Sugar & Spice Chex Mix:

I just love chex mix and this was so fast to put together! I wasn't sure about the Bugles and the cereal together, but they worked just great! Warm from the oven or completely cooled, it was super yummy!

I hope you give it a try!

4 cups Chex cereal

2 cups Cheerios

3 cups original Bugles chips

1 & 1/2 cups almonds

2 egg whites

2 tblsp. water

1 cup sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

In a large bowl, combine cereal, Bugles and nuts; set aside. In a small bowl, beat egg whites, water, sugar and cinnamon with a whisk or hand mixture until foamy and frothy. Pour over cereal and mix until evenly coated. Pour into a very well greased 15x10-inch baking dish. Bake at 300 degrees for 45-50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes, until light brown and crisp. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Note:

-You can use all Corn Chex, all Rice Chex or a mixture of both.

-Replace the almonds with some other nut or additional cereal.

-Substitute Apple Pie Spice for the Cinnamon.

Chicken and Rice Casserole:

With some of the leftovers from our awesome Rotisserie chicken deal, I made this casserole and it turned out super yummy! I was very excited about it, because it didn't use a cream of something soup and it was pretty simple to put together. I hope you give it a try!

1 small onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped fresh mushrooms, optional

2 tblsp. butter

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 tblsp. cornstarch

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

3/4 cup milk

6 tblsp. mayonnaise

 2 cups cubed, cooked chicken

1 & 1/2 cups cooked, long grain rice (instant or not, it doesn't matter)

1/2 cup celery, finely chopped

1/2 cup frozen peas

1 tsp. lemon juice

3/4 cup crushed cornflakes

1 tblsp. melted butter

In a large bowl, combine chicken, rice, celery, peas and lemon juice; set aside.

In a small saucepan, saute the onion and mushrooms in butter until onions are tender. Add garlic and stir. Add cornstarch, salt and pepper and whisk until smooth. Slowly pour in milk. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and cook until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in mayonnaise. Pour over chicken mixture and mix well. Transfer to a greased baking dish. In a small bowl, combine cornflakes and butter. Sprinkle over casserole. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until bubbly around the edges and hot through. Serve!!

Need a side with that?

Jello Yogurt Fruit Salad

Strawberry Mousse

Applesauce Jello

Slow-cooker Fried Apples

Reheating Rotisserie Chicken:

One night, right before closing time at Sam's, my dad found an entire cart full of Rotisserie chickens for $2.00 each!!! We all have a great love of Rotisserie chicken, so he got several and I just wanted to share with you how we re-heated them. They generally aren't very expensive to buy in the first place, especially since they are hot and ready, but we have found them "discounted" at the end of the day numerous times at Walmart and Sam's (I'm sure other places have them as well). 

#1. Oven Method

Wrap the cooked chicken tightly in foil and place on a baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until heated through. 

This way was very good, although it did dry out the chicken slightly. 

#2. Crock-Pot Method

 Wrap the chicken tightly with foil. Put about 1/2-inch of water in the bottom of your crock-pot. Place the chicken in the crock-pot, making sure that the seams of the foil are on top the chicken, so no water can get in the foil. Cover and cook on low for 3 &1/2 - 4 hours.

This way was AMAZING!! It was SO moist and most of us actually liked it better like this than when you eat it straight from getting it from the store!

So I hope you will get some rotisserie chicken and try out one of these great re-heating methods! They are so nice since they are already cooked and everything!

Note:

-The ones we get are labeled "gluten-free" but I would still strongly recommend checking the label wherever you purchase yours, just to be safe!

Lemon Bars:

Lemon is probably my favorite flavor and it's definitely a popular flavor right now, with Spring coming.

These bars were very easy and I hope you give them a try!

Crust:

2 sticks butter, room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups flour

1 tsp. xanthan gum

1/8 tsp. salt

Filling:

6 eggs

3 cups sugar

2 tblsp. grated lemon peel or lemon zest

1 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup cornstarch

Confectioners' sugar for dusting

For the crust: In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add flour, xanthan gum and salt and mix until well combined. Press evenly into a greased, 9x13 baking dish - you will probably want to flour your hands, as the dough is pretty sticky. Chill for 15 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or just until barely golden brown. Set aside to cool.

