BLT Salad

This is a yummy salad that we had at Jeremy's grandmother's on Thanksgiving. Very good and pretty quick to prepare!

BLT Salad
Lettuce - I chopped and washed 3 little bunches of hearts of romaine (they come 3 in a package)
* The recipe calls for 6 hard boiled eggs, chopped. I hate boiled eggs so I left this out.
1 can of chopped black olives
2 medium tomatoes, diced
*The recipe calls for one small red onion- I don't like raw onion, so I used sliced green onions.
1 can of Mexi-corn
1 bottle of Kraft ranch dressing - the lady insisted that you must use regular Kraft ranch!
2 c. of shredded cheddar cheese
bacon bits - I couldn't remember if the salad had real or fake crunchy bacon bits so I used some of both.

You layer the ingredients in that order and can make it up to a day ahead of time. Just don't mix it, otherwise all your lettuce will get wilty.
I used a pretty trifle bowl and you can see all the different colored layers!

Cincinnati Chili

So if you are from the south, you may have never heard of Cincinnati Chili. As for me growing up in Southwest Tennessee, chili meant a spicy type of thick soup with ground beef and beans. Well, when we moved to Texas, their chili had nothing but meat...no beans. That was hard to get used to. When we moved "up north" to Lexington, I discovered the Gold Star Chili chain. It's not soup like you might think. First of all, it is a slightly spicy but sweet-ish meat sauce served over spaghetti noodles and topped with finely shredded cheddar cheese. You can also add beans and onions, but I prefer it without. When I was pregnant with Jack, Madalynn would have preschool on Wednesday mornings. I can't tell you how many days I ate at Gold Star Chili for lunch.
I made this for the kids and I last week and it is pretty close to the Gold Star version. Pretty yummy and kid friendly. It does have what seems like several ingredients, but nothing too unusual. There are some spices in this that don't sound like they belong in something you're cooking for dinner, but it turns out well!
Cincinnati Chili
3/4 lb of lean ground beef
1 medium diced onion
1 garlic clove, pressed or finely chopped
1 (15oz) can of tomato sauce (I used 2 small 8 oz cans.)
1 1/2 c. water
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper, or to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar
8 oz of spaghetti noodles, cooked according to directions
1/2 c. finely shredded cheddar cheese
*OPTIONAL 15 oz can of red kidney beans, heated
*OPTIONAL chopped onion

-Crumble beef into a large, nonstick skillet, add diced onion, and brown.
-When browned, add garlic, tomato sauce, water, cocoa, chili powder, salt, allspice, cinnamon, cumin, red pepper, and vinegar. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat, and simmer slowly for 1 hour.
-Stir occasionally and add more water if needed to make it the consistency of a meat sauce.
-Spoon sauce over cooked spaghetti, top with cheese (beans and onions if desired).
-Serve with oyster crackers.

Chocolate Chip Pie

1 unbaked 9 in. deep dish pie shell
2 large eggs
1/2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
3/4 c. (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
1 c. semi-sweet morsels (I use half semi-sweet and half milk chocolate)
*Optional: 1 c. chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 325.
Beat eggs with mixer on high until foamy.
Beat in flour and sugars.
Beat in butter.
Stir in choc. chips (and nuts) and spoon into pie shell.
Bake for about an hour. Cool on wire rack. Serve.

Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie

* All amounts can be customized based on how many or how few people you are cooking for.*

4-6 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
2 c. chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 pkg frozen mixed vegetables * I never use this, I just use leftovers or what we like (canned green beans, corn, steamed carrots)
2 potatoes, cooked and cubed

Mix all these ingredients and pour into a casserole dish.

The Crust
*This is what makes this potpie better than average!*
2 sticks of margarine, melted
2 c. self-rising flour
2 c. milk
Mix and pour on top.

Bake at 350 for one hour.