Pear and Gorgonzola Salad

Another great salad. I substituted feta for gongonzola. Apples could also be substituted for the pears.

Autumn Salad with Pears and Gorgonzola
Gina's Weight Watcher RecipesServings: 5 servings • Time: 5 minutes • Points: 4.5 ww points

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 small ripe pears, peeled and diced
1/4 cup (2 oz) gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1 head radicchio, washed and torn into pieces
1 bunch arugula
14 pecan halves (1 oz)

For the vinaigrette: In a large bowl, mix vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper. Whisk in olive oil and blend.In a salad bowl combine all greens, pears, gorgonzola and pecans. When you are ready to serve, add the vinaigrette and toss well. Serve immediately.

Orange, Red Onion, Gorgonzola And Arugula Salad

I loved, loved this salad. I was worried at first because the dressings makes so little but, with the oranges, it didn't need much dressing. Paired with the enchildas, York said it was one of the best most flavorful meals I've ever made.

Orange, Red Onion, Gorgonzola and Arugula Salad
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 1 • Points: 5 pts Calories: 241.7 • Fat: 13.7 g • Protein: 9.4 g • Carb: 22.2 g • Fiber: 4.0 g.

1 small orange, peeled, chopped
3 tbsp crumbled gorgonzola cheese (blue cheese works great too)
sliced red onion (to taste)
2 cups baby arugula and spinach mix
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp honey
salt and fresh pepper

In a small bowl combine oil, balsamic, honey, salt and pepper and whisk well.In a plate or bowl add baby greens. Top with oranges, onion and gorgonzola. Drizzle vinaigrette over the top and enjoy!!

Chicken Enchiladas

Whoever knew you could have healthy enchiladas? And bonus! These are some of the best, most flavorful ones I've ever made. They were a little on the spicy side so, I would recommend cutting back a little of the chili powder if you are concerned about kids. But, other than that, they were fabulous! Gina is a miracle worker with these diet foods!

Chicken Enchiladas

Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes

Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 2 enchiladas • Calories: 342 • Points: 6 ww pts

For the sauce:
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-2 tbsp chipotle chilis in adobo sauce
1-1/2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
3/4 cup fat free chicken broth
kosher salt and fresh pepper to taste

For the chicken:
1 tsp vegetable oil
8.5 oz (2 breast halves) cooked shredded chicken breast
1 cup diced onion
2 large clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup cilantro
kosher salt
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp chipotle chili powder
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup tomato sauce
8 (6-inch) reduced carb whole wheat flour tortillas
1 cup shredded low fat Mexican cheese
Nonstick cooking spray

In a medium saucepan, spray oil and sauté garlic. Add chiles, chili powder, cumin, chicken broth, tomato sauce, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5-10 minutes. Set aside until ready to use.Preheat oven to 400 degrees.Heat the vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté onions and garlic on low until soft, about 2 minutes. Add chicken, salt, cilantro, cumin, oregano, chili powder, tomato sauce, chicken broth, and cook 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Spray a 13 by 9-inch glass baking dish with non-stick spray. Put 1/3 cup chicken mixture into each tortilla and roll it. Place on baking dish seam side down. Top with sauce and cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes. Top with low fat sour cream or scallions if you wish. (Extra points) Makes 8 enchiladas.

Roasted Broccoli and Garlic

I'm not usually a broccoli lover. I like it ok but, this recipe was absolutely fabulous. Very easy to make and the garlic made a great combination. I added a little grated parmesan after baking.

Roasted Broccoli with Smashed Garlic
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 1/4th of broccoli • Points: 2 pts
Calories: 126 • Fat: 7.5g • Protein: 4.3 g • Carb: 13.7 g • Fiber: 5.7 g

1 1/2 lbs broccoli florets, cut long with part of stem
6 cloves garlic, smashed
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt and fresh pepper

Preheat oven to 450°. In a baking dish combine broccoli, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Roast broccoli about 20 minutes, until broccoli is browned and tender.

Roasted Lemon And Rosemary Chicken

I am once again trying to eat healthy. Swim suit season is coming, no more holidays and no more trips scheduled for a while so, maybe, just maybe, I'll actually succeed. For now I am loving Gina's Weight Watcher's Recipes. This is one of the first recipes I've tried and if I say so myself, that is one pretty bird! Easy and absolutely delicious.

