I know there used to be a recipe thread, but I couldn't find it so I thought I'd start a new one and since a few people had asked others for their recipe for their "specialty", here goes.....I think the title is self explanatory.

Crock pot Spaghetti Sauce (you have to have a BIG crock pot to make this.  If you don't, you can cut the meat in 1/2)

1 lb ground beef, browned & drained
1 lb. Italian sausage, browned & drained
2 large cans crushed or diced tomatoes
1 small can of tomato paste
about 1 cup of chopped onion
(I measure the next ingredients with my hands so I'll try my best to approximate, of course, season to taste)
1 TBSP garlic powder
2-3 TBSP minced garlic
2-3 TBSP onion powder
pinch of thyme
3 TBSP oregano
3 tsp salt
1 tsp rosemary

combine all in a crock pot and cook on low 7-8 hours or high 4-5 hours (until onions are transparent)

I know there used to be a recipe thread, but I couldn't find it so I thought I'd start a new one and since a few people had asked others for their recipe for their "specialty", here goes.....I think the title is self explanatory.

Crock pot Spaghetti Sauce (you have to have a BIG crock pot to make this.  If you don't, you can cut the meat in 1/2)

1 lb ground beef, browned & drained
1 lb. Italian sausage, browned & drained
2 large cans crushed or diced tomatoes
1 small can of tomato paste
about 1 cup of chopped onion
(I measure the next ingredients with my hands so I'll try my best to approximate, of course, season to taste)
1 TBSP garlic powder
2-3 TBSP minced garlic
2-3 TBSP onion powder
pinch of thyme
3 TBSP oregano
3 tsp salt
1 tsp rosemary

combine all in a crock pot and cook on low 7-8 hours or high 4-5 hours (until onions are transparent)



that sounds really good, Kim. I will have to try it sometime...I love cooking in my crock pot.

Here are a couple of desserts that my family loves...

Chess Cake

INGREDIENTS
1 (18.5 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1/2 cup butter, softened
3 eggs
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
4 cups confectioners' sugar
DIRECTIONS
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch cake pan.
-In a large bowl mix together cake mix, butter and 1 egg. Pat batter into greased 9x13 inch pan.
-In a medium size mixing bowl mix together cream cheese, 2 eggs and sugar. Pour the cream cheese mixture over the cake mix batter.
-Bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown.


Magic Cookie Bars

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

Quite appropriate for this time of year, methinks. 



INGREDIENTS:

    * Crust (see Notes below):
    * 2 cups finely crushed ginger snaps cookies
    * 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
    * 6 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted
    * Filling:
    * 3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
    * 1 cup sugar, divided use
    * 1 tsp vanilla
    * 3 large eggs at room temperature
    * 1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix) OR 1 cup cooked mashed pumpkin
    * 1 tsp ground cinnamon
    * 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
    * 1/8 tsp ground cloves


PREPARATION:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. (300 degrees F. for a dark springform pan) and position the oven rack in the center of the oven.

For the Crust (see Notes below):
Mix ginger snap crumbs, pecans and butter; press onto bottom and 2 inches up side of 9-inch springform pan.

For the Cheesecake Filling:
Using an electric mixer on medium speed, combine cream cheese, 3/4 cup of the sugar, and the vanilla until well blended. On low speed, add eggs one at a time, mixing each time just until blended. Remove 1-1/2 cups of the plain batter and set aside.

To the remaining plain batter, add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Using a large spoon, stir to combine.

Pour 1/2 of pumpkin batter over crust in springform pan. Spoon 1/2 of plain batter over pumpkin layer. Repeat until all batter is used. Using a long butter knife, gently swirl through all layers of cheesecake batter without disturbing crust to achieve a marbled effect.

Bake for 55 minutes or until center is almost set. Do not overbake. Use a thin knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the crust. Cool completely on wire rack. Remove outer pan and refrigerate at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, before serving.



Now, if you don't want to make a homemade gingersnap crust, you can use a pre-made graham cracker crust instead.  In that case you would bake at 325 degrees for about 40 minutes for the small crusts and 45 to 50 minutes for the large.

Over reading week, my parents came to visit me and they brought me a recipe book for students. I'm going to try out some recipes this week and I'll start off with creamy chicken.

Ingredients

1 chicken breast, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon butter
1/4 pint double cream
1/2 teaspoon freeze dried basil
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 chicken stock cube, crumbled
2-3 mushrooms, sliced
Rice to serve

Method

1. Put rice on to cook with 1/2 pilau rice cube or pilau seasoning.
2. Fry onions in the butter until soft.
3. Add the chicken and the garlic, cook on a high heat until the chicken is no longer pink. Add the mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add the cream and the stock cube, cook gently for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Add the basil, cook for one minute.
6. serve with rice.

Cheesy Mushroom Chicken (for the crockpot)

This is such an easy and delicious recipe for those of you who cook in a crockpot.


