Sausage Balls

Getting ready to make some of these to take to Mr. Giggles parents house as we celebrate his birthday and freezing some to use for breakfast at home.  Yummy and pretty easy to make.

10 oz grated cheese (usually cheddar)
1 Pound sausage
2 Cups Bisquick
½ Tsp garlic (optional)

Mix thoroughly, form into balls, bake in 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes or until done.

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Rae's Yum Yums

My sister got this recipe from a friend of hers and they are so yummy and easy.  I don't know what the "real" name is so I made up my own!!  My nephew loves these things and will eat as many as possible.

Ingredients:
1 cup peanuts (or whatever nut you like)
1 cup chex cereal (I used the corn one)
1 cup pretzels broken up
Approximately 6 squares of almond bark
1 cup plain m&m's (optional)  they are delicious with or without

Mix first three ingredients (and m&m's if you choose to add them).  Melt your chocolate in the microwave stirring occasionally so it doesn't scorch.  I melt mine in the microwave.  Pour chocolate over the mixture and stir until completely covered.  Lay out wax paper and spoon mixture into "blobs" on the wax paper and allow to cool.  Once cooled and hardened. . . .eat.  I hope you enjoy these as much as we do!

Homemade Corndogs

I ran across this recipe today here.  I really like corndogs and I hope to be able to make these soon.  They sound pretty easy and the pictures looked really good.  If you try them before I do, leave me a comment and let me know how they turned out.


Homemade Corn Dogs

• 1 Tbsp vinegar or lemon juice
• scant 1 cup milk (I used skim)
• 1 1/2 cup flour
• 1 cup yellow corn meal
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 10-12 hot dogs
• brochettes or wooden skewers, cut in half

1. Preheat some oil in a deep fryer or large skillet to 365 degrees. You need it to be a couple of inches deep and the pan needs to be large enough to fit the corn dogs in.  I used my Le Cruset oval dutch oven.
2. Place 1 Tbsp of the vinegar or lemon juice in a liquid measure cup.  Then add enough milk to measure 1 cup.  Stir and let sit for 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk together the flour,corn meal, sugar, baking powder,salt, and baking soda in a large bowl.  Add milk and eggs then whisk until well combined.
4. Insert skewer in hot dog and dip in batter. Coat hot dog well and fry in 356 degree oil until golden brown. Drain on towels.

Pioneer Woman's Sour Cream Noodle Bake

Pioneer Woman had this one her blog last week and it sounded super yummy and super easy so I decided to give it a try.  Friends, it was so easy and tasted so good.  Mr. Giggles liked too (but he said it needed mushrooms.  He thinks everything needs mushrooms so maybe next time they will be added!).  Next time I may add a little more tomato sauce.  I served it with corn and garlic toast.

Ingredients

• 1-¼ pound Ground Chuck
• 1 can 15-ounces Tomato Sauce
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 8 ounces, weight Egg Noodles (I don't like egg noodles so I used bowties and it worked well).
• ½ cups Sour Cream
• 1-¼ cup Small Curd Cottage Cheese
• ½ cups Sliced Green Onions (less To Taste)
• 1 cup Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Brown ground chuck in a large skillet. Drain fat, then add tomato sauce. 1/2 teaspoon salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Stir, then simmer while you prepare the other ingredients.
Cook egg noodles until al dente. Drain and set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine sour cream and cottage cheese. Add plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Add to noodles and stir. Add green onions and stir.
To assemble, add half of the noodles to a baking dish. Top with half the meat mixture, then sprinkle on half the grated cheddar. Repeat with noodles, meat, then a final layer of cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, or until all cheese is melted.

Royal Icing

I found this recipe for Royall Icing from Wilton's website and it is what I used for my Valentine's day cookies.  It isn't real sweet tasting and it dries hard and fast.  My cookie recipe made 66 cookies and I halved the recipe and was able to completely ice every one of them.

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons Meringue Powder
4 cups (about 1 lb.) confectioners' sugar
6 tablespoons warm water

Makes: About 3 cups of icing.

Directions:
Beat all ingredients until icing forms peaks (7-10 minutes at low speed with a heavy-duty mixer, 10-12 minutes at high speed with a hand-held mixer).
NOTE: Keep all utensils completely grease-free for proper icing consistency.
* For stiffer icing, use 1 tablespoon less water.
**When using large countertop mixer or for stiffer icing, use 1 tablespoon less water.
Thinned Royal Icing: To thin for pouring, add 1 teaspoon water per cup of royal icing. Use grease-free spoon or spatula to stir slowly. Add 1/2 teaspoon water at a time until you reach proper consistency.

Souper Salad Fettuccine Salad

This is a yummy salad that travels well to potlucks or to your own dinner table!


8 oz. Fettuccine
1/2 C. Mayo
1/2 C. Frozen Corn
1/4 C. Grated Parmesan Cheese
1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder
1 tsp. Fresh Cracked Pepper
Salt to taste (I omit)

Cook pasta according to directions. Drain. Mix pasta and corn in a bowl. Mix together the mayo, cheese, garlic powder, and pepper. Combine the pasta, and sauce, and mix well. Salt to taste (I omit the salt). This is best if refrigerated for a couple of hours before serving.

Sugar Cookies

I tried out this recipe for sugar cookies the other day and it was a hit.  These cookies are not too sweet, even with using royal icing on them.  They are mother-in-law approved!

Ingredients

• 1 cup(s) (2 sticks) butter (no substitutions), softened
• 1/2 cup(s) sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon(s) vanilla extract
• 3 cup(s) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In large bowl, with mixer on low speed, beat butter and sugar until blended. Increase speed to high; beat until light and creamy. On low speed, beat in egg and vanilla. Beat in flour, baking powder, and salt until blended.
2. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces; flatten each piece into a disk. Wrap each disk with plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour or until dough is firm enough to roll. (Or place dough in freezer 30 minutes.)
3. On lightly floured surface, with floured rolling pin, roll 1 piece of dough 1/8 inch thick. With floured 3-inch to 4-inch cookie cutters, cut dough into as many cookies as possible; wrap and refrigerate trimmings. Place cookies, 1 inch apart, on ungreased large cookie sheet.
4. Bake cookies 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough and trimmings.