Brie's Bean Soup

http://thatwifeblog.com/2009/01/that-wifes-bean-soup/

That Wife’s Bean Soup

Ingredients

(All ingredients are optional and interchangeable. Go ahead, mix it up a little bit!)

Lots of cans of beans (In this batch I used chickpeas, black, kidney, pinto, and ranch style)
1 Can of crushed tomatoes
1 Onion, diced
1 Packet of ranch salad dressing mix (the dry stuff)
1 Packet of onion soup and dip mix

Directions

1. Find a really big pot.
2. Pour some water in the pot. I probably use like 6 cups or something.
3. Pour all of the beans in the pot, with their liquid, except the black beans (you should drain and rinse those).
4. Add everything else to the pot.
5. Boil for hours. I’m not joking, for hours. Once I boiled it for 4 hours. Just boil it down so that it is nice and thick and a little bit salty. Stir often enough that it doesn’t burn to the bottom of the pot because then it tastes bad.

Katie Pintado's Peanut Butter Balls

1/2 cup pb 1/2 honey 3/4 powdered milk Mix all, roll into balls and coat with wheat germ.  You can add goodies to the mix (ie raisins, choc chips) Anything goes....great snack for kids!

Brie Fairbanks' Broccoli Casserole

3 eggs beaten
8 oz of shredded Mexican cheese
1 big dollop of sour cream (or mayo)
1 small onion chopped and sauteed in butter
1 can of cream of chicken soup
4-5 heads of chopped, steamed broccoli
1 package of Ritz crackers browned in 1 cube of butter

In 2.5 qt casserole dish mix everything but the crackers. Spread crackers on top.

Bake covered for 30 min @ 350
Let sit for 5 minutes. 

Tammy McKissick's Buffalo Chicken Dip

Buffalo Chicken Dip
20 oz canned chicken (I use 2 of the cans from Costco)
1 cup ranch dressing
3/4 cup hot sauce (I use Franks Buffalo Sauce, you can find it near the Tabasco Sauce, near the BBQ sauce)
2 8-oz packages cream cheese
1 1/2 c shredded cheese

Combine all ingredients, reserving approximately 1/2 of the shredded cheese for the top.
Put in 8x8 pan and then top with remaining shredded cheese.
Bake at 350* until heated through and cheese on top has melted (should be a little bubbly).

Serve with tortilla chips and celery sticks (or carrot sticks if you prefer).

Tara Crawford's Yams

Ingredients:
3-3 1/2 Lbs Yams/Sweet Potatoes (you may substitute the canned variety here)
1 C. Sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 C. Melted butter
2 eggs (beaten nicely)

Topping:
1 C. brown sugar
1/2 C. melted butter
1/2 C. flour
1 C. chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350. Mix first batch of ingredients until smooth. Put in a buttered 9 X 13 casserole dish (The shallower the dish, the more crispy bits)
blend topping ingredients and sprinkle on top. Bake for 30 minutes.

Serves: only one if it's me!

Kris Judd's Homemade Rolls

1 package dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
1/4 cup warm water
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs, beaten
4 to 4 1/2 cups flour
1/2 stick butter, melted
1 peeled potato- mashed- cubed- in microwave

Pour warm water over yeast in mixing bowl. Let stand. Scald (heat until just before it starts to bubble) milk in saucepan and remove from heat. Melt 1/2 cup butter in microwave and add to milk in saucepan. Stir in salt and sugar. pour into mixing bowl with yeast, add beaten eggs and mix well. Add potato. Add flour and knead with dough hook for 2 to 3 minutes. Cover bowl with a dish towel and let rise for 3 to 4 hours.

Melt 1/4 cup of butter. Grease 2 cookie sheets. Divide dough in half (it will be sticky). Roll half of the dough out on a floured surface into a 12'' circle. Spread half of the melted butter on top with a pastry brush and cut into 12 slices with a pizza cutter. Roll each slice up "croissant-style" and place on a cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining half of dough. Let rise again for 4 to 5 hours. Bake for 9 minutes at 375 degrees.