Roast Chicken with Rosemary and Lemon
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Cook Time: 50 minutes • Points with Skin: Leg 4 pts, Wing 3 pts, Thigh 4 pts, Breast 5 pts

1 (3 lb) chicken, washed and dried, fat removed
1/2 onion, chopped in large chunks
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1/2 lemon
2-3 sprigs rosemary
1 tbsp herbes de Provence (or dried rosemary)
salt and fresh pepper

Heat oven to 425°. Season chicken inside and out with salt, pepper, and herbs de provence. Squeeze lemon juice on the outside of the chicken and stuff the remains of the lemon along with onion, garlic, rosemary sprigs inside the chicken.Roast the chicken until the internal temperature is 165°F, about 50-60 minutes (Insert thermometer between the leg and the thigh). Let the bird rest for 10 minutes before carving.

Deviled Eggs

Deviled Eggs
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 2 halves • Time: 25 minutes • Points: 2.5 ww pt

4 large hard boiled eggs, cooled and peeled
2 tbsp low fat mayonnaise
1 tsp dijon mustard
paprika
salt and fresh pepper to taste
2 tbsp chopped chives

Cut eggs in half longways. Remove yolks and put them in a bowl. Add mayonnaise, mustard, salt and pepper. Stir well and pipe them back into egg whites. Top with chopped chives and paprika.

Lemon Lime Cake

I was in charge of book club last month and was in the mood for something light and springy since we are finally experiencing warm beautiful weather. This cake was perfect.

Lemon Lime Cake
Lick The Bowl Good
adapted from Duncan Hines

Cake:
1 pkg Duncan Hines® Moist Deluxe® Lemon Supreme Cake Mix
1 (3.4 oz) pkg lemon instant pudding
4 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup lime juice

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup lime juice
2 tbsp water
2 tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour 10-inch Bundt or tube pan.
For cake, combine cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, oil, 3/4 cup water and 1/4 cup lime juice in large bowl. Beat at low speed with electric mixer until moistened. Beat at medium speed 2 minutes.
Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool in pan 25 minutes. Remove cake from pan onto cooling rack then immediately return cake back to pan. Poke holes in top of warm cake with toothpick, wooden skewer or long-tined fork.

For glaze, combine 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/3 cup lime juice, 2 tablespoons water and melted butter in medium bowl.
Pour slowly over top of warm cake and allow it run along the sides of the pan. Cool completely while still in pan.
Invert onto serving plate. Dust with additional powdered sugar or glaze (recipe below). Garnish with lime slices, if desired.

Banana Pudding Pie

I love banana pudding so, to find a recipe that puts it in a pie...my kind of heaven! This was really yummy and I learned all sorts of new things, like pudding can be made from scratch. I guess I should have know that but, always just assumed that was one of those magical box things. That being said, this could probably be made easier using the actual box style pudding and I did skip the homemade cream part of the recipe and used cool whip.

Banana Pudding Pie
Lick The Bowl Good
adapted from Southern Living

Vanilla Wafer Crust (recipe below)
Vanilla Pudding (recipe below)
Whipped Cream (recipe below)
3-4 medium bananas, cut into slices
20 vanilla wafers plus more for decoration (see note)

Vanilla Wafer Crust:
2 1/2 cups (about 30) crushed vanilla wafers
1/2 cup butter, melted

Vanilla Pudding:
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
4 egg yolks
2 cups milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Whipped Cream:
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla

For the crust: In a medium bowl, stir together crushed vanilla wafers and butter until blended. Firmly press on bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate.
Bake at 350° for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack, and let cool 30 minutes or until completely cool.

For the pudding: Whisk together sugar, flour, eggs, yolks and milk in a heavy saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, 10-12 minutes or until it reaches the thickness of chilled pudding. (Mixture will just begin to bubble and will be thick enough to hold soft peaks when whisk is lifted. It must be thick and slightly bubbly to set up properly!) Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla.
Transfer to a medium bowl and cover with plastic wrap, making sure to press the plastic directly on top of the custard so it doesn't get a "skin" on it. Refrigerate til completely cool. (Can be made up to a day in advance.)

Whipped Cream: In a medium bowl, whip cream on medium high speed til soft peaks form. Slowly add the sugar and vanilla and continue to beat til thick and stiff. Don't overbeat or you'll have butter!

Assembly: Arrange half of the banana slices evenly over bottom of cooled crust. Spread 1/3 of cooled pudding over bananas, then layer with 20 vanilla wafers. Spread 1/3 more pudding over vanilla wafers, then add the remainder of the banana slices and cover them with the last of the pudding. Spread the whipped cream over the entire pie and decorate with more vanilla wafers if desired.
The layers from the bottom up should be: vanilla wafer crust, bananas, pudding, vanilla wafers, pudding, bananas, pudding, whipped cream
Refrigerate at least for 4 hours. Overnight is best. Consume within 2 days.
NOTE: It's best to prepare the pudding in advance to allow it to chill properly. If you prefer this pie be topped with a meringue then there's no need to refrigerate the filling. See the original recipe here.
Also I used an entire box of vanilla wafers for the pie. If you want to decorate with additional wafers then get a second box to be on the safe side.

