Melting Pot Cheese Fondue Copy Cat

4 oz chicken broth
1 t. chopped garlic
3 shakes of mustard powder
Lots of cheddar cheese
pepper
worcestershire sauce

Mix broth and garlic together. Stir. Add 3 shakes of mustard powder. Stir. Add cheddar cheese in small amounts, and stir to melting between additions. add 5 turns on on a pepper grinder. Stir. Add 3-4 shakes of worcestershire sauce. stir. Add cheese until reached consistency. If fondue becomes too thick DO NOT ADD MILK, add in more chicken broth, or water. To thicken add more cheese.

Dip apples, breads, pigs in a blanket, veggies, sausage, tortilla chips into fondue

Garlic Ranch Chicken

4 chicken breast halves
garlic
1 1/2 T. butter
Ranch salad dressing mix (the powder)
1 T. olive oil

Thaw the chicken breasts. Spray the bottom of an 8 x 8 glass baking dish. Place the chicken in the pan. Drizzle the chicken with the olive oil, and then evenly spread the ranch dressing mix and garlic (both to taste- I loaded both on mine and it was great). Take the butter and cut it into several pieces and then layer evenly across the top of the chicken. Cover with tin foil. Bake at 400 for about 30 minutes until finished. Can serve it on top of vegetables, salad or pasta..... but I just generously dipped those babies into REAL ranch salad dressing :)

Snicker Salad

6 apples
6-7 snickers bars
1 jar whipped topping

Cut the apples up into small pieces and place in a bowl. (While I'm cutting them up I normally throw some of the whipped topping into the bowl as well and mix it, it keeps the apples from turning brown.) Cut the snickers into small pieces and place in the bowl. Mix in the whipped topping and refrigerate.

Fruit Dip

Plain Yogurt
Whipped Topping
Instant Vanilla Pudding Powder

Equal Amounts of Plain Yogurt and Whipped Topping mixed well together. Then mix in vanilla pudding powder to taste. Refrigerate and serve with fruit (Or just dip your finger into it like me :) )

Another good rendition of this recipe is to use Strawberry or Raspberry yogurt mixed with the whipped topping. No pudding powder needed for this one.

Baked Steak Burritos

1/2 c. butter
1 pkg (1 oz) taco seasoning mix
1 1/2 lb beef boneless sirloin tip steak cut into bite size strips
1 can (16 oz) refried beans
12 (6 inch) flour tortillas
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3 med. green onions thinly sliced
1 can (10 oz) enchilada sauce
1 c. shredded mexican cheese blend

Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a 10 inch skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in the taco seasoning mix. Add beef strips and cook 5-6 minutes stirring occasionally until desired doneness; drain. Place the refried beans in a microwaveable dish and microwave for 2 minutes stirring once or twice.Spread each tortilla with beans. Top each with beef, cheese, and onions. Roll up, folding in the sides. In an ungreased 13 x 9 inch glass baking dish, place the burritos with the seam side down. Pour enchilada sauce over the burritos. Sprinkle with mexican cheese blend. Bake uncovered 7-12 minutes until burritos are heated and cheese is melted.

Cheesy Bread Sticks

1 1/2 c. warm water
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. yeast
1/2 tsp. salt
3-4 1/2 c. flour

Parmesan Cheese

Cheddar Cheese

Garlic Salt

Italian Seasoning

In a large bowl  combine water, sugar, and yeast. Let stand for 10 minutes until the yeast is bubbly.Add salt and stir. Add 1 1/2 c. flour and mix well. Gradually add more flour (usually between 3-4 cups) until dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and it barely sticks to your finger Spray a glass or metal bowl (retains heat better) with cooking spray and place dough in the bowl. Cover and allow to rise for 1 hour or until doubled in bulk. Remove from bowl and place on a lightly-floured surface. (if using this for pizza popper dough.... stop here.) Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Roll into a rectangle and cut into 12 strips with a pizza cutter. Sprinkle cheddar on top of each strip and press lightly to stick. Roll out each piece of dough into a snake and then drape over your forefinger and twist the dough. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining 11 pieces of dough. Cover pan and allow dough to rise for another 30 minutes. Before placing in the oven, drizzle melted butter across the top, and then sprinkle garlic salt, grated parmesan cheese, and italian seasoning across the tops of the breadsticks. Preheat your oven to 425. When done rising, bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

These can also be sprinkled with just butter and cinnamon/sugar :) 

Pizza Poppers

 (picture courtesy of ourbestbites.com)

1 Recipe for Pizza Dough/Breadsticks (found here)
Marinara Sauce
grated parmesan cheese
1 T olive oil
garlic powder
italian seasoning
mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out your pizza dough onto a floured surface, roughly 12 x 6 inches. Using a pizza cutter (roller) slice the pizza dough into about 20 squares. Put your pizza toppings on each square, NOT WITH THE MARINARA. Take for example if I was making normal pepperoni poppers. I would put JUST the pepperoni and monterey jack cheese into the dough. Capeesh? Capeesh. When all of your dough squares have the toppings you want on them, take each corner and pinch together, you want to wrap the dough around the toppings without any holes, so the toppings are encased in its own little pizza dough ball. Spray a pie pan with non stick cooking spray. Then place each of the dough balls with the seam side down into the pie pan. Brush the tops of the balls with melted butter, and then sprinkle parmesan cheese,garlic powder, and italian seasoning on the top. Cook at 400 for 15-20 minutes, or until the top is light brown. I think I only cooked mine for 10 because our oven is hotter than normal. Then when they are done and hot you DIP them into warm marinara sauce :)

Mozzarella Sticks

16 oz pkg (string cheese)
2 eggs, beaten
Italian Panko Bread Crumbs
Milk
Flour
Dried Parsley Flakes
Oil

