The Best Meatballs

I stole this straight from kraftfoods.com because it looks amazing and I want to eat some, like yesterday. Wow. It looks yummy, and I love me some Stove Top, so really, why haven't I found this recipe before?


The Best Meatballs
Prep Time: 20 min Total Time: 38 min Makes: 8 servings

Ingredients:
2 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1-1/4 cups water
2 eggs

Make it:
HEAT oven to 400ºF.

LINE 2 (15x10x1-inch) pans with foil; spray with cooking spray. Mix ingredients until blended; shape into 32 (1-1/2-inch) balls, using 1/4 cup for each.

PLACE 16 meatballs in each prepared pan. Bake 16 to 18 min. or until done (160ºF).

COMBINE half the meatballs with Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce or Creamy Brown Gravy. (See Tips.) Cool remaining meatballs; freeze for later use. (See Tips.)

Tips:

Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce
Mix 1 jar (14 oz.) spaghetti sauce, 2 oz. cubed PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese and 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil in large skillet; cook on medium-low heat 3 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Add 16 hot meatballs; stir to evenly coat. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese before serving. Makes 4 servings, 4 meatballs and 1/3 cup sauce each.

Creamy Brown Gravy
Mix 1 jar (12 oz.) beef gravy, 1/2 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream and 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley in large skillet; cook on medium-low heat 3 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Add 16 hot meatballs; stir to evenly coat. Makes 4 servings, 4 meatballs and 1/3 cup sauce each.

How to Freeze Meatballs
Loosely pack cooled meatballs in freezer-weight resealable plastic bags. Lay bags flat in freezer so meatballs freeze individually. Store up to 3 months. Thaw in refrigerator several hours or overnight before using as desired.

Versatile Oatmeal Cookies

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups quick cooking oats
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup dried cranberries

DIRECTIONS

1. Beat butter, sugars, eggs and vanilla for 5 minutes. In another bowl, combine oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add to butter mixture 1 cup at a time.
2. Mix in raisins and craisins.
3. Drop by spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets and bake for 12-14 minutes at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). These freeze very well. Enjoy!!

I made these without the raisin/craisins, but instead I added coconut and white chocolate chips. Oh my, they were amazing! So I renamed them to "Versatile Oatmeal Cookies"

You could also use the Neiman Marcus tip, where you blend the oatmeal in the blender, I love that trick! Anyway, these are a stellar basic cookie recipe that comes out chewy, but slightly crispy on the bottom. I LOVE it!

From AllRecipies.com

Pecan Pie

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:

* 4 eggs
* 1 cup dark brown sugar*
* 3/4 cup light corn syrup*
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 cup melted butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 cups pecans, chopped
* 9-inch unbaked pie shell
* 1/3 cup (about 25) nice looking pecan halves

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Beat eggs well in a large bowl. Add brown sugar, corn syrup, salt, melted butter and vanilla to eggs, mix thoroughly.

Sprinkle chopped pecans in pie shell. Pour egg mixture oven pecans. Arrange pecan halves around edge of filling next to crust for decoration. Bake on middle rack of oven for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 degrees F and continue baking for 25 to 30 minutes, until set.

Serve at room temperature.

* I've made this with light brown sugar and dark corn syrup. The flavor was pretty much the same.

via about.com I owe a friend BIG TIME, so I think I'll make him a pecan pie!

Fresh Blueberry Topping!

Fresh Blueberry Topping.

Ingredients:
1 cup fresh blueberries, washed and drained
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 Tablespoon corn starch



Directions:
Wash blueberries -drain all excess water.
In a small saucepan, combine blueberries, water and sugar.
Bring to a simmer for five minutes then add lemon juice.
Sprinkle in corn starch and cook until slightly thickened.
Allow to cool before serving (unless using as a hot topping).

Big Mahalo again to Stephanie for the recipe! I can't wait to try it!

To Die for Blueberry Muffins (from scratch!)

INGREDIENTS

* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 3/4 cup white sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/3 cup vegetable oil
* 1 egg
* 1/3 cup milk
* 1 cup fresh blueberries
* 1/2 cup white sugar
* 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/4 cup butter, cubed
* 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners.
2. Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups right to the top, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture.
3. To Make Crumb Topping: Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking.
4. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done.


Nutritional Information
To Die For Blueberry Muffins
Servings Per Recipe: 8
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 383

* Total Fat: 16.1g
* Cholesterol: 43mg
* Sodium: 322mg
* Total Carbs: 56.9g
* Dietary Fiber: 1.4g
* Protein: 4.3g

Thanks Stephanie!

