My Favorite Recipes!

Welcome to Monday and August 1, 2011. Today is suppose to be a nice "balmy" 107 degrees. I won't lie. I am a little tired of the hot. Especially since my pool went green again. I have once again had to buy the pool "flock" which has to set 24 hours and then be vacuumed out of the pool. It looks to be doing its job and tomorrow we will be back in the pool business (waterproof bandage over the tattoo and all), but it is just a pain to lose a couple of days when the weather is so darn HOT!

Today is the first day of my blog themes and I told you I would just surprise us all and pick today's theme at the last minute. Well drum roll please......today's theme is My Favorite Recipes! Perhaps you should make a note....Monday's will forever be Recipe Day in Lisaland. That is until or unless the queen of Lisaland gets tired of or decides to change that. Awwww....it is good to be Queen!

A little history on my culinary skills. Before I married my late husband Tim, I had none. If it couldn't be put in the microwave......I couldn't make it. Come to think of it....that might have been why I was so skinny back then. After marrying Tim though (who might I add was an excellent cook) I had no choice but to learn. The funny thing is, I went from someone with no recipes to someone who really doesn't use a recipe. I either make stuff up as I go along, or I look at a recipe, read the basic instructions and then tweak the heck out of it. For the sake of not driving my readers crazy though....I have done my best to put measurements with my recipes so that you won't have to be flying blind on them. I am fully aware that "a little bit of this" is greek to most people.

Today I am going to share two recipes with you. The first one is one that I found years ago in a magazine. I have made this recipe dozens of  times over the years and taken it to many functions with always the same result.....people LOVE IT! The second is an all time favorite of mine. A restaurant that is now closed used to make this wonderful salad and that was about the only reason I would ever go there. After years of playing with different recipes....I found a pretty close and comparable substitute to my restaurant favorite.

What comes to mind when I say tuna casserole? Blah? Boring? Maybe even....Yuk?! Well Company Tuna Casserole may just change your mind. This casserole has a rich flavor that most tuna casseroles don't and it doesn't have the normal cheddar cheese flavor that most do.....because the cheese used in this one is cream cheese. If you decide to try this one at home.....I would love to hear your comments. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

Company Tuna Casserole
1 reg. size can tuna in water (drained)
1 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese (left out to room temperature about 4 hours)
1 tsp. mustard (the hot dog condiment)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 small onion diced
1 small box of elbow macaroni (cooked per directions)
crushed crackers or potato chips
1 Tbsp. butter or margarine

Fix macaroni per directions. Once done set aside in a draining colander. In a separate bowl combine cream cheese and mushroom soup. Mix until creamy and no lumps. To this mixture add the mustard. Mix again. Then add tuna, diced onion and finally the macaroni. Mix until all macaroni is thoroughly covered. Put in a 9x9 baking dish and cover top with crushed crackers or chips. Dot the top with the T. of butter/margarine. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 35 to 45 min. This casserole is great right out of the oven or even better on day two as left overs. This recipe can be increased proportionately as needed to fit your family or gathering size. If you are like me, this recipe will be with you for years to come!

I get tired of the same old salads all of the time. Every once in a while I like a salad that has more flavor, more bite, more pizazz. After scouring recipes for years...and playing with all kinds of ingredients, I finally found a recipe that was pretty darn close to a restaurant favorite. Here is my version of garlic salad....and with this new day and age of prepackaged salad...it is easier than ever.

Yummy Garlic Salad
1 sm. package of shredded lettuce
1 sm. package of coleslaw cabbage mix
1 c. real mayo
1 Tbsp. Garlic juice
1/2 Tbsp. garlic salt
1/2 Tbsp. garlic powder

Put lettuce and cabbage mix through a food processor to chop up some (can also leave lettuce and cabbage as they are out of the package) then combine in a large bowl. In a separate bowl mix mayo, garlic juice, garlic salt and garlic powder until thoroughly mixed (this makes the dressing). Then toss the lettuce/cabbage mixture with the dressing. Salad is best if refrigerated 2 to 24 hours. If you like a little less garlic then I suggest playing with this recipe until you get the amounts where you like them. Once you do though....I think you are going to find this a nice change to plain old cole slaw or regular old salads.

So here you have it folks. Not only have you gotten a glimpse of my life in this blog, but you also get a glimpse into my kitchen. Exciting ain't it?! Please let me know if you try these recipes how they turn out and if you like them. Also let me know if you need any help with them as I don't always explain as well as I think I do. And finally....on Recipe Day....don't hesitate to throw in your own favorite recipes as I surely can use some add ons to my recipe repertoire. Who knows....one of your favorites could become one of my favorites and end up forever glorified in my blog!

Well hope this starts your day out with some new ideas and gives you a fresh start to both the week and the month. Happy Monday everyone!

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