Rosemary Marmalade Chicken

This is an excellent one-dish dinner...and it's great for leftovers if you're only feeding one or two people. The best part: it only has a few ingredients, and those aren't very expensive!

You'll need:

1. 5 lb. whole chicken
2. 4 medium russet potatoes
3. 1 large purple onion
4. 2 cups orange marmalade (I used sugar-free to save the calories)
5. 1/4 cup olive oil
6. 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
7. salt and pepper

You'll:

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. First, remove the inner bag from the chicken and discard (don't look--it's pretty gross to me!). Then, wash the chicken with tap water inside and out. Set aside.
3. Wash and cut potatoes into cubes, bite-size or slightly larger. Place potatoes in the bottom of a large roasting pan, or 9x13 deep baking dish.
4. Cut onion into wedges. Spread onion over potatoes, and gently toss with your hands to mix them together.
5. Sprinkle potatoes and onions with about 1 tspn of salt and 1 tspn of pepper, or until your little heart is content.
6. Strip the leaves from 2 sprigs of rosemary and sprinkle them over the potatoes and onion.
7. Place the chicken, with wings tucked under, on top of the potato/onion mixture in the dish.
8. In a bowl, mix orange marmalade, leaves from 2 sprigs of rosemary, oil, 1/4 tspn salt, and 1/4 tspn pepper.
9. Spoon marmalade mixture on top of chicken, and put about a tablespoonful inside the chicken (just for good measure).
10. Cover dish with lid, if available, or securely with aluminum foil.
11. Place in a 400F oven, and cook for 1 hour and 45 minutes, or until completely done. Cooking time is altered depending on the size of your chicken. For a shorter cooking time, about 1 hour, you can use 2 2-lb chickens. To check for done-ness, cut all the way to the bone after resting period.
12. After removing pan from oven, uncover and let rest for 5-10 minutes.
13. With a large serving spoon, spoon some of the juices onto the chicken. Transfer to a serving dish, or serve it in the same one you cooked it in (I certainly did!). Face it--there is nothing prettier than a centerpiece of a whole bird! HaHa! Enjoy. You can serve it with another side dish if you would like. I recommend something green, perhaps a salad.

Nam! Nam!

Ranch House Burgers

These are simple to make, but have a very unique and complex flavor profile. The awesome part is that you don't have to add a hundred different spices to get the flavor--instead, just a packet of mix! I just serve these with a dill spear and some canned baked beans for a complete meal that takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish!

You need:

1. 1 lb. ground hamburger meat
2. 4 tbsp barbecue sauce
3. 1 packet of Hidden Valley ranch dip mix
4. 16 dill hamburger chips
5. 2 tbsp flour
6. 2 tbsp corn meal mix
7. Dash of black pepper
8. 1/8 cup vegetable oil
9. 4 tbsp sour cream
10. 4 slices cheddar cheese
11. 8 rings of purple onion
12. 4 hamburger buns

You do:

1. Heat vegetable oil in a small saucepan over med-hi heat.
2. In a medium bowl, mix hamburger meat, 2 tbsp barbecue sauce, and ranch packet.
3. Divide the hamburger meat into 4 sections, and pat each section into a patty.
4. There are several ways to cook these burgers: grill, George Foreman grill, oven, or stovetop. I use a small George Foreman on high. So, the patties each cook for 4 minutes. On a regular grill, you'll probably want to cook them about 5 minutes per side. In a 400F oven, cook them for about 15 minutes, and on the stovetop, cook them over medium heat for about 6-8 minutes per side.
5. While the first round of burgers are cooking, add pickles, flour, corn meal, and black pepper to a ziploc bag and shake to thoroughly coat each pickle.
6. Don't forget to check the burger patties if you are having to cook 1 or 2 at a time.
7. Add coated pickles, in batches, to hot oil in the saucepan. Cook each pickle so that it is brown on both sides (about 1.5 minutes per side).
8. Once browned, place the pickles on a paper towel to drain off any oil.
9. In a small bowl, mix sour cream and 2 tbsp barbecue sauce.
10. Heat the buns for 15 seconds in a microwave.
11. Spread the sour cream/barbecue mixture on all of the top and bottom buns.
12. Place a slice of cheddar cheese on the bottom bun.
13. Atop the cheese, place a hamburger patty.
14. Stack 2 onion slices and 4 fried pickles on top of each patty.
15. Top with bun top. Serve with baked beans for a delicious, comforting meal!

