Lime Scented Mango Strawberry Salad

Made this for part of the Small Group Snacks tonight. Cannot wait to enjoy it!!!!

Lime-scented Mango-Strawberry Salad

Ingredients:

3/4 c. sugar
2 tsp. grated lime zest
1/3 c. fresh lime juice
3 cups trimmed, sliced strawberries (about 2 lb)
3 cups peeled, diced mangoes (2 to 3 large mangoes)

Instructions:

Combine sugar and 1/3 cup water in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until sugar has dissolved, about 3 minutes. Remove from ehat and let cool. Stir in lime zest and juice; let cool to room temperature.

Cut up fruit and mix in a large bowl. Add syrup and gently stir until well mixed. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes or until ready to serve.

Source:
All You Magazine

Notes:
You can use this same lime juice syrup with other fruits such as pineapple, bananas, papaya, or kiwi. You can vary the amount and type of fruits depending on what's available.

olive garden soups

the past two weeks i've made 2 of Olive Gardens soups (copy cat recipes) for supper.
Both turned out awesome!

We usually order the soups instead of salad when we go out to Olive Garden because we love their soups so much.

Here are the recipes.

Minestrone (Asah's favorite)

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup minced white onion (about 1 small onion)
1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/2 cup frozen cut italian green beans
1/4 cup minced celery (about 1/2 stalk)
4 teaspoons minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
4 cups vegetable broth (Swanson is good *note: Do not use chicken broth!*)
2 (15 ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained
2 (15 ounce) cans small white beans or great northern beans, drained
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup carrot, julienned or shredded
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
3 cups hot water
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup small shell pasta


1. Heat three tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot.
2. Saute onion, celery, garlic, green beans, and zucchini in the oil for 5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent.
3. Add vegetable broth to pot, plus drained tomatoes, beans, carrot, hot water, and spices.
4. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Add spinach leaves and pasta and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency.
6. Makes about eight 1 1/2 cup servings.

Zuppa Toscana (my favorite!)

1 lb ground Italian sausage
1½ tsp crushed red peppers
1 large diced white onion
4 Tbsp bacon pieces
2 tsp garlic puree
10 cups water
5 cubes of chicken bouillon
1 cup heavy cream
1 lb sliced Russet potatoes, or about 3 large potatoes
¼ of a bunch of kale (I substitute spinach)

1. Sauté Italian sausage and crushed red pepper in a large pot. Drain excess fat, refrigerate while you prepare other ingredients.
2. In the same pan, sauté bacon, onions and garlic over low-medium heat for approximately 15 minutes or until the onions are soft.
3. Add chicken bouillon and water to the pot and heat until it starts to boil.
4. Add the sliced potatoes and cook until soft, about half an hour.
5. Add the heavy cream and just cook until thoroughly heated.
6. Stir in the sausage and the kale, let all heat through and serve. Delicious!

tonights dinner

wanted something fancy and special. this did the trick. SUPER affordable and not too much time involved either. enjoy!

LEMON ROSEMARY CHICKEN
(from "All You" Magazine")

1 lemon
3 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 4-lb. whole chicken, rinsed and patted dry
Salt and pepper

Preparation
1. Halve lemon and place inside cavity of chicken along with rosemary, garlic and 2 Tbsp. butter. Fold wings under chicken and tie legs together with string. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

2. Place chicken, breast side up, on a small rack inside slow cooker. Cook on high until an instant-read thermometer inserted into thigh registers 180ºF, 4 to 4 1/2 hours.

3. Preheat broiler to high. Melt remaining 1 Tbsp. butter. Transfer chicken, breast side up, to a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush chicken with melted butter and broil to brown skin, 2 to 3 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes on a cutting board before carving and serving.

SMASHED RED POTATOES W/ GARLIC

•2 pounds small red potatoes
•4 cloves garlic, peeled, sliced
•1 teaspoon salt
•3 tablespoons butter
•1/4 to 1/2 cup milk or half-and-half
•Salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation:
Scrub potatoes and cut into small chunks. Put potatoes and the sliced garlic in a medium saucepan; cover with water and add salt. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.
Remove from heat and drain well. Pour into a bowl and mash with the butter and milk or half-and-half. Add salt and pepper to taste. (I also added a little garlic salt)
Serves 4 to 6.

