Taco Soup

Here's another delicious soup recipe. It has all the good stuff of tacos in a warm bowl of soup. I serve it with Nacho Cheese flavored Doritos-a little secret I learned from my sister Amy. She made taco soup for us when we were visiting once and it was soooo good with the Doritos. They really make it taco-y! It's the only time I ever buy Doritos. Buy a small bag if it makes you feel better but don't leave them out! This is actually Amy's recipe that I've changed just a little. Basically I added more beans, tomatoes, sauce, and water to make it stretch further for our family. Oh and I did change the tomatoes to the chili ready flavor. You can also put sour cream, shredded cheese, chopped green onions or olives on top. This soup will fill you up and it's so easy!

Taco Soup


1 lb. turkey burger
1 small onion, chopped
2 (16 oz.) cans chili ready diced tomatoes + 2 cans water
2 (16 oz.) cans kidney beans
1 (17 oz.) can corn
2 (8 oz.) cans tomato sauce
1 package taco seasoning (I use the 30% less sodium kind by McCormick)
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
Nacho Cheese Doritos, NOT optional!


In a large soup pot, cook burger with onion. Drain off fat. Add all ingredients except Doritos. Simmer for 30-45 minutes. Serve over crumbled Doritos chips or sprinkle Doritos on top with any other toppings you like.

Frosted Pumpkin Bars

This is a yummy pumpkin dessert to add to your Fall menu. I love anything pumpkin and I'm always looking for new ways to use pumpkin in my baking and cooking. My pantry always has canned pumpkin stocked up. This is a simple recipe that I usually have most things on hand for. It's nothing fancy but tastes great and is very moist. You can also add a cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips if you're feeling wild (and if your husband actually likes chocolate chips in pumpkin desserts. Mine doesn't. *sniff, sniff*) or raisins if that's what you like. (I'm afraid I say "no thank you" on the raisins but that's what my husband loves. And this is why I normally make it without any add-ins. Ha.) I normally store the leftover cake in the fridge because it has cream cheese in the frosting.

Frosted Pumpkin Bars


1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
4 eggs
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 2/3 cup sugar
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. cinnamon (sometimes I do 1 tsp. cinnamon and 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda


Cream pumpkin, eggs, applesauce, oil, and sugar together. Add dry ingredients. Mix well. Place in a greased 10x15 or sheet cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 min. or until done. Cool cake completely and then frost.

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Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Mix cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Add powdered sugar and vanilla. Spread over cool cake.

Creamy Tortellini Soup

It was very chilly today. A perfect day for soup. I needed something really good and creamy. I had a giant bag of frozen three cheese tortellini in my freezer that somehow jumped into my cart the last time I went grocery shopping. I figured I could do something with that so off to the kitchen I went to do a little "inventing". The result was fabulous. Definitely a keeper. I thought for sure I'd have leftovers for tomorrow. Not a drop left in the pot. Well, at least I know it was a success! I'm going to have to make this one again for sure! You could always make it with pasta instead of tortellini if you wanted. It looks like a lot of ingredients but it's really easy and fast to throw together. Oh my goodness! This soup is so yummy! Dip some garlic bread sticks in there and tell me you're not in heaven. I dare you!
*I just made this again (yes, twice in one week) and my husband thought it needed another chicken bouillon cube or maybe more salt. Adjust salt level as you need. My measurements are definitely on the lower levels.

Creamy Tortellini Soup


1 Tbsp. butter or olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
8-10 mushrooms, diced
5 cups water
6 Tbsp. flour
2 potatoes, peeled and diced
1 cup frozen corn
1 (14 oz.) can chicken broth
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1/2 tsp. garlic powder (could use fresh garlic but I didn't have any)
1/2 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper, optional (This really heats it up. More than you'd think!)
1/4-1/2 tsp. salt (depending on what kind of broth you use)
2-3 cups frozen tortellini
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
4 cups spinach (I pile mine up and slice through it to get smaller pieces)


In a large soup pot, heat butter or olive oil. Add onion, carrots, and mushrooms. Saute for about 5 min. In a separate bowl, combine 1 cup cold water with 6 Tbsp. flour. Whisk until smooth. Add 4 cups of water to vegetables in soup pot. Stir in the flour and water mixture. Stir to blend well. Add potatoes, corn, chicken broth and all spices and bouillon. Bring to a boil. Turn to medium and boil for about 20 minutes or until potatoes are soft. Stir occasionally. Add evaporated milk, frozen tortellini, and spinach and cook for 5 more minutes. Serve!

