tomato basil soup

I have always love tomato soup, and when I had applebees tomato basil soup for lunch a few years ago I knew I had to get the recipe. I found a copycat recipe on topsecretrecipes.com. This recipe is easy to make and freezes well. My family loves this recipe and since you make it yourself, you know exactly whats in it and you can control the salt, that's something you just can't do with canned soup.

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup minced white onion

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 (28 oz.) cans crushed tomatoes

3 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup minced fresh basil

2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley 1/3 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, and add onions and garlic. Saute for about 1 minute. Add crushed tomatoes and chicken broth, and bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and let mixture cool, uncovered, for 30 minutes or so. You can let it sit for as long as an hour, if you like. Pour approximately half of the tomato mixture into a blender with the basil and parsley. Put the lid on the blender and hold it down with a dish towel. Mixture may still be hot and you don't want the lid of the blender to pop off. Blend on high speed for about a minute, pour the mixture into a large bowl or pitcher, then add the rest of the mixture to the blender and blend on high speed for a minute. Pour all of the pureed tomato mixture back into the saucepan, and then add the remaining ingredients. Bring the soup back up to a boil then reduce and simmer for 20 minutes. Makes about 6 servings.

pineapple upside down cupcakes

 

Pineapple upside down cake is a simple but delicious cake. Also cupcakes are great because there small cakes that you can take with you anywhere. This recipe combines them both. Now you can have pineapple upside down cupcake at work, school, in the car, or anywhere really. I found this recipe on Pinterest and I just love it.

Cake Ingredients:
2 eggs
2/3 cup white sugar
4 Tbsp pineapple juice
2/3 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Topping:
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick or 4 Tbsp)
2/3 cup brown sugar (packed)
1-can pineapple rings
6-maraschino cherries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray your muffin tins with non-stick cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, add eggs, white sugar, and pineapple juice. Beat for 2 minutes. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the wet ingredients and turn mixer back on for 2 minutes. In a small sauce pan, melt the butter and add the brown sugar. Stir on low heat for one minute. Spoon a layer of the warm brown sugar mixture into the bottom of each muffin tin, then place a pineapple ring on top. Add a cherry in the middle of each pineapple. Pour cake mixture over to fill muffin tin 3/4 of the way full. If you are using regular muffin tins, you will need to cut down the rings to fit or just use pineapple tidbits. Bake jumbo cakes for 25 minutes. Bake regular cakes for 20 minutes. If you choose to make a large cake, bake for 22-25 minutes in a 10 inch cast iron skillet. The cake is done with a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from the oven. Let cool in pan for 3 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of each cake to help loosen in case it sticks a little. Place a wire cooling rack on top, and quickly flip over on top of sheet tray to catch extra drippings.

Chicken noodle soup

 On cold nights a good chicken noodle soup is always nice to have. I came up with this recipe on one of those cold nights. This recipe makes enough to feed a hungry crowd without braking the bank. This recipe also freezes well.

1 (3 lb.) whole chicken 

Water to cover chicken
1 cup carrots diced
1 medium onion, diced 

1 cup celery, diced
1 tablespoon parsley 

1 teaspoon sage 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/2 teaspoon pepper 

16oz egg noodles, cooked

In large pot bring to boil chicken and water. Once it starts to boil reduce heat and cover. Simmer until chicken is cooked, about 1 hour. Remove chicken. Add vegetables and seasonings to pot and boil until vegetables are tender. Remove chicken from bones and skin. Add chicken and cooked noodles to pot. stir to combined.

creamy seafood pasta

This is my husbands favorite pasta. I told a friend that is a chef in New York about this recipe. Since he doesn't like to work as hard at home as he does at work he agreed to try it. He said that it tastes a lot like what he makes at work but it's a lot less time consuming. He still like his better of course but at home he said “this will definitely work”.

16 oz. uncooked linguine
1 can (18.5 oz) new England clam chowder
1 cup milk
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 lb. uncooked deveined shelled large shrimp, tail shells removed
1 (8-oz.) package sliced fresh mushrooms
1/4 cup green onions, chopped
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste, if desired
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, if desired

In 5- to 6-quart Dutch oven, cook linguine as directed on package. Drain well; return to Dutch oven and cover to keep warm. Meanwhile, in blender, place clam chowder, milk, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and the garlic; blend on medium speed until mixture is smooth. Set aside. In 12-inch nonstick skillet or wok, heat oil over medium-high heat until hot. Add shrimp, mushrooms and onions; cook about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until shrimp turn pink. Stir in pepper flakes and soup mixture; cook until thoroughly heated. Stir in parsley. Salt and pepper to taste. Pour over cooked linguine in Dutch oven; toss gently to coat. Top individual servings with shredded Parmesan cheese.

