Bacon Egg Salad Croissants

Perfect for a sunday brunch or any meal, really. These sandwiches are light and flavorful.











6 hard cooked eggs, chopped
1/3 cup diced celery
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp prepared mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/3 cup crumbled bacon
4 lettuce leaves
4 thin tomato slices
4 croissants, split

In a bowl combine the eggs, celery, mayo, mustard, salt and pepper. Fold in the bacon. Serve on a crossant with lettuce and tomato slices.

Tossed Broccoli Salad

Excellent side dish for any kind of meal from Thanksgiving dinner to just another friday night meal. It's surprisingly crisp, fresh and crunchy with a bit of sweetness.

2 lbs. fresh broccoli, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 lb. bacon, cooked & crumbled
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 medium red onion chopped
raisins and walnuts to taste (optional)

Dressing

1 cup mayo
1/2 cup sugar
2 T cider vinegar

Combine dressing first then add broccoli, bacon, cheese, onion and raisins and walnuts. Refrigerate.

Hot Dog Soup

You might think this is a strange sounding soup but it is surprisingly yummy. Kids, of course, will love it too!

4 medium carrots, cut into thin strips
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 medium parsnips, peeled and chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 cup butter
2 T all purpose flour
1 (16oz) pkg hot dogs, halved lengthwise and cut into bite size pieces
1 (12oz) can evaporated milk
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup water
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp pepper

Saute carrots, potatoes, parsnips & onion in butter for 5 minutes. Stir in flour until blended. Add hot dogs, milk, soup, water, basil and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 25-30 minutes.

Chicken Tacos

When I first made this recipe, after I tasted the chicken I decided I'd better make a double batch. Learn how to make this easy mexican style shredded chicken and you can use it on taco salads, burritos, wraps, tacos, sandwiches, quesadillas or whatever. You'll find lots and lots of uses for it. It's even better warmed up the next day.

4 chicken breast halves (I use the frozen style that comes in a bag)
3 T oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 - 1/2 cup chopped onions
1 - 2 cups salsa

lettuce, shredded
sour cream (optional)
mexican style shredded cheese
diced tomatoes
salsa or taco sauce
flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place chicken breast halves into a shallow baking dish and bake for 40-50 minutes until juices run clear. Meanwhile, in a skillet, cook onions and garlic in oil until transparent. After the chicken is cooked, shred and add to the skillet with the salsa. Heat through. Serve on tortillas with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, sour cream and taco sauce.

Light Classic Macaroni Salad

If you're on weight watchers, a 3/4 cup serving of this is only 2 pts! I used to love to eat a nice sandwich for lunch with some of this yummy macaroni salad on the side. Personally I think this macaroni salad is better tasting than the full fat version!




2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
1 cup fat free mayonnaise
2 T sweet pickle relish
1 packet of equal
3/4 tsp ground mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/3 cup chopped carrot
1/4 cup chopped onion
Dash paprika (optional)
1 hard cooked egg, sliced (optional)

Cook macaroni according to pkg directions, drain and rinse with cold water. Cool completely. For dressing, in a small bowl, combine the mayo, pickle relish, equal, mustard, salt and pepper. In a large bowl, combine macaroni, celery, carrot and onion. Add dressing & toss gently to coat. Refrigerate until serving and garnish with egg & paprika.

My Favorite Cucumber Onion Spread

A must for the summer months or anytime of the year that you can find cucumbers. We grow our own just so we can have plenty of this yummy spread on hand.








1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup finely chopped and seeded cucumber
1/4 cup finely chopped vidalia onion
2 T mayo (or Miracle Whip)
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

Crackers, potato chips or rye chips

Combine all ingredients; beat until blended and refrigerate until serving.

Lil Smokies Appetizers

Around my house we sometimes turn an good appetizer into a meal. This is one of those recipes. In fact, it's become a Christmas Eve tradition to have these yummy smokies around. They're easy to grab whenever you're hungry.

2 pkgs little smokies sausage links
1/2 cup catsup
1/2 cup bbq sauce
1 cup grape jelly

Combine everything in a crock pot on medium heat for 1 hour. Stir and turn to low for another 30 minutes.

Kansas City Steak Soup

I love a good soup and a pot of soup at my house goes a long way. It's even better the next day and you can pair it with a yummy grilled cheese sandwich or a crusty roll or even a salad, depending on your mood. This recipe is one even the kids will love even though it has a good helping of veggies.


