Sweet Tea

Perfect Sweet Tea
(makes 1 gallon)


Ingredients -
5 - 8 Family size Tea Bags. (or 12 regular Tea Bags) 
1 Quart (4 Cups) - Boiling Water
3 Quarts (12 cups) - Cool Water
1 1/2 - 2 (one & a half) - Cups Sugar.
1/4 teaspoon - Baking Soda


Directions -
1. Sprinkle baking soda into a pitcher
 Add Tea bags to the pitcher/baking soda,
Pour Boiling water over tea bags,
Cover and allow to steep for 15 minutes.

2. Remove and toss out Tea Bags,
Add Sugar and Stir until completely dissolved.
Add Cool Water.
Refrigerate until cold and ready to drink.

3. Serve over ice,
Take a nice long sip.
Swoon.
Repeat.

Chicken Salad by Helen Guymon

Can use canned chicken breasts or 3 baked chicken breasts.

Chicken
Celery
Green Onion
Crushed Pineapple
Cashews

Dressing:
Mayonnaise
Lemon Juice

Apple Nut Squares by Helen Guymon

3 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 1/2 cups apples, peeled and dices

1 cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Blend together eggs, oil and sugar. Sift together soda, salt, flour and cinnamon, then stir slowly into egg mixture. Fold in apples and nuts. Pour and spread evenly into a lightly greased 9x13-inch pan. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Delicious served warm with ice cream, or at room temperature.

Orange Salad by Helen Guymon

2 pkg (3 oz. each) orange gelatin
2 cups hot water
1 cup juice drained from mandarin oranges and pineapple
1 can (6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate)
1 can (1 cup) crushed pineapple, drained
1 can (11 oz.) mandarin oranges, drained
1 pkgs (3 3/4 oz.) lemon pie filling
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
Grated cheese

Dissolve gelatin in hot water. Add juice and frozen orange juice. Stir until well blended and concentrate is melted. Add crushed pineapple and mandarin oranges. Pour into pan or casserole dish and allow to set.

Meanwhile make lemon pie filling according to directions on package. Cool. Fold in whipped cream. Spread on set gelatin mixture. Sprinkle top with grated cheese serves 8.

Blueberry Jello by Helen Guymon

6 oz. pkg cherry Jello
2 cups boiling water
1- 15 oz. can blueberries in heavy syrup
1- 8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 cups sugar
1- 8 oz. sour cream (1 cup)
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup chopped pecans

Dissolve Jello in water and add blueberries (undrained) chill until set. Beat cream cheese and sugar. Add vanilla and sour cream.

Add crushed pineapple to either jello mixture or cheese mixture if desired.

Green Pineapple Set Salad by Helen Guymon

1 pkg lime jello
1 small brick cream cheese
1 can crushed pineapple
1 cup boiling water
1 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup crushed nuts
1 cup whipping cream
maraschino cherries
(drops of green food coloring)

Drain pineapple for 1 cup of juice. Heat juice and dissolve jello in juice. Dissolve cream cheese in boiling water. Mix cheese and jello mixture and let set until firm. Beat the set jello mixture until fluffy with beater. Fold in whipped cream until perfectly smooth. Add pineapple, cherries, crushed nuts and return refrigerator.

Brownies by Helen Guymon

2 cubes margarine
2 cups sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
4 eggs
1/2 cups cocoa
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups nuts
3 cups miniature marshmallows

Mix first 5 ingredients (beat well) add cocoa and flour, beat. Add nuts spread in a 9x13 pan. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove. Top with marshmallows and return to oven for 3 minutes, watch close. Remove and cool.

Frosting:
1/2 cups margarine
1/4 cups cocoa
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cups canned milk
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Beat. Spread over brownies. Sprinkle with nuts.

Lemon Bars by Helen Guymon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt 1 cup butter in 9x13 pan in oven. Add 1 3/4 cup flour and 1/2 cup powdered sugar. Mix together with fork and spread into pan. Bake for 20 minutes.

Filling:
6 eggs (medium), beaten
1/4 cups flour plus 1 heaping Tbs
3 cups sugar
9 Tbs lemon juice (add more if desired)

Beat all together until foamy. Pour over crust and bake for 30 minutes.