Mint Chocolate Cookies

2/3 cup butter
1 Cup sugar
1 Egg
1 Tsp vanilla
1 Cup flour
1/2 Cup cocoa
1/2 Tsp baking soda
1/4 Tsp salt
1-2/3 Cups/10-oz bag of mint chocolate chips (I used a bag of mini York Peppermint Patties...mmm)

Heat oven to 350°F

Beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add egg and vanilla, beat well. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; add to butter mixture. Beat well. Stir in mint chocolate chips.

Bake 8 to 9 minutes. Makes about 2 dozen.

Stolen from Jamie.

Cream Puffs (from scratch!)

CREAM PUFFS

BASIC CREAM PUFFS:

1/2 c. butter (1 stick)
1 c. water
1/8 tsp. salt
1 c. all-purpose flour
4 eggs

GLAZE & VANILLA CREAM:

2 boxes instant vanilla pudding mix
3 c. milk
1 c. whipping cream, divided
4 (1 oz.) sqs. semi-sweet chocolate

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bring butter, water and salt to a boil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour all at once. Stir until mixture comes together and looks like mashed potatoes. Remove from heat. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well with a wire whisk after each addition. (Mixture will curdle but will smooth as it is blended.) Beat until smooth and pasty. Drop by heaping teaspoons onto 2 greased baking sheets, making 12 mounds. Bake 45 minutes, or until puffed and golden. Remove from oven. Working quickly, with a small sharp knife, make a 1/2 inch slit in the side of each puff. Bake 10 to 15 minutes longer to let the steam escape. Let cool. While puffs are baking, prepare filling and glaze.

FILLING: Combine pudding mix, milk and 3/4 cup of whipping cream until smooth and well blended. Chill until ready to fill puffs.

CHOCOLATE GLAZE: Combine chocolate and the remaining 1/4 cup whipping cream in a small heavy saucepan. Melt over low heat, stirring frequently, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat and set aside. When puffs are cool, split them and fill with vanilla pudding mixture. Drizzle slightly warm chocolate sauce over each puff to glaze. Chill until ready to serve.

Again, thanks to Jamie for the recipe! Yummy!

Hawaiian Meatballs

HAWAIIAN MEATBALLS

1 1/2 lb. ground beef
2/3 c. cracker crumbs
1/3 c. minced onion
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/4 c. milk
1 tbsp. shortening
2 tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 can pineapple tidbits (13 1/2 oz.)
1/3 c. vinegar
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1/3 c. green pepper, chopped

Drain pineapple, reserving liquid. Mix meat, crumbs, onion, egg, salt, ginger and milk. Shape mixture by rounded tablespoons into balls. Melt shortening in large skillet; brown and cook meatballs. Remove meatballs and keep warm. Pour fat from skillet. Mix cornstarch and sugar, stir in pineapple syrup, vinegar, and soy sauce until smooth. Pour into skillet; use medium heat, stirring constantly until thick and boiling. Cook 1 minute. Add meatballs, tidbits and green pepper. Heat thoroughly. Serve over hot cooked rice and hawaiian fruit on the side.

Yoinked from my Sis. Thanks Jamie!

Fruit Salsa + Cinnamon Chips

Fruit Salsa + Cinnamon Chips



Stole this one from Natalie! Thanks Nat! Looks tasty!

Fruit Salsa

2 apples (1 red, 1 green - or whatever, I use what I have)
1 cup chopped strawberries
1 cup chopped kiwi (again, if I forget to buy kiwi, I use twice as many strawberries, and it's just as yummy)
2 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. raspberry (or strawberry...or whatever) jam

Mix together and serve with cinnamon chips...


Cinnamon Chips

flour tortillas (I use freshly made - not by me, my grocery store makes them fresh in-store)
cinnamon sugar

Spray tortillas with water or cooking spray and sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar mixture. Cut into triangles with a pizza cutter and bake at 475 for 5-7 minutes. They harden as they cool.

Cinnamon-Chocolate Pudding

Now this I've GOT to try. Saw the recipe at Kraft Food & Family, and I just NEED to try it. NEED to.

Cinnamon-Chocolate Pudding

2 cups fat-free milk
1 pkg. (4-serving size) JELL-O Chocolate Fat Free Sugar Free Instant Pudding
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 cup thawed COOL WHIP Sugar Free Whipped Topping


BEAT milk, pudding mix and cinnamon with whisk 2 min.

STIR in COOL WHIP.

SPOON into dessert dishes.


May Substitute
Prepare as directed, using COOL WHIP LITE Whipped Topping.
Can be Made Ahead
Desserts can be made ahead of time. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Buffalo Chicken Dip



1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened2 cans (9.75 oz each) Swanson Premium Chunk Chicken Breast, drained½ cup Frank's RedHot Sauce ½ cup blue cheese salad dressing½ cup crumbled blue cheeseAssorted fresh vegetables and/or crackers

Directions:

1) Stir cream cheese in 9" deep dish pie plate until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients.
2) Bake at 350°F. for 20 min. until hot and bubbling. Stir. Serve with vegetables and crackers.

