White Chicken Chili

1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut in bite-size pieces
1 cup dried great northern beans, rinsed and sorted
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1 garlic clove, minced
2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
10.75-ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup
5 cups water
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)
4.5-ounce can chopped green chilies
sour cream, optional
chopped avocado, optional

1. In a 3.5 or 4-quart slow cooker, combine chicken, beans, onion, garlic, oregano, salt, soup, and water. Mix well.
2. Cover and cook on low for 9 to 10 hours.
3. Just before serving, stir in cumin, hot pepper sauce, and chilies.
   

Serve with additional hot pepper sauce, sour cream, and avocado.

Serves six.

Try crumbling cornbread into the chili and topping it with grated cheese. Delicious!

Homemade Croutons

4 cups stale bread, cut in 1/2 inch chunks
2 tablespoons butter, melted*
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Place the bread chunks in a medium bowl.
3. In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients.
   
4. Lightly toss the bread chunks with the butter mixture and then place on a rimmed baking sheet.
5. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned and crunchy throughout.
   
6. Let cool and then store in an airtight container until ready to use.
   

* You can use 4 tablespoons butter instead of half oil/half butter, or you can use all oil.

These croutons are so easy to make, yet they really dress up your salad (or soup). This is a great way to use leftover bread, even the crusts.

Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

16-ounce package dried green split peas, rinsed
1 meaty ham bone, 2 ham hocks, or 2 cups diced ham
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 ribs of celery plus leaves, chopped
1 or 2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 chicken bouillon cubes, crushed
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped, or 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1 tablespoon seasoned salt (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon fresh pepper
1-1/2 quarts hot water
1/2 cup light cream

1. Layer all ingredients except cream and water in slow cooker in the order given.
2. Pour in water. Do not stir.
   
3. Cover and cook on high 4-5 hours or on low 8-10 hours, until peas are very soft and ham falls off the bone.
   
4. Remove bones and bay leaf. Mash peas to thicken soup. Add cream just before serving.

Serve garnished with croutons. Freezes well.

Serves 8.

This is a great way to use leftover ham. It is so good and so easy!

"Olive Garden" Zuppa Toscana

1/2 pound mild Italian sausage, crumbled
1/2 pound smoked bacon, chopped (about 12 pieces)
14 ounces water
32-ounce can low sodium chicken broth
14-ounce can low sodium chicken broth
2 cups sliced small red potato*
2 tablespoons crushed garlic
1 onion, finely diced
2 cups fresh spinach or kale
16 ounces (1 pint) heavy whipping cream
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown sausage, breaking into small pieces. Drain and set aside.
2. Brown bacon. Drain and set aside. (Can bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.)
   
3. In a large pot, combine water, broth, potatoes, onion, and garlic. Simmer over medium heat until potatoes are tender.
   
4. Add sausage and bacon to pot. Simmer for 10 minutes.
   
5. Add spinach and cream to pot.
   
6. Season with salt and pepper and heat through.

Serves 12.

*Can substitute cauliflower for potatoes for low-carb option.

This is a close copy of Olive Garden's delicious soup. It's quite easy to make!

Ham and Cream Cheese Rollups

8 ounces deli ham, shaved and then chopped
8 ounces cream cheese
8 ounces mayonnaise
chopped green onions to taste
chopped sun-dried tomatoes, to taste (just a little bit)
freshly ground pepper and a bit of salt
flour tortillas

1. Combine the first six ingredients and chill for an hour or so.
2. Cut round edges off tortillas to form rectangles.
3. Spread ham mixture over tortillas, then roll up jelly-roll style.
4. Cover tightly and chill several hours or overnight.
   
5. Just before serving, cut tortilla rolls into 1-inch slices.
   

These are great for parties and potlucks. They are a bit time-consuming to make, but you can make them the night before. They are very pretty and taste wonderful.

7-Up Cake

3 sticks butter, softened (see quick softening tip)
3 cups sugar
5 eggs
3 cups flour
2 Tbsp vanilla extract*
3/4 cup 7-Up

Glaze (optional)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-2 Tbsp milk

1. Beat softened butter and sugar for about 20 minutes. (A stand mixer works best.) It will be very fluffy, and the sugar will be incorporated.
   
2. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. Mix in the flour and vanilla gradually, alternating between flour and vanilla.
   
4. Fold in the 7-Up.
5. Pour into a well greased bundt pan and bake at 325 degrees for about 1-1/4 hours. The top will be crackly and delicious.
6. Allow cake to cool slightly. Blend milk into powdered sugar gradually, to desired consistency. Blend thoroughly with a whisk and pour over cake.

*Substitute lemon extract for vanilla if desired.

All through college, I worked at a dry cleaners. There was this woman who made a cake for every birthday. We could choose from a whole book of recipes, but every person in my store always chose the same cake every year: 7-Up cake. It was so incredibly light and wonderful, with just the right amount of sweetness.

About a year ago, I suddenly remembered that cake and desperately wanted to have some. I searched the Internet and found quite a few variations. This one is pretty close to what I remember, nearly as good as the cake our birthday lady made. (Isn't it funny how our fondest memories never seem quite as good when we try to recreate them? It's still fun to try, though.)

--Sarah

Softening Butter Quickly

If you're like me, you probably forget to take your butter out of the refrigerator when it needs to soften for a recipe. Not to worry...

To soften butter quickly, cut it in slices (about 1/4 inch) and lay on a plate. The butter should soften in about 15 minutes at room temperature. Do NOT soften butter in the microwave; it melts too quickly.

