Valentine's Day: Heart-Shaped Mini Pizzas

We made these mini heart-shaped pizzas for a playdate.  The kids had a healthy lunch, and lots of fun! 

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

I saw this recipe on Making Memories (via Pinterest) and decided to try it - with a few modifications, of course.  It may sound a little weird, but it's delicious!  The kids especially liked it.  I shared it with Tasha, and her family also loved it.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
16 oz frozen hashbrowns
3-4 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
1/2 lb. diced ham
2 c. shredded Swiss cheese

Sauce (original recipe):

1 can cream of chicken soup
8 ounces cream cheese
1/4 c. milk
1/4 t. pepper

Sauce (my version):
1 can cream of chicken soup
4 ounces cream cheese
1/2 c. milk
1/4 t. pepper
2 T. dijon mustard

Mix sauce ingredients together.


In a 9x13 pan, layer potatoes, chicken, ham, and half of the Swiss cheese.  Pour sauce over the cheese. Top with the rest of the Swiss cheese.  Bake at 350 for 50 minutes covered, and 10 minutes uncovered.

Bean and Bacon Soup

This recipe came from Real Simple magazine many years ago.  John loves it! Sometimes I use 1 cup cubed ham instead of the bacon.  We had this tonight with 90-minute rolls.

Bean and Bacon Soup
4 strips bacon
3/4 c. chopped carrot
1 c. chopped celery
1 c. chopped onion
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans great Northern beans, drained
salt and pepper

In a soup pot, fry bacon until crisp.  Remove from the pan, chop and set aside.  Add carrot to pan drippings and cook 5 minutes.  Add celery, onion and garlic and cook 3 minutes.  Add beans and 2 c. water.  Bring to a boil, cover and simmer on low 10 minutes.  Mash some of the beans with a potato masher to thicken the soup.  Season with salt and pepper, and stir in bacon.

90-Minute Rolls

I'm not sure where I got this recipe from, but it's a stand-by because you don't have to wait all day for the rolls to rise.

90-Minute Rolls
2 1/2 c. flour
1/2 t. salt
2 T. sugar
1 T. yeast
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. water
2 T. butter

Heat milk, water and butter in a saucepan until very warm.  Mix 1 cup flour with sugar, yeast and salt.  Add milk mixture.  Beat 3 minutes on high.  Stir in remaining flour and knead 3-4 minutes.  Rise 15 minutes.  Divide dough into 8-12 pieces and shape into balls.  Place in a greased cake pan.  Rise 15 minutes.  Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes.

Cheeseball Appetizer

I've made a lot of different (but very similar) cheeseballs. Once I made cheeseball truffles, rolled in different mix-ins, for a baby shower. For Thanksgiving, Maggie and I made this snowman cheeseball from Betty Crocker. We didn't use the recipe, just the snowman idea. Here's my generic cheeseball recipe with some mix-in/roll-in ideas.

1 pkg cream cheese

2 c. grated cheese

Blend together.

That's it! You can use any kind of cheese for a different flavor. I just use my standard colby-jack. I like to mix chopped green onion in mine, but here are some more ideas for mixing into the cheeseball, or pressing/rolling onto the outside:

1/2 t. dry mustard

chopped walnuts

chopped pecans

sesame seeds

parsley

paprika

diced olives

diced sundried tomatoes

diced red pepper

To make the snowman, we "frosted" two cheeseballs with some cream cheese whipped with milk. We used raisins, a carrot, pretzel sticks, and celery to decorate. I used a peeler to make thin strips of celery for the scarf. Maggie was a really big help.

John's "Deceptive" Andes Mint Cookies

Several years ago, John made and delivered these cookies to his Home Teaching families. Later, at church, one of the ladies told him his cookies were "deceptive!" They look just like chocolate chip cookies, but the Andes Mint chunks provide a much different flavor.

1/2 c. butter

3/4 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. sugar

1 t. baking soda

1 t. baking powder

2 t. vanilla

2 eggs

1 pkg Andes Creme de Menthe Baking Chips

2 2/3 c. flour

Blend butter, sugars, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla and eggs. Stir in baking chips and then flour. Chill dough 1 hour. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

Layered Pasta Salad

I combined two recipes into dinner tonight. John and I both would have preferred a lighter dressing, but I really liked the combination of ingredients I used.

Layered Pasta Salad

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

3 cups cooked small shell pasta

1 cup diced cooked ham

1/2 cup ranch dressing mixed with 1/2 cup mayo

1 cup cheese cubes

1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved

1/2 cup cashews

2 sliced green onions

Stir just before serving. Mix it up before you serve. Distribute the dressing. Do it.

Maggie helped make dinner and was a BIG help. She was so proud of herself, too. She measured, stirred and poured, and I cut up some strips of cheese for her to cut into cubes with a plastic knife.

Dalton was not a big help. Sorry, boy. He also refused to eat any dinner. Sigh. He's cute, though.