favorite ingredient friday ~ stromboli

Strombolli
1 loaf frozen bread dough
2 eggs, seperated
1 TBSP parmesean cheese
1 TBSP parsley
1/2 TBSP garlic powder(I'll press a few cloves of garlic)
1 TBSP oregano
1/2 TBSP pepper
approximately 2 TBSP olive
1/2 lb cooked Italian sausage OR pepperoni
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced (I use 2 small cans)
Oil frozen bread dough and defrost 3-4 hours, per package instructions. Roll out with hands to 1/4 inch thickness. Mix egg yolks, seasonings and spread on dough. Top with meat, mushrooms, and cheese. Roll lengthwise & shape into a horseshoe shape. Place seam side down on a cookie sheet. Brush with egg whites. Bake at 350' for 30 minutes. Slice into 1" pieces. Serve with hot pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce.

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favorite ingredient friday

I posted this recipe recently, but it is a great and delicious quick and easy meal!
Nancy mentioned that the egg mixture is a lot! I think you could make three pies instead of two with the ingredients listed. Eat one, freeze two!

2 pie crusts (I used frozen)
2 cups cubed chicken
2 packets of taco seasoning
2/3 c. salsa
2 c. cheddar cheese (I forgot to buy this but had a block of sharp cheddar I grated)
8 eggs
2 c. half and half
2 T butter
1/2 c. sliced olives
4 oz. can chopped green chilis

I sauted my chicken breasts in the butter, covered with the first packet of taco seasoning and added just a little water so it wasn't dry. I let it cook and cut it into small pieces with my spatula. Mix the eggs with the cream and then stir in the chilis and olives.
Bake the pie crusts 8 minutes and then pat them to flatten them back out.
Put the chicken in the bottom of each pie crust, followed by the cheese, and then 1/3 c. salsa in each and pour the egg mixture over the top.
Bake at 400 for 35 minutes. (I turned it down to 375 and then cooked it for another 10 minutes. Be sure and get the deep shell pie crusts because they are really full.

favorite ingredient friday ~ chicken pot pie

Chicken Pot Pie

2 Pie Crusts (your own or purchased), unbaked
2 T. Butter
2 T. Flour
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. thyme (I used mrs. dash herb and garlic & rosemary too)
¼ tsp. pepper
1 c. chicken broth
¼ c. milk (I used heavy cream)
2 cups chicken, cooked and cubed
1 ½ cups vegetables (I used fresh potatoes and baby carrots, frozen peas)
Dash of minced onion

Preheat oven to 425. Line pie plate with one crust. Melt butter in a large skillet over low heat and stir in flour, salt, thyme, and pepper. Cook until smooth and bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in milk and broth. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly for one minute. Stir in chicken and veggies. Pout into pie crust. Top with the second pie crust. Seal edges, cut fancy slits for airing. Bake on cookie sheet 30-40 minutes or until crust is golden brown. There was enough filling for two pies to I used phyllo dough, I have a pan for really big muffins, I layed out and buttered the phyllo, cut it in half (about six layers) and then layed it in the muffin tin, put a big spoon of the filling and twisted the top. These were so wonderful!!! Matt liked the regular pie version best, but I thought the phyllo made it more special! and they were pretty too!

FIF~Freezer Edition etc.~

Guess where I'm going in a little while??? To Cheesecake Factory, courtesy of my brother! Yea. I've never been there before. I hope the cheerios I just ate for breakfast haven't spoiled my appetite... or maybe it would be good if they did.
Several people made mention of those baskets on my fridge. I put those there a year or two ago and each has a purpose. The first basket holds 100 calorie snack bags and low fat snacks. The second hold junk food or candy. The third is for chips that will be used for the weeks recipes or are left from the last recipe. Behind the baskets I hide put away my styrofoam cups I'm so fond of.
I can't tell you what a lift all your comments were yesterday. It reminds me of the fibers of a rope, when bound together they gain strength. I feel strong knowing I'm bound with such a wonderful group of Christian ladies. Thank you.

Now, on to FIF! This week is freezer edition. To see others or sign up click on the button below. It is perfect timing for freezer food since I got a new freezer. When I was shopping for the fridge I noticed a small freezer online that got rave reviews for it's size (small) but, more for the amount of stuff it will hold. It was really cheap inexpensive! It isn't hooked up yet. I have to do a pantry clean out and reorganization first (help Marcia :o)... but, it will be wonderful and there are so many neat recipes I will make and freeze now!

