4th of July Cake

1 white cake mix
1 8 oz. cream cheese, room temp
1 8 oz Cool Whip
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 Strawberry Danish Dessert
(it's near the pudding & Jello)
Strawberries, sliced
Blueberries





-Mix the cake mix as usual. Only use about 3/4ths of the cake mix. (You use less to have enough room in the pan for all the layers. I put the extra in a muffin pan and made about 4 cupcakes.) You'll need to watch the cake so it doesn't burn since you have less mix in the pan.

-Whip the cream cheese and powdered sugar with beaters, then fold in 3/4ths the Cool Whip. Putting the remaining in a sandwich bag for later.

-Cook the Danish Dessert mix following the pudding instructions on the box. Fold in the sliced strawberries.

-Layer the cream cheese mixture then pour on the strawberry layer, spreading it to the sides of the pan.

-Put blueberries in the top  left corner then cut one corner off the sandwich bag and squeeze out the Cool Whip to create lines across the cake. Chill about 3 hours then enjoy!

Rustic Croutons

These taste so yummy over a Caesar salad. They are the best croutons ever!


2 T. unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 loaf (10 ounces) rustic italian bread, cut or ripped into 3/4-in pieces (I used Costco's French baguettes)
1 tsp. salt (I used less, about 3/4 tsp, so add to taste)
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. minced garlic
(other ingredients that can be added are parmesan cheese and Italian seasonings)

Combine butter, olive oil, pepper and garlic. Drizzle over bread crumbs and toss until coated. Sprinkle with salt and toss until coated. Spread bread in a single layer on an 11 x 17 baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes until golden brown.

The croutons are really good if they still have a little bit of a chewy texture after they have been baked. However, if you want to store some for later, be sure to bake until really crispy. You can also pop them back into the oven for 10 minutes or so before serving to crisp them back up. The chewy ones don't store well and end up tasting stale.

Stuffed Strawberry French Toast

An Easter brunch family tradition!

Texas Toast:
Cook it how you normally would cook french toast (we use, eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg).

Cream Cheese Filling:
 1 cup cream cheese (any kind, normal or low fat, whatever works), an 8 oz pkg
 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. (or more if you want) cinnamon

  Mix with a hand mixer. Spread a thin layer on each side of the toast. Put sliced strawberries in side and sandwich it together. Top with syrup & enjoy!





 Cinnamon Syrup:
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup corn syrup
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 cup butter
  Boil 1 minute and serve. Store in fridge.

Potato Tortilla Soup

2 cans cream of potato soup
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 can evaporated milk
1 can mexi corn
1 can green chili's (it still tastes good if you forget and leave it out)
grilled chicken, in taco seasoning, cut into strips OR canned chicken or whatever is easiest.
If you don't cook the chicken with the taco season (like if you're cooking with canned chicken), I just add taco seasoning to the whole soup.
1-2 cups shredded cheddar or Mexican style cheese

3-6 flour tortillas OR tortilla chips 

Throw everything into a crockpot or pot on the stove, it just needs time to heat up and melt the cheese. 2 hours in a crockpot is probably good, less if on the stove. Add the tortilla strips towards the end, so they don't get soggy. We like to dip tortilla chips in it, we like the crunch. Either way is yummy!

Breakfast Brunch

7 slices of bread
7 eggs
3/4 c.+ 2 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 green onion chopped (it's probably okay without it, or with normal onions or dried onion)
1 1/4 c. grated mild cheese
1/2 c. evaporated milk
1 can cream of mushroom
1 lb. ground sausage or hamburger, browned and drained (we've always used hamburger)
1/4 c. grated mild cheese.

Grease 9x13 pan. De-crust bread and line the bottom of the pan. Mix eggs, milk, mustard and onion, pour over the bread. Sprinkle with 1 1/4 cups grated cheese. Mix milk with cream of mushroom soup and cooked meat, pour over top. Cover with 1/4 c. cheese. Bake at 375 for 40 minutes. Yield: 12 servings.

Cilantro Pesto

These rolls were just a package of cresent rolls I reshaped then sprinkled with garlic salt and parsely.

I've been experimenting a lot with pestos lately and I've found a real keeper.
I used it for our green St. Patricks Day dinner tonight.

