Cheesy Bacony Corn Chowder

4 cups(ish) corn broth/chicken broth
3 slices bacon
1 onion diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons flour
1/2 bag frozen corn or a couple ears of fresh corn cooked and cut off the cob
4oz cream cheese
1/2 block extra sharp cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the bacon until crisp in a medium pot.  Remove bacon leave drippings toss in onion, cook until transulent.  Add garlic.  Crumble the cooked bacon and add back to the pot.  Mix in the flour until oil is absorbed and it sticks to the food.  Add broth in 1 cup at a time to stirring well.  Add in the corn and cream cheese.  After cream cheese has melted add a bit of the cheddar to the pot and leave the rest for topping. 

Hopefully this makes sense.  I've never found the perfect chowder recipe so I just fake what I do like.  You can tweak how you'd like.  I made the corn stock from the cobs of corn destined for the freezer and cooked them in water for about an hour.  Lots more stuff can off and the flavor was amazing!  I made 4 extra bags for the freezer so I can use it later on this winter as well.

Coconut Basmati Rice

1 3/4 cups basmati rice
1 can coconut milk
2 cups water
toasted coconut

Combine rice, coconut milk, and water in saucepan over medium-high heat.  Cook and stir until it boils.  Reduce heat and cover. Cook for about 15-20 minutes or until the water is all absorbed. 
Let stand for 5-10 minutes. Fluff.

To toast coconut:  Pull out a small skillet warm up on the stove add the coconut and stir until it is starting to turn brown dump into a bowl or plate.  You have to watch it or it burns fast.

You can substitute the basmati rice for regular white rice, but I wouldn't suggest it.  The basmati rice is amazing and does actually taste different.  Also make sure to wash and soak the rice, it makes it cook so much faster!

Adapted from: 365 Easy Vegetarian Recipes

Grandma Lich's Seven Layer Salad

1 Head of Lettuce-chopped
1/2 onion-sliced then broken apart
1 pkg frozen peas
1 head of cauliflower-sliced
2 cups sliced celery

Dressing: 
2 cups Miracle Whip or Mayo (it is an entire small jar)
3 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Mix dressing.  Spread on top of salad and seal edges.  Top with 1# crisp bacon crumbled.Top thiswith 2 cups sharp cheddar cheese. Cover and set in fridge for 24 hours.  Toss and Serve!

One of my very favorite foods! Eat it within a day or so of "tossing and serving" because it starts to get a bit soggy.  Each one of us leaves out something when we make it.  Grandma cuts out the onions, mom the peas and I leave out the celery! 

Walnut Berry Muffins

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup corn meal or (1/2 cup corn and 1/2 cup ground flax seed)
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 ripe banana, mashed
3 large eggs
1/4 cup canola or applesauce
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup berries- lightly smash half and leave the other half whole
1/2 cup (ish) walnuts for topping

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Mix dry ingredients. Set aside.  Mix all wet ingredients but berries.  Add the wet to the dry, mix until just combined.  Fold in the berries.  Fill greased muffin pan 3/4 cup full-makes about 18 with this much batter in the cups.  Top with walnuts.  Bake 20 minutes or until done. Consume.

This is adapted from here.  I made the original recipe today and decided it was good but definitely needed to have some things changed to better suit us.  You can use muffin liners but be warned your muffin will stick to it horribly and leave a nice bit behind, I suggest going without them-but I also use silicon muffin pans!  These are not the normal sweet muffins, they have a good flavor but not the normal super sweet am-I-eating-a-cupcake? muffin.


calories 103
fat 5.3
carbs 11
fiber 2
protein 3
(using flax and corn mix, oil, 2% milk)

Hawaiian Haystacks

4-5 cups cooked rice
2 cups cooked chicken
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 cup milk

Toppings:
1 pkg crispy Chow Mein Noodles
almonds, peanuts, sunflower seeds, cashews
sliced green onions
coconut
pineapple-crushed or tidbits, drained
sliced olives
mandarin oranges, drained
soy sauce
diced green peppers
diced tomatoes

Chunky Chicken Gravy:
Combine chicken, cream of chicken soup and milk.  Heat until desired thickness and temperature is reached.

To assemble.  
Rice
Gravy
Any combination of toppings from the above list or anything else that would be good with it

A classic.  This particular combination is from Phil's family's cookbook. 

Peanut Chicken Tenders

1 egg
1 tsp mustard (Dijon or regular)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 lbs chicken breast (sliced)
2 tsp olive oil
1 1/2 cup peanuts

Preheat oven to 400.  In shallow bowl mix egg, mustard, salt and pepper.  Set aside.  Place peanuts in food processor to make course crumbs.  Spray cookie sheet with spray.  Dip chicken in egg, then roll in peanut crumbs; place on the cookie sheet.  Drizzle oil over chicken tenders.  Bake 11-13 minutes.

I've had this recipe since we were first married.  I first had them for a dinner before prom with some friends.  I loved them and later made them myself.  I do not know where I found the recipe, so I'm sorry. 

Whole Wheat Cornbread

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder

1 cup milk
1 egg (beaten)
1/4 cup butter (softened)

Preheat oven to 425. Mix all dry ingredients.  Add in wet individually.  Mix until just combined.  For muffins bake at 425 for 13-15 minutes.  For a pan bake at 425 for 16-20 minutes.  

I found this recipe when we were first married.  I have no clue where I found it but I love it.  They are my favorite, they even beat out Jiffy Mix for me.  I also grind my own wheat and corn for this recipe.  Just grind the normal popcorn and store it in the fridge.  I normally do a whole bag and it lasts well in the fridge without going rancid.