Home-made Apple Crisp

Another home-made recipe which was given to me among so many.

What you need:

1 cup flour (sifted)

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

4 cups chopped apples (McIntosh or your favorite)

3/4 cup uncooked oatmeal (minute cooking not instant)

1/2 cup butter (melted)

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp cornstarch

1tsp vanilla

Ice Cream or Whipped Cream for topping (whichever you preffer)

Mix the flour, oatmeal, brown sugar, butter and cinnamon until crumbly. Divide in two.

Press half of the crumb mixture into a 9X13 inch baking pan (greased).

Spread dices apples in pan.

Combine in a small pot, sugar, cornstarch, water and vanilla. Cook on medium heat until the mixture becomes clear and thickened.

Pour over the apples.

Add remaining crumb mixture over top and place baking dish in preheated 350 degree F oven for 30-40 minutes.

You will know when the Apple Crisp is ready by poking the apples which should be soft and the topping should be golden brown.

Serve out onto dishes and top with your favorite ice cream, whip cream, or caramel sauce.

Enjoy!

Ginger Bread Cookies

This is a classic recipe I found in my recipe box. I can't remember how I got this recipe but it is good.

You Need:

1/4 cup butter
1 tbsp molasses
3-4 tbsp water
1 cup flour
pinch salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves

What to do:

Cream butter, sugar, molasses, and water together thoroughly.

Combine the remaining 6 dry ingredients and then stir into creamed mixture gradually until mixed well.

Work with hands to form a smooth dough. Cover and chill for 1-2 hours to help with ease of rolling.

Roll chilled dough out to about 1/4 inch thick on a floured board.

Cut with cookie cutter and place on a greased cookie sheet.

Bake for about 10-12 minutes in a preheated 350 degree F oven or until slightly browned.

Cool, decorate, and enjoy!

PB&J, the Yummy Way!

I love having this snack while I'm watching a movie, or having a weekend treat.

What you will need:

Peanut Butter
Any flavour jam you like
Butter
2 slices of whole wheat bread

Lightly butter the outsides of both peices of bread. Set both peices of bread butter side down on a napkin.

In a bowl, mix about 2 tablespoons of peanut butter to one tablespoon of jam. Add more or less of either one if you like....Hey It's Your Sandwich ;o)

Spread one slice of bread with as much or as litle of the PB&J mixture as you like. Place the other slice over top and discard the paper towel. Fry up the sandwich in a fry pan until the bread is golden brown and crispy and the middle is yummy and melty.

When ready, cut down the middle and enjoy with a big glass of milk, juice, water, or whatever you like.

Healthy Supper -------Easy Shrimp and Whole Wheat Pasta Dinner

This is a recipe that my parents used to make. They used to use butter in this dish and white pasta so I changed things up a bit to make it healthier without losing a bit of flavour.

What you will need:

Olive Oil
30-40 or more regular sized shrimp (or jumbo if you love shrimp)
(sometimes I buy a shrimp ring to make it cheaper and easier)
garlic salt
Mc Cormicks or Mrs. Dash No Salt Added Garlic and Herb Seasoning
1 package, Whole Wheat Pasta
Parmesean Cheese

Dried parsley flakes OR fresh parsley

Put a large pot of water on maximum with the lid on until water boils.

While you are waiting for the water to boil, put a pan on the stove on medium heat and heat up about 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil.

Add cleaned and rinsed shrimp to the oil. Sprinkle the garlic salt and seasoning to taste. Cook until the shrimp is done. If you need to add more oil during cooking, you can do so adding a teaspoon at a time.
Adjust tempurature settings during cooking if needed.

Meanwhile.................once the water has started to boil, add about 5-7 shakes of salt from a salt shaker and add pasta and cook according to Al Dente directions on the back of the package.

When the pasta is cooked, drain and slowly add to the pan with the shrimp mixture.

Toss everything together until nice and hot adding any extra oil or seasoning if you desire.

Pour everything from the pan onto a serving dish and top with a few sprinklings of parmesean cheese and parsley.

You will have to change quantities of shrimp and pasta according to the number of people you are serving.

Serve and Enjoy!

Note: I always enjoy this dish with a cesear salad.

Low Fat Dessert- Easy No Bake Cherry Cheesecake

This low fat dessert recipe I got from my mom, among many others, when I got married. This cheesecake is delicious and is ready in no time. It only has one 8oz pack of cream cheese and I use light cream cheese and the rest is dream whip. You get all the flavour with a fraction of the fat from regular cheesecake.

What you will need:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter-softened
1 cup icing sugar
8 oz light philly cream cheese-room tempurature
2 envelopes dream whip-follow directions on package
1 can cherry pie filling

1. Combine butter and graham crumbs until you are able to form into a crust. Press crust into a 9X13 inch baking dish.

2. Mix icing sugar and philly cream cheese well with electric mixer. Fold into dream whip and mix again until all ingredients are combined.

3. Spread cream cheese mixture over crust and top with cherry pie filling. Refridgerate for about 45 minutes to one hour.

Enjoy!

Healthy ----- Simple Full Course Chicken Dinner

This chicken dinner is simple to make, tastes yummy, and consists of protein, vegetable, and carbs.

Note: Sorry, there are no exact measurments as this recipe I kind of made up on my own. So I basically add the ingredients to taste. It's not hard once you see the recipe. This recipe will vary depending on how many people you are cooking for. Right now I only cook for two.

What you will need:

Butterfly Cut Chicken Breasts (these cook up super fast)
1-2 eggs, depending on how many you are feeding.
Italian seasoned Bread Crumbs
1 bag of Roasted Chicken and Wild Rice flavoured Rice (eg. Uncle Bens)
1 Cauliflower
Parmesean Cheese
Olive Oil
Garlic salt
Parsley flakes
Salt and Pepper

Step One:
Wash and cut up califlower into bite size flowerettes. Drain, and place in a casserol dish. Drizzle on the cauliflower some olive oil. Then sprinkle on some garlic salt, pepper, a touch of salt, parsley flakes, and some parmesean cheese. Toss the cauliflower until the mixture coats it well.
Place lid on dish and put in oven on middle rack of a 375-400 degree oven. I usually stir the cauliflower every 15 minutes until my desired tenderness is reached.

Step Two
Pour olive oil into a pan to cover the bottom and set on stove. Turn the burner on to almost medium heat while you start to coat the chicken in the bread crumbs stated below.

Break the egg(s) into a bowl and beat with a fork until mixed.
Take chicken breats out of package and rinse. Place in the egg and mix until all chicken breasts are coated.
Pour seasoned bread crumbs on a dish. Turn on burner with pan and oil on it. Coat one peice of chicken at a time and set aside until all chicken breasts are coated with bread crumbs.
Place chicken into warm oil and cook on one side for about 5 minutes checking every couple minutes.

Meanwhile...........Once the chicken is in the pan, prepare rice according to direction on package, for how many people you need. The rice only takes about 10 minutes to cook.

Once rice is on the go it should be time to flip the chicken. Cook on the flipped side for about 5 minutes or until browned on the outside and cooked in the middle. The butterfly chicken should take no longer than 10 minutes to cook.

Everything should be done about the same time and ready to place on the tabel. I hope you like it!