Crack Potatoes-Loaded Potato Casserole

Crack Potatoes/Loaded Potato Casserole

2 (16oz) containers sour cream (I used one light and one Greek Plain Yogurt)

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded (2%
)2 (3oz) bags real bacon bits
2 packages Ranch Dip mix
1 large (28 - 30oz) bag frozen hash brown potatoes - shredded kind

Combine first 4 ingredients, mix in hash browns. Spread into a 9x13 pan. Sprinkle some cheese on top. Bake at 400 for 45-60 minutes. I made a small pan and 2 7x7 toss away tins, gave one to a neighbor and froze the other batch by putting plastic then foil over it!

 This was the bake and toss pan I used, perfect for freezing, don't cook the one you put in the freezer though..

Creamy Avocado Lime Cilantro Chilled Pasta Salad

I made this and it was so delicious, it has cilantro in it, but if you don't like cilantro you can use very little or leave it out, so very good! :) I would make this again and again and bring it to places I had to bring a dish to pass, I used greek yogurt instead of mayo so it was much lighter!

 while pasta is cooked, drained and cooling, mix all remaining ingredients in food processer

 add into pasta and serve!!

Creamy Avocado Lime Cilantro Chilled Pasta Salad
that name is a tongue twister!
 Ingredients

• 1 1/2cup dry shell pasta or short pasta of your choice
• 1 ripe avocado
• handful of cilantro, roughly chopped
• 1 1/2Tbsp lime juice
• 3Tbsp mayonnaise (I used plain greek yogurt)
• 1tsp garlic paste
• salt & pepper
• chopped cilantro and/or jalapeno for garnish

Instructions

1. Cook pasta according to the package instructions. Drain well, set aside to cool.
2. Peel avocado and remove the pit. Put it in a food processor together with chopped cilantro, lime juice, mayonnaise and garlic paste. Blend it until it’s creamy. Add salt and pepper to taste. (Cover it with plastic wrap and keep it in a refrigerator if you have time.)
3. Transfer the avocado sauce to a medium sized bowl. Add cooked pasta and toss them well. Sprinkle chopped cilantro and/or jalapeno on top.

Southwest Stuffed Red Peppers

These were so good, I added my own twist!

 Mix all the ingredients together...

 Stuff peppers..

 top with cheese...

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, chopped

16 oz lean ground turkey or chicken ( I used ground turkey)

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 T chili powder (decrease to 1/2 T if you don't like spicy food)

1 T ground cumin

16 oz jar salsa (any flavor, but make it something you like.)

1 cup cooked rice (I used Mexican Rice from those rice packets found in the store where rice is located)

1 can of black beans rinsed and drained

1 cup shredded low-fat cheddar cheese

sour cream (topping optional)

avocado (topping Optional)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350. Cut three large bell peppers in half and remove seeds.

2. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown turkey with onions. Add minced garlic, chili powder and cumin and stir and cook 1 minute. Stir in salsa and rice.

3. Place cut bell peppers on a cookie sheet and divide turkey mixture evenly among them. Top with cheddar cheese and bake for 17. 

4. Serve with sour cream, avocado and spinach on top. 

Recipe Source: Dr. Oz

Parmesan Asparagus

Parmesan Asparagus

Asparagus

1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Put oil on bottom of baking dish, mix in cheese and salt and pepper, bake for 10 mins at 350.

Cheesy Squash Casserole

 Mix all ingredients but the panko and butter...

 Bake for 45 minutes and then top with panko and butter and put in for 30 more minutes...

 Sorry, we ate out of it before I could get a picture... it was delicious..!

Squash Casserole

Ingredients 

4 medium yellow squash - cut ends off and into thin slices

1 can Rotel

1/4 cup whole milk

1/2 cup diced onion

1 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp garlic salt

1/2 lb. Velveeta - cut into small cubes

3/4-1 cup Panko crumbs

3/4 stick butter - cut into 1 Tlbs pieces

Directions 

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 1 1/2-2 quart dish. Mix all ingredients, expect butter and Panko, in a bowl. Pour into prepared dish. Cover with foil and bake for 30-45 minutes, until squash starts to soften. Stir and sprinkle Panko and drizzle butter over it. Return dish to oven and bake for an additional 30 minutes or until desired shake of brown/cooked.

Cheeks Cheesy Potatoes

A holiday staple... or should I say a staple at any Cheek-family meal!

Cheesy Potatoes

6 potatoes, cooked, cooled, pealed and then grated

1 cup sour cream

2 cups shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese

3/4 cup chopped scallions

1/3 stick of butter

Boil potatoes until tender, but not too tender or they don't grate well, so make sure you don't over cook them.  Peel and grate the potatoes.  Mix together sour cream, cheese, and butter. Mix in Potatoes, then add salt and pepper to taste.  Top with some remaining cheese.  Bake in a 9 x 13 pan at 350 for 45 minutes

Oh so delicious!

