Lily's Sweet Thanksgiving Card

 

I got the cutest surprise in the mail.  My granddaughter, Lily sent me a darling Thanksgiving card with a recipe she created in it.  Lily loves to cook and she is very creative.  Her sister has celiac disease, so can't have gluten.  Lily has made it her mission to create gluten-free recipes that the whole family can enjoy. How I love my Lily!

Beautiful 12-year-old Lily Kay

Tomatoes, Tomatoes, Tomatoes!

We have a bumper crop of tomatoes this year.  Following are three things I like to make when we have abundant tomatoes:  

Nectar of the Gods (Tomato/ Basil Soup)  Find the recipe here: http://hungryhintons.blogspot.com/2010/09/nectar-of-gods.html

I freeze this soup in quart bottles or bags BEFORE I put in the cream or milk.  Then when we use, it we add the milk.  We did a dozen quarts the other day.

Garden in a Bowl Salsa  Find the recipe here:  

http://hungryhintons.blogspot.com/2011/08/garden-in-bowl-salsa.html

A delicious fresh salsa with a secret ingredient!

And last the best of all the game, Summer Tomatoes.  Find the recipe here:

http://hungryhintons.blogspot.com/2010/09/summer-tomatoes.html

This is SO SO good.  

So, just in case you also have more tomatoes than you can eat, here are some recipes you can try.

Lemon Blossoms Recipe courtesy Paula Deen Prep Time:12 minInactive Prep Time:1 hr 0 minCook Time:12 min Level: Easy Serves: 5 dozen Ingredients 18 1/2-ounce package yellow cake mix 3 1/2-ounce package instant lemon pudding mix 4 large eggs 3/4 cup vegetable oil Glaze: 4 cups confectioners' sugar 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 1 lemon, zested 3 tablespoons vegetable oil 3 tablespoons water Directions Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray miniature muffin tins with vegetable oil cooking spray. Combine the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs and oil and blend well with an electric mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes. Pour a small amount of batter, filling each muffin tin half way. Bake for 12 minutes. Turn out onto a tea towel To make the glaze, sift the sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice, zest, oil, and 3 tablespoons water. Mix with a spoon until smooth. With fingers, dip the cupcakes into the glaze while they're still warm, covering as much of the cake as possible, or spoon the glaze over the warm cupcakes, turning them to completely coat. Place on wire racks with waxed paper underneath to catch any drips. Let the glaze set thoroughly, about 20 minutes. I've also made these with chocolate cake mix and pudding with a vanilla glaze. Yummy!

Easy Cheesy Rolls

I got this recipe from the Worldwide Ward Cookbook. These are easy and go great with spaghetti. I've altered the recipe slightly from the original. Easy Cheesy Rolls 2-3 T.butter, melted 2 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese (the kind in the green can) 1 Tbsp. dried basil and 1 T. olive oil OR Pesto sauce (I had some from Costco) 1 tsp garlic powder Grated cheese, any kind 1 pkg. Pillsbury Grands Biscuits In a bowl, combine melted butter, Parmesan cheese, dried basil or pesto, and garlic powder. Mix shredded cheeses in a separate bowl. Remove biscuits from can and separate into individual biscuits. Flatten each biscuit slightly and put some cheese in the center of each biscuit and fold the dough around the cheese to form a ball. Pinch the dough together to seal the cheese inside. Roll each ball of dough in the melted butter mixture and place on a baking sheet. if there is any left over butter mixture, spoon it on top of the rolls on the baking sheet, Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes until rolls are golden brown. Makes 8 rolls.

