The robins are bathing in our bird bath, it seems a little chilly for that but they seem to be enjoying it! My tulips, poppies, daffodils, crocus and lilies are up, even my chives are tall enough to use, I hope that Mother nature doesn’t throw us a curve!  My daughter Mary and her family are coming for Easter, our son John and his family the weekend after Easter we are starting slow, so we still can practice social distancing, it has been a long year and I truly don’t think there will be a big change for most of the summer. We have both gotten both our vaccines so are feeling a little safer. Now on to the recipe, I always think strawberries feel like spring, hope you enjoy this one!
 
Strawberry Spinach Pasta Salad
 
8 oz. of penne noodles, or your pasta of choice, cooked according to package directions
2 cups packed fresh baby spinach leaves
1 cup sliced strawberries
1 cup pineapple chunks
1/4 cup dried cranberries, or dried blue berries
1/2 cup salted cashews
 
Orange poppy seed Dressing:
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon Dijon
3 Tablespoons honey
1/3 cup orange juice
2 tsp. poppy seeds
optional: pinch of salt and pepper
 
Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar, cover, shake well, set aside
Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss with the prepared dressing.
Serve immediately or cover and chill for 1 hour before serving!
 
Have a great week, Happy Easter and stay safe!

​Pa Lloyd always says that when you have seen the first Robin in the spring there will be 3 more snows before spring, so we will see! I just hope my tulips that were up survive!
 
Today’s recipe comes from the kitchens of Pat Burns and Joanne Soma,  I thought they were delicious, the one I had used a chocolate cake mix and chocolate chips you can be creative and try other flavors, if you want them to be gluten free simply use a gluten free cake mix. Today would be a good day to try them, turn on your oven and warm up your kitchen!
 
Toffee Cookies
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup canola oil
1 regular size butter pecan cake mix
1 pkg. butterscotch chips
1 pkg. toffee bits
 
Beat together eggs and oil then cake mix, Mix in chips and toffee bits, this will take some muscle. Drop by Tablespoon full 2 inches apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes, let cool a couple of minutes before removing from pan.
 
Stay safe and have a good week!

​I guess if it means our cold spell is on its way out I won’t complain about new snow!  Spring has to be around the corner, I think its safe to say that we all look forward to warm temperatures where we can be out doors again, especially when we have been so confined to our homes! We had appointments to receive our Covid vaccine last week but was cancelled due to bad roads over much of our country and vaccine not being delivered. Hopefully we will be able to receive it this week.
 
My friend Anita Galkin called me last week with a new recipe using sweet potatoes, she says it’s the only way she makes them now. So I tried the recipe last evening and it was very good, I’m anxious for when I can invite company for a meal and try it out on them.  Its always fun to be able to make something in a different way. I hope that you will give it a try and like it too!
 
Sweet potatoes with Boursin cheese
 
2 medium sweet potatoes
Olive oil, for drizzling
salt and pepper
Boursin Garlic & Fine Herbs cheese ( found in small 3 inch box 5.2 oz. by the specialty cheese)
1/4 cup pecans, roughly chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries
honey for drizzling
 
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Wash sweet potatoes and peel if desired, then slice them into disc-shaped slices about 1/4 inch thick. You should have about 6 slices from each potato. Arrange sweet potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet, drizzle both sides with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
Roast the sweet potatoes for 7-8 minutes, flip each slice over and bake another 7-8 minutes. Let sweet potatoes cool a couple of minutes, transfer to a serving platter, spread the Boursin cheese on each slice, then top with chopped pecans and dried cranberries, finish with a drizzle of honey on each slice.  Enjoy!
 
Have a good week and stay safe!

​If this isn’t soup weather I don’t know what is!  We have had a pretty mild winter until now, this cold spell has lasted awhile and isn’t for the faint hearted, it makes it easy to stay inside doesn’t it? Today is one of those comforting soup recipes that Carolyn Seidel was generous enough to share with me. I hope it warms you and yours up! Before I forget the recipe I shared last week is best if you drain most of the liquid off of the corn before adding, its otherwise too juicy.
 