Chicken breasts ( amount is depending on how many people are eating)
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 can of mushrooms
shredded cheese (you can use any kind, I like to use colby/jack mix)
garlic powder
italian seasoning
noodles or rice (to serve with the chicken)


Place thawed chicken breast in crockpot. Add, mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup, can of mushrooms, a bit of garlic powder, a bit of Italian seasoning, and top with a few handfuls of shredded cheese. Cook on low for about 7 hours, or on high for about 5 hours.  Serve over rice or noodles. It is a really yummy meal. :P

1 tablespoon olive oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
1 onion, chopped
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup of water
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chiles
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried cilantro
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3-4 cans cannellini or Navy beans, drained and rinsed
2 green onions, chopped
2 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese

DIRECTIONS
-Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook chicken and onion in oil 4 to 5 minutes, or until onion is tender.
-Stir in the chicken broth and water. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30-40 minutes.
-Stir in green chiles, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, cilantro, and cayenne pepper, simmer for 15-20 minutes
-Stir in the beans, and simmer for 5 more minutes, until beans are heated. Garnish with green onion and shredded cheese.

I would assume you could do this in the crock pot, cooking on high for 4-5 hours, and add beans about 30 minutes before you're ready to serve.

Cheesy Mushroom Chicken (for the crockpot)

This is such an easy and delicious recipe for those of you who cook in a crockpot.


Chicken breasts ( amount is depending on how many people are eating)
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 can of mushrooms
shredded cheese (you can use any kind, I like to use colby/jack mix)
garlic powder
italian seasoning
noodles or rice (to serve with the chicken)


Place thawed chicken breast in crockpot. Add, mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup, can of mushrooms, a bit of garlic powder, a bit of Italian seasoning, and top with a few handfuls of shredded cheese. Cook on low for about 7 hours, or on high for about 5 hours.  Serve over rice or noodles. It is a really yummy meal. :P
I do this without the italian seasoning, mushrooms and cheese.  I also have a similar recipe that goes in the oven over rice and another for the crockpot that uses Stove Top.  They're all yummy :)

I also have a recipe for Corned Beef Hash. This recipe serves 2.

Ingredients

1 small tin corned beef
1 400g or 440g tin baked beans
1 small onion, chopped
4 potatoes (you could use instant mash instead)
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 beef stock cube
A few drops Worcestershire sauce (Lea and Perrins is ideal)  (optional)
Oil for frying
1 dessertspon butter (for mashed potato)
Boiling water (for mashed potato)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
2. Fry rhe chopped onion in the oil.
3. When the onion has begun to cook, add the corned beef and the baked beans.
4. Add the stock cube and the optional Worcestershire sauce. Cook for 5 -10 minutes or unti heated through.
5. Make the mashed potato. If you're using whole potatoes, boil them while the corned beef mixture is cooking. Once boiled, drain them, add butter and mash. If you're using instant mash, use 125g of a 250g packet and add boiling water and butter. Alternitavely, follow the instructions on the pack. Mix until smooth.
6. Transfer the corned beef mixture to a baking dish and top with the mashed potato. Sprinkle the grated cheese evenly on top of the potato.
7. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes or until the cheese is golden.

To go with these Chicken dishes ( or any other roast meat dishes) I will offer a really tasty veggie dish.

First of all get a Zucchini or 2 and cut into slices.

Sautee them down in a saucepan with a bit of vegetable oil.

When they are nearly done, add a few cloves of garlic OR a few tablespoons of minced garlic.

Then as the Zucchini is nearly ready, grate some cheese (your preference) over it.

Very simple but tasty dish to accompany any Roast meal :)



The other I can offer is to chop up a combination of Capsicum,mushroom, onion and Tomato (chopped) and sautee it down with a bit of paprika and Garlic.

Its a Hungarian dish that goes well with any chicken dish or any Red meat Roast dinner.

To go with these Chicken dishes ( or any other roast meat dishes) I will offer a really tasty veggie dish.

First of all get a Zucchini or 2 and cut into slices.

Sautee them down in a saucepan with a bit of vegetable oil.

When they are nearly done, add a few cloves of garlic OR a few tablespoons of minced garlic.

Then as the Zucchini is nearly ready, grate some cheese (your preference) over it.

Very simple but tasty dish to accompany any Roast meal :)



The other I can offer is to chop up a combination of Capsicum,mushroom, onion and Tomato (chopped) and sautee it down with a bit of paprika and Garlic.

Its a Hungarian dish that goes well with any chicken dish or any Red meat Roast dinner.

For the Super Bowl season:

Boilermaker Tailgate Chili

"This is the chili recipe the gang eats at Purdue Boilermaker football games. I always prep and cook the chili the night before and then reheat the next day. This is a combination of many different tomato-based chili recipes. Good luck and enjoy."

Original recipe yield:
10 Servings
PREP TIME  30 Min
COOK TIME  2 Hrs
READY IN  2 Hrs 30 Min

SERVINGS  About scaling and conversions
INGREDIENTS

    * 2 pounds ground beef chuck
    * 1 pound bulk Italian sausage
    * 3 (15 ounce) cans chili beans, drained
    * 1 (15 ounce) can chili beans in spicy sauce
    * 2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with juice
    * 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
    * 1 large yellow onion, chopped
    * 3 stalks celery, chopped
    * 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
    * 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
    * 2 green chile peppers, seeded and chopped
    * 1 tablespoon bacon bits
    * 4 cubes beef bouillon
    * 1/2 cup beer
    * 1/4 cup chili powder
    * 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
    * 1 tablespoon minced garlic
    * 1 tablespoon dried oregano
    * 2 teaspoons ground cumin
    * 2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce (e.g. Tabasco

This a is very tasty brazilian dish from the Bahia area.You'll need manioc or yuca roots,unsweetened coconut milk and azeite de dend