Sweet Potato Casserole

 peel potatoes and cut into chunks... (I forgot to peel until after... don't do what I did)

 crush the cookies...

 mix cookies and butter in food processor...

 spread mixture out...

 cover with topping..

Sweet Potato Casserole With Gingersnap Streusel

Cooking Spray

5lb sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1 1/4 tsp salt, divided, plus more for boiling potatoes

15 to 20 coarsely broken gingersnap cookies

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, cu into bits

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup half and half

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

2 large eggs

1.Coat a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray

2. Place potatoes in a large pot, peeled, cover with water, add generous pinch of salt.  Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are very tender; 14 to 16 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool.

3. Meanwhle, making the topping. Put the ginersnaps, flour sugar and 1/4 salt in a food processor; pulse one or twice to combine.  Add the butter and pulse a few more time, cookies in small chunks.

4. Once the potatoes are cool, make into a chunky puree in a blender or food processor.

5. In a large bowl, wish together the maple syrup, half and half, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmet, eggs and remaining salt.  Add potato puree; mix thoroughly. Transfer to baking dish.  Sprinkle the topping evenly.

6. preheat oven to 350. Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.. 

Yum!

Zucchini Parmesan

 Saute onion garlic and zucchini in olive oil....

 Pour in pan, top with jar of sauce... top with 2 cups cheese...

 

 

 

Zucchini Parmesan

Adapted from the recipe found here. 

 Ingredients:

2 large zucchini, thinly sliced
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBSP olive oil
1 16 jar spaghetti sauce
1-2 cups mozzarella cheese
Optional: mushrooms, fresh tomatoes, bread crumbs

Here's how it goes. Slice your zucchini.

Then the onion...

Heat the olive oil in your saucepan over medium heat,

Then add the onion, zucchini, and garlic.

Saute to desired tenderness. I prefer my zucchini to still have some crispiness when the dish is done, so once some of the zucchini slices started to show a hint of transparency, I took them off the heat.

Then spread the zucchini mixture into a 9x13 dish.

Pour spaghetti sauce on top:

And stir...

Sprinkle the cheese on top as the finishing touch,

And bake at 325 degrees for approx 20 minutes, or until heated through and cheese is bubbly. This time, I actually baked it at 350 for around 17 minutes.

Twice Baked Potato Casserole

Mash Potatoes and then mix in ingredients..

When mixed top with extra green onions and pour heavy whipping cream... about 1/4 cup over the top... this made it moist! It wasn't in the recipe, so I added it to make it better!

Twice-Baked Potato Casserole

* 2 lbs. potatoes, unpeeled and cubed
* 4 oz. cream cheese
* 1 c. sour cream or 1/2 c. sour cream and 1/2 c. Ranch dressing
* 4-5 slices chopped bacon, cooked
* 2 c. cheese
* 2 t. salt
* 1 t. black pepper
* 1 t. garlic powder
* 2 green onions, thinly sliced

*1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1. Boil potatoes until fork-tender. Drain and return to pot. Slightly mash potatoes before adding any other ingredients.

2. Add cream cheese, sour cream (or sour cream and ranch), bacon, 1 c. cheese, green onions and the seasonings to the potatoes. Stir until well combined.

3. Transfer the potato mixture to a small casserole dish. Top with green onions and pour 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream on top. Cover with remaining cheese. Refrigerate or bake immediately at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

These were pretty much amazing and I served them with the Mustard Cream sauce chicken... it was for sure on the make again list... party pleaser!

Parmesan Baked Artichokes

Parmesan Baked Artichokes

1 14oz can artichokes in water, drained

1/4 cup panko bread crumbs

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 oz freshly shaved parmesan

Preheat oven to 375.

Layer artichokes in a baking dish. Drizzle olive oil on top. Season with salt, garlic and italian seasoning. Add bread crumbs and 1/4 cup parmesan on top. Bake for 15 minutes.

Remove artichokes from oven and turn on broiler. Top with shaved parmesan and broil for 1-2 minutes, or until cheese is golden brown.

Pasta Salad

Boil the noodles...

Add some diced celery...

some fresh cut up tomatoes

Mix in some black olives... some provolone cheese... and the dressings... minced onions and seasoned salt.

Pasta Salad

1 bag of veggie blend spiral noodles (boiled and drained)
1/2 cup of sliced black olives
1 cup chopped celery
1 chopped tomato
4 slices (thick cut) Provolone Cheese cut into chunks
 1 tbsp.  minced dried onion
seasoned salt to taste
pepper to taste
1/4 cup of Green Goddess salad dressing
2 tbsp Vidalia Onion Dressing
2 tbsp Honey Mustard dressing
2 tbsp Zesty Italian Dressing

Those are rough estimates on the dressings...

