Orange Julius

1/2 can orange juice concentrate

1 c. milk

1 c. water

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 c. sugar

**Combine in blender and blend until smooth

**Add 2 handfuls of ice and blend again.

Mmmmm......

Super Simple Pizza Sauce

This is my mom's oldie, but goodie recipe for homemade pizza sauce. It's my favorite and so stinkin' easy to throw together. I took a picture of my whole pizza, because I thought it was a little bit more exciting. :)

1 can tomato sauce

1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. crushed basil
1/4 tsp. oregano

**Stir together!

The BEST marinara sauce

My sis-in-law served an LDS mission in Italy and she taught me this super simple red sauce that she learned there. It is my go-to for a quick but yummy dinner. I use it with pasta, ravioli, tortellini, chicken Parmesan......I could go on but I'll stop now so you can get to the facts.

This is all it takes folks! Seriously!
If you don't like chunks use 2 cans of pureed tomatoes.
Or if you like bigger chunks just use regular diced tomatoes. I am all about the petite diced ones. I literally buy them by the case!
Oh and that is basil peeking out from the back row. I think it's one of the more shy spices. Heehee. You can also use fresh garlic if you would like, but I am in love with the little jar!!

So you throw it all in the pot!! Aaaaaaand your done.
Ok not quite.
I have no actual measurements I just throw in garlic and basil and grate the Parm over the pot until it all looks good. I do this all first before I get the pasta going. You want it to simmer for as long as possible. The longer the better!!

Here it is. Steaming right out of the pot. YUM!

Sorry it's blurry but I knew you were dying to see my plate of tortellini. Knowing the 'administrator' of this awesome blog she'll have it removed by midnight. Oh well.

I serve this up with a tossed salad and some yummy bread and we are good to go! And my Mr. will just eat the leftovers with a spoon. It's really just that good! Enjoy!

--Nicki

This is Kim adding some measurements for those of you that prefer to know a general amount. :)

1 can of petite diced tomatoes (I puree mine in the blender for no chunks!)
1 can tomato sauce
2-3 crushed garlic cloves
1/4 c. basil (more to taste--I use the dry spice)
1/2 c. grated or powder Parmesan Cheese (more to taste)

Spinach Salad

I got this yummy salad recipe from my sis-in-law Lisa and it has become a Howe family fave!!

1 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
1 bunch spinach (I remove the stems)
1 purple onion, sliced into thin rings
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
8 oz. swiss cheese, shredded
8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

Dressing:
1 c. salad oil
1/2 c. apple cider vinegar
1/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1 T. poppy seeds (optional)

Toss all the salad ingredients into a large bowl. Combine the dressing ingredients and whisk until combined. Add the dressing just before serving or serve on the side. It is delish!

--Nicki

Chocolate Mousse aka Mississippi Mud

I got this recipe from Marnie and Carla. It is my FAVORITE treat they make and I use this recipe any time I'm supposed to take a dessert somewhere. It also contains my two favorite ingredients: Cream Cheese & Cool Whip! :)

Crust:
1 cube of butter
1 c. flour
1 Tbs. Sugar
(You can double it if you like a thicker crust like I do!)
**Cut together and press into a Pammed 9x13 pan
**Bake at 350* for 12-15 minutes

Filling:
8 oz. cream cheese
8 oz. Cool Whip
1 c. powdered sugar
**Beat together
**Pour over cooled crust and let set for 15 minutes

Pudding:
1 sm. instant vanilla pudding
1 sm. instant chocolate pudding
3 c. Milk
**Beat together
**Pour over cream cheese filling

Top with 8 oz. Cool Whip

Cheesy Chicken & Rice Casserole

So, Mindy actually told me about this recipe and it's actually found on the back of the Campbell's Cream of Chicken soup can, but she altered it just a little bit. Since I'm making it (even though I stole it from her) I'm posting it. :)

Combine in bowl:

1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
(I will swear until the ends of the earth that only Campbell's will do!)
1 1/3 c. water, milk, or chicken broth
3/4 c. uncooked rice (I used Calrose)
1-2 Tbsp. chicken bouillon
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 c. grated cheddar cheese

Pour over:
4 chicken breasts
placed in a Pammed 9x13 pan.

Cover with foil and bake at 375* for 50-60 minutes or until rice is tender and chicken is cooked. Top with more cheese and cook until cheese is melted.

Nummers!

Butterscotch Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Growing up, Nicki and Kim always made cookies on Sunday afternoons. So every Sunday, after dinner, I am in the mood for cookies. I don't end up making them very often, but when I do, this is my favorite recipe. 

Ingredients

1 yellow cake mix (I have used yellow, lemon, and white and they always turn out great)

1 small pkg. instant butterscotch pudding

2/3 C. rolled oats

Mix above ingredients together.

Add in:

1/2 C. oil

1/2 C. sour cream

1/4 C. water

2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 bag Chocolate chips (I usually use more. You be the judge)
(Good chocolate chips are a must. I recommend my personal fav, Ghirardelli)

Bake at 350 for 8-10 mins

Do NOT over bake! It's hard to tell when they're done since the color is already golden, but don't ever bake them longer than 10 minutes. Unless, of course, you like a crunchy cookie. 

