Grape Ice

1 1/3 cup sugar
4 cups grape juice
1/2 cup lemon juice
3 cups warm water
1 cup orange juice

Stir sugar and warm water together until sugar is dissolved. Add the other juices and freeze in a container with a lid. When frozen, chop with a fork. Freeze again until ready to serve. It is easier to chop ahead of time and have it ready.

Artichoke Bruschetta

-Nicole Bender

1 (6.5 oz.) jar marinated artichokes, drained and chopped
1/3 c. finely chopped red onion
1 French baguette, cut into 1/3" thick slices
1/2 c. grated Romano cheese
5 Tbsp. mayo

Preheat the broiler. In a medium bowl, mix the marinated artichoke hearts, Romano cheese, red onion, and mayo. Toast baguette to very light brown. Top french baguestte slices with equal amounts of the artichoke mixture. Arrange slices in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Broil in the preheated oven 2 minutes or until the toppings are bubbly and lightly browned.

Mom's Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

-Heather Jordan

1/2 C sugar
1/2 C brown sugar
1/3 C margarine or butter, softened
1/3 C shortening
1 egg
1 t vanilla
1 1/2 C flour
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/2 C nuts, optional
1 pkg (6 oz) semi sweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 375. Mix sugars, margarine, shortening, egg and vanilla. Stir in remaining ingredients. Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfulls about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake until light brown, 8-10 minutes. Cool slightly before removing from cookie sheet.

*can also add 1/3 C crushed peppermint candy with remaining ingredients.

Berries N Bits Pudding Trifle

-Sarah Hirschi

1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1 sm. Pkg. instant vanilla pudding

36 vanilla wafers

¾ cp. Mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 ½ cp. Cold water

2 cps. Cool whip

1 quart fresh strawberries sliced in half

Combine milk and water. Add pudding, beat well. Chill for 5 mins. Fold in cool whip. Spoon 2 cps. pudding mixture into a serving bowl or trifle bowl. Top with ½ of each remaining ingredients. Top with remaining pudding and repeat layers. Garnish with additional strawberries, choco. chips and wafers. Chill thoroughly.

Caramel Apple Trifle

-Sarah Hirschi

1 pkg. yellow cake mix

1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) instant vanilla pudding

1 jar (12-14 oz.) caramel ice cream topping

1 ½ cps. Chopped pecans, toasted

2 cps. Cold milk

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 large can apple pie filling

1 8 oz. cool whip, thawed

Toast pecans in frying pan. Prepare and bake cake according to package directions, using two greased round baking pans the size of your trifle bowl. Cool for 10 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely. In a large bowl whisk milk, pudding, and cinnamon for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft set. Put one cake layer in trifle bowl. Poke holes in cake with a long wooden skewer. Gradually pout 1/3 of the caramel topping over the cake. Sprinkle with ½ cup pecans and spread with half of the pudding mixture. Spoon half of pie filling over the pudding. Spread with ½ carton of whipped topping. Top with remaining cake and repeat layers. Drizzle with remaining caramel topping and sprinkle with remaining pecans. Refrigerate until serving.

Brownie Trifle

-Sarah Hirschi

1 19.8 oz. package brownie mix

1 12 oz. cool whip

1 cp. Chopped pecans (reserving ¼ cp. For garnish)

1 cp. Miniature chocolate chips

2 3.9 oz chocolate instant pudding

8 skor bars, coarsely crushed

Prepare brownie mix according to package directions in a 13x9 pan. Cool and crumble. Prepare pudding according to package directions, omitting chilling. Layer half of crumbled brownies in a 3 quart trifle bowl. Top with half of pudding, half of coarsely Brownie Trifle

crushed candy bars, nuts, chocolate chips and half of whipped topping. Repeat with remaining brownies, pudding and toppings. Cover and chill 8 hours or overnight. Garnish with remaining crushed candy bars.

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

-Sarah Hirschi

6 cups of water (I use 2 cans of chicken broth and 4 cups of water)
3 chicken breasts ( I use about 8 tenders)
1 tablespoon chicken bouillon or base (4 bouillon cubes for 4 cups of water in addition to the broth)
2 cups chopped celery
2 cups chopped carrots
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 cups dry egg noodles (I like the rottini noodles better for this recipe)
1/4 cup of flour (I used 1-2 tblsp. of cornstarch and water instead)
1/2 cup cold water.

Bring water (and broth) to a boil in large pot. Add chicken, bouillon or base and stir until dissolved. Cover and cook for 20 to 30 minutes until chicken is no longer pink in center. Remove chicken and cut into small pieces. Return to broth and add carrots, celery and onion. Cover and cook until tender. Add noodles and cook for 10 minutes or until noodles are tender. Mix cream of chicken soup, evaporated milk and spices together and slowly stir into broth mixture. Whisk flour (cornstarch) and water (I don’t use very much with the cornstarch. Just enough to make it wet.) together stirring until smooth. Stir flour mixture into soup and cook until thickened.