Favorite Ingredient Friday - Ultimate Party Meatballs

For Thanksgiving we went over to one of Joe's co-worker's house. I wanted something simple, quick and tasty to bring over. There was going to be plenty of the traditional Thanksgiving food, so I wanted something just a little bit different too.

Thanks to Mom Central I found the perfect recipe from Ultimate Party Meatballs. The website offers recipes, entertainment tips, party enhancements and an ultimate sweepstakes (grand prize winner wins $3,000 in gift cards and 20 second prize winners will receive a Rival 4 Qt Crockpot.)

Here is the Ultimate Party Meatballs recipe:

3 ingredients. 1 dish. My kind of recipe!

1. 1 16-ounce can Ocean Spray® Jellied Cranberry Sauce
2. 1 12-ounce bottle Heinz® Chili Sauce
3. 1 2-pound bag frozen, pre-cooked, cocktail-size meatballs (about 30)

Directions:
Combine sauces in a large saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring until smooth. Add meatballs. Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until meatballs are heated through, stirring occasionally.
Slow Cooker: Place meatballs in a slow cooker. Combine sauces and pour over meatballs. Cover and cook 4 hours on high.

These were very delicious! It had the perfect combination of flavors...We doubled the recipe (since there were 12 adults) and it's a good thing we did, we hardly had any leftover to take home. I heard quite a few people exclaim how tasty they were, and were surprised at the 2 sauce ingredients. Needless to say - these were a big hit!

I now have a new "go-to" recipe when I need to bring a dish somewhere; I plan on bringing these to Bunco in a couple of weeks too.

For more recipes visit Overwhelmed With Joy

Favorite Ingredient Friday

Cheddar Chicken Soup - courtesy of Kraft Foods

Ingredients:
1. 1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-sized pieces
2. 2 Tbsp. flour
3. 1 can (14-1/2 oz.) chicken broth
4. 2 cups milk
5. 2 cups frozen mixed vegetables
6. 1 cup KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Directions:
1. SPRAY large saucepan with cooking spray. Add chicken; cook and stir on medium-high heat 5 minutes or until cooked through. Stir in flour; cook and stir an additional minute.
2. ADD broth, milk and vegetables; stir. Reduce heat to medium. Bring just to boil, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
3. STIR in cheese until completely melted.

This was a good, quick, and easy soup to make. We didn't have a bag of frozen veggies so a can of mixed veggies worked well too! Kayla even liked this and she ate leftovers last night too...very rare for her!

To see more recipes visit Overwhelmed With Joy.

Holiday Cooking, Blogger Style

Sparkling Orange-Almond Sipper
1. 2 C water
2. 1 6-oz can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
3. 1 1-oz bottle pure almond extract
4. 1/2 gallon orange sherbet, softened
5. 2 2-liter bottles ginger ale, chilled
Orange slices and curls (optional)

Directions:
1. In a pitcher combine water, lemonade concentrate, and almond extract; mix well. cover and chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.
2. To serve, place spoonfuls of sherbet in a punch bowl. Add lemonade mixture. Slowly add ginger ale; stir gently. Serve immediately. If desired, garnish with orange slices and curls. Makes about 6.5 quarts.

Orange-Glazed Ham
1. 1/2 C packed brown sugar
2. 1 tsp finely shredded fresh orange peel
3. 2 tbsp orange juice
4. 1 tsp ground mustard
5. 3-lb cooked boneless ham
6. whole cloves

Directions:
1. In a small bowl combine brown sugar, orange peel, orange juice, and mustard. Set aside.
2. Score ham by making diagonal cuts in a diamond pattern. Stud with whole cloves. Place ham on a rack in a shallow baking pan.
3. Bake in a 325 oven for 1-1 1/4 hrs or until a thermometer registers 140, basting occasionally with orange juice mixture the last 30 minutes of baking. Makes 8 servings.