2 cups fresh cilantro leaves
1 cup fresh parsley leaves
3 tablespoons lime juice
1/2 cup pine nuts (cashews, walnuts or almonds can be used)
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup grated Asiago cheese (or Parmesan)
1/2 cup olive oil (I used garlic EVOO or you could just add a little garlic)

Rinse, dry and roughly chop the cilantro and parsely. Roast the nuts in a pan on the stove over medium. Once they start changing color sprinkle with the chili powder and a little salt. Put the cilantro, parsley, lime juice, nuts, salt, pepper, and grated cheese into the bowl of a food processor then stream olive oil in while pulsing until mixture is smooth, 8 to 10 pulses. If mixture is too thick, add more olive oil; if too thin, add more nuts.  Pour into 4 one-cup freezer containers. Use one container within a few days; freeze the others for later.
 
Ideas for use: I spread it over chicken breasts and baked them in the oven. On the side I made cilantro pesto rice that would be really good on a Cafe Rio type salad. Recipe is as follows...
 
1 can black beans
1 can corn
3/4 c. chicken broth
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried cilantro ( I really like cilantro)
2 c. cooked rice
1 c. cilantro pesto sauce
 
Heat through, sprinkle with Asiago & serve.

Anne's Corn Bread

Another favorite!

1/2 c. butter, melted
2/3 c. sugar
    Stir.
    Add:
2 eggs and beat together.
1 c. buttermilk (I keep powdered buttermilk on hand, it works great).
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 c. flour
1 c. cornmeal
1/2 tsp. salt

Pour into an 8x8 pan. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes. Ready when knife comes out of center clean.

Homemade Rolls

2 Tbsp. yeast
1/4 c. warm water
1 c. warm water
3 eggs beaten
1/2 c. sugar
4 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter

Soften yeast in 1/4 cup warm water. Add remaining ingredients and 2 cups of flour. Mix until well blended, then add remaining flour 1/4 cup at a time and mix to form soft dough. Place dough in a greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled (about 1 hour). Punch down, roll out onto floured board. Cut out in circles. Dip circles in melted butter, fold in half and place on cookie sheet. Let rise again until puffy. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes.

I don't cut them in circles, I make little rolls and barely dip them in butter. They taste great!

Delicious Potato Soup

We make this all the time and love it! Here are the measurements, but I really just do as much as I want, because I don't think it would make very much if you follow the vegetable measurements. I will just double or triple the part where you make the broth (broth, milk, butter, flour).

2 c. water
1 1/2 c. potatoes
1 c. carrots
1 c. celery
1/4 c. onion
Salt and Pepper

1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. flour
1 c. milk
1/2 c. chicken broth
1 c. cheddar cheese
1/4 tsp. dill weed (I don't have this, so I just throw in whatever spices I want, like parsley, garlic powder, etc)
Crisp bacon

Boil water in large pot. Chop veggies, then add to boiling water. Return to boil, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Do not drain. In a seperate pan, melt butter and whisk in flour. Cook until smooth, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and gradually stir in milk and chicken broth. Bring to boil over medium heat. Boil 1 minute. Add cheese and stir until melted. Add to veggies. Add spices. I let it simmer for quite a while before we eat, and definitely let it cook on low heat for a while if the veggies are still really crunchy. Add salt and pepper  and broken up pieces of bacon to taste, if desired.

This recipe is really yummy with homemade bread or rolls on the side.

A Gourmet Sack Lunch Meal

Last week we had our RS Birthday dinner and had these yummy gourmet sack lunches. They sent out the recipes, they were really good! Here they all are.

Pesto Mayonnaise

¼ cup mayo

2 Tbsp. Parmesan Cheese

1 dash of garlic powder

1 Tbsp. Gourmet Garden Basil Herb Blend  (I’m sure you could also just use fresh basil.  I just went for the easy route.  This is found in the produce section by the fresh herbs and it is in a little squeeze bottle.)

Cranberry Dijon

½ cup whole cranberry sauce (homemade or canned)

2 tsp. Dijon mustard (or more to taste)

The recipe I found calls for 1 tsp. horseradish but I forgot to buy it at the store, so I didn’t put it in.  It would probably give it more of a kick though and might be good.

