Chicken Bowtie Pasta from Marci Young

This is a double recipe.....

1 and 1/3 boxes Dry Bow Tie Pasta

2 blocks Cream Cheese

2 Cans Chicken Broth

1 block frozen Chopped Spinach

3 C. Cubed Chicken

2 Tbsp. Garlic Salt

4 C. Parmesan Cheese

Boil Bow Tie Pasta until very al dente. Do NOT overcook pasta!! In a separate pan combine Broth, Cream Cheese, Chopped Spinach, Cooked Chicken, and Garlic Salt. Stir, stir, stir until cream cheese is melted and chopped spinach is no longer frozen. Drain Pasta and then combine Cream Cheese/Spinach mixture with pasta and stir in Parmesan cheese. Let sit for 5-10 minutes - stir and serve.

This is a great recipe for a crowd. Mix and put in a crock pot and keep on warm.... add more broth if it starts to thicken too much. Everyone I know that has tried this recipe LOVED it!!!

Raspberry Danish Dessert

recipe for a 9 x 13 pan:

Mix and cook until melted

3 cubes butter

2 cup brown sugar

Mix with:

5 cups rice crispies

2 cups coconut flakes

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Spread 1/2 of mixture on bottom of pan, Spread 1 container softened vanilla ice cream over 1st layer. Cover ice cream with remaining rice Crispy mixture.

Cover with saran wrap and put in freezer for 1-2 hours or overnight

Topping:

1 pkg raspberry danish dessert (Walmart carries this during the holidays and AJs has it all year...)

2 3/4 cup water

10 oz raspberries (frozen or fresh)

Boil 1 minute Drizzle over individual servings

Enjoy!

I got this recipe from my sister-in-law, Sheryl Lundgreen.... This is AMAZING!!!!!

Steak and Spinach Pinwheels

This is one of my favorite recipes for entertaining! Its delicious and looks fabulous! I made this for the big Relief Society Christmas Dinner in 08. I also just served this for my in-laws 50th wedding anniversary party.

1 1/2 lb flank steak

salt and pepper to taste
8 slices of cooked bacon
1 pkg. chopped spinach, thawed and dried
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan Cheese

1 package Knorr hollandaise sauce, prepared

Directions

pound flat and score flank steak
salt and pepper to taste
lay 8 slices of cooked bacon on the steak
layer spinach
sprinkle on Parmesan Cheese
Roll, and cut into 8 pieces. Thread pinwheels on metal skewers - 2 per skewer

Broil 6-7minutes- flip- 6 minutes broil other side

Serve right out of the oven, drizzled with Hollandaise sauce.

Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

6-8 Green, Red or Yellow Peppers (I like a variety)cleaned with stems and seeds removed

2 Tbl. olive oil

1/2 red onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 red pepper diced

6 oz. mushrooms quartered

2 Tbl. fresh chopped basil

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

2 cups butternut squash, cubed and steamed

1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes with chiles (I like Trader Joe's)

1 cup plus 4 Tbl. tomato sauce (I use a favorite spaghetti sauce)

2 cups cooked brown rice

1 cup shredded cheese (I like mexican blend)

Cook onion, pepper and garlic in hot oil until onion begins to soften. Stir in mushrooms and basil and cook until mushrooms are just beginning to cook through. Add tomatoes and 1 cup tomato sauce; simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in black beans, squash, brown rice and cheese until well combined and cheese is melted. Sea salt and pepper to taste.

Place remaining tomato sauce in baking dish. Stuff peppers with mixture and place on top of sauce. Add 1/2 c water, cover with foil and bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Enjoy!!

I made this up as I went along and it turned out great! My kids LOVED it! (Except the younger 2.... it was a little spicy for them!)

Roasted Vegetables

1 small butternut squash, cubed

2 red bell peppers, seeded and diced

1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed

3 Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed

1 red onion, quartered

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, combine the squash, red bell peppers, sweet potato, and Yukon Gold potatoes. Separate the red onion quarters into pieces, and add them to the mixture.
3. In a small bowl, stir together thyme, rosemary, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Toss with vegetables until they are coated. Spread evenly on a large roasting pan.
4. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, stirring every 10 minutes, or until vegetables are cooked through and browned.

This is good as a main dish!!!

Sweet and Spicy Tomatillo Salsa

I made this recipe up in an effort to come up with a salsa that was similar to Tia Rosas!

10 tomatillos, husks and stems removed, rinsed and dried

1 small sweet onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small serrano chile, rinsed and stem cut off

1/2 cup cilantro (depending on how much you like cilantro, i love it and say,the more the better)

2 Tbsp lime juice

2-3 Tbsp brown sugar (depending on how sweet you like things)

2 Tbsp white sugar

salt to taste

Roast tomatillos, chile and sliced onion (rubbed with oil)at 450 for 20 minutes. Immediately place in blender along with the remaining ingredients except the cilantro. Blend well. Let cool to room temperature and then add cilantro and blend again. Enjoy!

