1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup sliced celery

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons water

3/4 cup sauerkraut, rinsed and drained

2 cups half-and-half cream

2 cups chopped cooked corned beef

1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

Rye croutons, optional

In a large saucepan, saute onion and celery in butter until tender. Add broth and baking soda. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth; gradually add to pan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.

Reduce heat. Add sauerkraut, cream and corned beef; simmer and stir for 15 minutes. Add cheese; heat until melted. Add salt and pepper. Garnish with croutons if desired.

Yield: about 6 servings.

16 oz wide egg noodles, cooked according to package directions

1 head of green cabbage, shredded and lightly steamed, 5 min

1 onion, sliced

2-3 T butter or margarine

8 oz chicken stock

8- 10 oz sour cream

1 T parsley

6-8 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled

Salt and Pepper

In a large skillet, sauté onion in butter or margarine, add cabbage and stock.  Add noodles and combine well.  Add sour cream, parsley and salt and pepper.

Top with bacon crumbles to serve

1 medium onion, sliced

½ red pepper, slice

½ green pepper, sliced

2 Tbsp butter

1 pound fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined

Juice of one lemon

1 Tbsp Old Bay seasoning

1 tsp garlic salt

Flour tortillas

Sauté onion and pepper in butter until crisp-tender

Add remaining ingredients, except tortillas and sauté 5 min or until shrimp is pink.  Serve on tortillas.  If desired, top with salsa, sour cream, shredded cheese and guacamole.

Serve 6-8

4 chicken Breasts

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 cup barbeque sauce

8 slices bacon, cooked crisp, drained

4 slices Pepper Jack or Swiss cheese

1 cup dried onions

Salt and pepper

Season chicken with salt and pepper and sauté in olive oil until no longer pink

Top with bacon, cheese and dried onion

Serve over a bed of rice or on a bun

1 package (36) Oreos

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 24 oz packages of white almond bark or melting chocolate

Valentines sprinkles

Mini heart cookie cutter

Instructions:

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Process Oreos (including filling) in your food processor, until you have an Oreo “sand”.

In a large bowl, combine crushed Oreos and softened cream cheese.

Mix together with your hands until well combined.

Take a piece of parchment paper and lay a big heaping spoonful of the cookie mixture.

Fold over the parchment and press the cookie mix into about a 1/2 inch layer.

Using your mini heart cookie cutter, cut out cookie shapes.

Repeat until all of the mixture has been cut into heart shapes.

Chill them in the refrigerator for about an hour.

Then, melt almond bark or chocolate in the microwave on 30 second intervals, stirring well between.

Dip Oreo hearts into the melted almond bark/chocolate and place back onto the parchment.

Coat with Valentines sprinkles immediately, before the coating dries.

Chill again in the refrigerator until the coating is set.

3 chicken breasts, cooked/grilled

1 pound thick cut bacon, cooked

8 ounces of cream cheese

1 cup cheddar and jack cheese mix, shredded

½ packet Ranch Seasoning

4 large tortillas, burrito sized

Chop the chicken and the bacon into a small dice (see picture above)

Add all the ingredients except the tortillas into a large bowl and mix well.

Spread a quarter of the mixture onto each tortilla evenly.

Roll into a pinwheel, tightly.

Cut into 1″ pieces and serve cold or if you want to heat, cook at 400 degrees for 10 minutes

4 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 c. shredded Cheddar

6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1 tsp. garlic powder

kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 tube crescent rolls

8 pickle spears, halved

Egg wash, for brushing

Preheat oven to 350º. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese with cheddar, cooked bacon, and garlic powder. Season with salt and pepper and mix until fully combined.

Unroll Crescent Rolls into triangles and cut in half lengthwise. Spread mixture on each triangle, then top with a pickle. Roll up.

Brush Crescents with egg wash and bake until golden, 12 to 15 minutes.

1 large loaf French bread or 2 smaller loafs

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup sour cream

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/4 – 1/2 cup Frank’s Original Hot Sauce (1/2 for quite spicy)

1 1/2 tablespoons dry ranch dressing seasoning mix

1/2 tsp EACH chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder

salt to taste

1/4 cup Blue cheese crumbles up to 1/2 cup if you LOVE blue cheese

1 cup freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese, divided

1 cup Mozzarella cheese, divided

3 cups packed shredded chicken (about 1 1/2 pounds)

Garnish (optional)

6-8 pieces Cooked and crumbled bacon

blue cheese (only if you love it because its strong)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Slice about 2 inches deep through the top of the bread, and continue to cut a large rectangle, being careful not to cut through the bottom of the bread. Remove top of bread and hollow out middle to create a rectangular bread bowl. Set aside.

Whisk together cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise and hot sauce and all spices/seasonings until well combined.

Stir in blue cheese, 3/4 cup cheddar and 3/4 cup mozzarella followed by chicken.

Spoon Buffalo Chicken Dip into prepared French bread and top with remaining cheddar and mozzarella cheeses. Bake on a baking tray at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is melted and slightly golden.

Let bread sit approximately 10 minutes to set and slightly cool then slice. Best served warm.

1 (15-ounce) can low-sodium canellini beans, drained and rinsed

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 large onion, diced (about 1 cup)

2 carrots, diced (about 1/2 cup)

2 stalks celery, diced, (about 1/2 cup)

1 small zucchini, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried)

2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage leaves (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

32 ounces low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth

1 (14.5-ounce) can no salt added diced tomatoes

2 cups chopped baby spinach leaves

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan, optional

In a small bowl mash half of the beans with a masher or the back of a spoon, and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, zucchini, garlic, thyme, sage, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper, and cook stirring occasionally until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.

Add the broth and tomatoes with the juice and bring to a boil. Add the mashed and whole beans and the spinach leaves and cook until the spinach is wilted, about 3 minutes more.

Serve topped with Parmesan, if desired.

1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts*

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 cup chopped green onions (including whites, mince the whites)

2 jalapeños, seeded and minced (leave seeds if you want soup spicy, omit if you don’t like heat)

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 (14.5 oz) cans low-sodium chicken broth

2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced

1/2 tsp ground cumin

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

3 Tbsp fresh lime juice

3 medium avocados, peeled, cored and diced

Tortilla chips, Monterey jack cheese, sour cream for serving (optional)

In a large pot heat 1 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, add green onions and jalapenos and saute until tender, about 2 minutes, adding garlic during last 30 seconds of sauteing.

Add chicken broth, tomatoes, cumin, season with salt and pepper to taste and add chicken breasts. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Then reduce heat to medium, cover with lid and allow to cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken has cooked through 10 – 15 minutes (cook time will vary based on thickness of chicken breasts).

Reduce burner to warm heat, remove chicken from pan and let rest on a cutting board 5 minutes, then shred chicken and return to soup. Stir in cilantro and lime juice. Add avocados to soup just before serving (if you don’t plan on serving the soup right away, I would recommend adding the avocados to each bowl individually, about 1/2 an avocado per serving). Serve with tortilla chips, cheese and sour cream if desired.

*For thicker chicken breasts, cut breasts in half through the length (thickness) of the breasts, they will cook faster and more evenly.