Need More Escape!

It is early Sunday morning. I have been reflecting on an amazing paper retreat last weekend. Thirty + women converge on Eden, Utah for a fabulous weekend of fun, food, paper and making new friends. The retreat was sponsored by Heartland Paper, where we work - or pay to work. Teresa and Pat (me!) organized and hosted this event. We put our heads together, found a beautiful site to hold our retreat in Eden, Utah up Ogden canyon. We had two condos and a clubhouse that was perfect. (But really, is there ever enough room when you are scrapbooking?) Lynn, my talent friend, came and headed up the food department. Yummy, yummy! There was a bit more of all of us as we left! Tya, another worker bee at Heartland, was on hand to help. It was so touching to see ladies who were attending alone make good friends. We had several groups of four scrappers and lots of pairs - mothers and daughters, sisters, good friends. But within hours, we were one big happy group of paper addicts! I am starting this blog to share all the bits and piece of paper stuff that floats around in my head. It will be rough in the start - kinda like our first scrapbook pages, but hopefully, it will grow and become refined! To start this blog, I want to post the tasty recipes that we had at the retreat. You ladies who attended have been asking - so here they are. Lasagn-ioli Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Serves 8 - 10 Frozen cheese ravioli – Costco Large bottle of Prego Spaghetti Sauce – Costco Carrots – shredded or julienne Pepper – orange, yellow and red (Costco) Garlic cloves – finely chopped Fresh spinach – several handfuls Mozzarella cheese shredded Saute the carrots in olive oil until done and add peppers and spinach. Saute until spinach is wilted. In a 9x13, spray the pan with cooking spray. Pour a bit of sauce on the bottom. Place a layer the frozen raviolis on the bottom. More sauce then veggies and cheese. Another layer of raviolis, veggies and cheese. Top with a layer of raviolis, sauce and cheese. Cover with foil. Place on a cookie sheet. Bake Lasagn-ioli for 15-20 minutes, remove foil and continue to bake 15-20 minutes longer or until Lasagn-ioli is hot and bubbly throughout. This recipe freezes well. Make in two small square foil pans. These will fit into a gallon size Ziploc baggie. Label and date bag, list number of servings on bag. Include baking instructions: "Remove pan from plastic bag, bake at 400 degrees for approximately 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until hot and bubbly throughout." Notes: This recipe is inspired by the Beef Council's Lazy Lasagna recipe found on their website www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com It is a cross between Lasagna and Ravioli; ready to savor today or frozen for up to 3 months and enjoyed later. Recipe makes two 8x8 pans (one 9x13 pan) serves 8-10. Cafe Rio Pork Salad 3 lbs pork roast 16 oz chunky salsa 1 can coke 2 cup brown sugar Place pork in crock pot + fill half way up the side of the pork with water. Cook on high for 4 hours. Drain water. Cut pork into thirds, then mix sauce [coke, brown sugar, + salsa] and pour on top. cook 4 more hours on low. shred pork. mix back in with sauce if you want it saucy or not. CAFE RIO SALAD DRESSING 1 1/3 cups sour cream 3/4 cup mayonnaise 1 bunch of cilantro 1 package ranch dressing mix 4 tbsp. salsa verde (green salsa) 2 cloves of garlic 1/8 tsp. Tabasco sauce juice of one lime Mix together in the blender. This is soo good. EZ Lime and Cilatro Rice (Lynn's version) 2 cups uncooked instant rice 2 cups chicken broth 2 cloves minced garlic 1/4 cup chopped cilantro 1/2 onion, chopped 1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp zest of lime 2 tbs lime juice 2 tsp sugar 2 tbs butter Saute onion, garlic + butter until the onion is soft. Add chicken broth and salt then bring to a boil. Stir in rice. Remove from heat and allow to sit 10 minutes or until rice is soft. Fluff the rice and add zest, lime juice and sugar and cilantro. Special Salsa Steak (Teresa - I think she said it is a Weight Watcher's recipe) Bring steaks to room temperature before preparing. Heat grill to high. 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp ground cumin ½ tsp cayenne pepper 1 lean boneless top sirloin steak – 1 inch thick Cooking spray ½ cup Pace Picante sauce with cilantro 1 c frozen whole kernel corn, thawed 1 c drained canned no-salt-added pinto beans ½ cup sliced green onions Combine first 3 ingredients in a small bowl; rub evenly over both sides of steak, pressing onto steak. Spray the top of the steak with cooking spray and place on hot grill – covered, for 4 – 6 minutes on each side. While steak grills, combine salsa corn and beans. Slice steak diagonally across the grain into ¼ inch thick slices. Top with salsa. Makes 4 servings. Teresa’s White Bean Chili 2 C. or 1 lb. large white beans 6 c. chicken broth 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 med. onions, chopped 1 T. oil 2 t. ground cumin 1 1/2 t. dried oregano 1/4 t. ground cloves 1/4 t. cayenne pepper 4 c. diced cooked chicken breast Soak beans covered in water, overnight. Drain beans when you are ready to start the chili. Combine beans, chicken broth, garlic and half the onions in a large soup pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 hours. Add more chicken broth if necessary. (I've never had to) In a skillet, saute remaining onions in oil until tender. Add seasonings and mix thoroughly. Add to bean mixture. Add chicken and continue to simmer 1 hour. Serve with toppings: grated jack cheese, tortilla chips, guacamole, sour cream and salsa. Serves about 8 people.