recipe

Zucchini Bread

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Zucchini Bread

* This post was from August, on my other site, ShopAldi, but it’s a wonderful recipe any time of year! * 
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Tis the season for an over-abundance of Zucchini! And what’s the best thing to do with extra Zucchini? Make bread! And here is my recipe:

INGREDIENTS

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini

DIRECTIONS

Grease two 8 x 4 inch loaf pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.

Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini until well combined. Pour batter into pans.

Bake for 45 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan and completely cool.

Enjoy!

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French Onion Chicken Noodle Casserole

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French Onion Chicken Noodle Bake

Here is another perfect comfort food dish that everyone in the family will enjoy. My husband went back for seconds and took leftovers for lunch! That’s a sure sign it’s a winner in my house.

French Onion Chicken Noodle Bake
Ingredients and instructions:

  • 4 cups cooked chopped chicken
  • 2 cans cream of chicken soup
  • 16 oz container French Onion Dip (I made my own with a dry mix and sour cream)
  • 1 cup cheddar cheese
  • 12 oz egg noodles
  • 1 cup crushed French fried onions

Cook egg noodles according to package directions, drain. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a casserole dish with cooking spray. Combine chicken, soup, dip, and cheese. Stir in cooked egg noodles. Pour mixture into casserole dish. Top with crushed french fried onions. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until heated through and until the onions are slightly browned. Serve with a nice vegetable on the side and enjoy!

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Menu Plan Monday for 11/24

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The week of Thanksgiving is always a difficult week to plan for me. People are coming and going, plus there’s a giant meal to prepare for on Thanksgiving. Oh, and my birthday falls somewhere during the week too. It can be a hectic week that is 100% revolved around food. But this year I have a plan. Sort of.

Sunday: 
Pork Tenderloin with Maple Apple Glaze
White Rice
Steamed Carrots
Rolls

Monday:
Happy birthday to me! Dinner out with family.

Tuesday:
Picking up the college freshman at school. Dinner on the road.

Wednesday:
Ham Steak
Mashed Potatoes
Steamed Broccoli

Thursday:
Traditional Thanksgiving Menu

Friday:
Leftovers from Thanksgiving

Saturday:
Chinese food.

 Check out more amazing menu plans, or link up with your own menu plan at Organizing Junkie!
Just click on the image:

mpm


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Chicken Noodle Soup

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Crock Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

I’ve been feeling the need to make comfort food lately. The cooler temperatures and shorter days are sure signs that winter is on the way. What better way to feel cozy than a wonderful, warm, homemade bowl of chicken noodle soup. This is my own recipe that I created through trial and error, so you may want to tweak it to fit your own taste. For example, my husband is not a fan of celery or onions, so I leave them out. If it was just me, I’d have not only celery and onions, but I’d throw in mushrooms, scallions and whatever else I had in the fridge! I call this version of chicken noodle soup the simple version.

Ingredients

2 frozen chicken breasts
6 cups chicken broth
1 cup chopped carrots, pre-cooked
2 cups pasta, pre-cooked
Salt, pepper and onion powder, to taste

Place chicken and broth in crock pot and cook on medium for 6-8 hours. Remove the chicken, place in bowl to shred. Return shredded chicken to crock pot. Toss in the carrots and pasta. Cook for another 30-45 minutes. Stir occasionally. You may need to add more hot water, the pasta will soak up a lot of the water once it is added.

Serve soup with rolls or crackers. Enjoy!

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Cinnamon Roll Cake

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Cinnamon Roll Cake

Fall is here. Let the baking commence. I found this yummy recipe on Pinterest and had to try it for myself. It IS as good as it looks.

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients
3 cups flour
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1½ cups milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
½ cup butter, melted

Topping
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
Cinnamon Roll Cake
Instructions:
– Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
– In an electric or stand mixer add the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, milk, eggs, and vanilla.
– Once combined well , slowly stir in the melted butter. Pour into the prepared 9×13 baking pan.
Topping:
– In a large bowl, cream butter, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon together until well combined and creamy.
– Drop evenly over the batter by spoonfuls and use a knife to marble/swirl through the cake.
– Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or when a toothpick inserted near the center comes out nearly clean.
Glaze:
– In a medium bowl, mix the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla together with a whisk.
– Drizzle evenly over the warm cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Play Dough

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Play Dough

What child doesn’t like an afternoon playing with play dough? And what parent doesn’t enjoy saving a little money? Here’s a sure bet to bring a smile to everyone’s face; make your own play dough! Here are the easy instructions for unlimited and inexpensive fun!