Teriyaki Pasta Spinach Salad

This salad is one of my top two favorite salads of all time. To be in my top two I have to be able to want to eat them every single week. (Not that I do...just that I WANT to.) My favorite is still the Fiesta Pasta Salad but this one is so close it's practically a tie. They served this at our church Super Saturday Craft Day a few weeks ago and I really think I might have died if they didn't share the recipe. Thank goodness they did! You have to try this one. I love the dressing, the honey roasted peanuts, the mandarin oranges, and the craisins. Mmmm...so tasty. When I went to buy my ingredients to make this my grocery store only had the mini-size bow tie pasta. I also didn't put any fresh parsley in. Oh...and I just used one big can of chicken breast instead of cooking up my own. Oh...and it's originally called "Spinach Pasta Salad" but I thought it needed to include the word "Teriyaki" because that's what makes it soooo yummy! So I think those are all of the changes I made. This makes a ton! Easily enough to feed 6-8 people. When I was putting it together I made as directed but saved back about 1/3 of the dressing, 1/3 of the spinach and toppings, and 1/3 of the pasta. That way I could mix up a "fresh" batch the next day for lunch since I knew we probably wouldn't eat it all at once. The original recipe was double the amounts below. Since I doubt I'll ever need to make THAT much I'm just going to post the 1/2 size that I made (before I divided it into thirds) and if I ever need to make a HUGE batch then I'll just double it. OK. Enough chattering. Here's the recipe!

Teriyaki Pasta Spinach Salad

1 bag (10 oz.) spinach
2-3 green onions, sliced
1/4 c. fresh parsley
1/3 c. craisins (I put in a few more!)
1/3 c. honey roasted peanuts (I put in a few more!)
1 can mandarin oranges, drained (I cut each segment in half just to make more pieces in my salad.)
1-2 c. cooked, cut-up chicken (or 1 large can chicken breast)
1 box (12-16 oz.) bow tie pasta (You're actually supposed to use 1/2 this amount but I don't know if it was because I used the mini-size pasta or what but the whole box seemed just right...especially after I took 1/3 out to save for the next day.)

Dressing:
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/3 c. Teriyaki sauce
1/3 c. rice vinegar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Prepare the dressing ahead of time and refrigerate overnight. (Mine got about two hours of refrigeration and it was just as good as the 1/3 I reserved for the next day.) Mix all salad ingredients together and add dressing just before serving.

Tuna Veggie Burgers and Creamy Lemon Dill Sauce

I whipped these up for dinner and they were so good. Very moist with all of the vegetables in them. Sometimes that seems to be the problem with tuna burgers-they get very dry. Not these! My boys like them with ketchup but I like them plain or with my Creamy Lemon Dill Sauce. Serve alone or on a bun with all the fixin's.

Tuna Veggie Burgers

2 cans tuna, drained
1/3 cup bread crumbs
1/3 cup dry oats
3 Tbsp. ground flax seeds, optional (I store my flax seeds in the freezer and grind just what I need at the time in a little spice/coffee grinder. You can also buy ground flax seed packaged.)
1 egg
1 zucchini, grated
1 carrot, grated
1 tsp. Mrs. Dash Onion and Herb (or favorite seasoning)
1/2 tsp. dry dill
salt and pepper to taste

Mix well and drop onto preheated skillet greased with non-stick cooking spray or olive oil. I often use my electric skillet. I use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to scoop out the tuna mixture, drop onto hot skillet, and slightly spread/flatten to about 1/2 inch thickness. 1/4 cup scoop makes 8 burgers. Cook on med-low heat (or 325 degrees on the electric skillet) for about 5-7 minutes on each side. I usually put the lid on while it's cooking on the first side and then uncover for the second side. Serve warm.

Creamy Lemon Dill Sauce
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 tsp. dill
1/4 tsp. Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb, optional
1/2-1 tsp. lemon juice

Mix well and slather on top of burgers!

Creamy Lemon Dill Sauce

This is the sauce I use a lot when cooking or eating fish. I like to use it to top tuna burgers and I also often use it when I bake salmon or other fish. I mix up a batch to put on top of the salmon as it bakes and then some more to put on top when serving. I like to put the Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb seasoning in it to give it a little more garlic (and because you know I just can hardly cook without my Mrs. Dash!) but it is optional.

