Saskatoon Pie

4 cups saskatoons or blueberries

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup flour

1 T. lemon juice

2 T. butter

1 recipe pie crust

Mix all except butter. Put into pie crust. Dot with butter, top with another crust. Bake 15 minutes at 450, then 30 minutes at 350.

Oma's Peppermint Cookies

1/2 cup sour cream

1 cup cream (or 1/2 milk and 1/2 whipping cream)

1/2 cup oil

2 eggs

2 tsp peppermint extract

2 cups sugar

5 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

Mix wet ingredients, then add dry. Refrigerate dough 4 hours so it handles better. Roll out or roll into balls and flatten. (I find it easiest to drop them by spoonful.) Bake 8-10 minutes at 350.

This is a half recipe of the original!

Creamy Garlic Pasta

3 T. butter

1 tsp. garlic powder

2 and 2/3 cups chicken broth

1 and 1/3 cup milk

350 g pasta

salt & pepper

Melt the butter, add the garlic and everything else. Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes until pasta is cooked and liquid is absorbed. If it gets too dry, add a little additional milk or put the lid on for a few minutes. 

 

This recipe works best with a pasta that cooks a little quicker, like rotini or penne.

Original recipe that's a little smaller:

2 T. butter

3/4 tsp. garlic powder

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup milk

250 g pasta

salt & pepper

Chewy Granola Bars

1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup margarine, melted
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries
3 cups oatmeal
1/3 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup coconut
2 tsp sesame seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup chocolate chips

Blend the sugar, peanut butter, syrup and margarine. Add vanilla. Add remaining ingredients and mix until blended. Press into a 10x15 cookie sheet and bake 15-20 minutes at 350. Cool and cut into bars.

Often I don't have all the ingredients listed but this recipe is very flexible and you can just about put in anything you want.

Pizza Sauce

 Kind of homemade, kind of not.

1 can tomato paste

1 can tomato soup (I like no name the best in this recipe)

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. garlic

1/2 tsp. basil

sprinkle of black pepper

Mix well and store in the fridge. Use whatever spices you like (oregano, cayenne pepper, Italian seasoning, etc.). It thickens quite a bit sitting in the fridge so if I want to use it when it's thick, I add a wee bit of water.

Stewed Tomatoes

8 tomatoes

1 medium onion

1/2 cup green pepper

1 small bay leaf

2 T. margarine

1/2 cup celery (optional - I usually leave this out)

3 T. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

Chop the veggies and put everything in a slow cooker. Cook on low 8 hours, then remove the bay leaf. I put this in pint jars and freeze them, then I use them in chili and other recipes that call for stewed tomatoes.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

2 chicken breasts, cut into small pieces

1/2 an onion, chopped

oil

1 tsp. Cajun seasoning (I use Tony)

1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. brown sugar

1 can diced tomatoes (540 ml)

2.5 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup cream

400 g pasta (penne or rotini)

 

Cook the chicken and onion in the oil and spices. Once browned, add the tomatoes, broth and cream. Bring to a boil and add the pasta. Cover and simmer until the pasta is done, uncover for the last few minutes to thicken it up if needed.

Variation: This also works to leave out the chicken and just make it as pasta. Then I make chicken fingers on the side and serve them together, almost like a chicken parmesan idea.