Chunky Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients: 2 bottles or cans spaghetti sauce (your choice), 1 14-0z.can crushed tomatoes, 1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes, 1 can tomato paste, 1 large green pepper- diced, 1 onion- chopped, 1/2 lb. ground beef, 3-4 T. worcestershire sauce, 4-5 mild Italian sausages, 3-4 T. Italian Seasoning, Garlic to taste- crushed or minced, 2-4 T. sugar, 8 oz. mushrooms-sliced, 1 can olives- drained and sliced (see note below), 2 cans or jars artichoke hearts (total about 28 oz.)-drained, Parmesan cheese for topping In a saucepan, bring sausages to a boil in water. Boil for about 10 minutes. Drain and set out to cool. While cooling, start browning ground beef, onion, and worcestershire sauce in a large skillet. When cool enough to handle, chop the sausages and add to ground beef. Brown all well. Drain and put in crock pot. Add sauces, tomatoes, tomato paste, green pepper, garlic and seasonings. Stir and cook on low several hours. An hour or two before serving, add the mushrooms, artichoke hearts and olives. Serve over pasta of choice with grated parmesan cheese. Makes a lot- can freeze leftovers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *To slice olives, drain, then using an old knife you don't care about, put the knife right in the can and chop back and forth until olives are chopped. This is lots easier than chasing them around on a cutting board.

Halloween Soup

Our family tradition for Halloween is to have this soup with pumpkin bread or pumpkin muffins. It is a recipe that has evolved over the years, but one that I've made literally since the beginning of our marriage- probably the only one that I still make. I just kind of throw it together- no measuring, but this is my best guess: ½ lb. Hamburger, cooked with 1 chopped onion Put drained meat and onion in a crockpot with: 2 cans diced tomatoes 2 T.Better Than Bullion in 4 cups hot water (beef and can add ham flavored) Put whatever of the following you want: 1 cup Carrots- chopped, 1 cup potatoes-diced,1yellow squash-chopped,2 ribs celery w/tops-chopped,1/4 head cabbage-chopped fine, seasoning salt to taste, 3 T. sugar, salt and pepper,1 bay leaf,1/2tsp basil,1/2tsp thyme, Mrs. Dash, Mrs. Dash w/ garlic, v-8, Add later: can of green beans, can of corn, pearl barley or rice

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Soup Season! My favorite season of the year. This is a very delicious version of Chicken Tortilla Soup: . . . .. . . .. . . .. 2 T. butter, 1/2 cup chopped bell peppers, 1 cup chopped onion, 1 tsp. cumin, 1 1/2 quarts chicken broth or stock (or I like to do 1 quart stock and 2 cups chicken broth made with BTB), 1 3/4 cup chunky sala, 1 cup frozen petite white corn, 1 can black beans,drained, 3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded OR 1 whole roasted chicken (like from Costco)deboned and shredded, Tortilla strips or chips, . .. . . Garnishes for topping the soup: Cilantro, sour cream, avocado, lime juice . . . . .. . . .. . . . . .. . . .. . . . . .. . . . .. . . Melt butter in large sauce pan. Add green pepper, onion, and cumin. Simmer until tender. Stir in broth, salsa, corn, and beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and cook for a few minutes. Add chicken. Heat through. Ladel into bowls and top with tortilla strips. Add garnishes of your choice. The lime juice is delicious.

Loaded Baked Potato Pizza

This recipe won the "main dish dinner" category for the Pillsbury Bake-off. We tried it the other night and really liked it. It does taste like a loaded baked potato. Loaded Baked Potato Pizza -- Serves: 6 servings Ingredients: 1 can (13.8 oz) Pillsbury(r) refrigerated classic pizza crust 1 medium white potato 1 tablespoon CRISCO(r) Pure Olive Oil 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1 box (10 oz) Green Giant(r) frozen broccoli and cheese sauce 2/3 cup sour cream 1 tablespoon ranch dressing 1 cup shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese blend (4 oz) 5 slices cooked bacon, coarsely chopped 1 small tomato, seeded, chopped (1/2 cup) 2 medium green onions, chopped (2 tablespoons) Directions: Directions Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray large cookie sheet with CRISCO(r) Original No-Stick Cooking Spray. Unroll pizza crust dough on cookie sheet; press dough into 13x9-inch rectangle. Bake 10 to 13 minutes or until crust is light golden brown. Remove from oven; set aside. Meanwhile, pierce potato with fork; place on microwavable paper towel in microwave oven. Microwave 4 to 5 minutes, turning once, until tender. Cover; let stand 5 minutes. When potato is cool enough to handle, peel potato and cut into 1/4-inch cubes (1 cup). In small bowl, mix potato, oil, salt and pepper; set aside. Cook broccoli in microwave as directed on box. Empty from pouch into another small bowl to cool slightly; set aside. In another small bowl, mix sour cream and ranch dressing. Spread mixture over pizza crust to within 1/2-inch of edges of crust. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the cheese evenly over sour cream mixture. Sprinkle with bacon. Spread broccoli mixture and potato mixture evenly over bacon. Sprinkle tomato, onions and remaining 1/2 cup cheese evenly over potato mixture. Bake 15 to 22 minutes longer or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