Creamy Lemon Dill Sauce
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 tsp. dill
1/4 tsp. Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb, optional
1/2-1 tsp. lemon juice

Mix well!

Speedy Spinach Pesto

Basil pesto with pine nuts is my favorite but it can be expensive to make or buy. This is an alternative recipe that uses spinach and walnuts (or pine nuts) instead. Still delicious!

Speedy Spinach Pesto

2 cups fresh spinach leaves, washed and stemmed
1/2 cup fresh parsley, preferably Italian flat leaf
1/2 cup walnuts or pine nuts, toasted
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, not canned
3 garlic cloves
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

1. Place all ingredients into food processor and process to a fine paste.
2. Taste and adjust seasonings and transfer to a glass container and top with a thin coat of olive oil to prevent the top of the pesto from discoloring.
3. Keeps for weeks in the refrigerator. (If it lasts that long! Mine never has!)

Makes 2 cups.

Gnocci with White Beans and Pesto

We loved this recipe! It's pretty simple to throw together especially if you already have pesto made up (or bought). I made my own Speedy Spinach Pesto to go with it. Gnocchi (pronounced 'Noki') are a type of pasta made from potatoes. They look like almond shaped little lumps of dough. In the photo here, I used mini-size gnocchi. Normally they are larger in size. You can typically find gnocchi in the pasta aisle at your grocery store. I buy mine at Wal-mart and they are in fresh sealed vacuum packs. For this recipe I didn't have any canned fried onions, so I left them out. I'll put them in the recipe but personally I don't think you would even need them! If you've never tried gnocchi give it a try!

Gnocchi with White Beans and Pesto

1 pound pre-packaged gnocchi
3 Tbsp. olive oil
8 oz. fresh mushrooms, de-stemmed and quartered
1 cup celery, diced
1 (15.5 oz.) can Cannellini (White) Beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups packed baby spinach leaves
1/4 cup black olives, sliced
1/2 tsp. ground sage
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup canned fried onions
3/4 cup pre-packaged or homemade pesto
1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
1/8 cup grated Parmesan cheese, optional

1. Prepare gnocchi according to package directions; drain and set aside.
2. Heat a 10-inch skillet and 1 Tbsp. olive oil over medium-high heat. When warm add mushrooms and cook for three minutes.
3. Add celery, cover and cook one minute more until celery is bright green and soft.
4. Uncover and cook until water has evaporated.
5. Remove celery and mushrooms from pan and set aside.
6. Add remaining 2 Tbsp. olive oil; when warm add drained gnocchi and brown it alone until bottoms are crisp.
7. Stir and continue to brown the other sides.
8. Turn off the heat; add mushrooms, celery, cannellini beans, spinach, olives, sage, salt and onions.
9. In a separate bowl, mix pesto and broth together.
10. Top gnocchi with sauce and Parmesan cheese; mix well. Serve.

Makes about 6 servings.

Click HERE for my Speedy Spinach Pesto recipe.

Dump Cake

Love this cake! Nice and warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream is best. Can't get much easier than this cake.

Dump Cake


1 box (18.25 oz.) white cake mix (or I've used yellow if that's all I have)
1 can (20-21 oz.) cherry pie filling
1 can (20 oz.) crushed pineapple with juice
1 cup shredded coconut (or more if you like it like I do!)
1 cup chopped walnuts, optional
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted (I usually just use 1/2 cup)


In a 9x13 baking dish, mix cherry pie filling with pineapple. Spread evenly in pan. Cover evenly with dry cake mix. Top with coconut and nuts. Pour melted butter evenly over the top. Bake in 350 degree oven for 30-45 minutes or until the sides are bubbling and the top is browned.
Note: Let cool for about an hour before cutting. Don't forget your scoop of ice cream!

Mexican Style Black Beans and Rice

There's nothing fancy about this meal. In fact it's just Rice-a-Roni doctored up "Brooke" style. But boy is it good! This is one of my quick meals that I normally have everything on hand for. My kids love it and it tastes great. I like to serve it with crushed tortilla chips and a little bit of sour cream on top if I have any. Mmmm...