1 lb. coarsely ground beef, browned and drained of fat
3 c. water
2 small onions, sliced
1 (16oz) can tomatoes
1 tsp pepper
1 (10 oz) pkg frozen mixed vegetables
2-4 tsp beef base or beef boillon granules
1 can tomato soup
3 celery stalks sliced thinly
2 carrot sticks sliced thinly
1/4 cup sugar

Place the browned ground beef, water, onion, celery, carrots, undrained tomatoes, pepper, mixed vegetables & beef seasoning in a slow cooker. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.
1 Hour before serving, turn to high and add 1 can of tomato soup and sugar.

Secret Chinese Donuts

What's the secret? They're ridiculously easy and so good that they won't last. You may even want to make a "secret" batch just for yourself! Shhhh, I won't tell.

Can of refrigerated biscuits
Oil
Sugar

Heat oil to about 350 degrees. Tear biscuit dough in two and roll into a ball. Drop (very carefully) into the hot oil. Once they are browned, remove from the oil and place into a large paper bag. Sprinkle your donuts with sugar (inside the paper bag) and toss gently to coat.

Rich & Easy French Onion Soup

As you know, I'm a sucker for a good crock pot recipe. Here's one for one of my favorite soups. Enjoy!

6 large onions, chopped
1/2 c butter
6 (10 1/2 oz) cans of beef broth, undiluted
1 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 bay leaves
10 slices French bread, toasted
Shredded Parmesan and/or Mozerella cheese

Cook onions in a skillet with the butter until pearly white.
Transfer to a slow cooker and add the beef broth, worcestershire sauce
and bay leaves. Cover and cook on low 5-7 hours. Top each bowl with
a slice of french bread and cheese.

Easy Salisbury Steak

We love comfort food around here. This is one of the best and is surprisingly easy to make and smells wonderful. Pair it with some mashed potatoes and a veggie and you have yourself a fancy shmancy dinner! Is your mouth watering yet?






1 1/3 cans Golden Mushroom Soup
2 lbs. ground round
2/3 cups dry breadcrumbs
1 1/3 large eggs, beaten
2/3 cup chopped onions
salt and pepper
garlic salt or garlic powder
1/2 cup water

1. Combine 1/4 soup with ground beef, breadcrumbs, egg, onion, salt, pepper and garlic.
2. Make 6 patties and put into a shallow baking dish
3. Bake 350 degrees for 40 minutes, then drain off fat.
4. Combine remaining soup and water and pour over patties.
5. Bake 10 minutes longer or until heated through.

Mom's Saturday Night Spread

Growing up with a policeman as a dad and a mom who stayed at home, we didn't have a lot of money. This is an easy dish that my mom came up with that we loved. Hope you enjoy it too.

2 lbs. ground beef
1/4 tsp chili
1/2 cup to a cup of chopped onions
1 can Chicken Gumbo soup
3/4 cup Ketchup
1/2 cup Mustard
1 Tbs butter

Cook onions in a skillet with butter until they are transparent. Brown the ground beef and spoon
out the extra fat. Add the rest of the ingredients and allow to simmer for about 10 minutes on
med. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve on buns like sloppy joes or over bread.

Crock Pot Chicken n' Dumplins

Yes, I know that Chicken n' Dumplings has a "g" on the end. I'm from the south and we pronounce it Chicken n' Dumplins. So, spell it any way you want, this is an EASY and inexpensive (aka CHEAP) dish that will please every member of your family, even those picky kids. If you know me, I'm all about easy and I worship the person who invented the crock pot. Why didn't THAT person win a Nobel Peace Prize? The crock pot has done more to promote peace in households all over the planet than anything else I can think of. In the south we have a saying...When mama ain't happy, ain't NOBODY happy...and crock pots make THIS mama VERY happy! Enjoy......

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 Tablespoons butter
2 (10.75 oz) cans cream of chicken soup
1 onion, finely diced
2 (10 oz) pkgs refrigerated biscuit dough
Parsley (optional)
Salt
Pepper

1. Put the chicken, butter, soup and onion in the crock pot and fill with just enough water to cover.
2. Cover and cook on high 5-6 hours.
3. About 30 minutes before serving, put torn, small pieces of biscuit dough into the pot and
cook until dough is no longer raw in the middle.
4. Sprinkle with parsley and salt and pepper to taste.