Beef Gyro Recipe

1/2 c. beef broth

2 T. Olive Oil

1 garlic clove (minced or pressed)

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. oregano

dash pepper

1 pound boneless beef sirloin cut into strips

2/3 c. cucumber ranch dressing

1 t. sugar

gyro style pitas

2 c. chopped lettuce

1 c. chopped tomato

1 small cucumber, peeled and sliced

1 small red onion, sliced

In large resealable bag, combine first six ingredients, seal and refrigerate up to 24 hours or place in freezer bag and freeze.

In small bowl, combine salad dressing and sugar, refrigerate until serving. Thaw, drain and discard marinade. In large nonstick skillet saute beef for 3-4 minutes or until no longer pink. Serve on pitas with lettuce, tomato, cucumber and onion. Drizzle with dressing.

Taco Chicken

. 5 medium chicken breasts, boiled and slivered

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can rotel tomoatoes

1 medium onion

1 bell pepper

2 cups of shredded sharp chedder cheese

1 large bag of plain doritoes

Mix all but cheese and doritoes and place in freezer bags. Boil chicken, sliver it in medium chunks. Mix all canned ingredients in large bowl. Dice onion and pepper and add to mixture. Add half the cheese and mix well. Layer the bottom of a casserole dish with doritoes, then add a layer of chicken, then mixture, then cheese, do this two times, ending with cheese, you can add more cheese if you like. Bake at 375 degrees F. for about 45 minutes or until cheese is bubbly

Meatballs

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and shape into small meatballs. In large skillet cook meatballs turning continually until meatballs are cooked through. To freeze first put all meatballs on a cookie sheet and freeze. Once the meatballs are solidly frozen (make take several hours) remove from cookie sheet and place in freezer bag and put back in freezer.\

Defrost and serve with your favorite sauces.

ideas for meatballs - brown gravy and meatballs served over rice, spaghetti sauce, barbeque sauce.

Barbecue Chicken

Chicken

Barbecue sauce

Wash and dry chicken pieces. Place in freezer bag. Add BBQ sauce. Lay flat to freeze.

After thawing in the refrigerator, cook as you normally would. Grill them, use a electric grill or bake it in the oven. The chicken comes out very juicy and tender from the long marinating process.

Favorite Ingredients Friday ~ No bake cookies

Here's what I'm making today:

• 1 3/4 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
• 3 cups oats
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa. Bring to a boil, and cook for 1 1/2 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in peanut butter, oats, and vanilla. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto wax paper. Let cool until hardened.

Izzy's teachers seemed to really be touched by the keychains and notes. Niecie cried, but that's Niecie :o). Izzy brought home a book of pictures chronicling her year in school. I have looked at those sweet pics so many times in the last 24 hours! She had a great year and we are so blessed. She is an absolute doll. Well, today I am going to lunch at the German place I mentioned in my restaurant post. My (OLDER) brother Mike is taking me! So I'll be back later to tell you how perfect my schnitzel was!

Go over to Overwhelmed with Joy's blog to see more recipes on fif!

Favorite Ingredient Friday ~ wraps & broccoli salad

Wraps...

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
1 (4 1/2-ounce) can chopped green chiles
1 (4 1/4-ounce) can chopped olives
1 cup (4-ounce) shredded pepper jack cheese
2 tablespoons salsa, plus salsa for dipping, optional
1/2 cup green onion tops, sliced
1 cup chopped fresh spinach
2 packages flour tortillasIn a large bowl, beat cream cheese until creamy. Then add sour cream, green chiles, olives, pepper jack cheese, salsa, and onion tops. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer. Stir in spinach. Spread mixture evenly over the surface of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas tightly and cut each tortilla crosswise into 6 slices. Skewer each wrap with a wooden toothpick. Serve immediately or chill. Serve with salsa for dipping, if desired.

Broccoli Salad...

1 c Mayonnaise	2 1/2 lb Broccoli (or 2 big bunches)
1/2 c Sugar	1 c Shredded sharp cheddar
1/4 c Vinegar	1/2 lb Bacon, crisp fried and

Directions
Whisk together mayonnaise, sugar and vinegar and set aside. Cut broccoli into florets and combine in large bowl with cheese and bacon. Toss with mayonnaise dressing. Cover and chill overnight before serving.