Nam! Nam!

Chicken Stir-fry

I'm pretty sure it doesn't get any easier than this homemade dish that easily serves 4! Serve it with an eggroll (found in your grocer's freezer case) and you have a complete Asian-inspired meal. And, hey--there are so many good-for-you ingredients in this one, too! The vegetable mix I used includes broccoli and pea pods, and something else that I'm not sure about!

You need:

1. 1 tbsp vegetable oil
2. 12 oz. package fresh stir-fry veggies (produce section)
3. 1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
4. 1/2 cup sliced purple onion
5. 1 lb. chicken, cut into small pieces
6. 4 cups cooked whole-grain or white rice
7. 1/2 cup orange juice
8. 1/3 cup teriyaki sauce
9. 1 tspn soy sauce
10. 2 squirts of ketchup
11. 1 tspn corn starch

You do:

1. Heat oil in large skillet or saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add vegetables to pan (bell pepper, onion, and stir-fry mix). Cook for 5 minutes, or until veggies are slightly tender. (If you so desire, you can add a can of mini corn, or carrot matchsticks at this point as well.)
3. Add chicken to pan with veggies. Stir frequently and cook about 8 minutes, or until all chicken is cooked.
4. Meanwhile, whisk together orange juice, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, ketchup, and cornstarch.
5. Once chicken is cooked, add juice mixture to pan.
6. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low.
7. Allow mixture to simmer, tossing from time to time, for about 5 minutes.
8. Serve over rice and enjoy!

Nam! Nam!

Balsamic Steak Sandwiches

I got this awesome recipe out of a magazine called Real Simple. It is the greatest magazine that I've ever read for sure! The only thing I changed about this recipe is the bread and the cheese. They suggested blue cheese, which I'm sure is great, but I'm not a fan, so I went for another white cheese--Provolone!

You need:

1. 2 lbs strip steak
2. 1/2 large purple onion, sliced
3. 5 roma tomatoes, sliced
4. 1 tspn salt
5. 1 tspn black pepper
6. 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
7. 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
8. 6 slices provolone cheese
9. 6 sandwich rolls (I use Pepperidge Farm Sesame Seed Buns)

You do:

1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. Line a large cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Be sure the cookie sheet have four sides to keep any liquid from dripping off.
3. Sprinkle the strip steak with 1/2 tspn salt and 1/2 tspn black pepper. Place on one side of the cookie sheet.
4. In a small bowl, mix tomato slices, onion slices, 1/2 tspn salt, 1/2 tspn pepper, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. Be sure to toss the tomatoes lightly, but coat all the vegetables thoroughly with oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.
5. Pour the vegetables out on the opposite side of the cookie sheet. Separate the vegetables so that all of them will get exposure to the heat.
6. Cook the steak and vegetables in the oven for 6 minutes. When removing it from the oven, allow the steak to sit for 5 minutes before cutting.
7. Meanwhile, open sandwich rolls and place them on a clean cookie sheet. Lay a piece of cheese on each roll. Heat in oven about 3 minutes, or until cheese is slightly melted to roll.
8. Slice strip steak into small strips, about 1/2-inch (think fajitas), or thicker if desired.
9. Divide cut steak, and marinated veggies on each roll. Serve with chips, or fries, or a mixed greens salad.

Nam! Nam!

Cran-Orange Chicken

I'm not sure what to say about this...I was surprised at how good it turned out! It has a sweet fruit, an acidic fruit, and aromatic onion. It's just good!

