Honey Lime Enchiladas

I got these from the sisters cafe, and also in our ward cookbook, they are very yummy, haven't met anyone yet who does not like them, try them!

Honey Lime Enchiladas
Sauce:
1 1/2 lb cooked pork, or chicken, shredded
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup lime juice
1 Tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Mix together sauce ingredients then add to 1.5 lbs of cooked shredded pork or chicken.  Let the sauce soak into the meat for about 30 minutes (sometimes I like to make a little more sauce than it calls for)
Enchiladas:
2 (10 oz) cans green enchilada sauce
equal parts of Mozzarella cheese, shredded and
Cheddar cheese, shredded
Flour tortillas, can use whole wheat tortillas

Lightly spray 2 pans with non stick baking spray.  (I usually use one 9 x 13 in and one 9 x 9 in pan but it may vary with how thick you stuff your enchiladas)  Pour green enchilada sauce into pans to coat the entire bottom.  Fill tortillas with shredded meat and desired amount of cheese.  Roll and place in dish.  Pour remainder of sauce over the enchiladas and sprinkle more cheese on top -don't be stingy! ( I sometimes use more like 1 1/2 cans you can freeze left over enchilada sauce in a baggy) Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 min.  Then turn on broiler and place enchiladas nearer the top of oven.  Let it broil until cheese is slightly brown and crispy! so yummy!

For nurturing of our souls:
Today at church it seemed the main message being taught was that Heavenly Father loves and knows each one of us individually.  I shared a story that happened to me several years ago.  My husband had lost his job, it was Easter time, I had gone to the store to get a few items for our Easter dinner, on the way out of the store I stopped to look at the beautiful Easter Lily flowers and thought to myself, Oh how I wish I could buy one and put it on our table for a centerpiece, but that is just a luxury item and I have no money for one.  About three or four hours later my RS president stopped by my house, she was holding a big easter lilly, she said she felt silly but she walked by the flower and felt like she should buy it, and as she drove by my house, she thought I might enjoy it.  As she left I cried tears of joy as I knew Heavenly Father knew my thoughts earlier. (Later my RS pres said she felt so silly bringing me the flower, she was not sure if she really was "hearing" the spirit correctly!, it wasn't until I shared my thoughts from earlier that she realized she totally was in tune with the spirit)
Here is the Scripture in Alma 18:32 . . ." Yea, and he looketh down upon all the children of men; and he knows all the thoughts and intents of the heart: for by his hand were they all created from the beginning"

Pumpkin Roll

Okay, I  had to post this since it was requested for our last family get together, as my daughters went to Kneaders and had their pumpkin bread and said mom could make something better than this,  LETS EAT PUMPKIN ROLL! So I had to make it for them you know!

This is the only pumpkin roll recipe I make, although there are lots of recipes out there and I am sure they are all good, this is from my Sandridge Ward cook book and this was from Jill Johnston:

Pumpkin Roll
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup pumpkin
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Beat eggs on high for 5 minutes  with hand mixer (I usually last two or three mins I dont have much patience).  Gradually add in sugar, pumpkin, and lemon juice and keep mixing.  Fold in flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.  Pour dough into big jelly roll cookie sheet that has been buttered and greased, or sprayed with pam, and I like to sprinkle sugar on it to keep from sticking.  (This time I used my SilPat cookie liner and poured the dough over it and it worked beautiful, I am telling you girls, put it on your Christmas list, it is awesome!)  Anyhow. . .Bake at 375 for 15 minutes (i set my timer for 12 and go from there).  Have a big white cotton tea towel on the table that has been lightly sprinkled with powdered sugar, and I turn the jelly roll pan upside down and let it fall onto the tea towel, then I sprinkle powdered sugar on top of cake and roll it up.  Let it cool.  When cool, unroll, Spread Cream Cheese topping over the cake and reroll, and then refrigerate til ready to use.
Cream Cheese Topping:
1/2 tsp vanilla
4 Tbsp butter
1 cup powdered sugar
4 oz cream cheese
Mix all together
When we made this last week, the filling was a little skimpy, so I think you should double the cream cheese topping, that way you have much more filling, so yummy!
It turned out great, this tastes great chilled too!


