Crockpot Turkey

Yes. I am making turkey in a crockpot. This year for Thanksgiving my family will be in Orlando Florida at Walt Disney World. We will be missing Thanksgiving. (We're actually eating at a Chinese Restaurant in Epcot for Thanksgiving.) My husband LOVES Thanksgiving. How could I deprive him of one of his favorite meals, and so close to his birthday? So this year we're calling it "Fakesgiving". It's our fake Thanksgiving. Taking lots of short cuts, and making a smaller meal. . . thus a crockpot turkey. Don't judge me. It's moist, buttery, and tasty, not to mention virtually NO WORK!

Crockpot Turkey

1 5-7 lb turkey breas, thawed
1/2 cup butter
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

1. Toss all ingredients into crockpot.

2. Cook on low heat for about 10 hours or until cooked through.

3. Take turkey out of crockpot, and let set for about 25 mintues.

4. Cut and eat!

Layered Cranberry Orange Jello

Layered Cranberry Orange Jello

2 cups grahm cracker crumbs
1 stick butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar, divided
1 8oz pkg. cream cheese
2 8oz tubs of Cool Whip
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 large pkg. orange jello
1 can cranberry sauce
1 1/2 cups cold water
1 can mandarin oranges

1. Stir boiling water into gelatin in large bowl at least 2 minutes until completely dissolved.

2. Add cranberry sauce; stir until melted.

3. Stir in cold water. Refrigerate about 1-1/4 hours or until slightly thickened (consistency of unbeaten egg whites). Gently stir in mandarin oranges.

4. Meanwhile, stir crumbs, 1/4 cup of the sugar and butter in 13x9-inch dish. Press firmly onto bottom. Refrigerate until ready to use.

5. Beat cream cheese and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in large bowl until well blended.

6. Gently stir in 1 tub of the whipped topping. Spread evenly over crust; cover with gelatin mixture.

7. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm. Garnish with remaining tub of whipped topping just before serving.

Boursin Potato Gratin

Boursin Potato Gratin

2 1/2 pounds of potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 clove garlic
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup Boursin cheese
Salt
Pepper

1. In a saucepan, combine heavy cream, milk, salt, pepper, and garlic.

2. Cook until boiling, then reduce heat and simmer stirring constantly until slightly thickened.

3. Add in cheeses and stir until melted.

4. In a 9 x 13 pan, layer 1/3 of the potatoes, with 1/3 of the cream mixture.

5. Continue layering until all the ingredients are gone.

6. Bake at 350 for 1 to 1 1 /2 hours.

7. Let set for about 20 minutes before cutting and serving.

Bacon Fried Corn

Packed with heavy cream, butter, bacon, and bacon fat. . .this is not a very healthy veggie. But for the Holidays, it sure is a delicious one! I mean, really, how can you go wrong with this combo?

Bacon Fried Corn

6 slices bacon
2 to 4 Tbsp butter
1 10oz bag of frozen corn, thawed
2 Tbsp finely chopped onion
1 to 2 Tbsp sugar
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
Salt
Pepper

1. Chop bacon into tiny pieces. Fry until crisp.

2. Save 2 Tbsp of bacon fat.

3. In a separate saute pan, melt butter.

4. Add in corn, onion, and 2 Tbsp bacon fat.

5. Sprinkle on the sugar, salt , and pepper.

6. Add in the cream, and stir continually until corn is tender and slightly browned.

7. Toss with crumbled bacon and serve.

Creamy Chicken Alfredo

Creamy Chicken Alfredo

5 Tbsp butter
3 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup parmesan cheese
2 cups chopped, cooked chicken
Pasta cooked according to directions on pkg.

1. In a sauce pan, melt butter.

2. Add in garlic, salt, and pepper.

3. Stir in the heavy cream and bring to a boil.

4. Reduce heat, and simmer, stirring constantly until slightly thickened.

5. Toss together, sauce, chicken, and pasta. Sprinkle with cheese and stir. (The cheese melts right into the sauce and helps to thicken it up a bit.)

Caramel Apple Galette

Caramel Apple Galette

1 pre-made pie crust
3 large Granny Smith Apples
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup butter
3 Tbsp heavy cream
3 Tbsp sugar

1. Sprinkle 1 Tbsp of flour on your baking pan.
2. Line with pie crust.
3. Peel and thinly slice apples.

4. Lay apples over pie crust leaving two inches at the edges.

5. Mix together brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon.

6. Cut in butter until course and crumbly.

7. Spoon brown sugar mixture over apples.8. Fold up the edges of the pie crust.9. Brush pie crust with heavy cream and sprinkle with sugar.10. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Cheddar Pull Apart Bread

Cheddar Pull Apart Bread

2 loaves of Rhodes Frozen Bread Dough, thawed
1/2 cup butter
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup melted butter

1. Cut bread dough into 24 pieces per loaf.

2. Place dough pieces into a 9 x 13 dish sprayed with non stick cooking spray

3. Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt, pepper, and cheese.

