Gingerbread houses

Last weekend I took the kids to Walmart to make gingerbread houses. Daniel was on call and we needed something to do. Kraft and herseys donate everything do it was free! The kids had fun. Kira enjoyed decorating but hardly any of Carson's food made it on the house because anything I handed him went straight in his mouth.

Baked Green Beans

1/2 lb green beans trimmed and snapped in half

1/4 cup olive oil
sea salt and black pepper to taste.

Preheat oven to 425. Line a cookie sheet with tin foil. Toss the green beans in the olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread the green beans evenly on the cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes.

From: http://tried-and-truecookingwithheidi.blogspot.com/search/label/Side%20Dish

Delish!

Orange Julius

There has been a lot of sickness in our house for the past couple weeks. So we have been enjoying this cold refreshing drink occasionally.

6 oz frozen Orange juice concentrate

1 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 - 1 cup water (depending on desired consistency)

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup powdered sugar

Ice cubes

Put everything in a blender for 1-2 minutes.

Linzer Cookies

I wanted to make something festive for Valentine's Day and thought these cookies would be fun.

This was my first time making them and they are pretty easy, it just takes some time to cut them out.

Linzer Cookies

3/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature (3 sticks)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 1/2 cups flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup good raspberry preserves

Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the butter and sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°. Roll the dough out (about 1/4-inch thick) and cut hearts with a plain or fluted cutter. With 1/2 of the rounds, cut a hole from the middle of each round with a heart cutter. Bake the cookies until the edges begin to brown, about 12 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature. Thinly spread raspberry preserves on the flat side of each solid cookie. Dust the top of the cut-out cookies with confectioners' sugar and press the flat sides together, with the raspberry preserves in the middle and the confectioners' sugar on the top.

Recipe from: http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com/2008/02/linzer-cookies.html

Apple Dumplings

• 2 whole Granny Smith Apples
• 2 cans (8 Oz. Cans) Crescent Rolls
• 2 sticks Butter
• 1-½ cup Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• Cinnamon, To Taste
• 1 can (12 Oz.) Mountain Dew Soda

Peel and core apples. Cut each apple into 8 slices each. Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Place in a 9 x 13 buttered pan.

Melt butter, then add sugar and barely stir. Add vanilla, stir, and pour entire mixture over apples. Pour Mountain Dew around the edges of the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes until golden brown on top. Serve with ice cream, and spoon some of the sweet sauces from the pan over the top.

It looks and tastes like you spent a lot longer on it than you really did!

Recipe from http://thepioneerwoman.com.

French Dip Sandwiches

1 2.5-3 lb. beef roast (you can use a frozen roast if you want)

2 Tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper
2 1-ounce packages dry onion soup mix
2 c. water
2 cans beef broth
6-8 large buns (or more...6 would be VERY generous servings!)
Swiss, provolone, or mozzarella cheese, shredded or sliced.

Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat and rub roast with salt and pepper.

When very hot, carefully place roast in pan and sear on all sides. You're not cooking the meat, you're just browning it quickly on all sides to add flavor and seal in the juices.

Place in crockpot and sprinkle with onion soup mixes. Pour water and beef broth over roast.

Cook 8-10 hours on low or cook 4-5 hours on high and another 3-4 hours on low. It's hard to screw this part up; basically, the longer it cooks, the more tender it will be. But you know it's done when you pop a fork in it and the meat just falls apart. When meat is ready, shred with a fork.

Place meat in crusty rolls. Top with cheese and broil open-faced in the oven or toaster oven for a few minutes, until bread is golden and cheese is melty.

Ladle juices into small cups for dipping and enjoy!

This recipe is from http://www.ourbestbites.com/. They have lots of yummy things, you should check it out. I can't believe I didn't find out about it sooner. These are seriously THE best french dip sandwiches I have ever had. And my husband LOVED them.

Honey Lime Enchiladas

1- 1 1/2 lbs cooked chicken (I used 2 large chicken breast)

Sauce:

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup lime juice

1 Tablespoon chili powder (I thought this would be too much, but it's not!)

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 (10 oz) cans green enchilada sauce

1 cup colby jack cheese, shredded

1 cup montery jack cheese, shredded

6-8 flour tortillas (8 in)

Mix the sauce ingredients together and add the chicken. Allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Spray pan with cooking spray. I used a 9x7 in pan. (I know it's a weird size, but works great for our small family). Pour enchilada sauce in pan to coat the bottom. Fill tortillas with meat and desired amount of cheese. Roll tightly and line in pan. Top with the rest of the enchilada sauce (I used 1 1/2 cans instead of the full 2 cans) and more cheese.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

This is so different for enchiladas, my husband loved it. I made Cafe Rio black beans with it and it was a good combo.

Recipe from: http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com/search/label/mexican