Reunion Recipes

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds

By Georgia

• 1 egg white
• 1 t. vanilla
• 1/2 c. white sugar
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1 t. ground cinnamon
• 4 c. whole almonds

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  
2. Lightly grease a cookie sheet. 
3. Beat egg white till foamy, add vanilla.  Add the nuts and stir till well coated.
4. Mix the sugars, salt, and cinnamon and sprinkle over the nuts.
5. Toss to coat and spread evenly on the prepared pan.
6. Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes until golden.
7. Allow to cool, then store in an airtight container.

 The Best No-Bake Bars You'll Ever Eat

By Esther

• 1 c. peanut butter
• 1/2 c. honey
• 1/2 cup unrefined coconut oil (be sure to use unrefined for the coconut flavor)
• 2 c. dry oats (not instant)
• 1 c. shredded coconut                   
• 1/2 c. chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
• 1 1/4 c. dark chocolate chips
• 1 t. vanilla

1. Melt peanut butter, honey, and coconut oil over medium-low heat.
2. Once melted, remove from heat and add oats, shredded coconut, chocolate chips, and vanilla.Stir until chocolate is entirely melted.
3. Pour into a 9 x 13 foil lined pan and cool in the fridge.
4. When it's set, cut into bars and enjoy. Store in the fridge...if they last that long!

Bacon and Cream Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms

BACON AND CREAM CHEESE STUFFED MUSHROOMS

Georgia

 

 

Ingredients

• 8 oz bacon
• 1/2 cup finely minced sweet onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 16 oz white button mushrooms
• 4 oz cream cheese
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Using scissors or a sharp knife, cut raw bacon into small pieces. In a large saute pan, over medium heat, cook bacon until nice and crispy. While bacon is cooking, remove mushroom stems from caps and chop stems into small pieces. When bacon is done, remove from pan and set aside; reserve 2 tablespoons of bacon grease and pour the rest from pan. Saute onion until soft about 5 minutes, scraping up any brown bits on bottom of pan. Add chopped mushrooms stems and garlic and cook a few minutes longer. Reduce heat to low. Add cream cheese and parmesan cheese and stir until cheeses are melted. Add reserved chopped bacon and season to taste with salt and pepper. (Mixture can be made, cooled, and stored, covered, in the fridge for up to two days.) Remove mixture from heat and stuff each mushroom cap generously with mixture. Bake at 350F for about 20 minutes or until mushrooms are soft and filling is nice and hot.

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http://www.mountainmamacooks.com/2011/02/bacon-and-cream-cheese-stuffed-mushrooms/

Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries

CHEESECAKE STUFFED STRAWBERRIES

Georgia

 

http://www.thesweetslife.com/2011/08/cheesecake-stuffed-strawberries.html

Ingredients:
-1 lb large strawberries
-8 oz. cream cheese, softened (can use 1/3 less fat)
-3-4 tbsp powdered sugar (4 tbsp for a sweeter filling)
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-graham cracker crumbs

Directions:
1. Rinse strawberries and cut around the top of the strawberry. Remove the top and clean out with a paring knife, if necessary (some may already be hollow inside). Prep all strawberries and set aside.
2. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until creamy. Add cream cheese mix to a piping bag or ziploc with the corner snipped off. Fill strawberries with cheesecake mixture. Once strawberries are filled, dip the top in graham cracker crumbs. If not serving immediately, refrigerate until serving.

Chipotle Chicken Tostada Bites

CHIPOTLE CHICKEN TOSTADA BITES

Georgia

http://kelseysappleaday.blogspot.com/2011/04/chipotle-chicken-tostada-bites.html

 Ingredients:

1/4 c. plus 2 TBSP chipotle salsa, pureed (I like Herdez brand)
1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast
2 avocados
zest and juice of one lime
2 TBSP red onion, finely minced
1 clove garlic, pressed or finely minced
1 Roma tomato, seeds removed, finely chopped
2 TBSP fresh cilantro, minced
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeds and ribs removed, finely minced (optional)
1/4 tsp. cumin
salt and pepper, to taste
24 round tortilla chips
24 cilantro leaves, for garnish

Directions:

1.  The night before serving, pour 1/4 c. pureed chipotle salsa over the chicken breast and allow to marinate, tightly covered, in the refrigerator.  Turn once during marinating time.
2.  Cook the chicken, covered, in a saute pan.  Allow to cool, then shred.  Mix shredded meat with remaining two TBSP salsa.
3.  While chicken is cooling, make guacamole by combining all remaining ingredients (except chips) in a nonreactive bowl.  Mix together with a fork, leaving only small chunks.  Adjust salt and pepper as desired.
4.  Just before serving, top each chip with a generous TBSP each of guacamole and chicken.  Top with a cilantro leaf and arrange on a platter.