Pizza Casserole

This is a yummy way to use leftover roast. Ken, who doesn't really like macaroni, loves this. The picture shows rigatoni, but I just used elbow macaroni. I'm sure any kind would work. 1 1 ½ cups cubed leftover roast OR ½ lb ground beef 2 cups macaroni, cooked and drained 1 32 oz. jar spaghetti sauce 1 8 oz. pkg. shredded mozzarella cheese Parmesan cheese, grated Pepperoni, diced Black olives, chopped . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brown the ground beef (if you’re using that) or cut up roast. Combine with cooked macaroni and spaghetti sauce in a casserole dish. Top with cheeses, pepperoni, and olives. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until heated through and cheese is bubbly and brown. Yummy!

Delicious Fudge Pie

Brielle and I made this pie and a peach pie (see below for recipe) for Kristen's birthday. It was "easy as pie" and so delicious!! 2 squares (2ounces) semisweet chocolate, 1 stick butter, 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs, beaten (Brielle is an excellent egg beater!), 1 unbaked pie crust......... Melt the chocolate and the butter together in a saucepan or in the microwave. Stir until smooth. Add the sugar and eggs and beat well. Pour into the pie shell and bake at 375 for 25 minutes. Serve warm or cold with ice cream or whipped cream if desired.

Mom's Tamales

Mom and Dad made up this recipe. Proof: I just spent a long time looking through google images trying to find something that looks like it. This is the closest I could find. My girls remember going on Saturday mornings to clean their condo for them and then they'd often feed them these for lunch. They are really good and really easy. 1 tamale per person, (they used to buy canned tamales, but they no longer exist. Sometimes they would buy tamales from a Mexican restaurant. I buy the fresh tamales from Costco. They come in bags of twelve- you can freeze them. We've tried both the pork and chicken and both are good) heated in the microwave still in the leaf. 1 egg per person 1 can tomato sauce per 2 people onion, diced Tabasco Sauce grated cheese Remove the tamale from the leaf and put it on the plate, then a fried egg, then onion, then 1/2 cup tomato sauce, Tabasco sauce, then grated cheese. Yummy!

Fresh Peach Pie

'Tis the season for peaches, and this is a great way to use them. We have two peach trees, so this has become a yearly tradition. Slice 3 or 4 peaches into a bowl. Sprinkle with a little bit of sugar and stir gently. Put into a baked pie shell. Mash 2 large or 3 med. peaches and put in a saucepan. Add 1 1/2 cups sugar, 5 or 6 T. cornstarch, and 1/2 cup water. Cook on med. high heat about 5 minutes. It should be at a full boil. Remove from heat and add 1/2 tsp. almond extract and about 2 T. butter. Stir well and pour over peaches. Chill for several hours. Serve with whipped or ice cream. You can add more peaches, but be sure to add more cornstarch, too.

Sara's Mexican Rice

MEXICAN WHITE RICE 2 cups long-grain rice, rinsed and drained 2 small garlic cloves 4 T. canola oil 1/2 small onion chopped 4 c. canned chicken broth 3/4 cup frozen peas 1 tsp. salt Heat oil in large pot and add rice, garlic cloves and onion. Cook and stir over medium heat until rice is lightly browned. Add chicken broth and salt-- stir. Bring to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, cover and reduce heat to very "low" setting and start timing for 30 to 45 minutes. Ten minutes before rice is done, add frozen peas, cover and finish cooking until rice has absorbed most of the liquid and is tender. If rice has absorbed all liquid and it's not tender, add 1/8 cup water to it. Makes 8servings.

