Homemade Oreos

My friend, Traci, brought this recipe over for us to make. Good call, my friend! These are yummy! I asked her where she got the recipe and she found it online at a blog called the SassyRadish. How cute is that? I just found it and her blog is much prettier than mine with lots of pictures and a cute story, so I am just going to provide the link you can click to give her proper due. You can find her homemade oreos here.

These are definitely not in the normal low fat or fat free category of things I post, but I think the holidays are a time to splurge and not be so hard on ourselves. That's what New Year's resolutions are for, right?

I hope you are all enjoying this holiday season. Take time to relax and enjoy...especially homemade oreos. ;)

Buckeyes...aka Peanut Butter Balls

All I can say about these are yum! My mom and I used to make these pretty much every year for Christmas. They have always been a favorite and I just wanted to share them. Apparently they are a staple in Iowa, but not everywhere else. So, here you go! Enjoy!

Buckeyes

1/2 c. margarine, softened
2 1/2 c. powdered sugar
2 1/2 c. peanut butter (personally, I like chunky pb but any will work, even natural)
1 tsp. vanilla
3 1/2 c. Rice Krispies
1 12 oz. bag semi sweet chocolate chips
Paraffin wax

Directions

Cream margarine and powdered sugar. Add peanut butter and vanilla. Stir in the
Rice Krispies. Shape into balls about the size of walnuts. Place in refrigerator for a couple of hours or longer.  Melt 1/2 block paraffin in double boiler. Add chocolate chips; stir well. Keep mixture over hot water. Stick a toothpick into a ball and dip in chocolate. Place on cookie sheet covered with waxed or parment paper. Makes about 75 balls. Store in covered container in refriegerator. Will keep for 3 to 4 weeks.

You can also use a spoon and dip the whole ball in the chocolate. Sometimes it gets a little tedious doing them with toothpicks.

Dorito Casserole

 Who doesn't love Doritos? I know we love them! The nice thing about this recipe is that it sounds terrible for you, but it uses lean ground beef or chicken, baked Doritos, light Velveeta and fat free cream of chicken soup. Now, if you are against processed foods, this recipe is obviously not for you. But, if you aren't, then it's for you! I haven't made this in a long time. It may have to go in to the rotation again here soon. Yum!


Dorito Casserole

1 lb 90% lean ground beef or chicken
1/2 lb of Velveeta light
2 tbsp of chili powder or taco seasoning
1 can of fat free cream of chicken soup
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1/2 bag of baked Doritos - Nacho cheese or Cool Ranch

Brown ground beef or chicken then add taco seasoning or chili powder, cream of chicken soup, and rotel tomatoes. Crush Doritos and pour half into a casserole dish sprayed with Pam, then add a layer of the meat mixture, then half the cheese, another layer of chips, then meat mixture and finish off with cheese. Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes

Mexican Chicken Baseballs

 I have to admit I haven't tried this version of the baseball recipes because we love the Buffalo ones so much. How could this one possibly be bad? It sounds yummy!

Mexican Chicken Baseballs

3 oz Kraft Philadelphia Free Fat-Free Cream Cheese, softened
2 Tbsp fat-free margarine
4 Tbsp Old El Paso Taco Seasoning Mix, 1/2 pkg
4 cooked chicken fillet, approx 2 cups.
2 Tbsp fat-free skim milk
4 Pillsbury Reduced-Fat Crescent(s), 1 8oz. can
1 cup Del Monte Whole Kernel Supersweet Fiesta Corn


Instructions


Blend cream cheese, butter, taco seasoning and milk until smooth. Pour mixture over chicken (and optional items)and stir.
Separate crescent roll dough into 4 rectangles and seal perforations. Spoon 1/2 cup mixture (more if optional items are added) into center of each.
Pull opposite corners of dough to center and seal- and place on ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake at 350* for 15-20 minutes.

Chicken Baseballs

Here is a great family recipe! I never realized that I hadn't posted the other variations of Chicken Baseballs. I have a version of Buffalo Chicken Baseballs that you can search for on here. If your family doesn't like spicy, this is the tame version. :) Watch for Mexican Chicken Baseballs on my next post. Thank you for some motivation from some old Belle Plaine friends to keep me going! :)


Chicken Baseballs

4 servings
3 oz. light cream cheese, softened
2 tsp light margarine, melted
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp chopped onion
2 cups cubed, cooked chicken
1 8 oz. can reduced fat crescent rolls
2 Tbsp milk
bread crumbs

In a blender (or by hand) combine cream cheese, butter, salt, pepper, milk, onion.
Blend. Pour mixture over chicken and stir. Separate crescent roll dough into four
rectangles and seal perforations. Spoon 1/2 cup mixture into center of each.