Jill Frazer's No Bake Nutter Butter Nutella Pie

No-Bake Nutter Butter Nutella Pie

for the crust- 24 nutter butter cookies 1/4 cup butter for the filling- 2-8 oz. packages cream cheese, softened 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 cup nutella 1/2 cup whipping cream for nutella ganache {optional} 1/4 cup nutella 1/4 cup cream {or more if you like a thinner ganache} Directions: Spray 9-inch pie plate with non-stick cooking spray and set aside. {1}Place nutter butter cookies into food processor and grind until they are fine crumbs. Stir together with melted butter. {2}Press into prepared pie plate. Place into refrigerator to chill. {3}For the filling, whip cream cheese and sugar together until well blended. Stir in vanilla and nutella. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly. Stir in cream and then increase speed and whip 3 minutes or until very thick. {4}Pour into pie crust and smooth the top. Refrigerate until set, at least 2 hours. To serve, prepare nutella ganache by microwaving nutella and cream together until a thin sauce forms. Drizzle over pieces of pie.

Sandi Huang's Brazilian Lemonade

from Our Best Bites

Brazilian Lemonade

4 juicy limes (try and find ones with thin, smooth skins; they’re the juiciest and the thin skin cuts down on the chance of your drink being bitter)
1 c. sugar
6 c. cold water
6 Tbsp. sweetened condensed milk

Mix cold water and sugar very well and chill until ready to use. This step can be done ahead of time.

Wash limes thoroughly with soap (I just use hand-dishwashing soap or regular hand soap); you need the soap to get the wax and pesticides off of the limes because you’re using the WHOLE lime, baby. Cut the ends off the limes and then cut each lime into 8ths.

Place 1/2 of the limes in your blender.

Add 1/2 of the sugar water, place the lid on your blender, and pulse 5 times. Place a fine-mesh strainer over a pitcher (the one you’ll serve the lemonade in) and pour the blended mixture through the strainer and into the pitcher. Use a spoon to press the rest of the liquid into the pitcher. Dump the pulp and stuff in the strainer into the trash. Repeat with remaining limes and sugar water. Add sweetened condensed milk; DO NOT leave this step out unless you will die of a horrible sweetened condensed milk allergy because this is the secret ingredient! You may want to taste test it at this point; I used giant, thick-skinned limes tonight and didn’t test it and it came out a little bitter. If it’s bitter, just add some more sugar and maybe a little more milk.
Serve immediately over lots of ice. This does not keep well, so don’t make this in advance (although you can cut the limes, mix the sugar water, and measure the sweetened condensed milk in advance). Serves 4, although I can pretty much guarantee you that people will want more; I usually plan on 1 1/2 servings at LEAST per person.

Sandi Huang's Strawberry Limeade

from Our Best Bites

Fresh Strawberry Limeade
Recipe (can you even call this a recipe??) by Our Best Bites

1 tall glass
Lots of ice
Sprite (or Diet Sprite…or Ginger Ale if you’re feeling wild)
1 1/2 limes
3-4 tablespoons Strawberry Sauce

Strawberry Sauce

1 pint strawberries

1/3 c. white sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Wash strawberries and remove stems. Roughly chop the strawberries and throw them in a medium saucepan. Add sugar and vanilla and cook over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and then stir mixture constantly for 5 minutes. Turn off heat and allow mix to cool. Use a blender to puree the mixture.

To make Strawberry Limeade

Fill a glass with ice. Squeeze the juice of one lime into the glass over the ice. Fill the glass about halfway with Sprite. Add 3-4 tablespoons of strawberry sauce. Top the glass off with Sprite and add more strawberry sauce if desired. Garnish with lime wedges (which you can also squeeze into the glass before drinking. Definitely best when served with a straw.

