dang good restaurant-style salsa

2 cans diced tomatoes
3 green onions
1 Cup of cilantro (CLEANED and stems cut off)
1⁄2 jalapeño pepper, cleaned out with NO seeds
21⁄2 tsp minced garlic (or garlic cloves)
1 can green chilies, 4 oz
1 tsp sugar
11⁄2 tsp salt
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp lemon juice

*Put ingredients in blender in this order and blend until smooth.

Mom's Potato Salad

7 large new potatoes, boiled
5 hard-cooked eggs
4 green onions, diced (including green part)
2 stalks celery, diced
1 jar (2 ounces) pimientos
2 medium sweet pickles, diced
Paprika
Parsley
Dressing

The day before, cook potatoes and eggs. Cool and chop potatoes and 4 of the eggs into large bowl. Dice onions, celery, pickles and with pimientos add to potato-egg mixture; blend lightly but thoroughly.

Dressing

1 cup mayonnaise
1 T vinegar
1 T sweet pickle juice
1 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1 T prepared mustard
1/4 t celery seed

Mix together mayo, vinegar, pickle juice, salts, pepper, mustard and celery seed; toss lightly with potato mixture. Slice reserved hard-cooked egg to garnish salad with paprika and parsley, if desired. Chill overnight for best flavor.

Angela's Salad de Maison

Juice of 1 lemon
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
3/4 c. vegetable oil
1/4 lb. bacon, diced
2 heads romaine lettuce, torn in small pieces
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup coarsely grated Swiss cheese
2/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup croutons

 Make dressing. Combine lemon juice, salt and pepper. Beating continuously with a fork, slowly add vegetable oil in a stream. Let stand 3 hours. Sauté diced bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels. In a salad bowl, combine romaine lettuce, tomatoes, Swiss cheese, almonds and bacon. Toss with dressing, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Garnish with croutons. Yield: 8 servings.

Megan's Cream Cheese Pound Cake

1 1/2 cups butter
3 cups sugar
1 package cream cheese
6 eggs
3 cups cake flour
1 t. vanilla

 Cream butter, sugar and cream cheese together. Add eggs and flour, alternate and beat between each addition. Add vanilla. Bake in a buttered and floured bundt cake pan at 300 degrees for 1 hour and 45 minutes.

Kalleen Kidd's Chocolate Frosting

2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 T unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup milk
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted

1. Melt chocolate chips and set aside to cool, but still soft and stir-able.

2. In a small sauce pan, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa and milk; bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Boil 1-3 minutes or until thickened like thinned pudding. Remove pan from heat and strain mixture into a small bowl. Cool completely in the fridge or freezer.

3. Beat butter, add chocolate mixture, until fluffy, about a minute. Finally add melted chocolate and beat again until well combined and fluffy.

Kalleen Kidd's Delicious and Moist Chocolate Cake

1 package devil's food cake mix (Duncan Hines)
1 1/3 cup water
1/2 cup sour cream
2 large eggs
1/4 cup chocolate instant pudding powder

Mix all ingredients for 3 minutes on high. Bake at 325 until tests done.

Kalleen Kidd's Buttercream Frosting {chocolate or coconut frosting}

Mix 1 cup butter with 2 pounds of fresher powdered sugar, 2 tsp of vanilla and enough cream to get your desired consistency. The amount of cream varies by how soft your butter is. Add it very slowly.

*Milk can be used but cream whips and tastes better.
*Using a cup or two less powdered sugar can make a better tasting frosting.

*This can be made into coconut frosting by substituting coconut extract to taste in place of vanilla
*This can be made into chocolate frosting by omitting the vanilla, adding a bit less powdered sugar and adding cocoa to taste.