FIF~cream cheese brownies!

1 c. sugar
1/4 c. cocoa
1/2 c. melted butter
2 eggs, well beaten
2/3 c. flour
3/4 t. vanilla
1/4 t. salt

Cream butter, sugar and cocoa together, add eggs, vanilla, salt & then flour. Bake at 325 for 2o minutes or until done.

I also sometimes mix together:
8 oz. cream cheese
1 egg
1/2 c. sugar

dollop on top of brownie mixture and take a knife to marble it throughout the brownies.

When Matt and I first started dating, he mentioned he loved his grandmother's cream cheese brownies... so I thought that's easy enough. I made brownies adding some cream cheese, pretty proud of myself. He took one look at them and knew they were wrong. I later talked to his grandmother about her brownies and she told me how she made them (I was only 16 for goodness sakes)... Anyway, the brownie recipe is from my mom although she says she has no recollection of giving it to me but it is good in a pinch when there isn't any mixes on hand and I need to make something sweet fast!

I also realize I posted yesterday that I was going to start this weight challenge (ugh), but just because I am posting this recipe for you, my friends, doesn't mean I'm making them myself... not today anyway.

You can go to Overwhelmed With Joy! to see more FIF recipes!

FIF~Breakfast Edition~Eggs in a nest

6 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 sheets phyllo dough, thawed
8 eggs
2 tablespoons water
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup diced ham
1 cup grated Cheddar
Salt and pepperPreheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Butter 4 muffin cups. In a small bowl, combine melted butter and garlic. On a cutting board, stack 3 phyllo sheets and cut into fourths, forming 12 squares. Cover phyllo with a damp paper towel when not in use because it dries out quickly. Press 1 phyllo square (one sheet thick) into bottom of each muffin cup. (Don't worry if phyllo tears) Brush with butter. Add another layer of phyllo and brush with butter. Repeat a third time. Bake for 10 minutes. Carefully remove phyllo baskets from muffin cups and cool on wire rack. In a medium bowl, beat eggs and add 1 tablespoon water. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a medium skillet and add eggs. Sprinkle ham over eggs. Scramble eggs to desired doneness. Sprinkle in cheese and stir until melted. Season with salt and pepper and spoon into phyllo baskets.

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Favorite Ingredient Friday~taco waffles?!?

I am posting this recipe because I think I actually invented it! yea me!!! (I know my life could use a little more excitement, right?)... Anyway, I made double taco seasoned meat Wednesday when I had tacos, planning to use the remainder for the empanadas.
Yesterday at noon I wanted to have a leftover taco for lunch and did not have any taco shells left (family at them all), didn't have any taco chips because I made guacamole and they all got eaten too, and used all my tortillas for Michelle's taquitos I've been making and freezing for Matt's lunch. So, after looking through the cabinets repeatedly I used a frozen waffle. I kid you not, it was delicious. So I made up the whole box of eggo waffles for dinner and made some beans seasoned and heated the taco meat. I put cheese, sour cream, and salsa over the top (and black olives). My family all loved this! I was excited to have another easy variation of tacos...

Taco Waffles

ground beef
taco seasoning
beans (optional seasoned with chili powder and cumin)
frozen waffles
cheddar cheese
sour cream

Toast the waffle, layer on beans, meat, cheese, and toppings... enjoy.

You should try it, you'll like it :o)... and you should also head over to Overwhelmed with Joy to sign up and play FIF~

favorite ingredient friday ~ lemon chicken

Every Friday I almost forget to post this meme and I really love doing this one. There are some great recipes to be had over at "Overwhelmed with Joy!" You should check them out. I should be packing because we are leaving in just a few hours and I have not finished yet!!!! But, I am here, posting a recipe :) Oh well, I'll get it done! (I'm repeating in my mind... "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength"... "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength!" and so on...)
We'll be gone until Sunday, it is raining buckets here so please say a little prayer for our safe travel if you have a sec. & have a great weekend!

This recipe is really good. I went through a stage where I cooked this a lot! My good friend Mendy made this once for her parents years ago (and if you know Mendy, you would know that she somehow would always leave one thing out..) and she left out the brown sugar, which is pretty important! Her poor parents puckered the lemon chicken down and I smile every time I get that visual. Then there was the time she brought fudge to our house for a party that we had to eat with a spoon (I love Mendy!). So, if you make this... remember the brown sugar!

