Special K bars

As a child I remember mom making these special treats. Back in those days the Special K cereal was much like Rice Krispies, just more flat and a little wider. Now the Special K cereal is more like flakes so it doesn't work in these bars. I think the name should be changed and I have seen these bars called other names. But to me they will always be Special K bars. Some things from childhood just stick with a person.

1 cup sugar

1 cup corn syrup

1 cup peanut butter

6 cups  Special K cereal or rice Krispies

Frosting

6 oz. chocolate chips

6 oz. butterscotch chips

 Stir the sugar and corn syrup together in a pot until the mixture boils.  Remove from heat. If cooked longer than 30 seconds you will have hard bars.

 Stir in the peanut butter, and then the Special K cereal.  Mix thoroughly.

 Pour mixture into a 9×13 pan, and press down on the mixture.

Melt the chocolate and butterscotch chips together on low heat in a small pan.  Pour onto the cereal bars and smooth with a knife.  Put in the fridge to cool, and then cut into bars.

Brown sugar little smokies

Brown sugar Little Smokies

1 pound bacon

1 (16 ounce) package little smokie sausages

1 cup brown sugar, or to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 350º

Cut bacon into thirds and wrap each strip around a little sausage. Use a toothpick to secure the bacon to the sausage and it also makes for easy serving. Arrange on a baking sheet and sprinkle them liberally with brown sugar.

Bake until bacon is crisp and the brown sugar melted. Serve warm.

Oatmeal dinner rolls.

Oatmeal buns

2 cups quick-cooking oats

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup butter, cubed

1 tablespoon salt

2-1/2 cups boiling water

2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water (110° to 115°)

5-1/2 to 6 cups all-purpose flour

Additional butter, melted

In a large bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, butter and salt; stir in boiling water. Cool to 110°-115°. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water; let stand for 5 minutes. Add oat mixture and 2 cups flour; beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 20 pieces. Place in a greased 13x9-in. baking pan. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.

Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan to a wire rack; brush with melted butter.

Recipe from Taste of Home

No Knead Dinner rolls

Ingredients

Buns:

1 tbsp dry yeast (one packet)

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup  warm water

4 1/2 Cups bread flour, + extra for dusting (can use all purpose / plain flour) AP flour makes the rolls less fluffy

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 cup milk, lukewarm, whole or low fat

3 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 eggs, at room temperature, beaten with fork

Brushing:

1 tbsp butter, melted

Instructions

Place the yeast and 2 teaspoons of the sugar in a medium bowl, then pour in water. Leave for 5 minutes until it froths.

Place flour, remaining sugar and salt in a bowl. Mix to combine.

Make a well in the centre. Add milk, butter, eggs and pour in the yeast liquid, including all froth.

Mix until combined with wooden spoon - it will be like a thick muffin batter. Not pourable, but thick and sticky.

Rise #1:

Leave dough in the bowl, cover with a wet (clean) tea towel and place in a warm place (25C/77F+) to rise for around 1 1/2 - 2 hours or until almost tripled in volume. Dough surface should look bubbly 

Forming Balls 

Line a 31.5 x 23.5 cm / 9 x 13" tray with parchment paper with overhang.

Remove tea towel and punch dough to deflate, then mix briefly in the bowl to get rid of the bubbles in the dough.

Dust work surface with flour, scrape dough on work surface. Dust top of dough then shape into a log. Cut log into 4 pieces, then cut each piece into 3 pieces (12 in total). 

Take one piece and press down with palm, then use your fingers to gather into a ball, flip (so smooth side is up) then roll the dough briefly to form a ball. This stretches the dough on one side and that's how I get a nice smooth surface on my roll. (For this step, use as much flour as needed to handle dough and avoid piercing inside into the wet dough)

Place the ball with the smooth side up on the tray. Repeat with remaining dough. Line them up 3 x 4.

Rise # 2:

Spray surface of rolls (or cling wrap) with oil (any), then place cling wrap over the tray.

Return tray to warm place and leave for 30 - 45 min, until the dough has risen by about 75% (less than double in size).

Partway through Rise #2, preheat oven to 350º

Bake for 15 - 18 minutes, or until the surface is a golden brown and the roll in the centre sounds hollow when tapped. The surface color is the best test for this recipe. 

Remove rolls from oven. Brush with melted butter.

Use overhang to lift rolls onto a cooling rack. Allow to cool to warm before serving. Best if used the day they are made. To refresh the next day, , just warm in the micro for few second.

This makes 12 fairly large rolls, about the size of a baseball.

Peppermint Latte

2 tablespoons instant latte or vanilla cappuccino mix

3/4 cup boiling water

1/4 cup Land O Lakes® Half & Half

1 tablespoon chocolate syrup

2 teaspoons maraschino cherry juice or syrup, if desired

1 to 2 drops peppermint extract

Aerosol light whipped cream

Crushed or whole candy canes, if desired

Instructions

Place latte mix in coffee mug. Slowly stir in boiling water, half & half, chocolate syrup, cherry juice and peppermint extract.

Top with whipped cream and candy cane, if desired. Serve immediately.

By recipe and photo by http://www.landolakes.com/

Crustless pumpkin pie

Sugar free low carb crustless pumpkin pie

Nonstick cooking spray

3/4 cup sugar substitute

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

2 large eggs

1 can (15 oz.) Pure Pumpkin

12 ounces of fat free half and half

PREHEAT oven as directed below. Glass baking dishes without crust require a cooler oven, and in most cases, a longer baking time. 

SPRAY with nonstick cooking spray or lightly grease bottom of baking pan or glass baking dish. 

PREPARE filling as directed on can Pour into pan or dish. 

BAKE as directed below or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. 

COOL on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

Recipe makes 8 servings

Bake times and temps:

9-inch-round glass pie dish: 325° F; bake for 55 to 60 minutes

Oyster Cracker Snack

1/2 cup canola oil

1 package ( 1 ounce) dry, ranch dressing mix

1/4 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp. dill weed

2 bags oyster crackers

Mix. Spread on cookie sheet and back for 30  minutes in 250º oven.

Cool, store in airtight container.

Homemade heavy cream

So often we will find a recipe that calls for heavy cream and we have none. Here is a recipe to make your own, providing you have whole milk  on hand.

Make your own Heavy Cream 

3/4 cup whole milk (not low fat)

1/3 cup real butter, melted but not hot enough to boil!

Put the whole milk In a bowl, add the melted butter and whip with a whisk attachment or hand beater on medium for about 2 minutes.

If you plan on making your own Whipping Cream use 1/2 c. butter instead of 1/3rd.

Refrigerate the mixture in a covered container. If using the cream in soups, sauces or baked goods, it's ready immediately. To use it in homemade whipped cream it must be refrigerated for at least 24 hours. Do not use margarine as this is merely oil and does not work.

Coffee slushie

 1 Tbsp. Instant Coffee, any variety

 1-1/2 cups ice cubes

 3/4 cup milk

 2 Tbsp. sugar

Place all ingredients in blender container; cover. Blend on high speed until ice is crushed.

Pour evenly into 2 glasses.

Serve immediately.

**Recipe and picture found on Kraft foods

Chicken stuffed Avocado's

Some people like avocados so here is a recipe I found that I think you will enjoy. 

4 avocados, halved and pitted

2 cooked chicken breasts shredded

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup chopped tomatoes

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 pinch cayenne pepper

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, or more to taste

Preheat oven to 400º

Scoop out some of the flesh in the center of each avocado; place into mixing bowl. Add chicken, cream cheese, tomatoes, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper; mix well to combine. 

Scoop spoonfuls of chicken mixture into the wells of each avocado; top each with generous amount of Parmesan cheese. Place avocado halves, face-up, in muffin cups to stabilize.

Bake avocados in preheated oven until cheese is melted, 8 to 10 minutes.

Cheeseburger Tomatoes

1 tbsp. canola or olive oil

1 

medium onion, chopped

2 

cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. 

hamburger

1 tbsp. 

ketchup

1 tbsp. 

 mustard

4 

slicing tomatoes

 salt and pepper to taste

2/3 c. 

shredded cheddar

1/4 c. 

shredded iceberg lettuce

4 

pickle slices

1. In a medium skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Add onion and cook until tender, about 5 minutes, then stir in garlic. Add hamburger, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, and cook until the beef is no longer pink. Drain fat. Season with salt and pepper, then stir in ketchup and mustard. 
2. Flip tomatoes so they are stem-side down. Cut the tomatoes into six wedges, being careful to not cut completely through the tomato. Carefully spread open the wedges. Divide cooked ground beef evenly among the tomatoes, then top each with cheese and lettuce. 
3. Garnish with sliced pickles.  

Not a recipe

Hubby is not fond of the artificial sweeteners because of the awful after taste. But being diabetic now, he has to stay away from sugar. After much searching I found a sweetener that had wonderful reviews of not having any aftertaste, looks and measures like sugar ( it is a bit more coarse), and it can be used in all recipes, The downside is, that it's quite expensive. And I could only find it at Amazon.com.  The name of the sweetener is Xylitol.  This sweetener is worth every penny and hubby is now happy.

Pepperoni Crisps

1 c. shredded Parmesan

3/4 c. shredded low-moisture mozzarella

mini pepperoni or cut up regular pepperoni

1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning

Warm marinara sauce, for dipping ( I like to use Prego spaghetti sauce, traditional)

Preheat oven to 375º. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Spoon about a tablespoon of Parmesan into a small mound on baking sheet. Top with about half tablespoon mozzarella. Carefully pat down on cheese to flatten, then place a few pepperoni slices on top. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning.

Bake until crispy and golden, about 12 minutes. Let cool slightly before transferring to serving dish.

Serve at room temperature with marinara sauce for dipping.

About one carb per serving.

Chicken stir fry

Chicken cabbage stir fry

1 c. long-grain white rice

1 tbsp. canola oil

1 clove garlic

1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken

3 green onions

1 medium red pepper

1/2 small head green cabbage

1 c. reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 tbsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce

1 tbsp. cornstarch

2 tsp. grated peeled fresh ginger or 1/8 tsp dry

Prepare rice as label directs.

Meanwhile, in 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil and garlic over medium-high heat until hot. Add chicken and green onions, and cook 5 to 6 minutes, or until chicken is well browned and loses its pink color throughout, stirring frequently. Transfer mixture to medium bowl.

To same skillet, add red pepper, cabbage, and 1/4 cup chicken broth; stir to combine. Cover skillet and cook vegetables over medium heat about 5 minutes until tender-crisp, stirring occasionally. Transfer vegetables to bowl with chicken.

Meanwhile, in cup, stir soy sauce, cornstarch, ginger, and remaining 3/4 cup broth.

Add broth mixture to skillet and heat to boiling over high heat; boil 1 minute. Remove skillet from heat and stir chicken and vegetables into broth mixture. Serve with rice.

Tomato Bisque

CREAMY TOMATO BISQUE

     Just like AppleBees

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup onions, chopped

1 tsp minced garlic

2 (28-ounce) can crushed or diced tomatoes

3 cups good-quality chicken stock

Salt

black pepper
1/3 cup sugar

1/4 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp parsley

1/3 cup fresh basil or 1 Tbls dried

3/4 – 1 cup heavy cream

Shredded parmesan cheese and croutons, for garnish

Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and then add onion and garlic and saute' for about 1 minute.

Add crushed tomatoes and chicken broth and bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and let mixture cool, uncovered, for 30 minutes to up to 1 hour.

 

 Pour approximately half of the tomato mixture into a blender. Put the lid on the blender and hold it down with a dish towel. Mixture may still be hot and you don't want the lid of the blender to pop off.

 Blend on high speed for about a minute, pour the mixture into a large bowl or pitcher, then add the rest of the mixture to the blender and blend on high speed for a minute.

 Pour all of the pureed tomato mixture back into the saucepan and then add the remaining ingredients.

Bring the soup back up to a bubble then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Garnish of 3 or 4 croutons on top and a sprinkling of shredded parmesan cheese.

** Note- be careful of what brand of canned tomatoes you use. Use one you know is good.   

Low Carb pancakes

4 eggs

1/2 cup ricotta cheese (you can use part skim)

1/4 cup vanilla whey protein powder 

1/2 tsp baking powder

pinch salt

Optional: 1/2 tsp vanilla liquid stevia

coconut oil for frying or canola oil

Add all ingredients to a blender or whisk together by hand.

Heat coconut oil in a skillet on medium high heat. I use canola oil.

Use 1/4 cup to measure batter for each pancake.

Free form pancakes or use an english muffin mold in skillet to form pancakes.

Allow to cook 2-3 minutes on one side or until you see bubbles forming around edges and center. Flip and cook 1-2 minutes more on other side.

 Makes a total of 8 pancakes, serving size is 2. 

Melt in your mouth chicken breast

I made this in the air fryer oven and had to lower the temp for the last half hour.. It was so moist and tender that even I, a chicken hater, liked this dish. Partner this dish with some grilled fresh asparagus and you have a  winner chicken dinner. 

4 boneless chicken breast, halves

1 cup mayonnaise or Miracle Whip

1⁄2 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated

1 1⁄2 tsp seasoning salt

1⁄2 tsp black pepper, ground

1 tsp garlic powder

Mix Miracle Whip (which is what we prefer, it has flavor), cheese and seasonings.

Spread mixture over chicken breast and place in baking dish.

Bake at 375°F for 45 minutes.

When I make this dish, I cut the recipe in half.

Recipe originally inspired by Food.com

Sugar free Chocolate chip cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter (2 sticks) , softened

1/3 cup Stevia granulated sugar 

1/3 cup Stevia-brown sugar blend

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 eggs

1-1/3 cups HERSHEY'S Sugar Free Chocolate Chips (8-oz. pkg.)

1 cup nuts chopped (optional)

Heat oven to 375°F.

Stir together flour, baking soda and salt. Beat butter, granulated sugar blend, brown sugar blend and vanilla in large bowl until creamy. Add eggs; beat well. Gradually add flour mixture, beating well. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts, if desired. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake 7 to 9 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.

Oven Fried Chicken Tenders

This has to be the best baked chicken recipe I have ever found. The panko stayed crispy and did not stick to the racks in the air fryer. The chicken was moist and tender like it had been deep fried. Two thumbs up on this one!!👍👍

1 3/4 cups Panko breadcrumbs

Oil spray

Batter

1 egg

1 Tbl Miracle Whip salad dressing.

2 tbsp flour

1/2 tsp salt

Black pepper

Chicken

1 lb chicken tenderloins (or chicken breast cut into 1 inch strips)

Oil spray

Instructions

Preheat oven to 390º

Place the Batter ingredients in a bowl and whisk with a fork until combined. Dip chicken into batter with your left hand.

Pick up a piece of chicken with your left hand and place it into the Panko bowl.

Use your right hand to sprinkle some bread crumbs onto one end of the chicken, then pick up that end of the chicken and turn it over. Pat down gently to press the breadcrumbs onto the chicken, then transfer onto baking tray.

Repeat with remaining chicken.

Spray lightly with oil. Bake for 10 minutes (if small) - 15 minutes (medium to large).

Remove from oven and serve immediately.
This recipe works great in an air fryer oven. Bakes the same amount of time on center rack.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Since living in AZ we have had this soup several times. Although it's spicier than we are used to, the flavor is robust. I tone it down a little by using a smaller jalepeno and take out the seeds. 

Packaged tortilla strips found in the salad dressing isle or make your own

Soup:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup sweet Vidalia or yellow onion, peeled and diced small (about 1 medium onion)

1 large jalapeno pepper (about 4 to 5 inches long), diced very small (the seeds are where the heat is concentrated; include or discard them based on preference)

4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced

32 ounces (4 cups) low-sodium chicken broth

2  14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes and juice (I used petite diced, no-salt-added)

1  15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed (I use 1/2 can)

2 cups shredded cooked chicken (use store bought rotisserie chicken to save time)

1 1/2 cups corn (I use one can, discard the juice) You can use frozen or fresh

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 tablespoon chili powder

2 teaspoons cumin

2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika (regular paprika may be substituted with a dash of liquid smoke added to the kettle)

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional and to taste
1 can evaporated milk

1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves, finely minced (I don't use)

 If you make your own tortilla strips: Preheat oven to 375º, line a baking sheet with foil to save cleanup time, loosely scatter the tortilla strips, evenly drizzle with olive oil, evenly sprinkle with kosher salt, toss with hands to coat evenly, and bake for about 15 to 18 minutes, or until crisp and lightly golden brown; set aside. While strips bake, begin making the soup.

Soup – To a large Dutch oven or stockpot, add 2 tablespoons olive oil and heat over medium-high heat to warm.

Add the onion, jalapeno, and sauté for about 5 minutes, or until vegetables begin to soften. Stir intermittently.

Add the garlic and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir intermittently.

Add the chicken broth, tomatoes and juice, black beans, chicken, corn, lime juice, chili powder, cumin, 2 teaspoons salt, pepper, smoked paprika, optional cayenne pepper, and bring to a boil. Allow mixture to boil gently for about 5 to 7 minutes. Add evaporated milk. If at any point the overall liquid level looks low or you prefer your soup to have more broth, add 1 to 2 cups of water; you’ll adjust the salt and seasoning levels at the end.

Add the cilantro and boil 1 minute.

Taste soup and add salt to taste. This will vary based on how salty the chicken broth, tomatoes, black beans, and rotisserie chicken are, and personal preference. Make any necessary seasoning adjustments (i.e. more salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, etc.).

Ladle soup into bowls, top with tortilla strips to taste, optionally garnish with avocado, cheese and/or sour cream; serve immediately. Soup will keep airtight in the fridge for 5 to 7 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Extra tortilla strips will keep in airtight at room temp for up to 5 days.

Mandarin orange jello

When I make this recipe I use sugar free jello and sugar free fruit to keep it as low sugar as I can. It is very good and always a big hit.

Mandarin orange jello

YIELD: 8 cups

1 1/2 cups hot water

1 6 oz package of orange jello

1 12 oz Cool Whip

1 20 oz. can crushed pineapple, drained

2 10 oz. cans of mandarin oranges, drained

coconut, chopped walnuts, or mini marshmallows, optional (I never use)

Add 1 1/2 cups of hot water to jello in a large bowl. Mix well until all disolved. Let this cool on top of your counter until it is cool enough to put in the refrigerator. Cool in the refrigerator approximately

15 to 20 minutes. You don't want the jello to set up. You want the jello to be cool and when you stick

your finger in it comes out with an orange coating. The jello is still in liquid form. Next, add the cool

whip and stir well until all the jello is mixed in. Add the pineapple and mix well. Add the mandarin

oranges last and fold in gently so as to not break up the oranges. Chill for a half an hour or over night is best.

Parmesan Baked Chicken

Finding recipe with low to no carbs is difficult and then add no frying too. Now that's a challenge. After purchasing an air fryer oven, we can have the best of both worlds and not hurt our diet plan. There is a lot of flavor in this recipe. Chicken strips also work great for this recipe.

Baked Parmesan Chicken

4 pieces of chicken

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 eggs + 2 tablespoons milk

1 cup Panko breadcrumbs

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

 Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.

In a shallow dish, combine flour, black pepper, salt, garlic powder and Italian seasoning.

In another shallow dish, whisk together eggs and milk.

In a third shallow dish, combine Panko breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese.

Pat chicken dry with a paper towel.

Set up assembly line to coat chicken in this order: flour, eggs, Panko. First dredge chicken in the flour mixture, then in the eggs and then coat with the Panko/Parmesan mixture. Once coated, arrange on the prepared baking sheet.

Spray tops of chicken with nonstick cooking spray.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until crispy and golden brown and cooked through. If the tops aren't brown enough for your taste, flip on the broiler for a few minutes; careful not to let them burn.

Cheesy Cauliflower breadsticks

4 cups cauliflower riced, about 1 large head of cauliflower

4 eggs

2 cups mozzarella cheese I used a Tex Mex blend

3 tsp oregano

4 cloves garlic minced

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup mozzarella cheese or more, for topping

Preheat oven to 425 F degrees. Prepare 2 pizza dishes or a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

Make sure your cauliflower is roughly chopped in florets. Add the florets to your food processor and pulse until cauliflower resembles rice.

Place the cauliflower in a microwavable container and cover with lid. Microwave for 10 minutes. Let the cauliflower cool just until there's no more steam coming from it. Place the microwaved cauliflower in a large bowl and add the eggs, 2 cups of mozzarella, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix everything together.

Separate the mixture in two and place each half onto the prepared baking sheets and shape into either a pizza crust, or a rectangular shape for the breadsticks.

Bake the crust (no topping yet) for about 25 minutes or until nice and golden. Don't be afraid the crust is not soggy at all. Once golden, sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and put back in the oven for another 5 minutes or until cheese has melted.

Slice and serve

Easy Stir Fry

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 pound beef sirloin, cut into 2-inch strips or small chunks of chicken
• 1 1/2 cups fresh broccoli florets
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into matchsticks
• 1 1/2 cup julienned/matchstick cut carrots

• 1 green onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 cup chicken or beef broth

2 Tbls. Corn Starch

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 
  

1. Heat vegetable oil in a large wok or skillet over medium-high heat; cook and stir beef or chicken until browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Move meat to the side of the wok or to a plate and add broccoli, bell pepper, carrots, green onion, and garlic to the center of the wok or fry pan. Cook and stir vegetables for 2 minutes.
2. 
   
3. Mix chicken broth, cornstarch and soy sauce and set aside.
4. 
   
5. Stir beef into vegetables, pour chicken broth mixture toss. Continue to cook and stir until vegetables are tender, about 2 more minutes.

      Serve over rice or chow mein noodles. All by itself is good too.

Strawberry smoothies

What a great, low carb, low sugar treat on a hot Arizona day. A favorite of ours.

1 cup frozen fresh strawberries
4 ice cubes
1/2 cup low fat milk
1 T sweetener
1 6 oz container of strawberry yogurt

Put all in blender until smooth and no more ice chunks
Pour into two glasses and enjoy.

Use different fruits and yogurt for different flavors to enjoy.

Best Frog Eye Salad ever

I got this recipe from my mom, and I've made it many time, so I know it's a good one. The recipe makes a huge amount making it great for family gatherings or if you have a large family at home. I've had other recipes and they do not compare in taste and flavor to this one. You won't be disappointed. 

Frog Eye Salad

1 1/3 cup Acini De Pepe (uncooked)

1 can (15 oz) chunk pineapple or tidbits (drained) reserve 1/4 cup of juice

1 3/4 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

1 pkg small vanilla instant pudding

2 cups whipped topping 

3 cups mini marshmallows (the colored look so pretty)

1 can crushed pineapple, drained

2 cans mandarin oranges, drained

1/2 cup coconut

1/2 cup maraschino cherries, halved

Cook pasta 11 minutes, rinse with cold water, drain well. In LARGE bowl beat reserved pineapple juice, milk, sugar and pudding for 2 minutes. Gently stir in pasta and remaining ingredients: cover, refrigerate at least 5 hours.

I put my cans of fruit in the fridge so they are cold when I make this salad. It seems to turn out better.

If you don’t want to waste the rest of the juice, drink it.

No bake peanut butter cookies

To us these cookies are more like a candy than a cookie. But really good.

Diabetic Peanut butter cookies

3/4 cup natural peanut butter

1/4 cup butter

1/4 c brown sugar substitude

1/4 cup low-fat milk

1 3/4 cups rolled oats

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Heat peanut butter, brown sugar, butter and milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring, until the butter and sugar have melted. Stir in oats and vanilla. If using chocolate chips, let the mixture cool to room temperature before stirring them in. Drop the dough by the tablespoon onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Press into 2-inch circles. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes. Keep refrigerated.

To make ahead: Refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Serving size is one cookie.

Diabetic Friendly No bake cookies

Diabetic Friendly No bake cookies

1/2 c graham cracker crumbs

3 c old-fashioned oatmeal

1 1/2 c sugar (or Splenda, granulated would probably work)

1/4 c cocoa

1/2 c skim milk

1/2 c butter

1/2 c peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine graham cracker crumbs and oatmeal. Set aside

In large pot, stir sugar, cocoa, milk, and butter over medium heat until dissolved.

Bring mixture to boil, and boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Stir in peanut butter and vanilla until well combined.

Quickly blend in oatmeal mixture.

Beat by hand until thickened...

(A few minutes, if necessary.)

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto waxed paper.

Refrigerate until firm. 

Store in the refrigerator in air tight container.

ENJOY!

NUTRIENTS PER SERVING:

SERVINGS: 48 (1-COOKIE)SERVINGS

CALORIES: 83

CARBS:11g

FIBER:1g

DIETARY EXCHANGES:

1 STARCH

1/2 FAT

***FREEZE OR REFRIGERATE EXTRA COOKIES TO PULL OUT WHENEVER YOU WANT A SWEET TREAT!

Pea and Crab Salad

8 oz imitation crab

10 oz frozen peas thawed 

1/2 cup crumbled bacon 

1/2 cup Miracle Whip salad dressing

1 tsp sugar 

In a bowl, combine crab, peas, and bacon and mix well

In a different bowl, combine salad dressing and sugar and mix well

Mix the salad dressing and crab mixture together

Cover and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve, at least 3 hours.

Broccoli Raisin Salad

2 pounds fresh broccoli cut into bite sized pieces

1/2 cup green onion, chopped

3/4 cup seedless raisins

3 or 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1/3 cup sunflower nuts

1/2 to 3/4 cup Miracle Whip  salad dressing

 1 or 2 tablespoons cider vinegar (you be the judge)

2 tablespoons sugar or to taste, I used Splenda

Combine broccoli, onion, and raisins and set aside.  Mix the salad dressing, vinegar, and sugar. Toss with salad, chill until served, at least 2 hours. Just before serving add the crumbled bacon and sunflower nuts. Makes about six servings. Enjoy!