French Toast Bake

8 slices day-old French bread (1 inch thick)

5 eggs

2 1/2 cups milk

1 cup packed brown sugar, divided

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1 cup chopped pecans, optional

1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries, optional

Arrange bread in a greased 9x13 baking dish. In a bowl, combine the eggs, milk, 3/4 cup brown sugar, vanilla and nutmeg; pour over bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Sprinkle pecans over egg mixture. Combine butter and remaining sugar; drizzle over the top. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with blueberries. Bake 10 minutes longer or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Yields: 6 - 8 servings

Snicker Apple Salad

6 Granny Smith, Red Rome or Jonathan apples, cored & diced

6 Snicker candy bars, cubed

2 (3 oz.) pkg. instant vanilla pudding

2 cups milk

1 (12 oz.) Cool-Whip

Mix together pudding and milk; beat. Fold in Cool Whip. Add apples and cubed candy bars. Fold together. Chill at least 1 hour.

This can be cut in half to make a smaller salad.

Crunchy Onion Chicken

1 1/3 cup French-fried onions

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1 egg, beaten

Crush french-fried onions in plastic bag. Dip chicken into egg, then coat in onion crumbs. Bake 20 minutes at 400 degrees, until cooked through.

Variation - You can replace the fried onions with bread crumbs.

Instant Pistachio Salad

1 (20 oz.) can crushed pineapple, drained

1 (3 oz.) pkg. instant pistachio pudding mix

1 (8 oz.) container Cool-Whip

1/2 (10 oz.) pkg. miniature marshmallows

In a large bowl, combine the pineapple and dry pistachio pudding mix. Fold in thawed Cool-Whip and marshmallows until well mixed. Refrigerate until chilled and serve.

Orange Tapioca Salad

2 pkg. tapioca pudding

3 cups boiling water

1 (3 oz.) pkg. orange jello

1 can mandarin oranges

4 oz. Cool-Whip

Add pudding and jello to boiling water and cook until thick. Cool and add drained mandarin oranges. Fold Cool-Whip into tapioca mixture. Put in a serving bowl and refrigerate.

Crock-Pot Pizza

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef

1 (12 oz.) pkg. Kluski noodles

Pepperoni

1 (26 oz.) jar spaghetti sauce

4 cups cheese

Brown ground beef; drain and add spaghetti sauce. Boil Kluski noodles for 10 minutes or until tender; drain. Layer in crock-pot the noodles, meat mixture, pepperoni, and cheese. Repeat. Cook on low in crock-pot for 4 hours.

German Chocolate Bars

1 package German Chocolate cake mix

2/3 cup cold butter, cubed

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 can coconut-pecan frosting

1/4 cup milk

Place cake mix in a large bowl; cut in butter until crumbly. Press 2 1/2 cups into a greased 9x13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, immediately sprinkle with chocolate chips. Drop frosting by tablespoonfuls over the chips.

Stir milk into the remaining crumb mixture; drop by teaspoonfuls over top. Bake 25-30 minutes longer or until bubbly around the edges and top is cracked. Cool on a wire rack and refrigerate for 4 hours before cutting.