Tortellini Tomato Soup

We all really liked this soup! Super easy to make. I hear there's supposed to be a couple stormy days this week......perfect!

tortellini tomato soup:

1 pkg. (9oz.) refrigerated cheese tortellini
(I had a 20 oz. pkg & used all of it, figured the kids would like the pasta in it the most anyway)
2 cans (10oz.) tomato soup
2 C. chicken broth
2 C. milk
2 C. half & half
1/2 C. chopped oil packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried basil
1 C. shredded mozzarella

1. Cook tortellini according to pkg directions.
2. Meanwhile in a large pot combine soup, broth, milk, cream, tomatoes & seasonings. Heat through stirring frequently.
3. Drain tortellini well & add to soup.
4. Stir in cheese. When cheese is melted serve immediately & sprinkle with additional mozzarella or parmesan on top.

Breadtwists

This recipe is super easy to make & my kids LOVED them! I made them to go with our tortellini soup. They're supposed to taste just like the breadtwists at The Pizza Factory in Utah. I may like theirs better just because they make them for you hehehe! These were nummy though for sure. Make them with any soup or just for fun!

breadtwists:

1 1/2 C. warm water
2 TB. sugar
1 TB. yeast

Let that sit for 5 minutes then add:

3 1/2 C. flour
1 tsp. salt

1. Mix until smooth with spatula & your hands until it's mixed and forms a ball, then let raise for 10 minutes.
2. Roll out dough on floured surface into large square with a rolling pin.
3. Brush with real melted butter mixed with garlic then sprinkle with kosher salt.
4. Fold in half and cut into 1 inch strips with a pizza cutter.
5. Twist & place on a cookie sheet (sprayed w non-stick spray)
6. Let raise for an additional 15-20 minutes.
7. Bake at 400 degrees for approx 20 minutes or until golden brown on top.
8. Remove from oven and immediately brush with melted butter (garlic butter if you want), sprinkle with kosher salt & grated Parmesan cheese (skipped that).
9. Serve with marinara, alfredo, ranch or your favorite soup for dipping!

*Dough also makes a great pizza dough, just roll out into a large circle, add your favorite toppings and bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes.

Very delish! Can't wait for that rainy day!

Strawberry & Lemon Cake Cookies

I got this recipe from my Mom & last week over Spring Break, my kids wanted some cookies & I knew these would be the perfect, quick cookies to make! They are really moist & "Springy"!

strawberry (or lemon) cookies:

1 box strawberry (or lemon) cake mix
1/2 C. shortening
2 eggs

Mix together and roll into balls. Bake 375 degrees for 11-12 minutes.

cream cheese frosting:

4 oz. cream cheese
2 TB. margarine
2 C. powdered sugar

Cream together & frost cooled cookies.

I was in a hurry, so I just used a can of frosting this time. Enjoy!

Stromboli

Guest Chef Time Ladies!
Today our guest chef is my dear friend Stephanie! Stephanie is a fantastic mother to 4 children & a very talented photographer! Lucky for us, she has finally given into my constant nagging (hehehe) & given us her secret recipe for Stromboli!! My mouth is watering already! Seriously, look at that picture! I know I'll be adding this to my menu this week! Thanks Steph!
Here is a super easy recipe for a yummy finger food appetizer or if you want it as a meal, just cut them into bigger slices! Here's what you'll need:

stromboli:

Can of pizza dough (or if you're really talented, make the pizza dough yourself. But trust me, the refrigerated dough makes it so much quicker!)

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp parsley
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 egg yolks
1 cup or more of mozzarella cheese
Whatever toppings you like!

1. Spread out your pizza dough on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Mix the other ingredients (except for the toppings) and spread over the dough. Top with cheese and your toppings. My kids are very plain pizza eaters. Half of them like cheese only, the other half require pepperoni. But I've had it with ham and pineapple or sausage and that is yummy too!

2. Roll up your pizza dough:

3. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes. Just watch it until it turns golden brown like this. Once you take it out of the oven, brush with butter.

And here's what the gooey inside looks like:

If you want to serve it as an appetizer, you can slice it up like so:

Oh yes - and it's yummy to dip it in ranch or pizza sauce. Enjoy!

your guest chef,

Steph

Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies

I found this recipe online & boy oh boy is it delicious!!! I've never baked with Almond Paste before & have never even seen it before so I started calling around. Walmart said they didn't carry it, Target said they didn't carry it & then World Market claimed they did. So I went to World Market & purchased this:
I was suspicious that it was Marzipan not Almond Paste, but they asked me if I was baking with it & when I replied yes, they said this was the right stuff, so I bought it. I made the cookies with it and they were REALLY GOOD! The only problem was they all weren't the prettiest cookies, mostly flat & gooey, some were a little bit more puffy, but we decided they tasted like Paradise Bakery chocolate chip cookies & were satisfied with the results! Then the next time I was at Target I just mozied down the baking aisle & lo & behold, there was the PURE Almond Paste that they swore they didn't carry! Grrrrr. Anywho, we bought it and made the same recipe again with the pure Almond Paste to see the difference.