Cut 5 across and 6 down.

Lemon Pudding Dessert by Helen Guymon

Crust:
1 cup flour
1 cube butter
1/2 cup walnuts

Blend until crumbly. Press into oblong pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes. Cool.

1 cup cool whip
1 cup powdered sugar
8 oz. cream cheese, softened

Mix together and spread over crust.

2 pkg instant lemon pudding
3 cups milk

Beat until stiff. Spread over cream cheese layer. Top with cool whip and grated nuts.

Apple Strudel by Helen Guymon

2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup warm water
2 1/2 cups flour
3 quarts grated apples
1 cube butter
3/4 cups sugar
3/4 cups brown sugar
1 Tbs cinnamon

Beat eggs, stir in oil and water, mix in flour with a fork, form into a ball. Pound dough 100 times (may use a dough hook). Let dough rest for 1 hour while peeling and grating apples. Mix sugars and cinnamon in a plastic bag or a bowl. Roll dough flat on a floured cloth and stretch to 54" and cut at 45. Put apples on 3/4 of dough and butter on 1/4 dough over apples. Sprinkle sugar mixture over apples only. Fold in 1 1/2 edge of dough over apples to seal in juices (42"). Grab end of cloth and roll up strudel from apple side. Cut into 3 of 14" sections or 6 of 7" sections, or form into "S" shape. (May be frozen before cooking.) Spray pan generously before cooking. Bake in 350 degrees oven for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

*Need 4 end pieces for large pans or 10 end pieces or small pans.

Blueberry Dessert by Helen Guymon

Crust:
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 cup nuts
1 cup melted butter

Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Crumble when cool.

Filling:
Prepare 2 envelopes of dream whip with 1 cup powdered sugar and 8 oz. cream cheese and spread over crust.

Topping:
1 pkg danish dessert with strawberries
or
1 can blueberry filling

Blueberry Strata Pie by Helen Guymon

1- 1 lb. can (2cups BB)
1- 8 3/4 oz. can crushed pineapple (1 cup)
1- 8 oz. pkgs, cream cheese softened
3- Tbs sugar
1 Tbs milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 baked  9" pastry shell
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tbs cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 cup whipping cream, whipped

Drain fruit reserving syrups. Blend cream cheese and next three ingredients. Set aside 2 Tbs pineapple. Stir in remaining into cheese mixture. Spread over bottom of pastry shell, chill. Blend 1/4 cup sugar, the cornstarch and salt. Combine reserved syrups. Measure 1 1/2 cups blend into cornstarch mixture. Cook and stir until thickened. Stir in blueberries, lemon juice, cool. Pour over cheese layer, chill. Top with whipped cream and reserve pineapple.

Peach Pie by Helen Guymon

2 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
1 package peach jello
3 Tbs cornstarch
2 cups peaches
Orange food coloring

Mix 1 cup water, sugar, and coloring. Boil. Mix the rest of the water and cornstarch and add to mixture.  Cook until thickened. Add jello. Place peaches in crust and add colored mixture. Chill 4 hours.

Crust:
1 heaping cup flour
1/2 cup margarine
3 1/2 Tbs powdered sugar

Blend and press into pies. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes.

Lemon Meringue Pie by Helen Guymon

2 cups boiling water
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup cornstarch (don't use quite that much)

Cook until transparent, stirring constantly until boiling.

Add:

3 beaten egg yolks
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 Tbs butter

Top with meringue.

Fresh Raspberry Ribbon Pie by Helen Guymon

1 baked 9" pastry shell
1 package (3 oz.) raspberry gelatin
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups boiling water
1 Tbs lemon juice
Dash of Salt
2 cups fresh raspberries, crushed, or 1 package (10 oz.) frozen raspberries
1 package (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sifted confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup whipping cream, whipped

Dissolve gelatin and sugar mixture in boiling water. Add lemon juice. Stir in raspberries until well blended. Chill until partially set.

Blend confectioners sugar, vanilla, and salt with softened cream cheese. Beat until fluffy; fold in whipped cream.

Spread 1/2 of cream-cheese mixture in baked and cooled pastry shell, then half of raspberry mixture. Repeat, forming four layers in all and ending with red on top. Allow to chill until firm. Set into wedges to serve.