Pull opposite corners of dough to center and seal. Sprinkle each "baseball" with
bread crumbs and place on ungreased cookie sheet or pizza stone. Take at 350 degrees for
20 minutes.

Chicken Enchilada Soup

I can't believe I haven't shared this recipe. It is simple and a favorite in our house! We are having it tonight and it is so yummy!

Chicken Enchilada Soup

1 lb. BSCB (cooked and shredded) or 1 large can chicken breast
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can Fiesta Nacho or Southwestern Pepper Jack soup
1 cup skim milk
16 oz. jar of salsa
2 oz. 2% Velveeta


It can't get much easier than combining this all in a pot and simmering until melted and warm. You can also do it in the crock pot on high 2-3 hours or low 6-8 hours. Enjoy!

Creamy Salsa Chicken

I seriously thought I had shared this recipe before. I looked through the archives and couldn't find it. I've been asked for it by several people, so here it is. This is good either in tacos, nachos, enchiladas or served over rice. It is easily adaptable as well. If there is something you don't like, just leave it out!

Creamy Salsa Chicken

3lb boneless skinless chicken breast
2 jars salsa (this is easily adaptable, just use what you have on hand, I would assume they mean a 16 oz. jar)
1 can corn, drained (I always use frozen corn because this Iowa girl can't stand canned corn. If you like it, you may want to try Mexi-corn)
1 can black beans, drained
2 packets of taco seasoning
8oz FF cream cheese

Put chicken breasts into crockpot and pour in all ingredients except cream cheese. Stir until taco seasoning is mixed in well. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.

In the last 30 minutes, add cream cheese. After 30 minutes has passed, stir until cream cheese is blended throughout.

Serve over brown rice.

Sausage and Potatoes

While I'm on a roll and have new recipes to post, I thought I would share another super easy one! I know you must all think that I have sausage on the brain (get your heads out of the gutter!). Like I explained earlier, it's been on sale a lot lately and lots of winter recipes we enjoy call for it.

Tuesday I was battling a new cold, so I wasn't very motivated to cook. A friend of ours from Florida was going to be staying that night with us, so Sean requested something in the crock pot they could eat whenever they were ready that night. I came across this recipe that I hadn't tried before and happened to have everything on hand for it! It was a hit! The guys loved it!

Sausage and Potatoes

14 oz Hillshire Farm Turkey Smoked Sausage, sliced
1 t onion powder
28 oz frozen O'Brien potatoes with peppers & onions
1 10 3/4 oz can cheddar cheese soup
3 T fat free milk
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in crock and mix well. Cook on low 6 hours or 3 hours on high.

You can't get much easier than this. Seriously...

I served it with some biscuits, because you know all men need bread when they eat! However, I would suggest a nice green salad or vegetable on the side, too.




 

Italian Sausage Soup

Last night I was searching for a quick and easy soup recipe to make with ingredients I actually had on hand. The "pickins" were slim my friends. My meat stock pile has dwindled and it's time to stock up again! It seems as though all types of sausages have been on sale lately, so I have a lot on hand. I happened to have a roll of Jimmy Dean hot ground sausage needing to be used up. I usually only have turkey sausage, but I think I bought this in a week sale moment thinking I would make those tasty little sausage & cheese ball appetizers. Long story short, it needed to be used up. I looked through my recipe stash and found this very yummy soup! I didn't have any spinach on hand, so I made it without. I definitely will make this again and make sure I have some because it will bump up the nutrition. Anyway, this is something different than the ordinary soup recipes I see and thought I would share it with you all! Enjoy!

Italian Sausage Soup

8 ounces hot or sweet turkey Italian sausage
2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano
1/2 cup uncooked small shell pasta
2 cups bagged baby spinach leaves
2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan or Romano cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil


Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Remove casings from sausage. Add sausage to pan, and cook about 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Drain; return to pan.

Add broth, tomatoes, and pasta to pan, and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes or until pasta is done. Remove from heat; stir in spinach until wilted. Sprinkle each serving with cheese and basil.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 1/3 cups soup, 1 1/2 teaspoons cheese, and 1 1/2 teaspoons basil)

CALORIES 216 FAT 7.1g FIBER 1.6g

Cooking Light, JULY 2004
 
Another quick note: I doubled the recipe since I had a 16 oz. roll of sausage. It is a very forgiving recipe and easily adapted.