Lime & Garlic Potato Wedges

So we needed a quick side for our Pineapple Burgers..and well these I just pulled out of nowhere...and they were FAB ...we dipped them in Sweet Baby Rays Raspberry Chipolte BBQ Sauce.

Ingredients:
4 Lime Wedges (one lime)

6 red potatoes washed and chopped with a variegated veggie slicer into wedges

Garlic Salt

Olive Oil

Directions:
Place potato wedges on cookie sheet Drizzle olive oile and stir to make sur ethey are coated well.
Squeeze lime juice over the wedges, sprinkle with Garlic Salt.

Broil wedges in oven on high heat for 15 minutes...or until begin to brown on edges...

Pepperoni Rolls

My kids get to give me their birthday menu, this means all foods , Breakfast , Lunch and Dinner and beverages and desert for their Birthday...My GORGEOUS daughter Madalyn wanted these bad-lil-darlin's for her B-day Lunch...and YES my kids blow out candles at every meal...I'm REALLY glad they were born ...so sue me.

These will change your universe...they did mine...and all to the genius of my friend Diane and and her DH Steven! Mad props you two!
I make these by the truck load, take them to neighbors, visit teaching, add them to dinners...or (drum roll) PERFECT for lunches...which makes ME HAPPY to once again have a fabulous pre-made lunch option!

Here's the Dough...again just my EASY Bread/Roll Dough I use for EVERYTHING ( Joette your the bomb)

BREAD
10-12 cups Flour ( depending on my mood I use white, wheat or half and half)
1/2 cup sugar
5 Cups warm water
1 cup dry milk
1 cube melted
1 Table spoon salt
3 TBsp Dry FAST acting yeast (Not just active yeast but fast acting)

In Bread Mixing Machine Add water, Milk, & Melted butter & 5 cups flour Mix for one minute....allow to be on lowest setting as you add1 cup flour, Salt, & Yeast. Scrape side of Mixer and mix a little longer.Then while the mixer is on slowly begin adding cups of Flour. Usually I end up adding between 5 to six cups.Once the the dough is all completely pulled away from the mixing bowl you don't need anymore flour. Put lid on Mixer and mix on speed number two for 4 minutes.Once it is finished I cover the counter top with oil, If I am making regular bread I use Veggie oil, if I am making peperoni rolls and Focacia i use Olive oil.

I remove the Dough and knead it on the counter. What ever dough I am using a rework it on the counter top for a couple of minutes. I separate the Dough and what I am not using I cover with a hot damp dish towel.


Toppings:
Olive Oil
Garlic Salt
Italian Seasoning
Peperoni
Shredded Mozzarella


I do the same thing for pepperoni rolls except I don't use butter , just a little extra olive oil, Garlic salt, Italian Seasoning (basil, Rosemary, Parsley), Shredded Mozzarella, Parmesan & Peperoni.
I use a third of the dough at a time, roll it out cover it in then I rub it into the dough with palms of my hands.I cut the dough in half with a pizza cutter and roll the fourths into cylinders and cut them into one to one and one half inch rolls with dental floss.About 28-30 on a cookie sheet.
Cook at 350 for 20-25 minutes

I also make mini-versions in whole wheat and freeze em -in Gallon Bags to defrost on the counter or microwave.
Dip em in Marinara Sauce....

Try the Hawaiian Version...with a lil' Sauce, instead of Olive Oil, Canadian Bacon, Mozzarella, and crushed Pineapple...you'll thank me!
:0)

Lime-Cilantro Rice with Pineapple

Recipe from http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/06/lime-cilantro-rice-with-pineapple.html



OK SERIOUSLY GOOD!!!! Pair it up with this : Grilled Asparagus:http://feedingabunchamunchkins.blogspot.com/2010/05/chili-lime-chicken-and-lemon-asparagus.html
or Thai Chicken Crock-Pot :http://feedingabunchamunchkins.blogspot.com/2010/05/spicy-thai-chicken-crock-pot.html


Lime-Cilantro Rice with Pineapple

Like I said, you really can just make this to taste, but here’s the basics.

