Stuffed Peppers

4 green peppers

1/2 lb hamburger

1 small onion

1 1/2 cups cooked rice

1 8 oz can of diced tomatoes

cheddar cheese

a pinch of dried Parsley

salt & pepper to taste

*First get the rice cooking because this takes the longest.

*Then boil the peppers until you can put a fork through but do not over cook (they will finish cooking in the oven).

*In the meantime, cook the hamburger and onion. Add the salt, pepper & dried parsley to your liking.

*Preheat Oven to 375 degrees.

*Once the rice and hamburger are ready mix them together in a medium bowl. Drain the diced tomatoes and add to the bowl.

*Now you are ready to stuff the peppers. I do it in layers so that there is cheese through out the pepper. Put a 2-3 spoonfuls on the bottom of the pepper then sprinkle some cheese. Repeat until you fill the pepper. Add additional cheese on top.

*Add about a half an inch of water to the bottom of a casserole dish. Stand Peppers up in casserole dish and cover with aluminum foil. Cook 20-25 mins or until filling is hot.

This is great with all types of cheeses my favorite in this dish is Feta Cheese.

Homemade Fruity Pancakes

combine the following ingredients:

1/2 c milk
2 tbsp melted butter
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 banana or 2 large strawberries cut into thin slices or a handful of blueberries.

(I like strawberries and bananas)

combine the following ingredients:

1 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Combine the wet with the dry and mix until well blended (thick cream consistency).
Add butter to a pan and pour in pancake mix (the amount depends on how big or small you want the pancakes). Add butter to a pan turn heat up to medium. Once the butter melts add pancake mix. I made 5 medium size by adding 1/2 cups of the mix at a time. These are delicious! Enjoy warm with butter and syrup Or top with fresh fruit, powdered sugar or cinnamon.

I wish I had taken a picture with butter and syrup on the pancakes (picture of strawberry pancakes). Darn it! Always Next time. : )

Meatballs

1 lb Hamburger
1 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp mustard
1 tbsp grated cheese
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 bread crumbs (more if mix is to wet)
1 egg

Mix together the above ingredients in a large bowl.
Cover the bottom of a casserole dish with vegetable oil
and put 2 -3 tbsp of butter pieces on top of oil. Add the meatballs.
I use a 1/8 measuring cup to keep all the meatballs approx the same size.
Bake on 400 degrees for 15 mins uncovered. Makes 16 -18 meatballs.

Stuffed Shells

1 pkg Jumbo Shells & 1 bottle of tomato sauce or if you want to make your own see easy recipe below.

Pasta Cooking Instructions: Cooked Shells in boiling water until El Dente (not cooked all the way through).Then pour into a strainer and run under cold water, this will help stop the cooking process. The Shells will continue to cook in the oven later.

Filling Ingredients & Instructions:

Lrg Container of Ricotta cheese
1 pkg Frozen Spinach defrosted & strained of water
1 Egg
Optional: 1 tsp minced garlic or 1 tsp of garlic salt

In a large bowl combine the above ingredients. Stuff the shells.
Cover the bottom of a casserole dish with sauce. (This will make more
than a casserole dish so you may need 2 or 3. I usually freeze some too.)
Place the stuffed shells on top of sauce and then add more sauce on top. Cover dish and bake
on 375 degrees for 30 mins or until the sauce starts to bubble.

Easy Tomato Sauce Recipe:

1 Med. Onion diced
1 Med. green Pepper diced
1 tbsp minced garlic

Cook the Onion and pepper with a little olive oil then add the garlic at the end.
Then add the following ingredients and bring to a boil. Then turn to Med - Low
for 30 mins. Finally turn down to Low and simmer for 4-5 hours. The longer you simmer
the thicker the sauce will be.

2 Lrg cans of Crushed tomatoes
1 Lrg can of diced tomatoes (drain watery liquid out in sink)
1 Lrg can of tomato sauce
3 bay leaves
1 tbsp basil
1 tsp salt
1/8 cup sugar (keep tasting and adding more if needed, this will sweetin it up)

Remember to take bay leaves out before serving.

Mom's 7 Layered Mexican Dip

Here is another great recipe to take to a gathering or to have at home for the holidays. This is also another recipe of my Mom's.

What you need:

10.5 oz can of refried beans
3 Avacado's diced
1 tbsp lemon juice
sprinkle of garlic salt
3 tbsp sour cream
3 tbsp mayo
1 pkg of dry taco mix
tomatoes diced
green onions diced
black olived sliced
Shredded Cheddar cheese


In a round casserole dish layer the ingredients.
1)Start with the refried beans (1st layer).
2)Then the Avacado's - add the lemon juice on top (2nd layer).
3) Mix together the garlic salt, sour cream & mayo and add it (3rd layer).
4) Then add the chopped tomatoes (4th layer).
5) Then add the chopped green onions (5th layer).
6) Then the black olives (6th layer).
7) Add the cheese on top (7th layer).

Serve with tortilla chips.

I know some of my friends have had this before... please comment. Did you like it? Anything you would change? Opinions always accepted. Thanks.

Chutney Cheese Ball

With the holidays approaching I wanted to share some of my favorite dishes. This one is great to bring to someone's house or have at your house when you host gatherings. The credit for this delicious recipe goes to my Mom, she is a wonderful cook and taught me the basics while growing up.

What you need:

16 oz cream cheese, room temp.

1/2 c. chutney

1/4 c finely chopped scallions

1 med clove garlic, minced

1/2 c . shredded colby cheese

1/2 c. shredded monterey jack cheese

Salt & pepper

1 c. coursely chopped pecans (optional)

In a med. bowl , combine the first 4 ingredients. Stir until well blended. Add the colby and jack cheeses. Sitr and season with salt and pepper. Form into a ball and roll in pecans. Makes 2 balls. Serve with crackers.

Chocolate Covered PB Crackers

Crackers (Ritz or other similar brand)
Peanut Butter
Chocolate Morsels
Candy Corn (for Halloween) or sprinkles
Wax Paper

1) Spread peanut butter between two crackers. Continue making the sandwiches until you get to the desired amount you would like to make.
2) Then melt the chocolate over the stove top.

What I usually do is put 1-2 inches of water on the bottom of a large sauce pan and turn on medium heat, then pour a bag of chocolate morsels into a medium glass bowl and put the bowl in the sauce pan. This way the chocolate will melt and not burn.

3) Dip the peanut butter and cracker sandwiches in the chocolate. (I use a fork and a spoon).
Add the candy corn or sprinkles before the chocolate hardens.
4) Place the sandwiches on wax paper to harden.

These are unbelievable!