4. Drizzle with butter.

5. Let rise in warm place until doubled in size.

6. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until browned.

Tacos in Pasta Shells

Tacos in Pasta Shells

1 lb ground beef
1 packet taco seasoning
1 box large pasta shells
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Garnishes: tomato, onion, shredded lettuce, avocado, sour cream, crushed tortilla chips

1. Brown ground beef and prepare as directed on taco seasoning packet.

2. Meanwhile, cook pasta shells according to directions on box.

3. Fill each pasta shell with 1 Tbsp of taco meat.

4. Place shells in a 9 x 13 dish, sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle with cheese.

5. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.

6. Serve with garnishes!

Pesto Mac

If you haven't already noticed, I'll go ahead and point it out for you. I'm a HUGE fan of quick meals, few ingredients, and one-dish-wonders. In this dish you get your carb, meat, and veggie all in one. It's a really quick to make dinner that will please everyone. I know. . .at first glance it sounds like an odd combo, but it's really good. The sweetness of the corn with the pesto is addicting! I found it in a Simple and Delicious Magazine a few years back and we make it often. The original recipe called for quite a bit of cheddar cheese mixed into the pasta, which made for a gloppy mess. Insead, we sprinkle, (generously) with reduced fat parmesan cheese.

Pesto Mac
1 cup equals 5 Weight Watchers Points (Using the healthy pasta.)

1/2 of a 16oz box of macaroni, (I used the Barilla Plus twisty elbows.)
3/4 cup pesto (I used Classico Traditional Basil Pesto.)
1 10oz bag of frozen sweet corn (I like Green Giant, Super Sweet Corn.)
2 cups cooked, thinly sliced chicken
salt
pepper
parmesan cheese

1. Cook macaroni according to box directions.

2. While macaroni is cooking, steam corn in the microwave for 4 minutes.

3. Drain pasta, toss with pesto, corn, and chicken.

4. Season with salt and pepper, and top with parmesan cheese.

Tiramisu

This is my favorite dessert ever. The first time I had it was at an Italian restaurant called Biaggi's located in Maple Grove Mn. It was SO GOOD! A typical Tiramisu is espresso-soaked lady fingers, layered with a sweet cream and mascarpone cheese, topped with a rich sweetened cocoa powder. Rich, but not too rich, creamy, full of coffee flavor, a pinch of chocolate, and simply perfect. From that point on, I ordered it from every restaurant that offered it, and found there to be quite a variation on what you get depending on where you are. I have to say the best place I have had Tiramisu at was at Disney World. We were at Epcot, in the Italy Pavillion and there was a little bake/coffee shop that had it featured as a dessert. We were with my parents so we ordered two, and shared. From that point on, I was on the hunt for a Tiramisu recipe that was easy to make, and tasted great. This one uses ingredients that you can find anywhere, very simple. Not so "authentic," however tastes amazing. There is no ricotta or egg yolk in this recipe, it's a no cook recipe as well. Very simple, very good. One bite, and you'll be hooked.

Tiramisu

2 loaves of Sara Lee pound cake, thinly sliced
3 cups heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 large box of instant vanilla pudding
2 1/2 cups cold milk
1 1/2 cups strongly brewed coffee, cooled
1/2 cup Ghiradelli Sweetened Ground Cocoa (You can sub 1/4 cup cocoa powder mixed with 1/4 cup of powder sugar.)

1. Mix together pudding and milk. Whisk together and let set in fridge while you prepare the cream.
2. For the cream, mix together heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat on high speed until cream is very stiff.
3. Fold the vanilla pudding into the heavy cream mixture.

4. Place 1/3 of the pound cake slices in the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan.
5. Drizzle with 1/3 of the coffee.
6. Spread 1/3 of the vanilla cream on top of the the coffee soaked cake.
7. Repeat layers twice, creating a total of three layers of everything.