****For an extra treat... cook refried beans mixed with loads of shredded cheese (I like the Mexican blend) and taco seasoning until hot and cheese is completely melted into the beans. Scoop the hot bean dip with your tortilla chip and then dip into the green salsa..... and welcome to heaven!!

Trader Joe's Black Bean, Roasted Corn & Avocado Salad on A Bed of Red Quinoa

1 cup Red Quinoa

2 c. Chicken Broth

15 oz. can Black Beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups roasted corn kernels (sold frozen at Trader Joe's)

1 avocado, cut into 1/2 " pieces

2 vine ripened tomatoes, cut up

1/2 c red onion fienly diced

3/4 c. Cilantro Salad Dressing (I like Fresh and Easy's)

1/2 bunch fresh cilantro

1/4 c. olive oil

Zest of 1 lime

sea salt and pepper

Place 1 c. of quinoa and the 2 c. broth in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer, cover, and cook until all the broth is absorbed - 10 to 15 minutes.

While the quinoa is cooking, combine beans corn, avocado, tomatoes and onion. Top with Salad dressing and toss gently. Add salt, pepper and lime zest to taste. Add 1/2 of the cilantro and gently toss again. Set aside.

When quinoa is cooked, toss with olive oil; salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool. When ready to serve, spread quinoa on plate and top with the corn and bean mixture. Garnish with remaining cilantro.

YUMMY!! I made this for lunch and it was excellent!!

Thanksgiving and Abraham Lincoln

Did you know that Abraham Lincoln was the President that started it all??

In 1863 he set aside the last Thursday in November as a National Day of Thanksgiving.

Abraham Lincoln had this to say about giving thanks...

“We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in number, wealth, and power as no other Nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God who made us.

“It behooves us, then, to humble ourselves before the offended power, to confess our … sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.” (John Wesley Hill, Abraham Lincoln, Man of God, 4th ed., New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, p. 391.)

WOW!!

Las Vegas with Kids!!

I really was't sure if Vegas was a trip I wanted to take with the kids.... and there were a few uncomfortable moments ... but overall it was a blast!! We stayed at the Hilton Grand Vacation Resort which was on the strip... but in the older area down by Circus Circus (although the Hilton is new .... and still has 1 tower under construction...)

We thought this particular "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign was the best choice with the kiddos!! Who doesn't love 5 stories of M&M's!!

We explored our favorite hotels - The Bellagio, The Venetian, Caesar's Palace, etc and went to all the free shows. The Fountain show at the Bellagio and the erupting volcano at the Mirage were both huge hits!! All the free shows that run every 1/2 hour to hour all were great... except one.... Treasure Island!! The pirate show has changed a LOT since the last time I saw it years ago!! I miss the fighting pirates!! "Sirens" (aka Strippers) and stripping pirates? ......well... I guess it is Vegas.....

The kids LOVED the gardens at the Bellagio. They were all decorated for Fall.... complete with Lord of the Ring type talking trees!!

You can just glimpse at one of the talking trees right over the girls' heads!

Sophie especially LOVED the talking trees!!

The older girls really enjoyed the Grand Canal Shops in the Venetian....

We just HAD to find our cheap Vegas prime rib dinner ... and we did!! $4.99 for a 12 oz with veggies and baked potato at the Gold Spike in downtown Vegas... and it was GOOD!! The girls all skipped the huge slab of meat and ordered the breakfast plate for their dinner.... and it was really good too!

I am loving my new phone more and more....It kept Sophie totally entertained while we waited for our meals!

The kids' favorite part was probably Caesar's Palace. We had a lot of fun identifying all the statues!! (Our family LOVES the Lightning Thief series!!!)

And Away We Go!!

2 days and counting until we leave for Salt Lake for my niece, Becca's wedding!! All 4 of my girls have matching blue and brown dresses to match the wedding colors that I got at a boutique in Mesa a few months ago.... they just happened to match! Yay!!

Finally today I found a GREAT dress for me too! Chocolate brown with a gathered princess bodice and cap sleeves... form fitting.... all the way to the floor! A slit on the side to the waist with cream fabric underneath (no... not leg!)

It was a little more dress than I was looking for.... but I couldn't pass up the price!! It was 75% off!! So... it was only $28!! Aahhh!! (But it makes me feel like a million!!) I don't know when I will ever wear it again.... John will have to take me to a black tie event!!

Now to get fancy matching bling-e flowers from Marci!! (for the girls... not me!!)