Hot Cocoa

 

This recipe is very good but super rich. It's almost like drinking a cup of melted chocolate. I've made this with bitter sweet and semi-sweet chocolate and either way it is still very sweet. My husband likes to say “it's like drinking from the chocolate river in Willy Wonka”


1.5 cups of heavy cream

1 can of sweetened condensed milk (14 oz)

2 cups of bittersweet chocolate chips

6 cups of milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

In a large pot over low heat, combine all of the above ingredients. Stir regularly for 30-40 minutes until chocolate is fully melted and incorporated with other ingredients.

If you’re making this for a party, you could add all of the above ingredients to a crock-pot a few hours before guests arrive. Provide a ladle and mugs and let them serve themselves.

Cinnamon Rolls

This recipe is a Cinnabon copycat, maybe? I got this recipe off the internet years ago and it's a really good recipe. There isn't a Cinnabon around here and I've never had a cinnamon roll from Cinnabon so I don't know how close this is. Like I said though this is a really good recipe. Using the bread machine makes this one of those easy recipes. Just fill the machine, set it to dough cycle and come back in 90 minutes, easy.

Dough: 1 cup warm milk
2 eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
4 cups bread flour
2 1/2 teaspoons bread machine yeast

Filling: 1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened

Topping: 4 ounce cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt

Place ingredients in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select dough cycle; press Start. After the dough has doubled in size turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, cover and let rest for 10 minutes. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll dough into a 16x21 inch rectangle. Spread dough with 1/3 cup butter and sprinkle evenly with sugar/cinnamon mixture. Roll up dough and cut into 12 rolls. Place rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake rolls in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. While rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese, 1/4 cup butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Spread frosting on warm rolls before serving.

Wet Burrito

I got this recipe from my grandmother in-law. I had this recipe for about 2 years before I tried it. Now its one of our favorites. It's not hard to make even with making the sauce. It has good flavor and makes Mexican dinner night different from having tacos and regular burritos. This is also very filling so you can feed a lot of people (10-12) or and family of 6 with 2 teenage boys.




gravy:

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup chili powder

1/3 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon cumin

1/4 teaspoon oregano

3 cans (15 oz.) chicken broth

1 can (12 oz.) tomato sauce




Melt butter. Mix dry ingredients in bowl. Add dry ingredients to butter. Stirring constantly, slowly add chicken broth. Slowly, stirring constantly - stir in tomato sauce. Thicken gravy lightly with cornstarch until desired thickness.

Burritos:

2 lb. ground beef

1 large onion

salt and pepper

1 (31 oz.) can re-fried beans

20 floured shells; warmed

8 oz. cheddar cheese; shredded



Fry beef and onions. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Then add re-fried beans. Mix well. To assemble individual plates: Fill flour shells with meat mixture, roll up placing seam side down on plate. Ladle gravy on top. Top with cheddar cheese, tomato, lettuce, sour cream and salsa.

*Recipe makes a lot of gravy - but the gravy freezes well.*

High Temp Eye-of-Round Roast and Garlic mashed potatoes

You don't have to be made them together but since I did I'm going to write about both. This roast is very good. I like how there isn't to much going on. Sometimes people think you need to use every spice available to man to make things taste good, that's not always true. The garlic mashed potatoes are a nice change from boring old mashed potatoes. The garlic isn't over the top which is nice (nobody wants super garlic breath).

Roast
1(3 pound) beef eye of round roast                                                                         
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C). Season the roast with salt and pepper and place in a roasting pan or baking dish. Do not cover or add water. Place the roast in the preheated oven. Reduce the temperature to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C). Roast for 21 minutes (seven minutes per pound) then turn off the oven and let the roast sit in the hot oven for 2 1/2 hours. Do not open the door at all during this time! Remove the roast from the oven, the internal temperature should have reached at least 145 degrees F (65 degrees C). Carve into thin slices to serve.


Potatoes

2 lbs red potatoes  
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons butter
salt and black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup roasted garlic (about 2 small whole heads)

Preheat oven at 400. Place garlic cloves in a aluminum foil packet and place in the oven and roast for 45 minutes. During this time boil potatoes. Take garlic cloves and squeeze out of the skin into a mixing bowl. Add the remainder ingredients and using a stand or hand mixer, mix until creamy.

Chipotle Beef Wrap

I love this wrap, I could eat it everyday if eating red meat all the time wasn't so bad. This is by far my favorite thing to make for lunch. On super hot summer nights I have made this as a dinner. The younger kids are not into super spicy things so I use less peppers when i make it for them, but when it's just me and my husband or the older kids I like to use more peppers.

