Filled Macaroni Ring Macroni to fill a ringed jello mold, bundt or springform pan Salt (to taste) Fillings and toppings of your choice Add macaroni and salt to a pot of water and cook till firm tender. DO NOT add oil to the water because you will need the cooked macaroni to stick together. Fill mold with macaroni and let set. Turn onto  a platter and fill center of ring with filling of your choice. In the pictures at right black beans (top) and pinto beans (bottom) were used. To complete, garnish with toppings of your choice. For the pinto bean ring Marie used grated cheddar and Monterey jack cheeses, and diced green chilis. The black bean ring was topped with cheddar cheese and chopped green onions.  Also, two flavors of salsa were added to the black bean platter. Serve cold or at room temperature.

      Mouth-Watering Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes Cake

Click on picture to enlarge.

Creamy Mashed Potatoes Idaho potatoes, enough to frost the cake    and feed your family Minced garlic and Salt (to taste) Cream cheese (to taste) Peel and cut up potatoes. Add potatoes, salt and garlic to a pot of water and cook potatoes till tender. Combine potatoes and cream cheese and mash. For the Cake:  Make up your favorite meatloaf recipe. Shape in springform pan or other round baking dish and bake. Allow meatloaf to partially cool, frost with mashed potatotoes, and garnish with mixture of green, red, orange and yellow diced bell peppers. Return to oven set on warm and heat through. Slice like a cake to serve. Yum!

Chicken Tortellini Soup

Ingredients
2 cups chicken breast tenderloins
40-oz. can chicken broth
2 large onions (1 chopped and 1 uncut)
2-3 stalks celery
 Salt and pepper
2 Tbsp. chicken bouillon granules
8-10 cloves garlic (or to your taste. We like garlic!)
4-5 carrots, sliced
8-12 oz. tortellini (fresh or frozen)
1 bag frozen spinach
1/4-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
 Ginger to taste
 Poultry seasoning to taste
			
Directions

Cook chicken in water with whole onion, celery, salt and pepper and 
chicken granules. Remove chicken, onion and celery and set aside.

In small amount of olive oil, saute chopped onion, garlic and sliced 
carrots until they are crisp tenter. Add chicken broth and cook until 
carrots are tender. De-bone chicken and add to the above mixture. Bring 
to a boil and add tortellini; cook until tender. Add seasonings to taste. 
Add spinach just before serving and heat through. Sprinkle helpings with
parmesan cheese.
  

Pumpkin Dessert

Note: This is one of the most requested recipes. Hope you all enjoy it as much as we do.


Filling:
1-1/2 cups evaporated milk
6 eggs, lightly beaten
(1) 29 oz. can pumpkin
3/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 cup brown sugar (or a little less)
1/2 cup white sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In medium bowl, mix eggs and evaporated milk. Set 
aside. In large bowl, combine remainder of ingredients above. Add milk/egg
mixture and mix well. Pour into prepared 9" x 13" pan.

Topping:
3/4 stick margarine or butter
1 box yellow cake mix
1 cup nuts, chopped

Mix margarine and cake mix together resembling a crumbly pie crust. Spread
evenly over filling. Sprinkle nuts on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60
minutes, until knife comes out clean.
  

Split Pea Soup

Note: Once you have tried this soup you will not even look at another
split pea soup recipe, it's that good.



1 1/2 cups dry split peas, rinsed
2 1/2 quarts water
7 - 8 whole allspice in a tea strainer or tied in cheesecloth.
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
6 large potatoes cut in cubes
2 medium onions chopped
6 carrots chopped
2 cups cubed ham
1/2 medium cabbage shredded

Combine peas, water, allspice, salt and pepper - bring to boil. Simmer
for about 1 hour. Stir in potatoes, onions, carrots, ham and cabbage.
Return to boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 30 min. Feeds alot!

Piecemakers' Potato Salad

Note: When we make this recipe to serve at our Craft Fairs we use
very large amounts of all the ingredients. The following recipe is a scaled
down version as best we can estimate.



