Butterscotch Brownies

from my "Essential Mormon Celebrations" cookbook, found these gems. I've also heard them referred to before as "blondies" but whatever you call them, these were so incredibly yummy!
ps- i didn't have to break out my mixer, i mixed by hand

3/4 cup butter
3 cups packed brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup flaked coconut

in a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat; remove from heat and cool. blend in brown sugar and eggs. in a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt; add to brown sugar mixture and blend well. stir in nuts, vanilla and coconut. spread into greased 9x13 pan and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes. Let cool before cutting into bars.

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

this is from allrecipes.com, rated 4.5 stars by 1152 reviewers. its a family favorite! toppings we enjoy on it included: shredded cheese, sour cream, salsa and guacamole. keeps very well in the fridge and reheats great for leftovers.

• 1 pound shredded, cooked chicken
• 1 (15 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed
• 1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups water
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen corn
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 7 corn tortillas
• vegetable oil

Place chicken, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, onion, green chiles, and garlic into a slow cooker. Pour in water and chicken broth, and season with cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Stir in corn and cilantro. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 6 to 8 hours or on High setting for 3 to 4 hours. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly brush both sides of tortillas with oil. Cut tortillas into strips, then spread on a baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven until crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. To serve, sprinkle tortilla strips over soup. *a note. i have made this many times and finally wised up to a few things. it tastes better if 1) i cook it on high for 3-4 hours and not use the low setting. my chicken looks disgusting if i cook it for 8 hours. and 2) i don't add cilantro to the soup while it is cooking. it over-powers the taste and i much prefer a generous handful of the fresh stuff on top of my soup in my bowl.

General Tso's Chicken

from Everyday Food Oct.08 issue. its part of a section about making popular take-out items lighter and cheaper at home instead of eating out. travis has declared this his favorite meal ever. fantastic flavor!!

recipe info: serves 4 total time 45minutes

1 1/4 cups long grain brown rice
1/4 cornstarch, divided
1 lb snow peas, trimmed and halved crosswise
4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 tsp grated peeled fresh ginger (i did 1 tsp ginger powder)
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp red-pepper flakes
2 large egg whites
coarse salt and pepper
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 tbsp vegetable oil, such as safflower

1- cook rice according to directions. meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together 1 tbsp cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water until smooth. add snow peas, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, brown sugar and red-pepper flakes; toss to combine, and set aside
2-in another bowl, whisk together egg whites, remaining 3 tbsp cornstarch, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper. add chicken, toss to coat.
3-in a large non-stick skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil over medium-high. lift half the chicken from the egg-white mixture (shaking off excess), and add to skillet. cook, turning occasionally, until golden., 6-8 minutes. transfer to plate; repeat with remaining oil and chicken, and set aside (reserve skillet)
4-add snow pea mixture to skillet. cover; cook until snow peas are tender and sauce is thickened, 3-5 minutes. return chicken to skillet (with any juices), toss to coat. serve with rice.

Raspberry Lemonade Slush

6 cups hots water
4 cups sugar
1 12 oz can frozen lemonade concentrate
1 16 oz can crushed pineapple with juice
2 10oz bags frozen raspberries
2 liters gingerale or lemon-lime soda

mix hot water and sugar together until sugar is dissolved. add lemonade, pineapple, and raspberries and stir until well mixed. freeze overnight. serve with desired amount of ginger ale or soda. makes 10-12 servings.

*a note. take out one hour prior to serving as the mixture is more "slushy" when its time to serve.

Seven Layer Taco Dip

from allrecipes.com 793 reviewers gave it 5 stars, its a winner! if i'm in a hurry, i'll omit the chopped tomatoes because, next to the salsa, it seemed a tad redundant.

• 1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
• 1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 (16 ounce) container sour cream
• 1 (16 ounce) jar salsa
• 1 large tomato, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 bunch chopped green onions
• 1 small head iceberg lettuce, shredded
• 1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives, drained
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. In a medium bowl, blend the taco seasoning mix and refried beans. Spread the mixture onto a large serving platter.
2. Mix the sour cream and cream cheese in a medium bowl. Spread over the refried beans.
3. Top the layers with salsa. Place a layer of tomato, green bell pepper, green onions and lettuce over the salsa, and top with Cheddar cheese. Garnish with black olives

Black Bean Salsa

from my friend Sonja Glick. This is fantastic stuff, be prepared to break out lots of tortilla chips to dip with!

1 15oz can black beans, drained
1 15oz can corn, drained
1 red pepper
1 green pepper
1 yellow pepper
1 purple onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp cilantro (i prefer generous amounts of fresh cilantro)
1/4 cup olive oil
4 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp fresh lime juice
salt and pepper to taste

seed and dice peppers. chop the onion. combine peppers, onion, corn, garlic and cilantro. toss to mix. add olive oil, vinegar and lime juice. salt and pepper to taste, toss again and add beans lastly.

*a note. this is great freshly made or can be chilled for a few hours prior to serving. this can keep for a day or 2 in the fridge, after that the beans get mushy and all the liquid pools in the bottom. its best to eat the day you make it.

Wonderful Apple Dip

this recipe came from my friend Christy Miller who says she got it from Jenny Salter and well, once you taste it, you'll see how easy it is to share this recipe! and might i recommend pink lady apples or if they are in season, honey crisp apples are well worth the price.

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 white sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 bag toffee bits

stir together until very smooth. keep in fridge and keeps up to a week.