2 teaspoons olive oil 
1 (4-6 oz.) cube steak 
1 chipotle in adobo, chopped (more if you like spicy less if you don't) 
2 large tortillas 
2 tablespoons mayonnaise 
Lettuce 
Tomato

Rub olive oil in a heavy skillet. Saute steak over high heat until medium rare to medium, turning once (3-4 minutes). Set aside until cool; slice thinly. Stir together chipotle in adobo and mayonnaise; spread on tortillas. Top with beef and lettuce and tomato. Roll up and eat.

Baked Ziti

If you like Tortino's combination flavored pizza rolls then you are going to love this recipe. I'm not kidding it taste just like combination pizza rolls. I'm not sure why this is called baked ziti when the noodles are not ziti noodles, but with the way it tastes I don't really care what they named it. Anyways you are going to love this recipe. The kids can't get enough of it. This recipe also freezes well. Just thaw and bake, taste just like you sent a lot of time on it.

1 box rigatoni pasta 

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 

 2 1/2 spicy Italian sausages, casings removed 

1/2 yellow onion, diced 

 1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced 

2 garlic cloves, minced 

1 jar sun-dried tomato and sweet basil spaghetti sauce 

2 cups mozzarella cheese 

1/2 Parmesan, grated salt and pepper to taste

 

Preheat oven to 350°F. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add a small handful of salt and pasta to water and stir. Boil pasta for 7 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until pasta is al dente. Drain, toss with a teaspoon of oil, pour into a large mixing bowl and Pour 1 tablespoon of olive oil into a large sauté pan and place over medium- high heat. Add sausage and break apart with a wooden spoon. Cook sausage for about 5 minutes or until evenly browned. Drain and add to pasta. Discard grease and add remaining oil to pan. Add onion, bell peppers and garlic to pan and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Pour onion mixture over sausage and pasta mixture and toss together. Add marinara, 1/2 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan and gently fold together until fully incorporated. Adjust seasonings. Pour mixture into a lightly greased 9x13 baking dish and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the cheese bubbles and browns. Allow ziti to cool for 5 to 7 minutes before serving.

Apple crisp

I love apple crisp, its one of those fall comfort foods you just can't live without. I love this recipe because the oatmeal top and apple ratio are just perfect. Not to much of one or the other. I halved the sugar to the original recipe but it still seems very sweet.

• 5 Cups granny smith apples,slices
• 1/2 Cup sugar
• 1/2 Cup butter
• 1 Cup quick cooking oatmeal
• 1/2 Cup flour
• 1/2 Cup packed brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix apples and sugar in a 2 quart baking dish. In a bowl mix butter, oatmeal, flour, and brown sugar together and then sprinkle over apples. Bake for about 1 hour or until golden brown.

Chili

Everyone needs a chili recipe. I have tried a lot of different ways to make chili and this is the easiest and best one. You can buy all the beans and do it the hard way but with a large family, work, and life in general easy is always nice to have. This recipe can be made in a crock pot but I have very bad luck with crock pots so mine hardly sees the light of day.

• 4 hamburger patties
•  2 (30.5 oz.) cans brooks chili mix
•  8 oz. can tomato sauce
•  1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes 
• 1/2 cup green pepper, diced 1/2 cup onion, diced 
•  1/2 cup celery, diced
•  1 tablespoon chili powder
•  2 teaspoons cumin
•  2 teaspoons onion powder
•  1 teaspoon garlic powder 
• 1 teaspoon salt
•  1/2 teaspoon pepper 
•  1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Brown the hamburgers then cut each patty into 16 pieces. Add everything to a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Cook about 2 hours stirring often so the bottom doesn't burn.

Turkey burgers

Some people don't like ground turkey because they replace beef in a recipe for ground turkey. Ground turkey is a completely different food and that Is how it should be treated. I came up with this recipe after watching food network a few years ago. Everyone was making their version of a turkey burger, so I took the things I thought would be good and made my own turkey burger. The sauce for the bun sounds weird but it really is delicious. 

 

• 20 oz. package ground turkey  
• 1/8 cup granny smith apple, finely chopped
•  1/4 cup onion, chopped
•  1 stalk celery, finely chopped 
•   salt and pepper to taste
•  vegetable oil, for drizzling 
•  4 wheat hamburger buns
•  1/2 cup mayonnaise
•  1/4 cup cranberry sauce (jelly NOT whole berry) 
•  

Combine turkey, apple, onion, celery, salt, and pepper in a bowl and form into 4 large patties. Preheat a large skillet or a grill pan to medium high heat. Drizzle skillet or brush grill with vegetable oil and cook patties 5 to 6 minutes on each side. Mix mayonnaise and cranberry together. Add mayo/cran mixture to top of bun.

