TheKitchenCookie

About once a year I get really hungry for the potato salad we used to make in the summer at home. And with the grilling season here it's a great as a side dish. This was also standard fare at funeral meals when I was growing up. It's a tasty tried and true recipe. I love the crunch the celery adds to the tangy sweetness of the salad. 6 cups shoestring potatoes 7 hard boiled eggs 2 Tablespoons finely chopped onion 1 cup celery, diced Dressing: 1½ cups Miracle Whip 3 Tablespoons prepared mustard ¼ cup milk 1 cup sugar 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar 1 teaspoon salt Bake potatoes and cool completely. Remove the skins and shred along with the hard boiled eggs. Add the celery and onion. In a separate bowl mix the dressing ingredients and pour over potato mixture. Stir with a rubber spatula until evenly mixed. Happy Weekend to everyone! Come party here! Stonegable, Creative Blog Hop, Sunday Showcase, See Ya In The Gumbo ...

This cheesecake idea has been bouncing around in my head for a pretty long time. I had a picture in my mind of what I wanted it to look like but knew the flavors of it wouldn't really excite any of the big eaters in my house and so was reluctant to make it until I thought of the cute little 6 inch cheesecake pan in my pantry. And I was pretty sure my neighbor Myma would be happy to see me coming again.☺ I wanted it to be fluffier than a regular cheesecake so I decided to add just the whites of two eggs beaten stiff and folded in. Worked like a charm. It's very fluffy and doesn't seem as heavy. The almond flavor is very nice with the dark sweet cherry sauce. For the Crust: ¾ cup chocolate graham crackers 1 Tablespoon Dark Chocolate Cocoa Powder 1½ Tablespoons sugar 2½ Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted Mix thoroughly and press in the bottom of a sprayed 6 inch Springform Pan. Bake at 300° for 7 minutes. Allow to cool. For the Cheesecake: 8...

 I found a dressing at the grocery that sounded, (and tasted) really yummy but... it had that nasty ingredient, MSG! Growl, why not just leave that OUT of food?!! Anyway I decided move on and do my best to come up with something similar that is minus the chemicals. I mean, bad-for-you chemicals and the word food should never be in the same sentence. Right?! Okay, I'm gonna go ahead and climb down from my 'high horse' now and share it with you.☺ Mine was not thick like the bought stuff but had a really good flavor. It was more of a marinade than a dressing. Ingredients: 1 cup buttermilk ½ cup sour cream ½ cup canola oil ¼ cup white balsamic vinegar ¼ cup sugar ¼ cup water 2½ teaspoons lemon juice 1 TBS. dried onion flakes 1 TBS. Roasted Garlic and Herb Seasoning ¾ teaspoon Smoked Sea Salt 2 teaspoons cornstarch 2 TBS. fresh red bell peppers, finely diced Fresh Parsley Fresh Dill 8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, ...

 We spent a relaxing weekend at the family cabin in the mountains over the last weekend hanging out with my husbands family. He has two siblings out of state that we don't get to see real often now that most of us have children in school, so this is usually a good time for catching up again. Saturday breakfast is usually prepared by my MIL and this year she made this delicious, easy to prepare breakfast casserole. The smoked and cottage cheeses add so much yummy flavor! The recipe calls for cheddar but I could only find a smoked blend of cheddar and swiss and that worked well too. I served it yesterday at the brunch I hosted and the ladies gave it good reviews. Thanks Mom for allowing me to share it here. ☺ Ingredients: 3 cups cooked, shredded Potatoes (I used frozen shredded hash browns, thawed.) ¼ cup butter, melted ¼ cup onion, chopped 1-1¼ lb. ham, small cubes 2 cups smoked cheddar cheese, shredded and divided 1 (16...

Cool and Refreshing! The heat is amazing these last few days and calls for something cool and refreshing! I hosted a ladies brunch this morning and served this refreshing Citrus-y Mint Tea. I am told my husband's Grandmother served this tea quite a bit and it became her signature drink, so I thought I would give it a try. I had fun with the photo shoot as you can see ☺ but it really is too warm to work outside if there is nothing very pressing to do out there so I had plenty of time to play around with it. The blue hydrangeas and the calla lilies are favorites of mine too and were gifted to me a few years ago. Ingredients: 2 cups fresh mint leaves, packed 3 cups cold water Blend and put through a sieve. Discard the leaves then add: 2 cups sugar 2 (12 oz.each) frozen lemonade concentrate 2 (6 oz.each) frozen orange juice concentrate Add enough water and ice to make 2 gallon. This would make...

Today is shaping up to be VERY warm! I was out picking more raspberries and Anthony's been doing a little mowing, so I've determined we will replenish with an afternoon 'cocktail' of Spark and Rehydrate from our favourite, Advocare . My favourite is a mix of Mango Pineapple Rehydrate and Mandarin Orange Spark . The rehydrate does a terrific job of replacing electrolytes and the Spark gives you a boost of energy and sharpens your mental focus. By afternoon on any given day who doesn't need those two things?! Taking an Advocare break while building our new deck For several years my husband, Linford, struggled with working in the heat. He would come home with headaches and muscle cramps and no energy for the kids. He was trying everything out there to stay hydrated, Gatorade, water, Propel, etc. etc. but nothing seemed to work. Since using Rehydrate and Spark he's a different man and has energy to spare and no headaches or muscle cramps. Yippe...

Delicious Summertime! We had a wonderful all day gentle rain on Tuesday. The berry picking next morning was perfect! The berries felt clean, the air was clean, the birds were singing and there was a wonderful breeze. I really enjoy picking raspberries, in case you didn't catch on there. haha - Several years ago we planted a row of 10 Black Raspberry plants in the garden and they have faithfully satisfied us. They are much easier to pick than strawberries, although very pricker-y. Our Small Group from church was planning to come over last evening so I thought it would be nice to serve them fresh, warm Raspberry Cobbler with ice cream. We also have a row of Red Raspberries elsewhere that we are enjoying right now, so I mixed the two together for this. An easy dessert that is also - DEE- licious!! I'm enjoying the lillies in the bed by the garden. Here's the recipe: 5 cups fresh Raspberries 1½ cups sugar Stir together and...