Pie Squares

Batter:
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
4 eggs
1 1/2 tsp baking powder

Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp milk
1/2 tsp almond extract

1 can of pie filling - your choice of flavor

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix batter together - will be thick and buttery.  Pour half of batter onto a greased cookie sheet.
Spread on can of pie filling.  Dab the rest of the batter on top. Making it look like small dots
Cook for 35-40  minutes.
Drizzle on glaze.

Lazy Cookie Bars

Lazy Cookie Bars

Ingredients:

1 (15 oz.) box yellow cake mix

2 eggs, beaten

5 tbsp. butter, melted

1 bag (12 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.

Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

I love to use the kind that has flour in it.

In your mixing bowl, combine dry cake mix with melted butter and beaten eggs.

This is easier if you have an electric or stand mixer because batter will be very thick.

Stir in bag of chocolate chips.

Spread batter into greased baking dish.

What I like to do is spray my hand with some nonstick cooking spray and then spread the batter around using my hand since the batter is very thick.

Once it is evenly spread out, put in the oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes.

It will puff up as it is cooking and be golden brown around the edges when it is done.

Allow to cool.

This makes a great base for some ice cream too.

Cook's Notes: The great thing about this recipe is all the variations you can make.

Feel free to use different types of chips or add in nuts. I really love when the holiday baking chips come out. 

Sweet Corn Bread

"This corn bread goes well with just about anything. I always make it when we have chili. The sour cream makes it nice and moist."

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Lightly grease an 8-inch square baking dish.
2. Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Mix egg, sour cream, milk, and butter in a small bowl. Fold egg mixture into flour mixture until just moistened; pour into prepared baking dish.
3. Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Serve warm.

Slow Cooker Hearty Beef Stew

"Here's an old-time hamburger and mixed vegetable soup, made the way Grandma made it...if Grandma had a slow cooker. If you can't go home and check on it on a week day be sure to added extra broth at the beginning. A large bag of frozen mixed vegetables can be used in place of the canned vegetables."

Ingredients

• 1 (32 fluid ounce) container beef broth, or more if needed
• 1 pound ground sirloin beef
• 1 (15.25 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 (15 ounce) can green beans, drained
• 1 (15 ounce) can peas, drained
• 1 (14 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 3 carrots, cut into bite-size pieces
• 2 potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 large stalk celery, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
• 2 bay leaves
• salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Stir beef broth, ground sirloin, corn, green beans, peas, tomato sauce, carrots, potatoes, onion, celery, garlic, parsley, celery seed, and bay leaves together in a slow cooker.
2. Cook on Low for 4 hours. Check for moisture and add broth as needed. Continue cooking another 4 hours. Season with salt and black pepper.

Speedy Hamburger Soup

"The perfect cold-weather soup: Easy, and so tasty. My family has served this on Christmas night for years. It doubles easily and freezes well. For a meatier soup, double the ground beef."

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can stewed tomatoes
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 2 cups water

• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen mixed vegetables
• 1/4 cup dry onion soup mix
• 1 teaspoon white sugar

Directions

1. In a large pot over medium high heat, saute the ground beef for about 5 minutes, or until browned. Drain off excess fat.
2. Add the tomatoes, sauce, water, vegetables, soup mix and sugar. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Beef and Vegetable Soup

"This is a satisfying, very easy, and delicious vegetable soup to serve anytime of the year. Serve with saltine crackers and chunks of sharp cheese."

Ingredients

• 2 pounds ground beef
• 4 carrots, diced
• 4 celery ribs, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can whole tomatoes, crushed

• 1 (15 ounce) can peas, undrained
• 1 (15.25 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15 ounce) can green beans, drained and rinsed
• ground black pepper to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon ground thyme
• 1 bay leaf, or more to taste
• 1/4 cup water, as needed

Directions

1. Crumble ground beef into a stockpot over medium-high heat; cook and stir until beef is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink, 7 to 10 minutes. Drain and discard any excess grease.
2. Stir carrots, celery, and onion into the ground beef; cook and stir until vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add potatoes, tomato sauce, crushed whole tomatoes, undrained peas, corn, and green beans to the pot; season with black pepper. Stir mixture until evenly mixed. Add thyme and bay leaf to the pot. Pour 1/4 cup water over the mixture if needed to moisten mixture, replenishing as needed while cooking.
3. Bring soup to a simmer, place a cover on the pot, and cook, stirring regularly, until potatoes are tender, about 1 hour.

Cream Cheese Chicken Chili

Cream Cheese Chicken Chili

-1 can of drained and rinsed black beans
-1 can of corn-undrained
-1 can of diced tomatoes
-1 can of diced green chilis)
-1 package of the ranch dressing powder (or make a diy)***
-1 tsp cumin
-1 tsp garlic powder
-1 Tbsp chili powder
-2 chicken breasts. (I just toss them in frozen)
-1 package of cream cheese.

Basically dump everything but the cream cheese in the crock pot and
Mix. Put the block of cream cheese on the top and cook on low for 6 ish hours or until your chicken is done. Shred your chicken and you're good to go.

We like to eat ours with corn chips.

*** If you don't want to use a ranch packet, add theses seasonings/ingredients
1/2  cup buttermilk
1 Tbsp dried parsley
3/4 tsp dried dill weed
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp dried onion flakes
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dried chives
1/2 tsp salt