Guiltless Alfredo Sauce

If you are a reader of Our Best Bites, you might already be familiar with this recipe. I LOVE me some yummy Alfredo sauce, so this does the trick without the same amount of calories and fat--if you're counting. :)

(Recipe found here)

You will need:

2 C low-fat milk (I use skim)
1/3 low fat cream cheese
2-3 Tbs. flour
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. butter
3 garlic cloves
1 C grated Parmesan cheese

**Put milk, cream cheese, flour, and salt in a blender and blend until smooth. 

** In a non-stick sauce pan, melt butter on med-high heat and add garlic, sautee for about 30 seconds.

**Add milk mixture to the pan--stir constantly for about 3 or 4 minutes or until it just comes to a simmer. Keep stirring and let it cook for a few minutes more. It should be thickening up. **When it’s thickened remove the pan from the heat. 

**Add the cheese, stir it up and then cover immediately. 

**Let stand for at least 10 minutes before using.

**It will continue to thicken upon standing. 

**Season with additional salt and pepper if needed.  

YUM!

Best-Ever Potatoes

So.  This is sort of random.  Every day I receive about five different recipe emails from various websites.  More than half the time I look at the name/ingredients and think, "Ew.  That sounds just teeeeerrible."  But once in a while I find one that looks easy/yummy/interesting and I print it out.  This is one of those recipes.  It is a little on the spicy side so you may want to adjust the pepper jack - cheddar cheese ratio if you don't like spicy.  Here's the details.

BEST-EVER POTATOES

 



7   cups coarsely chopped small red potatoes

Potatoes 1 lb For $2.00
Red
thru 2013-10-27

Bigg's

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Potatoes 3 For $5.00
Red
Klondike Rose or Goldust Express Baby Potatoes, 1-lb. Bag Microwavable MIX & MATCH, Loyalty Card Required
thru 2013-10-30

Marsh

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1   cup chopped onion

1  8  ounce carton dairy sour cream

1   cup (4 oz.) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1   cup (4 oz.) shredded sharp cheddar cheese 

1/2  teaspoon salt

1/4 - 1/2  teaspoon ground pepper

2   medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped

 

In a large saucepan cook potatoes and chopped onion, covered, in a small amount of boiling water for 12 to 15 minutes or until tender; drain. Stir in sour cream, Monterey Jack cheese, cheddar cheese, salt, and red pepper. Stir in chopped tomatoes. Spoon into a 2-quart rectangular baking dish. Bake, uncovered, in a 350 degree F oven about 30 minutes or until heated through.

 

Give it a try!!  I swear you will love this!

Cream Cheese Stuffed Pumpkin Cookies

If you are a fan of pumpkin this fall season, and/or a fan of our Pumpkin Cake Roll, you will probably love this yummy little treat! This was another one of those Facebook recipes that my friends were sharing so it would be pinned to their walls. I must say, these did not disappoint!

     
Cookies:

•  3 cups flour 
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon 
• 1 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon salt 
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg 
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup brown sugar 
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil 
• 1 - 15 oz. can of pumpkin 
• 2 large eggs 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

 **Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

**Beat together brown sugar, sugar, oil and pumpkin. Add eggs one at time, mixing well after each addition, followed by the vanilla. 

**In a separate bowl, shift together the dry ingredients. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.

**Drop by teaspoon onto a Pammed baking sheet

** Bake for 11 minutes and cool on a rack. 

  

Cream Cheese Filling 

• 1 - 8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened 1 stick of unsalted butter, room temperature 
• 1 - 16 oz. package of powdered sugar 
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• Pinch of cinnamon--to taste

**Beat together cream cheese and butter. Add powdered sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. Frost flat side of half the pies and top with another piece!

YUM!!!

Banana Bread

We are all in love with my Aunt Di's banana bread she brings camping and to our Girls' Weekend. Mindy and I have both tried it out at home and our families have helped us devour it too! If you like banana bread, this is a great recipe to try!!

4 medium bananas

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 C vegetable oil

1 C sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 C flour

1 tsp. salt

**Mash bananas with potato masher until lumps are gone. 

**Dissolve soda in 2 Tbs. of hot water. **Add soda to bananas and mix well. **Mix all remaining ingredients into bananas. 

**Pour into greased 8x8 pan. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes or until knife comes out clean.

(I actually did mine in 2 medium sized loaf pans--rather than a square pan like the recipe originally said--and they took more like 45 minutes. Mindy did one big loaf pan and I think she said it took more like an hour to bake.)

White Chicken Enchiladas

This here was one of those recipes floating around on Facebook that I just knew I had to try! I was NOT disappointed and hope you won't be either!!

(Recipe from here: http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/3043084-White-Chicken-Enchiladas?full_recipe=true)

• You will need:
• 10 soft taco shells
• 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
• 2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
• 3 Tbsp. butter
• 3 Tbsp. flour
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles. 

DIRECTIONS

• 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan
• 2. Mix chicken and 1 cup cheese. Roll up in tortillas and place in pan. 
• 3. In a sauce pan, melt butter, stir in flour and cook 1 minute. Add broth and whisk until smooth. Heat over medium heat until thick and bubbly.
• 4. Stir in sour cream and chilies, but don't boil it!
• 5. Pour over enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.
• 6. Bake 22 min and then under high broil for 3 min to brown the cheese.