For the filling: In a large bowl, whisk together 5 eggs, sugar, lemon peel and lemon juice. In a separate bowl, combine remaining one egg and cornstarch. Mix until there is no lumps. Add to egg and sugar mixture and mix well. Pour onto crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until filling is set - it should be like a very thick pudding consistency and spring back whenever you gently touch it. Cool to room temperature. Cut into squares and dust lightly with confectioners' sugar. Serve!

Store in an airtight container with wax paper in between each layer.

Granola Cereal:

I love this granola! It's super easy and it's just a great base for so many things! You can add or leave out whatever you like. Use it as a cereal, add it to yogurt, sprinkle it on fruit or over ice cream....anything you want!! I hope you give it a try and enjoy it!!

5 cups Old-Fashioned Oats

1 cup chopped nuts - almonds, walnuts, pecans, whatever you like

1/4 cup ground flax seed, optional

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup canola oil

1/3 cup honey

In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, flax seed and salt. Stir and set aside. In a medium saucepan, stir together the sugar, oil and honey. Heat over medium-high heat until sugar is dissolved, stirring constantly. Pour syrup over oat mixture and mix well. This takes a little time, because you want to go slow and make sure there are no huge lumps of syrup and oats, and other oats that are completely dry. You won't be able to necessarily cover every oat, but you do want it to be as evenly mixed as possible. Pour onto a well greased cookie sheet (one with sides) and spread evenly. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Stir it around. Bake 10 more minutes and stir again. If the oats are slightly golden brown, then it's done. If not, bake 2-3 more minutes until there is a slight color change in the oats. Let it sit in the pan to completely cool, just stir it every now and then to brake it up. Store in an airtight container.

Note:

-Ground flax seed is a great way to get in a whole lot of good things, but sometimes it can change the flavor of the dish and most people don't like that. This dish, however, is the perfect place to sneak it in, because it adds absolutely nothing to the flavor of the granola, but yet you are still getting in the fiber and everything else that is so great about flax seed!

Check out these other great recipes:
Pumpkin Granola
No-Bake Granola Bars

Cheeseburger Paradise Soup:

I posted this recipe once before, but for some reason, I totally forgot to write the directions for how to make the soup! So I decided to scratch that post and write a whole new one!!

Despite the ingredient list, this soup really is pretty easy to make and tastes very yummy!

I hope you give it a try!

3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes

3/4 cup carrot, diced or grated

1 small onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup diced green pepper, optional

1 & 1/2 cups water

1 tblsp. + 1 tsp. beef bouillon granules (make sure to check the label)

1 tsp. minced garlic

Dash of Pepper

1 lb. ground beef

1 can sliced mushrooms, optional

2 & 1/2 cups milk

8 oz. Velveeta cheese, cubed

Bacon bits, optional

In a large saucepan, combine potatoes, carrot, onion, pepper, water, beef bouillon, garlic and pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium and cook until potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook beef and mushrooms until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add meat and mushrooms to potato mixture. Stir in milk and heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Add cheese and stir until thoroughly melted. Serve!!

Need a muffin to go with that?

Cinnamon Roll Muffins

Banana Bread Muffins

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Baking Powder Drop Biscuits

Honey Cornbread Muffins

Can of Condensed Tomato Soup:

This is such a great recipe that I am so excited about! It might seem crazy, but so many recipes call for a can of tomato soup, and they usually all have wheat in them. I've looked around and experimented a little, but it's hard to find a substitute that tastes similar. Then I found this one and I was so impressed by how well it works and how short the ingredient list is!

I hope you will give it a try!

1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce

2 tblsp. sugar

1 tblsp. cornstarch

1/2 tsp. salt

Mix altogether in a small bowl. Use in place of a can of condensed tomato soup in recipes. 