Lime Rice

LIME RICE

Georgia

I use this one with Noah and Whitney’s Café Rio Burritos. I make the rice to go in the burritos, instead of just plain rice. I cheat and sauté and then throw everything in the rice maker. This makes more than you will need for one pan, so I freeze the other half, and use it the next time I make them.

 

In saucepan sauté:
1 Tbsp. Butter
½ yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced

In large pot, bring following to boil:

3 1/3 c. water

4 tsp. chicken bouillon
¼ c. bunch cilantro, chopped (I skip this, cause I really don’t like cilantro)
1 tsp. cumin
1 small can diced green chilies
½ Tbsp. lime juice
¼ tsp. salt

Add sautéed onion and garlic to boiling water, then add 1 ½ c. long grain rice. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Turkey Roll-Ups &/or Chicken Puffs/Pillows

TURKEY ROLL-UPS & CHICKEN PUFFS/CHICKEN PILLOWS

Georgia & Shauna

I combined these recipes, because they are the same thing, I just took the “healthier/tastier” options on both of them and made them one recipe.

2 cups/3 lbs. cooked chicken (I boil this with chicken bouillon, garlic salt, and salt and pepper)

1 Tbsp. butter

6 oz. cream cheese

½ tsp. pepper

4 oz. can mushroom pieces

2-3 packages or crescent rolls

More melted butter

Seasoned bread crumbs

Sauce:

1 can cream of mushroom/ chicken

½ tub of sour cream

1 soup can of milk

Optional – lemon juice

Melt together butter, cream cheese and pepper. Stir in mushrooms and chicken. Roll out crescent rolls. Put spoonful of chicken mixture on wide end of triangular roll. Roll up the roll; pinch sides to seal shut. (There is no neat way to do this, just try to incase the chicken mixture in the crescent roll. No matter how bad they look, they turn out looking fine after being cooked.)

Dip in melted butter. (I forgot to do this once, and have never done it since, I just roll in crumbs and call it good). Roll in seasoned bread crumbs (I don’t ever season them either, I just use regular bread crumbs). To make your own bread crumbs, add parsley, oregano, and pepper to your bread crumbs.

Bake at 350º for about 17 minutes.

For gravy, mix cream of chicken/mushroom soup with milk, sour cream, and lemon juice. Pour over puffs before serving.

Oreo Fudge Bars

  OREO FUDGE BARS

Georgia

 

 

1 16 oz. package of Oreo cookies

1 stick butter, melted

¼ tsp. salt

1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

½ cup milk chocolate chips (could use another ½ cup semi-sweet chips if you like)

½ cup mini chocolate chips

 

Preheat the oven to 325. Line a 9x13 pan with foil and lightly spray with Pam. Set aside 6 Oreo cookies for the toppings. In a small food processor grind the rest of the cookies. If you don’t have a food processor, just pound with a rolling pin until the cookies are fine crumbs. Add the salt to the crumbs and stir to combine. Melt butter and gently stir together with the cookie crumb mixture. Press firmly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Coarsely chop the remaining cookies into chunks and set aside.

 

Over a double boiler or in the microwave, melt ¾ cup semi-sweet and ½ cup milk chocolate chips together with the condensed milk and vanilla. Stir frequently until smooth. (To do this in the microwave, put in a glass bowl, and put the microwave to 50% power, and melt one minute at a time, and stir in between each minute, when it gets close to being all the way melted, just stir for a long time, and the chips will melt)

 

Spread evenly over the prepared cookie crust. Sprinkle the mini chocolate chips and Oreo cookie chunks over the top of the filling. Press down gently into the chocolate topping. Bake for 20-22 minutes in the oven. Allow to cool on counter for 1 hour. Chill in fridge until completely cold and se before cutting into bars or it will make a big mess.

 

*These aren’t very good hot from the oven, but are great after chilling and the filling has set.