Tammy McKissick's Frozen Pineapple Slush

Frozen Pineapple Slush
1 (46 oz) can pineapple juice (unsweetened)
2 1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
4 cups water
2 cups sugar
Ginger Ale

Bring water and sugar to a boil.
Add juices.
Freeze 12-24 hours, stirring occasionally while it is freezing.
When ready to serve put some slush in a tall glass and pour ginger ale over it. (You might need to defrost the slush for about an hour before serving so it isn't rock hard).

Note: I didn't have 12-24 hours to freeze the slush before recipe group, so I put mine in the ice cream maker for 30-40 minutes first and then finished it up in the freezer... it ended up only taking 4 hours to freeze.

Sandi Huang's Chocolate Cream Pie

Recipe found in Cooks Illustrated

MAKES ON 9-INCH PIE, SERVING 8 TO 10

For the best chocolate flavor and texture, we recommend either Callebaut semisweet and unsweetened chocolates or Hershey's Special Dark and Hershey's unsweetened chocolates. Do not combine the yolks and sugar in advance of making the filling--the sugar will begin to denature the yolks, and the finished cream will be pitted.

INGREDIENTS

Chocolate Cookie Crumb Crust
16	Oreo cookies (with filling), broken into rough pieces, about 2 1/2 cups
2	tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and cooled
Chocolate Cream Filling
2 1/2	cups half-and-half
	pinch table salt
1/3	cup granulated sugar
2	tablespoons cornstarch
6	large egg yolks at room temperature, chalazae (protein strands attached to yolk) removed (see related Quick Tip)
6	tablespoons unsalted butter (cold), cut into 6 pieces
6	ounces semisweet chocolate or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1	ounce unsweetened chocolate , finely chopped
1	teaspoon vanilla extract
Whipped Cream Topping
1 1/2	cups heavy cream (cold)
1 1/2	tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2	teaspoon vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. For the Crust: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. In bowl of food processor fitted with steel blade, process cookies with 15 one-second pulses, then let machine run until crumbs are uniformly fine, about 15 seconds. (Alternatively, place cookies in large zipper-lock plastic bag and crush with rolling pin.) Transfer crumbs to medium bowl, drizzle with butter, and use fingers to combine until butter is evenly distributed.

2. 2. Pour crumbs into 9-inch Pyrex pie plate. Following illustration below, press crumbs evenly onto bottom and up sides of pie plate. Refrigerate lined pie plate 20 minutes to firm crumbs, then bake until crumbs are fragrant and set, about 10 minutes. Cool on wire rack while preparing filling.

3. 3. For the Filling: (See illustrations below). Bring half-and-half, salt, and about 3 tablespoons sugar to simmer in medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally with wooden spoon to dissolve sugar. Stir together remaining sugar and cornstarch in small bowl, then sprinkle over yolks and whisk, scraping down sides of bowl, if necessary, until mixture is glossy and sugar has begun to dissolve, about 1 minute. Whisk yolks thoroughly in medium bowl until slightly thickened, about 30 seconds. When half-and-half reaches full simmer, drizzle about 1/2 cup hot half-and-half over yolks, whisking constantly to temper; then whisk egg yolk mixture into simmering half-and-half (mixture should thicken in about 30 seconds). Return to simmer, whisking constantly, until 3 or 4 bubbles burst on the surface and mixture is thickened and glossy, about 15 seconds longer.

4. 4. Off heat, whisk in butter until incorporated; add chocolates and whisk until melted, scraping pan bottom with rubber spatula to fully incorporate. Stir in vanilla, then immediately pour filling into baked and cooled crust. Press plastic wrap directly on surface of filling and refrigerate pie until filling is cold and firm, about 3 hours.

5. 5. For the Topping: Just before serving, beat cream, sugar, and vanilla in bowl of standing mixer on low speed until small bubbles form, about 30 seconds. Increase speed to medium; continue beating until beaters leave a trail, about 30 seconds more. Increase speed to high; continue beating until cream is smooth, thick, and nearly doubled in volume and forms soft peaks, about 20 seconds. Spread or pipe whipped cream over chilled pie filling. Cut pie into wedges and serve.