Baked Candied Sweet Potatoes
1. 1/2 C packed brown sugar
2. 2 tbsp orange juice
3. 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
4. 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
5. 3 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-1.5 in chunks (7-8 cups)
6. 2 tbsp butter or margarine, cut up

Directions:
1. In a large bowl combine brown sugar, orange juice, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla. Add sweet potatoes; toss to coat. Transfer to a 3-qt rectangular baking dish. Dot with butter.
2. bake, covered, in a 350 oven for 40 min. Remove from oven and stir gently, spooning syrup over potatoes. Bake, uncovered, for 15-20 min more until potatoes are tender. Makes 8-10 servings.

All recipes were taken from the McCormick Flavors of the Season Holiday Cooking and Entertaining Made Easy cookbook.

For more holiday recipes visit Overwhelmed With Joy

Favorite Ingredient Friday

A few weeks ago we had dinner at Outback and I had vanilla bean sweet mashed potatoes - they were delicious! I found the recipe on line and made them last week. Probably not the healthiest for you, but they sure are yummy!

Outback's Vanilla Bean Sweet Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:
MAKES 4 SERVINGS
2 pounds (about 3 medium) sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons butter, softened
½ cup sugar
1/4 cup Karo syrup
½ tablespoon cinnamon
½ tablespoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Cook sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet in 350-degree oven for 1 hour. Remove skin from sweet potatoes; set aside. Place butter, sugar, Karo, cinnamon and vanilla into mixing bowl; blend with an electric mixer for approximately 2 minutes. Add sweet potatoes; blend an additional 1 minute. Serve immediately.

For more recipes visit Overwhelmed.

Favorite Ingredient Friday

Sesame Chicken Kabobs

Ingredients:
1. 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2. 1/4 C + 2 Tbsp teriyaki sauce
3. 1/4 C soy sauce
4. 2 Tbsp sesame seeds
5. 3 Tbsp veg or olive oil
6. 2 Tbsp sesame oil

Directions:
1. Cut chicken into 1-inch cubes and arrange in shallow baking dish (you can skewer them now to make it easier).
2. Combine remaining ingredients and stir well. Reserve a little to baste with. Pour the rest over chicken. Cover and marinate abt 3 hrs.
3. Grill and baste frequently with reserved marinade.

Joe made these a couple weeks ago and they were delicious!

Favorite Ingredient Friday - Valentine's Day Chocolate Edition

Chocolate Bliss Cheesecake

Prep Time:20 min Total Time:5 hr 30 min Makes:12 servings

Ingredients:
1. 18 OREO Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, finely crushed (about 1-1/2 cups)
2. 2 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
3. 3 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
4. 3/4 cup sugar
5. 1 tsp. vanilla
6. 1 pkg. (8 squares) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, melted, cooled slightly
7. 3 eggs

Directions:

PREHEAT oven to 325°F if using a silver 9-inch springform pan (or to 300°F if using a dark nonstick 9-inch springform pan). Mix cookie crumbs and butter; press firmly onto bottom of pan.

BEAT cream cheese, sugar and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add melted chocolate; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Pour over crust.

BAKE 55 min. to 1 hour or until center is almost set. Run knife or metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool before removing rim of pan. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Store leftover cheesecake in refrigerator.

For more chocolate-themed recipes visit: Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday - Super Bowl Edition

Cheesy Spinach and Bacon Dip
Prep Time:10 min
Total Time:10 min
Makes:4 cups or 32 servings, 2 Tbsp. each

Ingredients:
1. 1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained
2. 1 lb. (16 oz.) VELVEETA Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3. 4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, cut up
4. 1 can (10 oz.) RO*TEL Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies, undrained
5. 8 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, crisply cooked, drained and crumbled

Directions:
1. Combine ingredients in microwaveable bowl.
2. Microwave on high 5 min. or until Velveeta is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring after 3 min.

Variation
Prepare as directed, using VELVEETA Made With 2% Milk Reduced Fat Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product and PHILADELPHIA Neufchatel Cheese, 1/3 Less Fat than Cream Cheese.

How to Cut Up VELVEETA
Cut VELVEETA (the whole loaf) into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Then, cut each slice crosswise in both directions to make cubes.

