*TAPEWORM SANDWICHES*

 I have not made those but it’s a great idea for kids during Halloween.

-8 hot dogs
-8 hot dog buns
-1/4 cup ketchup

Bring a pot of water to a boil.
Slice each hot dog into long, worm-like strips.
Dump hot dog strips into boiling water and cook until they begin to curl a bit.
Drain.
Return cooked hot dog worms to pan and toss with ketchup until thoroughly mixed.
Serve in hot dog buns.

*CINNAMON DOUGHNUT MUFFINS*

These muffins taste a lot like a cinnamon doughnut and are great with coffee. We love them for breakfast or anytime! :))

-3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
-1 cup sugar

-2 eggs
-3 cups flour
-3 tsp. baking powder
-1/4 tsp. baking soda
-3/4 tsp. salt
-1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
-1 cup milk
-1/4 cup buttermilk

Using mixer, cream the butter and sugar.
Add eggs and continue mixing.
Add remaining ingredients and mix until smooth batter.
Spray a 12 cup muffin pan and fill each cup 3/4 full or almost to the rim.
Bake in preheated 350 degree oven 35 minutes or until browned.
Remove and let cool just long enough to handle.

*Sugar, Cinnamon, Butter Dip for Muffins
-1/2 cup butter, melted
-1 cup sugar
-1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

You will need two bowls for dipping.
Melt the butter in one bowl and mix the cinnamon and sugar in the other bowl.
When the muffins are cool enough to handle, dip in butter and then in cinnamon mixture. Enjoy!

*HOW TO FILL A CONTAINER FROM THE SINK*

*BACON BURGER DOGS*

waiting for the grill
The next time you can't decide if you want a bacon cheeseburger or a hot dog, consider this...the ultimate burger! Some folks will probably think that I have way too much time on my hands but I just love to play with my food! LOL!!! :))
These are amazing!

I started off with lean ground burger then added about 4 slices of bacon cut up.
Seasoning's! I added Garlic Powder, Onion Powder and Black Pepper
Squeeze some mustard in there...
Shake some Worcestershire sauce and Soy sauce in there for even more flavour.
Finally! Form burger into "dogs" around bamboo skewers, then wrap them in bacon! Mmm! Bacon!
I slow cooked them on the BBQ on the top rack.
Keep a close eye on them while on the BBQ. Due to the fat dripping off the bacon you are more than likely going to have a few grease fires spitting up and toasting your burger dogs, which could get pretty messy and result in black/burnt burger dogs

*WHERE TO STORE YOUR SPICE*

*OVEN TEMP*

*HOW TO COOK A SPAGHETTI SQUASH*

 I have to admit, spaghetti squash is one of my favorite vegetable, well one of the top one.... it’s easy to cook and so yummy. It’s a very cool vegetable and a great replacement for pasta. I have tried cooking spaghetti squash a couple of different ways but I always come back to baking it in the oven. When I have steamed or microwaved it... it always seems to be to much water left in the squash.

Probably the hardest part of cooking spaghetti squash is cutting the squash in half. You will need a good chef’s knife to cut the squash. First, cut off the stem if it is still attached. Then insert your knife in the middle of the squash and cut in half.

The next step is to scoop out the seeds from the center of the squash. An ice cream scoop is the perfect tool for this job. A strong spoon will work too.

Then I line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, coat it with vegetable spray and lay my squash cut side down.

I preheat my oven to 350 degrees and bake the squash for 40 to 60 minutes, depending on the size of the squash. The skin will never get soft, it will just cave in when pressed.

Flip the squash over and run a fork through the squash to separate the strands. The squash will be very hot. Spaghetti squash in a non-starchy vegetable so you don’t have to be concerned about your portion size like you do with other winter squashes (acorn, butternut etc...). Top your squash with anything you normally put on your pasta. Mmmmmm this is so good..... Enjoy.

*ROMAINE LETTUCE*

*FOR CRISP POTATO*

*SAUSAGE, PASTA AND CHEESE SKILLET*

This is a quick and easy recipe to make for your family anytime. Just add some cornbread and you have a meal. This recipe is very versatile, too, as you can use different meats and vegetables.

-1 small onion, chopped
-1 pound package smoked sausage, sliced
-2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
-1/2 tsp. minced garlic
-1 (14 ounce) can chicken broth
-1/2 cup water
-2 cups elbow macaroni, uncooked
-8 ounces velveeta cheese, cubed
-1 (14 ounce) bag frozen garden blend vegetables (I used the broccoli, sugar snap peas, green beans, mushrooms, carrots, celery, onions and red peppers)
-1/4 tsp. black pepper
-1/2 tsp. salt

Melt butter in large skillet.
Brown onion and sausage.
Pour in chicken broth and and water and bring to a boil.
Stir in macaroni and simmer about 10 minutes until pasta is tender.
Add vegetables and stir.
Sprinkle cheese over vegetables and cook about 10 to 12 minutes longer until cheese is melted and vegetables are tender stirring often.
Makes 8 to 10 servings. Enjoy!

(Note: You can use chicken, ham or polish sausage and any kind of pasta in this dish. Different vegetables, too)

*SPIRAL CUT HOT DOGS*

Kids love those....

There’s been a video circulating rampantly about spiral cutting hot dogs. We thought it only seemed fitting to try it for ourselves and determine if it’s all it’s cracked up to be.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyieI2bxyIk

The first step was obviously to go out and buy some hot dogs and skewers. Easy enough. Every grocery store has wieners and almost all of them have skewers for shish kebabs.

That’s when things got a bit trickier. It turns out that I’m not that great with wieners.