Stuffed Green Pepper Soup
 
1/2 cup white rice, cooked to make one cup, set aside
 
1 pound lean hamburger, crumbled and cooked until no pink
 
Add : 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 medium sized onion, chopped
1 cup chopped green pepper, cook 5-6 minutes longer
 
Add:
3 cups beef broth
14.5 oz. can stewed tomatoes ( chop large pieces of the tomato)
2 Tablespoon brown sugar
3 bouillon cubes or 2 tsp. of bouillon granules
1/2 tsp. ground pepper
Bring to boil, then simmer for 30 minutes
Add:
1 cup cooked rice
Let simmer for another 5 minutes so soup is hot for serving.
Garnish with fresh chopped parsley.
 
Have a great week, stay warm and safe!

​It certainly feels like a Minnesota winter this week!  These cold temperatures call for cozy warm up crock pot meals, like I am sharing with you today!
 
Reading has always been a passion of mine especially during this year of isolation. I have so appreciated our local library. Routinely I call in a list of books that the staff gather for me to pick up. Last fall as I was unloading my books I brought home I found a small crock pot  cook book compiled by the staff of our Martin County Library tucked in at the bottom of the plastic bag under my books! I have tried many of them and they all are make again recopies! Today I am sharing one of the most versatile ones that was submitted by Deb!
 
Fiesta Chicken
 
4 chicken breasts, frozen or raw
1 pkg. dry Fiesta Ranch dip
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 can corn, undrained
8 oz. cream cheese
 
Place all ingredients ( chicken on bottom) in slow cooker. Cook 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low. Shred chicken with forks and mix back in.
 
Use for tacos, enchiladas or serve over rice.
 
Have a Happy Valentine’s day, stay warm and safe!

​I love putting a meal in my crock pot and forgetting about meal prep until its time to dish up! Especially on these cold dreary days. Todays recipe comes from my Grand Daughter Samantha Phillis, she is a busy young Mother of 3, three and under who needs fast prep meals.
 
Balsamic and Honey Pot Roast
 
2.5-4 pound chuck roast
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
2 beef bouillon cubes
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
4 cloves garlic minced or pressed
1/3 cup water
1/2 tsp. salt ( I didn’t add)
 
Place roast in a slow cooker, whisk together honey, vinegar, soy sauce and water together, pour over roast add bouillon cubes and garlic, cook on low for 8-10 hours.
 
Have a great week and stay safe!

I have a Lydia story today, I was lucky to have her with us for a day recently, she had been sitting up to the table, when she slid off the chair she slipped and bumped her head, so I was consoling her and she said” Nana a banana might make me feel better” ( she loves to eat) I am sharing a cookie recipe she helped me make, I measure and she dumps in ingredients into the bowl what she really likes to do is lick the bowl when we are done, there isn’t much left to eat but she finds what there is! I like this recipe, there aren’t many ingredients, no flour so its good for my Grand daughter who who eats a gluten free diet and it doesn’t make so many, I always let Lydia take some home with her to share!
 
Peanut Butter Cookies
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup chunky peanut butter
1 egg
1 cup chocolate chips
1 tsp. vanilla
Granulated sugar for rolling in
 
Blend sugar and peanut butter, add egg and vanilla, stir in chocolate chips. Dough is soft. Roll into balls and roll in sugar. Press gently with a fork two directions. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 9 minutes. Let cool on a parchment lined cookie sheet before removing.
 
Have a great week and stay safe!

​I am all for one dish easy to put together meals! I tried a new recipe from my Grand daughter, Samantha last week she’s a busy Mom so she likes easy too, I will definitely make this one again.  For just the two of us I changed the amounts to 2 chicken breasts and 5 potatoes, the other amounts I kept the same. Left overs worked well warmed up in the micro wave.
 
The Christmas cards are finally ready to mail and the goodies ready to package up to send to my four kids my goal for today, I hope your holiday preparations are going well, I’m sure for many of us it will be a very different holiday but there is always next year to think about, and there is hope with a vaccine on its way, a reason to celebrate!!
 