Blueberry Sauce by Helen Guymon

For pancakes, waffles, ice cream.

1/2 Cup Sugar
1 Pint Fresh Blueberries
(or 2 Cups thawed frozen blueberries)
Juice of One Lemon
1 tsp Cornstarch
1/4 Cup Cold Water

Combine sugar, blueberries, and lemon juice over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Combine cornstarch and water; add and cook until thickened. Chill before serving.

Raisin Filled Cookies by Shirley Guymon

Cookies:
2 Cups Sugar
2 Cups Shortening
1 Cup Brown Sugar
4 Eggs
2 Tbs Milk
2 tsp Vanilla
6 Cups Flour (7)
2 tsp Soda
1 tsp Salt

Filling:
1 Cup Applesauce
1/2 Cup Raisins
1/2 Cup Dates
1 Cup Nuts
Grind All Of The Above Together.

1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Water
2 Tbs Butter
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla
2 Tbs Flour
Then cook all ingredients slowly until thick and let cool.


Cream shortening, sugar, eggs, milk, and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients. Shape dough into 4 rolls about 2" in diameter. Wrap in waxed paper chill in refrigerator or freezer.

Slice roll of dough into thin slices and put a slice on greased sheet, top with 1/2 tsp filling and another cookie. Do not pinch. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.

Chocolate Chip Cookie's or Bars by Helen Guymon

Mix together:

4 Eggs
2 Cups Brown Sugar
1 Cup White Sugar
1 1/2 Cups Shortening
2 tsp Vanilla

Add and mix well:

4 1/2 - 5 Cups Flour
2 tsp Salt
2 tsp Soda
12 oz. Chocolate Chips
(nuts)

Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes for cookies.

For bars: press into large cookie sheet and bake about 15 minutes or until done.

Snickerdoodles by Helen Guymon

1 Cup Shortening (part butter)
1 1/4 Cup Sugar
2 Eggs

Cream together.

Add:

2 3/4 Cups Flour
1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar
1/2 tsp Soda
1/4 tsp Salt

Roll in cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Valentines Sugar Cookies by Helen Guymon

2 1/4 Cup Flour
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Cup Shortening
1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
1 Egg
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1 tsp Almond Flavoring
1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 Cup Butter
1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar

Sift together flour, cream of tartar, soda, salt and set aside. Cream shortening, butter, and sugar until fluffy. Stir in egg and flavoring.

Bake at 375 degrees for 6-8 minutes.

Sugar Cookies by Shirley Z.

4 Eggs
2 Cups Shortening
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Soda
8 tsp Baking Powder
1 Cup Milk
7 Cups Flour
4 tsp Vanilla
2 Cups Sugar

Mix and chill for 45 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-9 minutes.

Soft Sugar Cookies by Helen Guymon

2 Cups Sugar
2 Cubes (1 cup) Butter
2 Eggs
7 Cups Flour
1 Cup Milk
1 tsp Salt
4 tsp Baking Powder
2 tsp Soda
2 tsp Vanilla

Cream sugar, margarine, and eggs until fluffy. Mix dry ingredients together and add to creamed mixture alternately with milk (vanilla added.) Blend well.

Bake at 375 degrees for 5-10 minutes.

Powdered Sugar Cookies by Helen Guymon

1 lb Butter
1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
1 Egg
1 tsp Baking Powder
About 4 Cups Flour
1 tsp Almond or Vanilla

Mix then add flour and continue beating. Keep adding flour until consistency to roll and cut. Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees or 375.

Powdered Sugar Cookies by Shirley Guymon

1 lb Butter
1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
2 Egg Yolks
1 tsp Vanilla
1/4 tsp Baking Powder
(5 1/2) 6 Cups Cake Flour

Soften butter. Put in electric mixer and beat for 25 minutes.  Add vanilla; powdered sugar and beat well. Add egg yolk and beat thouroughly. Add flour.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Cool and roll in powdered sugar.

Rosettes by Helen Guymon

2 Eggs
2 Tbs Sugar
1/4 tsp Salt
1 Cup Milk
1 Cup Flour
1 Tbs Vanilla

Stir together and fry in hot oil.

1 Cup Honey
1/2 Cup Water
1 Cup Sugar

Boil until thickened.

