Curried Chicken Salad Sandwiches -- Caroline Winters

Curried Chicken Salad Sandwiches

1 lb. chicken tenders cooked and cubed (you can also used canned chicken)

1 stalk celery finely diced

1/4 green pepper, diced

4 green onions, diced

3/4 C. mayo

1/4 C. coarsely chopped salted peanuts

1/3 C. golden raisins

3/4 tsp. curry powder

1/8 tsp. black pepper

1/8 tsp. shallot salt (or onion salt)

Mix mayo with seasonings, stir in remaining ingredients. Serve on your favorite bread or rolls.

Best Frosting Ever -- Amber Williams

Perfect Cupcake Frosting and Filling


recipe by ourbestbites.com

6 T Flour
1 C milk (whole milk is best, but I used non-fat when it's all I have and it's actually fine)
1 C real butter
1 C sugar (that's granulated sugar, not powdered sugar)
1 1/2 t vanilla extract, or other flavor if you wish.
1/2 t. almond extract

Whisk together the flour and the milk. Heat in a small sauce pan on medium heat. Whisk continuously until it starts to thicken. I think this is the critical point for any of you who have had problems with this recipe. I have a feeling people are under-cooking this part. Let it cook, while stirring, until it looks like pudding (you should be able to see the bottom of the pan when you stir it). Even though it's thick, you can still it through a mesh strainer (just whisk the mixture in the strainer to push the thick stuff through) -- I didn't put mine through a strainer because it wasn't at all lumpy after whisking constantly while it cooked.  Then let it cool completely to room temp. or chill it in the fridge. It needs to be cooled completely. If you don't let it cool completely, it will melt the butter and you'll have runny frosting.

In an electric stand mixer, beat the butter and the sugar for a minute or two until well combined and fluffy. You'll want to use the whisk attachment on a stand mixer, not the flat paddle. Then while beating, add in the thickened milk mixture and the vanilla. Beat on the highest speed you can get to without it spraying all over the place for 7 minutes. Yes, 7 whole minutes, maybe even 8 or 9. I know that seems like a long time, but that's when the magic happens!

You will be scared because it will look like a weird goopy mess at first and you'll wonder what on earth you did wrong. Keep beating and something amazing happens. It goes from that goopy mess to something thick, velvety smooth, and perfectly fluffy.
Use it to fill cupcakes or other pastries, or as a frosting on top. You can't go wrong putting this on just about anything :)
One batch makes enough to frost 24 cupcakes with BIG tops.  If you're just spreading a little on top, it will do 48.  You can half it if you need to -- but really, why?  :)

After trouble-shooting with a lot of people, here are some helpful Notes:
1. Use real butter, and a good name-brand. Cheap butter does weird things.
2. If you beat for the 6-8 minutes and the mixture still looks strange, beat longer and at a higher speed if you can. It should come together, but it takes a little patience!
3. Store at room temperature in a sealed container. Frosting may separate in the fridge, but you can store it overnight if left at room temp and in a well sealed container.

Best Ever Lasagna -- Amber Williams

Best Ever Lasagna

3 lb. sausage
4 cloves minced garlic --- you could use half, but why?
2 Tablespoon dried basil
3 teaspoon salt
1 big can crushed tomatoes from Costco (or 4 big cans of crushed tomatoes from store)
2 teaspoons sugar -- added to tomatoes
Lasagna noodles - I end up using one whole package plus part of another -- leave uncooked!
6 cups cottage cheese (Costco size)
1 cup Parmesan cheese
4 Tablespoons Parsley Flakes
4 Beaten Eggs
1 teaspoon pepper
2 pound mozzarella shredded (I just buy big bag of shredded mozzarella and use most of bag)

Brown meat. Add next 5 ingredients and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. In a medium or large mixing
bowl mix together cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese, parsley, eggs and pepper.
Do not cook noodles - but you might need to break them to fit into pan. Start with a little sauce
on the bottom of the pan. Then noodles - sauce - cottage cheese mix - mozzarella and repeat to make 3 layers.
Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.
If frozen, I cook it for at least an hour to and hour and a half covered with tin foil for at least 45 minutes and
then take off so cheese gets melty.
Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.
This recipe can be halved but it works so well using the large costco products it is easier to make more.
It can make 2 deep large lasagnas, or 4-5 little ones in glass 9x9 pans. If the dishes are shallow it might be too hard to make them three layers deep.

Rigatoni -- Suzanne Kingsford

Rigatoni

This is a recipe that I've found even the pickiest of eaters like and eat well. It makes a large batch - one for your family and one to take to someone else or to freeze for another night.

3 lbs. ground beef
1 chopped onion
2 cans tomato sauce (8 oz cans)
1 tomato sauce can full of water
2 packages spaghetti seasoning
1 lb cheddar cheese, grated
1 lb mozzarella cheese, grated
1 pint cottage cheese
1 can mushrooms (optional)
1 large package rigatoni noodles

Brown meat and onion, drain off fat. Add sauce, seasoning packages, water and mushrooms and allow to simmer for 20-30 minutes. Cook noodles. While noodles are cooking, combine cheeses and cottage cheese. Layer noodles, cheese and meat sauce in your pans and top with a little extra cheese. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until heated through.

Cinnamon Bun Popcorn --- Suzanne Kingsford

Cinnamon Bun Popcorn


This is so addicting and a great treat to have on hand or to give away!

1/2 cup kernels, popped
1 c. roughly chopped pecans (I omitted completely a few times I made it for people who aren't crazy about nuts)
1 c. brown sugar
3/4 tsp cinnamon (or a tad more if you like)
1/4 c. Karo syrup
1 stick butter
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla
3 squares almond bark (or white chocolate chips work fine too)

Preheat oven to 250. Combine brown sugar, butter and cinnamon in pan and melt on stove until bubbly (about 2 min - don't overcook or it will get too hard). Remove from stove and add soda and vanilla. It will bubble up for a minute, this is normal and kind of cool to watch! Pour mixture over popcorn and nuts and mix well. Spread popcorn onto a lined cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Melt almond bark in microwave and drizzle over popcorn. Let cool and break into pieces. Enjoy!

Kansas City Sue's Chicken -- Tammy Anderson

KANSAS CITY SUE'S CHICKEN


4-6 chicken breasts, cut in halves
1/4 lb butter
1/4 c ketchup
1/2 c vinegar
1/2 c sugar
1 onion, diced
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 c water
1 beef bouillon cube

In lg skillet, brown chicken in butter. Remove chicken pieces to slow cooker as they brown. Combine all other ingredients in skillet and bring to a simmer, stirring. Pour sauce over chicken. Cover and set on low. Cook for 4-6 hrs in crock pot (I do 6 hrs) or until chicken is tender. Serve with sticky rice or noodles ( I do rice) YUMMY!

Skillet Curry Chicken - Angie Dunn

Skillet Curry Chicken


Simple and delicious!

1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped
1 onion (or less), chopped
1 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. curry powder
1 can (10 oz.) cream of chicken soup
1 cup heavy cream (I used half & half and ended up adding water b/c it was so thick)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (I used 4-5 breasts), cut into 1" pieces
3/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tsp. smoked paprika

In heavy skillet, cook apple and onion in butter and olive oil until tender, 4-5 minutes. Stir in curry powder and simmer for another 2-3 minutes. Add soup, cream, salt, pepper and stir. Bring to a simmer. Add chicken to pan along with mushrooms and paprika. Bring to a simmer and cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until chicken is thoroughly cooked (I cooked the chicken separately to save time.) Serve over hot cooked rice.

Yummy!