepared dish.

3. Cover with foil. Bake rolls in a 375 degree F. oven about 30 minutes or until heated through.

4. Meanwhile, for the sauce, coat an unheated 2-quart saucepan with nonstick cooking spray. Preheat over medium heat. Add onion, sweet pepper, mushrooms, and garlic. Cook until vegetables are tender. Stir in undrained tomatoes, tomato sauce, basil, sugar, and ground black pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 5 to 10 minutes or until desired consistency. Serve sauce over lasagna rolls. Makes 8 main-dish servings.

We love this sauce recipe! The spinach rolls are really good, but we also use this sauce for spaghetti and other pastas. You have to use cottage cheese for the spinach rolls though, Nicole uses ricotta and they dry out. I think she might cook them with the sauce on them and they don't dry out.

Apple Squares

1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped apple (I used closer to 1 cup)
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts (I left these out)
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x9 inch pan. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon; set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together melted butter, brown sugar, and 1/2 cup of white sugar with a wooden spoon until smooth. Stir in the egg and vanilla. Blend in the flour mixture until just combined, then stir in the apples and walnuts. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pan. In a cup or small bowl, stir together the remaining cinnamon and sugar; sprinkle over the top of the bars.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in preheated oven. Cool in the pan, and cut into squares.

These things are so yummy! I had a whole bag of apples that weren't as crunchy as I usually like them, so I decided to try this recipe. I think they would be perfect for a brunch because to me they taste like an apple pancake only sweeter and chewier.

Brownies (from a cake mix)

1 pkg. Betty Crocker Super Moist Fudge cake mix (I just used a choc cake mix I had)
1/2 c. melted margerine or oil
1/2. cup packed brown sugar
2-6 TBS water, use more if batter is stiff
1 egg
1 c. chopped nuts
1 pkg. vanilla chips, or 6 oz. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 9x13 pan. Mix dry cake mix, margerine, water, brown sugar and egg until blended. Add nuts and chips. Spread in pan . Bake 25-30 min.

A lady in my ward gave me this recipe. I was supposed to make cookies for Rob to take to the Young Men tonight, but my car won't start, so I couldn't go get the stuff I needed. I remembered that I had a cake mix and thought I would try this recipe. It turned out really chewy and moist and crackly on top, which is how I like brownies. She told me that you can bake these in mini muffin liners with an almond on top for a party or shower or something.

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. butter, melted
1/4 c. crisco (I use butter flavored)
1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 TBS vanilla
2 c. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In seperate bowl, cream together melted butter, crisco, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in vanilla, egg and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in flour mixture until just blended. Stir in chocolate chips by hand. (I never sift the dry ingredients, I just put the flour in one cup at a time and toss in the salt and soda. I also throw the chocolate chips in and let the Kitchen Aid mix it all up.) Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Bake 15 to 17 minutes. If you want to make normal sized cookies, drop by tablespoonful and I usually cook them about 10 minutes. If you don't like to use crisco, you can use more butter instead, but I think the crisco is what makes them soft and chewy and I figure if you don't eat these all the time, it's okay.

Chicken Fajitas

4-5 Boneless, Skinless, Chicken Breasts
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
1/3 Cup Soy Sauce
3/4 Cup Chopped Fresh Cilantro
1 Tbs. Chopped Garlic
1/2 tsp. Black Pepper
3/4 Cup Chopped Onion
3/4 Cup Chopped Red and Green Peppers

1 Lime (to squeeze over cooked fajitas prior to serving)

Cut up the chicken. Mix all ingredients (except the lime) in a large ziplock bag. Marinate overnight in the fridge. Pour everything into a skillet. Discard ziplock bag. Cook stovetop in a skillet, or cast-iron on the grill until chicken is done.

Squeeze fresh lime juice over cooked fajitas.

Top with:

Lettuce

Tomatoes

Cheddar Cheese

Sour Cream

Guacamole

Salsa

Serve with warm tortillas and enjoy!

World's Easiest Peanut Butter Cookies

1 Egg
1 Cup of Peanut Butter
1 Cup of Sugar

Combine all ingredients. Drop on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. Place on a cookie rack for cooling.

Note: These are very rich...best to have a big glass of milk ready!

