Tuesday, January 2, 2018

Karla's Favorite Recipes of 2017

Karla’s Favorite Recipes of 2017!!!  Happy New Year!!!

On our cruise they had this amazing Mustard Vinaigrette salad dressing. Marjorie (our waitress) told me it was made with Dijon Mustard, lemon juice, salad dressing/mayonnaise, salt & pepper.  So I came home and experimented a little.  This is what I came up with.
Creamy Mustard Vinaigrette
1 c. miracle whip or mayonnaise
3 T. mustard (I prefer regular mustard or 1/2 Dijon & 1/2 regular)
1/4 c. honey
1/4 c. apple cider vinegar
2-3 T. lemon juice
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 t. paprika
Stir well. Chill. Drizzle over your favorite salad greens or use as a vegetable dip.

Makes a delicious sandwich on a homemade bun, serve over rice, wrap in a tortilla, sprinkle over a salad, or eat it plain.
BBQ Shredded Chicken
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
seasonings to taste (I use....salt, pepper, garlic & onion powder, season salt)
1 c. BBQ sauce
1/4 c. Italian dressing
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
Place chicken in crock pot and sprinkle generously with salt & pepper, garlic powder, & season salt.
Once chicken has cooked....shred it.  I use my electric hand mixer to shred my chicken.  Does a great job!!  I leave the broth in the chicken as it keeps it moist and tasty!
Stir together the remaining ingredients and pour over the chicken. Heat through in the crock pot.  Serve.

If you are a chocolate lover.....here is my Favorite Chocolate Frosting.  It works nicely for decorating or frosting or thin it for a great glaze.
CHOCOLATE FROSTING
2 c. semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 c. butter, cubed
1 c. sour cream
4-1/2 to 6 c. confectioners' sugar (Depending on how thick you want it to be)
1/4 t. salt
1/2 t. vanilla
Place butter and chocolate chips in small glass bowl, microwave at 60% power, stirring every 45 seconds until smooth and melted. Transfer to mixer bowl; cool for 5 minutes. Stir in sour cream. Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar , add salt & vanilla and beat until smooth.  Spread between layers and over top and sides of cake.
**Thin with water or milk to make a great glaze.  I keep this in the fridge all the time, it is great on anything that needs a chocolate finish.

We went to the Kona Grill for dinner.  They serve seasonal vegetables and we sure enjoyed their Sautéed Zucchini & Corn.  Here’s my version.  Steve loves it....maybe you will too?!
SAUTEED ZUCCHINI AND CORN
Place a tablespoon of butter in large shallow pan.
Stir in 2 or 3 finely diced small zucchini and 2 or 3 cups of corn (fresh or frozen).
Sauté over medium heat, once vegetables are mostly cooked stir in 1 cup of bacon pieces.
Season with salt & pepper.


A great banana bread recipe baked with a cinnamon sugar topping!  I like to triple this recipe and fill up the oven!!
BANANA ZUCCHINI BREAD
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. oil or butter
1 medium overripe banana
2 eggs
1/2 c. sour milk (add 1 T. vinegar or lemon juice or buttermilk)
1 t. vanilla
1/4 t. salt
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cinnamon
2 c. all purpose flour
1 c. shredded zucchini
Beat together:  sugar  & oil. Add banana, eggs, milk, & vanilla and mix well.  Add salt, cinnamon, baking soda and flour, mix until slightly lumpy.
Stir in zucchini. Pour into sprayed loaf pan.  Sprinkle batter with additional sugar & cinnamon (about 1/4 c. total)
Bake at 350 for 35-50 minutes until done.
Cool 10 minutes before removing loaf from pan.

We had the best Tomato Basil Soup in Idaho Falls. I decided I need to make this for our Garden Club Tomato Night.  So I set out to duplicate the recipe. I made it in my Instant Pot and it worked out great to keep it warm and to serve from.  Everyone loved it!
Instant Pot Tomato Basil Soup
1 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 to 4  cloves garlic, minced
2 to 3  T. butter
1 t. salt
½ t. pepper
2 t. dried basil or 1/4 c. fresh basil
2 bay leaves (optional)
2 cans (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes or 6 fresh tomatoes, diced
4 cups chicken broth
½ cup heavy cream or whipping cream
2 T. regular clear jel (cornstarch could work too)
Using the sauté setting of the instant pot or electric pressure cooker, sauté the onion, celery, carrots and garlic in butter for about 5 minutes.
Add the salt, pepper and basil, and sauté for 1-2 minutes more.
Turn off heat, add bay leaves, tomatoes and chicken broth, and stir.
Secure the lid and cook the vegetable mixture using the soup setting, or cook for 15 minutes at high pressure.  Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes, then manually release remaining pressure. Remove the lid.  Remove the bay leaves.  Puree the soup using an immersion blender.
Stir together the cream and clear jel and add to the soup mixture, stir until well blended.  Taste and adjust seasonings as desired.


I made these for our Sturgeon fishing trip this fall.  This recipe is a keeper!!
MAKE AHEAD BREAKFAST ENCHILADAS
1 1/2 c. half & half milk
5 large eggs
1/2 t. salt
1 ½ T. flour
2 ½ c. ham, diced
1/2 c. green onions, chopped
2 1/2 c. cheddar cheese, grated & divided
12- 8" flour tortillas
Toppings:  salsa, sour cream, & extra green onions or cilantro for garnish
Whisk together:  milk, eggs, salt & flour.  Pour a little of this liquid (enough to cover the bottom) in a sprayed 9x13 pan and set aside the rest.
Mix together:  ham, green onions & 2 c. cheese.  Scoop 1/3 c. of this onto tortilla and roll up and place in pan. Pour the remaining egg mixture over the top of the enchiladas.  Cover & refrigerate overnight to allow the tortillas to absorb the egg mixture.
In the morning.....Bake at 350 for 35 to 45 minutes, until the egg mixture looks cooked and tortillas are golden brown. Top with the remaining ½ c. grated cheese the last 10 minutes of baking.
Serve with the toppings of your choice.


I had a couple jars of apple pie filling that did not seal. So, I came up with this recipe.  Then I started making them with fresh apple slices and they worked out well too.
Apple Crisp......Fruit Crisp
42 oz. Apple Pie Filling (Or any fruit filling you like) **
Topping
1 c. flour
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. old fashioned oats
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
3/4 c. melted margarine
1/4 c. chopped pecans
Spray a 9 inch square or round baking dish and dump in the pie filling.
Mix together the remaining ingredients to make topping, and sprinkle over the pie filling.
Bake at 375 for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown.

**If using fresh apple slices instead of pie filling prepare this.
6 c. peeled & sliced apples
1 c. sugar
2 T. flour
1/4 t. salt
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg
Mix together the dry ingredients and then stir in the apple slices.  Use this in place of the apple pie filling. Proceed with the topping and bake as directed above.

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