Salsa Chicken

1 pound of chicken (boneless breasts, tenders, or chunks)

1 can Rotel tomatoes with green chilies

1 jar salsa (I used Pace medium)

1 green pepper, sliced or diced

1 red pepper, sliced or diced

1 yellow pepper, sliced or diced

1 onion, chopped

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 bag frozen corn

Cumin, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

3 cups rice, cooked

Colby Jack cheese, shredded, optional

Sour cream, optional

Saute the chicken. When cooked through, remove to plate. Add the tomatoes, salsa, peppers, onion, beans, corn and spices to skillet. Heat through, especially if your veggies are frozen. Meanwhile, shred the chicken or cut into smaller pieces. Add back to skillet. Serve over rice. Sprinkle with cheese and sour cream, if desired.

Baked Ziti

2 pounds lean ground beef

2 tablespoons instant minced onion

2 cloves garlic, minced (I use the minced garlic in a jar)

2-3 tablespoons parsley flakes

2 jars Ragu marinara sauce

2 cans (15 oz) tomato sauce

Savory Garlic Philadelphia Cooking Creme

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon Oregano

1 teaspoon Basil leaves

1-2 bay leaves, crushed

1 pound ziti, cooked and drained

Shredded Italian Blend or Mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Fry the beef, minced onion, garlic and parsley flakes. Drain on paper towels to remove any grease.

Pour the marinara sauce, tomato sauce, salt, pepper, oregano, basil leaves and bay leaves into a 5 qt dutch oven. Add one or two heaping dollops of the Philadelphia cooking creme to the sauce. Stir to melt the cooking creme. Warm sauce while the beef is frying and/or the ziti is cooking.

Add beef mixture to sauce and continue warming. Add ziti to warm sauce. Stir gently to coat the noodles with the sauce. Spray baking dish with cooking spray.

Pour half the sauced ziti into baking dish, top with cheese. Add more sauced ziti and top with more cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned.

Sausage and Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms

1 pound medium fresh mushrooms, cleaned

1/4 cup Kraft Zesty Italian dressing

1/2 cup Italian sausage, cooked, crumbled

1/2 cup Kraft shredded low-moisture part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat broiler. Remove and discard stems from mushrooms. Brush mushroom caps with dressing and place on rack of broiler pan. Broil 5 minutes.

Press sausage evenly into mushroom caps, using about 1/2 teaspoon sausage in each cap. Sprinkle evenly with cheese.

Broil an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve hot.

**Substitue Kraft Four Cheese Mexican Style Shredded Cheese or Kraft Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese for the mozzarella cheese.

** I use bulk Italian sausage (no casings) to save time.

Recipe from Kraftfoods.com

Baked Crab Rangoon

1 can (6 oz) white crab meat, drained, flaked

4 oz Philadelphia Neufchatel cheese, softened

1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions

1/4 cup Kraft Light Mayo Reduced Fat mayonnaise

12 won ton wrappers

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix crab meat, Neufchatel cheese, onions and mayonnaise.

Spray 12 muffin cups with cooking spray. Gently place 1 won ton wrapper in each cup, allowing edges of wrappers to extend above sides of cups. Fill evenly with crab meat mixture.

Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown and filling is heated through. Serve warm. Garnish with chopped green onions, if desired.

**Won ton wrappers can be found in the refrigerated produce section of your grocery store.

Recipe from Kraftfoods.com

Cheesy Spinach and Bacon Dip

1 package (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained

1 pound Velveeta Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

4 ozs Philadelphia cream cheese, cubed

1 can (10 oz) Ro*Tel diced tomatoes and green chilies, undrained

8 slices Oscar Mayer bacon, cooked, crumbled

Microwave all ingredients in microwavable bowl on HIGH for 5 minutes or until Velveeta is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring after 3 minutes.

Serve with tortilla chips and cut-up fresh vegetables.

Recipe from Kraftfoods.com

Tree Shaped Crescent Veggie Appetizers

2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury refrigerated crescent dinner rolls

1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon dried dill weed

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

3 cups finely chopped assorted vegetables (bell peppers, broccoli, carrot, cucumber, green onions, red onions, mushrooms, etc)

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove dough from cans in rolled sections; do not unroll. Cut each section into 8 slices (16 slices from each can).

Place slices, cut side down, on ungreased cookie sheets to form trees. To form each tree, start by placing 1 slice for top; arrange 2 slices just below, with sides touching. Continue arranging row of 3 slices, then row of 4 slices, ending with row of 5 slices. Use remaining slice for trunk. Refrigerate one tree while the other bakes.

Bake one tree 11 to 13 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 1 minute; carefully loosen with pancake turner and slide onto cooling rack to cool. Bake and cool second tree.

Place each tree on serving platter. In small bowl, mix cream cheese, sour cream, dill and garlic powder; blend until smooth. Spread mixture over both trees. Decorate trees with assorted vegetable pieces. Refrigerate until serving time. To serve, pull apart slices of tree.

Note: You can use the Pillsbury crescent dinner rounds in place of the dinner rolls. You can also use a ranch dressing mixture instead of the dill and garlic mixture.

Recipe from Pillsbury

Slow-Cooked Macaroni and Cheese

1 package (16 ounces) elbow macaroni
1/2 cup stick margarine, melted
2 eggs, beaten
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cheddar cheese soup, undiluted
1 cup milk
4 cups (16 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/8 teaspoon paprika

Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain. Place in a 5-qt. slow cooker; add margarine. In a bowl, combine the eggs, evaporated milk, soup, milk and 3 cups cheese. Pour over macaroni mixture; stir to combine. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.

Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Cook 15 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with paprika.

Yield: 10 servings

Recipe from Taste of Home

Pumpkin Bars

4 eggs
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
15-ounce can pumpkin
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

Icing:
8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine the 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.

Yield: 48 small bars or 24 large bars

Recipe from Paula Deen and Friends: Living it Up, Southern Style

Wendy's Chili

2 pounds ground beef or ground venison
One 29-ounce can tomato sauce
One 29-ounce can kidney beans (with liquid)
One 29-ounce can pinto beans (with liquid)
1 cup diced onion (1 medium onion)
1/2 cup diced green chili (2 chilis)
1/4 cup diced celery (1 stalk)
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
2 teaspoons cumin powder
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups water

Brown the ground beef in a skillet over medium heat; drain off the fat and crumble beef into pea-size pieces.

In a large pot, combine the beef plus all the remaining ingredients, and bring to a simmer over low heat. Cook, stirring every 15 minutes, for 2 or 3 hours.

Makes about 12 servings

Variations: For spicier chili, add 1/2 teaspoon more black pepper.

For much spicier chili, add 1 teaspoon black pepper and 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper.

And for a real stomach stinger, add 5 or 6 sliced jalapeno peppers to the pot.

Leftovers can be frozen for several months.

NOTES** I usually use canned diced green chilis--one or two cans (mine are usually 4.5 oz cans).

I don't like celery so I always throw in a whole stalk and remove it before serving.

I usually mix light kidney beans and dark kidney beans. I never have exactly 29 ounces of either bean--I add the beans to suit myself---I prefer fewer beans than most folks.

As for the 3 medium tomatoes--I have NEVER used fresh tomatoes . I just throw in a can or two of whole tomatoes or diced tomatoes.

Pumpkin Dip

2 cups confectioners sugar
1 15 ounce can pumpkin
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Mix ingredients until smooth. Refrigerate. Serve with spritz cookies or gingersnaps.