Make Ahead Omelet

-8 slices of bread, cubed (whole wheat or rye-pumpernickel)

-6 eggs
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-2 cups milk
-1/4 cup margarine, melted
-1 pound sharp cheddar cheese, grated
-Toppings of your choice (mushrooms, onions, green peppers, olives, etc.)

Grease a 9X13 inch pan. Add bread. Spread cheese over bread. Beat eggs. Add milk to eggs and then beat again. Add margarine to eggs and pour over bread. Refrigerate overnight. Top with mushrooms, onions, peppers, olives, etc. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes until set.

From the kitchen of Heather Campbell.



Coffee Ice Cream Punch

Here's the recipe for the amazing punch my friend Heather made for the baby shower we threw a few weeks back. It received glowing reviews...

-1/2 cup instant coffee
-3 quarts hot water
-2 cups sugar
-2 quarts milk
-1 teaspoon vanilla
-5 ½ ounce can Hershey’s syrup
-1 gallon vanilla ice cream

Combine hot water, sugar and coffee. Cool completely. When cool, stir in milk, vanilla and chocolate syrup. Mix well and freeze in a tupperware container. 3 hours before serving, take out to partially thaw. Pour in punch bowl and then add the vanilla ice cream just before serving.

From the kitchen of Heather Campbell.

Mediterranean Tacos

On Sunday, Scott was requesting something Mediterranean grilled for dinner. I was looking to make something easy and use stuff we had on hand. This is what we came up with...

-Chicken breasts (boneless or bone in), we used 4
-Zesty Italian salad dressing
-Flour Tortillas or Pita Bread
-Hummus
-Box of Couscous, prepared*
-Romaine lettuce, sliced thin
-Kalamata olives
-Feta
-Tomatoes, large dice
-Zucchini or cucumbers, thinly sliced

Marinate chicken in salas dressing for few hours and then grill. Scott always like to use his mesquite wood chips while grilling - see this recipe for tips. We used bone in chicken breast...takes about an hour on the grill. I think this Morrocan Chicken recipe would also taste great with these tacos. However, I didn't have these ingredients on hand. While your chicken is grilling, prep your toppings.

When chicken is done, slice into thin pieces (think fajita slices). Start your taco by smoothing some hummus onto a tortilla (we used tortillas because that's what we had...pita would be fab as well!). Next, layer on some chicken and all your favorite toppings. Serve with a side of couscous or do what I did and put the couscous right on your taco. Enjoy!

*You can prepare a box of couscous and serve it as it. However, I prefer to jazz ours up a little bit. After preparing my couscous, I let it sit at room temperature to cool. Once thoroughly cooled, I drizzle with olive oil and then add in some veggies....zucchini, yellow squash, chopped tomatoes, carrots. Then I dump in a container of feta (we LOVE feta!!) and gently mix. This makes a meal in itself...I love to eat this stuff for lunch.

Fruit Dip

Here are a few more recipes that were inspired by Katie's shower. One of my favorite appetizers is fruit and dip so of course I had to prepare some for the shower. Enjoy a few of my favorite fruit dip recipes. Remember, the key to a smooth and lump free dip is to thoroughly blend the cream cheese alone before adding the other ingredients.

Kim's Go To Fruit Dip
-8 ounces of cream cheese, softened
-3 T sugar
-1 cup sour cream
-1 t vanilla extract

Blend well and serve with fruit.

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Pizazzed Fruit Dip
-8 ounces of cream cheese, softened
-1/4 cup powdered sugar
-1 T sherry
-1 t vanilla
-1/2 cup cool whip

Blend well and serve with fruit.

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No Guilt Fruit Dip
-1 container fat free Cool Whip
-1 big box of sugar free vanilla pudding mix

Thaw cool whip and mix until well blended. Serve with fruit. This is a Weight Watcher's recipe.

Overnight Blueberry French Toast

My friend Heather and I recently hosted a baby shower for our dear friend, Katie. This is one of the casseroles (among others) that Heather made for the shower. It got glowing reviews so I thought I'd share it with you here. Heather says it is super simple to make. I can't wait to try it the next time we have company.

-1 loaf French bread, sliced 1-inch thick (probably won’t need the whole loaf)
-6 large eggs
-2 cups milk
-1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
-1 teaspoon vanilla
-1 cup brown sugar, divided
-1/4 cup butter (or stick margarine)
-1 cup chopped pecan (optional)
-2 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)

Grease a 9X13 inch baking dish. Arrange the bread in a single layer in the dish. In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Add in the milk, nutmeg, vanilla, and ¾ cup of the brown sugar. Stir well to mix. Pour egg mixture evently over the bread. Cover and let sit 8 hours or overnight in refrigerator. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and remaining ¼ cup of brown sugar, stirring well. Top the egg mixture with pecans and blueberries, then drizzle on the butter sauce. Bake for 45 minutes until set and golden brown on top. Serve with warm maple syrup.

From the kitchen of Heather Campbell.

Fried Cauliflower

I haven't had this for YEARS and have been completely craving it lately. I remember eating this all the time growing up. Made it tonight with dinner tonight...so yummy!!!

-1 head of cauliflower
-Bisquick or pancake batter mix
-Salt and pepper
-Oil (I always use olive oil even though I know you aren't suppose to fry with it)

Core cauliflower. Steam head of cauliflower for 5-10 minutes or until tender (not too soft though since you will still fry it later). Refrigerate cauliflower for 2 hours or even overnight. When you are ready to fry, cut cauliflower into bite size (1-2 inches) pieces. Pour 1/4 cup or so of oil in a fry pan and pre-heat over medium heat. Meanwhile, prepare some pancake batter. You don't need the egg...just the pancake mix and water. Add more water than it calls for...you will want a runny consistency. Add a generous amount of salt and pepper to the batter to your liking. Dip cauliflower pieces into batter, generously coating them. Shake off excess batter and then carefully place in hot oil in fry pan. Continue with the rest of the cauliflower (you will have to do a couple fry pans full as all the pieces won't fit in one round), turning after each sided is lightly browned and crisp (tongs work well for this). Place on a paper towel lined plate to drain and then serve warm.

Growing up, we would eat this as a side dish or sometimes as an appetizer at a party.

From the kitchen of Cheri Midagliotti.

...didn't realize that my Stella made it into the picture. I will say that these do taste great with a beer!

Chicken Supreme

Another new crockpot recipe that was devoured tonight...

-1 can (10 3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
-1 envelope (1 ounce) dry onion soup mix
-4-6 boneless,skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/4 pounds)
-1/2 cup imitation bacon bits or 1/2 pound bacon, crisp-cooked and crumbled (I used an entire 3 ounce package of bacon bits)
-1 container (16 ounces) reduced-fat sour cream

Spray crockpot with nonstick cooking spray (I use a slow cooker liner). Combine soup and soup mix in medium bowl; mix well. Layer chicken breasts (I just throw mine into the crockpot still frozen) and soup mixture in crockpot. Sprinkle with bacon. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours. During last hour of cooking, stir in sour cream. Serve over egg noodles or rice.

*Cream of mushroom soup or cream of celery soup can be substituted for cream of chicken soup. *I added a large can of mushrooms (drained) to this recipe. We love mushrooms in this family!
*After serving dinner, I realized that I completely forgot to add the sour cream in during the last hour. Whoops! The recipe was still AMAZING and all 3 boys in this house scarfed it up. It didn't take like anything was missing.

From the kitchen of Jaime Crosby.