Mandarin Chicken Salad

This is one of our very favorite salads. I got the recipe from my friend Kim. My sister always requests it. So, for Easter, this was one of my assignments.

Mandarin Chicken Salad


8 chicken breast halves (I usually like them grilled)

1 (12 oz.) pkg. pasta (bowtie or rotini

1 1/2 bottles Brianna's poppy seed dressing

1 pkg. chow mein noodles

1 pkg. slivered almonds

3 c. romaine lettuce

3 c. iceberg lettuce

1 can sliced water chestnuts, cut in halt

2 cans mandarin oranges (drained)

1 bunch green onions, chopped

Cook the chicken, chill and cut into chunks. Mix together the cooked pasta, chicken and 1/2 bottle of dressing. Let this marinate for awhile. Mix together the chow mein noodles, lettuce, water chestnuts, slivered almonds and green onions. Pour on the other bottle of salad dressing. Combine with the marinated chicken and pasta. Add mandarin oranges and toss gently. Serve immediately. Serves about 15.

Homemade Oreo Cookies

These are always a favorite. This recipe is everywhere but, I just recently found it on My Sister's Cafe. A few years ago one of my friends made these for a baby shower and used pink icing...too cute. I made them for Superbowl this year. I should have thought to make the icing the two teams' colors. But, as usual, my ingenious thinking comes, just late.

Homemade Oreo Cookies
submitted by Melanie
Printable recipe here

For the Cookies:
1 package devil's food cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 - cup oil

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Add oil and eggs to cake mix and blend together. Roll dough into balls (a little larger than a quarter). Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on sheet (until warm). Remove cookies from sheet and place on cooling rack.To assemble the cookies, add about a tablespoon of filling into the center of one cookie. Place another cookie similar in size on top of the filling. Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie. Continue this process until all the cookies have been sandwiched with cream.

Cream Cheese Filling Recipe:
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 block of cream cheese (8 oz)
3-4 cups - powdered sugar (depending on desired consistency)
1 - tsp vanilla extract.

Cream butter and add cream cheese and mix well. Add powdered sugar slowly until you reach your desired consistency.

Popcorn Cake

I saw this on a friend's blog and decided to try it for the family for Valentine's. The kids loved it. It's makes way more than one bundt pan's worth however. There was plenty to snack on all week.

Calvert's Popcorn Cake

16 cups popped popcorn
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup butter or margarine
16 oz. bag marshmallows
1 lb. M&Ms
1 16 oz. jar dry roasted peanuts

Pop popcorn and mix in large bowl with M&Ms and peanuts. In microwave safe bowl, melt oil, butter and marshmallows for one minute and stir and heat for one more minute until it melts and is similar to the consistency for rice krispies. When desired consistency is reached, pour over popcorn mixture and mix well. Pour mixture into a well greased bundt pan and push down with greased hands. Wait 1-2 hours before inverting.

Sandy's Fudge

York's mom makes some of the best fudge. She used to always have it in her freezer and York and I would always grab a couple of pieces when visiting. It's become our tradition to always make a batch at Christmas time.

Sandy's Fudge

3 pkgs (12 oz.) chocolate chips
2 cubes margarine
1 1/2 c. chopped walnuts or pecans
1 tsp. vanilla
1 lb. pkg. marshmallows
4 1/2 c. sugar
1 large can evaporated milk

Cook sugar and evaporated milk together. Stir constantly. Once it boils, slow boil it for 12 minutes. Take pan off heat and stir in marshmallows, melt. Stir in margarine, melt. Stir in chocolate chips, melt. Add vanilla and nuts. Pour in buttered 9x13 pan. Cool before cutting.
*I've also poured in a cookie sheet. Makes it a little thinner. This recipe makes a ton of fudge!

Enchiladas

I can not say enough about these enchiladas by Pioneer Woman. I made the chicken ones a couple of weeks ago. They were so good that I couldn't wait to try the beef ones. Equally fabulous. I've decided the key and most important step to making enchiladas, is the frying of the shells. It may not be the healthiest way but, all thoughts of that go out the window after the first bite.