Use Your Slow Cooker
When serving this dip at a party, pour the prepared dip into a small slow cooker set on Low. This will keep the dip warm and at the ideal consistency for several hours. For best results, stir the dip occasionally to prevent hot spots.

For more game day recipes visit Overwhelmed.

Favorite Ingredient Friday

Spanish Rice
(I have no idea if this is considered authentic Spanish rice, nor do I remember where I got it from, I just know it tastes good!)

Ingredients:
1. 1/4 C olive oil
2. 1 14-oz can of stewed tomatoes
2. 1 clove garlic
3. 1 tsp Chile powder
4. 1 C long-grain rice
5. 2 C water
6. Dash of Worcestershire sauce and salt & pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Saute garlic in olive oil, mix in remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and simmer,tightly covered on low heat for about 20 min. Stir occasionally.

For more recipes visit Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday - Casserole Edition

Turkey and Broccoli Casserole


Prep Time: 10 min
Total Time: 40 min
Makes: 6 servings

Ingredients:
1. 1-2/3 cups hot water
2. 1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Turkey
3. 3 cups chopped cooked turkey
4. 1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen broccoli florets, thawed, drained
5. 1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed Cheddar cheese soup
6. 3/4 cup milk

PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Add hot water to stuffing mix; stir just until moistened. Set aside.
MIX turkey and broccoli in 2-quart casserole dish or 13x9-inch baking dish. Mix soup and milk until well blended; pour over turkey mixture. Top with prepared stuffing.
BAKE 30 minutes or until heated through.

For more casserole recipes visit Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday - Muffin Edition

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

Ingredients:
1. 1 egg
2. 2 cups Original Bisquick® mix
3. 1 1/4 cups mashed very ripe bananas (2 to 3 medium)
4. 1/3 cup sugar
5. 3 tablespoons vegetable oil (I use applesauce in place of oil for baking recipes)
6. 1/3 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 400ºF. Place paper baking cup in each of 12 regular-size muffin cups, or grease bottoms only of muffin cups.
2. Beat egg slightly in medium bowl; stir in remaining ingredients just until moistened. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.
3. Bake about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft) Heat oven to 425ºF. Use 14 medium muffin cups. Decrease sugar to 1/4 cup.

For more muffin recipes visit Overwhelmed With Joy

Favorite Ingredient Friday

Quick Pineapple Upside-Down Cake



Ingredients:
1. 1/4 cup butter or margarine
2. 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3. 1 can (8 oz) pineapple slices, drained, cut in half
4. 2 tablespoons chopped pecans, if desired
5. Maraschino cherries, if desired
6. 1 1/2 cups Original Bisquick® mix
7. 1/2 cup granulated sugar
8. 1/2 cup milk or water
9. 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
10. 1 teaspoon vanilla
11. 1 egg

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. In 9-inch round pan or 8-inch square pan, melt butter in oven. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over melted butter. Arrange pineapple slices in single layer over sugar mixture. Sprinkle with pecans. Place cherry in center of each pineapple slice (cherries with stems can be added after baking).

2. In large bowl, beat remaining ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on medium speed 4 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour batter over pineapple and cherries.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately place heatproof serving plate upside down over pan; turn plate and pan over. Leave pan over cake a few minutes so brown sugar mixture can drizzle over cake; remove pan. Cool at least 10 minutes before serving. Store loosely covered.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Heat oven to 375°F. Use 1 1/3 cups Bisquick mix and stir 1/3 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour into mix. Increase milk or water to 2/3 cup. Bake 25 to 30 minutes.

For more recipes visit: Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday - Cookie Edition

This week I received the Kraft Food & Family Magazine and it has a lot of great holiday recipes - just in time for the FIF Cookie Edition! I haven't tried this recipe yet, but I sure plan on making it soon!

Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies


Ingredients:
1. 1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
2. 3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter, softened
3. 1 cup sugar
4. 2 tsp. vanilla
5. 2-1/2 cups flour
6. 1/2 tsp. baking soda
7. 4 squares BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, melted
8. 1 pkg. (6 oz.) BAKER'S Premium White Baking Chocolate
9. 12 hard peppermint candies, crushed

Directions:
PREHEAT oven to 350ºF. Beat cream cheese, butter, sugar and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add flour and baking soda; mix well. Blend in semi-sweet chocolate.