Jalapeno Popper Dip

So I am finally recovering from my epic Superbowl tragedy this year, at least enough to post this fantastic new recipe. My friend Renee shared this recipe with me and it is phenomenal! I realize big word to describe little a dip, but seriously I could have eaten the entire bowl and that's not the depression speaking because of my team loss this year, it's just that good...

2 pkg Cream Cheese, Softened
1 cup Mayonnaise
1can diced Green Chili's
1can Jalapenos, diced (I like 2 cans but it's too spicy for some peeps)
1 bag shredded Parmesan Cheese

Mix 1/2 bag of Parmesan with all other ingredients and fill a small casserole dish then sprinkle the remainder Parmesan on top. Bake at 375 degrees until bubbly and crisping on top. Serve with tortilla chips.

I bought a bag of homemade tortilla chips that you had to fry prior to using and the combo between fresh hot chips and this dip was delicious despite the horrible game. Enjoy!

Hot Wings Winger's Style

Here is a copycat recipe courtesy of Pinterest and it seriously is exactly like Wingers, YUMM-O and it is so easy...love it!

Ingredients:

1 cup Franks Red Hot Sauce (No substitutions, has to be Franks)
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 bag Tyson Frozen Chicken Wings
1/2 cup Ranch Dressing

Directions For Sauce:

1 cup Franks Red Hot Sauce
1 cup Brown Sugar

Using a sauce pan on low heat add brown sugar and hot sauce. Stir slowly and melt the brown sugar into Frank's Red Hot Sauce.  After a few minutes all the brown sugar should have dissolved into the sauce. If it needs thickening add more brown sugar or let stand.

Directions For Wings:

1 Bag Tyson Frozen Chicken Wings

Prepare anyway you like your wings, you could even use the sauce on breaded chicken strips to make sticky chicken fingers. But, you know us we LOVE to deep fry here so I just bought a bag of Tyson's chicken wings deep fried them for about fifteen minutes. Just until golden brown, threw them in a crock pot on low and then covered them with the sauce to keep them warm.

Directions For Dipping Sauce:

1/2 Cup Ranch Dressing

1/2 Cup Wing Sauce

I poured about half of the sauce over the wings in the crock pot and then used the rest to make the dipping sauce. To make the dipping sauce just mix wing sauce with ranch, seriously that's it. I used homemade ranch dressing and it was awesome.

The only way to make Winger's hot wings at home, Enjoy! 

Brussels Sprouts: 60 Seconds

So one of my favorite things about Bountiful Baskets is that we usually get some type of fruit or vegetable that I wouldn't normally buy at the store and sometimes that I have never even tried. So the fun part is cooking and eating slightly outside of my normal comfort zone. And on a few occasions I have had to call my Grandma Shirley and ask, "What is a persimmon? And how do we eat it.?" This week we got brussels sprouts and nobody at my house had ever tried them and after all they get such a bad rap I have never even thought of buying them. Anyway, after some Internet searching I finally found a technique that I thought would work best for what we normally would eat as a side dish, the result....pretty good. Not something I would want every week but, I am a huge fan of cooked cabbage and it is a very similar taste like a little mini cute cabbage. So I would definitely make them again but, would probably be a little picker with what I served them with since they are a pretty distinct taste.

60 Second Brussels Sprouts:

18 Brussels Sprouts
1 Tbs Olive Oil
1 Lemon
Salt & Pepper
4 Tbs Butter

1. Remove the core of the brussels spout by cutting it out in a triangle shape, like you would the core of a cabbage.
2.  Cut brussels sprouts into really thin slices. If any of the leaves fall off just roll them up and slice thin.
3. Put a Tbs of olive oil in a pan and heat it until it is smoking hot, the trick to cooking these is the high temperature so don't prematurely throw your sprouts in.
4.  When your pan is seriously hot, toss in your brussels sprouts and squeeze a half a lemon over the top and add salt and pepper to taste.
5.  Cook them for exactly 60 seconds on high heat, stirring constantly, and not over cooking.
6. Turn off heat and squeeze other half of lemon over the top and add butter, when butter is melted your ready to serve.

And the bonus, I think they are actually healthy! If you have any questions there are about a million you tube video's on this (seriously), Enjoy!