8. Sift the Sweetened Ground Chocolate on top of the whole dish.

Kim's White Chicken Chili

Kim's White Chicken Chili

3 cans Great Northern Beans, rinsed and drained
3 cups cubed, cooked chicken
1 jar of Alfredo sauce
2 cups chicken broth
1 or 2 cans of green chilies
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
2 cups shredded cheese, (I used 1 cup cheddar, and 1 cup pepper jack.)
1 cup sour cream
2 Tbsp butter or oil
1 small yellow or red pepper, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp cumin
1 1/2 tsp pepper
3 cups cooked, small pasta
Garnish with: chopped tomato, cilantro, crushed chips, and cheese

1. In a soup pot, melt butter and then saute pepper, and onion.

2. Add in garlic, cumin, and pepper.

3. Next add in Great Norther Beans, corn, green chilies, chicken broth, chicken, and alfredo sauce. Bring to a boil.

4. Simmer until beans are cooked through.

5. Stir in corn, cheese, and sour cream until melted and heated through.

6. Stir in pasta.

7. Serve and garnish!

Chili No Bean Dip

Chili No Bean Dip

1 can Fat Free Hormel Turkey Chili No Beans
1/2 block of 2% Velveeta Cheese
1 small can Durkee French Fried Onions
1 Small can Rotel Tomatoes and Chili

1. Mix all ingredients together in crockpot.

2. Cook on low until melted.

3. Serve with chips!

Justin's Peppermint Hot Chocolate

My kids are Hot Chocoholics! They like it in just about any shape or variety. With whipped cream, marshmallows, chocolate chips, Andes Mints, candy canes, you name it! I think his love affair with hot chocolate started when he was three. I have a picture of him enjoying his very first cup of hot cocoa. It was after a chilly afternoon playing in the snow while his dad was shoveling the driveway. He came in, frozen to the core, runny nose and all, and a full head of sweaty "hat hair." I try to change it up a bit every now and then but this is Justin's favorite way to enjoy his hot chocolate. Not too chocolatey, with a bit of mint, and tons of marshmallows!

Justin's Peppermint Hot Chocolate
4 Weight Watchers Points with One Candy Cane, and No Marshmallows

1 cup milk
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp dark cocoa powder
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 mini candy canes
Lots of marshmallows!

1. In a microwave safe bowl, whisk together milk, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and vanilla.

2. Toss in two of the candy canes.

3. Microwave on high until chocolate is hot, and candy canes are melted.

4. Pour into a cup, top with marshmallows, and garnish with third candy cane.

Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwich

This idea came from my sister Kim. She makes it for breakfast every day. One day when I was visiting her she made it for me. I'm not a huge egg person, and typically, I would not get up and make myself eggs for breakfast. This however, I make almost every day now. The kids love it too. It's your typical "McMuffin" style sandwich, but without the fat and calories. Today I made mine using a Pepperidge Farm Deli Sandwich Round, but typically I use a Thomas's Triple Health English Muffin. Low Cal. . .High Fiber. And here's another little side note: Kim has tried all the different brands of the Fat Free American cheese slices, and they all seem to have a weird texture, aftertaste, or tang to them. That is all but one brand. Borden. It's the only one I buy. It melts great, tastes great, and has no weird fat-free taste to it.

Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwich
2 Weight Watchers Points without Bacon Pieces, 3 Points with Bacon Pieces

2 egg whites
1 Tbsp Oscar Mayer Real Bacon Pieces
1 English Muffin or Deli Sandwich Round
1 Slice of Fat Free Cheese
Salt and Pepper

1. Using non stick cooking spray, spray a frying pan and turn on heat to medium. Let pan get hot.

2. Pour egg whites into the pan and cook until bottom of eggs are set.
3. Sprinkle the bacon pieces, salt, and pepper over the egg whites.
4. Cook until whites are set.

5. Fold egg whites until they will fit on your sandwich.
6. Pop English muffin into the toaster and toast.

7. Put the eggs whites onto the muffin bottom, top with cheese, and top of English muffin.

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

I found a recipe online for a Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup. It was made similar to this, but had a few cans of cream of chicken soup and sour cream in it. I wanted to make something a bit more "home-made" than that so this is what I came up with. This soup is thick, creamy, and hearty. I served it when my sister came for dinner. She loved it. . .sent some left overs home with her for her lunch at work the next day. I do have to say, that as the soup sits, it thickens, so you may want to thin it out a bit with more milk if it seems too thick for you.

