Oven Hot Dogs

Oven Hot Dogs
Inspiration: In the Wabe

Ingredients:
Hot dogs
Hot dog buns
Toppings (ketchup, mustard, mayo, relish, onions, etc)
Chili (I used Hormel canned chili)
Shredded cheese

Directions:
Line a 9x13-inch casserole dish with aluminum foil. (This step isn't necessary, but it does help with getting the hot dogs out later.)

Fill buns with toppings, such as ketchup, mayo, mustard, relish, whatever you like. Top with a hot dog. Line them up in your pan. You can fit 8 hot dogs in the buns, in your dish.

Top generously with chili, cheese and things like onions if you're using them. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Carefully remove from the pan and eat. If you lined the pan with aluminum foil, you may be able to lift it out of the pan and onto the counter to dish. If you didn't, be careful dishing out the first couple of hot dogs because they will be hot and it's really easy to drop one. Eat like a normal hot dog on a bun, or if too messy with a knife and fork. Either way it's very yummy!

Homemade Potato Chips

Homemade Potato Chips
Source: Allrecipes for inspiration

Ingredients:
1 potato (for a single serving)
Seasonings

Directions:
Cut potato into extremely thin slices. I used what I had on hand, and a suggestion of a tip on allrecipes, and sliced mine with my vegetable peeler. Since this was the method I was using, I peeled my potatoes and dispossed of the peel. I then "peeled" the rest of my potato into thin slices.

Line microwave tray with parchment paper. Spray lightly with cooking oil (just to keep from sticking). Spread out potato slices in a single layer without touching. You may spray lightly with cooking oil (I don't), and sprinkle with seasonings. I just use a little bit of sea salt.

Cook on high until chips are browning. They are done then. Well, at least that's when I think they taste the best. For my slicing method, and my microwave, it's about 5 to 7 minutes when mine are done. Keep in mind the more potatoes in there the longer it takes, therefore the less slices, the shorter the cooking time. Let cool for about a minute and dig in. They are heaven!

Smores on a Stick

Smores on a Stick
Source: Whimsicle Creations There are awesome pictures on her site of the Smores on a Stick

Ingredients:
Large marshmallows
Pretzel sticks or lollipop sticks
Chocolate almond bark (or candy melt)
Graham crackers, crushed (or sprinkles, get creative)

Directions:
Place on marshmallow on a lollipop stick or pretzel stick. Repeat for all marshmallows.

Melt the almond bark or candy melt in the microwave, be careful not to burn it.

Dip each marshmallow in the almond bark to coat and then roll it gently in the graham cracker crumbs, or whatever topping you chose to use.

Place it on a cookie sheet to let the almond bark set. Once set, put them away until ready to eat.

My daughter and I made these together as a treat for the Fourth of July. We used two bags of large marshmallows, one bag of pretzel rods (we didn't use the whole bag), one package of chocolate almond bark, and 1/2 a box of cinnamon graham crackers. It took us about an hour to make them all, but we had to keep heating up more almond bark and I didn't have a ceramic bowl/cup to keep the almond bark from cooling faster when I melted bigger batches of it.

Warning: They are yummy and addictive!!!

Slow-Cookin' Pulled Chicken

(Image taken by Hungry Girl)

Slow-Cookin' Pulled Chicken
Source: Hungry Girl

Ingredients:
1-1/2 lb. raw boneless skinless lean chicken breasts, halved
1 cup canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. brown sugar (not packed)
2 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. cider vinegar
2 tsp. garlic powder
Optional: red pepper flakes, to taste

Directions:
Place all ingredients except the chicken in the crock pot. Stir until mixed. Add chicken and coat well with the sauce.

Cover and cook on high for 3 - 4 hours OR on low for 7 - 8 hours, until chicken is fully cooked.

Remove all the chicken and place it in a bowl. Shred each piece using two forks -- one to hold the chicken in place and the other to scrape across the meat and shred it. Return the shredded chicken to the crock pot, and mix well with the sauce.

If you're serving a group, keep the crock pot on its lowest setting, so the chicken stays warm. If you like, season to taste with red pepper flakes. Eat up!

MAKES 7 SERVINGS

PER SERVING (1/2 cup): 149 calories, 1g fat, 462mg sodium, 10g carbs, <0.5g fiber, 9g sugars, 22.5g protein -- PointsPlus® value 3*

When I made this I doubled the recipe to make a huge batch (the single recipe should be plenty though). I didn't quite double everything exactly. I used a 15 oz. can of tomato sauce (double would have been 16 ounces, but I couldn't see opening another can for only an ounce of sauce) and I used a large package of boneless skinless chicken breasts that was about 4.5 pounds before I trimmed them. Everything else was doubled.

This make a very yummy shredded barbeque chicken. We ate it on hamburger buns. This is a sweet barbeque, but not overly sweet.

When cooking the chicken, it looks like you will have way too much liquid left over. I shredded the chicken and put it back in the crockpot to cook for another hour on low and then I turned the lid to the crockpot to let it dry out slightly for another 30 minutes while on low. This turned out perfectly and is definitely a keeper.