I struggled to jam the stick straight through, my aim was pretty terrible.

Eventually I made it end to end with fairly reasonable straightness, or so I thought.

As I started to spiral cut, it became clear that my skewer was nowhere near centered. In some spots it was so bad that I was only cutting a couple millimeters deep.

First attempt complete; all fingers intact. They say practice makes perfect though.

The second time around I thread the skewer vertically and it worked much better. If you’re going to try this, I’d highly recommend that.

Obviously I wasn’t going to waste a perfectly good stick of meat, so both went on the grill.

I can’t lie, they look delicious on the grill.

Once they're cook.... coat your wiener with mustard AND ketchup. YUMMY!!! :))

*BROWNIE/REESE/COOKIE CUPS*

I have not tried this but they look super easy and yummy!!!
Preheat oven to 350
press down 1.5 squares of break-apart refrigerated cookie dough into the bottom of each well.
Place Reese cup upside down on top of cookie dough (or an Oreo!).
Top with prepared box brownie mix, filling 3/4 full. Bake for 18 minutes! HEAVEN.

*LOTMENT LOVE - LETTER* :))

*ANTS ON A LOG*

Makes a yummy snack that looks like ants sitting on a log. Excellent idea for a kids school lunch or simply for a healthy summer snack.

-Celery stems are an excellent source of vitamins B1, B2, B6 and C with rich supplies...

of potassium, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, sodium and plenty essential amino acids.
-Peanut butter is loaded with protein and “good” fats,
-Raisins contain fiber, anti-oxidants and help with bone growth.

celery sticks (cut about 3 inches long)
peanut butter
raisins

Spread the peanut butter on the celery stick.
Put the raisins on top of the peanut butter.
Enjoy with a friend.

*The traditional "Ants on a log" is celery, peanut butter and raisins. But since kids love this snack so much, here's a few ways to change it a little.

VARIATION:
-celery, peanut butter, and raisins or craisins (for red ants on a log)
-celery, peanut butter, a layer of honey, raisins
-celery, peanut butter, top with chocolate chips, pumpkin seeds, dried fruit pieces, granola, or different types of nuts.

-celery, cream cheese, paprika, roasted peppers and/or pine nuts
-celery, cream cheese, cinnamon, and craisins or dried blueberries or tiny chocolate chips or granola
-celery, cream cheese, chopped pineapple on top

-celery, Cheez Whiz

-celery, nutella, tiny marshmallows or nuts

-celery, almond butter, raisins

-celery, hummus, roasted peppers

-celery stuffed with chicken salad

*DIRTY PIRATE POPSICLES*

(RECIPE SHARED BY MANON VEILLEUX)

-2 1/2 cups Coke
-1/3 cup Captain Morgan Spiced Rum
-1/3 cup Kahlua

1. Place all ingredients in a large glass and stir to combine. Pour mixture into popsicles mold.
2. Freeze for about 2 hours or until mixture starts to solidify enough to hold a popsicle stick upright. Insert popsicle sticks and finish freezing popsicles overnight. To release popsicles run hot water on the outside of popsicle molds for a 2-3 seconds.

*Slightly flat Coke will produce a popsicle that stays frozen longer. To quickly and manually flatten out the carbonation, empty out enough Coke from a 2-liter bottle to leave a 3-inch space from top of bottle to top of coke. Place cap back on and shake vigorously for 10 seconds. Set aside to leave bubbles to subside.

*SPICE IN COOL PLACE*

*CELERY IN FOIL IN FRIDGE*

*BLUEBERRY JAM*

Summer doesn’t feel complete without at least one blueberry picking trip and a batch of homemade blueberry jam cooling on the kitchen counter. :))

-6 cups smashed blueberries (you’ll need 8-10 cups of unsquashed berries to equal this amount)
-6 cups sugar
-1 lemon, zested and juiced
-2 tsp. cinnamon
-1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg
-two packets liquid pectin

Fill your canning pot with water and begin to bring it to temperature.
Sanitize your jars, lids and rings.
Add smashed blueberries and sugar to a large pot.
Bring to a boil and add cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon zest and juice and let jam continue to cook for about fifteen minutes.
Add pectin and bring to a rolling boil for a full five minutes.
Turn off the heat and fill jars.
Wipe rims and put lids on. Screw on the bands and lower into the water.
Process in the hot water bath 10 minutes.
When time is up, remove from water and cool on the counter.
When the jars are cooled, check the seal by pressing on the top of the jar. If there’s no movement, the jar has sealed.
Store up to one year in a cool, dark place.

*BLUEBERRY CRISP*

Also known as Blueberry Crumble... full of fresh blueberries for a juicy, lightly sweetened fruit crisp. Mmmmmm!!! good.

-4 cups fresh blueberries, washed, drained well
-1/2 cup sugar

-1 Tbsp. corn starch
-2 tsp. lemon juice
-1/3 cup packed brown sugar
-1/2 tsp. cinnamon
-1/3 cup flour
-3/4 cup quick cooking rolled oats
-Pinch of salt
-1/4 cup softened butter (4 Tbsp.)

In a bowl combine the blueberries, granulated sugar, corn starch, and lemon juice, and mix to combine evenly.
Pour into a lightly buttered baking dish.

In the same bowl combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, oats, salt, and butter.
Stir with a fork until the mixture is crumbly and evenly blended.
Spread the mixture over the berries and bake at 375 degrees F. for 40 minutes.
Let cool to warm before serving.
You can serve it with whip cream or ice cream.

*RECIPE HOLDER*

Great idea to hold your recipe up while cooking.