Mama's vinegar cucumbers and onion

• 1 cup of water
• 3/4 cup of vinegar (or less)
• 2 peeled and sliced cucumbers
• 1 medium sliced purple onion

This recipe needs to be to "your" liking, so you will just need to taste the mixture of water to vinegar and if it's too vinegar tasting..then add more water and vice versa.

Mix all of the above in a large bowl and keep in the refrigerator. Easy! This was always something my mama had on the table during the summer months, along with a plate of fresh peeled maters. She would just keep adding more onion and more cucumbers when the bowl was empty. I would recommend changing the water at least every 2-3 weeks. Oh, and use an old cool whip bowl or Tupperware bowl. This can ruin a good Tupperware bowl. :)

Chicken and Rice Casserole

• 1 whole chicken
• 3 boiled eggs
• 1 large family size can of cream of chicken soup
• 1 1/2 cups of Miracle Whip salad dressing (trust me)
• 1 1/2 cups of rice (uncooked) w/3 cups of the cooked chicken broth
• 8-10 cups of water
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large bag of regular lays chips, crushed
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 tbsp of chicken bouillon
• 1 tsp each of:  Tony's, salt/pepper, garlic/onion powder

I try to take all of the skin off of the chicken except for the thighs/drums, this makes the "stock/broth" not so "fatty", but still packs a lot of flavor.

In a large stock pot, add your 8-10 cups of water, chicken, bouillon, spices, bay leaf, veggies and boil for about an hour. Once the chicken is "about" to fall apart, remove it from the pot, remove your bay leaf, turn your heat off, add the cream of chicken soup, mix until dissolved, remove 3 cups of the broth to use to cook your rice, add your eggs and cover. Let the eggs sit in the HOT broth for about 15-20 minutes. This will give your rice time to cook and you can de-bone the chicken. Once the rice is cooked, remove the eggs and chop.

In a large mixing bowl, add your hot rice, chicken, chopped eggs, mayo, about 2 cups of the broth, a little more salt/pepper to taste. Mix until well combined. I usually add more mayo and broth until I get the flavor I like. Spray a 13x9 glass baking dish, add the rice mixture, top with the crushed lays chips and bake at 350 for about 30-40 minutes until bubbly.

**I had about 2-3 cups left of the broth which I put into ice trays, let it cool down at room temp and then put it in the freezer. Once they are frozen, you can put them in sandwich or freezer bags for later usage. They will keep in the freezer for about 3-4 months**

Chicken & Dumplings

• 1 whole chicken
• 2 cans of cream of chicken soup or 1 large family size
• 2 cans of biscuits
• 3 chicken bouillon cubes
• 3 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium bell pepper, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped (optional)
• spices: salt, pepper, thyme, lemon pepper, onion/garlic powder, Tony's
• enough water to cover your chicken (about 8-10 cups)

In a large stock pot, boil your chicken, water, veggies, and spices for about 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the size of your chicken. I honestly never look at the weight of the chicken, just the price, which I usually buy about a $4.50 whole chicken :) On the spices, I use about a teaspoon each.

While your chicken is cooking, pop both cans of biscuits. I use the cheapest, store brand, buttermilk. I put about 1 cup of flour on a paper plate and put all the biscuits on the plate. On a floured board or newspaper, put about 1/2 cup of flour to dredge the biscuits on both sides. Roll out your biscuits and cut into dumplings. I just make sure both sides are floured and roll it until it's about the size of my fist. Put a "dusting" on top of the plate of dumplings. This is just for added "thickness" to the broth.

Once your chicken is done, let it set on a plate until cool enough to handle, then de-bone and chop. While the chicken is cooling, add your 2 cans of cream of chicken soup to the broth and stir until blended. De-bone your chicken and add it to the pot. Check your broth to see if you need to add more salt or spices. Once your broth is back up to a nice boil, turn the heat down a bit, medium high, and start adding the dumplings. A few at a time. Once they are all in the pot, cook for an additional 15 minutes at medium and turn the heat off. Let it set a while. It will be hot. I LOVE the broth. Serve with rice and cornbread.

Easy Taco Salad

• 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 small bag of regular Frito's (10 oz)
• 1 taco seasoning packet
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1 to 1 1/2 lbs of ground meat
• 1 head of iceberg lettuce, chopped
• 1 small bottle of french dressing or 3/4 large bottle
• 1/4 cup chopped purple onion (optional)

You can use low fat cheese, lean ground meat, and light dressing; however, I would not recommend fat free.
FYI, do not refrigerate. It get's all soggy. So, make sure you have lot's of company :)

Place your chopped lettuce in a LARGE mixing bowl, add the cheese, and Frito's. Set aside. In a medium skillet, brown your ground meat, drain. Add your taco packet and water to the ground meat and heat until it thickens. You may need to add a little bit more water. Add the HOT meat mixture to the lettuce and mix well. Add your dressing and onion. Mix until combined. If you like less dressing, use a smaller bottle. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Pie with a side of Pork Roast

• 1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp of peanut butter
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 (8oz) package of cream cheese (at room temp)
• 1 (8oz) tub cool whip
• 1 Oreo cookie pie crust
• ice cream topping (magic shell)

I used honey roasted peter pan peanut butter, yummy, and Reese's magic shell.

In a large bowl combine all of the above ingredients except the toppings and crust. Blend with a hand mixer then gently fold in the cool whip. Pour the mixture into the pie crust and freeze for 2 hours. Once frozen, drizzle the top with the ice cream topping and re-freeze for 20 minutes.

Thaw slightly before serving. Easy! Enjoy!

On my pork roast...I just seasoned with my usual spices; lemon pepper, garlic/onion powder, Tony's, salt/pepper, a pinch of thyme and rosemary. In my roasting pan on the stove top, I browned all sides, then removed the roast and added the vegetables; potatoes, onions, celery, and carrots. Add the roast back to the pan and cook at 375 covered for 1 hour. Forget about it :) Remove the top and cook for an additional 30 minutes. Remove the roast from the pan to set for about 10 minutes. Remove the veggies, make your gravy with the pan drippings. Done.

Chicken and Sausage Sauce Piquante

• 1 lb of smoked sausage, sliced
• 3-4 lb of chicken tenders/breast, diced
• 2 cans of stewed tomatoes with bell peppers, onions, celery
• 1 can of rotel or 1 can of Campbell's tomato bisque
• 2 tbsp of oil
• 2 tbsp of flour
• 1 cup of milk
• Spices: lemon pepper, dried parsley, salt/pepper, garlic/onion powder, minced onion, Tony's

First, let me just say that you can use "regular" stewed tomatoes and "add" chopped onion/bell pepper/celery or you can buy the stewed tomatoes with the veggies already added. I just chose to "cheat" since we were hungry :) Also, you DO NOT have to use the tomato bisque, it is rather sweet. If you have FRESH  tomatoes on hand/freezer, etc, I would recommend using those versus the can.

Season your chicken with your spices. I used about 1/2 tsp of each and 1 tbsp of the minced onion and parsley.

In a large pan, saute the chicken and sausage in the oil for about 10 minutes or until brown and chicken is cooked. Remove the meat to a bowl. Add the 2 cans of stewed tomatoes to the pan and cook for about 5-7 minutes or until it's reduced some. I also use a potato smasher to smash the tomatoes some so you do not have "chunks" of tomatoes. Once the tomatoes have reduced, add the flour and cook until it's dissolved and thickens, then add your milk and if you want, add the can of tomatoe bisque or rotel at this point. Add your meats back to the pan and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes. Season with salt/pepper. You can add more milk if it's too thick or let it reduce if it's too thin. Serve over rice.

To me, this is basically making tomato gravy and adding meat to it :)

Chicken Fiesta

• 2 cups of grilled diced chicken
• 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 16oz jar of pace picante sauce
• 1 small can of sliced black olives
• 1 or 2 cans of cream style corn (your choice/I used 2)
• 2 green onions, diced
• 1 bag of Doritos or Tortilla Chips

Spray a 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray, layer the crushed Doritos (chips) on the bottom, then in layers; chicken, corn, salsa, olives, green onions, and cheese. Bake at 350 for about 25-30 minutes until golden and bubbly. Very easy and delish! Serve with sour cream and guacamole :)