Whole Wheat Bread 

(makes 4 large loaves)

***This recipe was made for a bosch mixture, for me, I think bosch is the greatest and best way to go with bread. But I'm sure other mixer machines would work as well.***

5 c. warm water

2 T. instant yeast

1/4 c. oil

1/4 c. honey

3 T. dough enhancer (this is used in lots of dough recipes, it makes super fluffy, moist, bread. I found mine at a kitchen store in Utah and bought several cans. I'm sure you can find it here in Cleveland, although I've never looked for it)

1/2 c. gluten (I also bought a bag of this at the same kitchen store in Utah, but I'm pretty sure I've seen it in the store here)

6 c. wheat flour (freshly ground is always yummier, but store bought works great too!)

Instructions (these are really important, it can make all the difference when it comes to making bread!)

Knead above ingredients for 2-3 minutes. (I set my timer and make sure it gets a full 2 minutes). Then sprinkle 2 more cups of flour on top, then 2 T. on top of the flour. (Supposedly the salt can mess with the yeast, so it works better to put it on top of the flour and mix it in that way.... this is just what the kitchen store told us when they gave us the recipe!). Mix in that 2 cups of flour. Then add more flour until it reaches a good consistency, about 3-4 more cups of flour. About 12-14 cups in total recipe. I know when my dough is a good consistency because it starts to pull away from the sides, and the bowl is practically clean when it's done mixing, there is no dough on the sides of the bowl. Once it reaches this consistency, knead 8-10 minutes (set your timer!). Shape into loaves in greased bread pans. Let rise until double in size (about an hour). Then bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until golden on top.

Note* They had this sliced and we ate it as cold sandwiches with ham and white cheese, then we had the options of the two sauces above. I loved it with the Pesto Mayonnaise. The bread worked great for cold sandwiches.


Thai Peanut Noodle Salad

1 cup Asian sesame dressing

2 TBS soy sauce

2 TBS crunchy peanut butter (i add more... maybe 3)

2 TBS honey 

1 pkg thin spaghetti (i use whole grain)

4 green onions

1 cup chopped cilantro

spinach (approx 2 cups) and matchstick sliced carrots, or shred your own (approx 1 cup)

cook spaghetti, drain, and toss with 1/4c of the asian dressing. 

mix remaining 3/4c asian dressing with PB, honey, and soy sauce in a bowl.

add spinach, carrots, green onions, cilantro to noodles. 

pour dressing mixture over. mix lightly. this is good cold or warm.

i also usually add chicken (2 cooked breast, or i'll buy a rotisserie chicken and pull meat from it~ VERY GOOD) and serve as main dish.

 ****other things we've added- bean sprouts, water chestnuts, mandarin oranges (was ok), baby corn (the little ones on the cob), sugar snap peas.... you can dressing it up or down. just make slt more dressing if you add much more to it, like 1 1/2 of the recipe. very versatile.***

White Cake

1 french vanilla cake mix

1 6oz plain Yogurt (I can never find plain so I use vanilla)

3 egg whites

3/4 c milk

1/3 c vegetable oil

Mix on low until blended then beat on high for 3 minutes

9x13 cake pan

Bake 335 degrees for 40 minutes

After its baked make a lemon glaze

1/8 c water, 1/8 c sugar.  Heat until dissolved and squeeze 1 whole lemon or 2TB lemon juice. Mix, fork the cake a few times and brush the glaze over top of cake with pastry brush.  Before eating sprinkle top with powder sugar. 

Refrigerate the cake, I use this for a yummy strawberry shortcake so thats why the lemon glaze and powder sugar are good however you can also frost it.

 Note* The cake was frosted with a buttercream frosting. They were SO good.

Here are a few pictures I stole off a girl in my ward's blog of the dinner. The center pieces were so cute too. All she did was make suckers on skewers and filled the pots with rock salt and stuck them in. How cute & easy!

Coconut Cupcakes

Ok girls are you ready for the yummiest day of your life :) I made these for Addi's 1st B-Day and we have made them almost every weekend since. (I wonder where those extra 5 lbs. came from :)

3 eggs

1 cup Sour Cream

1/2 cup water

8 oz. cream of coconut (can sub. with coc. milk)

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. coconut extract

1 white cake mix

1 small box instant coconut pudding

1- 7 oz. pkg coconut flakes (use for sprinkling on top)

Frosting:

2 cubes butter

4 cups powder sugar

2 tsp. coconut extract

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 Tbsp. cream of coconut or coc. milk

Beat until smooth. Frost the cupcakes when they have cooled. (I used a ziploc bag and cut a little whole in the corner.)

