Dr, Pepper Meatballs

(Note: this is what the sauce looks like that you pour over top-not exactly appetizing!)

Recipe from Allrecipes! Delicious!

1 1/2 pounds lean ground turkey
1 egg
1 1/4 cups dry bread crumbs
1 (1 ounce) package ranch dressing mix
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 onion, minced
1 green bell pepper, minced

1 (12 fl oz) can Dr. Pepper®
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup ketchup
1 cup diced tomatoes in juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Preheat an oven to 375 degrees. Place the turkey, egg, bread crumbs, ranch dressing mix, and 1 tablespoon of the Worcestershire sauce into a mixing bowl along with 3 tablespoons of the minced onion, and 3 tablespoons of the minced bell pepper. Set the remaining onion and bell pepper aside. Form the turkey mixture into 2 inch meatballs, and place into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for 15 minutes.

While the meatballs are baking, stir the remaining onion and bell pepper in a bowl along with the Dr. Pepper®, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, diced tomatoes, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. Once the meatballs have cooked for 15 minutes, remove them from the oven and pour the sauce overtop. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and return to the oven. Bake for 30 minutes, then remove the foil and continue baking 15 minutes more. Remove from the oven and allow to stand 15 minutes before serving.

Broccoli and Ham Mac & Cheese

Trina's very old, very special family recipe!

2 cups macaroni (uncooked)
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
salt & pepper
Broccoli
Ham
Sharp cheddar, mozzarella, Colby, and Monterey Jack, totaling 6 cups

Cook macaroni, strain. In a small saucepan, melt butter. Add flour, mix until completely stirred in. Pour into a mixing bowl and add milk, whisk until combined. Add macaroni, cooked broccoli, ham, cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Stir well and pour into greased dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Jalapeno Popper Dip

Got this recipe from Allrecipes-I took a lot of the suggestions and make a variation of the original recipe. Good with tortilla chips, pretzels, pita bread-and we are trying toasted french bread next! Yum-I could eat the whole thing!

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, drained
2 ounces canned diced jalapeno peppers, drained (more or less for kick)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (the real stuff)
1/4 cup bread crumbs

Stir together cream cheese, mayonnaise, and sour cream in a large bowl until smooth. Stir in green chilies, jalapeno peppers, a little Parmesan cheese and cheddar cheese. Pour mixture into a pie or oven safe serving dish. Mix bread crumbs and remaining Parmesan cheese together and sprinkle on top. Bake at 375 degrees for about 25-30 minutes.

Squash and Zucchini Casserole

Found this recipe here!

2 medium yellow squash
2 large zucchini
1 Vidalia onions, thinly sliced (we omitted)
2 large tomatoes, sliced (we used Romas)
2 cups grated Romano cheese (we used a Parmesan/Romano mix)
1/2 cup butter, divided (used margarine and only 1/4 C to cut the calories)
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut the zucchini and squash into long, thin layers. Lightly grease a 7x11-inch baking dish and layer the squash, zucchini, onion and tomatoes into the baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese and add pats of butter between each layer of vegetables, and season each layer with salt and ground black pepper to taste. Continue this layering process until all the vegetables are used up and top this off with the remaining butter and cheese. Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes, or until vegetables are to desired tenderness and cheese is melted and bubbly.

Spinach Alfredo Pizza

A few weeks ago on move-in day we ordered pizza from Papa John's... I ordered the Spinach Alfredo pizza and it was amaaaazing (and actually is the recommended pizza for Papa John's in the "Eat This, Not That!" book!) We prefer making our own pizza since it's cheaper and healthier, and because I love my beloved baking stone... and I've been dying to have it again so I found a recipe to try and man it's a WINNER.

Note: this recipe makes 2 pizzas. We made one tonight, and we're making the other tomorrow since I got two pizza crusts, but next time we'll freeze the spinach/alfredo/artichokes together and save them for the next time.

1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 (10 ounce) container Alfredo Sauce
1 (6 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained (we omitted)
1 (10 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
2 unbaked pizza crusts (favorite of the moment: Marketplace thin-crust pizza dough from Walmart, already baked and in the bakery section)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 (2.25 ounce) can sliced black olives (optional, we also omitted)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread pizza crusts out onto baking sheets or pizza pans. Place the spinach and Alfredo sauce in a saucepan, and warm over medium heat. Stir occasionally. Spread 1tablespoon of olive oil onto each pizza crust. Spoon half of the Alfredo and spinach onto each crust, then arrange artichoke hearts over the sauce layer. Top each pizza with half of the mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle mushrooms and black olives on top. Bake pizzas one at a time for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the bottom is nicely browned.

Pineapple Cupcakes

...and since we had pineapple left over from dinner, and we had all the ingredients... got the recipe here from the Wilton site!

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 cup pecans chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 325°F. In medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In separate bowl, whisk together oil, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla. Stir in sugar, pineapple and, if desired, nuts. Add flour mixture; mix well. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on rack; remove and cool completely before decorating.

*It says it makes 18-for me it made 12 fluffy ones and a mini loaf pan!

Caribbean Chicken Grill with Pineapple Salad

First post from our new house!

SO GOOD! Maya even ate the chicken... and she's been refusing chicken for the better part of 6 months now! Got the recipe here!

8oz can pineapple chunks or tidbits (we had a fresh pineapple, so I measured out the amount)
1/4 C oil
2 tbsp lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp sugar
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 C diced red bell pepper
1/4 C diced red onion
1 small jalapeno pepper, minced
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste

Drain pineapple juice into a 1 cup measure (I made my own-crushed some pineapple and added a bit of water. Wasn't 1 cup but it worked fine). Add oil, lime juice, garlic, red pepper flakes and sugar; mix well. Place chicken in a large zippered plastic bag or glass utility dish. Pour all but 1-2 tablespoons of marinade over chicken. Cover and refrigerate chicken for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Meanwhile, place pineapple in a medium-sized serving bowl. Add red bell pepper, red onion, jalapeno, cilantro and reserved 1-2 tablespoons of marinade. Toss well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Heat grill to medium. Remove chicken from marinade; season with salt and pepper. Grill, turning once, for 10 to 15 minutes or until cooked through. Serve with pineapple salad.

**Some of the reviewers had doubled the amount of salsa they made with it-particularly the amount of pineapple-SO glad I did! I probably ended up using about 2-2.5C pineapple.