F O O D

Cranberry Nut Bread

2011-12-24T09:20:00.000-05:00

This is my absolute favorite nutbread! Kroger sells a sweetened cranberry relish in the deli section, it is made with whole cranberries, pineapple & walnuts. A few years ago I discovered I could use it instead of the fresh cranberries in my nutbread it was AMAZING! This recipe is for standard cranberry orange nutbread, but I will note the modifications I made in case anybody feels like experimenting.

Ingredients
2 cups flour
3/4 cups sugar (1/4 cup if using sweetened relish)
1 1/2 t baking powder
3/4 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 cup softened butter
1 T grated orange peel (omit if using sweetened relish)
3/4 cup orange juice (substitute water if using sweetened relish)
1 egg
1 cup fresh or frozen chopped cranberries (or 1 cup sweetened cranberry relish)
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans (omit if using relish that contains nuts)

Preheat the oven to 350. Spray two 8X4 loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray. In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda, stir in butter until crumbly. Add orange peel, orange juice and egg. Fold in cranberries and nuts. Fill loaf pans half full. Cook @ 350 for one hour or until wooden tooth pick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool in pans for 10 minutes before moving to a cooling rack. When it is completely cool, wrap nutbread in foil to store. This recipe also works great for mini loaves to give as gifts.

Banana Nut Bread

2011-12-24T09:16:00.000-05:00

Banana's are very popular in my house, but just about every time I buy a bunch the last 2 or 3 don't get eaten. They get "too ripe" & the kids won't touch them. So, into the freezer they go. Frozen bananas work well in any recipe calling for fresh banana. Mini loaves wrapped in foil are also perfect for gift giving. The recipe is a modified version from my Betty Crocker Cookbook. This will make 1 standard size loaf or about 3 mini loaves...foil pans are GREAT for baking mini loaves & can be reused over & over. When I'm making mini loaves for gifts, I double or triple the recipe depending on how many I need & put all the mini pans on a cookie sheet to make getting them into & out of the oven easier.
Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup softened butter
2 eggs
4 over ripe fresh or frozen bananas (thawed enough to smash easily if using frozen)
1/3 cup water
1 2/3 cups flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/4 t baking powder
1/2 cup nuts

Preheat oven to 350. Cream sugar & butter together in medium mixing bowl. Stir in eggs, then add mashed banana & water. Mix the dry ingredients (except nuts)in a separate bowl then slowly add to wet mix. Fold in nuts. Pour into greased loaf pan & bake until tooth pick inserted in middle comes out clean....approximately 1 hr for standard size loaf. If making mini loaves, fill greased loaf pans 2/3 full. Cooking time will be between 30 & 45 minutes depending on size of mini pan. Let them cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then on a wire rack until completely cool before cutting or wrapping in foil.

Snickerdoodles

2011-12-20T16:42:00.001-05:00

Many years ago when my oldest was in 3rd grade (he’s 24 now), his class made a cookbook. We’ve recently moved and that cookbook is one of the many things that resurfaced during the unpacking process. My youngest son LOVES snickerdoodles and when he saw this new recipe he couldn’t wait to try it.

Ingredients

3 3/4 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla

3 Tbs sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Lightly grease cookie sheet. In a small bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda and cream of tartar. In a larger bowl, beat butter 30 seconds. Add 2 cups sugar & beat until fluffy. Add eggs, milk and vanilla. Beat well. Add dry ingredients, beat well.

Refrigerate dough 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375. Form dough into 1 inch balls, roll in mixture of sugar and cinnamon. Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet and flatten slightly with bottom of a glass. Bake for 8 minutes or until light golden.

Tuesday Tag Along

2010-07-06T02:26:00.001-04:00

Tuesday Tag Along is a blog hop. Click the button to participate. I've found some great new blogs to follow from this meme.

If you are following my blog, please leave a comment with your url so that I can follow your blog too.

Menu Plan Monday—July 5th

2010-07-05T01:23:00.001-04:00

Last week I did ok the first few days, then my menu seemed to go right out the window. Next Monday I am going back to work full time outside the house for the first time in almost 12 years. Time is up and I now REALLY need to get serious about meal planning.

Monday…Homemade Chicken Strips (didn’t have these last week as planned)

Tuesday…Italian Sausage & Pepperoni Calzones

Wednesday…Sub Sandwiches and Fruit Salad

Thursday…Cowboy Beans

Friday…Grilled steaks w/corn on the cob

Saturday…Hot dogs, fries and baked beans

Sunday…Spaghetti and Meatballs

Friday Follow Me and I’ll Follow you Back

2010-07-01T22:45:00.001-04:00

Friday is a popular day to find new blogs to follow....this week I am participating in all these events. Click the buttons to sign up. If you are following my blog, leave me a comment with your URL and I will follow you back.

Menu Plan Monday

2010-06-28T06:40:00.000-04:00

It has been MONTHS since I’ve done this on my blog. I belong to a message board for families with lots of kids and I usually try to post a weekly plan there. Sometimes I stick to it and sometimes it goes right out the window. I’m hoping by getting back into regular posting here, I will get better at true meal planning.
This week we don’t have a lot of options, most of what is in the freezer is chicken, so my challenge is to cook chicken in different ways that my family will eat without all of us getting completely burned out on chicken in general.
Monday…Easy Burritos with homemade tortillas
Tuesday…Chicken and Rice Stir Fry
Wednesday…Spaghetti with Italian sausage
Thursday…baked chicken and baked potato
Friday…Cheese Enchiladas (looking for a recipe for homemade corn tortillas)
Saturday…homemade chicken strips
Sunday…Chicken Parmesan

We will all be home during the day too, so I've got some tentative ideas for lunches, but no particular day planned for them. On the other days we will eat leftovers or we may even resort to peanut butter and jelly.

SOS
Red Beans and Rice w/Cajun sausage
leftover Penne pasta casserole from last week
Cheesy Sausage and potatoe casserole

New look and a bunch of new posts

2010-06-27T18:55:00.000-04:00

It has been a while since I've actively worked on this blog. I refer to it constantly for recipes I've recorded here, and had been storing things with the intention of taking pictures the next time I made them to post them. Today, I went through and finished up several old entries and posted (without pictures, mostly). I didn't date them all today, but anything new for this month was actually completed today.

I also went into the new blogger Template Designer and gave this blog a little make over. It has always bugged me that the text portion was so skinny, I LOVE being able to make it wider without losing the sidebar. I may still make a few tweeks, but for now I'm happy with it.

I've been using Windows Live Writer to work on my main blog and I'm really enjoying it....so much so that I'm planning to add this blog to it so that I can create blog posts for this blog too.

I'm hoping to get back into the habit of participating in Menu Plan Monday and some of the other weekly food carnivals and I'm looking for food related blogs to add to my blog roll. I've discovered a few new ones recently that I will be adding soon and I'll also be on the look out for more.

Easy Burritos

2010-06-27T07:24:00.001-04:00

Burritos are a staple in our house. If my kids had to choose only one food to eat for days on end, burritos would be their choice. It is one of the only things that all SIX of my kids LOVE.

Ingredients
2 lbs ground beef
1 packet taco seasoninglarge can of refried beans
flour tortillas
shredded cheddar cheese
salsa (optional)

Brown the ground beef. Pour ground beef into a metal collander. Let it sit for at least 5 minutes to fully drain off as much grease as possible. (ground beef can also be rinsed with HOT water to remove even more grease). Transfer ground beef back into frying pan. Add taco seasoning and water according to package directions.

Heat refried beans in a large sauce pan. When beans are HOT and water has cooked out of ground beef, mix the the beans and the ground beef together.

Wrap flour tortillas in a clean dish towel and microwave on high power for 45 seconds. (I usually heat about 10 at a time, heat for less time for fewer tortillas)

Place tortilla on a plate. Add filling and sprinkle with shredded cheese, add salsa if desired. fold both sides in, then start at one edge and roll up.

Burrito mix can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week and is easy to reheat in the microwave. My 12 yr old and 10 yr old will eat this for lunch daily during the Summer and they can fix it for themselves.

Strawberry Bread

2010-06-26T12:08:00.000-04:00

I book marked this recipe quite a while ago and keep forgetting to post it. Strawberries are one of our favorite fruits, so we had to give this a try.

STRAWBERRY BREAD
Ingredients

3 cups Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Cinnamon
2 cups Sugar
1 tsp Salt
2 pints chopped Strawberries

1 1/4 cup Cooking Oil
4 Eggs (well beaten)
1 tsp Red Food Coloring

~ Mix all dry ingredients together.

~ Make a hole in the center of the mixture. Pour strawberries, oil and eggs into the hole.
~ Mix until all ingredients are thoroughly combined.

~ Pour into 2 small greased and floured 9 x 5 x 2 in loaf pans

~Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour

The original recipe also has a yummy cream cheese spread to turn this into tea sandwiches, put my picky eaters don't eat cream cheese

Cooking with dried Ancho peppers & Dried New Mexico peppers

2010-06-22T15:58:00.000-04:00

Over the years, I've looked at the big bags of dried peppers for sale in the Mexican food section of the grocery store, but I've always stuck to prepared enchilada sauce for making my favorite Mexican dishes. Hubbycame across a recipe for a pork dish that called for dried New Mexico chili last Fall....we bought a large bag for that recipe and while it didn't turn out very well, I soon found a use for all the left over peppers.

I was making lots and lots of tamales last December. I was using 2 large cans of enchilada sauce for about 6 dozen tamales. Instead I decided to try using the dried peppers. I first removed the stems and seeds and rinsed the peppers in cold water, then I added about 6 of them to the meat cooking in the crockpot.

When the meat was done, I fished out the cooked peppers and put them in the blender. I pureed them and then added some of the meat broth. I was surprised at how much this looked and tasted like enchilada sauce. It wasn't quite spicy enough for Hubby, but the kids thought it was GREAT. Since I usually end up making two separate pans when I make most Mexican dishes anyway, I just add a bit of extra HEAT to the pan for Hubby and I.

SOS....otherwise known as creamed chipped beef

2010-06-21T15:01:00.002-04:00

If you've ever been in the military you probably know this as Sh*t on a Shingle....or SOS. Hubby and I were both in the Army Reserve and anytime I ate breakfast on a military base it was my first choice. The military wasn't the first place I had ever had it though....when I was a kid my Mom would sometimes make it for dinner. I was actually pretty surprised to see it served for breakfast when I was in basic training.

Ingredients:
Dried beef
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour
3 cups milk
toast

The first step is to melt the butter in a frying pan, then tear up the dried beef into small pieces. The beef is very salty, my Mom always rinses it before tearing it up, but my husband actually prefers it salty so I don't always rinse it.

Brown the beef in the butter for 10 to 15 minutes, the edges should curl and look slightly crispy. Then add flour to the pan and stir it around to absorb the butter from the pan.

Add the milk and bring to a light boil. Stir gently to keep it from sticking to the pan.
Serve over toast or if you prefer, biscuits. Hubby actually prefers it over white rice. Salt and pepper to taste.

Red Velvet Cake from scratch

2010-06-09T19:09:00.000-04:00

This is the cake I made for my son Mason on his 20th birthday. He asked for a Red Velvet Cake, so I went looking for a recipe. I found this one on Joy of Baking.com and since I had all the ingredients (mostly), I decided to give it a try. Clicking on the title above will take you directly to the original recipe.

Red Velvet Cake:

2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour (substitute 2T of cornstarch per cup of all purpose flour)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk (add 1 Tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice to 1 cup milk)

2 tablespoons liquid red food coloring

1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar

1 teaspoon baking soda

Red Velvet Cake: Preheat oven to 350 Butter two - 9 inch (23 cm) round cake pans and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl sift together the flour, salt, and cocoa powder. Set aside.

In bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until soft (about 1-2 minutes). Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.

In a measuring cup whisk the buttermilk with the red food coloring. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter mixture, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour.

In a small cup combine the vinegar and baking soda. Allow the mixture to fizz and then quickly fold into the cake batter.

Working quickly, divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans and smooth the tops with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 25 - 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Place a wire rack on top of the cake pan and invert, lifting off the pan. Once the cakes have completely cooled, wrap in plastic and place the cake layers in the freezer for at least an hour. (This is done to make filling and frosting the cakes easier.)

I did not have cake pans, so I baked it in a 13X9 glass baking dish. I only had 1 Tablespoon of red food coloring, since the coloring is for appearances only, I just made it with what I had. This is a very dense, but extremely tasty chocolate cake!

Potato Soup

2010-01-08T21:21:00.003-05:00

This is one of those recipes, that I have never actually seen in written form. My Mom has made this ever since I can remember. I especially like this because you can make as little or as much as you want.

Basic Recipe (I'll talk about options later)

6 potatoes (peeled & diced)
1/2 onion (diced really small)
1 stalk celery (diced really small)
1/2 lb bacon (fried & crumbled)
1 cup milk (canned milk works too)
1 can whole kernel corn (drained)

Boil the diced potatoes in a sauce pan until tender with just enough water to cover them (about 20 minutes). At the same time, fry the bacon in a small frying pan. As soon as the bacon is done, fry the onion & celery in the bacon grease. Let the bacon cool a few minutes, then crumble it. When the potatoes are done, do not drain the water. Add the crumbled bacon, fried onion & fried celery to the potatoes. Add the can of corn and the cup of milk. Stir well. Add more milk if everything doesn't float freely.

Options: I have made this with as little as 2 potatoes, a strip of bacon & some left over corn....adjusting the onion, celery & milk in proportion. I've also doubled or tripled the basic ingredients to feed a crowd. Potato soup is fabulous with biscuits!!!