Apple Nachos

APPLE NACHOS

Georgia

If you're like me at all, I'm always looking for good appetizers to serve at little get togethers. This one was fast and simple, and the best part is they were tasty!!!

http://lexiscleankitchen.com/2014/08/22/healthy-food-friday-apples-apple-nachos-kid-friendly-apple-snacks/

Ingredients:

2-3 apples (I like Honeycrisp)

½ cup dark chocolate melted (I used milk, I like it better than dark)

¼ cup nut butter, melted

¼ cup homemade caramel (I forgot this, and they still tasted delicious)

2 Tbsp. coconut

2 Tbsp. nuts

2 Tbsp. golden raisins (or just plain raisins)

Instructions:

1.      Slice apples into thin wedges, and arrange on plate.

2.      Drizzle chocolate, nut butter, and caramel

3.      Top with desired toppings and serve

Note: Topping options are endless!

Stuffed French Toast

STUFFED FRENCH TOAST

Georgia

 

Loaf of French bread

6-8 oz. cream cheese

¼- ½ cup powdered sugar

Almond extract

2 eggs

About ¼ cup milk

About a tsp. nutmeg

Frozen fruit (raspberries are my favorite)

Sugar

 

Filling:

Warm up cream cheese. Add powdered sugar, ¼ cup at first, add more if needed. Add a couple drops of almond extract. Mix well.

 

Mix in a bowl:

2 eggs, milk, nutmeg (about a tsp.)

 

Raspberry Sauce:

In a saucepan heat raspberries, and a little water to a warm temperature. Add enough sugar so it is not sour.

 

Put filling between French bread (the more the better). Dip in egg mixture, and fry on greased pan. Top with raspberry sauce.

Upside Down Spaghetti

UPSIDE DOWN SPAGHETTI

Georgia

1 lb. ground beef
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese

1 lg. prego spaghetti sauce

1 (8 oz.) sour cream
Grated mozzarella cheese

Cook meat and add sauce. Place half of the cooked spaghetti in 9x13 in. pan. Add half of sauce mixture. Mix cream cheese and sour cream; place on top, then layer rest of spaghetti, followed by rest of sauce. Add grated mozzarella on top. Bake at 325º for 30 minutes covered. Bake additional 15 minutes uncovered.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

SPINACH ARTICHOKE DIP

Georgia

 

2 cups parmesan cheese

1 (10 ounce) boxes frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1 (14 ounce) cans artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

2/3 c. sour cream

1/3 c. mayonnaise

2 tsp. garlic, minced

 

1.     Preheat oven to 375.

2.     Mix together Parmesan cheese, spinach, and artichoke hearts.

3.     Combine remaining ingredients and mix with spinach mixture.

4.     Bake for 20-30 minutes.

5.     Serve with crackers or toasted bread. (Or Wes and I like chips.)

Canned Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

CANNED HOMEMADE SPAGHETTI SAUCE

Georgia

 

50-60 Roma tomatoes (13 lb. 2 oz. of tomatoes)

4 green peppers

1 whole garlic

3 lbs. yellow onions

4 sticks celery

1 pint vegetable oil

8 small cans tomato paste

½ cup salt

1 ½ c. sugar

2 Tbsp. fresh basil

2 Tbsp. oregano.

 

Slip skins on tomatoes, and cook down for 2 hours.

 

Sauté green peppers, garlic, onions, and celery. (I definitely did NOT use that much oil, and you’ll have to sauté in batches)

 

Puree vegetables in blender, and add to tomatoes. (After I added the vegetables to the tomatoes, I would scoop out some and put it in the blender, and keep doing this until the sauce was to the “chunkiness” I wanted)

 

Then add tomato paste, salt, sugar, basil, and oregano. (I don’t like how much sugar it calls for, next time I’ll be cutting the sugar in half probably)

 

Cook all together for 2 hours, until desired consistency.

 

Steam can for 20 minutes. ( I only have a water bath, so I water-bathed the pints for 50 minutes, and the quarts for 55 minutes.)

 

Good luck! It’s super yummy~!

Quick Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

QUICK WHOLE WHEAT PIZZA CRUST

Georgia

 

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 package active dry yeast/instant yeast

¾ tsp. salt

1 cup hot tap water (120-125 degrees)

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil (canola or olive oil work well too)

1 Tbsp. honey or granulated sugar

1 Tbsp. gluten (optional)

 

To prepare pizza dough, stir whole wheat flour; lightly spoon into a measuring cup and level flour.

 

In large mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour, yeast and salt. Blend in water, oil and honey or sugar. Stir by hand vigorously until all ingredients are well mixed; about 3 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise to desired size.

 

Place dough in greased jelly roll pan or 12-14 inch pizza pan. Press dough to cover bottom of pan and up sides to form a rim.