SHAPE tablespoonfuls of dough into 52 balls. Roll each ball into 3-inch-long rope. Place, 2 inches apart, on baking sheet, bending top of each slightly to resemble a candy cane.

BAKE 10 to 12 min. or until lightly browned; cool 5 min. on baking sheet. Transfer to wire racks; cool completely. Microwave white chocolate as directed on package; drizzle over cookies. Sprinkle with crushed candies. Let stand until chocolate is firm.

For more cookie recipes visit Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday

Key Lime-Banana Smoothie

Mmmm...doesn't this look refreshing?! :)


Ingredients:
1. 1 container (6 ounces) Yoplait® Original Key lime pie low-fat yogurt
2. 1 ripe banana, sliced
3. 1/2 cup milk
4. 1 tablespoon lime juice
5. 1/4 teaspoon dry lemon lime-flavored soft drink mix (from 0.13-ounce package)
6. 1 cup vanilla frozen yogurt

Directions:
1. Place all ingredients except frozen yogurt in blender. Cover and blend on high speed until smooth.
2. Add frozen yogurt. Cover and blend until smooth.

For more recipes visit Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday - Soup Edition

My favorite soup to make is this Country Ham Chowder - but I've already posted that recipe, so time to dig out another soup favorite!

Italian Sausage Soup

Ingredients
1. 1 lb Italian sausage
2. 1 clove garlic
3. 2 (14-oz) cans beef broth
4. 1 (14.5-oz) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes
5. 1 C sliced carrots
6. 1 (14.5-oz can great northern beans, undrained
7. 2 small zucchini, cubed
8. 2 C spinach - packed, rinsed and torn
9. 1/4 tsp black pepper
10. 1/4 tsp salt

Directions:
1. In a stockpot or Dutch oven, brown sausage with garlic. Stir in broth, tomatoes and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 15 min.
2. Stir in beans with liquid ad zucchini. Cover and simmer another 15 min, or until zucchini is tender.
3. Remove from heat and add spinach. Replace lid allowing the heat from the soup to cook the spinach leaves. Soup is ready to serve after 5 min.

For more soup recipes visit Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday

Caramel Apple Dessert Squares
Sliced apples bake into the top of this rich, tempting cake. It's easy and fun because the caramel sauce forms while it bakes.

Ingredients:
1. 1 1/2 C Original Bisquick® mix
2. 2/3 C granulated sugar
3. 1/2 C milk
4. 2 medium cooking apples, peeled and sliced (2 cups)
5. 1 Tbsp lemon juice
6. 3/4 C packed brown sugar
7. 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
8. 1 C boiling water
Sweetened whipped cream or ice cream, if desired

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350ºF. Mix Bisquick and granulated sugar in medium bowl. Stir in milk until blended.
2. Pour into ungreased square pan, 9x9x2 inches. Top with apples; sprinkle with lemon juice. Mix brown sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over apples. Pour boiling water over apples.
3. Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Serve warm with whipped cream.

For more recipes visit Overwhelmed With Joy

Holiday Cooking, Blogger Style

Time for the 2nd Annual Holiday Cooking, Blogger Style recipe exchange hosted by Overwhelmed With Joy.

Ginger Glazed Carrots

Ingredients:
1. 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, divided
2. 3/4 cup water1 pound baby carrots2 tablespoons honey
3. 2 tablespoons orange juice
4. 3/4 teaspoon McCormick® Ground Ginger
5. 1/8 teaspoon McCormick® Ground Nutmeg
6. 1/8 teaspoon salt
7. 1/2 teaspoon McCormick® Parsley Flakes

Directions:
1. Place 1 tablespoon of the butter and water in skillet. Add carrots; cook, uncovered, on medium heat 5 to 6 minutes or until carrots are slightly tender. Drain.
2. Mix honey, orange juice, remaining 1 tablespoon butter, ginger, nutmeg and salt in skillet. Add carrots.
3. Cook, uncovered, on medium heat, 4 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently to glaze carrots. Sprinkle with parsley, just before serving.