Crockpot Chicken Salsa Tacos

In a Crock-pot, put 4 frozen chicken breasts. Top with 1 cup of salsa. Cook all day. Shred with fork. On soft flour tortillas put: Some of the chicken mix, cheese, avocado (opt.), lettuce, green onions, olives, tomatoes, raspberry-chipolte sauce (this is what makes it. You can get it at Costco) and sour cream. Fold up taco style and serve with black (or refried) beans and Mexican Rice (Sara's recipe- I'll put it on here if you want it)

Kristen's Caramel Marshmallow Popcorn

2 bags microwave popcorn, popped with unpopped kernels removed 2 cubes real butter 1 cup brown sugar 30 large marshmallows Place popcorn in a large bowl. Melt butter and brown sugar and stir constantly. Let boil 1 minute (not longer). Remove from heat and add marshmallows and stir until marshmallows are melted and all is well blended. Pour over popcorn and stir. Great movie night treat~Anyone have an idea for an easy way to remove unpopped kernals from popcorn?????

Summer Tomatoes

Our favorite way to use our home-grown tomatoes: Boil a big pot of water. When boiling, add 10-12 tomatoes. Boil for about 1 minute. Immerse in cold water. Peel, core and chop tomatoes. Put in a 1/2 gallon glass jar. Add: 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 onion diced or could use shallots or green onions Big bunch of fresh basil, chopped 3/4 - 1 cup olive oil 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, or mix of vinegars Fresh parsley 3 T. Sugar Salt and Pepper Put lid on jar and shake til well blended. Put in sun for several hours. Serve with french bread or as a topping on pasta with parmesan cheese.

Baked Beans

Having a 4th of July barbecue? Here's an easy baked beans recipe that you can do in the crockpot. I got the recipe from my sister, Patty 3 cans pork and beans, drain some of the liquid

1 can dark kidney beans, drained

1 can butter beans, drained

1 large onion, chopped

1 large green pepper, chopped

1 kilbasa sausage (can use light), cut in chunks

1/2 cup molasses

1/2- 3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup ketchup

2-3 T. chili sauce (opt.)

Few splashes rice vinegar

Mix in crock pot and cook all day.

Mormon Pina Coladas

We came home yesterday to 111 degree heat. These pina coladas hit the spot. They weren't quite as good as Taylor's Italian Sodas, but they're good . . . and easy. Fill blender 1/2 full with pineapple juice. Add 3 T. coconut milk and 1/3 cup sugar. Fill the blender with crushed ice. Blend and serve.

Butterscotch Cookie Bars

Adrienne made these for our Hinton Family Reunion. They were so yummy! 1 cup butterscotch chips 1/4 cup butter 2 eggs 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 3/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 3/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 1/2 cup chopped nuts, opt. DIRECTIONS Place butterscotch chips and butter into a glass bowl. Heat in the microwave for about 3 minutes(much less in my microwave), stirring at 30 second intervals until smooth. Set aside to cool until firm. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F Grease a 9x13(I used a smaller pan- about 9x9) inch pan. In a large bowl, beat the butterscotch chip mixture with eggs and vanilla until well blended. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into the batter until evenly mixed. Mix in the brown sugar, chocolate chips,and nuts (if desired) Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven, just until the bars begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Cut into squares while warm.

Oh, Baby!

World's Greatest Sandwich or BELTCH(Bacon, Egg, Lettuce, Tomato, Cheese) This sandwich is from the movie, Spanglish. It is delicious. We make it frequently. Before Adam Sandler takes a bite, he says, "Oh, baby!" It's that good. 3-4 thick slices of bacon 2 slices monterey jack cheese 2 slices rustic country bread (really good bread), toasted 1 T. mayo 4 slices tomato 2 butter lettuce leaves 1 tsp. butter 1 egg 1. Cook the bacon til crisp. Drain on paper towel. 2.Place the cheese slices on one of the toasted breads and put under broiler until cheese is melted 3.Spread the other slice of bread with mayo and top with tomato slices, bacon and lettuce 4. Melt the butter in a skillet and fry the egg. When bottom is set, turn over. Leave yoke runny. (over easy) 5. Slide the egg onto the lettuce and top with cheesy bread. Cut in half, letting the yoke run down the sandwich. Oh, baby!