Grandma's Cheesy Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 lb. frozen, cubed hash browns
1/4 cup chopped onions
1/4 cup butter
1 can cream soup (cream of mushroom, celery, potato, etc.)
1 cup low fat sour cream
1 cup 2% milk
2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Topping:
1 cup crushed cornflakes
5 tablespoons melted butter



Directions:

Mix all ingredients (minus the melted butter and corn flakes) and place in a baking dish. Top with the crushed corn flakes and drizzle melted butter all over top. Bake at 400 degrees for 45-60 minutes or until bubbly!

Broccoli Casserole

INGREDIENTS:

* 2 heads fresh broccoli, chopped
* 3/4 cup shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese
* 1/2 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom or celery soup
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1-2 tablespoons of butter
* 1 cup crushed Ritz crackers
* 1/4 cup cup reduced fat milk or half and half

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook broccoli in the boiling water for 2-3 minutes. Drain, and set aside.
3. In a saucepan over medium heat, mix the cheese, cream of mushroom soup,milk salt, and pepper. Stir until cheese is melted. Add the broccoli, stirring to coat. Transfer the mixture to a 9x13 inch baking dish.
4. In a separate saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Mix in the croutons, and sprinkle over the broccoli mixture.
5. Bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until the topping is browned and broccoli is tender.

Onion Strings

Ingredients:

2 medium onions
2 cups of buttermilk
2 cups of flour
teaspoon of salt
teaspoon of pepper
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 to 2 quarts of canola oil


Directions:

Begin by peeling a large onion and slice it very thinly. So thin, that you can see the knife though the onion slice. Separate the onion rings and put them in a shallow dish. Add your 2 cups of buttermilk. (You can use regular milk and add a couple tablespoons of vinegar if you don't have buttermilk.) Make sure all the onions are touching the buttermilk.

Add your flour to a bowl and a teaspoon of salt. Add your black pepper. Add your cayenne pepper. Stir the flour mixture with a fork and set aside.

Add 1 to 2 quarts of oil to a pot. Heat the oil to 375 degrees. (It will take several minutes)

With tongs remove a handful of onions and dip them in the flour until well coated. Tap off the excess and put them in the oil. Untangle them and let them cook until brown and take the first batch out and repeat. (They cook pretty fast)

Crash Hot Potatoes

Ingredients:

New potatoes or other small rounded potatoes (as many as you like)
Olive Oil
Kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
Rosemary (or other desired herbs)


Directions:

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, add potatoes and cook until for tender. Drizzle olive oil on a cookie sheet. Add as many potatoes as you desire, but leave plenty of space between each potato. With a potato masher, gently press down on each potato until it slightly mashes, rotate the masher 90 degrees and mash again. Brush the top of the potatoes generously with olive oil. Sprinkle with kosher salt, fresh black pepper and herbs of your choice. Bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until brown.

Mexican Corn on the Cob (Elote)

INGREDIENTS

* 4 ears corn, shucked
* 1/4 cup melted butter
* 1/4 cup mayonnaise
* 1/2 cup grated cotija cheese
* 4 wedges lime (optional)


DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat.
2. Grill corn until hot and lightly charred all over, 7 to 10 minutes, depending on the temperature of the grill. Roll the ears in melted butter, then spread evenly with mayonnaise. Sprinkle with cotija cheese and serve with a lime wedge.

Pasta Salad

This is da bomb. No joke :) Even kids will eat this up. I always get requests for it when I go to gatherings.

1 package of Wacky Mac veggie spirals
1 bottle of Italian dressing plus extra
3/4 cup of shredded or sliced carrots
3/4 cup of onions (purple onions are my favorite)
3/4 cup of thinly sliced green peppers
3/4 cup of thinly sliced red peppers
and whatever other veggies you may want to add or have on hand

Cook noodles according to the directions on the box. Meanwhile chop all our veggies. Drain noodles and place in large bowl. Add veggies and dressing. Cover and chill in fridge. You can make this in advance, in fact, it's one of those dishes that taste better the longer it marinates. I say extra Italian dressing because after it sits, the noodles absorb the liquid and you will need to add more. How much more, is up to you. We usually add 1/4 of another bottle or so.

Optional: Add cheese that is cubed. My husband has to have cheese in everything. That's what you get where you marry a cheese-head from Wisconsin. : )

Italian Green Beans

Ingredients:

fresh green beans (about 1 pound)
2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons Italian bread crumbs
mozzarella cheese for garnish


Directions:

Steam green beans for 2-3 minutes. Drain water and remove beans from pan. Add oil and garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Return beans to pan and add breadcrumbs. Toss and let cook for 2-3 minutes. When finished sprinkle the cheese on top and serve immediately.


These are soooo good!

Bionic Mashed Potatoes

Finally potatoes that will stay warm at the table. These potatoes hold true to their name. :) Not the healthiest, but worth the release of your pants zipper and button.(hehe) These are good the day of, but even better to make the day before. If you want to make it the day before, just do all the steps, except baking it and do your baking the day you are serving it. It's nice to get one dish out of the way the day before Thanksgiving. It makes the day go so much smoother!

Ingredients:

5 large potatoes
milk (1/2 to one cup, depends on the size of your taters)
butter (1/2 to 3/4 stick of butter)
reduced fat sourcream (1/4 cup)
reduced fat softened cream cheese (1/2 brick)
1 egg (preferably cage free egg):)
sea salt
fresh cracked pepper
paprika

Directions:

1. Peel and boil potatoes, until tender. Drain and put in large mixing bowl.
2. Add the milk, butter, cream cheese and sour cream and blend until smooth.
3. Add your egg, salt and pepper.
4. Put into baking dish. Sprinkle with paprika. Cover with foil and bake until done.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30-40 minutes until thoroughly heated. Enjoy!

Roasted Vegetable Casserole

INGREDIENTS:

* 1 small zucchini squash, cubed
* 2 red bell peppers, seeded and diced
* 1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed
* 3 Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed
* 1 red onion, quartered
* 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
* 1/4 cup olive oil
* 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
* salt and freshly ground black pepper



DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, combine the squash, red bell peppers, sweet potato, and Yukon Gold potatoes. Separate the red onion quarters into pieces, and add them to the mixture.
3. In a small bowl, stir together thyme, rosemary, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Toss with vegetables until they are coated. Spread evenly on a large roasting pan.
4. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, stirring every 10 minutes, or until vegetables are cooked through and browned.

Sweet Potato Casserole

INGREDIENTS:

* 1 (40 ounce) can cut sweet potatoes, undrained
* 1 cup white sugar
* 2 eggs
* 1/3 cup butter
* 1/3 cup milk
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
*
* 1 cup packed brown sugar
* 1 cup chopped pecans
* 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/3 cup butter, melted


DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 2 quart baking dish.
2. Place the sweet potatoes and their liquid in a medium saucepan, and bring to a boil. Cook 15 minutes, or until tender. Remove from heat, drain, and mash.
3. In a medium bowl, mix the mashed sweet potatoes, white sugar, eggs, 1/3 cup butter, milk, and vanilla extract. Spread evenly into the prepared baking dish.
4. In a separate bowl, mix the brown sugar, chopped pecans, flour, and 1/3 cup melted butter. Sprinkle over the sweet potato mixture.
5. Bake 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.