Tips: - Substitute ranch dressing for blue cheese dressing and shredded cheddar cheese for blue cheese crumbles. - Make it tailgate friendly – prepare ahead of time and transport in a disposable heavy foil pan. When you get to the tailgate heat it on a grill and serve nice and hot! - Make this in the microwave by heating it on high for 5 minutes instead of baking

- Keep it warm in a crockpot or slow cooker

Coconut Banana Muffins

Coconut Banana Muffins

These make a great breakfast or after-school snack and are a great way to use up those bananas that have gotten a bit too ripe. Remember, if you have overripe bananas and don't have time to bake, you can just pop them in the freezer, skins on or off. If you take the skins off, just freeze them in groups of three so you can easily pull out what you need for one batch of muffins.

1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
3 very ripe bananas, mashed together
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour (up to 1/2 cup whole wheat flour)
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup grated coconut

Cream together the butter and eggs, then mix in the ripe bananas and vanilla.

In a small bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar together, then add to the wet ingredients and mix just until all is moistened. Add the walnuts and coconut.

Spoon the batter into muffin tins and bake at 350 for 30 minutes or so, until done.

From CheapCooking.com

Bisquick Mozerella Cheese Sticks

Easy Cheese Sticks

Make this appetizer favorite at home! The crispy, golden brown outside holds rich, gooey melted cheese.

Prep Time: 10 min

Total Time: 1 hour 25 min

Makes: 30 appetizers

1	lb Monterey Jack, Cheddar, Swiss or mozzarella cheese, cut into 3x1/2-inch sticks
	Vegetable oil
1	cup Bisquick mix
1	teaspoon paprika
1/2	cup milk
1	egg
	Marinara sauce, if desired

	Print these coupons...
	$0.60 off Bisquick® Baking Mix Plus 22 more...
	About Concordance™

1.	Place cheese sticks on tray; freeze at least 1 hour.
2.	Heat 2 inches of oil to 375ºF in large heavy saucapan or follow manufacturer's direction on deep fryer. Beat Bisquick mix, paprika, milk and egg until smooth. Dip cheese, 1 stick at a time, into batter, covering cheese completely.
3.	Fry 8 to 10 sticks at a time 1 to 2 minutes, turning carefully, until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Serve with marinara sauce.

Panipopo

This panipopo recipe is simple and delicious. Panipopo is dinner rolls cooked in coconut milk pudding. This is Kehau Woolsey's recipe. via my sister Paula.

Use your favorite bread recipe (I used my Kitchenaid recipe)or Rhodes dinner rolls. Prepare coconut pudding by mixing well:
2 cans (13.5oz each) coconut milk
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup cornstarch

Pour mixture into a large foil pan or divide between two 9" x 13" cake pans. When dough has risen for an hour, shape into round dinner rolls (about 24). Drop into pan(s) with coconut milk. Let rise again for an hour. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.

White Chocolate Dipped Gingerbread Cookies

Servings: Makes 3 dozen medium size cookies

Decadent gingerbread cookies with a hint of orange flavor, dipped in white chocolate. Time consuming to make, but worth every minute!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons dark molasses

1 tablespoon water

1 large egg

3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 tablespoons dried orange peel

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

1/2 cup solid shortening

2 boxes (6 ounces each) white chocolate baking squares

Instructions:Whisk molasses, water and egg in a small bowl; set aside. If using an electric mixer: Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, orange peel, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg and allspice in large mixing bowl. Cut in butter using a pastry blender or 2 knives until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Pour molasses mixture over flour; beat with mixer until dough forms. If using a food processor: Place flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, orange peel, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg and allspice in food processor; process 10 seconds. Add butter; process until dough resembles coarse meal, about 30 seconds. Pour molasses mixture over flour and process until dough forms. Remove dough from processor. Turn out on lightly floured surface. Knead 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer dough to bowl; cover. Chill a minimum of 2 hours. Preheat oven to 350º F. Roll dough between 2 sheets of waxed paper to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutters. Place on baking sheets; bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Cool. Melt shortening and white baking chocolate in heavy saucepan over medium heat. Dip half of each cookie in chocolate. Place on cooling racks or wax paper to let chocolate harden

Another Shoutout of Thanks goes to Jori for these babies too!

Heather's Peppermint Pie!

1 chocolate pie crust
2 cups of mini marshmallows
1/2 cup milk (whole milk works best)
8 drops red or green food coloring
1 capful peppermint flavoring
1 8 oz Cool Whip

1. Slowly melt marshmallows with milk over low/med heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add coloring and flavoring, mix well.