1 cup dry white rice, cooked in 2 C water.
2 T real butter
Juice from 1 large lime, or two smaller ones (taste as you go, I add a lot!)
1 small can crushed pineapple, drained. (You may want 2 small cans)
½ - ¾ C chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook rice. As soon as it’s done, toss in the butter and stir to melt. Add lime juice, pineapple, and cilantro. Stir to combine, and then add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

* You’ll want to serve this right away, if you don’t, the flavors tend to mellow a bit and you’ll probably need to add more lime juice because the rice kind of sucks it up. If you’re not quite ready to eat when your rice finishes cooking, just toss in the butter and keep a lid on it so it stays warm. Then right before you serve it, toss it all together.

Spinach Salad w/ Bacon, Feta, Red Onion and Yellow Raisins

* Quick Salad to take to those Family Picnics/ Reunion….or work party’s everyone loves it!!!

Ingredients:
• 1/2 lb bacon
• 2 lb spinach, (or box of prewashed Spinach from Grocery Store, take a couple handfuls out)
• ½ Chopped Red Onion
• 1 cup Yellow raisins
• 1 cup Feta Cheese

DRESSING

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 3 TBSP of Bacon drippings
• 1/2 small onion, finely grated
• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Directions
1.
Cook bacon until crisp.
2.
Drain on paper towels; reserve 3 tblsps drippings for dressing.
3.
Crumble bacon; add bacon, Onion, raisins, and Feta to Spinach.
4.
Combine mayonnaise, onion, oil, vinegar, sugar and mustard with reserved drippings.
5.
Toss with dressing or put lid on and shake Box of Salad…..

YUMMMO!

Copycat Crispy Green Bean Fries(TGI Friday's)

* This is my favorite appitizer EVER!!!
I had it on th eway back home in the airport in Dallas...and decided to find the resipe...

35 min | 15 min prep |
Ingredients

Wasabi Cucumber Ranch Dip
1/2 cup bottled ranch dressing (Hidden Valley is best)
1/4 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded, minced
1 tablespoon milk
1 1/2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon wasabi powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 pinch cayenne pepper


Green Beans
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
4 cups vegetable broth or chicken broth
6-8 ounces fresh green beans
1 cup flour
1 cup plain breadcrumbs or seasoned dry bread crumb
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
vegetable shortening, for frying or vegetable oil

Directions
1 Combine dip ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth.

2 Place in bowl; cover and chill till ready to use. Dip will thicken as it chills.

3 Place beans in the broth.

4 Bring to a boil and cook 15 minutes, then place in cold water to stop cooking process.
5 Mix beaten egg with milk in a shallow bowl.

6 Measure 1 cup of flour into another shallow bowl.

7 Combine bread crumbs, 3/4 teaspoons salt, black pepper, onion powder and garlic powder into a third bowl.

8 Take a handful of beans out of the water and shake off excess liquid.

9 Coat the beans with the flour, shaking to remove excess flour.

10 Dip the beans, one at a time, into egg/milk mixture, then dip in breadcrumb mixture.

11 Place the beans on a plate until all are coated.

12 Heat the shortening or oil to 350°F in a heavy skillet(or use deep fryer). Use enough to cover the beans, about 1 1/2 inches.

13 Fry until golden brown, about 1 1/2 minutes.

14 Drain on paper towels.

15 To serve, place on a large platter and serve with the wasabi cucumber ranch dip.
Enjoy

Pesto with Baggette & Veggies

What you will need:
2 Packages of Cream Cheese
1 Container of Pesto (Costco has awesome pesto)
Parmesan Cheese
Baguette cut in slices
Fresh cut up Veggies of your choice…

Directions:
Cut Cream Cheese in half to make wider lay 4 slices on bottom of glass baking dish. Cover with Pesto. Sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese.
Bake at 400 for 20 minutes… Then Broil until edges are dark brown.
Let cool…. Serve as dip.