Simple, Perfect Enchiladas
3"x5" Cards 4"x6" Cards Full Page Print

Prep Time: 1 Hour30 Minutes
Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Servings: 6

Ingredients
FOR THE SAUCE:
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
1 Tablespoon All-purpose Flour
1 can (28 Ounce) Enchilada Or Red Sauce
2 cups Chicken Broth
½ teaspoons Salt
½ teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
2 Tablespoons Chopped Cilantro
_____
For The Meat:
1-½ pound Ground Beef
1 whole Medium Onion, Finely Diced
2 cans (4 Ounce) Diced Green Chilies
½ teaspoons Salt
_____
For The Tortillas:
10 whole (to 14) Corn Tortillas
½ cups Canola Oil
_____
TO ASSEMBLE:
3 cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese
½ cups Chopped Black Olives
1 cup Chopped Green Onions
½ cups Chopped Cilantro

Preparation Instructions
Step #1 – The SauceIn a large saucepan over medium heat, add oil and flour and whisk together to make a paste, cooking for one minute. Pour in the red sauce, chicken broth, cilantro, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30-45 minutes.
Step #2 – The MeatBrown the meat with onions in a skillet. Drain off fat. Stir in 2 cans diced green chilies and seasoned salt. Set aside.
Step #3 – TortillasHeat canola oil in a small skillet over medium heat. One by one, using tongs, fry tortillas in oil until soft, not crisp – about 30 seconds per side. Remove to a paper—towel lined plate. Repeat until all tortillas have been fried.
Step #4 – AssemblyPreheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour ½ cup red sauce in bottom of baking pan. Spread to even out. Dip each tortilla into red sauce, then remove to work surface. Spoon meat, a little grated cheese, a little black olives, and green onions in the center of tortilla. Roll up and place, seam down, in baking pan. Repeat until pan is filled. Pour extra red sauce over enchiladas. Top with remaining cheddar cheese.
Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle cilantro over enchiladas before serving

Chocolate Sheet Cake

I got this recipe off of Pioneer Woman after rave reviews from my friend Suzanne. I've made it a couple of times and it is really good. Although, I do recommend reading the directions and actually cooking the ingredients before throwing them all in the mixer. I kind of skipped that part this time and realized too late that I'd completely over looked a major part of the recipe. Amazingly enough, it still turned out pretty good although, not as good as the first time I made it. It's great for serving a large crowd. I'm not sure I completely agree with the "Best ever" title it was given but, than again, I haven't tried that many sheet cakes in my time.

Best Ever Chocolate Sheet Cake
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Servings: 24

Ingredients
CAKE Ingredients
2 cups Flour
2 cups Sugar
¼ teaspoons Salt
4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
2 sticks Butter
1 cup Boiling Water
½ cups Buttermilk
2 whole Beaten Eggs
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Vanilla
_____
FOR FROSTING:
½ cups Finely Chopped Pecans
1-¾ stick Butter
4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
6 Tablespoons Milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 pound (minus 1/2 Cup) Powdered Sugar
Preparation Instructions

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.
In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.
In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.
While cake is baking, make the icing. Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.
Cut into squares and eat!

Our Favorite Pumpkin Pie

I've been making this pie for years. Every Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is the most requested dessert of my family. Cream cheese and pumpkin...proceed with caution. It doesn't get much better than this.

Double Layer Pumpkin Pie

1 extra-serving size graham cracker crust
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 T. milk or half and half
1 T. sugar
1 1/2 c. cool whip

Mix cream cheese, milk and sugar together. Fold in cool whip. Spread in bottom of graham cracker crust.

1 cup milk or half and half
2 pkgs. (4 serving size) instant vanilla pudding and pie filling
1 (16 oz) can pumpkin
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves

Pour 1 cup milk into bowl. Add pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk until well blended, 1 to 2 minutes (mixture will be thick). Stir in pumpkin and spices with wire whisk; mix well. Spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate at least 3 hours (I don't always do this). Garnish with additional whipped topping and almonds, if desired.

Olive Garden Salad

My sister was having a party this week on the same day she was singing for a benefit. I volunteered to come do the cooking for her since she is always so willing to sacrafice her time whenever I'm in need of a vacation from little punks. Not too mention, hanging out at the lake on a Saturday is not too shabby a way to spend the day, even if I am cooking for most of it. She wanted fall themed foods. It was fun to plan and to satisfy my never ending craving for pumpkin. Lots of pumpkin recipes to follow...

Darby was also having an Anti-homecoming party for all of her punk friends that are either not old enough to date or didn't have a date for homecoming. I doubled everything from Kat's party and served the same thing for Darby's. Ford heard one of the kids say "how come the food is so good?" I'm not sure they are used to fancy food at these teen parties.

We started with the Olive Garden Salad. I found the recipe on The Sister's Cafe.

