Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are the best chocolate chip cookies ever! This is Kelly Ann's recipe - I remember visiting her at college and she had made these - yum!

3/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups Brown Sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
1 (3 oz.) box instant vanilla pudding mix
4 cups flour
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts or coconut (optional)

Cream butter, shortening, and sugars together. Add eggs, beating well. Sift dry ingredients together. Add to creamed mixture. Fold in chocolate chips and nuts. Bake at 350* for 8 minutes. Yield: 5 dozen

Quick to prepare crockpot bbq chicken

4-6 chicken breasts (can be frozen)
1 bottle of bbq sauce (although I didn't use the whole bottle; more like 1/2 or 2/3 depending on how much chicken to slather up, you decide)
1 can pineapple crushed or cubed (I actually used half a can of slices and cubed it myself and added a dash or two of the juice)

Put all that into a crockpot on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.

Serve chicken over rice with some of the sauce. Don't forget a side of veggies and some rolls for a complete dinner.

Start dinner by 1pm and you too can have a happy family by evening time!

Strawberry French Toast Casserole

1 loaf (20 oz) bread, cubed
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, cubed
1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
1/3 cup powdered sugar
12 eggs, beaten
2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup maple syrup

Place half the bread cubes in a greased 9 x 13” pan. Layer cream cheese cubes evenly over bread. Sprinkle strawberries over top, and then the powdered sugar. Cover with remaining bread cubes. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, vanilla, & syrup. Drizzle egg mixture evenly over bread. Cover & refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350*. Cover and bake 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 25-30 minutes more, or until center is firm & top is golden brown. Serve with strawberry syrup (recipe below), and maple syrup if desired.

Strawberry Syrup

2 cups sugar
2 cups water
2 T. butter or margarine
¼ c. cornstarch
2 cups mashed strawberries

Combine sugar, cornstarch, & water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and stir/cook until thick. Add strawberries and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Add butter. Makes 4 cups.

Chow Mein Noodle Easter Nests.

4 cups chow mein noodles
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup peanut butter
36 jelly beans
Directions
1Break chow mein noodles into small pieces; set aside in large mixing bowl.
2Combine sugar and corn syrup in large saucepan.
3Cook on medium heat until the sugar is melted and there are bubbles at the edge of the pan.
4Add peanut butter and stir until smooth.
5Pour peanut butter mixture over crunched up noodles; toss until completely coated.
6Let cool slightly to avoid burns.
7Butter hands lightly and use approx 1/4 c.
8mixture to form a compact ball.
9Make indention in the middle of each ball to resemble a bird's nest.
10Place on waxed paper and let cool completely.
11Place 2-3 jelly beans inside each nest.
12Serve on a bed of green-tinted coconut for extra festive look.

Sausage Fettuccini

1 lb. ground Italian sausage
1 to 2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 T. all-purpose four
1-1/2 to 2 c. half-and-half
2 to 3 T. grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
8 oz. pkg. fettuccini, cooked

Brown sausage, garlic and onion; whisk in flour, half-and-half, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Heat thoroughly without boiling. Spoon over fettuccini. Serves 4.

Wild Rice Soup

This is great for a cold winter day. It's super yummy and different from your typical soup.
1 (6 oz) pkg. Wild Rice (I think I used Uncle Ben's, which you can find next to the Rice-a-Roni's and things)
1 c. finely chopped onion
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried chervil (which I didn't have, so I just left it out)
1 tsp. or more curry powder (I like curry, so I added more for a stronger flavor)
1/2 tsp. dried mustard
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 c. butter, melted
1 (8 oz) pkg. sliced fresh mushrooms (which I avoided since I don't like them. You can leave them out or put them in for the flavor, then take them out later. I like the flavor, just hate the sliminess)
1/2 c. thinly sliced celery
1/2 c. flour
6 c. chicken broth
2 c. half and half
Cook wild rice according to package directions. Meanwhile, cook onion and next 5 ingredients in butter in a large Dutch oven (or wok) over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until onion is tender.
Add mushrooms and celery; cook, stirring constantly, until mushrooms are tender. Reduce heat to low. Add flour, stirring until blended. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Gradually add chicken broth; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened.
Stir in cooked rice, half-and-half and cook until thoroughly heated. Yield: 12 cups