Creamy Cheesy Cauliflower Soup

This is a very quick and easy soup that is also fairly healthy. At least I like to think so since I am eating cauliflower. The pepper jack cheese gives it a very nice kick. But I think several different types of cheeses would work if you wanted to use something else.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
1 cup chicken stock
1 head cauliflower
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese

Directions:
1. Melt butter in a pot. Slice onions and add to the butter. Cook for a few minutes.
2. Add flour and mix. Cook onions and flour for a couple of minutes.
3. Add salt, milk, and stock. Stir.
4. Cut up cauliflower and add to the pot. Bring to a boil and cook for about 10 minutes until cauliflower is tender. You can also use frozen cauliflower florets.
5. Either using a stick blender or blender blend the mixture until smooth.
6. Return mixture to the pot. Add in dijon mustard and cheeses. Stir until cheese is melted and soup is smooth.

I also added crushed garlic in step #3 since I like garlic so much.

A few of our favorite recipes this Holiday season

Bacon, Olive and Onion Cheeseball

Ingredients **
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
6 slices bacon, browned until crispy, patted dry and chopped
1/2 can black olives, drained and chopped
3 green onions, thinly sliced

Mix together. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill until serving. You can also roll this in roasted nuts before chilling. We made our's into a monster face instead of covering it with nuts because it was way funner to eat that way. And if monsters know that we eat monster heads, they will be less likely to terrorize us.

**You can change these ingredients to fit whatever you like. Just keep the cheese the same and drain everything really well.

Cream Cheese Blueberry Pie

Ingredients
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
8 ounces whipped topping
1 tsp. vanilla
1 (9 inch) pastry shell, baked
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 cups fresh or frozen blueberries


Directions
1 - In a small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth. Fold in whipped cream. Spread into pastry shell.
2 - In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, water and lemon juice until smooth; stir in blueberries. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Cool. Spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate until serving.

This was a terrific yet tart dessert, which I thought was nice when there were so many incredibly sweet things to eat. It did not take much time to make and was easy to make ahead.

Cheese Fondue (I think this will be our traditional Christmas lunch.)

Ingredients
1 cup apple or white grape juice
1/2 pound shredded Swiss cheese
1/2 pound shredded Gruyere cheese
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 (1 pound) loaf French bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 package Li'l Smokies
apple slices


Directions
Simmer juice in pot. Toss shredded cheese with flour. Add Swiss cheese, Gruyere cheese, 1/4 pound at a time to simmering juice. Stir after each addition of cheese until melted. When all the cheese has melted, stir in salt and nutmeg. Keep warm in crock pot or rice cooker. Serve with cut-up French bread, Li'l smokies, and apple slices.

Cheesy Mashed Potato Layer Bake

4 large white potatoes, baked and peeled
3 large sweet potatoes, baked and peeled
1 (8 ounce) cube Cream Cheese, divided
1/2 cup Sour Cream, divided
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
1/4 cup Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese, divided
1 small onion, divided

Directions
1 - Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place potatoes in separate bowls. Add half each of the cream cheese, sour cream and onion to each bowl; season with salt and pepper. Mash with potato masher or mixer until creamy. You may need to add milk to the white potatoes to get them to a creamy consistency.
2 - Stir half of the Parmesan cheese into white potatoes. Stir half of the Cheddar cheese into sweet potatoes. Alternately layer half each of the white potato and sweet potato mixture in 2 qt. or 9x13 clear glass dish. Repeat layers.
3 - Bake15 min. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses; bake 5 more min. or until cheeses are melted.

I thought this was so pretty. It looked like a Christmas ornament. And I was very excited to find a cheesy potato recipe that included sweet potatoes.

Caramel Dipping Sauce

1/3 cup water
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pinch salt

Directions
1 - Bring the water, sugar, and butter to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat. Do not stir the mixture until the sugar has completely dissolved in the water. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the caramel has turned golden brown, 10 - 15 minutes.
2 - Carefully pour in a slow, steady stream of cream into the caramel while stirring constantly. The hot caramel will boil vigorously when the cream is added and solidify in areas. Add the vanilla extract and salt. Continue stirring over low heat until the caramel is smooth and creamy, 5 to 10 minutes more. Allow to cool for at least half an hour before using.

I used this to dip apples in as well as drizzle over a pumpkin cheesecake. It tastes like homemade caramels. Way better then the stuff you buy at the store!

Dry Ranch Dressing Mix

1 teaspoon dried parsley
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tsp. dried dill weed

Mix together. Use in place of the Ranch seasoning mix.

This tastes just like the store bought stuff, and it is way cheaper.

I have found that if I mix this with a container of sour cream, take a portion of that out and mix with seasoned rice vinegar, it tastes very similar to Ranch Dressing and (depending on the type of sour cream you use) does not have near the additives.