Lemon Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts ( I like to cut them into smaller pieces and/or use tenders)

1/4 c. flour

1 t. paprika

1 t. salt

1/2 c. lemon juice

2-3 T. butter

1/2 c. chicken broth or bullion

1 T. brown sugar

parsley

Soak chicken in lemon juice for about 30 minutes to 1 hour... dip in flour mixed with salt & paprika... brown in butter... add chicken broth and brown sugar mixed and let the sauce thicken for about 20 minutes covered.
I like this alone or served with rice.
garnish with parsley.

Favorite Ingredient Friday ~ Easter Edition ~Hot Rolls!

Mom's Hot Rolls
(ssh... don't tell her I told you!)

1.5 cups warm water (not hot, not cold... warm!)
1/3 c. oil
1/4 c. sugar
1.5 t. salt
1.5 T. yeast (2 pkgs.)

3-4 c. bread flour

stir together first 5 ingredients, let yeast dissolve. Slowly add flour, one cup at a time until you have a ball of dough you can work with.
Powder your working surface and knead the dough. (The best way I can describe this is that you push it flat with your palms and then fold it over and repeat.)
Set the dough in a warm spot to rise until it doubles in size.
Push the dough back down, shape small balls and place them beside each other in pan or dish. Let them rise again until doubled.
Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 3o minutes or until golden brown.
Brush with melted butter and enjoy.

Zip over to Overwhelmed with Joy to sign up and see lots more Easter goodies!

Favorite Ingredient Friday~Taco chili

I almost forgot to do a recipe for FIF today! I guess things are really busier than usual around here. With Izzy recovering from yesterday, we are spending the day pampering and snuggling her a lot. She is better today though. Thanks for your prayers.

I saw this recipe last week on Paula Deen and it is a lot like the taco soup recipe but calls for dried beans, sounds fabulous right?

Taco Chili

1 cup dried kidney beans

1/2 cup dried pinto beans

1 (1 1/4-ounce) package taco seasoning mix

1 (1-ounce) package buttermilk salad dressing mix

3 tablespoons dried minced onion

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1 1/2 cups corn or tortilla chips
4 cups water

1 (11 3/4-ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles

1 (16-ounce) can tomato sauce

1 pound ground beef, cooked and drained

Place beans in a large bowl, cover with water and soak 6 to
8 hours, or overnight. Drain and add to a Dutch oven. Add seasonings, water, diced tomatoes and green chiles, tomato sauce, and ground beef.
Heat to boiling, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 2 hours, or until beans are tender. Or just throw it all in the crockpot for the day and voila!

Serve with corn or tortilla chips.

Head over to Overwhelmed for more!

Favorite Ingredient Friday~

TGIF? I thank God for everything, so I will include Fridays... even though I honestly prefer Mondays. The weekends are so busy around here that we need Mondays to recuperate! This next week is the kiddos spring break. They are pretty excited! Bailey is having a friend who moved away visit for a few days and then he and Emelia are visiting their Gram in Tulsa for a few days. Izzy is having her dental surgery next Thursday, not a great way to spend Spring break but we are very excited to have this procedure behind us. Bailey and Emelia will have "Nini days" with my mother... Only Emelia is sure where she wants to go for her day - the omniplex! Amanda is planning a trip to the zoo with a friend and a lot of sleep! She has had 9 week finals this week and is so tired. She made a 100% on her Algebra III final yesterday, so the studying is paying off.

Today for favorite ingredient Friday I am posting some recipes that I received in an email from a friend for powdered mixes.

Taco Seasoning:
1 cup dried minced onion
1/3 cup chili powder
2 tablespoons cumin
4 teaspoons crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon oregano
4 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
Combine all ingredients and store in a
cool, dry place. When you're using for Mexican dishes, use
about 1 tablespoon or so per 1 pound ground beef, or chicken or beans. More if
you like the extra flavor.

Noodle Mix:
1 cup instant nonfat dry milk
2 tablespoons grated Romano cheese
1/4 cup dried minced onion
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
Combine ingredients and store in a sealable
container or zipper-topped plastic bag. This will keep for two months in the pantry. However, I would personally store in the fridge because of the cheese; plus, it will last longer. Mark the date on the bag with a Sharpie pen. This recipe doubles and triples well. To use: combine 1/4 cup mix with 2 tablespoons melted butter and 1/4 cup milk. Toss with 8 ounces pasta (cooked).

