Awesomely Easy Potato Salad

Growing up my dad would always be the potato salad master! Memorial Day, 4th of July, Family Reunions, you name it, we wanted and had potato salad. I always thought it took so many different things to make it, and being young I was probably right, not to mention it had the icky vegetables that I just did not want to eat!

It's been many, many years since I've had my dad's potato salad and I decided that I would try and make it from memory and scratch for a church potluck instead of buying it from the store. I ended up breaking down and called my mom to make sure I had the right stuff late at night because I just couldn't sleep and my grocery list looked crazy.

So, here it is! My recipe for my dad's Awesomely Easy Potato Salad! Not quite sure how many this feeds because I just played it by eye, but it was easily 10-15 people with leftovers to spare!

Ingredients

8 lb bag of potatoes

1 jar Miracle Whip (30 Fl Oz)

1 Cucumber

1 Green Pepper

1 Red Pepper

1 Onion

Salt and Pepper for Taste

Optional

You can also use any vegetable you wish to use. My dad's called for Radishes but the store had them in a huge bunch and we wouldn't eat them otherwise, so we left them out.

Also eggs and paprika as well...I'll include these steps in this recipe just for you!

STEP ONE: 

- Peel and cut potatoes in small cubes. Then boil in water until completely cooked, about 30 minutes or so.

- Let potatoes completely cool before going onto the next step. I cooked mine the night before and cooled them overnight in the fridge in an air-tight container.

*optional*: Boil eggs as well, as many as you would like to add to the top of your potato salad. Also let them cool down before you use them later.

STEP TWO:

- Chop up Vegetables and place them in a large bowl.

See how colorful it looks! My mom was telling me that adding color is everything! Just think, if you had radishes, you'd have purple and if you had yellow peppers, you'd have yellow! Not to mention, you can sneak part of a cucumber here and there to "make sure" they taste okay! Mmm, yummy.

STEP THREE:

- add potatoes to veggie mixture. Add Miracle Whip. Add as much as it takes to cover everything! I used about 2/3's of my jar. 

- add salt and pepper for taste and then add some on top for looks. Here is what my potato salad looked like.

*optional*: Cut up eggs the long way so you have the cooked white and cooked yolk and place the eggs on top, adorning the potato salad to add more color. You could also add paprika for a little bit of more color.

So there it is! Awesomely Easy Potato Salad! 

Feel free to add, change and experiment!

Slacker

So I have been severely slacking in the pinterest cooking department! I have a few on my plate that I want to try, but it's getting the energy and participation of my two favorite helpers! If any of you have suggestions, find us on Facebook under this URL: https://www.facebook.com/groups/440599245970427/

It's a small group so far but we would love to see what you are making and what you would love to share!

Pizza roll-ups

So I've made this recipe maybe 4 times or so, but I was pressed with ideas this week, so this is what I made for lunch. It's really yummy and I like it. The original recipe can be found here: The Girl Who Ate Everything.
The boys and I had just returned home from Union City (my hometown) and I really didn't feel like cooking much of anything....but, here's the yummy goodness!

Please disregard the potatoes and the toolbox. We went grocery shopping yesterday and have no room, not to mention our gate door in the backyard broke, so hubby fixed that but neglected to put away our tiny toolbox. Anywho, here is the recipe, modified for two servings, which makes 16 of them:

Ingredients:
2 (8 ounce) packages refrigerated crescent roll dough
8 cheese sticks, halved
1 package sliced pepperoni
optional - marinara or ranch sauce for dipping

Now for the steps, so easy!

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 F.

Step 2: Undo the crescent rolls tube. If you're like me, and just can't do it for fear of the unknown, have your hubby do it for you, and then roll your eyes at him when he makes fun of you, what a man!

Step 3: Unroll the dough, put pepperoni on the larger side then add half of a cheese stick. See, looks good already.

Step 4: Carefully put into oven and bake from 10-14 minutes, or until golden brown and amazing looking....

Now, you can serve them with marinara sauce, mmm yummy...or your favorite sauce. On The Girl Who Ate Everything, she included a garlic topping, here's the recipe for that:

Garlic Butter Glaze:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasonings
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 Tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

For some reason I don't make this, but I have also found that Pillsbury makes garlic crescent rolls...hello wonderful! BTW, I'm not doing any product placement for Spartan brand...just happened to be at that store yesterday and it was cheap :)

Hope you all enjoy and remember to join/follow Recipes of Pinterest on Facebook!

~Samantha and two very happy little men with full bellies!

Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies

I am by no means a baker....not by a long shot! I don't bake a lot, usually only near holidays. I've decided to try different cookie recipes lately, and this one I tried today. I found this at http://the-inspiration-cafe.blogspot.com/2012/04/blueberry-cheesecake-cookies.html off of pinterest, I think...well, now I cannot remember. Well, regardless, I found it. Now, just to warn you ahead of time, my cookies kept falling apart, much like a muffin would. It could be just the way I made it, but honestly this cookie tastes so darn yummy that it doesn't matter which way it breaks, just as long as it all goes in my tummy. Oh, and I had some wonderful helpers this time around!

 

Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies

2 boxes Jiffy Blueberry Muffin mix

4 oz. cream cheese

1 stick "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter"

1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips

Step One: Cream together butter, cream cheese, and brown sugar. 

Step Two: Add eggs one at a time until blended.

Step Three: Combine muffin mix with the butter mixture and mix well. 

Step Four: Fold in white chocolate chips. 
Step Five: Chill for at least one hour
Step Six: Preheat oven to 325 degrees
Last Step: Drop by tablespoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake for 14-15 minutes or until just turning brown around the edges. Cool on cookie sheet for 1-2 minutes. Transfer to wire rack until completely cooled. Oh, and enjoy with a nice cold glass of milk! YUM!

Easy Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo

Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo ----MMM YUMMY YUMMY

This recipe is so easy, and so yummy! I was amazed at how easy it was. Usually I buy frozen alfredo from the store for $1.50 and that doesn't give me a whole lot, not to mention it has all that fat, and salt, and other stuff. Now, this may have some of the same stuff, but it's homemade, yummy and oh so wonderful to smell! Here is the recipe, which I found here on www.kraftrecipes.com, but tweaked a bit for some of the stuff I had.

1/2

lb.  fettuccine, uncooked

2

cups  fresh broccoli florets

1/4

cup  Zesty Italian Dressing

1

lb.  boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces (I used more, we love chicken)

1-2/3

cups  milk

4

oz.  (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) neufchatel cheese (found next to the cream cheese at the grocery store)

1/4

cup  Grated Parmesan Cheese

1/2

tsp.  dried basil leaves

Step 1: Cook pasta as directed on package, adding the broccoli florets to the boiling water the last 3 minutes.

Step 2: While the pasta is cooking, heat the Italian dressing in large non-stick skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken, stirring it and coating it, cooking it for about 5 minutes or until it is done. Stir occasionally.  Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and stir constantly. Cook it for 2 to 3 minutes or until sauce is well blended and cooked through.

Step 3: Drain pasta mixture, place in large bowl and add the chicken/sauce, mixing until everything is well coated. ENJOY!

Start-up!

Please hang in with me as I begin this!

I LOVE PINTEREST! Ever since I've discovered it my husband has been happy! More variety of cooking and more yummy stuff to make! Oh man, am I excited to show you some of the things I have made!