Hawaiin Ham and Cheese Sliders

Hawaiin Ham and Cheese Sliders
3/4 cup melted Butter
1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp Brown Sugar
1 tbsp Poppy Seeds
2 tsp Dried Minced Onion
12 King’s Hawaiian Dinner Rolls
9 oz thin sliced Deli Ham
8 oz thin sliced Swiss Cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish.
2. Combine butter, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, poppy seeds, and dried onion.

3. Slice the rolls to make sandwiches. Remove tops and set aside.
4. Place the bottom pieces into the prepared baking dish.
5. Layer the ham onto the rolls. Top the ham with the Swiss cheese.

6. Place the tops of the rolls onto the sandwiches. Brush or pour the liquid mixture evenly over the rolls.

7. Bake 20 minutes or until the rolls are lightly browned and cheese has melted.
8. Separate into individual sandwiches to serve.

These are so, so, so good. Something I wouldn't normally try making but my MIL made these at a family party a while ago and we fell in love!

Blueberry Rhubarb Breakfast Sauce

Blueberry Rhubarb Breakfast Sauce

6 cups finely chopped rhubarb

4 cups sugar
1 can (21 ounces) blueberry pie filling
1 package (3 ounces) raspberry gelatin

Rinse seven 1-cup plastic containers and lids with boiling water. Dry thoroughly.
In a saucepan, bring rhubarb and sugar to a boil. Boil 10 minutes. Remove from heat; add pie filling and 

mix well. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in gelatin.
Fill all containers to within 1/2 in. of tops. Wipe off top edges of containers; cover with lids.
Refrigerate up to 3 weeks or freeze up to 12 months. Thaw frozen jam in refrigerator before serving. 

Serve with pancakes, waffles, toast or English muffins. Yield: 7 cups.
Nutritional Facts:
1 serving (2 tablespoons) equals 75 calories, trace fat (trace saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 7 mg sodium, 19 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, trace protein.
Read more: http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/blueberry-rhubarb-breakfast-sauce/print#ixzz3W4fB86yk

My mom introduced me to this recipe. Sooooo delicious. Everyone loved it!! The kids were a little wary of the chunks of rhubarb. Maybe next time I will put them in the food processor first.

Honey Mustard

Honey Mustard
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream (optional)
3 T mustard
3 T honey

YUM-O!!! This is my version of the original recipe. The original makes 100 servings so I had to 1/8 everything. I just used regular yellow mustard in mine. So good on a sandwich or with chicken tenders. So easy to make!! Yay!

Buttermilk Syrup

Buttermilk Syrup
1 1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. butter
2 T. corn syrup
1 t. baking soda
2 t. vanilla

In a saucepan combine the first five ingredients, bring to a boil. Boil for 7 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Makes about 2 cups of syrup.

Creamy Ranch Pasta Salad

Creamy Ranch Pasta Salad
1/2 box shell shaped pasta

1 head of broccoli, chopped

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

1/2 package mini pepperonis

8 Monterey Jack cheese sticks, cut into cubes

3 medium carrots, chopped

1 packed Ranch dressing, prepared as directed (about 1 cup prepared)

Directions:

Cook pasta shells according to directions on the box, being sure not to overcook because you don't want your pasta to be too soft.  Rinse pasta in cold water and drain.  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine broccoli, peas, pepperonis, cheese and carrots.  Fold in cooled pasta.  Pour prepared ranch dressing over the pasta and stir until evenly coated.  Keep refrigerated until served.

I loved this salad! Perfect for summer. You can never go wrong with Ranch dressing. I couldn't find Monterey Jack cheese sticks so I just used Cheddar cheese that I already had. You could easily substitute the pepperoni for bacon or ham too. Delicious! And low in calories! According to My Recipe Magic there's only about 100 calories and 6 g fat per 1/2 cup of salad.

Sweet and Sour Sauce

Sweet and Sour Sauce
1 cup sugar
2/3 c. pineapple juice
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup water

Combine sugar, pineapple juice, vinegar, ketchup, and soy sauce in a pot and cook over medium heat. Let sugar dissolve and bring to a light boil. In a small bowl combine cornstarch and water, mix well so that there are no lumps. Pour cornstarch mixture into boiling sauce and stir for 1 minute. You can also add chunks of pineapple or bell pepper. Makes about 3 cups.

Another sauce that I could seriously drink!! I was thinking this might make a good neighbor gift at Christmas time. Make a big 'ol batch and then put it in decorated jars. I wonder if this would freeze well...

Veggie/Cracker Dip

Veggie/Cracker Dip
1/2 c to 1 c. cottage cheese
1 clove of garlic
Herbs (I used Italian Seasoning)

Blend in food processor or blender until smooth. Eat with crackers or veggies.

Thank you, SparkPeople!

I added a bit of milk to make it less thick and it tastes a lot like Ranch dressing! Who knew.

Fry Sauce

Fry Sauce
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1/4 c. ketchup
1/4 t. vinegar

Mmmm. The vinegar is the secret ingredient to great home made fry sauce! It tasted just like it was from a restaurant. I couldn't stop eating it! We had roasted parmesan potatoes with it. Mmmmm.

Hot Bean Dip

Hot Bean Dip
1 can refried beans
1 cup (8 oz.) sour cream
4 oz. (or more) Velveeta cheese - cubed

Mix all together in a pot and heat until cheese is melted and bubbly. Or in a crock pot on low for about 2 hours. Serve with Fritos or tortilla chips.