Spinach, Apple, Walnut, Ranch Salad

It's spring!!! I am going to be posting A LOT of Salad recipes...because well..we eat A LOT of Salad....and kid friendly salads are a big deal for us Moms...that don't have A Lot of time...but want our kids to eat healthy.

Ingredients:
Medium Bag of Whole Fresh Baby Spinach ~ wash, break stems off and pat dry

4-5 fresh crisp sweet apples (Brae burn or Gala) de-cored and cut up bite sized
1 cup chopped Roasted Walnuts
2/3 cup or six chopped green onions
1 cup Ranch Dressing
1/2 cup (or more) dried Cranberries

Mix all ingredients in Large bowel including dressing and serve immediately...
My kids eat this up and it is soo fast!!!

Butternut "French" Fries

I got this recipe off the "Hungry Girl Website" over a year ago.
I make them all of the time (especially if I am using half of a butternut squash for another recipe).

In italics are the changes I have made...these are really, really good..kinda like sweet potato fries.

Face it, french fries are one of the greatest tasting foods known to man. But they're no-nos when it comes to dieting. Of course, if you're feeling ambitious, you can whip up a batch of HG's Bake-tastic Butternut Squash fries. Yep, you can make crispy, wonderful, sweet fries out of our new best friend, the butternut squash. And, what's even better is that this is our easiest recipe ever. So pay close attention. VERY close attention. Because what we're about to share with you may very well change your life...forever!

Ingredients:
1/2 butternut squash
kosher salt

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. Peel and de-seed your butternut squash. If you're unfamiliar with handling them, you may have a little trouble at first. They're fairly easy to peel, but you'll need a sharp knife to cut them. Once your orange friend is peeled and seed-free, slice it in half. Then cut it up into french fry shapes. We like to use a crinkle cutter to make authentic looking crinkle cut fries, but they'll work any way you slice 'em. Place on a cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick spray. Cover lightly with kosher salt (regular salt works, too, but we prefer kosher). Place tray in your pre-heated oven and bake for 40 minutes or so, flipping halfway through baking process. Fries are done when they are starting to brown on the edges and get crispy. Serve with ketchup, or however else you enjoy fries or sweet potato fries!

* When Slicing the Butternut (it IS THICK) use a good knife..and make potato log like size slices...because your squash will shrink and lose water during baking.

When baking the fries ...I olive oil spray my pan....do a light dusting of Sea salt and rosemary (I like them better with rosemary, but I am weird) ON THE PAN BEFORE placing the uncooked fries onto it.

I then do another light spraying and dust more Sea Salt and Rosemary.

I like to eat them with BBQ Sauce...YUMMY!!!

Nutritional Info:


Serving Size: 5 oz., uncooked
Calories: 65
Fat: 0g
Sodium: 486mg (includes salt)
Carbs: 16.5g
Fiber: 3g
Sugar: 3g
Protein: 1g

* 1 Point

Cute Veggie Choo-Choo Train

All you need:

I composed these trains from a quick Veggie tray bought at a local Grocery store (I was in a hurry)

I used :

Celery

Baby Carrots

Cherry Tomatoes

Broccoli Florets

Slices of Cucumber

Tooth picks to hold it all together

Lion House Dinner Rolls Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups warm water (110 to 115 degrees)

2 tablespoons dry yeast

2 teaspoons salt

1 egg

2/3 cup nonfat dry milk powder (instant or non-instant)

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup butter or shortening

5-5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour

I add 2 TBspoons Orange zest......

