Smashed Potato Soup

Smashed Potato Soup

3-1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-in. cubes
1/2 cup chopped yellow and/or red sweet pepper
1-1/2 tsp. bottled roasted garlic
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
4-1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup whipping cream, half-and-half or light cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
Sour cream (optional)
Shredded cheddar cheese (optional)
Crisp-cooked bacon, crumbed (optional)
Sliced green onion (optional)

In a 4 to 5 quart slow cooker combine potatoes, swet pepper, garlic and black pepper. Pour broth over all. Cover and cook on low heat for 8 to 10 hours or on high heat for 4 to 5 hours.

Mash potatoes slightly with a potato masher. Stir in whipping cream, 1 cup cheddar cheese and the 1/2 cup green onions.

If desired, top servings with sour cream, additional cheese, bacon and additional onions. Makes 6 main-dish servings.

Holiday baking

I love holiday baking! The fudge, candies, cookies, everything! It's so much fun! This year I'm making the usual fudges, peanut brittle, peanut butter crunchies, as well as Holiday Cheesecake Squares. The kids and I are going to bake Candy Cane Cookies to go with their candy cane unit study.


As you can see, the kitchen is well stocked and ready!



Today I made dark chocolate walnut fudge, double decker fudge, and peanut brittle. Tomorrow I plan on making more fudge, cookies with the kids, and maybe one or two other things.

Dark Chocolate Walnut Fudge

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
dash salt
1/2 to 1 cup chopped nuts
1-1/2 tsps vanilla extract

In heavy saucepan, over low heat, melt chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt. Remove from heat. Stir in nuts and vanilla. Spread evenly into wax-paper lined 8 or 9 inch square pan. Chill 2 hours or until firm. Turn fudge onto cutting board. Peel off paper and cut into squares. Store loosely covered at room temperature. Makes 2 pounds.


Double Decker Fudge

1 cup peanut butter chips
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Combine peanut butter chips and 2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk, heat until chips are melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla. Spread evenly into foil-lined 8 inch square pan. Combine remaining sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips. Heat until chips are melted and mixture is smooth. Add remaining 1/2 tsp vanilla. Spread evenly on peanut butter layer. Chill 2 hours or until firm. Turn onto cutting board, peel off foil and cut into squares. Store covered in refrigerator. Makes 1-1/2 pounds.

I never have luck using wax paper or foil with my fudge so I just spray my pan lightly with Pam non-stick spray. I also store all my fudge in the refrigerator. Next up: Rocky Road Fudge....

Pecan Pie Bars

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter or margarine
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 eggs
2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350°. For crust, beat butter in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add powered sugar; beat until well blended. Add flour gradually, beating at low speed after each addition. (Mixture will be crumbly but presses together easily.)

Press dough evenly into ungreased 13x9-inch baking pan. Press mixture slightly up sides of pan (less than 1/4 inch) to form lip to hold filling.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, for filling, beat eggs lightly in medium bowl with fork. Add pecans, granulated sugar, corn syrup, melted butter and vanilla; mix well. Pour filling over partially baked crust. Return to oven; bake 35 to 40 minutes or until filling is set.

Loosen edges with knife. Cool completely on wire rack before cutting into squares. Cover and refrigerate until 10 to 15 minutes before serving time.

Makes about 48 bars.

My Easy Vegetable Soup

So usually when I make veggie soup, I just get out a stock pot, or the crockpot, and start to throw a bunch of things in. Here's what I did tonight.

In the stock pot since I only had about 1-1/2 hrs to cook it.

1 tbls. minced garlic
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can chicken broth
2 cans red kidney beans
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables
Italian Seasoning, sea salt, pepper and parsley
Water to cover
approx. 1-1/2 cups macaroni noodles

I simmered it, covered, for about an hour and 20 minutes. Then I added the noodles and cooked it another 8 minutes or so. It wasn't too soupy, I could have added more water. But Jacob said it was the best and asked if I could make it every week.

Oh, and the best part? It probably cost me about $.50/serving or less to make this.

Baked Eggs

6 bread slices, cut in cubes
2 cups grated mild cheddar cheese
1 cup cooked, cubed ham
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
6 eggs
3 cups milk

Mix bread, cheese, ham, bell pepper and onion; spread in a 13x9x2-inch baking dish greased with nonstick spray. Whisk eggs and milk, and pour over top. Cover dish with foil and freeze.