Mexican Style Black Beans and Rice

2 boxes Rice-a-Roni, Mexican Style flavor
1 Tbsp. olive oil
4 cups water
1 (10 oz.) can Rotel, tomatoes and green chilies (I use Mild)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained (I've used kidney beans, red beans, and pinto beans, too)
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup frozen chopped broccoli
crushed tortilla chips, optional
sour cream, optional

In a large skillet, combine rice-pasta mix with 1 Tbsp. olive oil and saute over medium heat until vermicelli is golden brown, stirring frequently. Slowly add 4 cups water and special seasoning packets. Stir in Rotel, black beans, and corn. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Add broccoli about half way through so that it stays nice and bright green.  Serve with crushed tortilla chips and sour cream if desired.

Oatmeal Carmelitas

We hardly ever use ice cream toppings but I had some leftover caramel topping from banana splits we had for Tory's birthday. Normally my ice cream toppings just sit in the fridge wasting space until I throw them out. I was looking through a cookbook that I got from my sister Heather and found this recipe. It is from her mother-in-law. I only had 1/2 cup of the ice cream topping left so I just halved the recipe. It made an 8x8 square pan that was just right. These are VERY sweet and one square is really all you'll want! Very easy recipe and very good. (And a great way to use up leftover ice cream topping!) Makes about 16 squares in the 8x8 size or 24-36 squares in the 13x9 size. I will post the recipe in its original 13x9 size and measurements.

Oatmeal Carmelitas


Crust:
2 c. flour
2 c. quick oats
1 1/2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 c. softened butter


Filling:
1 c. caramel ice cream topping
3 Tbsp. flour
1 c. chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet)
1/2 c. chopped nuts (I used walnuts)


Crust: Grease pan. In large mixer bowl, mix all crust ingredients on low until crumbly. Press half of crumb mixture, about 3 cups, in bottom of 13x9 pan. Bake crust at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Filling: Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix caramel topping and flour. Sprinkle partially baked crust with chocolate chips and nuts. Drizzle with caramel mixture and top with the other half of the crumb mixture. Bake another 18-22 minutes or until golden brown. Cool and then refrigerate for 1-2 hours until the filling is set. Cut into bars.

Click HERE for pumpkin spice variation!

Lentil Shepherd's Pie

We love Shepherds Pie around here and it's so easy to make a vegetarian version. Of course you can always add burger. In fact that's how I used to make it most often. But since we've tried to include more vegetarian meals into our diet I've adapted many of my recipes and this is one of them. Everything else is the same except with the meat version I didn't add lentils and only one can of kidney beans. My Shepherd's Pie has a secret ingredient. I use salsa to give it some good kick. This last time I made it I added a new ingredient that is definitely staying on my permanent ingredient list for this. It's a type of mustard that hardly even tastes like mustard. It's called Southwest Spicy Sweet, Hot Mustard and it's the Great Value brand at Wal-Mart. Let me tell ya, it's GOOD! Adds just a little spice to the dish. Run to Wal-Mart and get you a bottle! You can always add more lentils to this, too. When cooking the lentils just use a 1:4 ratio with lentils to water.

Lentil Shepherd's Pie

1 cup dry lentils
4 cups water (for cooking lentils)
4 large potatoes, washed and diced (I leave the peels on. Makes it more hardy.)
2 cans green beans, drained
1 cup frozen corn
2 cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes (I like petite diced the best.)
1 cup salsa
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
3 Tbsp. Southwest Spicy Sweet, Hot Mustard
salt and pepper to taste

In small saucepan boil  lentils and water with lid slightly ajar. Simmer for 20 minutes or until soft. In a separate pan boil diced potatoes for 20 minutes.

While the lentils and potatoes are cooking, mix beans, corn, kidney beans, tomatoes, salsa, tomato sauce and mustard in a large baking dish. (I use my dish that is one size bigger than a 9x13.) Add cooked lentils-drain any remaining water first. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Mash the boiled potatoes. I throw mine in my Kitchen Aid and I just use a little almond milk or soy milk. I try to leave out the butter since the rest of the dish is so full of flavor you don't really miss it. Salt and pepper the mashed potatoes and spread on top of the bean mixture. I used to sprinkle shredded cheese over the top at this point but now I skip that step. Do whatever makes you happy.

Place in 350 degree oven and bake for 25 minutes. Warning: Let sit for awhile before serving. It will be boiling hot right out of the oven! Enjoy!