Make It Monday - Creamy Apple Salad

It's Monday, the week of Thanksgiving, and I am busy prepping to visit family out of town for the holiday! I can't wait to go and be with family and celebrate all we are thankful for! 

Today's recipe is one I made to go with dinner last night. It is super easy, kinda high in calories and sugar (but who's counting?!) and super delish! It helped me to use up some of my apples and Halloween candy. Hope you enjoy it!

Creamy Apple Salad

3-4 large apples, diced 

2 regular sized Snickers candy bars, diced

1 1/2 cups cold milk

1 package of instant vanilla pudding

1 tub of Cool Whip

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp powdered vanilla

In large bowl, whisk vanilla pudding, cinnamon, vanilla powder and milk together.

Place in refrigerator to firm up.

Meanwhile, dice up apples and snickers into bite sized pieces. 

Grab your bowl of pudding and fold in the Cool Whip.

Add apples and Snickers and mix until covered. 

Refrigerate and serve cold.

Make It Monday - Chile Verde

My brother in law is Hispanic. He's quite the character and always keeps our family laughing and smiling. We just love him, and he's an awesome father and wonderful husband to my sister in law Lindsay. He also cooks some amazing authentic Mexican food! He shared this recipe with Mr. H and I a few years ago and we have it every once in a while. I added a few things to it, but this is pretty much his recipe. Last night we dined on this pot of deliciousness, complete with rice and tortillas. I hope you try it out and enjoy it as much as we do here at the H house!

Pork Chile Verde

1 large Pork Roast, trimmed and diced

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

1 med. onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic, minced 

1 can of diced green chilies

1 bottle of Herdez Salsa Verde

1 large can of Green enchilada Sauce

1 Tbs. dried oregano

2 tsp. ground cumin

1 cup of cold water

1/2 c. all purpose flour

In large pot heat oil and brown pork. 

Remove pork from pan and add onion and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes. 

Add green chilies and cook 2 minutes more. 

Once flavors are blended, add salsa verde, enchilada sauce, oregano and cumin.

Add pork back in to mixture.

Let simmer on low for 2-4 hours. 

About 30 minutes before serving, mix cold water with flour. 

Pour into simmer pot to thicken the sauce.

Serve with rice, beans and fresh homemade tortillas.

Enjoy!

Make It Monday - Homemade Hot Chocolate

 
I must have a thing for warm, homemade drinks. This is my favorite time of year and I am pretty sure I have either cocoa or cider every night, while watching my evening shows. So here's another delicious warmed drink recipe for you!

I found this recipe online, added some yummy-ness of my own to it and now I am sharing it with you! It's perfect for gifts and any fall or winter holiday. You could also mix it up and try some other flavors. Experiment see what you can create! Enjoy the recipe!

 (Image courtesy of Google)

Homemade Hot Cocoa

3 cups dry milk powder

2 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 c. cocoa

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla powder
(I use Alison's Pantry brand)

Mix all ingredients together. Add two large heaping spoonfuls to 1 cup hot water or milk. 

Top with marshmallows or whipped cream. Store in air tight container. 

And lastly, to add to the wonderfulness of this time of year, I designed some FREE Halloween lunch printables! There are some jokes and some blank cards to write notes to your kids. The cards are 3x2 perfect for little lunches. I had fun creating them. I hope you can get some good use out of them in the next couple weeks. Happy Monday everyone!

 (Right Click on the image to save and print)

Make It Monday - Jambalaya

Today's recipe is a mix of one my Mom made growing up and a few added touches of my own. My mother served an LDS mission to the great state of Louisiana. While she was there she fell in love with the food. She brought home a delicious Jambalaya recipe and it's been one of my favorites for as long as I can remember. This past week I had some homemade smoked sausage and decided to revamp this Jambalaya and make this dinner. It's so filling and perfect for a quick evening dinner.  Here's my recipe, enjoy!         
Ma's Jambalaya

Ingredients:
  -1 medium onion, diced - 1/4 cup butter -1 1/2 pounds smoked sausage, diced - 2 cloves garlic - 3 T. flour - 1 can dark red kidney beans - 2 cups rice, uncooked - 3 1/2 cups chicken stock - 1/2 t. cayenne pepper - 2 t. salt - Tabasco Sauce   In large pot melt butter, add onions and cook until translucent. Add sausage and cook until brown. Add garlic and let flavors blend for a few minutes. Sprinkle flour in pot and make a roux. Add remaining ingredients, bring to a boil. Turn burner to low and simmer with lid on for 45 minutes or until rice is done. Add Tabasco for a little kick. Enjoy!  

Make It Monday - Caramel Apple Cider

Welcome to the first ever Make it Monday! 

I am super excited to share this recipe with you today, and hope you'll try it and love it!

The temperature in our little town is supposed to drop significantly this week. I love cooler weather with all it's layering, scarves, boots, and especially seasonal food! This apple cider is delish and definitely one you'll want to repeat. The best part?! You just throw it all in a crockpot! Enjoy!



(Image courtesy of Google)

Caramel Apple Cider

4 C. bottled apple cider
3 Tbs. caramel syrup
1/2 Tbs. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
4 Tbs. sweetened whipped cream (optional)

Mix all of the ingredients together in a 2 quart slow cooker. Cook on low for 4 hours.
Leftovers - refrigerate, reheat well.