Olive Garden's Salad

We made this salad for a dinner party, along with these Olive Garden breadsticks and this delicious spinach tomato tortellini.  Everyone raved about the food, and I thought the salad really was very close to the salad that Olive Garden serves, which I love!!

SALAD:

• 1 bag American Blend Salad (Dole works well) 
• 4-5 slices Red Onion 
• 4-6 Black Olives 
• 2-4 Pickled Pepperoncini or banana peppers
• ½ cup Croutons 
• 1 small Tomato sliced 
• Freshly grated Parmesan Cheese 

DRESSING:

• ½ cup Mayonnaise 
• ⅓ cup White Vinegar 
• 1 tsp. Vegetable Oil 
• 2 Tbsp. Corn Syrup 
• 2 Tbsp. Parmesan Cheese 
• 2 Tbsp. Romano Cheese 
• 1 clove garlic minced 
• ½ tsp. Italian Seasoning 
• ½ tsp. Parsley Flakes 
• 1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice 
• Sugar (optional)

Instructions

Chill a glass salad bowl in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.  While it's chilling, make the dressing first.  Mix all ingredients in a blender until well mixed (approximately 30 seconds). If this is a little to tart for your own personal tastes please add a little extra sugar. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Place the bag of salad in bowl. Place on top of the lettuce – red onion, black olives, pepperoncini or banana peppers, tomatoes, and croutons. Add some freshly grated Parmesan cheese if you like. Add plenty of Salad Dressing on top.  Enjoy!

Festive Mint Cream Dessert

I discovered this recipe today on pinterest, and can't wait to make it for a Christmas dinner party we are having! It sounds absolutely delicious!

Mint ice cream and colorful sprinkles make this cool concoction perfect for holiday parties or meals. For a chocolaty dessert, use rocky road or chocolate ice cream instead.

Original recipe and picture: http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/Festive-Mint-Cream-Dessert

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter, divided
• 1 package (16 ounces) chocolate cream-filled sandwich cookies, crushed
• 8 cups mint chocolate chip ice cream, softened
• 1-1/2 cups milk chocolate chips
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 3/4 cup evaporated milk
• 1 carton (16 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
• Chocolate syrup and red and green sprinkles, optional

Instructions:

1. In a microwave, melt 1/2 cup butter. Stir in cookie crumbs. Press into a 13-in. x 9-in. dish. Freeze for 30 minutes or until firm. Spread ice cream over crust; return to the freezer until firm.
2. In a large saucepan, combine chocolate chips, confectioners' sugar, milk and remaining butter. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Cook and stir for 3-5 minutes or until thickened. Cool to room temperature. When cool, spread over ice cream; return to freezer until firm.
3. Spread whipped topping over ice cream (dish will be full). Cover and freeze for until firm or overnight.
4. Remove from the freezer 15-20 minutes before serving. If desired, drizzle with chocolate syrup and top with sprinkles. Yield: 24 servings.

Gingerbread Men

I've never really found a gingerbread man recipe that I liked until last year. This recipe is from a woman in my ward in Denver, and it's wonderful. I made these cookies again tonight for my piano recital tomorrow.  The cookies are really easy to make, and I love the butterscotch pudding in here. The cookies come out very sweet and delicious and just the right amount of crunchy. Lovely! Katelee and I had a great time making these, and I was surprised at how quickly they went. Try them!

• 3/4 c. butter, softened 
• 3/4 c. brown sugar 
• 1, 4 oz. package of instant Jell-O butterscotch pudding 
• 1 egg 
• 2 c. flour 
• 1 tsp. baking soda 
• 1 T. ground ginger 
• 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Beat the butter, brown sugar, pudding mix, and egg together. (Don't make the pudding, just pour the powder in.) Then gradually add the rest of the ingredients. Roll out on a clean countertop (no flour needed! That's my favorite part!) and cut into gingerbread men shapes or whatever shapes you want. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart, and bake for 8-12 minutes, depending on your oven. (I baked mine for 10 minutes in Denver, and 8 1/2 minutes in Utah.  As soon as the edges looked done, I whipped them out so they didn't get too crispy.)  Cool. Frost, if desired, or serve plain. Delicious!

Peppermint Brownies

I was lucky enough to acquire this recipe a couple of years ago, and without a doubt these are the best mint brownies I have ever tasted. 

CHOCOLATE MINT BROWNIES 

Brownie layer:

1 cup butter
5 Tbsp cocoa
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp peppermint extract

Melt the butter and cocoa together.  Sir in eggs and sugar.  Add flour, salt, and peppermint.  Bake in a greased 9x13" pan at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.  Cool completely.

Mint Frosting:

2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp evaporated milk
6 Tbsp butter
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
4 drops green food coloring

Mix all frosting ingredients until creamy and spread onto brownies.  Refrigerate for one hour.

Glaze topping:

6 Tbsp butter
1 cup chocolate chips

Melt together and then pour gently over green frosting.
Refrigerate again.

One thing I love about these brownies is how easy they are to cut; don't they look pretty in these little bags?  They didn't crumble like some other brownie recipes I have tried.

So, if you are trying to decide what to give your neighbors this year, need a dessert to take to the ward Christmas party, or simply want to make a delicious treat for your family, you know what recipe I would recommend!

Overnight Christmas Caramel French Toast

We had a church Christmas party this morning, and I was asked to make a couple of these casseroles for the breakfast meal.  They were simple to assemble, made my house smell heavenly and tasted simply delicious!  I think we are going to make this and an egg casserole for our Christmas morning breakfast this year!  Make it the night before and then just throw it in the oven in the morning - PERFECT for Christmas morning!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 T. light corn syrup
• 1 loaf of French Bread, cut into 12 slices
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 6 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

The night before:

Grease a 9x13 baking dish.  Cut your french bread into 12 equal slices.  In a small saucepan, bring the brown sugar, butter and corn syrup to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and pour into the greased baking dish.  Top with 6 slices of bread.  Combine the sugar and cinnamon, and sprinkle half the cinnamon sugar mixture over the bread.  Place remaining 6 slices of bread on top of the first 6 slices.  Sprinkle the remaining cinnamon sugar mixture on top of the bread.  In a large bowl, beat the eggs, milk, and vanilla.  Pour over the bread.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning:

Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before baking.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Bake, uncovered, for 30 - 35 minutes.  (You may need to bake it longer, depending on how much it "jiggles." 

Top with your favorite syrup and enjoy!

Butter Baked Chicken

I discovered a recipe like this somewhere on the internet, and tweaked it over time for my own tastes.  Here is the updated recipe we had for dinner yesterday.  Enjoy!  

Ingredients:

• 6-8 chicken breasts (I use boneless skinless)
• 2 12 oz. cans evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 Family Sized can of Cream of Chicken soup
• 1/2 cup water
• mashed potatoes (optional)

Preheat oven to 425.  In a baking dish, place the butter, cut into smaller pieces.  Put the baking dish in the oven while it's preheating so the butter can melt.  (Check it every so often, though, so you don't burn the butter, you just want it nice and melted.)

Meanwhile, pour a little of the evaporated milk in a small dish...just enough to dip your chicken in. After you dip each piece of chicken in the milk, roll it in the flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Place in the baking dish on top of the melted butter and bake for 30 minutes at 425.

While the chicken is cooking, mix water, soup, and what's left of your evaporated milk together. Turn chicken over after 30 minutes of baking time and pour soup mixture on top. Bake for 30 more minutes until nice and golden brown.

This makes LOTS of yummy gravy! This should definitely be served with a side of creamy mashed potatoes to go along with it. Mmmmmm....