Preheat oven to *350. Place 24 liners in the cupcake pan. Beat first 5 ingredients together. Add the rest (except for the coconut flakes) one at a time beating on low. Fill batter in liners about 3/4 full. (they seem kind of full but they don't cook up too big.) Cook 18 - 21 minutes. Check with a toothpick. (Mine were still a little moist but I didn't want to burn the tops, and they still turned out fine.) When cooled frost and sprinkle with coconut. These are soo good even without the coconut on top if you are not a fan. (The cream of coconut can be found by the mixed drink stuff in the grocery isle. The coconut milk is found down the Asian isle. I haven't tried that but my friend has and said it is just as good.)

Red Beans and Rice

Matt had this on his mission a lot and waited three years to make it for me. When he made it I thought for sure I wouldn't like it...and I ate three bowls at dinner (don't forget, I am pregnant). It's simple and cheap! We figured it costs less than $7 dollars to make and makes something like 12 servings.

1 pkg of family size Zatarans Red Beans and Rice mix
2 cans of red beans (not kidney)
1 polska kielbasa sausage...I'm not sure what that means. Really all you need is one of those slabs of sausage (any kind) that are kind of in the shape of a horse shoe. I hope that makes sense.

We've also added a half cup of normal rice (cooked separately) just to add to the mix if you want.

Mix the box, according to directions. After, add the extra beans (and rice, if you want) and cut up sausage and add that. Let it warm for 5 minutes or so.

Eat up! It's so yummy, seriously. And, it's not very spicy from coming from the south!

Frog-eye Salad

I can never find Acene Di Pepe pasta (tiny ball shaped pasta), so I've always ended up using Pastina pasta (the tiny star pasta) and it works just as well.

1 c. Pastina or Acene di Pepe pasta
1 pk Instant Pistachio Pudding
1 8oz cool whip (at room temperature)
mandarin oranges
canned pineapples
grapes
marshmallows (do not use the colored, fruity ones...trust me they don't taste as good as normal ones)

Cook pasta, drain, rinse with water to keep from clumping together, let it cool. Mix pudding, mix with pasta. Add cool whip. Dump in any kinds of fruits you like. Let sit in refrigerator for a few hours before serving. Just before serving add half bag on marshmallows (or more if you'd like).

Note:You can use the full 2 cup container of pasta and an extra pudding and cool whip to double. But, this "halved" batch makes plenty. Enough to feed over 14 adults. A lot of recipes add 1-2 cups sugar and eggs...but I like to keep it simple and it really is just as good.

Matt's Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies

So I know I've posted a "Mary's Choco. Chip Cookie" recipe before, and they are good, but these seriously are better. Matt waited for like two years after we were married to make them! So that's why I posted the other ones earlier. We make these ones all the time and roll them in balls, put them in the freezer and make more whenever!

He takes a lot of pride in these cookies and may possibly kill me if he knew I posted it on here. :)

Here it is:
2 c. flour
1 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. shortening
chocolate chips

Mix everything together in mixer. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes.
Or you can roll them on a pan and place in freezer, after frozen put in ziploc baggie for late use!

Pasta Chicken Salad or Antipasto

This is that yummy one Mom always makes.

Cook up as much pasta as you think you'll need.
Use rotini (the curly, sometimes multicolored kind) pasta.

Next, throw in as much as you want of the following:
chopped green onion
sliced black olives
chopped tomato (take out seeds and juicy parts)
finely chopped celery
cucumber (take out seeds)
mozzarella cheese cut into chunks-mom just uses string cheese (you can do a mixture with cheddar if you want)
cooked chicken cut into chunks
salt
pepper

Moisten mixture with miracle whip. Chill in refrigerator before serving.

Meringue Dessert

Last year Brandon and I had this dessert at an expensive restaurant and it was to die for, so here is my version.  I made this for Valentines day that's why they are heart shaped.  You won't be disappointed by these they are Fantastic!

Meringue crust

2 egg whites
3/4 c. sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar

Add cream of tartar to egg whites and beat until stiff. (remember NOT to use anything plastic when making meringue.) Add sugar and salt a little at a time, until mixture is very stiff.  Use electric mixer.  Fold in vanilla.  Drop by teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart on a foil covered cookie sheet. Bake at 300 degrees for about 15-18 minutes.