*******************************************************************

In large bowl of electric mixer, combine water and milk powder, stir until dissolved. Add yeast, then sugar, salt, butter, egg, and 2 cups flour. Mix on low speed of mixer until ingredients are wet, then 2 minutes at medium speed. Add 2 cups more flour; mix on low speed until ingredients are wet, then for 2 minutes as medium speed. (Dough will be getting stiff and remaining flour may need to be mixed in by hand). Add about ½ cup flour and mix again, by hand or mixer. Dough should be soft, not overly sticky, and not stiff. (It is not necessary to use the entire amount of flour.) Scrape dough off sides of bowl and pour about 1 T. vegetable oil all around the sides of the bowl so it is covered with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in warm place until double in size. (My note here- I just sprayed a clean large bowl with vegetable spray and put my ball of dough in there, turning to cover the dough with the vegetable spray.) Sprinkle cutting board or counter with flour and place dough on floured surface. Roll out and cut rolls in desired shape and size. Place on greased (or parchment lined) baking pans. Let rise in warm place until rolls are double in size (about 1 to 1 ½ hours).

*Bake at 375 for 15 to 20 minutes or until browned.
* Brush with melted butter while hot.

******************************************************************
2 hours 20 minutes 2 hrs prep

HOMEMADE POTATO CHIPS....YUMMY & EASY ...I not kidding!!!!

I found thos resipe on the net ...and was AMAZED how great they turned out!!! These potato chips are very easy to make in the microwave. Also, they are healthier for you as they are not cooked in any oils. This method has intrigued so many people that have tasted them and then made them for themselves. Kids just love them.
*********************************************************************
Ingredients:

4 large potatoes (russet, yellow gold, white or red potatoes)

your choice spices (granulated garlic powder, seasoning salt, cayenne pepper, dried dill weed, granulated garlic powder)

Olive oil, for microwave bacon tray or use a paper plate on top of a Mirowave safe plate.

*******************************************************************************
Directions:
If potatoes are old, peel and slice thin, less than 1/16" in thickness (paper thin), slicing across the potato. If the potatoes are new or good skins, DO NOT PEEL, just scrub well, then slice them less than 1/16" in thickness (paper thin), slicing across the potato. ( I use a kitchen aid peeler and it works perfect for the chips.Place potato slices in a bowl, sprinkle with some salt (if desired) cover with cold water and let sit for 10 minutes. Remove potato slices in batches onto paper toweling and pat dry. If you have a microwave bacon tray, rub the tray with a vegetable oil, then place the sliced potatoes flat on the tray in a single layer. Sprinkle with your choice of herbs or spices or just leave them plain. Cover with a microwaveable, round heavy plastic cover. Microwave on HIGH (full power) for 5 to 5 1/2 minutes or until they curl slightly and are a very light brown in color. (watch them ...some were done in four minutes)Cooking time could vary slightly, depending on the wattage of your microwave and the thickness of the slices. The thinner the slices, the quicker they cook and the tastier they are. You do not have to turn the sliced potatoes over. Rub the inside of the dish with some olive oil for the first batch of potato chips. I do not know why, but I find that if you do not rub oil the first time, some chips will tend to stick to the dish. After the first batch is done, you do not have to rub the dish again. Continue to microwave the remainder of sliced potatoes as noted above. If using a bacon tray, after the first batch is cooked, you can reduce the microwaving time to 4 1/2 minutes and even less as you continue to microwave each batch. You can also use PARCHMENT PAPER to microwave the potato slices. Lightly spray or rub the parchment paper with some vegetable oil or a Pam spray. Place your potato slices on the parchment paper, then sprinkle them with whatever you like and then place another piece of parchment paper on top. This will help microwave the potatoes more evenly and they should turn out nice and crisp.

Microwaving time should be between 4 and 6 minutes.
******************************************************************************
ADDITIONAL IDEAS:. Granulated garlic powder with parsley. Cracked black pepper, grated parmesan and sea salt sprinkled after removing from microwave. Another, after removing chips from microwave, sprinkle with grated cheddar cheese, zap for a few seconds to melt the cheese, then add a dab of sour cream.