Bacon Ranch Chicken

 This is from the Six Sisters 30 minute meals recipe book.

Serves 6

2-3  chicken breasts (boneless/skinless)

salt and pepper to taste

onion powder, optional

garlic powder, optional

3/4 of a block of cream cheese, softened

3/4 c shredded cheddar cheese, divided

5 slices thick cut bacon, cooked and crumbled

1 (1 ounce) packet dry ranch dressing mix

4 green onions, sliced thinly

1. Prepheat oven to 400 degrees F

2. Spray bottom of  9x13 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray

3. Pound chicken breast until they are about 1/4 inch thick. You want them all to be the same thickness.

4. Place chicken in single layer in the baking dish and season with salt and pepper (as well as optional)

5. In a med. bowl, mix cream cheese, half the cheese, half the bacon, and the dry ranch mix.

6. Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over all the chicken breasts.

7. Top the chicken with the remaining shredded cheese

8. Bake 20-25 minutes or until fully cooked (internal temp of 165 degrees F)

9. Remove chicken from oven and top with remaining bacon crumbles and green onion.

Original Lemon Bars Recipe

 This is the recipe we used to use when the kids were growing up. It went missing for a bit, but now, here it is!

Never Fail French Bread

 This recipe is from A Bountiful Kitchen. Made it at Kara's while watching the kids. Everyone liked. The dough is rather sticky, but not too bad. I did add more flour as we are in a humid climate (despite all the air comditioning). Made 2 hearty loaves. (you can tell by the pic that I need to work on dividing the dough more evening and shape it better)

Diane's No Fail French Bread

Author:Si Foster

Course:bread

Cuisine:American

Prep Time:1hour hr

Cook Time:20minutes mins

rise time:30minutes mins

Total Time:1hour hr 50minutes mins

Servings:12 per loaf

The easiest and best French bread you will ever make. Simple ingredients, mixed in a stand mixer or by hand. Makes two huge loaves!

Ingredients 

• 2 tablespoons dry yeast, I prefer SAF brand
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 2 cups warm water*
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon (yes tablespoon!) sea or Kosher salt
• 5 tablespoons Olive oil, Canola or vegetable oil*
• 6 cups flour (4 cups bread flour and 1 1/2-2 cups All Purpose)
• 1 egg *optional, beaten- for glazing bread

Instructions

• **Please read recipe notes before beginning if you live in a humid environment!**
• Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup warm water.
• In a separate large bowl combine warm water*, sugar, salt, oil and 3 cups of the flour. Stir well.
• Add the yeast mixture to the warm water-flour mixture. Mix together with large wooden spoon or paddle attachment.
• Add the remaining 3 cups of flour, a cup at a time, mixing well after each addition.
• After all of the flour is added and mixed in, let sit in bowl for 10 minutes.
• When the dough has risen, stir down with a large spoon. If making in a stand mixer, turn the machine on low for a few seconds until the dough is deflated, and push dough to bottom part of bowl with a spatula. 
• Repeat 5 times, every ten minutes, for a total of 60 minutes of rising and then punching (or pushing) down.
• Divide the dough in half. Roll each half of dough in a 9x12 rectangle on a floured surface.
• Roll the dough up like a jelly roll (long way). Place the dough on a greased baking pan (jelly roll pan), with the seam side down. Both loaves will fit on one pan.
• Score the bread across the top 3 or 4 times, and brush with beaten egg (if using).
• Let rise for 20-30 minutes in warm place.
• Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes in lower half of oven, until golden brown. Or you may bake at 350-375 convection for 18-20 minutes until golden. 

