Potato Soup

We found a recipe for the most 

yummy potato soup ever!

Amazingly, it's so easy! 

****************

Potato Soup

8-10 med. size potatoes, or enough to fill your crockpot

1 onion

3 to 4 cans chicken broth

Nature's Seasoning

Cream cheese

Garnish: Cheese and bacon bits

1. Peel your potatoes and dice into small pieces.

2. Toss into crock pot with 3 cans chicken broth and add water to cover potatoes

3. Cut onion and add to pot

4. Sprinkle a couple tablespoons of Nature's Seasonings or seasoning of your choice

5. Cook on high all day, at lease 4-5 hours.

6. Add cream cheese cut into little pieces and mix well.

We made this around 10 a.m. and left the house all day.
When we returned the potatoes were cooked.

At this point I transfered the potatoes to a large 

pot on my stove and bringing to a boil I added cornstarch water (3-4 tablespoons cornstarch to 4-5 ounces water, stir with fork until smooth)
until thickened.
Turn down on med low and simmer until

cream cheese is melted completely.

Add garnish: cheese and bacon bits

This makes a large pot. We enjoyed leftovers 

for lunch the next day and also had enough to take grandma and grandpa.

Super Yummy!!

Source: Pinterest

I'm still learning how to use Pinterest but it's amazing.

Thanks to Jodi at  Pleasant Home for the tutorial on her blog!

Best Ever Peanut Butter Truffle Brownies

Last week I came across this wonderful recipe for brownies
at Mrs. June Feuntes' blog,
A Wise Woman Builds Her Home.
Thank you for sharing these with us June!!

Peanut Butter Truffle Brownies

For the Brownies:

• 1 cup butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 eggs
• 3 teaspoons vanilla
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

For the Peanut Butter Filling:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 cup powdered sugar
• 2-3 teaspoons milk

For the Ganache Topping:

• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 by 13 inch metal baking pan. Put a long piece of parchment paper in the bottom of the pan, letting the parchment extend up two sides of the pan and overhang slightly on both ends. (This will make it easy to remove the bars from the pan after they have baked.) Butter the parchment.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Remove from heat and add the sugar; stir to combine. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Mix in cocoa, baking powder and salt. Add flour and stir until just combined and no streaks of dry ingredients remain. Pour into prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Let cool completely in pan on a cooling rack.
3. While the brownies are cooling, make the peanut butter filling. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the ingredients and beat until smooth. Add more milk if necessary to make it spreadable. Spread in an even layer over the brownies. Place in the refrigerator until filling is set, about 30 minutes.
4. While the filling is setting, make the ganache, combine the ingredients in a double boiler or in a microwave safe bowl. Melt together and combine. Pour the ganache over the top and spread gently. Return to the fridge until set.

I made these today and they 

are most definitely the best

brownies ever!! If you like the

chocolate and peanut butter

combination these will be a favorite!

I'm cooking now!

Making homemade Made Granola Bars today.....yummy!

Also. I love this recipe for 

Chicken Enchiladas....very easy and delicious.

 Chicken Enchiladas

3 cups chopped cooked chicken

2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can chopped green chilies drained

8 flour tortilla shells

Vegetable cooking spray

1 (8 oz.) container sour cream

1 can enchilada sauce

Toppings: diced tomato, olives, avocado and enchilada sauce

Stir together the first 5 ingredients.

Spoon chicken mixture evenly

over each tortilla and roll up.

Arrange in a lightly greased 13x9-inch pan.

Drizzle enchilada sauce over the stuffed shells, as much as you prefer.

Sprinkle with extra cheese!!

Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. 

Sprinkle toppings of your choice.

We like adding extra enchilada sauce or even taco sauce.

 

 

 

Strawberry Cake

Next week is our VBS at church and I'm teaching the Junior girls. I've been looking for 

a craft for this age and came across a super neat blog, Pink Paper Peppermints. She has the cutest 

fabric flower tutorial. I'm gonna run and try

making this while you take a look at this awesome blog!!

Also, my youngest daughter and I made 

Pioneer Woman's recipe for

Strawberry Shortcake Cake yesterday!!

Needless to say, it was a big hit!!

We took it to my sister's for dinner and everyone loved it. 

