shortcut Italian noodle soup

Half of box of 3 min macaroni noodles cooked with two cups of pasta water
half jar spaghetti sauce
1 can tomato soup
1 lb sweet Italian sausage (ground, browned and drained)
half onion (I used red) chopped
2 garlic cloves minced
water
1/2 c sugar

Simmer

Homemade Chicken Salad

2 large chicken breasts, baked, skinned, boned, and cubed (Approximately 3+/-  cups chopped)
2 +/- tbsp miracle whip
2 +/- tsp yellow mustard
2 +/- tbsp of sour cream
2 +/- tbsp cream cheese
2 +/- tbsp sweet relish
2 +/- tbsp diced (minced) sweet onion (Vidalia)
4 boiled eggs - chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

Whip everything for dressing separately so the cream cheese will smoothly transition to sauce without becoming chunky. Fold in chicken, onion, egg, and relish.

Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Ingredients

• 1 (21-ounce) can apple pie filling
• 1 (9-inch) graham cracker crust
• 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2/3-1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup caramel topping
• 12 pecan halves, plus 2 tablespoons chopped pecans

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Reserve 3/4 cup of the apple filling; set aside. Spoon the remaining filling into the crust. Beat together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Add the eggs and mix well. Pour this over the pie filling.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the center of the cake is set. Cool to room temperature.

Mix the reserved pie filling and caramel topping in a small saucepan and heat for about 1 minute, or until spreadable. Spoon the apple-caramel mixture over the top of the cheesecake and spread evenly. Decorate the edge of the cake with pecan halves and sprinkle with chopped pecans. Refrigerate the cake until ready to serve.

Aunt Lisa's Crock Pot Chicken and Dressing

Chicken and Dressing (Crockpot)

 

Needed for chicken:

A whole chicken to boil, debone, and pull apart

1 can of regular size cream of chicken soup

 

Needed for dressing:

2 quarts of cornbread crumbs

2 tablespoons of sage

1 onion chopped

2 sticks of melted butter

1 large can of cream of chicken soup

¾ cup of chicken broth (from boiled chicken)

2 eggs

 

Mix all items needed to make the dressing.  At the end, mix in the chicken.  Place the mixture in the crock pot and add the regular size can of cream of chicken soup on top.  The dressing mixture needs to be juicy, so add additional broth as needed.  Place the crockpot on low heat and cook 4-5 hours.

 

Aunt Lisa said:  If you do not want to boil your own chicken, you can purchase a cooked chicken or canned chicken and cans of chicken broth, but it is not near as good as boiling your own chicken. 

Sesame Chicken

Sesame Chicken serves 3 - 4, or 5 - 6 as part of a multi-course meal.

Prep Time: 25 minutes; Cook Time: 20 minutes; Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 pack of chicken tenders, cut into 1'' cubes.

 

Marinade:

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon chicken broth
• a few drops of sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1/4 tsp of Chinese 5 spice

Sauce for Sesame Chicken:

• 1/2 cup water
• 1 + 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 2 T (1/8 cup) vinegar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 TB soy sauce
• 2 TB sesame oil
• 1 heaping tsp tomato paste
• 1 t minced garlic & 2 t of garlic juice

Other:

• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds (toasted in dry pan for 2-3 minutes until golden brown)
• oil for shallow frying the chicken after marinating
• 6 cups of steamed rice or instant rice, prepared according to package directions (making enough rice for 6 servings)

Preparation:

Marinade:  Mix the marinade ingredients and marinate the chicken for 20 minutes (or up to 2 hours).

Sauce: mix together all of the sauce ingredients.  In a small pot, bring ingredients to a boil, stirring continuously. Turn the heat down to low and keep warm while you are frying the chicken pieces

Fry the chicken:  Add the marinated chicken pieces a few at a time and toss them around with tongs and fry until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with the remainder of the chicken. 

Just before you are finished cooking the chicken, bring the sauce back up to a boil. 

I cooked the instant rice according to directions.  (Steamed rice is preferred, but instant works in a pinch).  I placed the cooked rice in the bottom of a large bowl, dumped in the chicken, poured over the sauce and sprinkled the sesame seeds over everything.  Enjoy!