amazing shish kabobs

this is my families favorite summertime dinner, it's so good, and beleive me, you'll want to make the full amount, and if you have left over meat, you can just leave it raw and put in freezer bags and save for next time!

Steak Marinade:
2 pounds of roast, have the butcher cut into 2 inch chunks

mix:
1/4 c oil
2 T vinegar
1 t. onion salt
1 t. celery salt
3/4 t. garlic salt
1/2 salt
1 t. oregano
1/4 t. course black pepper
1 t. mustard
1 small bay leaf, crushed

Coat the meat and let stand over night in fridge

Chicken/Turkey Marinade:
2-3 pounds chicken or turkey breast, cut into 2 inch chunks

mix:
1 can Sprite
3/4 c. soy sauce
3/4 c. oil
1/4 t. garlic powder
1/2 - 1 t. horseradish

Coat the meat and let stand over night in fridge

Other additions:
depending on what you like/dislike you can add to this list, this is just what my family likes:

-bacon wrapped carrots: cook the carrots until you can get a toothpick through, but not enough that they are mushy (boiling about 10 minutes) cut bacon in half, and wrap around the carrot, hold in place with a toothpick, (it sounds weird, but believe me...so good!)
- bacon wrapped squash: same way as above, but you don't have to cook the squash, it's already soft enough
- purple onion
- sausage, in about 1 inch pieces
- brats, in about in inch pieces
- green, yellow, and red peppers
- mushrooms

We usually just put all the ingredients out on the table and let people build their own kabob, or you can put them together before hand. We have this trough that we use for the bbq brackets, but a grill works just fine, you just have to watch it closer to make sure the veggies don't burn before the meat is done, so cook on a low heat.

Enjoy, and happy summer!!!

Fresh Cherry Pie

Okay, so this was the first time I have ever made a Fresh Cherry Pie, and also the first time I have ever tried a lattice top crust, so the pie may not exactly be pretty, but it sure was good!
Here is the recipe I used:
1 batch of double crust pie dough (use your favorite recipe, or even pre-made)
4 cups fresh cherries, pitted
*Hint: I do not have a cherry pitter, but I opened up a paper clip and used one of the bent ends to pop the pit out the top of the cherry. You can also try poking them out with a straw*
1 cup sugar
4 Tbsp. Minute Tapioca (I used this, and it helps to thicken the filling, however, next time I might just try some flour or cornstarch)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. butter

Directions:
Mix all ingredients except butter, and let rest for 15 min. Pour in pie pan lined with bottom crust. Cut up butter into small cubes and place around top of filling. Cover filling with top crust. *Optional: Brush top crust with egg wash (mixture of 1 egg and milk), and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
Bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes or until filling is bubbly and crust is golden. *Tip: I like to cut a hole out of the middle of a piece of foil and cover the pie with it so the edges are covered, and the middle is exposed. I will take the foil off for the last 15 minutes or so. This helps keep the edges from getting too brown or burned, while the middle cooks.

Fruit Dip

My friend Hayley made this for bunco and it was delish!

1 package cream cheese (I used 1/3 fat kind)
1 C brown sugar
1/2 C sugar
1 tsp Vanilla
1/2 bag Chocolate Covered Heath Toffee Bits (I couldn't find these so I smashed 2 Skor bars up really fine and it worked great!)

Serve with fruit . . . it's super yummy with apples!

Black Bean Salsa

This is my favorite chip dip to make for just about anything!

2 Cans Black Beans - drained
1 Jar Green Salsa Verde (I use Herdes)
1 Can diced tomatoes, with liquid (I use Rotel)
1/2 bag frozen white sweet corn
1/2 white onion
1 tsp Garlic
3T Red Wine Vinegar
3 Avocados - diced
Cilantro ( I have used fresh and dry, both are great!)
Serve with Tortilla chips and enjoy!

BBQ Chicken Pizza

mmm, this is delicious, and it's Ryan's favorite, so I've made it enough times to perfect it!

Pizza Crust:
1 package (2 1/4 tsp) yeast
1 cup warm water (105-115 degrees so it won't kill the yeast)
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp olive oil
1 1/2 Tbls. sugar
2 c white flour

Mix everything together, grease a bowl, place dough in it, and cover and let rise for about an hour until double in size.
Spread on a greases pizza pan, bake at 400 for about 5 minutes by itself, then add toppings:

Chop 2 large chicken breasts into small pieces. Cut half a purple onion into small pieces. Saute chicken and onion together in a little bit of olive oil and shake in some Montreal Steak Seasoning (depending on how 'zesty' you like it, we like about a teaspoon's worth I'd say). After sauteing, put it in a bowl, and mix in enough BBQ sauce to just cover it all.

Spread BBQ sauce on the baked crust (I just use whatever we have in the house, tonight I used Hunt's Honey BBQ), place chicken and onion mixture on top next, then 2 cups of Italian mixed cheeses, sprinkle more Steak Seasoning and the parsley.

Place back in the 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes, or until cheese just starts to brown...mmm! enjoy it!

Fried Onion Strings

This is a great side to hamburgers, steaks, soups, or anything really. Not terribly healthy, but delicious nonetheless.


Ingredients:
1 large sweet or yellow onion sliced very thin
3/4 cup blue cheese dressing
3/4 cup milk
splash or two of hot sauce
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon each salt, pepper and garlic powder
1 1/2 - 2 cups oil


Directions:
Mix dressing, milk and hot sauce together in lage resealable plastic bag. Toss in sliced onion rings and chill for 45 minutes. In second large plastic bat, mix together flour, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Heat oil to 375 degrees (use electric skillet if possible). Shake excess dressing off of onions and toss into flour mixture, shake well. Being careful not to crowd the pan, drop prepared onions inot oil and cook until lightly browned. Drain on paper towel and keep warm.

White Chicken Chili

I got this recipe from my friend Hayley's food blog and it is delish, and super easy!

1 package boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 onion
1 package Italian seasoning
1 large can green chilli's
2 cans white corn
2 cans white navy beans
2 cans garbanzo beans
chicken bullion granules
salt/pepper
cumin

In the morning put your chicken in your crock pot with a tiny bit of water in the bottom. Add 1 onion, green chilli's, and your Italian seasoning and let cook on high for 4-5 hours. It should be really moist and you should be able to shred it with a fork. When it gets to that point, shred the chicken completely.
Add your canned goods, with juice and all. Stir everything together and add seasonings to taste. Add about 2 tbsp. of bullion, and a few tsp. of cumin, but do whatever floats your boat. Let this simmer all day long and serve with some grated mozzarella cheese on top.