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

2009-12-19T12:51:00.005-05:00

This was my Father in Laws favorite cake. He requested it for his birthday every year. He died in February of 1989, but I'm sure if he were here he would LOVE this cake. Today is his birthday, so the kids & I made this cake in memory of him.

ingredients
	11/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled) 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus 3 tablespoons (cut into small pieces) for preparing the top 1 cup sugar, plus 2/3 cup for preparing the top 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 cup milk 7 thin rounds cored pineapple

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
With an electric mixer, cream 6 tablespoons butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until combined. Add flour mixture in three additions alternately with the milk in two, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix just until combined.
In a 10-inch cast-iron (or ovenproof nonstick) skillet, pour the remaining 2/3 cup sugar into skillet, and place over medium heat.
Let sugar begin to liquefy, then stir with a wooden spoon until sugar is fully melted and golden, 2 to 3 minutes. The sugar may smoke, but if it browns too quickly, remove pan from heat briefly before continuing.
Remove pan from heat; add 3 tablespoons butter (cut into small pieces), stirring to incorporate. The butter will help cool the caramel and stop it from darkening; it also thins out the caramel to make a syrupy sauce.
Begin by placing one pineapple round in the center of the pan. Arrange the remaining rounds in a circle around center slice, overlapping slightly if necessary to fit.
Carefully spoon batter over pineapples in skillet. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Let cake cool in pan 5 minutes. Run a knife around edge of cake, then carefully invert onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Cranberry Nut Bread

2009-12-09T14:24:00.005-05:00

This is my absolute favorite nutbread! Last year I discovered a sweetened cranberry relish in the deli section of the local grocery store. It has whole cranberries, pineapple & walnuts. It was too sweet to eat as a side dish, but when used instead of the fresh cranberries in my nutbread it was AMAZING!

Ingredients
2 cups flour
1/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 t baking powder
3/4 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 cup softened butter
3/4 cup water
1 egg
1 cup sweetened cranberry relish

Preheat the oven to 350. Spray two 8X4 loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray. In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda, stir in butter until crumbly. Add water and egg. Fold in cranberry relish. Fill loaf pans half full.

Cook @ 350 for one hour or until wooden tooth pick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool in pans for 10 minutes before moving to a cooling rack. When it is completely cool, wrap nutbread in foil to store. This recipe also works great for mini loaves to give as gifts.

FUDGE

2009-12-08T22:50:00.003-05:00

One of my favorite Christmas treats is homemade Fudge. I've made the kind with marshmallows or marshmallow cream in the past, but this type with condensed milk is my absolute favorite. I've tweaked this recipe a little bit. It originally called for 3 cups of semi sweet chips, but the package I usually buy is only 12 oz. Instead of opening two bags of semi sweet, I used one bag of semi-sweet & 1/2 a bag of milk chocolate. This recipe can also be made in a double boiler on the stove top, but I find using the microwave to be much faster & easier.

2 cups (12 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup (6 oz) milk chocolate chips
1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk
(I used store brand condensed milk & it came out fine)
Dash salt
1/2 to 1 cups chopped nuts (optional)(I leave out the nuts)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

LINE 8- or 9-inch square pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan.

MICROWAVE METHOD
COMBINE chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt in 1-quart glass bowl. Cook on HIGH (100% power) 3 minutes or until chips are melted, stirring after 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients.
Spread evenly into prepared pan.
CHILL 2 hours or until firm. Remove from pan by lifting edges of foil. Cut into squares.

Flour Tortillas

2009-11-27T16:47:00.002-05:00

My friend Kim posted this link to a flour tortilla recipe. I've been wanting to try making my own flour tortillas for a while. We eat at least 4 dozen flour tortillas a week, probably more.

3 cups unbleached flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
4-6 Tbsp. vegetable shortening or lard
about 1 1/4 cups warm water

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Add vegetable shortening or lard. Or use a combination of half lard, half shortening.
Use a fork or a pastry cutter to cut in the shortening or just do it the old fashioned way and use your hands.

Next add warm water a little at a time until your dough is soft and not sticky. You do not need very hot water.

Knead the dough for a few minutes.

Now you will pull off pieces of dough to form about 12 small dough balls. Let them
rest for at least 10 minutes, longer if you like.
Now you can roll out the dough It is a good idea to dust each ball with a little flour just before you roll them out. roll up, center and roll down. It is good to lift the dough and turn it. Again, rolling pin in the center and roll. Roll them out fairly thin.
Lay your tortilla on the hot pan. It takes just a few seconds to cook. Flip to the other side. When they are done it should have lots of nice brown speckles. Place them in a towel. They are ready to be served!

Sweet & Sour Greenbeans

2009-11-26T12:22:00.005-05:00

This is a family recipe. I think it may be Pennsylvania Dutch.

Ingredients
4 cans French Cut Green Beans
1/2 lb bacon cooked and crumbled
1/4 cup Sugar
1/2 cup white or apple cider vinegar

cook 4 cans french cut green beans in the juice from the cans, add 1/2 lb crumbled cooked bacon, add 1 T bacon grease, sugar and vinegar....increase sugar or vinegar to taste to create sweet and sour flavor. Refrigerate in serving dish until just before dinner, reheat in microwave.

This will feed 15 to 20 people, it can be halved or doubled depending on how many servings are needed.

Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage, Apples & Cranberries

2009-11-26T02:50:00.004-05:00

I have always LOVED cornbread stuffing, but until recently I didn't know how to make it. I've tried several recipes, but this year decided to develop one of my own.

Ingredients

Directions

Soak cranberries & apples in cider for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Cook sausage in a skillet, stirring frequently and crumbling the meat with a spoon, until it is well browned and no longer pink. Add sausage to the stuffing bowl and stir everything together. Add apples, cranberries with their liquid. Mix thoroughly. In a small saucepan, melt stick of butter. Add 3 cups water and stir. Pour this liquid into the stuffing mixture and combine thoroughly.

Store in the refrigerator for up to two days before cooking, or freeze up to a month in advance. I don't like to stuff my turkey. I bake the stuffing at 350, in a covered casserole dish, for 40 minutes. If you like your stuffing browned, cook it uncovered.

Doctored Macaroni & Cheese

2009-11-22T14:56:00.007-05:00

We eat a LOT of Kraft macaroni & cheese....well, the kids do, Hubby won't touch it. Recently Morgan & I have been experimenting with adding things to make it more like baked macaroni & cheese. Today, we added extra cheddar cheese, then put it in a baking dish added Italian bread crumbs & baked it to a golden brown. It is FABULOUS....even better than the baked mac & cheese we were trying to imitate. It's so good we are considering adding it to our Thanksgiving menu.

2 boxes Kraft Mac & Cheese prepared according to package directions.
Stir in 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Add enough milk to make creamy (1/4 to 1/2 cup depending on how creamy you want it)
pour into baking dish
sprinkle with bread crumbs (Progresso Italian bread crumbs are DELICIOUS)

Bake at 400 approximately 15 minutes or until golden brown & bubbly.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies--Hubby's Favorite

2009-10-19T16:43:00.001-04:00

I don't make these as often as Hubby would like, but now that the weather has suddenly turned very cold I'm in a baking mood. I start with the Quaker Oatmeal Vanishing Oatmeal cookies recipe and make a few modifications. Today, I did use butter, but I often substitute shortening. I am using 1 1/2 cups of Old Fashioned Kroger brand oats & 1 1/2 cups of Thick & Rough grain milled oats to make the 3 cups of Oats. I always add the salt even though it is optional & about twice as much cinnamon as the recipe calls for.

Ingredients

1/2 cup (1 stick) plus 6 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
3 cups Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
1 cup raisins

Preparation

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Peanut Butter Cookies

2009-10-19T15:06:00.000-04:00

I'm sure that there a LOT of different peanut butter cookie recipes out there. Skippy peanut butter is my favorite brand and their recipe is my favorite for peanut butter cookies. I do make a few modifications. First, I use whatever brand of peanut butter is on sale or cheapest...this time we used Peter Pan. I've also used Jif. The second modification I make is using shortening instead of the margarine that the recipe calls for. I don't ever buy margarine & shortening works fine as a substitute.

This is a GREAT recipe to for my Tween kids to mostly make on their own. I check to make sure they put in the right ingredients & don't forget anything. I put the cookie sheet in the oven & take it out...they can do the rest. Even the 2 & 4 yr old can help making the dough into balls & flattening them with a fork on the cookie sheet.

Ingredients

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup Skippy ® Creamy or Super Chunk ® Peanut Butter
1 cup Imperial® Spread, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions

1.	Preheat oven to 350°. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in small bowl; set aside.
2.	Beat Skippy® Creamy Peanut Butter with Spread in large bowl with electric mixer until smooth. Beat in sugars, then eggs and vanilla until blended. Beat in flour mixture just until blended. (If necessary, refrigerate dough until easy to handle.)
3.	Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Arrange balls on ungreased baking sheets 2 inches apart. Gently flatten each cookie and press crisscross pattern into tops with fork dipped in sugar.
4.	Bake 12 minutes or until lightly golden. Cool completely on wire rack. Store in tightly covered container.

Apple Strudel Muffins

2009-10-04T18:21:00.007-04:00

I've had two apples sitting on my counter for a couple weeks. I've been wanting to bake, but the weather wasn't cooperating, then we go SICK. Today, we still aren't feeling great, but the weather is cool & brisk & I'm in the mood for something fresh baked. I searched on All Recipes & found an Apple Strudel Muffin recipe.

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped apples (I peeled, cored & diced 2 apples)
(I added 2 T sugar & 1 t cinnamon to the apples)
Topping:
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin pan.
In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl, beat together butter, sugar and eggs until smooth. Mix in vanilla. Stir in apples, and gradually blend in the flour mixture. Spoon the mixture into the prepared muffin pan.
In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture is like coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over tops of mixture in muffin pan.
Bake 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Allow to sit 5 minutes before removing muffins from pan. Cool on a wire rack.

This yielded 18 regular size muffins....I think 2 apples is more than 1 1/2 cups, but I didn't measure.

This was Melanie's reaction.....

The Purple Lunchbox....a new weekly Carnival!!

2009-08-21T13:31:00.002-04:00

Anelys from Blooming Buds has started a new weekly food carnival. My older kids usually eat hot lunch at school, but I thought this would be a great way to get me motivated to do some FUN things with the little ones lunches at home. This is the first week of the carnival & I'm am not very prepared. Anelys took pictures each day of what she put in her daughter's lunchbox. I'm hoping to do that next week, but for this week I'm just trying for a recap of what Marissa (4) & Melanie (2) had each day.

Monday: Cheese Quesadilla, watermelon cubes (both LOVED it!)

Tuesday: Eggs & Bacon at Gramma's house

Wednesday: Whole wheat crackers w/ hummus, blueberries & strawberries (Melanie LOVED it all, Marissa didn't eat the hummus)

Thursday: Salami & Cheese, crackers, banana (an all time favorite lunch)

Friday: Leftover hamburger & rice, grapes, watermelon cubes (both ate well)

I really haven't put much thought into lunch before, I think I need to work on getting more vegetables into our lunch menu. I've got lots of saved e-mails with recipes for FUN meals to make for kids, I'll be searching them over the weekend to find some fresh ideas.

Cherry Tarts from Fresh Bing Cherries

2009-07-21T15:17:00.015-04:00

Hubby was having a potluck at work today. He wanted me to bake bread, instead he decided to try making cherry tarts from fresh Bing cherries. I have NEVER made a cherry pie filling before, this is the one type of filling that we always buy in a can from the grocery store. In principal I knew how it should be done & so we experimented.

Ingredients
4 pounds fresh cherries
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice
2T corn starch mix in 1/4 cup cold water

Bing cherries are $1.99 a pound right now at our local Kroger, we bought about 4 lbs of fresh cherries. Hubby, Morgan & Maggie cut the cherries in half & pitted them. Then we put about 3 cups of chopped cherries into a double boiler saucepan on the stove. We added 1/2 cup water, 2 cups sugar & 1/4 cup lemon juice. We brought the mixture to a boil & cooked it down until the cherry meat separated from the skins. We skimmed out the skins & continued to cook the cherries. We smashed up the pulp. The cherry mash wouldn't come to a rolling boil in the double boiler, so we transferred it into a medium size Pyrex bowl. We put it in the microwave & cooked it in 3 minute increments until it boiled, then we added the corn starch mixture. We boiled it again until it was almost ready to overflow from the bowl, stirred it & then boiled it again. We let it sit to cool for about half an hour, then mixed it into the rest of the pitted cherries.

Pie Crust
2 cups Flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup Crisco butter flavored shortening
5 to 10 tablespoons ice cold water

We made a double batch of my pie crust & pressed ping pong ball size balls of crust into our silicon muffin pan. This is the first time I've really use the silicon pan & it worked GREAT!! We have a new tool we bought from Pampered Chef that works great for spreading the crust evenly.

Fill the tart crusts about 2/3 full with the cherry mixture & bake @400 for 20 minutes or until crust is golden. It's a good idea to have a cookie sheet or foil under the muffin pan to catch any drips. Remove from oven & let cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes. I had to use a butter knife to gently loosen up the tart before popping it out of the pan. The more cool they are, the easier it is to get them out of the pan without having them fall apart.

This filling had wonderful flavor & was enough for 3 dozen tarts with enough filling left over for an 8 inch pie.

For more Tempt my Tummy Tuesday visit Blessed with Grace.

Well, that didn't work out so well

2009-07-12T14:03:00.003-04:00

Last week was the first time in a long while I had planned a menu. When I planned, I thought all the kids would be home all week & I hadn't finished all my grocery shopping.