Favorite Ingredient Friday

Hearty Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:
1. 1 lb boneless chicken breasts, cut up
2. 2 cans (14.5 oz each) chicken broth (3.5 cups)
3. 1/2 C uncooked regular long-grai white rice
4. 1 tsp ground cumin
5. 1 can (11 oz) Mexican-style corn
6. 1 C chunky salsa
7. 1 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
8. 2 Tbsp lime juice
Crisp Tortilla Strips

Directions:
Spray saucepot with vegetable spray and heat 1 min. Add chicen and cok until browned, stirring often.
Add broth, rice and cumin. Heat to a boil. Cover and cook over low heat 20 min.
Stir in corn, salsa, cilantro and lie juice and heat through. Top with Crisp Tortilla Strips.

Crisp Tortilla Strips: Preheat oven to 425. Cut 4 corn tortillas into thin strips and place on baking sheet. Spray wiht cooking spray. Bake 10 min or until golden.

Kayla loves the tortilla strips!

Don't forget that next Friday is the Holiday Cooking, Blogger Style recipe exchange.

Favorite Ingredient Friday

This week's recipe theme is - sandwiches! I found this online at Betty Crocker

Baked Turkey, Cheddar, and Bacon Sandwich



Ingredients:

1. 2 cups Original Bisquick® mix
2. 1 cup milk
3. 1 egg
4. 4 ounces thinly sliced cooked deli turkey
5. 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (6 ounces)
6. 5 slices precooked bacon

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Spray square baking dish, 8x8x2 inches, with cooking spray.
2. Stir Bisquick mix, milk and egg in medium bowl with wire whisk or fork until blended. Spread half of the batter in baking dish. Top with turkey, 1 cup of the cheese and the bacon. Spread remaining batter over bacon.
3. Bake uncovered about 29 minutes or until golden brown and center is set. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake about 3 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

For more sandwich recipes visit Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday

Caribbean Pork 'N Rice (courtesy of Kraft Foods)


Ingredients:
1. 1 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into chunks
2. 1 Tbsp. oil
3. 1 medium onion, chopped
4. 2 medium carrots, chopped
5. 1 can (14 oz.) pineapple chunks, drained
6. 1 can (14 oz.) water
7. 1/4 cup BULL'S-EYE Original Barbecue Sauce
8. 1 tsp. ground ginger
9. 1 green pepper, chopped

10. 2 cups uncooked instant white rice

Directions:
COOK tenderloin in oil in a large skillet. Add onion and carrots and cook until pork is no longer pink inside.
STIR in pineapple, water, barbecue sauce, ground ginger, green pepper and rice.
BRING to boil; cover and let stand 5 minutes.

You can substitute boneless skinless chicken breast for the pork tenderloin.

For more recipes visit Overwhelmed

Favorite Ingredient Friday - Sauce Edition

This week's Favorite Ingredient recipe is a sauce edition. I just found this recipe on Betty Crocker and thought how quick and easy this is to make.

Cranberry Sauce (from the website: This recipe is so easy and delicious that you’ll never need to open another can of cranberry sauce again!)



Ingredients:
1. 1 pound fresh or frozen cranberries (4 cups)
2. 2 cups water
3. 2 cups sugar

Directions
1. Rinse cranberries with cool water, and remove any stems or blemished berries.
2. Heat water and sugar to boiling in 3-quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Continue boiling 5 minutes longer, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in cranberries. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Continue boiling about 5 minutes longer, stirring occasionally, until cranberries begin to pop. Pour sauce into bowl or container. Refrigerate about 3 hours or until chilled.

Tips:
Be sure to cook the cranberries until they “pop” in order to release the natural pectin, which thickens the sauce.
Variation
Want more flavor? Stir in 1 tablespoon grated orange peel after cooking.

For more sauce recipes visit Overwhelmed