Note:

-This is equivalent to 1 can of soup. 

-Try this recipe as a sauce for my Porcupine Meatloaf! It tastes so yummy! 

Fresh Lemonade:

It might seem like an odd time of year to be talking about Lemonade, but we had some fresh lemons that weren't getting used, and lemonade sounded good. There's a lot of recipes out there, but this one is fast, easy and delicious! So if your having the winter blues, go get some lemons and make lemonade!!!

 

2 cups sugar

2 cups water

1 gallon of cold water

2 cups fresh lemon juice

Lemon slices, if desired

In a small saucepan, bring sugar and 2 cups of water to a boil, whisking until sugar dissolves. Set aside.

Pour the gallon of water and the lemon juice into an extra large pitcher or container. Add the sugar/water mixture and stir all together. Add lemon slices if you want. Chill for a couple of hours.

Note:

-This was good right away, but it was WAY better the next day.

-The reason, I don't have a picture, is because this is a very light-colored lemonade! It just looked like a glass of water! But take my word for it, it didn't taste like water!!!

Copycat Cracker Barrel Grilled Chicken:

We love Cracker Barrel's Grilled chicken, so I was really excited to find this recipe and try it out.

It was super easy, and whereas I didn't think it tasted exactly like Cracker Barrel's, it was still very, very good!!

I hope you will try it out too!

(FYI: Cracker Barrel's Grilled Chicken is gluten-free, so go get some if you've never tried it!!)

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into tenders

1 cup Zesty Italian dressing

2 tsp. lime juice

1 tblsp. honey

In a small measuring cup, combine dressing, lime juice and honey. Mix well. Place chicken in a gallon zip lock bag and pour dressing mix over the chicken. Seal the bag and toss to coat all the chicken. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, but longer is better. Place chicken & marinate juices in a large skillet. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Now, you will probably think that there is WAY too much liquid in the pan and that it will never boil down, but it will. It will just take a long time - 40-50 minutes, actually. DO NOT COVER THE PAN!!! Stir it around about every 10 minutes or so. After about 35 minutes, you should see a big difference and you may need to stir it more often. You chicken will start to brown and since there is honey in the mix, it will thicken and caramelize on the chicken. Stir and flip chicken until all the chicken is browned and most of the liquid is evaporated. Serve!!!

Note:

-The original recipe called for zesty or regular Italian dressing, so you can use whatever you prefer.

Homemade Gum Drops:

Happy Valentines Day!!!

I hope everyone has a wonderful day!

This recipe might be a little late to make for Valentines Day, but you could make them just because, or for a party or something. They are really easy and very yummy! I made them for kids I babysit and also for the kids in my Sunday School class, and they turned out so cute! And they would be great for lots of different things - stars for the 4th of July, Christmas trees...basically the ideas are endless! You can make them whatever color and shape you want!

I hope you give them a try!

2 cups sugar

1 & 1/2 cups applesauce (I used the no sugar added)

2 (3 oz) pkgs. jello, any flavor or color

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin (Knox)

1 tsp. lemon juice

Additional sugar for coating

In a large saucepan, combine 2 cups sugar, applesauce, jello, unflavored gelatin and lemon juice. Whisk together and let stand 1 minute. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, while stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute (stirring constantly). Immediately, pour into a 9x13-inch baking dish, that has been well coated with cooking spray. Refrigerate until firm (3-4 hours). Loosen the edges of the jello with a spatula and carefully invert onto a cutting board or wax paper that has been sprinkled with sugar to keep the jello from sticking. Using cookie cutters, cut into your desired shape or just cut into squares. Place a sheet of wax paper on a cookie sheet and sprinkle with sugar. Place gum drops on top of sugar and let dry for 6-8 hours. Place more sugar in a small bowl, and roll each gum drop in the sugar to evenly coat. Store in an airtight container!!!

Note:

-The first picture is not mine. I forgot to take a picture of mine before I had them all in bags!

Here is a link to the blog where I found this recipe and where the picture is from!