So here is what we actually ate:

Monday...hot dogs on the grill w/chips & fresh strawberries
Tuesday...BBQ Beef Ribs
Wednesday....Chicken breasts
Thursday...Pulled BBQ pork
Friday...Tacos
Saturday...Hamburger & Rice

I'm thinking about making steaks on the grill tonight. I got some pretty good deals on meat last week & my freezer is currently almost overflowing. I'll be doing a lot of cooking this coming week. Maybe I'll even manage to post some new foods here, it's been FOREVER.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-07-06T10:30:00.002-04:00

It's been FOREVER since I've written down a plan for our weekly menu. The kids have been out of school for 6 weeks & we've been winging it every night....it was FUN, but sometimes makes for a really hectic night, so here I am, planning again. I'm trying to buy & eat as much fresh produce as possible. This is easier said than done here in Tennessee...it is a very green place but very little food seems to be grown here. We were spoiled living in the California Central Valley. It just seems so wrong to be eating fruits & veggies grown in South America in the middle of Summer.

Monday...Hot Dogs, corn on the cob, watermelon & chips (on the grill if the weather cooperates)
Tuesday...hamburgers, corn on the cob, fruit salad (grill again if the weather cooperates)
Wednesday...spaghetti & meatballs (one of the kids keeps asking for it)
Thursday...Grilled chicken, baked beans & salad
Friday...Tacos w/refried beans
Saturday...Smoked sausage & Fried potatoes & Fruit
Sunday...Chicken stir-fry w/LOTS of veggies

Tamale Pie...Tasty Tuesday

2009-04-28T22:46:00.005-04:00

This is another of those things I make without a REAL recipe.

Ingredients
2lbs ground beef
2 packets taco seasoning
small can chopped olives
small can chopped Ortega chilies
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (optional)
2 small boxes of cornbread muffin mix

Fry the ground beef, drain & add taco seasoning according to package directions

After the water has cooked out, add olives & chilies

Pour meat into a large casserole dish

Add cheese over meat if desired (my family likes cheese on EVERYTHING)

Prepare cornbread mix and pour over top to form a crust. ( Homemade cornbread can be substituted, you need enough for a standard 8x8 pan of cornbread)

Bake at 400 until cornbread top is golden brown. Allow to cool for a few minutes then slice into squares to serve. (pictures coming soon)

Visit Balancing Beauty & Bedlam to see more Tasty Tuesday...she's got Mexican Freezer meals this week, YUM!!!

I received a Splash Award!!!

2009-04-27T16:10:00.001-04:00

I'm so excited, this is my first Blog Award on this blog!!!! Annette at Fairy Blog Mother gave me the Splash Award. Which means she finds my blog alluring, amusing, bewitching, impressive, and inspiring!

I need to pass this along to 9 others...which is so incredibly hard to choose because there are SO many great blogs out there. Here are a few of my favorite blogs in no particular order:

Tammy's Recipes - Everyday Cooking Inspiration
Dadsdish.com
Joy The Baker
The Money Jar
Moms By Heart
The A to Z Twins
Christie's Thoughts
Molly's Country Memories Home Place
Crazy Adventures in Parenting

Braided Pizza Bread--Calzones

2009-04-21T22:00:00.002-04:00

I saw this recipe the other day and had several ideas!! My youngest son wanted calzones this week, so I decided to start with a pizza like version.

Ingredients
2 loaves frozen bread dough (thawed) or you can make your own from this crust recipe
1 can spaghetti sauce
1 can tomato paste
1 stick butter (softened)
garlic
oregano
basil
pepperoni
shredded mozzarella cheese

Heat spaghetti sauce in a saucepan, add tomato paste, 2 T garlic, 1 T oregano & 1 T basil, stir until well combined.

Roll bread dough out into a rectangular shape so its approx. 1/2 inch thick. Combine butter with 2 Tablespoons garlic. Spread thin layer on the rectangle.

Spread 1/3 cup sauce down the center of rectangle.
Add layer of pepperoni down center
Cover pepperoni with a layer of shredded mozzarella cheese

Use a pizza cutter to cut strips along each side of the dough (even numbers on each side). Starting at the bottom, take each piece, cross and twist.
Continue cris-crossing until your pizza is braided.
Brush remaining butter/garlic mixture over top.

Cover with foil to prevent burning crust
Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes
Remove foil after 15 minutes of cooking

Allow to cool 10 minutes before slicing to serve.
One loaf feeds 4 adults easily.

The original recipe gives instructions for preparing this as a freezer meal.

Meat Pies...Tasty Tuesday

2009-04-21T09:05:00.002-04:00

My Hubby has been talking about meat pies for YEARS. The idea has always appealed to him & he has wanted me to make them. The problem has always been that I wasn't really sure what to put in them. Last Fall, I finally got around to trying it and they are now a family favorite. My first attempts were made with left over beef stew. The stew gravy made them too wet and they were hard to pick up. Next we came up with a stew like filling, but with almost no gravy.....it worked GREAT!

I'm making these this week because my youngest son requested them for his Birthday week menu. At his request I will be leaving out the peas & the green beans, he is not much of a vegetable fan.

Filling (enough for at least 12 pies, freeze leftover filling)
1 lb stew meat (or left over roast beef)
4 peeled and diced potatoes
1 cup frozen carrots (chopped into small pieces)
1 cup frozen peas
1 can green beans (drained)
1 cup cheap red wine
1 bay leaf
1 t salt
2 t pepper
1 T oil
1 T minced garlic (I like the kind in the jar)
1 stalk celery chopped
1 cup water

This can be made in the crockpot or any large pot on the stove. Chop the meat into small pieces (1 inch by 1 inch or less), season with salt & pepper. If the meat is uncooked, brown in a skillet before adding to pot. Add the meat, vegetables, bay leaf and wine to pot. In a skillet, cook the garlic and celery in oil until tender. When garlic and celery are tender, add water to skillet and then pour mixture into pot. Cover with tight fitting lid and cook on low heat until potatoes are fork tender.

Crust (make 2 batches for 12 pies)
2 cups Flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup Crisco butter flavored shortening
5 to 10 tablespoons ice cold water

Remove the filling from the stove & refrigerate for at least an hour. Divide the crust into 6 sections. Roll out each section individually into a saucer size circle. Rolling on a piece of wax paper or a silicone mat is highly recommended. Add about two tablespoons of filling to the center of the crust, fold over and crimp the edge along the open portion.

Poke a few vent holes in the top with a fork to let out steam. Place on a cookie sheet then do the next one. When the cookie sheet is full put it in the oven at 400 for about 30 minutes or until the crust is golden.
They heat up well for a quick snack or lunch, they can also be eaten cold. If making more than your family will eat in 2 to 3 days, freeze before baking, then bake from frozen, allowing 10 to 15 extra minutes for cooking. These freeze best if you put them on a cookie sheet until hard, then put in freezer bags or wrap tightly in freezer paper.

To see more Tasty Tuesday visit Balancing Beauty and Bedlam

Homemade Chicken Strips...Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

2009-04-21T00:00:00.001-04:00

My son Morgan will be 11 on Wednesday. Chicken strips have been one of his absolute favorite foods since he was a toddler. Anytime we take him out to dinner, we don't even have to ask what he would like....he always orders chicken strips, everywhere we go. We don't eat out very often anymore, so I've started making our own chicken strips at home. This is another of those no real recipe foods, but here goes.

Ingredients
2 lbs boneless chicken (breast or thigh both work fine)
2 cups toasted bread crumbs
1 cup flour
2 eggs
pepper
salt
lemon pepper
garlic
oil for frying

Slice the chicken into strips. Cut into smaller pieces if your family prefers nuggets
Dredge the chicken in beaten egg
Mix the bread crumbs, flour & seasonings together in a pie pan, then dredge the chicken in the flour mixture. I like to put a LOT of seasoning in the flour. Being able to see the pepper is a good sign that you've got enough in there.
Heat oil in a large skillet. The oil should be at least 2 inches deep. Drop a small piece of bread into the oil, if it immediately starts to sizzle & fry, the oil is hot enough. Add the coated chicken pieces being careful not to let them touch in the pan.

When the first side is golden brown, flip them over to cook on the other side. Usually takes about 5 to 7 minutes on each side.

When they are golden on both sides remove from pan & place on a dish with paper towels or coffee filters to allow the grease to drain. Serve with your favorite dips & sides.

Visit Blessed with Grace to see more Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

Land O'Lakes chocolate chip cookies

2009-04-20T22:04:00.000-04:00

I saw this recipe on Frugal Girls. She is also currently hosting a giveaway to win 2 lbs of Land O'Lakes butter.

Chewy Jumbo Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups Land O Lakes Butter, softened
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
2 Land O Lakes All-Natural Farm-Fresh Eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla1
(12-ounce) package(2 cups), semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions:
Heat oven to 375 F. Combine flour, baking powder and baking soda in medium bowl; set aside. Combine butter, sugar and brown sugar in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla. Continue beating, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. Reduce speed to low. Beat, gradually adding flour mixture, until well mixed. Stir in chocolate chunks. Drop dough by 1/4 cupfuls, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 14 minutes or until light golden brown. (Do not over bake.) Let stand 1 minute on cookie sheet; remove to cooling rack.

The kids & I had planned to make Toll House Chocolate Chip cookies together on Friday afternoon for Family Fun Friday. Instead we made these. I like to use real butter (generic, unless Land O'Lakes is on major sale). I bought the store brand of genuine chocolate chips (imitation aren't good). These were the best chocolate chip cookies we've had in a very long time.

Menu Plan Monday...a loose plan for this week

2009-04-20T08:22:00.002-04:00

My youngest son is turning 11 this week, he is very excited. I am wondering where those years went.
He is helping me plan this week's menu. He chose his favorite foods. I am going to make them and write down the recipes. Like his older brothers, he LOVES to cook, so he'll probably be helping me in the kitchen too.

Monday...homemade chicken strips w/roasted red potatoes
Tuesday...calzones
Wednesday...meat pies
Thursday... Breakfast for Dinner, pancakes & sausage
Friday...homemade corned beef hash

We plan to bake a chocolate cake for his birthday and a few other treats this week. Wish me luck getting all these recipes written & the pictures taken. I'll add in the links as I get them completed.

Visit I'm an Organizing Junkie to see more Menu Plan Monday.

What we actually ate this week

2009-04-17T19:15:00.002-04:00

On Monday, I wrote a Menu Plan, this is a big improvement over last week, just because I had a plan. My intent in writing the plan was to try to figure out what we were likely to eat...not necessarily to lock us into eating those things, but to have my ideas written down somewhere so that when it got to be 5:30 & I hadn't started dinner yet I could look at the plan & make the choice to either go with the plan or if something else really sounded appealing & we had all the ingredients make that. I realize that this is probably not how most people use a menu plan, but I've learned over the years that what works for most people usually doesn't work for my family.

Here is what I planned:
Monday....Chicken, white rice & asparagus
Tuesday...Baked Ham, mashed potatoes
Wednesday...Hamburger & Rice
Thursday...Red Beans & Rice w/ smoked sausage
Friday...Burritos

Here is what we actually ate:
Monday...Chicken, white rice & asparagus (just as planned)
Tuesday...Baked Ham, green beans & salad (a little different, but still the same main course)
Wednesday...Hamburger & Rice (just as planned)
Thursday...Pork Chops, hominy & salad (we ended up having the red beans & rice for lunch)
Friday... Chicken & Rice Stir Fry (ran out of tortillas for burritos...made a double batch of stir fry & took one to Maggie's teacher who is home on disability)

I think I did pretty good. My ultimate goal is to NOT run to the store for ingredients on a daily basis & to resist ordering take out or running through the drive thru....I was totally successful there this week. Now to figure out what we are going to eat Saturday & Sunday. My goal for next weeks menu (in addition to the ultimate goal) is to try not to repeat anything that we ate this week....we tend to get a bit monotonous at times.

Saturday...Spaghetti (wanted to add a no meat night as recommended by my friend Janet in one of her posts this week)
Sunday...Tacos or burritos (I need to do a bit of grocery shopping for next week so I'll pick up more tortillas)

Artichokes--Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

2009-04-14T07:26:00.002-04:00

Artichokes are one of the very best foods I have ever eaten. If I could afford to eat them everyday I definitely would. When we lived in California, they were very cheap from about mid-March through mid-May. Here in Tennessee, they are available most of the year, but the quality is not as good & the price is staggering.

We prepare artichokes to eat by immersing them in boiling water & letting them cook until the stem is fork tender. We eat them by pulling off the individual leaves one at a time & dipping them. I dip mine in mayonnaise. Hubby dips his in melted butter seasoned with garlic & a bit of pepper. Once the end of the leaf has been dipped, you put it into your mouth & scrape the dip & artichoke meat off with your teeth. Eating an artichoke is a time consuming process, but well worth the effort. After all the leaves have been eaten, you scrape the choke (fibery thistle type stuff) out of the heart, cut the heart into chunks and eat it with your preferred dip.

Head over to Blessed with Grace for more Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

Tasty Tuesday...Fried Potatoes & Sausage

2009-04-14T00:01:00.002-04:00

This is something that I have eaten all my life....one of those things that you "just make". There really isn't a recipe, but I'll try to create one as I go.

Ingredients:
1lb smoked sausage or kielbasa (I like the all beef)
2 lbs potatoes (frozen cubed potatoes are my new favorite)
oil for frying the potatoes
salt & pepper
catsup

I use two frying pans. Slice the sausage into rounds about 1/2 inch thick & brown in first frying pan on medium heat.

If using fresh potatoes, wash thoroughly & cut into 1 inch cubes, peels can be left on or removed depending on how you like your fried potatoes. Lately, I've been using frozen cubed potatoes to save time. Heat about 2 Tablespoons of oil in another frying pan. When it is HOT, add potatoes, season with salt & pepper. Cover with a lid. Cook on medium heat, turning with a spatula every 3 to 5 minutes until the potatoes are starting to brown.

Add cooked sausage to potatoes, stir together & cook uncovered for an additional 5 to 10 minutes allowing the potatoes & sausage to finish browning.

