Fiesta Chicken Casserole

1 package refrigerated pie crusts (2 crusts)
1 jar (16 oz.) salsa
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 package (24 oz) frozen corn
2 big cans of chicken, drained
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

Preheat oven to 400. Let the pie crusts stand at room temperature for 15 minutes or until they are easy to handle. Stir the salsa, soup, sour cream, cheese, corn, chicken and beans in a large bowl. Spoon into 13x9 baking dish. Unfold the pie crusts on a lightly floured surface. Lay the crusts side by side so that they overlap by about 3 inches in the center. Press the seam to seal. Roll the pie crust into a 14x10 rectangle. Place the pie crust over the chicken mixture. Cut several slits in the pie crust. Bake for 40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

**I got this recipe from the coupon insert in the Sunday paper and it was yummy! It would be easy to make and freeze ahead. It would be good with homemade crust and you could use boiled chicken instead of canned also. However, following the recipe "as is" was very quick and easy.

Fresh Apple Coffee Cake by Mrs. Martin Kleiboeker

2 c. sugar
3 c. flour
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 c. coconut (optional)
3 c. apples, peeled and chopped
1 1/2 c. oil
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. nuts (optional)

Combnie sugar, flour, soda, salt and cinnamon. Add oil, eggs and vanilla. Mix well. Add apples. Add coconut and nuts if desired. Grease and flour bread pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

**This is a recipe from the Freistatt cookbook and it is EXCELLENT. I omitted the coconut and nuts but added about 1/2 cup of craisins. I also sprinkled the top with some sugar for that coffee cake "crust". I never peel the apples when I bake bread and it always turns out great.

One-Pan Taco Beef and Noodle Skillet

1# lean ground beef
1 pkg. taco seasoning mix
2 cups water
1 box macaroni & cheese
1/3 cup sour cream
1 large tomato, chopped
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 cup tortilla chips, broken up

Brown meat. Add seasoning mix, water and macaroni. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover. Simmer 7 minutes or ntil noodles are tender and liquid is almost completely absorbed. Stir in sour cream and cheese mix from macaroni box. Top with tomatoes, lettuce and tortilla chips.

**This ended up very much like Hamburger Helper. Joy loved it and declared it "a keeper". Quick and easy and the ingredients are stuff you probably have around the house.

Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes by Ginia Oehlschlager

10# potatoes
2 eggs
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup butter
2 tsp salt
16 oz. cream cheese

Peel and quarter potatoes. Cover completely with water in saucepan. Boil and cook gently until tender. Drain well. In large bowl, combine potatoes with other ingredients. Mash well. Spoon into well greezed 3 qt. or 9x13 pans. Refrigerate up to 2 days or freeze. To bake: thaw. Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes or until top is golden.

**I had a big bag of potatoes that needed to be used up and this recipe was a great way to do it. I left out the eggs (something about uncooked eggs freaks me out) and added some extra butter and some leftover heavy whipping cream that I had in the fridge. Creamy, yummy goodness! Great with the stroganoff (see recipe below).

Crockpot Stroganoff by Theresa Barnett

1# lean beef cut diagonally into very thin strips
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can water
small can mushrooms (undrained, optional)
1 pkg. onion soup mix
2 cups uncooked noodles
1 carton (8 oz.) sour cream

Place beef into crockpot. Add soup, water and onion soup mix. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4 hours. Add noodles. Cook an additional 30 minutes or until noodles are done. Stir in sour cream before serving.

**I used stew meat for this recipe and it turned out fantastic - so tender! I just threw the meat in there right out of the freezer and omitted the can of water. We ate it with Ginia's mashed potatoes (see recipe above).

Garden Update

I have been picking about a dozen strawberries per day and have picked a couple of handfuls of green beans already. The yellow squash and zucchini are coming on STRONG and I have probably 30+ tomatoes on their way. Summer fun!

Banana bread by Jessicca Oehlschlager

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
2 bananas (or more)
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp. baking soda
cinnamon (optional)

Grease and flour pan. Heat oven to 350. Beat sugar and oil together. Add eggs, bananas, sour cream and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

**I doubled the recipe with 5 bananas and came out with 3 loaves of very moist banana bread. Excellent warm out of the oven!