This is the chicken salad recipe I have made for years. The paper that the recipe is written on is rapidly deteriorating so I finally decided to put it here before it is lost forever. This is the basic recipe but I change the ingredients depending on my mood. The only thing I don't change is the mayo mixture with the exception of sometimes adding extra pineapple juice. Like I said, we love pineapple. 

The salad is great by itself or as a sandwich. I especially love it with croissants or on a good wheat bread. I love to serve it with fruit. It tastes like a summer picnic. 

​​Ingredents:
​8 oz chunk pineapple (I pretty much always use much more than this because we all love pineapple)
2 TBS pineapple juice (reserved from can of pineapple)
4 cups diced cooked chicken
1/4 cup chopped celery
2 TBS chopped green onions
1/3 cup toasted slivered almonds
1/3 cup raisins (you can use grapes if you prefer)
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 TBS Dijon mustard
3/4 tsp curry powder
1/8 tsp salt

Drain pineapple reserving 2 TBS juice. 
Combine pineapple, chicken and next 4 ingredients
In a separate bowl combine pineapple juice, mayonnaise, and the next three ingredients. Add to chicken mixture. Cover and chill. 

I am not a baker at all, but my friend Randi makes the best cookies I have ever eaten. This year I decided to find a recipe that could maybe compete with hers. I think I have found it. These chocolate chip cookies have just a drop of sea salt sprinkled on the top. The saltiness perfectly accentuates the flavors of the cookie. This is the only cookie I will ever make.  I doubled the recipe and would definitely recommend doing that every time. 

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2  cup salted butter (room temperature)
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup + 2 tsp granulated sugar
1 large egg at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Sea Salt Flakes (I have a grater I used)
Instructions: 
Preheat oven to 375. Prepare cookie sheets by placing parchment paper on them. 
1 Combine flour and baking soda to a mixing bowl. (I sifted the flour into the bowl to make it nice and fluffy). Whsk the two ingredients to combine. 
2 In a large bowl add softened butter and both sugars. Beat until mixture is smooth and fluffy. 
3. Add egg and vanilla, beat on low speed until combined. 
4. Add flour, half of the mixture at a time, beat until combined. Be sure to not overmix. 
5. Add chocolate chips and stir together with a wooden spoon. 
6. Cover bowl and chill at least 30 minutes (I chilled two days because I got busy and couldn't get back to it)
7. Use a teaspoon to create rounded balls. Place on parchment paper a couple of inches apart. Add 1 or 2 chocolate chips to the top of the scoops of dough. 
8. Bake at 375 for about 10 minutes until the cookies are golden brown. I like my cookies on the crunchy side so watch that first batch closely. I noticed that even a few seconds made a big difference. 
9. When you remove the cookies from the oven, sprinkle a few flakes of sea salt on each cookie. I have a sea salt grater that I used. Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for about five minutes and then finish cooling on a rack. 

My son asked me to make chicken and dumplings tonight. I have never been able to get it right, but I tried something new. Both he and my husband loved it so I'm going to have to put here to remember what I did. 

Ingredients: 
4 chicken  breasts
MirePoix Style Blend onions, carrots and celery (12 oz-frozen)
32 oz chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 tsp minced garlic
2 cans buttermilk biscuits


Directions:
I was going to chop my own onions and celery, but then I found the Mirepox blend while looking for a bag of frozen peas and carrots. It is a Thursday night of the week with the  largest full moon in 68 years, and I teach in a middle school so I was thrilled to go with the shortcut. It was the best decision I have made in a long time. If you want to chop your own vegetables, I used half of the bag-- about 6 oz --of finely diced onions, carrots, and celery. Next time I would use the whole bag. Saute the vegetables in a large cooking pot in either a tablespoon of butter or olive oil with a teaspoon of minced garlic  Saute for about three minutes until the vegetables are soft. Add the chicken broth to the pan. I cut the chicken breasts up into quarters to help the chicken cook a little faster and added it to the broth. Boil the chicken over a medium heat until the chicken is cooked through. My chicken was cooked through in about 11 minutes because I had cut it up. 

