Coconut Syrup -- Julianne Clark

If you like coconut at all, you really need to make this syrup. Carl calls it the sweet nectar of life. It's so good, you could drink this stuff. Seriously. You might want to double the recipe.

COCONUT SYRUP

7-8 Tb. butter

3/4 c. buttermilk

1 cup sugar (I usually put in 3/4 c. to make me feel better)

1/2 tsp.

1 tsp. coconut extract

Place first 3 ingred. in saucepan on medium heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Boil 1 minute, stirring constantly, then remove from heat and add soda and flavoring. It will fizz, so give it a few minutes to settle down--the foam eventually settles. Store in the fridge--I usually heat it up a little in the microwave before using. YUM!

Christmas Casserole

1 pound Jimmy Dean sausage

6 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 cup sour cream

2 slices bread, chunked

1 cup grated Cheddar cheese

1 small can diced green chilies

Salt and pepper to taste

Brown sausage and drain.

Beat eggs.

Beat together milk and sour cream.

Mix eggs, bread, green chilies, cheese, and milk mixture.

Fold in sausage. Add salt and pepper.

Pour into ungreased 9"x9" baking dish.

Cook uncovered for 45 minutes at 350.

Serve immediately.

I usually double the recipe and use a 9"x13" dish. The cook time increases - to an 1 hour or even 1 1/2 hours. See what works for you, your altitude, and your oven. We take this to Bear Lake and it takes longer to cook there. Also this dish is great for trips or busy mornings because it can be made ahead of time and just refrigerated until the morning.

Honey-Lime Chicken Enchiladas

This is one of my favorite meals I have ever eaten.

Honey-Lime Chicken Enchiladas

from Keeping Up Cookbook

1/2 c. honey

1/4 c. lime juice

1 T. chili powder

1/2 t. garlic powder

1 1/2 pounds chicken, cooked and shredded

Stir together honey, lime juice, chili powder, and garlic powder until combined. Add chicken and let sit in marinade for at least 30 minutes.

2 (10-oz.) cans green enchilada sauce

1 cup half and half

flour tortillas - (we love to cook our own from Costco)

shredded colby jack cheese

Mix enchilada sauce with half and half. Spread roughly 3/4 cup of the sauce in the bottom of a 9"x13" baking dish. Fill flour tortillas with marinated chicken and shredded cheese, roll-up, then place side-by-side in baking dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the top of the enchiladas and top with more cheese. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

Awesome French Toast Casserole and Buttermilk Syrup

This is an awesome breakfast!! One of the best parts is that you make it the day ahead and pop it in the oven in the morning. The worst part = I hate cutting/touching cream cheese, but I love eating it. It is good with regular syrup, but AMAZING with buttermilk syrup (which by the way, would make anything smothered in it amazing. I'm just saying.)

French Toast Casserole

from Keeping Up Cookbook

10 slices of French Bread, crusts removed (I like Country French Bread in the bakery)

1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, cut into small cubes

12 eggs

2 cups milk

1/2 cup maple syrup

1 t. cinnamon, more for sprinkling on top

1/2 t. salt

Cut bread into cubes or strips. Layer bread and cream cheese cubes in a greased 9"x13" baking dish. Whisk together eggs, milk, syrup, cinnamon and salt. Slowly pour egg mixture over bread and sprinkle with additional cinnamon. Refrigerate overnight. Bake uncovered in a 375 degree oven for 45 minutes, or until casserole is puffed and center is set. Slice and serve hot with buttermilk syrup.

Buttermilk Syrup

from Our Best Bites cookbook

3/4 c. buttermilk

1 1/2 c. sugar

1/2 cup real butter (no substitutions - why would you want to?)

2 T. corn syrup

1 t. baking soda

1 t. vanilla

1. Combine buttermilk, sugar, butter, corn syrup, and baking soda in a 4-quart pan. (It will grow, so it needs to be a big pan.)

2. Bring mixture to a boil and reduce heat to low(ish) - just make sure it's still bubbling. Cook, stirring very frequently, for 7-9 minutes or until the syrup reaches a rich golden brown. (I doubled the recipe for YWs and it took about 15 minutes.) Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

3. Put on any breakfast food, muffin, fruit, ice cream, cake, dessert, or licked off a spoon. Yummy!