Layered Lettuce Salad

I love, love, love this salad. I'm sure this isn't a new recipe for most of you, but sometimes you forget those old favorites. One of my first choices for a gathering or get together, as it is best made the day before. Pretty salad, when put together in a glass bowl.

Layered Lettuce Salad

• 1 head lettuce
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 4 eggs, hard-boiled and sliced
• 10 oz frozen peas, uncooked
• 1/2 cup green/red pepper, diced
• 1 onion, chopped (I often used green onions)
• 8 slices of bacon, fried and crumbled (bacon bits work too)
• 4 oz shredded cheddar cheese

Dressing

• 1 to 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
• 1 to 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• dash of salt

Tear lettuce into bite sized pieces. Layer with remaining ingredients, except cheese and dressing, in order given. Mix dressing ingredients and spread over salad. Top with shredded cheese. Cover and refridgerate 8 to 12 hours.

Rhubarb Cake

everyone just dug into the cake, had to take a pic while i could, so it didn't have proper time to set, so pic is a little floppy, but oh.... so delic.

crust:
1 cup flour
1 cup coconut
1/4 cup slivered almonds
3 Tbsp. Brown Sugar
1/2 cup margarine
mix ingredients and place into a 9 x 13 pan. Bake @ 350 for 15 min. and let cool

filling:
4 cups rhubarb
1 cup white sugar
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 cup water
Cook in microwave for 7 min. Pour over crust then add 1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows on top of hot mixture & let cool completely.

Mix 1 box vanilla instant pudding and pour over cooled rhubarb mixture & cover with cool whip or whipping cream, sprinkle with lightly toasted coconut if you like.

Chicken n' Dumplings

2 cups leftover chicken cubed

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. chicken oxo

3 cups water

2 carrots chopped

1 stick celery chopped

1 small onion chopped

2 dashed thyme

2 dashed parsley

Place all ingredients into a casserole dish, and bake for 1 hr. @ 350 until veggies are tender, (make sure there's enough water to cover all the veggies & chicken) then 20 min before serving, mix your ingredients for dumplings and drop on top using a tablespoon and bake for another 20 min. @ 350 . You can also use turkey if you have extra's at holidays.

Dumplings

2 cups flour

1/4 cup margarine

4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

3/4 cup milk

Chocolate Treasure Box

This recipe (and photo) was sent to me by Diane, our newest contributer! She is an amazing cook/baker (my taste buds can testify!) and I look forward to seeing more of her recipes on here. Doesn't this look divine?! She made it for her family for Valentine's Day.
Chocolate Treasure Box

1 carton (7 oz) milk chocolate for dipping
4 fresh strawberries
5 milk chocolate bars (1.55 oz each)
1/2 cup white chocolate chips, melted
1/2 cup cold milk
1/4 cup instant chocolate pudding mix
1 1/4 cups whipped topping

Melt dipping chocolate according to package directions. Dip strawberries in chocolate and allow to drip off. Place on waxed paper and set aside.
Cut chocolate bar in half width wise. Drizzle with white chocolate and refrigerate until set. Dip the short sides of two chocolate bars in halves in melted chocolate; place at right angles to each other on a wax lined cookie sheet, forming two walls of a box. Dip the other two in melted chocolate, to make a four walled box. Let set for approximately 10 minutes.
Meanwhile in a small bowl whisk milk and pudding for two minutes and let sit for 2 minutes. Fold in whipped topping.
Place boxes on serving plates. Cut a small hole in the corner of a pastry bag and fill with pudding mix. Fill box with pudding mix.
Dip the long sides of the remaining chocolate bar halves in melted chocolate; adhere to each box, forming lid. Garnish with strawberries. Makes 4 servings.

ps - I changed the recipe up a bit by buying the bigger bars and melting them down, pouring them onto my cookie sheet. I then used a ruler to make straight edges and make squares. I put it in the freezer for a few minutes to set. I used the same chocolate to dip the strawberries. I didn't put white chocolate on, but would next time for an added touch
pps - Recipe came from Country Woman Magazine (March 09)

Chicken Pie

Chicken Pie
2 cups left over chicken or turkey
1 carrot sliced
1 sm. onion chopped

1/2 cup peas
1/2 cup corn
1 sm. pepper chopped any color
1 stick celery chopped
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tin cream of celery soup (don't add milk or water)

Put all your chicken & veggies into a pan & saute about 15 min or so till veggies are tender, add salt & pepper & soup. Make pie dough and pour chicken mix into pie shell then top with leftover dough an make slits so steam gets out and bake 350 for 45 min. until golden. Let sit about 15 min. before serving so juices can settle (makes a 9" pie)
Pie dough
2 cups flour
3 tbsp. lard
1/4 tsp. salt
enough water to make soft dough