Olive Garden Salad

dressing:
1/2 c. mayonnaise

1/3 c. white vinegar

1 tsp. vegetable oil

2 Tb. corn syrup

2 Tb. parmesan cheese

2 Tb. romano cheese

1/4 tsp. garlic salt or one clove garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. italian seasoning

1/2 tsp. parsley flakes

1 Tb. lemon juice

Mix all dressing ingredients in a blender until well mixed. It it is too tart, add a little sugar.

Salad:
1 large head romaine lettuce

slices red onion

black olives

2-4 banana peppers

2 small tomatoes, quartered

1/2 c. croutons

freshly grated parmesan cheese

Put lettuce in bowl. Place on top of lettuce red onions, black olives, banana peppers, tomatoes, adn croutons. Add some freshly grated parmesan cheese if you like, and add plenty of olive garden salad dressing on top. If you want to be really authentic, chill your bowl in the freezer for half an hour.

Pumpkin Bars

We had friends over for lunch the other day and someone brought these pumpkin bars that were fabulous. She e-mailed the recipe but, it never came through so, I had to go in search of it on my own. I don't think these were the exact same but, they were pretty darn good anyway. They were more of a bread than a bar but, I later remembered that I had misread the recipe and instead of doubling the required amount of baking soda, I quadrupled it. Maybe that's why? Didn't matter in the end, it was still good.

Pumpkin Bars

4 eggs
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
15 oz. can pumpkin
2 cups sifted all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda

Icing:
8 oz. package cream cheese softened
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 359 degrees. Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine eggs, sugar, oil and pumpkin until light and fluffy. Stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined and the batter is smooth. Spread the batter into a greased 13 by 10 inch baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting. Cut into bars.

To make the icing: Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and mix at low speed until combined. Stir in the vanilla and mix again. Spread on cooled pumpkin bars.

I actually wanted a lighter icing so went with a whipped icing:

1 cup (1/2 pint) cold heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Whip the heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and vanilla and continue to whisk until you have firm peaks.

Esther's Gingersnap Cookies

These are some of my all time favorite cookies. I love them this time of year. My friend Esther usually gifts me with some and then I have to turn around and make them myself because I never get enough.

Gingersnaps
Esther Boyer

1 c. brown sugar
3/4 c. shortening
1/4 c. molasses
1 egg
2 1/4 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. salt

Blend all together. Roll into balls and then roll in granulated sugar. Bake at 375. The trick is not to over cook, that way they stay soft and chewy, about 9-10 minutes.

My Favorite Artichoke Dip

I love, love, love this dip. The only problem with it, is that everyone else loves it too and that limits my ability to eat the entire pan by myself. My friend Alyssa makes this for almost every gathering we have and I never get tired of it. It's supposed to be a spinach artichoke dip. I like spinach artichoke but, I haven't tried it with the spinach , because I'm afraid I won't like it as well.

Florentine Artichoke Dip

Alyssa Walker

1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained and squeezed dry

1 (14 oz.) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 c. mayonnaise

2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, softened

2 T. lemon juice

1 c. parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease a 7x11 inch baking dish. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese and mayonnaise until smooth. Mix in the artichoke hearts, spinach, and parmesan cheese. Season with garlic and lemon juice. Spread evenly into the prepared baking dish. Bake covered for 20 minutes. Remove the cover, and let the dish bake uncovered for 5 more minutes, or until the surface is lightly browned. Serve it with Wheat Thins, Triscuits, or breadsticks. Spinach can be left out and prepared the same.

Tina's White Chili

We had friends over the other day for lunch to celebrate and hour 1/2 less church time than normal due to the ward splitting. We ended up changing it into a farewell for one of our favorite families that got put into the new ward. It's the second ward split since we've lived in Katy. Katy 4th ward...unbelievable!

Tina brought this white chili to share and it was the first thing to disappear. It was so good, that I had to make it again two days later because by the time I got around to trying it, there was only a spoonful left.

White Chili

7 chicken breasts
1 medium onion
3 tsp. garlic powder
2 Tbs. oil
4-6 cans great northern beans
28 oz. chicken broth
2 cans chopped green chilies (can add more if you like them)
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 c. sour cream
1 c. whipping cream
tortilla chips
cheese

Cut up chicken and brown with chopped onion, garlic powder and oil. Add everything except the creams and boil, then simmer for 30 minutes. Turn off heat and add creams. Serve over chips and top with chopped cilantro and cheese.

* I actually added everything except the creams in the crock pot. Cooked until the chicken shredded and add the creams right before serving.

* This is the doubled version of the recipe. Can easily be halved for smaller portions.