Cheese Ball

Man have I been busy. I thought September was going to be a pretty low key month at work once we got month-end close out of the way. I stayed at home with my son on Monday since he had his 9 month appointment and shots. I came into work Tuesday and got hit out of the blue. First, the coworker I backup was out on vacation until this coming Tuesday and I'm always extremely busy when she is out. And secondly, we have internal audit here for 3 weeks.

Wow

Needless to say I have not had a spare moment until now all week. (they just left to fly back home for the weekend).

I hate it when work interrupts my previously scheduled blogging.

Anyway, believe it or not this is the last recipe from Carson's baptism weekend. I feel like I've been blogging about it forever, which I kind of have since it happened over a month ago now.

Cheese ball

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
12 oz sharp cheddar cheese spread, softened
2 Tbsp blue cheese dressing, room temperature
1 Tbsp onion, grated really fine
1/8 - 1/4 tsp garlic powder salt (optional)
Chopped pecans

1. Let both cheeses sit until they are room temperature, about 2 hours. Mix together until well blended.
2. Mix remaining ingredients (except pecans) with cheese mixture until well blended. Put in refrigerator.
3. Once mixture becomes firm, roll it into a ball and then roll to cover in chopped pecans. Serve with crackers.

Source: my mother-in-law

Creamed Lima Beans

This is my mother-in-law's recipe. She's been making it her whole life and whenever there is a potluck or family gathering, this is what she makes to bring. I don't remember ever eating lima beans before I met my husband and tried this dish but it surely was good. And when we served it baptism weekend my Mom didn't want to try it because she's "not a bean person" (her words). I told her to just take a taste (when did I become the parent?) so she did and then said she really liked them. So there! (Muah ... love ya Mom!)

The recipe below is as dictated by my mother-in-law as she was preparing it. There are not many measurements so the recipe will be more in paragraph form than anything.

Butter the sides of the pan and also add about 3 Tbsp butter to the boiling water. Then add 2 bags of lima beans (but these have to be fordhook lima beans, not baby lima beans ... to my mother-in-law this was VERY important). Add water to cover the lima beans (about halfway up the pan, cover and bring to a boil. Salt and pepper to taste.

When beans are cooked through, add half-and-half to bring to top of beans. Do not boil, but keep it hot. Dissolve about 3 Tbsp cornstarch with 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the heated half and half. Then add that back to the bean mixture and stir until thickened. Watch it because you may end up needing to use more cornstarch to get it to the proper thickness. Check seasoning and salt and pepper to taste.

Source: my mother-in-law

Sweet Restaurant Slaw

I've been looking for that go-to slaw recipe. It's been difficult because my husband and I have completely different tastes when it comes to slaw. I prefer a tangy flavor like in this slaw. My husband prefers more of a vinegar flavor, like they serve at KFC. This was right up his alley. He loved it and really thinks should be our "go-to" slaw recipe. We'll see. : )

Sweet Restaurant Slaw
Makes 8 servings

1 (16 oz) bag coleslaw mix
2 Tbsp diced onion
2/3 cup Miracle Whip salad dressing
3 Tbsp canola oil
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp white vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp celery seed

1. Combine coleslaw mix and onion in a large bowl.
2. Whisk together salad dressing, oil, sugar, vinegar, salt, and celery seed in a medium bowl; blend thoroughly. Pour dressing mixture over coleslaw mix and toss to coat. Chill at least 2 hours before serving.

Source: adapted from allrecipes.com

Mini Cheesecakes

Oh cheesecakes .... you and I have a love-hate relationship. I love how good you taste. I hate how bad for my thighs you are. I'm scared to death to bake you (not quite sure) but I yearn to try one. My problem is that my husband does not like cheesecake so if I were to bake one I'd have to eat the whole thing myself (which brings me back to my thigh problem).

Then I saw these on a few differnt blogs in my google reader and I just knew I had to add them to the list of dishes to make for Carson's baptism.

They were very simple and so yummy. Even my husband liked them, which is a good thing. I ended up doubling the recipe since they were meant to feed a crowd so the measurements I used are in the recipe below.

Mini Cheesecakes

1 box Nilla wafers (you don't use the whole box)
2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
4 Tbsp sour cream
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Line mini cupcake tin with liners and place one Nilla wafer into bottom of cups.
3. In bowl of stand mixer, combine cream cheese and sugar.
4. Beat to combine well until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
5. Add sour cream and egg, mixing well to combine.
6. Scrape down sides of bowl, add lemon juice and vanilla and mix to combine well.
7. Remove from stand mixer, scrape sides and hand beat to make sure mixture is combined well.
8. Using mini cookie scoop or teaspoon, fill each liner almost to top.
9. Place in oven and bake 15 minutes.
10. Remove from oven and let cool.
11. Cover tightly and place in fridge overnight, or at leaast 4 hours before serving.
12. Top with whatever you want. I used strawberries, blueberries, hot fudge, and caramel.

Source: doubled from Good Things Catered as adapted from Elizabeth's Edible Experiment. Originally from Gourmet Magazine

Grilled BBQ Chicken

We have been making this A LOT lately. My husband is cutting out carbs so this has been a go-to dinner for us lately. We've probably had it once or twice a week.

We season everything to taste so I don't really have any measurements.

Skinless boneless chicken breasts
Barbecue Sauce
Salt
Coarse ground black pepper
Seasoned salt
Garlic Powder

Season chicken with salt, pepper, seasoned salt, and garlic powder. Start cooking chicken on grill. Dredge chicken in bbq sauce everytime you turn chicken on grill. Serve with additional bbq sauce drizzled on chicken.

Alternately you can perpare this on the stovetop in a skillet with 2 Tbsp olive oil.

Buttermilk Pancakes

One thing that is nice about having family to visit is that I get an excuse to make pancakes. I love them. I could eat them for any meal of the day. The problem is that my husband doesn't like them at all. So I rarely make them. Since I had a large crowd to visit for Carson's baptism I knew I'd be making these. I also mixed some blueberries and peaches into some of them. Blueberry Peach Buttermilk pancakes are to die for delicious!

Buttermilk Pancakes

3 cups all-purpose flour
3 Tbsp white sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
3 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
3 eggs
1/3 cup butter, melted

1. In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat together buttermilk, milk, eggs, and melted butter. Keep the two mixtures separate until you are ready to cook.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. You can flick water across the surface and if it beads up and sizzles, it's ready.
3. Pour wet mixture into dry mixture, using a wooden spoon or fork to blend. Stir until it's just blended together. Do not over stir! (If you're adding anything in like fruits, etc do it now). Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using about 1/2 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Source: allrecipes.com

Garden Garbage Dip

I love "hiding" veggies in things. Mostly since I've become a Mom. Carson hasn't really fought any veggies yet but I know the day is coming. So whenever I make something that incorporates getting more veggies into my diet I'm game. I've thought of the easy things like spaghetti sauce, meatloaf/meatballs, etc. Then I saw this recipe and thought, "Hmmm ... so I can make a dip with veggies to dip veggies in?" Excellent!

And before you look at the recipe and think "Holy cow that's a lot of chopping!" Remember, if you have a food processor you can let it do all the work for you. That's what I did.

Garden Garbage Dip

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup finely chopped radishes (about 2 medium)
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions (4 medium)
1/4 cup finely chopped cucumber, drained
1/4 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped carrots
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried dill weed, or to taste
1/4 tsp pepper

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Spoon into 1-quart serving bowl.

Source: Kim's Kitchen