Then take a small container of heavy cream and mix it with about 1/4-1/2 cup of sugar, until it is stiff.
Once the cookies are cool top with cream and then with berries or chocolate.  Berries are our favorite for this dessert. Gasp! I know I choose berries over chocolate for once. ENJOY!

Brownie Trifle

1 pan of brownies cut into 1 inch squares
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup water
1 pkg. chocolate pudding (small pkg.)
1 large container cool whip
Strawberries
1 small chocolate bar

In a bowl combine the pudding water and sweetened condensed milk.  Fold in half of the cool whip. In a trifle bowl put a layer of brownies, then top it off with the chocolate mixture, followed by a layer of cool whip.  Continue layering until it's gone.  Then top with Strawberries and shave top with the chocolate bar. Optional: layer in strawberries throughout trifle if desired. Delicious!!

Yummy Lemon Muffins

These are super yummy and I think would be especially fun if baked in those tiny muffin pans, that makes bite-size muffins, but you'd probably want to cook it for less time. 

Muffins:
1/2 c. sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 c. softened butter
1 egg.

3/4 c. plus 1 tbsp flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c. milk 
1/2 tsp lemon zest

Syrup:
1/4 c. sugar
2 tbsp. lemon juice

Cream together the first four ingredients. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk, adding it to the creamed mixture. Stir in lemon zest. Spoon into paper-lined muffin tins (2/3 full) or into a loaf pan.
Bake muffins at 325 for 10-15 minutes, or bake loaf at same temp for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Just before they come out of the oven, make the syrup. Heat it on low in a sauce pan, until the sugar is dissolved. Polk holes in muffins or loaf with a toothpick and drizzle syrup over them. Let them cool a few minutes to let the syrup set up.

*I got this from the World Wide Ward Cookbook. Mine did not turn out anything like they are pictured, for those of you who have that book, but they are still so yummy!

Bran Muffin Mix

My mother-in-law makes this all the time, it really is so good and (somewhat) healthy! I don't know any kids that haven't liked it. Luke will eat these all day if I let him.The mix stores in the fridge for a long time, so you can have fresh muffins whenever you want! They can also be frozen in a ziplock baggie and stored in the freezer. Toss them in the microwave for a few seconds and they are delicious!

2 c. 100% Bran flakes (any brand)
4 c. All-Bran cereal
2 c. boiling water
1 qt. buttermilk
1 c. shortening
2 c. sugar
4 eggs
4 c. flour (I do at least half whole wheat)
4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp salt

Mix bran cereals together in bowl. Microwave the water and pour over cereals, let sit for a few minutes. Add buttermilk. In large bowl cream shortening, sugar (the unhealthy parts!), and eggs. Add to bran mixture. Mix together flours, soda and salt and add it to the rest. The mixture can be stored in air tight container for 30 days in the refrigerator. Use as needed. 
Bake 12-20 minutes at 400. Stick in toothpick to check if it's done.

Coke Ham

1 ham "butt", says ready to cook on it (with the bone-in)
3-4 liters of Coke

Trim off most of the fat.Some fat is desirable to retain flavor.
Cover entire ham in Regular Coke in a large (probably deep) pan with tight fitting lid.
I actually put tin foil tightly on the pan and then put the lid on top to make sure it's well sealed off.
Cook for 1 hour at 500 degree, then 250 for 4-6 hours. Drain Coke, saving some to pour back over to keep it moist while serving. Shred and serve.

Vanilla cloud chocolates

 Vanilla Cloud Chocolates

4 T butter

2 C mini marshmellows

1/2 tsp. vanilla

4 C. powdered sugar

1-3 tsp. milk

 In a med. saucepan, bring butter to a boil over high heat.  Do NOT stir.  Allow to boil until medium brown hue, watch carefully, do not scorch.  Immediately add marshmallows and stir, stir, stir.  Remove from heat.  Add vanilla, sugar and 1 tsp.  milk. Beat with electric beaters and add milk as needed.  The consistency should be thick and sticky.  Pour into a 9x9 in glass dish. (or just a bowl) and refrigerate until hard.  Remove, and work fast while it's hard, roll into balls, dip in melted chocolate, decorate if desired. 

*These taste like Maxfield's chocolates to me and I think they would be even better if you added some extract-lemon, orange, etc.