Notes

1. Tips for humid environment: If you live in a humid environment, you may need to either add more flour than called for or you may reduce the liquid in the bread by 1/2 cup. Instead of 2 cups hot water, use 1 1/2. While living in Spain (humid environment) , I use 4 cups bread flour and about 1-2 cups all purpose flour and about 1 1/2 cups water (not including the 1/2 cup of water used to proof the yeast). So, the water total is about 2 cups instead of the 2 1/2 cups called for in the recipe. This recipe was developed in Utah, where the elevation is often 4000 ft and very dry climate!
2. After reading comments from people who have expressed frustration with the bread failing (the exception) I decided to change the water from "2 cups hot water" to "2 cups warm water". I believe part of the issue was hot water was added along with yeast, and the hot water was killing the yeast. Warm water works. I use warm or hot water right from the tap. 
3. I add  bread flour in place of the all purpose flour. When doing this, I use 4 cups bread flour and 1-2 cups  All Purpose flour. Watch the amount of flour if using  bread flour. In some cases, you will need only 1 1/2 cups of additional All Purpose flour. Do not add too much flour, it will result in the dough being stiff and difficult  to handle.
4. I make this in my KitchenAid stand mixer. Use the paddle attachment until you have mixed in the first 3 cups of flour. Then switch to the dough hook to mix in the final 3 cups of flour.
5. I often forget the mixing down step (5 times every 10 minutes) and have never had a problem with the bread turning out perfect. Just make sure the bread raises in the bowl until it has almost doubled in size, or for about 45 minutes. Then proceed to the rolling out step. If you skip mixing down every 10 minutes, the bread will not have quite the same texture. Mixing down the dough will help develop the gluten and create the texture that is slightly chewy, but still light!
6. If you have a convection oven, use the convection setting. Bake at 350-375  convection for about 15-20 minutes. The convection setting turns out the prettiest loaves of bread!
7. This bread is best made with Extra Virgin olive oil. 
8. In Spain, my oven was very small and it works better for me to shape the dough into 3 smaller loaves. The bake time is about the same! I got used to shaping into three smaller loaves and now almost always shape into three loaves. I bake at 375 convection for about 18 minutes. 
9. The egg wash or glaze is not necessary. Egg wash will produce a shiny instead of a matte finish on your loaves. You will need about 1/3 of the egg wash for this recipe. Lightly brush the loaf with the egg wash before it starts to rise after shaping.

Sloppy Joes

 We all liked this recipe (made for the Morgan kids 6 May 2025 in Hawaii while their parents are on a cruise). It's from A Bountiful Kitchen website:

Sloppy Joes

Author:Si Foster

Course:Dinner, lunch, Main Course

Cuisine:American

Prep Time:5minutes mins

Cook Time:10minutes mins

Total Time:15minutes mins

Servings:6 -8

Sloppy Joes are a blend of sweet and savory and are so juicy and filling! This Sloppy Joe recipe is the perfect quick and easy dinner and also great for large group gatherings!

Ingredients 

Sloppy Joes:

• 1 1/2 lb extra lean ground beef
• 1 onion, white, sweet or yellow, chopped, about 1 1/2 cups total
• 1 red pepper, stem and seeds removed, chopped (optional) about 1 cup total
• 1 clove garlic, minced or 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 6 oz can tomato paste
• 15 oz can tomato sauce
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce, or 2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, more if you like it sweeter!
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
• water 1/4 to 1/2 cup to thin sauce, if needed
• few drops hot sauce, such as Tobasco , optional

Instructions

Sloppy Joes:

• Brown ground beef in skillet over medium high heat. Drain off any grease.
• Add chopped onion and chopped red pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until onion is softened, about 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and cook for one additional minute.
• Add tomato paste, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Cook over medium heat. Add hot sauce if using. Simmer on low for about 5-8 mintues or until mixture thickens up a bit.
• If mixture is too thick, thin with 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water. Serve with hamburger buns, top with cheese, if desired.

Notes

Slow Cooker and Instant Pot Instructions:

Slow Cooker or Crockpot- Place the meat in a skillet, cook on medium high and drain off grease. Pour the cooked meat and remaining ingredients into the slow cooker, stir and turn the setting to low. Cook for about 4-6 hours on LOW heat  or  2-3 hours on HIGH. Depending on the slow cooker, the cooking time may vary. Add water if needed after cooked. 

