Strawberry Pretzel Dessert

This dessert is one word........AMAZING!!!!! Andrew's Grandma Wibbeler fixes this every now and then and I love it so much! SO good in the summer! So refreshing!

What you need:
2 cups crushed pretzels
3/4 cup melted butter
3 tablespoons sugar, plus 3/4 cup sugar
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
1 (8-ounce) container whipped topping
2 (3-ounce) packages strawberry gelatin dessert mix
2 cups boiling water
2 (10-ounce) packages frozen strawberries
Whipped topping or whipped cream, to garnish

What you do:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. For the crust, mix the pretzels, butter, and 3 tablespoons of sugar. Press this mixture into a 9 by 13-inch pan and bake for 7 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool. In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese and 3/4 cup of sugar. Fold in the whipped topping, and spread over the cooled crust. Refrigerate until well chilled. In a small bowl, dissolve the gelatin in the boiling water, and allow to cool slightly. Add the strawberries and pour over the cream cheese mixture. Refrigerate until serving time. To serve, cut slices and serve with a dollop of whipped topping.

I am sure that several of you have either had this or you make it also. If you have any variations, I would love to know what they are....I love trying new things!

Stuffed Green Peppers

This is a recipe that I have been looking forward to trying for a long time and still have not tried, however, they look good and I wanted to share them with you. If you get to try them soon, let me know what you think!

What you need:
Green Peppers (with the mix, I'd say you could make 10-121 lb hamburger
1 onion
1 can tomato sauce
1 box yellow rice
Mozzarella Cheese

What you do:
Wash your bell peppers, cut off the tops and scrap out the insides. Dice onion. I went the quick route and made my rice in the microwave. 1 box of yellow rice, 2 Tbsp butter, 2.5 cups of water. Cover and cook on HIGH for 5 minutes. Uncover and cook on P-6 for an additional 15 minutes. Fry up hamburger and onions. Drain grease. Give your rice a good 'fluff'. Add tomato sauce and rice to the hamburger and onions. Add some cheese to the bottom of your bell peppers. Fill with mixture. Top with additional Mozzarella, and bake until at 350 until cheese is melted. (Don't forget to line your cookie sheet with foil for easy clean up). Enjoy!!!!!

Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball or Dip

With the holidays just around the coroner, I though it was a great time to start sharing ideas for parties. So many of us have parties to attend and most of the time I like to take an appetizer or two so I am going to be posting many holiday "extras" recipes!

This recipe was taken from Kelly Stamps at Kelly's Korner. She posted it on her blog, I tried it, and it is too good to not share!

What you need:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans

What you do:
In a medium bowl, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Mix in confectioners' sugar, brown sugar and vanilla. Stir in chocolate chips. Cover, and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Shape chilled cream cheese mixture into a ball. Wrap with plastic, and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Roll the cheese ball in finely chopped pecans before serving. But it can be hard to form a ball so I skipped the nuts and just put the mixture in a bowl. (I think it's better that way!)

King Ranch Chicken Casserole

This is an easy meal that has easy ingredients........what more could you ask for?

What you need:
1 large onion, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
3 chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can Rotel
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp pepper
12 (6") corn tortillas
2+ cups shredded sharp cheddar

What you do:
Sauté onion and bell pepper in hot oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in chicken and next 7 ingredients; remove from heat.Tear tortillas into 1-inch pieces; layer one-third of tortilla pieces in bottom of a lightly greased 13" x 9" dish. Top with one-third of chicken mixture and cheese. Repeat layers twice ending with a layer of cheese.

Bake at 375° for 30 to 35 minutes. Freezes well and is yummy with a dollop of sour cream :)

Crock Pot Meatloaf

Andrew LOVES meatloaf and I am not the biggest fan. However, I decided to try this just for him, and it was actually pretty good. Below is the recipe.

What you need:
2 lbs of ground chuck
2 eggs
2/3 quick cooking oats
1 pkg dry french onion soup
1 cup of ketchup(reserve 1/2 c. for topping)

What you do:
Combine and mix ingredients in a bowl. Spray your crockpot with Pam. Form your mixture into a loaf and place in crockpot. Top with remaining ketchup. Cover and cook on low for 6 1/2 hours. Let cool somewhat before removing from crockpot. Enjoy!

Crockpot Buffalo Chicken Lasagna

Buffalo Chicken Lasagna is a new favorite in our home! It is so easy to make and so yummy! Enjoy!

What you need:
2-4 boneless chicken breast

1 box of traditional lasagna noodles

1 jar of prepared pasta sauce

1 c. buffalo wing sauce

1 yellow pepper

1 red pepper

1 green pepper

1 15 oz. Ricotta cheese

2 c. shredded cheddar and mozzarella cheese blend

1/4 c water

What you do:
The night before, we need to put your chicken in a crockpot and let it cook overnight.

The next morning, drain all the water off and chop the chicken into small pieces. This recipe is designed for a 5 qt. crockpot, if you are not using one, cut back on your ingredients.

In a large bowl, combine cooked and chopped chicken breast, pasta sauce, and 1 c buffalo wing sauce. Ladle a big spoonful of the sauce into the bottom of your crockpot, cover with a layer of uncooked lasagna noodles. You'll have to break them to get a proper fit. Add a smear(a spoonful or 2) on top of the noodles. Add a layer of the bell peppers. Sprinkle on a handful of shredded of cheese. Repeat layers until you run our of ingredients. Put 1/4 c of water into your empty pasta sauce and shake the jar, then pour the mixture over the entire lasagna. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours. When cooking time is complete, unplug and take off the lid of the crockpot. Let is sit for 20 minutes before cutting into it or it will fall apart.

If you do not have time to cook this in a crockpot, you can cook the chicken and when you get home in the evening, follow the same directions and using the same ingredients except exchange traditional lasagna noodles for over ready ones and bake it on 350 degrees for 1.5-2.5 hours. Let it set for 10 minutes out of the oven before cutting to prevent it falling apart.

Have fun cooking and Enjoy!

Canned Southern Apple Pie Filling

This is such an easy way to make apple pie filling......

What you need:
6 quarts sliced fresh apples (firm crisp apples are best)(about 30 apples)
5 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups Clear Jel
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
2 1/2 cups water
5 cups apple juice
3/4 cup bottled lemon juice


What you do:
Core and then slice the apples about 3/8 inch thick. Place apples in a large bowl of water. Crush about 5 - 500mg vitamin C tablets in the water to keep the apples from browning. You will need to do this to make sure they do not spoil suring the canning process. Prepare 7, 1 quart jars.

(You can download a wonderful canning resource from Kansas State University . It will give you many ideas for preserving apples and complete instructions for safe canning.Preserving Apples from Kansas State University Download )

Combine sugar, Clear Jel, cinnamon, water and apple juice in a large pot. Stir and cook on medium high heat until the mixture thickens and begins to bubble. Add lemon juice and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add drained apple slices to sauce.

Fill jars with mixture, leaving 1 -inch head space. I packed the jars with the apples and then divided sauce among the jars.

Wipe jar rims clean, tighten lids and process immediately. Place jars in pot of water with water 1 inch above top of jar lids and boil for 25 minutes (For 0-1,000 ft altitude. See download for other times). Remove from water and let jars cool 12 to 24 hours. Lids should be indented if properly sealed. Now they are ready to be saved for later or wrapped for gifts.

Enjoy!!!!!