To prepare for serving, thaw dish,and bake uncovered for 45 minutes at 375*. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Chicken Spaghetti

1 12-oz package of spaghetti
1-1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (3 cups cooked)
1 28-oz can Italian-style or plain crushed tomatoes in puree
1 2-oz jar pimentos (I left these out)
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms (I left these out)
1-1/2 cups chopped onion
1 3-oz can sliced ripe olives (I left these out)
1 packet dry spaghetti- sauce seasoning (I used Italian seasoning instead)
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups grated cheddar cheese (does not get frozen)

Cook spaghetti until al dente; drain. At the same time, cut chicken into 1-inch cubes; cook chicken in a small amount of water until no longer pink in the center. (I didn't so this, I boiled all my chicken for my recipes. So I just cubed it and started at the next step.) In a large pot, combine chicken with remaining ingredients except cheese. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cooked spaghetti to sauce. Cool and freeze. I used a 13x9x2 foil pan to freeze it in.

To prepare for service, thaw spaghetti. Bake spaghetti at 325* for 40 minutes. Top spaghetti with cheese; return spaghetti to oven for 5 minutes or until cheese melts. Makes 10 servings.

Once a month freezer cooking

This weekend will be my first "at home" day of cooking and putting together freezer meals. I've done it before at a "dinner creation" type place, but never totally on my own. We needed groceries, I'm stuck at home with the "swine flu" kids, and it seems like a great time to start. I'm excited about the day of cooking and about not having to worry about making dinner for a month!

My list of recipes:

Chicken Divine
Teriyaki Chicken
Manicotti
Chicken Tetrazzini
Lemon Chicken
Hearty Hamburger Tomato Stew
Chicken Cacciatore
Mandarin Orange Chicken
Chicken Spaghetti
Chicken Enchiladas
Cannelloni with Cheese Sauce
Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Ham

Yes, we eat quite a bit of chicken. I only have 14 recipes, but I think that will be enough considering I don't cook 7 nights a week and I have some easy things I can make that aren't make ahead.

Sunday is going to be my big cooking day, again since I'm not able to go to church I thought I would do something useful. So hopefully by Sunday night I'll have a freezer full of yummy meals!

Crockpot Baked Penne

This is literally one of my easiest recipes. I admit I found the idea on the A Year of Slow Cooking blog, but I changed it a bit. She calls it ziti, but I use penne noodles. It is simple and the whole family loves it!

Spray crockpot with non-stick spray. Rinse penne noodles and lay enough in the bottom of the crockpot to kind of cover it, about 20-25 noodles?? Cover with spaghetti sauce, then mozzarella cheese. Repeat with noodles, sauce and cheese until ingredients are gone. I use 2 jars of sauce to make enough for the family and some leftovers. I don't measure anything else. When everything has been added, pour about 1 cup of water around the edge of the crockpot!! This keeps the noodles from sticking, burning to the edge, and getting too dry. I didn't do this the first time and some of the top noodles didn't get cooked. Cook on high for 4 hours. I've never done it on low, but I imagine it could be done on low for 8 hrs. Serve!

Chili Verde

1 8-oz package dry pinto beans
1 lb boneles, skinless chicken breast, cooked and diced
1 4-oz can chopped green chilies (I left these out)
1 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp dried oregano leaves
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
3 cups water
3 chicken bouillon cubes
1 tsp minced garlic (1 clove)
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup grated low-fat Montery Jack cheese (I used mozzarella)
1 dozen corn tortillas
1 11-1/2 oz jar salsa

Rinse pinto beans, soak in cold water overnight, then drain. In a large pot, combine beans, water bouillon cubes, garlic, salt and onion; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until beans are soft, about 1 hour. Add more water if necessary. Add chicken and rest of spices, simmer 10 more minutes. Top with salsa and cheese. Serve over warmed tortillas.

Chicken Cacciatore

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and diced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 sliced medium onion
1/2 sliced green bell pepper
1 tsp minced garlic (1 clove)
1 28-oz can Italian-style or plain crushed tomatoes in puree
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp dried basil leaves
Parmesan cheese
1 8-oz package wide egg noodles

In a large skillet, saute onion, green bell pepper and garlic until onion is transparent. Add chicken and remaining ingredients except Parmesan cheese and noodles to the skillet. Simmer 15 minutes. Put in a 13x9 baking dish, cover with foil and bake on 350* for 35 minutes. Cook noodles according to package. Serve chicken over noodles and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Hearty Hamburger Tomato Stew

1 lb lean ground beef
1-1/4 cups chopped onion
2 cups peeled and sliced carrots
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 16-oz can cut green beans, drained
1 16-oz can corn, drained
1 46-oz can tomato juice
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp celery seed
salt and pepper to taste

Brown ground beef. Combine all ingredients in crockpot and cook on high for 6-8 hours.