Before the icing....i love the old fashioned look!!

Oh, my, now look how delicious this looks!!

Chicken Casserole

Grandma's Chicken Casserole

I'm sure everyone has their own recipe for making chicken casserole but I think my mom's is the best. I thought I'd give it a try so I made a huge dish for our youth at church tonight.

6-8 pieces boiled chicken tenders, torn in small pieces
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 - 1 1/2 cans broth from chicken
Peppridge farm cornbread dressing mix
Cornbread - Optional

1. Mix the two cans of cream of chicken soup with 1 can of water, thin if needed. Add enough to a casserole dish to cover the bottom.
2. If you would like to add cornbread to the stuffing you can do so now. I usually don't prepare my cornbread ahead and don't take the time but it's delicious if you do add the cornbread.
3. Add a layer of dressing mix on top of this and then the chicken pieces.
4. Repeat layers until all ingredients are used.
Bake at 350 degrees about 30 - 40 minutes.

Peach Tart Recipe

We love fresh peaches and since we've been out of town I haven't made any desserts , so today, this is what I'm making.

Peach Tart

Ingredients
Crust:
*1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
*1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
*2 tablespoons sour cream

Filling:
*about 6 medium peaches, peeled, pitted, and sliced
*3 large egg yolks
*3/4 cup sour cream
*3/4 cup sugar
*1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Glaze:
*1/2 cup peach preserves or jelly
*1 tablespoon frozen orange juice concentrate
*mint for garnish

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

To make the crust:
Place the flour, butter, and sour cream in food processor and pulse to combine. When the dough has formed a ball, pat with lightly floured hands into the bottom and sides of an ungreased 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom and 1/2-inch sides, or a round au gratin dish. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the crust is set but not browned. Let cool while preparing the filling.

To make the filling:
If using fresh peaches, peel and slice thickly. Arrange the fresh peach slices in overlapping circles on to of the crust, until it's completely covered. Overfill the crist, as peaches will shrink during cooking.
Combine the egg yolks, sour cream, sugar, and flour and beat until smooth. Pour the mixture over the peaches. Place the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake for about 1 hour, until the crust sets and is pale golden in color. Cover with an aluminum foil tent if the crust gets too dark. Transfer the tart pan to a wire rack to cool. When cool, remove the side wall of the pan.

To make the glaze:
Combine the preserves or jelly and orange juice. Spread with pastry brush over the top of the warm tart. Serve the tart warm, at room temperature, or chilled. Garnish with fresh mint.

Fun Recipes

Organization

With spring in the air and the warm weather here at last I'm drawn outside to work and play. Weeding my flower bed, filling the bird feeders, and enjoying the nice weather. The cleaning/organizing bug hits me once and a while, usually springtime and so I'm organizing my sewing things. Moving to a new room for the summer so there's no progress in the sewing area, but...... my kitchen actually looks like a kitchen. Table cleared with tablecloth and flowers. Oh yeah, and food I've made with a little more time to focus on baking.

Recipes

Strawberry Pretzel Salad

First Layer:
2 cups coarsley crushed pretzels
3/4 cup melted margarine
3 tablespoons sugar

Second Layer:
1 (80z) cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 small container cool whip

Third Layer:
1 package (6 oz.) strawberry flavor gelatin
2 cups boiling water
1 (10 oz.) box frozen strawberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Put fist layer in 9x13x2 inch pan.
Bake 8 minutes. Remove and cool.
Second Layer, Beat sugar into cheese and stir in cool whip. Spread over pretzels.
Third Layer, Mix gelatin, boiling water, and strawberries together. Set aside 10 minutes, pour over cheese mixture. Chill thoroughly.


Honey Bun Cake

1 Box yellow cake mix

3/4 cup oil

4 eggs

8 oz. sour cream

1 cup brown sugar

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

Mix together first 4 ingredients, stirring by hand. Pour half of the batter into an oblong pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Pour remaining batter on top. Swirl batter with fork. Bake in 325 deg. oven for 40 minutes.

Icing: Mix together 2 cups powdered sugar, 4 teaspoons milk, and 1 Tablespoon vanilla. Pour over cake while hot.


Both these recipes are so very easy! ENJOY!