Red Enchilada Sauce

Enchilada Sauce

Recipe from: Food.com

I made this sauce a couple months ago and LOVED it. 

This is the only sauce I will make for now on. 

Ingredients
3 tablespoons chili powder

3 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon cocoa powder

¹⁄₂ teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon oregano

3 cups water

1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce

Directions

1. Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl.
2. Stir constantly, slowly add enough of the water to make a thin paste.
3. Pour into pan and add rest of water.
4. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens.
5. Stir in tomato sauce.

Brownies

 I lined the 9x13 cake pan with wax paper.  Then I placed whole graham crackers on top of the wax paper, covering the whole pan.  I prepared the brownie mix (following their instructions) then I pour the brownie mix on top of the graham crackers and baked according their instructions. 

The recipe below is brownies and chocolate chip cookies.   I followed the recipe on the box.

First I lined the 9x13 cake pan with foil because I was out of wax paper.  Then I poured the prepared brownie mix on top of the foil.  Then I  separated half the package of Nestle Toll House Cookies.  I put the other half in the refrigerator to use at another time.  I placed 12 mini cookies on top of the brownies.  I planned on cutting 12 big brownies and I made sure each brownie had a cookie in it. So it was 4 cookies to a row and 3 to a column.  They were both really good but I was surprised the graham cracker was my favorite.  Next time I make the graham cracker recipe I plan on putting mini marshmallows on the top the last 5 minutes of baking.   Making SMores.  I didn't do it this time because it is messing and I didn't want to deal with it.

Kitty Litter Cake

Kitty Litter Cake

Ingredients

1 (18 ounce) box spice cake mix or 1 (18 ounce) box German chocolate cake mix

3 eggs (or as called for by your cake mix)
¹⁄₃ cup oil (or as called for by your cake mix)
1 ¹⁄₃ cups water (or as called for by your cake mix)
1 (18 ounce) box white cake mix

3 eggs (or as called for by your cake mix)

¹⁄₃ cup oil (or as called for by your cake mix)

1 ¹⁄₃ cups water (or as called for by your cake mix)

1 (6 ounce) box vanilla instant pudding mix

1 (18 ounce) package vanilla sandwich cookies

green food coloring

12 small Tootsie Rolls

1 new kitty litter box

1 Pooper Scooper

Directions

1. Prepare cake mixes and bake according to box directions (any size pan). Prepare pudding, chill until ready to assemble. Crumble sandwich cookies in small batches in food processor, scraping often.
2. Set aside all but 1/4 cup.
3. To the 1/4 cup of crumbs, add a few drops of green food coloring and mix using fork or shake in a jar.
4. When cakes are cooled to room temp, crumble into a large bowl.
5. Toss with half the remaining cookie crumbs and chilled pudding.
6. You probably won't need all the pudding, mix the cake and "feel" it, you don't want it soggy, just moist; ge ntly combine. Line litter box.
7. Put mixture into box.
8. Put 3 unwrapped tootsie rolls in microwave safe dish and heat until softened.
9. Shape ends so they are no longer blunt, curving slightly.
10. Repeat with 3 more tootsie rolls and bury in cake mixture. Sprinkle the other half of cookie crumbs over top.
11. Scatter green crumbles lightly over top (chlorophyll in cat litter). Heat 3 tootsie rolls in microwave until almost melted.
12. Scrape them on top of the cake and sprinkle with cookie crumbs.
13. Spread remaining tootsie rolls over top; take one and heat until pliable, hang over side of litter box, sprinkle with cookie crumbs

Macaroni and Cheese

Ree Drummond's Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients

• 4 cups dried macaroni
• 1 whole egg
• 1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) butter
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups whole milk
• 2 heaping teaspoons dry mustard (more if desired)
• 1 pound sharp Cheddar, grated (not pre-grated cheese), plus more for baking
• Salt
• Seasoned salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Optional spices: cayenne pepper, paprika, thyme
• I added
• 1 cup corn
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 pound browned hamburger

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cook the macaroni until still slightly firm. Drain and set aside.

In a small bowl, beat the egg. In a large pot, melt the butter and sprinkle in the flour. Whisk together over medium-low heat. Cook for a couple of minutes, whisking constantly. Don't let it burn. Pour in the milk, add the mustard and whisk until smooth. Cook until very thick, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low.