For the nourishing of our souls:
My scriptures fell open to Proverbs 12 and in reading that chapter, here are some verses that I liked:
Proverbs 12:4 A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband; but she that maketh ashamed is as rottenness in his bones.
12:8 A man shall be commended according to his wisdom; but he that is of a perverse heart shall be despised.
verse 17: He that speaketh truth sheweth forth righteousness; but a false witness deceit.
verse 19: The lip of truth shall be established for ever; but a lying tongue is but for a moment.
Verse 22: Lying lips are abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly are his delight

So may we be a crown to our husbands and may our mouths tell the truth and be a delight!
Happy Day!

Better Than Sex Cake

I know I know, I tried to think of a different name as no one likes to say the S word, but this is how our family knows the cake, so I shall leave it called as that!  Everyone has this recipe, and it is requested alot for birthday's, and the only thing I do different than everyone else is this:

I DO NOT BAKE THE CAKE MIX STRAIGHT FROM THE BOX! Remember my very first post, if you dont, go here:  but use that recipe to make the chocolate cake, it will make the cake thicker and so much more moister! (This is the SECRET that makes it "over the top")

1 box German Chocolate Cake Mix (or devils food)
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar caramel ice cream topping sauce
Cool Whip
3-4 Heath or Skor Candy Bars, chopped up (optional)

Make the cake according to my comments above(where you go to my first post).  While warm, Poke holes all over the top of the cake (the end of a wooden spoon works good) and pour the can of sweetened condensed milk over the top of the cake.  Next spread the caramel topping over the top.  Let it absorb.  Let cake cool, then Frost with Cool Whip and spread chopped up heath bars evenly over the top (optional).  Keep cake in fridge.  It tastes best after it has been chilled!  SO YUMMY and MOIST

And for the nourishing of our souls:
To go with my post I found a scripture on love in D&C 42:22:
"Thou shalt love thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt cleave unto her and none else"
And that goes for women as well to love their husbands with all their heart and cleave unto no other.

And to show just how important that scripture that is, the next verse in 23 says: "And he that looketh upon a woman to lust after her shall deny the faith, and shall not have the Spirit; and if he repents not he shall be cast out"

My dear readers, you dont know what you've got til it's gone, and I can truly tell you, since not having a husband, you dont know how lucky you are to have a husband/companion/friend.  Please, for my sake, go give him a big hug, tell him you love him, and be grateful for him, you will be so glad you did, I promise!
Have a wonderful day!

Rice Pilaf and Saucy Chicken

This recipe came to me from my friend Krista Birch, she made this dinner for me and it was so yummy, the ingredients are so simple and yet they create a yummy simple dinner, I especially love the RICE PILAF, so delicious!

Saucy Chicken and Rice Pilaf
1 boneless skinless chicken breast per person
2 cans cream of mushroom, or cream of celery soup
2 pkg Schilling Chicken Gravy Mix
Butter or margarine

Put about 1 Tblsp butter or margarine in nonstick fry pan.  Brown the chicken on all sides (the browner, the better) Place in 9 x 13 in pan. Pour soup and gravy mix into pan that you browned chicken in and add about 2 1/2 cups water.  Bring to a boil and get all the browned bits from bottom of pan.  Pour over chicken (should be kinda runny) Bake at 350 degrees for one hour, covered with foil.