I have served this for breakfast, lunch or dinner....we like it any time of the day!! I usually eat mine with catsup.

Tasty Tuesday has a new host at Balancing Beauty & Bedlam....hop over to see more Tasty Tuesday.

Menu Plan Monday...what I THINK we are going to eat this week

2009-04-13T09:33:00.004-04:00

I haven't been doing really well sticking to my menu lately. Last week I never got around to even doing one. However, I really enjoyed doing a recap of what we had actually eaten on Friday. This week I'm going to write out what I THINK we are going to eat, then on Friday I will take a look back & talk about what we actually ate & why. I think doing this for a couple weeks will help me to better plan what really works for us in a menu

Monday....Chicken, white rice & asparagus

Tuesday...Baked Ham, mashed potatoes

Wednesday...Hamburger & Rice

Thursday...Red Beans & Rice w/ smoked sausage

Friday...Burritos

I'm not going to plan the weekend right now, I'll figure that out on Friday when I look back at how the week has gone.

What we ate this week

2009-04-10T20:54:00.000-04:00

I didn't do Menu Plan Monday this week....just didn't get to it. Because of that, I thought it would be nice to write down what we DID eat this week.

Monday...Baked Chicken

Tuesday...Kielbasa & Fried Potatoes (Hubby had a steamed Artichoke too)

Wednesday...Shredded Beef Enchilada Pie

Thursday...Chili Verde

Friday...Pork Chops w/rice & gravy

I went grocery shopping on Tuesday & bought a chuck roast and a pork picnic roast. The chuck roast immediately went in the oven with salt & pepper for seasoning. The pork picnic roast went in the crockpot with a can of green enchilada sauce. A few hours later, I took the chuck roast out of the oven & let it cool in the pan for an hour before putting it in the fridge overnight. I let the pork roast cook all night in the crockpot, then let it cool for two hours in the morning before putting it in the fridge.

Wednesday afternoon, I took the chuck roast out & pulled all the bones and fat out of it, then shredded it into a sauce pan. I added two packets of taco seasoning & 2 cups of water, then brought it to a boil. Once it was boiling, I stirred it to shred the meat even more then let it simmer for about 20 minutes to cook out some of the water. I used this shredded beef as the center layer of my enchilada pie.

Wednesday night after everyone was asleep, I couldn't get to sleep. I got the crockpot out of the fridge, removed the congealed fat with a spoon and then pulled all the bones out of the meat. I removed the rest of the meat and the congealed broth from the crockpot, pouring the broth into a container & putting it back in the fridge. I shredded the pork and put it back into the crockpot. Once all the meat was shredded, I poured a bottle of green salsa over the meat & put it back in the fridge for the night.

Thursday afternoon, I brought the crockpot out of the fridge and turned it back on low. I took the container of pork broth out, scraped the small amount of congealed fat off the top and then added it back into the crockpot. I let this cook for a couple hours, then removed 2 cups of broth. I put the broth into a saucepan on the stove & brought it to a boil. I mixed 1/4 cup of flour with 1 cup water and slowly stirred it into the boiling broth to thicken. After I added the thickened broth back to the Chili Verde in the crockpot it was ready to serve for dinner with grated cheese and flour tortillas.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-03-29T23:00:00.001-04:00

The Ultimate Blog Party last week was so fun!!! I met a ton of new people & had so much fun with my Party Food post. I was hoping to find some new food carnivals to participate in, I'm working on ideas for a couple I found and plan to continue looking through all the links I haven't gotten to yet. This week will be pretty basic. We'll mostly be having family favorites, the titles are clickable links that will take you to the recipe.

Monday...Chicken Stir Fry

Tuesday...Chili and cornbread muffins

Wednesday....Cheese Enchilada Pie

Thursday...Hamburger & Rice

Friday...Meatloaf w/mashed potatoes

Saturday...Chili Verde

Sunday...Penne Pasta w/Italian Sausage

Check out I'm an Organizing Junkie for more Menu Plan Monday.

Fresh Strawberry Pie

2009-03-24T18:41:00.001-04:00

I think that California is the only place I have every actually seen this. It may be popular in other parts of the country, but I have not seen it since we moved to Tennessee in 2004.

Ingredients

pre-baked pie crust

2 pints strawberries

2 cup sugar

3 cups whipped cream

2 T corn starch

1 cup water

Any type of pre-made pie crust will work. I prefer to make one of my pie crusts & bake it, but a graham cracker crust will work too.

Remove the tops from the Strawberries and slice. Put in a large bowl and pour sugar over them. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Drain all accumulated juice from strawberries and transfer to a sauce pan. Add corn starch to cup of water. Bring Strawberry juice to a boil, stirring constantly and add water. Bring back to a boil and continue stirring for 5 minutes. Allow to cool & thicken for 5 minutes then pour over strawberries, stirring gently to coat. Pour coated strawberries into pie shell. Cover top of pie with whipped cream.

Swing by Blessed with Grace for more Tempt My Tummy Tuesday

Ultimate Blog Party 2009---Party Food!!!

2009-03-24T11:34:00.002-04:00

Welcome to our Party!!! This is the first major blog carnival I have ever participated in and I'm just sooo EXCITED!!!

I was really enjoying all the weekly carnivals on my main blog, but made the decision that I didn't want to mix food into that blog. Starting a blog dedicated specifically to food was the logical solution. I've finally written down some family recipes that have been favorites for years, I've also found some new recipes and added them. I participate in Menu Plan Monday in an attempt to get myself more organized. I've also done Tempt my Tummy Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, The Household Helper's Christmas Virtual Cookie Swap, The $10 KFC Cooking Challenge, The Lots of Kids Kitchen Challenge and Slow Cooker Thursday. I would love to be able to participate in these types of things every week. I am always on the lookout for new food carnivals....they are just sooo much FUN!

I love to put out a big spread for a party. Come on in, mingle around & feel free to eat to your hearts content. Today's menu is full of my favorites for a Spring gathering. Pour yourself a tall glass of Sweet Tea or Lemonade. If you prefer adult drinks, give my Hubby's homemade Hard Cider a try.

Start with the appetizers, there is sure to be something everyone will like.

Fresh Fruit Salad

Guacamole w/Tortilla chips

Spinach Dip in Sour Dough Bread Bowl

Pickle & Olive Tray

Veggie Tray with Hidden Valley Ranch Dip

Deviled Eggs

Cheese Tray

The Buffet is ready whenever you are. Eat up, there is plenty of food.

Spiral Sliced Honey Baked Ham

Cowboy Beans

Chicken Salad

Store bought Croissants

Potato Salad (sorry no picture)

The Desserts are over here. Go ahead and start here if you like, I won't mind.

Pretzel Salad

Strawberry pie

Jello Salad

Check out all the fun at the Ultimate Blog Party Headquarters.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-03-22T22:57:00.005-04:00

Monday...Tacos and refried beans

Tuesday...Baked chicken w/mashed potatoes

Wednesday...Cowboy Beans

Thursday...Smoked sausage & Fried Potatoes

Friday...chicken Parmesan

Saturday...spaghetti & meatballs

Sunday...Beef Stew

Go to I'm an Organizing Junkie to see everyone else's menu for the week.

Cowboy Beans

2009-03-22T21:24:00.006-04:00

I have seen the term "cowboy beans" refer to pork and beans (baked beans & hotdogs cooked together) But this is a little different.

Ingredients

1 lb browned & seasoned ground beef (salt, pepper & garlic to taste)

2 28 oz cans of Bush's baked beans (any flavor)

Combine meat and beans in a casserole dish. Cover with lid or foil and bake at 400 for 30 minutes. The flavor of the beans will determine the flavor of the casserole. Remove from oven and uncover, then allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving. This is one of those things that tastes even better the next day when the flavors have had time to soak into the meat.

Deviled Eggs

2009-03-22T20:28:00.006-04:00

These always remind me of EASTER!! They have got to be one of THE most Spring foods around. I think my association with Easter is based on the fact that for most of my life I've helped make deviled eggs out of the hard boiled Easter Eggs after they've been found.

Boiling eggs is very easy, but it is also easy to mess up.

Start with a medium sauce pan 3/4 full of water, add a couple sprinkles of salt and bring to a boil. When the water is boiling, turn the burner down and carefully add as many eggs as will fit in the bottom. Let them simmer in the water for 15 minutes, being careful not to allow the water to boil. After the 15 minutes, take the pan off the heat & allow to sit an additional 5 minutes. Put the pan of water in the sink and run the cold tap into the pan of eggs for a few minutes, then allow the eggs to sit in the pan for a few more minutes to cool. Transfer the eggs to a bowl and wait 30 minutes before peeling.

Once the eggs have cooled, you can make them into deviled eggs.

Ingredients

6 hard boiled eggs peeled
3 T mayonnaise
1T sweet pickle relish
1 T spicy brown mustard

Slice the eggs in half, remove the yoke completely and set the whites aside. In a bowl, smash the yokes and add the mayonnaise, relish and mustard. Mix well. Fill the whites with the yoke mixture and refrigerate until time to serve.

Potato Salad

2009-03-22T12:15:00.006-04:00

This is a modification of the potato salad my Mom has always made. Warm weather always says "Potato Salad time" to me!!!

Ingredients
6-8 large potatoes boiled in the skins
1 yellow onion chopped
2 stalks celery
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup miracle whip
1/2 cup sweet pickle relish
1/4 yellow mustard
2 hard boiled eggs

Boil potatoes until fork goes in easily. Pour potatoes into a colander and allow to cool for at least an hour.(potatoes can be cooked & refrigerated up to 2 days in advance, but don't peel until ready to make the salad) When potatoes are cool, peel skin (cold potatoes are easiest to peel). Cut potatoes into 1 inch dices. In a small bowl combine chopped celery, chopped onions, mayonnaise, miracle whip, relish and mustard. Mix together thoroughly then mix into potatoes being sure to evenly coat all potatoes. Slice hard boiled eggs and garnish top of salad. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate a minimum of one hour before serving.

Jello Salad

2009-03-21T19:03:00.014-04:00

Ingredients
small box cherry jello
small box orange jello
small box lime jello
small box lemon jello
small box strawberry jello
miniature marshmallows (optional)
whipped cream

Mix each package of jello in a separate bowl with one cup of boiling water each. Stir until completely dissolved. Pour into into pans or molds so that jello is about 1 inch deep. Refrigerate until fully set and firm. Slice into squares and pour into a large bowl. Stir in miniature marshmallows. Spoon into bowls to serve and garnish with whipped cream.

Pretzel Salad

2009-03-21T17:40:00.003-04:00

This is a fabulous three layer dessert that my Sister in Law always makes for family gatherings.

Ingredients
1 bag pretzel sticks (crushed)
1/4 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar
one tub coolwhip
8 oz package of cream cheese
Large box of Berry jello (I use strawberry, but any kind of berry is good)
pint of fresh or frozen strawberries

In a 9 by 13 pan

(Crust) 1 bag pretzel sticks crushed (place into bottom of pan), pour 1/4 cup melted butter evenly over crushed pretzels. Bake at 350 until bottom looks firm and golden brown. Cool on rack

(Middle Layer) mix 1 cup sugar, one tub coolwhip and 8 ounces cream cheese (this takes a while as the cream cheese doesn't like to blend) Spread over fully cooled pretzel layer

(Top)Large box of berry flavored jello, pint of strawberries (chopped with tops removed if using fresh) and one cup boiling water. Boil water, stir into jello add strawberries set in fridge for 5-10 minutes until jello begins to set up. Spread jello/strawberry layer over middle layer. Return to fridge until jello is firmly set.

Sweet Tea

2009-03-21T16:59:00.004-04:00

This is most of my family's favorite year round drink.

Ingredients
2 family size teabags
1 Lemon Zinger double teabag
1 cup sugar
1 gallon water

Fill a gallon pitcher half full with very hot water. Put teabags in pitcher to steep for 5 minutes. Remove teabags. Add 1 cup sugar, stir well. Fill pitcher the rest of the way with cold water. Serve over ice in tall glasses.

Chicken Salad

2009-03-21T16:29:00.009-04:00

Most of my family will not eat this, but I LOVE it so much I just had to share. This is part of my Ultimate Blog Party 2009 menu.

Ingredients
2 cups leftover chicken
1 celery stalk
8-10 grapes
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sweet pickle relish

Cut chicken into chunks. Dice celery. Slice grapes in half. Combine all ingedients in medium bowl

Salt and pepper to taste. Serve on croissants or toasted sourdough bread.

I'm linking this up to Tasty Tuesday Parade of Food over at Forever Wherever.com, hop over there to view the other parade entries.

Guacamole

2009-03-21T13:48:00.011-04:00

Guacamole is very simple to make and oh so delicious!!! A little tip I learned while living in California: Save the pit & put it in the guacamole until you are ready to serve, it will keep it from turning brown.

Ingredients

4 soft ripe avocados
1/2 cup chunky salsa

To peel the avocados, slice in half and pull apart the avocado. Scoop out all the avocado and put into a bowl, smash the avocado up with a fork until it is smooth with no large lumps. Mix in salsa. Salt to taste.

Serve with Corn Tortilla chips or on taco's, burritos, etc.

Fresh Fruit Salad

2009-03-21T13:24:00.003-04:00

My kids LOVE this!!!

Ingredients
1 can mandarin oranges in juice
1 lb green or red grapes washed & removed from stems
1 lb fresh strawberries remove tops and slice
1 can pineapple cubes in juice or 1/2 of a cored fresh pineapple cut in chunks
1 peeled and sliced kiwi (optional)

In a large bowl, combine all fruit, except kiwi, add juice from mandarin oranges. Not all of my kids like kiwi, so I put it on a separate plate to be added by anyone who wants it.