You need:

1. 4 chicken breasts (or 8 tenders)
2. 4 green onion stalks
3. 15 oz can whole cranberry sauce
4. 10 oz can mandarin oranges, drained
5. 1 tspn garlic salt
6. 1/4 tspn salt
7. 1/2 tspn black pepper

You do:

1. Preheat to 350F.
2. If using chicken breasts, cut them as if forming a butterfly, but continue the cut. If using tenders, no cutting is necessary since there are already 8 pieces.
3. Place the chicken between two pieces of saran wrap and beat with a mallet until each piece is about 1/4 inch thick and the thickness is even throughout.
4. Once thinned, sprinkle each piece of chicken with the garlic salt and pepper on both sides.
5. Cut 2 of the green onion stalks into 2 to 3 inch sections so that you get at least sections from each stalk.
6. Place a 2-inch section of the onion on the edge of a chicken piece and roll the chicken up (mush like a crescent roll) around the onion. Place the chicken roll on a lined cookie sheet or glass dish. Repeat this for all 8 pieces of chicken.
7. Place dish with chicken in oven for 15-18 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
8. While chicken is cooking, put oranges in medium bowl. Using a fork, break up the oranges into small pieces.
9. Add the cranberry sauce to the bowl with oranges. And, break up the cranberry sauce with the fork, mixing the oranges in.
10. Add about 1/8 cup of diced green onions to the cranberry-orange sauce if desired.
11. Mix in 1/4 tspn of salt with cran-orange sauce. Cover bowl and refrigerate until serving.
12. Cut the last green onion stalk into 1-2 inch pieces.
13. For the last 3 minutes of cooking the chicken, place the green onion pieces on the dish also so that they can get crispy.
14. When finished cooking, place chicken rolls side by side on a dish (preferrably rectangle). Remove cran-orange sauce from refrigerator and spoon onto the top of chicken. Serve immediately.

Nam! Nam!

Mixed Berry Cobbler

This is the simplest dessert that I've ever made...and, there are so many more great things about it! It makes my house smell wonderful. The ingredients don't spoil, so you can keep the items in the kitchen for the time you can't figure out what to cook, or for the company that just "drops by".

What you need:

1. 16 oz package frozen mixed berries (usually includes blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries)
2. 1/2 cup of water
3. 1 box of butter cake mix
4. 1 1/2 sticks of butter or margarine
5. chopped pecans (optional)
6. ice cream (optional)

What you do:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Empty the berries into a 9x13 dish.
3. Add the water to the dish.
4. Add the cake mix on top of the berries, making sure to get it somewhat even throughout the dish. I use the back of a spoon to even it out.
5. Thinly slice the sticks of butter and place them on top of the cake mix.
6. Place in oven for 60 minutes or until cake mix is brown and fruit is bubbly. If you choose to use the pecans, sprinkle them on the top for the last 10 minutes of cook time.
7. Serve hot with ice cream on top. If I use pecans on the cobbler, I serve it with Vanilla Bean ice cream. If I omit the pecans, I serve it with Buttered Pecan ice cream (this is my favorite).

This is great, even leftover!

Nam! Nam!

Appetizer

This was dubbed simply "appetizer" by my younger sister, who loves it anytime!

You need:

1. 8 oz. bar 1/3 less fat cream cheese
2. tube of 4 crescent rolls
3. ~3 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
4. 1 egg yolk, beaten
5. crackers

You do:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Unroll the crescent rolls and lay them flat on a clean counter.
3. Pinch all of the seams together so that the roll dough is one piece.
4. Place the block of cream cheese in the center of the roll dough.
5. Generously cover the top of the cream cheese with dill. I would estimate that I use about 2 tbsp.
6. Pull the dough up over the cream cheese block and pinch the seams together so that there are no holes.
7. Lightly brush the top of the bread with some of the egg yolk.
8. Sprinkle some dill on the top for color.
9. Place appetizer on cookie sheet or glass dish and cook for 12-14 minutes (or until golden brown).
10. Serve warm with crackers.

Nam! Nam!

Caribbean Chicken with Pineapple Salsa

This dish is yummy and full of flavor. And, well...it's colorful to boot!