Homemade Shake and Bake:
1 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup flour
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1 teaspoon paprika
salt and pepper to taste
Combine ingredients and store in a
sealable container or zipper-topped plastic bag. This will keep up to four months in the pantry, depending on the humidity (you may just want to keep it in the freezer). This recipe will also double or triple well.
To use: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place one cup mix in a plastic bag. In a bowl, mix an egg and 1/2 cup of milk. Dip chicken pieces one at a time in the milk mixture, then shake one at a time in the plastic bag. Place on a baking pan and bake for appropriate time (depending on the chicken you're using — as a little as 20 minutes or up to an hour for bigger, bone-in pieces).

Homemade Flavored Rice Mixes:
4 cups uncooked
rice
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Combine all ingredients together and store in
a zip-topped plastic bag or sealable container. This will keep up to four months if stored in a cool, dark and dry place. With brown rice, you may want to keep it in the freezer.
To use: Mix 1 cup mix with 2 cups water. Bring to a boil, lower heat, place lid on rice and simmer until liquid is completely absorbed, about 20 minutes or more. Check if you need to. (I would add an extra half cup liquid for the brown rice.)
Variations:
To make Vegetable Rice Mix, substitute an envelope of vegetable soup mix.To make Spanish Rice Mix, substitute 1/2 cup Taco Seasoning (see recipe above) for envelope of onion soup.

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Also, anyone is welcome to snag the pray for izzy button on the sidebar to put on your blogs ~

FIF~St. Patrick's Day Edition

Today is favorite ingredient Friday ~ St. Patrick's Day edition, which means either a green food recipe or an irish recipe...

My maiden name was Bailey. I really liked having Bailey as my last name. It was easier to spell than my married name, and no one asked me to spell it repeatedly... I liked that name so much that I named my son Bailey, John Bailey... Anyway, my dad and many of his sisters look Irish, with red hair etc.

Today was a busy day and I am trying to keep my eyes opened long enough to get this typed out. After taking Izzy to school this morning, I took Amanda to get her passport. It took forever! She is going to Canada this Summer with our church to do mission work in Montreal. They are also going to stop off at Niagara Falls. Needless to say she is very excited... It is pretty much all she is focused on right now. Hopefully her passport will come within the 10 weeks estimated. (Her trip is in 13 weeks). Izzy had a good day at school. She worked in the walkable with her pt Camilla and did a really good job concentrating on moving her little legs. Later today Jon from the dme co. came to measure for her new stroller chair. We are getting a raspberry colored stroller. I am excited mainly because her current stroller chair is so incredibly heavy that lifting it in and out of my car every day is quite a job! I'm not complaining, I am blessed to have such strong arms. But it will be great to have a lighter 'new' stroller. Tonight we did her program and again she did great! Lots of smiles! She also did really good at the assisted crawl. Emelia has become my #1 helper on this part of therapy! She is always cheerful and ready to help.

Okay, on to the recipe...

green key lime pie.

1-1/4 cups crushed pretzels
1/4 cup sugar
6 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup lime juice
1 env. KOOL-AID Lemon Lime Unsweetened Soft Drink Mix
1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed, divided
MIX crushed pretzels, sugar and butter. Press firmly onto bottom and up side of 9-inch pie plate. Refrigerate until ready to fill.
COMBINE condensed milk, lime juice and drink mix in large bowl until well blended. Remove 1/2 cup whipped topping; set aside. Gently stir in remaining 2-1/2 cups whipped topping. Pour into crust.
FREEZE 6 hours or overnight. Let stand at room temperature 15 min. or until pie can be cut easily. Garnish with reserved whipped topping before serving. Store leftover pie in freezer.

Have a great Friday! You can sign up to participate in FIF over at Overwhelmed with Joy!

Favorite Ingredient Friday ~ Tortilla Soup

I don't have a written recipe for this soup, but it is so good!!!!

Tortilla Soup...