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

1 stick butter
1 to 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken, cooked and cubed
1 large onion (about 1 cup diced)
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup diced celery
1/2 cup flour
6 cups water
4 cups milk
6 chicken bouillon cubes (or appropriate amount of granules for 6 cups water)
16oz pkg. home style egg noodles, cooked

1. In a large soup pot, melt butter.

2. Add to the butter, onion, carrots, and celery. Saute until crisp/tender.

3. Toss chicken in with the veggies and mix.

4. Sprinkle in the flour, and mix well until all the veggies are coated in the flour/butter paste.

5. Slowly add in the bouillon cubes and water and stir. (Mixture will begin to thicken quite
quickly.)

6. Bring to a boil.

7. Once boiling slowly add in the milk. Stir until heated through.

8. Mix in the noodles and serve.

California Burger

Easy. Healthy. Tasty. Doing Weight Watchers has me on the constant lookout for foods that are filling, and healthy, and taste great. It's easy to get stuck in the rut of eating the same meals day in and day out, but I'm always looking for alternative. This burger makes you feel like you're eating a lot, but without the calories.

California Burger
Only 5 Weight Watchers Points per burger!

1 Lean Turkey Burger (I buy the big thick ones from Costco. They come in a package of 12 for $9.00)
1 Pepperidge Farm 100 calorie Deli Sandwich Round
1 to two Tbsp. Avocado Sour Cream Spread
2 tomato slices
1 pickle slice
Several onion slices
Shredded lettuce

1. Cook Turkey Burger according to pkg. directions.

2. Layer bottom of the Deli Sandwich Round with burger, onion, tomato, pickle, lettuce, Avocado Sour Cream Spread and top of Deli Sandwich Round.

3. Indulge in a filling, healthy, and delicious meal!

Fresh Avocado Spread

I am avocado obsessed. I like it with Mexican food, and I LOVE it on burgers and sandwiches. I make this spread and use it in place of mayo on sandwiches. It's delicious, and far less calories than mayo.

Fresh Avocado Spread

1 Ripe Avocado
3 to 4 Tbsp sour cream
1/2 tsp lemon juice
Garlic Salt
Pepper

1. Mash avocado.

2. Mix in sour cream, lemon juice, garlic salt, and pepper.

Homemade Flour Tortillas

My kids are taco-obsessed. It's their favorite food. Most kids like spaghetti, or pizza, but mine can't get enough tacos. My youngest, Tessa, especially. It's one of the only meals that she gets truly excited about. We rarely if ever, eat fast food. Their extent of fast food is the occasional Happy Meal from McDonalds. But one day last week, Tessa took notice of a Taco Johns by our home. Now we've driven past this place at least once a day for the past 7 years, but for whatever reason, she never noticed it. She was just staring, in awestruck wonder, out the window and says, "Look Mom, a Taco Store!!!" So needless to say, we eat tacos (or something Mexican) at least once a week. This was the first time I had ever made my own tortillas. I couldn't believe how easy it was, and how good they were! While eating, Justin told me never to by the "crusty store ones" again.

Homemade Flour Tortillas

2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup water
3 Tbsp oil

1. Mix together with a fork. Will be a very sticky dough.

2. Dump onto a well floured surface and knead by hand 6 or 7 times.

3. Divide dough into 8 portions.
4. Roll each portion of dough into a ball.

5. Roll each dough ball into a 7 inch circle.
6. Spray a frying pan with a small amount of nonstick cooking spray.

7. Fry each tortilla in for 1 1/2 mintues on each side.

Golden Pumpkin Pie

This is my mom's recipe. She's made it every year. Almost always with fresh pumpkin. I have tried many pumpkin pie recipes, and come back to this one each time. I won't even bother with another recipe. This one is it!!! It's got the perfect amount of spice, and it's just creamy, pumpkin, delicousness. It's the heavy cream. Has to be. This is not a calorie conscience recipe by any means, but it is tasty!

Golden Pumpkin Pie

1 unbaked pie shell
3 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup brown sugar
1 3/4 cup pumpkin
1 cup whipping cream

1. Line your pie dish with the pie shell.

2. Mix together all the rest of the ingredients.

3. Pour into pie shell, and bake at 350 for 1 hour or until set.

Chocolate Chip Pie

I made this pie today because it's my sister Amanda's favorite. She has a VERY busy life. She's working full time at a hospital as a surgical technologist, (all sorts of odd hours!) And also a full time nursing student. She has a full plate, between work, school, and studying! I don't see her very often, but when I do, I enjoy spending time with her. She's coming over tonight to "use" my son for one of her nursing projects. So, I decided to make dinner, and her favorite dessert. This pie is like a chocolate chip cookie on steroids! It's big, moist, chocolatey, and very rich and buttery. One bite, and you'll be hooked!