Buffalo Wild Wing hot sauce copycat

I love this sauce. I use it for a lot of things like pasta, pizza, even sandwiches. I always make a lot of this sauce and freeze it. While making the sauce be careful not to lean over the pot, because its so spicy you'll think you burned you nose hairs off. Any recipe that asks for hot sauce gets this sauce. My oldest son always says that if I let him have a bag of this and a straw he would drink it like a Capri Sun.

• 1 cup Frank's cayenne pepper sauce
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/8 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons water
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Combine all ingredients except egg yolk, water and cornstarch for the sauce of your choice in a small saucepan. Heat sauce over medium heat until boiling, then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove pan from the heat and allow it to cool, uncovered, for 10 minutes. While the sauce cools, vigorously whisk egg yolk with 2 teaspoons water in a medium bowl for about 2 minutes or until color is pale yellow. Whisk in cornstarch until dissolved. Drizzle the hot sauce mixture into the egg yolk mixture in a steady stream while rapidly whisking. This will create a thick, creamy emulsion that will prevent the oil from separating. Cover the sauce and chill it until it's needed. Makes 1 1/2 cups.

KFC Chicken Potpie Copycat

 

 This is a really good recipe. This is even better than KFC, the crust is so good that you could eat it on its own. The only thing about this recipe is you are really going to want to make 2 or 3 times more filling then the directions say so that you can freeze some for next time. This recipe takes almost all day to make but it is worth the wait. I changed the potatoes and carrots to frozen diced potatoes and frozen crinkle cut carrots. I did this because not only are they uniform size and shape so the cook all the way, where as the regular carrots and potatoes are still crunchy after being cooked. I already made the changes below.

***use the food processor for the crust to make it easier***

Crust- 

•  1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
•  5 tablespoons cold butter
•  1/4 cup shortening 
•  3 tablespoons cold water 
• 2 eggs, separated

Chicken- 

•  4 cups water
•  3 tablespoons salt
•  2 tablespoons sugar 
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
•  3/4 pound chicken breast fillets (about 2 fillets) 
•  1/2 pound chicken thigh fillets (about 2 fillets)

 Filling- 

• 1 cup frozen crinkle cut carrots 
•  1 cup diced hash brown potato
•  1 cup frozen peas
•  1/4 cup butter
•  1/4 cup all-purpose flour
•  1 1/2 cups chicken broth
•  1 cup whole milk
•  1/2 teaspoon salt
•  1/4 teaspoon rubbed dried sage pinch ground black pepper

1. Make the dough for the crust by combining the flour and salt in a medium bowl. Use a fork or a pastry knife to cut the cold butter and shortening into the flour until there are no pieces of butter or shortening larger than peas. Add the water and egg yolks (save the egg whites for later), and bring the dough together with your hands until you can form it into a ball. Wrap the ball in plastic and let it chill out in the fridge for 2 hours.

2. Make the brine for the chicken by combining the water with salt, sugar, and ground black pepper. Stir until the sugar and salt dissolve, and then add the chicken, cover, and chill for 2 hours. Don't let the chicken marinate for more than 2 hours or it will be too salty. If you will not be using the chicken after it has brined for exactly 2 hours, remove it from the brine and rinse it off, and then pop it back into the fridge inside a storage bag or covered container until you need it. 3. When you are ready to assemble the pot pies, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

4. Preheat a saute pan drizzled with about 1 tablespoon vegetable oil over medium heat. Rinse the chicken fillets, and then dry them. Add the chicken fillets to the pan and saute the breasts for 5 to 6 minutes per side and the thighs for 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove the chicken and let it cool, then tear it into bite-size pieces.

 5. Use a steamer basket in a covered pan over boiling water to steam the sliced carrots and diced potato for 6 minutes. Add frozen peas and steam for an additional 6 minutes.

6. Make the sauce by melting the butter over medium-low heat in a large saucepan. Whisk in the flour, turn the heat to medium, and cook the flour and butter mixture for 1 minute, whisking often. Add the chicken broth and milk while whisking and simmer for 5 minutes, or until the sauce thickens. Add the steamed vegetables, chicken, salt, sage, and ground black pepper. Turn off the heat and allow the filling to cool for 10 minutes.7. Build the pot pies by spooning 1 to 1 1/2 cups of filling into small baking dishes, ramekins, or aluminum pot pie pans. Fill all of the pot pie pans and then get the dough ready. 8. Roll out dough and cut it into circles using an inverted round plastic storage container that has a diameter about 1-inch larger than the pie pans. You can roll the dough circles more after you cut them out if you need to stretch them bigger. Place the dough over each pie and then pinch all the way around the edges to seal. Slightly beat the leftover egg whites and brush over the top of each pot pie. Place the pies on a baking sheet and bake for 22 to 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Makes 4 to 6 pot pies.