Happy Sunday baking!

Beef Stew

I have always turned up my nose at stew, but after the pickiest sister Candice stamped it with her approval, I thought I'd better try it! This recipe comes from our sister-in-law, Tif, and is quick and easy and, best of all, a crock-pot recipe. My fave!

(Not my picture. Image from here. I'll be honest...mine didn't look very appetizing (the color of the broth turned me off), so I opted for this image instead).

Ingredients

1 lb. stew meat

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of celery soup

1 can of corn--with the juice

3-4 potatoes, peeled, washed, and chunked

1 C. diced carrots

1 can (use one of the cream cans) filled with water.

Dehydrated or minced onion to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Throw everything in the crock-pot and cook on low all day. About 5 minutes before we ate, I threw in a cup or so of frozen peas (I didn't want them to get soggy from cooking all day). The stew was really hearty and filling and a perfect meal for a chilly day!

Winger's Chicken

I got this recipe from my old neighbor, Kristen. We were instantly fans of it! And, best of all, it only requires 4 ingredients!

8-10 pre-breaded chicken tenders (you can bread you're own if you're more ambitious than I am).

3/4 C. brown sugar

3 Tbsp. Frank's Original Hot Sauce 

2 Tbsp. Water

Place chicken on baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes at 350*. Turn chicken over and bake for another 10-12 minutes.

In a saucepan, combine brown sugar, hot sauce, and water. Bring to a boil and whisk together. When the brown sugar has melted, put chicken in a bowl with a lid, pour sauce over chicken, and shake to coat all chicken. 

 Place chicken back on baking sheet and bake for 8-10 more minutes so that the sauce kind of glazes and almost crunches on the chicken.

Serve! We like this with either baked potatoes or oven fries (recipe for oven fries below).

--Mindy

Oven Fries

Once upon a time, Nicki found this recipe, and she and I have loved it ever since.

Ingredients

4-5 medium sized potatoes, washed

1-2 Tbsp. vegetable or olive oil

salt and pepper to taste or Lowry's seasoning salt

Once cut potatoes into steak fry-sized pieces. I use my Pampered Chef Crinkle Cutter, and it works really well. 

Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray before putting your fries on the sheet. Pour oil over the fries and toss well. Salt and pepper or season the fries and toss again. 

Cook at 450* for 10-12 minutes, turn with a spatula, and cook for 10-12 more minutes. You can cook them longer if you like them crunchy or shorter if you like them softer. We eat these quite often at our house because they're easy, fast, somewhat healthy, and seem to go well with almost anything!

--Mindy

Meatballs & Gravy

This is one of my mom's recipes, and it's one of our favorites. It's one of mine and my husband's favorite Sunday meals.

Michael took this of his plate right before dinner. Not the best picture. As I'm sure you've noticed, we Howe girls are not pro food-photographers.

Ingredients

Meatballs

1 lb. hamburger

1 egg

bread crumbs

dehydrated or some minced onion

salt and pepper

Gravy

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 pkg. brown gravy mix 

milk

In a bowl, combine raw hamburger, egg, some bread crumbs, and the onion. There are truly no measurments for the bread crumbs and onion. I would guess about 1/4 C. bread crumbs and 1/8 C. onion, but it is totally up to you and depends on how oniony you want it. Add salt and pepper.

Using your hands (it kind of grosses me out, but you can wash up afterwards :), mix the meat mixture together, roll into golf ball-sized balls, and drop onto a cookie sheet. 

Broil meat for 8-10 minutes, turn meatballs over, and broil for another 8-10 minutes. When the meatballs are browned, transfer them to a casserole dish (one that has a lid).

For the gravy, mix together soup and gravy packet. I like to add some milk to thin it a little bit. Pour gravy mixture over meatballs, and bake at 350* for about 30 minutes or until soup is bubbly.

Serve over mashed potatoes.

We really love this. Obviously. I wouldn't post something we didn't love.

Enjoy!

--Mindy

Chicken Pillows

Hi. My name is Kim, and I am addicted to cream cheese! :)

(Okay, so this isn't the best picture. I had dinner all cleaned up and the left overs packed away for my lunch tomorrow when I thought about posting the recipe. I'll try to get a better one next time I make them!)

In bowl combine and mix with beater:
2 chicken breasts (cooked and chunked)
(Alternative: 1 can of canned chicken and just mix with a fork)
4 oz. cream cheese (softened)
1/4-1/2 c. Cheddar Cheese (you can leave this out if you prefer)
Salt & Pepper

**Spread mixture on the wide end of Pillsbury crescent roll (I like to use the Big & Flaky) and roll up. Place on a Pammed baking sheet and bake at 350* for 17-20 minutes until crescent rolls are golden brown.

*I usually roll these (uncooked) in melted butter and then in crushed up Stove Top (chicken flavor) mix. Today I was just too lazy. :)

*We serve ours with 1 can Cream of Chicken soup mixed with 1 C. sour cream warmed up.
(Matt puts it on like a gravy, I like to dip mine.)