Chicken Potato and Ranch Hot dish
 
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1 pkg. dry ranch dressing mix
14 medium potatoes, cubed
3 chicken breasts, cubed
2 1/2 cups shredded cheese
1 cup cooked, crumbled bacon
1 cup green onions, chopped
1 tsp. black pepper
 
Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Line 9x13 inch baking dish with foil and spray with cooking spray.
In a large bowl combine oil, salt, pepper and ranch dressing mix.
Add potatoes to the oil mixture and toss well. Spoon potatoes into a large baking dish, leave as much oil mixture behind as possible.
Roast potatoes until crispy, about and hour ( it took mine 45 minutes) stirring every 15 minutes.
Cut raw chicken into bite size pieces. Add to oil mixture and toss well.
In a separate bowl mix the cheese, bacon and onion.
When potatoes are crispy, remove from oven, Lower temperature to 400 degrees, top potatoes with the raw chicken and then the cheese mixture. Bake for another 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, serve with sour cream or ranch dressing, enjoy!
 
Have a great week and stay safe!

​Today Santa left the food section of the Minneapolis Tribune containing some prize winning Christmas cookie recipe’s on my front porch! Whoever left them thank you, I always like to try one or two new recipes during the holidays! I have decided that since we have cancelled our family Christmas get together I am going to send each family a package of goodies so this week I will be in my kitchen. I wasn’t going to put many decorations up this year but when I got started I was on a roll so even though it will be just the two of us it will look festive!
 
I have several variations of the good all American Chocolate chip cookie but a couple of weeks ago a long time friend sent me a new take, I would say that this Chocolate chip cookie rates to be a Holiday cookie try it and see what you think!
 
Bailey’s Irish Cream Chocolate Chip Cookie
 
2 1/2 cups flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. espresso powder or instant coffee
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
3 Tablespoons Bailey’s Irish cream liquor
2 room temperature eggs
12 oz. chocolate chips
 
Whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and espresso powder, set aside.  Combine sugar and butter, beat until light and fluffy about 2 minutes then add vanilla and bailey’s Irish cream liquor, mix then beat in eggs one at a time. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix in the dry ingredients, fold in chocolate chips. Chill dough for 2 hours or up to three days. Roll one Tablespoon of dough in a ball and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 9-10 min. Let cool for a couple of minutes before removing from pan.
 
Have a great week and stay safe!

​My Thanksgiving dinner was a sad tale! On Wednesday afternoon I had a dessert in the oven baking, when the timer went off, its wasn’t done so I gave it another 10 minutes, it still didn’t seem done on further investigation my oven didn’t seem very hot so I determined my oven was to put it bluntly dead. Luckily I have an electric roaster so I put my dessert in that to finish cooking, it did seem done but the consistency was off we each had a piece and I threw the rest out. I fixed our Thanksgiving ham in the roaster, that too wasn’t the same, I cooked the dressing in the crock pot which I have done before but it was dry. I even managed to over salt the green beans the only good part of our meal was the cranberry salad I had made. The good thing was we didn’t have that stuffed feeling we usually have after eating Thanksgiving dinner and of course a memory! I have decided I just wasn’t motivated this year my heart wasn’t in it!! The repairman is due to come today or tomorrow.
 
On to todays recipe, I am sharing a cozy taco soup, the recipe comes from Cindy Tonne, I like it better than chili, I hope that you will like it too.
 
Taco Soup
 
1 # hamburger, browned and drained
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cans beans, any kind or a combination such as black beans, kidney beans or white beans, do not drain.
3 cans Ro-Tel diced tomatoes or 1 large can diced tomatoes and 1 can green chilies
1 can water
1 can Mexicorn, do not drain
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1 pkg. dry Hidden Valley Ranch dressing
 
Combine all ingredients, simmer 20 minutes to 1 hour. Makes 12-14 cups, Freezes well. To serve may top with grated cheese, sour cream and Fritos.
 
Have a great week and stay safe!