You'll need:

1. 1/4 cup Caribbean Jerk sauce or marinade
2. 1/4 cup cider vinegar
3. 1-1/2 cups orange juice
4. 10-12 chicken tenders or 4 chicken breasts
5. 1 package saffron rice
6. 15 oz. can of black beans
7. small can of pineapple tidbits (I think it's 8 or 10 oz)
8. 1/4 cup scallions, chopped

You'll do:

1. Coat a large teflon coated pan with cooking spray.
2. Heat pan to medium heat.
3. Place chicken in pan and cook on each side for 6-8 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
4. Meanwhile, bring 2-1/4 cups of water to a boil in a boiler and add rice. Cover and cook for 20 minutues.
5. In a small bowl, mix jerk sauce, vinegar, and orange juice.
6. Once chicken is cooked through, reduce heat to low-simmer. Add juice mixture to the pan with chicken. Cover pan and allow to simmer 20 minutes, turning once.
7. Meanwhile, drain juice from pineapples.
8. Mix pineapples with scallions in a small bowl and refrigerate until serving.
9. Drain black beans and rinse with cold water.
10. Once rice is cooked, mix rice with beans in a large bowl.
11. Serve chicken on top of rice and beans. Spoon a couple tablespoons of juice from pan on top of chicken. Add pineapple salsa to the top and serve.

MaMaw's Chicken Salad Sandwiches

This recipe can be adapted for simplicity and health!

What you'll need:

1. 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded or diced
2. 1/4 cup dill pickles, chopped
3. 2 boiled eggs, diced
4. 2 tbsp mayonnaise
5. 8 slices wheat toast

What you'll do:

1. Mix the chicken, pickles, eggs, and mayonnaise in a medium-sized bowl.
2. Spread the mixture equally on 4 pieces of toast. Top with remaining pieces of toast.

For speed/simplicity: Use boiled chicken, rotisserie chicken, or canned shredded chicken. Instead of diced pickles, use dill relish, and buy the eggs already boiled in the produce department of upscale grocery stores. These pre-made ingredients make this a very quick meal!

For lower fat: Omit the egg yolks, and use light mayonnaise or miracle whip.

Serve with chips and fruit.

Nam! Nam!

S'mores Cups

Alright...I dreamed these up after having a S'mores milkshake and loving it. Knowing that milkshakes are impossible to transport to BCS championship parties (or any other party, for that matter), I came up with a non-frozen variety. And, well...it's darn good! I made these in single serving cups, but this can also be made as one dish in a trifle bowl. This recipe makes 10 servings, but easy to scale up or down as you wish. If you want to make this in a trifle bowl, you will need to double the recipe, to make a total of 20 servings.

You'll need:

1. 5.9 oz box of chocolate instant pudding mix
2. 3 cups milk
3. 10 tbsp graham cracker crumbs, plus some for sprinkling
4. Dark chocolate bar, just regular size
5. miniature marshmallows
6. 2.5 sheets of graham crackers (broken into 10 rectangle pieces)
7. 10 9oz clear cups, or your preference for serving dishes

You'll do:

1. Preheat oven to broil Hi.
2. Make pudding according to package directions (most brands use 3 cups of milk, whisking for 2 minutes) and then refrigerate.
3. Line the bottom of each cup with a tbsp of graham cracker crumbs.
4. With a large knife, cut chocolate bar into very small pieces.
5. Remove pudding from refrigerator. Mix chocolate pieces into pudding.
6. Add about 3 tbsp of pudding to each cup, atop the graham cracker crumbs.
7. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper.
8. Place marshmallows on wax paper in clusters of 5-6.
9. Put pan in preheated oven for 30 seconds to brown tops of marshmallows.
10. Let marshmallows cool about 10 minutes before trying to remove them.
11. Lightly dust each pudding cup with graham cracker crumbs.
12. Break each graham cracker rectangle into 2 equal pieces and place on opposite sides of the pudding cup so that they are mostly sticking out of the pudding.
13. With a clean, non-stick spatula, remove each cluster of marshmallows from the wax paper and place on the top of pudding.
14. Serve immediately, or chill for up to 4 hours. If you want to make this ahead of time, just wait until the last minute to add the graham cracker pieces to the top--everything else can be done 1-2 days in advance.