To start, cut your string cheeses in half. Then, roll them in flour. Mix the bread crumbs and parsley together. Roll the now floured cheeses in the egg until they are covered, and then transfer them to the bread crumb/parsley bowl. Spoon bread crumbs on top to coat well. Transfer to a cookie sheet. Repeat until all of cheese is finished. IMPORTANT STEP: PLACE THE COOKIE SHEET WITH CHEESE ON IT INTO THE FREEZER! Crazy right? However, I assure you, this is the only way to keep your cheese from oozing everywhere when you fry it. Freeze the cheese sticks for 20-30 minutes uncovered. When you're ready to fry them up, heat about 1 1/2 inch deep of canola oil on your skillet around medium heat. When heated, take the cheese sticks out of the freezer, and carefully (I use tongs) put a few into the oil to fry. When the first side browns... flip them over (where the tongs come in handy!) When finished remove to a paper towel to dry off the excess oil. Fill a dish up with marinara sauce. Salivate. Feel your arteries clog just looking at them... and then partake.

Flautas

Chicken Breasts
Corn Tortillas
Oil
Shredded Cabbage
Cheese
Salsa
Sour Cream

Boil the chicken breast in water until it is cooked. Shred the chicken. Roll the shredded chicken into the corn tortillas (with desired seasonings.) Fry the tortillas in a frying pan until light brown on both sides. Top with cabbage, cheese, salsa, and sour cream to serve.

French Onion Soup

2 onions thinly sliced
1/4 c. butter
2 T flour
2 (10.5 oz) cans beef broth
1 1/2 c. water
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese grated
1/2 c. Swiss cheese grated
sour cream
sliced french bread

In a pan, saute' the onions in the butter over medium heat until the onions are caramelized-approx 20 min. Add flour and mix well. Gradually add the broth and water. Boil for approximately 25-30 minutes. While the soup is boiling, toast the french bread slices. Place a piece of toasted bread in each bowl. Top bread with cheese and dollop of sour cream. Pour the soup over the bread and serve.

Kolaches

Bread Dough:

1 1/2 Tbsp. dry active yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups hot water
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp. salt
1/2 cup oil
5 - 6 cups all-purpose flour
finely grated zest of 1 lemon

Additions:

Beef little smokies

Medium cheese cut into 1 inch slices

Green Peppers

Scrambled egg, etc.

Dissolve yeast, warm water, and 1/4 cup sugar in a small bowl. In a different large bowl, combine hot water, 1/4 cup sugar, salt, and oil. Add 3 cups of flour and lemon zest to the mixture in the large bowl and mix well. Stir in yeast mixture. Add 2 - 3 cups more flour and mix until well blended. (At this point your dough will still be quite sticky). Leave in bowl and let rise for 1 hour, mixing a few strokes a couple of times during the hour.
Pull out a little portion, flatten into a circle and place your desired "innards" into the dough. Fold in the end pieces and roll until the insides are sealed in the bread. Place on cookie sheet. Let rise a little longer if desired  Preheat oven to 350 and cook until light brown

BBQ Chicken Spinach Wraps

4 Spinach Tortillas
3 chicken breasts cubed and marinated generously in your favorite BBQ sauce
15 tortilla chips
Ranch dressing
Shredded lettuce
Cheddar cheese shredded
Onions (optional)
Tomatoes (optional)

First take your marinated chicken chucks and cook them, whether you bake them in the over or cook them on a george foreman like I did... they're just as good! While the chicken is cooking spread ranch dressing on one side of the torillas. Add the shredded lettuce and crumbled chips to the tortillas. Divide the chicken up among the tortillas. Add the cheese. Roll tortillas up carefully, wipe the drool from your mouth and serve

Chinese Sauteed Green Beans (SO GOOD!)

Let me first start by saying that I hate green beans. Hate hate them. and peas. I wont touch them for the life of me. This recipe however... I absolutely love. Its the only way I will eat them, when they're around... they don't even last 3 minutes.

1 T soy sauce
2 T olive oil
1 T honey
1 T minced garlic
1 T unsalted butter (or just normal butter, still works fine)
12 oz green beans trimmed

Combine soy sauce, honey, and 1 T water in a small dish. In a 10 inch saute' pan heat the butter with the olive oil over med-high heat. When the butter is melted add the green beans and 1 t salt-coat well with this mixture. Cook, turning beans occasionally, until well browned, shrunken, and tender- 7-8 minutes. (Butter will have turned dark brown). Reduce heat to low, add the garlic and cook , stirring constantly (15-20 seconds) until the garlic is softened and fragrant. Carefully add the soy mixture (make sure to scrape the honey off the bottom). Cook, stirring until the liquid is glazey (30-45 seconds.) Transfer the beans to a serving dish, and pour the extra glaze on top.

Taco Dip

2 cans refried beans
1 T lemon juice
2 medium avocados
1/2 t salt
1/2 c. mayonnaise
1/2 t pepper
1 taco seasoning packet
1 large sour cream
8 oz grated cheese

Bottom layer: (uses a 13x9 pan)
1) Refried Beans
2) avocado mixed with salt, pepper, and lemon juice (mash avocado)
3) sour cream mixture (sour cream + mayonnaise + taco seasoning)
4) grated cheese

Chill before serving, serve with tortilla chips. (Can also add other toppings like olives, green onions, etc)

Ranch Potatoes

Potatoes
Powder Ranch Packet
Olive Oil

The specifications for these just depend entirely on how much you want to make! Slice the potatoes into little chunks. Put them into a large ziploc bag. Add in enough olive oil to coat each potato slice, and then pour in some of the ranch packet, to your taste. Place in baking dish and cook at 350 degrees until the potatoes are tender or crispy