Take 1/4 cup of the sauce and slowly pour it into the beaten egg, whisking constantly to avoid cooking the eggs. Whisk together until smooth. Pour the egg into the sauce, whisking constantly. Stir until smooth. Add in the cheese and stir to melt. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt and the pepper. Add any additional spices if desired. Taste the sauce and add more salt and seasoned salt as needed! DO NOT UNDERSALT.

Pour in the drained, cooked macaroni and stir to combine. Serve immediately (while it's still very creamy) or pour into a buttered baking dish, top with extra cheese and bake until bubbly and golden on top, 20 to 25 minutes

Rhonda's Review

 I liked this recipe but I don't think it is going to be the one I keep and never try another recipe again.
I love Taste of Home so I will be trying their Crock pot recipe next.

 click on recipe for the instructions to an easy Mac N Cheese.  I make all the time.  *** I only use 1 cup of salsa and I don't add the olives and pimientos.

Ants on a log

Pumpkin Seeds

Halloween in right around the corner and a lot of you will be carving pumpkins.  Here is a great Pumpkin Seed recipe to try.

Ingredients

2 cups raw pumpkin seeds

5 tablespoons sugar (divided)

¹⁄₂ teaspoon  salt

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

3 tablespoons butter             

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
2. On foil lined cookie sheet (I fold up all four sides of foil to form a lip so they don't slide off), spread out seeds in a single layer.
3. Toast in oven for 45-50 minutes, stirring several times until seeds are dry & starting to brown.
4. When seeds are toasted, melt butter in a large skillet over med-high heat.
5. Add seeds & 2 Tablespoons of the sugar. Stir until sugar is melted. About 1 minute.
6. In medium sized mixing bowl, stir together the remaining 3 Tablespoons of sugar with the salt & pumpkin pie spice.
7. Add pumpkin seeds from skillet to mixing bowl & stir until coated

Super Bowl

Mason Jars and much more

I put some goodies in these Mason Jars and wrapped them with Cellophane.

Jelly Belly Cupcakes

I bought a big container of Jelly Belly's and wanted to give them to my parents in a cute decorative way for Christmas.  I remembered I had a lot of Christmas cupcake wrappers, so I decided to Jelly Belly cupcakes. 

Birthdays

Michael's 18th Birthday Candy Bouquet

Michael's 17th birthday donut cake

Michael's 16th birthday surprise from Brent and Natalie

Trevor's 15th birthday balloons

Trevor's 13th birthday donut cake

Brent's 16th birthday donut cake

                          2015 Football dinner cupcakes

Dad's 70 birthday cupcakes

My 50th birthday Surprise from Julie

What a brilliant idea~ My sister-n-law Julie sent me this great box full of birthday goodies!  That was the nicest surprise and really helped make my 50th birthday special. 

Notice I am wearing a birthday crown in both pictures.

 My favorite Family Restaurant "Cheesecake Factory."  Karrie drove us there and the parking lot was crazy.  We had to drive around for 20 minutes looking for parking and finally found a spot on the other side of the mall.  At first that seemed like a bummer until we saw all these people riding around the mall on little mechanical animals.  They ended up letting us ride one for free since it was my birthday.  I hope I can find that picture. 

 I spread out my "50th" birthday celebration so it lasted about a month.  I had my mom and dad come up for Michael game against Oakdale since my parents drove up to Oakdale the year before for Michael's football game.  I thought they would enjoy that game and I also needed my moms help with the baseball dinner.  That was so much fun~ I will never forget the dinner as long as I live. 

These poor unsuspecting people were also part of my 50th birthday celebration...they just didn't know it.  When they asked all of us to go, my first thought was I would enjoy doing that to celebrate my birthday.  Only Mike and I knew I was celebrating my birthday.  It was great!  Oh~ I also celebrated my birthday at the high schools Jeans and Jewels.  Had a great time.  I just decided if I was doing something in March it was my birthday celebration. 

This was so much fun...I watch too much CSI and Law and Order.  We split the boys up and half of them had to play dead and the other boys outlined their bodies with masking tape.