Spaghetti Sauce

2 pounds lean ground beef
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup red wine (I use same amt. of apple juice or skip it)
1 (1 ounce) package dry onion soup mix
1 (4.5 ounce) can canned mushrooms, drained
2 teaspoons dried basil leaves, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 pinch ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground allspice
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 cup water

In a large skillet, brown the meat with the garlic over medium heat. Stir in the wine; simmer, stirring often, for 10 minutes.
Mix in dry onion soup mix, mushrooms, basil, salt and pepper, cinnamon, allspice, parsley, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and water. Cover pan almost completely, allowing space for steam to escape, and simmer 1 hour. Add additional water if needed to prevent sticking.

This is our new favorite spaghetti sauce!

"Stuffed" Pork Chops

6 Boneless Pork Chops (about 1.5 lbs)
1 21 ounce can Apple Pie Filling
1 box Stouffers Stuffing (for chicken)

Prepare stuffing according to box directions. While that cooks, grease a 9x13 pan and put the apple pie filling over the bottom of the entire pan. Place the pork chops on top of the apples. Once the stuffing is done, evenly distribute the stuffing on top of the pork chops.

Cover with foil

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Remove foil, bake for 10 minutes more.

I know it sounds a little weird, but we made it last night and it was super good!!

Crab Salad

2 TBSP sour cream
2 TBSP mayonnaise
2 TBSP sweet pickle relish (I didn't add this)
1 lrg. shallot, minced
1 1/2 tsp. worchestershire sauce
3/4 tsp. dill weed
1/2 tsp. chopped fresh parsley (I didn't add this)
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. fresh lemon juice (I didn't use fresh)
1/4 tsp. grated lemon zest (I didn't use this)
freshly ground black pepper
1 lb. crabmeat-drained and flaked (I use imitation)

Add all ingredients to the crab and mix. I like mine with crackers, but I am sure it is good any way.
Obviously I didn't make it exactly as the recipe says, but I never do! I really like this recipe though and one day I might try it just as the recipe says!

Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole

1 26 oz. bag frozen country style hashbrowns
2 c. shredded colby cheese (I used cheddar)
1/4 c. minced onion
1 c. milk
1/2 c. beef broth
2 TBS butter
dash of garlic powder
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper

Preheat oven to 425
Combine frozen hashbrowns, cheese, and onion in large bowl.
Combine milk, beef stock, half melted butter, garlic powder, salt and pepper in another bowl. Pour over hashbrowns and mix well.
Heat remaining butter in large ovenproof skillet. Spoon in hashbrown mixtures and cook until hot and cheese is melted, stirring occasionally.
Put skillet in oven and bake for 45-60 minutes, until the surface of hashbrowns is dark brown.

I don't have an oven proof skillet, so I just cooked them on the stove until they were hot and then transferred into 2 sqaure glass pans and baked for 45 minutes.
This tastes a lot like the casserole at Cracker Barrel. I did think it needed a little extra salt and pepper. It was really easy to make and maybe a tiny bit healthier than Funeral Potatoes since it doesn't have cream of anything soup or sour cream in it.

Cuban Salsa Verde with Black Beans and Rice

Yummy, healthy, easy, and inexpensive! (It has a fairly mild flavor.)

1 c. loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves
4 green onions, chopped
1 tbs. lime juice
1 tbs. olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp. honey
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. dried crushed red pepper
chicken broth
3 c. uncooked brown rice, cooked according to package directions (I used instant rice and cooked it in chicken broth)
1 can black beans, drained (I added an additional 1/4 c.)
2 chicken breast, cooked and shredded (or shredded pork or beef)

Blend the cilantro, onions, lime juice, olive oil, garlic, honey, salt, and pepper in a food processor, using a little chicken broth if liquid is needed. Mix cilantro blend, chicken, beans, and rice. Serve with low-fat/fat-free sour cream and whole wheat tortillas.

Powerballs

1 c. peanut butter
1 c. honey
Mix until smooth. Graually add:
3 c. old fashioned oats
1/2 c. ground flaxseed (I didn't have this, so I added some flour)
1 c. chocolate chips and any combination of
nuts and soft dried fruit (peanuts, raisins, cranberries, etc.)
Roll into balls. You can eat them right away, but they are better
after being refrigerated for awhile. The recipe says they freeze well.
Makes around 50. I made these with chocolate chips and raisins and Adam and Luke loved them. I actually really liked them also. They are kind of like cookie dough. I kept them in the fridge because I thought they were good cold. They are very cute in mini muffin papers.