Monday, July 30, 2012

Karalee's Spinach Pasta Salad


Here is another favorite from Karalee, that I am anxious to try.

Karalee's Spinach Pasta Salad
From the kitchen of Karalee Dobbs
Dressing:
½ c. vegetable oil
1 c. teriyaki sauce marinade
2/3 c. white vinegar
6 T. sugar
½ t. salt and pepper
Mix all dressing ingredients together. 

Combine:
16 oz. bow tie pasta (cooked and drained)
2-3 c. diced cooked chicken (optional)
1 bunch green onions chopped fine
Pour dressing over the above ingredients and marinate for 2-3 hours or all day ( I prefer all day.)

Just before serving add:
2 cans mandarin oranges (drained)
1 pkg.  fresh spinach (chopped)
6 oz. peanuts
6 oz. craisins

This makes the large Tupperware bowl full.  Just guessing, but probably 15-20 servings.  Great for parties where you need to bring a large salad.  I get lots of people asking for the recipe as it is different.

Karalee's Bowtie Pasta Chicken Salad


Karalee brought this salad to the Whiteley Picnic in June.  It was very good.  

Karalee's Bowtie Pasta Chicken Salad
From the kitchen of Karalee Dobbs
Chicken breasts - boiled w/salt pepper & onion (About 4 cups chicken cooked and diced)
4 cups (16 oz. bag bowtie shaped pasta) Cook 12 minutes, still a little firm. (I prefer the mini bow tie pasta.)

Combine:
2 - 8 oz. jars (Kraft or Hidden Valley) Cole Slaw Dressing
1 ½ t. salt
¼ t. pepper
4 T. green onions (optional)
2 c. mayonnaise
2 dashes thyme
2 pinches ginger
    mix with chicken and pasta and refrigerate overnight

Before serving add:
2 c. diced celery
4 c. red seedless grapes cut in half
4 c. unpeeled diced red apples
2 - 20 oz  cans Dole pineapple tidbits (drained)
1 ½ c. silvered almonds

Makes a LARGE salad.  Fills a large Tupperware bowl.
Serves 20-25

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Cake Mix Add Ins.....

My nephew, Josh turned 21 on July 4th. My sister, Kristen called me and asked me if I would make him a birthday cake, since they were in the middle of moving and then coming here for the Atkinson Reunion.  She told me he wanted chocolate  fudge cake with chocolate ice cream filling and chocolate frosting, now that's a triple chocolate cake for sure.  Well, as I was getting ready to make the frosting Kristen called to say Josh would not be coming with them after all.  So, I decided I would just save the cake for Katie's birthday on the 7th.  Well, since that was the last day of the reunion I thought afterwards we could come home and celebrate  with cake because I couldn't take an ice cream cake up there because it wouldn't fit in my freezer.  But that afternoon Katie told me she had to leave shortly because her friends were taking her somewhere for a birthday surprise.  By this time the cake had her name on it and everything!  Well yesterday (July 18th) was Kasey's birthday, so I scraped off the "tie" from Katie and added "sey" and it became KASEY's cake.  And this time we finally ate it!  It was very yummy!  Lately it seems that cake mix cakes are really small and flat.  Marcia had recently told me how her niece adds extra ingredients to her cakes.  So I decided to try it  and see if I could make it a taller cake.  It worked out perfectly!!  Here is what I did......

Cake Mix Add Ins
1 cake mix and the ingredients listed on the package
then add:
1 additional egg
1 c. sugar
1 c. flour
1 c. sour cream
Mix as directed.  It will take about 10 to 15 minutes longer to bake.

ANOTHER VERSION.......
1 cake mix
then add 1 or 2 more eggs than the box says
Replace the oil with melted butter & double the amount
Replace the water with the same amount of milk

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Recipe to make your bathtub SHINE!!!

This might not sound too exciting....but it sure is to me.  When we remodeled in 2009 we did not put a new bathtub in even though I would liked to have.  I had a hard time justifying a new tub just because the old one wasn't shiny any more.  I have tried every possible remedy from cleaning books, on the internet, and anything else I could find.  But as soon as my tub was dry.....it was not shiny.  Even though it was clean it was not shiny and to me it just doesn't seem really clean if it isn't shiny!!   Have you figured out that shiny is kinda important to me??? Here is the recipe that worked the magic......
To make tubs and sinks shine, use a lemon dipped in borax. Rub the lemon with the borax on the tub and sink. Rinse when done for a sparkling shine.

Read more: How to Make a Bathroom Shine | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2307649_make-bathroom-shine.html#ixzz1zbjtreq4

I suggest you wear rubber gloves and it did say if you don't have a lemon lemon juice would work.  I used 1 lemon and about 1/4 c. borax for 1 tub and 3 sinks.


Here are a few more ideas it gave for a shiny bathroom.

  • To remove soap scum build up from sinks and tubs use a cloth soaked in white vinegar. Wipe down the tub and sink with the vinegar, then use a different cloth and baking soda. Rub the baking soda all over the tub and sink. Rinse the tub and sink with water.
  • To clean a toilet, pour some vinegar in the toilet bowl and allow to sit for five minutes. Flush the toilet. If there are stubborn stains, pour the vinegar into the toilet bowl and scrub with a toilet brush.
  • To remove calcium build up on faucets, take some tissue paper soaked in white vinegar and wrap it around the faucet for two hours. Remove the tissue and rinse with water for a clean and shiny faucet.
  • To bring out the shine in a faucet, rub flour on the faucet with a dry cloth. Dust off the flour with a different cloth and the faucet will shine. Some people find that vacuuming works better for removing the dust.
  • Read more: How to Make a Bathroom Shine | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2307649_make-bathroom-shine.html#ixzz1zbkPBb8n

    Lacey Making Teddy Bear Cookies