   8-10 russet potatoes
   3/4 cup chopped onion (or more if you like)
   1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
   Hidden Valley Ranch Buttermilk Dressing - enough to bind ingredients
   together
   

Wash, dry and oil potatoes. Bake at 350 degrees for an hour, or until done.
These may be baked on the rack in the oven or in a roaster. (We like to bake
them in our electric roaster. They taste better to us that way.) After baking,
cool potatoes, then peel and cut into small pieces. Add onions and chopped
parsley, then Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing, and mix well.

P.S. The recipe for making the dressing is on the back of the Hidden Valley
Mix, but we like to add extra dry mix to the dressing for more flavor.

Baked Swedish Pancake

My first encounter with these pancakes was 20+ years ago at a Sambo's restaurant on the
Canadian border. Their appearance and flavor was so unbelievably wonderful that I asked
for the recipe. The waitress said she couldn't give it to me but that it was very simple.
You can imagine my surprise when I went home and found it on the cover of
Sunset Magazine. I began making it then and have never stopped.



   1/2 cup butter
   6 eggs
   3 cups milk
   1 cup sugar
   1 1/2 cups flour
   1/2 tsp. salt
   Dash of cinnamon
   Powdered sugar/fruit/sour cream or syrup for topping
   

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place butter in an 11" x 14" dish and melt it
in the oven. Measure sugar, flour, salt and cinnamon into a large bowl. Beat
eggs and milk in a separate bowl. Pour egg mixture into dry ingredients and
beat until smooth. Remove heated dish from the oven, and pour mixture into it.
Sprinkle with nutmeg or cinnamon. Return to oven and bake 25 to 30 minutes.
Serve immediately, sprinkled with powdered sugar and garnished with lemon
juice, fried apples or fresh fruits in season, sour cream, maple syrup or jam.
For a little heavier version, halve the milk.

Serbian Eggs

   6 eggs, beaten
   1 lb. farmer style cottage cheese, small curd
   1 lb. Monterey Jack cheese, grated
   1 cup Bisquick
   1 cup milk
   1 cube butter, melted

To the beaten eggs, add cottage cheese, Jack cheese and Bisquick. Mix well.
Add milk and 1/2 melted butter to this mixture. Use the other half butter
to grease a 9" x 13" baking dish and then pour all the mixture in the dish
and bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Serve with some fresh salsa - can't beat it!

Funky Apricot Chicken

    Chicken breasts or thighs (enough for your family)
    Garlic salt
    1 Medium jar apricot preserves
    1 Small bottle barbecue sauce, your choice
    1/2 Cup minced onion
    2 tsp. soy sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange chicken pieces in a single
layer in an ungreased 13" x 9" baking dish. Sprinkle lightly 
with garlic salt.

In a small bowl, combine the apricot preserves, barbecue sauce, 
minced onion and soy sauce. spoon over chicken. Bake, uncovered,
for 1 hour.

Lentil Soup

       1 lb. bag lentils
       5 cups chicken broth
       2 cups cold water
       4 stalks celery, chopped
       1 large onion, chopped
       4 carrots, sliced
       1 large can tomatoes
       2 oz. ham or Canadian bacon
       4 cloves garlic, minced
       1/4 cup parsley, chopped
       1 bay leaf
       1/4 tsp. paprika
       1 tsp. marjoram
       1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
       salt and pepper to taste.

Wash lentils well. Put lentils, ham, chicken broth, water and 
celery into soup pot and bring to a boil. Cook for 45 minutes 
on moderate heat. Add remainder of ingredients and cook 
for 30 more minutes on low heat. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Southwestern Pasta Salad

   1 lb. any type pasta
       1 cup corn
       1 cup black beans (rinse canned beans well.)
     1/2 cup fresh cilantro*, chopped
 1 (7oz) can diced green chilies
     1/2 cup black olives, chopped  or 3/4 cup sliced olives
       1 purple onion, chopped
         Optional: grilled red or yellow peppers, diced
         Salt and pepper to taste
         Cumin to taste
         Chili powder to taste

Cook pasta al-dente in salted boiling water. Rinse pasta with 
cold water and drain well. Add remainder of ingredients and toss. 
Chill before serving. Serves 8.

*Cilantro is a type of parsley, sometimes called "Chinese parsley".

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