Butterfinger Ice Cream Dessert

2 cups milk
1 quart vanilla ice cream, slightly melted
2 (3.5-ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups crushed graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup crushed saltine crackers
1 (8-ounce) container whipped topping
4 (2-ounce) Butterfinger bars, crushed

1. Combine milk, ice cream, and dry pudding mix in a large bowl and beat until well mixed. Place in refrigerator.
   
2. Melt butter in saucepan; pour over cracker crumbs in a large bowl. Stir well.
   
3. Pour crumb mixture into a 13-by-9-inch pan, patting into an even layer on bottom and reserving 1/3 of mixture for topping.
   
4. Pour ice cream mixture over crust. Freeze for one hour.
   
5. Spread whipped topping over filling. Mix crushed Butterfingers with reserved crumb mixture. Sprinkle over top and return to freezer to set.
   

Let stand at room temperature for about 20-30 minutes before serving.

My mom makes this frequently, and it's a favorite request for family birthday parties. It will make you want to lick the empty pan when no one is looking. (At least it has that effect on me!) -- Sarah

Amish Friendship Banana Nut Bread

1 cup Amish friendship starter
1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup natural unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 very ripe bananas, mashed
4 eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup walnuts, chopped

1. Mix first six ingredients well.
   
2. Add rest of ingredients except nuts. Mix only until blended.
3. Fold in nuts.
4. Pour into greased and sugared loaf pans and bake at 350 degrees for 30-60 minutes depending on size of pans.

Makes 2 regular loaf pans, 4 mini loaf pans, or 6 small tin foil loaf pans.

Amish Friendship Bread

Starter, if needed:
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup milk

Daily Instructions:
1 - Do nothing (the day you receive the starter)
2 - Stir with wooden spoon
3 - Stir with wooden spoon
4 - Stir with wooden spoon
5 - Add 1 cup sugar, flour, and milk
6 - Stir with wooden spoon
7 - Stir with wooden spoon
8 - Stir with wooden spoon
9 - Stir with wooden spoon

***DO NOT REFRIGERATE. Keep the starter on the counter so that the yeast can grow. (Yeast inhibits other organisms from growing so that it does not spoil.) If it looks or smells moldy, though, discard. It should smell a little sour, or sort of like beer; the smell gets stronger as it ferments.

On tenth day:

1. Add 1 cup sugar, flour, and milk. Stir thoroughly.
2. Pour off 3 cups; put in plastic bowls or small zippered sandwich bags. Save 1 cup for yourself and give 1 cup each to two friends.
3. To the remaining batter, add:

• 1 cup oil (or 1/3 cup oil and 2/3 cup natural unsweetened applesauce)
• 1 cup milk
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla

4. Mix well and then add:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1-1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 large package of instant vanilla pudding

5. Mix well.
6. Spray two regular loaf pans, four mini loaf pans, or six small tin foil pans. Sprinkle pans generously with cinnamon and sugar.
7. Pour batter into pans, about 2/3 full, and sprinkle tops with more cinnamon and sugar.
8. Bake at 325 for one hour. (35-45 minutes if using the mini pans)

Variations:

• Substitute any flavored pudding for the vanilla (chocolate, strawberry, banana, butterscotch).
• Add a handful of chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, or peanut butter chips. Just sprinkle on top of batter in pans.
• Fold in a handful of chopped walnuts or pecans
  
• Add a little coconut or dried fruit
• See also banana bread version

Tip: Instead of storing the starter in a bowl and stirring with a spoon, you can keep it in a zippered plastic storage bag and just squeeze and knead the bag each day. I prefer the bowl because it's less messy. But I've found that the bag works better when you are making your first batch of starter. Making that first batch is tricky; you want to cultivate the good germs (yeast) and avoid the bad ones (mold). Once the yeast starts growing, it inhibits other organisms. Keeping the batter in the smallest possible container (the bag) helps prevent mold. In a bowl, mold can grow along the sides of the bowl where the batter has dried.

My mother used to bake this every week in many variations. Hers always tastes the best!

I love the anticipation of tending the batter for ten days before baking day. I love the sentiment of sharing the starter with friends, though I usually just bake all of it.

Every Christmas, I make scores of mini loaves and wrap them in decorated cellophane. Then I hand them out to coworkers, neighbors, and family members. By the second baking day or so, I don't care if I ever see another Amish friendship loaf again. But by the next Christmas season, my mouth is watering for these rich, sweet cakes.

Lemon Torte Cake

Cake:
2-1/4 cups all purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons dried lemon peel*
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
1-1/3 cups sugar
2/3 cup mayonnaise
l cup 7 Up

1. Preheat oven to 350.
   
2. In a medium bowl, blend together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, lemon peel, and salt. Set aside.
3. In large mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, sugar, and mayonnaise until fluffy and lemon colored. Add the flour mixture alternately with the 7 Up, beating with a wire whip after each addition.
4. Spread the batter into two sprayed 8" or 9" round cake pans. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. The top will spring back when done.
   

Lemon Filling:
One 14 oz can Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup lemon juice

1. In a medium bowl, beat together the milk and lemon juice with wire whip.
   
2. Set in the refrigerator to thicken as it chills.
   
3. Spread between cake layers and over the top layer.
   
4. Chill frosted cake for at least two hours.
   

This can be made a day ahead. In fact, it tastes even better the second day. The filling penetrates the cake a little and makes it nice and moist.

*Use the fine Microplane rasp grater to grate the lemon peel. Avoid getting the bitter white pith.

This is my Aunt Carol's recipe. Because she has a gluten allergy, she uses 2-1/4 cups of rice flour mix (2 cups of rice flour, 2/3 cups of potato starch flour, 1/3 cup of tapioca flour) in place of the wheat flour and adds 1 teaspoon xanthan gum. It is incredibly light and tender. --Sarah