Creamy Bacon Tomato Avocado Pasta Salad

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• 6 slices bacon, chopped into one inch pieces
• 1/2 pound dried rotini pasta
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup Sour Cream
• 1/4 cup milk
• juice of 1 lemon about 1/4 cup
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried dill
• 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
• 1 avocado pitted and sliced

1. Cook bacon until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate.
2. Cook pasta according to package directions. Strain. Run cold water over the top until the pasta is cooled.
3. While your bacon and pasta are cooking, whisk mayonnaise,sour cream,milk, lemon, salt, garlic powder, pepper and dill together in a bowl.
4. Stir cooled pasta, cherry tomatoes, sliced avocado and reserved bacon into the dressing. Toss to combine. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

* We loved this it was such a quick salad to make and tasted great. I would wait until serving to add the avocado so that it doesnt go brown but it was super yummy

Pizza Sauce

1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce 

1/4 cup water 

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano 

1/4 teaspoon dried basil leaves

 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 

1/4 teaspoon salt 

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

 1 whole bay leaf 

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

1 tsp garlic

1/4 teaspoon italian seasoning 

1. Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Cook over Medium heat and let simmer 15 min.

Calzones

3/4-1  c. whole milk ricotta cheese

1 c. mozzarella cheese, grated

1/2 C Italian Cheese 

1 egg white =1T water

Mix with a fork until smooth.

All your favorite pizza toppings

pizza sauce (homemade or store bought)

1.Start with the dough make your own dough or you can use store bought.   Roll each piece into an 8-9″ circle.   Fill half of the circle of dough with one fourth of the cheese filling and all the additional toppings besides the pizza sauce.  Leave about an inch from the edge so that you can fold the dough over the filling into a half moon shape. Crimp the edge with a fork.  Place on a parchment lined baking sheet ,

2.Using a fork, beat an egg with 1 T. water.  Brush the egg wash over the top of the calzone. And sprinkle with a little garlic salt and parsley. Bake it in a pre-heated 375° oven for 25 minutes.  It will come out golden and crispy!  Serve hot with a side of marinara sauce for dipping.

* I got this recipe from grandmabeesrecipes It was a great recipe and everyone loved them. I split the dough in half and made 2 jumbo calzones and then just cut them in slices to serve.

Pizza Dough

1 pkg. active dry yeast

1 c. warm water

1 t. sugar

1 t. salt

2 1/2 c. All-purpose Flour

Pour the hot water into a medium size bowl.  Sprinkle the yeast onto the water and allow to stand until it is dissolved and bubbles start to form.  Add sugar and salt.  Stir in 1 cup of the flour then add an additional 1/2 cup at a time until the dough cleans the side of the kitchen aid with a dough hook.  Then let it mix for 6-minutes on medium speed.)  Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise about 30-40 minutes.

Divide the dough half for 2 medium size pizzas

* I did like this dough it was quick to make but I do have another pizza dough recipe on my blog that requires no rise time that I love here is a link to that pizza crust. But either way if you have time this recipe is simple to make.

Mexican Meat and Bean Filling

1 lb ground beef
2 cans pinto beans, drained
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
½ cup salsa
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Cook beef in skillet until brown, then drain.
2. Mix beef, beans, tomato sauce, salsa, and chili powder. Place into a 9×13 pan.

1. Sprinkle with cheese.
2. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until heated through.

1. I like to serve this with tortilla chips and salad, but you could also serve this with tortillas and use it more like a filling.

