Country Pork Ribs

These were easy, yummy, and fall-apart good. Found the original recipe here

-Extra lean, boneless, country-style pork ribs. My package had about 6 ribs in it. (they only had bone-in when I went to the store. They worked just great. They fall right off the bone while cooking, so it was really easy to scoop out the bones before serving)

-In bowl, mix together:

-1 small can crushed pineapple with juice

-1- 1 1/2 cups ketchup

-1 cup brown sugar

-4-5 shots Worcestershire sauce

-1 tsp dry mustard (I used regular mustard)

-1 tsp dry ginger

*double this if you are going to do a bigger batch

In a large pot, spoon in a little of the sauce. Place ribs on sauce and salt & pepper those babies. Pour over remaining sauce to cover ribs.

Cover pot with a lid & bring sauce to boil over medium heat. Then turn down to low/simmer. Stir ribs & sauce every 15-30 minutes until done. They will cook at least 3 hours, but can cook longer. (I think mine were on there about 4 hours). You want the sauce to darken & the ribs will be falling apart!!

Take lid off the last 20-30 minutes for the sauce to thicken. Serve over rice & enjoy!!

Coconut Syrup

Candace's post made me think of this syrup. It is TO DIE FOR YUMMY! LOL!

1 cube Butter
1 can Coco Lopez

Melt on stove,  warm it until thoroughly mixed and warm.

This is so yummy. Mike made me crepes with fresh strawberries and this syrup drizzled on top. Delicious.

*Coco Lopez is usually found in the Hispanic part of the grocery store or by the drink mixes. It is hard to find. I know Winco carries it, but Walmart does not.

Buttermilk Syrup

2 cubes butter

2 c. sugar

1 c. buttermilk

Melt butter then add sugar and buttermilk. Boil for 2 minutes, remove from heat and add 1 tsp. baking soda and at least 2 tsp. vanilla.

Saves good in fridge for 3 weeks.

Popeye (German) Pancakes

Recipe from Ali Lee

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Melt 6 TBS. butter in a 9 x 13 glass dish. (I do this by putting the butter in the pan put it in the oven and let it melt while the oven is preheating).

6 eggs

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

Blend together in the blender or using a hand mixer.

Add 1-2 TBS. vanilla

dash of salt

Pour into melted butter in the the pan, bake for 15- 20 minutes. Done when puffed up and edges are golden brown. Top with powder sugar, jam or plain or syrup.

Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce

{Note to self} Remember this cute gift idea for Christmas: Farr's Candy Cane Ice Cream and a yummy jar of homemade hot fudge sauce.

Hot Fudge Sauce
2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cube butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract**

Combine all ingredients in a medium sauce pan over medium-low heat and stir continually, until completely melted and hot. Do not boil.

Mixture will thicken as it cools. Microwave, stirring every 30 to 60 seconds, until the hot fudge melts again and gets hot.

**To make peppermint hot fudge sauce, substitute peppermint extract.

Milky Way Brownies

I was trying to use up a bunch of Milky Way candy bars we had & found a few similar versions to this recipe online. I thought it was both a cakey & fudgey Brownie at the same time.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter

13 fun-size Milky Way bars, chopped into thirds (I had the mini size, and ended up using 30 of those cut in half)

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine candy bars with 1/2 cup butter in a small saucepan. Cover and stir over very low heat until smooth. This is the part that takes patience, but stir, stir, and eventually it will get nice & smooth. Transfer to a bowl, let cool a bit while frequently stirring. Add in sugar and vanilla extract. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Stir flour mixture into batter. Spread into buttered 8-inch square pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until edges pull away from sides of pan. Let cool. We didn't frost ours...the hubby said they didn't need it. Enjoy!

Party Pasta Salad

1 lb box bowtie pasta, cook in salted boiling water. When cooked, rinse in cold water & drain.

While pasta is cooking, prepare following:

1 1/2-2 cups red grapes, cut in half

8 oz can pineapple tidbits, drained

12 oz can cashew, bits & pieces

2 stalks celery, diced small

3 large cans chunk white chicken, drained

*optional: handful chopped green onions

1 bag lettuce greens

(I usually don't add these, but my mom usually does)

Dressing: Mix in separate bowl until well combined

1 cup light mayo

3/4 bottle Kraft coleslaw dressing

Mix all ingredients in large bowl. I usually add some onion salt to taste. Refrigerate several hours or overnight before serving.

This is always a hit at any party, and we actually get requests for it several times a year.

Lemon Chicken Fettuccine

2 boneless chicken breasts cut crosswise into 1/2 inch strips
salt and pepper
2 T butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 c. heavy cream
2 T fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1 lb dried fettuccine pasta
2 c. frozen peas (optional)
1 c. chopped fresh basil

Bring 4 quarts water to boil in a large pot. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over med-high heat. Cook chicken until no longer pink, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Add garlic to empty skillet and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add cream, lemon zest, adn lemon juice and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and keep warm.

Add 1 T. salt and the pasta to boiling water and cook until almost al dente. Add peas to pot and cook until bright green, about 1 minute. Reserving 1/2 c. pasta water, drain pasta and peas, and return to pot. Add sauce, cheese, basil and reserved chicken to pot and toss to combine, adding reserved pasta water as needed. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Asian Chicken Kabobs

Marinade:
1/3 c. rice vinegar
2 Tbsp sesame oil
4 tsp soy sauce
1 c. pineapple juice concentrate (found it with the frozen juice concentrates)
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp fresh minced garlic

Kabobs:
2 small zucchinis
1/2 red onion
green or red bell pepper
1 lb chicken breasts
mushrooms

Combine marinade ingredients in a shallow baking dish and mix well. Place wooden skewers in water to soak 10 to 15 minutes.

Cut zuchinni and onions into 1" x 1" pieces and set aside. Cut chicken into 1-ounce cubes.

Alternately skewer vegetables and chicken.

Place kabobs in marinade, turning to coat evenly. Marinate covered for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Transfer kabobs to grill or broiler and discard marinade. Cook on medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes or until cooked through.

Shelly's notes: We LOVED this marinade! I think next time I do this I will just use the marinade for chicken kabobs...and do something different for my veggie side dish. I just don't love veggies cooked kebab style!! But the marinade was delish and would be good for grilled chicken breasts too. I served this with Coconut Rice.