Alternative Hawaiian Haystacks

Last night we made Hawaiian Haystacks. But first off I was out of chicken. Secondly I had left over ham and cooked ground sausage. So we had hawaiian haystacks with cubed ham and ground sausage instead of chicken. I loved it. I think I liked it better than chicken.

As a side note, I was also out of pineapple so we did not have that as a topping. I think it would have been good though.

The toppings we had on hand were...

rice, ground sausage, cubed ham, grated colby cheese, coconut, gravy (Cream of chicken soup with a can of milk), crunchy chinese noodles.

For my family of 5 eaters...I made two cans of soup with 2 soup cans of milk...it was just right.

Need recipes from Ward Christmas Party

If you brought something to the ward Christmas party...WE REALLY WANT THE RECIPES!!!!! Everything was so good!

Cheeseball Recipe

Copies of this recipe were out on the RS table...I don't know whose recipe it is or why it was out...but I swiped one and am sharing it with you.

1 pkg cream cheese

1T. worchestershire sauce, or according to taste

1T. milk

Green onion, chopped into small pieces

Chipped/dried beef, chopped into small pieces (found by the canned meats, it will either come in a package or in a small glass jar.)

Mix the first 3 ingredients until it is a smooth consistency. Add green onion and dried beef according to your liking. This recipe will make one small ball. If making for a party, I would double it.

Hawaiin chicken

I made up this new recipe last night. It was really good and the kids liked it too (although my kids aren't very picky). I made fried chicken like I usually do. Then I made sweet and sour sauce like I usually do, except that I didn't have any pineapple juice. So I drained a can of pineapple tidbits (soup can size) and used that juice (it was about 7 oz). After the sweet and sour had thickened, I added the can of pineapple tidbits (when I make it again, I will only add 1/2 of the tidbits). I then placed the chicken in the bottom of a pan and poured the sauce over the top. It would be good over rice, but I didn't think far enough ahead.

Here is a link to my fried chicken

http://just2morebites.blogspot.com/2011/07/fried-chicken.html

here is a link to my sweet and sour sauce

http://just2morebites.blogspot.com/2011/07/sweet-and-sour-sauce-won-ton-sauce.html

Kitchen utencil organization

I have always stored my utencils in a jumbled up drawer. Then when Amy G. taught her organization class she said she stores her in canisters, so I decided to try it. I keep mine in my pantry because I don't have a lot of counter space to start with. I really like it. It makes it easier to find things and gives me more drawer space.

Packet Mixes Organization

This is the way I organize my packet mixes. I take empty taco seasoning boxes (or gravy or whatever) from the grocery store, they fit the packages perfectly. Free and organized!!!

Spice organization

This is how I organize my spices...I think it's a pretty good idea...so I thought I'd share...

This picture is sideways...sorry...inside my cupboard door I have a list of all the spices I have. They are organized alphabetically.

This is a picture of the bins. Each bin has a number on it. The bins are listed on the paper with the spices that go in that bin. These particular bins are about 2 or 4 for $1 at Walmart. On the left are spices that are too big to fit in the bins. I call these "loose" and I have a category on the paper called "loose".

Do you have any Christmas Recipes?

Do you have any recipes that you like to make around this time of year?

Nancy's chicken

Becca N. and I have bragged about this meal before (we have both been lucky enough to have Nancy P. bring it to us after having a baby).

1 whole fryer chicken

clean the chicken.

baste with melted butter or olive oil.

Salt and pepper the chicken.

Bake at 325 degrees for 2 1/2 hours.

Start baking covered with foil. Just before done remove the foil to brown.

Serve with stove top, mashed potatoes and root vegetables (potatoes, carrots, onions) sprinkled with parsley. You can cook the root vegs at the same time as the chicken (I can't remember how long though?!?!?!)

I have made this before it is moist and delicious and easy.

Three sauces

I just found these recipes from a RS activity at Evelyn's house a while back. They served these sauces with pulled pork over rice. I'm sure you could do it on buns too. I think they would be good with meatballs too. I'm not sure whose recipes they actually are (maybe Jan's???). I remember liking all three.

Sweet and Sour Sauce

1 C. sugar

1/2 C. white vinegar

1/2 C. water or pineapple juice

1 clove minced garlic

1 tsp. paprika

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp corn starch

1 T. cold water

Green pepper to taste, chopped chunky

Onion to taste, chopped chunky

Large can pineapple chunks

Combine sugar, vinegar, water, salt, paprika, garlic. Boil for 5 minutes. Put cornstarch in a small bowl and ass 1 T. cold water. Whisk with fork until smooth. Pour cornstarch mixture into boiling mixture stirring constantly until smooth. Mixture will thicken. Add green peppers and onions and pineapple chunks. Let simmer until peppers and onion are tenderized a little, but still crisp. If mixture is not thick enough, repeat the cornstarch step.

Quick Sweet and Sour Sauce

1 bottle Toshibas Hawaiian sweet and sour sauce

1 large can chunk pineapple juice and all.

1/2 C. water

green pepper, coarsely cut

onion, coarsely cut

Simmer all above until peppers and onions are a little tender but still crunchy.

ou can only find this sauce during the late summer/early fall at Sam's (big bottle) or Maceys (small bottle). It is seasonal. So if you find it...stock up.

BBQ sauce

1 C. ketchup

1 C. brown sugar

1/4 C. white sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp prepared mustard

4 T. vinegar

Mix everything. Microwave just long enough to melt sugars. Pour over cooked meat. If you don't use all the sauce, refrigerate, microwave to liquify sugars when used again. Do not use this BBQ sauce to cook with the meat. The high sugar content will burn under normal cooking conditions. Great for southern pulled pork sandwiches with fruit coleslaw on top.

Peanut Clusters

This is another one from Alayna that I got last year.