While chicken is baking, make the Rice Pilaf
3 cups water
1 Tblsp dried parsely
3-4 Tblsp chicken bouillon granules
1 1/2 cups Uncle Bens Converted Rice
1/2 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup tiny chopped celery
Butter

Bring 3 cups water to boil, add 1 Tblsp dried parsley, 3or 4 Tblsp chicken bouillon granules, 1 1/2 cups rice (my favorite is Uncle Ben's converted) 1/2 cup grated carrot, 1/2 cup tiny chopped celery, and 1 Tblsp margarine.  Cover when it returns to boil.  Cook on very low heat for 20 min.  Turn stove off, leave covered, and on burner.  Serve with gravy from chicken.

For the nourishing of our souls:
I love to read books, uplifting spiritual books.  I love to browse through the library or go to DI and look at their used books.  I found Through His Eyes by Virginia Pearce for $1.50 at DI, it is a good book, talking about how we clean out our closets, we also need to clean out our minds, throw away the negative thoughts and self talk.  Here is a saying from that book:
"We are what we think.  All that we are arises with our thoughts.  With our thoughts, we make the world"
Buddha
And President Hinckley said "Each of us is largely the product of his or her beliefs.  Our behavior is governed by these.  They become our standards of conduct"
which reminds me of the saying (not sure if it is scripture)
"As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he"
And in Mosiah 4:30
"But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts, and your words, and your deeds,. . . .even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish.  And now, O man, remember, and perish not."
May we think LOVELY thoughts, positive thoughts, hopeful thoughts, kind thoughts, grateful thoughts, and uplifting thoughts this day! and Remember you are worth more than gold, listen to Britt Nichole singing GOLD here

Pizza Dough - My Favorite Recipe

This recipe comes from the cookbook called The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner, her daughter went to college where my Shauna went, and Shauna came home one weekend telling me her friend's mother was writing a cookbook and I told her I wanted to buy one, I had no idea she was the Food Nanny, I love the cookbook!
This is a very quick and very easy recipe, I like to make it for my grandkids, and let them make their own pizza, you can whip up the dough and cook right away, no need to let it rise like other recipes

Basic Pizza Dough by Food Nanny

1 Tblsp active dry yeast
1 cup warm (105-115 degrees) water
2 Tblsp olive oil
1 Tblsp honey
1/4 tsp salt
3 to 4 cups all purpose flour (or use half whole wheat -half white)

Mix the yeast and water in a small bowl, cover, and let stand until foamy, about 5 to 10 min

Mix the oil, honey, salt, and yeast mixture in a large mixing bowl (I use my Kitchen Aid or Bosch), Add one cup of flour at a time, up to 3 cups, mixing well after each addition.  You may have to stir in the third cup of flour by hand, depending on your machine.

If the dough seems too wet, mix more flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until the dough is soft.  Mix in your Kitchen Aid for about 5 min.

Lightly grease pizza pan or cookie sheet with oil.  If making two or more thin crust pizza's, divide the dough and with rolling pin roll out dough on floured surface, gently stretch the dough to fill the pan.
(I just pull a ball of dough out of the bowl and with my hand form it into a kidsized circle, just using my hands to pull and stretch and form, I can get 2 to 3 kid sized pizzas on a pan)

Cover the dough with pizza sauce ( I just use my own homemade spaghetti sauce or Prego sauce or the food nanny has a recipe that goes like this:
Easy Pizza Sauce your Kids will Make
1   8 oz can tomato sauce
1/4  tsp dried basil
1/4  tsp oregano
1/4  tsp garlic or garlic salt
1/8  tsp ground black pepper
1 Tblsp sugar
Mix all together in small bowl

Then let the children put on what toppings they like, mozzarella cheese, olives, pepperoni, pineapple, mushrooms, bell pepper, bacon, etc.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
Bake 15 to 20 min on lowest oven rack

For a variation you can make 3 cheese pizza using  mozarella cheese, smoked gouda cheese and gruyere cheese!