GREEN BEANS W/ FETA AND DILL
(From Athenos Feta Cheese packaging)
These were my favorite and I'll be making them again. And again!

2 lbs fresh green beans
1/2 c Italian Dressing
1/4 c crumbled Feta Cheese
Dill
Salt and Pepper

Boil green beans about 7-8 minutes until tender-crisp.
Tooss with remaining ingredients.

So, there ya go. Dinner is served! Enjoy!

Chicken Tacos (in the crockpot!)

we tried this last week and LOVED it! definitely on the regular rotation now...and this is super versatile...and simple.

Easy Chicken taco Meat:

3-4 large frozen chicken breasts (or several frozen breast tenders, or thawed chicken works fine too!)
1 can rotel OR small jar salsa
1 pkt taco seasoning

Cook on low 8-10 hrs. Could be less depending on crockpot.
Shred chicken well with two forks. Drain off "extra" liquid.

Enjoy your tacos! Great with shredded cheese, sour cream, etc.

And for the leftovers-these are great ideas i found on a recipe site:

• Use leftover chicken to make tortilla soup. Combine chicken taco meat with 32 ounces of chicken broth, 1 can of mild Ro-Tel tomatoes, 1 can of corn or 1 1/2 cups of frozen corn, 1 tablespoon lime juice and 2 tablespoons of chopped, fresh cilantro. Simmer for 15 minutes and serve with crumbled tortilla chips and shredded cheese. Could also add black beans to this.

• Try this chicken to fill enchiladas or quesadillas or top a taco salad or make super-quick and healthy nachos by layering tortilla chips, black beans, chicken, salsa, onions (green or diced purple), cheddar cheese, sour cream and guacamole.

• Add this chicken to beans and, if you like, rice and use it for burritos.

• Use the salsa water that's leftover in the crockpot to make rice with. You can make about 2 cups of rice to have as a side dish or put on your tacos

Cheese-Garlic Biscuits

Just made these today and forgot how delicious they were so I thought I'd share this simple recipe. They are fashioned after Red Lobster's Cheddar Bay biscuits. I'd rate them pretty close to the real things!

Enjoy!

3 c self rising flour

2 1/4 c milk

2 c grated cheese

1 tsp garlic powder

1 stick butter (melted)

-Mix all ingredients together and pour into greased muffin pan.

Bake @ 375 for 15-20 min until a little brown on top.

Brush with melted butter/garlic salt mixture as soon as they come out of oven.

I had two for lunch today and can't wait to serve them with dinner tonight!

easy potpurri

this will make your house smell wonderful, and oh-so-Christmasy!
we're hosting a party tomorrow night so I got this ready today and thought I'd share:

1 orange
1 lemon
1 lime
cloves
cinnamon sticks

Slice fruit and place in medium size pot about 1/2 full of water. Add a few whole cloves and cinnamon sticks and simmer. Smells wonderful!
You can turn this off and re-use the next day as well.

Enjoy.

Oreo Peanut Butter Pie

today we made a pie, just because.

and, if you'd like to make one too...here's how:

Crust:
about 25 oreos, crushed
one preschooler to crush them:

note: (if a preschooler isnt around...place them in a zip top bag and pound away. it's super fun!)

1/4 c butter, melted on low on stovetop

-Combine butter and crushed oreos, form into crust in pie plate and refrigerate while preparing filling.

Filling:

8 oz cream cheese, softened

3/4 c peanut butter (crunchy)

1 c heavy whipping cream, whipped

3/4 c powdered sugar

2 tbs milk

-Beat cream cheese until fluffy; add peanut butter and milk until smooth.

-Fold in whipped cream and sugar.

-Spread evenly onto crust. I add cool whip on top and put in freezer for a few hours to make firm.

Everyone loves the end result!

crockpot mac n cheese

a friend asked for this recipe, so i figured i'd post it to share with everyone. we made it for one of the sides for our "Easter feast" and it was so yummy (and easy!!)