Spinach Dip in a Sourdough Bread Bowl

2009-03-21T13:06:00.011-04:00

This is one of my absolute favorite appetizers. I mostly follow the recipe on the back of the Knorr Vegetable recipe mix.

Ingredients

1 package frozen chopped spinach, thawed & squeezed dry
16 oz sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
1 package Knorr vegetable recipe mix
1 can chopped water chestnuts (drained)

Combine all ingredients and chill for 2 hours.

While it is chilling, hollow out a large round of sourdough bread. Start by cutting a circle into the top of the round. Pull out as much of the bread as possible and put on a tray to be eaten with the dip. Cut up an additional round of sourdough for dipping. Transfer the chilled dip to the hollowed sourdough round for serving.

Taco Pie

2009-03-20T22:01:00.004-04:00

My Hubby is the one who actually came up with this recipe. Over the years it has been one of his favorite things to take to work potlucks.

Ingredients
2 lbs ground beef
2 packets taco seasoning
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 small can diced black olives
1 small can diced green chillies
10 corn tortillas

Brown the ground beef and drain thoroughly. Return the ground beef to the skillet, add the taco seasoning according to the packet directions and add water as directed. Add can of black olives and can of green chillies. Cook until water is cooked out.

Spoon a 2 inch layer of meat into the bottom of a large casserole dish. Cover with 1/2 cup shredded cheese. Cover with layer of corn tortillas. Continue layering meat and cheese and tortillas. Cover with cheese and bake at 400 until all cheese is melted and top is golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before slicing to serve.

Chicken & Stuffing Casserole

2009-03-18T21:30:00.002-04:00

This is something I came up with recently from things I had in the kitchen. It turned out really well, so I thought I better write it down.

Ingredients
6 chicken thighs (about 1 1/2 lbs)
bag of frozen vegetables (the one with broccoli & mushrooms & a few other things is my current favorite for this)
1 can chicken broth (2 cups)
box of stuffing mix
herb seasoning or poultry seasoning

I prefer to cook my chicken first for things like this so that I don't have to worry whether it is DONE. Cook chicken with skin on in baking dish at 400 for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer chicken to a plate, reserving the drippings, allow to cool for one hour. After an hour, transfer the drippings to a sauce pan and add 2 cups of chicken broth. Heat to boiling. Thicken with flour or cornstarch & water to make gravy. Remove skin from chicken, and chicken from the bone. Discard the skin and bones. Break chicken into irregular chunks and add to gravy. Once all the chicken has been added to the gravy, season with either an herb blend for chicken or poultry seasoning. Heat a 16 oz bag of frozen vegetables until they are no longer stuck together, they don't have to be HOT.

Spread the vegetables in the bottom of a 9X11 baking dish or a casserole dish. Spread the chicken and gravy over top of the vegetables, covering the vegetables completely. Prepare the box of stuffing mix according to the box directions. Allow the stuffing to cool about 10 minutes, then spread it evenly over the gravy layer. Cover with foil and cook in the oven at 400 for 20 minutes or until hot all the way through.

Tasty Tuesday...a little GREEN for St Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T00:05:00.004-04:00

The kids are home from school all week for Spring Break. Since it is St Patrick's Day, we decided to make something GREEN. The kids always prefer to bake, so we made cupcakes.

Ingredients Boxed Cake Mix (prepare as directed for cupcakes)

3 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup softened butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons milk

Green food coloring

My 10 year old son and 8 year old daughter made these. They started with a yellow cake mix. They prepared the mix following the directions on the box. When it was thoroughly mixed they added enough green food coloring to get a nice lime color. They tried a few drops of blue first to see if it would mix with the yellow of the batter to create green, but it didn't work.

The frosting was made using a mixer. Creme together the softened butter and the powdered sugar, then add the vanilla, milk and food coloring. Whip with mixer until fluffy. They had to add additional food coloring a couple times to get to the desired grassy Spring color.

Let the cupcakes cool completely, then frost!!! Yum!!!
Drop by Forever...Wherever to see her Irish inspired recipes & see what everyone else brought for the Parade of Food this week.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-03-15T23:25:00.000-04:00

This week the kids are on Spring Break.

Monday...Hot dogs, chips & potato salad

Tuesday... (St Patricks Day) Corned Beef & boiled potatoes

Wednesday...Breakfast for Dinner. Homemade waffles w/ sausage patties

Thursday...Tacos

Friday...Home made Pizza

Saturday...Hamburger & Rice

Sunday...Chicken & Rice Stir Fry

Menu Plan Monday is being hosted at $5 Dinners this week, go take a look!!!

Enchilada Pie

2009-03-12T14:27:00.012-04:00

My family loves enchiladas. We usually eat cheese enchiladas, but this recipe works well for any type of enchilada. The basic recipe is pretty simple.

Ingredients

corn tortillas (about 8 to 10)

shredded cheddar or jack cheese (2 to 4 cups depending on how much you like cheese)

can of red enchilada sauce

can of diced chilies (optional)

can of sliced olives (optional)

I usually make this in an 11X9 baking dish. Pour a thin layer of enchilada sauce into the bottom of the pan. Next I tear corn tortillas in half and line the pan with them.

For cheese enchiladas, I put 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese in next covered with a layer of diced green chillies and then another layer of corn tortillas. Add another thin layer of enchilada sauce and then another layer of shredded cheese. Sometimes I garnish the top with sliced black olives.

To make chicken enchiladas, I shred 2 to 3 cups of chicken that has already been cooked & soak it in enchilada sauce. I substitute the chicken for the two cups of shredded cheese in the center and sprinkle about 1/2 cup of shredded cheese over the meat.

Green chillies are good with the chicken, but I don't always put them in. Cover with a layer of corn tortillas. Add a thin layer of sauce and then another layer of shredded cheese. I don't use the black olives in my chicken enchiladas & sometimes garnish the top with green chillies instead. Shredded beef or seasoned ground beef also work well for the center layer.

This can be made ahead in a foil pan, covered tightly with foil & frozen until ready to cook.

Cover pan with foil, cook at 375 for 30 minutes. Remove foil and cook until cheese is golden. If cooking from frozen, cook at 375 for 50 minutes before removing foil, then return to oven until cheese is golden brown. To store after it has been cooked, slice into portion size squares & put in Ziploc bags. Reheat in microwave until hot all the way through.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-03-09T08:52:00.001-04:00

Monday...Red Beans & Rice w/smoked sausage

Tuesday...Chicken Parmesan

Wednesday...Hamburgers & Fried potatoes

Thursday...Enchilada casserole

Friday...Beef Stew

Saturday...Chili & cornbread

Sunday...Spaghetti & meatballs

Menu Plan Monday

2009-03-02T09:16:00.003-05:00

Monday...Chicken & Rice Stir Fry

Tuesday...Tacos

Wednesday...Beef Stew & homemade biscuits

Thursday...Red Beans & Rice w/smoked sausage

Friday...Homemade Pizza

Saturday...Baked Chicken & stuffing

Sunday...Cheese Enchiladas

Visit Org Junkie to see what everyone else is eating this week.

Chicken Parmesan

2009-02-11T14:51:00.009-05:00

I made this for the first time one day last week. It was a BIG hit and we will definitely be having it again soon. I looked around for a recipe online, but didn't find anything that had all the elements I wanted, so this is what I came up with.

Ingredients
about 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 packet saltine crackers
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 t oregano
1 t basil
2 eggs beaten
1 cup olive oil
26 oz can spaghetti sauce
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

I started with 3 large chicken breasts. I cut each one in half to make them thinner so that they would cook faster. In a large bowl, crush the saltine crackers and add the Parmesan, oregano and basil. Dip each piece of chicken in the beaten egg and then into the cracker mixture. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan. When it's hot, fry the chicken pieces. Do not turn them until the first side is golden brown (too much turning makes the breading fall off). Brown on both sides.
Pour a thin layer of spaghetti sauce in the bottom of a baking dish. Set the oven to 350. Place the brown chicken pieces in the baking dish evenly spaced so they are not touching. Pour sauce over the top and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. I have a couple kids who will not eat sauce, so I put theirs in a separate pan without any sauce.

Bake until cheese is melted and browned. Let it cool in the pan for a few minutes before serving, the melted cheese will be VERY hot!!!

Tempt my Tummy Tuesday--Apple Dumplings

2009-02-10T13:00:00.010-05:00

Several years ago, when in the hospital having a baby, I had one of these. It was so yummy & I've been meaning to make them myself ever since. I bought apples on sale this week for $1 per pound & decided to give it a try.

It is a baked apple wrapped in pie crust. Any pie crust will work, I used a premade frozen one this time. I could also have used the pie crust recipe I use for my apple pie.

If using a frozen crust, take it out of the freezer & let it sit for at least an hour. Preheat the oven to 375.

One crust will make two dumplings. Wash the apples & cut out the core being sure to get all the seeds. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar into the center of the apple. Place 1 T butter in the center of apple. If using premade crust, cut it into 2 even pieces. If using homemade crust, roll out into a traditional pie circle, then cut in half. Wrap the apple in 1/2 circle of pie crust. Use your fingers to smooth it until the apple is completely covered. Place in ungreased pie pan & repeat for additional dumplings. Bake until crust is golden. Let cool for a few minutes & ENJOY!!!

Check out Blessed with Grace for more Temp my Tummy Tuesday recipes.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-02-09T09:42:00.012-05:00

Monday...Penne Pasta & Sausage Casserole

Tuesday...Hamburgers & roasted red potatoes

Wednesday...Red Beans & Rice w/smoked cajun sausage

Thursday...Bruschetta Chicken (trying this recipe for the first time)

Friday...Chili Verde

Saturday...Homemade Pizza

Sunday...Baked Chicken & baked potatoes

Be sure to check out everyone else's menus for the week @ orgjunkie.com

Homemade Pizza

2009-01-28T11:06:00.002-05:00

We are pretty spoiled & buy take out pizza a lot more often than we should, but the quality of pizza here in Tennessee leaves a LOT to be desired, so we've recently tried out making it ourselves. I use a pizza stone that has to go into the oven for 15 minutes to heat up before you put the pizza on it. I make the crust and put it on a cookie sheet, then when the pizza stone is HOT I transfer it off the cookie sheet. Since my pizza stone is round, I make a round pizza.

I got this GREAT pizza crust recipe from my friend Lisa

1 1/3 cups water
2 tsp sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp cornmeal
3 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp yeast

Mix ingredients. Knead or use mixer. Let stand 10 minutes. You can roll the dough into two 9x13" pizzas (great for kid's lunches!) or into two medium pizzas or a large pizza and an order of breadsticks. Parbake the crust with a drizzle of olive oil on it at 450 degrees for ten minutes. Remove the crust and add sauce and toppings. If making breadsticks, add your breadsticks now. Place into the oven for another ten to fifteen minutes or until golden and bubbly.

I use leftover spaghetti sauce & whole milk mozzarella (takes less cheese & tastes extra yummy!) then either cooked Italian sausage or pepperoni or BOTH with another light layer of cheese over the top. Fresh garlic is also GREAT on pizza.

Meatballs

2009-01-26T21:41:00.005-05:00

My family LOVES meatballs. They would gladly eat them as a main course and I sometimes accommodate that by making meatball sandwiches. But most of the time when I make meatballs, I serve them with spaghetti.

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground mild Italian Sausage
1 T Italian Seasoning
1 T minced garlic
1 t salt
2 T grated Parmesan cheese
2 slices white bread or 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
2 eggs

I get the bread a little wet and crumble it up, then mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.

When it is well combined, form into balls. I make them about the size of a golf ball. They can be cooked in a frying pan on top of the stove, but I usually cook mine in a baking dish in the oven @375 for about 30 minutes, remove from the oven & turn them over, then cook for an additional 15 minutes

Let them sit for a few minutes to cool, drain the grease & add them to the spaghetti sauce. I like them to sit in the sauce for at least an hour before serving.

These are also great for making ahead in bulk, I cook several batches, let them cool, then freeze in large ziplock bags. I add them, frozen, to my spaghetti sauce in the crockpot when I start the sauce.

Menu Plan Monday

2009-01-26T10:31:00.003-05:00

We had snow last week!!! That is unusual for us, we are in Tennessee. This week our menu will be mostly winter comfort foods. The temps here are expected to be back in the teens & twenties, so warm filling foods will be just what my family needs.

Monday...Beef Stew

Tuesday...Spaghetti & meatballs

Wednesday...Chicken & Dumplings

Thursday...Meat pies

Friday...Pizza (GREAT crust recipe)

Saturday...Chicken & Rice Stir Fry

Sunday...Meatloaf & Mashed potatoes

Stop by Menu Plan Monday on Orgjunkie.com to see what everyone else is making this week, if you link your menu on her site, you'll also be entered in a giveaway she is having.

Lasagna

2009-01-15T10:12:00.002-05:00

This is one of my FAVORITE foods. Unfortunately, Hubby won't eat it. He has an aversion to ricotta cheese. However, all of our kids LOVE it, recently I have been making my Italian sausage and penne pasta casserole for Hubby when I make lasagna for the rest of the family. They compliment each other well and it has been a perfect solution.

Ingredients
1 lb Italian Sausage
15 oz Ricotta Cheese
1 egg
2 cups shredded Mozzarella
2 26 oz cans spaghetti sauce
8 lasagna noodles
salt & pepper
garlic
basil
Italian seasoning

Brown Italian sausage, then drain. Heat both cans of sauce and add garlic, basil and Italian seasoning. Boil lasagna noodles until pliable but not too soft. In a small bowl combine ricotta cheese with 1 egg & season with salt & pepper. Coat a 13 X 9 baking dish with non stick spray. Spread Italian sausage in bottom of pan, cover with generous layer of sauce. Arrange 3 to 4 lasagna noodles to completely cover the sausage. Spread the ricotta cheese mixture over the noodles, then cover with an additional layer of noodles. Pour remaining sauce over noodles, top with grated mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake @ 350 for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake additional 15 minutes or until cheese is lightly browned.