Nam! Nam!

Pigs in a Blanket

I realize these are traditional pigs in blankets--nothing special. But, I figure there might be someone out there who doesn't know exactly what to make them with. And, well, they are one of my fave tailgate foods...

You'll need:

1. 1 package lil' smokies
2. 3 large packages refrigerated crescent rolls

You'll do:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Open first package of crescent rolls and separate dough at perforations. Lay 1 dough triangle on cutting board and cut into 3 pieces with a pizza cutter. I cut them into 3 smaller triangles, but experiment and use what works best for you!
3. Once cut into pieces, lay a lil' smoky on one end of a cut dough piece, and roll so that the dough wraps completely around the sausage.
4. Place each pig in a blanket on a cookie sheet with the exposed end on the bottom.
5. Cook on 350F for 8-10 minutes, or until golden brown. (Consult the crescent roll package cooking instructions for exact cooking time)
6. Serve immediately.

Nam! Nam!

Pinwheels

This appetizer recipe takes a few ingredients, most you would keep in your kitchen on a normal basis. And, it makes a huge tray of pinwheels--great for a low cost, yummy filler.

You'll need:

1. 10-12 10" tortillas (10 is usually plenty, but you may want a couple extras just in case)
2. 8 oz bar of 1/3 less fat cream cheese
3. 8 oz reduced fat sour cream (fat free is usually a little too runny)
4. 8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
5. 3 green onion stalks
6. 1 tspn garlic powder (you may want to split this to 1/2 tspn garlic salt and 1/2 tspn garlic powder if you want some more salt flavor)

You'll do:

1. Mix cream cheese and sour cream with mixer.
2. Add shredded cheddar, green onions and garlic seasoning. Mix well with mixer.
3. Lay a tortilla flat on clean countertop. Drop a heaping teaspoon of mixture and thinly spread over entire tortilla with back of spoon. Be sure to get as close to the edge as possible.
4. Beginning at one side of the tortilla, roll tightly into a cylinder (about the shape of a taquito).
5. Repeat until all mixture is used.
6. Wrap rolled tortillas in saran wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours. I make these a day ahead of the event I'm using them for, and just refrigerate overnight. Remember that the mixture will be good for as long as the sour cream would have been--that's the quickest thing to spoil of all the ingredients. I wouldn't recommend keeping them more than a couple days, just because the tortillas may get soggy (I've never tried keeping them that long before cutting).
7. Remove tortillas from saran wrap.
8. Place 1st rolled tortilla on cutting board and cut into slices, discarding ends where cheese mixture is missing or not plentiful. I cut them to probably about 1/3-1/4 inch slices, and I've never paid attention to how many slices come from each tortilla.
9. Slice remaining rolled tortillas.
10. Arrange on serving dish and serve with salsa or gaucamole.

Nam! Nam!

Breakfast Brownies

Their name may be decieving because they have no sugar, or cocoa, or anything else you would expect from a brownie. However, they have the shape of a brownie, and thanks to Alex for giving them a name for me! Because, let's face it--breakfast casserole is just plain boring! These are great--you prepare the mix ahead of time, so that all you have to do in the morning is throw them in the oven. They include oodles of protein and a little big of vegetable. Serve them with some pancakes, biscuits, or just by themselves for a yummy wake-up call!

You'll need:

1. 12 oz summer sausage (can substitute kielbasa, ham, bacon, or turkey sausage)
2. 1/2 medium sized white or yellow onion, chopped
3. 6 large eggs (only use 5 if you have extra-large)
4. 8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
5. 2 heaping tbsp of baking mix (such as bisquick)
6. 1-1/2 cup milk
7. 1/4 tspn salt
8. 1/4 tspn pepper
9. 1 tspn parsley (optional)

You'll do:

1. Chop sausage into small, bite-size pieces.
2. Cook meat and onion in skillet on med heat until onion is tender and meat is slightly browned, about 6-8 minutes.
3. In bowl, add eggs and slightly beat with whisk.
4. Add remaining 6 ingredients to the eggs, and stir just until mixed.
5. Transfer cooked meat mixture to plate lined with paper towels to drain of any grease.
6. Lightly grease or spray a 9x13" dish (such as pyrex).
7. Add meat mixture to dish.
8. Pour egg mixture over meat in dish.
9. Stir until just mixed.
10. Cover and place in a refrigerator for 8-12 hours.
11. Preheat oven to 350F.
12. Cook covered for 45 minutes.
13. Uncover and cook for another 15 minutes. Edges should be brown and middle should be firm when shaken.
14. Remove from oven and allow to sit for about 10 minutes.
15. Slice and serve immediately. (makes about 20 servings)

This is even good re-heated in the microwave. Place slice on microwave plate, cover, and heat 20 seconds on each side.

Nam! Nam!

Tangy Baked Chicken Tenders

I love chicken fingers, but the deep-fried version keeps my thighs looking way to healthy! So, these are a much lighter version, still full of flavor!

You'll need:

1. 6 chicken breast tenders (I used tyson)
2. 1 tbsp marinade (dale's low sodium for me)
3. 2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
4. Lemon pepper (use as much of this as you would like--I probably sprinkle in about a teaspoon or so)

You'll do:

1. Defrost chicken tenders in large ziploc bag.
2. Add marinade, sauce, and lemon pepper to bag with chicken. Allow to sit in refrigerator for 30 minutes (or up to 8 hours, if you want to marinade it in the morning before work).
3. Preheat oven to 350F.
4. Arrange tenders in pyrex dish or on lined cookie sheet.
5. Pierce each tender 2-3 times with fork so that the marinade can infuse while cooking.
6. Cook at 350 for approximately 8-10 minutes on each side (cooking times vary based on your oven. check chicken for doneness by inserting a fork or knife, if the utensil goes in smooth with no resistance, chicken is done.)
7. Serve as finger food or with forks!

Nam! Nam!

Garlic Steak

This is a recipe using a fairly cheap cut of beef, London broil, and serving it sliced. Very yummy, economical, and quick! You can't beat that!

You'll need:

1. 1.5 lb London broil
2. 2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
3. 2 tbsp marinade (such as dale's)
4. 1 tspn diced garlic from a jar (if fresh, use 2 tspn)
5. salt and pepper

You'll do:

1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. Line a shallow pan or cookie sheet with foil.
3. Mix sauce and marinade in small bowl.
4. Place meat on lined pan.
5. Sprinkle meat lightly with salt and pepper on both sides.
6. Drizzle sauce mixture over meat, and spread it with the back of a spoon.
7. Sprinkle garlic over meat, again spreading it with the back of a spoon.
8. Place in oven, and cook until desired doneness (15-18 min for medium-rare).
9. Transfer meat to cutting board and allow to sit for 10 minutes.
10. Slice meat on an angle, and serve with sides.

Pictured with loaded mashed potatoes and marinated tomatoes and onions. (see other blogs for those recipes)

Enjoy!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

This needs no introduction...

You'll need:

1. 2 tbsp extra vigin olive oil
2. 1 cup onion, chopped
3. 1 cup carrots, sliced
4. 1 cup celery, sliced
5. 3 tspn minced garlic, from a jar (if fresh, use 5-6 tspn)
6. 2 tbsp flour
7. 1/2 tspn oregano
8. 1 tspn thyme
9. 1/4 tspn poultry seasoning
10. 64 oz chicken broth
11. 1/2 a rotisserie chicken (portion of dark and portion of light meat), diced or shredded
12. 6 oz egg noodles
13. Salt, optional (I don't use salt because the poultry seasoning and chicken usually have enough salt for my liking)

You'll do:

1. Heat oil over medium-high heat in large pot.
2. Add onion, celery, carrots, and garlic and sautee for about 5 minutes.
3. Add flour and seasonings, mix well.
4. Just after stirring in spices and flour, add chicken broth (and salt if desired).
5. Allow soup to reach a boil and then reduce heat to low.
6. Cook for 15 minutes, cover and cook 15 more minutes.
7. Add chicken and egg noodles, and cook another 15 minutes (or until noodles are tender).

