Creme de Menthe Bars

Borrowed from Kathy Reny

- 1 stick butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup flower
- pinch salt
- 16oz can Hershey syrup

**Cream butter and sugar, add the eggs, stir in the flour and salt, add the syrup and bake at 350 in a 13x9x2 pan for 20-25 minutes, then let it cool (I put in the fridge for at least 45-60 minutes)*

Mint Layer:
- 2 cups confectioners sugar
- 1 stick butter
- 3 tbl creme d'menthe syrup

**Cream together and frost cooled cake**

Chocolate Top Layer:
- 6oz chocolate bits (I sometimes add a bit more!)
- 6 tbl butter

**Melt together and pour over mint layer, stick in the fridge until cooled, then cut and enjoy!**

Marshmallow Fruit Dip

Borrowed from Kait

Ingredients:

1 container (8oz) regular or strawberry cream cheese
1 jar (16oz) marshmallow fluff

Steps:

Mix the two together and serve with sturdy fruits!

Maple Roasted Butternut Squash

From Ina Garten

Ingredients

• 1 large butternut squash
• 1 head garlic separated but not peeled
• 2 Tbsp. good olive oil
• 2 1/2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 2 ounces thinly sliced pancetta chopped
• 16 whole fresh sage leaves
• French bread for serving

Directions

Preheat oven to 400°. Peel and seed butternut squash and then cut into 3/4- to 1-inch cubes. Place squash and whole unpeeled garlic cloves in a baking dish or sheet pan large enough to hold them all in one layer. Toss with olive oil, maple syrup, salt, and pepper, and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until squash begins to brown, turning once during baking.

Sprinkle pancetta and sage leaves evenly over squash and continue to bake for another 20 to 30 minutes, until squash and garlic are tender and caramelized. Season to taste and serve hot with French bread for guests to spread with the roasted garlic.

Potato Basil Puree

From Ina Garten

Ingredients

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, lightly packed
• 2 pounds large Yukon Gold or white boiling potatoes
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil and fill a bowl with ice water. Add the basil leaves to the boiling water and cook for exactly 15 seconds. Remove the basil with a slotted spoon and immediately plunge the leaves into the ice water to set the bright green color. Drain and set aside.

Peel the potatoes and cut them in quarters. Add the potatoes to the same pot of boiling water and return to a boil. Cook the potatoes for 20 to 25 minutes, until very tender. Drain well, return to the saucepan, and steam over low heat until any remaining water evaporates.


In a small saucepan over medium heat, heat the half-and-half and Parmesan cheese until the cream simmers. Place the basil in a food processor fitted with the steel blade and puree. Add the hot cream mixture and process until smooth.


With a handheld mixer with the beater attachment, beat the hot potatoes in the pot until they are broken up. Slowly add the hot basil cream, the salt, and pepper and beat until smooth. If the potatoes need to be reheated, cover and cook gently over low heat for a few minutes. Pour into a serving bowl, sprinkle with extra Parmesan cheese, season to taste, and serve hot.

**you can be lazy like me and use instant potatoes if you are in a rush!**

Eclair Cake

Borrowed from various sites

Ingredients

• 2 (3.5 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
• 1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 3 cups milk
• 1 (16 ounce) package graham cracker squares
• 1 (16 ounce) package prepared chocolate frosting

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, thoroughly blend the pudding mix, whipped topping, and milk.
2. Arrange a single layer of graham cracker squares in the bottom of a 13x9 inch baking pan. Evenly spread half of the pudding mixture over the crackers. Top with another layer of crackers and the remaining pudding mixture. Top with a final layer of graham crackers.
3. Spread the frosting over the whole cake up to the edges of the pan. Cover, and chill at least 4 hours before serving.

Lemon Pepper Scallops

 Found a few places, altered by Dave

Ingredients
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons seasoning salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
3/4 tablespoons lemon pepper
16 sea jumbo scallops, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
4 teaspoons lemon juice

Directions
In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt, oregano, thyme and lemon pepper.
Roll scallops in flour mixture until lightly coated on all sides.
Heat olive oil in a skillet or frying pan over high heat.
Add 4 scallops to the pan and sear on all sides (about 2 minutes for each side).
Remove scallops from pan and place on a plate in the oven to keep warm until ready to serve.
Repeat 3 times until remaining scallops are cooked.
Toss with parsley and lemon juice.

Ice Cream Sandwich Delight

Borrowed from Michelle Danis

1. You layer a tin pan or brownie pan with ice cream sandwiches....cut some if you need to get it to fit in pan.
2. Optional layer of caramel sauce on ice cream sandwiches.
3. Cover it with a layer of cool whip.
4. Pour heath bar crumbles over it.
You can also do double layer of ice cream sandwiches if you want extra fatty :-)

Chili

Homemade

Another one that I add to as I go along, so it's never the same recipe

Ingredients:
package ground turkey (or beef), cooked
package of turkey or chicken sausage, decased and cooked
2 onions
3-4 peppers, various colors, chopped
variety of beans, whatever you want, drained, I usually do:
can black beans
can red kidney beans
can dark red kidney beans
can pink beans
can cannelini beans
2 cans chopped chilis
1 can corn, drained
2 cans diced tomatoes
1-2 cans crushed tomatoes - depends how thick you want it
cumin
chili powder
cayenne red pepper

Steps:
1. I cook the meats and season with pepper and chili powder as it cooks
2. Saute the chopped onion and peppers in olive oil
3. Add the drained beans and the cans of chili to the onions and peppers
4. Add the cooked meat
5. Add in as much diced and crused tomatoes as you like
6. Season to your liking with the spices
7. Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips!

Gazpacho

From Ina Garten

We have tried a few recipes, but Ina is always a good one

Ingredients

• 1 hothouse cucumber, halved and seeded, but not peeled
• 2 red bell peppers, cored and seeded
• 4 plum tomatoes
• 1 red onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 23 ounces tomato juice (3 cups)
• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup good olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Roughly chop the cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and red onions into 1-inch cubes. Put each vegetable separately into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until it is coarsely chopped. Do not overprocess!

After each vegetable is processed, combine them in a large bowl and add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well and chill before serving. The longer gazpacho sits, the more the flavors develop.

Zucchini Boats

Homemade

Ingredients:
gigantic zucchini
small summer squash, chopped
1/4 red onion, chopped
cooked ground turkey meat
1 egg
bread crumbs
tomato sauce
shredded cheese

Steps:
1. Clean the zucchini and cut it down the middle, lengthwise.  Hollow it out, scooping out the seeds.
2. Put half an inch of water in a shallow baking dish big enough to fit the zucchini and bake just the zucchini, face down, for 10-15 minutes.
3. In the meantime, cook the turkey or beef, seasoning with pepper as you cook. Once it's done, put the beaten egg in a bowl with the breadcrumbs and mix it into the cooked meat.
3. Once the zucchini is done pre-cooking, fill them with the meat mixture, the summer squash and red onion.  Pour tomato sauce on top and sprinkle with tomato sauce.  You can also add any other veggies but this is all we do.
4. Bake at 350-375 for about 40 minutes.