* I thought that this was good I think that I would just skip the tomato sauce and add a full cup of medium spice salsa and a little more chili powder. We used this on taco salad but you could put it on any mexican meal 

Chicken Yakisoba

½ head green cabbage 
1 medium yellow onion 
2 medium carrots 
1 small crown broccoli 
2 inches fresh ginger 
1 large chicken breast 
2 Tbsp vegetable oil 
2 (3 oz.) packages ramen noodles
seasoning packets discarded 
1 tsp sesame oil
¼ cup soy sauce 
¼ cup worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp ketchup 
(up to) 1 Tbsp sriracha hot sauce
1 Tbsp sugar

1. Before you begin, prepare the meat and vegetables for stir frying. Peel the ginger with either a vegetable peeler or the side of a spoon and then grate it with a cheese grater. Peel and grate the carrots with a large holed cheese grater. Remove the core from the cabbage and cut into thin strips. Slice the onion into thin strips. Cut the broccoli into bite-sized pieces. Slice the chicken into thin strips.
2. Begin boiling a medium pot full of water for the noodles. Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the grated ginger, saute for about 30 seconds to one minute. Add the chicken strips and cook until they are no longer pink (about five minutes).

1. Once the chicken is cooked through, add all of the vegetables. Stir and cook until wilted (about 5-10 minutes). Meanwhile, once the water boils, add the noodles and cook just until tender (2-3 minutes). Drain, return to the pot (with the heat turned off) and toss with the sesame oil to keep from sticking.

1. In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, ketchup, sriracha, and sugar. Use only ½ tsp of sriracha if you don’t want it spicy, use up to 1 Tbsp if you like it hot. Stir until the ketchup and sugar are dissolved. Pour the sauce into the skillet with the chicken and vegetables with the heat still on medium high. Add the noodles, stir to coat everything in the sauce, and heat through (just a few minutes).

* I got this recipe from budgetbytes We added more hot sauce to our own bowls and also some cashews tasted great and was simple to make.

Creamy Potato Casserole

2 1/2-3 lbs shredded hash browns
2 Cups of shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup onion, diced
2 cups heavy cream
2 cup half and half
1 teaspoon salt
pepper

1.Preheat oven 350 degrees.
2 Combine all ingredients and stir until well mixed.
3 Butter a large casserole dish.
4 Pour mixture into dish.

5 Cover dish and bake for one hour.
6 Uncover and bake till top is golden brown approximately 20-25 minutes.

Jalapeno grilled Cheese

Bread

Whipped cream Cheese

Pickled sliced jalapeno

Havarti Cheese Slices

Butter

1.Spread one slice of bread with whipped cream cheese and top with Jalapeno Slices and one slice of Havarti Cheese.

2. Top with another slice of bread and butter both sides of bread and place in a fry pan on med heat. Cook 3-5 min until both sides are golden and cheese is melted.

Malt Ball Magic Cookie Bars

1¾ cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 13 graham cracker sheets)
¼ cup sugar
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1½ cups chopped walnuts
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cup chocolate-covered malt balls, chopped
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang over both long sides. Mist with cooking spray. In a large bowl, mix cracker crumbs, sugar and butter. Press evenly into bottom of baking pan and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.

2.Preheat oven to 350ºF. Sprinkle nuts, coconut, chocolate chips and malt-ball pieces evenly over crust. Drizzle condensed milk over. Bake until edges are golden, 25 to 30 minutes.

 Let cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Use foil overhang to remove from pan. Peel off foil, cut into bars and serve.

Rotisserie Chicken in the Slow Cooker

1 broiler/fryer chicken (3.5-4 lbs)

2 Tbsp Paprika

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 1/2 tsp onion powder

2 Tbsp garlic powder or 3 cloves garlic

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1T garlic

onion

foil balls optional

1.Place all of your ingredients except the onion and 1T garlic in a small bowl and stir in water by the teaspoon until a paste forms.
2. Crumble up foil into 3-4 balls and place in the bottom of a sprayed slow cooker for the chicken to cook on.
3. place the chicken on top of the foil balls breast side up. 

4.Coat the chicken inside and out with the paste. place the sliced onion and 1T garlic in the cavity of the chicken Cover and cook on low 6-7 hours or on high 3.5-4.5 hours. Make sure the thickest part of the thigh registers at 180 degrees