Northgate Recipe Ladies!

Amanda Garner's Cucumber Sandwiches

Two slices 100% whole grain bread
Five thinly sliced slices of cucumber (washed and peeled)
Four teaspoons fat free cream cheese (room temp.)
Pepper & Salt to taste

After washing, peeling and slicing cucumber place slices on a paper towel with another sheet over the top to soak up juice for about 15 min.
Spread about two teaspoons room temperature cream cheese on each slice of bread. Place the slices on the bread. Salt & pepper to taste, close the sandwich, then cut into triangles.

Tammy McKissick's Tortilla Soup

Tortilla Soup
3 14 1/2 oz cans of chicken broth (I used fat free)
2 c chopped cooked chicken breasts
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 15 oz can cream style corn
1 4 oz can chopped green chilies (undrained)
1/2 c chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 t chili powder
6 6 inch corn tortillas

Combine all ingredients, except tortillas, into a large pot. Bring to a boil. Lower heat, and simmer for 20 minutes.
Cut corn tortillas into strips. Place on cookie sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 400 degrees until crispy.
Serve soup with tortillas and top with cheese.

Sandi Huang's Whipped Cream Pie

1 reduced fat Graham cracker crust,
1 tub lite cool whip,
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 can condensed milk

In a medium bowl, mix together the condensed milk and lemon juice. Fold in the tub of thawed cool whip. Pour into pie shell and freeze for a couple hours. Let the pie soften for a few minutes before serving.

Jenny Heyman's Spinach Wraps

This idea actually comes from Tara Crawford who made these for a Fitness Fair Enrichment awhile ago. I emailed her to get the recipe a week later because I was craving some more of their healthy goodness! I like to make up a bunch so I have something healthy on hand to eat for lunch. Here's how she told me to make them:

Start with one of the wraps (located in the same place as the tortillas-which you could substitute in a pinch). Spread a thin layer of light cream cheese, then a couple tablespoons of pesto. Add spinach leaves, sliced bell pepper (red, orange, yellow), a couple slices of red onion, shredded carrots, 3-4 slices deli turkey, and a couple of sun-dried tomatoes. Then just roll and enjoy!

I'm sure you could come up with other variations too. I know in the Cougareat at BYU they have one thats really good with mandarin oranges and craisins.

And if you're going to truly eat them Jenny Heyman style they should be followed by a handful of chocolate chips :)

Amy Waltman's Whole Wheat Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
3 tablespoons sour cream
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 1/4 cups whole wheat flour

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, sour cream, almond extract and vanilla and mix well. Add soda, salt and flour and mix on low just until combined. Roll dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 3 to 4 hours. Roll out on floured surface and cut into shapes. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 375 degrees for 6 to 8 minutes. (They don't brown). Cool on racks, then frost.

Frosting

1/3 cup butter, softened but not melted
4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
pinch of salt

In mixing bowl, beat butter slowly with powdered sugar. Add milk and continue to beat. Add vanilla, almond extract and salt. If needed, add more milk to make frosting spread consistency. Color with food coloring if desired.

Amy Waltman's Taco Soup

1 lb. ground beef (thawed--takes beef the same amount of time to thaw as chicken)
1 can beef broth
1 15.5 oz can pinto beans
1 15.5 oz can corn
1 14.5 oz can green beans (French style)
1 15 oz. can kidney beans
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes
1 10 oz can diced chili and tomatoes (brand Rotel)
1 tablespoon taco seasoning (found in a small seasoning bag in mexican isle)
1 oz ranch dressing (powder form- found in dressing aisle--1 oz is usually the whole package)

Brown ground beef; drain off fat. Rinse and drain pinto beans, corn, and green beans. Add all to ground beef (use the biggest pot you have). Simmer 30 min.

Serve with grated cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips.

Kris Judd's White Chili