2. Place in the fridge (on a hotpad), and stir occasionally until the marshmallow glops off the spoon.

3. Mix in Cool Whip, reserving about a cup or so to put dallops on top of the pie if you want. Pour into the chocolate pie crust and put back in the fridge to set for at least 2 hours.

Thanks Heather!

Best Sugar Cookies!

Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter, room temperature

1 1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup instant vanilla or cheesecake pudding

1 egg1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

2 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Cream the butter, powdered sugar and instant pudding very well until light and fluffy. Slowly beat in the egg, vanilla and almond extract. Add the flour, baking soda and cream of tartar and mix until just combined. Form dough into a ball and wrap well. Chill for 1 hour. After chilling, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll dough out 1/4 inch thick and cut into desired shapes. Bake for 8 – 10 minutes until a light golden brown edge appears on cookies. Frost with Cream Cheese frosting or Royal Icing frosting (below).

Royal Icing Frosting

1 cup C&H (in the box) powdered sugar

5 Tablespoons meringue powder

Scant 1/2 cup water (just shy of 1/2 cup)

Beat all ingredients in a mixer or with a hand mixer for 7 to 8 minutes. Scoop some in a bowl and color it with desired food coloring. Then, a teaspoon at a time, add water until it just becomes runny. Fill a pastry bag with a #3 tip. Outline the cookie and, then with zigzags, fill the center. With a toothpick, brush the frosting to fill in all the holes. If it doesn’t smooth out, your frosting is too thick.

Thanks to Jori for the recipe!

3 Hot Chocolate recipes!

I'm a SUCKER (TOTAL and COMPLETE sucker!) for a good cup of hot chocolate! Natalie posted 3 recipes, and I'm totally stealing them!


Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate

4 squares baker's chocolate
2 cups milk
2 tbsp. peanut butter
marshmallows

Break chocolate squares and melt in a saucepan with milk. Do not boil. Stir in peanut butter until mixture is smooth. Pour into mugs and garnish with marshmallows.

White Peppermint Hot Chocolate

6 hard peppermint candies, finely crushed
2/3 cup whipping cream
3 1/2 cups milk
8 oz. white chocolate, chopped
1/2 tsp. peppermint extract

Beat whipping cream with crushed candies until stiff peaks form. Refrigerate for at least one hour. In the meantime, heat milk on medium low heat. Mix in chocolate and whisk until smooth. Add peppermint extract and stir thoroughly. Pour into cups and top with peppermint whipped cream mixture.

Luscious Hot Chocolate

1 cup milk
1 cup half and half
1 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
8 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Heat milk, half and half, both chocolates and sugar in a saucepan on medium-low heat until chocolates melt and sugar dissolves. Pour half of the mixture into a blender and mix until frothy. Return to the saucepan and add vanilla. Stir briefly and serve.

{From LDS Living Magazine.}

Squishy Bread

Squishy Bread
Stolen from Sunnie Adams (Thanks for the heads up Lisha!)

Squishy Whole Wheat Bread Recipe
3 1/2 c whole wheat flour (use white wheat for lighter bread)
1/3 c gluten
2 T yeast
2 1/2 c hot water

Mix one minute and let rise for 10 minutes.

Add-
1/3 c oil
1/3 c honey or sugar
2 T lemon juice
1 T salt
2 1/2 - 4 c whole wheat flour

Mix/knead for 10-15 minutes. Divide into three loaves and put in greased bread pans. Preheat oven to 350 degrees for one minute or until barely warm, put loaves in and turn oven off. Let rise until loaves have risen just barely above the rim about 45-60 minutes. Turn on oven to 350, leaving pans in the oven, and bake for 35 minutes.

Buffalo Chicken Soup

John took me to a fabulous Soup & Salad restaurant in Cheektowaga, called Danny's. They had the BEST Buffalo Chicken Soup there and I want some more!

I was roaming the internet, and found this one. Hopefully I'll try it soon and let you know what I think!

Buffalo Chicken Soup
We tasted this cheesy, spicy chicken soup at a local restaurant and
just had to try to recreate it at home. We got it first try! It's so easy
and delicious, I'm sure it'll become a favorite at your house, too.


Recipe Created By: Robbie & Mike Rice
Prep. Time: 0:25
Serves: 4

1 sm. onion - chopped
2 ribs celery - chopped
1/4 cup butter OR margarine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup chicken broth
2 cups diced, cooked chicken
1/4 - 1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce - to taste
4 oz. process cheese food (Velveeta®) - cubed, low-fat okay
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. celery salt
1/2 tsp. garlic salt

-In a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat, cook onions and celery in butter until tender.
-Stir flour into pan; slowly whisk in milk and broth.
-Stir in remaining ingredients and simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the cheese has melted.