real life & the price is right: Family Supper round 2

It was my turn to cook for family supper on Monday. If you remember last time...it was a complete fail of pictures on my part. But I'm going to attempt to be better this time....and partially succeeded.

For an appetizer I started with my a favorite (ok they're all favorites, let's be real). I love pickle wraps, but I was lazy and went with the dip version.

Pickle Wrap Dip

16 ounces cream cheese, softened

12 ounces Buddig beef, chopped

16 ounces baby dill pickles, drained, diced

16 ounces Ritz crackers

Directions:

1. Combine softened cream cheese, chopped beef, and diced pickles; mix well.

2. Serve with Ritz crackers, chilled or up to room temperature.

3. Refrigerate leftovers.

I only used 1 package of beef and 3/4 jar of pickles. But could have easily used another 1/2 package of beef. I also added a little sour cream so it wasn't so thick.

For vegetable, Grandma Z's Corn Casserole. Made on every birthday and holiday in college. A Freddy Court/815 6th Street/125 Campus Ave Special. I actually still make my mom have it for holidays at home.

I would love to share the recipe, BUT unfortunately I cannot.

For potato I went with the Lahr family recipe for "Party Potatoes" (a lot of people laugh when I tell them they are party potatoes, but it's a staple for every graduation, Turkey Day, Christmas....)(ps. by Lahr Family recipe, I mean, back of the hash brown potato bag)

Party Potatoes aka Mr Dells Original Potato Casserole

Ingredients

10 cups shredded hash browns
1/4 cup + 2 T. butter or margarine
1 can cream of chicken soup
12-oz. sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup chopped green onions or normal onion
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
1 cup crushed corn flakes
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375° F. Melt 1/4 cup butter or margarine and pour into 9 x 13 inch baking dish, then add 5 cups of Mr. Dell’s Hash Browns. (No need to thaw.) In separate bowl, mix soup, sour cream, milk, and green onions, then pour 1/2 of this mixture over hash browns. Salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle one cup grated cheese on top. Add remainder of hash browns and pour remainder of mixture on top, salt and pepper. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top, then cover with crushed corn flakes. Drizzle two tablespoons melted butter or margarine over mixture and bake for 55 minutes.

The only problem with this recipe is the corn flakes. Who owns corn flakes? I did not buy an entire box of cornflakes to use only 1 cup. I was going to use Ritz crackers but, nobody's got time for that.

For meat I made Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken. It's a recipe I've had pinned for a long time and really wanted to try it. I went home on my lunch break to put everything together.

Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken

Ingredients

1 (3 lb.) bag frozen chicken breasts

1 (12 oz.) bottle Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Wings Sauce

1 (1 oz.) pkg. Ranch dip mix

Directions:

Put frozen chicken, wing sauce, and ranch dip mix into a crock pot. Cook on LOW for 6 to 7 hours.

Using two forks, shred chicken and return to crock pot. Cook on LOW for an additional hour.

Me shredding chicken for the first time.
Amber, do you have any cool tools to shred chicken with besides forks?
-Yeah he's called Jimmy

I made about 1 1/2 times the recipe to feed 7 of us. So I used double ranch and 1 1/4 bottles Buffalo sauce. I just bought rolls from the bakery, nothing to fancy but you could easily get some Hawaiian Sweet Rolls OR! make Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheeses. SO good. (Yup. Totally making those later this week)

For dessert I went with real simple, and made these Sunday night. I bought a box of No bake cheesecake, and instead of making the whole cheesecake, I made them into individual muffin tins. Super easy. Buy a box and you'll be able to figure it out.

(Actually the reason I make them this way, because it makes more. It SAYS it will make 12, but I got 14. And who doesn't want extra dessert?)("oh but Alyssa doesn't that make the rest of them smaller?" Uh no. Plus who even determines how big they're supposed to be?)