(approx $4 a tube which would make 2 batches)

We think you can taste the almond flavoring a little bit more in the 2nd batch more and the cookies were a little bit more fluffy vs. flat. My kids said that they LOVED both batches so this recipe will definitely be in rotation often when we make cookies!

almond chocolate chip chip cookies:

2 sticks softened butter

3/4 C. sugar

3/4 C. brown sugar

3 oz. Odense Pure Almond Paste (I just cut the pkg in half)

2 eggs

1 TB. vanilla

2 & 1/2-3 C. flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

12 oz. bag of milk chocolate chips

3/4 C. chopped almonds (optional)

1. Beat butter & sugars until light & fluffy.

2. Add the almond paste in small pieces/pinches until well mixed in.

3. Add eggs & vanilla until well combined.

4. Add in baking soda, salt & chocolate chips, mix.

5. Add in flour (dough is sticky).

6. Scoop onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (optional), bake 350 degrees for 11-12 minutes or until golden. Let cool then dig in!

If these aren't a festival of flavor to your taste buds, you may want to have your taste buds checked out!

Homemade Twix Bars

Can you say YUM?! I did. Really pretty easy & totally delicious! My kids have been begging for me to make these for weeks, but I knew if I made them I'd need a sample so I waited a while. Worth the wait. Tastes like a PB Twix to me! Makes a whole 9x13 pan full.

homemade twix bars:

2 sleeves of Club crackers
1 C. butter
2 C. graham cracker crumbs
1 C. brown sugar
1/2 C. milk
1/3 C. sugar

2/3 C. creamy peanut butter
1/2 C. butterscotch chips
1/2 C. chocolate chips

1. Line 9x13 pan with foil overlapping ends of pan.

2. Line bottom of pan with a single layerof club crackers.

3. In large pan melt butter then add graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, sugar & milk. Bring to a boil & boil for 5 minutes stirring constantly.

4. Pour 1/2 of this sugar mixture on top of crackers in pan.

5. Make another single layer of crackers, then second half of sugar mixture on top of them. Then add one more layer of crackers.6. In a pan melt butterscotch chips, chocolate chips & peanut butter stirring constantly. Once melted, pour over top of crackers.

7. Place in fridge for atleast 1 hour, easier to cut the longer they've been in the fridge. Pull foil out of pan by overlapping ends & cut into pieces.

Lasagna

I've had this lasagna recipe for years & whenever I make it, it gets rave reviews! I got it from the wife of a guy Scott used to work with who I can't even remember their names...it was one of those "you have to go over & fake conversation" over dinner, but her lasagna was really good so I asked for her recipe & we've been enjoying it ever since!

lasagna:

sauce: bring to a simmer.

1 lb. ground beef, browned & drained

3 1/2 C. Prego

1 1/2 C. water

olives (optional)

cheese mixture: mix together in a separate bowl.

2 C. cottage cheese

3 C. mozzarella cheese

1/2 C. Parmesan cheese

2 eggs

1/4 C. chopped parsley

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

uncooked lasagna noodles

1. In a 9x13 pan pour about 1 C. sauce in the bottom of the pan, 3-4 noodles, more sauce, then 1/2 the cheese mixture, 3-4 more noodles, more sauce, other 1/2 of cheese mixture, noodles, rest of the sauce then sprinkle with a little mozzarella cheese.

2. Cover with foil & bake 350 degrees for 60 minutes. Uncover & bake an additional 10 minutes.

3. Lasagna is more runny the first day, the second day (when you are thrilled you are eating leftovers) the noodles soak up a lot of the juices & we like it better the 2nd day because it's a little more set.

Garlic Bread Spread

Great addition to the lasagna recipe above! This recipe comes from Steph. Remember that bread she made at bunco that we all ate 3 slices of a while back? This is it!

garlic bread spread:

1 stick of butter softened

chopped green onion

2-3 cloves of minced garlic

1/2 C. parmasen cheese

1 C. cheddar cheese

1/2 C. mayo-added last

1. Mix all ingredients adding mayo last.

2. Spread onto french bread loaf cut in half lengthwise.

3. Place in oven until top of bread is browning & bubbly.

Teriyaki Chicken

Guest Chef time............
This week my youngest sister Heather has graced us with her presence & brought along a fantastic recipe for Teriyaki Chicken! Heather lives in Utah with her ever funny husband Jared & cute as a button 1 year old (Monday) daughter Livee & works as a dental hygienist a couple of days a week. SO glad to have her guest chef-ing!

Sorry for taking so long to finally make a decent meal :) here it is. Easiest meal ever!

teriyaki chicken:

Chicken breasts (i cut mine in half)
Teriyaki sauce (i use a 30 minute marinade)
Pineapple slices
Muenster cheese

1. Marinate chicken in teriyaki sauce for 30-60 minutes.
2. Put chicken & marinade into pan & bake 350 degrees for 45 minutes uncovered.

3. Remove from oven & place one pineapple slice, then one slice of muenster cheese on top of each piece of chicken. Put back in oven until cheese melts.
4. Serve with rice and veggies & extra teriyaki sauce. I always use extra pineapple-it is sooo good. This is our FAVORITE chicken! Enjoy!

Your Guest Chef,
Heather

Peanut Butter Cookies

If you're a peanut butter lover like me, these are dangerous. Now that you've been warned, throw caution to the wind, pull out your mixer & whip these puppies up!

peanut butter cookies:

1 C. sugar
1 C. brown sugar
1 C. butter flavored shortening
1 C. creamy peanut butter
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2-2 1/2 C. flour
1/2 bag peanut butter chips (optional)

1. Mix & drop in balls onto cookie sheet.
2. Make waffle pattern on top of cookies with fork.
3. Bake 375 degrees for 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned.