This is a tasty chicken recipe that is great to serve to your family or prepare for a simple dinner party. Very simple to make and gives you time to spend with your guest.

2 cups of prepared dressing, prepared to package directions.

4 boneless and skinless chicken breast

Swiss cheese, Need enough to be able to cover chicken.

1 cup of condensed cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup white wine or milk.

Divide dressing into four servings and place in a serving dish

Place chicken breast on top of each dressing serving.

Place cheese on each chicken breast.

Mix soup and wine or milk together.

Pour soup mixture over chicken, cheese and dressing.

Bake at 325 degrees for 90 minutes.

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This Spinach Dip is a classic and one of my favorites.  This is best served with a pumpernickel round hollowed out and the dip placed inside.  The hollowed out bread can them be cubed and used to dip. This is a great recipe for a party of any kind.

2 10 ounce packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained.

1 8 ounce can water chestnuts, drained and finely chopped

1 cup sour cream

1 cup plain yogurt

1 cup finely chopped green onions with tops

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon or 1.2 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves

½ teaspoon dry mustard

¼ teaspoon pepper

1 clove garlic, crushed

Mix all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour before serving.

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One Christmas my mom decided to try this caramel corn recipe.  It became an instant family classic.  Every year I continue the tradition by baking several batches and giving out bags of caramel corn to all of my friends and family.

12 cups unsalted popcorn

3 cups walnuts halves, pecan halved or unblanched almonds. Use one or a combination of the nuts.

1 cup packaged brown sugar

½ cup butter

¼ cup light corn syrup

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking soda.

Begin by preheating oven to 200 degrees. Divide the popcorn and nuts between 13×9x2  pans, ungreased.

Cook brown sugar, butter, corn syrup and salt over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until bubbly around edges.

Cook for 5 more minutes, remove from the heat.

Stir in baking soda until foamy.

Pour over popcorn and nuts.

Toss until well coated.

Bake one hour stirring every 15 minutes.

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Corn muffins are so good and can go well with many of the days meals.  Corn muffins with some fresh fruit make a great breakfast.  A salad with some diced ham and a corn muffin is a perfect filling lunch. Corn muffins go well with most chicken dishes and of course pork chops.  This recipe makes the most delicious corn muffins that you will enjoy all day long at any meal.

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup cornmeal

2 tablespoons sugar

3 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1 can of whole kernel corn, well drained (7 oz can)

1 cup milk

3 tablespoons oil

1 egg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put paper baking cups in muffin pan.

Mix flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Mix these ingredients well.

Stir in corn,

In another bowl mix milk, oil and egg and again and mix well. Add this to the flour mixture stir until all ingredients are moistened, do not over stir.

Put batter evenly into the lined muffin cups.

Bake for 18 to 23 minutes until golden brown.

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I love to make this salad in the summer as well in the middle of the winter when a little color and fresh fruit make you smile.  This is a very easy recipe and is delicious. You can have this fruit salad to start you meal or it can make a healthy ending to any meal.

4 kiwifruit peeled and cut into eighths

2 navel oranges, peeled and sectioned

1 pink grapefruit, peeled, sectioned and halved

Low-calorie poppy seed dressing

Sliced strawberries

Mix all the fruit together

Place the fruit on 4 to 6 plates

Drizzle dressing over fruit and serve.

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I love potatoes and potato salad and this recipe is my all time favorite potato salad recipe.  I tried this for the first time at a Fourth of July picnic and everyone went wild and wanted the recipe.  This potato salad combines the perfect amounts of all the best ingredients to really be the best potato salad ever.

8 medium potatoes peeled cooked and diced

1 ½ cups of mayonnaise

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon yellow mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon pepper

1 cup minced onions

5 hardboiled eggs

Paprika

Put potatoes in a large bowl.

In separate bowl mix mayonnaise, cider vinegar, sugar, yellow mustard, salt, garlic powder, and pepper.

Add onions and mix well and stir in eggs and sprinkle with paprika.

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I remember having this meal a lot in the summer.  We grew the green beans in the garden and had the ham hock in the freezer, from the holiday meal in the winter. This green bean and ham recipe is a great example of down home cooking  This dish is so tasty and reminds me of Mom and home.

Ham hock (1-2 pounds)

5 Potatoes peeled and diced (large chunks)

1 quart of fresh green beans (ends removed and snapped)

If ham hock is not already cooked, place in stock pot, add water about 2 inches and cook on low heat covered for about 90 minutes.

Add potatoes and green beans and cook for another hour or so.  You want the meat tender and the potatoes soft.

This meal is perfect when served with a warm homemade bread.

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In the summer there was always a bowl of cucumbers and onions if our refrigerator.  Any time day or night you could not beat a dish of perfectly seasoned cucumbers.  Here is my Moms famous recipe

2 medium cucumbers peeled and sliced.

1 onion sliced thin rings

2 cups of milk

2 tablespoons of vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste.

Add all of the ingredients and let stand over night. Remember the vinegar curdles the milk and that is the effect and taste we want.

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I don’t know about you but it seems like my family and I are always on the go.  We have so many things to do that we don’t always get a chance to sit down for dinner.  This chicken and rice recipe is very easy to make and is a wonderful meal for the whole family to sit down together and enjoy.

1 ¼ cups of uncooked raw rice

1 can of cream of chicken soup

1 can of cream of celery soup

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

¼ cup melted butter

¼ cup dry sherry

10 pieces of chicken

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

In a 3-quart casserole place the rice.

In a separate bowl mix the soups, butter and sherry.

Take 1 ½ cups of the soup mixture and spread over rice.

Place chicken in a single layer skin side up in casserole.

Take rest of soup mixture and spread over chicken.

Sprinkle the parmesan cheese evenly over chicken.

Make sure casserole is well covered and bake for 2 hours at 350 degrees

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Every time I make this chicken salad I am amazed at how easy it is to make and how fabulous it tastes.  This recipe is fantastic for a luncheon, a tea, baby shower, or bridal shower.  It is also great to take on a picnic. It is a simple recipe but the flavors blend together to make one of the best chicken salads I have ever tasted.

¾ cup chicken finely chopped

¼ cup cashews finely chopped

1 tablespoon scallions finely chopped

3 tablespoons of mayonnaise

Mix all of the above and serve on croissant, sandwich bread or on a fresh garden salad.

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