Meat Loaf

2009-01-13T21:47:00.002-05:00

This is one of those traditional average American family recipes....pretty much everyone I know has a version of meatloaf. At one time, I thought all meat loaf was the same, but over the last few years I've discovered that there are some HUGE differences.

Here is my basic recipe:

1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 egg
2 slices bread
1/2 cup ketchup
Salt & Pepper
Garlic
Worcestershire Sauce

I combine the meat, egg, slices of bread and ketchup, then liberally sprinkle with the spices & last add a couple splashes of Worcestershire Sauce. Put it in a loaf pan & add a stripe of ketchup down the center. Bake @ 350 for 40 minutes, then drain off all the grease. Bake an additional 20 minutes. Drain any additional grease and remove from the pan immediately, then let it sit for at least 5 minutes before slicing.

A variation that my family is very fond of is to use 1/2 cup of chunky salsa instead of the Worcestershire Sauce.

I have also used 1 lb ground beef with 1/2 lb of ground pork.

When I was a kid (yes, I'm OLD)....everyone used a packet of Lipton Onion Soup mix as the seasoning, but since nobody in my family eats onion that has never been an option here (don't tell them the salsa I use has onions)

Menu Plan Monday

2009-01-12T09:19:00.008-05:00

I've fallen off the wagon of doing this for a few weeks. Time to get back in the groove. Because it is soooo cold outside, I'm making a lot of comfort foods this week.

Monday...Chicken & Rice Stir Fry

Tuesday...Beef Stew w/homemade bread

Wednesday...Red beans & Rice w/hot smoked sausage

Thursday...Hamburger & Rice

Friday...Chili and cornbread muffins

Saturday...Meatloaf & mashed potatoes

Sunday...Lasagna and garlic bread

Check out I'm an Organizing Junkie to see what the rest of the world is eating for dinner this week.

Menu Plan Monday

2008-12-15T00:02:00.002-05:00

Monday...Baked Ham w/mashed potatoes
Tuesday...Tacos & refried beans
Wednesday...Spaghetti w/meatballs
Thursday... Crockpot Beef Stew w/homemade bread
Friday...Chicken & Rice Stir Fry
Saturday...Cheesy Sausage, Egg & Potato Casserole
Sunday...Grilled Cheese & Potato soup

Check out more menus over at Orgjunkie.com

Virtual Cookie Swap--Sugar Cookies

2008-12-12T00:02:00.002-05:00

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup softened butter
1 t vanilla
1/2 t almond extract
1 egg
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 t baking soda

colored sugar or icing for decorating!!!

cream together butter and powdered sugar, beat with mixer at low speed until fluffy. Add egg & flavorings. Mix flour & baking soda together in a separate bowl & then stir into the butter mixture. Form dough into log, wrap in wax paper & refrigerate at least 2 hrs.

Cut dough into two sections & roll out 1/4 inch thick. Cut out with cookie cutters. Sprinkle with sugar or colored sugar decorations (skip this if you plan to frost them).
bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 375 for 7-8 minutes or until edges are just starting to brown. Remove from cookie sheet immediately. Let them cool completely before frosting.

Makes about 4 dozen 2 inch cookies.

Slow Cooking Thursday---Beef Stew

2008-12-11T12:27:00.007-05:00

I LOVE doing daily themes. I saw a reference to Slow Cooking Thursday on this weeks Menu Plan Menu & was sooo excited to join in.

The crockpot is one of my best friends in the kitchen. I don't always use it to cook entire meals. This recipe is cooked in stages, but eventually it does all end up in the crockpot.

Ingredients
2 lbs stew meat or 2 lb roast cut into cubes (whichever is cheaper)
2 cups frozen carrots
6-8 medium potatoes
2 T vegetable oil or shortening
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup minced garlic
32 oz Beef Broth (I like Swanson's, but cheapest is fine)
26 oz Swanson Beef Cooking Stock
salt & pepper
flour or corn starch for thickening

Heat 2 T oil in large frying pan, add 1/4 cup minced garlic. Let the garlic start to brown, then add meat. Brown meat on all sides, season with salt & pepper, transfer to crockpot. Add chopped celery to frying pan & brown in any remaining oil, add 2 cups Beef Broth & bring to a boil, boil for 3 minutes, then pour into crockpot. Add 2 cups frozen carrots and all of Cooking Stock.....put the remaining 2cups of beef broth in the refrigerator for later. Turn crockpot on low. Peel & cube potatoes, rinse in cold water then add to crockpot. Switch crockpot to High & cook for at least 4 hrs without removing lid. Can also be cooked on low for 7-8 hours.

In a saucepan, heat remaining beef broth to a boil. Mix together 1 cup water & 1/4 cup flour or corn starch in a cup. Slowly add the flour mixture to the boiling broth, stir continuously. Boil at least one minute, add thickened broth to crockpot & stir thoroughly. Turn crockpot to low & cook an additional 30 minutes before serving.

Nut Breads for Christmas

2008-12-09T09:55:00.008-05:00

For today's Tackle it Tuesday, I'm finally making my pumpkin bread, from the pumpkin puree I made a few weeks ago. Luckily for me, pumpkin stores well in the fridge. I'm using the recipe from my post over on Large Family Cooking.

I've also posted a Cranberry nut bread recipe & a Banana nut bread recipe in the last week. I just LOVE to make nut bread in the weeks before and after Christmas. It is almost as yummy as cookies!! Mini nutbreads also make GREAT gifts for teachers, coworkers, even the mailman. If a small gift is needed, one mini loaf fits that perfectly. If a bigger gift is called for you can give a variety of 3 or 4 different kinds of mini loaves or even add a mini loaf as a center piece to a cookie tray.

Menu Plan Monday

2008-12-08T01:00:00.002-05:00

Monday...Pork chops, stuffing & green beans

Tuesday...Hamburger & rice

Wednesday...Tamales

Thursday...Lasagna

Friday...Scalloped potatoes w/Ham

Saturday...Chicken & Rice Stir Fry

Sunday...Roast Beef & Mashed potatoes

Check out everyone else's plans for the week at Orgjunkie.com

Cinnamon Rolls

2008-12-02T20:53:00.003-05:00

Something about December makes me want to bake every day. On Sunday, I made cinnamon rolls. Sorry, no pictures, but here's the recipe. They were really good, so I'm sure I'll be making more soon & I'll get pictures.

Ingredients

Dough
1 package yeast (2 1/4 t)
1/2 cup very warm water
1/2 cup scalded milk (cooled)
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter
1 t salt
1 egg
3 1/2 to 4 cups of flour

Filling
1 stick softened butter (1/2 cup)
1 cup brown sugar
2 T cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

In a large glass bowl, combine the yeast, sugar, water and milk. Stir until yeast & sugar are dissolved. Add butter, salt & egg. Add two cups of flour & mix until smooth. Slowly add additional flour until dough is smooth & elastic. Cover with kitchen towel & allow to rise in a warm place until double in size. Punch down, knead on floured surface, sprinkling any sticky parts with flour. Roll out to 1/8 inch thickness in a rectangle shape.

Spread softened butter on dough. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly. Sprinkle cinnamon. Add raisins &/or nuts if desired.

Roll the dough tightly starting on the longest edge. Slice dough into 1 inch segments and place in greased baking pan. Leave at least 1 inch all the way around each segment. Cover pan & allow to rise again until segments are touching. Bake at 375 for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Rub butter over tops immediately after removing from oven. Allow to cool on wire rack for at least 15 minutes before serving to avoid burns. Icing or glaze can be applied after the initial cooling phase.

Tamales

2008-12-02T10:29:00.001-05:00

Tamales are a traditional Mexican food served at Christmas. They are one of those perfect foods that almost everybody likes. They are easy to reheat, easy to eat & very portable. They are a bit labor intensive to make, but very worth the effort. I've also been told they freeze well, but there are never any left to freeze when I make them, my family gobbles them up immediately.

Start with

And (This is shredded pork, but you can also use shredded beef or chicken.) I cook the meat in my crockpot until it is falling off the bones, then let it cool in the fridge for a couple hours (or overnight). Remove as much grease from the cooled meat as possible, then shred it either with your hands or using two forks to pull it apart. Add about 1/2 can of enchilada sauce for flavoring. Keep the broth for use in making the dough.

You will need a pot like this with a steamer insert

To prepare the dough, combine 3 cups Masa, 1/2 t salt & 1 t baking powder. Add 2/3 cup shortening and cut in like making biscuits. When it is crumbly, add 2 cups either broth from the meat or canned chicken broth. I add about 1/2 can of enchilada sauce to the broth & heat it ahead of time. Mix the liquid into the dry until the dough becomes spongy. Let sit for a few minutes.Put about this much masa on a soaked & rinsed corn husk (soak corn husks in HOT water for about 30 minutes, then rinse thoroughly & remove any corn silks)
Flatten it out
Put a small amount of meat all down the center
Fold over the corn husk

Fold the husk back open

Fold the other side closed, fold the ends in, then roll up

Stack on end in steamer pot

Steam at low heat for an hour, then take them out & let them sit for at least 2 hrs to cool before eating or packaging up for later.

Menu Plan Monday

2008-11-24T20:59:00.005-05:00

It's going to be a busy week!!

Monday...Tacos

Tuesday... Red Beans & Rice

Wednesday... Honey Ham w/sweet potatoes

Thursday... (Thanksgiving) Starting to cook on Wednesday

Roasted turkey
white bread stuffing
cornbread stuffing
mashed potatoes
giblet gravy
candied sweet potatoes w/marshmallows
sweet & sour green beans
canned cranberry sauce
homemade whole cranberry sauce
spiced peaches
homemade bread rolls
2 homemade deep dish apple pies
2 homemade pumpkin pies
cherry pie
peach pie

Friday...leftovers

Saturday...Fend for yourself

Sunday...more leftovers

Bread

2008-11-20T13:32:00.001-05:00

This is a family recipe. My Grandmother made this bread daily for her husband & 6 kids when my Mom was a kid. My Mom has always made it for holiday meals & on those chilly winter days when fresh baked bread is the only thing that can make you feel truly warm. I started making it when I was about 10. My Mom would buy a jar of yeast & 20 lbs of flour, then several times a week I would "practice" making bread. It really is one of those trial & error things that you have to make over & over to get the feel for. I don't make it as often as my family would like, but I do make it for all holidays & randomly through out the winter.

This recipe involves getting messy. Plan to have dough up to your elbows & flour all over the place.

Ingredients
2 cups very warm water
1 packet regular yeast (2 1/4 t )
2 T sugar
2 T vegetable oil
2 t salt
5 lbs flour (you won't use the whole thing, but it is best to have a full bag to start)

It is important to use a large glass bowl....I sometimes use the 5 quart stoneware insert from my round crockpot.

Read the instructions on the back of the yeast packet. The water should be 90 to 100 degrees. Pour water into large glass bowl. Add sugar, yeast, oil & salt. Mix around with your fingers to dissolve.

Start adding flour 2 cups at a time & mixing in well with one hand (keep one hand out of the mixture to use in getting the flour out of the bag or canister). It can also be helpful to have another person pour flour for you. You will know you are close to enough flour when it starts to get hard to mix the flour into your dough. The dough should have an elastic feel & when you knead it, there shouldn't be any stickiness.

Put the dough back in the large bowl & cover with a towel. Let it rise in a warm part of the kitchen until it doubles in size. Punch it down, sprinkling flour on it anywhere it is sticky. Cover & let rise again. The second rising will be faster.

Punch it down again. Break off a piece about the size of a racquetball. It should fit nicely in the palm of your hand. Knead the dough by pulling the edges out & folding them firmly back into the center. Continue kneading until a solid firm ball is formed. Place into a greased 13X9 baking pan. Repeat until the pan is full. Be sure to leave about 1 inch space around each roll. Cover with a towel & let rise until the rolls are touching each other.

Bake in the oven @ 400 for 20 minutes or until they are golden. Remove from oven, rub the tops of the rolls with butter for a soft crust or shortening for a firmer crust. Remove from pan & allow to cool slightly before serving. DO NOT cut into hot bread with a knife!!!!! Cutting with a knife will cause the bread to get gummy. Break open by hand to butter.

My Mom's Baking Powder biscuits

2008-11-18T19:26:00.002-05:00

This is a recipe my Mom has been making since she was a child.

1 Cup all purpose flour
1t baking powder (not baking soda)
1/2 t salt
1 T Crisco
enough water to get good dough consistency

Measure flour, baking powder & salt into bowl. Mix together. Add Crisco. Cut Crisco into flour mixture until crumbly. Add enough water to make a stiff dough. Roll out on a floured surface & cut with a small glass, or add a little extra water & drop by tablespoonfuls onto a greased pan. Bake at 425 until golden (10-15 minutes).

This recipe is easily doubled or tripled to accommodate a crowd.

Let the countdown to Thanksgiving begin

2008-11-15T11:32:00.010-05:00

There are 12 days until Thanksgiving!!!It's time to start gathering the recipes & thinking about strategy! I will be buying a 15 to 18 pound frozen turkey in the next few days...they are currently 79 cents a pound at the local grocery store, I'm hoping it will drop down another 10 to 2o cents a pound when the sale papers come out tomorrow. Once I buy the turkey it will sit in the bottom of my fridge until Thanksgiving morning. I know from past experience that it takes about a week for a turkey that size to actually defrost in the refrigerator. Based on that, I'll probably buy it this Wednesday. I've already bought a 10 lb spiral sliced ham. I've been making lists of what I've already got & what I still need to buy. Most of what I still need is produce, so I will buy that on the Tuesday before.