Mini Pizza

We just made these the other night and its not really something you need a recipe for once you've made them once and have the general idea. These were so fun because my kids made them for dinner and they had a blast cooking their own dinner, so it was fun watching them create their own pizza...and I swear I am going to start remembering to take pictures for the blog someday, pictures make everything better!

 

1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury Grands refrigerated biscuits

1 cup pizza sauce

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (8 oz)

1 package (3.5 oz) sliced pepperoni

 

Press each biscuit into 6-inch round. Place on greased cookie sheets. Top each round with pizza sauce, cheese and pepperoni.  Bake at 375°F 10 to 15 minutes or until bottoms are deep golden brown and cheese is bubbly.

 

Lion House Rolls

These rolls are to die for, if you click on the above picture it should link you to the webapge for this recipe where she has all sorts of pictures and videos. These are a new favorite of mine, I think possibly because they are totally drenched with butter, hot out of the oven they are DELICIOUS!

2 cups warm water
2/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk
2 Tbs dry yeast (2 pkg)
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter
1 egg
5-5 1/2 cups flour

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, combine the water and the milk powder and stir so the milk dissolves.

Add the yeast to this mixture while water and milk is still warm. I let the yeast proof (dissolve and start to react) for a couple of minutes then add the sugar, salt, butter, egg and 2 cups of the flour. Mix on low speed of mixer until ingredients are wet, then turn to medium speed and mix for 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and add 2 more cups of flour then mix on low speed until the ingredients are wet, then turn mixer on medium speed and mix for 2 minutes. The dough will be getting stiff and you may need to remove the bowl from the mixer and mix in the remaining flour by hand (mine is still wet here).

Add approximately 1/2 cup of flour and mix again. (This can be done by hand or mixer). The dough should be soft, not overly sticky, and not stiff. (It is not necessary to use the entire amount of flour). Scrape the dough off the sides of the bowl and pour approximately on tablespoon of vegetable oil all around the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough over in the bowl so it is covered with the oil. (This helps prevent the dough from drying out.) Cover with plastic and allow to rise in a warm place until double in size.

Sprinkle a cutting board or counter with flour and put the dough on the flour. You want to put enough flour on the dough so that it is workable and not sticky.

You can roll these into crescent rolls or do it the traditional Lion House way. Here is a video showing how to roll them the Lion House way. Roll into a rectangle about 1/4 inch thick and brush with melted butter. You want to cut the rectangle into smaller rectangles that are 2"X4" (a little smaller than a dollar bill). If you make and "L" with your thumb and pointer finger that will show you how wide and tall to cut your rectangles.

Then you roll them (or flip them like in the video) and place them on a greased (or parchment lined) baking pans with the end of the roll resting on the pan.

Let rise in a warm place until the rolls are double in size (approx. 1-1 1/2 hours). Bake in a 375-degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until they are browned to your satisfaction. Brush with melted butter while hot. Yields 2 to 2 1/2 dozen rolls.

Oreo Cake

For Rylan's birthday this year he wanted an Oreo cake so I started the hunt for a good recipe, and I ended up finding this fantastic recipe on Pinterest. Honestly this is the best frosting ever....ever! I am a huge Oreo fan and seriously I could make this frosting and skip the cake, it's so good. When I try it again I may try it on cupcakes or just a plain white or even a chocolate cake.  The Oreo cake is good but, combined with the frosting it is really rich. Oreo frosting....I may have to go and make it now.

Oreo Cake:

1 box white cake mix

15 Oreos, crushed 

Cake: Prepare cake according to package directions, stirring in the crushed Oreos to the batter before dividing between prepared pans. Bake as directed on box. Remove cake layers from oven and allow to cool completely on cooling rack.

Oreo Frosting:                                                                                                                                                    

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 (16 oz) box powdered sugar
1 (8 oz) container Cool whip, room temperature
15 Oreos, crushed
¼ tsp. vanilla extract

Frosting: In mixer, cream the cream cheese and sugar. Add vanilla, mix well, and stir in Cool whip. Mix well. Fold in crushed Oreos until well blended & frost cooled cake. Refrigerate cake until ready to serve and refrigerate any leftovers.