Black Bean Soup

The cold weather is here for some of us and when it is cold there is nothing like a bowl of warm soup. This is so easy and takes only about 10 min of work in the kitchen.

2 cans black beans
2 cans chicken broth
1 tsp. salt
3 cups cooked rice
avacado, sliced
grated cheese
tortilla chips, crushed
sour cream

Blend together the black beans with one of the cans chicken broth. Add mixture, other can of chicken broth, and salt to a large pan. Cook on medium heat. In individual bowls, layer the rice, then the soup, then the other toppings.

Bread Stick Mummy Dogs

I'm going to make these for a Halloween party tonight. I think they look really cute. What kid wouldn't want to eat a Mummy Dog?

Bread Stick Mummy Dogs
1 roll/pkg Pillsbury Bread Stick dough (12 count)
12 hot dogs
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Unroll all 12 bread sticks from package. Cut each into 3 equal strips. Take 3 strips, one at a time and wrap around 1 hot dog starting from the top of the hot dog. (Each hot dog has 3 thin bread stick strips around it). Leave a small space towards the top of the hot dog to make mustard eyes. Continue wrapping all dogs then place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
2. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes. Use mustard or ketchup for the eyes.

Variation:

I found another recipe for this same dish using Rhodes Dinner Rolls.

For each Mummy Dog, cut one dinner roll in half. Roll each half into a 22-24" rope. Wrap one rope around hot dog from bottom up 4 1/2" leaving the top part of the hot dog exposed. Cut a 1 1/2" piece off the second rope and set aside. Wrap the second rope around the hot dog going the opposite direction. Wrap the 1 1/2" piece around the top of the hot dog. Place Mummy Dogs on a sprayed baking sheet and bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven, cool slightly and add mustard eyes. Serve warm with ketchup and mustard.

Pumpkin Spice Blossoms

I found this on a great recipe blog, http://www.picky-palate.com/
I haven't tried it, but they sound really good. I think you could use a regular chocolate kiss if you can't find the pumpkin flavor. Yum!

Pumpkin Spice Blossoms
1 Spice Cake Mix 18.25 oz
14 oz can Libby’s Pumpkin
½ Cup sanding sugar
1 bag Hershey’s Pumpkin Spice Kisses
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer beat the cake mix and pumpkin until well combined, about 45 seconds. With a cookie scoop, scoop dough and roll top half in sanding sugar (dough is sticky) then place onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet. Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until cooked through. Quickly transfer to a cooling rack and immediately press kisses into the center of each cookie. I immediately place cooling rack into the fridge for 15 minutes so the kisses don’t melt. I tried both ways and it melts down if just left at room temperature. Enjoy!
About 36 cookies

Update:

I tried this recipe and I made a few modifications. The cookies turned out good and everyone thought they were yummy. I used regular sugar instead of the sanding sugar and chocolate kisses instead of pumpkin flavor. I thought the dough was too sticky to handle and roll in the sugar, so I just sprinkled some on the top of the dough after it was on the cookie sheet. I used a greased cookie sheet instead of the parchment paper.

Cashew Chicken Casserole

So, I think it's been long enough since I've been a member and not posted a thing so here it comes...
I've not made this myself, but I helped a friend this past week and I intend to use this often as a regular. And, since I observed, I don't have specific amounts of the ingredients, or a picture :).

3-4 chicken breasts
diced onion
diced celery
cashews
1 can Cream of Chicken soup, plus one can water
Chow Mein noodles

Cook and cut up chicken. Add onion, celery, cashews, soup and water. Mix well. Pour into 9x13 pan and top with Chow Mein noodles. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes (long enough for the onion and celery to soften as desired). I intend to serve this over rice, although that's not how we ate it at my friend's. Enjoy!
Monica

Peanut Butter & Chocolate Cookie Cups

Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 2/3 cups peanut butter & chocolate morsels
2 large eggs
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease mini-muffin cups. Beat butter and sugar in small mixer bowl until creamy. Add flour and beat until mixture is evenly moist and crumbly. Roll rounded teaspoon of dough into a ball, press onto bottom and halfway up side of muffic cup. Repeat with remaining dough. Place a couple (5 or so) morsels in each cup.
Beat eggs in medium bowl with whisk. Stir in sweetened condensed milk and vanilla. Spoon into muffin cups, filling almost to the top of each cup. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven to wire rack. Gently run knife around edges of cookies. Let centers flatten. While still warm, top cookies with morsels. (they will soften and retain their shape.) Cool completely in pan on wire rack. With tip of knife, release cookies from cups.

Manicotti

Ingredients:
16 oz. Ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 egg
1 Tbsp parsley (or add spinach)
2 tbsp Parmesan Cheese
Salt & Pepper
8 oz. pkg manicotti shells
1 bottle favorite spaghetti sauce


In large bowl, mix first 6 ingredients, only using 1/2 the mozarella. Cook manicotti shells, rinse with cool water and drain. Fill manicotti shells with mixture. Place in 9x13 inch dish. Pour spaghetti sauce over; cover with remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 - 30 minutes.

(I made this for dinner last night and it was really easy and I thought it was good. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture.)

Zucchini Parmesan

The garden is coming on and you probably have lots of zucchini like me. So I found a new recipe:

Zucchini Parmesan
From Cooking Light

1 pound zucchini, cut lenghtwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
6 garlic cloves, peeled
Olive oil-flavored cooking spray
1/2 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 cup 2% reduced-fat milk
1/2 cup fat-free ricotta cheese
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat broiler. Lightly coat zucchini and garlic with cooking spray; place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Broil 5 minutes or until garlic and zucchini are lightly browned. Remove garlic from baking sheet; mince. Set zucchini aside. Combine the garlic, breadcrumbs, and parmesan cheese; set aside. Combine milk and next 5 ingredients (milk through egg) in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Combine tomatoes, basil and oil in a bowl; set aside.
Preheat oven to 400º.

Spread 1/2 cup milk misture in bottom of an 11x7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrance zucchini slices over milk mixture to cover the bottom of the dish, and top with 1/3 cup breadcrumb mixture and 1/2 cup milk mixture. Repeat layers, ending with the zucchini. Top with the tomato mixture, and sprinkle with the remaining breadcrumb mixture. Bake at 400º for 45 minutes or until bubbly and brown.

Yield: 6 servings

CALORIES 135 (31% from fat); FAT 4.6g (sat 1.8g,mono 1.8g,poly 0.4g); IRON 1.1mg; CHOLESTEROL 45mg; CALCIUM 176mg; CARBOHYDRATE 15.4g; SODIUM 486mg; PROTEIN 9.8g; FIBER 0.9g