Here's a run down of my plan
Roast turkey--put it in the roaster by 9 am Thanksgiving morning, it should be done about 1 1/2 hrs before dinner. I don't cook my stuffing inside the turkey. Put turkey on a serving platter & let it cool to make carving easier.

Honey glazed ham--put it in the oven for one hour, two hours before dinner. Keep it in the baking pan covered with foil until just before dinner. Reheat in the microwave if needed just before putting it on the serving platter....don't forget to remove the foil before putting it in the microwave.

white bread stuffing--have the kids rip up 4 loaves of day old bread Wednesday morning. Leave out overnight to get completely stale. Thanksgiving morning, melt 1/2 cup butter in frying pan, saute 1 diced onion & 2 diced stalks of celery, plus the diced core of the celery until limp & slightly golden, add spices, eggs & milk put into baking pans & cover with foil. Cooks for about an hour at 400....anytime during the day. Remove foil & brown in oven for about 20 minutes sometime in the two hrs before dinner. Warm up in the microwave just before serving if it gets too cool.

cornbread stuffing--bake batch of cornbread on Wednesday, cube & allow to sit out to get stale, prepare stuffing at least 2 hrs before dinner, substitute turkey broth for chicken broth, substitute poultry seasoning for thyme, bake in a baking pan as time allows. Reheat in microwave just before serving.

mashed potatoes--get Hubby to peel 10 lbs of potatoes on Wednesday night. Immerse them in water in a big pan or bowl & refrigerate until about 2 hrs before dinner. Cook & prepare, store in crockpot on low to keep them warm through out dinner.

giblet gravy--remove the giblets from the turkey before it goes in the roaster. Boil them including the neck for about an hr, then let cool. Chop up the meat, only use a small portion of the liver, it can be very bitter, feed the extra liver to the dog or cats. Remove as much meat as possible from neck & discard bones, put the chopped meat back into the broth & set aside until the turkey is taken out of the roaster. Add the broth from the roaster, then bring to boiling & thicken with a flour & water paste.

baked sweet potatoes--wrap about 6 thoroughly washed sweet potatoes in foil. Bake in oven at 400 for 1 1/2 hrs early in the day....leave them wrapped & reheat in oven for about 20 minutes just before dinner. Serve with butter, marshmallows & cinnamon

candied sweet potatoes w/marshmallows--prepare in a baking dish a couple hrs before dinner, reheat in microwave just before serving

sweet & sour green beans--in the morning, cook 4 cans french cut green beans in the juice from the cans, add 1/2 lb crumbled cooked bacon, add 1 T bacon grease, 2T sugar & 2 T vinegar....increase sugar or vinegar to taste to create sweet & sour flavor. Refrigerate in serving dish until just before dinner, reheat in microwave.

canned cranberry sauce--refrigerate cans until just before dinner, slice onto a refrigerated plate to serve.

homemade whole cranberry sauce....follow recipe & prepare on Wednesday. Refrigerate until just before dinner.

spiced peaches...on Wednesday, put 2 cans of peaches in heavy syrup into large bowl with lid. Insert cloves randomly into peach pieces, sprinkle with cinnamon. cover & refrigerate until just before dinner

veggie tray...daughter in law is bringing

pickle & olive tray...my mother is bringing

homemade bread rolls...make dough Thursday morning, allow to rise 2X, set aside until about an hour before dinner, then make into rolls & let rise again. put in oven at 400 for 20 minutes just before dinner, when the bread is done it is time for dinner!!!

2 homemade deep dish apple pies...make on Wednesday, store uncovered in a cool place until time for dessert

2 homemade pumpkin pies...make according to Libby directions on Wednesday. Use two regular pie pans. Store in cool place covered with plastic wrap until time for dessert

cherry pie...make on Wednesday in a deep dish pan. Uses two cans of pie filling. Store in cool place covered with plastic wrap

peach pie...make on Wednesday. Use 3 lbs frozen peaches in a deep dish pie pan. Store uncovered in a cool place.

It may seem like a lot of work, but the enjoyment my family & I get from having this special meal together makes it well worth the effort.

Pumpkin

2008-11-12T12:44:00.003-05:00

Cooking with Anne had a post about Fresh Pumpkin a while back. Pumpkin anything is always popular with my kids, so we had to give it a try. We baked the pumpkin, we let it cool & then we scooped it out. I put it in the colander to drain for about 30 minutes because pumpkin is VERY watery. Then I put it in the refrigerator because I didn't have time to blend it up. The next day, I put it in my biggest bowl that goes to my electric mixer & used the mixer to puree it. Anne recommended using a blender or a food processor, but I don't have either of those out on the counter at the moment, so I decided to give the mixer a try first & it worked beautifully!!! One fairly small pumpkin made 5 cups of puree!

Deep Dish Apple Pie

2008-11-07T15:59:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, I went to the store & bought more apples.....the neighbor's tree is all out. I bought 4 large Granny Smiths, 6 Romes & 12 Gala. The Granny Smiths are tart & very firm. The Romes are slightly sweet, & very firm. The Gala's are much softer than the other two & pretty sweet. The Granny Smiths & Romes are essential to a good pie, the sweet apple usually varies depending on what is on sale. Fuji's, Red Delicious & Golden Delicious all work equally as well as the Gala's. The firm apples will retain some firmness even when cooked, but the softer apples will cook down almost to the point of being a sauce. By combining different types of apples, I not only get an interesting sweet/tart balance, I also get several layers of texture.

Start by washing all the apples well. Peel apples & place in a large colander. Wash again after they are all peeled. Discard the peels. Using a fruit slicer, slice & core the apples. Mix all the different kinds together in one bowl. Don't worry about stray seeds or bits of peel. Discard the cores. Wash all the slices in cold water in a large colander. Let it sit for a few minutes in the sink for all the water to drain. Using a paring knife, cut off any remaining peel, core or seeds on each slice, cut the slices 1/8 inch thick and put in a large bowl.

Sprinkle cinnamon over sliced apples. Stir gently with a slotted spoon until they are all lightly coated. Sprinkle 2 cups sugar over sliced apples, stirring gently until the are all coated. Sprinkle 1/2 cup flour over apples & stir gently to coat. Apples can be stored for up to 24 hrs before making pie. To store, cover bowl tightly & refrigerate. Add additional flour just before using apples if mixture seems too wet. There should not be any visible liquid in the bowl.

Double-Crust Pie

2 cups Flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup Crisco butter flavored shortening
5 to 10 tablespoons ice cold water

To make pie crust, put flour, sugar & salt in medium bowl, mix with fork to combine. Add Crisco. Using two butter knives or a pastry blender, cut the shortening into flour mixture until crumbly. Add water one tablespoon at a time stirring continuously with fork until it starts to stick together. Using hands, form into a ball. Cut ball into two equal pieces. Using a rolling pin, roll dough out on waxed paper. Lightly flour the rolling pin if it starts to stick to the dough. Roll dough into a large circle to fit into deep dish pie pan with at least 2 inches overlap.

Fill pie pan with apple slices. Stack apples about 4 inches above top edge of pan.

Using rolling pin, roll out second crust and place over top of pie.

Trim crust, leaving about 1 inch overlap all the way around. Fold up edge of bottom crust over edge of top crust & crimp with a fork. Gently poke holes in top crust with fork to allow venting during cooking.

Cook in oven at 400 for about 1 hr or until crust is golden.

Shredded Beef Taquitos

2008-11-06T14:11:00.008-05:00

My 18 yr old would live on frozen taquitos if I was willing to buy him an unlimited supply. Last week over on Lots of Kids Kitchen, Mirz posted a recipe for homemade taquitos....this gave me the idea that I really needed to try making my own shredded beef taquitos.

Ingredients
1 lb of cheap chuck roast (any inexpensive beef roast or even stew meat works)
1 packet taco seasoning
1 cup shredded cheddar or jack cheese
60 corn tortillas
non-stick cooking spray

Cook roast in crockpot overnight so that it is very done & falling apart. Place the crockpot insert in the refrigerator for at least 3 hrs. The grease will have risen to the top & congealed. Remove as much grease as possible & dispose of it. Remove the meat from the crockpot. Using fingers or a fork shred it up and place it into a medium saucepan. Transfer the remaining broth into a freezer container & freeze for use in something else. Add one packet of taco seasoning & 3/4 cup of water to meat in sauce pan. Simmer until most of the water is cooked out.

Heat griddle or dry frying pan and warm individual corn tortillas to make them soft & pliable. Place a small line of meat along one edge of a tortilla, sprinkle cheese over meat, then roll tightly. Place on lightly greased large cookie sheet with the seam down. Repeat until pan is full.

Lightly spray non-stick cooking spray over them & then cook in 425 oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until they are golden brown. Remove from oven & allow to cool for 5 minutes. They are fantastic warm with salsa or guacamole or sour cream & also make a great cold appetizer. This same shredded beef can be used in any recipe you would normally use ground beef for, especially nachos,tacos, tamales, burritos & tostadas.

Tentative Thanksgiving Menu

2008-11-06T09:07:00.004-05:00

Baked turkey
Honey glazed ham
white bread stuffing
cornbread stuffing
mashed potatoes
giblet gravy
baked sweet potatoes
candied sweet potatoes w/marshmallows
sweet & sour green beans
canned cranberry jell
homemade whole cranberry sauce
spiced peaches
corn on the cob
veggie tray
pickle & olive tray
homemade bread rolls
2 homemade deep dish apple pies
2 homemade pumpkin pies
cherry pie
peach pie

Cheesy Sausage, Egg & Potato Casserole

2008-11-04T12:58:00.008-05:00

Eggs are very popular with my kids. I have modified a crockpot recipe that a friend gave me & come up with a casserole. It is perfect for a special breakfast or brunch. The ingredients can be put into the crockpot at night before bed & it will be ready to eat in the morning, or the more popular version at my house gets cooked in the oven in an 11X13 baking dish. This recipe can easily be halved & cooked in an 8X8 pan to feed 4 adults.

Ingredients

2 lbs ground breakfast sausage

2 lbs frozen diced hash browns

1 dozen eggs

1 1/2 cups milk (2 cups if cooking in crockpot)

1t dry mustard

salt & pepper

small chopped onion (optional)

4 cups grated cheddar cheese

Brown the sausage in a frying pan. Spray the 11X13 baking dish (or crockpot insert) with non-stick spray. Spread the frozen diced hash browns evenly in the bottom. Drain the grease off the cooked sausage. Spread Sausage over the frozen hash browns. In a medium size bowl, scramble the eggs, add milk (1 1/2 cups for baking dish, or 2 cups if using crockpot), spices & onion (optional), mix well. Pour over hash browns & sausage.

If cooking in baking dish, cover with foil, cook in oven at 400 for 50 minutes. Remove foil & add grated cheddar cheese over the top. Cook for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted & golden brown. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.

If cooking in crockpot, add cheese, cook on low for 8 to 10 hrs.

Hamburger and Rice

2008-11-03T21:37:00.011-05:00

This is a staple in our house, one of those things that EVERYONE loves. It is simply browned ground beef mixed with white rice. The seasonings seem to be the key.

Ingredients

2 lbs ground beef (I usually buy the 80% lean, the extra lean doesn't work well, some fat is necessary)

Montreal Steak Seasoning

Lemon Pepper

2 cups long grain white rice

1 t salt

2 T butter

Break up the ground beef & cook in a large frying pan on medium heat. Season well with Montreal Steak Seasoning & Lemon pepper. Boil 3 cups of water in a large sauce pan that has a tight fitting lid. Add salt & rice to boiling water, return to a boil for one minute, then cover & reduce heat to medium Low. Allow rice to cook for 15 minutes. When the ground beef is browned, reduce heat to low until the rice finishes. Remove lid from rice, add butter, replace lid & let sit for 5 minutes. Drain any remaining grease from the ground beef. Turn the frying pan back up to Medium High, add rice to ground beef & stir well. Cook together for a minute or two in the frying pan, stirring constantly. The rice will pick up the residual spices from the pan.

This goes well with green beans or peas as a side dish. Leftovers store well & are GREAT heated back up the next day for lunch.

Beef Barley Soup

2008-10-28T09:49:00.004-04:00

This is one of Hubby's favorites. It's been a while since we've had it, so we'll see how the kids like it, maybe I'll get lucky & they will all LOVE it (yes, I know that is unlikely, but I can dream).

Ingredients
2 lbs chuck roast
1 onion
1 stalk celery chopped small
1 t basil
1 bay leaf
2 T minced garlic
1 can whole tomatoes undrained
1 can peas undrained
1 can chopped green beans undrained
1 cup barley

Cook chuck roast (or any inexpensive beef roast or stew meat) in crockpot until tender. Remove meat from crockpot & set aside the broth. Allow the meat to cool, then dice it into small cubes, removing all visible fat. Return the meat and broth to the crockpot, add diced onion, chopped celery, basil, bay leaf and minced garlic. Pour the juice from the tomatoes into the broth. Crush the tomatoes, then add to broth. Add peas and green beans. Add water to 3 inches below the top of the crockpot. Add barley. Cover with lid & cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. Add more water if soup becomes too thick.

Menu Plan Monday

2008-10-27T19:03:00.006-04:00

Monday...hamburger & rice (kinda like stir fry w/no veggies)

Tuesday...baked chicken w/baked potatoes

Wednesday...Taco & refried beans

Thursday....Beef Barley soup & homemade yeast rolls

Friday...Chili Verde (wish me LUCK, I'm entering it in our neighborhood chili contest!)

Saturday...Navy Bean soup

Sunday...Chicken & Rice Stir Fry

I'll be posting recipes for the Beef Barley soup & the homemade yeast rolls later in the week & hope to get a recipe posted for the Navy bean soup soon too.

