Grandpa's Waffles

This is my Grandpa Dixon's recipe.  I usually make the following adjustments: more whole wheat & less white flour, sometimes omit sugar, use 1/3+ cup powdered milk (sift with other dry ingredients) and about 1 3/4 c. water in place of the 2 c. milk.  Sometimes I substitute applesauce for all or part of the oil.

Grandpa's Waffles
Beat together:
2 eggs
1/2 c. oil or melted butter

Sift:
1 c. white flour
1 c. whole wheat
4 tsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt

Also: up to 2 c. milk

Add egg/oil mix and milk to dry ingredients.  *Don't over-mix!* Cook on med/high to high setting on waflle iron. 

Never Fail Biscuits

I got this recipe from Julie Turner at a recipe exchange in our ward. They work well with whole wheat too.

NEVER FAIL BISCUITS

2 cups flour
 1/2 tsp. salt
4 tsp.baking powder
1/2 tsp cream of tarter
2 tsp of sugar
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup milk

Sift together dry ingredients.Cut in butter.Add milk all at once.Bake at 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes.
**The less you mix and work with the dough,the more light and fluffy the biscuits will be.**

Mom's Blueberry Smoothie

This is from my mom.  It tastes like a blueberry milkshake!

1 heaping cup frozen blueberries
1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder
1 cup milk (I like to use almond milk for my smoothies)

Blend to desired consistency.

Granola

This recipe is from my great friend Heather.  We got together one day at her house to make a big batch, fun times!   Andrew and Creed were buddies, and he still talks about him.  Eden always wished our house could look more like Miss Heather's because she's such a great decorator.  We miss them!

Granola
2 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cups shredded coconut (or flakes)
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup sesame seed, wheat germ, and/or ground flax
1/2 cup shelled sunflower seed

1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup dried apricots, snipped
1/2 cup raisins

 In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients, except dried fruit.  In a separate bowl, combine honey and oil, then stir it into the oat mixture.  Spread evenly in a 9x13 pan.  Bake at 300 45-50 minutes or till light brown; stir every 15 minutes.
Remove from oven; remove to another pan to cool, stirring often to prevent clumping.  Stir in apricots and raisins.  Store in tightly covered jars or plastic bags.  To keep more than two weeks, freeze.  Makes 6 1/2 cups

*I usually double this when I make it and use a baker's half-sheet instead of the 9x13 pan.  I use 1/2 c. sesame, 1/4 cup wheat germ, 1/4 ground flax seed.  Sometimes I use dried cranberries instead of raisins. 

*At higher altitudes, turn down the heat, stir every 10 minutes, 30-40 minutes.

Lentils in the Slow-cooker

This recipe is from my neighbor Shannon.  Her recipe calls for 1 cooked, cut-up, steak.  I have used raw beef cuts and shredded at the end of cooking, with no problems.  Sometimes I use some cooked, shredded, chicken from the freezer, or no meat at all.  We definitely prefer using the Rotel, but regular diced tomatoes work too.  Also, I use about 6 cups of water and 2-3 bouillon cubes instead of chicken broth.  This is a big recipe, definitely enough for two dinners.

1 bag lentils (depending on how much meat I'm adding, I reduce this to 2/3 bag)
2 c. chicken broth
5 c. water
3 cloves garlic (or 1 heaping tsp. minced garlic)
1 med. chopped onion
1 1/2 c. shredded carrots (I have also cut up my own)
1 can Rotel or stewed diced tomatoes
Salt & pepper
Italian seasoning (or oregano)
1 cooked steak, cubed

Combine in crockpot and cook 6-8 hours on low.

Quaker Cornbread

We make cornbread often to go with chili and soups.  The recipe off the Quaker canister is my favorite, but I started buying larger quantities of cornmeal, so I had to track this down again.

1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup skim milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg, beaten

Heat oven to 400 F. Grease 8 or 9 inch pan. Combine dry ingredients. Stir in milk, oil and egg, mixing just until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
Serve warm.
9 servings.

Fluffy Pancakes

Eden and Scott love to make these.  He's tried several recipes, and this one's the best!  I've substituted half the flour with whole wheat and they're delicious.  We doubled the original recipe, and often add either blueberries or chocolate chips (after we've cooked some plain).

Fluffy Pancakes
1 1/2 cups milk
4 Tbsp. white vinegar
2 cups flour
4 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
4 Tbsp. melted butter (I usually use oil)

Directions
1.  Combine milk with vinegar and set aside for 5 minutes.
2.  Combine dry ingredients.  Whisk egg and oil into "soured" milk.  Combine wet and dry ingredients
3.  Cook pancakes over medium heat. 
 

Sweet and Spicy Chicken

This is one of my favorites, and the rest of the family tolerates it pretty well.  And it's SO EASY!  It's from The Sisters Cafe.  I pretty much make it exactly as it says, and I almost always double or triple it and put half in the freezer.  I usually use frozen chicken breasts, and regular diced tomatoes, and I don't bother removing the chicken to shred it, I just shred it in the slow-cooker.  I've used sugar substitutes, and I could hardly tell the difference.  Scott says he can definitely tell the difference.  We usually serve it over quinoa.

Sweet and Spicy Slow Cooker Chicken
submitted by Melanie recipe from Prudence Pennywise

*Note: If you don’t want the finished shredded chicken mixture to be quite as “wet”, slightly drain the tomatoes before using them. Also, I nearly always double or triple this recipe because it freezes so well.

*Serves 4

1 pound (about 2) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 (14-ounce) can petite or regular diced tomatoes, undrained
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (add more if you like extra heat – with this amount it is mild enough for my kids to eat it up but spicy enough to help offset the sweetness)

Place the chicken in the bottom of the slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the tomatoes, brown sugar and red pepper flakes. Pour over the chicken. Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 4-6 hours or on low for 8-9 hours. Remove the chicken to a cutting board and shred with two forks. Return to the slow cooker and mix the chicken with the juices from the tomato/brown sugar sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve in flour tortillas or over tortilla chips with toppings of choice: lettuce, sour cream, cheese, avocados, etc.

* This is a great Freezer Meal: I freeze the leftovers and let thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving the next day. Reheat and serve. Easy!

Creamy Ham and Potato Soup

This one is from The Girl Who Ate Everything, and she adapted it from allrecipes.com.  I've made my own changes to make enough for two dinners.

Creamy Ham and Potato Soup

6-8 cups peeled and diced potatoes

1 cup diced celery
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup carrot, diced or shredded
2 cup diced cooked ham (I just used some I had leftover in the freezer from the holidays)
6 cups chicken broth (or water & bouillon)
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
2 teaspoon ground white or black pepper, or to taste
7-8 tablespoons butter
7-8 tablespoons all-purpose flour
 2+ cups milk

Directions:
1.Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, carrot, ham and chicken broth in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the salt and pepper.

2.In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk so that lumps don't form and until all of the milk has been added. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4 to 5 minutes.

3.Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through.

I often make the soup earlier in the day, then put it in the slow-cooker to keep warm until dinner.  Cornbread is delicious with this soup!