Homemade QUICK & EASY Breadsticks

FIRST OF ALL:  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO HERMANA CAPTAIN IN PERU. 

I FED THE MISSIONARIES TODAY IN HONOR OF MY FAVORITE MISSIONARY! 

I had these in Bountiful when I was staying with my friends Ginny & Dave over Spring Break. She served them with cheesy potato yumminess soup. I served them tonight for my family & the missionaries with a salad bar & a pretty good chocolate banana cream pie (from AllRecipes.com which I modified a little according to many of the reviews, and next time I will try this one, which isn't as easy or lazy...). The breadsticks would also be yummy with spaghetti, lasagna, or any Italian food that screams out breadsticks. :o)

These are mixed, kneaded, raised and baked in an hour! YUM! 

Best, Easiest Homemade Breasticks E.V.E.R. :o)

2 T instant yeast

1 T honey

1 tsp salt

3 1/2 c flour

1 1/2 c warm water

Toppings: 1 cube butter, 1/4 c mayo, 1/4 c Parmesan cheese, McCormick salad supreme seasoning (which I didn't have so I didn't use & they were still yumminess), garlic salt 

Dissolve yeast and honey in warm water, let sit for a few minutes. In large bowl combine salt and flour. Add yeast mixture to flour and stir together. Mix and knead for 3 minutes (you can do this with a dough hook on your mixer or by hand, it's not a lot of dough). Let dough rest for ten minutes. While dough is resting melt 1 cube of butter and spread half in the bottom of a cookie sheet (use a cookie sheet with sides). Roll dough out 1/2 inch thick in rectangle shape. Place on buttered cookie pan. Cut with pizza cutter into one inch strips (I did the strips the long way and then cut it into thirds the other way so they would be smaller bread sticks, you pre-cut so they will pull apart easily after they are baked). Mix 1/4 c mayo with the other 1/2 cube of melted butter. Spread over breadsticks (I know it's weird to use mayo, but it's really really really good). Sprinkle with topping: Parmesan cheese, salad seasoning & garlic salt. Let raise for 15 minutes. Bake at 365 degrees for 15 minutes. 

Dessert Spread (I haven't tried this yet): Spread 1/2 cup (I think this was a typo on the copy I got because you should have a 1/2 cube leftover from melting it and putting 1/2 in the pan) butter over breadsticks the sprinkle with  1/4 c sugar mixed with 2 T cinnamon. Cook breadsticks & drizzle with frosting (2 T butter, 2 T milk, 1/2 c powdered sugar, 1 t vanilla).

Mama's Carrot Cake

I made this for the first time ever a couple of weeks ago for Lanie's first birthday. I used a sheet cake pan, and then made a mini stacked cake for Lanie and a large stacked cake for the fam. I remember loving this cake when I was a kid. Oh man, this cake is so delicious! So moist. So flavorful. And hey, it's got carrots in it. That puts it in the vegetable group in the food pyramid, right? :o) And who doesn't feel cool after making a cake from scratch? I think if you added pecans to the actual cake and made the carrot pieces a little chunkier (I was lazy and put them in the food processor), it would be very similar to the amazing Paradise Bakery Carrot Cake. But, you'd have to add raisins for the full effect. They would not be added to mine. I couldn't add all this stuff since it was for a first birthday. No nuts to choke the little chica. Next time though.

Yum. The girls thought it was uber weird (and sorta gross) to put carrots in a cake. They thought it was sure to be disgusting. In the end, they LOVED it. They still talk about it. They licked the attachments clean after we mixed up both the cake AND the frosting.


The cake:

Mix together:
1 1/2 c. oil
{I used 1 c. applesauce and 1/2 c. oil, and it was great!}
2 c. sugar

Add:
4 eggs
3 c. grated carrots

Mix dry ingredients separately, and then dump them in:
2 t. baking soda
2 t. cinnamon
2 t. salt
2 c. flour
{I might throw in some ground clove or a bit of ginger next time.}

Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes
{less time if baking on a sheet cake pan, watch closely so it doesn't burn}


The love (aka the frosting):
{don't frost the cake until it's completely cooled}
{also, I do not recommend stacking. it's a pain}
{but it looks cute}

Mom's recipe on the cake recipe card at Kat's house:

3 oz cream cheese
1/2 cube softened butter
2 t. vanilla
2 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 c. nuts

My variation to have enough to stack the cake and a teensy bit leftover for graham crackers:
8 oz cream cheese (I always use neufchatel)
1 cube super soft butter
2 t. vanilla
enough powdered sugar to make it right as you whip it
{I forgot to add nuts this time, and I was slightly traumatized by the omission}

Enjoy. I kept it in the fridge, and it stayed so moist and delicious! It was a perfect little snack for our family after just about every meal for a few days. It was a sad day when it was all eaten. But it lasted quite a long time with just a few of us piecing off of it (some more than others, not gonna lie).