Cinnamon Apples

2008-10-21T21:10:00.009-04:00

Yesterday the kids picked 19 apples from a neighbors tree. I'm not sure what kind of apples they are, but they were pretty good size & the neighbor didn't want them. The kids wanted an apple pie, but I haven't gotten around to that yet. I did make a pan of cinnamon apples & it turned out very YUMMY!!!

Ingredients

4 firm tart apples peeled, cored & sliced

1 stick softened butter

1 cup brown sugar

3 T cinnamon

Layer the sliced apple pieces in a small baking dish, sprinkle cinnamon over them. In a seperate bowl, cream the butter into the sugar & 3 T cinnamon. It should form a stiff paste. Spread the paste over the apples. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Apples will be fork tender when they are done. They can be eaten warm as a side dish or dessert or can be served over ice cream as a topping. They are also good mixed with warm oatmeal for breakfast or served cold as a snack. They can be reheated in the microwave if you prefer them warm.

Chili

2008-10-20T15:40:00.004-04:00

This is a traditional chili made with pinto beans, ground beef & tomatoes.

Ingredients

1 lb bag of dried pinto beans
1t baking soda
1lb ground beef
1 can chili ready diced tomatoes
1 T dried onion
2 T minced garlic
2 T chili powder

Dried beans have to be presoaked. I recently discovered that I prefer the "quick" method. Start by pouring the beans into a large pot, cover them with cold water & swish around. Remove any that are broken or look odd. Dump out the water. Rinse thoroughly. Add 6 cups of cold water & 1T salt, bring to boil. Let it boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, add 1t baking soda to reduce the gas in the beans & cover with a lid. Let it sit for one hour. Drain and rinse again. Rinse the pan out very well, then put the beans back in & add 8 cups cold water. Bring to a boil. Let boil for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to a simmer.

Brown the ground beef in a frying pan then drain the grease. Add the can of diced tomatoes, dried onion, garlic and chili powder. I also like to add any dribbs of tomato based salsa I may have in the fridge, anything that has tomato, peppers or onions is fair game. Let simmer for 20 minutes.

Add the ground beef mixture to the pot of beans. Let cook for another 90 minutes or until beans are tender. This can also be left in the crockpot on low all day to cook.

I usually serve it with crackers or corn bread. You can also add cheese, onions, sour cream, or anything else you like on your chili. This recipe makes plenty for dinner and some leftovers for lunch or even another dinner. It stores well in the fridge for up to a week & can be frozen in an airtight container for several months.

Menu Plan Monday

2008-10-20T08:38:00.005-04:00

Monday...Penne Pasta w/Italian Sausage

Tuesday...Chicken & Rice Stir Fry

Wednesday...Steak & baked potatoes (My birthday)

Thursday...Red Beans & Rice w/smoked sausage

Friday...Hamburgers & Fried potatoes

Saturday...Chili & cornbread

Sunday...Baked Chicken & Roasted Red Potatoes

Roasted red potatoes

2008-10-19T13:47:00.000-04:00

These are yummy & very easy.

Ingredients

1.5 to 2 lbs of small red potatoes (10 to 14)

lemon pepper or your favorite pepper based seasoning.

1/2 stick of butter

I use a glass loaf pan. Thoroughly wash the potatoes, then quarter them. Cover the bottom of the pan with a layer of potatoes, season, add another layer & season. Continue until all the potatoes are in the pan. Cover the pan with foil and bake @ 400 for 45 minutes. Leave the foil on until just before you are ready to serve them. Pour into a serving dish & top with the butter, stir the potatoes around in the dish to coat them all lightly.

Lots of Kids Kitchen Challenge for October

2008-10-18T09:39:00.024-04:00

On a budget of $10, feed a family of 4 for a day or $15 for families with 4 or more children. The meals must include breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast and lunch can be one-dish, but dinner must include a main course and sides. You do not have to include drinks in your budget.

I am feeding 2 adults and 4 children

Breakfast $2.89
Scrambled Eggs--dozen eggs $1.19

Toast--loaf of bread $1.10

Butter--one stick .60

jelly

Lunch $4.46

Cheese Quesedillas

package of fajita size flour tortillas $1.79

2 cup package of grated cheddar $1.67

salsa

Dinner $7.94

pan fried strips--2 lbs boneless chicken breast $4

1.5 lbs roasted red potatoes $1.50

1 dozen biscuits from scratch $1.15

can of green beans .69

butter--one stick .60

My total for this day is $14.29

Apples and Oatmeal Breakfast Casserole

2008-10-17T09:40:00.009-04:00

This is something I came up with while tweaking a recipe from the Lots of Kid's recipe page.

Ingredients
4 cups rolled oats
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
pinch of ground clove
pinch of all spice
3 t cinnamon
1 1/2 cups milk
4 eggs
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 apples cored & sliced thin
1 t vanilla extract

Measure the oats into a large bowl, add the baking powder & spices, set aside. In another bowl mix the milk, eggs, apple sauce & brown sugar. When the sugar is dissolved well, add the apple slices. Slowly pour the liquid mixture into the oat mixture, add the vanilla. Stir until everything is well mixed being careful not to smash the apple slices. Pour into a 9 x 11 greased baking dish.

Bake in a 350 oven until the top is golden...approx 45 minutes. Serve hot with milk like traditional oatmeal or let it cool & slice into squares to be eaten like a snack cake.

$10 KFC Cooking Challenge

2008-10-09T22:12:00.007-04:00

Anne over at Cooking with Anne posted about the KFC $10 challenge a few days ago. $10 really seems like a LOT to me when it comes to a simple fried chicken dinner, so I thought I would run the numbers on a similar (but healthier w/bigger proportions) dinner for my family. Most nights I'm feeding 2 adults & 4 kids.

2 lbs boneless chicken breast made into pan fried strips $4

1.5 lbs roasted red potatoes $1.50

1 dozen made from scratch biscuits $1.15

box of mac & cheese (made w/whole milk & real butter) $1.50

can of green beans .69

My total $8.84 and I am providing a wholesome, satisfying meal for a family of 6

I've got a new post up on the Large Family cooking board

2008-10-09T15:36:00.003-04:00

Lots of kids is one of my favorite websites and I'm very excited to be on a team there for their Kitchen blog. Check out my latest post over there & let me know what you think!!

Chili Verde

2008-10-07T10:31:00.014-04:00

I have been making this for quite a few years & it is still one of my family's favorites. I've also won several church chili contests with this
It is not what most people think of when they think chili. It has no beans, it is not red or white & it uses pork instead of beef or chicken. Many people are afraid to try it because it has a very green (verde) color, but those brave enough to give it a try soon become fans. It is an adaption of a popular dish served in many traditional Mexican Restaurants in the Central Valley in California. The restaurant version is more of a soup with a very thin watery broth.

Ingredients
Approx 5 lb pork roast (pork shoulder, Boston butt, etc)
1jar Pace Salsa Verde or Herdez Salsa Verde (any green chili salsa without vinegar will work)
1 can Las Palmas Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
1/4 cup flour or corn starch
salt & pepper

Over the years, I have developed a method of making it that is very easy & convenient for me. It takes two days. I buy the cheapest & biggest pork roast I can find. It doesn't matter if it has a bone or not. Pork shoulder roast or Boston butt work great and often go on sale for as little as $1 per pound. I start by putting the roast in the crockpot on low for at least 6 hrs. I season it liberally with salt & pepper. Don't add any water & just let it cook. Then, turn the crockpot off to let it cool for an hour or two. When the crock is cool enough to pick up without potholders, put it in the refrigerator overnight.

The next morning, I take it out & scoop all the congealed fat off the broth. The fat will be white & very much like shortening. I put the fat in the trash. Then, I remove the roast from the crockpot & put it on a plate. Transfer the broth (it will be congealed) to a medium size sauce pan & heat on low. Cut the roast into large chunks, removing the fat from the meat & discarding as I go. Depending on how long the roast was cooked, it may cut into chunks easily or it may shred...either works fine. If I see a vein of fat running through a piece of meat, I cut on that vein to remove as much of the fat as possible. Chunks should end up being about the size of a six sided die. Once the meat is all cut up & as much fat as possible has been removed from it, I put it back in the crockpot. Pour the salsa over the meat, replace the lid & turn the crockpot on low. Stir the broth in the sauce pan until it is warm, then add the Las Palmas Green Chile Enchilada Sauce. Let the broth simmer on low for 30 minutes, then thicken to a gravy consistency with either flour & water or corn starch & water. The gravy can then be added to the meat in the crockpot. Allow to cook in the crockpot for at least another hour. Serve with grated cheddar or jack cheese and flour tortillas.

A crockpot of this will feed quite a crowd, it also freezes well & is great to use in burritos or over rice for lunch or a light dinner.

Chicken & Rice Stir Fry

2008-09-30T09:23:00.006-04:00

Have I mentioned that my family is picky? Everyone will eat chicken & everyone will eat rice, but some will not eat it if I mix them together. To avoid dinner time melt down, I set aside a portion of the chicken and a portion of the rice before mixing in the rest of the ingredients for the stir fry.

Ingredients
2 lbs chicken breast (boneless thighs work too)
1/2 cup butter
2 cups long grain rice
frozen sliced carrots (not the cubes)
frozen sugar snap peas
can of sliced water chestnuts
soy sauce
minced garlic
black pepper

In a large frying pan or wok on medium heat, melt the 1/2 cup butter. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of minced garlic, more if you really like garlic, less if you aren't a garlic fan.

Start the rice in a medium sauce pan....I use 3 cups of boiling water for 2 cups of long grain white rice, reduce the heat to low once the rice comes to a boil & cover with a tight fitting lid. Let the rice cook for 15 minutes, then remove it from the heat & set aside. Don't remove the lid yet.

While the rice is cooking, slice the chicken breast into cubes and add it to the pan with the garlic, sprinkle with black pepper. Use a spatula to push the chicken around until all sides have turned white or slighty golden, then cover the pan or wok with a lid. Let the chicken simmer approximately 20 minutes.

When the chicken & the rice are both done(if you have picky eaters some chicken can be set aside for them at this point), remove the lid from the chicken and add the frozen vegetables, then put the lid back on. Open the can of sliced water chestnuts, drain them & rinse in cold water. Add to the pan with the chicken & vegetables. Add 1 cup soy sauce. Remove lid from rice & fluff it with a fork. (Set aside a portion for any picky eaters). Add rice to the frying pan or wok & stir gently to combine all ingredients. If there is not enough liquid in the pan to coat all the rice, add more soy sauce. Cover with lid & allow to simmer for an additional 5 minutes.

This is a very hearty meal, left overs reheat well & make a great lunch for the next day. Variations: you can use fresh carrots, sugar snap peas, green onions, bell peppers, etc, however they should be added to the chicken before the start of the 20 minute simmering period. This also works great with small cubes of beef instead of chicken.

Menu Plan Monday

2008-09-29T14:37:00.009-04:00

I'm new to menu planning and still tweeking it. I found this cool site from my friend's blog from last week & couldn't wait to participate!!! I'll be posting recipes for most of the things on this weeks menu later in the week.

Monday...Chicken & rice stir fry

Tuesday...Chili verde with grated cheese & flour tortillas

Wednesday...Spaghetti & meatballs

Thursday...Red beans & rice with cajun sausage

Friday...Hamburgers & fried potatoes

Saturday...left over chili verde

Sunday....navy bean soup & corn bread

*F* *O* *O* *D*

Cranberry Nut Bread

Banana Nut Bread

Snickerdoodles

Tuesday Tag Along

Menu Plan Monday—July 5th

Friday Follow Me and I’ll Follow you Back

Menu Plan Monday

New look and a bunch of new posts

Easy Burritos

Strawberry Bread

Cooking with dried Ancho peppers & Dried New Mexico peppers

SOS....otherwise known as creamed chipped beef

Red Velvet Cake from scratch

Potato Soup

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Cranberry Nut Bread

FUDGE

Flour Tortillas

Sweet & Sour Greenbeans

Cornbread Stuffing with Sausage, Apples & Cranberries

Doctored Macaroni & Cheese

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies--Hubby's Favorite

Preparation

Peanut Butter Cookies

Apple Strudel Muffins

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

DIRECTIONS

The Purple Lunchbox....a new weekly Carnival!!

Cherry Tarts from Fresh Bing Cherries

Well, that didn't work out so well

Menu Plan Monday

Tamale Pie...Tasty Tuesday

I received a Splash Award!!!

Braided Pizza Bread--Calzones

Meat Pies...Tasty Tuesday

Homemade Chicken Strips...Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

Land O'Lakes chocolate chip cookies

Menu Plan Monday...a loose plan for this week

What we actually ate this week

Artichokes--Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

Tasty Tuesday...Fried Potatoes & Sausage

Menu Plan Monday...what I THINK we are going to eat this week

What we ate this week

Menu Plan Monday

Fresh Strawberry Pie

Ultimate Blog Party 2009---Party Food!!!

Menu Plan Monday

Cowboy Beans

Deviled Eggs

Potato Salad

Jello Salad

Pretzel Salad

Sweet Tea

Chicken Salad

Guacamole

Fresh Fruit Salad

Spinach Dip in a Sourdough Bread Bowl

Taco Pie

Chicken & Stuffing Casserole

Tasty Tuesday...a little GREEN for St Patrick's Day

Menu Plan Monday

Enchilada Pie

Menu Plan Monday

Menu Plan Monday

Chicken Parmesan

Tempt my Tummy Tuesday--Apple Dumplings

Menu Plan Monday

Homemade Pizza

Meatballs

Menu Plan Monday

Lasagna

Meat Loaf

Menu Plan Monday

Menu Plan Monday

Virtual Cookie Swap--Sugar Cookies

Slow Cooking Thursday---Beef Stew

Nut Breads for Christmas

Menu Plan Monday

Cinnamon Rolls

F O O D