Chocolate Chip Pie

1 unbaked pie shell
3/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Line pie dish with pie shell.

2. Sprinkle chocolate chips into pie shell.

3. Mix together butter, flour, sugar, and brown sugar.

4. Add eggs one at a time.

5. Pour batter over the chocolate chips, and bake at 350 for about an hour.

6. Cook until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.

Polka Dot Cheesecake Bites

Polka Dot Cheesecake Bites

1 Tube of refrigerated cookie dough
2 8oz pkgs. of cream cheese
2 eggs
3 Tbsp flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla

1. Divide dough by Tbsp, into 24 portions. I use a small cookie scoop for this.
2. Cut each dough ball in half.
3. Roll each half into a ball.
4. Place one ball into each mini muffin tin.

5. Press down and flatten into bottom of tin.

6. Mix together cream cheese, flour, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.

7. Put 1 Tbsp of cheesecake batter on each cookie batter round.

8. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes

9. Top with three chocolate chips each, let them melt, and spread them around.

10. Top with sprinkles.

Bruschetta Chicken Stuffing Bake

This recipe came straight from the back of the Stovetop Stuffing box! It's really good too! I mean seriously, can you go wrong with stuffing? I'm a HUGE fan of easy, one dish meals, and this is a keeper. The chicken always cooks up very tender and juicy, and you get just the right amount of crunch on top with the stuffing. I love the fresh taste the tomatoes give it, and calorie wise, you're not adding butter to the stuffing, so it's a pretty healthy meal! I usually like to give you a picture once we've dug in so you can see the layers of goodness. . .but we ate fast tonight! Trust me, there is chicken under there.

Bruschetta Chicken Stuffing Bake
4 Weight Watchers Points per 1 Cup

1 can (14 1/2 oz) of diced tomatoes, undrained
1 6oz pkg. Stovetop Stuffing Mix
1/2 cup water
3 cloves minced garlic
1 1/2lbs of boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
Dried Basil
Shredded Parmesan Cheese

1. Place chicken evenly in the bottom of a small casserole. (I used a 9" square stoneware dish.)

2. Mix together tomatoes, water, garlic, and stuffing.

3. Spoon stuffing over chicken.

4. Sprinkle with basil and cheese.

5. Bake at 350 for about 35 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Sausage and Pierogi Skillet

I actually found this recipe on the back of a package of pierogis. I don't remember what brand they were, but I found it years ago. If you've never had pierogis, this is a must try. The best way I can describe it is that it's a cross between pasta, and mashed potatoes. Simply said, very tasty! Made it once, and we all really liked it. It's pretty healthy and the pierogis make it very hearty as well. I always use the reduced fat Kielbasa, or Turkey Kielbasa to cut out a few more calories. And believe it or not, my kids LOVE the cabbage in this!

Sausage and Pierogi Skillet
5 Weight Watchers Points for 1 cup cabbage/Sausage mix and 3 Pierogies.

1 round of Kielbasa sausage, sliced and quartered
1 bag of coleslaw
1 chopped onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper
Pierogis

1. In a large pan, saute sausage until browned and heated through. Set aside and keep warm.
2. In that same pan, mix together coleslaw, onion, and garlic. Saute until cabbage is tender.

3. Add in chicken broth and cook for just a few minutes until slightly reduced.

4. Mix sausage back in with cabbage/coleslaw mixture. Keep warm.

5. In another pan, cook Pierogis as directed on package. You can boil, or saute them in butter. To cut calories I boiled mine, and saute'd them in a little bit of non stick cooking spray to get them slightly browned. (I made enough for each of us to have three.)

6. Heap the cabbage and sausage mixture onto your plate, and top with Pierogis.

Pistachio Almond Cake

Pistachio Almond Cake

1 pkg. white cake mix
1 small pkg. sugar free instant pistachio pudding
4 eggs
1 1/4 cup water
1/4 cup oil
1 tsp almond extract
few drops of green food coloring
1 can of chocolate frosting

1. Whisk together white cake mix and pudding mix.

2. Add in eggs one at a time, followed by water, oil, almond extract, and green food coloring.

3. Whisk until well combined.

4. Pour into a Bundt pan sprayed with baking spray.

5. Bake at 350 for 45 to 55 minutes.
6. Let cool for 10 minutes and invert onto a serving plate.
7. Cool completely.

8. Heat frosting in the microwave until creamy and pourable.

9. Pour evenly over cake.
NOTE: This cake looks MUCH different in person. I could not get my camera to capture the color. When you cut into the cake, it's actually quite green in color. Very hard to tell here.