8 ounces elbow macaroni, cooked and drained
4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
12 ounces evaporated milk
1 1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper


Directions:

Combine the macaroni, 3 cups of the cheese, evaporated milk, milk, eggs, salt and pepper. Place in a greased crockpot. Top with remaining cheese. Cover; cook on low for 4-5 hours.
Be sure not to overcook macaroni!!!

Tara's Sunday lima beans

I have to try hard to find veggies I like, but I love to make these on Sundays to go with whatever is for Sunday lunch. I just made them again this morning and realized how much I love them. Even Jordan eats them! Enjoy.

1 bag frozen baby limas
1 can chicken broth
1/2 small onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced (I just used the already minced kind)
salt and pepper
Olive oil
Goya Sazon seasoning (this stuff is a-mazing! i use it on just about every veggie i cook)-You actually find it near the Latino stuff in the grocery store.

Heat 1 tbs olive oil in pot. Add onions and garlic and saute for a few minutes. Add bag of limas and chicken broth and a 1/2 packet of the Goya Sazon along with salt and pepper. Simmer on low-med for a good 45 minutes to an hour.

2 great "copycat" recipes

I've made both of these recently and both have turned out EXCELLENT.

here's Cracker Barrel's Hashbrown Casserole:

(SERVES 10 -12 )


Ingredients
2 lbs frozen hash browns
1/2 cup margarine or butter, melted
1 (10 1/4 ounce) can cream of chicken soup
1 pint sour cream
1/2 cup onion, peeled and chopped
2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper


Directions
-Preheat oven to 350°F and spray an 11 x 14 baking dish with cooking spray.
-Mix the above ingredients together, place in prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes or until brown on top.



and Chili's Fajitas:

I must say they tasted GREAT and much like Chili's. The secret is the marinade; and letting the meat marinate overnight if possible. We had NO leftovers and really enjoyed this. If you're heading to Jordan's Fiesta in a few weeks you'll get to taste them there....I was testing this recipe out to see if it was a "go" and it is.

Ingredients-

1/4 c lime juice

3 tbs vegetable oil

4 cloves garlic

3 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp liquid hickory smoke

1/2 tsp cayenne (red) pepper

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts or skirt steak

2 tbs water

1/2 tsp lime juice

large spanish onion (sliced thin)-i used both red and white onions

2 med green bell peppers-seeded and sliced thin

1 red bell pepper-sliced thin and seeded.



-Marinade: combine 1/2 c lime juice; 2 tbs oil, garlic, 2 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp salt, liquid smoke, cayenne pepper, 1/4 tsp pepper in sealable plastic container, add chicken or steak and refrigerate at least 2 hours, or overnight (preferred).

-Combine water, 1 tsp soy sauce, 1/2 tsp lime juice and a dash of salt and pepper, set aside.

-Saute meat at medium-high until cooked through (or grill).

-Cut meat into thin strips, set aside.

-In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook onion and peppers in remaining 1 tbs oil until brown; remove from heat. Pour reserved liquid mixture over onions and peppers.

-Toss together meat, onions, and peppers.

serve with warm tortillas, pico de gallo, cheese, sour cream and guacamole.

easter treats!

i'm getting so excited for easter this year, even though asah will be far away on a mission trip....
i'm going to try and bake my first ham....
and i also found these on the web today and fell in love!
How Adorable are these???? I love rice krispie treats and I love Peeps so these are perfect!

Here are instructions: CLICK HERE

And here's a pic. The picture doesnt include the green-dyed coconut "grass" but you could add that or just leave them like this. I think Jordan will love them!

Great coupon and a recipe

Try these chips for free!

Click Here

Great with this Fruit Salsa:

INGREDIENTS
2 kiwis, peeled and diced
2 Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and diced
8 ounces raspberries
1 pound strawberries
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons fruit preserves, any flavor (i use strawberry)

In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, Golden Delicious apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes.


I made this for tonights Small Group at our house. We use the Apple Cinnamon Flat Earth chips for dippers. SOOOOOO yummy.