Instant Pot - Turn the Instant Pot to the SAUTE setting. Brown the meat and remove any extra grease from the pot. Add the chopped onion and red pepper and cook for a couple of minutes.  Turn SAUTE setting off. Add remaining ingredients, and stir well.  Make sure the sealing ring is in place, and turn the dial on top of the lid to SEAL. Cook on MANUAL or HIGH PRESSURE setting for 5 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally, or,  after 10 minutes, carefully release the remaining pressure and serve. 

Never Fail Butter Rolls

Callie used to make these every year for Thanksgiving. I made them with Adalyn in Hawaii a couple of times. They're very good and truly, never fail. 

Never-Fail Butter Rolls 

4 c. warm water 

2 T dry yeast 

1 c. sugar 

1 c. dry milk 

6 eggs 

1 c. cooled-melted margarine (I use butter) 

2 t. salt 

10-12 c. flour 

 Mix together water, yeast, sugar, milk and eggs. Wait until bubbly, then add cooled margarine and salt. Add and mix in flour. Let rise until double in bulk. Dough will be sticky. Roll out thin and cut (with pizza cutter) into strips. Tie strips into knots and tuck ends under. Place rolls on baking sheet, let rise. Bake until golden brown in 425 degree oven. Good frozen and reheated.

Crustless Quiche

Crustless Broccoli, Bacon, and Cheddar Quiche

This crustless broccoli cheddar quiche is made with bisquick (or flour + baking powder). Add ham or bacon if you want, feeds a crowd!

Prep Time 15minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour (it never takes me that long)

Total Time 1hour hr 15minutes mins

Course: Brunch, DinnerCuisine: American Servings: 8 servings Calories: 339kcal Author: Elizabeth Lindemann

Ingredients

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups whole milk

3/4 cups bisquick or other baking mix (or flour + 1 teaspoon baking powder)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

16 oz. steamed broccoli florets cut into small pieces (about 2 cups)

8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese (about 2 cups)

chopped bacon or ham optional, see notes (I've been using the Kirkland Bacon Crumbles - easy!)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a quiche or pie dish (or baking dish up to 9x13 inches) with butter or oil. Place prepared dish on a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil, just in case of overflow while baking. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs (4), milk (1.5 cups), bisquick (3/4 cup), kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon), and black pepper (1/2 teaspoon) until well combined.

Stir in the grated parmesan cheese (1 cup), the steamed broccoli florets, and the shredded cheddar cheese (8 oz./2 cups).

Pour batter into greased dish and bake (on a foil covered baking sheet in case of overflow) for about 60 minutes or until golden brown on top and set (it shouldn't jiggle when you shake it).

Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Notes

Cooking time may vary depending on what kind of baking dish you use and how deep it is. It may take anywhere from 50-70 minutes to fully cook, so keep an eye on it. If it's browning too quickly on top, you can tent it with foil.

Make it into mini muffin quiches by baking in a greased muffin pan at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes.

Make it low carb/keto by omitting the Bisquick and adding 2 more eggs.

Save time by buying frozen broccoli florets in a steamable microwave bag.

Make ahead by assembling the entire quiche and covering with foil and refrigerating for up to 48 hours before baking. Or bake it ahead of time, refrigerate, and reheat in the oven for 15-20 minutes at 350 covered with foil.

Nutrition

Calories: 339kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 136mg | Sodium: 649mg | Potassium: 266mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 752IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 455mg | Iron: 1mg

Corn Pudding

 This is my mom's recipe that we make at many holiday gatherings. Not everyone likes it, but most of us do. It also was nice, when we were in Peru, to make as kind of a dinner with other sides. Simple to make and if I have bigger than a 9x13 pan, I 1.5 times it.

CORN PUDDING

Drain 1 can whole kernel corn

Beat 4 eggs

Mix 2 cups milk

Grate about 1.5 cups of cheese (cheddar)

1 cup soda cracker crumbs

 

Butter bottom of dish and layer twice:

1.     Crumbs

2.     Corn

3.     Cheese

4.     Milk mixture

Dot with butter, salt, pepper and paprika.

Bake for 20-25 minutes (until firm) at 325-350 degrees.

 

(Don’t cover…don’t double)