Serve with cheese toast or grilled cheese and gobble it up!

Enjoy!

Scuppernong Pork Chops

This was purely experimental because I was out of barbecue sauce. And, well, it turned out deee-licious! Even has a sweet flavor, so you can skip the dessert!

You'll need:

1. 4 pork chops (I like the bone-in, but you can use boneless)
2. 12 oz jar of scuppernong jelly (substitute any light-colored jelly you wish, such as apple)
3. 1/4 cup of barbecue sauce
4. Salt and pepper, to taste

You'll do:

1. Mix jelly and barbecue sauce in a small bowl.
2. Place pork chops in a large, shallow dish, like a 9"x13" pyrex.
3. Sprinkle both sides of chops with salt and pepper.
4. Pour jelly mixture over chops. Flip chops in order to coat both sides with jelly mixture.
5. Allow to marinade in fridge for 2-10 hours.
6. Preheat oven to 350F.
7. Cook pork chops for 15-20 minutes, or until done completely through.
8. Serve hot, with side dishes. Pictured with fresh steamed green beans and a baked potato.

Enjoy!

Sausage Balls

This are great to prepare as a filling appetizer! And, only have 3 total ingredients. Yep--THREE!

You'll need:

1. 1 pound mild or hot ground sausage (such as Jimmy Dean)
2. 7 or 8 oz bag of sharp cheddar cheese
3. 2 cups baking mix (such as Bisquick)

You'll do:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a bowl.
3. Spray cookie sheet with non-stick spray or line with foil.
4. Pinch off pieces of mix and roll between palms to form a ball (they will expand slightly during cooking).
5. Place sausage balls on pan, about an inch apart.
6. Bake for 15 minutes on 350 F.

Yields 35 sausage balls, each about 1.5 inches in diameter. You can make these smaller or larger depending on your preference.

Enjoy!!

Taco Soup

This makes a huge pot of soup. You can serve it to a lot of guests, or store it frozen for up to a month! Also, great for tailgating on a cool fall day. Serve alone, or with cheese quesadillas for a more filling meal.

You'll need:

1. 1 pound of ground chuck (or substitute shredded chicken)
2. 2 cans whole kernel corn, drain
3. 14.5 oz can pinto beans, NOT drained
4. 14.5 oz can light red kidney beans, drained
5. 1 can original rotel
6. 14.5 oz can stewed tomatoes or tomato sauce
7. half a yellow onion, chopped
8. 2 packets taco seasoning
9. water

You'll do:

1. Brown ground chuck in large pot. (if using chicken, skip this step)
2. Drain meat, wipe out pot with paper towel, and return meat to pot.
3. Add taco seasoning packets.
4. Add corn, pinto beans, kidney beans, rotel, tomato sauce, and onion to pot.
5. Fill tomato can with water and empty into pot. Repeat.
6. Mix in pot.
7. Cover and simmer on medium-low heat, for at least an hour.

Enjoy!

White Chocolate Snowballs

I call these snowballs because I made them for the first time during the Christmas season. Really, though, you can make them anytime...but, they do look great in a red bowl! This is a simple, no bake recipe. All you'll dirty up are 2 bowls, spatula and measuring cup!!

You'll need:

1. 1-1/4 cups rice krispies (or any other rice cereal brand)
2. 1-1/4 cups peanut butter captain crunch (don't scrimp here--get the namebrand)
3. 1-1/4 cups marshmallows
4. 1-1/4 cups honey roasted peanuts
5. 24 oz white chocolate almond bark

You'll do:

1. empty white chocolate into a glass mixing bowl and place in a 200 degree oven.
2. meanwhile, mix all dry ingredients in bowl.
3. white chocolate will take about 30-45 minutes to completely melt.
4. once melted, pour white chocolate over dry ingredients and mix well will a spatula.
5. drop spoonfuls of mix onto white chocolate.
6. allow to cool to room temperature in order to harden.
7. place on a pretty tray or in a bowl and serve to guests!

Enjoy!