Chicken (I usually buy frozen fajita meat at Sams or a roasted chicken and pull off and shred the meat.)

large can of chicken broth (40ish ounces)

green chilis, 4 oz.

onion chopped

canola oil

cup of salsa

heaping teaspoon of chili powder & ground cumin

cilantro

cheddar cheese

avocados

corn tortillas

Saute the chicken with onion and green chilis, add in broth, salsa, & spices. Salt to taste. Let simmer .... Bring oil to boil, roll up a few corn tortillas at a time and slice them making strips, fry them in the canola oil until crispy... lightly browned. Take out and salt, set aside... Cut the avocado into chunks.

To serve, place your cooked tortillas in the bottom of the bowl, lay in some avocado chunks, pour soup over and add cheese to the top.

I served this soup to the Australians when they were here in the Summer. They took the recipe home, it is just sooo good. I think making your own tortillas makes the difference.

Enjoy! For more FIF go to Overwhelmed with Joy!

If the thought of this yummy soup puts you in the "party" mood, there is a big party going on over at 5 Minutes for Mom. So, welcome to my blog ... sit down and stay for a while!

Favorite Ingredient Friday

My friend Melody had these pretzels at a work party and thought they were a great snack. I made a batch around the holidays and they were really good!

Spicy Pretzels

1 lb. Bag of pretzels
¾ cup vegetable oil
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. lemon pepper
1 or 1 ½ tsp. ground cayenne pepper

Pour pretzels into a 1 gallon Ziploc bag. Mix all other ingredients together and pour over bagged pretzels. Seal the bag and turn over every 15 minutes for 1 hour. Empty bag into a bowl and let set for a few hours.


Southwestern Pasta Salad
This serves 8 but I doubled the recipe.
1 16oz. box of Penne or Wagon wheel Pasta
1 15 oz. can of black beans, drained
1 8 oz. can of whole kernel corn, drained
1 red bell pepper, chopped
6 green onions, chopped
Fresh cilantro
Parmesan, Romano, or mozzarella cheese (or all three)
Southwestern dressing

Southwestern dressing
1 tsp ground cumin (toasted for 3 to 5 min. in small frying pan)
8 oz. sour cream
16 oz. jar of chunky salsa (as spicy or unspicy as you like it)
2 cloves garlic
Cook pasta by pkg directions. Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again. Add 1 ½ cups of the southwestern dressing. Refrigerate for at least 1 ½ hours. Spoon pasta onto serving dish. Add black beans, corn, red bell pepper, green onions, and cilantro. Spread over the top of the pasta. Spread the remainder of the southwestern dressing over the top and sprinkle with cheese.

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Favorite Ingredient Friday... Valentine's Day Edition!

SNICKERS® Tarts
Really pretty, and so easy to make that the kids can lend a hand!

* 1 bag SNICKERS® Brand Miniatures, unwrapped
* 1 bag DOVE® Brand Chocolate Hearts or M&M'S® Brand Milk Chocolate Candies for Valentine's Day
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1 cup heavy cream

* 2 packages (6 per package) graham crust tart shells
* 1 1/2 cups whipped topping or whipped cream
* Red sugar sprinkles
* 3 egg yolks

What to do:

1.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Chop the SNICKERS® Brand Miniatures and put them in a bowl. Place the bowl on top of a pot with simmering water until the chocolate has melted, stirring occasionally.
2.
In another bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar until thick and creamy.
3.
Stir the melted SNICKERS® Brand Miniatures into the egg and sugar mixture. Mix in the heavy cream.
4.
Place the tart shells on a baking pan. Spoon the mixture into the tart shells, scooping from the bottom of the bowl.
5.
Bake for 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool.
6.
Decorate the top of the tart shells with a dollop of whipped topping or whipped cream. Sprinkle with red sugar and either place a DOVE® Brand Chocolate Heart on top of each one or sprinkle with M&M'S® Brand Milk Chocolate Candies for Valentine's Day.

Makes 12 tarts.

Go visit Overwhelmed with Joy's blog for more!!!

Favorite Ingredient Friday...

Spinach dip is a favorite with my family and extended family. I am always "expected" to bring it to any event... It is styled after the recipe on the knorr vegetable soup package, but I make it a little different & everyone always asks for the recipe:

Annie's version of spinach dip

8 oz. cream cheese
8 oz. sour cream
8 oz. mayo
1 package knorr veg. soup mix
4 chopped green onions
10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed and drained well

Mix well, and refridgerate for flavors to meld.

I serve in a hawaiian bread, cut out the middle and chop up the peices for dipping.
Crackers also work well... or veggies.