Ingredients

1/2 cup of salt
1 cup of plain flour
2 tablespoons of cream of tartar
1 cup of water
1 tablespoon oil
food coloring

Instructions

1. Split the ingredients into two bowls and stir. Make sure it is combined well.

2. Place one of the bowls into a saucepan over a medium heat and add your food coloring. Stir well. A chemical reaction happens all of a sudden and then your gloppy mess will become quite sticky, then clumpy.

3. Ball up the mixture into Play Dough.

4. Repeat with remaining mixture and add different color.

5. Give to your children and let them use their imagination to create wonderful memories! Feel free to join in the fun.

This entry was posted in crafts, play-dough, recipes, thrifty and tagged , , , .

Apple Brownie

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Apple Brownie

 

It’s time for more fall baking! This time I’m using fresh McIntosh apples (my all-time favorite apple) from the local farmer’s market, in these amazing and super-easy Apple Brownies.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 3 medium apples – peeled, cored and thinly sliced
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon


Apple brownie

 

Instructions:
– Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×9 inch baking dish.
– In a large bowl, beat together the melted butter, sugar, and egg until fluffy. Fold in the apples.
– In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
– Stir the flour mixture into the wet mixture until just blended.
– Spread the batter evenly in the prepared baking dish.
– Bake 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Enjoy with some nice Pumpkin Spice coffee!

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Applesauce Puffs

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Applesauce Puffs

I am addicted to Pinterest. Here is another fun and easy recipe I discovered yesterday. These are perfect for a fall day and super easy to whip up. The whole family will devour them in minutes.

Here’s the recipe:

Applesauce Puffs

2 c. baking mix (such as Bisquick)
3/4 c. sugar (divided)
3 t. cinnamon (divided)
1/2 c. applesauce
1/4 c. milk
1 egg
2 T. oil
5 T. melted butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease mini-muffin pan.

Combine baking mix. 1/4 c. sugar and 1 t. cinnamon. Stir in applesauce, milk, egg and oil until well mixed.
Fill muffin pan until each muffin is 3/4 full. Bake at 400 for 10 min.

While that is baking, mix 1/2 c. sugar with 2 t. cinnamon in a bowl. When the puffs come out of the oven and cool for just a few minutes, dip the tops of the warm puffs in bowl of melted butter and then drip them in the bowl of cinnamon sugar. Eat, share and enjoy!

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Peanut Butter Cookies

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Peanut Butter Cookies

Here’s a classic cookie that everyone loves.These are great for a cool fall evening while curled up under a blanket with a good book.

Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

Directions

  1. Cream together butter, peanut butter and sugars. Beat in eggs.
  2. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir into batter. Put batter in refrigerator for 1 hour.
  3. Roll into 1 inch balls and put on baking sheets. Flatten each ball with a fork, making a criss-cross pattern. Bake in a preheated 375 degrees F oven for about 10 minutes or until cookies begin to brown. Do not over-bake.
Recipe makes 4 dozen cookies.

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Oatmeal Apple Butter Bars

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Oatmeal Apple Butter Bars

One word: Yum. These were incredible and so simple to make. Another great find from Pinterest!

Here is the recipe:

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ cup butter, softened to room temperature.
1 cup apple butter

INSTRUCTIONS
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9-inch square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. In large mixing bowl, combine oats, flour, sugars, salt and cinnamon. Add butter and stir until well mixed. Spread half of the mixture into baking pan and pat down until it is flat. Spread the apple butter evenly over crumb layer. Sprinkle remaining crumbs over apple butter and press down gently. Bake 30-35 minutes or until golden. Transfer pan to wire rack and cool completely. Enjoy!

Oatmeal Apple Butter Bars

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