Remove the cooked chicken from the pan and cool it. Once it is cool, shred the chicken and add back to the pot. Add the cream of chicken and cream of celery soups and bring to a boil. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Take one can of biscuits and tear the biscuits into quarters and add them to the soup. Stir to wet the dough. Simmer until the dumplings are cooked through (15 minutes worked perfectly for me). Eat.

Once all of the dumplings were removed, I brought the pot back to a boil and repeated the dumpling process. This helped the dumplings to cook perfectly without getting sticky.  

The recipe received a 9 from the honest and picky husband and a 10 from the always appreciative son. 


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I'm not a big fan of mac-n-cheese, but I really liked this recipe that belongs to my good friend Shannon's mom. I only have it in a series of text messages now so I guess I better put it here before I lose it and have to bother Shannon for it again. 

8 oz of macaroni cooked for 6 minutes
1 can evaporated milk
3 cups sharp cheddar cheese
1.5 cups mlk
salt to taste
1 egg
3 tbs butter

Put everything in a slow cooker and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours. Simple, but I totally ruined it the last time I made it by forgetting to plug the slow cooker into the electrical socket. Soaking for three hours and then cooking for three hours makes for a huge pot of mush! So for me... plug cooker into electrical outlet and then turn to high. Very yummy and easily doubled. 

My son had his best friend spending the night, and I needed to throw something together for dinner. I had chicken, Vidalia onions, and some canned chunk pineapple so I threw together this dish. They have now been named after my son's friend Ezra who ate them as a late night snack and insisted that the recipe be delivered to his mother. So Tracie... here you go! 

Ingredients
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup honey
pepper to taste
2 tsp minced garlic
3-4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts (6-8 medium)2 onions

a can of pineapple chunks

Place the first five ingredients into a large bowl and stir. Set aside part of the marinade for basting during cooking.  
Cut the chicken into 1 inch cubes and add to the mixture.
Cut the onions into 1 inch pieces and add to the mixture.
Mix, cover, and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. I think overnight would be much better if you have the time! 

After mixture has marinated Soak about 12-14 wooden skewers in water and begin threading on onion, chicken, and pineapple. 

Heat up the grill and cook on a medium high heat for about 20 minutes. Baste with the marinade that you set aside and turn as needed. 

These turned out to be really good.. The next time I make them, I will try adding some of the juice from the pineapple to the marinade. I think 2 or 3 tablespoons will make it even better. 

 I found this recipe at realkitchenmom.com and it is one I have used repeatedly.  My family loves this Bolognese sauce, and my favorite thing about it is that it is made in the slow cooker. I love throwing it all together and coming back to it hours later. The whole house smells wonderful and the tastes are all so nicely blended together. It makes a ton, and I am always able to freeze part of it. I finally had to put the recipe here so that I could find it without having to  search through my Pinterest page. I LOVE the grocery store Aldi. I get everything I need there to make this dish which makes this recipe even more affordable as well as tasty.. 

Slow Cooker Bolognese Sauce

• 2 pounds ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 8 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 (14 oz) cans chopped tomatoes, drained
• 3 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce
• 2 (6 oz) cans tomato paste
• 1 1/2 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 2 teaspoons dried marjoram
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

1. Cook beef in large skillet until browned.

2. Drain the grease and transfer to a large slow cooker. Add all of the ingredients to the, mix well.

3. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

GRILLED PORK LOIN

2 1/2 - 3 lb. boneless pork loin, split lengthwise
1 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. sherry
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Combine soy sauce, sherry, salt, ginger, dry mustard and garlic powder. Place pork loin in a bag or shallow pan. Pour marinade over pork; cover and marinate at least 2 hours, turning the meat occasionally.(I like to marinate at overnight)

Place loin on grill 6 to 8 inches above low coals. Grill 1 to 1 1/2 hours, turning frequently. Brush with marinade several times during cooking. To serve, cut in thin slices.  Makes 4 to 6 servings.

I had the best artichoke dip years ago, and I have spent years trying to find a recipe that closely resembled it. This is my far the best! I took it to work recently, and everyone loved it. I doubled the recipe and it disappeared quickly. 

1 lb mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 cup parmesan, grated
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup artichoke heart, drained and chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced

Put all of the ingredients in a slow cooker and cook on high for 1 hour. I like to serve with crackers.