This recipe is a family favorite of the DeFreese's. I made it for the first time today and mmmmm. So good. I would probably add more than 4 oz of Velveeta next time, though.

Taco Seasoning

This was such a great find on Pinterest! Those taco seasoning packets get so expensive when you buy them a lot.  Sean doesn't really even like the taco seasoning on his taco meat but I do. So I made up a batch and just sprinkled some on my taco at dinner. It tastes way better than the packets. Hooray!!

Homemade Taco Seasoning

1 part chili powder
1 part ground cumin
1 part garlic powder
1 part onion powder
1/4 – 1/2 part crushed red pepper

Roasted Parmesan Potatoes

Roasted Parmesan Potatoes
4 medium russett potatoes, peeled and diced
1 T vegetable oil
3T grated Parmesan cheese
2T parsley
1 t. paprika
1/2 t. garlic powder
1 t. salt
1/8 t. cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 450F. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray.
Toss potatoes with oil in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl combine parmesan, parsley, garlic powder, salt and cayenne. Add the Parmesan mixture to potatoes and toss to coat evenly.
Arrange potatoes on prepared baking sheet. Bake until browned and fork-tender, about 25 minutes.

Try dipping them in fry sauce. Mmmm.

Fruit Honey Smoothie

1 cup frozen strawberries (or use fresh strawberries and 1/2 c. crushed ice)
1 banana
1/3 cup honey
1 cup milk
1/2 c. plain or vanilla yogurt

Combine all ingredients in a blender, process until smooth. Makes 2 large smoothies.

Nutrition per serving: 332 cal, 9 g protein, 76 g carb, 2 g fat, 281 mg calcium, 110 mg sodium

YUM, YUM, YUM! I have had this recipe in my recipe box forever. I wish I had made it sooner! We all loved it. It was pretty filling too. And I love that it doesn't have any sugar so I don't feel bad at all if Brandon has 2 cup-fulls. I think I will make some freezer smoothie packs so that I can make these whenever I want and not have to worry about not having all the ingredients on hand. Yay!

No-Bake Chocolate Chip Granola Bars {easy & healthy!}

No-Bake Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups quick cooking oats {not rolled oats!}
1 cup crispy rice cereal
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips
1/4 cup peanut butter (optional)

Directions:
In a large bowl, stir oats and rice cereal together. Set aside. In a small pot, melt butter, honey and brown sugar together over medium high heat until it comes to a bubble. Reduce the heat and cook 2 minutes. Pour in vanilla and stir. Pour over dry ingredients and mix well to moisten all ingredients. Pour into lightly greased small jelly roll pan {about 12x8x1} and press out to be about 3/4 inch in thickness. {If your pan isn’t small enough, pack the mixture into one side. You really want to press them down so they stick together.} Sprinkle with mini chocolate chips and press down lightly. Melt peanut butter in saucepan until smooth. Drizzle over granola. Cool on a counter top to room temperature for two hours or until the chocolate chips are set before cutting into bars. Wrap in parchment or plastic wrap and store at room temperature.

Yum!!! These tasted more like dessert than a healthy granola bar. And I felt so good about giving these to Brandon. He loved them. I drizzled peanut butter over the top of the granola bars but I'm thinking now that it may have been easier to eat if the PB was mixed in with the granola. Not sure though. Enjoy!!

Cough Drop Lollipops

Cough Drop Lollipops

½ cup to 1 cup honey (honestly any amount would do probably)

Candy thermometer (optional)

Lollipop sticks

Lollipop mold (although if you do not have a mold you could make free form lollipops by pouring the honey over the stick on a non-stick surface)

Cook-

Pour honey into small saucepan and cook over low heat. Stir constantly and bring honey to a boil. If using candy thermometer, insert in and continue to stir the honey until it has reached a temperature of 300 degrees. Remove from heat and move to test phase. If not using the candy thermometer then continue cooking and occasionally test. Just don’t wait too late to test; testing too early is better then testing too late.

Test –

To make sure your honey has reached the right consistency, place a drop or two of honey into a cup of ice water. If the honey turns and stays hard (like a hard candy) then you are good to go. If it is still soft then you need to keep cooking a bit longer.

Making the Lollipops –

With Molds- Grease lollipop molds and insert sticks so that they are ready in the mold. Pour honey into mold and let cool at room temperature. (No cheating and putting them into the fridge. It won’t work)

Without Molds- Lay lollipop sticks on a greased non-stick surface such as a silicone mat or parchment/wax paper. Carefully pour honey over each stick, creating a free form lollipop.

Making Cough Drops sans sticks-

Instead of making lollipops, you can of course make regular cough drops. You can purchase cough drop molds or any small mold will work. I used my lollipop mold to try out my cough drops and it worked fine. You could also create free form cough drops just like the free form lollipops. Same instructions apply; pour honey into mold or onto a greased non-stick surface and let cool.

I was SO excited to find this on Pinterest. Brandon has had a cough for about 2 weeks now and is pediatrician said to give him straight honey to help coat his throat and stop the coughing. I tried putting some on my finger and having him lick it off and he only had like 3 licks. Then I tried giving him a spoonful of it and he just gagged. He loves suckers so I knew this would be a winner. Yay!!