Chocolate Chip, Oats 'n Caramel Cookie Squares

Our family loves this dessert.  Pillsbury is a really good site to find some really yummy recipes!!

INGREDIENTS:

1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated chocolate chip cookies

1 cup quick-cooking oats

Dash salt, if desired

2/3 cup caramel ice cream topping

5 tablespoons Pillsbury BEST® all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup Fisher® Chef's Naturals® Chopped Walnuts

1 cup Hershey's® semi-sweet baking chips (6 oz)

DIRECTIONS:

• Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, break up cookie dough. Stir or knead in oats and salt. Reserve 1/2 cup dough for topping. In ungreased 9-inch square pan, press remaining dough mixture evenly in bottom to form crust.
• Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until dough puffs and appears dry.
• In small bowl, mix caramel topping, flour and vanilla until well blended. Sprinkle walnuts and baking chips evenly over crust. Drizzle evenly with caramel mixture. Crumble reserved 1/2 cup dough mixture over caramel.
• Bake 20 to 25 minutes longer or until golden brown. Cool 10 minutes. Run knife around sides of pan to loosen bars. Cool completely, about 1 hour, 30 minutes. For bars, cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Store tightly covered.

Mexican Chicken Penne

1 package (16 ounces) penne pasta
2 cups (2 cans of chicken)
1 1/4 cups salsa con queso dip
1/2 c. milk
1/4 t. salt
1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 large tomato, chopped
3 green onions, sliced
1/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese

~Cook pasta according to package directions.  Meanwhile in a large bowl, combine the chicken, dip, milk, and salt.
~Drain pasta; add to chicken mixture and toss to coat.  Top with black beans, tomato, onions and cheese.

Lasagna Soup

I love finding  trying new recipes, I couldn't wait to try this one.  The house smelt so good!!

*INGREDIENTS
Soup:
1 1/2 pounds Italian sausage
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed through a garlic press
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 (28-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes, undrained
2 bay leaves
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil or 2 tablespoons dried basil
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 pound fusilli noodles, cooked and drained
Cheese topping:
1 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh basil or 1 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, for sprinkling
DIRECTIONS:
In a large 4-quart pot, add the Italian sausage and cook over medium heat, breaking the pieces up with a wooden spoon or spatula while it cooks. I prefer the sausage in fairly small pieces. After about 3-4 minutes, add the onion. Cook the sausage and onion together, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is cooked through and the onions are soft,a bout 5-7 minutes. Drain any excess grease, if desired. Stir in the garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes and tomato paste. Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the diced tomatoes with their juices, bay leaves and chicken broth. Add the basil, if using dried (if using fresh basil, add it in the next step).
Bring the soup to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste and the fresh basil, if using.
For the cheese mixture, in a small bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and basil. Set aside.
To serve the soup, add a scoop of cooked pasta noodles to a bowl. Top with a ladle or two of soup and dollop with a generous spoonful of the cheese mixture. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Serve immediately

Cheese Baked Spinach

Our family LOVES this dish!!

1 (10 ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed and drained
salt and pepper to taste
1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
2 T. milk
2 to 3 T. grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Spread spinach evenly in an 8 x 8 baking dish.  Season with salt and pepper.
Thin cream cheese with the milk to spreadable consistency.  Spread on spinach; top with Parmesan cheese and back until hot and bubbly, about 30 minutes.

Zucchini Muffins

These tasty zucchini muffins would also be delicious with about 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans, either in addition to the carrots or to replace them.

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light or dark brown sugar, packed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups finely shredded unpeeled zucchini
• 1/2 cup finely shredded carrot

Preparation:

Grease and flour 12 muffin cups. Heat oven to 375°. In a mixing bowl, beat the oil with eggs, sugars, and vanilla extract.
Combine the flour, soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; add to the wet ingredients; stirring until blended. Fold in the shredded zucchini and carrots.
Fill muffin cups about 3/4 full; sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or granulated sugar, if desired. Bake for 20 minutes.

Taco Soup Crock Pot Style

Ingredients~
2 cans of kidney beans
2 cans of pinto beans
2 cans of corn
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 can chile's
1 packet taco seasoning
1 packet ranch dressing mix
1 pound lean ground beef and/or hot sausage
shredded cheese and sour cream or embellishment

Directions~
brown meat
drain fat and add meat to crock pot
sprinkle seasoning packet on top of meat, stir
drain and rinse the beans add to crock pot
add chile's and corn
stir~
Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5.  The longer it cooks the better.  Stir well before serving, add cheese and sour cream and enjoy!

Simple Scones

1 T. yeast
1 T. sugar
2 c. flour
1 t. salt
1/2 t. baking powder
Mix all the dry ingredients together then add 1 cup warm water. Mix all together.  Deep-fry in enough oil that they are not on the bottom of your pan, they will float.  They are finished when they are golden in color. These are wonderful with syrup, honey, or powder sugar .