Boil noodles, drain, add in celery, tomato, olives, cheese, salt, pepper, minced onion and then dressings... mix together and chill for an hour before serving.


 This recipe is from my friend Adreane, she served it at the lake this weekend and Daniel FELL in love with it (he had never had pasta salad before) so I decided to make it for him. 

Grill Potatoes

Grill Potatoes

5 baking potatoes cut up in eatable sized chunks

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

1 clove chopped garlic

1/4 chopped onion

1 cup shredded cheese, your choice ( I used Cheddar)

salt & pepper

Cut up potatoes and lay them in foil, drizzle olive oil, butter over them, put salt and pepper on top, mix in onions and garlic.  Wrap up in foil and lay on grill until potatoes are soft, about 30 minutes.  When you up wrap the foil, cover in cheese.

Oven Fried Onion Rings

Only the best thing ever....crumbs made with potato chips and saltines! yum...

after being dipped in flour, dip in batter mixture...

Dip in potato chip/saltine mixture.....

Oven-Fried Onion Rings

Yield: About 24 rings, serving 4 to 6

Prep Time: 45 minutes | Bake Time: 23 minutes

½ cup all-purpose flour, divided
1 large egg, room temperature
½ cup buttermilk, room temperature
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon salt
¼ ground black pepper
30 saltine crackers
4 cups kettle-cooked potato chips
2 large yellow onions, cut into 24 rings (see note)
6 tablespoons vegetable oil

1. Adjust oven racks to lower-middle and upper-middle positions and heat oven to 450 degrees F. Place ¼ cup flour in shallow baking dish. Beat egg and buttermilk together in bowl. Whisk remaining ¼ cup flour, cayenne, salt and pepper into buttermilk mixture. Pulse saltines and potato chips together in food processor until finely ground; 8 to 10 pulses.


Oven-Fried Onion Rings: Dredging station

2. Working one at a time, dredge each onion ring in flour, shaking off excess. Dip rings in buttermilk mixture, allowing excess to drip back into bowl, then drop into crumb coating, turning rings to coat evenly.


Transfer coated rings to large plate or tray.


3. Pour 3 tablespoons oil onto each of two rimmed baking sheets. Place baking sheets in oven and heat until just smoking, about 8 minutes. Carefully tilt heated sheets to coat evenly with oil, then arrange onion rings on sheets. Baking, flipping onion rings and switching and rotating position of baking sheets halfway through baking, until golden brown on both sides, about 15 minutes. Briefly drain onion rings on paper towel-lined plate. Serve immediately.

* Note 1: Slice the onions into ½-inch-thick rounds, separate the rings, and discard any rings smaller than 2 inches in diameter. It will depend on the size of your onions, but both of mine ended up being sliced into 4 to get the ½-inch-thick rounds.


* Note 2: The onion rings can be breaded in advance and refrigerated for up to an hour. Let them sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking them; if baked while still chilled from the refrigerator, the onions will not cook enough to soften and will remain crunchy.

(Recipe adapted from Summer Entertaining from Cook’s Illustrated)

Onion Rings Dipping Sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes

½ cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons ketchup
2 tablespoons horseradish
¼ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
Dash ground black pepper
Dash cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate.

Cheesy Cheddar Hashbrown Bake

Chop up the onions................add the butter

cook until the onions are translucent....
add the sour cream and cream of chicken and the cheddar cheese.. melt, mix this mixture with hashbrowns and cook in over until golden brown!

mmm... serve with any dish!

Cheesy Cheddar Hashbrown Bake

 

Ingredients:

3 Tablespoons Butter

1/2 Cup Onion, diced finely

1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup

2 Cups Medium Cheddar Cheese, shredded

1 Cup Light Sour Cream

1 1/2 Pounds Frozen Shredded Hashbrown Potatoes, thawed

Salt & Pepper, to taste

-

Directions:

In a large skillet, melt the butter and add the onion and saute until translucent. Lower heat and add the cheese, sour cream, soup, salt and pepper. Mix until combined. Add potatoes to a large bowl and then pour wet mixture oven them and combine everything thoroughly. Spread mixture out in a baking dish and bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for about 1 hour, or until potatoes are tender. (all ovens cook differently, so take it out and check it at the 50 minute mark and keep cooking if needed)

My Take:
I thought the meal was delicious, definitely going to be a staple of a potato side dish at our house.  My kids even loved it.  My brother in law was over for this meal and he HATES onions, but he even choked it down ate the entire thing!  So if I can get him to eat it, and say he liked it, then it's good.  If you are an onion lover, then of course, you'll like the onions in it, but I encourage you even if you're not an onion lover, that you will include them and try the dish, they are subtle.