Fancy Fruit Puffs

by Kristi Butikofer (A girl from work made this, a take on Fruit Pizza)

Ingredients:
3 packages of frozen puff pastry shells
8 oz Package Cream Cheese (softened)
14 oz can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1/3 c lemon juice from concentrate
1 tsp vanilla
Assorted Fresh Fruit
1/3 c Apple Jelly - melted

Instructions: Bake puff pastries according to package specifications and cool on wire rack. Remove tops and soft dough inside puffs. While cooling, mix cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually add sweetened condensed milk and mix until smooth. Add in lemon juice and vanilla and stir until combined. Spoon mixture into pastry shells and top with fresh fruit. Brush with melted apple jelly and refrigerate at least one hour.

Slow-Cooker Shepherd's Pie

Slow-Cooker Shepherd's Pie
by Gaylene Verdoorn

Ingredients:
•4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes (about 2 lb.)
•1/3 cup milk
•2 tablespoons unsalted butter
•Salt and pepper
•1 tablespoon olive oil
•1 medium onion, diced
•2 cloves garlic, minced
•1 pound lean ground beef
•1 tablespoon tomato paste
•1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
•1 teaspoon dried thyme
•1 tablespoon cornstarch
•1 cup frozen mixed vegetables

Instructions:
Prick potatoes all over with a fork. Microwave potatoes on high, turning once, until tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from microwave, let cool slightly, then peel and mash with milk and butter. Season with salt and pepper.
In a skillet over medium heat, warm olive oil. Add onion and cook, stirring, until translucent, 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds longer. Add beef, increase heat to medium-high and cook, breaking up chunks, until meat is cooked through and beginning to brown, 8 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, Worcestershire, thyme and 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper. In a small cup, whisk cornstarch with 1 cup water. Add to skillet and cook, stirring, until liquid thickens slightly. Remove from heat; transfer to slow cooker.
Layer vegetables on top of meat; top with potatoes. Cover, turn slow cooker to low and cook for 3 hours.

Microwave Caramels

2 C. sugar
1 C. Karo Syrup
1 C. butter

Mix in 3 qt. glass or ceremic dish. Microwave on high for 5 minutes. Stir until all sugar dossolves. Gradually add while stirring:

1 Can sweetened condensed milk

Then microwave on high for a total of 12 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes with a clean spoon. Pour mixture into a greased 9x13 pan.

Fudge

1 1/2 C. Sugar
1/2 C. Butter
1 6oz. evaporated milk
1 1/2 C. Marshmallow Cream (1/2 of 13 oz. jar)
2 C. Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 C. Milk Chocolate Chips
1/2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
Nuts or add-ins as desired (optional)

1. Lightly grease 9x9x2 pan and set aside.
2. Heat sugar, butter, milk and marshmallow cream in heavy 3 qt pan over medium heat until mixture boils, stirring constantly. Boil and stir for 5 minutes.
3. Add chocolate chips and vanilla extract, stirring until chips are melted. Stir in nuts if desired.
4. Spread into prepared pan. Cool.

Cereal Mix Treat

1/2 Large box Corn Chex
1/2 Large Box Golden Grahams
Flaked Coconut- any amount
mixed nuts

Sauce:
2 Cubes Butter
1 C. sugar
1 C. white corn Syrup

Mix cereals, coconut and nuts in a large bowl. Mix sauce ingredients in a pan. Bring to a boil and boil for 4 minutes. Pour over cereal mixture and stir gently

Taco Soup

1 pound ground beef, browned
1 can stewed tomatoes, diced
1 can garbanzo beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can corn
1 15 oz. can Tomato sauce
1 4 oz. Can green chiles
1 pkg. Ranch dressing mix
1 cup favorite salsa
Taco seasoning to taste (I used 1/2 pkg.)

I have a lot of taco soup recipes. I don't love any of them by themselves, so I took a couple of recipes and put in what I thought would make for a yummy taco soup. I made this last night and it was really good. All you have to do is throw everything in the pot and let it simmer for 10-20 minutes. The hardest part is opening all of the cans. Then make sure you have the staple garnishes for this dish:

Cheddar cheese
Sour cream
Corn chips

Enjoy!



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Mexican Taco Casserole

1 pound ground beef
1 small onion
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 cup water
3/4 cup Taco Sauce, Medium
4 ounces Diced Green Chiles
1 can sliced black olives, drained, divided
1 package Taco Seasoning
1/2 bag tortilla chips
2 cups shredded mild cheddar cheese, divided
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
1/8 cup sliced green onions

Preheat Oven to 375 degrees. Cook beef, onion and garlic until beef is brown. Stir in water, taco sauce, chiles, 1/4 cup olives, and seasoning mix. cook over low heat for 3-4 minutes. Layer half of broken tortilla chips on bottom of greased 12x8 inch pan. cover with half of meat sauce and then sprinkle 1 cup cheese. Repeat with remaining chips, meat sauce and cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly and cheese is melted. Top with remaining olives, tomatoes, and green onions.

The great thing about this recipe is you can modify it to fit your taste buds. For example, I left out the onions and olives. I also used a mild instead of a medium taco sauce and I didn't use a whole package of taco seasoning because the stuff is too strong for me. This is basically something of a glorified, layered nachos dish. We loved it and will definitely be making it again!