Peppermint Marshmallows

Ingredients
3/4 cup water, divided
3 (.25 ounce) packages unflavored gelatin
2/3 cup light corn syrup
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 - 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
confectioners' sugar

1 - Grease a 9x13 baking dish. Add confectioners' sugar and coat the pan. Set aside.
2 - Place 1/2 cup of water in the bowl of an electric mixer, and sprinkle gelatin on top of water to soak.
3 - While gelatin is soaking, combine 1/4 cup of water, corn syrup, and sugar in a saucepan, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil the mixture hard for 1 minute.
4 - Pour the hot sugar mixture into the gelatin mixture and beat on high for 12 minutes with electric mixer, until the mixture is fluffy and forms stiff peaks. Add vanilla and peppermint extracts, and beat just until blended.
Pour the marshmallow mixture into the prepared baking dish, using a greased spatula to smooth the top of the candy. Cover the candy with the reserved greased foil or wrap, and press down lightly to seal the covering to the top of the candy.
5 - Allow the marshmallow candy to rest for 4 hours or overnight. Set out a layer of wax paper covered with confectioners' sugar. Loosen marshmallows from the edge of the dish. Dump out onto wax paper. Using oiled scissors or an oiled kitchen knife, cut the marshmallow candy into strips, then into 1 inch squares. Dredge the marshmallows lightly in the confectioners' sugar and store in an airtight container.

This recipe is very fun for kids. If you don't care for the peppermint flavoring, the vanilla alone is great. Instead of cutting these in squares, you can use cookie cutters.

Tomato-Basil Chicken

This recipe is so so so good and so so so easy.

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Tomato Soup

1/2 cup milk

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves, crushed

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder or 1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 of a 1-pound package medium tube-shaped pasta (ziti), cooked according to package directions (about 4 cups)

• Heat the oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook or 10 minutes until it's well browned on both sides.
• Stir the soup, milk, cheese, basil and garlic powder in the skillet and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Serve with the pasta.

Pumpkin Freeze

2 c. ginger snaps, crushed

1/3 c. melted butter

2 T. brown sugar

1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cloved

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 tsp. ginger

1/8 tsp. salt

1 quart vanilla ice cream (soft)

Mix crushed ginger snaps with melted butter and 2 T. brown sugar. Press into a 9X13 inch pan. For the filling mix together pumpkin, 1/2 cup brown sugar and all the spices. Fold in ice cream. Spread evenly over crust, cover and freeze. To serve, cut into squares and serve. You can make extra ginger snap crust to sprinkle on the top. Drizzle with caramel.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Lasagna Casserole

6 chicken breasts cooked and diced or shredded

2-3 c. diced ham

2 -1 pound boxes of pasta (whatever shape you like...I use penne or bowtie)

1 - 16 ox cottage cheese

1 container of ricotta cheese

1 - 6 oz container of shredded italian blend cheese

1 lb block of mozzarella cheese - shredded

1 lb block of swiss cheese - shredded

Alfredo Sauce

2 sticks of butter

1 - 8 oz. block of cream cheese

A quart of heavy cream

1 - 6 oz. container of shredded parmesan cheese

2 tsp. garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

If you are making alfredo sauce to eat on pasta-make it normal, but for this recipe add in 3/4 to 1 cup of milk. It helps keep it moist and saucy.

Simmer butter, cream cheese, heavy cream and extra milk. When mostly melted add parmesan cheese, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Simmer until cheese is melted. Cook your pasta until tender and drain.

Dump everything in to a large bowl and pour the alfredo sauce over the top and mix well. I often times add more milk if it doesn't seem wet enough because you want it really saucy. Pour into a large pan or two 9x13 pans. Reserve half of your mozzarella and swiss cheese to sprinkle on top. Cover with foil and bake at 350* for 30-45 minutes. This recipe makes a lot so plan for leftovers or invite people over.

Pink Sauce Pasta

I had this at the Relief Society Christmas Party in my ward and it was absolutely WONDERFUL! The lady who made it shared the recipe with everyone and before I lost it I wanted to put it on here.

First make the alfredo sauce:

Melt and simmer-

2 sticks of butter

1 - 8 oz. block of cream cheese

A quart of heavy cream

3/4 c. milk

1 1/2 c. good shredded parmesan cheese

2 tsp. garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

Brown and season 1-2 lbs. of ground beef. Drain off grease. Boil 2 boxes of rigatoni noodle or penne. Cook until almost done. Drain noodles and pour into a LARGE baking dish. Pour alfredo sauce over and add browned hamburger and stir until well coated. Pour a large jar of prego spaghetti sauce evenly over top. (or you can make homemade sauce). Top with shredded mozzarella or italian blend cheese or both. (she does both). Bake in the oven at 350* for 30 minutes. Enjoy it's creamy goodness.

This recipe make a lot!!!

Andes Mint Cookies

1 1/2 cups butter or 1 1/2 cups margarine
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 large eggs
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
Andes mints

Preheat oven to 350. Mix butter, sugars, vanilla and eggs. Stir in the flour,
baking soda and salt. Unwrap Andes mints and wrap dough balls around each mint.
Place on cookie sheet. Bake for 9-12 minutes. Cool slightly and remove to wire
rack and cool completely. Place more Andes mints in a glass bowl and place over a
pan of shallow simmering water to melt. Add a tablespoon of butter to make glossy.
Drizzle with a spoon over cooled cookies. Makes 3 dozen delicious & pretty cookies.