1 1/2 bags choco chips (she did 2 full bags)

2 or 3 C. peanuts (spanish or cocktail) (She did 4 C.)

melt choco chips (stove or micro). Add peanuts. Drop by spoonfuls. Proportions of choco and peanuts really don't matter. Good refrigerated.

English Toffee

Alayna M. brought this to me last Christmas and I asked her for the recipe.

2 1/2 C. sugar

1/2 C. karo

1 1/2 C. blanched slivered almonds

1 lb. butter

1/2 C. water

1 lb. dipping chocolate (or hersheys bars)

3/4 lb. chopped walnuts (she uses a little less)

Boil sugar, water, karo, almonds and butter. Stir constantly. Cook until nuts are brown. Similar to the color of almond skins. This can take around 30 min. Spread on ungreased cookie sheet. Melt choco immediately after spreading toffee. Spread choco and sprinkle with walnuts. Pound walnuts into choco with the back of a spoon. Allow to cool overnight. Tap the bottom of the pan with a knife or hammer until it cracks. break up remaining toffee.

Pretzel Jello

This is what I took to Thanksgiving this year. I will post 2 variations of the recipe. The one with pineapple is the one I tend to make and the one with just strawberries is from my sis-in-law. They are both good.

Pretzels, crushed (not to a powder, but into pieces). Measuring 2 2/3 C. after crushed.

3/4 C. melted margarine or butter

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 C. white sugar

12 oz. coolwhip, divided (I do Fat Free)

2 C. boiling water

6 oz strawberry jello

10 oz. frozen sliced strawberries, thawed (save juice)

20 oz can crushed pineapple (drained well)

Put pretzels in the bottom of a cake pan. Pour melted butter over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Cool completely (at least 1 hour).

Blend softened cream cheese, sugar and 8 oz. coolwhip (not all 12 oz). Spread over cooled pretzels.

Mix water and gelatin until dissolved. Add strawberries with juice and drained pineapple. Pour carefully over cream cheese layer. Let set in fridge.

Once set. Spread the remaining coolwhip over the top.

Version #2

2 C. crushed pretzels

3T. sugar

3/4 C. melted butter

8 oz cream cheese, room temp.

1/2 C. sugar

small carton cool whip

20 oz frozen sliced strawberries, or 1 qt. fresh (sliced)

6 oz. strawberry jello

2 C. boiling water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix the pretzels, 3 T. sugar and melted butter. Put into a 9 X 13 pan. Bake for 7-8 min until toasty. Set aside to cool.

Beat together cream cheese, cool whip and 1/2 C. sugar. Spread over cooled crust.

Combine strawberries, jello and boiling water until jello is dissolved. Let stand in refrigerator until partially jelled, then pour over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate until set.

Aunt Olive's Noodle Soup

This is a family recipe. It is a soup that you bottle. It is a little time intensive to cut everything up and bottle it in the summer, but it sure make a fast, yummy meal when you go to use it.

I have also cut down the recipe before and made it for one meal (not bottling it). See recipe below.

1/2 bushel tomatoes

1/4 C. salt

1 C. sugar

1 tsp. pepper

9 C. macaroni (cooked)

3 large bell peppers

1 bunch celery

5 medium yellow onions

1/2 lb. real butter

Melt butter in skillet. Add celery, onions and peppers until light brown.

Peel tomatoes, cut into small pieces. Cook all other ingredients. Boil hard for 15 minutes.

Mix together.

Put into clean bottles. Cold pack pints for 20 minutes. Quarts for 25 minutes.

Makes about 35 pints.

The last time we made this we tripled everything except we only doubled the tomatoes. It made 16-24 quarts. It took a total of 4-5 hours.

When you serve this it will probably need pepper. To stretch it you can puree a bottle of tomatoes and add to it. Some other variations are to add cooked hamburger or cooked sausage when serving. You can also top with parmesan cheese or regular cheese when serving.

I know Sister Dabb has a recipe that is VERY similar that she made for RS one time. She doesn't add the noodles to hers (before bottling). Then she can make the soup with rice or noodles. It's a good idea, but it's also nice to just open a bottle and have an immediate meal.

These are the quantities to cut it down to a single dinner...

5 tomatoes, blended in blender .......When I was done it was too thick, so I blended a large can of stewed tomatoes and added it. (you could probably just add more tomatoes at the beginning or use bottled tomatoes instead of stewed.)

1 T. salt

3 T. splenda or sugar

A few shakes of pepper

3-4 handfuls of noodles (curly or macaroni or whatever), this is about 2 1/2 C. cooked and drained

1 bell pepper, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 tsp. oil

Fry the vegs in oil until tender. Mix everything together and heat through.

Grandma's Soft Yummy Christmas Balls

This is what I'm bringing to the ward Christmas party. What did you bring?

Leave about 2.5-3 hours total to make these. (which includes cool whip softening time and cooling time once formed).

Makes approx 36 (depending on spoonful size)

3 king size hersheys bars (I prefer 2 with almonds and 1 without) (they are approx 7 oz. each but not exactly)

12 oz of cool whip (I did Fat Free), before using leave out for an hour or so to soften

Graham cracker crumbs, crushed with a rolling pin inside a ziploc (I used 1/2 of 1 sleeve)

1 T. crisco (only if melting chocolate in microwave)

Melt chocolate in the top of a double boiler or cook in the microwave for a minute or two. (If you melt it in the microwave, add 1 T. of crisco to the chocolate before microwaving). If doing in the microwave, stir every 30-45 sec or so.

Blend in softened coolwhip.

Spoon into crushed graham cracker crumbs. Roll into a ball.

Place on wax paper to cool.

You can refrigerate to speed up the cooling process.

I would think if you were making the day before you would want to keep them refrigerated.