White Sauce

I use this sauce for everything from lasagna to soups and enchiladas to casseroles. It's a great base to add whatever flavor you're going for. It starts with equal amounts of butter and flour, add milk and salt and you're done!
Ingredients:
4 T butter (half a stick)
4 T flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1/2 -1 t. Salt
Directions:
melt butter in sauce pan. Whisk in flour and cook about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk, going slow at first to avoid lumps. Cook over medium heat until it boils, stirring regularly. Boil for about 1 minute then remove from heat. Stir in salt to taste (start little..) and use in recipe.
Note: sometimes I want my sauce thicker. Then I add an extra 2 T of flour. This makes it a little harder to get smooth, but you just have to be patient and whisk well while adding milk.

Crepes!

We LOVE crepes. You can put anything in them, it's so fun trying out different fillings. There are some tips you need to know to get them right if you've never made a crepe before. So read carefully.
Ingredients: (makes approximately 12 crepes in 8 inch pan)
2 eggs
1 cup milk
2/3 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoons oil or melted butter
Pinch salt
Optional:
1 t. Vanilla
1 T. Sugar
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together with whisk. If desired, you can refrigerate batter for an hour or overnight, but I don't. Batter will be very runny. Heat non stick pan to medium high. I use an 8 inch Teflon frying pan. Because it's so non stick, I don't need to grease it, but if they stick just grease very lightly. For my 8 inch pan, I use a 1/4 cup measuring cup filled about 3/4 full and that makes a perfect thickness. You want the crepe to be very thin. Almost paper thin.

When you pour the batter in, hold the pan in the other hand and quickly swirl it around the pan to just barely cover the whole surface, making a nice thin circle. The batter will probably have a few tiny lumps from the flour, but that's ok. They will cook out. Cook on one side for about a minute or two (notice how the crepe changes as it gets cooked through. Practice will tell you when you need to flip.) I use a rubber spatula to get under the crepe then grab it with my fingers to flip. Cook in other side 30 seconds to a minute. you don't want it to brown, really. Maybe just a little. It will get a little crisp on the edges. Perfect. You're done!
Filling ideas:
Berries (fresh or frozen, cooked)
Other fruit
Nutella
Powdered sugar
Pie filling
Whipped cream
Puddings
Anything you want!
Savory: eggs, cheese, cooked veggies

Lemon Pasta with Chicken and Spinach

A quick, easy, light meal.  Pretty good.
Adapted from melskitchencafe.com

Ingredients:
Cooked chicken
12 oz pasta, cooked (I used angel hair)
4 cloves garlic
2 T butter
6 cups chopped spinach
1/4 cup chicken broth
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
Parmesan cheese

Instructions:
Cook garlic in melted butter. Add spinach and chicken broth and cook until spinach wilts (about 3 minutes). Add pasta. Add in lemon zest and juice and cooked chicken. Serve immediately and top with fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Caramel Popcorn

This is so good you would have no idea how ridiculously easy it is. A quick zap in the microwave after mixing kind of sets the caramel. Spreading it on a cookie sheet lets the individual pieces harden so it doesn't all stick together.
I like that this recipe isn't overly sweet and sticky. It's just perfect.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup popcorn kernels. (more if you want not as strong of flavor, less if you want more concentrated sweetness)
1/4 cup butter
2 T. Light corn syrup
1/2 c. Brown sugar (I use slightly less)
1/4 t. Salt
1/2 t. Vanilla
1/4 t. Baking soda

Directions:
Pop corn using your favorite method. (Here's mine: put 1/4 cup kernels at a time in large microwaveable bowl covered with a plate. Microwave until popping slows down.)
Melt butter, corn syrup, sugar and salt in saucepan. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and soda and stir well, letting the baking soda do it's job.
Pour sauce over popped corn in large bowl and stir to coat evenly. Microwave for 30 seconds-ish. Stir. Spread on cookie sheet to cool.
Option: add in 3/4 cup of peanuts.

Ham Bone Soup

A great use for leftover ham. A filling, comfort food. Great for chilly winter nights. I used the cock pot but can be done on the stove as well. Serve with cornbread. Oh, and remember to soak the beans the night before!
Ps. Even my picky girl LOVED this. She said, "I just ate a carrot and it didn't even taste like a carrot!" Score.

Ingredients:
Leftover ham bone with some meat left on it. (You can throw in some extra ham if there's not much on the bone.)
1-2 carrots
1 stalk celery
1/2 cup-ish onion
1-2 cloves garlic (a spoonful of the jar garlic works great.)
1lb dry beans, pre soaked (I used a bag of mixed beans meant for soup, minus the flavoring packet. You can use just white beans or a mix)
Seasonings-parsley, thyme, pepper, paprika. To taste. (don't add salt until you taste it, it may not need it. Ham is usually salty enough)
4 cups chicken broth (or bouillon)
4 cups water (if your slow cooker doesn't fit that much, you can add more water after you take the bone out.)
Instructions:
Soak beans overnight in enough water to cover them plus an extra two inches. Dice veggies. Cut fat off of ham bone. Add all ingredients to crock pot. Mine was done on high in about 5 hours. Maybe over done... If its going to be in there all day, I'd suggest a low setting.

No Roll Sugar Cookies

I still hold to my previously posted favorite sugar cookie recipe, but if your in the mood for a more fluffy cookie out just don't want to roll and cut, these were excellent. Taste best next day.

Recipe from www.annies-eats.com

Ingredients:
For the cookies:
4½ cups all-purpose flour
4½ tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. salt
1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups sugar
3 large eggs
5 tsp. vanilla extract

For the frosting:
5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/3 cup (5 1/3 tbsp.) unsalted butter, melted
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
7-8 tbsp. milk (plus more, as needed)
Food coloring (optional
DIRECTIONS
To make the cookies, preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.  In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt, and whisk together to blend.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat together on medium-high speed until soft and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.  Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the bowl as needed.  Blend in the vanilla.  With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients mixing just until incorporated and evenly mixed.  Cover and chill the dough for 1 hour.

When you are ready to bake the cookies, scoop a scant quarter cup of dough and roll into a ball.  Flatten the ball slightly and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining dough, spacing the cookies at least 2-3 inches apart.  Bake about 10-12 minutes or just until set.  (Do not overbake!  The edges should be no more than very lightly browned if at all.)  Let cool on the baking sheet for several minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To frost the cookies, place the confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl.  Add the melted butter, vanilla, and milk to the bowl and whisk until smooth.  Whisk in additional milk as necessary, 1 teaspoon at a time, until you reach your desired consistency.  Tint with food coloring if desired.  Use an offset spatula or spoon to frost the cooled cookies.  (If the frosting begins to thicken as you decorate, just continue to whisk in small amounts of milk to keep it workable.)  Top with sprinkles if desired.  Store in an airtight container

Cauliflower Soup

Jim and I really like this. It's basically an awesome creamed broth with cauliflower in it. Kids are not thrilled with it.

Saute 1/2 cup onions, 1-2 carrots, 1 T garlic, and maybe some celery in a little butter. Add a head of cauliflower, chopped. Sprinkle in salt, pepper, parsley and a bay leaf. Add about 2 quarts of chicken broth (or water with bouillon) and cook until cauliflower is soft.

Meanwhile, cook white sauce. (melt 4T butter, add 6T flour and cook one minute. Add a couple cups of milk. Cook until thick, stirring regularly.) Add sauce to soup.