No-bake Cheesecake!

We grew up with this amazing no-bake cheesecake (SO EASY TOO), and here is this year's traditional flag.
Not anatomically correct, I know.

But so yum. :o)

Crust:
Blend up one and a half little packages of graham crackers.
Mix with one cube melted butter.
Press into pan. Refrigerate to set.

Cheesecake topping:
Mix together
one 8 oz package of cream cheese (I use neufchatel),
one 8 oz tub of cool whip (low fat is just fine),
and 2/3 cup powdered sugar.
I mix in my KitchenAid. It gets light and fluffy. Yum.
Spread gently over set graham cracker crust.
Refrigerate to set.

It's best if you let it set for a few hours if you can...
so make it in the morning. :o)

Add fresh fruit or fruit topping and whipped cream.
Yum.
Enjoy.

Sometimes I serve the fruit and whipped cream separately and let people put what toppings they want on it. I had extra strawberries and blueberries to serve on top of the flag pieces, since it was sort of skimpy with the fruit. But it was gorgeous! :o)

Tortellini, Bean and Pesto Soup

2	tablespoons butter or margarine
1	garlic clove, finely chopped
1	medium carrot, cut into julienne strips
1	medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1	medium celery stalk, chopped (1/2 cup)
6	cups water
2	teaspoons vegetable or chicken bouillon granules
1	can (19 oz) red kidney beans, drained, rinsed
1	package (10 ounces) dried cheese-filled tortellini (2 1/2 cups)
1	tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/4	teaspoon pepper
6	tablespoons basil pesto
6	tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

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1. Melt butter in 4-quart Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Cook garlic, carrot, onion and celery in butter 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Stir in water and bouillon granules. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Stir in beans and tortellini. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tortellini are tender.
3. Stir in parsley and pepper. Top each serving with pesto and cheese. Serve immediately.

Southwestern BBQ Chicken Salad

This salad is so, so delicious!

2 large chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

1 cup BBQ sauce

1/2 head Romaine lettuce, chopped

1/2 head Iceberg lettuce, chopped

1 can corn, drained (I just used a couple handfuls of frozen corn, thawed out in the microwave.)

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 bunch green onions, chopped

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

4 Roma tomatoes, diced

2 Haas avocados, diced

shredded cheese, Mexican blend or cheddar

crispy tortilla strips

• Stir shredded chicken in with the BBQ sauce until well coated (I cooked my chicken in the crockpot with BBQ sauce, shredded it and then added more BBQ sauce. I thought it turned out really well). Of course you can use less or more sauce, it's up to you! I like quite a bit since I love the smoky flavor of BBQ sauce in a salad.
• Toss together the lettuce, cilantro, corn, beans, and chopped veggies.
• Top with shredded chicken, cheese and crispy tortilla strips.
• Drizzle ranch or cilantro lime dressing over salad and enjoy!

Cinnamon Sugar Muffins

• 2/3 cup butter (can use shortening)
  
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1 tsp cinnamon
  
• 1 cup milk

Topping:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 cube butter, melted
  

Instructions:

1. In a mixing bowl, beat butter and egg.
2. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, allspice, and 1 tsp cinnamon.
3. Stir dry ingredients into egg mixture alternately with milk (batter will be stiff).
4. Fill greased or paper lined muffin cups two-thirds full.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until muffins test done.*
6. For topping, combine sugar and cinnamon.
7. When muffins are removed from the oven, immediately dip the top of the muffin in the butter and then into the cinnamon and sugar.
   
8. Serve hot or cooled.
   

*For mini muffins, cook for 8-10 minutes or until muffins test done.
* Recipe yields 60 mini muffins.

Broccoli Salad

• 1 large head broccoli or 2 heads, chopped
• 1 small red onion, chopped fine
• 1 1/2 lbs. bacon, fried & cut up
• 2 cups shredded swiss cheese
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 can honey roasted peanuts (can substitute slivered almonds, I use some of both)

In a large bowl, combine broccoli, onion, bacon, cheeses, and peanuts.

Dressing - In another bowl combine the following:

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tbs. white or red wine vinegar

Pour dressing over salad, mix, and refrigerate overnight.