Pam's Super Easy Enchiladas

A K. family favorite, modified by me. This is now our absolute favorite dinner and we count down the days between when we can have it again (because if we didn't care about a balanced diet, we'd probably eat it daily).

1 package flour medium flour tortillas (10 count) (We prefer the Don Julio brand...)

Enchilada sauce (red or green) - 1 large (20 oz.) can or 2 small (approx. 10 oz.) cans

Shredded Mexican Cheese blend (16 oz. total)

~ 1 cup sour cream

2/3 cup black olives

1/3 cup green olives

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Cube chicken into small pieces and fry in pan with a little olive oil.

Chop black and green olives (I use my food processor because I'm too cheap to buy pre-chopped olives).

Mix cubed, cooked chicken, chopped olives, and sour cream in a bowl.

Pour a small amount of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish - just enough to cover.

Fill tortillas with chicken mixture and cheese and roll them up. Place in baking dish, seam down. You'll have to fit them in fairly tightly for 10 enchiladas to fit but they should just fit. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the enchiladas and top with cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes - or until heated through and cheese and sauce is bubbling.

Allow to sit for a few minutes after removing from oven. These are excellent as left-overs, also.

Sherri's Banana Bread

2 1/2 cups flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup soft butter

1 beaten egg

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (3 small)

1/2 cup milk

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts and pecans

Makes 1 loaf

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease 9"x5"x3" loaf pan. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt- set aside. Beat sugar, butter, and egg until smooth. Add bananas and milk. Mix well. Add flour mixture, beating till smooth. Stir in nuts. Bake about 1 hour. Let cool 10 minutes. Remove and cool completely on rack.

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

Prep Time: 10 Minutes Cook Time: 20 Minutes Ready In: 30 Minutes Servings: 6

INGREDIENTS:

1 medium onion, chopped (or 1 Tablespoon dried onion flakes) 2 tablespoons butter or margarine 2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth 2 cups sliced peeled potatoes 2 cups canned cooked pumpkin 2 cups milk

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1 cup sour cream 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley 3 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

DIRECTIONS:

1.

In a large saucepan, saute onion in butter until tender. Add the broth, potatoes and pumpkin; cook until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat; cool. Puree half of the mixture at a time in a blender or food processor until smooth; return all to the pan. Add the milk, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, salt and pepper; heat through. Meanwhile, combine the sour cream and parsley. Spoon soup into bowls; top each with a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle with bacon.

Ranch roasted potatoes

1 oz. (2 T.)  Hidden Valley ranch salad dressing & seasoning mix
2 lbs. Small red potatoes, quartered
1/4 cup vegetable oil (or olive oil)

Preheat oven to 450F.

Place potatoes in gallon sized ziplock bag and add oil; seal bad & toss to coat.
Add salad dressing mix and toss again until coated.
Bake in u breaded baking pan at 450F for 30 to 35 minutes or until potatoes are brown and crisp. If using glass pan, reduce heat to 425F.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Chocolate Syrup

Homemade Chocolate Syrup
Ingredients
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup cold water
¼ teaspoon salt
2-3 teaspoons vanilla extract
Method
In a medium saucepan, whisk cocoa and sugar until all the lumps of cocoa are gone. Add water and salt and mix well with whisk. Cook over medium heat, bringing it to a boil. Keep boiling until thick, stirring to keep from scalding.
Remove from heat and allow to cool. When cool, add vanilla. Pour into an airtight glass container or a squeeze bottle and keep refrigerated.
To make chocolate milk, use at least 1 tablespoon of syrup for every 8 ounces of milk, adding more to taste.
Makes about 1 3/4 cups.

Aunt Jill's Sweet and Sour Meatballs

This is a recipe my Aunt Jill gave me and has been a favorite ever since. (This recipe may be a little "Well, duh! I know how to boil water!" But my Aunt made this recipe for me when I was still learning how to cook. And boy did it help! She lovingly wrote out an entire box of recipes for me that I still use as staples in my meal menu.)

Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Ingredients
3 to 4 cups cooked rice
1-1/2 lb. ground beef formed into meatballs and cooked (See recipe for Spinach Meatballs)
2 to 3 cups sweet and sour sauce (see recipe)
1 lg. can chunk pineapple (save juice, you will use it)

Cook rice first. While it is cooking, prepare meatballs and cook them. In large pot prepare sweet and sour sauce reserving pineapple chunks. Put cooked meatballs into pot with sauce. Stir gently to coat meatballs and mix in pineapple. Serve over cooked rice. Serves 6.

Spinach Meatballs
Ingredients
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen, chopped spinach, drained well
1/2 med. onion, finely chopped (I substitute dried onion flakes to taste, not sure how much I use)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 to 1-1/2 lb. ground beef
2 to 3 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese
2 to 3 slices dry bread, in crumbs (Veggie Thin crackers are also yummy!)
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Blend together well and form into half dollar sized balls. Coat cookie sheet with tin foil. Place meatballs on cookie sheet and place on highest oven rack. Broil on "low broil" setting and turn once. (Watch carefully so they don't over-cook.) Or bake at 500 degrees F in center of oven for about 10 minutes.

Sweet and Sour Sauce
Ingredients
2 cups water and/or pineapple juice
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
4 heaping Tbsp. cornstarch dissolved in cold water (about 1/3 cup water)

Bring water and/or juice to a boil. Add vinegar, sugar, and ketchup. Stir until sugar is dissolved and mixture returns to a low boil. Pour some cornstarch mixture into liquid a little at a time and stir constantly. Continue adding cornstarch mixture until sauce thickens to right consistency. Remove from heat and keep covered until ready to use.

*At Chinese restaurants, I also see them include sweet bell peppers with the pineapple. This is very good but my tummy doesn't like peppers. But I thought I'd throw the suggestion out there.

Pumpkin Bread for machines