• Add one teaspoon of lemon juice to each quart of water when cooking rice, this will keep rice fluffy.
• For crisper salads: Place a saucer upside down in the bottom of the salad bowl before filling with salad. Excess moisture will run underneath the saucer and this will help keep the salad crisp and fresh.
• You can substitute crumbled cornflakes for bread crumbs when making meatloaf.
• A teaspoon of sugar mixed with your yeast and water makes it raise better. Even if you are making bread you can use some sugar. Never mix salt directly with the yeast and water mixture as the salt kills the raising action.
• If it is a meringue pie you are making…add four or five marshmallows cut into pieces or 1/2 cup miniature ones, to meringue just before spreading. These marshmallows give both flavor and body to the meringue. The latter is important if pie is to stand for sometime before serving.
• A wire cheese cutter is ideal for cutting chilled refrigerator cookie dough.

1 package (16 oz) hot dogs
2 cups uncooked corkscrew pasta
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 cups 1% milk

1. Slice hot dogs into bite sized pieces; set aside.
2. In large saucepan, cook pasta according to package directions; drain and return to saucepan.
3. Stir in hot dogs, cheese and milk.  Cook over medium heat 10 minutes or until cheese is melted, stirring occasionally.

Tips/Tricks/Notes

I LOVE this recipe!  It is so quick and so easy, and brings back memories of being a kid!  My only tip for this recipe is to do with the amount of milk.  I found the pasta ended up a little more runny then I would like.  Next time I will probably put a little less then the 2 cups of milk, but not too much less.

Also, I wanted to share with everyone my camera/picture experiment.  I've been a little unhappy with my food pictures and have been trying to figure out why they aren't as good as others I have seen.  I had Kev bring his camera home from work and took pictures of the pasta with his and with mine.  As you can see in the comparison pictures below, his camera is definitely much better then mine!



















The picture seen above is an actual picture I took of my completed macaroni, it is not taken from the internet or played with in anyway.

Meatloaf:
1 can (10 oz) Campbell's condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 egg, beaten
2 pounds ground beef
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1/3 cup water

1. Thoroughly mix 1/2 cup soup, onion, egg, beef, and bread crumbs in a large bowl.  Place the mixture into a 13x9x2 inch baking pan and firmly shape into an 8x4 inch loaf.
2. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the meatloaf is cooked through.
3. Heat 2 tbsp pan drippings, remaining soup and water in a 1 quart sauce pan over medium heat until the mixture is hot and bubbling.  Serve the sauce with the meatloaf.

Cauliflower:
1 can (10 oz) Campbell's condensed cheddar cheese soup
1/4 cup milk
4 cups fresh or frozen cauliflower

1. Stir the soup and milk in a 2 quart microwavable casserole.  Add the cauliflower.  Cover the dish with plastic wrap.
2. Microwave on high for 8 minutes or until the cauliflower is tender-crisp, stirring once.


Tips/Tricks/Notes

I'll start with the meatloaf because it was a bit of a learning experience.  I had never done meatloaf until today, so this was a first time thing!  I found this recipe in my Campbell's recipe book and figured it would be pretty good since it's called "Best-Ever".  Not to say it's bad, but it's definitely not the "Best-Ever".  I thought something was missing, however Kevin quite enjoyed it.  I'm wondering if anyone can give me tips on meatloaf, something I could add or change about this recipe?  It always throws me off when I'm not into the recipe, but Kevin on the other hand enjoys it!  If he likes the recipe, I am always happy to give it another shot, but I am hoping someone can suggest something that might "spice" it up for me!

If you plan on trying this recipe, my only tip is, when it says "firmly shape into an 8x4 inch loaf", it means FIRMLY!  Maybe it is just because I had never tried meatloaf before, but my loaf definitely crumbled a lot!

As for the cauliflower, I have done this simple recipe many times and not always with cauliflower.  Broccoli of course is another big hit!

The picture seen above is an actual picture I took of my completed meatloaf and cauliflower, it is not taken from the internet or played with in anyway.

3/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp dry mustard
1 package (16oz) frozen, cooked meatballs

1. Combine and stir all ingredients in the crockpot, if meatballs are frozen, set to high for the first hour, and then low for 3 more hours.  Serve with toothpicks or on baguettes.

Tips/Tricks/Notes

I found this recipe on the blog Annie Bakes.  It is a super easy meatball recipe, and they were so yummy!  Next time I plan on making my own meatballs when I do this recipe.  There isn't much more to be said about this recipe, it's definitely one to try!  The only change I had to make was to the time, I accidentally bought uncooked frozen meatballs instead of cooked ones, so I thawed the meatballs then cooked them on HIGH for the 4 hours instead of dropping the crockpot to LOW.

The picture seen above is an actual picture I took of my completed meatballs, it is not taken from the internet or played with in anyway.

1 boxed cake mix (any flavour)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup oil
3/4 cup chips (any flavour)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl combine all ingredients, mixing well.  Spoon batter in about 2 tbsp sized balls and place on baking tray.  Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes.  Cool briefly on trays before removing to wire rack to cool completely.

Tips/Tricks/Notes

I found this recipe on the blog Cathlin Cooks... but Mostly Bakes!  I usually prefer to bake cookies from scratch but I had a few cake mixes around the house that I had bought during sales.  This recipe is a quick and easy way to use up those extra mixes!  The cookies on the left in the picture are Lemon Cake Mix with White Chocolate Chips and the cookies on the right are Devil's Food Mix with Butterscotch Chips.

The picture seen above is an actual picture I took of my completed cookies, it is not taken from the internet or played with in anyway.

I've been at this whole blogging thing for a bit now and have found a nice amount of blogs I enjoying dropping by regularly!  I wanted to share those blogs with my readers.  All the blogs are food related blogs except for the first one, which is my best friend Corrine's blog and a must view if you love to read!

Lost for Words - http://www.lostforwords-corrine.blogspot.com/
Annie Bakes - http://anniebakes.blogspot.com/
Barbara Bakes - http://www.barbarabakes.com/
Bite Size Baker - http://bitesizebaker.com/
Brattypants - http://brattypants.blogspot.com/
Maison Cupcake - http://blog.maisoncupcake.com/

I also joined 'You Want Pies With That?' (http://pieswiththat.blogspot.com/), Where every month you must bake a unique pie that goes along with that months theme.  To learn more, visit the blog!  I already have my idea for April's theme "Spring"!  Can't wait!

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 sweet red bell pepper, julienned
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tbsp lime juice
1/2 cup chicken broth
8 to 10 warmed flour tortillas
Toppings (ie, guacamole, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, salsa)

1. Cut chicken into diagonal strips and place in slow cooker sprayed with cooking spray.
2. Top with onion and bell pepper.  In bowl, combine cumin, chili powder, lime juice and chicken broth and pour over chicken and veggies.
3. Cover and cook on LOW for 5 to 7 hours.
4. When serving, spoon several slices of chicken mixture with sauce into center of each warm tortilla and add any additional toppings of your choice, then fold.

Tips/Tricks/Notes

I have decided that I love my crock pot!  It really is the most handy thing ever!  I love being able to throw together dinner in the morning and have everything ready for dinner that night!  This recipe is a very easy recipe and it is also very tasty.  I didn't add the peppers as I didn't have any in the house at the time.  I also found the cumin to be a little over powering and won't add as much next time.

The picture seen above is an actual picture I took of my completed fajitas, it is not taken from the internet or played with in anyway.