 

Some people prefer to “pre-bake” the crust for about 3 minutes before adding the toppings. Crust will be “crispier” than if not pre-baked.

 

Add pizza sauce of your choice and your favorite pizza toppings; bake at 425 for 15-20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and toppings are done.

White Chocolate Frosting

WHITE CHOCOLATE FROSTING

Georgia

 

1 cup butter, softened (no subs)

2 cups powdered sugar

6 ounces white chocolate or 6 ounces white baking bar, melted and cooled

3-5 tablespoons whipping cream or half-and-half

 

1.     In a large bowl, beat the butter and powdered sugar at low speed until fluffy.

2.     Add in melted and cooled white chocolate and whipping cream (start with 3 tablespoons and add more to achieve desired consistency).

3.     Beat on high speed for 3-4 minutes, scraping the bowl with a spatula.

Fruit Pizza

FRUIT PIZZA

Georgia

 

Crust

1 ½ c. butter

1 ½ c. sugar

¾ tsp. salt

¾ tsp. baking powder

¾ tsp. baking soda

3 eggs

3 c. flour

 

Cream butter and sugar. Add salt, soda, baking powder and eggs. Stir in flour. Bake at 375 10-15 minutes. Let cool.

 

Topping

11 oz. cream cheese

1 c. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 container cool whip

 

Mix cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Fold in cool whip.

 

Top with fruit!!

Yummy Drink

YUMMY DRINK

Georgia

 

Equal parts of pineapple juice and lemon lime soda. Then mix in some rainbow sherbet. Pretty tasty. Good for a punch bowl.

Lime Rice

LIME RICE

Georgia

 

I use this one with Noah and Whitney’s Café Rio Burritos. I make the rice to go in the burritos, instead of just plain rice. I cheat and sauté and then throw everything in the rice maker.

 

In saucepan sauté:

1 Tbsp. butter

½ yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

 

In large pot, bring following to boil:

3 1/3 c. water

4 tsp. chicken bouillon

¼ bunch cilantro, chopped

1 tsp. cumin

1 small can diced green chilies

½ Tbsp. lime juice

¼ tsp. salt

 

Add sautéed onion and garlic to boiling water, then add 1 ½ c. long grain rice. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds

CINNAMON ROASTED ALMONDS

Georgia

 

1 egg white

1 tsp. vanilla

½ c. white sugar

½ c. brown sugar

¼ tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

4 cups whole almonds

 

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Lightly grease a cookie sheet. Beat egg white until foamy, add vanilla. Add the nuts and stir until well coated. Mix the sugars, salt, and cinnamon, and sprinkle over the nuts. Toss to coat and spread evenly on the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes, until golden. Allow to cool then store in an airtight container.

Vanilla Wafer Fruit Salad

 VANILLA WAFER FRUIT SALAD

Georgia

1 12 oz. container of cool whip

1 large tub of vanilla yogurt

1 pkg. Jell-O Vanilla Instant Pudding (I’ve used both the small or large package, doesn’t seem to matter)

 

Mix three ingredients together, and let set up in the fridge.

 

Add package of frozen berries to the salad right before you serve.

 

Serve with Vanilla Wafers. (I usually sprinkle the mini Vanilla Wafers on top, and then put the box next to the salad so people who get to the bottom can put some on theirs also)

Striped Delight

STRIPED DELIGHT

Georgia

This is the best dessert I’ve had in a LONG time. So yummy, and pretty easy.

 

35 Oreo Cookies, finely crushed

6 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted

1 pkg. (8oz.) cream cheese, softened

¼ c. sugar

2 Tbsp. cold milk

1 tub (12 oz.) Whipped Topping, thawed and divided

3 ¼ c. cold milk

2 pkg. (4 serving size each) Jell-O Chocolate Flavor Instant Pudding

 

Mix crushed cookies and butter in medium bowl. Press firmly onto bottom of 13x9 in. baking dish. Refrigerate 10 min.

 

Beat cream cheese, sugar, and 2 Tbsp. milk in medium bowl with wire whisk until well blended. Gently stir in 1 ¼ c. of the whipped topping. Spread over crust.

 

Pour 3 ¼ cups milk into large bowl. Add pudding mixes. Beat with wire whisk 2 min. or until well blended. Pour over cream cheese layer. Let stand 5 min. or until thickened. Drop remaining whipped topping by spoonfuls over pudding; spread to cover pudding.

 

Refrigerate at least 4 hrs. Cut into 24 squares. Store leftover dessert in refrigerator. Makes 24 servings or about 12 at our house.