Parmesan Chicken Sandwich

1/2 c. mayo
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp snipped fresh basil
2 1/2 c. chicken, cooked & chopped ( I just use a can)
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 c. green onions, thinly sliced
3 Tbsp celery, finely chopped
Salt & Pepper
Bread

For dressing mix mayo, lemon juice and basil together. In another bowl mix chicken, Parmesan cheese, green onions, and celery then pour dressing over and toss to coat. Season with Salt & Pepper. Cover and chill in refrigerator 1-4 hours. Put inside two pieces of delicious bread and enjoy.

I keep a container of this in my fridge for a quick grown up lunch, as opposed to eating mac n' cheese or PB & J again.

Easiest Ever Bread Recipe

From Jenny:

Mix:
7 C. Flour (I use 100% Hard White Wheat)
2/3 c. vital wheat gluten
2 1/2 T SAF instant Yeast
5 C. warm Water (like you'd use for a nice bath)

Mix together first 3 ingredients in a mixer with a dough hook. Then add the water all at once and mix for 1 min. on speed one. Cover and let rest for at least 10 min. ( This is called "sponging". We find it best if you can let it sponge for about an hour. After sponging, mix the dough again for just a moment to redistribute the yeast.

Add:
2/3 c. oil
2/3 c. honey
2 T Salt

Mix for one minute to thoroughly incorporate into the dough.

Add:
5 C. of whole wheat flour

Add 1 C. of flour at a time, beating in between each cup until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. If it is very, very mushy, add more flour. It should just clean the sides and bottom of the bowl--this is the most important sign. It will look much softer than you think it should look. It should not look like a tight ball of dough. If it does, add more water, a little at a time. You may not need to add the whole 5 extra cups of flour...This is the hardest part, once you get this down, you've got it made.

Knead for 10 min (we prefer 5-8 min) I knead at a power level 3 out of 4 on my Bosch. Turn off the mixer and scrape out all your dough onto your work surface. Make sure it is oiled and not floured. Also, oil your hands so they don't stick to the dough.

Preheat oven to lowest setting (around 200) and then turn oven OFF. Divide dough, (we usually use the Medium bread pan and get 3 loaves out of a batch) shape and place into oiled (like "pam" or "vegeline") bread pans, put in oven.(Make sure oven is off) Let dough rise in warm oven for 15-30 min. Turn oven on to 350F and bake for about 25 Min. Remove from pans and cool on racks.
We have "tweeked" this recipe a few times to get it just right, I'm sure you'll have to play with it a bit as well. The good news is...it always tastes great even if it doesn't look pretty all the time.

Super Moist Bundt Cake

1 cake mix

1 pudding mix

4 eggs

1 c. sour cream

1/2 c. vegetable oil

1/2 c. warm water

Mix everything together and pour into a prepared bundt pan. Cook for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a rack for 20 minutes then turn out onto a plate.

This is the cake I made for Mary's birthday last week. I made it again tonight with a slight variation. I love how versatile this recipe is. In the original recipe it call for a chocolate cake mix with chocolate pudding and a bag of chocolate chips stirred in just before pouring in the pan. I made one with a vanilla cake mix, butterscotch pudding and butterscotch chips that everyone seemed to love. Tonight I made a vanilla cake mix with lemon pudding and just sprinkled powdered sugar over the top. My family loved it!

Chocolate Frosting

8 Tbsp butter

4 Tbsp Cocoa

1/3 c. evaporated milk (2% works fine)

4 c. sifted powdered sugar

Melt butter in medium saucepan over low heat. Whisk in cocoa and milk, bring mixture just to a boil stirring constantly. Remove from heat, beat in powdered sugar with electric mixer until smooth. Pour warm frosting over warm cake. Makes a lot of frosting.

Tomato Chicken

From Jenny's Recipe Group

Chicken breasts
1 or 2 cans of tomatoes (any kind you like, Italian works well)
Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
Ricotta Cheese (optional)
Garlic powder
Basil leaves

Spray baking pan and put chicken breasts in. Spread a small amount of ricotta cheese on each chicken breast. Dump the whole can of tomatoes over top, use two cans if making a large amount. If using plain tomatoes you may want to add more herbs and spices. Spread Mozzarella cheese on top. Sprinkle with garlic powder and basil leaves. Bake in oven for about 30-40 minutes at 375 or until chicken is cooked all the way through.
Serve over rice, pasta or just with a side salad and bread.