For the nourishing of our souls:
Read in D&C 6:33
Fear not to do good, my sons, for whatsoever ye sow, that shall ye also reap; therefore, if ye sow good ye shall also reap good for your reward

It has been my experience that every good deed I have done for others has come back to me throughout my life, and mostly I have been paid back during the hardest times of my life, it makes me wish I had done MORE good things so I could continue to receive MORE good things in return!  But let me give you an example, when my kids were in high school, I would sometimes like to take their car at night when they were asleep and go fill it full of gas and not tell them.  And later in my life, during some hard times, one day I went to get in my car and my daughter had filled my car full of gas, it was such a nice surprise! Little things are such BIG things and its the little things that make memories!

Play Dough from the Child Study Lab

A few Years after  Dan and I had our first baby, Dan was still attending Arizona State University, he was able to get Dustin into their preschool program and they had the best program ever, this recipe came from their child study lab and I have used it to raise all my seven children plus my seven grandchildren, NO MOTHER SHOULD BE WITHOUT THIS RECIPE!  You just cant raise a kid without homemade playdough!

Child Study Lab Play Dough
2 cups flour
1 cup salt
2 cups water
4 tsp cream of tartar
3 Tblsp oil ( I use vegetable oil)
Food Coloring

In a big saucepan (6 to 8 quart) Mix together all the ingredients (I do it in the order listed) and I use a whisk at first to blend all the ingredients together (a large wire whisk) and then I put the whisk in my sink and get a big wooden spoon to stir it with. (as it cooks it will get so thick and stuck in the whisk)
 Cook the above ingredients (after blended together) over stovetop with  medium high heat until it starts to pull away from the pan and hold together in a ball, I stand and stir with wooden spoon the whole time, as it goes pretty quickly, until it becomes a big clump that has all pulled together in the center of your pan, then pour it onto table or countertop and KNEAD with your hands, but be careful as it will be hot, you may want to let it cool a minute or two before you Knead, and then knead until it is ready, I store mine in tupperware container on a shelf. 
YOU WILL LOVE IT!, nothing is more fun for kids than a fresh batch of playdough.  Be sure to soak your pans for several minutes and then clean out right away as it is harder to clean if you dont do it right away
ENJOY!, your children will love you!

For the nourishing of our souls:
The other day I was with my RS pres and some planes flew over our head, so loud we could not hear, and she said I LOVE THAT SOUND, and I said why? and she said, it represents FREEDOM, and so today I want you to be thankful for our FREEDOM, and here is my most favorite singer singing a heart pounding song I love: listen here 
If I could be anyone in this world, I would choose to be Martina McBride, she is beautiful and has the most beautiful voice!!

Tie Dye Cupcakes and Buttercream Icing

Recently I had the opportunity to make cupcakes for a baby shower and I got online to get ideas for cute ways to frost the cupcakes and I came across this idea and decided to try it, my first try did not turn out as cute as hers, but I am going to do this again, here is the site so you can make these darling cupcakes for a shower or birthday or wedding!  Look here for a picture and how to do it  and here is her buttercream icing:

Quick Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
*Note: you can substitute milk for the heavy cream but the frosting will be missing an element of silky creaminess.
*Makes about 4 cups of frosting
INGREDIENTS:
½ cup (1 stick, 8 tablespoons) butter, softened to room temperature
3 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
16 ounces powdered sugar (about 3 ½ cups)
¼ cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl using a handheld mixer or the bowl of an electric stand mixer, beat the softened butter and cream cheese together until it is light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Mix in the vanilla. Add the powdered sugar gradually and mix in fully after each addition. Cream at low speed until well blended and creamy. Pour in the heavy cream and whip until the frosting is light and fluffy.


For the nourishing of our souls:

My favorite hymn in the church hymns is "How Great Thou Art", and I found this song sung by Carrie Underwood on YouTube and it is magical, it sends chills down my spine every time I hear it, so listen and enjoy, have a wonderful day, and tonight when you say your prayers, may you be reverenced and humble at how great our Heavenly Father is! listen  here  make sure you listen clear to the end as it is the ending that sends tingles!